Everynight Id be wishing that Baby Zeeq would sleep through till next morning. Or at least waking only once at night for his feed and then fall back to sleep. Instead, he’s a waking nightmare!

But I have to admit its been a lot easier now. 

When he was a neonate( less than 28 days), he’d wet his diapers so often that Huggies ran out almost every week. He’d pooh at least a few times a day and believe me, a chore…  as he does his business at night. Well, at least I know he’s on the normal side. Still, it was hard work especially when you are also trying to heal from a Caesarean scar. Sometimes I felt like the stitches were going to split from so much ‘getting-up’ activity and OCD-ly check them in the mirror everytime after a nappy change.

As baby reached his 1 month mark, I find that he pooh-ed only twice a day. Thankfully, at predictable hours. Still waking up at night but not shrieking for a nappy change. Just for feeds every 2 hours. Then he’ll be back in Dreamland. After a gentle swaddle.

Now that he’s 2 months plus.. I can see the pattern in him waking up. Once before midnight, around 9 or 10 PM. Then, at Midnight. next at 3Am and the other at 5Am. On good nights, he follows a 3 hourly waking strictly. On a bad night however, he would choose whatever hour to wake up and wail his heart out. A swaddle never works, the spring cradle rarely. not even the manual moving half naked mother. Yet, persistence is the key. And thats when I’ll be getting a headache the next morning. And he’s not sleeping much in the day either. SuperBaby!!!

Im still hoping that he’d change. Obviously the Day 61 theory did not work. Perhaps theres a Day 91 theory? Fingers crossed. I’ll need the sleep once Im back to work next month.

Mr Husband is now serving in the Orthopedic department. Reluctantly, that is. Though he has a lot to complain about everyday, he does find one thing special about it. He’d get to follow up on those cases reported in the local newspaper or telly.

And a special preview of the culprits face before they’re sentenced to prison time!! WHOA.

“You’re so fine
And I wouldn’t do anything
To deny you
And I would die for
You..”

Songs like these makes me miss my dating days. When its just the two of us taking our own sweet time at the mall eating, window shopping. Discovering new places. Kidding each other.

Its been a while.

Hurmmphhh.. Date Night. Yes, date night. Once, everything is in order.

“I am convinced that He (God) does not play dice.”
Albert Einstein

Moosa was a high earning officer in a private company. He makes a salary of near 5 digits every month. Anyone would be happy to live on that luxury but Moosa was never content. He even complained that what he earned was never enough to support his family lifestyle. Which was not full of a Hilton or Kardashian bling to it anyway.

He has a little family of 6 of whom two of his elder daughters had already got married to respectable young gentleman. His third son now studying in a renowned university under government scholarship leaving only one young son ( who is 17 years old) by the way to feed. Along with his wife, Sonja. In their own, non rented home. It makes you wonder, how could it not be enough?

Moosa apparently had an ambition. He wanted not only a pay rise but also a promotion. He wanted to be Boss No 2 in the company.  But every  time theres a vacancy, the post would be given to someone else rendering Moosa feeling disappointed. Again and again. He was dumbfounded. He doesnt understand why he was never picked despite his shining accolades and achievements. He was always ‘the best’ as per the CEO but why isnt his hard work translated into a higher position in the company?

His wife, Sonja, however had no qualms. As though she knew the reason why her husband Moosa’s wishes arent coming true. When I asked her…

Sonja said,

Everyday I pray to Allah.. if Moosa spends his earnings towards gaining Allahs blessings and towards his family, then do grant him more Rezki as he wishes. but if Moosa spends it on matters otherwise, on things that’ll drive him away from Allah and neglects his family, then Ya Allah withold his Rezki until he fully repents and own up to his sins.

Something to think about.

“If we are to live together in peace, we must come to know each other better”
Lyndon Johnson

Even as a doctor, I still get a tad jealous of how much time my husband spent at work. Yes, eventhough we work in the same hospital, though in different departments, if I arrive home earlier.. id still be wondering, “Whylahhhhhhhh.. he’s late? Banyak lagi ke kerjanya?”

Multiply that with a few days of the week of every month.. you get a very dissatisfied wife. A lonely wife. An unhappy wife.

But because Im in the same line of workwith Mr Husband, the math kind of works the same the oher way round. This is when being UNDERSTANDING plays a huge role in our relationship.

We make it a point for each other to know;

• what our job involves. For instance, when I was in the anaesthetic dept, I let him know what I do. I intubate patients, give spinal block, care for patients in the ICU, do premed. Its to make him feel involved. to make him have an idea of why I would react in a certain way that day etc.
• the normal working hours
• the extra working hours – when the next shift is, our next oncall
• who we usually hang out with, so he can spy, so he’ll know who to find if he cant reach me

In short, be transparent. Tell everything about work. In a marriage, there’s no such thing as ‘lets not bring work home’. Work is a crucial part of any married life. At least, when I come home I’ll know that he’s not there because , “Yah.. he’s oncall” and I dont have to prepare dinner. He he.

