bye bye Drypers

this is a Mommy post! bahahhahahhahaha.

i noticed recently during one of my Tesco shopping sprees that Drypers came up with a New & Improved packaging for their Wee Wee Dry range. uh oh.

the last time Tesco 'improved' on their diaper range (think Tesco Loves Baby), i waved goodbye to the brand and turned (or returned lol) to Drypers instead. the plus part of Tesco diapers was that it was very reasonably priced, and it worked really well for me too... until they 'upgraded'. boo. i was never a fan of manufacturers improving an already perfect product that had nothing wrong with it to begin with.

generally parents will look for diapers with great absorbency, diapers that are breathable as well as being gentle on their children's bums. i didn't give it much thought when i purchased the new and improved version, since the old ones were non to be seen.

a few days later the maid told me that the new diapers that i purchased were no good, and could i purchase the old ones again? she then started lecturing me (haha) about how the 'new and improved' Drypers were thin (nipis!), they didn't last long (boros!) and tended to leak (bocor!). Emms started getting rashes on her bum and reddish marks around her thighs. that is not good.

then ironically this morning my friend asked me whether i was still using Drypers Wee Wee Dry. hahahha that is so not a coincidence. i thought i was the only one that had complaints about their 'new and improved' product. so i did a little googling and apparently, the majority of the public doesn't like this new packaging too. seems like everyone's been complaining about them, on the Drypers FB page and even in the forums at Drypers club. most of the complaints were regarding product quality - diapers too thin, leaked more often, rashes forming all over child's bum. we'll end up using more diapers just because the diaper is too thin to last more than just a couple of hours. is that the company's new strategy to get us to buy more diapers??? diapers are already so pricey to begin with. grrrrr.

over at the Dryper's forum

i wrote a lengthy email to Drypers regarding their improved packaging bahahahha. don't know how much good that will do, there's so many people's complaints on their website that were left ignored. they won't be able to rectify the problem overnight anyway. so in the meantime i guess it's time to turn to other diaper brands instead. Huggies, anyone? lol.

btw, has anyone tried Dryper's Touch? i've purchased one pack before but i can't recall if it was good or not. probably i'll stop at Tesco after work later and get a pack and compare it with Huggies =P.

img src: taken from Dryper's FB for comparison
left: old, right: new

updated 13/7:
i went abit nuts when i said i was going to look for alternatives. diapers are freaking expensive btw. did you know a pack of L Drypers Touch (the gold packaging) is RM50+??? gahhhhhhhhhh.

blender + steamer

when Dinara started solids i was kinda eyeing this:


but Significant Other put his foot down asking whether it was worth the price? and we still had a perfectly functioning blender and steamer that i had used during Dayana's time. chis. kalau beli harddisk or whatever uninteresting-to-me gadget dekat PC fair, tak pikir twice, terus beli without a blink of an eye. hampeh!

but ok la fine, i pikir at least with that money i can buy this blouse i've been eyeing at Zara since yesterday, haha (dah la Zara Basics, mahal pulak tu, chis betul branded clothings nih).

today i was talking to a friend, and she gave me this link. functions more or less like Phillips Avent.


the latter costs much cheaper than the former, according to my friend. Phillips Avent blender + steamer costs rm399 at normal price. i'm not sure where you can get the Baby Brezza brand though. my friend's dot will be starting solids in a months' time so she's the one doing all the research lol.

just managed to racun that friend to get herself Freestyle though, haha. now if only i can influence her to buy a kain buruk' as she calls it... LOL.

even blenders pun i boleh eksaited, haha. anyway, your baby's first eating experience is a moment that you can't miss. Dinara is a happy eater, she'll happily swallow anything you offer her, no kidding. even meds pun she'll happily take, much to Mommy's delight. her food dia makan, kakaks' food dia makan, even our food pun dia mau, mengamuk if you eat in front of her and don't offer her a bite. lol.

i bought her Munchkin's Fresh Food Feeder for her at FabulousMom last weekend. she seemed to enjoy sucking on it, dunno if it's beneficial to let her suck on it or just chuck small pieces into her mouth for nutrition? beats me. the one thing her older sister isn't grabbing out of her hands.

ugh, speaking of which, i'm hungry. feel like eating mcD's double cheese burger before going back.

Dayana update: she's starting to learn that the iPad is actually more interesting than her iPod, with the drawback that the iPad is wayyy heavier than her iPod. oh, and she prefers her smellier Wee than the other freshly washed Wee. i have to practically hide the ickier one before she'll accept the newer one. haih.

ok, i'm off now. need.to.clean.the.room.before.mil.comes.home.

ugh.

