I am still here

Yes, I am still very much pregnant. Just hanging around, didn’t do much lately. Making final checking and preparation for the arrival of new baby. I stayed at home more often now, one is that I have been forbidden from driving car and secondly it has been raining last week. So little gal stayed at home and did not attended school for 2 days as her dad cannot send her to school and I was banned from driving. But since it is school holiday now and due to A H1N1 fear, I prefer to have her stay at home more than going to school.

Didn’t update much on this blog for the past 1 week, not that there is nothing much to update on my part, but I am lazy to sit and type a post. Lazy to crack my head. Lol! Most of the time, I will be FB-ing and farming and also doing some blog hopping, checking out on other friends’ blogs. I have stop farming for time being; as I wouldn’t be able to look after my farms while I am in my confinement, right? Gosh, I am sure I would miss FB-ing and blogging during that period, but I guess there are other priorities that suppress and fill up my times to think or do other things. Family!!

Today is my birthday. One year older and hopefully wiser. I started my day by getting little gal to sing "Birthday Song" to me......Hmm, don't I feel great to hear my daughter sang "Birthday Song" to me?? Lol! Last night, my sis invited us to steam boat buffet. She just received her investment payout from her insurance policy, so she made it a double celebration; one for my birthday and one because of the payout. We went to My House steamboat which is located at Jalan Pending. Oh, I love seafood. So before I confine myself for a month or so, I better taste all those yummy crabs, prawns and fishes. *wink* And little gal??? She was more interested in the ice stick!!





Thanks sis again for the nice dinner! I love you! And not forgetting to thank Dora for introducing me to a nice digital scrapbook website. Congratulations to Dora too, she has upgraded herself to "Mummy" not long ago. Welcome to mummyhood, my friend.

How is my very first digital scrapbook?? I have been looking around for user-friendly digital scrapbooking site, but couldn't find any till Dora told me this site last week. Still a lot to learn especially on cropping, editing etc; haven't really get down to touring around for tips and guidance. Will embark more on it soon.

Ready to go?

For many months I kept receiving good wishes, advices, encouragements and comments from friends on my pregnancy. Thank you very much. You all have been wonderful in making my pregnancy a much better endured journey. I know that you are looking forward to seeing my baby as much as I do. I hardly can wait to welcome him to the world.

I am now at week 38 and has been gaining more weight than ever. I am like a big balloon now. Other than occasional discomfort on my lower abdomen, I don't have any health issue. However lately I develop some joint pains on my fingers and pain on my soles when I walk around. You may not believe it, but I don't have a single stretch mark or develop any itches on my tummy. A pregnant friend couldn't believe it until I shown my tummy to her last week. Hahaha! She just couldn't believe it till she saw that I don't have stretch mark. I don't have one when I was pregnant with my first child. But my skin on the tummy is darker than the rest of my body of course, and green veins are more visible there.

My bag is packed for the trip to the hospital; but unlike previous visit, this time round, I wouldn’t be bringing many things. I remember in the last trip, my bag was so full with many stuff that in the end I did not even use any of those stuff. You know, baby clothes, baby stuff, those maternity pads, baby diapers and baby milk powder (no one told me that private hospital does give out milk cans and I brought back 2 small cans of milk powder home). What to do, I were a first-time mother and an anxious, eager and excited one too! Lol! You can say this time round, I am smarter and only bring what is necessary.

Just few weeks ago, I was sorting out baby stuff from boxes and containers. I brought out my little gal’s cloth diapers and some baby stuff from hampers given by well wishers. Wow! The diapers still looks new and white. So I have washed all those cloth diapers and they are ready to be used. I still have few feeding bottles and nipples that never used, so those are taken out as well. What ever that can be used, I taken it out just in case.

We did not buy any baby clothing as we still can used little gal’s baby clothing. Luckily we bought mostly white baby clothing last time, so it is unisex and can be worn on baby boy as well. *wink* Baby stuff are very expensive nowadays and you know, baby grows up fast. Hardly can buy and keep so many.

