Breastfeeding

I was made aware the benefits of breastfeeding when i was on my first pregnancy in the UK in 2002. Awareness in Malaysia has also grown: evidence i picked up from specialty shops selling breastfeeding equipments, blogs & websites, also government hospitals policies on breastfeeding.

Able to breastfeed In my personal opinion, I think every women is able to breastfeed. However, some may have to work harder than those lucky ones where milk supply is never a problem. Lack if milk supply is only a result of what your mind says to your body, not the cause of you unable to breastfeed. Eat/drink well and think positive always helps. Inverted nipples should not be a reason nowadays since there's stuff to help the problem. To some, time may be an issue but i've read a lot of outstation mothers still can find the time to express milk supply.

Don't criticize Good for those who breastfeed. The only thing that i disagree is when formula feeding mothers are criticised for their choices. I've seen a lot on blogs & website forums where formula feeding mothers were looked down by the breastfeeding mothers. Life is about making choices. They have reasons why they make those choices. You can only educate so they can make informed choices. You can educate, but don't preach. Seek to understand, then to be understood.

Breastmilk & intelligence I definitely disagree if formula is chosen over breastmilk because the belief of formula is better than breastmilk. Malaysian mothers are inclined to have that impression...just look at the formula milk adverts on TV. Even i (who breasfeed) sometimes doubt whether breastmilk is enough. Knowing the level of competitiveness in Malaysia, of course you want something that boost your kid's intelligence & health. Breastfeeding mothers boast to feed their child the best (which i disagree the boasting part). But breastmilk is only a factor,not a main factor in kid's intelligence. Simulation since young, parents' doa also play a part...

Matter of choice So breastfeeding is a matter of personal choice. Not mandatory. For Muslims, we are encourage to breastfeed until the baby is 2 years old.

Bond Breastfeeding to me, is more for the bonding between mother & child. If i weren't breasfeeding, my son would have ignored me when i come home from work. He would appreciate my maid more since his daytime is spent with my maid who plays, bathes and feeds him. But alhamdulillah, until now he still wants my cuddles and attention. I don't have the problem where my own son doesn't want me, or i have to pass my son to my maid to stop him from crying. To me, it is sad for a mother unable to calm down her own child. Calm down the child by saying, not yelling and hitting.

I have exclusively breastfed my eldest for 8 mths (she rejected the milk herself when i introduced formula milk), my second for 2 years and my third for 8 mths. I introduced formula milk (drank if breastmilk is not available) when they have started weaning around 8 months.

I am pro breastfeeding and i encourage all mothers to breastfeed. The benefits are tremendous and rewarding.

Can you guess???

Can you tell people by the things they have? People call it PROFILING (obviously i've been watching too many secret agent movies)....See what can you tell about me...


My stuff at my office. Looks neat but not so neat. Hand lotion, picture frame with no picture, a plant...hmmmmm. What so significant about the quotes that i put up at my whiteboard?

What i can tell you is this miniature of Double A box (with mini papers in it) was nicked from my husband. It was a door gift when he attended a conference.
I love it because I LIKE THINGS in SMALL SIZES....mini cupcakes, baby shoes with adult pattern, mini memo pads. If you have noticed, mini mirror, mini photo frame, small hand lotion, mini woven basket (the one on top of the Lipton tin)... it's not just coincidence that i have those on the shelf.... So if anyone would like to give me things, give me things in small sizes. It is just as good as or even better than the original size... even my car is only a MyVi...hehe... I like Kancil, Viva, Kelisa, Swift(the higher range), Satria rather than any sedan cars. I chose MyVi because it has higher cc, Swift too expensive and Satria only has 2 doors.

Apart from that, you can tell a lot about me from the stuff that i have...I'm also trying to do profiling on myself. Knowing Gemini, they sometimes don't know what they want and who they really are... I profiled myself to know more about myself...Happy profiling!...

