:: the end ::

It's the 44th day, hence marks the end of my confinement period and I'm currently waiting for BFFs to come and celebrate.

Happy Saturday peeps!

For all Muslims, only another day to go before the holy Ramadhan arrives so let's prepare for it.

:: si bobot ::

~ Ady Rifqi @ 5 weeks ~

:: in love with nudity ::

...and I meant these nude heels...

I had my eyes on nude coloured heels since ages ago but never bought any. Since my shoe racks are already empty, I guess it's time for me to own one. Nude coloured shoes are as universal as black because its neutral shade matches tons of colours. Not only that, they can also give longer and sexier illusions to your legs hence make it one must-have colour for a shoe fetish like me. I love wearing high heels but wear them mostly to office so my choice would be either in pointed or peep toe like any one (or all) of the above.

a.) Plain patent pointed pumps like this look formal and suitable if worn with suits but look sexy when paired with jeans on casual Friday.

b.) If a plain one is too plain, then this Valentino Patent Stylish Bow Pump can give similar formal and sexy look plus more attention to the feet.

c.) Peep toe heels are not considered as formal corporate attire but who cares? This simple peep toe might spoil the entire look if worn with corporate suit but it sure looks good with shirt and pants or skirts. 

d.) This Fendi Platform Bow pumps might be too fancy to be worn during the day as it is more suitable for a night in town but there is no prefect to record names like school days. No harm wearing this, perhaps with a simple plain outfit to enhance the overall look and brighten up a day.

e.) This booties look gorgeous inside a pants that end on the ankle because it will only show the peep toe and a part of the ribbon. Sexy yet still reflects the formal office attire look.

f.) This is a fancy gladiator heels and if this is chosen for work it would be only on casual Friday. That gold straps make it extra pretty.

g.) I love shoes with details especially with bows, ribbons, buckles; not forgetting in patent material and this Alexander McQueen's would be my most favourite choice among all. It reflects sophistication, formality, class and sexiness in one. I like~!

-----

Tips - what to wear with nude shoes:

1. With all white attire, perhaps a dash of nude in belt or necklace.

2. Go all neutral from top to toe but enhance it with gold or tan accessories.

3. With bright colours so you won't end up looking all red or blue or yellow or whatever colour from top to toe.

4. With a mini skirt because your legs will look extra longer.

5. With a pair of jeans.

6. With printed top or dress. The neutral shade can helps to tone down the look or enhance the printed outfit.

*credit: image - polyvore / tips - typef.com

:: ops bersih ::

Don't get me wrong, this is not about the Bersih rally but my personal Bersih project which is decluttering and organizing items in my so-called 'walk in wardrobe'. After moving into this house since two years ago I suddenly got the urge to tidy up the room. The project started last week with the first wardrobe and my goodness, for the first time in my life I was surprised with how many clothes I have! There were A LOT and some even forgotten so there were few "oh?" and "ahaa" while I was organizing them. Started with the first tier I took out everything and organized them back into the wardrobe after deciding which one to leave and which one remains. Most items were in good condition but there were some white tops which haven't been "seen" for ages started having yellow spots hence require bleaching. After the first tier I continued with the second tier, then the third one, followed by those on hangers. I then moved to the drawer chest and finally the shoe rack. Living with a baby doesn't give me much freedom, hence the project didn't finish in one day. I could only continue when Ady was sleeping on his own and it didn't happen everyday so it took me almost 2 weeks to complete everything. Ops Bersih ended yesterday. Now, I'm satisfied because they are all well organized and I will no longer keep items that won't be useful. 

I didn't snap any photo at the beginning of the project but this was how the wardrobe previously looks like. Even KiKi loves hiding inside there before. Can you spot her?

Now everything is neat. Top tier is for tops and jeans. In the middle is pants and skirts while the bottom tier is for baju kurung and jubah. On hangers are cardigans, suits and few skirts, dresses and jubah.The wardrobe is totally full. There are another similar full stack of tops, bottoms and baju kurung at the back of each line. I shouldn't buy any new clothes after this. Seriously. (yes, I am dead serious - yeahh right!)

Drawers are for tank tops, inners and scarves.

