Farrel's Favorite Tumis Laksa..

Taktau la orang lain panggil ape kan, tapi my mom used to call it tumis laksa.. Farrel suka sangat makan, in fact papa Farrel pon suka makan.. Tapi takde la buat hari-hari, jap agi bosan plak makan benda sama je. Tapi kalau buat tu, 1 mangkuk memang boley abes Farrel makan. Hehe.

Tak sempat nak amek gambar, just share the simple recipe je la ek. :-)

Bahan2:

• bawang merah
• bawang putih
• carrot
• sawi
• ikan selayang/kembung yang telah direbus dan dihancurkan (buang tulang dahulu)
• mee kuning/bihun
• fish ball
• air
• garam

Cara2:

• Tumis bawang merah dan bawang putih sampai naik bau
• Masukkan air
• Kemudian masukkan carrot, batang sawi, fish ball dan ikan yang telah dihancurkan. Biar sampai mendidih
• Masukkan mee kuning/bihun dan sedikit garam
• Biar sampai mendidih dan siap

Kalau tanak masukkan ikan, boleh ganti dengan ayam. Nak tukar sayur lain pon okay. I just letak ikut apa yang ada dalam peti jek. Kalau tanak bagi kat kidsd, letak sedikit lada hitam lagi sedap. Sekejap je dah siap. Sangat senang dan sangat sedap. Hehe. Selamat mencuba!!

Arsyad & Farrel's Portrait..

Having 1 toddler and 1 baby, both boys are so much fun.. Not to mention it is also very tiring looking after both of them especially when they are having a fight for a toy and when they are chasing with each other and 1 of them will eventually fall.. Haha.. Of course I'll always shouting out loud to make sure they'll play together safely..

Everytime I'm looking at their photos, it makes me smile.. Semua penat lelah terus ilang.. It feels that I did a great job looking after them all by myself.. Semoga anak2 mama membesar dengan sihat, dan menjadi anak2 yang soleh di dunia dan akhirat.. Amin~

I Want to Win Babywearing Gear for Great Cloth Diaper Change Malaysia 2012 Contest

I started to fall in love in Cloth Diapers when I first read Farrah Rahim's blog.. That was when I pregnant my 1st son, Arsyad.. But then I didn't prepare any cloth diapers for him since he was born coz I've so many issues after I gave birth to him, c-sect, breast abscess, going back and forth to the hospital make me forgot all about these cloth diapers thing.. But, when he was 4 months old I started to think maybe I should give it a try, eventhough not using it for full time at least I did try and see if I can cope with it.. 

Yeah~ at first I found it was so hard to do coz I didn't have enough knowledge on how to take care of the cloth diapers.. I simply wash it with Nappikleen which I didn't know that it can't be used to wash CD coz it has enzyme in it.. And owh my~ it started to leak and I don't know how to do the stripping.. So at that time I just have 6 cloth diapers for me to rotate.. And I almost give up, but then I keep on googling and reading all the tips and infos from other mommies.. 

Cloth diapering has been a gradual learning process for me.. Probably like some of you, I used to think that the concept of cloth diapering seemed nice but a little too hands and gross for me.. I am quite sensitive to nasty poo smells.. Not that anyone likes dealing with poo, but when the time goes by, I was amazed by myself how quickly I got used to it, and it wasn't a big deal anymore.. I became one with the poo.. Hehe.. Okay maybe not, but it became gradually less disgusting to me..

And now Alhamdulillah I started to fully cloth diapering my 2nd son since he was 2 months old till now.. This is the time I realize that how worthy my investment on the cloth diapers that I bought from my 1st son, which I add on my stash bit by bit.. Its just that for newbies like me few years back, there are few things I wish someone had told me about cloth diapering..

