Travel Halal: Shanghai

This is my story of our Shanghai trip...

First of all, it is so different that the Shanghai you've watched in Shanghai Noon (hahaha). Shanghai today is very moving forward, and sophisticated.

You can ride the fastest bullet train in the world, from Pudong Airport to Shnaghai City. The train is called Maglev Train. We didnt get to ride on it though. We did get the chance to ride on the second fastest in China, the bullet train which took us from Shanghai to Shaoxing.

Transport:
We had a local guide, so basically, transportation was included in the price as well. We were given a bus for us 12 people. Talk about the spaces and empty seats!
I think it would not be a trouble to catch public transportation as there were many and probably more efficient than ours! (lol)
We decided to hire ground agent to take us around because we have small children with us. We didnt want to hassle of getting caught in the cold of winter season and communication issues that could make it worse. Unless of course, it was just us adults.
If it was just us, I would have taken the Hop-On Hop-off bus for sight seeing of Shanghai city.

Food:
It is not difficult to find Halal food in Shanghai. You will easily find Lazhou Noodle restaurants. Lanzhou noodle is also known as mee tarik here in Malaysia. They have the Halal, green coloured sign outside their shop. It is really easy to see. Lanzhou noodle is a must. It is simply yummy.
Comfy food in the winter.
Our agent took us to a halal restaurant which served chinese food. but I cant recall the name. That place was quite pricey.
For other basic food, you can eat the bread and try different drinks available. I love their Matcha, and E100 drinks (lemon or calamari juice). You can purchase from their mart like FamilyMart, Lawson,

Hotel:
We stayed in apartment when in Shanghai. International Service Apartment. 
sorry, but i dont recommend this if you have small children, strollers, and big heavy luggage.
I booked this because we planned to cook our meals. and the only decent apartment I could find was this.
The room was okay, with 2 queens. It could fit 4 adults and 2 children. It has a microwave, washing machine, stove, kettle. You can cook there.
But what i hate is that the apartment was only a part of the tall building. meaning, the whole building was not the apartment. it shared with other businesses as well. to go to the building, you need to ride on an escalator. this escalator only functions at 730am to 8pm.
When we reached there at 3am, we had to carry our big heavy luggage up the stairs. it was so tiring for all of us. we have 4 strollers with kids on them to carry! imagine our tiredness!

Places worth visitng:
Our agent took us to few interesting places. We didnt cover much cause the day was shorter than night. We went to the museum (which was boring), The Shanghai Financial Tower, Shopping in Chingpu Outlet which houses branded items at reduced price. I got myslef a Furla, Hub got himself a Braun Buffel and Mak got herself a Bally. The price was much cheaper from Malaysia, and you can entitle for tax refund up to 11%.

Souvenirs shopping can be done in Bazaar outside the Wu han garden.

at the bazaar outside Wu Han Garden

But make sure you bargain kaw kaw. hahahha. There was also a halal turkish food in the bazaar. Dont forget to grab a bite!
We went for a river cruise along the Huangpu River. You can see sophisticated Shanghai better at night.

on the river cruise along Huangpu river

I find that Shanghai, being an international as it claims, is not a children or baby friendly place. It was hard to maneuver strollers in the city. They have lots of stairs but hard to see the tracks for wheelchairs or strollers. We ended up carrying the strollers (with out kids in it) many times and that exhausted us.
The night we went for the river cruise felt like a night in Amazing Race. We were literally running up and down the stairs, carrying strollers and the kids, just to catch the boat. (cause we were late),
and our body is still aching till now.

walking in the city to the river cruise

Tips for parents with small children:
bring light strollers. or no strollers at all.
in fact, put on your baby carrier. find one that can carry up to 20kg perhaps? hahahah


Overall, winter in Shanghai is really really cold. I would love the city but the language barrier is killing us. and child unfriendliness makes it even difficult for us.

Nice place to go if you don't have small kids with you.

we'll be back once the three girls are big enough. hahhaaha


Thank you Shanghai.

Travel Halal: Disneyland Shanghai

Ni Hao! We just got back from a week holiday in Shanghai!

We went there with my mom, parents in law, sisters in law and her children. We were 12 altogether: 4 children, 1 baby and 7 adults. We booked out flights about a month before departure via AirAsia (what else?). December in Shanghai is winter time, so the weather was pretty cold with temperature ranging from 2-8C. That was really cold.

We bought a ground tour differently. Basically I was arranging the tentative, accommodation and guide. I found this tour guide from Mr Google: IslamiChina. They offer muslim friendly tour package across China, and also like ours, customized.

Our plan was to spend about 4 days in Shanghai and 3 days in Shaoxing. Initially Mom and I wanted to find cotton textile in Shaoxing, but that will be another story.

We reached Pudong airport around 1am. Our agent, Cici brought us to our Apartment in the city and our trip started off with Disneyland on the first day.  

I booked the apartment myself through Booking.com. I will write more on the apartment later in another post. In short: I dont't like it that much and I don't recommend it to family with small children.


                                    

Disneyland Shanghai recently opened its gate to all in June 2016. So basically it is still fresh from the oven. It is one of the cheapest Disneyland among others.

Entrance fee:

source: www.disneylandshanghai.com

It was about 59USD for adults, and children will be charged by heights. Amal, Amna and Sofeya (their cousin) entered for free and Ayra and Syahmi only 70% of adult's fee. We went on Friday so it was a non-peak day. The rate for weekends is different.

We spent about 10 hours in the theme park. Yet, I still it wasnt enough.

Preparations:

If you are going in Winter time, be sure to bring along you winter gears such as gloves, jackets, leg warmer, winter hat, blankets.
Drinking water is a must! The bottled water in Disneyland is very very costly.
Halal food is very hard to find, so please pack biscuits, and dry snacks. Bread and home-cooked meals are not allowed. Everybody will be checked and scanned before entering. They will throw any cooked meals if found. So dont waste your time preparing one. Just ensure you bring enough biscuits for the tummies. Milk is okay.
Eat a lot before going cause you will be using a lot of energy especially when you are bringing small children.
Wear good comfortable shoes cause you will be walking a lot! it takes 10 minutes to walk from the parking lot to the park. and the park itself is huge!
Strollers. Your children will not make it long on their own 2 feet. so it's either your back, or the stroller.

Activities:
Oh my there are many things to do! to ride on! we only managed to catch about 5 major attractions there: Carousel, Dumbo ride, Snow White Castle, Toy Story, Pirates of Carribean. My sisters in law managed to ride on the Tron. Hub and I wanted too but our kids were tired. So kesian nak tinggalkan with the atok and nenek.

My favorite ride is Pirates of Carribean. It was the most awesome ride I have ever been to! It was full of adventure. Even little Amal had fun in it. It was surprisingly suitable for all ages. I loved the 3D effects that felt so real and the boat ride made you feel like you were a part of the battle. Seriously, this is a must! that was our final ride before the fireworks. it was already dark (night time) so there was no queuing line at all. Our luck that we didnt have to wait at all. I want to share some picture we took but it was too dark. This is from google:

Source: Google

                               

Another highlight of the day was the firework. It was Amazing! Disney was being really generous with the fireworks. It was about 20 minutes and it was really spectacular. Like the one you see during new year. and to watch it in front your very own eyes just add that wow effect.
My kids enjoyed the Dumbo ride, and carousel very much. and of course the Parade. There were Elsa and Anna, Nemo, Winnie, Mulan, etc.

source: Google. It was exactly the same like in this picture!

I wanted to try more but our kids we really tired. I heard the Tron was awesome too.
The weather got really cold towards the evening. So it slowed them down. Nevertheless, it was really exciting and we had fun.
I think going in Summer can be even more tiring. So winter is okay. We didn't sweat and no heat rash etc.

Food:
Our agent told us that there was Halal food inside, but we could not find one. The area was so big that we just didnt have the energy to search through all.
We asked information counter, but they could not speak English at all. nor do they know what halal is. If you must go, please bring along a dictionary for translation purpose (cause we didn't have internet roaming)
However, if you step outside the park, (which is the Disneytown), there is one halal shop in the food court. The food court is called Food Republic.

source: disneylandshanghai.com

Food Republic is located at the back of Disneytown. Once you entered the front entrance, walk straight to the back of the food court, to the last shop on the left. The last shop was the only shop serving halal food. There is no Halal sign in Arabic. But they do have Halal Certificate in Chinese. I forgot to take a picture. but yeah, you can ask them.

After eating, you can always go back inside the Disneyland park. We didnt do that cause we forgot that we could do so. hahaha. I guess the excitement had taken over us. So we stayed in the park and starved. ahahahha. We are waffles and tawakal.

Praying:
Of course, as expected, there is no surau. The staffs in Information Counter (IC) was kind enough to let us use a room in IC to pray. So we managed to pray in peace, in warmth, and in clean place. Alhamdulillah.

Language:
Even though Disneyland is basically an international brand, everything is conducted in Chinese. The princesses were speaking in Chinese. Even Elsa can speak Chinese! The staffs there were helpful and friendly, but they could not understand English. We were using hand gestures to make them understand our concerns. We were like chicken and ducks. Our agent did not follow us inside, so that's why we had communication problem. But we survived, so all is good Alhamdulillah.

Facilities:
They have baby room, so no problem to change diapers, or even to hang out for some warmth.
They even have a nursing room where you can nurse your baby, or pump your milk.
The toilet is very clean and not that smelly. Thank god. But i do noticed some urine smell in some areas. It's either someone peed on the side, or it was to close to the toilets.



So. that's all about Disneyland Shanghai for muslims! I guess this pretty much covers the importants parts of trip to Disneyland Shanghai.

It is worth going, provided you stay until the end of the fireworks.


Ah we miss Disneyland.

Next, Disneyland Tokyo perhaps?

1st Year Survival of At Home MOM

It will be my 1^st year anniversary as a Work/Stay At Home Mom. Oh gosh I have a lot to share about, on what to expect, the feelings, how to cope, etc. And this will be a long one so bear with me ait?

What to expect?

Laziness/tiredness..  you call it lazy, I call it TIRED la wei.

For about the first 3 months, I felt..lazy. All I wanted to do was being lazy. But that was because I was heavily pregnant, I was in my third trimester. Hahaha that explains the laziness right? I wanted to do a lot, well at least my mind was not lazy. But the energy was mostly used by the baby in the womb.

After Amal was born, I concentrated on taking care of her, with breastfeeding and constant napping. It drained the energy out of me. I was thankful though that I didn’t have to rush in to work cause I would be sad to leave Amal behind. Just like what I felt when it was with Ayra and Amna.

Despite the perk of having to be there all the time for Amal, I was/am exhausted. All freaking time. I was lacking good sleep (for almost 5 years now), tired of ensuring the house is clean and tidy. I am neat freak, so I cannot see serabutness in the house, you know.

However, I am glad that we have Livy the Vacum Robot. I would be crazy without her, seeing hairs and dusts on the floor. Haha at least with Livy, I just need to switch her on and she will do the job. We will do the extensive cleaning once in 2 weeks. So that spares us a lot of energy and time.

Exhausted… the extreme of tiredness

Being home most of the time, with 3 under 5 children are really exhausting. It exhausts you physically and mentally. By physically, I’m sure you (the ones with toddlers) can understand how tired it is to attend to the needs of these children. I need to make sure breakfast, lunch and dinner are ready. On top that, don’t forget snacks. These kids love snacking. Plus, unhealthy snacks are a no-no. Though I fail that most of the times. Seriously, where can I get the extra time and energy to prepare our own healthy snacks? Thank god for frozen!

Mentally exhausted is another thing that fails me every time. You are at home, with the eldest being almost 5. What kind of intellectual conversation are you expecting? Most of the time is about Rainbow Dash and Sunshine Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle and Flutter Shy. Then it would be dinosaurs and horses, and fairies and princesses. The only time I get to stimulate my brain is when we are studying math or reading. That is a different level of patience hahahaha. It doesn’t help either that I have this sickness of overthinking. I cannot stop my brain from thinking about our financial, the schools, the education, the business, how to go about. I guess that drained out my brain even faster.

Privacy. What is that again?

I miss my me time. The time that I can have when I was at work. It doesn’t have to be a spa or a massage session. A ME time is a quiet time that I can have on my own doing whatever I want. I hardly get that anymore. Previously when I was at work, I usually had lunch in my room, while continuing working, or doing things I want to do. Surfing internet, checking out online shopping and stuffs. Or get out and hit the mall, just walking alone. That me time. Oh god I miss that. Now? Now I cant even pee in peace. Even if I lock the door, they still come knocking or yelling my name and asking me questions. “Mommy, how to spell dinosaur?” “ mommy, whatpe tu?” “mommy, amna hungry”. “mommy, amal is eating the playdoh!” How come they don’t kacau the father?????

Cold War

When your body is tired, and your brain is drained, you will end up being moody. Almost all the time. And it makes you even crazier when you see your partner gets to spend time with his friends at work, or be in his own zone even for an hour or so. At least he gets to do it daily. You get this ‘meluat’ feeling and you start to get pissed off easily by whatever he is doing. I’ve been there and we have resolved that. When that hits you, you need to talk to your spouse asap. Do not let it bottled up. You will end up hurting your children easily. You get irritated easily and scold them for the smallest reason. I am guilty of that and god I wish I don’t have to go down that road again. It is scary for me, and my family. Sometimes I am more a momster than a mommy. Hahaha Now don’t get me wrong, respect to the Husband is there. It’s just you cannot comprehend things positively when you are beyond exhaustion, mentally and physically. Too many frustrations. So that is why communication on your expectations, etc is important.

Insecure

When you were once an employee, (highly paid lagi tu) and now you stay at home with no pay, you will become extremely insecure. I am not talking about insecurity towards your husband, just insecure as a whole. You don’t get to spend money like before. You want something, you gotta check your purse and calculate. You pause and breathe in and walk away. You don’t have savings and that scares the shit out of you for what ifs. I get that almost on daily basis even up till now. One day, after solat, I confided in HIM on what I feel etc. I felt lost. I cried my eyes out. I prayed to Allah to ease my way. I opened the Quran and I believe He showed me the story of Prophet Musa. The page showed me the story of when Paraoh ordered for baby boys to be killed out of fear of the prophecy. Musa’s mom was so scared. She put him in a boat and sailed him. But Allah assured her that he will be returned to her.

                                      

This verse taught me to have faith in Allah. Have faith in Allah. Have faith in Allah. Dua, and work on it. Work on whatever I can work on. Keep on praying. Rest assured Allah has things worked out for us. Just have faith. And so, whenever I feel insecure, I feel down, I feel lost, especially financially, I remembered this story. So, if you feel lost on something, doa and pray to Allah. Talk to Him cause He is always listening. Then open the Quran to find the answer.

Seems like i am rambling more on the bad sides rather than the good ones kan? hahha

well, not everything is bad! be positive!

Stick like a glue

Your children will be more attached to you and you end up falling in love with them over and over again. Even though they just scream their lungs out at each other just now. Or they pick their poo from their diaper. And scattered their shit on the bed. Literally. And at times when they had nothing to do, hanging on your leg will be an activity. Just for fun. (but not for you when you need to do works)

Time is gold

Though it may seem like I have all the time in the world, trust me, that was just illusion. It’s Monday today, and suddenly it’s Monday again. When I was about to appreciate the weekends, Monday comes and plays the blues. I have all the things that I want to do for the week, then something comes up and bye bye list. We see you next week. That is one of the reasons for Lil’ Tummy not moving (or perhaps my excuse). the perks is you get to plan your day/week ahead (and pray that your plan sticks). I dont have to worry when Amal is hospitalized cause work is not asking me to be in the office. My time is devoted totally to her wellbeing. and that makes me a better mom. You get to plan for lunch with your ex-colleague, or dates with your daughther. and God is generous, He eases your way to it.  

                                             

                                                 

Love Overloads

My time is mostly spent on the kids (duh). I get to know my children more. I get to follow closely their development. I get to bring Amna to her physiotherapy sessions without guilt (work waiting in the office), I get to do exercise with her (though not on daily basis). Amna loves imitating my yoga moves, so it helps her to stretch her muscles and use her left limbs more. Ayra gets to come home from school to mommy’s cooking. We get to go on dates, just the two of us. One day is spent just me and Amna, and other day is spent just me and Ayra. We get to have our own private conversation, eat ice cream and be silly. I love that.

Healthier lifestyle (or so I believe)

I try to do Yoga at least once a week (but don’t take my word for it), eat healthy, cook healthy, gardening, etc. I need my family to eat healthily. We hardly dine out anymore. First, it can be costly, second, it can be dirty. Or unhealthy. We cannot buy health, but we can prevent unwanted side effects from happening. Diseases start from the gut: diabetes, heart diseases, kidney failure. So, what we now will have its effect 20 years later. So in order to be healthy in the next 20 years, we have to eat right, right now. I cant however be this conscious everyday. I am a human after all. So we do skip a bit once or twice. But drink lots of water, and balance out with veges and fruits.

Own Business Empire (Bahaha)

Now it may seem cool to able to start your own business, with your own brand etc. but my god, it is so hard to be persistent! I have things planned out, A to Z, but execution is really killing me! To juggle family, which is always always my priority, and business is really hard. The most frustrating part is marketing. I have laid the plan, how to do it, etc. I dont habe a partner to push me and work togehther. plus I don’t have much time to do so. I guess I need to take things one step at a time and not to have so much hope kot. 

So basically, there are ups and downs of being at home mom. What you need is strength (mentally and physically), support system, team work, and what I find important but easily missed is: ME time. This is crucial. Just take the time off. Don’t over think. Do what you want for 2 hours, alone. Go out with friends, laugh. That little things help you sane.

Don’t I miss having my own job? Oh YES I do. At times I feel like I am a better mom if I am working. I would less of a momster, and more on a mother.

So where do I go from here? I will let Allah set the road for me. I have my aims, but the road will be set by Allah. I do what I can and the rest is up to Him. I am always open to possibilities. 

Till then, please give me lots of coffee, cakes, and your prayers.

40degree

I am in a hospital now. Amal has been warded due to high grade fever.

She has been unwell for the past one week. On and Off fever, with PCM twice daily.

we initially thought she was teething, since she showed no other symptoms.

but we had to bring her to the hospital when she was different that one night. 

she was nursing, then she stopped. she was quiet, but awake.

her breathing was like a lil bit rapid, but her eyes showed weakness. 

her head was burning hot, yet her feet and hands were cold as ice.

she started to tremble. her lips shook hard. 

i never seen anything like this in any of my children.

we just had to bring her to the hospital.

upon arriving, her temperature reached 40 degree celcius.

imagine that! 

she vomited and became so weak.

she had her blood checked and WBC was 28. it was so high!

her lymphocyte was high as well: 50.

doctor suggested for her to be admitted. 

it has been 2-days now and she showed no signs of improvement despite oral Augmentin given.

but it has been only 2 doses so we should wait eh?

hopefully it is nothing bad.

Qiqah Little Amal

Salam Aidiladha to all muslims in the world!

today was the second day of aidiladha. we had the Aqiqah Day for little Amal. 

she is 6 months old now. and weigh approximately...8kg plus plus?

 whatever her weight is, my arm hurts whenever i carry her, or breastfeed her.

huhu

the little princess is now crawling all over the house.

she loves putting everything she sees in her mouth.

she is in the curious stage. and i am tired of saying no. 

when i put that thing, she finds some other things and starts to taste them. 

she likes tasting her own arms. and she would suck it sampai keluar bunyi sedut.

it is hillarious. she makes me want to taste it too.

the little princess of the day put on Ayra's dress. it was all about recycling.

as long as it looks new and the baby is cute, who's asking eh?

we recycled from head to toe, except the diaper.

she got a lot of angpows, and she was really eager to taste them too.

it's the way she shows her appreciation. lol

and she even had a unique gift: a bag full of sugar. 

well, actually, she got 6 packs of sugar all together. 6kilos in total.

so she is like 6 kilo sweeter today.

bahahhha.

i havent received anything this unique. i havent encountered this before. 

my Mak said it's an orang kampung's tradition. but she herself does not know the symbolic meaning behind it. so, as usual i turn to Mr Google, whom we know has the answers to all. 

but whoa. Mr Google does not know it all after all!

i could not tfind the symbolic meaning of sugar. it was just a gesture show gratefulness.

and we are forever grateful for that. every little things matter.

dear Amal,

mommy hope you will the coolness of our eyes and our strength 

love u Amal.

of 3 months away

ive been trying to steal some time to blog. i kept postponing it until it was almost 3 months later.

really? 3 months just flew away?

we are done with Puasa, Raya and soon Raya Haji is coming.

Puasa was the most tiring of all. that explained why i didnt have the time to blog!

if i were to grade myself for that Ramadhan, i would give myself 4 out of 10. 

as the previous Ramadhan, i didnt get to perform tarawikh in surau or masjid. 

i did it on my own every night. and to add the shame, 2 rakaat.

i was like a drugged person immediately after magrib. not like we ate a lot. 

i guess the hormones of breast feeding mom, plus taking care of 2 more. 

we had our first raya in my gramma's place in Klang. we travelled back to Terengganu on the second day. the children forgot about me when we were there. Mommy is only needed at night. or for meals. 

so that left me some space to breathe. hahaha. not! dont forget the baby. 

so how is Lil' Tummy doing now? how long has it been now? almost as old as Amal i.e: almost 6 months.

it is doing okay. for a new start up. but not as good for post 6 months start up.

i could have been more aggresive but my kids are keeping me busy as well.

nonetheless, Lil' Tummy has 2 agents now: in Kota Bharu and KL.

I am looking to spread the wings to other states as well. and there have been queries, but we have yet to start anything yet. the time will tell.

as for cooking, i have experimented with other elements as well. i have eliminated the not so popular dish and added in more. thanks to Amal for her tongue. hahah. 

i've started her solid a lil bit early. 5 and hlaf months. only like once a day meal. and small one. like a cube per day. she seemed to like it. 

i have big plans for LT. big dreams. Oh my.

and now i am doing something something and hopefully Allah ease my way. 

it wont be easy, i know. after all, we are just starting out. 

anyway, the kids just recovered from cold flu cough and fever. and i have been exhausted ever since. i didnt have enough sleep cos Amal was like waking every few hours and cranky all the time. it wnet on for about 2 weeks. i was seriously tired. i cried in the bathroom cause i felt so bad for feeling that and i wanted a time on my own. i want a me time. a ME time.

a time to enjoy my own company. to check on myself. to know that I am still there. 

being a mom is of course the greatest thing ever. but I dont want Me to disappear. do u get what i mean?

i have dreams. i have visions. again, my dreams being the best mom is always the priority. but the other side of my dream is to work for what i want out of this life. do something good for me. for others. 

i want my children to be proud of my accomplishment, other than being a mom. 

i want to feel inspired.

i hope i am to the track.

and dear Allah, please, please ease my way.

ps: i need a spa. whole day spa. with massage and body scrub and facial and etc. i think that is... impossible since my boobies refilled so fast that i find pumping tedious. 

i hope to be able to blog more!

Lil'Tummy in Kosmo!

I received a call one fine Saturday evening from a lady.

She said she was Kosmo.

well, I didnt jump straight away.

I knew she would want to ask something related to the event that we participated in.

Probably how to spell my name, etc.

but then, she asked whether she could meet me. 

she wanted to know more about Lil' Tummy and myself.

How it started, how long have I been doing this etc.

I was like.. what? me? Lil' Tummy?

i mean, we are barely breathing.hahaha 

i dont have customer based, and I am actually kind of lost there somewhere.

hahaha

but, of course I said yes.

come one, free marketing, who would in the right mind would decline kan??

(even though I am faaaaar from ready)

The reporter, Cik Zu, came the after that, i.e Sunday. 

I didnt know what to expect, what to say, what to wear!

i knew i had to wear black though.hahahahaha 

it was all last minute. even the children got ready while the interview session happening!

It was fun. it was mostly on me, and how i started this, why i wanted to do this.

the girls even posed for the pictures. 

i demonstrated on how the meal was prepared, but it was not more like halfway there.

but the girls pretended to like them nonetheless.

talk about acting!
for me, i just hope i didnt look fat. or chubby.
gosh my cheek!

Amna was like always, cheeky as she has always been.

always wanted to be by my side. and Ayra knew enough how to behave, especially when the cameraman asked her to pretend and pose. 

And little Amal was busy sleeping!

(thank god for that!)

we even invited a 'customer', who is the baby of my cousin.

well, she is considered my customer since her mothers buys from us!

hehehe

so, the little cute debob Irene was in the paper too!

front cover of Pesona!

in case you missed it, please have a look below:

look at Amna's cheeky face!

this is nothing much. or big.

I am very sure, there are other brands of homemade baby food that deserve this more than I do.

they have been in this business longer time than i am.

i am still a newbie, slowly building up my brand, and customer base. 

but nevertheless, i am thankful to Allah for giving me this opportunity.

this is His gift. out of the blue. from the sky.

haha

Alhamdulillah...

ever since then, the business has started to kick off well.

not great, but well enough.

and i am forever grateful..

I am now a busy mumprenuer.

day time junggling my task of being a mom and businesswoman.

taking orders, arranging for delivery, answering calls,

marketing and promoting and making sales.

we started with 5 purees, and 4 level 2 meals.

and we have now added 2 more desserts, and 2 more meals for 8M above.

i am excited.

i do hope this gets better.. 

something i can be proud of, my girls would be proud of, and

mostly, something healthy to feed the children.

cos, every children deserve the best right?

xoxo

Chef Mommy! 

Travel with 3

It has been a hectic week and weekend! 

It started when Hub's granny died, and we went back to KT last week.

and that became our first long distance journey together all 5 of us. 

adhoc journey lagi tu.

We departed at about 2am, as soon as we got the news. 

Amal was kind of surprised to see yellow lights in the middle of the night. 

(the street lamps), so it took her some time to get settled and finally sleep.

I could not sleep soundly cos, well, I can hardly sleep whenever I am on long distance journey, especially by car. I needed to make sure Hub was not sleepy. Alhamdulilah, we arrived safely and managed to catch her funeral. I didnt know her well enough as she is really really old, but she is one of the nicest people i have ever known. such a gentle person. 

i know for sure Hub loves her so much and that she has big impact on his life..

I pray that her soul be blessed and Allah protects her from seksaan kubur.

Our trip to Terengganu was really short as Hub needed to work. We stayed there for a night and went back on Thursday. Me myself i had a lot to prepare. 

Lil' Tummy was opening a booth on the week after and we were planning on a Kuantan trip the days before. We followed Hub along for his working trip there. basically, I am all planned out. 

wait.

Lil' Tummy???

That's another story I yet to tell.

hehehehhe

Our trip to Kuantan was really tiring for me.

I had to take care all 3 girls at a time, from morning till evening. Amna was not feeling well and cranky all the time. crying, and wanting my attention all the time. 

#toomanyallthetime

but we did manage to pay a visit to one of my Bff's house there. finally!

We got lost on the way there cos the google map took us where it thinks I want to go. like i care about the ladang kelapa sawit!! i wanted to get in a panic mode, but considering i have 3 children in a car with me under my care, i stayed calm and pretended mommy knows the way. 

and surprisingly the girls were okay. Amal slept soundly in her carseat, and the rest were just well behaved. alhamdulillah. but of course i had to bribe them with my phone and 

they were entertained by the apps. ;)

it was really nice to be able to catch with my long long time friend. she has been busy so we always update each other via whatssap. but to pay a visit is just out of the context. too far, too little time, considering she's a busy doctor in ER.

and when we get the chance to meet and talk, that's what we do. talkkkkk.

even Amna was 'attentive' to our conversation!

The second day was all day in the room. bathing in the tub, watching tv, crying, and sleeping. 

and we got a surprise in the evening when Tok and Ki came to bring us to the beach. 

things grandparents do for their cucus eh?

they came all the way from KT. just to have picnic by the beach in Teluk Cempedak and to have dinner of Ana Ikan Bakar.

 I wish i can be that when Hub and I are older..u know, travelling as we wish. when we wish.

#aimingforearlyretirement

and i could say the highlight of the trip was.. Ana Ikan Bakar!

Oh my god. #droooooling

first of all, dah berkurun tak makan ikan bakar. I cant even remember when was last time I had it. 

secondly, sedap gilerrrrr. my friends suggested it and man, I am salivating just thinking of it.

hahahahaha.

but seriously, the ikan bakar petai is the one to go for. 

we had it for 2 nights in a row. 

trip with all us 5 was..crazy. hahaha

my butt hurt from not moving. i had to sit still with Amal on top of the pillow which was on top of me. Amal was crying cos she didnt feel good and she wanted me all to herself. unfortunately i cannot let go of Amal. thankfully Ayra is big enough to do her own things and be with Ayah, her fav person. 

the 3 hours journey felt sooo long. 

Amna had stomach ache but she didnt want to eat anything. it was so hard to make her eat. 

and she wanted to be carried almost all the time. she is not light. so I am not the one to carry her.

then there's the tantrum for not getting what she wants, there and then.

she was screaming all the way while we were having lunch in Megamall. too add salt to the wound, the meal was horrible. just plain horrible. that made the whole lunch and going back experience just..bad. i felt like a lady going cuckoo. 

thank god i did not go tru this alone. 

i dont think im ready for another long journey longer than 1 hour with 3 of them. 

i am tired beyond words. my brain is tired, my body is aching.

we just go to malls and zoo jela yer babies??

or better yet, just stay at home. 

Xoxo

habis pantang!

I have now completed my 6 weeks confinement. 

wohoooooo!

well, to be honest, I dont feel much so liberated as I should be, or as what i felt during the 1st confinement. I have not been 'good' or obedient in following strict Malay confinement rules this time around. I have lots and lots to do, mind you the 2 other girls and a home.

it is so much of difficulty being in a confinement with 3 kids.

I am glad now I can go out and watch movie, even though i need to tag Amal along.

unfortunately the boobies cannot be detached. 

Amal is still a bit yellow of jaundice. but she is growing up good.

she can now sleep longer hours at night.

have u ever fell asleep, deep sleep then u woke up worrying why u slept like a log and wondered whats wrong with the baby? why is she not up or crying?

that's me when she doesnt wake up for milk.

i go paranoid. i would feel chest to see whether she's breathing. or put my finger on her nose to feel her breathing. hahaha. 

and then at that moment, she wakes up and then there goes my time. 

and i regret checking her up. ahah

i am now enjoying my Baskin Robins Praline and Creams.

yumm yummyy

gosh it is so hot every single day that i really really need to gulp down cold water.

Of A B C D

I am intrigued by this.

it got me thinking.

If I were to choose, I will definitely choose A, C and D.

Why A?

Oh dear should I say why??? Of course the vomiting and nausea and the tiredness and the backache, headache, stomache. Hyperemesis is the worst! and mine did not help but to hang around until my third timester. Alhamdulillah the third pregnancy was not as bad as the first or the second. but regardless, I am forever traumatized by this. with the needles and drips. and my most important thing to carry everywhere: plastic bag. It was my BFF. heck, it replaced my handbag!

I couldnt travel a lot. All i could do was curled up on my bed and sleep. and I missed eating. I craved eating. anything as long as I could eat. 2nd and 3rd pregnancy was not as bad, but it was still part of the journey. but seeing your child/children and husband being neglected was a very very bad feeling. I felt soo bad that I could not entertain them much, being a mom and a wife. really, I felt so bad.  

on the bright side, I did lose weight. a lot. I ended up with few weight gain, usually about 10kg or less. that was my proud moment. haha (but baby fat is still here though, darn it)

What about B?

Labour is of course painful. I would be mad if I say it did not hurt. I am no bionic woman people.

But Alhamdulillah, I tend to..forget them. u know, like a short term memory. 

probably that's why i have 3 children now.

the feeling of the baby coming out and gulppppp. suddenly the pain stops. 

when the baby cries, suddenly the pain is gone.

that is the perks of giving birth without painkiller. (haha)

Why C & D?

ok, breastfeeding was kind of easy for me for the second one. i had no engorgement issue.

but the first, and the third, it was a bit difficult. 

for the first child of course being a new mom, i didnt have much clue on the real bf situation. i did read a lot on BF during pregnancy but the experience itself is different. the first one was more on milk supply issue. this third one is more on latching issue. her latching caused nipple pain and a lil bit of bleeding. crazy okay. but Alhamdulillah, we are over that now. hopefully.

then there's the almost hourly feeding which leads to sleep deprivation. 

having 2 kids and an infant with u having not enough sleep is really something else. it's like your energy bar is almost zero. u tend to be easily pissed, moody and crying in the middle on the night. 

almost crazy. 

but, nothing beats the look of your child. when u look closely at the helpless body, screaming for your very own attention, u just melt. and then u realize, she will grow out of it and eventually no longer needs u like she does now. u will no longer be her only thing. 

when that time comes, u will long for this crazy moments. 

and u melt and move on with all the energy left in u. 

#eatenergybar

   

Dealing with Green Eye Toddlers

When you have someone new coming into your little family, aka the birth of a new baby, of course everybody would be thrilled and happy and all, including your children.

But that doesnt mean they don't get jealous. 

Jealousy is the difficult part to handle. As a mom.

Ayra had her fair share of green eye moments when Amna was born.

She would come and snuggle with me right when I wanted to nurse her little sister back then. 

Well, same goes to Amna now. 

She would come and snuggle right when Amal needs to be fed. 

and sleeping time involves me patting her with one hand and the other holding Amal while trying to steady myself nursing her.

and she cries a lot to lately. seeking attention ler tu..

and owh, that was nothing. 

When Hub went outstation when we were 2 weeks in confinement, I had to entertain 3 babies altogether. the most difficult part was to putting them to sleep altogether.

one hand must scratch Ayra's leg, another is to Amna.

while putting Amal on the lap and making sure she didnt wake up cos, well, if she wakes up then all my hands go to her alone. if that happens, the her 2 big sisters will throw tantrum from being sleepy.

and at that moment (or even now), I wish i have 8 arms.

If their grandmother/s is/are around, Amna would go to them and be manja manja and all. 

She didnt even bat an eye to me.

okay, mommy got jealous too.

but I guess that's her way of coping with this new life and new baby.

She doesn't hate Amal at all.

In fact she loves kissing her and playing with her.

whenever Amal cries, Amna will quickly call me and show my boobies. She knows adik needs milk.

I learn to spend about 15 minutes at night to sing with her, all her fav songs. 

hug her at any time that I have. kiss her lots and lots.

Ayra too. but hers is quite different. Now that she is sooo talkative and talking non stop all day long, 

i need to make sure her voice is heard. 

and hug and kisses. 

and Thank Allah for their father!

savior to my insanity.

really, I cannot do this without him.

jealousy is quite normal. 

but how we are handling it as a parent is important.

a. we must never show more love towards the other. treat equally. never show favoritism. how would we feel if our parents dont favor us? I never want any of my child to feel unwanted. please God no. 

b. explain to them that we need to tend to the little one because adik is still small and needs to drink milk from mommy. once she is bigger she can play with you.

I am pretty sure they can understand even though they might show a different reaction initially. 

c. patience on the parents' side is also important. i failed this many many time during this confinement period. with the heat, the hormones, the lack of sleep, the tiredness, the breast soreness. I am only human. the flawed one that is. so i tend to lose it and regret it every time. so, dear me, patience. patience.

d. Hugs and kiss them as much as u can in a day. just take a minute or two, and say

"Come and let me hug you. i just wanna hug you.."

then you hug them as long as u can. hug them as if you are going away. 

that meaningful hug. the hug that tells them you are always here for them.

and give them sloppy kisses everywhere!

e. spend like 15 minutes or more if u can, just the 2 of you. talk, sing, chat, play. 

anything they want to do with you. as long as they are happy. then back to nursing mode. 

f. if you are good in multitasking, then great. lay down together, with the baby on your lap and the toddler on your right. put them to sleep like they want to. 

g. as soon as this confinement is over, I need to take two half day off from the baby. to spend a quality time with each of them. need to Amna and Ayra for a bonding session, one on one. typical idea is to bring each to the mall and have lunch, buy something nice and be happy. and only talk about them. not the sisters. 

okay, baby is screaming now. 

back to boobie mode.