This is wardrobe no. 2 and those are my working tops / shirts. Couldn't do anything about this as it is already full to the max. There are even 2 tops in 1 hanger. Special reminder to myself: this has no more room for new top. Period.

Unwanted stuffs. From left to right: a bag of shoes & a bag of clothes for donation plus 2 paperbags of clothes for my lil sister.

Most of those shoes need to be sent to cobbler so I don't know whether I should send them for donation or just throm them away. There are few pairs of favourite shoes inside there for example the pink one on top by Eclipse but I have to stay strong. I don't want to keep them anymore and because I will have good reasons to buy new pair of shoes.

My almost-empty shoe racks. Not so many left :-( Although I keep my flats in another shoe rack at the hall but that doesn't count. I still need to start my collection all over again. Should I say yay or nay?

Overall, I'm satisfied with Ops Bersih. I should make this an annual project so I could get rid of unwanted, outdated items and ensure everything is neat and organize. Well, hopefully this inspire you to start with your own spring cleaning project too ;-)

Happy weekend peeps!

:: first of many things ::

It's 17th of the month and on this date last month, I was giving birth to Ady. Yeap, our lil son is already 1 month old today. Happy 1 month birthday baby! Time flies really fast when there is good things around so I have to cherish every moment with Ady before I start working again. Hubby started going to work as usual a week after Ady was born so there were only both of us at home during the day. Although Ady's usual routine is sleeping and awake for diapers changing, feeding and bathing, a day is never the same like another. One thing I learnt from having a baby is you have to expect the unexpected. Today he might want to sleep on his own but tomorrow he might only want to sleep in my arms. Sometimes I just couldn't believe I've become a mother. I have zero experience in handling baby who is less than one month old so I'm sometimes surprised with my own ability, for example bathing Ady on my own since he was 12 days old. I guess motherhood comes naturally and you have to do what you have to do. Although we have started giving Ady formula milk I'm also thankful that I'm still able to express my milk and he drinks it more than the formula milk, which is only given twice or thrice during the day. Last week Ady managed drinking directly from me but he only does that when he is not very hungry. Well, at least that could helps to stimulate more milk and hopefully I could still give him breastmilk until next few months.

Today also marks Ady first visit to the shopping mall. We know it's kinda early for him and myself to go out but we just couldn't resist the temptation of bringing him jalan-jalan so we started with a small shopping mall closer to home and it was Empire Shopping Gallery. Another thing I couldn't resist was having good food and that also explained our outing. If I become double the size I'm today or having arthiritis and rheumatism later, there is no one else to blame except myself for not having proper confinement period. Had our late lunch at Chilli's. We ordered the same customised dish like Nor and I had during our last outing together; New York Strip + Monterey Chicken with mashed potato and seasoned veggies as well as additional fries. Surprisingly I was full to the max only with one main course so I wondered how Nor and I could ate so much last time when we also ordered Triple Play. Hrmmm...

Enough talking about food. Ady was sleeping in his carrier when we arrived but he suddenly awoke when our dish arrived so we took turns cuddling him while eating. We then strolled around the mall and bought two rompers for our baby. As new parents, it was our first visit to nursing room in a shopping mall and surprisingly Empire Shopping Gallery has a very nice nursing room with cute wallpaper (or is it the same with other shopping malls?). There were 2 changing rooms, a sink and also hot / cold water dispenser. It was clean and comfortable and it makes me want to visit Empire with Ady again. 

Changing time~!

 Ady arrived in blue but left in red

We spent almost four hours before leaving the mall. It was a new experience for all of us, a pleasant one and I just couldn't wait for our next family outing perhaps to a bigger mall ;-)

:: majlis aqiqah ady rifqi ::

Event: Majlis Aqiqah Ady Rifqi

Date: 16.06.2011 (Saturday)

Time: 11:00 am

Venue: Masjid Al-Mukminun USJ 2

 

 

It was a simple, small event. Started with recitation of surah Al-Imran, the Ustaz then gave Ady a bit of honey and date, followed by marhaban where Ady was brought around and shown to all guests. The event ended with lunch which includes mutton from the aqiqah cooked in 'kuzi' style as one of the dish. Alhamdulillah everything went smoothly and well according to plan. It was a significant event for Ady and us as the parents. 