MomBloggersPlanet cutest baby smiling contest

i've always seem to have the tendency to miss deadlines when it comes to online contests. so this time i was determined not to miss this one. before i know it, my kid will be too old (young? old sounds... well... OLD) to be entering this sort of contests, lol. so this will be my first time entering, yay!

this December's contest is: Cutest Baby Smiling! =D by:


without further ado, here's my walking, talking, smiling baby =D

My Cheeky Little Rascal

Name: Dayana Nur Sabrina M. A.
Date of Birth: August 31, 2008

it was quite difficult to choose only one photo. this one made the cut, taken recently this month.

so. why do i love to see her smiling?

my Dayana will always have plenty of smiles to go by. i can remember the first time she ever smiled at me. she was always frowning during the first few months of her life, and my mom would always massage her little forehead so she wouldn't get wrinkles sooner than expected, lol. so imagine my delight when her lips first blossomed into a smile at me *swoon*. a child's smile will make any parent's heart melt, don't you think so? (ok so ever since i got my baby i seem to have a developed a more sensitive side, haha). and you just can't help smiling back - smiles are contagious. smiling is actually good for you. it's good for your health! so i guess you could say my little one is one happy healthy smiling baby!

it's great therapy to see her smile after a exhausting day at work. you work the whole day, slaving over assignments and deadlines, staring at the computer screen most of the time, so what better way to de-stress than to see your own child smiling? she's like my motivation to get through the day, one of the reasons why i haven't given up living on planet earth, lol. life is hard as it is. a smile to brighten up your life couldn't hurt, could it? =).

but most of all, seeing her smile makes everything worthwhile for her Mommy and Daddy.

now... if only we can make her a sister or brother to bully. haha.

to wrap things up, i'd like acknowledge the sponsors of this contest: PhotoBook Malaysia and AliceWonders! arigato gozaimasu!

what's in your diaper bag?

it's 5am and i'm already in the office. how pathetic is that? =P.

i've never liked any of the diaper bags that i've ever used over the course of the past year. probably the design really didn't suit me. or i guess it lacks some of the features that i look for in a diaper bag. until now i have yet to find a diaper bag that can fit everything that i want it to hold. but then i'll probably have a hard time locating stuff in the bag. hahahahaha. the bigger the bag, the more stuff to stuff in! so first lemme talk about all the bags that i've ever used as a diaper bag.

the first diaper bag i bought was Avent's Urban Diaper Bag. i bought this at Babyjaya during their sales way before Dayana was born. i didn't do much research on diaper bags last time. so me and Significant Other hentam based on how cute the bag looked. lol.



this messenger bag is a stylish changing bag that allows gives you two looks - the zip-on flap is interchangeable,which gives you the the option of two looks in one. it comes in either pink or blue. you can also knock yourself out with whatever color that suits your current wardrobe. lol. some of the other features of this bag include:
- wide adjustable shoulder strap for optimum carrying comfort
- spacious, easy access interior and easy-close magnetic fastening
- 3M Thinsulate pockets keeps two bottles of pre-boiled hot water warm or cold ready-mixed formula / breastmilk cool for several hours
- detachable pocket for personal items
- includes a mini laundry bag
- spacious baby bag is large enough to carry all your baby care items

as you can see from the photo the bag has many compartments, which definitely makes it easy for you to store items systematically and for easy retrieval. i loved the bag! it came with it's own changing mat (which is normal for most diaper bags). i also love the mini laundry bag that came with the diaper bag, which was really useful in my opinion. i'd put my baby's soiled clothing in there as to not mix with the other items in the bag. i liked the idea of a built-in insulated pocket to store two bottles during travel, it helped a lot when i was transporting EBM around. but i didn't like that the insulated pocket would take up 1/4 of space in the bag once bottles were put into it.

but as much as i tried to like the bag, i wasn't too fond of the flap's design. i found that the kononnye 'easy-close magnetic fastening' wasn't so easy after all, especially if you sumbat alot of stuff into the bag to its full capacity. the magnet isn't strong enough so the flap will be hanging awkwardly over the bag opening. another thing is the bag has the potential to accidentally overturn once everything has been crammed inside, and since the magnetic fastening isn't strong enough so if the bag topples over, everything will come spilling out T_T. sungguh tidak selesa mau galas this bag since the flap isn't properly secured. and i just love to bring rubbish in my diaper bag (coz you never know when you might need them, right?). my mom always complain that my diaper bag berat macam batu. whatever =P.

recently the zipper for the flap (the zip stopper, to be precise) sudah frayed off so unfortunately i'm stuck with a flapless messenger bag T_T (or until i get the bag to a place that can help to fix it, sigh). i found the magnet in the flap to have rusted, i dipped the flap to give it a quick wash one day and when it dried faint stains of rust (i think) seemed to have appeared where the magnet is positioned on the flap. terus tidak cantik diaper bag ku itu.

next i decided to get a diaper bag in backpack style. so i got the Rucksack Change Bag from Mothercare.


