How bizarre!

Cuti-cuti Sekolah

2010-12-21T11:15:00.017+08:00

When the year-end school holidays came round, I cracked my head for activities to keep Nat occupied and am pleased to say I fared quite well.

On the penultimate day of school, we let her celebrate her birthday with her classmates as she was going to a new school in 2011. Nothing big - just brought some cupcakes and light snacks. Her teachers organised some musical games and allowed us to show the kids a photo slideshow I had prepared on the Smartboard. Finally, Nat happily gave out the party packs that she had helped to pack and label to her friends.

Watching the slideshow

She enjoyed the party immensely as these were the kids she interacted with on a daily basis. We could see she was very comfortable with them indeed. It saddened me a little to think that she would have to start making friends all over again soon. Moreover, Hubby and I had some concerns about removing her from an environment where she was doing so well (I’m proud to say she was the top achiever amongst her peers) but we also had some reservations about continuing to send her to the current school.

That weekend, we had the full moon party of our new nephew, Ivan Toh Tik Quan, and also the party of Christabelle, one of Nat's schoolmates held at Flykidz Gym.

The new addition to the Toh clan

Kiddos

Gym bootcamp

The following week, she went for two days of trial classes at her new kindy, took an overnight trip to Ipoh to visit Kong Kong who just had an operation and attended Brandon's birthday party at Kidz Sports.

Happy Birthday Brandon

After that, she had 2 days of Christmas craft classes at Caterpillar after which she would hang out at my office the rest of the day; got scared at the cinema watching Mother Gothel in Rapunzel - A Tangled Tale; and had a full dress rehearsal followed by school concert.

The third week, we brought the kids to Aquaria KLCC as Tuesday was a public holiday. Bad timing, though. There were just too many people and it was so warm inside. On Wednesday, we went to Sunway Lagoon to watch Peter Pan The Musical (and got thoroughly wet getting to the amphitheatre as it was raining heavily). She also attended another Caterpillar Christmas craft class and also a Little Cooks cooking class at Dish Deli where she learnt to make scones, mini pizza, chocolate cookies and crackle cakes. The results were quite yummy too!

With the cast of Peter Pan. Can you spot her?

My Little Cook

Crackle cakes, mini pizza and scones

The weekend saw us take a trip up North to Ipoh for a night and then to Pangkor on Sunday. I had been debating whether or not to bring Adam. As much as I enjoyed having him with us, I also knew it would not be much of a relaxing holiday for me. So as a compromise, we booked 2 x 3D/2N packages at Pangkor Island Beach Resort.

For the first 2 nights, we brought both kids then headed back to Ipoh on the 3^rd day to leave them with the grandparents while Hubby and I returned to Pangkor for another 2 nights of bliss! Of course Hubby complained about the irrationality of travelling back and forth (it was a good 6 hours by the time we got back to the resort) but for me, it was worth it!

It was actually our first family holiday since Adam came along, not counting the trips to Penang for Bu Keat’s and Val’s weddings. The weather at Pangkor was perfect. Not too hot, loads of cool breeze and waves were as high as 3 feet at times. Hubby enjoyed jumping the waves while I was content just lying on a deckchair being lulled by the seabreeze.

After being at the resort for 5 days, I was quite happy to leave and our timing couldn’t have been better. It started pouring heavily the moment we checked out and rained the rest of the journey back to Ipoh and subsequently, KL. Nat stayed behind in Ipoh with the grandparents continuing her fun holiday at the same time, giving me some respite before the start of a new hectic year.

On Christmas week, Nat returned to KL on her maiden trip on the train with her grandparents. Celebrated Christmas Eve at Val's house and opened presents even before midnight as we were all exhausted and had to head back to bed. Christmas morning saw us celebrating mass together and after lunch, we left for Genting to watch Arrival, an Abba tribute band. We all enjoyed that but I swear never to go to Genting during school holidays ever again! It took us 1.5 hours to go on 3 indoor rides!

The last item on her busy agenda was the NY's eve party at her Mak & Ng Kong's house. Again, she was too pooped to see it through to midnight and missed out on the dazzling fireworks. And with that, ended another express year in our lives. Sigh….

Nat is 4 and Adam is 1!

2010-12-20T17:19:00.010+08:00

Dear friends & family,

You're invited to a lunch to celebrate Adam's 1st birthday & Tik Chu's 4th
birthday.
Time : 12 noon
Date : Sat 6^th Nov 2010

Venue : Trinity Children Centre

Birthday gifts are optional. Your presence is present enough (hmm.... sounds
corny!). However, we would love handwritten cards as keepsakes.
Alternatively, you may make a small love offering to the Home.

Kindly RSVP by this Friday 29th Oct to facilitate the necessary
arrangements. Thank you.

And so went the invite for the first-ever party we threw for the birthday of our kids (yes, we had to make it a joint one as I just didn’t have the energy to plan 2 in the same month).

I had been meaning to celebrate Nat’s birthday at an orphanage for some time but it didn’t seem opportune till this year. While we have friends that celebrate their children’s birthdays every year, we thought we’d wait till she finally asked to have a party.

In the end, she didn’t (bless her!) but since her brother was turning one this year, I thought, why not? On hindsight, Nat probably wouldn’t have been able to comprehend the idea of sharing and giving when she was younger.

I did some research on the many children’s homes, mainly in PJ as I wanted it to be easily accessible to our friends, to find the more deserving and less high-profile ones. I came to know about the Trinity Children’s Centre through Poesy Liang, the founder of an organisation called Helping Angels, that amongst other projects, gives free tutoring to the children here on Thursdays. There are 20 children (maximum capacity) here with ages ranging from 6 to 16. Most of them are not exactly orphans but were abandoned or come from abusive or broken families.

We intended to keep the guest list to a minimum since there would be 20 children from the orphanage but things took a turn and we were extremely blessed to have more than 100 guests including kids. Okay, I admit I couldn’t resist making it a merry occasion and so extended the invite to quite a few friends but mostly, only those with kids around Nat’s age.

All along, I had thought that the home was housed in 2 adjoining single-storey semi-dees, and so, that everyone could rough it out inside. After all, charity was the focus here, not comfort. Two days before the party, however, I found out one of the houses had been sold earlier and all the kids were now squeezed into one. Add to that my extensive guest list and I was scrambling to find canopy, chairs and tables on a busy Deepavali weekend.

Thank God everything fell in place and we had wonderful weather to boot. The chocolate fountain (which I forgot to photograph) was a hit with the orphans. Even Wendy, the home administrator was amazed at how many people we could accommodate.

Our guests were understanding of the space and parking limitation and quite a few contributed to the home as well (Thanks, you guys!). Many couldn’t stay for the games though as some kids needed their afternoon naps but we had a swell time with the lovely kids of the orphanage. They were sweet, helpful and really deserving.

Did Nat & Adam enjoy it? Well, Adam doesn't know better. Being a kid, Nat would doubtless have preferred a party at an indoor playground. The thought of the kids not having a proper family managed to tug at her heartstrings a little as she said to me one night "So poor thing hoh, the kids, Mama? ...No Mama and Papa. I love them...".

Exhausting as it was, I would have done it all again in a heartbeat! Thanks also goes out to my little elves, Val, Julian & Carol and Tracia.

Missing Miss Natalie

2010-06-10T11:00:00.002+08:00

I haven't seen my daughter in 4 days... It's the first time she's away from home and the longest we've been apart.

It's the school holidays and we were in Ipoh last weekend for the 3rd and final leg of Val's wedding celebrations - the requisite meal at Public restaurant and beyond doubt, the most gastronomic feast of all. We were about to make our way back to KL when Nat announced that she wanted to stay with Por Por and Kung Kung for her "holiday school".

I was mighty proud that she was showing such autonomy but cautious about her feeling unwanted, I kept asking if she really wanted to stay and reassuring her that she could come back with us if she so chose. She seemed a little torn between wanting to stay and leaving with us but finally stayed put and happily waved us off on our journey.

As our car turned the corner, my heart suddenly went to shreds, acknowledging her absence. Hubby felt similarly but stressed that just as she had to learn to be independent, we too, had to learn to let go.

Worst thing is, we're missing her more than she does us. I'm the one who keeps calling to make sure everything's ok and she's... well, she's having the time of her life being spoilt rotten by her grandparents! There was one night though, when after talking to me, she started screaming and wouldn't stop. Mum's theory was that she became emotional hearing my voice but didn't want to start crying, big ego and all... so started screaming instead.

I do feel liberated though. I've not had the freedom to do as I please in a long while. Not to mention I have had a few peaceful nights in the bedroom. She can be so noisy when preparing for bedtime that she often wakes her brother up and I have to quickly turn off the bedside lamp so he'll go back to sleep.

This Saturday, I'll be making a trip to Ipoh just to pick her up. Don't think I can stand being separated any longer than 7 days for now.

Mama's so looking forward to have you home, sweetheart!

Bad mummy

2010-06-08T14:38:00.015+08:00

Yes, I know I'm a terrible blogger and an even worse mother! Adam's already 7 months and I have yet to post a single picture of him on my blog! What will he think of me when he's old enough to read?

The last few months have been hectic to say the least. Being a working mum of one child is one thing but working and having 2 kids is a different story altogether. The workload more than doubles though I really can't complain, since I'm lucky enough to have a maid to help out around the house which is more than I can say for some of my Supermum friends. You know who you are.

Since coming back to work from maternity leave, I've had a host of changes to get accustomed to, starting with Nat going to school on all weekdays (as opposed to only 3 times a week last year), ferrying Adam to and from my in-laws' house en-route to work and home (Hubby didn't think our maid could cope with both the kids and housework), shedding my pregnancy weight in order to look good for my brother-in-law's and sister's weddings (no, they're not married to one another and yes, I AM that vain!), making several trips up North for the various wedding festivities and now, we've settled in with my in-laws (our second house move in 6 months, two more to go).

I now have to wake Nat up (a herculean effort, no less), get her bathed and ready for school, pump milk for Adam's cereal breakfast, get myself ready for work, feed him and myself before I can even step out the door. I no longer have to ferry him around but because of that, I tend to stay out later in the office and so, Adam is asleep by the time I get home (he goes to bed by 6-ish and sleeps through at least 10 hours before waking for 1 early morning feed and then going back to sleep again till 7-ish). I attribute this to Gina Ford's bedtime routine of bath, feed then sleep. Thanks An Pheng, for recommending the book!

I hope I'm not jinxing myself by broadcasting this but he's a wonderfully happy baby, always smiling and laughing readily. Such a darling! Must be the ample sleep and food he gets. My milk supply was just barely enough for Adam's voracious appetite but I didn't want my MIL to worry about him being hungry since she was already so helpful and supportive so I decided to supplement. He's still 90% breastfed though, and I intend to continue for as long as I can. Must be the guilt factor... Hubby and I pledged to try as far as possible to give this baby the same treatment as the first.

I am so glad he only had slight eczema which has seemingly gone away but to be safe, I fed him only goat's milk formula in the first 6 months. Only time will tell if other allergies will crop up in future but I'm not going to think that far for now.

Okay, now for some photos....

fresh out of the oven, and yes, sleeping!

morning sunbath. how scrawny!

Nat, the adoring sister

circa 3 weeks. has dad's eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth and dimples!

3rd month

4th month, Chinese New Year

first time in pool

bubbly baby

Winners of the Father & Son lookalike contest

finally sitting up in 5th month

With grandaunt

With his trendy (read : vainpot) big sis

Haiiiiyah!! Kung Fu kid

My dear son, worry not... I will make sure to keep the world updated on your progress... love you with all my heart!

Gong Xi Fa Cai!!

2010-03-05T15:48:00.002+08:00

The year of the Tiger took off with a challenging start. We've had a few mishaps, accidents, illnesses and even had to contend with some family differences in a not-so-pleasant way. And speaking to friends, we've realised that we're not alone. Too many negative events have occurred within this short time. Will the year ahead be fraught with many hurdles to overcome?

However, problems aside, it's also been an eventful and fun festive season as many relatives and friends were back for the lunar new year celebrations. Hubby's 2 brothers came home and so PIL had their wish of making the family dining table complete. The camaraderie we had made me wish that they didn't have to return after the holidays. Then again, maybe it was special only because these occasions are rare.

I'd not made any new year resolutions earlier but with the recent happenings, it has dawned upon me thatI've been holed up in a comfort zone for too long. It's time I get my life back in order - Rekindling lost passions, affirming relationships that matter, doing things for others without selfish motives, and most importantly, reigniting my spirituality. Sacrifices will definitely have to be made but only through this will we become better persons. Interestingly, it's also the season of Lent and I've no doubt that God intended for me to take pause and realise all this.

And with this I wish for peace, love and joy to all... Happy New Year!

It's a boy!

2010-01-20T15:18:00.002+08:00

Sometime in the 1st trimester of my second (or you could say, third) pregnancy, Hubs and I decided that we would wait till the birth to find out if we were expecting a boy or a girl. After all, it wasn't as if we could change things and if we could, it wouldn't have made a difference anyway.
We would love the baby just the same.

Hubs had always iterated that it didn't matter to him, and I believed too, that he had no preference. As for me, although I would have liked a sister for Nat (because my own sister is precious to me), I also relished the thought of having a pair. So yeah, I was also impartial.

We had already gone through the motions of having a child 3 years before so we jointly agreed to add an element of surprise to this pregnancy. People asked how we could stand not knowing and my reply was "Why not?". It was just a matter of time before the fact was known.

Now I'm glad we waited. For months everyone speculated... based on the difference in pregnancy symptoms, the way I carried, the shape of my expanding belly, my looks (while MIL said I was "uglier" this time around and hence it's boy, another friend said that I looked just the same and so, a boy it will be). The odds were against me having another daughter. Truth be told, I enjoyed the growing suspense.

The day finally came and what with the drama during labour, it slipped our minds to find out what gender the baby was immediately after its birth. We were just so incredibly relieved to hear the cry as the doctor (not my regular one, at that!) extracted him from my womb. When Hubs suddenly noticed the presence of external genitalia and made the announcement, I felt that I had subconsciously & instinctively known it all along.

So we now have a son and his name is Adam.

Coyote Ugly

2009-08-19T18:12:00.003+08:00

As I've mentioned before, Nat doesn't have very fancy footwork but one day, I asked her to do a sexy dance for me and this is what she came up with.

Mind Your Language

2009-08-03T15:12:00.003+08:00

Nat now attends once a week Mandarin playschool and after each class, she brings back a flashcard containing a new word they had learned for the day. When I remember and if I'm not too lazy, I will use those cards on her and in the process try to learn some characters myself.

One evening last week, we were relaxing in the living room after dinner when I caught her talking to her stuffed toy penguin, strategically positioned on the coffee table so that it was almost at her eye level. She had gotten hold of some passport photos of Hubby, herself and mine and were flashing them at the penguin. With every photo, she would look at the penguin in the eyes and ask "Who's that?", then proceeded to answer the question herself and finally saying "Very good!" while patting the little penguin on the head.

Hubby and I wished we had captured it on video but were too busy rolling around in laughter to do so.

Nat facts

2009-07-31T17:52:00.005+08:00

I've been wanting to write about Nat and her developments for such a long time so some of these are probably more than 6 months outdated.

1. Despite being quite tomboyish in her actions, she's actually a rather "girlie" girl who loves playing dress up and adores handbags & high-heel shoes in particular. Also parades and poses shamelessly in front of mirrors while doing hair-flicks with her non-existent mane.

2. Appreciates retail therapy. Nat's ecstatic when we go shopping and will scream in delight when she sees the logo for Giant, Tesco or IKEA. (Take note PR personnel. My daughter will endorse for a fee).

3. Has a good sense of direction. She seems to know where we're heading and could even point out the club where we brought her swimming one time.

4. Quite a polyglot. Already bilingual and understands Hokkien when MIL speaks to her. Currently she's learning Mandarin from playschool too.

5. Karaoke-queen material (take note, Chim Chim and Aunties Siau Yen & Aileen!). Probably ABBA's biggest young fan and can sing all the songs from the Mamma Mia soundtrack. I rarely buy toys for her but I did get her an amplifying microphone from ELC and let's say it was a worthwhile investment. But while she's been able to hold a tune from a young age, I can't say she has fancy footwork.

6. Has high standards of hygiene. Can't stand fingers being dirty after she's eaten and won't go in dirty or smelly public toilets. She once ordered MIL to move out of her way when she was blocking her exit after taking a whiff of an offensive-smelling loo. Even when she was much younger and not yet toilet-trained, she would refuse to sit in her soiled diapers.

7. Has extremely keen olfactory senses and can pick up the aroma of durians (which she loves) from a mile away. It's no wonder I was so sensitive to smells when I was pregnant with her.

8. Loves food way too much. We have caught her stealing food so many times from the kitchen counter, using a stool or chair when she thinks no one is looking. She can also snack non-stop which is a big worry for me. Even likes bitter, strong-tasting and pungent stuff like chilli sauce, bittergourd and raw onions!

Stealing cupcakes from the larder

9. Still sucks her thumb to sleep and if there's someone beside her, she will either play with that person's ears or armpits (yes, you read right) with the other hand. The thumb-sucking is most likely to blame for her bunny teeth and overbite. I do hope she grows out of it before her permanent set of teeth come out.

10. Extremely good at mimicking others. We really have to watch our words and actions when around her.

11. Loves a good pampering. She used to ask Su for leg massages before her afternoon naps and loves it when I clean her ears with a cotton bud. It's the only time she will lie still for anything!

12. A softie at heart. Once I was watching a movie that made me cry and the next thing I knew, my t-shirt was wet with her tears and she was looking up at me and sobbing. It was not the movie that brought her to tears but she was empathising with my sadness. I felt so touched!