Our heartiest appreciation goes to:

*Our parents (my parents-in-law for arranging the event & my parents for their support)

*Our dear friends, Isma & Hairil in Melbourne for Ady's Pumpkin Patch top and jeans that he was wearing.

*Family members, friends and all guests for spending their time attending the event.

*My grandparents, aunties and cousins. Although not attending the event, they still came all the way from Negeri Sembilan in the evening just to see Ady.

:: wordless wednesday - tilam ikea: pasti nyenyak ::

*entry ini adalah untuk Wordless Wednesday Contest @ www.eyriqazz.com

:: grey is the new black ::

#01 - Carter's Romper with Tie Print

#02 - Charles & Keith Peep Toe Boots

#03 - Harem Pants from EightDesignsBoutique

Grey is the new Black.

:: a sinful day ::

I should have wrote about this ages ago but didn't had the chance. Still wanna blog about it though cuz it was my last outing as a mommy-to-be. It was Wednesday, 2 days before giving birth to Ady. That noon, Nor fetched me and drove us to One Utama because she already made an appointment at the Estee Lauder roadshow. Like other makeup roadshows they sold vouchers that allow you to have a makeover, get your photos taken and redeem their products. For this Estee Lauder model search roadshow, such voucher was sold at RM300 and RM250 was redeemable for products. Since Nor wanted to add more Estee Lauder products in her collection, the voucher was worthy and she kindheartedly bought another voucher for me to have a makeover too as a pre-delivery treat. My BFF is such a darling isn't she? ;-)

Before...

...After

I really like my makeup because it accentuated my eyes without looking OTT although I was wearing fake eyelashes. Wish I could have that fresh, glowing look everyday.

Me still with baby bump and Nor looking pretty... ;-)

We actually spent hours at the roadshow so we were both starving when we left the Centre Court. Nor suggested having lunch at Chili's while we were looking for a place to eat. Remembering about confinement period that awaits me, I agreed with her irresistible idea. Chilli's is one of my favourite eating place and I better eat anything I wanted because I will have to abstain from many delicious food during confinement. Chili's got a new menu that allowed us to combine 2 main course in a dish served with Loaded Mashed Potatoes and Seasonal Veggies for only RM49.90. It was super awesome! Out of few selected main course offered, we chose to have New York Strip with Monterey Chicken. We were starving, excited and being "us", one combo dish was not enough so we also ordered a Triple Play.

Yeah, Nor and I always have big appetite when we go out together. Few years ago we both had 2 Burger King's burgers each (a Whopper & a Mushroom Swiss) together with other side dishes like fries, onion rings and mozarella cheese sticks... and finished eating every single thing. We made it again that day and cleared off those nice, tasty food. I even drank 2 big glasses of lemonade and a big glass of mango juice too... crazy but true!

Before...

...After :-D

Oh, I really need to eat at Chili's once this confinement period is over. I miss having good food! Anyway, to cut the story short I did some shopping at One Utama that day. Managed getting a yellow basic tee that I've been waiting for and also 2 basic vests from Dorothy Perkins as well as nursing and feeding items from Parkson that include Avent washable breast pads. I purposely highlighted the pads because I highly recommend it to all mothers-to-be out there. Breast pad is a must-have item and instead of buying disposable ones that cost a lot (because you will need them a lot), why not settle with a washable one instead? Avent washable breast pads contain 3 pairs of pads and also a laundry bag for RM64.90 but you could get them a bit cheaper at online baby stores.


It was Charles & Keith's first day of sale, the sale that I've been waiting for because I have been eyeing for this particular boot ever since it was a new arrival item. Two reasons why I didn't get it earlier were #01 - it was sold at RM149.90 and #02 - I couldn't wear them yet due to pregnancy so what's the rush? Unfortunately that boot was not sold at C&K One Utama so on our way back to USJ I have asked Nor to drop me at Empire because I knew it was sold there. It did and was discounted at 40% so it was only RM89.95. It was worth the wait and what's more, Nor paid it for me as my birthday prezzie. Who doesn't love free shoes? Love ya babe ;-)

Look at my ala-Rozita Che Wan's eyelashes

Trying to look cute + showing off my 2 scoops of ice cream and a trolley full of shopping items

The day was not over yet because our third destination was Mydin. I had to buy some groceries but we walked around the entire store (well, almost) since Nor never been to Mydin before and we ended buying a trolley full of items. One thing I love about going to Mydin is buying King's ice cream from one of the stalls at the parking area. No other brands could beat King's corn flavoured ice cream so that day I had not only one but two cones of ice cream, one on the way in and another on the way out. I even had a scoop of yam with a scoop of corn as you can see in the above pic. Memang hari lepas geram dengan makanan nih...hehehe.

