The day my least fave purple shirt turned to out to be my lucky charm....

It was like any other working day...
Except this time, I was actually early for an assignment. LoL.
Due to that, I was asked by the PR company if I wanted to join Tes*co SuperMarke*t Sweep Challenge with two other media and seven top Tesc*o Clubcard members...
Since I had to wait another 30 mins for the main event to start (and nak makan lunch pun macam tak sempat je), I said yes...

You see, the participants had to compete with each other to hunt down 50 Price Cut product items (the challenge is in conjunction with the launch of Tesco Price Cut Campaign) in 20 mins.
The speediest  not only take home all the items in their respective trolley but also some cash vouchers...

There were 10 teams - which consist of a participant and a Tesco staff - and each was given different set of items to look for.
Like yours truly, it was snacks, chocolates and biscuits.
Ada yang dapat household essentials like rice, minyak masak; ada yg dapat pet food, drinks and ice-cream; and ada yang dapat personal care products....etc.

Dengan baju kerjanya, and heels (lucky it was only kitten heels!), pun berlarilah macam nak gila cari barang...
Ok, we have shopped at that Tesco a few times before but, seriously, when u nak cari barang tu, masa tulah tak jumpa kan...
I was lucky to get a very competitive and cekap partner...

We managed to sampai the cashier 9 mins before time habis..
Masa tulah organizers confused siapa yg patut doublecheck and tally our loot...
After like 2 mins, barulah nak kira and found out satu item tersalah ambil..
Apa lagi, i ran as fast as i could to cari the correct oreo cookies, while my partner check barang di counter...

Then, problem lagi, the price of our items tak tally dgn the list..
We just print out the receipt and run as fast as we could (dgn trolley skali) ke info counter...

Muka penat tengah tunggu the judges buat keputusan rasmi

Selepas double check, we found out it was OK and we dapat 2nd price!!
Which is RM2K worth of vouchers! Alhamdullilah sangat!
First place won RM3k worth of vouchers, 3rd place (RM1K) and consolation (RM200). Each of us won whatever in the trolley too...
Which, most of it i bagi to my partner....

Menteri KPDKK, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and CEO Tesco Stores Malaysia, Tjeerd Jegen during the price giving ceremony.... (Picture courtesy of UMMB)

My partner : Holisah who helped a lot during the race

 It was a great, unexpected day indeed!
And I thank my husband who practically forced me to get out of the bed early morning to lari-lari anak around the block. lol...

And finally, dapat juga merasa macam mana participant that game show dulu-dulu (Supermarket Sweep) rasa... :-)

words are all i have...

I absolutely love writing...and yet, most of the time, i'm too tired to write.

I blame the fact that I write for a living.

But I have so much things in my head, waiting to get out.

Dancing ladybug

My lil' ladybug dancing to rock leleh...she makes my day. everyday.

Insiden ketika membeli-belah...

These happened like a month ago but i takleh lupa sampai sekarang...nak cakap geli hati,ada...nak cakap sakit hati pun ada gak...well, what do you think?

1. I*setan, KLCC

I had just finished my assignment (termasuk hantar stori) di KLCC and since i'm there, i decided to rewang-rewang sekejap before i balik rumah...malas nak rempuh jem and balik office semata-mata nak tunjuk muka padahal kerja dah siap...

anyway, my main objective was to get Dahlia a new pair of shoes esp, since she's already walking and her current pair takde tapak sangat, asyik tergelincir je...

punyalah survey...pergi mother*care, pergi isetan, even pergi adidas and nike just to bandingkan harga and the make...aiyoh, memula takmo spend sangat on expensive shoes but when i see how important it is to get those shoes yang lembut but at the same time memberi sokongan, mak pun jadi pening...

finally after dah buat purchase kat ise*tan, i pergilah the toy department..motifnya? wanted to get one of those logic game which Fitri suka sangat main...(I dapat sikit saguhati from The Company, and wanted to splurge something for the family)...bila dah dapat, biasalah pergi pula tgk toys for dahlia....

memula nak beli, tapi since tak sale and i've just gotten her a new toy about 2 weeks before, tak jadilah nak beli...(plus bila nampak the diskaun mark pada waktu tak sale, terus pikir dua kali..baik beli masa sale)...

so i went to the dvd/cd section...you see, at my parents, we don't subscribe the kiddies channel and Dahlia has been watching TVIQ that comes free...good channel but not all programs suitable for her...

so, i wanted to get her something that might interest her...then i saw sesame street sings karaoke...kan biasanya kat bahagian CD/DVD diaorg letak tv plus a player? so, i assumed u can have a look-see before purchasing it..


kat belakang that section, ada their store room and a few sales asst tgh sibuk masukkan barang...so...

Me : Adik, boleh tak akak test DVD ni
SA 1 : Takleh la akak, kena bayar dulu baru kitaorang boleh test (sambil diperhatikan oleh 2 orang SA lain)
ME : Oh? kalau akak rasa macam anak akak tak suka, kena refund balik ke?
SA 1 : A'a..
Me : ok...terima kasih la ya (padahal rasa polisi cam tu tak best la sebab the customer takde power to choose)

(masa i melangkah to see the toys nearby, i overheard this...)

SA 2 : Lor akak tu dah ada anak ke? Tak nampak pun...
Me : (hehehe...kembang kejap)

SA 2/3 : Kak, saya rasa lebih baik akak beli Quran...elok lagi untuk anak akak
ME : (Terkejut jap dan kemudian tersenyum)...Adik, akak setiap malam dengan suami akak mengajar anak akak baca muqaddam...(which we do until now)

Aiyoh, i rasa the statement from SA yang terakhir tu sangat la tak sesuai...i know he meant well, but i think tak bertempat lah juga, he kinda made me very uncomfortable.

Oh anyway, the DVD i bought? Dahlia absolutely loves it...main sampai 10 kali sehari setiap hari.. :-)


2. TTDI

After work, i went to fetch Fitri from home and bawa dia ke TTDI where he wanted to ambil his car after a week service...