Well, that is! More or less I think I have everything! (I hope, gulp) Somehow, I feel like I miss something but I don't know what it is. I guess as I go along the confinement, I will know what it is. At least if I miss out anything, I can get help from hubby or SIL to do for me. On other part, I have get my baby sitter to assist me in picking up little gal from her school when it re-opens for new semester next month. At least I am sure she is well taken of during my confinement.

Hmm, I wonder who the baby will look like? Like me or hubby? Whatever it is, all I hope is that he is going to be a healthy, loving and happy baby.

Hunting for bento

I have been extremely lazy to go out nowaday unless I have to. Weather plus my heavy body I don't like to move much. Except sending and picking my daughter from pre-school, I only drive to nearby neighbourhood mall to get groceries and necessity.

There is a 100 Yen shop that opened few months ago in RH Plaza. I visited the shop thrice and found that there is not much varieties in there. Probably the enterprenuer is still stocking up stocks as there is a notice that saying so.

Actually when they opened, I was pretty excited because finally I would be able to find a good place to buy bento stuff. But turned out, they don't have anything of that sort. Mostly are kitchen helpers, cutleries, cookery and Japanese noodles. I am looking for some cute bento equipment like those rice cutters and snack boxes, but they don't have them. Yeah, they have lunch boxes, but they are too shallow for my little gal to bring to school.

Hmm, probably I will make a visit soon and see whether they have stock up more products, and hopefully some bento stuff.

Early celebration

I have always love the month of August!! Why? Because it is the month of my birth. Last night, hubby treated me to an early birthday dinner. My birthday is in 2 two weeks time but hubby is worry that baby may come out earlier. Lol! Well, I guess I am a time bomb, don't know when the time is up, right? I don't mind celebrating it earlier anyway! And ouch! It means I am adding 1 more year to my age soon. Nah, never mind, I am still young. People said I don't look my age of 32. *laugh* I am going to have a wonderful birthday gift this year. You know what??

A Virgo baby. Yes. That is the best birthday gift I ever have. My baby would be a Virgo baby, just like the mummy and paternal grandmum. I went for my check-up today and doctor said the baby is weighing 2.9kg now. Head is down, so that is why I have some discomfort and pain on the lower part. Doctor also issued an admission letter just in case I am due early as few of her September-due patients have unexpected early delivery few days ago. Alright, all I need to do now is waiting for the baby when he is ready to come out to this world. *smile*

Let check out what we had for my birthday dinner. We gone for Western cuisine; once a while we are bored with rice. Lol!



Hubby was having his usual dish, duck breast ala orange. The duck meat was succulent and tasty.



And of course, he has alfredo too. Duck breast was too little for a big guy like him. Lol!



As for me, after thinking and scanning the menu few times, I settled for oven roasted cajun chicken with linguine. The chicken was very nice and tender.

Brushing up!

I wonder how long this would last, but am I proud of her for initiating it in first place. Yes, I am talking about my daughter who for the past 2 nights has been asking me to brush her teeth before bedtime.

Usually I brush her teeth early in the morning when she wakes up and once in the evening during bath time. Then at night, she would usually takes 2 milk feedings (usually one is around 7 something and one is exactly before she goes to bed). So for the past 2 nights after finishes her milk, she requested me to brush her teeth. And of course, I obliged to her request!

Few weeks ago, her school organized a dental care and the students are taught of how to brush teeth. When I asked her how she supposed to brush her teeth, she told me “round and round and round, mummy” with her hand gesture. Well, when I let her handle the tooth brush herself, she just move it a bit on her front teeth and the other teeth were left untouched. I guess I better do the brushing job for her for time being, till she is capable enough to handle it herself.