13. Very expressive and has a wonderful array of funny faces. Just looking at her antics makes the whole household laugh. I always look forward to her greeting me at the door upon my return from work. She'll run and fling herself at me without abandon till I'm sometimes bowled over if my feet are not properly grounded.

14. Bossy and likes correcting others. Hubby says no prizes for guessing where she got that from.

15. Politically correct. Every night without fail, Hubby would ask her if she wanted to sleep with him. One night she said "No" and when he asked why, she replied "Papa busuk"! Then after a pause, she continued "Papa's baju busuk".

16. Sociable and independent. She just blends in at school and at parties and likes to join bigger groups when at the park. Sadly, the bigger kids usually won't want to play with a young stranger, which is why I pray she will get on well with her younger sibling when the time comes.

17. A total TV addict!

Her usual pose in front of the idiot box

To our darling Nat, if you ever read this in future, know that that you bring such joy into the lives of those around you and that Papa and Mama love you with all our heart!

The sound of silence

2009-06-26T14:53:00.006+08:00

I can't seem to find the time or creative juices to blog anymore. Whenever a topic pops into my head, I'm usually in the midst of something and tell myself to post it the moment I have some free time but when that moment comes, I've completely forgotten what it was I set about to write.

Could the pregnancy hormones be to blame for this?

I'm now 26 weeks preggers which means another 14 more to go, barring unforeseen circumstances... Sigh... so long more to go?

Don't get me wrong though. I'm enjoying the pregnancy now (the energy and the appetite) but it hasn't been smooth-sailing all the way. Had terrible morning (more like whole-day) sickness, far worse than the last 2 times. Most food just didn't agree with me and I had to live on a staple of biscuits and energy bars. Thank God those days are gone!

I also fell terribly ill in my 3rd month and there was a point when everything I ingested, just came right back out again till I had no choice but to resort to taking Maxolon for the nausea. I figured I was better off taking medication that at least allowed the food to stay in rather than making myself weak from hunger and feeling like s**t.

Not long after, I fell in and out of coughs and colds and I had never had it so bad before that I was kept up the whole night hacking my lungs out. One day after a sleepless night, I got worried as I didn't feel bubs kicking around at all for half the day which was quite unusual. I was about to head to the hospital for fetal heart-rate monitoring when the little flutters started again. Phew!

Hubby and I have decided not to find out the gender of the baby early on this time. Since it's not our first time expecting, we thought we'd keep at least one element of surprise till the end. We've been getting lots of surprised looks when we tell people this. "Don't you want to know so you can go shopping?", they ask. What else is there to buy? We've already got all the big stuff. Clothes we have plenty. Come on, boys can wear pink too, can't they?

As with most second-time parents, we're feeling slightly guilty for not taking enough pictures of the bump, for not talking or singing to the baby enough, for not blogging much about the pregnancy, for not buying new stuff for the baby and even for not reading "What to Expect When You're Pregnant" (some of you would ask : "What's there to read when you've already been through it once?" But trust me... I'd forgotten most of the stuff!).

However, I will say that this time around, I've :-
1. been taking Probiotics and supplements (which makes me wonder why I still fell ill so often!), 2. been eating less rubbish and more homecooked food,
3. been exercising more (morning walks, prenatal yoga and been doing squats too); and
4. refrained from birds' nest (read that it could contribute to infant eczema despite the Old Wives' Tale that it gives the baby smoother skin).

Also, although we may not talk directly to the baby as often, surely he/she hears the banter when we're playing with Nat and I'm hoping that the happiness gets absorbed into the womb. Yes, I'm praying for another Nat.... not necessarily gender-wise but it would be such a blessing to have another child with her cheery disposition.

Okay, now for the third and final trimester (sleeplessness, lethargy, frequent toilet visits, indigestion, etc). Bring it on!

New terms of endearment

2009-06-26T14:47:00.002+08:00

About two weeks ago, Nat started interchanging the term "Ma Ma" for "Mummy" when talking to me. I'm guessing that this stems from the Western influence on telly to her mixing around with other kids who call their mothers "Mummy". Talk about societal and peer pressure at a young age!

Then again, she does sometimes tries to be cheeky and refer to her elders (my mum, PIL, etc.) by what Hubby and I call them and gets a kick out of us correcting her.

Be it "Ma Ma" or "Mummy", it's still the sweetest sound to me.

Amphibious HiLux

2009-04-03T15:19:00.002+08:00

It rained really hard last Sunday and as usual, the junction to our house got flooded. We happened to catch this amazing feat on film.

Living in desperate times

2009-02-28T07:59:00.003+08:00

An unfortunate thing happened on Wednesday.

I was at the Kedai TNB along Old Klang Road to run some errands. There wasn't parking so I decided to stop by the corner of the road while Val waited for me in the car. I was in there barely 5 minutes when I got a call from her. She was frantic and at first I thought that there had been a hit-and-run accident involving my car but then she told me she was bleeding and only then did I realise what had happened.

A malay-looking guy had been standing by the corner and at first, Val thought he was just waiting for someone but when the coast was clear, she saw him pick up a rock from the ground and charge towards her. She sat there frozen in shock, not knowing what to do. He smashed my front passenger window and because I had 3M tint installed, it shattered but was still held up by the film. Knowing this, the guy whacked the screen again and this time, the whole window fell onto Val and he proceeded to grab her handbag. For some reason, she clutched on to it tightly and screamed for help and he gave up a few seconds later, escaping with his friend (also suspected malay but fairer) who was waiting on a bike.

When I rushed out, she was surrounded by 4 kind passersby (all ladies, presumably colleagues who were walking back from lunch) helping her wipe down her wounds and calm her down. I was in quite a panic seeing the blood flowing down from her forehead, near her eyes and limbs. Also was not very familiar with the area and didn't know the way to the nearest hospital so we ended up at Pantai A&E. It was scary indeed driving around with no window just after that harrowing experience.

Everything happened so quickly that she didn't know how to react and I don't blame her at all. On hindsight, she could have honked the horn continuously when she saw him coming at her. She could also have opened the car door and slammed it against his body but then again, I doubt a lady's strength could match that of the guy who was obviously prepared to harm in the pursuit of quick money.

Val got away with quite a few cuts and grazes, mostly superficial, from the shattered glass and not to mention, the mental trauma. Looking at the deep cuts in my dashboard plastic, the injuries to her could have been a lot worse. Thank God for His protection!

So to anyone reading this, try not stay in a stationary car in PJ/KL (especially if you have kids) unless you're in the driver's seat and can drive away at the sight of anything suspicious. Even lady drivers stopping at traffic lights are not spared as experienced by my friend Jessica recently.

Gong Xi Fa Cai a la Baba Nyonya

2009-01-24T09:19:00.006+08:00

The Peranakan or Straits Chinese are descendants of Chinese immigrants who intermarried with the locals and settled here during the early 1400s. Over time, they assimilated Malay language and customs into their lives and created a fusion culture all their own.

Because most Peranakan are of Hokkien ancestry, their language (Baba Malay) is interspersed with many Hokkien words. The men came to be known as Baba, and the women, Nyonya. Malay influence is evident in their clothing and food, but they have also retained their Chinese heritage, especially customs like ancestral worship.

Hence, Chinese New Year is celebrated according to their mixed lineage.

“Our celebrations actually begin on Dec 22 during the tang chek or Winter Solstice, which signifies renewal and hope. This is the day when all Peranakan are considered a year older. We roll glutinous rice balls in red and white and stick them as markers on door posts to inform the public that we are fortunate enough to celebrate the New Year,” explains Cedric Tan, assistant secretary of the Peranakan Baba Nyonya Association of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

A red cloth is then tied around the door for happiness and to signal that spring cleaning activities have begun. However, if there is a death in the family, this practice is suspended until the mourning period is over.

“The Peranakan have been carrying out quaint practices from yesteryear, some of which are non-existent in mainland China. We may not know the reason because it was passed down through oral traditions so the meaning might get lost,” says Tan, who learnt some of the practices through his late grandmother who lived with them.

For example, unlike their Chinese ancestors, the Peranakan do not simply place oranges and pineapples on the altar but tie and decorate the fruits with serrated-patterned red paper before offering it to the gods.

“We are lovers of beauty, so the Peranakan home always has beautiful items. Even if there is a so-called feng shui item being used, it is purely for decorative purposes. Only the mirror is hung above the main door of the house to repel evil forces.”

Once the cleaning is completed, the baking commences. A must in every Peranakan household are kuih bakul, pineapple tarts, jelly, dodol and wajik. The latter two signify perpetuity.

“The Malays have cucu (grandchild), cicit (great-grandchild) and oneng-oneng (great-great-grandchild) but we go two steps further, and the next in line are called dodol and wajik. We make the kueh and hope that the human production will continue forever,” says Tan who is also the founder of Baba-Nyonya Culture Promotions, a consultancy firm which organises Peranakan weddings and puts up cultural shows.

A week before New Year, gifts comprising food items are exchanged with relatives so that on visiting days, guests do not come bearing gifts anymore. On the eve of Chinese New Year, the community will hang three lanterns with the family name painted on it outside the house and pray to the ancestors.

In Tan’s household, there is no reunion dinner on the eve; rather, they have a reunion lunch because one of his two brothers usually goes to his in-laws for dinner. The food cooked for the occasion is the same as what’s offered to the ancestors. Peranakan food is tangy, aromatic and spicy — a mix of Chinese and Malay ingredients and recipes.

“On the day itself, we open the main door of the house to greet the New Year, and follow with prayers. It is not to greet the God of Prosperity. The time to open the main door remains the same throughout the year which is around 6am-8am.”

Then comes the paying of respect to the elders, also called sohjah. Back in the days when grandma was alive, Tan says, the youngsters would stand in line according to seniority while the matriarch sat on her chair and gave out angpow.

“The girls would squat without their knees touching the floor while the boys would kneel and clasp their hands” says Tan. Instead of wishing Selamat Taon Baru, the elders would utter something like “Pande-pande surat” or “Cepat-cepat kahwin” or “Cepat-cepat beranak” while the younger ones would reply by saying, “Panjang-panjang umur”.

The day continues with relatives and friends dropping in to visit. The celebration culminates on the 15th day (Chap Goh Meh), when all lights and oil lamps at home are doused. The Peranakan will take three huge joss-sticks to the temple, burn them and stick them in a vase. Then they retrieve their joss-sticks, head home and use it to light candles and oil lamps in a ritual called Ambek Api.

“We bring home the holy fire for divine blessings and hope we will be endowed with good luck and happiness the whole year,” says Tan.

While their “authentic” Chinese counterparts throw oranges into the river or sea during Chap Goh Meh in the hope of finding themselves a spouse, the Malacca Peranakan embark on a fancy dress parade. Everyone, from children to adults, whether men or women, married or otherwise, dress up and go from house to house, sing songs, eat, mingle and make merry.

“It’s a really fun event,” enthuses Tan. “The elders act as judges, and the winners usually get a hamper or something.”

An excerpt from The Star 24 January 2009.

The customs mentioned really brought back fond memories of celebrating CNY when my grandparents were still around, especially Sohjah. After the demise of my Ng Kong which was followed closely by Mak's passing, Chinese New Year was never the same again. There's no longer the excitement and camaraderie that I felt back then. Of course I'm also married now and no longer join my parents and extended family back in Malacca on the first day.

Happy Chinese New Year one and all!

Terms of endearment

2009-01-02T16:09:00.004+08:00

For as long as i can remember, I have called my mother "mummy" or "mee" for short. Somehow, I had this warped idea that "mama" was archaic and that I was way too Western to be using such a chinese-y term. There was no doubt in my mind that my children would also call me "mummy" when the day came.

Nat started uttering the word "mama" from a very young age. It may have just been baby babble and not meant to address me but those two syllables were music to my ears. I found not only the word but the way she said it simply endearing and so started adopting it in my early conversations with her. I am now "Mama" to my little Nat and would not have it any other way.

My lovely mama with the one who calls me Mama

Chocolate volcano

2008-12-31T16:15:00.005+08:00

Made molten lava choc cake for Val on her birthday. It was my very first attempt. Here's what panned out...

Chocolate sauce oozing out

Warm chocolate & vanilla ice cream - the perfect pairing

From another angle

Don't be deceived though... it was surprisingly easy to make and very yummy-licious! Yay! If I can keep the consistency, we won't have to spend 20 bucks for one at Chilis whenever we have a craving for it.

Au Revoir 2008

2008-12-31T15:48:00.002+08:00

Happy New Year, all! Here's to another fabulous year ahead! Cheers!
With love,
The Tohs

Dictionary of Natspeak

2008-12-26T16:19:00.005+08:00

This is an introduction to Natspeak, a language still in its infancy and rather similar to English and Bahasa Melayu with elements of French (due to its lack of the H consonant sound).

ats - hat
bebena - ribena
bubberbye - butterfly
bibbit - biscuits
but tith - brush teeth
bwead - bread
chee chee & belak - No. 1 and No. 2
dog - dog, horse, deer, moose, cow or any like 4-legged mammal
ebeben - aeroplane
eberday - happy birthday
kangkyu - thank you
kecko - Tesco or any shopping mall
momore - no more
ohm - home
parry - sorry
peace - please
pecks - spectacles
penanas - Petronas
pipit - armpit
tahn - sun
tares - stars
terter / Bob - water. Naturally, Bob's (as in Bob the Builder) the vessel that the water normally comes in
wower - flower

Stay tuned for updates to this ever-evolving language.

Bali Travelogue - Part Deux

2008-12-26T13:08:00.021+08:00

It's now our 6^th and final full day in Bali. I've been waking up at 6-ish in the morning without fail even though our second hotel room has curtains that block out the sun. Even on the long car rides, I don't feel tired enough to nap. This is good in a way that it allows me to soak in the sights and sounds of Bali. Blame it on my inability to let go of my duties as "tour leader" and relax.

Having said that I'm so glad that we tailor-made our own travels instead of going with an agency despite tours being so affordable. On this trip I've been to several places that I hadn't during my last 2 visits to Bali and more importantly, these were less touristy places which I felt were not to be missed. We spent as much or as little time as we wanted at each location, ate anywhere we liked and being some of the few tourists around, enjoyed better bargaining power. The only downside was not having a guide explaining stuff to us along the way but that suited us just fine as we had Nat to entertain us and enjoyed each others' company.

Early December is usually the start of the high peak season before Christmas. But everywhere we went, Asian tourists abound with just a sprinkling of Caucasians. While Kuta was lightly abuzz with activity, Ubud was very very quiet. The Westerners were probably heeding their government warnings which came prior to the execution of the Bali bombers. Also I'm sure the unrest in Bangkok and the terrorist attacks in Mumbai did little to help the situation.

Weather-wise, it was hot, hot, hot! The days leading to our arrival had been rainy but during our trip, it drizzled only slightly on our 4^th and 5^th day. Otherwise, the sun was blazing in the blue, cloudless sky. Lovely for photos but the heat did get a little stifling at times. I'm tanner than ever but not complaining as I'd rather the sun than thunderstorms when traveling. We were lucky indeed!

In all earnestness, the getaway was really quite enjoyable. Our families are quite "cincai" so Khim and I had no in-law stress to worry about. :) Nat, as usual, was the seasoned traveller and she seemed happiest of all. Sleeping on the car rides and waking up when we arrived at our destination, running around and making us run after her, eating whatever was fed to her, announcing loudly "Belak, belak" after she had done a poo in her diapers, treating strangers with diplomatic aplomb (she was even invited by other tourists to join in their family shot as she stood watching them pose) and simply managing her way in the spotlight.

And the award for best photo goes to Su who captured this candid moment

Here are a list of places worth a mention:-

Uluwatu and go at sunset (5.30pm) to watch the amazing Kecak dance (see previous post). Costs 50k Rp per person but well worth it.

Bali Bird Park, Singapadu. At USD17 per person, it's pricey but the place is well-designed and maintained. One Singaporean said that it was better than Jurong Bird Park despite being much smaller in size. You get free entrance to the Bali Reptile Park as well. We decided not to venture in there as we had spent almost 3 hours at the bird park. The Birds of Prey show was interesting and held amidst a backdrop of paddy fields. If hungry, don't hesitate to dine at the cafe. Reasonably-priced and delicious. Approx 60,000 per pax for a full meal.

Gunung Kawi and Sebatu Temple (Pura Sebatu Gunung Kawi). Same name, different places. The former is an 11th Century temple complex consisting of shrines carved into the hillside south of Tampaksiring. You walk 315 steps down a winding and narrow path but the pretty paddy terraces along the way and the truly magnificent site that greets you at the end makes the trek worthwhile. The feeling I got when I passed through the gateway was one of being transported back in time. On the way up, shop at the many souvenir and handicraft stalls along the way. Business was quite bad (we came across less than 10 other tourists while we were there) and most of them had not made a single sale even though it was already 3pm so got some great bargains. The latter is a bathing place in Sebatu village.

Gunung Kawi and holy springs

Sukawati market – supposedly good for cheap art but we only spent 30 mins there before rushing off for lunch at Ibu Oka before they ran out of babi guling so didn't get to buy any art.

Tegenungan waterfalls. Nothing great but drop by if it's en-route. The viewing area is only a few steps away from the parking lot. It's a 10-minute walk down to the river which was surprisingly dirty and rubbish-strewn. We found out from the young girl traders (who spoke good English) that it used to be a bungee jumping site until the operators went bust.

Jatiluwih rice terraces.This would also be an en-route to some other place of interest.

Candi Kuning fruit market. Reminded me of the markets in Cameron Highlands although they sold much more than fruit and veggies. Also found some good bargains here.

Outside Labhagga Pacung Cafe, Bedugul

Pura Danau Ulun, Lake Bratan. The weather was extremely cool when we were there as it had been raining earlier. A bit too misty for nice photos but a very serene place to just sit and contemplate. It made for a nice change from the scorching heat the rest of our time there.

