Taking the ERL

Taking the ERL
Originally uploaded by Danial Raziq.

It's a weekend outing for Azrai, Danial and I. Azrai wanted to get a new handphone in Bukit Bintang and I decided to tag along. We brought Danial with us. It's Danial's first ride on the ERL, mine too.

It is very convenient. We enjoyed the trip. Stress-free. We don't have to fight the traffic, or go through the hassle of finding a parking space. It comes with a cost though. Then again, what doesn't?

It's a good thing that I'm a pro at tying the kain batik as a baby carrier. It helps a lot with carrying Danial while walking through the crowd. The kain kendong is both comfortable for both Danial and I. Danial even managed to get his nap while we're at Bukit Bintang browsing through the phones.

After half a day out galivanting around Bukit Bintang (galivanting is hardly a suitable word) with Danial in tow, I'm paying the price now, ouch! my back! I can't wait for Danial to start walking so I don't have to carry him around.

Getting Pregnant

No! I'm not pregnant again. Though we are working towards having a baby brother or sister for Danial but at the time this blog is typed, I'm positively not pregnant.

I was thinking a lot about pregnancy lately. As I was putting away my pregnancy clothes and Danial's clothes, I missed being pregnant. I missed having that little person growing in me, getting the butterflies when the baby starts kicking in my tummy. It's a neat experience that every woman should go through.

Earlier tonight, I was SMSing my cousin sister, Hazel. I got to know that she had another miscarriage. There have been so many that I lost count. I feel sorry for her. I know both Hazel and Is really want a child together. They've been married even before Azrai and I got married. I know how Hazel's feeling after each miscarriage. When I had my first miscarriage (before I got pregnant with Danial), I was devastated beyond anything else. In actual sense, I haven't even bond with the baby yet. It's not even a baby at that stage. It's more of a pea yet I mourn my loss. That's why I wasn't taking any chances with Danial when I got pregnant the second time around. Being pregnant is special... I miss being pregnant again...

I was also talking to my former colleague in Royal Selangor, TBS. She's now 5 and a half months pregnant with triplets after and IVF treatment. She's been married for 10 years and tried other fertility treatments without much success. It is a huge investment for her to have babies. She invested more than RM16K for the IVF procedure and store the remaining of her eggs for an annual fee of RM300 per egg and RM30 per egg monthly. Having babies is very expensive nowadays.

Before I got married, I thought it's easy to get pregnant. I thought I'd get pregnant easily too. My period is always on time but I couldn't be more wrong. After the first miscarriage, we had to get help in the form of Dr. Mani (God bless her) and work on getting Danial. I'm lucky because Azrai is very supportive and made it a lot easier. Thank God that I did have to go beyond taking pills because we hit the jackpot after 3 months.

Danial just turn 10 months yesterday. Time flies when you have a baby around. Danial seems to grow so fast. It seems like only yesterday that I held him for the first time. He was so tiny. Sometimes, when I look at Danial, I'm still amazed that this is the little person that I carried my tummy for 9 months. And when I look back, I've come a long way too. I've added more feathers to my cap. I'm a daughter, a woman, a wife, and a mother...

You DO learn something from Oprah

Rules for Bedtime
"Sleeping with your children or sitting with them 'til they fall asleep is a big no-no," says Jo Frost, ABC's Supernanny and author of Supernanny: How to Get the Best from Your Children.

"Children need to learn to fall asleep by themselves," she continues. "What starts out as a little bit of extra comfort soon turns into a big issue about control. And trust me, your children will put off going to bed just to have you by their side." Try her sleep separation technique so everyone can get a good night's sleep.

Step One: Time for BedTake your child to their bedroom. Read a bedtime story, give them "kisses and cuddles" and tuck them in.

Step Two: Tough LoveSit down on the floor or in a chair parallel to your child's bed so he or she can see the side of your face. As hard as it may be, bow your head and ignore their efforts to talk to you. It is important not to engage your child with eye contact.

Step Three: Stay In BedIf your child climbs out of bed, return them to bed with no eye contact.

Step Four: Distance YourselfEach night, move further and further away from the crib or bed. This pattern gives your child a sense of security in their bedroom.

Supernanny Jo Frost says children stay up at night to get the attention from their parents that they missed out on during the day. "The key message here is," says Jo, "if you spend time with your child during the day you're not neglecting him by putting this routine in place during the night." From the show Supernanny Shapes Up Bratty Kids

More Supernanny Techniques
Enforce discipline with the "naughty stool."

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Azrai and I was watching one of Oprah Show reruns about disciplining kids recently and we've decided that it's a good idea to apply it to Danial. Although I've known about good sleeping habits after reading up about it in BabyCenter.com, watching the show somehow or rather knocked some sense in Danial's Babah.

It wasn't difficult to test the method by Jo Frost. Danial has always has a routine of somesort. So, when it comes to bedtime, instead of Bibik dodoikan Danial to sleep. I took him with me into our room, read him his bedtime story where most of the time Danial would try to eat the book than listen to the story anyway; give him his kisses and cuddles and told him that it's time for bed; put him in his cot with Ty-ty (his stuffed toy) and switch off the lights (The streetlights outside provides good night light). Of course he fusses a little bit. I've already warned both Babah and Bibik not to interfere if Danial starts crying. I stayed in the dark out of his sight. It took him less than 5 minutes to stop fussing, suck his thumb and goes off to dreamland. That's my baby.

Another milestone, he's sleeping through the night now. Instead of having two feedings, one in the middle of the night and the other early morning, he sleeps through and would wake up for his 4am feeding. Having unbroken sleep for 3 quarter of the night, I'm won't complaint about having to wake up at 4am to give Danial his bottle. And the best part is, when he's done, I'd put him back in his cot and he'd immediately go back to sleep. Isn't that wonderful?

True, babies don't come with a manual. You'll never know what's coming next but I think modern parents now have excellent tools to learn about how to raise a child. We have books, the internet. As parents, we have to see what works for the child and stick with it. Having the tools, taking care of Danial is not so much like exploring an uncharted territory. It's more like going for a little treasure hunt.

Little Alexa Tan full moon

We went to Boon's newborn baby girl, Alexa's full moon lunch today. It was dimsum at China Treasure (I think) at Sime Darby Convention Centre near KLGCC. Food was great. Baby was adorable. (I should have put that sentence first instead of the food part). Danial was as active as ever. By now, Azrai and I are expert at tag team. And I notice, as parents with young kids, you'd master the art of eating very quickly.

I envy Jee Wei. She got back her pre-pregnancy figure. How does she do that? I still feel that I'm 3 months pregnant and Danial is almost 10 months now. I haven't been able to shed the extra weight off.

It was a long day today. After lunch. We picked up Danial's nenek together with Makcik Tini and went off to Seremban to visit Danial's Datuk. For more details, read all about it in my earlier blog. Datuk is recuperating. Danial's mom is again too lazy to go into details.

Hahaha... I better watch what I say in my blogs. Liris just told me yesterday that she read my blogs. Good thing I've been on my good behaviour and not use this channel to bad mouth anyone. Though there are some people I dislike, but this blog isn't about them. It's supposed to be about Danial, and everything about Danial. As it is, I've been deviating from the subject matter more often than not. So, to put me back on track, my darling baby, Danial is now a happy baby of 9 months and he has 7 teeth. He loves his Gerber baby food and everything about him is perfect.

Datuk's Birthday

Danial's Datuk was determined not to celebrate his birthday this year. And, on top of that, he announced his intention to be out of KL on his birthday. I guess, God granted his wish. Danial's Datuk didn't celebrate his birthday after all. On the extreme, he ended up in the hospital having his stomach cut up for appendicitis (I think I spelt it right). And of all the hospitals; private or public as you may have it in KL or the Klang Valley, he had to go to Seremban Specialist, which is what he wished for, outside of KL on his birthday. So, there you have it. Your wish is granted.

Boy, did he got everybody worried when we got the news that he has to be admitted for further observation before the doctors knew it was appendix. And being the busy mom to the very active Danial right now, I don't have the luxury to give a detailed account of what actually happened. So in a nutshell, Datuk was operated once the doctor confirmed that his appendix has ruptured and now, Alhamdulillah, he is on the road to recovery.

So, Danial's Datuk, from all of us, we pray that you get well soon.

Putrajaya citizens

On Wednesday, 28th June 2006; we're officially Putrajaya citizens. I think that's the best way to describe our move from Puchong to Putrajaya. Other ways doesn't sound right. From a Puchongite to a Putrajayan, perhaps? Well, anyway, Alhamdulillah, we've been blessed by Allah with abundance to provide a better home for Danial and his siblings (hopefully)

This blog also serves to remind me that moving is a major headache and to think a thousand times before deciding to move. The next time we're going to move, I'm going to get professional packers and movers to do the job. I just get the cheque ready. Let the professionals do the job. Now, instead of having one house in a mess, I have TWO house in complete chaos!

At the end of the day, I guess it's all worth it. After all, Putrajaya is the administrative centre for Malaysia and all the infrastructure are well in place. The foundation is set for Danial. Baby, I hope you'll appreciate all the things your babah and I do for you to get you started out right.

As for house warming... lets see how soon can I get the mess cleared. I might as well plan my house-warming to coincide with Hari Raya celebration. Then, that'll give me enough time to sort out everything.