Throw away those pacifiers

AS promised, I will share some tips from Michelle Kennedy’s books. First sharing would be on pacifier. I believe most babies cannot do without those sucking rubbers. Pacifier is really a wonderful thing. Most experts agreed that pacifiers are a great tool to satisfy an infant’s need to suck. They are comforting at bedtime and can quiet a baby during a car ride or trip to the shops.


But what happens when the infant turns into a toddler and sucking on pacifier is becoming a habit?? When is enough, enough?

I remember my little gal loved to suck on pacifier even when she is not feeding or hungry. Initially I planned not to give her pacifier as I understand that pacifier-sucking babies do not have a nice set of baby teeth. True or not?? Luckily my little gal’s teeth turned out nice, no big gap in between the front teeth. Lol! Okay, she was a crying baby and to stop her, my confinement lady gave her pacifier. So, every time she cried, the lady would pop the pacifier into her mouth to calm her down. That was how little gal grew fond of her pacifier.

She needed her pacifier during bedtime, and once she dozed off, I will have to pull it out from her mouth. It has becoming a habit, and I found it irritating when she threw it after satisfying her needs to suck. So one night I took the opportunity after she threw her pacifier away. I told her that I couldn’t find her pacifier so she has to do without it from that night onward. She did not cry for it but it took her quite a while to fall asleep. It took her many nights to finally realize that her pacifier was no longer there. She was around 1 year old that time.

Instead, she opted for finger sucking and comfort in her toy. It was hard to stop her from sucking her fingers as the fingers are there and cannot be thrown away. But she did stop sucking her fingers now. Solution? Little gal used to love putting on nail vanish. When ever she saw her aunt put on nail vanish, she will request her to coat her fingers and toes nails. So I told her that should she suck her fingers, her nail varnish would not last and nails would not be pretty. A girl is always a girl, being beautiful is part of a girl’s nature! *wink* So, she tries not to suck on them and it really works!!

Alright, back to the pacifier sucking, following are some easy tips I gathered from Michelle Kennedy’s Letting Go series. Try them out if you have one pacifier-sucking child that you want to wean him or her off…..

Don’t introduce one (3 months – 1 year old)
Don’t introduce her to pacifier in first place if you concern your infant will become addicted. Offer your fingers instead. Periodically, let your infant suck on your finger (make sure it is clean in first place) even during nap-nursing time if he doesn’t want to be fed.

Pull the plug become it becomes a habit (1 – 4 years old)
Pacifiers are for the comfort of babies, not the convenience of parents. To insert the plug and leave the baby in her seat every time he cries is unhealthy reliance on an artificial comforter. Parent should always be at the other end of a comforting tool. The breast or finger has the built-in advantage of making sure you don’t fall into the habit of just plugging up the source of the cries as a mechanical gesture. If you find yourself automatically reaching for the pacifier instead of your baby when your little one cries, pull the plug become it becomes a habit!

Make it hard to find (2 – 4 years old)
When she started to look for it, engage your child in a fun activity that she will forgets about her rubber friend. Then arrange for the pacifier to be permanently “lost”, substitute with other tools of comfort, such as cuddly toys

Night time habit (2 – 4 years old)
Once he is deep in dreamland, ease it out of his mouth. If her need something to help him back to sleep when he wakes in the middle of the night, give him cuddly teddy bear or favourite blanket. In time, the stuffed animal should replace the pacifier as your child’s bedtime companion.

Let it wear out (2 – 4 years old)
Some children tend to keep their pacifier even when it started to disintegrate until there was nothing left. They love to hold on to it and reluctant to throw the worn-out one. So, explain slowly to your child that it is dangerous and we have to throw them away. You can ask your child to personally do it himself. Throw the pacifier together.

Limit the sucking times (2 – 4 years old)
This is a good tip for overcoming most habits, and a great way to limit or reduce pacifier use. Tell your child that she can only have her pacifier at certain times of the day. Determine which times of the day she needs it most – bedtime, naptime, in the car- and restrict her to those times. Restricting the times when your child can use the pacifier will help her to realize that she doesn’t need it any longer, without turning you into the bad guy!

