12-12-12 : K Boys Welcome Another New Cousin!

no, this date doesn’t necessarily bring luck, or holds any special ‘magic’ just because of the triple number – I’m thrilled with this date because it’s the LAST repeating date we will ever encounter in our lifetime.

…AND I got a new nephew, and my boys got another boy cousin! (earlier my bro-in-law received his second child, a boy). congratulations to scientist parents syima and my bro-in-law din, getting this precious gift on this rare date!

this would be the 10th member of ‘Kelab Cucu-Cucu Atuk Podin’, and my younger sister’s syima’s 3rd child, and her 1st boy. much reason to rejoice!

 

 

* * *

 

I knew my sister was already at the hospital by 1pm on 12-12-12, so with Allah’s will, the baby could come out by today. I called her up from dubai kasi semangat haha but no sweat, it’s her third time so I’m sure she’s all prep and ready.

 

 

* * *

 

and then came the SMS announcing that my sister’s 3rd baby is OUT! alhamdulillah! mom and baby in excellent condition. it’s a BOY!

 

 

* * *

 

…and then I finally got the photo from my youngest sis azi whatsapp-ing to everyone. he is SO adorable, like any newborn would be. can’t wait to see him!

 

 

at the time or writing, the parents have not confirmed the name of the baby – the baby boy’s elder sisters are named sufiyyah syafiqah and marissa marha – SS, MM – because mama is SS and their abah is MM. so it’s a wild guess what’s this boy’s name would be!

My K Boys Welcome New Cousin Khir

baby alert!

mr. khairul’s younger brother had just welcomed a new addition to his family on 26th November 2012 at 11.24am : 2nd child, 1st boy in his family, and 4th cucu of my in-laws. what’s that? another K? yes, this adorably chubby wubby baby is named Khir Khairy, joining the K clan.

congrats to the proud parents, and welcome, little guy!

he is just too cute for words. so enjoy the pictures, courtesy of my sis-in-law tina. thanks! anong khaleef, abang kahfi and abang kazim will see you when they come back in a few weeks time!

 

baby khir khairy *pinch pinch*

 

baby khir khairy knows his opah!

 

this is my kahfi with his accidental-identical cousin wafa. wafa is baby khir khairy’s big sis! get ready to play the role, wafa! you’re kak long now!

 

* * *

 

ok, pak long. time to shop something nice for your new nephew…

Cousins Welcome Their 1st Babies

my cousins rini and wani are close cousins – so close that they gave birth just few weeks apart, both in october, and both are baby boys! alhamdulillah! welcome babies! these adorable babies also make my aunts aunty na and cik first-time-grandma! congrats to the proud grandmothers!

CONGRATULATIONS!

both baby boys and mommies are in excellent condition, alhamdulillah. to khairul and rini, and ijan and wani, may Allah grant both parents patience, wisdom and most of all endless love to care and nurture these precious newborns. good luck and have fun!

*kiss kiss pinch pinch*!

 

* * *

 

khaer muzafhar bin khairul anuar

3am ~ 4th oct 2012 ~ 2.69kg

 

proud dad khairul & beautiful mommy rini

 

* * *

 

adam miqhael bin shahrizan

9.30pm ~ 17th oct 2012 ~ 3.5kg

 

rockin dad ijan & bombshell mommy wani

 

* * *

 

aunty gim can’t wait to see you babies! nanti anong khaleef, abang kahfi and abang kazim balik dari dubai nak playtime dengan khaer ngan adam ok!

Kazim Cries Everytime I go to Bathroom

ok, to be fair, the title of this posting should read : kazim has STOPPED crying everytime i go to the bathroom. hihi. and this post is to celebrate the freedom!

…but not after months and months of crying, temper tantrums, wailing and basically a very vocal protest over his mother’s decision to enter a bathroom – which i could never really understood! only for the past few weeks did i realize that he has stopped crying whenever i enter the bathroom. he doesn’t cry anymore, he couldn’t care less!

he’s 2 years-2 months old, and i can finally enter the bathroom in peace!