It was so misty we couldn't even see the horizon on the lake

Kerta Gosa & Taman Gili - the former Royal Courts of Justice in the village of Klungkung. Also known as Bali's Sistine Chapel, it was built in 1710 and houses 2 outdoor pavilions with ornately decorated ceilings, one depicting rituals unique to the Siva-Buddha (integration of Hinduism and Buddhism) customs of Bali while the other, the punishments meted out for different wrongdoings and crimes. We solicited the services of this guy Putu who agreed to give us a guided tour of the pavilions for 20k Rp. He turned out to be very detailed and animated and so paid him 25k instead. Back in the 17^th Century, it was immoral for someone to break wind in the presence of others. The punishment in hell? Demons will pull out the rectums of public farters! Although entrance was only 5k Rp per person, I wish the museum was better maintained.

The rectum-pulling devils. Not an enviable job.

Goa Lawah (bat cave) – plan to spend not more than 15 minutes here. But it was interesting to see so many of these nocturnal creatures sitting right up to the mouth of the cave in broad daylight. Not that they had a choice as there are already millions residing inside and there's not so much as a square-inch of space left. Visitors don't get to go in though. Of all the places, the caretakers here were most commercially-driven and openly asked for tips.

Yes, those are bats

Opposite Goa Lawah is Kusamba, the fishing and salt-making village. The ocean there was of the deepest blue I'd ever seen and the sand was black, volcanic ash.

Tirta Gangga Water Palace – Tirta Gangga translates to "blessed water from the Ganges". The palace grounds consists of several pools, all filled with water from natural springs regarded as holy by the locals. Some of the pools were for swimming but most were for aesthetic purposes. It was a very long drive there and we almost turned back but FIL decided we should go anyway. I'm glad we did.

Pura Taman Ayun, palace of Mengwi. Not a must-see but nice for some photos. Visitors are not allowed inside but only around the grounds which are surrounded by a low wall. It was also rather unkempt.

Neka Art Museum - Founded by Suteja Neka, a former school teacher. Check it out if you're keen on art. Entrance fee 40,000Rp.

Would have loved to have gone Dolphin-watching at Lovina Beach. However, you'll need to stay overnight in Lovina as the boat leaves at 5.30am. As I had already booked our rooms in Ubud and Kuta, we are leaving it to our next trip, if that happens.

Spas

Checked around Ubud and prices were very reasonable averaging around 60,000Rp for 1 hour Balinese massage. However, we chanced upon the newly opened Kalangan Spa (Jl. Raya Sanggingan – Tjampuhan, Ubud. +62-361-978718) which offered a 50% discount. The ambience was so welcoming that we decided we deserved a nice pampering. Paid USD25 each for a 2-hour boreh/lulur session. We negotiated for them not to charge us the 15% tax and service charge and they agreed. Most of us opted for the Boreh but mum and MIL had allergic reactions to the scrub, which we found out later. The owner himself I Wayan Darsa took us back in his car and he told us he also owned a guesthouse behind the spa and a gallery.

Hotels

Saren Indah

Very basic. Set amidst paddy fields of the Nyuh Kuning district in Ubud so it's about 15 mins away from Ubud town. Not convenient unless you have a driver but they do provide a free shuttle to and from town every hour from 8am to 10pm.

The place is 10 years old so rather tired looking though I did notice that they were refurbishing bit by bit. There couldn't have been more than 12 rooms in the establishment. No kettle but they do give you a flask of hot water outside your room to make your coffee and tea. No shower curtain so you inevitably wet the whole bathroom floor. Double bed was only queen-sized.

What I liked about it was that it was very clean. However, this was negated by the strong sewage smell that we got in the bathrooms of 2 out of 3 of our rooms. I complained to them 4 times and each time, they said something would be done about it. However, the smell would return soon after. When I checked out, I expressed my disappointment and insisted that they not charge me for my extra bed (the rest of the bill had already been charged to my credit card upon booking) and after checking with the manager, they obliged. Breakfast was simple but adequate. After 3 mornings though, we yearned for something different.

Bali Rani

We were very fortunate as they were fully booked and so had us upgraded to deluxe rooms facing the swimming pool. Don't understand why hotels in Kuta always have such dirty floors. While the room floor at our hotel in Ubud was immaculate, the Bali Rani's floors were sticky and dusty. Thankfully they provide the guests with room slippers. As we were on the ground floor, the mozzies tend to come in and they kept me up on the first night. Although we complained about this twice, nothing was done about it. Old hotel over 20 years but nicely refurbished. Has all the creature comforts and even a business centre open up to midnight. Enjoyed the pool in the evening as the water was warm. Wouldn't hesitate to stay here again.

Food

Most places serve fresh juices at reasonable prices so take advantage of this while in Bali.

Ibu Oka (Jl. Tegal Sari No. 2, Ubud) – tender but skin not crispy. Price 40k per pax . Belinjo crackers are nice. Do not eat the mangosteens! 5K per piece.

Murni's Warung – lovely ambience. Go all the way to the bottom level for a riverside dining experience. There were 4 levels in the place but we hardly saw any other diners. The Bebek Betutu was good but don't order the Pork Vindaloo. Approx 80k per pax.

Nasi Padang Putri Minang in Ubud. Excellent pork leg curry. Locals dine here but lots of flies.

Labhagga Pacung Cafe (Jl. Raya Baturiti, Tabanan) in the highlands of Bedugul. Buffet-style. Food so-so but the view from there was breathtaking. They wanted to charge 65k per head but negotiated it down to 60k since there were 8 of us. If you don't ask, you'll never know.

Bali Colada in Discovery Mall. Not authentically Balinese but good food at great prices (by KL standards). Local food, pastas. The Jumbo Ocean King was only 79,000Rp with 4 big prawns and a big portion of risotto. Ikan Woku was also good. Approx 75k per pax.

Ayam Tulang Lunak Malioboro. An expensive fast food chain. But unique as the chicken and duck were pressure-cooked before being fried so even the bones could be eaten. Came away feeling a bit squeamish though because everything was fried in so much oil. 75K per pax and we didn't even have one order each.

Baruna Sunset on Sunset Road, Kuta - Grilled seafood. Locals dine here. The fish was very fresh. Total bill came to 330,000Rp for 4 fish, 2 fish head, gado-gado, 30 sticks of sate lilit, prawn and squid. Again, also swarming with flies.

Shopping

Our hotel in Kuta was almost directly opposite the Discovery Mall so mum, uncle, Nat and I practically spent a whole day there on our last day as it was too hot to venture elsewhere. There's a huge souvenir shop called Tandamata right at the top and the things there are actually quite reasonably priced and of good quality. Cheaper than the other souvenir shops in the mall. Besides also got a pair of Crocs for myself at 30% less (we never see Crocs on sale back home). Breadtalk is just as famous and there was a long queue at any time.

Outside Discovery Mall

Meanwhile, hubby and family decided to book a car to go furniture and art shopping and they came across quite a few bargains as well. We might consider coming again next year when our new place is ready to source for furniture provided tickets are cheap.

Driver

Whilst Tut Nick is a good and somewhat reliable driver, he's just a driver and will not initiate anything. At 27 years of age and unmarried, we found his attitude indifferent and apathetic. Our driver in Phuket would never hesitate to come down and open the door for us upon reaching our destination and even help us out of the van. He made us feel nice without feeling guilty kind of thing. Nick on the other hand would just stay put and wait for us to get down before driving off to park. He also only spoke when spoken to.

After the Jimbaran Bay episode, we were hesitant to try anything that Nick recommended. It is so important to have a good driver who enjoys his work and doesn't mind going the extra mile for his guests, in the case of Nick at least an extra inch or two. On the good side he did not stinge on leaving the car air conditioning on as and when we wanted it on. I have to at least give him that much credit.

Nick charged 700,000Rp for a full day's use. On our free and easy day, we found a driver who quoted only 600,000Rp. I wouldn't have minded paying the extra 100,000Rp if Nick was more accommodating and proactive. I guess I'm partly to blame as I didn't try to ask him for a cheaper day rate when I communicated with him online. I know now I should have bargained as we ended up using his services for 5 full days.

Talk about finishing any opportunity of giving him another gig was the fact that we he stiffed us on the last day. That is a five-minute ride to the airport for 350k that should have only cost 100k (as quoted by the drivers hanging around the hotel). Its not about paying more but about being taken as a fool for trusting someone ..... BETRAYAL ...... and having to pay for it! Beh syiok-lah. To sum it up he was an OK guy with a 'cool' attitude in the sense of being 'cool' with enthusiasm who decided to make a killing of us on the last day. Bye Nick. Until we never meet again. Keep the change. (Last paragraph courtesy of Hubby who wanted to put in his two cents)

Blog entry written on 6th December but only edited & posted on 2 Jan 2009

Bali Travelogue – Part 1

2008-12-22T17:38:00.006+08:00

I can't believe I'm up typing this at 6am! I'm on holiday for goodness sake! The sun rises (and sets) early indeed in Bali and our room amidst the paddy fields of Ubud is such that the rays of light shine in right through the tops of the windows. It's bad enough I had been sleeping late every night for the past week, thoroughly researching Bali on the net and trying my best to make sure my family and in-laws have a good time. Some of you would say "Are you crazy? Mixing your parents and in-laws on an overseas trip? You call that a holiday?"

Anyway, our "holiday" began with a bad start with our Air Asia flight being delayed 25 minutes. Then, we boarded the plane but half an hour later, the plane had still not started moving and we were all steaming in the stuffiness of the cabin as the air-cond was not turned on. We were then asked to disembark and wait in the waiting lounge again. We finally took off 1 hour 45 minutes after scheduled departure time.

Our driver, Tut Nick and his friend Kadek were at Ngurah Rai airport to pick us as arranged. As it was late, we decided to skip checking in to our hotel till after dinner and headed for some tea. Not sure if Nick thought we were Muslims but he brought us to a Halal restaurant called Mardiana which served so-so food. Told him afterwards that we love pork so he need not bring us to anymore Halal places.

Headed to Uluwatu to watch the Kecak and Fire Dance at sunset. There wasn't much time before the show so we skipped going up to the temple. On my previous 2 trips here, I watched the Barong and Keris dance which I found rather boring and was sort of expecting the same of Kecak. However, it was a refreshing experience with the show being staged in the open atop a cliff by the sea. Instead of the usual Gamelan music, the acoustics and vocal accompaniment to the dance were provided by about 40 men who sat encircling the dancers. Hot wisps of air emanating from flaming torches mixed with the cool twilight breeze and together with dark clouds looming in the sky lent the atmosphere a touch of drama. The 1-hour show climaxed to a superb finale with a brave display of pyro. Surprisingly, Nat sat through the entire 1 hour without fuss and even obliged one of the “creatures” with a hand shake and allowed him to carry her, garnering laughter and applause from the crowd.

Darkness had fallen by the time we left Uluwatu for dinner at Jimbaran Bay. Nick brought us to Melasti Cafe and our first impression was “Uh-oh. Major tourist trap!". Ambience was undoubtedly nice and a dead giveaway was the cultural dance being performed on stage. When we went to pick our seafood, we found it way overpriced, even by KL standards, so I told the restaurant manager that we simply could not afford to eat there. He offered a 10% discount and when I appeared unimpressed, he promptly raced to find Nick. Nick then explained that the restaurants along the whole stretch were controlled by the government and the price would be the same at any other. Of course! Do I have the word "SUCKER" printed on my forehead?

We then checked out a few of the other restaurants and settled for Bali Cafe 21 (Kedonganan Beach) but not before we negotiated the prices down to half. The food was not fantastic but not bad either and we got away with a bill of 1,000,000Rp for all 9 of us. Certainly not cheap by Bali standards. It's so strange though as Keat, Khim and I remember having dinner a few years back at Jimbaran at a shack of a restaurant for a song but yet all the restaurants on that stretch looked catered for tourists.

Finally checked in at Saren Indah at 10.30pm, exhausted, unimpressed and feeling rather apprehensive about what our next 6 days in Bali had to offer.

Blog was written on 2 Dec 2008 but no time to post till now.

Anatomy of a toddler

2008-11-24T18:44:00.002+08:00

Been so busy had no time to blog.
Here's a clip taken about 2 months back that I find quite entertaining.

Dear Pete...

2008-09-10T14:37:00.002+08:00

Is there something troubling you? Do you have problem you would like to discuss? Are you undecided about a certain matter and would like an opinion on what to do? Or do you just want to pour out your problems and share it with us. Then write to 'Dear Pete' and let us help you.

Dear Pete,
I am engaged to this young man and we will be getting married next year. However, I am unsure of him and suspect he may be unfaithful to me. You see, I think he is gay as I have caught him 'making eyes' with other men many times and I read somewhere that gay man are promiscuous. Furthermore, homosexuality is prohibited in my religion, Islam, so this may create problems with my parents, who are very staunch Muslims. What should I do?

Yati

*************************************************

Dear Yati,
First of all, you must not think that all gay men are promiscuous. Some are actually very faithful and have remained with the same partner for many years. But then you only suspect that your fiancé may be gay because, as you said, you caught him 'making eyes' with other men. It could be that he is just a friendly sort of person, that's all.

Anyway, why not lay the matter to rest by getting him to swear on the Quran in a mosque that he is not gay. This is now the trend adopted by the government to dispel any accusations that one is gay.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I am an Indian by birth and have tried for so long to pass myself off as Malay. But my friends still call me 'Mamak' and this really upsets me. I am half-Muslim and half-Hindu and I have made this clear many times. Mamaks are pure Muslims so this label certainly does not apply to me, who am half-Muslim and half-Hindu. What should I do? Do you think suing all those who call me 'Mamak' will help? I am filthy rich and possess the right connections and can choose the judge who will hear my case; so I will surely win all my cases.

Son of Abdullah

*************************************************

Dear Son of Abdullah,
First of all, you can't go around suing all your friends who call you 'Mamak' or else you will have no friends left. You can, however, sue all your enemies who call you 'Mamak'. But then, if your enemies run into millions, you may end up being 'locked up' in court for the rest of your life.

One option would be to change your name, in particular the 'Son of Abdullah' part. You can legally do this by obtaining a change-of-name certificate from the National Registration Department.

In fact, you can even add a Tunku, Raja or Tengku to your name. And your name should be changed to something very Malay sounding, such as Embong, Jusoh, etc. How does Tengku Embong Bin Tengku Jusoh sound like? This is not only very Malay but will also give you a 'royal' touch as well.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I am a Hindu who is about to marry a Malay girl. My future parents-in-law insist that I must first convert to Islam but I am worried that, when I die, there may be a tug-of-war between my family and my wife's family as to where I should be buried. What should I do? Should I convert to Islam or forget about marrying this Malay girl?

Rajadurai a/l Rajalingam

*************************************************

Dear Rajadurai,
If you really love this Malay girl then carry on and marry her, even if you are forced to convert to Islam. You must remember; love is blind; which, therefore, can help you overcome any trial and tribulation. So you must be prepared to face whatever comes for the sake of love.

Anyway, what do you care what happens to your body after you have died? It is not like you will know where you are buried since you are already dead. And look at it on the bright side. Once you convert you will no longer be known as Rajadurai a/l Rajalingam. You can request that your new Muslim name be changed to 'Raja Durai Bin Raja Lingam' and then everyone will have to address you as 'Tengku'. You will then be entitled to buy Amanah Saham shares and Malay Reservation land -- plus you can also become an Umno member and do a post-graduate course in UiTM, amongst some of the other benefits.

Who knows, you might even become the next Prime Minister, as Indians of the Islamic faith appear to have the best chance of becoming Prime Minister. And, no, you don't need to change your name to 'Bin Abdullah'. This is not what Islam stipulates and you can insist that they retain your original name, but with some modifications as I suggested above.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I started my business about ten years ago but can't seem to make it in the business world. My financial problems have strained my marriage and my wife has asked for a divorce. I am contemplating closing down my business and instead go work for a Chinese towkay who has indicated he is prepared to give me a job. But I do not want to be remembered as a failure and my Malay pride forces me to plod on against all hope even though I know it is futile to continue along this dead end road. Furthermore, why should I go work for a Chinese towkay when it is these Chinese who are robbing us Malays of our rights? What should I do?

Melayu Baru

*************************************************

Dear Melayu Baru,
You should bury your Malay pride and do what is right for your family, even if it means closing down your business and going to work for a Chinese towkay. Your family should come first. I know it is demeaning to work for the same Chinese who are robbing us Malays of our rights. But let's face it, 90% of the economy is controlled by the Chinese and, as the previous Prime Minister said, they also pay 90% of the taxes. So we Malays have really no choice but to tompang with the Chinese. That is the reality of the situation.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I am about to enter university and am undecided whether to take Business Administration or Political Science. My friends advice me to take Business Administration because, they say, I can make more money in the business world. What do you advice?

UiTM New Intake

*************************************************

Dear UiTM New Intake,
I would advice you take Political Science as you certainly can make more money in politics than in business. The business world is very competitive and there are more failures than success stories. Once you make it politics, you can enjoy 30% shares in Chinese companies plus Chairmanships thrown in. And these shares are all free. You need not pay for them. And, later, when you sell these shares, you get to keep the money.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I am a 56-year old Malay businessman who is about to marry a 26-year old singer. I am considering going for Botox treatment to make my face look younger but was told that it is haram for Muslims. What is your advice?

Sugar Daddy

*************************************************

Dear Sugar Daddy,
You can consider eating plenty of tempe because an ex-Chief Minister did just that and he now looks much younger. But I don't know how much tempe you need to eat and for how long before you get to see the positive affects. One setback with eating too much tempe is that it will give you plenty of wind, so you will have to be very careful with crowded lifts.

Anyway, you should not worry too much whether Botox is haram or not considering that you are a businessman. Surely you indulge in haram activities everyday and Botox would be way at the bottom of the long list of harams.