Sementara he went to see the mechanic, i went into this new boutique nearby...you see butik ni jual tudung berjenama terkenal and since i tak pernah beli pun the tudung, teringin la nak tengok whats so special about it...

As i tak bawa my handbag, i pegang my phone, keys and purse (i was also still in my workclothes), i masuk the butik...

Overheard la the owner talked to her SA over the phone..apparently she just tendered her resignation and wanted to work elsewhere...lepas she hung up, the lady owner (LO) bercakap to her husband yang berada di bilik stor about loosing another worker...

I was the only customer in the butik...and of course la terdengar the conversation (the owner wasnt exactly discreet pun)...

sambil-sambil jalan around the kedai (which i have to admit cantik baju and the tudung..), and the lady owner melayan all my soalan on the baju, saiz etc...suddenly :

LO : Nak kerja tak?
Me : (Tersenyum) errrrr....tak kot.
LO : Kerja part-time pun takpe...susah sungguh nak cari pekerja sekarang
Me : Buat la iklan kat depan ke...
LO : Kalau tak pun, kenal sesiapa yang nak kerja...
Me : Taklah sorry...

Lepas tu, i keluar from the butik and try to tahan ketawa...can't help but think kenapa the LO tanya i the question...

isit becoz i was so serabai (lepas kerja, mana nak nampak anggun dah)? i definitely nampak sebagai outsider, tak setaraf seperti penduduk the posh area of ttdi? or she just meant well...

anyway, both incidences mmg lekat la dalam kepala i... :-)

black or white?

A few weeks ago, my cousin and her husband, who are new parents asked me : "Salah ke if Danya gelap?"

Apparently in their fb page, a couple of their friends dok cakap their daughter is turning gelap...

I smiled and said softly, "Dahlia gelap but she is still my daughter and I love her very much. I'm proud of her...so buat tak layan je those ppl..."

Both my cousin and husband agreed but I think as new parents, they pun sure terasa...

I understand their predicament coz everytime somebody sebut Dahlia gelap or anything (or call her names), i pun marah...

i marah becoz one day Dahlia will see how ppl judge her sebab dia gelap..

I guess the world are turning stereotypical...babies should lahir putih, so tat nampak cantik....even the media and all these cosmetic/skincare company semua bersungguh-sungguh market its whitening range...ishk.

even masa mengandung orang dok sibuk suruh minum soya or makan bird's nest so tat baby nanti lahir putih...

heck, i masa mengandung dok tibai kicap just becoz...so does that made me a bad mother sebab makan?

the rules of genetics definitely tak terlintas la kan? sibuk putih jer...

Asians are not limited to the fairskinned like the ahmois...its like how most american thinks that asians means the orientals je, where in fact asians tu include the malays, indian, arabs.....

Well, eventho my daughter is not fair, but she is a darling..she is smart...and alhamdullilah dia sihat and happy...

kalau putih tapi perangai buruk pun buat apa kan?

For those who judge sebab dia or anyone gelap, i think u should see an optometrist coz the world is definitely not white.

Addiction.....

I'm currently addicted to this :



I've known about the series years ago, when it first showed in Astro...tapi tak tgk, i think its becoz we didn't subscribe the movie channel masa tu..or i rather watch something else masa tu..

anyway, this time around, came as an accident. Fitri loves war movies, esp. the second world war...it was in the middle of the nite, dahlia dah tidur and i had to fold the laundry...

seperti biasa, fitri will temankan i do my chores and while doing that, he was watching this. suka tak suka, i kena tgk....and terus tertawan ok? tak kisahlah i dah missed beberapa episode pun..

(since i malas nak menaip pepanjang tgh-tgh malam ni, i got this from Wikipedia) : Band of Brothers is a 2001 ten-part television World War II miniseries based on the book of the same title written by historian and biographer Stephen Ambrose.

The narrative centers on the experiences of E Company ("Easy Company") of the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, from Easy's basic training at Toccoa, Georgia, through the American airborne landings in Normandy, Operation Market Garden, the Battle of Bastogne and on to the end of the war[1].

since that day, i would tgk whenever its repeated over the idiot box until one day, i basically racun fitri to buy the box set..heheheh.

gila tak gila, i even surf the net to find out about the real E company (where the series is based on)...! hehehe....

i seriously think this is one of the best series i've watched. and yes, they d have good looking guys (i could imagine fitri's rolling his eyes when he reads that part..) but thats beside the point.

the series connects you to the characters. it showed how the war effected these ppl, and others around..it showed how the war was...(of course dalam ni semua special effects, i think the real war lagi teruk la kan)

fitri has been patiently educating me about the military e.g ranks, the grouping and the strategy...of course, some of it i still tak berapa nak paham...



anyway, this series actually mengubah my minat towards war movies. i really dig it.

of course, kalau locally made movie i akan tgk bukit kepong...yg u je pun yg i ingat. sarjan hassan tak tgk sampai habis....hmmm...maybe i shoud buka semula my old buku sejarah to read about our own war...

jees & apin (i know u guys are waiting for me to say this), my fave character is doc. eugene roe. cute ooo! :-P oh, leut. spiers pun ensem gak (dia yg berlakon jadi bapa siapa ntah dalam gossip girls)

My wishlist for no reason....

Currently these things have been playing in my mind...

i would like to think it as something i really-really want, tho tak tau should i buy it now or just wait later-later....anyway, just in case i tak terlupa suatu hari kelak :-




Item : Hotmama pouch

Justification : Since Dahlia is getting bigger and suka sangat kena dukung whenever I'm around (and when anyone else nak dukung dia, dia takmo lepas i), i'm contemplating of getting this for myself.

We do have the mothercare's baby carrier yang letak baby kat depan tu, but this pouch is to carry bila nak jalan-jalan around the house.

Lagipun its more comfy for me to dukung hip supported berbanding support tengah. (abit tak betul, but bila pakai the baby carrier, sakit bahulah, i think becoz dia takde the pelvic support, weights should be bourne at the pelvic and not the shoulder..)

And i kinda of like the fabric this lady ada, esp the blue version of the picture....tho, its is a bit pricey....maybe i should get a cheaper version kat mom's care je...same kaedah pun, just material dia samalah dgn orang lain..hehe.