 

my already-big boy kazim!

 

THEN…

• whenever i need to go to the bathroom, no matter for WHATEVER reason – 5 seconds hand-washing or 20-minute shower – kazim would just burst into tears of the worst kind!
• he would not want ANYONE else – of course, mr. khairul would try everything from cuddling him, giving him chocs, or his favorite oreo, or toys or put on ‘toy story 2’ – nothing works
• at times, when he was busy playing and then suddenly realized i was NOT around him, he would immediately grew nervous and ran to the kitchen or bathroom. when he found the bathroom door closed with me inside – SCREAM!
• when he was younger i would just take him along inside the bathroom! problem solved, for that few minutes…
• sometimes i would just leave the door slightly ajar – this seems to make him less anxious of his mother being ‘gone’ into the unknown – maybe because this lets him know what’s happening inside the bathroom
• of course when mr. khairul was around, sometimes he would distract kazim before i scoot off in lightning speed to the bathroom to do whatever!
• i developed a stealth mode when i am on a bathroom-emergency – mastering tip-toeing, closing door ever so quietly, and making sure the trickle of water doesn’t alert kazim!

 

 

* * *

 

NOW…

• he is not that anxious even if i’m not around. ‘mak is somewhere in the house. i’m cool.’
• even if he caught me getting into the bathroom, i would just smile and wave, and he would be just fine
• so many other things could satisfy him – even when he shows a slight frustration that i’m in the bathroom, he can be distracted by ben10 playing on tv, or his brothers calling him to play, or his bapak feeding him pasta cheese!
• i can have bubble bath, i can enjoy long hot shower, i can scrub the toilet – heck, i can sing the whole boyz to men album while washing my hair at one time without trouble!
• mak nak masuk bilik mandi? pegi lah…tak heran dah!

 

and what did i do to change this behaviour? NOTHING! kids just outgrew certain habits as they mature (thank goodness!) although i hope a few more things will NEVER change – like when he always give me surprise kisses for no reason at all...*smile!*

sob sob. my baby is growing! i can do without the crying-when-i-enter-bathroom, but don’t grow up too fast ya…

What I Miss About BF Kazim

i have stopped breastfeeding kazim. he's now 22 months old. it was a moment of sudden emptiness, a pinch of sadness, and missing a lot of moments. yes, it's also a little bit of a relief since for the past weeks he had been latching on empty - and that creates a lot of pain on my part. so we both had to let go.

i will miss a lot of the closeness, the touches, his tiny body in my arms, the smile on his face after a good ‘meal’, the satisfaction on his face as he falls asleep after each feed. mostly, the indescribable beautiful bf bond of mother and baby.

i will miss him falling asleep while i breastfed him – i know every mothers will recognize this look on their baby – the lentok look, eyes shut in a heavenly bliss of full tummy filled with mom’s glorious milk, mouth sometimes open in deep slumber, sometimes with a thin trail of breast milk still hanging from his lips – adorable!

i will miss that no matter how LOUD he cries, or how badly he is hurt, how hard he fell down, he immediately went silent the moment he knows he’s getting nursed. boobies always saved the day! haha.

i will miss the wonder i have on his sleeping position – his little body contorted according to the uneven curve of my cross-legged position as i breastfed him, head resting on mom’s hard knee-bone, one hand holding dangling on the side, and STILL managed to sleep, thanks to mom’s milk – selesa ke tido macam tu? i always chuckle in amazement.

i will miss him playing with his ear-lobes in his little chubby fingers as he latched on, eyes fixed on his hopes and dreams. most probably hopes of finally climbing that dining table and dreams of rummaging through neatly-folded stack of warm clothes.

i will miss this habit of his, developed when he’s about 18+ mths old – whenever i look at him as he breastfeeds, he would cover his eyes with his palm! yes, this seemingly shy-away action is hard to comprehend – and until now i wonder why he did it. it’s not an invitation to a peek-a-boo game, he just seemed – well, shy!

right now, miss breastfeeding even more whenever kazim is inconsolable, and i knew in my heart that no matter how tight i hug him, it’s not as comforting as when he’s nursed – that’s when he will feel he is safe.

well, now i gotta make sure he knows he’s safe in my arms no matter what. BF or not, my arms are still here for him to cuddle in. my lap is here for him to sleep on. the hugs will still be there in abundance, the kisses will be infinite. yes, even until the day kazim leaves for work on some big hot-shot job one fine day haha.

nowadays, when he sleeps, he needs to hold my hands, play with my fingers, and then fall asleep. i don’t mind. after breastfeeding stops, it’s nice to know that mom’s warmth is still needed.