Pete

#######################################

Dear Pete,
I am running a bar-disco and have installed 20 slot machines, which is the main money-spinner for my bar-disco. The slot machines can bring me about RM1 million a month. However, while I have a licence to operate my bar-disco, I do not have a licence for the 20 slot machines and now the police want me to pay them RM50,000 a month as protection money or else they will confiscate my slot machines and probably also close down my bar-disco. Bribery is haram in Islam and I am not sure whether I should pay the police the RM50,000 a month they are asking for or should I instead remove the 20 slot machines? I want to avoid doing something that Islam forbids. What is your advice?

Islam Jati

*************************************************

Dear Islam Jati,
Bribery is prohibited in Islam so I urge you to not pay the RM50,000 a month to the police even though your slot machines are bringing in RM1 million a month. Remove the slot machines and just operate your bar-disco, which has a licence. That would be the proper Islamic thing to do.

Pete

From NO HOLDS BARRED by Raja Petra Kamarudin

Dreamy Creamy

2008-08-26T18:37:00.002+08:00

Smoked pork and enoki linguini carbonara ala Hubs. The best carbonara I've had in a while. Creamy, eggy and cheesy but not oily. Yum! Don't mind if we have this again this weekend but first have to get the smoked pork from Ipoh.

Educating Nat

2008-08-26T16:45:00.003+08:00

Mum bought Nat a set of flashcards last week and here we are, taking her through a 5-card session. Although they normally do not require a response from the child, Nat started mimicking us (or rather, trying her darndest to) so we encouraged her on by clapping and cheering. She still babbles on in her own language although of late I've noticed she's more inclined to repeat words after me. More often than not, her enunciation is not all that clear. But it is cute.

Hubby and I have been careful to not overdo the flashcards at the risk of boring her. How we're going to get through 120 cards before that happens is beyond me.

Spice girl

2008-08-20T12:25:00.004+08:00

What can I say? My daughter has definitely inherited her parents' obsession for a certain berry called chilli. She was content just dipping her fork into the chilli sauce and licking it while we feasted on wonderfully succulent roast pork from Simee market. The area surrounding her lips turned red eventually but she seemed hardly affected by the pungent taste.

Despite her dietary limitations (no wheat, cow's milk or milk products, soy, eggs & nuts) due to her eczema, I'm so thankful that Nat's quite adventurous with food. To the extent of enjoying something as decidedly haute cuisine as avocado with creamed roe on rice crackers. Okay, who am I kidding? Adventurous is not the word, she's plain greedy! That girl eats anything! At any time! Which makes me worry incessantly about whether she will have a life-long battle with weight (again, just like her parents). But who am I to deny a growing child of nutrition?

My only consolation is that she's also extremely active. She dances, runs around the house and climbs up and down chairs non-stop during the day. The only time she's still and quiet is when she's sleeping.

Platypus to the rescue!

2008-08-14T15:34:00.005+08:00

Half-filled on the left, rolled-up on the right

Finally got my Platys yesterday. Ordered them through Li, my eco-friendly products supplier turned friend (do check out her cool website).

For as long as I can remember, I've been re-using those PET soft drink bottles to store my drinking water for school and now work. Even after reading all those emails about how we shouldn't re-use them as repeated washing will cause the chemicals to break down and leach into our drinking water, which by the way is unfounded according to some research I did. I guess they've always been the convenient option since they're light (as opposed to glass bottles), dispense water easily (like pour straight into the mouth) and do not leak.

So yeah, I suppose you could say this was an unnecessary purchase but I love the fact that they're collapsible hence can even pop them into my handbag and tote one around. Also, they're 100% BPA (Bisphenol A)-free and can last for years, according to Li.

Picnic in the park

2008-08-04T15:09:00.007+08:00

We'd been trying to organise a picnic in the park for a long time so when mum was in town three Sundays ago, it was an opportune time to have one.

Hubby arranged for the food (Makcik Sham's heavenly nasi lemak and bihun goreng) and I did the rest. We'd told everyone that we were having a picnic so that Nat could play in the shallow stream but truthfully, it was also a nice excuse to gorge out on the sambal sotong. Yum!

We arrived at 10am but this was the best spot we could find.

It was under a tree but soon the suns rays penetrated the less-than-dense foliage and mum's a big Puteri Lilin. Luckily for her, another group left so we quickly took over their shadier spot just next to the stream.

Nat was so engrossed that she wouldn't even look up to smile at the camera.

Splish-splashing through the stream

That's the wrong end up, my dear....

Papa & uncles resting

We packed up shortly after noon. Nat was so contented yet exhausted that she left without a fight. On the whole, a great morning out. Will definitely plan for more outings like these. Anyone else like to join in?

N.B. Nice photos with black borders courtesy of Uncle Jules.

Smile....

2008-08-04T14:11:00.003+08:00

No, it's not a new-fangled boomerang with fuzzy ends. It's my toothbrush, silly!

Friends of mine who have been on trips with me or stayed at my house may have noticed before this fantastic contraption on my bathroom sink counter. It's called the Zowin Double-head toothbrush. Don't laugh... it may look like something out of "Aliens" but it's won several international awards for innovation.

Was introduced to it 8 years ago and I've not gone back to normal toothbrushes since. It cleans even those hard-to-reach areas effortlessly. My dentist was amazed that I had not had a check-up in 8 years and yet my teeth were hardly stained.

My family usually orders in bulk and I get my stock from them but it's unfortunate that they're seldom sold in conventional retail outlets. I just hope they'll stay in production for as long as I have my set of teeth.

Kena Con

2008-07-08T17:53:00.004+08:00

I love this video simply 'cause it shows the innocence of babes.

Done Deal

2008-06-30T18:07:00.006+08:00

We put our townhouse up on the market earlier this month but it came with a condition that we would lease it back for another year whilst waiting for our new place to be ready. Most of the real estate negotiators we encountered scoffed at our asking price and others at the condition, convinced we would not be able to find buyers who would not insist on immediate vacant possession once the transaction was complete.

Four weekends, viewings by at least 12 different interested parties, and no less than 5 serious offers later, we were finally able to prove them wrong yesterday. The figure was closer to our asking price than we had expected, although we were obliged to throw in a couple of pieces of furniture as a "gesture", yet I was hardly thrilled when we received the earnest deposit cheque. Instead, I only felt a slight relief that I no longer had to expose my house and how we lived to the scrutiny of mere strangers.

Last night saw me waking up in the middle of the night, suddenly clutched by a foreboding sense of dread. Of what? I'm still not quite sure. After tossing and turning for an hour, I woke Hubby up and despite his reassurances, it took a while before I fell asleep again. And even then, my slumber was disturbed by dreams about properties. The funny thing is Nat seemed to empathise with me as she too, took much longer than usual to fall asleep and kept having night terrors, a somewhat rare occurrence these days.

Why do I not feel happy and excited? The purchasers come across as genuine and appear to be okay-enough landlords-to-be as well as responsible homeowners. They kept asserting that they loved what we have done to the house so they will no doubt look after it just as well. Could it be that I have developed such a strong attachment to the place we have called home for the past 3 years that I'm unwilling to let it go? Or am I harbouring some sort of deep-rooted insecurity about living in a rented home? Heaven only knows.

But the deed is done. In about a year's time, I pray I will find solace in a new place to call home.

Disco princess

2008-06-20T14:03:00.004+08:00

We created a disco in our bedroom the other night with just a LED torchlight and Hubby's mobile playing Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive". And this is the result...

Big girl now

2008-06-02T17:30:00.003+08:00

This pic was taken about a week ago and while she still lacks hair, it struck me that she has matured quite a bit in her looks. She's now 18 months old. Sigh... time sure flies!

About a car

2008-05-25T12:27:00.008+08:00

It's been close to 2 months since I got my new set of wheels so I guess it's probably high-time I blog about it.

Our decision to buy the new facelifted Mitsubishi Grandis did not stem from immediate necessity. In fact, you could say it was an impulse buy after test-driving it one Saturday but one based on what we felt was extremely good value.

Being a full-fledged 7-seater rather than a 5+2, the Grandis's closest comparison in terms of wheel-base and engine size would be the 2.4 litre Toyota Estima. Having said that, the latter costs at least an extra 40%. The facelifted model also comes with a nice-looking set of 17" rims with low-profile tyres and an 8" LCD monitor.

Cool eh? But we haven't used it much since we don't want Nat to get hooked on it.

But what clinched the deal for me was the 5-year manufacturer's warranty and 3-year free maintenance. Yes, call me a paranoid but I'd rather be safe than sorry. My trusty CR-V was still in tip-top shape but age was catching up. It was close to 8 years old and the thought of being bogged down with future expensive repair bills was not a pleasant one.

Since it was year-end when we placed our booking, we insisted on getting a 2008-registered car so agreed to wait till end February for one. However, a glitch in their system extended the delivery by another month. Was a little annoyed at that but all was forgotten when I finally received my keys.

Here's the verdict:-
Pros:

Easy to manouvre and good turning radius despite it's size and length. I've had no problems parking it and that goes for parallel parking as well.
All-round visibility (extremely important for me as I hate blind spots).
Adequately powered even when carrying a full load although the pick-up isn't all that fast. Whaddaya expect? It's no sports car.
Handling is crisp although the steering feel is rather bland (this comes from Hubby and I'll be darned if I understood what he means by 'crisp' and 'bland'. He did say that it under-steers a little but I think it's rather responsive).
The hardness of the suspension is well balanced. Although my experience suggests that the suspension will "soften" over time, offering a more comfortable ride.
Surprisingly, the car does not roll when turning corners.
Fuel consumption not too bad for a 2.4-litre engine. Town-use 480km on a full-tank but when we brought it back to Ipoh, it went up to 520km.
Extremely stable at high speeds. Hubby has pushed it to the end of the speedo (180kmph) even with 7 adults, a toddler and a full boot and we barely felt the speed.
Comfort is adequately provided but the driver and front passenger seats are certainly more cushy than the rest. Legroom at the back rows are ample. Then again, we hardly have long legs.
Multiple seat configurations for convenient expansion.
Has a flat floor so that passengers can walk through the middle of the car from front to 2nd row and left to right or vice versa albeit the space is tighter than my old CR-V.
Other noteworthy features: 6 speakers, glass antenna, individual reading lights and air-cond vents at each row with rear control, and plenty of storage space (cool stow-away trays inclusive) and hidden compartments.

Cons:

No cruise control
It's embarassing to sound the horn.
Back passenger doors are swing-type, not sliding.
Black interior a bit hard to maintain. I would have preferred grey as the dust would easily blend in. So this means I have to keep it clean at all times.
The service centre is so far from where we live. Bummer!

Roomy!

All in all, the Grandis is a very good balance between practicality, function and looks. We highly recommend it to anyone looking for an MPV. For me, it was definitely worth the 5-month wait!

White is the new black

Family expansion

2008-05-24T18:16:00.011+08:00

Lest any of you think I'm pregnant again, let me correct any misconceptions by saying that hubby and I were proud to welcome our new sister-in-law into the Toh clan last Saturday.

Both bride and groom looked truly joyful (don't you agree), oblivious to the fact that they were about to sign away their freedom. SIL was especially radiant in her brand new outfit and lovely hand-bouquet.

Bachelors and their nieces

Point of no return

Apart from the fact that I've gained another SIL, I'm also thrilled that I'm now closely related to one of my dearest friends (new SIL's big sis) whom I've known for seventeen years. Yes, I've known my new SIL since she was in primary school but never thought that we would be married to two boys (oops, I meant men) from the same family.

Oh, by the way, this was only the civil wedding. Full-blown ceremony upcoming in November, so stay tuned.

The Night I Scared My Daughter Out of Her Wits

2008-05-18T21:17:00.007+08:00

It started out as just another ordinary bedtime routine for Nat. She was frolicking about on the bed with the lights down low. I left her to tire herself out and went into the bathroom for my face-cleansing ritual. I had just purchased a new face pack from the pharmacy so decided to try that out too.

After applying the neem and turmeric concoction, I thought of chatting with Nat whilst allowing it to set in. Upon emerging from the bathroom, I was met with a look of sheer terror from Nat. Tears instantly sprang from her eyes and she started screaming and crying hysterically. I kept telling her "It's Mama, it's Mama!" but my cries fell on deaf ears as she retreated from me with every advance I made. The thought that my masked face would scare her really hadn't crossed my mind at all before that!

It was a good half a minute before she let me take hold of her and only calmed down when I sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". All that time, I was feeling so bad for traumatising her so I knew I had to show her that it was really me underneath the gunk lest she develops an unfounded fear of the dark or being left alone in the room. I could have easily gone to wash the mask off and then come back with a clean face but what if she couldn't make the connection and thought that a dark-faced stranger had come to attack her in my absence? So instead, I took her into the bathroom with me (looking in the mirror, even I had a slight shock at the 'Orang Minyak' gazing back at me, so scary was my reflection), sat her down on the closed toilet bowl and made her watch me remove the mask.

Mid-wash, she appeared to have already gotten over the big scare she had and was fiddling with the toilet flush (yes, her attention span is short indeed!) but it still didn't relieve me of the guilt. The guilt that I've been feeling till today. Mama's so sorry, my dear darling!

My wife is a loan shark

2008-04-03T22:59:00.003+08:00

I can't remember the last time Hubby and I caught a movie at the cinema. It was probably last June when we got free tickets to watch "Pirates of the Caribbean, At World's End". Hmm... that's a good 9 months! Darn! Definitely have not made full use of my Titanium card Buy-1-Ticket-Free-1 benefits.

So it was rather timely when after we returned from Phuket, FIL suggested we take mum and uncle out to watch Ah Long Pte Ltd. It was totally hilarious! I have not laughed so much throughout the duration of a movie.

For those who are unfamiliar with Jack Neo, he's the Singaporean director and actor who brought us gems as "Money No Enough" and "I Not Stupid". But Ah Long certainly takes the cake. Mark Lee was also superbly casted in his role. Can't imagine anyone playing it better. Fann Wong was also not too bad, although a little stiff at times.

Highly recommended for anyone in need of a good laugh. And watch out for the political innuendos. You'll be sure to fall off your seats.

Bangla Fantaseas

2008-03-30T17:01:00.024+08:00

I had been itching to travel out of the country for some time now. After all, it's been almost a year since we last did. Good thing we managed to snap up some free tickets on Air Asia to Phuket during their promo earlier this year. God bless Tony Fernandez!

The 18th of March finally came amid much trepidation and anxiety. I was supposed to take things easy due to the threatened miscarriage so I was very fortunate to have so many extra pairs of helping hands. (Tip: If you're booking a taxi to the KLIA LCCT, book with KLIA Airport Limo as they're cheaper and if you request for the Renault Enviro, it seats 5 passengers in the back.)

Our little fashionista in the Enviro

Arrived in Phuket at 1.30pm and our driver Daj (pronounced Deg) was there to meet us as he had promised in his email. I had initially thought Phuket was a small island but boy, was I wrong. We took ages to get from the airport to anywhere. First stop was Parlai Bay for lunch. It was Daj's recommendation but we didn't think very highly of the food or the price. Can't blame the poor guy though as he probably doesn't eat out much.

Since we didn't bring along a toddler seat, we were glad to note that Daj is a safe and reliable driver. He also speaks English relatively well and comes across as a humble and family-oriented guy. He drives an air-conditioned Toyota Commuter that easily seats 10 passengers. His charges are 1,000bht for half-day and 1,500bht for full-day tours. Airport transfers are 700bht per way. Anyone going to Phuket and looking for a driver may contact him here.

After lunch, we stopped by the Jim Thompson factory outlet as well as the cashewnut factory. Both were disappointing. The JT outlet in Bangkok has much more stuff at cheaper prices. The cashewnuts were also very expensive so didn't get any there. But it was our first time tasting cashewnut apple juice and seeing cashewnuts being processed. The nut is harvested from the bottom of the cashewnut apple and there's a special tool, much like a sewing machine, to remove the shell of the nut which has a very corrosive sap. Too bad I didn't get a photo of it.

By the time we checked into our hotel, the Millenium Resort Patong, it was already 5pm. Wanted to watch the sunset at Promthep Cape but since we were late, we only managed to catch it at the Karon View Point. We told Daj we wanted to go to a local market and he brought us to a 'pasar malam' near his house. Unfortunately, their night markets start closing at 8pm so we didn't get very far in trying the local delicacies. We had dinner that night at Kan Eang 1 @ Pier (Chalong Pier, that is), good seafood and lovely ambience. This place was also recommended by Jessica. At first sight, we thought "Uh-oh, cutthroat prices" but our bill came up to only about RM100, cheaper than our lunch. Kan Eang is practically an establishment in Phuket, having been around for 30 years and had only been refurbished a year ago.

Night market in Rawai Village

Kan Eang 1 @ Pier

Okay, a bit about our hotel. The Millenium is only a few months old and though it comes complete with all the creature comforts, it also has a lot of teething problems to sort out. For a start, the bathroom design was really bad. Unless you took a bath or showered sitting down, you would inevitably flood the entire bathroom floor. We also found their pillows way too high and I ended up sleeping on a rolled-up pareo the first night. We requested for a change from the reception the next morning but they said they didn't have any alternatives. Thankfully we came across the chamber maid and she managed to get some for us. Variety at breakfast was wide but the quality left much to be desired. Frankly, I didn't think I would live to see the day I tasted substandard Thai food in Thailand.

If you're looking for a hotel with a strip of sand, this is not one. Many hotels in Phuket (probably due to the Tsunami) are actually not beachfront. But this wasn't a criteria for us. Convenience was. And convenience we certainly got. Just walking distance to Soi Bangla (Patong's center of night action) and in an adjoining building to Jungceylon, probably the biggest shopping mall in Phuket, we didn't have to worry about the minibar not being stocked (yes, can you believe that? A 5-star hotel without a minibar!). All in all, the hotel was not bad but then again we were not paying full rates (got last minute discounts at latestays.com).

Since we didn't have a driver on the second day (Daj had prior engagements), we spent a good part of the day at Jungceylon. The anchor tenants are Robinsons and Carrefour and it's not unlike the malls in KL with cinemas, restaurants, bars and the like. Things were not necessarily nicer nor cheaper so it was more a leisurely walk around rather than a shopping extravaganza. Discovered a bazaar called "That's Siam" at the basement of the building where things were cheaper and prices were at least negotiable. There was also a food court on that level where we had our lunch.

See how we transported Nat around without a stroller?
By the way, she really enjoyed the special buggy rides

That night we walked out to the infamous Soi Bangla for dinner. We ate at Mengrai Seafood which came highly recommended at VirtualTourist.com The food was certainly tasty and cheap. Their garlic and pepper squid was the best I've had and chicken feet kerabu also yummy. However, the Pad Thai was too wet and sweet for my liking. Prawn cakes also not that great. You could also order cheap fried chicken and spring rolls from the stall next door.

Took a walk along the rest of Soi Bangla and back to aid digestion. It was pubs, discos and girly (some not real girls) bars all around. Wherever we walked, we were followed by the strong stench of sewage which was really offputting. The whole of Phuket was just teeming with tourists and you'd think you were in a Western country what with there being far less locals than caucasians in all of the beach areas!

See the "girls" dancing behind us

The next morning we wanted to go to the Gibbon Rehabilitation Centre but Daj told us that it would involve quite a lot of walking and trekking so we went elephant-trekking at the Kok Chang safari instead. We opted for the 1-hour trek since we would get to go round to the other side of the hill to see the view. It cost 1,000bht per person for that hour which was fun indeed but honestly, 20 minutes would have been enough. All that rocking even put Nat to sleep.

Mum & uncle on their 45-year old jumbo

In deep slumber long after we got down from the pachyderm

Lum Yai & Charley, Kok Chang's resident gibbons

Next stop was Phuket town. We again requested to be taken to a local market but like the other day, most stalls had closed. There wasn't much to see in town either but it was interesting to note that the majority were Chinese traders. We craved hawker food but being a Muslim, Daj didn't know much about non-halal hawker fare. According to him, 70% of the locals in Phuket are Muslims. Luckily a kind lady shopkeeper pointed us in the right direction. We ended up in this shack right opposite the roundabout from the Metropole Hotel and next to a Buddhist temple which served sinful Hokkien Mee complete with crispy rashers of pork skin, incredibly tasty otak-otak and melt-in-your-mouth pork satay that was so lean I ate 12 sticks!

Yummylicious!

The weather that day was lovely so we drove up Khao Rang hill and relaxed for a bit to soak up the atmosphere while looking over Phuket town. Nat tried to befriend a local girl who for some reason, seemed terrified of her advances and kept running away from her. Later, she did the same to a dog who also ran for cover under a fruit stall. Hmm... my daughter seems to repel certain beings.

Daj took us to Yannui beach later in the evening. It was a small stretch of beach near his village (Rawai) that he normally took his family to. Very nice and untouched. Wanted Nat to experience the surf and the sand. Surprisingly she remained undaunted by the saltwater and sand that went into her mouth when the waves came splashing over her head.

3 Generations in one shot

Yannui beach from a distance

The disadvantage of going to a secluded beach was that there were no amenities for washing up so we were still sticky and salty when we went for dinner at Rawai beach. Daj dropped us back at the hotel at 8.30 and after a shower, we went for our welcome drink at the Lounge 98.

We left for the airport after breakfast on Friday. There was a bit of drama at the airport when we were about to board the plane but realised Hubby was missing. We had all gone past customs but didn't realise Hubby was stuck outside. Apparently, the customs officer missed stamping his passport when we arrived and they had to check with the airlines whether he truly entered Phuket 4 days ago. So make sure you always check your passports when you get to a foreign country.

All in all, I still prefer Chiang Mai to Phuket and while I would return to the former, don't think I would be keen to visit Phuket again.

An Ode to Tikus

2008-03-28T08:59:00.003+08:00

We planned
You came along
It thrilled us no end
We looked forward to greet you in October
6 weeks, a warning flashed
8 weeks, normalcy resumed
Ah, the relief!
Alas, 10 was not our lucky number!
You were merely passing through...
Not ours to be
Goodbye little Tikus
You will forever be in memory

8th March 2008

2008-03-10T14:44:00.003+08:00

'Twas the day of the 12th General Election of Malaysia.

Woke up at the crack of dawn and headed for the Sekolah Kebangsaan Sultan Hishamuddin Alam Shah at 7.30am to exercise my right as a citizen of our beloved country. Had to check many weeks beforehand where the school was located. Although I had lived nearby for several years, I didn't know till then what its name was.

I got there just before 8 and everything was a breeze. I was in and out in less than 15 minutes.

And for those who had the smarts to pick it up, yes, it was my first time voting in the general elections. After all, there hasn't been a more crucial time than now to make the people's voices heard since I've been eligible to cast my vote.

The results were overwhelming, to say the least. That night we went to bed early but kept getting updates on the results via SMS, some of which were very unexpected, so much so that Hubby decided to turn on his laptop to catch up on the rest! Democracy is certainly not dead but whether there will be any change is something we'll all have to wait and see.

Gold digger

2008-03-01T23:21:00.004+08:00

Sadly, my little princess has discovered the crude habit of picking her nose, from where, I can only wonder. Not only does she do it in public, she revels in sharing her findings with others too. Yikes!

Pearl of the Orient

2008-03-01T18:20:00.012+08:00

Made a trip to Penang last weekend. FIL and MIL went to attend a wedding while we took the opportunity to indulge in our favourite hawker foods (what better time to go than with the expert - FIL's a Penangite through-and-through). It was ironic then that we ended up only having our last meal in Penang together with them although they did 'ta pau' some popiah (from Padang Brown), ban chiang kuih and mamak mee goreng (from Anson Road) for us one afternoon. We were left to fend for ourselves the rest of the time and we drove around aimlessly trying to remember where we had good Kuey Chap the last time we went there with him. Okay, okay .... it wasn't all that bad... I was just trying to stir up some drama.

We stayed at The Gurney this time as there was a good offer with Citibank cards. RM175 nett for a studio suite with breakfast for two (not that you'd need that in Penang with so much good food to be had but the truth is, the variety at the coffee house was pretty good too). The suite was very comfy with ample space and a sofa long enough to sleep on. Nat loved the pools with the slides and sand all around although the water was absolutely freezing cold. Service from the staff was good. No complaints about the place and would definitely stay there again.

Catching helium balloons in our hotel suite

Family pic by the infinity pool

Anyway, the highlight of my trip was reuniting with a long lost friend (found via Facebook, of course!) and meeting up with her family, hubby and adorable son who's just 5 months older than Nat. Yup, you bet I was trying to matchmake them!

Nat putting her moves on Seb

We met up with Jacq, Kah Kheng and Sebastian on Friday as well as Saturday night and had a blast! Funnily enough, we hardly rekindled old memories as we were busy trying to catch up on each others' lives since we last met 14 years ago. They brought us to Northam Beach Cafe on Saturday night and we discovered some pretty good food there. The sotong kangkung, satay, Filipino food, assam laksa and oh chien are well worth a try.

Old classmates and our babes (Yes, I'm THAT much shorter!)

More on the food front, we found out that my favourite kuih ketayap stall at Macalister Road does not open nightly. It all depends on whether they made enough money during the day in their other business. However, we still managed to gulp down 15 those yummy banana apoms between the three of us. If you're ever at Macalister, don't forget to try the duck rice, char mee suah, char kuey kak and belacan fried chicken. Can't remember the name of the coffee shop but it's at the junction to the Sunway Hotel.

While we were there, we also came across the most beautiful cherry blossom tree I have ever seen (yes, a trip to Japan in Spring is on our list of must-dos before we die).

Ain't she a beauty?

And needless to say, we chose to take the ferry back across to the mainland so that Nat could have her share of the experience.

Grumpypot wondering about the strong offense to her olfactory senses (Diesel, if you haven't guessed correctly)

There lay the sleeping monster

2008-01-07T14:32:00.001+08:00

It's always such a task putting Nat to bed. She will crawl, roll, walk, run, jump or flop herself all over our bed for at least half an hour before she can be content to lie down in one spot, suck her thumb and finally doze off. And all this while I lay still and pretend to be asleep. No way will she succumb if I was up reading or watching the telly. It's like, "Mum's awake! Why should I sleep?".

Last Sunday I almost had a few heart attacks while she went about her routine of treating my bed like an obstacle course until she finally settled on top of my feet close to the edge of the bed. See it through her daddy's eyes.

Errata

2008-01-07T14:25:00.000+08:00

My mistake. Nat actually has 12 chompers already! Looks like she's really going to take after her parents in terms of gastronomic capabilities.

Goodbye 2007. Hello 2008.

2007-12-31T14:35:00.001+08:00

It's hard to believe I haven't been blogging for a month now. Where has all the time gone?
For one, we've been busy playing with and watching out for Nat who started to walk 2 weeks back and is now into mimicking us. A lot. She really wears me out these days. But since she's so entertaining and funny, I don't mind.

Physical development-wise, she has trimmed down (paunch notwithstanding) and shot up a bit due to her restlessness. She's a real "kaypohchee" (busybody) walking back and forth and going into nooks and crannies where she's not supposed to, so her weight has remained stable at 9.5kgs. She also sprouted pre-molars about a month ago, much to my surprise (don't they only come out much later?), so she now has a set of 10 teeth!

The past few weeks, we've been out a lot and taking her with us too so she's been sleeping less than she usually does and we noticed she has developed eyebags! She definitely inherited that from Hubby as I've not been known to have any.

As for her babbling, she can now say certain words with utmost clarity, the most noteworthy being "papa", "kakak" (elder sister), "bear bear" and "nen nen" (breast, read : milk vessel). Only in very rare occasions do you hear her say "mama" or "mommy" and when she does, it delights me no end. She can also say "dai dai" when she actually means to say "kai kai" which is babyspeak for going out, after which she will rush to the doorway to put on her sandals.

We have also realised what a vainpot Nat is as she loves adorning herself in jewellery and carrying handbags. She also loves pretending to be on the phone (I can imagine us getting exorbitant phone bills in the future) with whatever she can get her hands on. She doesn't seem to mind having things put on her head either as you will see in the next few photos.

Little Gypsy princess

Reindeer with shiny forehead

With her new 2-piece and Barbie sunnies

Carrying Val's handbag and walking around

Anyway, I digress. It's hard to keep your focus when your life revolves around this little person who depends on you for everything (not that I would rather do anything else). I'm sure all you mommies will agree.

2007 has been a fruitful year for us indeed. I have watched my infant grow into a charming toddler. We have gone through a few tribulations on the family front but all's well that ends well. Truth be told, Hubby and I are extremely fortunate. God has blessed us in abundance and we couldn't ask for more.

The last few months have been particularly "happening" as we have put down a booking deposit for a new family car, been house-hunting and have just recently bought a new house (ready in 2009) and just got the keys to an office suite which we hope to rent out very soon. Needless to say, all of this will weigh down our finances significantly so we are learning to be more austere and not succumb to instant gratification. I've been wanting to go on a holiday for a long time (SY & YL, I do envy you guys!) but looks like we will have to make do with the offhand trips to Ipoh, Melaka or Penang for a while.

The only thing I regret this year is letting my gym and yoga routine of 4 years go to waste. I probably have the fitness level of a cabbage now but no way could I wake up at 6am like I did in those pre-baby days. Not when my sleep gets disrupted at least 2 times a night just so that I could feed, pump or soothe night terrors. So is going back to the gym on my list of New Year's resolutions? Nah... I think I'll pass...

My friends, here's a toast to an even more fulfilling and memorable year ahead for all of us. May we always be in the company of loved ones, enjoy robust health, have the opportunity to pursue our interests and succeed in them, treat others with kindness and sincerity and lastly not forget to stop and smell the roses. Cheers!

Through the barricades

2007-11-30T15:39:00.002+08:00

Hubby and I thought we didn't have to worry about putting up a safety gate since the house isn't all that big and Su's there all day to watch over Nat. But it turns out, she's too fond of going all the way up to get to chest of drawers where her clothes are kept and pulling everything out of them! Again, her sneakiness factor ranks high as she'll only climb up when Su's not watching 'cos she thinks she's napping or something.

We decided we couldn't take any chances and so I got the First Few Years hands-free safety gate which was on sale at Robinsons. Had to get 2 extra extensions too! In case you're wondering, no, it's not an optical illusion. Had to slant it a bit otherwise whoever comes down the stairs would not be able to step on the pedal to release the catch.

"Eh, what's this? Oh, just a door. Never mind, I'll get it open in no time."

"Papa, what's wrong with this door? I've been pushing and pulling but the latch doesn't work!"

"Fine! Ignore me... I'll just slip myself in between the bars..."

"Help! I'm not as slim as I thought I was..."

My daughter, the pole dancer

2007-11-30T11:39:00.001+08:00

Wheels no more

2007-11-27T10:08:00.002+08:00

As of yesterday morning, I have been officially without car.
Yup, my beloved gold CR-V has been sold. *Sob*!
Good thing is, it's been sold to a family I know will take good care of it. And even better is that I can see it anytime I want coz it now belongs to my sister's boyfriend's mum (who purportedly washes her car every night)!

It has served me well for the past 7.5 years and was indeed a reliable car. Hardly gave me any problems. I loved it so.... Wouldn't even think of selling it if not for the fact that we need an upgrade to accommodate an expanding family.

Happy times

Preggers in Cameron Highlands

Don't know when my new set of wheels will arrive but chances are, it'll be a good 3 more months before I'll have another car to call my own. Hubby is more excited than I am at the moment and keeps talking about it. Watch this space!

This used to be my playground

2007-11-21T17:32:00.001+08:00

Put Nat on the slide for the first time a couple of weeks back and she was not very impressed with it at the start. The sticky girl actually managed to hold a pose like this right in the middle of the slide.

See how she hangs on for dear life when her dad lets her go in this video....

Sneaky things...

2007-11-02T13:19:00.001+08:00

Babies are a clever lot, smarter than most adults give them credit for, and very powerful indeed.

They are capable of reducing their grown-up mothers to tears the moment we set eyes on them. They also have the uncanny ability to really grow on you the longer you get acquainted with them. Mine is no different.

Before this, I never would have thought I would allow my child to sneak into our conjugal bed on a nightly basis. Unlike many breastfeeding mums, I wasn't fond of nursing lying down. I couldn't seem to get comfortable hence I would feed Nat sitting up and then promptly put her back into her cot. Hubby also wasn't into the idea of co-sleeping as he often tosses around heavily and was worried he would land on Nat and reduce her to a pile of mush without realising.

Since her bout of illness however, Nat seems to have wormed her way into our bed and I didn't even see it coming. This has now become a habit with her starting to wail at around 2-3am followed by me, way too tired to carry or pat her back to sleep, picking her up and plopping her in the middle of our bed. She will then scream for about 5 seconds before finding her right thumb to suck and stroke my face with her left hand till she falls contentedly back to sleep between her 2 biggest fans. Only after her night-time feed will I put her back into her crib.

Now that she's bigger, I actually enjoy having her next to me where I can just turn and give her kisses and cuddles as I like. So you see... not only can they get you to do things without you realising it, they can even make you like doing it! Clever or not???

Moo-Moo Cow

2007-11-01T22:56:00.002+08:00

Nat in her Moo-Moo Cow outfit (comes with cute little panties in the same black-and-white print), courtesy of her Por Por. It's rare that one finds clothes for baby girls in black and white but I thought this one was really cute. After almost a year of being her dairy cow, I now have my own little Friesian calf.

Frowning calf, wondering why we're taking her away from this farm

"I love car rides"

"Moooo...."

Ice Lolly Face

2007-10-31T16:45:00.001+08:00

My little girl is rather greedy. Whenever she sees me eating, she will make her way over and move her lips tantalisingly. If that doesn't work, she'll gulp her saliva and that usually gets her a small nibble of what we're having, provided it's baby-safe and not too tasty (lest she gets used to yummy-tasting stuff and refuses her bland porridge).

A few weeks ago, we let her try New Zealand All Naturals Berry Sorbet. Watch how she comes back for more despite finding the taste weird.

'Twas a yellow evening on Sunday

2007-10-30T15:03:00.000+08:00

Literally... see pics.

Taken without flash

Eerie!

What's for breakfast?

2007-10-23T16:17:00.001+08:00

Malaysia is not a place for people with gluten, diary, soy, nut and egg allergies. And it's most definitely not a place for foodlovers with the same allergies. See picture for what I've been having for breakfast the past few weeks.

Okay, I had Marmite with my buckwheat and rice crackers just that once (and once was quite enough, believe me!) but those crackers are basically a bread replacement so I eat them with tuna, bacon, set honey or jam. It took a while to acquire the taste for them but they're quite nice when toasted actually.

For lunch and dinner, I am stuck with either rice, porridge, soupy meehoon or kway teow (variants of rice noodles) and amazingly, I'm ALWAYS hungry. And I mean ravenous! For someone who's been on a low-carbo diet for the past 4 years, I'm eating enough carbo per meal to feed a platoon of soldiers! Annoyingly, most Asian dishes are cooked with soy sauce so I've no choice but to avoid them too. At home though we've been substituting it with fish sauce in all our stirfries.

The good (unbelievable though it is) part about being on this diet is, buttoned-down shirts and tight blouses aside, I can now fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes including my jeans! Of course they're still more than a little snug but that's not the point. And all this while I believed that eating less carbo was the be-all and end-all of weight loss!

I could probably start a new phenomenon now. Wanna lose weight? Eat rice! Lots of it! Move over Atkins and South Beach!

Spring!