Or, i could just get it from Tiny Tapir, baru terperasan dia ada diskaun for he littlepods pouch. its now only RM45! (gambar below, and yes, i want the green version..hehe)






Item : Medela Swing Breastpump

Justification : I think i need a new breastpump....sebabnya i think the one i currently pakai tidak mengoptimumkan pemerahan...well either that and mmg my milk supply low...but then, i've always wanted this model, sebabnya dia nampak portable and lebih kecik berbanding the big bag i have to carry to the ofc everyday...i do wonder how good it is, sebab mmg banyaklah positive reviews over the net...

selain kos yang mahal (it is almost rm800 sebelum diskaun), is due to the fact, dahlia now almost 10 months old and dah mixed feed. is it too late for me to buy this? or should i just wait for the next one? *jeng jeng jeng*....

hahah...nolah, belum lagi....if ada, i'll definitely let you know..whateveris it, hopefully dapat lepas dahlia celebrate her 1+ birtday...

a friend said she tested a medela pump dulu (i tak tanya which model) and said its good...i do wonder if their office now allows testing....hmmm....but then again, back to my predicament - should i wait?




Item : Somethin' Urby : How tall are you?

Justification : Since we'll be moving to our own place soon...(how soon tu tak taulah but we'll be hopefully get our keys tak lama lagi), i was thinking of decorating dahlia's room with this...

i think its cute and i have to admit a few other stickers yg cantik ada lagi kat that site...hmmm...but it is pricey. ntahlah.




Item : Safety 1st : Secure Top Bed Rail

Justification : Dahlia LOVES playing on our bed. its her little playground, her little world where the pillows and our bodies become her obstacle course/or a world filled with adventures. she would roll, panjat, tumble here and there...at times, she moved so fast, u barely sempat tarik her tiny legs...i want this bed rail so that dia tak tumble ke bawah...

apart from that, kalau i terlena while feeding her, and she decides to roll, taklah jatuh kan? at least ada la sikit protection daripada takde langsung..

** All these hanya dalam pemikiran pada masa ini, tetapi i for sure kena beli babygate soon.....since dahlia dah sangat terer merangkak laju...oh, and also her front facing baby chair....that one definitely keperluan dan bukan kemahuan..hehe..

100 days and counting.....

On dahlia's 100 days birthday, she did this!!!! (this picture was taken on her 5th and final attempt on that day)...another baby milestone..

sayangnya both fitri and i missed this...in fact, she did this just a couple of hours after we left for work :-( but i am glad my parents were there to witness it..papa siap called i to tell me the good news...

"Dahlia, mama and abah is very proud of you!"

so far dahlia masih belum managed to free her right arm...selalu bila turn mesti terkepit bawah her body and she would be struggling and then cry out of frustration sebab takle keluarkan...

its soo cute to see how determined she is to keluarkan her arm...tu yg dia marah, bila try-try tak dapat... :-P

she's also adjusting hor to angkat kepala when meniarap...so far, alhamdulilah her neck dah kuat and dia teramat suka dalam sitting position (kita kena support her) and standing position...

and now dah pandai protest kalau takmo duduk dalam car seat...she would straighten her body and slide down the seat sebelum u can strap her in...and even if you do, dia still nak turun bawah juga....

apart frm that, she's now into sucking her fingers, her mitens (kalau pakai), her toys, her car seat strap, her bibs...anything around her :-P oh, and she likes to play with her air liur too.. :-P



alhamdullilah dahlia is growing beautifully, tho her arwah pediatrician did mentioned that dahlia is slightly underweight. normal 3 month year old baby is 5kg, dahlia is only 4.6kg...

note : dahlia's paed, Dr. Haliza Mohd. Shafie died just a coupleof days after we met her in a hiking accident in Ulu Ampang. She went training with pediatric surgeon and also one of the founders of mercy malaysia, arwah Dr. Amin Tai..alfatihah to both excellent Drs...such a huge loss...

i'm not really worried as she is a happy, kenyang and healthy baby...setakat ni dahlia baru sekali minum baby formula sebab due to my working hours, she had too...

i am sad that i tak dapat nak bagi dia exclusively bmikl but then, it is hard when i'm in this line of work...but i shall not give up and try to bfeed her as long as i could, sungguhpun terpaksa minum formula at times...

on a different note, thank you everyone for the birthday wish and also gifts, makcik bee, thank you for the books! i'm itching to read them!! next time datang lagi ya, so dahlia tak takut dengan u...heehe...

abi, thank you for the lovely suprise!!! the roses made my day! semua kat office pun wish ayang..and i so love the shoes~!!

ma, eventho u don't read my blog, but thank you for the shoes~~!!

(tahun ni i dapat 2 pair of crocs - santa cruz frpm fitri and pink malindi from mama)

a big suprise

Got it from KOS*MO! today.

I've always admired Allahyarham and was shocked by the news semalam.... :-(

to tell you the truth, i don't take pictures dengan sesiapa yang i interview kecuali him. seriously. and that picture sepatutnya utk tatapan personal sahaja...tapi photographer masuk dalam system, and now satu Malaya (yg baca kosmo! je-la) tgk sekarang ni...adus! malu ok?

al-fatihah to arwah Datuk Ibrahim Hussein.


RENCANA UTAMA

Makna hidup Ib

Oleh ZAMRI RAMBLI dan JOHA*NNA A. SOB*REY
Zamri.rambli@kosmo.com.my

Lebih lima dekad menghambakan dirinya dalam bidang seni, Datuk Ibrahim Hussein adalah ikon terbilang.

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'HIDUP tiada makna kecuali anda mempunyai jawapan kenapa anda menangis, kenapa anda ketawa.'

Demikian antara petikan ungkapan penuh bermakna yang tertera bersebelahan biografi pelukis agung negara, Datuk Ibrahim Hussein di laman web Muzium dan Yayasan Seni Ibrahim Hussein yang ditubuhkan atas usaha payah jerihnya pada tahun 2000.