So that was it - a wonderful, memorable and a 'sinful' day out with my BFF. It was sinful because we have spent more than RM1k through out the day and it was more sinful because we didn't regret it. My heartiest appreciation goes to Nor. You really made my day and I will remember it for the rest of my life because it was my last outing before becoming a mama. Really appreciate it babe and thank you for everything - xoxo.

:: losing doesn't mean failure ::

Being a mother, you will always want the best for your child. Ady is 3 weeks old and the best thing for him at the moment besides love and care should be breast milk. As we all knew, there are numerous benefits of feeding breast milk to a child. Personally, I have planned to breastfeed my son since I was still carrying him but little that I knew it is a pretty challenging task.

Government hospitals promote breastfeeding and ban any other milk as well as feeding bottles, paficiers and others. They have this policy where mothers should breastfeed their newborns as early as 30 minutes after delivery so the newborns could get the colostrum which contains antibodies that can protect them against disease. Ady didn't want to drink directly from me since that first 30 minutes. Different nurses came providing assistance but neither one of them succeed so Ady was taken away and given formula milk instead because he was already hungry. In this case they still provide formula milk but with a cup instead of bottle. I salute the nurses for their endless efforts but Ady still didn't want to drink from me until the second day. It was already at night and after numerous shoving by the nurse he finally 'surrendered'. Until today, that was the first and the last time so far because on Day 3 onwards I expressed my milk with the hospital's pump and given to him manually.

Ady drinking EBM from a cup and he was only 3 days old

We reached home late night on Day 4. Using the Anakku manual breastpump I bought earlier, I expressed my milk and fed him with a feeding bottle. That time Ady drank less than 2 oz (around 30-40 ml) but it gradually increased to 60 ml. Since he got jaundice, we were advised to feed him every 1-2 hours so on Friday, Day 8 we bought Medela Mini Electric double pumping breastpump for more efficiency. I have started worrying because I could only keep one or two stocks in the chiller while demand for milk was increasing as days passed by. I read on the Internet that some people could pump up to 20 oz per session and even have expired EBMs while it was a struggle for me to get even 3 oz! Honestly, it was very challenging and a bit stressful. I didn't do much everyday except expressing milk from morning till night but I could only kept 1 or 2 stocks in the chiller. Even so, I still intended to feed him fully with EBM at least until he reaches one month old which is only a week away.

I could plan but today I consider myself losing in this so-called battle because I already gave Ady formula milk this evening. Supply couldn't cater demand. Ady is growing and it's gonna be worst if there is no available stock when he is hungry so last night we decided to give him formula milk during the day and continue with my EBM at night. Giving formula milk is on trial and error basis because we have to wait and see whether it is suitable for our baby so hubby bought the smallest pack available. Our first choice is Enfalac A+ and hopefully it suits Ady. I'm a bit disappointed with myself actually, but it doesn't make me a bad mom, right? "Losing doesn't mean failure" and I'm saying this to cure my heart :-(

:: mama's lil sweetheart ::

Tidur melekat ;-)

:: groceries at my door step ::

Look what arrived for me today:

Fruits and Veges!

Rabby told me about an irresistible myDeal promotion and it was a RM10 voucher for online groceries shopping at redtick.com.my. With that voucher we could buy selected vegetables, fruits, fish and chicken as they were converted into points, either 1 or 2 points per item. This is the purchase order for my groceries today:

Items with points were those listed with (1P) or (2P) and instead of paying RM39.90 I only paid RM10.50 for Campbell's mushroom soup, San Remo's pasta and delivery charge. The balance of RM29.40 was "paid" with the RM10 coupon which means I saved RM19.40 for the first 8 items. Not bad.

