Durra Elfieya is 1 year old

Wooow… the most anticipating day of the year is actually today.. I really can’t believe it that Durra Elfieya is 1 year old today.. TODAY.. Syukur Alhamdulillah.. Plus, today is 2 Rejab already...

01 - The pregnancy experience

Uncle Din and I had our 1^st Eid together in Kelantan and we travel to his hometown by bus. I was already vomiting that night and was not in great condition to fast. The vomiting continued during our stay and kinda spoilt my Eid. Everyone had the same notion but I beg to differ; fear of another frustration. Upon our return to Shah Alam, I was confirmed to be pregnant.

The 1^st trimester was hard, very hard. Constant vomiting throughout the day pulls my weight down until I was at 4 months. I could not stand the smell and thought of many foods especially rice and oily food. I was so frail and at the mercy of food’s aroma. But Allah SWT is truly fair and kind. My health improved and got better upon entering 2^nd trimester. By the end of my pregnancy, I was as healthy as a horse carrying an excess of 27kg. 

02 - The labor experience

I opted to have my tummy checked every 3 days as an attempt to monitor the baby’s heartbeat after hearing too many horror stories of stillborn babies. It was Wednesday May 18, 2011 when I went for a CTG at DEMC accompanied by Uncle Din. The nurse confirmed that I have dilated 1cm and advised me to practice a lot of walk. Hereinafter, I went to office as usual and walked to and fro (from the parking lot to the RND building). Many of my colleagues were frightened when I told them of my current condition. They ‘chased’ me out and ask me to go home. Funny…

CTG @ DEMC : 18 May 2011 9.20 am

I experienced 2 false alarms:-

1^st : I thought I was in labor when actually I urinated in my sleep. Uncle Din laughed so hard that tears were falling down his cheeks.

2^nd: I really thought I was in labor when actually I was experiencing constipation. Again… Uncle Din laughed at me so hard that he literally he could felt his kidney aching. 

The actual leaking took place on Sunday May 22, 2011 at 12.00am midnight. We just finished watching Futurama and tucked ourselves in bed when I felt as if I urinated again. But this time, my water really broke and we head straight to DEMC in the middle of the night. Apparently my dilation was at 2cm and I was detained by the nurses. The actual pain began at 6.30am when I was around 3cm. Subhanallah…. Nothing can beat labor pain. It is truly the most excruciating pain ever existed in life! I felt like dying with the following hours spent in trepidation. Though received a dosage of pethidine and ethonox, it had no effect on reducing the pain in anyway. Finally, I opted to have epidural after hours of battling the contraction.

Post labor @ 3.20pm

Piya's very 1st photo

I vouch the truth in people’s saying; giving birth was like passing stool. If you feel that, then you’re ready to push. Syukur Alhamdulillah I successfully delivered Piya at 3.07 pm on May 23, 2011. She is the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen in my entire life. So tiny and delicate. It is really hard to believe that such a tiny creature has been living inside my enormous tummy. I kept rubbing my tummy feeling the hollow that took place. The following hours were spent in anxiety as apprehension was never far from one’s mind pondering on the obligations that awaits. 

03 - The 2 months puerperium

I had my confinement regime 2 weeks in Shah Alam and continued 3 weeks in Kelantan under the care of my MIL. The 2 school of thoughts that greatly contradict each other was truly confusing. My mother said there’s no such thing as forbidden food in confinement. On the other hand, my MIL said I must be prudent as even innocent veggies are prone to be harmful. Haiyaaaaaaaaa….. by the end of my confinement, I only lost 17 kg and got stuck with 10kg.

@ Airport Kelantan : Returning home from 3 weeks stay

Piya @ 5 weeks

04 - The Breastfeeding (BF)

I am not lucky like most mothers out there. I endured great difficulties as Piya detest latching. Only Allah knows the number of days and nights I wept in tears hoping Piya would ‘accept’ me so that I could EBF her even for 1 day. Subhanallaaaah… Allah is Great and perhaps my sustenance is somewhere else. I expressed my milk for 5 months only and continued feeding her with Anmum.