Getting back into shape

I admire those mothers that still can maintain their slim figures even after giving birth! For them, everything is the same and their bodies did not alter during and after pregnancy. Sometimes I wonder whether are they pregnant or not! Lol!

Wouldn’t it be nice if a mother’s weight and size can still be maintained like before?? I know it is hard, as some mothers like myself experiencing bigger frame, especially my hip and abdomen part, which are most obvious now.

Some more I am going for C-section, so those parts are even more difficult to slim down after delivery. I hope that I can shred some fat probably from gym or aerobic. In my first pregnancy, I only started exercising after a year, as I couldn’t find times to go anywhere and find suitable centre, except working and taking care of my gal after work. But this time round, I must start my exercise regime earlier, once my gynae gives me green light to do so! *wink*

Dry, hazy and smoky

I don’t remember it has been that hot in this time of the year. Yes, last year there wasn’t much rain and haze was hitting us pretty hard too. Look like the haze is a yearly affair and we cannot avoid it. But I think the condition is even worse this year. The weather is extremely hot till the sun is seen red in colour. Even my little gal commented that the sun is red and moon is yellow in colour. Visibility is poorer too especially when it is at sunset.

Irregardless of the weather, open burning is still visible and everyone is doing it. I still see people burning leaves, grasses or what-so-ever in their gardens. Some more I think the burning is more at such time than normal days. Those inconsiderate burning adds in more smokes to the already-hazy weather. My dark colour car is covered by those ashes and dusts that I don’t really bother to wash now. After I wash, the next minute, it will be coated with those white dusts again. Not to mention my dry laundry is smell of smoke. With the Chinese 7th lunar month end of the month, there would be even more open burning of offerings. Oh dear!! It could worsen the situation if there is no rain.

Is our API still under the "safe" level?? I don’t think our air is under the “safe” level anymore. With the continuous forest fire in Indonesia, I could smell smoke in the air. It is pretty bad. With such weather and condition, it would be rational to stay indoor more than going out. There is no more fresh air to breathe and enjoy!! All I am hoping now is that rain will come and weather will get cooler.

Recently I read in a local newspaper that some Northern and Central districts in Sarawak are been hit badly by drought till people do not have any clean water. People has to resort to bathing and washing in dirty rivers and streams. Now again, this is very sad to know that people is deprived of clean water as the rivers and streams are polluted and not safe to be consumed. El Nino is simply drying up the districts. I also read that soon Kuching will be hit with lack of water supply like the Northern Districts. Must do some water ration, and buy and store mineral water at home!!

Rain, rain, rain! Where have all the rain gone?? I couldn’t imagine what my confinement would be. Staying in the room with a mild temperature, no bath for a week, no hair washing for a month and eating all those hot soups with white and red wine, I wonder how I can stand all those heat and sweat…….

36th week and still counting

I went for my usual check up this morning. Just did the normal check up, i.e. urine (no protein detected), weight (62.5kg)and blood pressure (normal). Doctor also did the normal heart beat checking on baby. Except for the lower abdomen pain I have last week, which doctor assure me it is normal probably due to baby's head moving downward, everything is fine with me.

Doctor will do scanning on baby next Thursday to determine the weight of baby upon delivery. So, now I am on a weekly check-up......

Baby Handbook

We got this helpful baby handbook back in 2006. This useful handbook is written by Dr Tan Poh Tin who is my little gal's pediatrician. As new parents, we are not 100% know what is wrong with our little gal when she developed fever, crying non stop or developed rashes on her body. Thanks to Dr Tan, she introduced us to her handbook which from time to time, I still refer to it for tips.



This book covers from birth, umbilical cord & care, jaundice to feeding older children and feeding medicines and types of vaccines. It basically explains everything on baby from birth in laymen terms and empower you to take care of your baby's health from Day 1.