Kazim Crawling?

at 6 months plus, kazim pushed himself up in a crawling position for the first time few days ago! yay, kazim! (well, ‘yay’ now but ‘adoi’ later when he started crawling all over the place in cockroach speed!)

 

kazim & big bro

 

 

enjoy the video. i hope 20 years from now kazim can appreciate his mak’s effort to record his milestones!

“Mak, Bad Guy Take Kahfi!”

yeap, i heard khaleef screamed, “mak! bad guy take kahfi!” and with that, i saw a man holding kahfi who was wriggling to escape. the man did not let go. and khaleef kept screaming.

oh, let me rewind.

we were at a hotel in damansara with abah, and kahfi was his usual ‘cockroach’ self – run here run there – and we were starting to get ticked off with his constant need to escape. he even ran to the little ‘rumah kampung’ display at the hotel and brought down the pagar! oh, no!

at one point, one of the hotel staff took hold of kahfi, and brought him back to me, wriggling away trying to escape.

…and that’s when khaleef screamed out to me, “mak, bad guy take kahfi!

the hotel staff just smiled.

i can’t say for sure that this is the best way to educate our children about ‘stranger danger’ – but i always tell khaleef (or, sometimes, more to SCARE khaleef) that there are bad guys out there who can just snatch kids like him if he wanders off without telling mak or bapak, or if he doesn’t watch his little brother.

they just need to know that the real world out there could be more dangerous than having burgers fell from the sky, the magic of dibo the gift dragon or from the comforts of their own home.

* * *

lagi cerita kahfi.

kepala kahfi tersekat kat celah tiang tangga rumah abah. jerit-jerit dia. aku kat dalam bilik dengan kazim, tiba-tiba khaleef datang bagitau.

bila naik atas, nampak abah tengah cuba kluakan kepala kahfi dari celah tangga. kahfi dah bukan nangis lagi dah. dah terjerit-jerit. aku rasa bukan nangis sakit tu. lebih kepada nangis takut kepala tak bole klua!

aku pun cuba jugak. abah dah pegi bawah nak cari gergaji!

khaleef cuba membantu dgn membawa toys utk hiburan kahfi masa dia tersekat tu. bawak bola la. bawak robot la. bawak dinosaur la. macam-macam dia bawak tunjuk kat kahfi. ade satu part tu, dia pun tolong tekan kepala kahfi supaya bole klua!

aku cuma asyik cakap, “it’s ok kahfi. it’s ok. sayang mak.” supaya tenangkan kahfi. aku tau dia nangis tu lebih kepada takut. yang part sakit tu masa aku cuba tekankan kepala dia je.

hmm. kalo muat nak masuk, mesti muat nak klua. aku pun pusing-pusing, tekan-tekan, herot-herot – akhirnya dapat jugak kluakan kepala kahfi. merah telinga dia. nangis sedu-sedu. nasib baik atuk tak payah guna gergaji!

tu la. masuk lagi kepala celah tangga!

khaleef & kahfi (credit picture : tina)

member aku buat lawak. katanya, anak kedua dia pun ade je halnya. buat perangai pelik-pelik macam si kahfi. “second child memang macam tu ke, syigim?” erk, aku pun second child tau! kitorang bukan pelik, tapi terlalu kreatif sangat! hihi.