2007-10-16T10:11:00.001+08:00

After three years of being planted, the African Tulip Tree in front of our house has finally begun to sprout its vermillion flowers. We were beginning to think that we were unfortunate enough to get an infertile one but turns out it was just a late bloomer.

While typing the above paragraph, I was suddenly reminded of how the colour vermillion was my favourite when I was in primary school. Back then, it was not enough to just have 12 or even 24 colour pencils. Many schoolgirls were clamouring to have their own set of 36 that came in a metal box with Japanese cartoon characters on it. And we used to have them all perfectly sharpened.

The other thing that was all the rage were those pencil cases with a million and one secret spring-loaded compartments triggered by buttons. Those cost a small fortune each. I never had one but used to find any excuse to play with those belonging to my lucky classmates. Gosh! How much money Sanrio made from us gullible consumers.

It's a good thing they're no longer a trend. Can't imagine my children carrying all that extra weight in their schoolbags!

Nat's ill

2007-09-27T22:54:00.001+08:00

My daughter fell ill. For the first time. On my birthday.

Her nose is runny, her breath is thick with phlegm and she has a temperature. The works. She goes about her daily routine as normal and still smiles as cheekily as ever but my heart is heavy. I want to just hold and comfort her the whole day. I don't want to go to work and so I don't.

Our usual paed, Dr Junina's clinic is closed on Thursday mornings (coincidence you say?) so I had to look for an alternative. After scouring the Net at home, I settle for Dr Kwan in Damansara Jaya. He's a good doctor that I would go back to if Dr Junina is again unavailable. He prescribes Polaramine for the runny nose, Benadryl expectorant and Bricanyl for the phlegm.

Nat obediently opens her mouth to consume the spectrum of colourful syrups (including Paracetamol) that are her medication but you can see she's not happy with them. Mum comments how good a girl she is. Spoke too soon. Later in the evening, she absolutely refuses to even so much as open her mouth upon seeing the syringe in my hand. When I manage to force one dose down, she promptly throws it up again with the next dose. I am left with no choice but to put her to bed without the drugs.

God, please help her recover soon. *Big sigh...*

Another year older but none the wiser....

2007-09-27T22:27:00.001+08:00

I am officially now in the Thirty-something category.

Do I feel smarter? No!

More capable? No!

Older? Most certainly!

And no doubt this stems from my being a mother now. Spontaneity is a thing of the past. It's a good thing though that Hubby hasn't lost his "spur-of-the-moment"ness for he really pulled a surprise on the eve of my birthday. The last time this happened was when he proposed to me in a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere in York.

So anyway, we were sitting down watching telly after a sumptuous dinner of "Buka Puasa" delicacies from the Taman Tun market when the lights suddenly went off, everyone else broke into song and I was presented with a green tea cake from San Terri Cottage. Anyone else would have basked in the moment but I kept asking "When did you get the cake?", " How come I didn't see you bring it in?", "Did you get it yourself?". Count on me to spoil everything. But seriously... it was really sweet and I was happy of course.

"SURPRISE!!"

The accomplices

Mel : You're the king of surprises. I'm not worthy!!

About being older, well, what of it? *Shrug* It doesn't matter to me. As long as I'm with the ones I love, I couldn't be more blessed.

Crankypot!

2007-09-25T14:36:00.001+08:00

This is what happens when she doesn't get enough sleep and gets woken up. It's so ugly I've decided to use it as my desktop wallpaper to remind me that I should rush home once it's 5.30pm lest she unleashes the monster within.

You're cordially invited to an intimate dinner with...

2007-09-22T21:31:00.001+08:00

...read the invitation I received from Sunrise. Hubby and I were lucky enough to be selected again for another Sunrise-sponsored event last night. This time, it was a dinner and fashion show at the recently opened Umai-ya at Uptown 37.

The co-sponsors were V-Mag, Omega and Estee Lauder so instead of showcasing apparel, the models went round the restaurant exhibiting Omega's latest watch and jewellery collection. I had a free hand massage except it wasn't so much a hand massage as it was a 3-minute application of hand cream by the promoter.

Dinner was a elaborate 7-course Japanese meal comprising among others sushi, sashimi, unagi tempura and various maki. I breached my dietary restrictions a little by having some soy sauce. Hey, you absolutely cannot eat sushi without dipping it into wasabi and soy sauce, can you? Hubby and I were lucky to get a table for two so we practically had a paid-for date.

the freshest and tastiest sashimi I've had in a long while

Hubby couldn't wait for me to finish taking the shot before poking his chopsticks into the delectable Twin Towers maki

Unagi tempura. Yum!

Overall, it was a well organised event though they could have kept it a little shorter with a bit more planning. Food was good and so were the door gifts. Hubby and I are all for freebies (the cheapskates we are!). Hand them out this way anytime!

Humancopter

2007-09-20T14:50:00.001+08:00

I'm welcoming suggestions on this one. Anyone care to offer an explanation as to what my daughter is up to here?

Flower Power

2007-09-19T21:35:00.001+08:00

A few weeks back I had the fortune of getting acquainted with Josephine who works a few doors away from my office and who introduced me to Phytobiophysics, the science of harnessing the vibration energy of plants to release energy blocks in the human body so that balance is re-established for all levels of consciousness; spiritual, mental, emotional and physical. It is believed that stress, disease and viruses also vibrate at different frequencies that bring disturbance to the healthy, balanced life flows within the body.

A load of mumbo-jumbo? I couldn't agree more at the time. But since Josephine insisted her husband's eczema visibly cleared up within a month of taking the herbal formulas, no harm trying, I thought. Not to worry folks, I'm not going barmy just yet.

Hubby and I brought Nat to see Dr Yeap when we were back in Ipoh over the weekend. Her method of diagnosis was unconventional to say the least. She would form a circuit with the patient and ask him/her to resist her downward pushing motion on his/her outstretched left arm. I ended up acting as the "lever" for Nat and Hubby (a few occasions) and by the end of it, my shoulder was positively aching.

I wouldn't go as far as to say that we were completely sold on the "science" but Dr Yeap handled our questions so well that Hubby and I did end up asking for a consultation as well. We alternated between being skeptical and hopeful of the benefits of the "flower vibrations". Conceptually, Phytobiophysics is as abstract as Reiki but the antidotes are akin to a combination of Homeopathy and Bach Flower Essences. As with most alternative medicines, you can't help but attribute its efficacy to a placebo effect. So as I was telling Hubby, if Nat's eczema really does clear up, we'll know it's for real. After all, you can hardly expect a toddler to be psychologically affected by a sugar pill that she doesn't even know has been dissolved into her drinking water.

In addition to taking the pills, I have to give up quite a lot of foods as apparently I currently don't have the right enzymes to digest them hence they create an energy block within which manifests in the eczema and lower lumbar pain that I have. So just as Eileen urged me to go on a restrictive diet for Nat's sake, I was told by Dr Yeap to give up wheat (or anything with gluten), eggs, soy (that means soy sauce too!), dairy products, beef, lamb and duck for the timebeing till my imbalances are corrected.

It's been three days and I still can't think of anything convenient to eat for breakfast. No eggs, bread, cakes, biscuits, noodles, cereal or milk.... How long will I survive?

Is your face on it?

2007-09-19T20:34:00.000+08:00

Facebook that is.

Since a few months back I've been receiving countless invites to join but keep telling myself I didn't need another social networking utility to waste time on. I still don't know what possessed me to (I guess you could put it down to a slow afternoon at work) but I signed up 2 days ago and now there's no turning back.

Ain't No Mountain High Enough

2007-09-11T15:27:00.001+08:00

Nat traversed the whole flight of stairs at home yesterday evening without any help. She never faltered although I was following closely behind. Sigh... this little "samseng" of mine... I can foresee many heart attacks to come in the not-so-distant future.

What crap!

2007-09-11T14:50:00.000+08:00

Just the other night I launched into yet another one of my diatribes against my lousy HP iPAQ rw6828 when the battery heated up and drained again for no reason when I chanced upon this.

Now, I seriously doubt this person has an iPAQ and if he/she did, it certainly wouldn't be the same model as mine.

As a PDA, its capabilities are at most, ordinary, but as a phone, I must say I was much happier with my several-generations-old Nokia. The iPAQ is slow as a tortoise, the text on screen shakes at times (don't ask why), it hangs ocassionally, the battery does not last, loudspeaker is anything but loud and certain simple features are non-existent.

HP should seriously invest more money in R&D before they attempt to make anymore PDA phones. I would gladly sell it off and buy a new phone but don't think I can get even half my investment if I were to trade it in. Sigh... looks like I'll have to bear with it for a while.

Nice long weekend

2007-09-03T22:55:00.001+08:00

Malaysia celebrated her 50th year of independence last Friday so we had a 3-day weekend. Hurray! After not having had any public holidays in a while, it was a welcome respite and a great opportunity for lots of family time. In our case, this means lots of food as well.

To kickstart the celebrations, Dad & Aunty threw a poolside BBQ party at their still-quite-bare condo. A clear sky, cool night breeze with nary a touch of humidity made for a perfect night to throw a BBQ. Although not on a very high level, the poolside had a good view of the KL skyline, complete with the glimmering Twin Towers in the background.

After putting Nat to sleep, Hubby and I joined Val and her friends in a game of Taboo. As usual, girls reigned although it was 3 girls versus 4 guys. Heh, heh, heh.... Just before midnight, we gathered at the balcony expecting to see fireworks light up the sky in the KLCC vicinity. Well, we heard the explosions but the fireworks were nowhere to be seen, from that angle at least. Ha ha! Talk about anti-climax!

The next morning, Hubby and I dragged ourselves out of bed at 5.45am to attend a charity yoga class at the Saujana Resort, organised by Manasa Yoga. It was held under the skies between the swimming pool and the man-made lake. To commemorate our 50th year of independence, Manoj announced that we were to do 50 sun salutes! It had been a whole year since I last attended a yoga class and my muscle stiffness that early in the morning sure did not help. In spite of that I was pleasantly surprised that I did quite well indeed and managed to keep up although towards the end, my back got a little achy and I could feel the lactic acid build-up in my triceps during the press ups. Must have been the fresh air and Manoj's soothing voice!

Keat, Val, Yu Lin & Shu Wei came to visit in the afternoon and we watched "Blades of Glory". It was hilarious! A typical Ben Stiller movie but somehow I was in the mood for it. Then for dinner, we headed to Rick's Cafe Casablanca, my third and Hubby's fourth (!) foray since Tim invited us to the opening just a week ago. Yup, you read right! We seem to be a permanent fixture there. A cosy place (but without a non-smoking area), serving good food in generous portions at reasonable prices. What's there not to like? We like the mushroom soup, mushroom burger, lamb patties and smoked duck carbonara.

The Gorgeous Banana Souffle

On Saturday we took Nat swimming at the Plaza but she was uncharacteristically unenthusiastic about the pool for some reason. Still we let her splash around for at least half an hour. I got a bit worried when she cried during bath-time, something she almost never does, so much so we decided to give her a dose of Paracetamol before putting her to bed. Thank God she was fine after that.

Dinner that night was at Ho Ho, our favourite steamboat place in Dataran Sunway. It seems we head there everytime we feel like something light and soupy to balance out the over-indulging earlier. Highly recommended.

Yesterday, Pui San & Kwok Wai invited us to their son Jake Meng's full moon high tea at Bernard's. It was the first time we had been to one where the guest list reads longer than most weddings'. Little Jake is such a cutie with a really pink complexion and a full head of black hair! Nat got to meet up with her friends Aidan, Jean and Jodie but she wasn't as friendly as usual maybe 'coz of all the distractions around. Until then, Hubby and I had never had a reason to eat at Bernard's but we were quite impressed with the Hainanese chicken rice and the lamb chops and will go back sometime.

Wrapping up the weekend, we went out for dinner with Dad's family to Ozeki in Menara TA. The boys were back from Singapore. Food wasn't as great as I had expected it to be and most dishes were fusion. I only really enjoyed the sashimi platter.

So there goes another food-filled weekend and my chances of losing my pregnancy weight gets slimmer!

Things my daughter does that makes me laugh and love her more...

2007-08-26T15:17:00.001+08:00

She rocks and sways (and sometimes headbangs) to almost any kind of music, but without fail to the theme song of 'Grey's Anatomy'. She could be nursing or doing something but when that tune comes on, she'll look up, smile and start rocking.

Sorry, don't know how to rotate the video

She hums tunelessly but in rhythm to people singing and she sometimes does so very loudly in church. I don't know whether to blush with pride or embarassment.

When in an affectionate mood, she'll hug me around the neck and kiss me full on the mouth, eyes closed some more. Starting young? You don't say! Daddy better have a way to keep a reign on her when she starts dating.

She twirls her feet round and round and pumps her arms up and down when she's excited (and that includes upon seeing me return from work).

Her babbling of "Buerh", "Buh", "Ba", "Bai", "Ma", "Pa", "Mum". MIL thinks she'll start talking early since she's such a whiner.

She is absolutely terrified of being put to sleep in her cot but loves sleeping on the sofa downstairs. Before falling asleep, she will roll about in her cot, bang her head on the mattress and whine. I have an absolutely hilarious video of her falling asleep sitting up with her feet sticking out of her cot but it's too dark to see anything when I upload it. Here's a photo instead

She always has a smile for everyone and if she's in a cranky mood, just singing "Twinkle, twinkle little star" will definitely elicit a smile from her.

She has good dexterity and an incredibly strong grip (she once lifted a melamine chair with one hand).

She has an extremely good appetite and eats really quickly. Thank God!

Water baby

2007-08-20T16:10:00.002+08:00

My daughter was made for the high life....

Watch my little tail-less mermaid in action. She was really paddling furiously and didn't seem to mind the water entering her eyes, mouth and nose.

Trigger happy!!

2007-08-20T15:30:00.001+08:00

I got my first birthday present of the year from hubby on Saturday. It's a Canon Digital Ixus 850IS and I love it, love it, love it!

It's got a 2.5" LCD, image stabiliser, quick startup and high ISO. Best of all, it's got a wide angle lens so no more having to push my back up against the wall to take group photos in a cramped room. So far, we've put it to the test and it produces great photos even in low-light conditions. And unlike my 3-year old Nikon Coolpix 3700, I can even edit the videos here. Also, no more harsh flash lighting. I hated using the flash on my old camera 'coz of that. It even auto-rotates in playback mode which I think is so cool! Now, with a 2GB SD card, I no longer need to download my pics and videos so frequently.

The cons? Flimsy battery door panel (feels cheap and not spring loaded), no quick review button (have to change the mode) and the original case is ugly to say the least. But these, I can certainly live with.

Thank you baby!

Fed on Grain and Love

2007-08-20T14:48:00.001+08:00

After a series of postponements, hubby and I finally went for our long-delayed "pak toh" session last week. Since we're cutting down on our carbo, we decided to try out FOGAL meat market at Plaza Damas.

The verdict? Not too bad. I liked Khim's lamb burger which at less than RM15 was value-for-money. Came with a huge pattie, fries and coleslaw. Pic didn't turn out too well though.

Mine was a mixed platter, priced at RM35, that came with a steak (I asked for pork steak but they forgot and gave me beef instead), a choice of 2 kebabs and 2 sausages, a huge helping of salad and mash. I found the sausages too salty though.

We ended the meal with a sticky date pudding drenched in caramel and served with vanilla ice cream. Yummy! I would go back just for that. And if I'm not mistaken, that cost less than RM10.

Hubby kept commenting that the place lacks ambience but hey, with a name like that, whaddaya expect?

Oh yes, I cooked for mum & my inlaws last Wednesday. Attempted making a souffle again and this time with cream cheese and mushrooms and without following any recipe in particular and I'm proud to say that it was the piece de resistance of the meal! It turned out very light and fluffy at the top and creamy on the inside... Now, that's what I call a souffle! However, was busy putting Nat to sleep when the meal started so no pics.

Culinary adventures in Parkville

2007-08-13T18:00:00.001+08:00

On Saturday Hubby & I decided to flex our culinary muscles. He'd been bugging me to make a souffle for him since MIL gave him a cookbook from UK last November and says it's his childhood dream come true to be able to eat one.... Whatever....

Anyway, we gathered a few willing guinea pigs in the form of Val, Keat and Shu Wei and ended up with guacamole with cream cheese, honey-glazed roast chicken and hot crab souffle. I made the guacamole & souffle.

I shall spare you the pics of the chicken. Taste-wise it was fine but the glaze was a bit dark so didn't look too good in the photo.

Hot from the oven

Looks good if I may say so. Hubby absolutely loved it but I thought it was so-so only. Somehow the crab taste was almost non-existent. A disappointment to say the least. From its name, I had expected it to be bursting with the taste of rich seafood.
Ah well... I'm glad I managed to fulfil someone else's gastronomic fantasies...

Gigi Susu!!!

2007-08-10T16:26:00.001+08:00

Finally remembered to take pics of Nat's two little lower incisors after they first emerged a few weeks ago. However, she was furiously pulling away the whole time since she absolutely hates being touched on the face. It didn't help that my camera's battery was taking so long to recharge after every shot.

toothy grin

Itsy-Bitsy Teenie-Weenie Pink Polka Dot Bikini

2007-08-07T16:38:00.002+08:00

Sunscreen face

These pics were taken 2 weeks ago at Sutera Tunku when we took Nat for her 6th venture to the pool.

Aunty got this cute ensemble from NZ when they went in June

In her double-ring float

Splish-splash I was taking a bath...

Happy Camper

Crown Princess

2007-08-07T16:36:00.001+08:00

Taken at Ethan's 3rd birthday party a few weeks ago.

I wouldn't come here for a massage

2007-08-07T16:27:00.002+08:00

Tukang Urut is Malay for Masseuse.
A massage by a small wild cat? I think not...

Nose to Tail Eating

2007-07-27T09:10:00.001+08:00

A few weeks back, we had a "Chan Kar" Oh-Toh dinner (sans Sim & Eng and Teon & Cheryl and sadly, hubby, as he had a business meeting) at Elcerdo at Werner's Place courtesy of Dad & Aunty. It's a restaurant solely dedicated to porcine lovers including all the usually inedible parts, hence the tagline "Nose to tail eating". The owner's a German who lived in Spain but the cuisine is a mixture of European, Spanish and Mediterranean specialties.

I have been there 3 times so far (4 actually if you count the once where they messed up the reservations and we didn't have a table so they had to usher us to Deutsche Bierhaus opposite but they still gave us 2 suckling pigs on the house) and each time, the place is packed to the brim! I don't think they can even entertain walk-ins as reservations usually need to be made a couple of days in advance.

Highly recommended for porkie lovers but amazingly sinful as you can guess so make sure cholesterol levels are in check. The must-order is a roast suckling pig that's sooo.... juicy and succulent and has none of that gamey taste as the piglets were fed a special diet of corn or something like that. The meat is air-flown in from Denmark I think. But before savouring it, diners have to go through a ritual of chopping it up with a plate and then smashing the plate in a wooden bin for good luck! (The plate has to break or else they'll make you do it again and again till it does. Otherwise no luck.)

FIL demonstrates how crispy and succulent the suckling pig is

Apart from that, the Jambon (cold-cuts), pork shoulder and bacon-wrapped anchovies are also great for meat-lovers. The paella is the best I've tasted in Malaysia, Werner will make sure of it. He once took away ours just as we were about to dig in and brought us another fresh one as he found the first a bit too crusty while serving it.

A divine dining experience but not for the faint-hearted (read : high-cholesterol) or when you're feeling poor.

Amenorrhoea no more

2007-07-23T16:52:00.001+08:00

Yup, the monthly inconvenience has begun again...

After not having my period for 17 months, save for the lochia discharge after delivery, my ovaries have been kickstarted into action again. By what, I don't exactly know but my guess is the reduction of night feeds as Nat is sleeping through the night more and more (although not everyday).

This is not fun I tell you...

The sleeping series

2007-07-19T10:02:00.001+08:00

We seem to take lots of photos of Nat snoozing as it's the only time we don't have to worry about blurry photos.

Crouching baby, half-hidden Patrick

Bouncy-bouncy

Stretch snooze

My favourite, courtesy of Julian Oh

On Val's bed in dad's old house

Thumb-sucking

At The Curve

Mum's house, Ipoh

Couch potato

She loves this make-do bed

My Daughter is a Samseng!

2007-07-13T10:59:00.001+08:00

"Samseng" literally means gangster. Just watch and you'll see what I mean.

So, this was the reason for the bellyquakes I felt when I was pregnant...

Watch Nat play ball

2007-07-06T13:59:00.001+08:00

I'm so proud of my little girl! We discovered yesterday that she could pick and throw the ball back at us. Not bad for a 7 1/2-month old, eh?

Show me the money!

2007-07-04T15:06:00.001+08:00

No la... where got money to show? With a baby, what we used to call our "lifestyle fund" has been severely depleted to the point that begs the question : "WHAT lifestyle?"

Anyway, we have to constantly look for ways to spend less so here are a few things we have adopted to save money, pre- & post-parenthood.

The internet - no longer need to buy volumes of encyclopedias or pay for newspapers or spend money on stamps, paper & envelopes
Use open-source software or freeware
CD & DVD burners (read between the lines)
SMS - debatable 'coz some people end up spending more money on an SMS conversation than simply making a short call
Induction cooker (we love ours!)
Digital cameras - no more expensive batteries and film and less printing costs (C'mon, how many people actually print their photos these days?)
Rechargeable batteries for all our remote controls (of which we have several)
Energy-saving bulbs (get some cheap ones from IKEA. RM19.90 for 3!)
Menstrual cups - funny thing is, I only used mine 3 times before I became pregnant
IPL - saves time tweezing & money waxing. Tweeze and wax what you say? Any part with hair la.... Seriously, I'm so glad I did this
LASIK surgery. Okay, a tad extravagant but I'm saving on glasses, lenses, solutions and powered goggles and not to mention the inconvenience in the long run, aren't I?
Laundry balls - With these, I save on detergent as well as softeners. All I need is the hot water from my 5.5kg Electrolux, throw this Magic ball in together with a handful of scrubber balls for good measure and Voila! I have fresh-smelling clean laundry. Come to think of it, are our clothes so dirty that we need to use detergent on a daily basis? 1 Magic Ball cost me less than RM130 and will last for 3 years based on once daily use. That's less than I spend a year on my SA8 and Comfort! Best of all, I can also wash Nat's clothes without worrying about skin irritation caused by detergent
Cloth diapers and I don't mean the normal "lampin". These ones can hold 3-4 times more urine and keep babies' bottoms bone-dry and can even be used at night with an additional insert! I have yet to try them but will be receiving my order come Monday. Can't wait!

Feel free to add your money-saving tips. I'd be more than happy to try them out. In the meantime, I'll wait patiently for us to be able to convert our cars to NGVs. I was told an RM8 full tank gives you 150km mileage and when that runs out, you can switch back to petrol. The only thing you lose out on is boot space.

Material girl

2007-07-03T15:37:00.001+08:00

Nat loves her labels, literally!

Finally defeated...

2007-07-02T21:37:00.001+08:00

Could it be real?

... yup, the "Chu" is finally down!

Strangely enough, she actually fell asleep on her own, right smack on Patrick the dog's red butt! How cute is that?

What's all this fuzz?

2007-06-29T22:25:00.001+08:00

seaweed in the depths of the ocean?

hint: she may be bald but she's utterly cute!

Why I would breastfeed all over again

2007-06-29T20:20:00.001+08:00

Consider these....

Pluses

Bonding - yes, every mum will form the tightest of bonds with her children but the joy in my heart when Nat looks up at me with her innocent eyes and reaches out her hand to receive kisses from me, caress my face or stroke my hair is simply beyond words.
Nutrition. Breastmilk boosts immunity. Period. I know the moment I post this entry, I might kick myself for speaking so soon but Nat has never fallen ill in 7 months although I had a cold while I was on maternity leave and still continued to breastfeed.
Reduces risk of allergies especially if mum herself suffers from them. Yes, Nat does have eczema but it could have been much worse.
Ensures adequate fluid intake.
Convenient, non-messy way of feeding - no need to worry about not having enough hot water / formula if out for longer than expected, less things to pack when going out or travelling.
Does not cramp our lifestyle - read about when we took Nat to the cinema.
No smelly poo until baby starts on solids.
Best way to comfort baby in distress like when I accidentally clipped off a piece of her thumb when cutting her nails. Oops!
Best way to keep baby still, for instance when trimming their hair or nails and applying cream on their faces. Nat just hates anyone touching her face!
The fact that only the mother, and no one else, can actually breastfeed her baby gives her bragging rights and exclusivity. For instance, I have a ready excuse to take Nat away from whomever's carrying her if I ever need one.
Entertainment factor. One only need watch a mother nursing a 4-month old to know what I mean. They start being inquisitive and are no longer just sleeping, eating and pooping machines. The funny antics displayed by Nat during nursing sessions has had me & mum in hysterics.
Good for mummy's health - studies have shown reduced risk of breast cancer & osteoporosis.
Helps mummy lose weight - through having a good diet and the passive calorie-burning (okay, it's been a while since the needle on the scales shifted down but hey, the only things I'm abstaining from are alcohol and caffeine).
A multi-pronged way to save money - on formula (we all know how much they cost), sanitary pads (not having periods is a woman's dream come true!) and doctor's bills for baby.
Forging friendships with like-minded mothers. See: breastfeeding support group.

Minuses

Pain. The initial agony of the first few weeks.
How much? All that worrying about whether the baby is eating enough and not having enough milk supply.
Staring. Have to think about feeding in public (I've become more thick-skinned as a result).
Sleep deficit. Waking up a few times a night to express.
Unless one has ample stock in the fridge or does not mind lugging around a cranky, sleepy baby, breastfeeding curtails night-time outings. But this saves us money too and allows me to be more picky about the invitations we accept.
Teetotal. Having to be careful with my diet in terms of medication and alcohol.
Vaginal dryness. 'Nuff said!
Runny poo for the first 6 months (the baby's, that is!)
Withdrawal symptoms. Just reading Pearl's account about weaning Ian immediately reduced me to tears in anticipation of the end of my wonderful nursing relationship with Nat.

Check out her "lotus root" limbs

I can go on and on but the bottomline is, I have finally found my passion. I'm nuts about my Nat!

Chiang Mai - the sequel

2007-06-21T16:10:00.001+08:00

It was a much-awaited event, the wedding of Teon & Cheryl on 9th June at the Mandarin Oriental Dara Dhevi in Chiang Mai. Apart from being a long overdue holiday with the in-laws (the last time we'd gone anywhere together was 7 years back to Cameron Highlands), hubby & I were excited to take our baby on her first overseas trip and of course, to welcome another sister-in-law into our family.

The two "stars" of the trip. Will upload wedding photos later when we get the professional ones from Cheryl as we were so engrossed in the event that we hardly took any photos

Spending 6 days away from home with a 6-month old was a rather daunting idea to begin with but we thought, what the heck? It's not often we get to go away with the family so why not make the most of it? Moreover, we'll have so many extra pairs of hands to help carry Nat and her tonnes of stuff.

Our princess on her throne at Akaligo Mediterranean restaurant where the buffet lunch was held

The wedding itself was magical to say the least from majestic surroundings and elegant outfits to sublime cuisine and heartwarming speeches. The hotel was easily the most beautiful (although not the most opulent) I've been to so far and service was simply excellent. The magnificent grounds were so spread out that we had to take a buggy everywhere we went. I'm sure the Jim's team (the photographers) had a field day. Teon & Cheryl had a Lanna wedding ceremony steeped in Northern Thai traditions complete with an interpreter to narrate as we went along. Teon even arrived, as regal as a Thai king, on an elephant amidst a procession of dancers, musicians and paraphernalia-bearers.

There was even a wrist-binding ceremony whereby well-wishers tied a piece of string onto the couple's wrists which the couple then had to keep in their pillows for as long as they were married. And no Chinese wedding would be complete without the high-spirited negotiation between the "Chee Muis" and the "Heng Dais" and of course, the requisite Chinese tea ceremony for both families.

The bride resplendent in her "kua"

After the fanfare of Saturday, the rest of our days there were relatively relaxing with the highlight being a Thai culinary class at A Lot of Thai. We all love our Thai food so when Cindy broached the topic, we put in our names almost immediately. The school is run by a very down-to-earth young couple with 2 kids. It was fun, fun, fun! We decided to learn dishes which were native to Chiang Mai so we asked for a tailor-made private class. By the time we cooked the third course, we were all bragging about how our own version was best. Talk about being conceited!

Aprons on

My yummy version of chicken "Kaeng Hang Lay"

I managed to squeeze in 2 sessions of Thai massage but still maintain that I'm more the aromatherapy massage type. The elbow-work is just too scary for me to drift off to la-la-land. Didn't manage to revisit the Raming Tea Lodge and PornPing Palace though.

So what was it like travelling with Nat you ask? Well, for the most part, it was fairly smooth-sailing to my pleasant surprise. Not convenient, but smooth-sailing. I thank God that she was undemanding and allowed everyone to carry her. The only time she fussed a bit was when she was tired. It wasn't too difficult to feed her in public either as I carried the sling with me wherever I went. She was also very good on the plane. Needless to say, she was adored by people everywhere we went. Hubby and I always thought that we think she's cute coz she's our daughter after all but it seems quite a few people share our view too. :) Perhaps it's because of her eye contact with people. The flirt!

Napping on-the-go

However, her routines were disrupted quite a bit and as a result, she became a bit thinner at the end of the trip. All the adults, on the other hand, gained weight. Also, she has also become too used to being carried around so much so it's no longer possible to just lay her down to sleep. My worst fears have been confirmed but what to do?

As for our accommodation at the boutique Tea Vana, the room we got had 2 super single beds so I shared one with Nat while hubby had his all to himself. Since Nat's such a light sleeper, I had to be very careful not to move too much in bed so woke up with a stiff neck every morning.

On the grounds of our hotel

It's fair to say that every one of us enjoyed the whole trip and we're all saving our remaining Baht for a repeat vacation to charming Chiang Mai.

Yo-Ho-Ho and a Bottle of Rum

2007-06-01T14:19:00.001+08:00

A few weeks back I got a call from Sunrise Customer Loyalty Programme staff asking if hubby and I would like to attend the Spiderman 3 premier. Since dad had already gotten us free tickets for that, I asked if they had anything else lined up. She told me there was and so I asked to be invited to that instead.

And so, last night, after putting Nat to bed, we headed down to Cathay Cineleisure for our free buffet dinner and screening of "Pirates of the Caribbean, At World's End" courtesy of Sunrise Berhad. Aren't they simply an ace developer? I'm sure Aileen will agree.

Sad to say dinner was disappointing but I guess can't blame the caterer since there were no cooking or reheating facilities at the Premier Lounge so they could only serve cold, pre-cooked food.

The movie started at 9.30 and went on for almost 3 hours! Good value, you could say, but up until just before the credits roll, I hadn't a clue what the show was about! Maybe not having watched Episode 1 & 2 contributed to my lack of understanding but Hubby, who had just watched the first sequel a few weeks back was almost just as confused as I was. And there I was, thinking it would be an evening of relaxing entertainment that didn't require me to flex my brain muscles.

For those of you who haven't seen the show, I'm not going to spoil it for you and reveal the plot. And don't let my experience deter you, especially those Johnny Depp fans out there (He's so versatile. Hubby and I absolutely love his Tim Burton collaborations especially "Sleepy Hollow"). I've gotta say he's the highlight of the movie and he doesn't even have to try to be funny. He just is! Miss Knightley's character, on the other hand, could've been better cast. I dunno... she just doesn't have Pirate Mojo.

So there you go, my first blog pseudo-review.

What my bored hubby does in his free time

2007-05-30T17:23:00.001+08:00

You must admit, it's quite funny...

Vision restored

2007-05-28T16:03:00.001+08:00

Underwent Lasik surgery last Friday. Hubby was wonderfully supportive. He even accompanied me into the OT. Said it was scarier than my C-section.

Not that I needed someone to lend me courage. I was surprisingly calm and the only time I panicked a little was when I lost my vision for a few seconds as the machine sucked up the cornea tissue before Dr Yeoh created the flap.

The rest of the evening I felt as if I was in a room with a thousand cut onions. Was tearing the whole night and good thing I was given a dose of Stilnox.

The next morning, I could already see quite clearly and the discomfort was more or less gone. I looked fine save for a few burst capillaries (Val says I look like Darth Maul but pointed out to her that it was his pupils that were red and not the surrounding area). Really hope this will clear up by the time we go to Chiang Mai or else I won't look very nice in the family photos. As it is, I'm now having to tell everyone it's NOT conjunctivitis!

Apart from wearing eye shields at night for the past five nights (oh, I hate them so!), I've also had to put 2 kinds of eye drops. One is an antibiotic while the other is an anti-inflammatory.

Bug-eye-boo

I'm glad I chose to have it done at Advance Vision. The whole experience was great. Staff were pleasant and not pushy and Dr Yeoh is a very experienced in this field, having trained under world-reknowned surgeons and worked for 10 years in Ireland. It was when, during my first check-up, he took the time to chat with me and answer all my questions that I was sold on doing it here. What's more, it's his own business so he calls the shots and is not a puppet acting on behalf of investors. Although I went for the microkeratome (i.e. mechanical blade) and not the intralase procedure, I was comforted by the fact that this model of machine has been in use for years with a very high success rate. After all, it's track record, not latest technology, that you want.

I've been wearing glasses for 17 years and contact lenses for 16 years so I forget how it feels not to be myopic. Now everytime I wake up (which is like 5 times a day - once in the morning and at least 4 times at night), I'm like "Darn, did I forget to remove my lenses again?".

I can see clearly now the rain is gone...

A few more firsts...

2007-05-28T16:00:00.001+08:00

Wrote this draft more than a month ago but didn't have time to edit and post till now...

Have started showering Nat (as opposed to bathing) to prepare her for our Chiang Mai trip. I sure ain't gonna lug a baby bathtub all the way there! She was bewildered at first when I placed the shower over her head but she soon learned to bow her head so the water did not enter her eyes, nose and mouth. It's not easy holding up a wet and slippery baby I tell you, but I think Nat enjoyed the sensation of the shower spray. She kept holding out her hands to catch the water.

Last Saturday, Dad got us free tickets, complete with popcorn and drink each, for Spiderman 3 at TGV KLCC. Since it was a family affair, decided to bring Nat too. So it was the first time for both me and her at the cinema since her birth. It was a 2.30 movie so we settled into our seats at 2.15. It was almost feeding time but Nat's eyes were riveted to the screen, enthralled by the non-stop flashing of trailers and ads. She must have been thinking "What an awesome TV!". Val called to her several times before she turned to give a consolation glance and immediately swung back to face the screen.

A few minutes into the show, she started to fidget, looking for food so I fed her. In the dark, sandwiched between hubby and Val, I didn't have to feel at all embarassed about pulling up my blouse and nursing Nat. Ah... the beauty of breastfeeding... There were times when I could see her eyes wide open wondering what the noise at the front was.

She fell asleep after a while and I let her comfort suck for approx 45 minutes. Had to cover her ears in case she got woken up by the loud surround sounds though. When she woke up, she watched the rest of she show together with us and towards the end, during a part with dialogue, started babbling quite loudly and I had to silence her by nursing again. A few people behind us giggled though. All-in-all, a good experience though tiring when I cradled her to sleep as the seats were so narrow I couldn't rest my arms well.

Also began feeding her solids this week. I know she's barely 5-and-a-half months but there seems to be no satiating her appetite with only milk anymore. Decided to start out with organic brown rice cereal from Country Farms. She loves it! The instant I put the spoon into her mouth, there was no turning back. She kept lunging forward for more. I couldn't even spoon the cereal fast enough for her! Su says that she looked like a frog attacking an insect. So bad!!

Midnight ramblings

2007-05-10T15:14:00.001+08:00

You are so beautiful
I wish you'll just stay the way you are
So tiny, so helpless, so dependent on me
Growing right before my eyes
Everyday you learn more and more
Someday you will no longer need me
and though you will make me proud,
the thought saddens me
I know I will have to eventually let go of you
but I don't want to
I can't bear the thought of you leaving me
I want to protect you from everything cruel
My hope is for you to be a good person
with strong values
and a love of God
No matter what
always know that my love for you
will only grow with each passing moment

Finnegan begin again

2007-04-23T22:10:00.001+08:00

The week just past was one of many firsts.

I'm relieved to announce that Monday was the first time Nat slept through the night. Put her to bed at 7-ish and she didn't cry till 5am. Yup, 10 straight hours without a feed! Of course, that feat hasn't been repeated since but still, she has been relatively good. Last night it was 9 hours. I won't be as optimistic as to believe that my sleepless nights have come to an end but I'm hopeful that if she can do it once, she can do it again. It's also reassuring to know that my efforts in sleep-training her have paid off and she's capable of having long uninterrupted rest on some nights at least. So all that screaming and crying were not in vain after all.

Wednesday was the first time I had taken a day off work since I returned from maternity leave. It was Nat's inaugural trip to the photo studio to get her passport photo taken. I brought along her bumbo seat and it made the shoot a breeze. Someone should think of promoting them to photo studios. She looked straight at the camera and had good posture. However, instead of a smile, she had this bewildered look on her face.

Then we went to Fit For 2 in Bangsar (our first time too) for the free mummy & baby Fitball trial class. Met Pipa & Tara there but unfortunately, too many people signed up for the class so as coordinator, Pipa graciously made way for the other attendees. Ee Ran's right, Fit For 2's such a baby-friendly and sparklingly clean place! The class was lots of fun and for the most part, Nat seemed to think so too. My fitness levels are at an all-time low but that didn't stop me from singing along with Debbra during the cardio workout. She said in all the years she has been teaching fitness classes, no one had ever joined her in song.

After that, took Nat home and brought MIL out for a Yong Tow Foo lunch and a 2-hr massage session afterwards. It was a belated birthday treat from hubby and me. We tried Zen Soul in DSH for the first time and glad to say we were not disappointed. Plus there was a 30% happy hours discount from 11am to 3pm so took advantage of that.

On Thursday, Su reported that Nat managed to hold her bottle without any help for the first time! It's moments like these that make me wish so much I was a SAHM. I wonder what other firsts I will miss out on?

The weekend was also adventurous to say the least. We woke up early Saturday morning to attend the Ibu charity jumble sale at their Damansara Heights premises. Was debating whether or not to bring Nat but it was a good thing she was still sleeping when we left the house. With all the stalls set up along the side of the bungalow, some under tents, the crowd and heat were smothering and I wouldn't have been able to browse in comfort carrying her.

Hubby and I actually arrived at Ibu 5 minutes before they let the crowd in, talk about "Kiasu". We were given 2 goodie bags upon presentation of our tickets and were asked to buy a few more lucky-draw tickets at RM2 each for charity so with hubby's prompting, I contributed an extra RM10. Flo arrived soon after and it was also my first time seeing her as a mother-to-be (Yes people, she's 11 weeks pregnant!).

Having a good idea of what to look for, I zoomed in on the only Baby Bjorn around and made no hesitation in asking for it. So desperate was I, I didn't even bargain but at RM100 and in good condition, it was nothing short of a steal. It's by far the most superior baby carrier I've come across and till now, I'm still darn pleased with the purchase. Apart from that, I picked up some Milton tablets (will need those for Chiang Mai), 3 bibs with sleeves (they're ace!), a baby ring float and a cloth book (another thing I was on the lookout for). Flo picked up some good bargains too.

Along the way, met Pipa & Tara and Julia, who was on duty at the gate. Also bumped into Eunice & Tammy (baby Lucas) from Fitball class. Ee Ran came later when I was almost done. My neighbour Dolly at Plaza Mont' Kiara was also there promoting her Embun day spa.

We left at 11.15 and hubby took me for yummy char siew fan at Happy Mansion. Again a first for me. Halfway through our meal, Melissa from Ibu called to say that I had won a free lunch worth RM50 at Fit For 2. However, we had to pick it up before the end of the sale or else she would have to give it away to someone else. Of course we went back! Since I was there, I went on another round just to see if there were any last-minute bargains. Two minutes later, I got another call saying I had won 4 music classes at Gymboree worth RM180! Double whammy! Not bad for RM10, eh?

Later in the afternoon, I packed Nat into the car and went for a free trial Musikgarten class at Character Forever in SS2. It was a half-hour sing-along session led by a qualified Musikgarten teacher. The title of this blog, in case you're wondering, is inspired by one of the phrases we were taught to chant to the babies. Nat was quiet all through the session but when we were done and there was no more music, she began yelling for a good 15 mins, as though to get everyone singing again. It was quite enjoyable but I'm not sure whether it was the syllabus or the fact that I got to meet up with Ee Ran & Brandon, Jessica & Evan and Soo Ching & Niklaus. Nat kept smiling at Brandon and Niklaus. She's quite the flirt! In any case, don't think I'll sign up for the classes now. First of all, it's too late in the afternoon. Secondly, I think she's too young to understand anything despite all the mumbo-jumbo they claim so I'm only paying for myself to learn the songs, really. Lastly, I don't feel like committing to something every week at this point, especially when weekends are my only time to spend as I like.

Later that night, Michelle & Marc (more like Michelle only) gave us (& Keat & Chris & Soo Ching) a treat at this place in Bandar Baru Selayang called Chef Tam. You pick the seafood from Jin Chwan down the road and bring it there to be cooked. Not bad! We would go back there. But the bill must have come up to quite a bit since we had snow crabs.

Sunday morning, FIL had made prior arrangements for us to go for a walk in the park (first time for Nat). Actually, more like him pushing Nat in the stroller and leaving us behind. He was such a proud grandfather. Kept stopping to take videos of her and comparing her with every other baby there. It was my first time jogging in probably a year and it was terrible. Not that I was out of breath (in fact, I was pleasantly surprised that I still had some stamina) but I had never been so well-endowed before and my sports top obviously did not have much support. Luckily I brought a towel which I draped around my neck so I ended up having to hold on to both ends while pressing down on my chest to stop it from jiggling! See, the grass is not always greener on the other side...

Nat's favourite position

2007-04-11T16:47:00.001+08:00

My weird daughter

Babies galore!

2007-04-11T15:44:00.001+08:00

And now for part II of our KL/Ipoh/Penang/London/NZ group gathering before the Londoners returned to their coop. This time in place of Siau Yen & Yoke Lim, we had Christine & Aileen. Kit Mun could only show up much later when most of the others had left.

This time we did a potluck at our place. There was Lydia's pasta that was wiped out soon after it was placed on the table, Tim's oh-so-silky braised chicken & salt-baked fish, hubby's tasty thai grilled chicken, su's sambal sotong that teamed excellently with MIL's nasi lemak while An Pheng tossed a salad and brought ice cream. Oh yes, Tim contributed a pannatone all the way from Milan too!

Later we had a photo session of all the babies with their respective mummies/granny & daddies. The biggest baby of all was Aileen of course!

The camaraderie was fantastic to say the least, with our small living & dining area being filled with adult chatter & babies babbling at the top of their voices. Looks like Krysta had also staked her claim on Dennis as she warmed up to him & started following him around the house. Actually I have a sneaking suspicion that it was mummy Yee Peng who conspired the whole thing as she had to hold Krysta's hands while the latter "chased" Dennis around.

All-in-all, a fantastic gathering & one that will stay for a long time in our memories.
Thank you, ladies & gentlemen!

Everyone's a fan of the fan!

Cayden helping himself to the Bumbo

The 2 heartthrobs of the party

Aileen's maternal instincts are showing

The babies with their mummies....

.... and daddies

4 months 22 days

2007-04-10T15:03:00.001+08:00

I've finally decided to supplement Nat's feeds with formula. The night feeds are taking its toll on me. I've not had a good night's sleep in yonks. My milk supply seems to be diminishing even though I'm breastfeeding as often as I can and exclusively on weekends. But contrary to the theory, my supply isn't increasing to meet her demand.

It's vicious cycle indeed. Not enough milk during pumping sessions means I have to wake up every 2 hrs at night to pump & when I do that, I don't get enough sleep so my milk supply dwindles. At the same time, since I either pump before the night feeds or pump & feed simultaneously, Nat doesn't get enough to eat at any one time so she has to wake up more often & that disrupts her sleep.

Have tried to night-wean her but with little success. The few times I let her cry it out till she fell back asleep, I was so anguished by her cries that I cried along with her. Now, she already knows I'm there but hiding from her each time she cries, so she gets angry and can go on forever.

The longest I've managed to get her to go without a feed at night is 5 hours, with 4 being the ideal for me since I can wake up & pump in between & still have full breasts for her next feed. However sometimes she gets overtired & falls back into her 2/2.5 hr routine. It's times like these that i feel I'm failing to be a good mother.

So anyway, 2 nights ago, hubby & I trudged (me with a heavy heart) off to Guardian to get some Enfalac. That night I brought hot water & formula with me to bed & when she stirred at 12.30, I promptly made her a bottle. She drank 1.5oz before she realised it was not the usual menu & then gave a shudder & spat out the teat.

Then last night, I got Su to feed her the formula & put her to bed. She only took 4 out of the 5oz I prepared and woke up 3.5 hours after. Looks like formula doesn't necessarily keep the infant full to sleep through the night. Either that or I have a greedy baby. I still woke up at 2+ and 5+ and then 7+. So much for supplementing!

Bumbo bee!

2007-03-26T15:25:00.001+08:00

My daughter so loves her Bumbo seat. Sure hope she makes it worth the RM179.90 we paid for it!

Say a little prayer for me

2007-02-27T21:51:00.001+08:00

Saw this cluster of what we thought were large black ants on my guest room window but upon closer inspection...

yup, little praying mantises!

Call me 'jakun' but it was my first time seeing them this small, they looked almost cute. We spotted the larvae sticking on the pane a couple of days ago and couldn't figure out what it was.

Pretty as a picture

2007-02-27T15:53:00.001+08:00

Still haven't managed to get Nat's new pics uploaded so here are a few teasers stolen from Julian's photoblog. Check out his other shots too. Way cool...

Astronomical!

2007-02-17T13:05:00.001+08:00

We finally had Astro installed yesterday. Yes, believe it or not hubby and I have lived without satellite TV for 30 years! He made me vow not to let the TV rule our lives from now on but when I asked him to do me a favour, he asked if it required him to leave the telly. The cheek of him!

A recent email to a friend

2007-02-12T20:19:00.001+08:00

Have not had any time to write new entries so here's an excerpt from one of the more recent emails I've written just to update my blog a bit.

Hi H,

I know exactly what u mean about your daily achievements revolving around how much you yield from your pumping sessions. Mine have been even less successful than yours but with the night pumping sessions in between feeds, I somehow miraculously have just enough to meet her daily needs when I'm at work. Granted, I do supplement on the odd day when she's unusually hungry or if I'm out longer than expected and didn't prepare an extra bottle of EBM.

Knowing that she's growing from consuming only mostly my milk, it's just so worth the effort. However my supply appears to have plateaued so I'm not sure how long more I can continue to exclusively breastfeed. I'm trying to stock up my freezer but can only put aside an extra bottle or two per week.

I've tried every natural breastmilk-supply remedy that I've heard of including consuming turmeric juice, baby shark, steamed fish, papaya soup, fenugreek, milkmaid tea, groundnut soup & blackbean soup, peanut butter, milk and oats but I can't say for sure if any of them really work. At the moment I boil papaya soup with elephants' ears, ginger, fish and groundnuts twice weekly and also just started drinking an infusion of fenugreek & fennel a few times daily. If there's any improvement at all, I'm not even sure if it's real or merely psychological.

Oh yes, a friend of mine says she finds eating lots of celery & having sex boosts her supply plenty but i've not tried that myself (where she found the time & energy for that is beyond me). I also read somewhere that dried oyster soup does the trick (boil it like ikan bilis soup). The Malays believe that pegaga (alfalfa?) juice also works.

I'm sure you know that you should not stop the nighttime feeds in order for your breastmilk supply to continue and also to nurse exclusively during the weekends right? Have you also tried breast massage before nursing or pumping & lying while feeding at night so as to get more rest? The latter doesn't work for me though. I still prefer sitting up to nurse as I have to burp Nat after each feeding or she'll regurgitate.

At the end of the day, if you've tried all the above & your supply is still dwindling, be proud that you've succeeded in giving your son the best for almost 6 mths. That's what I keep telling myself & it's a lot more than most mothers can admit to doing. I presume you'll be starting him on semi-solids soon?

Exclusive breastfeeding is no easy feat and there are also hazards that come with it as I recently found out. You see, I've been having this chronic pain in my right wrist for almost 6 weeks and 3 weeks ago, it turned up on my left wrist too. It turns out that I have de Quervain's tendonitis, a syndrome akin to carpal tunnel and not uncommon in breastfeeding mothers. It's an inflammation of the tendon that causes pain when I flex my wrist and extend my thumb and especially hurts when I carry Nat by picking her up under her arms. The change in our hormones during pregnancy cause us to have lax muscles so that's why there's a tendency for mothers to have it if we carry our newborns too much.

I kept putting off going to see the doctor in hopes that either the pain would go away (read that it sometimes does) or I would get used to it but the tendons just got more aggravated. The pain was so debilitating that I couldn't write properly, grasp things or unhook my bra without wincing. Then it dawned upon me that Natalie was not getting any lighter and if I was to pay for treatment, I might as well seek it now. I finally went to an orthopaedic today and got a jab in each of the wrists. Hurt like hell (nothing compared to the doctor's bill though) but the pain has subsided somewhat. Also have to wear a splint on both hands and rest them a lot for at least 6 weeks.

Nat also has mild eczema and i was so sad when the doc told me coz i also have eczema and can emphathise with her. That was one of the reasons i was so dead set on breastfeeding and after all that trying, she still got it. She only has it on her face for now but I'm afraid it will affect other parts of her body too. Sometimes she uses her mitten-ed hands to scrub her face and it becomes reddish. The doc gave me some cream but i'm not using it as it contains steroids. i've been using steroid creams and they thin the skin. Much too strong for a baby. Trying out some eczema remedy products from buds baby (a local company. check out http://www.budsbaby.com/. however, the eczema products are new so not on the site yet) as they contain mild and natural ingredients. So far the moisturiser works well to keep the patches hydrated so she doesn't itch so much. If u want, I can buy and send to you for you to try. Hope your son's eczema heals soon. Take care!

How do I love her? Let me count the ways...

2007-02-12T20:13:00.001+08:00

I love her...

sweet baby scent

big round eyes

long fingers & toes

hairy ears & shoulders (she was my little hobbit but not anymore)

receding hairline and high forehead

long eyelashes that curl at the end

big toothless grin

chubby arms and thighs

pouts when she's about to cry

girlish little voice

fake attention-seeking cries

lazy cat stretches & back arches

wide hearty yawns

rapid breaths when she's deep in slumber

cute-sounding hiccups

Not to mention ...

The way she attacks anyone like Woody Woodpecker when she's hungry (she has outgrown this too)

How her head flops around in all directions when she's sleepy

How her mouth forms a tiny 'O' when she appears to be contemplating

The way she laughs aloud in her dreams

Her many facial contortions, especially when she's about to do a No. 2

How she gazes intently at me and gives me the sweetest smile, sometimes a shy one when i'm feeding her

How she sleeps with her arms above her head, without a care in the world

How her right ear folds in 2 when she's lying on that side

The way her tiny hand grips my finger and pumps it

How she steals a smile after she's finished feeding

Her look of contentment when she's in the bath

Watching her perform her strong kicks & punches in developing her motor skills

How she hates being restrained whether in the car seat or being cuddled too tightly

When she partakes in a frowning contest

Post-partum

2006-12-18T13:36:00.001+08:00

It's now 28 days since I was pregnant and here are a few physiological changes I've noticed.

The good news is, breathing is so much easier now that I don't have the extra baggage competing for space with the rest of my organs. This means that I can now go back to sleeping on my back without feeling like I have a boulder on top of me. Also my bladder seems to have regained its normal capacity and then some. It's like a bottomless pit, pretty much like my daughter's stomach. I'm amazed at how much fluid I can drink without having to go to the loo.

On the negative side, my looks have taken a complete nosedive and I don't mean from the time before I got pregnant.

The past few weeks in confinement have moulded me into the perfect personification of "Aunty" with shaggy, dishevelled hair, a double chin and upper arms that wave in the wind. My derrierre is even bigger now than when pregnant. I'm serious! Pants that I was able to wear right up till delivery are now bursting below the midsection onwards. I fear I may never again wear anything without elastic waistbands, never mind my size 27 levi's.

I also have a belly button the size of a grapefruit and stretch marks that make my tummy look like something out of a geography textbook. I dunno... maybe it's the lack of sunshine or polluted air or something and the moment I can step outdoors, the fat will miraculously melt away. There's hope yet... NOT!!

The only thing that has increased in size that I don't quite mind are (surprise, surprise!), my mammary glands. But with the extra weight and the constant feeding and not to mention that nursing bras do not exactly have the best support, gravity has become my boobs' biggest enemy. Oh well, I am a cow, for now anyway!