i first saw this bag at Mothercare in Plaza Indonesia, Jakarta. i thought i didn't want it, but after much thought i asked my friend if she could help me buy it during her Jakarta work trip. there was a big price difference, i'd save rm70+ if i bought it in Jakarta than if i bought it here (in Malaysia everything imported is mahal).

the bag is black in color, with the inner layer an orange color (nice!). it has many zippered compartments, the main compartment is way bigger than my Avent bag. it also has a handy, easy-access wipes pocket which i don't really use because i'm afraid the wipes will dry out after a while. but i store the wipes sealed in that compartment for easier retrieval. the changing mat that comes with it has two zippered messy bags attached to it to store soiled items or whatever that fancies you, but i've never utilized it. the bag also has an insulated compartment to store bottles, although i think the Avent insulated pocket functions much better than this one. it even has a side pocket which you really won't notice unless you look closely, where i keep small personal items in (Hema if you're reading this you'll remember the time we went nuts looking for my car key, i thought i'd lost it but it was actually in that pocket hahahahha... i even had my friends strip search the bag but none of them noticed the side pocket. goes to show how you can actually overlook it, which i wonder if it's a good thing or not, lol).

i like this bag. easy to carry around, backpack style. i just wished it came in a more interesting color =P. the zippers has this tapered end ( i dunno how to describe it, you can see it in the photo) to make handling the zippers easier. but one day when my mil brought the bag out during one of her outings with my baby, the tapered end for the zipper of the insulated pocket went missing. i found that hard to believe that it just went POOF like that because the zipper base didn't look like it was tampered, and the tapered end was tightly glued together, so it was impossible for it to unravel and pop off. but it did. so now the bag sudah cacat =(. my mom attached one of those paper rings to the zip to replace the missing end. but... ntah. you know la me. sampai bila bila tak puas hati. hehehehe.

this bag was really useful when i had to lug around a bunch of stuff for Dayana. when babies are still young, it doesn't hurt to bring everything along wherever you go, just to be on the safe side. haha. some might disagree, but this is how i think, heh. so... when Dayana turned One (and when she decided to wean herself off me on her own), i realized i didn't need to bring around as much stuff as i did before. hence i didn't really need to lug around such a big bag as this one.

i actually prefer messenger style bags than to backpacks, especially since i usually go around on my own and i need to carry my baby and also the diaper bag, not to forget my handbag too =P (thank God for babywearing!). sometimes i simply campak my personal stuff into the diaper bag to minimize the number of bags i lug around, but i found it tedious to transfer my stuff here and there (not to mention i win first prize for being Miss Forgetful).

which is why i'm just curious, what the heck do you lug around in your diaper bag for your baby? nowadays i just campak her stuff into my Baggu reuseable bag which i got free during the parenthood fair in MV last August. to make diaper-changing easier, i sumbat all the necessities into a small cow minky bag for easy access. items include:
- 2-3 piece of diapers
- EMAB
- wet wipes
- 2 cloth towels to wipe up messes
- packet of tissues

other things i sumbat into the Baggu bag include:
- changing mat (i use the one from my MC bag)
- the minky bag with all the above mentioned items inside
- a change of clothing for Dayana just in case
- baby's sweater + shoes + snugg hat
- 2-3 milk bottles
- milk powder storage container
- snacks
- pacifier
- a couple of toys to occupy her just in case she gets bored
- mini Chewy (i can't give her her big one, she'll end up dragging it on the floor)

i also bring around a ring sling carrier which obviously tak muat this Baggu =D.

(photos later)

are there any other useful things i should add to my diaper bag list? or is that already considered too much? =P. my friend Dee bought Allerhand diaper bag for her upcoming December baby. Allerhand is pricey, but i kinda like their look. probably i'd get one for myself if i ever were to get #2? lol. maybe i should get a diaper bag that i can use as my own bag once my kids have all grown up and i don't need to carry that many junk around town. lol.

anyway, here's two that i kinda like. hohohohoho.

travel backpack. i can use this as my own bag too, lol

weekender carry-all. an alternative to replace my lingkup Avent bag =P

books for my dot

i was browsing through the forums again in hopes of finding book recommendations for Dayana's age when in the process of googling i came across a few familiar books that i used to read wayyy back when i was young =P. Dayana seems to have lost interest in cloth books now and prefers to flip through books meant for older children. the thing with this is that i'm afraid she might overdo it and end up tearing the page in the process. so i'm in search of good board books for her to flip through to her heart's content. funny thing is, i don't think the books in my list are actual board books though =P

the forum mamas were talking about an Eric Carle, so i just googled up books by him and i was surprised to see that i've read one of his books when i was a child.