* * *

cerita kazim pulak.

kazim dah boleh bergolek lancar dengan bahayanya! kenapa aku cakap bahaya – sebab hampir nak jatuh katil!

pertama kali aku saksikan detik-detik dia bole bergolek tu memang la dah horay-horay dah, tapi dia dah tak ulang dah detik gemilang tu. jadi aku tak lah beria-ia letak bantal keliling dia kalau letak dia atas katil,

tapi baru-baru ni, aku letak dia tengah katil, sekelip mata je dia dah dekat hujung kepala katil! maknanye dia dah bergolek 4-5 kali untuk sampai ke situ.

terkejut gile aku!

jadi sekarang ni, kalo aku nak mandi lama atau keluar bilik, aku letakkan dia atas tilam kat atas lantai, atau kalau dia tido atas katil, aku akan buat kubu dengan bantal-bantal. dah laju dah budak busuk tu!

kazim & abang long khaleef (credit picture : syida)

* * *

ok budak-budak. bapak tengah jauh ni, korang jangan la nakal-nakal sangat ok. tolong mak sket! *senyum*

Fasting While Breastfeeding : After a Week

this year, for the first time, i am breastfeeding while fasting! my 3rd son, kazim is fully breastfeeding – and after 7 days, i am feeling good! alhamdulillah, and yay to me!

now - different moms will have different experience when breastfeeding during puasa month, so don’t compare ok! personally to me, these 7 days prove to be as easy AND as difficult as any other puasa days. meaning, the tiredness and hunger are just the same as when i’m not breastfeeding.

unlike when i was fasting while pregnant with kazim – man, that was hard. i would feel dizzy and fainty whenever i fast, and i could not stand for too long. lepas makan baru ok. i missed a lot of puasa days!

so i’m glad and thankful that my body can take it this time – breastfeeding while fasting, and kazim seems to be nursing well without any mengamukness of not having enough milk. hihi. i thought i’d be super dehydrated and in need of water everytime i breastfeed, but i feel fine.

the key is to drink well during berbuka, and eat a lot of fruits and vegetable. more importantly don’t skip sahur! me, i drink anmum milk during sahur. also, just got this great tip from kak arin (who is currently a breastfeeding AND pregnant mom who is fasting – respect!) to eat a lot of kurma during sahur.

lapar dahaga tu biase la masa puasa! hihi.

ini kazim

in Islam, every pregnant or nursing mothers are allowed the breaking of fast. they will be required to compensate later on - qada' puasa or fidyah. however, if i feel fine, i know i shouldn't take advantage of this 'special privilege' as a nursing mom!

most concerns that i read, are usually about the decreasing of mother's milk production, and the mother herself not being able to adapt to the conditions of fasting.

1) medically speaking, fasting does not cause harm to mothers who are breast-feeding. moms shouldn't worry about milk depletion, and its effects on the baby, as long as they eat a balanced diet and healthy food! the nutrients of milk is dependent on feeding mothers, so eat well during berbuka and sahur!

2) studies concluded that fasting does not reduce milk supply, but the dehydration that occurs might affect the mother's milk supply. that's why moms who're breastfeeding are encouraged to drink plenty of water while berbuka and bersahur. insufficient water in the body might affect the milk supply, as well as making moms feel tired and weak. so drink up, moms!

3) for working moms, try pumping after berbuka or, an article suggests you start early and just freeze a good supply for puasa month.

4) some articles i read say that if moms are fasting, it will increase the production of toxins in the body that eventually gets in breast milk. however, we must remember, babies also have immune systems that can prevent themselves from diseases, insyaAllah!

we must remember that Allah ordained fasting upon His servants because fasting does have a lot of benefits; a cleansing mechanism - physically and spiritually, rather than harming the people who fast.

at the same time, breastfeeding is encouraged in Islam for the many wondrous benefits as well - so why not seize the opportunity of getting two great rewards at the same time!

well, at the end of the day, it is a personal decision – to fast or not to fast while breastfeeding. it is up to how your body responds, and how your baby reacts. Allah is All Merciful and that is why He has allowed this leniency on us nursing mommies!

if you’re a breastfeeding mom who choose not to fast for fear of yourself, or your baby – then remember that the holy month of ramadhan is so much more than just lapar and dahaga – it’s about increasing our worship, and our remembrance of Allah. after all, breastfeeding is a noble thing, a blessing that Allah has grant us – so don’t feel that you’re left out this ramadhan!

in my case, i hope i will continue to have this strength to puasa while breastfeeding, and not make it an excuse not to! (kazim, susu mak cukup kan? kalo tak cukup, cakap je. nanti mak bukak pose ye. hihi.) if i succeed, this will be a much more meaningful ramadhan for me and kazim!

oh, and again, a reminder to me - don't skip sahur!