“Link to your enemies. Link to your competitors. Link to everyone. Instead of being sticky, be linky.” – Robert Scoble

Whenever I see Adele with her Grammy trophies or as a cover on any magazine – the first word that flashed through my head is E.V.I.L. Adele is Evil. HA ha ha.

That goes to show how influential Xiaxue is in writing her piece on Adele in one of her blog posts. Her rants though pretty fired up does have an amusing flavour to it. Honestly, I would rather read her blog than Dawn Yang. Her win at the Nuffnang awards as most influential blog, was well earned.

“Any man can be a father, but it takes a special person to be a dad”

Nowadays in Malaysia, new fathers are granted a 7 day paid leave. A full one week ‘holiday’ entrusted to men so they may fulfill their obligations in welcoming the new member of the family. It is not the time to laze around fathers. In fact, these are the recommended things you can do within your 7 days.

1. Hands on, with the baby

Its normal to feel slightly quesy or awkward to hold a newborn. They’re so little (unless its a macrosomic baby) with fingers and toes so dainty, it almost feels like you’re going to break any one of them anytime. However do not let that intimidate you, this is YOUR flesh and blood… plus, you’re not feeling this alone. Mothers, especially first timers may feel nervous too of having to hold their baby. Get over it, handle the babies carefully and it would provide great relief especially to the mother as she has an extra pair of hands that could help at least change the wet nappies every now and then.

2. Assume domestic responsibilities

Brew some tea, make some coffee. Toast a bread, stir fry nasi goreng etc. Soak the linens, wash your own clothes, buy groceries. Sweep the floor, make the bed, draw the curtains.. I can go on and on but I think most people have the idea already.

3. Sacrifice a few hours of your sleep time

At least for the first 6 days. Considering that you’re not working, it would be of great assistance to help nurse and change the baby’s nappy at night. Mothers, especially those who doesnt have the luxury of a nanny or an elder,  on top of just having a Caesarean section could really use some help. I know I did. Thank you.

Finally,

Be an active advocate for your wife and newborn child

There will be plenty of visitors to the house along with probably some unwanted advice. As a husband, I think it is very important for you to know how and when to put your foot down in relation to things or practices that may harm your wife and baby. Things like drinking god-knows-what herbs, unknown origin of ointments for the baby..

Then to ensure to your very best that both wife and baby have their privacy and aurat (for the wife) protected at all times. I think that is the outmost importance. Just because you’ve just given birth, it doesnt mean that its alright to flash your hair and boobs liberally.

That should sum it up. Wonder if Ive left anything out.

“Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of ‘you’ to the world.”

We made a short trip to Tangkak from Malacca. Just so Bro D could meet his nephew, Baby Zeeq for the first time.

We had pizza.

I wished we had cake but there was no cake store to be found there.

So I bought some food supplies for Bro D in return.

Happy birthday adik. You’re a big boy now. You are 20.

“Pernah kita jatuh
Mencuba berdiri
Menahan sakit dan menangis
Tapi erti hidup lebih dari itu
Dan kita mencuba melawan”
- Siti Nurhaliza, Seindah Biasa -

I am an avid fan of Siti Nurhaliza, Malaysia’s number one songstress. Im no fanatic, just a normal fan. I dont have all her albums but I do have a few. And my personal achievement as her fan was by going to her concert in Royal Albert Hall, London. Well, I was a student in Manchester at the time so no big deal. Conveniently, the concert was held right after our very own group trip to Italy. A perfect end to a great vacation, but thats another story.

So when Siti Nurhaliza came out with her new line of cosmetics, SIMPLY SITI … I was one of those people who simply had to get something from the range she offered. If possible, the cheapest one without sacrificing quality or customers satisfaction. And I havent been disappointed. Thus, for a few shopping trips to Watson over about a year,( I think), I have bought the ;

• Beginners kit of her skincare products
• C Bright Simply 5 cream
• Simply Lips and Gloss ( soft passion )
• Simply Feminine Blush ( sweet pink)

My latest purchase was the blusher although I have to admit, up till now, I have no idea how to exactly use it. I thought it’ll be straightforward but perhaps I was opening the wrong thing at the back of the applicator? In the end, I just dabbed the sponge on the powder to apply the blusher. Colour was awesome. I looked … youthful.

Recently, Simply Siti came out with a new product, Dermagic. The packaging looks interesting.. hmmmm..