05 - The Motherhood experience 

I love being a mother and nothing can beat the caprice. Kissing her forehead every night and cium kemasaman die setiap pagi; this is my favorite daily routine.  I can’t recall all her milestones but I’m very glad that she’s growing accordingly. I’m kinda ready to multiply the bunch but Ayah needs some time to embrace the thought (lepas Raya buka kilang eh sayang?)

Us at 1 year old :)

Dear sayang mama,

Syukur Alhamdulillah you are 1 year old today. You are truly the apple of my eye and we are so proud of you. I hope one day you will get the chance to read this trail of thoughts and know that Mama and Ayah will never stop loving you. I pray for your health, wealth, safety and sustenance. I love you sayang.

Yours truly,

Mama

Piya is 11 months old

Ever since Piya has started walking, I have to make an effort to allocate easily around 1 hour for her to play outside everyday. On weekdays I’ll let her play at the babysitter’s laundry shop (Cik D’s parents are managing a laundry shop right next to her daycare) while on weekends she will play at Mak Tok’s garden. 

When my colleague broach on this some while ago, it makes me ponder; how could a toddler be bothered to play outside? Apparently, I was wrong. Nowadays Piya has joined that phase where she would throw tantrums if I refuse her yearning for the sky. And as expected; I would give in to her crocodile tears to taper her pique.  

It is fun when your baby can walk but do bear in mind that you have to be extremely prudent by keeping an aye on her at all times. Not to mention the tiresome of chasing and protecting her from knocking sharp corners. Another note is you are considered clever and lucky if her very 1^st shoes fit her well. I bought her shoes 3 times until I found the right one. Kaki tembam.

 Cepat betol anak mama membesar...skit lagi nak setahun yea...

Piya dah boleh berjalan

Piya will be 1 year old very soon. I am very happy that she started walking when she was 9 months 3 weeks. There’s an old adage saying that your baby will either start walking or start talking. I kinda vouch that in a way. She just got her first tooth last week and I know she’s enduring a painful stage. With teeth or not, she likes to baby-talk as loudly as she pleases. Funny.

In my earlier posts, I did shared my experience of going to Pureen WHS with my babysitter. Subsequent to that, we fetched Piya at home and took her out for lunch. I slip her on her new shoes bought from the sale, and let her walk around the restaurant as there no other guess. But this is a bad habit tau... 

Muka terkejut "i tot no ummi today??"

it is ummi laaa...i like~

Doze off while i was driving.. did not notice this until we reach home.

Baby Milestone: Boys vs Girls

When I fetch my daughter yesterday from the babysitter; Cik D, there were only 3 babies around. All the 3 babies (Aniq, Balqis & Piya) are born in the same month. Hence, it is really amusing to observe their milestone.

Aniq:

A very handsome baby boy. I call him Edward Cullen as he’s too fair you can actually see his veins.

Sama Putih kan??

Among the 3, Aniq was the first to have his tooth came out. Poor baby, he endured a series of viral fever as a result of tolerating the tooth. Aniq has high tendency of throwing tantrums when he is frustrated and I notice he’s quite prone to experience some sense of friction. He’s very active and a bit mischievous; he likes to grab mama / papa’s spectacles and pull mama’s hijab too.   

Balqis:

She possesses a very subtle and serene feature. She has those rounded eyes that kinda melt your heart away. Reminds me of Angela Lansbury and Betty Davis.

Angela Lansbury



Betty Davis

 She, on the other hand, was the 1^st to spoke among the 3. You have to be prudent while conversing with her presence. Once, I was talking with Cik D on Aniq’s weight. I remember quoting “Aniq..dah tembam..” when suddenly I heard Balqis imitated my speech. Cerdik betol. Balqis nih pulak, byk mulut. Suka kuar bunyi tapi tak lasak. Suka org hug die dan lemah lembut jer.

Piya:

You know Piya.