Semalam dunia seni halus negara bisu seketika. Karya-karya anak kelahiran Yan, Kedah ini juga kaku. Semuanya tergamam menerima perkhabaran duka pemergian Ibrahim atau lebih sinonim dengan gelaran Ib awal pagi semalam.

Masih gagah pada usia 72 tahun, namun penyakit jantung yang dihidapinya tanpa diketahui ramai orang, menjemput nafas terakhir Allahyarham di Hospital Pantai Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur. Allahyarham meninggalkan seorang balu, Datin Sim Hussein dan anak perempuan, Alia Ibrahim.

Allahyarham juga merupakan adik kepada Sasterawan Negara, Datuk Abdullah Hussein dan Tan Sri Ismail Hussein yang merupakan Ketua Satu Gabungan Persatuan Penulis Nasional Malaysia (GAPENA).

Kehebatan pelukis tersohor ini adalah satu legasi yang tiada tolok bandingannya. Dia adalah anak kampung yang hidup dalam kesusahan dan kepayahan. Dia juga bukanlah anak yang pintar dalam bidang akademik.

Namun, cita-cita, kesungguhan dan bakat semula jadinya akhirnya membolehkan lukisan anak kampung itu menghiasi dinding istana-istana raja dan rumah-rumah perdana menteri Malaysia.

RAJA MUDA PERAK Raja Nazrin Shah antara yang hadir memberi penghormatan terakhir untuk Allahyarham Ibrahim.

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Gahnya karya-karya lukisan Ib yang menyorot perspektif dan nafas baru dalam seni tampak bukan sahaja dikagumi peminat dalam negara bahkan menarik minat pencinta seni lukisan dunia.

Lantaran itu, bukanlah menghairankan catatan diari pameran yang pernah diadakan Ib merentas pelbagai negara. Sekadar menyebut beberapa pameran antarabangsa yang meletakkan Ib sebagai pelukis dalam kelas tersendiri, beliau pernah mengadakan pameran hasil karyanya secara solo di Galeri John Wibley,

IBRAHIM bersama isterinya, Sim Hussein.

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London pada tahun 1962, Gallerie Internationale New York, Amerika Syarikat (1965), Newsweek Gallery, New York, Amerika Syarikat (1968), Dhait Abdullah Al Salam Galley, Kuwait (1977), Daruma Art Centre Copenhagen, Denmark dan Galerie Bortier, Brussels, Belgium (1983).

WARTAWAN Kosmo!, Johanna yang pernah menemubual Ibrahim pada tahun 2006.

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Namun, karya agung Allahyarham tidak lain dan tidak bukan adalah penubuhan Muzium dan Yayasan Seni Ibrahim Hussein atau IHMCF. Beliau menumpahkan seluruh jiwa raganya dalam merealisasikan muzium yang terletak di kawasan seluas 16,000 kaki persegi di kawasan Hutan Gunung Mat Chincang dan berhadapan kehijauan air Laut Andaman di Pantai Pasir Tengkorak, Pulau Langkawi, Kedah itu.

HASIL karya Ibrahim dipamerkan di New York, Kuwait dan Denmark.

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Pernah ditemu bual wartawan Kosmo! pada tahun 2006, Allahyarham mengakui IHMCF lahir daripada manifestasi seluruh kehidupannya.

"Untuk memulakan cerita bagaimana idea penubuhan yayasan ini bermula, biarlah saya ceritakan sedikit sebanyak berkenaan kehidupan masa lampau, bagaimana ia telah memberi kesan mendalam dan membentuk diri saya sekarang.

"Saya berasal daripada sebuah keluarga yang susah dan kehidupan kami sekeluarga ketika itu sememangnya amat sukar," kata anak kelima daripada enam beradik itu sewaktu diwawancara wartawan Kosmo! Joha*nna A. Sob*rey.

FIGURA yang dikagumi dalam bidang seni halus kerana kehebatan hasil karya lukisannya.

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Cerita Allahyarham, ketika berusia awal 20-an, beliau hanya mahu diberi kebebasan melukis dan meluahkan perasaan dengan cara tersendiri tanpa sebarang harapan daripada sesiapa.

Namun, pelbagai tekanan termasuk masalah kewangan sentiasa membayangi diri beliau dan memaksanya mencari jalan untuk menampung kehidupannya.

"Contohnya, ketika di Sekolah Seni Byam Shaw, London, saya merupakan satu-satunya penuntut dari Asia. Ia adalah waktu yang sememangnya sukar dan penuh dengan kesunyian.

"Suatu ketika dahulu, saya pernah melakukan pelbagai kerja seperti penghantar surat untuk hidup. Ia satu pengalaman tidak akan saya lupakan sampai bila-bila.

"Kemudian, selepas mengecap pelbagai kejayaan daripada jatuh bangun pada usia muda, pada satu hari ketika sedang berenang di kolam renang rumah sambil memikirkan sejarah hidup dan pelbagai halangan serta kesukaran yang pernah dihadapi, timbul ilham untuk mewujudkan IHMCF," cerita Allahyarham. Selepas lapan tahun menumpahkan segala usaha dan berhabisan RM10 juta pada tahun 2000, IHMCF dilancarkan oleh bekas Perdana Menteri, Tun Mahathir Mohamad.

Dalam kesedihan kehilangan sebutir permata berharga dalam bidang seni halus, yang pasti, Ib telah menjalani hidup yang sangat bermakna. Allahyarham pergi dengan mengetahui jawapan kepada setiap tangisan dan ketawanya.

High on milk

breastpump - RM368;
bottles - RM44;
nursing cover - RM29;
diapers - RM36;
striliser - RM16 or RM200...
watching your child drink milk and then smile (even masa dah tidur and still dok minum) - priceless.