1. That people who use cloth diapers LOVE to talk about cloth diapers - Ask them questions, lots of questions. Ask to see their diapers if possible. You will undoubtedly learn a lot, perhaps more than you thought you needed to know. Nothing beats learning from someone else's first hand experience, you will become more confident and develop a great support network by asking questions. Not sure if you know anyone who uses cloth diapers? Then feel free to join this group Malaysian Cloth Diapering Parents and Cloth Diaper Support Group at facebook. You will receive tons of advice and support from other mommies to help you get started.
2. More and more diaper styles can equal more confusion - Spending minutes or hours trying to figure out 'now how does this one work' can be no fun for you. So before investing in a full laundry rotation trying every version of every style out can lead to frustration, confusion and unnecessary expense. Why not pick 2 or 3 different styles that sound the most likely to work for you, try those, and then settle the one that works best? You can always try something new while your baby is growing up.
3. Don't complicate your diaper washing system until you have a problem - Start with the simplest washing system (pre-wash, wash and dry), don't use vinegar or baking soda, and only use half of the amount of recommended detergent. If you have a problem like diaper rash or smelly diapers, then begin the process of troubleshooting and changing your wash system. By starting simple, washing diapers will be easy to do and troubleshooting problems will be much more straightforward process. Then again, you may never have any problems because you kept the wash process simple and easy to begin with!!
4. There is joy in using cute diapers - We all know the joy of dressing our babies in adorable clothing. But it took me awhile to understand that cloth diapers are actually an extension of baby's wardrobe. Yes, diapers are meant to be functional, but why not make them fun too?? Dressing our son in diaper colors, patterns, and fabrics that appeal to us makes diapering much less stressful and much more enjoyable for me and my husband. :-)
5. You really don't need to know everything to be successful at cloth diapering - Okay, true confessions!! How much time did you put into learning about cloth diapers when you first got started? I must have spent at least 60 - 80 hours online, reading, finding stores to browse, and becoming entirely overwhelmed and confused. My first purchases were poorly planned despite my attempts at education because I was trying to know everything and try everything. Is this necessary?? Absolutely NOT!! My recommendation is to identify your basic diaper style (prefold, fitted, pocket, AIO or AI2) and then talk your choices and options and needs over with a cloth diapering friend or store that feels right to you. This still takes some time but much less than trying to learn everything! Go slow and steady.. :-)
6. Buying quality products makes the entire cloth diapering experience better - Quality does not have to be equal to expensive, but rather the top level products within your price range. Investing in quality products makes the whole cloth diapering process better. Buy the best quality products that you can afford. Not sure which one is the best? Don't be shy to ask other cloth diapers' users or go online and join the cloth diaper group. Cloth diaper users LOVE to talk about cloth diapers.

Cloth diapering to me is the best therapy and the best investment of all - change to cloth diaper to change the world! 

Owh~ btw, this entry is for the contest by Great Cloth Diaper Change (GCDC).. I hope I can win one of those babywearing gears. Mommies~ come and join this contest! if you want them too! Click here for more info about the contest. The last date will be on 20th May 2012 before 11pm. 


You can participate via blog or facebook. Just create a blog post or facebook note with title "I Want to Win Babywearing Gear for Great Cloth Diaper Change Malaysia 2012 Contest" and you must include this sentence and finish it with your own unique meaningful ways, "Cloth diapering to me..." OR "Dunia lampin kain moden buat diriku.." (not more than 30 words of your own words). 

Thanks to all the sponsors Snuggbaby and Big Eyes Shop.

Good Luck~

5 Months Old Farrel

Dah dekat nak masuk 6 bulan baru nak story pasal Farrel masa 5 bulan.. Sorry yer sayang, mama tak sempat nak duduk lama2 depan laptop.. Nanti mama ingat2 balik apa yg Farrel dah pandai buat masa 5 bulan ek? Bz taking care both of Arsyad and Farrel sometimes make me forgot your milestone darling.. So sorry dear~ I'll try my best to remember every single thing kay.. Hehe..

Now, Farrel dah 7.2kg and panjang 65.5cm.. Berat la jugak mama nak dukung, so my ring sling sgt la berguna ketika ini especially bila nk jemur baju.. Farrel dah master bab2 meniarap ni.. He can easily roll over left or right then back into his position balik.. He can also lift up his bum a bit but then still cannot move forward.. Everytime angkat punggung sendiri for sure terbalik ke tepi.. Haha..  But then Farrel boleh berpusing 360 degrees.. Different from Arsyad dulu yg mmg dh boleh move himself forward masa 5 bulan.. 