Piya and her best friend

Among the 3, she was the 1^st to stand at 9 months 2 weeks and her 1^st walk was at 9 months 3 weeks. Prior to begin walking, she’s very fond of jumping since she was 4 months old. Penah tak tgk baby suka melompat? Mine does. Die akan lompat-lompat mcm nak tercampak ke siling. Orang yg pegang akan lenguh, die pulak akan ketawa gumbira~. Piya’s behavioral? Selalu tak layan mama bila mama dah sampai.. sedih tau…

Hence, as usual, I would seek for Mr Google’s help in understanding Boy’s vs Girl’s development. It really makes you ponder on the uniqueness of these 3 little tots have. And voila! Here’s what I found from parenting.com:-

BOYS

01 - They like motion.

Boys prefer to watch mechanical motion over human motion.

Baby boys are more adept at keeping track of moving objects

02 - They've got the moves.

Girls do talk first, but boys are likely to start walking -- and hit all the major motor milestones -- around the same time as girls.

03 - They're more emotional than you think.

There is some evidence that boys tend to be more easily agitated than girls and have a harder time self-soothing. According to one study, even when 6-month-old boys appeared as calm as the girls in the face of frustration, measures of heart rate and breathing suggested that they were actually experiencing greater distress.

04 - They love a crowd.

Boys prefer looking at groups of faces rather than individual ones.

05 - They're (comparatively) fearless.

Boys express fear later than girls, and less often.

GIRLS

01 - They're made to mimic.

As toddlers, girls zoom ahead of boys on imitative behaviors such as pretending to take care of a baby but, interestingly, are no different from little guys when it comes to pretending to drive a car or water the plants, actions that are much less about human interaction.

02 - They're good with their hands.

Infant girls exceed boys when it comes to fine motor tasks, a head start that will stick with them until preschool. They're faster to manipulate toys; they use eating utensils sooner; and they write sooner and more neatly too.

03 - They may be better listeners.

Shake a rattle and you'll see no difference between newborn girls and boys, but when you talk, the girls will be more likely to become engaged.

04 - They like face time.

Girls are more likely to establish and maintain eye contact, and are attracted to individual faces -- especially women's. They're also more skilled at reading emotional expressions; if shown a frightening face, for example, they'll look at Mom or get distressed, but they'll be fine if they see a happy one. Boys take longer to notice the difference, according to a meta-analysis of 26 studies on kids' capacity to recognize facial expressions.

04 - They talk sooner.

Girls start using gestures like pointing or waving bye-bye earlier than their brothers.

Girls understand what you're saying before boys do, start speaking earlier (at around 12 months versus 13 to 14 months for boys), and will continue to talk more through the toddler years.

Interesting kan ? :)

Me vs Grandparents

Another weekend spent at home with Ayah. Lately the weather is also very cloudy which kinda makes us prone to remain tucked in our beds. Having said that, I still did the laundry as usual after Subuh prayer. So, feeling bored and hungry, I cooked fried rice for Ayah and prepared cheese sandwich for Piya. It is so much fun preparing sandwiches for her. For lunch and dinner, I cooked rice porridge with plenty of veggies for her. Alhamdulillah, she has good appetite.

My salient point today is what Piya is consuming. Staying with the grandparents does offer a different gamut of challenges. My latest drill that kinda makes me boil is Maktok’s stubborn pleasure of feeding Piya foods / drinks that I am not ready to offer. The latest incident took place while she was preparing Tok Ayem a glass of ice lemon tea when I heard an apparent giggle. Maktok called me and asked to look at Piya. I came over the dining table and maktok demonstrated again an action in front for me; she was feeding Piya with ice lemon tea. APAKAH…?

Geraaam nyer aku masa tuh Tuhan saja yg tau…….. Maktok suka wat mcm nih tau… This incident took place while I was around Piya but what would happen during times when I leave Piya to Maktok all by her selves? I scolded Maktok as usual and as expected Maktok would be in denial defending her actions. This is not the first time ok………..

Scene 1: Piya throwing foods all over the place while feeding time (part of her milestone)

Mama Piya: Sayang, don’t throw your foods. Mama xsuka.

Maktok: xpe, die kecik lagi.

Scene 2: Piya screaming at the top of her lungs demanding something

Mama Piya: Elfieya! Boleh tak jgn jerit2..? Mama xsuka tau.

Maktok: xpe, die kecik lagi.

Mama Piya: Amboi~ Kecik lagi..? kalau masa Dora kecik dulu, xde maaf.

Maktok: Sayang anak lain, sayang cucu lain.

Scene 3: Maktok feeds Piya foods w/o my consent.

Mama Piya: Mama kasi Piya makan ape? Boleh ke??? Biar betol mama nih!

Maktok: Aku dh bela 4 org anak elok jer semua. Tak sakit otak pon.

Sabar jer laaaa….. I am one of those people facing this grandparents-indulging-my baby-issue.

I notice that my parents turned over a new leaf with Piya’s presence. Suddenly they’re no longer the monster who used to scold us (at the top of their lungs) or even beat us with rotan / hanger / newspaper etc. They no longer have those demonic eyes glazing at you fiercely for breaking something, spoiling food or pestering them. I remember asking this question to my mom and she responded that she is more serene and buoyant now. She’s no longer easily moved by some sense of friction. Based on my observations, I think the reasons behind these new behavioral are most probably influenced by these:-

Time:

They have lesser competing pressures for their time. Surplus leisure time I presume. They’re no longer need to punch-in / out daily or have to crack their head mitigating office issues.

Money:

An abundance of time + money; what better way could they think of rather than spoiling the little munchkin?     

Love:

It is irrefutably that grandparents love babies more than their own children. I think it’s because they will regard the little human as their descendant carrying their name & family’s honor. I was quite stunned the other day when my mom holds Piya as I was slipping on my slipper; she said to Piya “Oh sayang tok! How can I live w/o you?”



2 months old - Mak Tok nak mandikan Piya

 

 

9 months old - holiday at PD with Mak Tok



Sayang sayang jugak… but they’re not the ones to bear the brunt of problems later.

Piya is 10 months old

Finally I can take some time to breathe…

There were too many things needed full attention at work that I barely have time to update this humble blog. I did not even have time to browse the internet… These are the times where I would work even before the clock rings at 8.00 am and return home around 5.45 pm.. I even had to punch-out at 7.00 pm the other day.. It’s been quite awhile since I return home that late..

Having said all that, as a mother, regardless of the exhaustion at work, I always look forward to return home instantly to embrace and cuddle my beautiful daughter. I may be physically drained out but you can never resist that warm smile and subtle laughter welcoming your presence every day.

Piya has turned 10 months now and I still cant believe how fast time passes us by.. I am quite amazed with her milestone; well maybe she’s actually on track (which I never make the effort to vouch). When she was exactly 9 months old, I was caught by surprise that she could actually wave ‘bye-bye’ because I barely taught her the gesture. One week later she actually says the words while waving. In the same month she has begun to stand up on her own and just as she was a shy of one week from being 10 months, she began to walk. Now, she’s beginning to climb the bed. My goodness…

Another fun thing being with her is that she can eat almost anything w/o me having to blend food anymore! Yeaaa! I can feed her rice, chicken (minced to small pieces) and her favorites are biscuits and bread….. senang nyer hidup mama sayang… tapi gigi takde lagi laaa….

Oh well….all well ends well..

Piya is 8 months old

Recently during CNY holiday, Piya has turned 8 months old. I still cant believe how fast time passes us by. She has grown into a little girl and began to loose those baby features. I always stare at her pondering how life would have been without her in it. I am very thankfully that Allah SWT has blessed me with a wonderful sustenance in the form of a human being. I know for a fact that not everybody is blessed with children even though you’ve tied the knot for many years.