Ramadan_Day 26

I'm definitely in raya mood already! I will start my raya holiday tomorrow until the next Friday (11 days!) And of course when you're in raya mood, you can't do your work, can you? I've settled some of my work which need immediate attention. Seems smooth sailing except the IT survey that i need to do immediately after raya....Ahh! Don't want to talk about. Don't want to spoil my raya mood. I promise i will be dedicated to work once i come back from the holiday. The 1 month raya celebration will give me some time for me to finish the task. I like it when i work while others are enjoying themselves. No pressure on me to do unnecessary matters thus i'll be able to finish the task which is important to me....
After kitchen cabinets, my next project will be the porch!..... It's good timing for me to do some survey on the internet and magazines since i can't really focus on my work. It will be a 2010 project and still contemplating on the budget, whether to do just minor (less than RM5k) or major (less than RM15k). Apart from budget, the garden theme is also a dilemma. I like Bali and Tropical themes but i also like flowers which directly related to English theme. I like greens and i also like flowers. So why not i combine both....easier said than done, though. I want the theme to be obvious although it's a hybrid but i don't want my garden to look like 'rojak' either.
I will dedicate a post for my garden dilemma later. Till after Raya holiday, wishing me "Selamat Hari Raya 1430 Hijrah!"....music**dam dam dum, bunyi mercun**music

Raya 2009 preparation

Raya fever has struck everyone! Raya songs are already on the radio, offices are being decorated, annual leave application has been submitted for approval, new money for ang pau received and to be sorted out. At home, kuih raya already started production, baju raya already collected, houses are being cleaned & decorated with new furniture (not me though!)

I don't know why I'm kinda looking forward to this year's hari raya. Possibly i feel a bit settled and have lost my UK raya attitude. Celebration was simple back then since majority are not Muslims. I cooked raya dishes and dressed up nicely in baju kurung. Went for open houses (quite a few) and that was it really. Simple preparation and the feeling of celebration was only for a day or two.
When i came back in 2004, i felt raya celebration in M'sia was costly. Imagine the money you have to provide compared to when i was in the UK. New clothes, ang pau, travelling and kuih raya orders. I didn't buy clothes specifically for raya in the last few years. I just wore new clothes not worn at either houses (Batu Pahat/Perlis). I only bought kuihs as gifts for parents & in laws. I didn't buy for my house as i didn't forsee anyone would come for a raya visit. I didn't see the need to decorate my house. I was still in my 'UK raya attitude'.....

But now, i bought cloths to be sewn as early as April 2009 for the whole family. I bought ingredients to make homemade kuih raya. I want to decorate my house (but have not done so due to budget constraint). I do want people to visit my house (on 2nd thoughts, actually i'm kinda reluctant since we don't have proper sofa sets for guests to sit yet!) .... so where is this excitement coming from? Is this good or bad?

I figure i have lost the 'UK raya attitude' and have anticpate raya like any other Malaysian in Malaysia. It's good to have these two experiences... makes you think and analyse. But raya is definitely more significant when you have kids. More enjoyable since i have a reason to dress them up... :0
What i bought for the girls. Bracelets and Japanese cotton for baju kurung. The theme came from my baju thus green and orange. The boys (Kasyif & hubby) will wear green and my kurung consolidates both colours.

My 1st attempt at making kuih raya. This is Almond London in the making.

Ramadhan Day 18

We are already 18 days through Ramadhan. Doesn't feel like 18 days though. Maybe because the work days so far were shorter than 5 due to Merdeka Day and Nuzul Quran which fell on Mondays. And next week is a 3 working day for me as i will start my 'balik kampung' journey on Thursday. 1 more weekend and the next weekend is already Hari Raya...Time really flies.... One of the signs of hari kiamat???
Alhamdulillah, i manage to do terawih prayers this year. Initially I wanted to berjemaah at the surau but on the 1st night the surau was so full. Rather that gruntling as i pray, i decided to pray at home. I feel this is better as a start.
Some people don't appreciate people doing terawih at home as if the effort is of little significance.... Yes, i admit a lot can be gained in terms of pahala if we do it at the surau. But rather that giving advice, they seems more like passing judgement...'tidak merebut peluang' is the most common remark.... I think this people have not embraced that only Allah SWT knows everthing and what's best for every human being He created. Have they ever try to understand why some people behave and act certain ways?

The religion doesn't burden its followers but encourage us to constantly change and improve for the better. As the phrase goes 'begin the end in mind', I have a vision to be an excellent Muslim one day. Excellence in terms of ibadah, thinking process and lifestyle. And i am making small steps towards that since this is what i can afford to do at the moment....

Selamat menjalankan ibadah berpuasa.....