Farrel sgt suke buat bunyi.. Pokpekpokpek sorang2 then tiba2 diam, tertido rupenya.. haha.. Just like his big brother.. He loves to play all his soft toys, Dino is one of his favorites.. He always envy with his big brother's Ultramans.. Haha.. Tu pon sbb Arsyad slalu tunjuk depan Farrel and selalu tak kasik Farrel pegang.. Farrel suke masukkan semua benda dlm mulut.. Tudung mama, baju mama pon nk gigit skali.. Hehe..

Alhamdulillah, his sleeping routine is still the same.. Takde masalah sgt mlm2, just bgn untuk minum susu je.. Skrg dh pandai klau mama bersiap2 nak kuar Farrel dah excited dah.. Kaki for sure tendang2 tangan terkapai2 nak suruh org angkat.. Hehe.. Klau mama buat2 lupe amek, Farrel trus nangis.. Haha.. Anak mama sorang ni sungguh murah dengan senyuman.. Ckp sikit je trus senyum.. Sejuk hati mama.. Hehe 

Ni je yang sempat taip at the moment.. Later, I'll story more about both of them.. Dah lama tak cite pasal Arsyad kan?? Asyik Farrel je, Arsyad takde plak.. Later insyaAllah.. Till then~

my precious!!

4 Months Old Farrel

Cepat sgt la anak2 mama membesar.. Nanti mama rindu nak pegang baby lagi camane?? Papa selalu ckp kat Farrel besar cepat sikit.. Mama plak ckp jgn la besar cepat sgt yer sayang.. Sure Farrel dah confuse mane satu nak ikut.. Haha.. Janji anak2 mama sihat, ceria dan cergas selalu, syukur Alhamdulillah.. :-)

Hmm~ dah masuk 4 bulan ni schedule tido Farrel still tak berubah.. Alhamdulillah.. Bangun subuh hari, siang hari take nap kejap2 jer then bila mlm, once dh tido kul 8 ke trus straight sampai ke subuh.. Tp skrg mlm2 eventho Farrel bgn 2 kali je tuk minum susu, tp sekali minum sikit punye lama.. Penat mama sampai kul 4 5 pagi je sure mama dh mula rasa nak gastrik, perut dah masuk angin.. So trus turun bawah minum milo and mkn roti or biskut..

Bila mama or papa letakkan Farrel meniarap, Farrel dh pandai angkat kepala sendiri.. Skrg pon dah ade tanda2 nak pusing, sikit je lagi nak lepas sayang.. Usaha lagi kay.. Hehe.. Bila Farrel baring atas katil, Farrel suka tolak2 kaki Farrel sampai la makin lama Farrel makin ke atas..Bahaya dah klau letak Farrel atas katil skrg, dh takle nk duduk diam.. Kalau mama nak shower je for sure mama letak Farrel dlm cot,  baru tenang mama nk mandi.. :-)

Now Farrel dah pandai pegang teether, rattle and any other toys.. Pegang je trus masuk dlm mulut.. Suke sgt2 especially jari jemari Farrel yg gebu tu, suke tol masukkan dlm mulut.. Arsyad plak takle tgk klau Farrel isap jari, for sure tarik trus tgn adik kuarkan, then sometimes ckp no no no.. Kdg2 nak tergelak pon ade looking at them.. Si abg suke buat action, berlari, melompat, buat2 jatuh then si adik plak gelak sakan tgk abg dia buat camtu.. So funny looking at both of them.. Mama pon gelak sama sbb dgr Farrel gelak.. He will laugh out loud.. Haha.. Happy mama tgk anak2 mama pandai main sama2.. Harap2 sampai ke besar la mcm ni yer.. Mama tau Arsyad dah tak sabar nak main dgn Farrel tp Farrel still tak paham lagi la Arsyad.. Kdg2 siap excited main wordworld dlm iPhone tunjuk kat Farrel.. Farrel pon suke jgk tgk sbb colorful.. Sharing is caring kan Arsyad?? Hehe..

Farrel skrg nak org ckp2 je ngan dia.. He loves to smile and laugh.. Ckp sikit je trus senyum and gelak2.. Happy btol anak mama ni.. Hehe.. He will just cry when he didn't see mama or papa in front of him or bila poopoo or bila nak susu.. Alhamdulillah senang nak jaga Farrel and Arsyad.. Just sometimes ade la jgk bila dua2 nangis serentak, mau rasa nak pengsan kejap especially Farrel yg makin berat skrg nak didukung.. And at the same time abg nak ditepuk2 bermanja2.. It is hard sometimes nak layan dua2 serentak and not to mention to give my full attention to both of them equally.. Last2 mama yg stress coz rasa tak dpt nak bg sepenuh kasih sayang kat both of my kids.. But I'll try my best to give everything to both of you.. Selagi mama larat InsyaAllah mama akan bagi sepenuh kasih sayang kat Farrel and Arsyad.. Dengan syarat jangan buat mama stress2 selalu tau.. Hahahaha..

Ape pon pegi checkup, berat Farrel dah 6.8kg kg and dah 64 cm panjang.. berat naik sikit je dr last month.. Farrel is 300 gram heavier and 2 cm longer than Arsyad when he was 4 months old.. Tapi Farrel takdela sebulat and setembam Arsyad dulu.. Arsyad dulu pipi mcm nk jatuh dh, Farrel lagi tegap tp tangan tetap sama berketak2.. Hehe..

Farrel skrg suka sgt main air liur.. Rambut mama pon dh keguguran yg teramat byk.. Farrel suka test suara sendiri.. Mcm2 style dia buat sambil kuarkan air liur skali.. Arsyad slalu geli and for sure dia akan trus tunjuk kat mama suruh lap.. Haha..

I have to stop first, Farrel dah memanggil2.. Hehe.. Till then~

Easy Way on How to Handle Your Cloth Diaper

Before I start cloth diapering both of my sons, everyday I'll google on how to handle these cloth diapers (CD) starting from on how to use it, how to maintain it and how to make sure they are all clean easily without making me feel it is the hardest thing to do. I know most of us mommies think that there are so many things to consider before start CD-ing our kids right? Me myself always think like this at first "ala..leceh la pkai CD ni..nak kene pre-wash dulu, takle basuh pkai tu pkai ni..bile dh leak nak kene stripwash la plak..susahnye..baik pkai disposables je,takyah susah2 nk pk".. That was me 3 years back, before I get use to the routine and before I started to realize byknye duit boleh jimat bila pkai CD..

some of my CDs

After you already confirmed that you wanted to fully cloth diapering your baby, doesn't matter if you want to start only wearing it during the day or only at night, at least you start to think wanna give it a try, the first thing you need to know is how to wash it. I tanak cerita la pasal jenis2 CD yang memang dah terlampau byk dlm pasaran skrg kan, pocket CD, fitted CD, AIO, AI2 mcm2 la.. I just want to share with all of you on how me myself handle all the CDs.

Firstly, takyah susahkan diri or terlampau merajinkan diri pegi basuh tangan. Sangat la penat okay nak basuh tangan tuh. Habis tangan u all ber-muscle nanti tau. Haha.. Everytime nak tukar CD, letak CD yang kotor (kencing sahaja, bkn yang poo-poo) dalam baldi yg kering dan bersih. I just put it in the dustbin yang tertutup to avoid bau yang kurang menyenangkan, yang ikea punye warna putih. Lagi bagus if you beli skali diaper pail liner letak dlm bin tu. So semua CD kotor sumbat dlm baldi. No need to bilas dulu, just kumpul sampai la you nak basuh. If baby you poo-poo, what you have to do is, buang poo-poo dulu dlm toilet bowl or bagi baby yg still poo-poo dia cair, just bilas mcm biasa. Jangan pkai berus, just bilas dekat paip and tenyeh2 sikit guna tangan. Memang akan still ade stain. So, if you rasa geli and risau takut nanti tak tanggal stain2 tu semua, what you can do is use a little bit of sunlight, tenyeh2 sikit and you can see it is all gone. Bilas sampai takde buih, then just put the CD in a different pail. Don't use the brush kay.

I sumbat dlm ni je..

Once you nak basuh semua CD yang kotor tu (usually I akan basuh once in 3 days time, jangan simpan terlampau lama, nanti you punya CD akan jadi berkulat), first thing you need to do is bilas CD yang you letak dlm bin tertutup tadi. Bilas je dekat paip to make sure air kencing tu dah takde. Dah siap, masukkan dalam washing machine. Inserts boley masukkan macam tu je, cover sila masukkan dalam laundry net. Jangan sumbat sampai terlampau penuh dlm laundry net takut tak bersih plak kan. So sediakan laundry net secukupnya. Beli laundry net murah2 je kat Giant pon ade. Hehe. Then, masukkan detergent. Make sure detergent yang sesuai, takde softener, takde bleach, takde enzym. Banyak yang you boley pkai, contohnya Pureen HAD, Lunacare, Autumnz detergent, Kuat Harimau, Ekonomi Handalan, soapnut, Cosway Kiddiewash, and many more. Just use small amount depends on berapa banyak yang you nak basuh. I basuh semua CD sekali ngan baju anak skali takde hal punye. Hehe.

I bilas camtu je after my son poo-poo..still ade stain no worries.. :-)

Bile dah siap wash, usually I akan extra rinse skali lagi then baru spin. Once dh siap tu bila you kuarkan CD2 tu semua, takkan ada bau hancing and you punya CD tak rasa keras. Means that you punya CD btol2 bersih. If you rasa keras sikit and still bau hancing, rinse lagi skali. Keras tu usually becoz of detergent build-up, rinse tapi still ada sisa-sisa sabun. That's why jadi camtu. And for CD yang ada stain, don't worry bukan CD you tak bersih. Normal la kan klau ade stain, for example klau kids minum air coklat ke minum milo ke tumpah kat baju kdg2 ada stain jgk kan eventho dah basuh. So don't worry. Just jemur you punya CD di bawah matahari terik, stain tu semua akan hilang. Trust me coz all my CDs mmg takde stain lagi so far. :-)

So easy kan? Takde la susah pon, basuh pon skali ngan baju anak-anak and dibasuh oleh washing machine. Hehe. If you btol2 follow these simple steps, you don't have to do the stripwash anymore. Later on if I ade buat stripwash, InsyaAllah I akan post on how to do it. But so far, all my CDs still okay takde leaking kat mana2 even pkai mlm2 pegi jalan2. So, malas la nak buat kan. Hehe.

Till then, happy cloth diapering.. :-)

Sama Tak?

Both of them in Bumbo seat.. Ade iras ke? hehe..

Farrel

Arsyad

Eeeeee geram dgn anak sendiri!!! hahaha..

New to Babywearing? And Want To Try One For Free?

I think all of you must have heard about the baby wearing thing right? I didn't have a gut to give it a try for my first baby and I don't think it was necessary for me to carry him all the time. Besides he was okay lying down on his baby rocker while I'm doing all my chores.

me with my Jumpsac ring sling

But, Farrel is way different from Arsyad. He always want us to entertain him and always want to be cuddled most of the times. So, I can't get my chores done and even can't entertain Arsyad as well. So the only solution is I should try the baby wearing thing. I do have the Chicco baby carrier, but he seems like not comfortable at all. So at last I've decided to buy the ring sling, the simplest baby wearing as I just can easily pop in and pop out the baby without any knot here and there. It is just as easy as A B C. 

If you want to give it a try but don't want to invest, afraid if you can't wear it properly or your baby doesn't want to be put in the sling, you should try this Giveaway Contest. Easy, just click LIKE on their page here and spread the words to others. Maybe you're the lucky one and get your hands on their yummylicious ring sling. Good luck~

Parenthood Expo @ KLCC Review..

We went to the parenthood expo at KLCC on 26th Feb 2012 around 3pm. As usual lots of parents with kids on strollers and carriers were there. Both of us too brought 2 strollers for Arsyad and Farrel. It was actually quite easy as the space was bigger than Mid Valley's one, so easy for us to push our stroller without stepping on other people's foot.

I would prefer the Maternity & Children Expo at Mid Valley as there were lots of choices compared to this one. As I was looking for babywearing items, I found out that there were just a few booth that sell the items. Not so many choices for me to choose. At last, we just went back home without buying anything. Owh~ I did buy 2 fans for both Arsyad and Farrel. Haha. I just can try out the Jumpsacbaby's ring sling and SSC Orbit. Lunatots also have their babywrap and ring sling too. But I didn't manage to try it out as there were so many people at their booth at that time. 

For cloth diapers, I only saw Lunatots, Autumnz and one more brand which I didn't stop by. Autumnz cloth diapers quite cheap around RM29 if I'm not mistaken. Didn't manage to ask Lunatots how much, but there were just a few colors left for boys. So, I didn't bother to ask. There were 2 disposables diapers were sold there, Drypers and Whoopies. So many people bought the Whoopies, I never knew what was the usual retail price outside, so I can't compare it. But for drypers the price was RM33 for Drypers Wee Wee Dry, just RM1.89 cheaper than the outside price. Usually, the retail price around RM34.89, so not that cheap. 

For new mommies, I think quite okay for them as there were quite a lot for them to buy. But I would prefer the Maternity & Children Expo more. More brands you can choose from. So for those who didn't manage to go to the last Parenthood Expo, no need to worry. You have a chance to go to the Maternity & Children Expo on 9th - 11th March 2012 at Mid Valley. I can't wait to go there. I'm still looking for the right babywearing for me and Farrel. So, don't forget to mark on your calendar yea mommies!!

My 3 Months Old Farrel..

Sekejap je Farrel dah 3 bulan. Now his weight is 6.4 kg and height is 62cm. A bit heavier and longer than his big brother when Arsyad was 3 months old. Alhamdulillah, taking care of my 2 heroes is not that difficult. He just love to be cuddled everytime he wants to sleep. So a bit tired for me to hold him up and hard for me to do other things. That is why I'm looking for a right baby wearing for me and him. The Chicco carrier doesn't work for me and him. He seems like very uncomfortable everytime I put him in it. But, he was okay with his papa.

He loves when we talk to him, he will smile and giggle. He loves to see anything which is bright in colors and moving. And I think Arsyad is his idol coz everytime Arsyad is jumping, running and dancing in front of him, he will giggle and laughing out loud. Haha. I know you can't wait to play with your big brother, Farrel. Arsyad can't wait too you know. He always gave you his toys eventhough you still didn''t know how to hold it still. Hehe.

So far, Farrel loves his cloth teether so much. He can easily grab it and put it in his mouth. I can see that he is more using his right hand compared to the left one, opposite with Arsyad who is left handed. Once Farrel hold something, he will not let it go. Hehe. 

Now, he loves to play bubbles with his air liur. Sgt la syok dia main. Rambut mama pon dh gugur sikit2 skrg. Luckily not that much. Alhamdulillah, since he was 2 months old, I started fully cloth diapering him. Berjaya jugak. And now, tak rase pon pkai cloth diaper tu penat actually. Once kita dah get used with the routine, actually rasa sama jek mcm pkai disposable punyer. Very easy and sgt laaa jimat. I never buy any disposables since then. 

I still fully breastfeed him. Alhamdulillah. He just refused to drink with bottle right now. Last time, he was okay, now tanak langsung dah. Susah jgk coz sometimes hubby can't help if I have to do something else. Need to train him back. Any ideas on what nipples is the best for me to train him back? Last time he was okay with Avent, but now tanak dah. NUK and MAM pon tanak. Harap2 pasni ok la.

Ok, need to go now. Farrel already call me to have some milk. Till then.. adios~ :-)