The Original Juice

But too busy at work... too lazy at home. Hehe..

I wanna write about my day at ODAC (Obstretics Day Care) where i learnt SO MUCH last Fri!!

Also how Z entertained a guy friend of mine at home.

As well as about the only 2nd birthday present i've got!


So hang in there people.

1. Why does my right hand cannot close to a tight fist every morning? It gets worse when i sleep longer. I can barely brush my teeth
2. Is it true that if we SCRATCH our body, it will make the STRETCH marks worse?
3. I read somewhere that the best sleeping position for a pregger is to lie on her left side and prop a pillow in between the knees. I can't sleep on my sides cos my nose will get block. i find sleeping on my back with pillows to prop my feet up slightly really nice for my back. But will it affect the baby when the bump gets bigger?
4. Is my belly button normal? Looks like its almost closing it, a bit swollen and out of shape.
5. Why does my left rib sometimes feel funny.. like pins and needles. Esp when i try to sleep on my left or simply sitting at the desk.

Really Q 1 scares me. My left hand already got injury.. now my right hand like not functioning correctly.


Also i forgot to write that @ KK last monday, we signed up for an antenatal class. I know its veryyyyy late already. Actually recommended from when you were at week 16. Im week 27 already! and it starts 3rd week Jan. But i really wanna be armed with some knowledge to prepare for labour as well as to care for the infant. Dont wanna be caught dumbfounded when slapped with the situation, panicked and ended up having C sect or something.

But Z said im just wasting my money. He said he knows already all things. YUCKS. Hellooooo how can you possibly know already simply by watching ur aunties?? It's not the same ok just WATCHING and actually EXPERIENCING the whole ordeal.


I signed up anyways. Hopefully we will benefit from it. Ameen.

It was close to 5:30pm when Ash and I decided to watch a movie. So i booked the tickets online.

It was as though a force was stopping me from buying the tickets because i keyed in my debit card details TWICE but the site told me the card has expired. That was impossible cos i just used it the day before. So i tried another card and it returned the same thing! I was sooo puzzled.

I then suddenly realised that in my haste, i entered the wrong exp date. I dont know what came over me. I Finally got all the card details right. But i still didnt feel good (rasa tak sedap) about something. Felt like something is still wrong, like i moved thru the site so fast. I gave it a once over and tot it was correct. Bedtime Stories, 2 tickets, 7:40pm.


Now it was 7:30pm. Ash called me to come out. I rushed and rushed and rushed like mad to walk over to Causeway POint. It was already 7:45pm when i collected my tickets. Only to be told, "YOUR TICKET IS FOR TMRW!!!!!!!!!"

OH.MY.GOD.

I can't believe it! The one thing that i didnt check was the DATE of the movie. I suppose i felt something was awry when the ticket i bought cost $10 each when it's actually a weekday night. I dismissed it thinking maybe cos its a sneak preview.

Then i recalled that i saw only one day of show timing for this movie and it said WED. I clearly saw it was WED. But what selenger me didn't realise was, Yesterday was NOT WED... it was TUESDAY! SELENGENYE JULISSAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!


Thank God Ash wasn't mad. But that is only bcos she hasnt paid for it!!! Humph :P

So i frantically sent out an sms to 5 or 6 of my contacts whom i tot might be interested and convenient for them to go to Causeway Point to buy my tickets as both me and Ash cldnt make it for that date. Nobody replied.


Luckily Ash gave me an idea. Before my class at 7:30pm, I can go to the ticket counter and approach pple to buy my tickets. Definitely they're there to buy one and as exp has it, Pple who Q to buy tickets will get very lousy seats and mine was 2nd row from the back. Surely somebody would want it.


However, very fortunately, im on half day on Xmas eve, so i decided to try my luck and ask my student if i can come over in the afternoon. This morning she replied me with a positive!

In a way, im relieved that i dont hafta approach strangers and "sell" my tickets. On the other hand, i'm $21 poorer instead of just $10.50 if i were to share with Ash. Oh well. that's the price to pay for not checking your work!

I received a call during lunch yesterday from the hospital to confirm my ODAC appointment.



She also reminded me to fast and things like that.



At 3pm, a similar no called me again.



Me: Hello



Nurse: Er... Boleh cakap dgn Maknye? (Can i speak to your mother?)



Me: *Puzzled why somebody who called my hp would wanna talk to my mother* Er... Mak kat rumah (My mum's at home)



Nurse: Oh... kat rumah? Er... Ni Julissa ke? (OH at home?... Are you Julissa?)



Me: Saya (Yes i am)



Nurse: Ohhh ingatkan anaknye tadi. (Oh i tot it was ur child just now)







HAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!





!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



??????????????????









She proceeded to ask me why i indicated vegetables as my Food taboo in the form. I told her i DO eat vege but not a wide range.. just potatoes, carrots and cabbages. She said the first 2 are diabetics' enemies. She coaxed me to try to eat whatever they serve on Fri.





After we hung up. I wanted to laugh sooooo hard so i called Ash to tell her. I could have conveyed the msg thru msn but i wanted to do some hardcore laughing and felt so relieved afterwards.



hahahahhahahahahahahahahahaahahahahahhahahahahahahahaha



*shake head*

22/12

5min past midnight, i was just about to turn in to bed and Zubair was already asleep since 8pm (leaving me in peace to play game), when suddenly he hold out his hand and mumbled something. I took it and shook hands and asked what did u say? "Happy Birthday."

I was very very pleasantly surprised!

So that's Milestone 1: My first Bday with the husband actually around with me.

Last year, not only was he in Pakistan WITHOUT me, he also forgot the date. Not my birthdate but he tot it was still 21st when it was already end of 22nd. Bah.


It's a Mon so i had to come in to the office despite it being my bday. But its for a good reason.

Milestone 2: Went to meet a broker to train them on our eCargo system!

I feel like its a big step in my career here w current employer. For the 3 years i've been with them, I barely hafta correspond with clients except for the occasional email and phone calls and this is my first! Me being the most senior n experienced in actually using the system, it was only right that i had to conduct the meeting.

I was nervous as hell cos i dont really know the technical underwriting part of the system if they were to ask me, I only know the IT part of the process. Thankfully we have 2 new underwriters so i roped one in. She's supposed to be in charged of this system eventually, So it's also only right that she was there too.

It went brilliantly. Sure there were glitches and some customisation that the broker and Insured would want and that's exactly our job to look into it. Their office is located at Springleaf Tower. One i had wished to visit for a longgggggg time bcos of the nice building structure. You know lah me, very keen to look at other pple's office. It's quite small but very chic and organised. I LOVEEEE their filing cabinet. God so neat!!! So jakun like tt.


Milestone No 3: Check up @ KK Hospital.

I have been looking forward to start going to check up at KK to familiarise myself with them. Now, not only did i get referred earlier, the first appt also fell on my bday! Wow.

Luckily, appt is at 1.30pm. So right @ 1pm, i left office in a cab to the hosp. $6.40. As usual, Z was a bit late. So i went ahead to register myself in first and bought a light Delifrance lunch.

I feel soooo cared for at the registration counter where they set up my file. The nurse there was veryyy.... caring and sensitive.. while asking me this n that, explaining procedures and stuffs.

One of which is that no specific doctor will be attending to me during the course of my pregnancy as well as delivery but a TEAM of doctors. I'm fine with that. But the other thing is that, i might just be getting a STUDENT doctor. hmmm that i might be a bit reserved. But let's just hope that won't happen?

Bcos im from the Subsidised rate, if i were, God Forbid, be admitted for c-Sect, i'd be staying in a B2 class ward... which is a 4 bedder. A bit of downside cos my only hosp exp was at a 2 bedder ward in Mount Elizabeth. But it shld be just a short stay n somebody said that pple normally just draw the curtains anyways.


The wait to see the gynae wasn't very long. I noticed that its prolly bcos women visiting other rooms also have very short consultation. It was soooooooooooo short n sassy i cldnt help feel like she's trying to get rid of me ASAP. I totally forgot to ask a few things i had in mind like:

1. Can i have foot massages? My feet hurt but my pedicurist said it might trigger premature delivery.
2. Is it true I sldnt be bending down a lot. that it will hurt LATER?
3. Which is the best stretchmark prevention cream she would recommend (Although im using one from mothercare that's @ 50% discount $9 only.. like cheap = no good?)
4. and many many more i even forgot what are they.

The doc from Poly didn't print ALL my blood tests results so i hafta actually go back there to collect them. ERGHHHH so leceh (troublesome)!!

When checking for my medical history, i pointed out i had childhood mild asthma but that i sometimes get attacks once a year. But even then, i've never needed the ventolin puffs, just the pills, which i normally skipped anyways. I gave excuse that pple say i shldnt be taking medicines when pregnant. She scoffed off that remark saying that Ventolin is safe for pregnant women and its better to take this medicine otherwise you'll be suffocating your baby without much oxygen intake! Ok ok, i thought, dont hafta roar at me. Duh.

I was given multi vitamins to take. But i forgot to ask if that means i dont hafta take the folic acids, irons n Vit C prescribed by the polyclinic since they are all included in the multi vit??

I was also instructed to go thru ODAC (Obstetric Day Care) to do a Supervised Blood Sugar Profile. This is where i hafta "check in" at the facility at 9am... be fed 3 hospital meals with no other extra outside food then at the end of the day, they will analyse all my blood readings to see if the status' improved. If my blood's good, i'll be released at 6pm, otherwise, i may just be admitted!!! No visitors allowed. I saw a TV in there, but i doubt there's computer?? I sooo hafta visit the library and get as many books as i can!

For this, I hafta pay $341!! Thank god, payment by Medisave is allowed. (Medisave being our first line of insurance / savings deducted monthly from our salary and a portion contributed by our employer.)

Now the thing is, i tried to defer this appt till Jan cos i dont have anymore leaves and i have tons to do at work and i have been taking a lot of MCs this month for check ups! But they insist it has to be done in the same week so i chose Fri. My boss will not be in too anyways.


By the time we finished Q-ing at the pharmacy and all, it was close to 4pm. Had late lunch / early dinner at Taj.. but i wasnt really famished so i didnt really enjoy the Fish Methi properly. Then did some toiletries shopping at Mustafa and walked back to my dad's office near the hosp to get a ride home.


My feet were aching like CRAZY by then! But i felt proud when i told my dad where we've been and he said, "Wah so far u walked. Good exercise huh" Yeah i should remind myself its an exercise. It's good except that it left me no energy to go for my teaching class that night. Again, i had to cancel. I didnt go last week either cos parents not around. *guilty guilty guilty*


Shall totally make it up to them. Somehow.

Sun 21/12

My parents, Ash and i went out at 12:30pm for Bday lunch @ Sakura International Buffet.



It was a guided move to just be sure and reserve a table. Bcos initially we wanted to go to the one at Admiralty, however, when i checked their website for phone number i discovered that that outlet was not halal!!! The halal ones are only at Downtown East, Clementi and Jurong West Stadium. We decided on JW.





Fortunately or unfortunately, Zubair gave priority to his music, so he wasn't able to join. Shan't comment on this further. But i told him to give ME a treat next time simply bcos he cldnt make it that day.


I dont know why but that day i just cldnt be bothered to pick up the hp and take pictures. Well prolly cos the batt was @ 50%, if i take pictures, it might just die soon. I tried to charge in the morning but the damn wiring in my room really irked me. I was practically slamming and tossing the cables around to unravel it. Such was the extent of my pent up anger. Ayah did take some pictures and videos but hm... havent received from him yet.


But... this is a good occasion. So im determined to enjoy it. Even tho we were late. Well not late late but just late to be able to eat MORE. Well i was nicely full by the time it finished anyways.


I had chicken satay, pizza, mushroom soup, siew mai, breaded prawn, cereal prawn, pasta salad, wedges, breaded scallop... and of course... Ice Cream! =) Ash cldn't stop herself on those raw squid and japanese green peas or something. I didnt dare to try. I cldnt imagine how somebody could actually eat RAW seafood... esp PRAWN. real GREY uncooked prawn. Er....


My parents were then off to two wedding invitations and not wanting to be subjected to same, we made our way home first by train. Found out Jurong Point has a sequel. Jurong.2 (notice how i put the Point? haha)

Last Thurs night (18/12), I was alone in my room.


It was 1:30am. Desperately sleepy but desperately wanted to wait up for Zubair. So much so i started crying thinking, "WHY HE MADE ME STAY UP TILL SO LATE??? He knows right the next day we hafta go for check up very early in the morning!!"


Before i knew it, i was spilling out vomit. But it wasn't as easy as that time exactly 10 yrs ago when i had diarrhoea. That was like a spoilt running tap. This night, it felt more like a congested tap. I truly felt like dying. I cldn't breathe. I was choking.


I wailed out loud but nobody came to my aid. Parents were away on Honeymoon, Ash in Vietnam. So i tried to compose myself and stop as much cough as i could just to be able to dial Zubair's no. