Laugh kookaburra laugh

Hahaha...who can tell? Today is the first day Adam Cikebum starts to laugh. It's no ordinary laugh. But a hearty laugh...

The best part is it happens when we visited Bobby & Nur, who just had a new arrival of Hani Reeqa. She's a tiny little girl (note that she's having jaundice).

I suppose, Adam understood that we are trying to matchmake the two of them. Haha! Notty little baby!

Tahnik pulak

Abah also invited Ustaz Badrinizar Al Hafiz for the tahnik ceremony. Well, it wasn't a ceremony actually. Twas a quite one. He came, did it for Adam and that's it.

And this wasn't the first time Adam belah mulut... he had the unofficial one in the labour room itself when I breasftfed him for the first time.

This is the practice of feeding the baby with chewed dates. The dates are chewed by an adult and spread on the baby's palate.

It was reported in Sahih Muslim that Anas Ibn Malik said :

“I brought Abdullah Ibn Abi Thalhah Al Ansari to meet the Prophet (PBUH) after his birth. That time, the Prophet was wearing a sweater and was spreading oil on his camel.

The Prophet asked : Did you bring some dates ?

I answered : Yes. Then I passed him a few dates and he started chewing them. He then opened the baby's mouth and placed some dates and this made the baby lick and swallow the dates.”

It is encouraged for the tahnik to be performed by revered personality in the community. This is for them to make supplication and invoke blessings upon the baby.

Lying face downwards

It didn't take long after his aqiqah, little darling has started to lie his face downwards!

The 1st ibadah by Adam Zuhair

Yay! Alhamdulillah, majlis cukur jambul & aqiqah for Adam went well. It wasn’t a big success, but at least we made it happen.

Thanks to Abah, Along, Acik, Yone & Ina for being of much help.

To Cikgu, thank you for helping us looking for the marhaban team.

Especially to Acik for representing our voice in the ‘lash out session’. We support you!

Celebrating the birth of a newborn is a valuable moment to parents, especially if it is the frist baby.
“And they who say, Our Lord, grant us in our wives and our offspring the joy of our eyes, and make us leaders for those who guard against evil”- Al Furqan:74

It is a common tradition in Islam (and the Malay culture has adopted this culture religiously)- that when a baby is born, his arrival into the world is celebrated in a ceremony where his hair is cut, he is given a name, and an animal is slaughtered and fed to friends and family in honor of his birth. This tradition is rooted in a hadith by prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who said “When your child is born, celebrate and announce his arrival with a feast, cut his fringe and give him a name (on the seventh day of his birth)".

Aqiqah literally means cut and this word is often used for the hair of a new born baby that is cut or shaved. It is defined as the animal that is slaughtered on the occasion when the hair of a new born is shaved.

The performance of aqiqah is sunnah muakkkadah ( highly encouraged ).

The most recommended for the parent or the guardian of the child is to slaughter 2 goats on the occasion of a boy and 1 goat for the birth of a girl.

Imam Nawawi states : It is performed to show joy and happiness upon the birth of a child and the joy of a baby boy is more, thus the animal slaughtered on his behalf is more.

This was reported in Abu Daud where the Prophet (PBUH) said : "A young boy is cleansed with his aqiqah. An animal is slaughtered for him on the seventh day, his name is given and his head shaved."

There are many benefits in the performance of aqiqah and some of them are :
1. Announcing the blessing of Allah with the birth of a baby.
2. Making known the baby's genealogy and his family.
3. Promoting acts of benevolent and promoting kinship and friendship by giving meat to family, friends and neighbours.

It is also encouraged for the baby's hair to be shaved for boys and also girls. The weight of the hair should be translated to the weight in gold and the value be donated to the poor.

This is little munchkin after his head is shaved. Adam & Tokwan.
Don't worry, darling. You are still handsome (to me).

How I wondered what u are?

Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what u are
Up above the world so high
Like my darling Adam Zuhair

Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what u are

I remember being so wondrous, how my little honey would look like. Would he resemble his chubby ayah? Or would he inherit the big eyes from Mama?

But now, I can wear a big smile on my face. Senyum sampai ke telinga! Because my questions have been answered.

My baby looks like himself…

with chubby cheeks and dimples like ayah’s,

with big eyes and little dimples under his eyes like mine.

New environment

I never knew that whenever mothers and babies must be apart in those early months (when the mother returns to work), the separation is felt rather poignantly.

I myself do feel this pain when I dropped off Adam this morning at the sitter’s place. I got back into the car and cried on Sham’s shoulder. I felt like a useless and hopeless mother!

Fortunately, Dr Wan, being an understanding boss, he offered to bring me to visit Adam. Perhaps he couldn’t stand seeing my lamentable face from morning. (Was it that obvious? Heheh.)

I was so relieved and happy that I could breastfeed him that afternoon. Phew! Thank God it is still in semester break.

Sagu... oh sagu...

Alkisahnye, birasku is a cartoonist, with the nickname Sagu. It reminds me of my childhood days...

That was during Ramadhan, the fasting month. I was not yet in kindy (bcoz I started fasting when I was 6).

Mak cooked this kuih called sagu. It's coloured pink and covered with grated coconut. Mak called me... to taste it, whether it was too sweet or not.

Being a naive 5-year old (or maybe less), I didn't know what to answer. So, to play safe, I tasted and said "ok".

Anyway, after that I saw her putting some more sugar into the pot containing the sagu. I was confused. Then, she called me again to re-taste. This time, lack of guile...

I answered "It's not sweet la."

Hahaha...I was scolded.

But now, when I think about it...it's hilarious :P

First time

1) 1st time boarding a flight
12th February 2005. Haha...It took me 25 years to board a flight!
Dah la first time, gi oversea (Aus) lak tu....sorang2 lak tu.

2) 1st time giving birth
18th Sept 2007. (18 = 9, sept = 9, 2+0+0+7 =9). Gave birth to a chubby Cikebum!

3)1st time went overseas
Same answer as in Q1. Twas for my Masters in UQ.

4)1st time away from family
Hostel when I was 13 (Form 1). But it was much better than being at home :P

5)1st time work
Intel Penang, while waiting for SPM results. It was so relaxing that I still wonder why some people think working in a manufacturing company is hectic? :P

6) 1st time feeling fat
Hmm.. frankly, I never felt fat until I tried putting on pants during confinement. Hahaha. Memang la! Now, the pants are loose (mcm pinjam je).
Other than that, maybe once, when I looked at this pix I took in BNE (autumn 2006), I felt like a chubby girl with a round face looking back at me.


7)1st time in love
Puppy love? Standard 2 :p I wonder where the guy is now?

8)1st time feeling pretty
What an ambiguous question! That took me quite long I guess.

9)1st time entering cinema
Hmm I was a kiddo. Acik & I managed to persuade Abah to bring us watch Robocop. No fancy cinemas like GSC/TGV...it was just at Cathay. Robocop was so cool back then!


10) 1st time admitted in hospital
Standard 5, minor surgery for bisul. Hehe.

Two words combined

How could these words came together as a term? Answers. anyone?

• Act naturally.
• Found missing.
• Genuine imitation.
• Safe sex.
• Good grief.
• Same difference.
• Almost exactly.

When will the cord fall off?

That day...

MIL: Why is Adam’s umbilical cord hasn’t dried?

Me : It will dry soon, Mak.

MIL: How many days has it been?

Me : Let it be. When the time comes, it will drop la…

MIL : Ye la…but people say, if it takes too long, the baby will become stubborn as he grows.

Me : Apa pulak? It’s not in any verse of the Quran kan?

(Dalam hati: How could it dry easily when some suggest to use the alcohol to clean/sterilize, while she uses talcum powder?)

Being the emotional mom in confinement, I texted Abah and told him.

As expected, Abah consoled me by agreeing with my words.

Day 12.

MrHubby brought Cikebum into the room after bathing him. As we were toweling him dry…

MrHubby : Eh, the cord is off his body.

Me : Good. Puas hati aku!

MrHubby : Don’t tell Mak. Let her realize on her own.

Me : Okay.

The next day…

MIL : Eh, where’s his cord? Rie, quick…find it! It might have dropped somewhere.

MrHubby : Alaaa, Mak! We knew, it dropped yesterday.

MIL : Really. Oh…good. Make sure u keep it.

MrHubby : Sure.

Me : U see, Mak. It purposely waited for Nuzul Quran. Isn’t that better?

MIL : Iye lah…

Eheh… jahat x mulut aku?

Welcome to the world! :)

Early morning of 18^th September 2007 at about 3.30 am, I woke up…

Since I have started to feel a strange fluttering thing in my tummy, Sham decided to wake up and have an early sahur.

He wanted me to make him a mug of Milo, so I went to the kitchen. Suddenly, I felt water running by between my hips.

Uh-oh…the waterbag burst! (I thought Along said, if I had blood stain (kembar darah), I wouldn’t have a waterbag leakage -kembar air.)

Hmm…it’s two days or one-week shy of my actual delivery date (20^th or 27^th).

So, Sham quickly finished his meal, and stuffed the bag into the car. And we drove to Hospital Putrajaya. I was busy texting friends, colleagues and family members to get their blessings & prayers.

When the doctor first checked me, but it was only 3-4 cm open, and had to wait further.
I was left strapped to a boxy machine (the ultrasonic doppler) to monitor baby's heartbeat. So fast like a running horse!

Every half an hour, the Dr & nurses came checking me. Dian & Jalak were so excited that they started to wait for us from the beginning.

Although the decision is ultimately mine, I was glad upon hearing the midwife saying “It’s progressing well, looks like u can deliver normally.”

When the contractions are minutes apart...I asked Sham, "What's the time?"

He said "11 a.m"

I remember people saying...if the baby is born during mid-day, he/she'll be stubborn!
After half an hour later, I asked the same question.

This time, I just couldn’t wait for the cervix to dilate anymore. Anything latter is just a waste of time, unless complications are expected to arise. Hehe! So, I started pushing.... Sham was asked to see the baby's head, while I tried to gasp another long breath. Not long after that...........

The baby's out! Alhamdulillah....
and I looked at Sham "What's the time?"
He smiled..."It's 12pm".

Hahaha. I tried hard to make sure the baby's out before noon, but what to do? Luckily, the Dr's watch showed 11.57am. So, I can say that my baby won't be a stubborn boy!

After showing him to me, I tried to tickle him a little bit while they were cutting his umbilical cord. Then, they put the baby on my tummy for a while. Subhanallah! He's so cute! With his eyes closed...

He was handed to Sham to hear his first Azan & Iqamah.

To cut it short, after evertything was done, I was asked to breastfeed him. That was the first moment that bound me with my little darl.

Then, I was sent to the ward. These are the pix of the proud Mama & Ayah...

Adam Zuhair Shamsuri.
Born 3.75 kg
11.57 am
18th September 2007
6th Ramadhan 1428
Hospital Putrajaya

Welcome to the world, little angel! Semoga tabah mengharungi pelbagai dugaan dalam hidup ini.

Our first visitors were Pak Ngah (Tok) and Mak Ngah (Uwan). I was overwhelmed!
Then, came Along & Yone, Sab, Zana & Ima, Faezah (my officemate) and Jasce (Sham's friend whom I just got to know).
Thanks a lot, guys...for sharing the excitement of the arrival of my bundle of joy!

The final countdown

I had this brownish stain. Seems like I am gonna deliver tomorrow. Am so nervous.

Certainly I know that this time would definitely come. But I never thought the wait is coming to an end this soon.

Back home, (after breaking fast with students at Afnan Tomyam) I looked at my big tummy in the mirror. I had this mixed feeling of excited, sad, anxious, etc. Tomorrow, my tummy wouldn’t be this big anymore… :(

MASM 2007 @ Morib

If last year's MASM, I attended as a newly-wed, this year, I come as a very-pregnant woman. Hahaha...

So, I couldn't do much. We made a move very early in the morning, before the cock crows. I slept in the car, while Sham drove.

Well, Malay's time is never punctual. We should have come much later as the event only started at 8.15am.
Here, the Director distributing the map of the treasure hunt to participants. Sham has to enterframe as he's the committe for the event.

These are my students who also participated in the treasure hunt. Firdaus, Najma, Miji & Asyran. Look at their faces...bersemangat sungguh!

But due to some technical errors (kena tipu dgn penganjur), they missed the 3rd place. Poor thing!

So, it's a he! :)

What is shown in the pix above?
I give u 5 secs...
5...
4...
3...
2...
1

Tettttt...
wrong!!!

This time, I asked Dr. Saimah...
"Dr., do I have to keep assuming that it's a boy until I give birth?"

"Oh, I thought it's already confirmed... let's see..."

Guess what? It's the 'eggs' (testes)...hehehe.
(I shouldn't have put up a porn in this blog. Notty me!)
Eventually, I managed to know it before the delivery...it's a boy!!! Yay!

Well, check-up for this month changed the EDD to 8th Sept! That's tomorrow! Hahaha... It can't be!

Counting the days...

Yesterday, we attended a nikah ceremony of Nana's (Dian's sister) and Nik at the Federal Mosque. We arrived early, so while waiting, Sham & I took some pix of ourselves...
and one of the baby in Mama's tummy! Just to remember how big I look like when I was almost due. Hmmm...pretty big huh?

These are the bride and groom... May Allah bless them. The ones in pink are the bride's parents.

...and.....(drumrolls)...here are the pengantin lama! Jalak & Dian. But they really looked their best. Because later that day, they had a photography session too. Wahhh...sakan!

Sorry, Nana. I am unable to attend the kenduri. Need to be extra cautious when the due date is approaching.

♫ ♪ Sing like no one's listening...♫ ♪

Dunno why... I really wanted to go karaoke with friends. The plan has been postponed a few times, as Zana was unavailable most of the time.

Eventually, this week, when Sham was away to Singapore... I asked his permission to go out with Sab and Fatiu to karaoke at the Klang Parade.

The first hour was spent singing our own fav songs. Skima nye!

When one of us picked a dangdut song, that was the turning point... we went crazy, singing like nobody's listening & dancing like nobody's watching...
Hahaha!

Thanks, babes! I really had a good time :)

Pix: Sab & I singing Senggol-senggolan Cubit-cubitan.

When boss complots...

It's my darling's birthday again.
This time, I planned with his friends to have a birthday bash for him.

Early that morning, we attended the presentation of the industrial training students. So, by afternoon, we were back at home, taking a nap.

Later, I asked him what'd he like to have for dinner.

Darling : Siakap tiga rasa la (3-flavoured barramundi) at Afnan Tomyam, as usual.

Me : Ermm... ok. (Alamak! There goes my plan)

Few mins after, he got a call from his boss (KMI). I eavesdropped, only to hear some serious intonation.

Darling : Dear, before we have dinner, can we drop by at my office? En Din wants to see me.

Me : Ok, but what for?

Darling : It's regarding the guy...yada..yadaa.....

To sum up, we got dressed and headed to his office. I was about to get outta the car when he said "Don't u wanna wait in the car? It won't be long."

With my big fat tummy, I managed to give a good excuse not to be left alone.

At Level 13 (his office)... Sham went straight to En Din's room. And upon seeing his boss, I just waved at him and went to the meeting room where the rest is waiting.
There were Najma, Asyran, Rahmat, Shahril & the gang, Hasri, etc. Wow! This is more than expected!

While waiting for him to come in, the candles on the cake were getting shorter that we had to blow them first. Haha.

Sham came in, surprised with the crowd and we sang "Happy Birthday". I could see he was speechless, except screaming "I never thought my boss is also behind this."


Well, we had a nice meal of chicken, pizza, cake, etc. I hope my darling really likes it (though he hates surprises!).


Thanks guys (esp Rahmat and Najma) for making this happen!

p/s: The pix/videos of the event were all lost while they were under Rahmat's so-called safekeeping :P

A letter to my sweetie pie

My dear baby,

Been hectic these days, you might feel kinda neglected. But obviously, I can feel your vigorous movement near my rib. It’s funny to see the lump moving from one side to another. Dr. Saimah told me it’s either your butt or your little foot. No wonder I could feel the strong kicks every now and then. Naughty little boy, huh!

You know, dear. Everyone can't wait for you to be here.

Auntie Sab, Auntie Zana, Cik Dian, Paman Jalak, Tokwan.

Faraway Downunder, there are Uncle Boboy, Nanny Mary, Auntie Ann, Auntie Micha.

In other parts of the world, the news of your arrival are awaited by Auntie Kelly, Auntie Rebecca, Tante Inten, Tante Desi, Auntie Thao, Auntie Auntie Anna & Uncle Fritz, Uncle Roy and Auntie Enneth, etc.

Not to forget Makcik & Maksu who have been awaiting for the moment to laugh at Mama when I got married and being pregnant. They just couldn’t imagine it because of my character- gila-gila and not serious.

Sayang, you are such a lucky boy so, mama hope you better be a good boy when you come out later.

I could see ayah’s excitement and anticipation of your arrival. He always plays with the booties and mittens, pretending that you were kicking and punching with those little feet and hands. Funny! But I feel so blessed..to love and to be loved.

Mama? Of course I am excited, but apparently I don’t have a deep fear of the upcoming labour. I know labour is painful, but it doesn’t change the fact that it still has to be done. Having the knowledge and experience working in a maternity clinic does not mean that I can adopt it well. But at least, it shouldn’t be that bad.

People keep saying, But when I think of the moment you'll be blinking your baby eyes looking around, trying to drink in every detail of this new world revealed to you...I get all keyed up and thrilled. I know it's gonna be worth the pain and hardwork just to hold you in my arm and have you by my side.

Mama easily gets tired and sleepy nowadays-it must be the pregnancy hormone. Fortunately, I don’t think it affects my other qualities…(am trying to control it as much so you wouldn’t have the bad qualities).

My dear boy,
I need to rest now. Till then, you take care and be good in there.

Can’t wait to see you,
Mama

Of cravings

I crave so many things during this pregnancy. The best part is I'll just get 'em and I really appreciate 'em.

The obvious one is sweet corn. I usually get my weekly dose of sweet corn from the night markets. I just buy the boiled ones (jagung rebus) though bcoz I don't want to eat the Polyaromatic hydrocarbon in the grilled corns (jagung bakar) . Haha! As if I am very health concious :P Sometimes, I buy the steamed corns (in cup), but they are not just as good as the boiled ones are. It's the excitement of munching from the cob that matters!


Durian is another one. I love it so much (apparently, I just love all things called food). Usually, I enjoy having durians there and then by the roadside (where it is sold). But few weeks ago, I tried the 'durian udang merah'. Fuh! It felt like cream melting in my mouth. Perhaps next time I should try expensive ones like this too. It's worthy!


My other craves include the fried jackfruit (cucoq cempedak)... and banana fritters (cucoq pisang) -->p/s: Mind the intonation!


Nevertheless, I'd prefer the cucoq cempedak sold at the stalls near the Aliran Damai Apartment in Cheras. Reasons? Bcoz they are cheap. Hahaha!
And they are not thickly covered with flour, which means I could still taste the cempedak inside. Somehow, Sham has to drive me to Cheras just to get some. How lucky am I to have such a good hubby ;)

As for the banana fritters, I prefer to fry 'em by myself. To me, it's yummier. Hahaha (perasan!) But Sham said, the one I made was really nice (smug!). I hope he is not a just trying to be a sweet talker ;)

Drinks? I love ais kacang and cendol. (Dont ask me the English translation of ais kacang!)
Being a Penangite, I have always loved it. Anyway, during this 9-month term, I like the one with chocolate topping (ABC koko) at Section 2 stalls.

And the best cendols can be enjoyed in front of the Raja Tun Uda mosque, Section 16.
(my tummy is singing)

I was also pampered with steamed barramundi (siakap) at Afnan Tomyam quite often towards the end of pregnancy. To make sure I get enough Omega 3 and such, Sham said.
Poor him! He has to tolerate bcoz he prefers it as cooked Tiga Rasa (3 flavoured barramundi).
Heh heh... that's the advantage of being pregnant :P

Came Ramadhan, I started developing craving Tepung Pelita a.k.a kuih sampan. A sweet treat made from glutinous rice, sugar, coconut milk and pandan flavour. It is creatively wrapped in small rectangular 'container' made up of pandan leaves or banana leaves.

The only thing I didn't manage to get was.....

Yes! Avocado - the natural butter. I bought one, and it costs me RM4 per piece. OMG! In BNE, it's much cheaper... (during the season, I could buy 5 pieces for just a dollar).
So, I carefully chose the not so soft, nor firm ones to make sure it's worth the money.

I kept it for a day or two at home before cutting it. Unfortunately, it wasn't as expected :( Gosh! Packed for exports, certainly it was picked unripe. What can I expect?

Boing-boing!

The baby lump is much noticeable now.

And I love this car sticker I have on the window of the co-driver seat.