Online groceries shopping is such a convenient service especially for a person who is in confinement like moi. Redtick not only sells fresh and frozen products but also other items like household items, health & beauty, baby & kid, bakery, cookies & snacks and few other categories. Delivery charge is only RM2.00 but make sure your house is included in their service area. By the way, cut-off time to place an order for same day delivery is at 12 noon. Orders received after that will be delivered on the next day. Redtick has good customer service. They responded to my enquiries within few hours and less. They also called to inform my items will arrive a bit late although it was only for 15 minutes. It was a pleasant shopping experience and no doubt I will continue shopping with them again in the future.

*keywords: online groceries shopping malaysia

:: a baby and a bag ::

Ady Rifqi is two weeks old today. Hubby shaved Ady's head last Sunday so he no longer has any hair now. Shaving a newborn's head is a sunnah in Islam. It signifies cleansing so a new set of hair could replace the one he has since inside the womb. The shaved hair will then weigh and equalise with gold's rate and the amount will be donated to those in needs. Another sunnah is having aqiqah, which is to sacrifice 2 lambs or 2 parts of cow for a boy. Insyaallah aqiqah for Ady will be done in two weeks time.

This is Ady's latest, new look. He looks a bit different now isn't he?

Ady got jaundice on his third day. Photo therapy session was done on him in the ward before we were discharged and we did two follow ups at SDMC to check his bilirubin's level. The last test was done Friday last week and it was 222. We have tried carrying him under the morning sun, bathing him with special ginseng for jaundice treatment and even made him drink goat's milk and black grape juice so we are going back to SDMC tomorrow, hoping that he is free from jaundice. The best remedy for jaundice is actually breastmilk and it is his only food source so hopefully it helps too. Ady drinks a lot more nowadays compared to last week. Previously it was around 40ml to 2oz but now he could drinks up to 3.5oz per feeding session. I just knew that boys drink a lot more compared to girls. I planned to provide him only with EBM for few months at least but I'm pretty worried whether I would be able to do it because it is a bit of a struggle. Don't know how some people even have expired EBMs due to stock overload because in my situation, it is hard even to keep few for stock. I'm trying hard here so wish me luck on that ya ;-)

On another note, after one month waiting I finally received my online purchase. It was my first experience buying a handbag from an online seller who is living in US and I'm telling you it was not a pleasant one. Everything was okay until full amount was transferred but there was no news after that on status of the item. I have sent few emails and even posted on her FB wall, still no reply. I didn't mind how long it takes for the item to arrive but she should update her customers whether the item is available and whether it is already couriered. It pissed me off when she managed updating her FB status on new orders and sharing pics on other items for sale but didn't seem to care about her current customers. There were few other buyers who were experiencing the same problem as mine and they too didn't get any reply from her. One day her FB status mentioned that the bags were already couriered to Malaysia but I still didn't know whether mine was included in the shipment until someone who was also a customer gave me contact number of that seller's local associate. I sms-ed her and happy knowing that my bag was already here. Considered myself a bit lucky because there were still others who haven't got theirs. Anyway, let bygones be bygones. Hubby picked up the handbag earlier today and this is the new 'kid' in my handbag collection:

I didn't intend to buy a Coach bag actually but I was kinda desperate to have a tote bag that could fit my iPad since my handbags are mostly small in size. I only used my Gucci D Ring tote but I don't want to spoilt it carrying heavy stuff and over-use it (although I already did) because it is a sentimental value item (bought it in Bali during our honeymoon). Thought of buying a Longchamp at first but the one I had my eye on was already sold out in their boutiques here. Felt in love with Kate Spade's spring collection but they were priced at RM1000++. Quite expensive for the inital purpose so when I saw the seller's FB status and photos from Coach outlet's catalog on Coach Memorial Day Sale, it didn't take me long to place an order because that Coach bag was really cheap! From retail price at USD268 it went way down to only USD83 so I only paid RM380 for the bag, inclusive of shipping and service fees. Best of all, it's pink and matches my iPad casing, my pink mobile and my pinky camera too. Total awesome! :-D