Aqiqah Cucunda Haji Sharifuddin

hari ni hari gembira sebab :

• kami 5 beradik akhirnya berkumpul di rumah abah selepas 2 tahun tak berlima (2008 syida di melbourne, 2009 pulak aku kat dubai)
• aqiqah 2 cucu abah, kazim dan adam harris
• dah lama rumah abah ni tak buat kenduri jemput ramai-ramai makan-makan meriah-meriah!

kendurinya bersahaja, buaiannya ringkas, tapi semangat besar, adat padat dan meriahnya sangat!


tema warna taklah di war-warkan sangat. cuma pada keluarga terdekat. anak-anak aku pun pakai biru. bapak diorang kata macam penghuni alcatraz je. ceh.



comel tak mak anak 3 ni? hihi. chubby ke, tembam ke, takyah cakap ye. puasa ni cakap yang baik-baik je dah le ye. hihi.

buaian ringkas ni dihias oleh adik aku syida. ringkas je menggunakan riben-riben, belon-belon - ape je yang ada. walaupun tampak amat ringkas, tapi hati yang membuatnya seronok untuk anak-anak sedara yang bakal naik buai nanti!

zzzz. kroh kroh. nyenyak je tido. buai yang merilekskan, tambah-tambah dikelilingi orang-orang yang sayang diorang. lagi sedap dan selamat rasa nak tido.


aunty da, diorang suka sangat la buai tu!



lagi pulak didodoikan dengan marhaban yang mengalunkan ayat-ayat indah dari kitab suci al-Quran. mak niraku, sahabat karib aku pun turut serta. seronok sangat bila makcik pun join marhaban jugak! siap bawak kertas marhaban sendiri!

mak niraku yang pakai baju brown tu

sambil-sambil marhaban, khaleef ngan kahfi selalu sangat la menyebok.

my sis syima with her kiddos marissa & sufya, with me & my boys khaleef & kazim

selesai marhaban, yong bawak adam haris keliling makcik-makcik marhaban tu. si adam haris belum botak lagi, jadi makcik-makcik tu gunting rambut dia seciput seorang, ngikut adat. adik bongsu aku azi diberi penghormatan untuk pegang dulang yang ade kelapa ngan bahan-bahan untuk cukur jambul ni.

berat beno katanye. nak terketor tangan, kata organg perghok. hihi.

sape-sape yang dah botak, tak payah pegi keliling ye. kau la tu, kazim oi. duk diam-diam dalam buai ye. nasib dia pun tengah tido.

azi, yong & me

akhir sekali giliran tuan rumah, abah aku le, atuk si kazim. jadi walaupun kazim dah botak, aku angkut jugak dia, sebab aku nak abah acah-acah gunting rambut dia seciput. eksyen je. hihi. saje nak amik gamba abah gunting rambut kazim.

lepas atuk kazim, opah umi pulak merenjis and eksyen-eksyen gunting rambut kazim seciput. padehal gunting tu tak kena pun rambut dia! hihi.

lepas cukur rambut, anak-anak yatim ambil tempat dan mulakan tahlil dan bacaan Yaasin. bergema rumah dengan surah yang indah tu. betul-betul aku teringat kat mak. moga rahmat surah Yaasin sampai padanya.

* * *

marhaban sudah, baca Yaasin sudah, cukur rambut sudah. masa untuk jamu tetamu yang sudi datang. jemput makan semua!

kat dalam dah sedia ada roti jala dengan kari ayam atau kuah durian. pilih mana-mana suka ye makcik. hihi. ni sebenarnya untuk brunch, khas buat makcik marhaban dan sape-sape yang datang awal. sedap! tapi biase la tuan rumah bukannya sempat makan betul-betul. sempat la merasa sikit!

selain roti jala, ade jugak kuih-muih ni. sedap-sedap belaka. pulut kuning pun ade skali dengan rendang ayam. memang sedap, tapi semua dapat rasa serba sikit. jadilah tu!

lepas makcik marhaban makan-makan, dapat goodie bag ni. dalamnya ade sejadah dan homemade chocolate kalo tak salah. cupcake pun ade kot-kot. malam tu yong, syima, azi yang sibuk-sibuk membalut, sambil syida hias-hias buaian.

makcik marhaban dah selesai makan, kat luar pun ade dok sedia makanan untuk mereka yang datang untuk tahlil. nasi hujan panas tu! sedap tapi pelik sebab ade rasa manis-manis sikit. banyak sangat bubuh kismis kot. tapi ayam masak merah memang best! pedas, tapi tak pedas sangat. sedang-sedang sedap!

walaupun dengan macam-macam lauk, hidangan ini yang nampaknya jadi perhatian - kambing golek! memang sedap sangat sampai habis licin. malahan, inilah hidangan yang habis paling cepat. nasib baik sempat singgah kat meja ni dan suruh brader ni potongkan kambing sepinggan, taruh tepi untuk tuan rumah.

* * *

mak mr. khairul pun datang join sekali, dengan adik-adik teh ngan sofia. seronok khaleef jumpa aunty ya dia.

lagi satu tetamu istimewa semestinya tokcik aku! tapi rasa pelik sikit sebab selalunya tokcik ni akan merangkap tuan rumah jugak, dan dia yang akan menyambut tetamu. kali ni, tokcik datang lambat pulak. tak best la. lenkali datang 2-3 hari awal ye tokcik! hihi.

tokcik & my mom in law

...dan seperti biasa tokcik aku la yang paling glamer dan vogue di antara semua tetamu. baju sequin-sequin, tudung lip lap tak tinggal. memang bergaya! hihi.

* * *

adik-beradik abah 7 orang. hari tu 3 je dapat datang. semua lelaki. comel sangat. pakcik kudus yang baju purple tu adik lelaki bongsu. pak huri yang baju belang pulak adik lelaki kedua. orangnya memang kelakar dan meriah. abah berbaju batik pulak anak lelaki sulung, yang dua-dua tu panggil 'bang'.

seronok amik gamba diorang sebab dah lama sangat tak jumpa!

yang atas ni 3 beradik, yang di bawah ni pulak 3 cousins. lepas kenduri, masa orang dah makin kurang, diorang bertiga ni sibuk tan-kan kulit main bola tengah-tengah laman abah. berpeluh-peluh. ye lah, kat dubai time ni mane nak klua main bola kat padang. kan tengah panas gile summer. kat umah atuk ni bole la main gile-gile bawah matahari!

haqeem, haiqal & khaleef

* * *

terima kasih pada tetamu yang datang meraikan kelahiran cucunda-cucunda haji sharifuddin, walaupun ade yang ingat aqiqah ni untuk sorang cucu je. ade pulak yang ingat kakak aku ade twins, sebab ade dua buai. sape ntah yang tak kasi maklumat betul ni. hoho.

secara betulnya, aqiqah ni bukan saje untuk kazim ngan adam haris - tapi sekali ngan anak adik aku syima, marissa. tu yang ade baper ekor kambing tumbang tu! terutama kambing golek yang tak sempat makan banyak-banyak tu. uhuk uhuk.

puasa esok ye? salam ramadhan untuk semua! alhamdulillah puasa kali ni istimewa sebab

• pertama kali puasa sambil susukan kazim
• tahun ni sambut ramadhan di malaysia, sampai la syawal nanti!
• tapi sedih jugak sebab mr. khairul puasa sorang-sorang di dubai...

Flying With Kids : What to Pack?

i travel back to malaysia with my 4 boys - a 4 year old kid, a terrible 2 toddler, and a 3 month-old baby. oh, and my favorite 31 year old boy!

there's A LOT to plan!

khaleef's on first flight!

i remember khaleef's first flight. sigh. how easy it was back then!

mr. khairul had already gone to dubai, and was waiting for us. i flew with my abah and umi, and a 2 year old khaleef. kahfi was in my tummy, and kazim was yet to be conceived!

it was a 2am flight. khaleef sat down, i switched on the in-flight movie to his favorite disney's 'the little mermaid'. after less than 30mins, he had already dozzed off - all the way - yes, ALL through the journey. he woke up only when the plane had landed!

memang senang ya amat!

* * *

on our second trip back home, khaleef was his usual 'easy-to-manage' self. he sat down, and immediately got comfortable with his in-flight entertainment.


what was new this time around, was we're travelling with kahfi - on his first flight, and first trip back to his home soil.

he too, was fairly easy to managed. hungry, i breast-fed him. when sleepy, he slept. when playful, he just sat quietly on my lap.


we got the 3-seat in a row, right up front so that we can have the bassinet for kahfi to sleep in. the bassinet is sturdy and looks comfy - kahfi slept well in it! however, he had to be taken out during turbulence, or else he might go bouncy bounce!

* * *

now for the first time, we're travelling with another addition to our family - baby kazim!

WHAT TO PACK?

1. make sure you have EXTRA CLOTHES - i got 2 for baby kazim, 2 shorts for the boys, and 1 t-shirt that could be worn by either one of them (travel light. it's highly unlikely that both boys dirty their t-shirt, i hope!)
2. DIAPERS and wipes - few for kazim and kahfi. if possible, double whatever you plan to bring. anticipate flight delay or tummy trouble!
3. shower cream, powder, diaper rash cream - i got myself the small packs of mini johnsons, and tucked them right in the diaper bag.
4. PLASTIC BAG to dispose the poopy diapers, or keep soiled pants - you can also use the barf-bag available in planes
5. MILK - for kahfi.
6. own SNACKS, finger food & bottled water - you can't keep asking the stewardess for water, or peanuts, can you? i brought biscuits and cereals.
7. entertainment - left it to the in-flight cartoons, and i'm saved!
8. favorite BOOK - a picture book for kahfi, and of course, 'the cat in the hat' for khaleef
9. TOYS - cars, cars or anything with wheels. more for kahfi.
10. first aid supplies - vicks vapor rub, plaster and tiger balm (tiger balm tu for the pening mom!)

arranged everything nicely in your diaper bag. make sure all items are organized, and MOST importantly - easily accessible.

in fact, pack a small bag (plastik bag pun boleh!) with just one diaper, a few wipes, and rash cream if needed and place it in the seat pocket in front of you, before you keep your handcarry and diaper bag up on the storage compartment.

senang nak capai kalo ape-ape hal!

AT THE AIRPORT

1. make sure you arrive early at the airport. you would have plenty of time for check-in. you must anticipate meragam, mengantuk, mengamuk or mengada-ngada drama from your kiddos!
2. try smiling helplessly at everyone and you may get help and be able to queue jump! (the last time we went back, they opened a counter JUST for us, because kahfi was crying)
3. this one i read somewhere - you can try asking if your flight is full when checking in because they can block out the seat next to you in a less full flight or put you next to a vacant seat, especially when traveling with a toddler under 24months without a seat; like kahfi.
4. wide space, plenty of room to move, the kiddos definitely want to run around - so put a set of reins or a harness on your kid so that you can let him walk around the terminal - but still keep him close.
5. make sure your kiddos wear distinctive clothing with bright colors or print to avoid losing them in a crowded airport - ALL my boys wore RED!
   

what's YOUR experience when flying or travelling with your kiddos? do share!

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i hope by the time you read this, we're already safe in malaysia, gobbling up durian and sticks of satay kajang, plus plates of char kuey teow!