The Blog of an Excited Mom

My baby shower featured in Utusan Malaysia

2011-05-05T11:20:00.005+08:00

Baby shower ganti lenggang perut

Oleh SHOLINA OSMAN
Gambar HALIM KHALID dan sumbangan ANNA JOE

INTAN Suhana juhari bersama anaknya, muhammad luqman wazif yang melakukan majlis baby shower.

BABY SHOWER. Kalau diterjemah secara tepat ke bahasa Melayu 'mandi bayi' memang kedengaran agak janggal memandangkan ia berasal dari budaya orang Barat.

Secara jelasnya, baby shower atau membawa maksud 'sirami bakal ibu dengan hadiah' adalah majlis untuk meraikan bakal ibu yang mengandung sulung ketika usia kandungan mencecah tujuh hingga lapan bulan

Di Malaysia, majlis baby shower masih baru sekalipun ada segelintir masyarakat Melayu yang telah menganjurkannya.

Dalam dunia artis pula, Erra Fazira dikatakan antara yang paling awal terlibat dalam majlis baby shower iaitu pada 9 Februari 2009.

Dituruti pula dengan Dynas Mokhtar pada 17 Mac 2010 dan terbaru Sazzy Falak pada 18 Mac lalu di mana banyak gambar sekitar majlis baby shower telah dipaparkan di dalam blog-blog tempatan.

Sekali gus ini menunjukkan petanda majlis baby shower mula mengambil alih peranan adat melenggang perut atau mandi tian dalam adat Melayu.

Melenggang perut atau mandi tian yang mempunyai pengaruh adat Hindu ini kini dipinggirkan memandangkan ia dikatakan ada unsur kurafat yang bertentangan dengan Islam.

Baby shower dilihat lebih baik berbanding adat melenggang perut kerana majlis ini boleh diubah suai mengikut budaya negara masing-masing.

Pengertian memberi hadiah kepada ibu juga bukan menjadi matlamat penganjuran upacara ini sebaliknya ia merupakan sebuah majlis kenduri bagi meraikan ibu mengandung anak sulung dengan rakan-rakan.

Disebabkan majlis baby shower masih kurang dianjurkan di negara ini maka tidak ramai yang boleh diajak berkongsi pengalaman bagi menganjurkan majlis ini.

Tetapi tidak sukar untuk mendapatkan maklumat baby shower kerana ia boleh didapati dengan banyak di Internet iaitu penyediaan dari peringkat awal sehingga akhir.

Intan Suhana Juhari atau lebih dikenali sebagai Su Anna Joe juga mendapat tahu upacara baby shower hasil dari melayari Internet.

Segala maklumat mengenai upacara baby shower memang menarik sehingga membuatkan Anna, 29, sangat teruja untuk melakukan baby shower.

Lagi pun Anna memang mengimpikan untuk melakukan satu majlis yang boleh dijadikan sebagai kenangan manis ketika mengandungkan anak sulungnya.

''Budaya ini memang dari Barat dan maklumat yang banyak mengenai baby shower ini telah membuatkan saya tak sabar-sabar untuk merealisasikannya,'' katanya ketika dihubungi, baru-baru ini.

Bagi Anna apa salahnya dia menganjurkan majlis ini walaupun namanya 'berbau kebaratan' tetapi berlangsung dalam suasana seperti kenduri biasa yang tidak melanggar ajaran Islam.

Lagipun katanya, para jemputan hanya terdiri daripada kaum wanita yang dibuat dalam satu majlis tertutup.

Anna bernasib baik kerana niatnya untuk melakukan baby shower ini mendapat sokongan daripada suaminya seorang peguam, Mohd. Hafiz Zainol Abidin.

''Memang banyak persiapan yang perlu dilakukan supaya majlis yang bakal diadakan itu benar-benar menepati ciri-ciri majlis baby shower walaupun ia tidak mencapai tahap seratus-peratus,'' katanya.

Perkara pertama yang perlu dilakukan oleh Anna adalah memilih tarikh dan tempat mengadakan baby shower sebelum merancang persiapan selanjutnya.

''Saya tetapkan majlis baby shower diadakan pada 16 Januari 2010,'' katanya.

Kata Anna, tarikh ini sesuai di mana cuma ada masa tiga minggu lagi sebelum dia dijangka melahirkan bayi pada 8 Februari 2010.

Semenjak itu Anna mula merancang senarai jemputan kira-kira 50 orang selain memilih menyediakan makanan, hadiah dan permainan.

Selain itu kata Anna bagi menepati konsep majlis baby shower maka hiasan dalaman rumah juga perlu diubah.

Oleh kerana Anna telah dimaklumkan akan melahirkan anak lelaki, maka barang-barang untuk hiasan utama seperti belon, bendera dan pakaian bayi yang digantung pada majlis baby shower itu hanya dalam warna biru, kuning dan putih.

Beliau juga tidak dapat melupakan perisitiwa tidak tidur hingga pukul lima pagi hanya kerana hendak menyiapkan sebuah kek dari pakaian bayi, tuala dan juga selimut yang juga termasuk dalam persiapan untuk majlis itu.

''Saya tidak menyangka ramai rakan-rakan yang dijemput hadir ke majlis ini dan paling menyeronokkan antara tetamu itu ada yang sedang mengandung dan turut membawa anak masing-masing,'' katanya.

Anna juga menempah sebiji kek tiramisu warna putih di mana bahagian atas dihiasi dengan patung kecil wanita mengandung dan bendera kertas yang dihasilkan beliau sendiri yang ditertulis perkataan can't wait to see you, a bun in over dan oh boy.

Jelas Anna, majlis itu juga dimeriahkan dengan acara memotong kek bersama suaminya.

Paling riuh kata Anna ketika diadakan acara mengukur perut yang merupakan antara bentuk permainan yang diadakan serta menjadi kemestian ketika menganjurkan baby shower.

Anna menambah walaupun dalam tradisi majlis baby shower tetamu akan menghadiahkan pakaian dan barangan untuk bakal bayi tetapi itu semua bukan matlamat utama.

''Apa yang penting majlis ini membolehkan saya bertemu semula dengan rakan lama malah bertukar-tukar pengalaman dengan mereka yang telahpun melahirkan anak,'' kata Anna.

Selain itu tambah Anna, beberapa hari sebelum baby shower itu pihak keluarganya telahpun mengadakan majlis solat hajat dan bacaan doa untuk keselamatan beliau dan kandungannya.

Anna telah selamat melahirkan Muhammad Luqman Wazif pada 5 Februari 2010 dan kini bayi lelaki yang comel itu telah berusia setahun dua bulan.

More details and photos from the baby shower can be seen here. Much Love, Anna

snappy #007

2011-04-21T02:12:00.008+08:00

I know it's been too long since I've posted anything here. So let's start off with these two photos as a warming up session before I write as usual.

These were taken at Toys R' Us in Midvalley Megamall. He has the plaster over his cheeks because he scratched his face till it bled. He has eczema, and he's a thumb sucker, so the contact with his saliva from the thumb sucking makes it worse. It heals, and it comes up again. Sometimes on one side of the cheek, sometimes on both. Poor boy! He also has some on his legs as well.

The dermatologist we went to says that, it'll wear off as he grows older. We sure hope so. Don't like seeing those red blotches on his cheeks, and of course the itchiness that he has to endure. Kesian Luqman. Kaki dah tak hensem sebab berparut-parut dah.

We're currently trying different kinds of creams, lotions and bathing soaps that are specifically for Luqman's skin condition. If you have any suggestions, that really would be great. I get really sad, once I even cried when he starts scratching on his scabs that are healing and starts bleeding. It must be extremely itchy for him to not feel the pain from all that scratching. :(

Thank you dear mommies. I've missed you all! Okay one last photo, this one was taken with my phone. It's much easier to camwhore with the phone rather than that bulky DSLR. I think that some of the best moments are captured with just a camera phone huh?

I really like this photo. Look at Luqman's expression. Hehe. Sad face, yet Ummi is smiling away! He was feeling sleepy, fed him milk and he dozed right away with that red zebra plaster on his cheek.

Much Love, Anna

Luqman's 1st Birthday Party on February 5th!

2011-01-27T00:24:00.007+08:00

Hi mommies (I assume only the ladies read this blog). I would love to invite you to my son's first birthday party on Saturday, February 5th, 2011, from 3pm-7pm. The theme is Wild Wild West!

If you'd like to come with your kid of course, haha, do leave a comment and I'll email you the details of the invite or just invite you through facebook! Leave your email address.

Much Love, Anna

Logos for mommies!

2010-11-12T23:14:00.007+08:00

For some reason, tonight I'm having one of those creative spasms. Most probably because I'm stressed that I've some unfinished work that I've to FINISH. Will be heading off to my mother's kampung in Kelantan this Sunday. It will be Luqman's first time on a plane! I can't wait to see his reaction. Will he be crying? Will he be excited and happy? Heh.

I made up 3 logos you can use for your blog or wherever online. Credit would be appreciated! Do tell me if you use any of them!! Don't be selling them though! Ahaha.

You just right click and save and upload it to put it on the sidebar of your blog maybe. It's up to you. I made it 'transparent' so it can go with any color background. Tell me if you've any problems with it.

{ Mommy & Baby }
Copyright © 2010 Sue Anna Joe The Blog of an Excited Mom

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

{ Baby Boy! }

Copyright © 2010 Sue Anna Joe The Blog of an Excited Mom

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

{ Baby Girl! }

Copyright © 2010 Sue Anna Joe The Blog of an Excited Mom

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

I know it's been forever since I updated anything here. I envy other mommies who update their blogs ever so often about their kids. How they write each detail of their baby's progress and milestones. First this, first that. I thought that I'd be one of those moms, writing down each and every detail. Apparently NOT. I guess I've been caught up with too much that I just didn't have the time to blog here. Sigh...

I'll probably jumble that up in one whole entry instead. A summary of what's been going on now that he's already 9 months! He's had his first solids, first fever (and a few after =\) and a number of this and that every baby goes through. He's a little slow on some, not crawling yet, has not cut his teeth. I'm saying 'slow' in comparison to other babies of friends. BUT I'm not worried, as I know that different babies progress differently. As long as he is healthy, eating well, is active in other ways, everything is perfectly fine. So Luqman sayang, take your time okay sweety?

So dear mommies. Hope you enjoy my logos. And if you want a customized / personalized logo e-mail me at sueannajoe@itudiostudio.com

Much Love, Anna

Baby in Bumbo

2010-07-04T02:26:00.011+08:00

Recently we bought Luqman a Bumbo seat. Always wanted it since I was pregnant. I saw a friend of mine Iqin using it for her son. It was love at first sight! And I definitely recommend everyone to get one for their own baby. I think it's most suitable for babies age 4 months and above.

The shape of the bumbo seat is so adorable, I love seeing the bottom part of it, because it looks like a baby elephant's butt. Which so happens to be the concept I think, since the logo itself is of a baby elephant. Come to think of it, the name BUMBO, bum would be butt, and bo would be Jumbo, a name which is quite commonly used for elephants for its huge 'jumbo' size.

The material isn't hard plastic, it's squeezable, but hard and sturdy enough for baby to sit in comfortably. But as the warning says, it's not meant to be placed on elevated areas such as tables. Regardless, I do put him on the table, far from the edge, when I'm sitting next to him of course. And putting him in this seat is no excuse for me to leave him unattended, even on the ground, the possibility of him toppling off is there if he moves around to much. So, just as long as you're close by, leaving him in this seat is perfectly fine.

He watches the tv and computer when I play some baby songs on YouTube. I don't do this often though, too much screen time is not good for the baby in the future, because when kids are exposed to too much tv, they tend to get easily bored in class since they are so used to bright colored, fast paced scenes. I read this in some parenting magazine a while ago. I prefer talking and playing with him, facing him front to front. I believe that the best entertainment and good for development is interaction with the parents. Beats all the toys in the world.

This baby seat comes in a variety of colors. The one I bought is AQUA. It also comes with a play tray set, but from what my friend said, it was a complete waste since she doesn't really use it. So if you want to buy, save your money and just buy the seat!You can read reviews from other parents on this Bumbo seat here at Amazon.com. I bought mine at Mothercare. I'm sure you can get them cheaper through online stores. But being the impatient me, I had to get it right there and then. That's the excited mom I am.

Much Love, Anna.

snappy #006

2010-06-11T02:13:00.005+08:00

We bought a new t-shirt and a beanie for Luqman. Got back home and tried it on immediately after my mom's guests went back home. Definitely had to take photos, couldn't resist. There's like a gazillion more photos in my computer, but it's repetitive. So here are the selected few.

Me & Luqman. His beanie is the same color as my scarf!!!

Baba & Luqman. Nyom nyom.

Bubble trouble!!

With his cargo pants, and red slippers.

My baby boys. I love you so. Yesterday, today, tomorrow and forever more.
Without you my heart would be sore.

Might have mentioned this somewhere before... we actually don't have a single photo of him printed out yet! It's all in the computer or on facebook. Ha ha ha. We might have it printed out one by one, or, we might do a photobook instead. Will consider. But we have to do it soon before we have more and more and more photos of him. Four months of photos is already more than enough to make us go woooo figuring out which one to include. So uh yeahhh. No more procrastinating mmkay? Haha, good luck to that!

Much Love, Anna

Out & About #001

2010-06-07T03:58:00.007+08:00

Gosh. Just like a car, it will take you sometime to start it if you haven't used the car in a while. In some cases, the batteries totally wear off. Similar to my case with this blog. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to post something, but I just go totally blank, not quite sure what to write. Not that I don't have anything to write about, but I guess once you stop for long, it's not easy to get back into action.

So here I am trying to warm up the engine. I'll just start off with some photos of us going out to One Utama today. Luqman just turned 4 months. We decided it's about time to go out and about. We were paranoid to bring him out much, mainly because of H1N1. Not that we haven't brought our son out at all, we did bring him Pyramid once, and sometimes to Giant other than the hospital for check ups.

Okaaaay. So I'll just share with you photos from the outing we had today at OU. Some of the photos were taken by me, and some by my hubby's sister.

Wanted to buy him new shoes, since the ones he have doesn't fit anymore. Ended up buying him these really adorable red slippers from Baby GAP. You know, someone should totally make selipar jepun for babies. That would be awesome.

We also bought this bib from Mothercare. He's been drooling like crazy. And I don't believe the kepercayaan that says air liur meleleh sebab masa mengandung, mengidam lepas tu tak dapat makanan tu. I believe it's a natural thing all babies go through. Gums, digestive system, e.t.c... Hehe.

Me and Luqman at MPH. Bought that pouch carrier at Sime Darby Medical Centre's pharmacy. Plan to get other kind of slings, but this will do for now.

Absolutely love this shot, taken by my sister in law. Usually it's posed, but this one was really 'in the moment' kinda shot. I like how I'm looking at Pitt, and he's looking at me, and my son's looking at Pitt. Was taken while we were waiting for our food at Nandos.

A shot of my back on the way back. Hehe, my SIL was sure having fun snapping photos. I like how Luqman's tiny lil feet are peeking out. Oh yeah, we took off the slippers.

I hate elevators that don't work. So this is a good reason why you should get smaller strollers. Easier to carry around, not to mention to move around in crowded areas or restaurants. By the way, Pitt is purposely doing that 'oh-it's-so-heavy-look' in this shot. Hehe.

We went back at around 10pm, explains the empty parking lot. Although my feet was aching, I managed to dance around with Luqman. Weeee. Couldn't resist.

There you have it. Our trip today to One Utama. And definitely more to come. Till the next entry, hopefully soon, see ya!!

Much Love, Anna.

A facebook addicted mom's worst nightmare & snappy #005

2010-04-29T12:33:00.007+08:00

"OMG. I DELETED THE WHOLE ALBUM OF MY SON. OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG. OMG OMG OMG. PATIENCE PATIENCE PATIENCE PATIENCE PATIENCE PATIENCE "

My facebook status message on April 22nd, 2010 at 4:12pm.

I was uploading these two photos below on facebook. After successfully uploading them I decided to delete and reupload just one instead, where I combined these two photos into one, side by side. And happily I clicked on delete, when I noticed that I was about to delete the WHOLE ALBUM.

Immediately closed the window hoping that it didn't load in time. I was confident that I managed to escape the ordeal. But of course, I was wrong. I had to refresh multiple times. To my horror, I had deleted the whole album. THE WHOLE FRICKIN ALBUM of my son.

Okay, not like I deleted all the original photos in my hard drive, but seriously, it's just as bad. Especially I already had so many lovely comments, and not to mention over 100 likes from that album. I mean, yeah they are just comments and likes, but still, it's these tiny little things, the warmth and love you feel all around. It's almost as though they share the joy and happiness and love at that moment.

It's just not the same when you re-upload. However, I still have some images on my profile pictures with those comments congratulating the birth of my son. It's sweet really. So I'd like to keep that. That moment of pure utter joy, sharing the moment my son came into this world, with the rest of the world a.k.a. facebook. Lol.

Is it weird that I felt so stressed about deleting the album on facebook? Was I overreacting? I know there are seriously worse things that can happen out there, but still I mean, come on, for a facebook addicted mom, that has definitely got to be a huge blow. Ahaha.

Okay, so yeah, these are the two photos that I uploaded on that day and then deleted the whole album seconds later. Smart. Very smart indeed.

"Ummi, why did you delete my facebook album?
Don't you love me anymore?"

"Hmm Ummi, it's otay. Don't cwy. It's just facebook.
Not like you're deleting me. Now who's your baby boy?
.........
Tadaaa! I'm your baby boy!!!"

So I've already created a new album. And kind of reorganized the whole layout. Instead of posting them one by one, I combined them into one whole collage and added some extra details with each photo, like a short journal entry. I guess, some good did come out of it. Hmm. But still, it just isn't the same. Oh so very the drama mama.

Much Love, Anna

snappy #004

2010-04-19T01:04:00.004+08:00

Haven't been writing much in this blog lately. I guess the mood comes and goes. Luqman is now 2 months & 2 weeks old. I don't really record specific dates of his milestones. But just to summarize it, he's now smiling a people, does this silent laugh, cooing and talking with people, playing with his saliva making bubbles, drooling, starts grabbing on to things, like pulling on my hair and not letting go.

And now it does seem that he recognizes me a lot, because every time I take him from the maid, he'll start crying, wanting to breastfeed. Which is really sweet. He knows his titty milk supplier well. Hehe. Alrighty, do enjoy these photos of him!

I call this 'My Little Burrito' cause he's all swaddled and wrapped up just like a burrito, or maybe a popia roll. This and the first photo up there was taken together when he was uhh 2 months.

I had to go to the bathroom, so my husband took care of our son for a bit, he was crying at that time (baby that is, lol). And when I came out, I saw them like this. Immediately ran for the camera to capture this moment.

2 months, 1 week & 2 days old. Sleeping on my lap while I was using the computer.

My boy, 2 months & 2 weeks. Took him together to celebrate my mom's 66th birthday. Borrowed my brother's stroller. Haven't got ours yet. Still looking.

So that's about it. I haven't printed out any of his photos yet. That's the downside of a digital camera, it usually stays in the computer. Will have to get to that soon. In fact, I've tons of things to get done with that has been long overdue!

I'm still getting the hang of getting myself organized. Especially since now I have my very own human to take care of.

Much Love, Anna

online shops anyone?

2010-04-15T16:45:00.004+08:00

Hi all. Obviously not an entry about my birth story which I promised in multiple entries ago. Okay, so if anyone noticed, I've already taken down my shoutbox. The adverts from blog shops were a flooding my shoutbox a little too much, so I decided to take it down.

However, here's a chance for you to link to your blogshops, or any recommendations of your fav online shops. Shops that sells baby & kids stuff, for moms, e.t.c... basically whatever is related. So please do share, and shoot away! If I like em, I'll add it to my 'mom loves to shop' links. Might even give a review. Thanks!

Much Love, Anna

Captured in motion #001

2010-04-06T20:01:00.004+08:00

Thought I'd share these two videos if you haven't seen the videos on my youtube or facebook.

Video of Luqman, 2 days old at the hospital.

Video of Luqman, 10 days old.

The first video was taken using a phone camera, thus the crappy quality. The second one was taken with my camera, much betttah. I do have more newer videos, but I need to edit and cut them a bit since they are a bit lengthy. Have yet the time to do so! And yes, I still have not written entries about my labour and Aqiqah. Ah, will get to them as soon as I settle the photos for my clients. Later ya'all.

Much Love, Anna

snappy #003

2010-03-29T01:50:00.005+08:00

Here's a bunch of photos of Luqman for you to enjoy! Much Love, Anna.

snappy #002

2010-03-27T00:44:00.006+08:00

"Luqman, you better not be flirtin' with 'em girls. They do you no good, nu uh. You gonna grow up a decent man. Let mama choose who you gonna marry."

Seeing the society these days, freaks me out. Hope I will be able to raise him well and he turns out to be a good man in life. I don't want to be too harsh and too strict with him though. I'll let him pick out who he wants to marry, she just has to go through me first though. Mwahahahaha.

Much Love, Anna

baby quickies #006: facebook status updates

2010-03-16T16:50:00.011+08:00

Okay, it's been over a month since the birth of my son. Have yet to do a write up on the whole experience. I will, but before that thought I'd share the facebook status updates after the previous one which includes the updates till I was 5 cms dilated (yes was still updating my fb with the help of my hubster), then the midwife told us to close the laptop and be ready to PUSHHHHH!!!!! I'll categorize the status updates with 3 categories; AFTER BIRTH, BIRTH (red text) & BEFORE BIRTH. Here you go, starting from the latest update:

AFTER BIRTH
March 15, 2010, 7:44pm
I plan to be a full time mommy & blogger, part time photographer & at times do workshops at the studio. Hmm.
March 14, 2010, 1:55am
It's not the same staying up to take care of a baby with staying up & being online. I thought being used to not sleeping till wee hours of the morning would make being up for baby a breeze. I was wrong. But it's just so worth it.
March 13, 2010, 2:03pm
I get bored on the weekends. Anyone wanna come visit me and baby this weekend? Lol, I sound lonely and desperate.
March 13, 2010, 1:53am
is jealous of mommies that can fully breastfeed and loaded with titty milk.
March 11, 2010, 8:55pm
Confinement tak habis lagi, but I'm feeling mighty. Think I shall start to get work done!!!!
March 8, 2010, 8:06pm
Luqman went for his checkup. Baby is now 4.36kgs, and 55cm in length!! Had his 2nd Hepatatis B injection. He's already 1 month and 3 days. I've another 11 days of confinement! Weee. After that, I've to work my ass off! So much to do!! Can't wait to go out and about with baby.
March 8, 2010, 1:14pm
I tried wearing my jeans today. And I'm happy to know that it doesn't fit. I don't plan to lose my weight, I want to gain it!! Ahaha. Lalalala.
March 6, 2010, 6:15pm
Is no longer addicted to the net. ^_^ It's all about my baby.
March 2, 2010, 11:40pm
Frustrated with self for not getting things done. I really do think I might have a deeper problem? I can't seem to complete anything. From studies to work. Seriously, what is wrong with me? Gosh, so sorry dear S for delaying things. You know who you are. =\ Other than that, baby is fine. This Friday, he'll be one month already! And I've about 2 weeks left for my confinement!
February 28, 2010, 4:06am
Yet another opportunity lost. Sigh, what is wrong with me....?
February 26, 2010, 6:04pm
I find it weird that, as much as I love taking photos, I haven't been taking a lot of photos of my baby boy. I was expecting to take pics of him every single day. I guess I'm just too caught up in the moment.
February 18, 2010, 9:25pm
It's impossible not to be another one of those moms who have their fb icon of their own kid. It's cute, but pathetic. Pathetically cute.
February 18, 2010, 10:47am
Uploaded a bunch of photos of Luqman in fb. Also updated my blog over at http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2010/02/when-mommy-gets-snappy-001.html chekidaut if you wanna!
February 18, 2010, 12:50am
Still a long way till my confinement is over. Yet I need to get some work done. It's okay though, I just need to sit in front of the computer and click click click. by this week please. It's been long enough. On another note, baby is doing fine. He's bald now! Just had his Aqiqah on Monday. Only invited relatives this time, sorry ya dear friends I didn't get to invite any of you to come over. Pictures soon.
February 15, 2010, 7:30am
It was heart wrenching and funny at the same time, seeing my baby taking a huge dunk. It kinda reminded me how I was when I was giving birth to him. Push Luqman, PUSHHH!! I even held his legs up like I was in labour. Haha. His face was really red, and he was wailing. Now he's asleep. Tired. Poor baby. â™¥
February 14, 2010, 1:17am
Is a bit tired. Slightly confinement depressed. I want real food. Waaaaaa.
February 12, 2010, 1:58pm
Got my baby back. Time off the net. Wanna spend time with him
February 12, 2010, 10:47am
Yayyyyyyyyyyy. Am getting ready to go pick up Luqman Wazif. My baby's coming home! My baby's coming home! If I wasn't in confinement, I'd be doing jumping jacks right now!!!!!!!!
February 12, 2010, 12:11am
Just uploaded a 3gp video of my son Luqman Wazif, 2 days old. http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=331537901065&ref=mf chekiiidaaautttt.
February 11, 2010, 5:13pm
That was the best 15 minutes of my life. Went to see Luqman, fed him, kissed him, hugged him. His progress is really good. From a whoping 311 to 214!! I hope he gets discharged tomorrow!
February 11, 2010, 1:27pm
Waking up is just not the same without you around. Luqman Wazif, my baby boy... ummi really misses you... :(
February 11, 2010, 1:32am
Missing my baby boy Luqman Wazif so much right now. Uploaded some photos taken at the hospital before leaving him there for his jaundice treatment http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=192186&id=593906065
February 10, 2010, 10:28pm
My baby boy, Luqman Wazif was admitted to the hospital today. He's getting a blue sauna session for some yellow issues. His bilirubin level was high, 311. I know, everything will be alright. But I was really sad and couldn't stop crying earlier today, because doctor recommended me to stay home away from him instead. Sigh, I miss him.
February 10, 2010, 4:18am
When breastfeeding, a mother should whole heartedly apply the 'pain is pleasure' concept. Anything for your own child.
February 7, 2010, 1:15am
"Is this really MY son?" Looking at him, it's just so hard to believe he's actually my very own baby.
February 6, 2010, 4:49am
Hiii. Crazy FB mommy is here. Napped. Regained energy. Is famished. Is crazy happy. Everything is perfect right now.

BIRTH
February 5, 2010, 3:31pm
5 cm dilated! Nurse said I'll most probably deliver by this evening. Baby, see you soon
February 5, 2010, 3:12pm
epidural is a miracle. Thank you for your existence!
February 5, 2010, 2:09pm
Hey everyone. Getting contractions. I wanna get ma epiduraaaaaal. Waiting for the doc. Woot woot! - i'm actually typing this right now. Another one coming. paaainn
February 5, 2010, 1:49pm
is in the labour room at Sime Darby Medical Centre, Subang Jaya. 3cm dilated. Waiting for epidural anesthesia. - Hafiz Z.A.
February 5, 2010, 9:51am
I think my water just broke. Getting ready to go to the hospital. Dear friends, please pray that everything goes well.

BEFORE BIRTH
February 4, 2010, 5:14pm
Baby is not FULLY engaged. Ain't coming out yet. Hafta wait till the 8th, if the baby is still in my uterus, I can choose to induce, or wait. Next appointment is on the 11th. Baby's weight is abt 3.1kg. A relief, worried he'd be too big for petite me. Went to OU right after, ate at Chilis. Nyumm. Oih really2 tired of walking, and really3 slow. Waddling like a duck! I felt that everyone was looking at my tummy!!
February 4, 2010, 11:12am
Ummi is off to the hospital now for checkup. Hoping the doctor will say "Eh awak dah boleh bersalin dah ni!!" But, I doubt it. Haha.
February 2, 2010, 8:21pm
Loves her hubster Hafiz Z.A. very much.
February 2, 2010, 7:15am
Baby. I'm actually quite relieved you're not ready to come and meet me yet. Ummi still has some very important work to get done. Perhaps, that's why you're not here yet. You want me to complete undone business eh? :)
February 2, 2010, 3:55am
Got up to pee. Now can't sleep. And hungry too. Hmmppffth!
February 1, 2010, 4:13pm
Let's play a guessing game. When will I be giving birth? Estimated due date is February 8th!! Hee hee hee.

Woooh. Okay, so I'll get to the details of the experience in another entry. Bye!

Much Love, Anna

snappy #001

2010-02-18T03:15:00.011+08:00

Hello once again. I've been busy with baby. Still haven't the time to write up the birth story. Just can't seem to find the time to sit down and write. I will, in another entry, but not this one. I also had this plan to do a shoot every single day, but I'm just too engrossed with my baby, I'm just not that excited to take photos of him.

I just want to capture every single moment with my own eyes, hands, and not being behind the lens. Plus knowing how very picky I am when taking photos, it's just takes up too much time. Too much that at times I feel like I'm exploiting my baby somewhat when I start taking photos of him. He's not a 'subject' to take photos of, he's my baby. Either that, or it's just my excuse not to regret not taking photos of him everyday as I planned. Ahah.

And the Kelley Ryden & Carrie Sandoval inspired shoots I planned has yet to be executed. I did try the other day, but my timing was bad. Naked? Bad idea. He peed a bit. And plus, he still has his umbilical chord. So it just didn't work out. Will try again this week.

However, I did manage to snap a few photos. More natural shots. And here they are.

I think he looks a whole lot like me in this picture.
If you notice, he has a bluish birth mark on his left hand.

"Ummi.. wacha doin...?"

"Go ummi go! Jyeah!!"

"Uhmm, ummi... please no mo photos.. I don't wanna.."

Tiny fingers.
That's baba. He's sunbathing Luqman.

Aww. Little toes.

Side profile.

Okay, nap time!

So yeah, the last four photos of him was taken while my hubster was exposing our son to the morning sun, it was somewhat after 8am here. He had jaundice, which we found out on the 5th day, during his first check up. Was pretty high. But, I'll talk about this in a different entry.

Recently had the baby's Aqiqah & cukur jambul ceremony. We also had him shaved bald. So now my baby is bald. Bald baby. Wuhuhooo! Which I'll also post up in another post. So wow, I've like 3 posts to put up. Or maybe I'll just chunk it into one entry instead.

Alrite, it's almost time to feed my baby. So till another entry.

Much Love, Anna

Hello world.

2010-02-10T07:30:00.004+08:00

Baby is finally here! 3 days before the due date. Funny thing is, originally I thought my due date was to be on the 5th, and on one of my checkups I found out it's on the 8th instead. But walaah, it happened on the miscalculated date. Well it's called estimated due date for a reason. Which reminds me that I need to change my header image. ^_^

Born on February 5th, 2010 at 6:51PM. Weighing 3.09kg and 48.5cm in length. Dear world, I present you, our baby boy, Luqman Wazif.

The cure to all sorrows, is watching a baby sleep.
And now I have one of my own to watch.
Heee. My favourite photo of him.
Took this myself yesterday, February 9th, 2010.

Baby is napping. Ummi is snapping.

Woot! Woot!

Finally baby, I have you in my arms...
Credit photo: Auntie Ainz

He loves to do this with his lips. Heart!
Credit photo: Auntie Ainz

Fresh out of the oven.

Aww, footprints!!

Hubster took this with his phone. On the 2nd day.
I just wanna squish him (both baby and hubby!)

So, there you have it. Will post the whole birth story in another post. Gosh, I'm actually still in awe and lala land. It's unbelievable really. I think all first time mothers feel this way. A sperm, and an ovum meets, 9 months later, you get a live human being!! How ahmahzing is that? So very much indeed. Alhamdulillah, for this miracle.

Much Love, Anna

baby quickies #005: facebook status updates!

2010-02-01T07:45:00.006+08:00

Second set of my facebook status updates. It's obvious how extremely anxious I am, playing this waiting game. I think all mom-to-be's are, especially when they're closing in to their due dates. Me? Well, seven days to go according to my estimated due date. And yes, it does feel like years instead of days (refer Feb 01's status update). Okay, the updates:

FEBRUARY 2010
February 01, 2010, 7:11am
Seven years eh days to go...

JANUARY 2010
January 31, 2010, 7:02am
Feeling mildly nauseous. Some say it could be a sign of labour. I want it to be, but I doubt it, I'm assuming it's just me being very nervous and anxious!
January 30, 2010, 3:25pm
"Haih. Mak tengok.. Hana ni macam nak beranak je dah..." That's what mom said a while ago. Hahahaha.
January 30, 2010, 11:21am
Woke up in a shock. Felt something trickling down under. Thought I saw a bloody show, it was just something under my fingernail. Huhu. I've still NINE DAYS TO GO!
January 29, 2010, 7:05pm
Feeling some lower backbone pain. Reading from some experienced mommies online, it might be signs of labour (early), most I read though get into real active labour and give birth a few like 2-3 days after. Hmm.
January 28, 2010, 2:38pm
Just got back from checkup. Did the CTG scan, minor contractions, baby's movement is active. So I'm just waiting for the due date on the 8th. Baby's weight is about 3.1-3.3kg according to the scan. My butt bone is hurting btw. Have an interview about blogging at 4pm later today! Weee.
January 28, 2010, 6:59am
Me wants Nasi Lemaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak!!!!
January 27, 2010, 6:11pm
Fuhh, updated pregnancy blog. Made a whole compilation of all my facebook status updates relating to my pregnancy!! Took me a while to do this though. >_<

I can't imagine the feeling of torture of being overdue, even by a day! Trying to be positive, well, I know I'll be missing this bump, being pregnant, so I guess I might as well cherish it while I still can. In fact, believe it or not, I have yet to capture a decent pregnancy portrait with the hubster. Maybe I shall snap some photos of us today. I know I'll regret if I don't.

AND I've still some stuff to get done for my clients. AND, I've yet to fully clean up my room. Still need to rearrange the furniture a bit. Clear up the closet to put in the baby clothes. And, and.. well, and I guess, everything truly does happen for a reason...? Yeah, yeah...

Much Love, Anna

baby quickies #004: facebook status updates!

2010-01-27T18:00:00.004+08:00

I was facebooking with my buddy Alan Ralph, and he mentioned how he enjoys reading my status updates on facebook. And I was like, hmm, should have saved 'em. Then I decided to google around if there was any way to retrieve old status updates, and mwahalah, I found this application and now I got 'em all! Wee. Am happeh. So thought I'd compile all the fb status updates about baby in this post. Updates are from latest to the oldest. And here they are:

JANUARY 2010
January 27, 2010, 3:34pm
Still no labor signs. Tomorrow's my checkup with the Dr. Delaila. Wonder what's the progress like. According to my EDD, I still have 12 days to go. Seems like forevah.
January 27, 2010, 2:47am
Oihh. So full. Had a toasted omelet (made with 2 eggs, baloney, green pepper and a cheddar cheese slice) sandwich, then a bowlful of Neapolitan ice cream topped up with hersheys chocolate syrup sprinkled with apple and cinnamon oat cereal. Oh so good.
January 26, 2010, 1:04pm
Sometimes I feel like a crazy woman. Looking at the 3d scanned image of my son, his 4d video, wondering when will I get to hold in him my arms every single day. Updating my fb status about the baby so frequently. But baby, you're all I can think of now... <3
January 25, 2010, 11:56pm
Oh gosh, I just can't stop getting teary eyed and crying. Watching videos of mommies giving birth (decent, minus the gore videos), and the very first latching. Mmm. Baby, ummi just can't wait to see you. :~)
January 25, 2010, 4:40pm
Looking at Ladynoe Mohamed's picture of her beautiful baby Sabrina makes me so impatient! Can't wait for my baby to come to this world! <3
January 25, 2010, 2:24pm
Really stressed. Getting work done, waiting for baby to arrive, and tired. Uploaded a bunch of old photos (therapeutical), one from my visit to Kelantan, and the other London. Do check it out.
January 25, 2010, 12:44am
Fingers are burning, just done marinating ze beef with pepper sauce with honeh for ze shishkebabs.
January 24, 2010, 9:08pm
Think baby will come around my due date instead? Almost exactly in another 2 weeks. But you never know... if it's this week. Aaaaaaa. Haven't packed my bag yet! Lalalala~~
January 24, 2010, 4:21am
Looking at photos of food is not helping my morning craving and hunger. I just can't help maself. Rezist ze temptation. Ugh drooool. ~~~~~
January 23, 2010, 9:28pm
My instincts feel that baby is coming soon. Don't wanna expect and hope too much, cause i'll end up being frustrated if I turn out to be overdue. Haven't packed my bags though. Ahaha. Farty blog updated with new work btw, http://sueannajoe.blogspot.com/2010/01/nn-asy-mm-etrical.html
January 23, 2010, 12:33am
Dear mommies, what did you pack in your bag for the hospital? What do I need to prepare? Thanks!
January 22, 2010, 11:44pm
Not feeling any contractions. Doctor said I should, seeing the position of the baby. She says I have a high threshold perhaps. I think I'll only know when my water actually breaks! Good thing hospital is nearby. Yay! :)
January 22, 2010, 2:30pm
Baby is 3/5 engaged! Baby gained weight, I lost some, lol, but I thought I ate alot last week. Maybe went to the baby. Baby went from 2.4kgs to about 2.7-2.8kgs! Doc says if baby doesn't come next week, she'll be doing a CTG scan. Wooo. Also blog updated, do check it out if u haven't http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2010/01/overly-happy-mom-to-be.html
January 22, 2010, 2:34am
Preggy blog updated http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2010/01/overly-happy-mom-to-be.html
January 22, 2010, 12:09am
ONLY 18 DAYS TO GO!!!??? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH. Hafiz Z.A. are you ready to be a daddddeehh?
January 20, 2010, 1:55am
Baby is moving a lot tonight. Really makes me wanna pee more frequently than I already have been. Waking up more than 10 times at night to pee is normal these days.
January 19, 2010, 3:45pm
Dear mommies, how much did your baby weigh and what was the length when he/she was born? And at how many weeks was your baby born? Was yours before or after or exactly on the estimated due date?
January 19, 2010, 1:54pm
Is much happier today. All I need was a good rest. Do check out the baby shower pictures, uploaded here, or read about it over at my blog! http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2010/01/our-baby-shower-january-16th-2010.html
January 18, 2010, 9:50pm
Baby, ummi is really down now. I appreciate that baba Hafiz Z.A. is trying to cheer me up. I wish you were here already. I hope things work out for all of us.
January 18, 2010, 7:12pm
Wanna upload baby shower pictures, but need to edit clients photos first. Resist the temptation, resist the tempation!!! Raarr.
January 16, 2010, 6:48pm
Thanks for coming to my baby shower. Thanks for a wonderful time. Hope you guys had fun! Will upload photos later tonight if I'm not too tired. Mwahs!
January 14, 2010, 3:27pm
Just arrived at the studio. MUST MUST MUST finish up both my clients photos. Also waiting for Fathiiah Hamzah & Sue Zir to come by the studio to help me with the baby shower preparations.
January 13, 2010, 4:07pm
Gosh. No wonder they say the last months of pregnancy you gain the most weight. I'm STILL hungry after gulping down 12 mini donuts!!
January 11, 2010, 3:38pm
is happy :)
January 11, 2010, 2:28pm
Anyone watched Paranormal Activity? Wanted to watch it with Leila Khalid & Zach Van Alley the other night, but coz I'm pregnant, they & hubster Hafiz Z.A. didn't lemme watch. I loove scary movies, don't easily get freaked out, but yeah, being preggy, I guess it was a wise choice not to. Saw the trailer & read reviews, seems that it was quite good & scared the shit outta some.
January 8, 2010, 9:00pm
Ze baby cot has arrived. Zomg. All it needs now is the mosquito net and a baby!
January 6, 2010, 1:47pm
Sharing workplace with hubster Hafiz Z.A. is supercool. When baby comes, he can hang around here as well with Ummi & Baba. Ah, 2010, I love you, despite our financial downs. We can do it babies!! Mwahs!
January 6, 2010, 12:45pm
Is at the studio, rearranging the set up. Editing photos for client Sabrina Salleh. Hang on babe!!!! Hope I can get everything done as soon as possible. Especially before birth!
January 3, 2010, 6:25am
According to my estimated due date, I've about exactly 1 month to go!! Babyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. Ummi & baba will be seeing you soonish! Lol, I hope I get to do my baby shower first. Ahahaha.
January 2, 2010, 1:54am
Blog updated. Baby shopping #002 http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2010/01/baby-shopping-002.html

DECEMBER 2009
December 31, 2009, 12:45pm
Oyh, I'm so happy and excited right now.
December 31, 2009, 11:19am
It's already the 31st here. Last day of the year 2009. And it'll be 2010 in about 12 hours and 40 minutes from now. Wow. Goodbye 2009. 2010 here I come! So much in store, with baby and all. Will start some promotions for pre-booking soon!!
December 31, 2009, 7:47am
preggy blog updated. baby shower & need help http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/12/baby-shower-i-need-your-help-again.html
December 30, 2009, 10:39pm
Anyone can recommend me somebody that can make nice cakes, cookies and cupcakes for a baby shower?
December 30, 2009, 10:06pm
Aih I hate it when I've to pick and choose. Garrr.
December 30, 2009, 7:24pm
Might go shopping for some baby items tonight.
December 30, 2009, 3:37pm
I feel hot today. Needs to cool down.
December 28, 2009, 5:47pm
Damn hongrehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Garrrrrr. I could eat a whole cow. Sorry ya Zeezam Rae & Akim Grohl Jangan marah nah. Hehehe.
December 28, 2009, 1:24am
Daddy to be Hafiz Z.A. is down with the flu. Soar throat and he just started the sniffles. Please go to the doctor tomorrow dahling. Worried that mommy to be will get it too. But am a strong mamah. Small but strongggggggggggggggggggg. Right baby? *pats tummy*
December 28, 2009, 12:27am
Suddenly wants to eat sphagetti.
December 26, 2009, 3:56am
Can't wait till baby arrives. Somebody to accompany me during my insomniac hours. Will be anxiously waiting for feeding time! Heee.
December 23, 2009, 2:23am
New entry with baby bump picture at pregnancy blog http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/12/pregnancy-bump-photo-week-33-updates.html
December 16, 2009, 1:25pm
I love my pregnant belly. Makes me feel womanly and wholesome. I'm just always so tiny and skimpy, it's great to feel a little bit fat.
December 14, 2009, 8:20pm
I am 8 months pregnant!
December 14, 2009, 1:26pm
Still a bit tired. Sleepy. Feet aching. But had fun. Missing hubby Hafiz Z.A. too eventhough I just saw him this morning. <3
December 13, 2009, 2:07am
going down for a glass of milk. than off to bed i am. need to rise early tomorrow, for a wedding shoot at PD :)
December 11, 2009, 4:51pm
Feels like tummy is extra large today.
December 10, 2009, 3:51pm
First time trying the sipahh straw. Caramel flavored. Damn nyummy!
December 10, 2009, 1:22pm
I am enjoying my pop.tarts. Mmh mhh mhh.
December 9, 2009, 2:02pm
Am craving for chocolate chip cookies and brownies with lots and lots of chocolate chips in 'em!
December 7, 2009, 10:12am
My first baby shopping spree. I'm hooked! http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/12/baby-shopping-001-what-i-wore-005.html Sorry for respamming, did some edits and added some links! :)
December 7, 2009, 2:37am
Finally shopped for baby!! Blogged at preggy blog. Weee http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/12/baby-shopping-001-what-i-wore-005.html
December 4, 2009, 1:18pm
Had a weird dream where I was eating sardine filled pencils. I even munched on thinking, too much wood, not enough sardine. Wdf.
December 3, 2009, 7:14pm
Can't wait to eat sushi in another uhhh 4 months. The things I sacrifice for you baby!
December 3, 2009, 2:12pm
Okay. So seriously, I need to start buying stuff for baby. Believe it or not I haven't shopped a single thing. And I'm due early February! Wuhoho.
December 3, 2009, 1:06am
He's back :)
December 2, 2009, 7:47pm
Hubby is just taking off from Perlis. Drive safely baby. Your babies are waiting for you at home.
December 2, 2009, 3:09pm
New entry at my pregnancy blog. What I wore #004, food, & pregnancy woes http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/12/what-i-wore-004-food-pregnancy-woes.html
December 1, 2009, 8:22pm
I feel like eating at TGIF tonight. Hmmm.
December 1, 2009, 2:12pm
Can't wait to do my first post wed and wedding shoot this December. Heeeee. And hopefully after baby, I can really start getting into action and do more and more jobs :) And hopefully workshops too!

NOVEMBER 2009
November 30, 2009, 11:33pm
Having trouble sleeping. Can't seem to find a comfortable position to place my growing tummy. Baby!!!!!!
November 26, 2009, 1:02pm
Heee. Respamming, if you haven't do check out the 3D/4D (video) scan of baby in ma tummeh!! http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/11/3d4d-video-scan-of-our-baby-boy.html
November 25, 2009, 9:42pm
Do check out my baby progression photo for the image of the 3d scan of my baby boy, orrrrr, to my blog entry at http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/11/3d4d-video-scan-of-our-baby-boy.html for more pictures and a video as well!
November 25, 2009, 2:31pm
omg omg omomg omg omg. another 1 and a half hour to goo. omg omg omg. so excited. omg. heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
November 16, 2009, 8:35pm
Baby has hiccups! Thought he was kicking at first, but there's this constant pulsating feeling, rythamic patterns. So cute. ^_^
November 13, 2009, 1:30am
Dear experienced mommies, what to shop for my newborn? Need help, at my blog entry!! http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/11/i-need-help-shopping-for-your-newborn.html
November 11, 2009, 10:50pm
Got a huge zit on my cheek. >_<
November 11, 2009, 4:31pm
Everytime I play Bejeweled, my baby will start kicking and moving about!! Heeee.

OCTOBER 2009
October 29, 2009, 1:34am
My baby was rumbling and tumbling and fumbling in my tummy. Always miss out on capturing a video, just too mesmerized @_@
October 28, 2009, 6:25pm
Is hungry to eat something, but can't quite put my taste buds on it. Hmm.
October 25, 2009, 8:03am
A lot on my mind. Trouble sleeping. But happy :)
October 23, 2009, 2:25pm
Sedang merajuk dengan suami. Waaaa.
October 22, 2009, 3:08am
I love seeing baby photos of friends on facebook. Ahh so adorable, so cute, so lovely, you people really make the most beautiful babies ever!!!! Sigh, can't wait!!!
October 21, 2009, 3:54am
Going down to the kitchen for some hot milk with honey. And try to get some sleep. I doubt I'll be able to though, eyes are still WIDE OPEN O_O
October 19, 2009, 4:39pm
Sweating like mad. Think I'm feeling a bit better. Throat is still a bit sore, nose slightly congested. Yay for home remedies, lotsa liquid and rest! Ummi's off to the studio now baby to meet a new team member for Itudio Studio! Weee.
October 19, 2009, 3:35am
Extremely hungry. Made myself a sunny side up toasted sandwich with cheddar cheese slice, mayo, butter and a bit of chilli sauce. Nyumm. Feeling a bit better now that I'm full. I hope I can sleep well and my noses clears up by tomorrow.
October 19, 2009, 2:00am
Not feeling well. Nose is terribly congested, slight sore throat. Have been drinking tea, lemon & honey, gargling salt water. Home remedies as I refuse to take any drugs. Don't wanna harm my baby. So sorry baby, ummi hasn't been taking care of my health much these past few weeks. Been so busy finishing up those websites. I'm really sorry :( I love you so much. I want to be super healthy for you right now. Kisses.
October 15, 2009, 7:17pm
I think I touched the baby's head today. It was bulging. Haihhh, I just wanna touch him for real. Hmmmm....
October 14, 2009, 4:38pm
A new entry at my preggy blog http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/would-you-like-to-touch-your-tortoise.html ""Would you like to touch your tortoise?""
October 14, 2009, 3:53am
huge sigh of relief. fuhhhhhhhhhhhh. now i can sleep like a baby, with both my babies tonight. :)
October 13, 2009, 12:54am
Just got up. Hungry very. What shall I cook up for my midnight snack? Need to wake hubby to accompany me. Muwahaha.
October 11, 2009, 10:47pm
Staying up late in the wee hours of the morning up to 9am is not a good idea. It makes me as moody as hell. >_<
October 11, 2009, 7:52am
Lol. My baby will turn into a vampire. Sleeping throughout the day, and only up after midnight. Finally got Itudio Studio's website done. Still a lot of content to be added though. Okay, time to sleep. Vaaaarrgghh.
October 11, 2009, 4:17am
Despite that I'm gonna be a mom next year, I still having trouble getting over the 'mean girls' back from high-school. Sigh...
October 10, 2009, 8:44pm
Alo, new entry at my preggy blog http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/pregnancy-bump-photo-week-23.html
October 8, 2009, 4:49pm
A new entry at my pregnancy blog, "Seeing the cup half full?" http://theexcitedmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/seeing-cup-half-full.html
October 7, 2009, 1:52pm
Each and every day I wake up, waiting to finally be able to hold you in my arms. Baby, I love you so so much.
October 7, 2009, 2:00am
I really want to and need to sleep, but have difficulty sleeping. I blame my internet addiction. My whole sleeping pattern is so unhealthy.
October 2, 2009, 4:23pm
Woke up to a happy baby somersault show. Watched my tummy bulging and moving. Woooooo.
October 1, 2009, 8:07am
Morning farts are the best.

SEPTEMBER 2009
September 28, 2009, 1:40am
We SAW our baby kick tonight! We could see my tummy bulging whenever he kicked. Sooo cute and amazing!! Imma happeh mamah!
September 18, 2009, 7:51pm
I saw the baby's butt today. OMG, so dayumm adorable, can't wait to pinch and squeeze it.
September 18, 2009, 12:53am
Was super hungry so I made grilled cheese sandwich. Nyumm. Still hungry though, should've made two.
September 17, 2009, 6:55am
I've been passing a lot of gas lately, so I did some googling, and came about this, thought it was too funny not to share, "Contrary to a popular misconception, fart noise is not generated by the flapping of the butt cheeks." Funny because the sentence seems so serious. Indeed. Seriously funny. Flapping of the butt cheeks. Hahahahahah.
September 15, 2009, 5:59pm
Baby, are my penguin printed cotton pants too tight for you, cause you've been kicking me all day.
September 13, 2009, 2:52pm
Last night was a beautiful night. We had a long serious discussion about our past, our life, and our future. And finally Pitt could feel the baby move!
September 12, 2009, 8:30pm
Made Shephard's/cottage pie with my hubby for berbuka. Was pretty good, but the mash potato was a little bit too thick, and the minced meat needs a little more seasoning. Other than that, perfecto, especially for the first time making it! Will definitely be making more. Nyummm.
September 8, 2009, 6:30pm
I felt the baby kick a couple of times today! ^_^ It started yesterday, wasn't so sure, but today, my baby boy is definitely kicking his momma!
September 8, 2009, 12:09am
Browsing photos of babies. Can't help but wonder how my boy will look like!! I *think* I felt him kick today! :)
September 1, 2009, 5:12pm
I enjoy walking with my belly in front.

AUGUST 2009
August 25, 2009, 5:59am
Semalam menangis lagi, masak roti canai frozen tak jadi. Frust gila. Bukak peti sejuk & almari carik makanan sambil nangis, tapi takda yang rasa nak makan, nangis lagi. Last-last heret Pitt pi makan kat Darul Ehsan. Mmm, makan roti planta, sama mi goreng basah, sambil hirup tom yam ayam dan minum fresh orange. Wah. Puas. Benda macam ni pon nak citer ke kat facebook? Hahaha.
August 23, 2009, 11:14pm
Didn't make the steak sandwich, we just had the steak with homemade mashed potato. Mmmmmmmmppfth. Lately I've been addicted to cooking!
August 23, 2009, 6:48pm
Marinating steak to make a steak sandwich for hubby tonight after tarawikh. Ohh mmhh mhh nyummy!!!
August 20, 2009, 12:26pm
Oh my, Nasi Ambang is sooooo damn good. Droools for more! Why oh why did I only discover it a day before puasa?

JULY 2009
July 24, 2009, 4:02pm
Shake it baby. Shake it shake it! :)
July 22, 2009, 4:40pm
Wants to eat Neapolitan ice cream with Hershey's chocolate syrup. Ooh. That's the life.
July 22, 2009, 2:59pm
Trying to survive the day without Zofran. Ugggh. I feel terrible.
July 13, 2009, 8:32pm
Tired of being tired. :(
July 10, 2009, 3:03pm
Feeling better, hope I can make it for Bazaario this Sunday!!
July 7, 2009, 3:11pm
Buergh. Not feeling well. :( I miss the studio. But too tired to go. Sigh.

JUNE 2009
June 19, 2009, 4:44pm
Twinkle twinkle little heart. :)

So, that's about it. Updates are from June 19th, 2009 up till January 27th, 2010. At first I omitted the food updates, but thought I'd include them anyway. Just to see what I've been eating and craving throughout my pregnancy! Took me a while to compile this, since I had other updates in between. And to format the html to be composed in this entry was sure tough. It keeps on messing up! But it's okay now.

Ooh, only 12 days to go. Have an appointment with Dr. Delaila tomorrow! Can't wait to know what's the progress. I hope I can deliver earlier than my due date. I wanna see baby!!!

Much Love, Anna

Overly happy mom (to be)

2010-01-22T02:19:00.009+08:00

I just had to share this photo. I love this moment captured by my friend. Took this from Sue's set of photos during our baby shower. This was the second and last game we played. Hangman (which I changed to babyman instead, hehe), using words that were baby related. Laughed so hard here because my hubster guessed with much confidence, 'BABY RIB', instead of 'CRIB'. Ahahahaha. I mean come on, baby 'RIB'?? Errrr, psycho much? Hehe.

Only 18 days to go baby!

Much Love, Anna

Our baby shower, January 16th 2010!

2010-01-19T01:28:00.012+08:00

Wooh. Alhamdulillah, the baby shower went well! Not everyone I invited could come though, still I was quite surprised that many did. Yay! I hope everyone had as much fun as we did. So here are some of the photos. Rest is on facebook.

Hubby helped with cutting the papers and binding
the notebook together for the goodie bag.

That's the notebook!

Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies made by my buddy Eila's boyfriend Zack.
Loved it! Was very crispy and chocolaty. Sha, Sue, Tiah, and myself packed these.
I did the tags. Tiah helped cut the edges with those zig zag craft scissors.

More stuff for the goodie bag!
Two candies and a cupcake lip gloss.

We used our leftover bags from our wedding for the goodie bag.

Balloons, streamers & baby rompers as part of the baby shower deco.
Notice the theme was blue, yellow and white.

The baby cake I did for the deco. Slept at 5am doing this.
All by myself! Made it using 4 baby rompers, one towel,
2 receiving blankets, 2 baby burp towels (for the milk bottle),
3 round styrofoam boards for the base.
Ribbons and lots and lots of pins!

The cake. Plain white Tiramisu.
Added a preggy lady cake topper courtesy of Tiah.
And, flags I made myself! Hee.

Diaper cake present made by Benjy! Sooo creative! Love it!!!

Presents. Mmmm.

Game time. Guess the girth. Thanks Jasmin for helping out.

Had Benjy & Dianne join the game as well
since they are expecting too!!
The more the merrier they say. Indeed it was.

Tiah was one of the winners! The other two were Fatimah and Marina.
They got an extra cookie!

Cutting the cake with dear hubby.

And of course group photos. Weee. Thanks Oat for snapping them.

So there you have it. It was quite a hectic week preparing for this. But thanks to friends who helped out (especially Tiah who helped the most!!), all went well. I did get a little stressed out. But it was all worth it. I really would love to attend more baby showers in the future. It's fun. Especially getting to meet up with friends. So dear friends, do make more babies and have baby showers for me to come to eh? Hehe. I wonder when I'll have my next one. Haha.

Uihh. Only 3 weeks to go. But the doctor did say you can be either 2 weeks earlier or later than the estimated due date. Sooooo, there is a possibility I'll be giving birth in about a week??? Aiiiiiiiyayayai.

Much Love, Anna

Baby shopping #002

2010-01-02T12:21:00.016+08:00

Today we went on our second shopping spree for baby. The first baby shopping was mostly clothing. This time it's more of the where-to-put-the-baby-thing-a-majib. So, what you see above is the stuff we bought today. Yay!

Only item not showing here is the baby cot/crib. Okay, so apparently as I was googling, I just found out that there is a difference between a cot and a crib. I thought it was just an British/American thing. But I read on a number of sites, where cot is the baby bed, while the crib is smaller and usually the rocking type? *shrugs* But to some, it's the same between the two. So this cot, will be arriving in about a week. Eeek can't wait!

So, we have bought a Halford Premier Zeus Plus baby car seat (left image) at Baby Jaya together with the yet to arrive baby cot. The cot comes with a foam mattress, 7 in 1 bedding set, diaper stacker, crib organiser and a fitted sheet. The mosquito net needs to be custom made though, which can be done at a curtain shop. Hmm, bila nak pergi?
Oh and this baby car seat comes with a 1 year insurance and 2 years warranty. Not bad.

Then over at Twins Baby we bought a rocking moses basket and another separate moses basket to carry around. We originally wanted to get the woven type, but saw this soft one instead, and liked the design much better. Plus it's less bulky, so we can actually put it on our bed if we want to sleep with baby. Maybe during those short naps during the day, or just lepaking on the bed. So now, we don't need to get the Close & Secure sleeper that we thought of buying.

Cute hanging toy in the rocking moses basket.

And lastly, I got the Philips Avent ISIS Breast Pump (manual). I just don't think I need any battery or electrical operated ones just yet. If this one works out fine, I'll just stick to it. See how it goes, how my milk flows yo. This one we got at The First Few Years at the Curve.

Still, so much more stuff to buy for me and for baby. Oh, and I'd like to have some suggestion for set bersalin/berpantang. Apa yang bagus? Because I have NO idea at all, since there's so many out there! And where did you get your bengkung? Or does it usually come together with the set?

Thanks in advance for your input! Oh and I've had some questions in some of my previous entries, which I'll reply to when visiting your blog eh? Since most of them was sometime ago, I doubt that you'd be rechecking that particular entry for my response.

I will be shopping again really soon, maybe tomorrow, or the day after, but soon. I'm starting to ache everywhere in my legs and feet now from walking too much. So I don't think I want to put too much pressure on them these last few weeks.

Also, any of you would be free this January 16th? It would be a Saturday. I'm thinking of inviting a number of my readers to my baby shower! It'd be a great get-together. And perhaps a start to a wonderful new friendship! Plus it'd be nice to get to know other moms or future moms out there and start talking about motherhood. Maybe have a regular meet up, a club or something. Hahaha.

Sooo, if you're free on that day, and you're interested to come, do tell, insya-Allah if there's nothing in the way, I'll send you the invites! I'm serious okay. *makes serious but friendly face*

Much Love, Anna

Baby shower & I need your help again!

2009-12-31T07:40:00.004+08:00

So finally, with the help of my buddy Fathiiah, me & hubby have decided on a date for our baby shower which is on January 16th, 2010. That would make it about 3 weeks before my estimated due date (EDD - I just found out the abbreviation, haha), February 8th, 2010.

We originally wanted to do it this month, but had to postpone due to our packed schedules. However, we did do a kenduri doa selamat & solat hajat recently. Was only with the family and the people from the mosque.

I really hate picking and choosing people to invite to our baby shower. Same problem I had during my wedding reception. I just really wish I could invite everyone I know, including readers of this blog. But that would be impossible. Mainly we need to consider the budget for food and goodies for the guests. Sigh...

So that image above is a photo of me & hubby. Did it for the invite, which for now we're just putting up online. Might print it out as a thank you card as well to be given on that day.

Okay, so about my cry for help (yet again) uhmm, does anyone have any recommendations, homemade or bakery, that does cupcakes, cookies & cakes for baby showers? I know you guys are very resourceful and such nice people who love to share and make the world a better place. So, please do share! I appreciate it muchly.

And have any of you done a baby shower, or attended any? How does it usually go about? What's usually done? What kind of games do people play at these baby showers?

Oyh, enough Anna, too many questions already! Hehehe. Oh well, what to do? I'm just an excited mom (to be).

Much Love, Anna

Pregnancy bump photo (week 33) & updates.

2009-12-23T01:30:00.017+08:00

Pregnancy bump at 33 weeks & 1 day.

Photo taken on Tuesday, December 2009

Wow. It's already 8 months. Damn fast huh? Getting even more and more anxious to see my baby boy. Have yet to go for my second round of baby shopping. I already have my eye on the crib that I want to get. And we just might repaint one of my old drawers to match the crib instead of buying a new one. If it looks good, will use it, if not, we'll just buy a new one. There's one at IKEA, just a little over RM 100 which I think is pretty decent. Either that, or I'll search at one of those ghetto kind of furniture stores, cheap stuff, yet not bad at all. Just gotta know how to look for it.

A number of peeps say in real life compared to the pictures I've been posting my tummy doesn't look as large. I agree, I've always looked bigger in photos anyway, and taller too. But life size, I've always been petite. My tummy looks rather huge from the side, since it's growing forward instead of sideways. From the front it looks pretty small.

I missed my appointments about 3 times. Just went yesterday. Was worried that the doc or nurses would fuss about it. But I guess they have too many patients to keep track. Phew! Had to fast to take that blood test to check for any gestational diabetes. But I'm pretty confident I'm okay. Either way, not so worried what the results will be, since there is always ways and precautions if needed. I didn't know that they would take the blood twice, had to wait another 2 hours for the second blood test. That was done after I had to gulp down a whole cup of glucose water, which was super super super sweet, which made me puke. Ugh. Glad the doctor just let me continue with the test. Did not like the idea of coming again to repeat the test.

I kind of freaked out when I puked. Wasn't because of the puking, but I had difficulty breathing, gasping for air. Almost like an asthma attack, one which I don't have. Probably some got into my lungs? I don't know. But not fun. I just couldn't breathe for a while there. Worried that I might faint. Then I felt that I wanted to puke again, when I gave this huge burp out instead. It was all gas. Haha. The lab guys thought I was going to puke on them, so they backed away a bit, hehe funny. I did puke a little bit more after the big burp, into the wastepaper basket, not the guys. Now that would have been quite a scene. Noticed that the lady waiting outside was tapping and rubbing her chest, I think she was quite in shock seeing me struggling there for a bit. Then everything was back to normal. Finished down the drink, came back 2 hours later and took the test.

Interesting info about my shortness in breathe incident I got through my Twitter:

RT: @farizalisz: @sueannajoe feeling shortnes of air after glucose drink is expected.U just gulped sugar-full drink after fasting,ur body becomes acidotic when u breathe quickly n thus becoming shortness of breath, u blow away the CO2 making it less acidotic :) just sharing

And I just read that, some people actually do get sick drinking down the glucose solution. Lemme quote from what I read on babycentre:

Will this test make me feel sick?
Some moms-to-be feel nauseated after drinking the glucose solution, and a few even throw up. It sometimes helps to have eaten something a few hours before the screening test. If you vomit soon after you've gotten the drink down, you'll have to come back another day and repeat the test. But most women get through it just fine. It's actually more common for women to feel sick during the three-hour glucose tolerance test, because the solution for that test may be twice as sweet or twice as much liquid as the one for the screening test and you have to drink it after fasting.

In the meantime, I met up with the doc. Weight gain is fine, baby's weight is fine. I gained about 1.8kgs since the last appointment, baby's weight is about 2.03kgs. My weight is 48kgs. Weight when I started weighing for my pregnancy was about 38kgs. More or less 10kgs weight gain. So progression is good. Doctor said that baby is fine, not too small, not too big. Oh and I'd really love to maintain this weight after birth!

I've been naughty though. I haven't really been taking my supplements as I should. Missing a lot of days. But from what I've been reading, supplements are more for the mom, since the baby takes the nutrients from the mother. So it's to replenish those nutrients gone. Plus, back in those days, I don't think people really took any supplements other than taking care of what they eat? Haha, okay. I'm just trying to make myself feel good. Now let me talk about something else.

On Sunday, December 13th I was commissioned to do a wedding shoot by the beach in Port Dickson. Cool huh! So this was papparazzied by one of Itudio Studio's team photographer, Azim. Yes, I was lying down on the sand to take photos. There were a few other positions where I was really lying down, like my arms stretched out, and tummy on the sand. Ah, the things I do for the things I love. Besides, I enjoyed the feeling of lying on warm sand even more so with a preggy belly. It was therapeutic.

I enjoyed the shoot, but my ankles were a little hurt. Not swollen or anything, just a bit sore. But it was gone the next day. And I'm pretty satisfied with the photos I took, especially since it was my first ever wedding photo shoot. You can check them out here at my artsy blog. Hee.

Oh, and during that last appointment, I already pre-booked a room for my delivery. Yowzer! And for the next appointment, in another 2 weeks, I'll have vaginal swab to check for Streptococcus infection, which apparently is really dangerous for the baby. So, this will be the first time I would be spreading my legs, wait let me rephrase that, this will be my first time spreading my legs in front of a doctor, lol. Eeeeeek. Gynecologists have guts I tell ya. Much respect to them!

Alrite. That's about it for now. Need to start clearing up our bedroom to make way for the crib and drawer. And will be having a kenduri doa selamat soon, and maybe a baby shower as well! Only 48 days to go. That's less than 2 months away. Oooh la la!

Much Love, Anna

Baby shopping #001 & what I wore #005

2009-12-07T02:20:00.017+08:00

So this is what I wore on Sunday, December 6, 2009.
A hand me down from my sister in law. She only wore it once or twice.
Love it! Probably my fanciest maternity wear.

The stuff I bought today. Mostly baby apparel.

Close ups.

My favorite out of the bunch. Haha.

Yipee. Finally some breath of relief. I've already started shopping for the baby. It's much more fun and exciting than shopping for yourself! I originally wanted to drop by myBBstore located at Jalan Kuchai Lama. But scratched that idea, and headed towards Midvalley Megamall instead. Since my brother and friend said that they bought a lot of their baby stuff there. Plus I've more options of the shops to browse around.

We went there around after 4pm. Traffic was fine, and we were lucky to have got a perfect parking spot right in front of one of the entrance at The Gardens. We didn't even search for long. Yay. Definitely a great way to start of the shopping spree.

So we checked out some of the shops over at The Gardens, saw a couple of things we liked very much but decided to come back later since we will be passing by that area again, since we parked close by. Off we went to Midvalley. Headed straight towards the baby area.

Bought most of the stuff at Mothercare which were:
1. Three pairs of Cotton Scratch Mittens
2. Five pairs of baby ankle socks
3. Seven pure soft cotton bodysuits (short sleeve)
4. Three pure soft cotton bodysuits (short sleeve)
5. Three pure soft cotton sleepsuits
6. Eight piece set which includes, bib, scratch mittens, hat,
two bodysuits, all in one jacket, trousers with feet.
7. One swaddling blanket from Miracle Blanket
Then, over in Isetan:
8. Bumblee Bee Thermal Blanket
9. Bumble Bee Receiving Blankets, a pack of three.
Baby GAP:
10. Two bodysuits (long sleeve)
And on the way back home, we dropped by at Babyland SS2:
11. Two baby abdominal binders (barut perut bayi) - one velcro type, one string type

Wuhoho. Overall I'm happy and satisfied with what we got so far. A little frustrated because the Bumble Bee Thermal Blanket & Receiving Blanket was about RM 10 cheaper at Babyland. I seriously recommend this place, you've got almost everything there. Planning to check out other baby outlets some other time like BabyJaya over in Uptown (which we actually went to, but was already closed), and maybe myBBstore mentioned earlier. I plan to check out their baby cots, baby car seats and strollers. Since these can cost a lot, so I really want to make sure I can get one with the best price possible. And for the rest, I think I'll be frequently stopping by at Babyland. Again, I highly recommend this place.

Still so so much to purchase. But I'm not worried as much since I've already seen the stuff that I should be getting (thanks to the list you've all provided!). I'm a bit confused as to what/which bottles to get though. Looking at some of the ones mentioned by Hamunosuke on her entry here. Which I think clears up my mind a little. Other than that, considering which breast pump to get, Medela or Avent? And would it really be necessary? Since I don't really have a 9-5 job. Can't I just squeeze 'em out? Haha. I really hope I can breastfeed my baby without much trouble. Swollen breasts, cracked nipples. Ayyhh.

Honestly though, I still don't have my own proper checklist. It's all in my mind. I'm really really bad when it comes down to organizing and doing a list of things. I just go with the flow, 'cause I'm cool like that. Haha. Okay, okay. I will do a list. I MUST do a list. I don't want to miss out on the important things I would need.

As for the baby apparel, I think it's enough for now? My mom suggests that I get a couple of two pieces, separate top and bottom. Which I really didn't think of getting just now, since I aimed for the 'value packs', which usually consists a one piece suit.

That's about it. I'm really thrilled for my next baby shopping spree! Weeeee. And it's so adorable seeing my husband getting all excited as well. He was googling around to get some info and reviews on baby items when we got back home, "the best baby strollers 2009" to be exact. Awww. But damn, strollers are expensive okayyyy.

Hahaha, which reminds me. We were at Toys R Us, and checking out the strollers there, and were joking about stealing strollers from other parents while they're busy doing other things, maybe eating, or shopping, well, those without their baby's in 'em of course. Lol. New career, stroller stealer. If you read the headlines of missing strollers, you know who to look for ;) So dear parents, take really good care of your strollers eh?

Much Love, Anna

What I wore #004, food, & pregnancy woes

2009-12-02T15:00:00.006+08:00

30 weeks & 1 day pregnant.
Happy and bloated after gulping down a wondrous meal at TGIF.
Wearing a cotton red tunic top bought at Padang Besar, Perlis.

I actually wanted to eat there the night before, but held back since I already spent so much on computer stuff. But just had to go since I just couldn't stop thinking about it, and realized I did have a little more money to splurge. But phew, glad that hubby was the one who paid. I guess it should always be that way, hubby should fork out the cash huh? Yes I'm very traditional when it comes down to money. Hehe. However so, I feel guilty to have him pay when my cravings are slightly for the slightly expensive than usual daily food intake. Cheap would be home cooked food.

Something marinated grilled lamb chop?

So yeah that's what I ate. Can't really recall the name from the menu. Was with mashed potato. The lamb was really good, especially with the barbecue sauce dip, though I think I make better mashed potato. The dip reminds me a whole lot of those oh so nyummy Tony Roma's ribs. Oooh yeah baby. Drools. We had those something mac and cheese, deep fried in bread crumbs. Hubby had something chicken. I really don't bother remembering the names of the food. I actually prefer Chilis over TGIF, but TGIF was more convenient and accessible. Went to the one in Section 14, PJ. I'm crazy for the Tostada Chips with Beef Queso, the Salsa dip that comes with is also ooh yeah nyummeh. A must order every single time I go there.

Alright. Now enough about food. Moving on.

Pregnancy woes. Yes. As beautiful as the experience is, throughout pregnancy, there is definitely some downs to it. But keeping in mind that, these downs are the parts that makes us appreciate the pregnancy and our precious ones even more. So not really complaining here, just sharing my own personal experience of being preggy.

So, I'm at my 3rd final trimester, 30th week. That's about 7 months plus preggy, I've had my fair share of pregnancy downs.

Morning sickness

Oy. Probably the worse out of all the stages so far. 3 months of feeling queasy, nauseous, puking every single thing I gulp down, and extremely super sensitive to any strong odor. It started somewhere along my 7th week. And got worse and worse as the days progressed. It's really really frustrating, because number one, you worry that your baby is not getting enough nutrients, and number two, your tummy is pretty much flat, so you don't look pregnant enough to be feeling that sick. It really brings you down. I didn't really have trouble eating, but everything I ate kept coming back out. Even liquid. The morning sickness got so bad, I was admitted to the hospital for 4 or was it 5 days. Was dehydrated.

As for odors, I was fine with the smell of food being cooked. What I really could not stand was the smell of anyone's breathe, my nieces, and especially my husbands. It made me really really nauseous. Couldn't stand his smell either, I even hated the smell of the shower gel he uses, and his perfume! Poor dude. All those scents did make me go rushing to the toilet bowl. But you know, I sometimes couldn't even stand the smell of my own breath! I had to brush my teeth and use mouth gargles religiously. Enter month 4 of pregnancy, the morning sickness gradually went away.

I did take some meds which helped quite a bit. It's called Zofran. It actually helped a lot, stopped me from puking so much. Pretty darn expensive though. But worth it! If you're having really bad morning sickness, you should try and ask the doctor about this med. It really was a miracle pill for me. Of course I did some research, and so far, good reviews and it does not harm the baby.

Mood swings & cravings

My mood swings haven't been so bad. But yes, I have cried a couple of times. It happens when I worry about something else like my business, I start to relate it to my pregnancy. Or, when I have an urge to eat something a.k.a. craving, and I don't get it, I'd have a serious major emotional breakdown.

I'd say I don't have any crazy, or bizarre cravings. Just once in a while. So anyways, there was this one night. Was doing some work at the studio. Was there till late, like till 2.30am. I was already super hungry, but wanted to get work done and was having fun taking photos at the studio with the new background we just bought. Had in mind that I wanted to eat lamb chop (yes I love my baa baas), and thought I'd drop by the mamak later to eat, since it's open 24/7. Plus hubby was napping I didn't really want to wake him up.

So at around 3am, woke hubby up and we headed to the mamak. Only to find out that the Western foods are already closed. :( I was already upset. But said, it's alright I could probably head down to the other mamak I go to nearby home. And well, well, no Western too. I was getting really frustrated, but held back. And decided to order roti planta with carrot milk. Then I saw a number of people ordering nasi lemak, and I suddenly had the urge to have one myself. Ordered. And the guy took my order, only to come back and say it's all finished. WTF!!! I just saw someone ordered a whole plate. :(

At that moment, I already ate a bit of the roti planta, have yet to drink the carrot milk. I got up immediately and dashed towards the car. Hubby got up and paid. I got in the car and started sobbing. Got back home, climbed into bed, and cried like never before. It was SO dramatic, as I was crying I was saying "Baby, Ummi really wants to eat that lamb chop..." It just made it worse. Up to the point I could not breathe and was gasping for air through my mouth. Almost sounded like I had an asthma attack (I don't have asthma). I even asked hubby to recite ayat Kursyi to calm me down. Which did work. I really thought that I was going to faint. Hubby was really worried. He was holding me, and rubbing my chest and back, calming me down.

Then I felt much better. Had a laugh and a seriously congested nose. Which gave me a cold the next day. Huh. What an experience!

Trouble sleeping

I've always had trouble sleeping. It takes me hours before I can fall asleep. Always so jealous seeing hubby sleep as soon as he puts his head on the pillow. So it's no surprise that I find it even harder to sleep during pregnancy.

But lately that trouble isn't really of my worries, since I do have sleep replacements throughout the day. Lately it's more of finding a comfortable enough position to rest my growing belly that has a growing baby in it. Which really loves to shift positions. So sometimes I find it comfortable sleeping on my left, sometimes on my right, sometimes on my back. And most of the time no position seems right. I keep on tossing and turning.

I was hoping to buy this pregnancy pillow:

Image taken here

It looks sooo comfortable. But I think it's a waste of money, since I can substitute it with our bantal peluk/bolster pillows, or a couple of pillows and cushions. Then again, I'm starting to think that it might help out a lot. I dunno, maybe try making my own? I'll get mom to do the sewing on the machine, me and bibik or hubby can put in the stuffing because it's getting extremely uncomfortable lately. How did/do you cope with your sleep during your pregnancy?

So, yeah that's pretty much my downs. Other than slower movements, I'm feeling pretty much more energetic compared to my earlier stage of pregnancy. And soon, this month I'll be having two photo shoots! One a beach wedding at Port Dickson, and a post wedding shoot at the couple's old high school! Crazy huh! But I'm all psyched. Plus it'll be good exercise, since I have been spending most of my time at home throughout my pregnancy.

All the other swelling of the feet, backaches, I haven't really had. Only at times when I sit too long and get up and start walking, my ankles hurts for a little so I start limping. It's all okay after a while.

So how was your pregnancy like? Hospitalization? Emotional breakdowns? Allergies? Food cravings? Do share!

Much Love, Anna

3D/4D (video) scan of our baby boy!

2009-11-25T21:25:00.016+08:00

Wow wow wow! I cannot express how excited I am to finally be able to see how our baby looks like. So after some online research, I found out about Vision College where they offer 3D/4D scans of the baby. A session lasts about half and hour or so. I HIGHLY recommend this place. For a number of photos as well as videos in a CD, it costs only RM 60. Damn cheap. And the scan is very thorough. The lady who did mine tried her best to get the most out of the scan.

Unfortunately for me though, baby was closing his face most of the time. He was in a C like position, all curled up like a baby kitten. I did get to see his side profile though, a little sneak preview. Baby is making me anxious. Tffhhh.

By the way, at my last doctor's appointment I realized that I had my due date wrong! Hahaha, I was three days early, it's supposed to be February 8th, 2010 not the 5th. Tsk tsk. So, this scan is done at 29 weeks & 2 days. Alrite, now for the photos and video!

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Baby from the side. You can see his eyes, the nose and lips! Me and hubby agrees that the nose looks like mine, lips probably a combination of both, and all around we both think the baby looks like him! Baba's baby boy :)
And on the sides are his hands and arms.

This is a close up of his hands covering his face, you can see his fingers. Adorable!

And this is his lil adowable feeeeeet. Eeeeeeeeee.
So this is where all the kickin' comes from all this while!

Now this is the 4D scan (video) of the baby. All from the side. He was pretty much asleep most of the time. I tried moving, poking my tummy, shaking it trying to wake the baby. The more we moved him around, the more he curled up. I bet he was like "Ummi!! I wanna sleep otayyyyyy?!" And closes his face with his arms.

So for those who wants (you should!) do this 3D/4D scan at Vision College located in Kelana Jaya, you can call up to make an appointment at 603-78038300 during office hours. The scan isn't always available and usually very packed. I made my appointment 2 weeks in advance. The best time to do this scan is after 24 weeks or so, and not more than 32 weeks. It's better that you go before 30 weeks, because when the baby is too big, its harder to see the face as the space in the womb is running out, so he/she tends to curl up like mine did. Especially if you're petite like me.

Oh and I'd like to thank everyone for all those great newborn lists of stuff to get. I haven't shopped anything yet, I plan to next month. So I'm definitely reviewing the list to see what I should be getting my hands on. You guys are a wonderful bunch. Thank you for sharing.

I hope you enjoyed the 3d scans and video I included. If you've done or planning to do yours do share them with me! Would so love to see. It's such an amazing sight. God's wonderful wonderful creation. Masha Allah!

Much Love, Anna

I need help. Shopping for your newborn?

2009-11-13T00:20:00.009+08:00

Pregnancy bump at 25 weeks & 3 days to be exact
Taken on October 30th, 2009.

I'm entering my 28th week. Already at my third trimester. Like, wait hang on there. Already? However so, it still feels like a loooooong wait. Tomorrow will be my next check up! I wonder how the baby is. My current weight is about 46kgs on the weighing scale at home, at the hospital it's usually 1 or 2 kg heavier. My normal weight before pregnancy is about need help, pictures, pregnancy bump, pr39kg-42kg the most. I'm normally underweight. So putting on all this weight is such a bonus for me. I hope I get to maintain it after giving birth. Funny how most would want to loose weight, while I really would want to keep all the fat I've gained.

So, I haven't bought a single thing in preparation for my newborn. Nada, zilch. I just didn't want to get things way too early. But I think now is about time I start buying some stuff. But gosh, I don't know where to start? What are the MUST HAVES? What are the things that you've bought, but never really use?

And how many pieces of clothing and what kind should I get for the baby? I know they grow up so fast, so I shouldn't really be buying too many, plus the gifts I might be getting from friends or relatives, not that I EXPECT to get any, but it's something normal right, for mommies to get gifts for the baby from relatives and friends? Either gifts or moneeehhh. Ka-ching! Haha. But really, among these gifts I've seen people get, do have baby clothes in 'em. So yeah. Gotta consider that as well when buying clothes for the baby. I just don't wanna end up having too much and not using them. Wasting is bad. Gifts are good. Hee. Momma is embarrassing baby now. Tskk, tskk.

So what other stuff do I need to get? Blankets? Bottles? How many? What type? A crib of course. Do I need to get a baby car seat already? Baby grooming kit? Socks? Mittens? Oi, what do I geeeeeeeeet? Really confused and clueless. Yes I've been reading up checklists all over the net, but I'm still lost. So lost. Help!

Also, it'd be great if you experienced mommies out there suggest where I can get these items. I live in Petaling Jaya. Thanks in advance for helping me out!

Much Love, Anna

Counting the days, maternity & newborn photography.

2009-10-30T15:15:00.005+08:00

102 days to go. Slightly over 3 months left. Wow.

It's been a while since I've done any updates. Have been busy busy busy with the studio. The website and viral marketing really work! Have been getting orders from the online shop, and inquiries on our photography services.

Currently in a standstill phase of my pregnancy, the excitement has gone down a notch. Still anxious of course, but not as crazy excited as I was in the previous months and weeks. I'm pretty sure my excitement will escalate again soon. Especially when I enter my final stage of pregnancy.

The ultrasound scan I did a week or was it two weeks ago (have lost track of time), was okay. Wasn't as omg-omg-omg as before, he was pretty quiet, and closed up tight, so didn't see much. A little disappointed, was hoping to see more movement and more of him. Other than that, his heartbeat was beautiful, and doctor said he's not too big, My estimation, he'll be heaviest, say 3.2kg's during birth? *shrugs* Will just wait and see!

I'm petite, and I don't think my v would appreciate a big baby at birth. I plan to take epidural, I'm just too wimpy. I actually do have a high pain tolerance, but giving birth is a whole different story. Friends who decided not to take epidural, always had a change of mind at the very last minute, which of course is just way too late. But, they managed to get through it, like whoa, super woman!!! My highest respects!

Anyhoo, would like to talk about my photography services. I'm starting to offer maternity photo shoots, babies, kids, and newborns. Was especially inspired by Kelley Ryden, whom I recently found about, thanks to Raizil who gave me the link through facebook. Below here are some samples of her work! Arrghh uber cuteness. *faints*

Lucky for me, a friend of mine just gave birth, so we've already agreed on a newborn photo shoot sometime next week!! We're both very excited. And hopefully the photos turn out good enough to get others to willingly throw me money to take photos of their newborns! Hehehe.

*Cue in advertisement*. So any of you pregnant ladies or ones with newborn babies especially, would like to have a photo shoot, do email me at management@itudiostudio.com. And I will try to work something out according to your budget! Hmmm. Heee.

I really hope I'll have the mood and strength to take photos of my baby once he's out. Newborns grow so fast, even within a few days they already look different. So, what are you waiting for? Send me an email!

Mwahs! Much love, Anna

Everyone is making beautiful babies!

2009-10-22T04:14:00.007+08:00

I've been going through baby photos of friends over at facebook. And wow, they are all so so so so cute, beautiful, handsome, adorable, it's just melts my heart. Sometimes it makes me worry if my baby will turn out as good looking as theirs. And having such beautiful nieces as well, makes me really anxious. Yes of course, a healthy baby is the utmost priority, and an intelligent one, but having good looks is a super bonus. Then again, ALL babies are lovely and pleasing to the eyes. There's just something so special about them that just makes you go awwwww and full of love and joy.

So I have this secret, I put up the cutest baby pictures as my desktop wallpaper. I believe, and also being reminded by mom that pregnant women should always look at all nice things during pregnancy so that the baby would turn out nice as well, lol. So, if I look at photos of babies with blue eyes, would my baby's eye turn blue too? Ahaha. But my mom did say that when she was pregnant with my 2nd brother, she had this Korea guy coming over to the house often, dad's colleague, and that's probably why my brother looks a bit Korean, haha.

Here are among the photos that I really like looking at, taken from deviantART.

"Fresh Baked" by Kittynn

"Pure.innocence" by lOolah

"Baby-5" by pixelzeesh

"Hands are eyes too" by PureE

"Just hanging..." by incredi

"silly face" by ilovealex

"Is there anybody here???" by shattana

"Eideann" by earthtorachel

Gosh, so adorable, and all very well taken! Can't wait to snap photos like these once baby is out. Heee. There's more that that I want to share, but I realize that the photos will be endless if I were to put them up here. So if you'd like to see more cuties, you can browse 'em HERE.

Much Love, Anna

Would you like to touch your tortoise?

2009-10-14T16:30:00.004+08:00

I love seeing where my readers come from, especially from search engines. It's nice to see what keywords and googling that has brought them to my blog. Although my blog has been relatively new, I've already have people coming to my blog from elsewhere, and not from my viral marketing strategies a.k.a. spamming like mad. Most of the keyword searches would be ultrasound scans and pregnancy photos, I assume the baby bump. Some of the usual searches I have been doing myself.

Personally I always google things up, it's amazing to see the massive amount of information you can get on the net. Things like, is it okay to have sex during pregnancy *wink* *wink*, traveling/getting on a plane, baby not kicking as much, bloating, how to get rid of morning sickness, so on and so forth. Other than articles written by the professionals, I like reading ones from Yahoo! Answers because most of the are from real experience. Somehow I find those more convincing.

Okay, back to checking out where my readers are from. And this right here has to be the most hilarious one I've came across so far.

Say what? "Can I touch my tortoise if I'm pregnant"?. Hahahaha. Well I'm sure she has a pet tortoise, and she's pregnant, and she's worried that by touching her pet tortoise it will be harmful for the baby in the womb as there might be dangerous bacterias. But, as funny as the search is, it proves to show how much we pregnant ladies worry. The most silliest, puniest things makes us go frantic. I hope she found her answer, which I know she didn't here. I'm convinced it's this entry which led her to my blog.

To whoever you are, dear pregnant lady with a pet tortoise, thank you for making my day.

Much Love, Anna

What I wore #003

2009-10-11T23:33:00.008+08:00

Sunday, October 11, 2009. My usual black pashmina scarf. A long sleeved purple tee, black tank top on the inside to cover my ass. The last time I wrote ass, it was censored (scroll down all the way to the bottom if you click on the link to that post to see what I mean). Hah. I'm just feeling very arsed out today, if that's a word. So to hell with the censorship.

Back to what I'm wearing today. A pinstripe dark grey UNIRONED slacks which is actually unbuttoned. Also another good reason for wearing the black tank top inside. This method doesn't work good for jeans though, because the flap is too bulky, so it would be obvious if I wore my jeans unzipped and unbuttoned. So, I just might need this thing down here. Belly belts for the unbuttoned pants for pregnant ladies.

Image taken from A Mother's Boutique

Kinda cool huh? I probably should get one for my husband as well. He's totally outgrown some of his jeans. Hahaha.

Much Love, Anna

Pregnancy bump photo (week 23) & What I wore #002

2009-10-10T20:36:00.008+08:00

22 weeks & 5 days pregnancy bump. Shot taken at my studio. October 10. 2009.
If you haven't, do check out the pregnancy bump photos from week 12-21 HERE.
*excuse the difference in dates on the picture and description here, I mistaken my due date for the 5th of February 2010, when it's supposed to be the 8th!*

So this is what I'm wearing today. A simple beige empire waist tunic top. Inside is a greyish brownish tank top and brown yoga pants.

I'm at the studio today with hubby, need some work to be done. And here I am updating this blog and playing the very addictive bejeweled blitz on facebook. Sigh, I'm so easily distracted. Okay, nothing much to write about. Back to ~~bejeweled~~work. *cough*

Much Love, Anna

Seeing the cup half full?

2009-10-08T16:47:00.018+08:00

Being a mother-to-be, we have this HUGE hope that the baby in the womb will turn out to be a beautiful and healthy baby. During my 16 week check up, I was asked to do a blood test, to check the possibilities of having a baby with down syndrome.

In fact, during the first trimester, there is already a test called nuchal translucency screening test (NT or nuchal fold scan) which I didn't take. I only did the blood screening test. And results came, I think about 2 weeks after, a result which was shattering. I had a high risk of having a baby with down syndrome, which was 1:20. For people my age, the risks are usually only 1:1000. So having a 1:20 ratio was extremely high. However it's just a RISK, plus there has been so many so called high-risk results yet delivered normal, healthy babies.

It was only recently that these tests were available for the younger aged group. These tests are normally done for elderly women above the age 35 or those with a family history of down syndrome. My sister-in-law did the blood screening test as well, and was considered high risk too, yet she delivered such a beautiful baby girl. But what got me worrying that my ratio was much higher than hers.

I was then offered another test called the amniocentesis, because through this test, you can get a 99% accuracy whether the baby has down syndrome. Which I refused to take for two reasons. First the test is done by injecting a long thin syringe to extract some of the amniotic fluid, and there is a possibility that this procedure can lead to miscarriage. There has been cases where, the baby turned out to be fine, but the test did cause miscarriage. So in no way I would want to take such a risk! And the other reasons as mentioned above, so many cases where those with high risks have perfectly normal babies.

The only reason why most parents want to do these tests would be having the choice of aborting their child if the baby has down syndrome, or to 'prepare' themselves to raise a down syndrome child.

To me, having heard so many false positives (which I discovered only after the test), it's just absolutely, completely ridiculous. So mothers to be out there, don't take this test!!! It just causes one to worry unnecessarily. I regret taking it, and won't be the next time I'm pregnant. I did cry for a while, and was very stressed, now I'm over it.

Whatever it is, I accept. I'll just keep on taking my prenatal supplements, eat well, and keep on praying for the best. The ultrasound scans can also give you physical hints to the normalcy of your unborn child. As children with down syndrome have very distinct features. So far, all seems very normal. So Insya-Allah it will all be fine. I cannot however totally shred the thought away.

While writing this, my thought goes out to Intan Jaliah and Aishah Rahim who both just recently lost their child, Intan at 8 months pregnancy, and Aishah during her 6 months pregnancy. After 20 weeks, a miscarriage is called stillbirth. I cannot imagine how devastating it must be to go through such a traumatic experience. Hmm. Their babies are in heaven now, waiting to meet them some day. I pray for their strength.

So being very excited, blogging about my pregnancy does worry me. I don't want to jinx it ya know? I am the type that likes to see the cup half full, but keeping in mind that the other half is empty as well.

Much Love, Anna

Ultrasound scan (Week 7 - 20)

2009-10-02T18:59:00.013+08:00

Here are the ultrasound scans from week 7 up to 20 (5 months). Let me guide you through them in case you have no idea what you're looking at. Reminds me of some sitcom (I think it was Friends) where Rachel / Jennifer Aniston was crying while looking at her scan, not because she was touched by having a little baby in her, but it was because she couldn't see where the baby was in the scan. Hahaha. Okay, moving on, make way for baby!

7 weeks. This was taken 2 weeks after I tested positive on the pregnancy test kit. If you see on the left side of the image you can see a bean shaped black thing outlined in white. And inside there towards the bottom, is a tiny white speck, that's the heart! And it was beating, adorable, like a tiny twinkly little star.

Almost a week after the first visit to the doctors, I had really bad morning sickness. I kept puking, and so I was admitted to the hospital for 4 days. This was taken a day before I was discharged. Just to check the baby's condition.
Not as clear as the first scan tough.

10 weeks. The bean shape has grown larger, that's the amniotic sac (ketuban).
This is where the baby resides for now, his very own private swimming pool
filled with amniotic fluid.

12 weeks. Finally I could see an actual tiny little human, like for realz dude. The first time I saw the baby move! He was really active, moving up and down, while his hands were waving, kinda like he was doing swimming strokes. So adorable. My friend Tiah was there at that time with me, she even shed a tear!

16 weeks. Such a huge difference from the scan at 12 weeks. And it was during this visit we found out the baby is a boy! Just like in our dreams. :)

The latest scan so far, at 20 weeks which is 5 months. This is when you get a very detailed scan, the backbone, the heart, the brains, the heart, the eyes, the nose, the arms, hands, e.t.c... Everything is measured to detect any possible birth defects. It's a bit hard to make out this scan though, the head is on the right side, a frontal view. You can see the eye sockets, and the left and right hemisphere of the brain. His body and arms on the side. The best bit is when I actually saw his cute little baby butt!!
Oh, and we heard the baby's heartbeat too. Oooh, so wonderful!.

So there you have it. The scans I've had so far. I just love doing these scans, it's the only time you get to 'see' your baby. I'm planning to do the 3d/4d scan sometime when I reach 6 months. This is when you can see the baby's feature more clearly. Ahh, extremely exciting. Can't wait!

Today I woke up to a wonderful baby somersault show. I could see my tummy moving, wave like, and bulging here and there, mostly right under my belly button. He was moving so much! I really want to take a video when this happens. Figuring out how though, without having to show any skin. I'm looking for a thin and soft enough fabric so the movements can be seen.

Here's a video on YouTube I found, where you can see the baby moving in the belly. Wuhohoho! Amazing huh?

Much Love, Anna

What I wore #001 updated

2009-10-02T13:29:00.004+08:00

My buddy Eeman came to the studio. Had a mini shoot.
Photo & Lighting by Azim at Itudio Studio. Edited by me.

I love this shot. Me & Eeman with a very pregnant pillow bump!
She looks so gorgeous in this despite her pillow baby. Hehe.
Photo taken by Eeman's hubby, Arm. Lighting by Azim, edited by me.
SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

I love fashion, but I'm not fashionable. I wear simple and comfortable clothes. So being pregnant you need to wear some looser fitting clothes and definitely looser pants. I didn't really have to buy much pregnancy wear since I'm petite, I can still wear most of the clothes I already own. But I sure did have to buy a lot of pants. From time to time, I still might buy a few more clothes, keeping in mind to pick ones that I'd be able to wear even after giving birth.

What you see in the 'pregnancy bump photos' entry is not really what I would wear going out. Those are usually the clothes that I wear inside. It's just the most decent way I can find to take photos of my pregnancy bump. I'm not comfortable showing too much of my skin (I used to though, during my earlier days of taking self-portraits). So yeah, you won't be seeing any photos of me lifting up my shirt to show my bump here.

As for what I wore... I've always loved checkered pattern shirts. And those 'boyfriend shirts'. As for the pants, well... a pair boring black slacks. Haha. So there you have it, something simple, nothing fancy but definitely comfortable!

Much Love, Anna

Baby quickies #003

2009-09-30T17:25:00.001+08:00

Yahoo! Messenger conversation with hubby today:

Me: Hai sayang
Hubby: hi baby
Me: baby mana? (which baby?)
Hubby: both babies
Hubby: my babies
Me: awwwwwwwwwwwww
Hubby: hehehehe

Baby quickies #002

2009-09-30T01:10:00.011+08:00

Not the most flattering view. But how could I resist the roundness of it all.

^I. The preggy walk.

{ I just love walking with my belly first. }

^II. An imaginary conversation in the future with my future son:

Me: Guess what picture this is?
Son: Hmmm, a really really big tortoise?

Pregnancy bump photos (week 16-21)

2009-09-29T18:53:00.010+08:00

Accidental shot which I so happen to like, taken today.
Front view tummy at 5 months plus.

16 weeks and 3 days on August 28, 2009

18 weeks and 1 day on September 8, 2009
*excuse the difference in dates on the picture and description here, I mistaken my due date for the 5th of February 2010, when it's supposed to be the 8th!*

19 weeks and 2 days on September 16, 2009
*excuse the difference in dates on the picture and description here, I mistaken my due date for the 5th of February 2010, when it's supposed to be the 8th!*

Shot together with the first photo above.
21 weeks and 1 day, September 29, 2009.
*excuse the difference in dates on the picture and description here, I mistaken my due date for the 5th of February 2010, when it's supposed to be the 8th!*

Thought of submitting them in separate posts in a chronological order, but I guess, I'll just lump it into one the ones I already took before this blog was up and include the ones I shot today. Knowing how lazy I am, piling them up is so not a good idea. See, till this day I've yet to scan the ultrasound photos. Boo me!

If you've seen my facebook, you've most probably have seen these. My DSLR is dead. The first and last shot was taken with my old digital camera, a Sony DSC-V3. The three middle shots were taken with my webcam, explains the blah quality. Really need to repair my camera or perhaps get an upgrade before my baby is out! Plus I do need it for my job, so I got two good excuses to get that Canon 5D Mark II I have my eyes on. *drools*

I'm happy with my V3 though, I had to dig it up and buy a new charger for it though, since I misplaced it somewhere. A little bit troublesome to get a good steady shot without the flash and a tripod. But I'll manage like I used to back in those days before I even had a DSLR. And this V3 is much easier to carry around anyway, so yup, better shut up and stop complaining. At least I don't have to take bad quality shots with my webcam. Lol, you should see me lunging my laptop around and taking photos with Photo Booth. Sad scenario I tells ya.

Oh and I just bought this 10 page black sticky album for the baby ultrasound pictures and perhaps a few shots when he's born. And maybe if I'm up for it, I'll print out the baby bump shots and include them in there as well. Cost me RM 9.90, bought it in while I was back in my hubby's hometown during Raya at The Store.

So there you have it, photos of my baby bump. I'll probably scan the ultrasound photos sometime this or next week and and upload them in one entry. Planning to do the 3d/4d scan sometime next month! Weee, excited as always. Alrite, I'm off.

Much Love, Anna

A letter for my baby boy #001

2009-09-20T03:13:00.001+08:00

Sayang, I was so thrilled to see you during my checkup last Friday, September 18, 2009. You've grown up so much since the last ultrasound scan. I saw your adorable little head, hands, feet, and I especially loved seeing your cute little butt! I just can't wait to pinch it, and squeeze it and kiss your soft baby butt. Well of course after I've wiped your poop clean. Hehe.

Sweety, there's only 4 months to go, before I can touch you, smell you, hold you, kiss you and watch you sleep, watch you grow, and start grabbing things, laughing, smiling, crying, crawling, walking, and even throwing a tantrum. Every single day I can feel you move around inside of my tummy, makes me wonder, is it your little arms that's poking around, maybe your elbow or knee, and maybe your little feet that's kicking me. Kadang-kadang ummi rasa geli sangat, terkejut pon ada bila sayang gerak-gerak dalam perut ummi. But each time, it just makes me smile and giggle.

I love it when your dad rubs and kisses my tummy. You've just made us love each other more and more each day. And baba even says "I love you two" whenever I say "I love you " to him, and that just makes me melt. I'm sure baba can't wait to start playing with you, his son.

Baby, tomorrow is the first of raya, I'll be wearing my raya clothes with a bulging tummy, thanks to you. And I know it's still another year before the next Raya, but I'm already starting to imagine you in a little cute Baju Melayu with a songkok on, which I'm sure you'll be taking off as soon as I put it on.

Alright my dear, I really need to get some sleep now. Need to wake up early tomorrow, I haven't even ironed my Raya clothes. That's me alright, I always do things at the very last minute. Tskk tskk.

Love you so, so much. Mwahs! Your ummi.

p/s: You're gonna be calling me ummi and your dad, baba! Oh and I already have a name for you, but I'm keeping that one hush hush for now. It came to me in a dream, while I was holding you in my arms, and that's when I was calling your name while looking at you. And I had another dream of you last night too. Proves to show that I just can't stop thinking about you!

Alritey dear. I'm off to bed now...

1+1=3

2009-09-16T19:26:00.008+08:00

I remember watching that from some Hindi movie, I think. (please, I RARELY watch those movies, perhaps only 3 or 4 in my entire life). Or maybe it was from some love flick. Anyway, that was a sweet moment, how the wife wanted to tell the hubby that they were going to have a baby, so she wrote on some huge paper, "1+1=3". Awww, so schweet.

Well mine wasn't all movie type cliche romantic moment. Plus I'm not much of a person that can keep surprises, I just get too excited and can't hold back. I'm the type that would wear the new shoes I just bought immediately after.

So, it was sometime in May 2009 if I remember correctly. That was the month Itudio Studio was launched. Don't bother visiting the website, there's nothing there yet. Later that month, my husband, Pitt and I went back to his hometown for a wedding. Traveled by car. And the days after the travel, I felt extremely tired, and feverish. I was thinking that it was the long hours in the car that got to me. Plus it was pretty damn hot in Perlis, both of us had to endure headaches.

Days later, my body just felt uncomfortable, I was feeling hot. No, not the hot babe kinda hot, but heat hot. If that makes any sense. Well body temperature wise, then I'd be feeling chills. I didn't really have any fever though. Then I tried calculating the last time I had my period. I usually never keep track, but it was easy that month, because the day of the studio launch was the day I got my last period, and that was May 1, 2009. Nice date, easy to remember.

So I decided to go and get one of those pregnancy test kits. There were a few to choose from, some slightly expensive then the rest. Wasn't quite sure which one to choose, so I asked the pharmacist. And she picked out the one you see in the picture above. Never really heard of the brand. I usually hear of Clearblue. But since the pharmacist recommended this one, plus it was cheaper, RM 14.90 to be exact. So, what the heck.

Oh, and I did ask her when would be a good time to take the test. She mentioned something about waiting a week or so after your last period, can't really remember the details. But whatever, whenever, I didn't really take note. But I knew I was late, and yeah decided just to test it out. I could always try again another time if the results came out negative. Also that it was exciting, always watched people do them, talk about it in movies, and start freaking out once they're positive, usually teen flicks. Haha.

The pharmacy was nearby my studio. So I popped on over there, and did the test immediately. Doing these tests, taking urine samples are always awkward. I mean if you're a guy, it's much easier, a girl, err well you have to be in a semi standing, not so squatting position, and you've to place the thing, container well in this case the test stick so that your urine will fall onto the stick. Not an easy task, messy too.

So there I was peeing onto the stick for about 5 seconds as instructed. Waited for the urine to be absorbed into the indicator window for another 20 seconds. It was like watching a slow-motion scene. And slowly, the first line was visible, then the next! Ahhhh. Two lines!!

This immediately reminded me of a question that a guy friend of mine asked. It was supposed to be sarcastic, but I was clueless of what he meant, "Bila nak dua line" (When are you gonna get two lines?) while gesturing two fingers across his forehead. I thought it was some sort of secret underground mafia group, because we were in the middle of such a conversation.

So NOW I get it. Duhh.

I was still in the bathroom, re-reading the box, to make sure I got it right. Grasping the fact that I am gonna be a mother, like yikes. Slowly, with a controlled facial expression, I got out of the bathroom, and sat down quietly next to Pitt. My staff, Akim was there in the studio, so I didn't want others to know just yet, since it's just too soon to be telling people about it. I really had to hold back and not bursting out of the bathroom, jumping up and down. I probably would have if Akim wasn't there.

So my husband was looking at me, he seemed anxious to know, and I was definitely anxious to tell him, my heart was beating a little bit faster than normal. And yeah, I said it, "Yup, I'm pregnant". Damn it, where's the 1+1=3 phrase, or maybe something like "Guess what you're gonna be a dad.." So, unromantic. But still sweet and precious nonetheless.

I didn't tell my mother immediately, I just wanted to be sure of the kits accuracy, on the box it did say 99% accuracy. Still, I called up my sister in law, and asked how accurate it is, to be sure. And she did say, if it's positive it's pretty much accurate, and she started laughing at me. So she was the first person to know, I told her to keep it a secret, and only after that I called my mom to tell her the news. As always she's very calm about things, her reaction was, "Okay, baguslah tu" (Okay, that's good). It was only during later weeks of my pregnancy she started to ask questions, and I could see she was actually excited too. Of course she should be, since I'm the youngest in the family, AND the only girl.

I did tell my a few of my close friends about this even before I went for the check up. However so, I still wasn't completely convinced, not till I went to the doctor. Which I did like about 2 weeks later. Which I will save for my next post.

So there you have it, my not so romantic but still sweet discovery of being a 1+1=3.

Much love, Anna

Baby quickies #001

2009-09-16T03:39:00.002+08:00

{ Baby, are my penguin printed cotton pants too tight for you, cause you've been kicking me all day. }

Tummy tightness & Ramadhan

2009-09-16T00:29:00.002+08:00

I was thinking of updating my posts chronologically starting from when I first found out I was pregnant. But I'll get to that later. Right now my tummy is feeling really tight. I'm assuming it's caused by, either or all of these factors:

+ gas
+ indigestion
+ the baby's getting bigger and bigger!

Whichever it is, it's not comfortable. Of course it isn't, the skin on my stomach is stretching to make way for my growing uterus and baby. As I'm writing this, I'm 19 weeks & 4 days pregnant. I haven't really felt any serious backaches-yet. But when my nieces sit on my lap, I can feel that my backbone is being pulled down by gravity. So I can only have them sitting on me for a couple of minutes.

I have a feeling that I'll be having these backaches soon, seeing how large my tummy is getting each and every day. Good thing is, I have a choice to hang out at home (which I've been doing for the past 4+ months) or go to the studio. Either way, I can lie down anytime I feel like it. I'm pretty sure if I had a 9-5 job, sitting all day, I'd be getting those backaches as well.

Let me quote what a pregnant friend who's experiencing those backaches "rasa macam kena tikam kat tulang belakang" (like being stabbed in the backbone), aihh, sounds extremely painful. She has to take some time to rest and lie down (at the office) in between our YM conversations.

I haven't been fasting much this Ramadhan. Almost every time after I have my sahur, I'd immediately puke, specifically after I gulp down a glass of water. I think it's pretty much because there isn't much space in my tummy, the liquid just gets pushed out. Nanti lepas pantang, kena ganti banyaklah nampak gayanya. But I'm not complaining, it's all a part of being pregnant.

Baby just kicked. He seems really active today. I'll talk about the kicking in a different entry. Oh and I plan to scan all the ultrasound scans to be posted up here, to go along with that chronological entries I plan to write, mentioned earlier. Hope I remember the gruesome details (first trimester morning sickness-something I don't miss!) to share with all of you. As they saying goes, sharing is caring!

FYI: It's official, the main reason for the tummy tightness today is, most definitely gas, which is coming out of my a** (it rhymes with gas, haha)

Much Love, Anna

Baby steps

2009-09-15T21:15:00.001+08:00

Hello there,

So so I've finally decided to open up yet another blog adding to the long list of my existing blogs. Some which I'm active, while the rest, seems to be covered in cyber dust and cobwebs.

Reason why I've created this brand new blog, is pretty obvious, to share and note down my pregnancy and my journey to motherhood. I can write about these things in my other blog, but not in detail, plus it's much easier for me to keep up with other moms out there, have a list of blogging mothers, links to useful websites, e.t.c... A useful resource for myself, and maybe others as well.

I don't want to get too overexcited about my pregnancy. It's hard not to though, and the title of this blog says otherwise. Not to ponder on negative outcomes, but so much can happen throughout a pregnancy and after. Then again, that is life. All we can do is pray, and do the best, and hope for the best. It seems I'm already starting to sip from the cup of motherhood, worrying! Isn't that what mothers do?

Much love, Anna