A great handbook!! I don't remember how much it costs as it was bought 3 years ago. You can buy it from Dr Tan's clinic at Green Heights.

Books for new mummies

When there is a book fair around the city, hubby and myself would definitely make it a point to make a visit there. We simply love books. Hubby in particular is a book collector. He loves Chinese history, motivational books and business books, while I myself am into non-fiction, mystery and romance novels. And since I have a child, my hunting also covers children section. So when we visited a book fair or bookstore, we usually went our separate ways!

I read a lot when I was pregnant with my little gal. Been the first-time mummy, I bought a lot of books and magazines concerning pregnancy, parenting and baby. During my 1st pregnancy I don’t have any pregnant friends, so no one to ask or share experiences. I turned to my mum instead. This time round, I have few friends that are first time mummies, so we share our experiences. Websites become my reading material as they are free and can be downloaded. Still, nothing beats a good book!

Thanks to my MIL who works in a library, she borrowed me few books on pregnancy and baby during my 1st pregnancy. I found them informative and it helps a lot in my understanding of my pregnancy and preparation for delivery. However, I returned the books to her after I delivered.



There are many good books around, so I couldn’t recommend which one is the best. But I like this easy-to-read book by Michelle Kennedy. It provides good tips for new mothers and helps to understand why babies and toddlers behave in certain ways. Her books come with tips and suggestions when you are at the end of your wits and patiences. Her books are categorised into 8 series that cover Crying, Jealousy, Letting Go, Manners, Sleeping, Staying Dry, Tantrums and Eating. I shall share some tips from her books, so watch out for them! :)

Busy as a farmer

I sent off darling hubby to the airport this morning. Hubby is away for business trip for a week. Since he is away, I would have the computer for myself! Lol! It is not that I am happy that he is away for that long, but just got to get used to him been away. It is part of his job. Furthermore, I wouldnt be that lonely with access to internet and in particular, FACEBOOK.

Everyday I must check on my farms. Yes, not one, but 3 farms!! I am saying that I am hooked to farming in the Facebook since it was introduced to me by my SIL. Don’t know should I blame or thank her for showing me how fun it is to do farming there. But I am not greedy, I only have 3 farms under my belt; namely Barn Buddy, Farmtown and Farmville. I got other invitations from friends on joining Farm pals, Fantasy Farm, Sunshine Ranch and other countless farms. Sorry, too much for me! I couldn’t take care of so many farms, so got to ignore those invitations. Don't want to get too addicted too.

With my 3 farms, I already spent much times online day and night checking them out. Sometimes I would get up in middle of the night to harvest, knowing that it is time to do so. Since I am a light sleeper, I tend to wake up frequently at night, so spending few minutes harvesting is not much of a problem for me. The itch is there to check on my farms, see which farms that needs harvesting, which crops to buy and plant and so forth! Even my little gal loves when I play Farmtown as she loves to listen to the "cluck" of the chickens and "meh" sound of the goats in my farm!

Now I am planning of how to stop all those farming activities when my due date is nearer. Must stop after harvesting all those crops and leave the farms empty while I am in my confinement period. Trust hubby to look after my farm?? I don’t think so!! He himself is busy with his game, Mafia.com to bother about farming! Farming is too boring for him.....


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Reasoning with a child

I seldom hit or spank my daughter. She may be naughty and rebellious but I tried not to use punishment as a way to discipline her. Children will always be children. Like what her nanny said, a child would not grow up stronger if he or she is not naughty.

Instead of “hitting” or “spanking”, I will resort to “reasoning “with her. For example if she is climbing a tall stool, I will tell her patiently and calmly that she will fall down and hurt herself if she climb that high. If “reasoning” does not work, then I will finally use “shouting” as my last resort. That will eventually put some senses to her! Telling her that her action is unacceptable and mummy is not happy that she did not listen accordingly. *wink* Punishing by hitting or spanking will "scar" a child and discourage them to explore further. Children are explorers; they learn by exploring.