At the age of 8 months, these are her traits of behavior:

1.       She would hold onto anything and stand on her feet.

2.       Once she is standing, she would shake her bon-bon + screaming frantically with joy.

3.       Whenever I am lying down, she would climb on my chest and slap my face with her hands.

4.       Sometimes she would ‘kiss’ me and leave a mark of saliva.

5.       She crawls in a quicker pace and is unsafe to leave her unattended.

6.       She sits straight but only for awhile as she prefers standing.

7.       She responds when her name is called and would smile to a familiar face.

8.       She is easily frustrated when I snatch away forbidden stuff that she grab unnoticed.

9.       She loves chewing on teething toys, my ID card, her diapers and even her nasal sucker.

10.   She is used to sleep in her baby cot all by herself.

11.   She is able to hold on her own food but eats using her left hand.

Mama sayang Piya~

Piya is 7 months old

I can’t believe how fast time passes by. I can still recall the day I was admitted for labor and today; my beautiful daughter is already 7 months old.. She will be 8 months this coming Chinese New Year. And since she has grown into a little girl, I have been spending more and more on her wardrobe attire. I think I’ve been spending easily RM100 per month to doll her up. Ayah always shook his head every time I brought home a new parcel.. eheheheh…

Syukur Alhamdulillah my baby is progressing well. I often place her in her baby cot teaching her to be independent and not too clingy. Without much ado, she would climb her baby cot, hold the bars, stand on her feet and shake her bon-bon… sometimes she would even ‘sing’ while doing that.

So much joy to see your baby is very active. The only downside of her active behavior is off recent late, she often awakes at 4.00 am and wants to play…. Addddoooooi…..

Layan jer laaa…..

Piya: 5 months & conjunctivitis

Yippiyaya is 5 months already! Cepatnyer masa berlalu… ramai kengkawan tgh tunggu masa jerk at ofis nih.. bila tengok diorg, rindu masa Piya masih dalam perut.. I really miss those days when she was kicking with excitement whenever I am listening to the music, television, talking to her or even rubbing my belly…

Alhamdulillah sepanjang 5 bulan membesarkan Piya, Piya tak penah demam, tak penah selsema dan tak penah batuk.. aku pon dh tak pump susu dh skrg… last day aku pump susu was on October 25, 2011 and masa tuh Piya dh genap 5 bulan.. nak wat camner, Piya takmo latch so susu jadi kering.. aku aim nak express milk sampai 6 months… I really did tried very hard.. tapi Allah Lebih Mengetahui… sampai 5 bulan jer rezeki Piya.. takpe, syukur Alhamdulillah…

Dalam minggu yg sama aku stop express milk, suddenly Piya kena conjunctivitis…  sib baik tak teruk… this is her very first illness so aku tak senang duduk, tido tak lena, makan pon tak lalu…. it began on Thursday morning. I was getting ready for work as usual as many other days.. usually I will get myself ready and Piya will be the last thing that I will attend. So when I picked her up from bed and placed her inside her baby carrier, I really had the shock of my life.. Out of no where her eyes were fully covered with yellow hardened discharged.. Aduuuuh… I still send her off to the babysitter though.. but believe me I was never at peace while I was at work. Thankfully I attended a training on the same day and more often than not, Proton’s training usually ends by 5.00 pm.. So I got the chance to fetch her early and without procrastinating any minute, Uncle Din and I took her to the clinic. The doctor prescribed 2 medicines for her: an eyedrop and a cream.

I had to take an EL on Friday October 28, 2011. The doctor refused to give an MC padahal boleh jer bagi aku MC… ubat2 Klnik Alam Medic mmg bagus.. after applying the cream to her eye lids that night, she woke up looking fresher and clean from any hard discharge. i was on leave for 2 days. She was fully recovered on Monday so I decided to stay home. Piya had this illness for 4 days in a row… tapi tak teruk pon.. just tend to be watery once a while and discharge now and then.

The root of the cause? Just some dust that was around the atmosphere… morale of the story: keep your environment clean and always clean the baby’s sleeping gadgets..