Monday, December 12, 2011

Sunday Activities

Woke up this morning feeling not so well-rested. Hubby had crashed next to us after burning the midnight oil finishing his report. Khayla was already awake and doing her favorite activity - standing and holding to the bed head. Thinking to tease her, I shifted over to hubby and cuddled up to him - and as expected, Khayla felt left out and started to crawl over and try to get between us. She is such a jealous baby. Camane la nak ada adik ni?

Morning activity is the same. Prepared porridge for my little girl (broccoli, carrot and blended anchovies), and while waiting for it to cook, bathed her. Khayla soon started to crawl after me and whine for food after her bath - so I gave her a plate of chopped banana which she contentedly ate and afterwards, played with while sitting in her baby chair. After she had had enough of banana, I scooped some porridge and we settled down in front of the idiot box watching Babytv while having a proper breakfast.

Hubby had to leave for a group discussion and there was just the two of us to continue with the day. After finishing her porridge, she nuzzled closer for a cuddle and a round of breastfeeding session. After she dozed off, I put her down and went to hand wash her clothes - then put them for a spin in the washing machine. By that time, Khayla had woken up only to find Mommy is not around. It was already 12pm, I scooped her up and then brought her to the guest room to iron our clothes - we were going to a kenduri kahwin in Bukit Damansara.

After that, I had to leave Khayla by herself while I took a quick shower. She was in full tantrum mode by the time I was done, and yet I could not pick her up because I had to: 1) put on my clothes, 2) re-heat her porridge, 3) prepare a bottle of formula milk for the journey, 4) store the warm porridge in a container for the journey 5) pack her bag, 6) put on some makeup and my headscarf, 7) put everything in a carrier bag ready for the trip. After all was done, then only I picked up my crying little girl and changed her into a matching outfit ;)

Then we went down to the car, but once I had settled Khayla in her car seat, I couldn't find the GPS holder - then I remembered it was on the fridge (dammit!). So I made a quick dash (it was drizzling some more!) back to home (with Khayla) to fetch the GPS holder, and also to fetch her dummy. After she was settled down for the second time in her seat, I noticed that one of her sandals is missing. So it was a third trip to trace the sandal (without Khayla this time). By the time I went back to the car, my little girl was crying - again.

All set and done, we drove off to our first destination - the petrol station to fill up on fuel. Then, to the gift shop to get a wedding gift. After all that needed to be done was completed, then we set off.

It was lucky that I simulated the journey before we went for the trip because most of the journey, the GPS was not working. It is the stupidest GPS navigator I've ever invested in (it's called Papago, installed on iPhone 4). So I had to rely on my memory to reach the destination, based on the journey simulation.

We reached there at almost 2pm, Khayla had fallen asleep in the car after a bottle of milk and a nibble on a biscuit (she dozed off while holding the biscuit - such a dear sight). Getting out of the car while holding the baby, a bag and the gift was a chore - luckily I got a parking close to the entrance.

Khayla was hungry when she woke up and she ate a good deal of her porridge. After the wedding, she was in a better mood and she fell asleep again during the journey back. We decided to stop by at a bakery to order her first birthday cake this coming 15th. Gosh, I get teary-eyed whenever I think of my little baby who is growing up into a little girl. I wished we could spend a lot more time because I never get tired of my little baby.

We reached home at almost 4pm. By that time, I was tired and my hands were aching. After settling down a bit, we both took an afternoon nap - such a wonderful nap it was!

Never will I venture out of the house with only the two of us - it's too tiring! So, how's your weekend, my friends? :)

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Monday, November 28, 2011

Rantings of a Mommy

Okay, I'm going to admit something. I hate BabyTV. But I love it (for Khayla's sake). And I hate it too. Strange, eh? Khayla only stops wriggling and resisting any attempts to feed her when the channel is turned on. She'll go into this zombie mode - glassy eyes absorbing the Hippa Hippa Hey or Oliver the Discoverer or whatever, and her mouth automatically opening without even seeing the spoon reaching her mouth. Then she'll chew chew chew (or if there's a baby song playing, her mouth will stay still full of food, and when the song is over then only she'll start chewing) without even tasting the food.

If I'm in my easy-peasy Mommy mode, I simply can't thank BabyTV enough for keeping my precious occupied while I hurriedly feed her, or zoom around the house getting things done. But most of the time, I prefer that she crawls around, exploring and learning rather than become a tv addict. So, there. The story of my love-hate feeling with BabyTV.

Talking about Khayla, she has been feeling rather unwell for the past few days. It started when I had to travel overnight to KK. I thought it'd be fine - she had started on formula milk a couple of weeks now so no issue of milk supply like last time. In fact, when we were Skype-ing, Khayla did not even bother to look at me frantically waving and calling out her name. She was just busy with the remote control or the tv console (do you know that babies her age are busier than a CEO?).

But that night, Khayla was down with fever and the next day, she was lethargic and slept the whole day at the nursery (according to her Daddy of course). Apparently Khayla is still having problems to detach herself from Mommy. So there goes our long weekend plan. When Khayla is sick, she changes into this overbearing child - who can't be left alone, needs to be cuddled all the time, needs Mommy's breast all the time, and to put it frankly, she becomes a whiny and tearful baby when she's awake.

I love my baby very much nothing in this world will make me want to part from her, but when she's in this mode I wished that daycare is open during weekend so I can get some needed rest. Do you know how stressful is Mommy's occupation, cupcake? Can't you just give me a 5 minutes break?

By the way, if you are wondering how then I get to write down this whole entry, she's currently having a nap (praying it will be for a couple of hours, but she just coughs and whines and stays quiet so probably her Daddy is lying down beside her till she falls asleep again) and I'm a really fast typist, so there. Phew. Oh yes, I haven't had any breakfast because I was busy trying to catch a moment here and there to fix her breakfast, do laundry and fold clothes. Let alone do my assignment or revision for an upcoming quiz next weekend.

Take a deep breath and try to do one thing at a time. Brunch first. Then study (if Khayla is still asleep). Toodles!

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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Where weekends are my favourite days of the week

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I had been keeping this too long in the draft mode that I forgot about this entry. Time to get it out for memory's sake ;) World, cherish your family!
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I had had a good weekend these couple of weeks. A good weekend means quality time I spent with both Suami Terchenta and our precious little baby.

To me, no matter how crappy the week had felt like, I must put in efforts to make my little girl happy. Surprisingly it has been easy to put away any ill-feelings I harboured throughout the week and don my 'World's Fun-nest Mommy' mode.

Just seeing the joy and happiness in my baby's eyes made me forget about work and instead concentrated to live in the moment watching my baby grow in front of my very own eyes.

Last week for example we brought Khayla to Snowalk, i-City in Shah Alam for some fun family outing. Khayla being the cold weather fan baby, didn't complain being subjected to minus 0 degrees but it was obvious it was not her cuppa tea either. She hardly smiled, maybe because she found it impossible to reach out to the snow, being wrapped up in multiple layers of clothing:



She was nevertheless fascinated with the lights and I was pretty sure she would grab those lit-up ice carvings if she could free her hands from the thick jackets.

Before we went home, we stopped by Fruitty-tutty for some ice-cream treat. Khayla enjoyed herself in the shop because she got to sit on a grown-up chair:



It was probably the highlight of her trip, much better than the freezing Snowalk or the lights walk we took later.

This week, we didn't go anywhere but we brought her down to the swimming pool for some splashing fun. The last time she went into the pool was when she was 4 or 5 months old. I brought her toy duck and she loved chasing after the duck in the water.

Unfortunately Khayla outgrown her water instinct and she had learnt that water could be nasty. So when I tried to put her on her back so she could float, she wriggled and stiffened her body. She also tried to lift her head up because she hated water going into her ears. There goes her water baby nature...

Today, we brought her for brunch at PappaRich nearby our house. She enjoyed her bun and even shrieked along to Celine Dion belting out her evergreen songs. Khayla could be really boisterous too.

In the evening I brought her to play at the playground. To summarise, she loves the swing and hates everything else. We also brought her to visit Che Mat's family and she loved Kak CT's boys, and vice versa.

Truth is, I wished we could have a lot more weekends like what we had this week. C'est la vie people!

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Monday, November 14, 2011

Parenting dilemma

Dear Internet,

Today I scolded my 10-month old baby. She was playing near the TV and tried to pull out the Astro card. I called her name several times but she was preoccupied in the way a 10-month old usually is. In the end, I said loudly and in a sharp tone, 'HEPP!!'

Khayla was startled. A moment later, she started to wail in fear - she has recognised when Mommy gets angry Mommy's voice will be scary and loud. It's so disheartening to see my little baby has started to fear me. It took her Daddy to pujuk and calm her down.

This was not the first time I showed anger to her. Yesterday when she refused to eat her meal and threw her spoon down, I scolded her. I pretended to hit her food tray, setting her in tears. I put Khayla on the floor and when she crawled to me, I refused to pick her up. She sobbed and then reached out to my hand - as if begging me to forgive her and also make everything fine again for her. I let her cry for half a minute before I took her tiny hand in mine. When I think about the way I punished my baby for being exactly who she is - a baby, I feel terrible and awful.

Not enough with that, I threatened her emotionally by saying bye-bye when she refused to listen to me calling her name. She knows bye-bye means I'm going away, which she hates. So she immediately looked up to me to make sure I wasn't. I knew then even when it seems harmless to trick her, it means for a second her heart was stricken at the thought of Mommy leaving her like Mommy always does in the morning on weekdays.

Dear Khayla,

Mommy wants you to know how deeply sorry I am for being a terrible mother who instead of showing you the right behaviour, punishes you through scoldings and emotional conflicts. I'm sorry baby. You're just a 10-month old baby who is still discovering your surrounding and has little understanding of the concept of rights and wrongs. All you understand is how much Mommy and Daddy love you and anything that contradicts with that knowledge of yours are surely frightening to you.

I love you to bits, my daughter.

Full of regrets Mom,
Me

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Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Jenjalan di Sasana Kijang

Weekend lepas entah kenapa aku tetiba rajin. Rajin pergi kelas (itu terpaksa, sebab kelas ganti!). Rajin basuh baju, memasak, mop lantai, jaga anak, blablabla. Wah, isteri sapa la ni kan? *mata bersinar-sinar penuh bersemangat waja*

Untuk menambahkan tahap kerajinan minggu ni, aku rajin juga mengajak Kak Ret pergi berfoya-foya. Ecey. Takde la berfoya-foya tapi berjalan-jalan je. Ekceli, nak ajak shopping di Sogo sebab nak sambar cadar dan tuala mandi baru sempena kedatangan family aku minggu ni dan juga ada clearance sales.

Tapi alang-alang menyeluk pekasam, Kak Ret terus la mengajak pulak ke Sasana Kijang lepak-lepak di situ. So apa lagi, tak penah lagi jejak kaki ke situ walaupun sebelah dengan UM City Campus tempat menuntut ilmu. Lagipun En Suami Terchenta ada kuiz keesokannya, maka aku pun merasakan beliau perlu bersendirian supaya dapat konsentret belajar untuk kuiz itu. Wasey, bertuah tak En Junaidix dapat isteri cam aku? Hehehe *jeling En Suami Terchenta*

So melepak la kami berempat di Sasana Kijang. Eh, berempat? Siapakah dua orang lagi tu? Aku, Kak Ret dan...

Shai dan Khayla

Jeng3x! Tu dia... bakal pengantin yang diimport khas untuk menjaga anak aku, Khayla. Tengok la betapa suker nya Khayla duduk bersandar di pangkuan Uncle Shai yang empuk. AHAHAHAHAHA! Shai, aku gurau je ye. Ko jangan marah pulak. Aku pun spesies empuk gak *nangis ke-sejuta kali terkenangkan zaman anak dara yang fewittt*

Ahem. Aku harap tiada sesiapa yang terluka melihat gambar ni. Saja nak tunjuk pemandangan di belakang je. Dua orang dewasa dan seorang bayi ini tiada sebarang pertalian darah mahupun ikatan ye. Model hiasan gambar semata-mata.

Camtu la suasana di Kafe Sasana Kijang. Best sebab moden. Makanan pun murah. Terbelalak mata sebab spaghetti bolognese cuma RM5.50. Kat KLCC ada??? Jangan harap.

Anyway dah puas mengalas perut, kami pun beransur ke muzium di Tingkat 2. Muzium duit kekdahnya.

Shai tengah usha mesin interaktif tentang sistem pertukaran barter sebelum orang terfikir nak buat mata wang

Cengginilah muzium zaman sekarang. Interaktif. Barulah ada orang nak datang. Tapi sebab Sasana ni baru bukak, jadi tak ramai orang tau pasal muzium ni. Rasa kesian pun ada sebab muzium  yang begitu canggih tapi lengang. Tak buat promotion ke?

Aku terkagum-kagum dengan mata wang pitis ni. Cuba imagine bawak duit cenggini ke pasar, mesti ada alasan beli beg oversize nak taruk serumpun duit syiling ni. Setiap kali nak guna, patahkan sekeping syiling bagi kat makcik jual kuih. Dah abis syiling, buang ranting. Cenggitu ye?

Ada penerangan tentang setiap versi duit syiling dari setiap negeri. Rasa bangga pulak sebab duit syiling Sarawak zaman Brooke dulu yang paling banyak variasi - ada yang bentuk segi empat, bulat, bulat ada lubang kat tengah, heksagon dan macam-macam ada!

Masih ingatkan anda masa kita gunakan duit kertas cenggini? Bila letak sebelah-menyebelah, kiteorang sedar yang bukan setakat nilai duit yang makin mengecik, saiz duit kertas pun makin kecik. Dulu duit RM50 25% lebih besar dari duit RM50 sekarang. Mungkin in the future tak pakai duit kertas lagi, tapi pakai virtual currency je? Hmm... Renung-renungkan.

Oh, cenggini rupa duit syiling siri ketiga yang akan diperkenalkan Januari tahun depan. Canggih. I loike! :) Cuma, sebelum bagi duit tukar 20 sen tu, kene double triple check tak terbagi 50 sen sebab saiz dekat2 syiling 20 sen sekarang je. Kan ke dah cakap duit sekarang makin kecik??

Lastly, ni ialah gambar Kak Ret di muzium. Wah, ada gambar korang terpampang di muzium? Tak de kan?Dahsyat ye Kak Ret. Tapi kan, bukan ke yang kat muzium tu cuma ada spesies yang dah pupus, expired dan tinggal kenangan je? Kak Ret, jangan sentaps! Gurau je ye! Hehehehe... *tetau esok jugak Kak Ret datang balik ke Sasana dan cabot semua gambar dia*

Anyway, best jugak sekali-sekala spend weekend gi muzium. Banyak benda baru yang diperolehi. Khayla siap tertido-tido dalam baby sling sebab aircond yang dingin. Hehe. Apapun, thanks Kak Ret sebab belanja makan dan ajak kiteorang ke sini :) A different experience, tapi still tetap fun!

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