Dahlia is 4 days away from celebrating her 2 month old birthday and she's growing wonderfully...in fact, she's getting taller and badan pun dah makin sedap-sedap eventho she's still tiny...

a few of her baju esp the sleep jumpers dah tak muat sebab kaki dia panjang. she's a very active and alhamdulilah a very happy baby. yes, she does cry loudly but then again, baby mana yang tak menangis kan?

she loves to smile and kena dukung. she sees the world with amazement tru her big round almond shaped (?) eyes...

and she loves to isap nenen. boy, does she loves to drink her susu..! :-) kalau terlepas je dari mulut, mesti mencari and latch on terus. kalau tak dapat, she would be fussy and mencuba sampai dapat.

and if she does dozed off apabila dah kenyang, she would give this heart-melting smile sambil tutup mata. kinda reminds me when ppl high with something they like.

since day 1, Dahlia has been drinking susu badan directly. only recently she minum expressed breastmilk (ebm) tru botol. itupun sekali sehari and kalau i sempat nak pump.

alhamdulilah she boleh terima botol. i was worried as i will be going back to work tomorrow (argh!). tho, i'm ot sure how much she drinks as i could only get about 2 oz whenever i pump in the afternoon.

it is very frustrating and yes, i do know u need to pump a few times a day. but i don't have the kesempatan and Dahlia drinks almost every 2 hours..anyway,i do it at least once a day.

but if dapat lebih 3 oz, i will keep it in the freezer, jadikan stok for her when i go to work. if tak simpan, habis takde susu utk dia...

i wasn't worried if dia tak minum botol di rumah sebab i'm still at home and dia boleh minum direct. i am very-very extremely worried if stok susu takde while i'm at work.

as most babies, Dahlia juga suka menghisap. but dia tak suka sama sekali pacifier. she would spit it out whenever its in her mouth. and we have changed pacifier, mind u.

i have to admit that masa memula i almost gave up on breastfeeding because it is very hard and tiring...but fitri and my family has been supporting me and alhamdulilah sampai sekarang i'm still bf her...

when i think about it, bf does create this magical bond between the mother and baby. and my heart aches when i think about going back to work and unable to bf my baby....i even cried yesterday sebab sebak nak tinggalkan dahlia at home.

i believe my parents will be great with dahlia, its just that i wont be there to play, feed, bathe her...

i pray that i could get home early, before her bed time to feed and see her...being in this industry, i realise its hard. our waktu kerja is never normal. but i will try my best & lebih rajin agar dapat balik awal...azam baru ni...

anyway, i think bf rawks! just kena tabah, sabar (sangat-sangat bersabar) and buat tak tau when ppl pandang u pakai the nursing cover while bf... :-) ( i so love the nursing cover!! and the pillow...sangat-sangat berguna!)

popcorns + movie...

I've always loved movies...well, you could call me a movie junkie...unlike my husband who loves old black and white p.ramlee movies, i prefer the usual (good) english-language movies...

don't get me wrong, i do love arwah tan sri's movies...but takdelah sampai sanggup tengok berulang kali. but i have to say that the seniman agung title fits him perfectly. until now, no one in this country could challenge him. he can sing, he can dance, he can write and compose music and boy, he can act - not just comedies but serious roles as well...

anyway, as i mentioned before i've always loved the movies...tho, masa kecil, i don't to go to the panggung often...

for me movies isn't just a way for me to relax, but gives me an insight to the world...how creative some people are...ok, not to mentioned that some actors/actresses are gorgeous... :-P (i still remember how i had the biggest crush on the stars in Mighty Ducks!)

as far as i could remember, among my first wayang yang tengok was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle The Movie with my Pak Teh Rosli and cousins Dayang and Reza; and Free Willy with my mom, bro and cousins from my mother side..

Free Willy was the movie that made me want to be a marine scientist...hence, the marine science degree i got from Up*M...altho takde rezeki nak jadi saintis, at least i berpuas hati that i learnt something that i really wanted and love....(tetibe teringin nak pergi diving lagi..)

aiyoh! selalu terkeluar topik...ishk..

back to movies....i remembered the long queues everywhere when Jurassic Park first came out....i can't remember if i watched it dekat panggung but i do remember the baris panjang...

since i don't often tengok wayang masa kecil, the family selalu sewa video tape kat this one shop in melawati...macam dvd/vcd "tak sah" masa sekarang, dulu it was video...having the vcr was such a bliss...

almost every week my bro and i would pester papa to visit the video shop...we would spend a long time choosing the movie we wanted to watch...not just that, the shop is sebelah je dengan the clinic yg we all pergi whenever we are sick..so, lepas checkup, mmg tak sah if tak visit that shop.

i would always ask the tauke if movie so and so ada or dah sampai and at times, he would let us know movies terbaru yang ada...bringing home 3-4 tapes each visit makes us happy everytime...

since there's no more vcr players, the video shop has closed down its business as well....

then there was the laser disc...which i had the chance to watch it over my Pak Teh & Mak Teh's place whenever i lepak there...

then came the vcd...so like normal people out there, carilah vcd yang "mampu milik"..masa dulu pakai beli je, tak pikir sama ada nampak kepala orang ke, or boleh dengar orang ketawa or makan ke..nampak je cerita yang macam best, beli...

lama-lama jadi bijak sikit and memilih la juga..nak movies yang clear je...we had tonnes of those vcds...and i kept them in a box which was trown away during spring cleaning the store room just before dahlia was born...

dvd's of course ada banyak di rumah...dulu, sma juga, pakai beli and now....pilih yg dvd 9 je..hahaha...

of course, as we are growing up, the visits to panggung wayang pun bertambah esp bila dah dapat kebenaran nak keluar with friends and u have your own money (or masa zaman sekolah, kumpul duit belanja)...

so far that i remember, i watched cerita seram sekali je kat wayang...itupun sebab nak temankan my friend, apin...truthfully, i didn't even watch the movie..i was too scared, so i tidur dalam panggung. hahah...can't remember what movie it was...ala-ala final destination..(ke mmg f.d..ntah tak ingat).

apart from the usual romantic-comedy, i don;t mind watching cartoons or kiddie movies di panggung... :-P

since i am spending a lot of time at home, the idiot box has been my company this last 2 months...so, selalu la tgk the movie previews yang disiarkan...

and here's some of the movies i really-really want to watch this year...

Its a Girl! :-)

Name : Dah*lia an-Na*jla Sham*shul Fitri

Sex : Girl
Date of birth : 22nd December 2008 (24 Zulhijjah 1429H)
Time of birth : 2151 hrs (or 9.51 pm)
Weight : 3.10 kg

Hospital : Ampan*g Puter*i Specialist Hospital
Obstetrician : Datuk Dr. As*har Abdull*ah
Pediatrician : Dr. Hali*za Mohd Shaf*ie

A little huraian.....

DAH*LIA. The dah*lia is the national flower of Mex*ico and it is there that it was first discovered growing wild by the Europeans. A member of the Compositae (daisy-like) family, it was grown and improved by a Swedish Botanist, Andreas Dahl, and named after him.

It was brought to Gre*at Bri*tain late in the 18th century and today it is a summer flower grown in all countries where the climate is mild. But it will blacken overnight in the first frost of autumn.

The original wild Mexica*n dahlias had yellow centres and red petals, but now varieties are grown in many different shades of red, yellow and purple.

Pale pink & yellow dahlia
(Pix : taken from here)

They vary considerably in shape and size, and their names generally give some idea of their appearance.

They include the large show and fancy dahlias, with many petals marked in several colours; single dahlias with one row of petals; cactus dahlias with pointed, starry flowers; peony dahlias which, with their large petals, look rather like the rend and pink flowers called peonies; and the dainty pompom dahlias, with round heads consisting of beautifully arranged, close-fitting petals.
Purple dahlia.
(Pix taken from here)

Dahlias grow from thick, underground stems called tubers and after the flowers have finished blooming in autumn, the tubers should be lifted and stored in a dry place, ready to be planted in the garden again the following May.
(Source : Children's Brita*nnica Vol. 6; Encycl*opedia Brita*nnica International, Ltd London. 1981)

NAJLA means yang mempunyai mata yang jelita.

Sungguhpun bukan local flower, but our daughter's name is based on a beautiful flower.... :-)

P/S : We would like to thank everyone for your wishes, visits and gifts....they meant a lot to us...Thank you!

Journalistic interpretation?

I takde kerja and sesaja googled Papa's name...and i found this at Ber*nama's library site...it was taken from their newsletter, Berita Bernama in 1980.

NOMENCLATURE OF UNACCEPTED DEFINITIONS

Journalists -Have you arrived?

At what stage of your career can you relax and say for certain that you have arrived as a journalist? Some say when you have regular irregular heartbeats, ulcers that defy diagnosis, untimely heart attacks, high blood pressure or a conspicuous loss of conspicuous loss of hirsute endowments at the hill-top.

Use the not-accepted Baharudin rating system to test yourself. Under this system, your stories must create some kind of response or aftermath (notice that I do not use the word reprisal as it might strike terror in your dainty hearts).

If your contact rings you up the next day to say you misquoted him completely, this indicates that he took the trouble to read, your report in the papers.

If he goes so far to threaten you with a law suit, this proves beyond any reasonable doubt that your story has touched him in the heart where it matters most.

By all means, do have a few restless nights thinking over your future in journalism but try not to lose appetite over this. You wouldn't want to drag in the medical profession over such a small matter. You could however try to catch hold of ex-journalists who hove gone into the legal profession (try Rashid Ali).

If your contact actually marches into Bernama Head Office with bloodshot eyes and fumes coming out of his ears to demand a retraction of your story, it goes to show how much trouble he has taken to see you personally over your story.

If he shows up with his lawyer, leave the matter entirely in the hands of the news editor, whose past personal experience in such matters will do doubt put him in good stead to deal with the problem.

However, while waiting for both parties to work out an amicable settlement out of court, you could spend the free time typing out your resignation letter.

And, for heaven's sake, as a parting gesture, exercise some principle - do not use office stationary. As an alternative, you could have your resignation letter typed out in advance. Just leave the date to be filled in when the need arises.

Therefore, under the Baharudin rating system, you can say you have arrived when you are leaving. At least you leave with a bang.

By BAHAR*UDIN LA*TIF, who jokes about his future.

Ribery - Pink Panther - Nike Mercurial Vapor Rosa

Would you wear this boot? its pink! i know i would..hahahaha...cool what!?! Fitri and i was surfing tru nikefoot*ball.com when we saw this boot...at first ingatkan merah..rupanya pink!!

even the video lagu Pink Panther! hahaha...

anyway, i think its cool..and only sesiapa yang berani (dan laju) akan memakainya...do you think the have this in kasut futsal version? :-P

Mari bersenam...or not.

National Fatwa Council Rules Yoga To Be 'Haram'

PUTRAJAYA, Nov 22 (Bernama) -- The National Fatwa Council has ruled that yoga is 'haram" for Muslims.

Its chairman, Datuk Dr Abdul Shukor Husin said only the physical aspect of yoga without the mantras and elements of worshipping outwardly was not wrong (in Islam).

However, he said, yoga was not to be encouraged among Muslims for fear that it could erode their Islamic faith since the physical part was a component of yoga practice as a whole.

He said there were three stages to yoga practice, which originated from the Hindus, -- first, the physical aspect which is the exercise part; second the mantras and worshipping and third the unification of oneself with God.

"Therefore, members of the council reached a consensus that any practice, regardless of type and in whatever form that have such elements, contradict Islamic teachings," he told a press conference here.

Abdul Shukor said the matter was decided at the 83rd National Fatwa Council meeting held in Kota Baharu from Oct 22 to 24 and that the decision would be conveyed to the respective state religious councils for gazetting.

He said yoga practice among Muslims had also been banned in Singapore and Egypt.

Abdul Shukor said various programmes would be carried out by the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) to enlighten Muslims on yoga.

He also advised Muslims to get information on any exercise programme before practising them to ensure that they would not affect their religious faith.

He said there were many other ways which Muslims could do to exercise for health, like praying.

Yoga has been practised since 3000 BC and is said to be able to slow down the ageing process, reduce the risk of diabetes, asthma and heart-related diseases. -- BERNAMA

*************************************************************************************

*sigh* personally i love yoga..minus the chanting lah...i mean, whenever i do yoga pun bukannya ada the mantras pun...ok, the instructor adalah sebut pasal sun etc, but i takdelah dgr kan? even at times i would be dozing off esp masa meditation.... :-P dozing off or day dreaming sambil tutup mata...

for me yoga is a form of exercise, a good way for me to move my couch potato bum from the sofa or chair...and i sleep better after each session...

granted, i only did yoga for about 3 months (or maybe even less), and now dah stop sebab my kemalasan and kepenatan, but learning about it makes me understand more about the art.

i don't see it as memesong...it all depends on nawaitu seseorang....for me, it for my and the baby's wellbeing...tak pernah berniat benda lain selain ia sebagai satu senaman pun.

yes, i am guilty for not practising eventho i already bought the yoga for preggies book a few months ago...but tak larat lah...(alasan atau kenyataan? entahlah..) :-D

i guess now kalau nak beryoga (minus the chants and mantras, of course) kena buat kat rumah senyap-senyap la....be careful..jangan tersalah lipat-lipat, ya!

Moooo~!

My husband seems to think that i have a fascination towards backhoes....why you ask? :-)

well, it all happened last Tuesday nite...i went to pickup Fitri at the LR*T station and he suggested "Jom pergi makan ketam"...its like music to my ears...i've been craving for ketam masak sweet sour since forever and off we go to Brickfiel*ds (thats my family's fave spot for ketam and steamboat chinese style..yum!)...

sampai-sampai je sana, the kedai tutup..uhuhu...i'm not sure the kedai tutup on that particular day or dia mmg dah tutup forever...anyway, we decided to go back home...

as we drive past Brickfie*ld's police station, and sampai the jalan where you can go left towards KL and right, PJ, in front of us was this massive bus...

selepas menyelit jalan, rather naik divider, utk masuk jalan ke arah KL (the bus halang jalan), we on the way home..

di Jalan Sy*ed Putr*a, as soon as the bus/taxi lane tamat, we were at the back a backhoe...of as u know, backhoes are really sllllooooowwww....

nak potong, banyaklah pula kereta...so, kena sabar je la..then, amiklah ext dekat area masjid negara..

punyalah sibuk berborak, i missed the exit to Jalan Sulta*n Isma*il, so lalulah Jalan Tu*n Razak....

Then, i noticed that my SLK (Small Little Kelisa) almost running out of petrol...as most of you know, dekat sebelah Hospy Pusra*wi tu ada Petrona*s kan? i have this habit of driving in lane tengah and lepas je Pusat Dara*h, i masuklah lane kiri (selepas fitri suggested i masuk kiri so that i don't miss the petrol pump)...

and guess what? in front of us ada backhoe!!!!

Fitri : u suka duduk belakang backhoes kan? *teasing me*
Me : Mana ada, u yg suruh i masuk kiri, tgk-tgk ada backhoe..mana i nak tau... :-P

in fact, it turned out that bukan hanya satu je backhoe depan we all..ada about 5!!!!

by then, i dah ketawa gila-gila dah...and we were lega that the petrol station dah dekat, so tak perlu duduk belakang them dah..

boy, were we wrong!

As Petrona*s was approching, we realised that the backhoes in front of us is also turning to the same petrol station!

both of us were laughing even louder!

i was imagining the backhoes macam sekumpulan lembu..like the ones you see dalam citer Cars...seriously!

as we were filling up, all the backhoes pun sama!...the station dimeriahkan dengan kehadiran backhoes! :-P

we filled up cepat-cepat and pray that takde lagi backhoes in from of us...and surely enough, takde...hehehe...

until now i still laugh whenever i ingat that nite...heheh...

morning!

I'm not a morning person. definitely.

this is how i look like in the morning :



but actually, this is how i am..


ok-ok...this is HOW i really am....



Hhahahahahah....*wink*

template

argh!

i've been trying to change my blog template but asyik error jer..why la? padahal just copy, paste and save..anyone can help??

medusa from hell

gosh! lots of things happened since raya...! even during raya pun, banyak benda memorable yang berlaku..hahaha...

* 1 Syawal

This year raya is at buki*t antarabang*sa (BA) since last year dah di rumah fitri...usually my family adalah bersalam-salaman tapi takdelah macam formal or anything..this year, things were different! my parents actually changed tradition and duduk kat sofa, suruh my bro and i bersalaman proper-proper! even my bro kena go one round and salam my parents, then me....! :-)

sebelum tu, fitri and i dah bersalam kat bilik (since i told him my family part bersalam ni a bit tak formal macam his family)...dunno why, tapi heartfelt la salam dgn fitri..control macho dari menitis air mata ok?

tgh salam, peluk tetiba kat background lagu Everything by Michae*l Bubl*e. for those yang tak tahu, that was the song in our wedding slide show...! consider like our song lah juga...hahaha...

then, as usual, makan brekkie lemang and all its goodness, including itik golek yang sangat sedap...(terliur je lagi bila pikir about the itik)..then, salam everyone in my family before pergi ke taman ta*r later that day..

at my in-laws, apa lagi, makan lagi and then ambil gambar family pictures (somehow dalam kegembiraan di BA, we terlupa nak ambil gambar with my family...mental note : next year kena amik gak!)

malam raya fitri kena balik melak*a already sebab dia kerja raya kedua onwards... :-( as we were rushing to bukit jali*l (sebb buses selata*n kat sana), fitri tersalah jalan and we all termasuk ke putraja*ya with only 10 mins sebelum his bus nak bergerak...dahlah highway baru tu takde U-turn! so, masuklah putraja*ya and pusinglah jalan jauh, exit tru Kajan*g, then Sunga*i Bes*i!

by the time we reach Buki*t jalil, time was already 10.20, closing to 10.30 pm! guess what? it was a miracle (and sheer luck) that the bus to melak*a was still there...nasib baik, kalau tak, surely i kena hantar fitri ke melak*a..which sebenarnya i don't mind... :-P

that nite my parents menziarahi my in-laws, sampai sana pukul 8.30 pm tapi balik, almost 12 am! apparently they all suka berborak! i'm happy that both families click! coul imagine the loghat kedah yang non-stop that nite.. :-)

***

Fitri came back on malam raya ke-5 and stayed for a week! best gila!!! sorry dear i had to work masa u ada di rumah... :-(

i started work masa raya ke-4 and it was for me the longest week ever...everything was slow..i truly have no semangat whatsoever to do stuff....buat kerja pun slow, sikit-sikit je...lepas tu balik awal.. :-)

***

i had braxton hicks contractions semalam...and it wasn't nice...sakit ooo....tapi baby still kicking, so legalah sikit di sebalik kesakitan tu..