The Tiny Seed, by Eric Carle

the book is about the tiny seed's and its journey on how it became a lovely giant flower. i think i still have this book somewhere at home. thanks to my mom who hoards close to everything that we've owned ever since we've lived in the States. US products always last, too bad i can't say the same for local made products. even the crib Dayana has been using at my parent's place used to be my sisters i think, bought from the US =D. although, there are some things that aren't worth keeping around the house, yet we still sayang to get rid of it =P.

another one by Eric Carle, The Very Hungry Caterpillar

one mommy was looking for this book last time. then everyone else chipped in by recommending which children books their child liked, so now i've compiled a small list of books i'd like to get for Dayana once my paycheck is in =P, two of which are Brown Bear Brown Bear What do you See? and Baby Einstein See and Spy Shapes (i've gotta teach Dayana her shapes sooner or later, won't i? lol). so this caterpillar book is also on my list =D.

If You Give A Mouse a Cookie... he'll ask for a glass of milk

i also used to have this book when i was young. i hope my mom still has it somewhere hidden among the jumble of boxes in the house. it has really cute colorful pages.

tikki tikki tembo no sa rembo chari bari ruchi pip peri pembo~!

another book i remember having. but i think this is for older children? but then again babies won't care what book you give them as long as they're colorful and nice to look at, lol. heck my daughter even likes tearing up newspaper, if i left her to it. this book is about how you should never name your first child loOoOoOoooooOoOoOng names, otherwise it will take forever to pass on the message that your child is sitting at the bottom of the well. haha.

goes to show that books last a lifetime =). if you keep them away carefully they can be passed down from generation to generation, for your child, and your child's child, and so on.

i hope my Dayana inherits her Daddy's brains and her Mommy's passion for reading.
Mommy is into fiction, Daddy is more into facts of life. so 50 50, eh? =P

useful motherhood links

Mawar,

i'm not sure which forums you are talking about and what you are exactly looking for, but the forums that i usually frequent on a daily basis (more like stalk daily =P) are as follows:

Malaysian Babywearers
this is where i usually hang out to find out more on babywearing, cloth diapering, breastfeeding,and others related to mommyhood and baby. we have occasional gatherings and meet ups, the mommies that hang out here are really friendly, you can ask practically anything and there surely will be someone to help you out. some mommies sell stuff here too.

The Babywearer
this is where i stalk FSOT for used baby carriers, excellent for mommies who love wearing their baby and wish to expand their collection =P. some carriers are better bought secondhand since they'd already be broken in and really snuggly, and it'll be relatively cheaper compared to buying first hand, unless you have the budget to knock yourself out. there are also forums you can browse through to help you search for your dream carrier. this is an international forum though, and you have to register first before you can browse. for a cheaper budget (considering expensive shipping costs) there are some local mamas who have their own brand carrier, that are equally as good as imported carriers =)

Diaperasia
this is where mommies sell their used or brand new baby stuff. you can find a bunch of cloth diapers for sale here, as well as other baby stuff, all divided into their respective categories. i've sold a couple of diapers here myself.

or, if you're interested in buying baby stuff brand new locally, there are links on the left side of my blog page, under mommy's favorites.

it's too lengthy to send you an SMS so i'm posting it here. hope that helps!

xoxo

on a side note, i will access my yahoo mail and facebook every day without fail =P

cutey crawly

Dayana is awfully good at crawling now. she crawls at every chance she gets. it's pretty difficult to get her to lie down in bed for her schleepy time. she would prefer exploring my bedroom floor than going to sleep. yesterday morning she got up at 1am+ for a Skype call with Daddy and refuses to fall back asleep even after bribing her with a bottle of milk!

i got her a pair of knee protectors to - what else? - protect her knees. dunno how useful it will be though. it's a bit pricey! i'm having second thoughts about purchasing this item from tt. fell in love with rumparooz, but they're a bit pricey as well. not to mentioned i just splurged on an rs, so... *sheepish grin*. oh well. i got a little something for myself too =P *wishing i had gotten meself the square one instead*

should i have not?

can't leave Dayana unattended now. goodness knows where she'll end up crawling into, or what sorta stuff she'd find and cram into her mouth *pengsan*. i can't leave her on the bed for more than 5 seconds anymore. babies really have no fear of falling, haha. she can climb over obstacles too. her favorite obstacle is her Mommy. haiz. she doesn't like the walker Daddy bought her, she howls like no tomorrow whenever she's being put inside it. need to check with the maid on her latest progress with the walker later.

her first time in her super canggih punye walker

her current pastime is babbling to herself, and engaging into a scream war with Tok Mami. her first blurtings were 'da da'. *oh how annoyed i was, penat ku jagamu and you mention that first??* so there she was, playing and mumbling 'da da da' non stop. pagi petang siang malam. until one day i got tired of it so i taught her how to pronounce 'ma ma'. which she finally managed to pronouce after a few tries, yay! but not as often as 'da da' though. pagi2 bile bangun sebut 'da da', bile nak tido terus cariek 'ma ma'. ok la tu. lol. but i read from babycentre UK that all this syllables mean squat to Dayana at the moment. but that's alright. whatever puts you to sleep at night =P~~~

she already knows how to protest when you take something away from her. hahaha.

she's fascinated with mirrors! i'm not sure what she thinks of her own reflection though, because sometimes she'll attempt to talk to her own reflection. heehee.

Dayana: mirror mirror on the wall, who's the cutest baby of them all? lol

now she's in the process of trying to pull herself up onto her feet. she'll crawl up to me and she'll hold her hands out, so i'll take them in mine and she'll struggle to pull herself up. hehe. i cheer everytime she successfully manages to do so. she'll beam at me like Little Miss Sunshine, and i'll sing her the hotdog dance. lol. i wonder when she'll move on to furniture cruising. there isn't much furniture to perch onto safely in the house.

i haven't thought of getting her shoes yet. tried one of my old pairs last weekend and she was slipping and sliding in them. haha. anyway, mil bought her a pair of red soft soles, her very first pair (minus her Adidas). they totally match with her IB. hehe.

tappity tappity... those are MY shoes ok

Lilly the Ladybug

i almost fell off my chair when i came across this little critter:

"Sure to catch your attention with her beautiful red color, Lilly the Ladybug is quite a catch and is sure to put a smile on your face. Bound to become your child?s best friend, Lilly is not only an adorable ladybug, but also a comfy pillow and super-soft blanket all in one. Perfect for road excursions or just cuddling in bed. Lilly also makes a perfect baby shower gift."

it's me!!! [note to Eiwa: lol] i'm adorable! *evil laugh*

i'm femes! hahahahahhahahhahahahahha

i heart! anyone wanna buy me one of these lovelies?

get it at Zoobies!

cartoon cartoons

i'm still up at 1am in the morning. Significant Other left for a business trip yesterday (technically speaking, since today is already Monday), and he'll only be back after two weeks. of which i don't really mind though; i think it's good to get a breather from each other once in a while. i'm really amazed at those couples who've been together for almost 30 years, i wonder what's their secret. me, Dayana and mil sent him off at KLIA. i haven't been to KLIA for such a long time. Dayana was particularly excited, especially when she got hold of mil's plastic bag (the one in which you declare your liquids to bring into the cabin) and refused to let go if it. i checked out Tie Rack in KLIA and seriously i'm not quite sure what the big deal is about these scarves. or maybe the selection at the airport were not too exciting to begin with. hehe.

Dayana is snoring beside me on the bed. the tv's on and tuned in to Cartoon Network. right now Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends is showing on tv. this was one of my favorite cartoons to watch when i was pregnant in my first trimester, no kidding. even Significant Other got hooked. i first saw this cartoon during my Bangkok trip. it was on every morning at 7.30am when i was up and about getting ready to go to the client's office, so it was rather convenient for me to watch it. back here i watch it at 1am in the morning =P. today's episode is about Bloo's (the main character) first encounter with the hiccups. it ends off with Bloo having a hiccup competition with another imaginary friend. naturally, Bloo won. hahahahhaha.

foster's home for imaginary friends

the shows i watch on tv has changed ever since having a daughter to look after. from Starworld and AXN, to Cartoon Network and Playhouse Disney. and i think the mommy is actually the one watching the shows on tv rather than the daughter, who has a really short attention span and gets bored easily. hihi.

another favorite to watch, lol

this one Dayana likey

last weekend was a bit hectic due to Megat and Hasmah's wedding on Saturday, and Significant Other's preparations to fly on Sunday. so Dayana didn't really have a proper meal that weekend, poor thing. my mom started her on bananas on Thursday, and she took to it pretty well, in fact =). today is actually the day she starts on sweet potato, but i woke up late and i didn't have time to prepare, so i guess it's one more day of banana for Dayana, lol.

i have so many things to settle by the end of the week, and so little time and money to do it. it doesn't help that a nail got stuck in one of my car's tyres recently, and after sending it to the shop to be patched, further inspection revealed that my tyres have crack marks and are in danger of exploding (is that the word? the guy said that the tyre might pecah if i kept on driving with the tyres in that condition). and one tyre costs about rm200+ *pengsan*. but they're actually due for a change anyway. i haven't changed them since i first got the car (oops... my bad...). and my car is due for it's 60,000km service. huwaaaaaa... more money flying out the window... anyone wanna sponsor me a tyre?

i'd like to babble more here, but then i'm afraid i'd get too emo. and i hate it when i write when i'm emo. i'm lucky my manager has approved my long leave, i got a little over 10 days to finish by the end of the month. at least i can unwind and relax abit (even though i can never manage to get rid off my financial woes =P). mil is leaving for UK on Wednesday for close to two months, so there are other matters to think about. but i'll leave that to be told at another time. so anyway... taa~

apple puree

i'm lucky that i carpooled with Significant Other yesterday. and i'm glad i don't take the train anymore. if not i would've gotten stuck in the 2-hour sardin-packed crowd at the lrt yesterday *shudders*

yesterday i bought some red apples from Cold Storage as i wanted to make apple puree for my daughter. hahaha. she had already taken 4 days of baby rice cereal in small quantities and seemed to get the hang of eating solids (from what my mil says lah). but that's baby rice and a little of EBM. now it's purely apples *wicked grin*. i can just imagine her disgusted face.

... i pulak terexcited.

i chatted with ieta yesterday (my most trusty babysource online =P) on how to make apple puree. in my mind i imagine it turning to apple juice after blending it. but she says it isn't so. (probably juicers are better equipped at filtering out the fibres in the fruit, leaving only the juice as your end product). anyway, at 12am tengah2 malam buta there i was in the kitchen, armed and ready to make apple puree. hahaha (ni la kerje the inexperienced Mommy - excited over the little things that's considerably normal. lol). thanks to the person who presented the steamer to us for our wedding present =D. while waiting for the apples to be steamed i got out the mini blender we bought using the voucher Significant Other received from PwC.

basically here's what i did:
1. cut the apple, leave the skin on
2. steam the apples for 15-20 minutes
3. take them out and wait for them to cool for a bit
4. peel off the skin and cut into smaller chunks before putting them into the blender
5. blend blend blend! until whatever consistency you wish to acheive. lol.

this is my first time using the blender and i have no idea how long i would need to blend the apples so i hentam saja. while chopping up the apple into smaller pieces i tried tasting one, it kinda reminded me of apple sauce. anyway, blend blend blend and then scoop them out into small containers, two to be kept in the fridge for today and tomorrow, another two to be kept in the freezer. i only got a small amount from one apple. i was thinking i'd let her acquire the taste of apple first before making more. let's hope she doesn't choke on it or anything. too bad i didn't take photos of the whole process. hahaha. i felt like blending all of the apples ok. jakun punye pasal.

next up... peas!

updated:
apparently Dayana doesn't like apples after tasting it for the first time. haha. mil didn't succeed in feeding the puree to her, so when i got back home i tried feeding it to her myself. she just spat it back out. so i thought of adding breastmilk to the puree. she accepted it more readily though. but after swallowing it she puckered her face as if she just tasted something sour. cheese~! i tried it myself before i added bm to it, it didn't taste weird to me. in fact, it tasted really sweet. lol. funny lah Dayana ni.

out of ideas

been busy the past week - worrying about work, juggling being a domestic mommy (and failing at it), trying to find some me-time in between... so i don't really have much to blog about at this point of time. at least, until i deliver my CR, my mind won't be at peace. such wrong timing to have the due date to be at the end of this week, which is the last week Significant Other resides as a Grape Planter before he moves on to greener pasture.

i managed to get all of Dayana's photos into one location for easy access later. so here's a nice little photo of my little rascal we took last weekend. she looks all grown up there, doesn't she? alot of people say that she doesn't look like me. can you believe that i actually look more or less like her now when i was younger? now i only need to go to my parents' place and dig up a picture of yours truly from the wonder years =D (izzar, dengki la u. hahahahhaha =P).

bumbo seat

here's photos of bumbo seat in action:
(ieta, if you wanna have the photo removed, lemme know ya =P)

mlo in her new bumbo seat =)

ieta's amir looking all happy wappy in it =D

seriously, at first glance it looks like a potty. hahahhahahhaha.
p/s. this is a promotional entry, specifically speaking. so.... bile lagi?

medela free.style.

is here!

my little angel sitting there patiently while mommy tinkers with her new toy

freestyle!

i got this new tech gadget here: http://mybreastpumpshop.blogspot.com/

huwaaaaaaaaaa...

i'm addicted... to online shopping!!! @#*&@&!@#

and i have three people to thank...

1. my beloved bff (for getting me 'itchy fingers'), Sarah
2. my newfound blogging friend and supermommy (for being so informative and helpful!), Farrah =P
3. the maker of my newly purchased but yet-to-be-used mei tai (for pushing me off the cliff due to her lovely reviews and 'frugality'), Aida

*muaks*

yesterday while i was feeding Dayana with her bottle i noticed that she can hold her own bottle now! wah wah! ok la, so she's not actually holding it all on her own but at least she's trying to, even though her grip is still a bit clumsy. lol. i still need to help her tilt the bottle a bit, else she'll just chew on the teat. heehee. so cute. my baby is growing up so fastttt. dengki tak if her mom wishes her to be small and cute forever? =P~~

earth.mama.angel.baby

the size i initially thought it would be when i first set my eyes on it:



after purchasing one from Grace of Lil Danzell, this is what i actually received:

[photo available later]

i was so surprised i almost fell off my chair laughing. and for that price???

to be fair, Grace accidentally sent me the item in the wrong size. i had ordered for the 2oz size, but unfortunately she was out of stock. so she promised to send me another 1oz jar... 1oz + 1oz = 2oz, right? =P~~~

has anyone tried their Milkmaid Tea? reviews, anyone?

on being baby-friendly

i just love baby-friendly places! they make diaper-changing easier, and provide you with a comfortable place to feed your baby, especially for breastfeeding moms who prefer a sense of privacy. for me, this makes my life easier as i don't have to bring EBM around in my diaper bag and worry about how to warm it up for Dayana should she request for it. although some older built places didn't provide facilities such as these so there was a time where i had to change Dayana's dirty diaper in the car. luckily we had those scented plastic bags to keep the smell at bay (later i threw away the diaper but i kept the plastic bag for future use. sayang lah! those plastics are darn expensive! =P).

last Saturday two weeks ago, Megat and Hasmah came over and we had breakfast at Old Town White Coffee. we brought Dayana along. i just love bringing her out for outings these days =). later we went to MV, along with mil. Dayana is getting more agreeable with her stroller these days. she would doze off in her stroller after awhile. i bring Mister Spidey along for the ride. she does tend to get fussy sometimes when she's awake, but i don't have to carry her as often as before. anyway, Significant Other bought a bunch of stuff in MV. i only bought the sweater i mentioned about previously =D. when it was time for feeding (judging by Dayana's level of crankiness) i used the baby room in Jusco. there was another family in the room while i was in there. at the time i felt so glad i bought a nursing cover from Fabulous Mom (promote, promote =P. mil had wondered what kind of cloth was that when she first saw it. haha). i thought the funny smell i was smelling at the time was from the other baby. actually after nursing i found out it was coming from Dayana. she pooped *faint*. later mil treated us to Chilli's. i tried the lamb shoulder Fahmi was raving about (he's so into chilli's it's kinda scaryyy). it was kinda yummy. i would've enjoyed it more if i didn't have to juggle holding Dayana and eat at the same time though. i also nursed Dayana in the restaurant under the nursing cover =P. luckily it was kinda dark too, so i guess people didn't really notice. i didn't mind. all the better if people didn't notice!

so that was my first experience using a baby room and nursing in public. the next day we went to MV again because we wanted to exchange an item. this time i used isetan's baby room. they had a separate area curtained off for nursing, something like a dressing room, so you had a better sense of privacy as opposed to Jusco's baby room where they provided only couches. during school holidays i notice the baby room is always occupied with some family or another (along with babies and toddlers in tow). hehe. i never noticed that many strollers being pushed around in shopping malls. it's only when you have your own stroller to bring your little one around that you notice the existence of others!

the only thing i dislike about using strollers is that you have to wait for those slow moving elevators to get to different floors. and when the elevators finally arrive, they're full. so you waste time just waiting for elevators to arrive. unless of course you would take the risk of using the escalators (escapators), which i'm not really sure if you could do that or not. i think i should learn how to use my Littlepods sling properly. i bought this ages ago but never had the opportunity to use it. i wanted it in red, but they only had my size in blue =(. two days ago (Saturday) i tried putting Dayana in the sling because i wanted to get her things ready to send her to Bangi and she refused to be play by herself in her crib. relying on Significant Other to look after her was hopeless because he was too engrossed with his PS3 game, Warhawk. at first Dayana was a bit reluctant to be put in the sling because her Mommy wasn't skilled at getting her in yet, but after a while she seemed okay with being in there. at least, she didn't seem to complain. to me she looks a bit squished in there. mil was afraid she would be squished too. haha. i really need someone to tell me if her positioning is right or not. anyway, practice makes perfect, right? =P

oh yes, i cut my hair yesterday! eGad! i almost cried when i saw the thick locks of my hair on the floor. but oh well. i needed a change in hairstyle anyway. now without weight, my hair has become abit untamed and frizzy. i was thinking if i should straighten my hair again. i don't seem to favor the poker-straight look so much anymore. maybe i'll just highlight it or something. red perhaps. what do you think?

happy birthday Nizar! my longest and dearest best friend ever. i can't believe we've known each other that long, huh? i hope you haven't thrown away that piece of chalk. hahahhahahahaha

Wally the C-sect baby

today i brought Dayana to the Dr. in Subang Jaya for her second month jab. i brought her to my panel clinic so that i wouldn't have to pay for the cost. i went alone this time. Dayana was in tears after the jab on her left butt. waaaa... my poor baby! now i had to handle from a sleepy baby to a howling one all by myself. hebat tak =P. i was so hebat the Dr. and nurses pitied me for coming alone, that they made me wait in the Dr.'s office for the receipt and helped me carry my bag and accompanied me to my car until i almost forgot to pay. hahahaha. kelakar betul. luckily the nurses were nice. they looked a bit blur at handling a baby though. the Dr. was also nice. at least he looked seasoned. some Dr.s have this kind of look that makes you think twice about allowing them to give your child their jabs. to me lah. especially if their specialty is not paediatrics. lol.

since i was in Subang Jaya i decided to drop by Aien's place for a visit. and i finally gave her the present i had bought for her baby aeons ago. hahah. this was my first time seeing her son. her son was 29 days younger than my daughter but my God, he looks so much older than my daughter! Aien's baby looks as if he was four months old. i think my daughter is just small for her age. hehe. anyway, i dub him as Wally. i hope his Mommy doesn't mind =). he reminds me so much of his father. he face looks so friendly it's like he's always smiling at you. wish i had tried to carry him though. the only baby i've ever carried is my own daughter, that's how scared i was of handling babies before =P. i was amazed at how Aien could just bounce him on her knee and he could fall asleep just like that. i tried that with my daughter. no take.

here's wally!

my long MC holiday

i'm sick!

i haven't been sick in a long while. in fact, i can't recall the last time i took an MC. i don't remember feeling this lousy during my pregnancy days either. come to think of it, did i even fall this sick while i was carrying Dayana? i can't really remember =P

there's a flu roaming about, and unfortunately i caught the bug from Significant Other. crap! it started out with a mild sore throat, followed by the sniffles, then the occasional headache and finally the much awaited fever. Significant Other had already caught the sniffles during the weekend. you should've seen the number of tissues he used up, the wastebasket was full to the brim of yucky tissues. i caught it from him a couple of days later. luckily Dayana hasn't caught the bug yet. she's over at my mom's this week.

i woke up on Monday with a really bad sore throat and a slight case of the sniffles. so i got an MC for one day, with hopes that i could rest and get better. the next day however i felt a bit feverish. but i was stubborn and insisted on getting ready to work. i ended up taking a detour to the clinic in Subang and the Dr. happily informed me that i had a fever, so he gave me 2 days MC! whee~ Significant Other sungguh jeles =P. the one thing i found amusing during this visit to the Dr. was that he told me that i shouldn't wash my hair. i was a bit blur at his statement so i asked him why. he said that it would make my condition worse. oh well. he's the Dr. so whatever he says goes i should think. haha. back home, i slept most of the day, and by evening i felt a bit better. hopefully i'll be on my feet and up and about tomorrow. my whole body feels achey all over. wonder if it's the effect from all the medicine i took. blergh.

since i'm pumping milk to give my daughter directly instead of freezing them i don't really bother to jot down the actual time, but here's a rough estimate of what i got on Tuesday, sick and all:
8.15am = 6oz
11.30am = 5oz
2.30pm = 4.5oz
6.45pm = 4.5oz
10.45pm = 3oz

i'm trying to get myself in a fixed pumping routine since Dayana isn't around. i read stories on how some mother's milk dry up after a while, as well as other horror stories that make me worry about my own milk production. should i upgrade my breastpump? =P. i am sooo jealous of the moms that manage to get more than 8oz during a single pumping session. huwaaa...

zoobies!!!

cute tak??? this is my recent online purchase, although this time i didn't buy for myself, it was more for Dayana =P (ok ok, i bought it mainly because it looked too cute for words, and Farrah's entry on her monkey really intrigued me to get one for myself). imagine my excitement when i received it in the mail! *grin*

i bought a Zoobies plushie from Tiny Tapir. mine's Khimba Koala and it's a limited edition apparently. i loOoOoOve the color, and it comes with a little bub of her own. it's a 3-in-1 thing; it's a soft plush toy, a pillow, and it even has its own matching paster purple coral fleece blanket! i was a bit amazed at its size, though. i didn't think it would be THAT big.

serves as a nice comfy pillow

contains a warm fluffy blankie inside!

a reminder to myself

a little reminder to myself before i forget what i need:
--- mom's precious cooler bag set (bag + 6 bottles + 3 icepacks) bought
--- food grinder (momslittleones) bought, and regretted
--- littlepods baby sling (babyjaya) bought
--- nursing cover bought
--- nursing pillow
--- Avent 4oz feeding bottles (3 pack) bought 2 boxes of this
--- diapers & wipes (neverending story)
--- nursing bra 2-set (fabulousmom)
--- bottle dryer rack (babyjaya) bought

other unnecessary things, but i'd like to list them here anyway =P
--- this cute empire waist tube from TopShop that iza was rambling about in her blog
--- this nice comfortable pair of covered shoes from Larrie i saw in a newspaper ad
--- this stylish pair of heels i seemed to like a couple of months ago but never bought
--- the new Sony's Skinny-T in pink!!! (i hate newspapers. they advertise too much)