***

work-wise, it has been disheartening when you see that one of your bosses mengamalkan favoritisme melampau....been listening to stories dalam office where ppl are complaining that a colleague asyik mengampu sampai even the person punya apprasal bagus eventho hakikatnya dia nyer stories biasa-biasa je, miss gak datelines...

and this one perticular boss, asyik membacking this one colleague sampai dia menurunkan morale everyone else...its like this one person yang buat kerja bagus and yang lain hanya backup for her measly work! banyakla cerita yang tak sedap didengar...

padahal i could say that ppl are working their asses off... yg mc sebab sakit still buat kerja kat rumah, yang baru je accident sanggup pergi office walaupun tgh tangan berbalut w mata yang lebam, yg dah separuh gila sebab stress still bertahan and suck their feelings to do work!

mmglah i tak puas hati, but i just listen to complains..malas nak buat pepe coz i know it wouldn't make any difference pun...anyway, u can't really stop favoritisme pun...its in every office politics.

today is the worst ever and it hit me big time...

you see, semalam i told my boss, BL, yang i nak slow down kerja next month...taknak keluar asgmts, buat columns tertentu until i cuti bersalin, sebaliknya tumpukan kerja-kerja di office e.g buat translation, research, process press release ke apa...and BL said ok, nnt dia bgtau another colleague untuk take over since she doesn't really have a column since getting back from maternity leave a couple of months ago...

you see, my colleague ni kira just joined the feature*s desk sebelum dia bersalin and bila balik, takde proper-proper column yet...since now i pula yang preggie, BL mintalah dia take-over...

so, i will be taking her to a few events for her to get to know the pr etc...

anyway, today sometime before lunch, DL (bukan BL) apparently pergi kat my colleague yg nak ganti i next month ni, and bitch about me!

DL ni boleh cakap "anne tu bukannya sampai paralise tak boleh pergi asgmts ke apa.." and this coming from a mouth perempuan, bukan lelaki ok?

she added "allaa all her columns semua senang...centrefold tu boleh je guna press release...lagi pun (she sebutlah anak emas kesayangan dia) buat semua kerja..

crap and what a bit*ch! padahal, yg anak kesayangan dia tu buat kerja based on rotation yang dia sendiri (DL) set, and i do help my colleagues with other stff, walaupun ada kalanya tak dapat nak tolong sangat...

plus, centrefold tu mana nak dapat release kalau u tak kenal orang and bukan semua orang bagi release that sesuai utk centrefold. i think DL is just stupid. dahlah malas, tau nak cari shortcuts and harap kat orang lain!

what i don;t like is she doesn't offer constructive feedbacks, rather than saying no and shooting down ppl's suggestion...

lepas tu kutuk story orang, and think dia punya anak emas story bagus all the time...padahal, anak emas story tu ala-ala je, semua yang tak perlu nak buat banyak research, buat story based on satu sumber...and fashion. itupun tak reti nak guna proper fashion terms!

yg buat i marah is her remarks pasal i larat nak buat kerja luar! i nak jalan from the parking space to the office pun dah termengah-mengah sampai kengkadang nak pengsan, ini nak gi run around??

and she has the nerve to say that i tak buat kerja...and trying to get ppl against me~! padahal i tak ganggu pun hidup dia, except from the occasional lambat hantar kerja...or tak hantar (but with a very valid reason).

and the reason for me to slow down work is i;m already in my 8th months, nnt karang terberanak masa tgh asgmt, or worst, contraction masa tgh driving or stuck dalam traffic, bukan ke menyusahkan orang lain?? apa citer kalau i pergi asgmt and then cuti bersalin, bukan ke story pun basi? bukan ke lagi baik buat handover awal?

lagipun, me staying at the office bukan utk goyang kaki! i asked a few ppl kat office (yg pangkat boss gak) sama ada my request to slow down is valid and they said yes...provided i tak abaikan my tanggungjawab and still do work kat office.

one boss even said something like : bukan u tak boleh buat story cover berkualiti dari office. with research and being resourceful, boleh jer...we have done it before.

there's one boss a few days before cakap : "saya tau awak still larat nak jalan etc. tapi kita tak mahulah awak sakit masa assgnmts ke apa"

another person even said : "mmg dah jadi amalan utus*an utk letakkan wartawan yang ngndung buat kerja-kerja office"

and these bosses are lelaki ok?? yg 2nd boss tu cakap waay before DL yang amat bitchy ni bersuara about me behnd my back...

biasanya i tak kisah orang nak ngutuk belakang i, coz i know ramai je gossip belakang-belakang ni...tapi apa yang tak tahan ialah when someone menghasut everyone else to go against you....

that is bad..dah lah u tu kira dianggap senior and ketua, and u are showing perangai yang mcam tu..how ppl nak respect you...

sometimes its true, cermin diri sendiri dulu sebelum mengata about others....not one is perfect i know, but then, at least jgnla buat sampai macam tu sekali kan? i hope Tuhan balas balik apa yang dia buat...

i cried in the office when i found out about it...and by the time i duduk office je, i target most of my workpile dah settle, all my columns filled...and hopefully, i will have cuti bersalin yang tenang...

*sigh* and thats is why i always wear headphones...dgr muzik lebih baik.

Raya di pejabat

This picture was taken yesterday....most of the staff were wearing our corporate shirt, but most of us gelar, baju kilang...(no offense kepada mereka yang mmg kerja kilang). Since baju dia dengan potongan wanita, of coursela i tak dapat nak pakai...

anyway, this is about 80% of the KL staff ...yg takde sama ada cuti, malu nak bergambar or tgh assignment. it is impossible to actually ambil gambar semua orang. ( i wish staff state pun ada, barulah lengkap)

Selamat Hari Raya from us di Kos*mo!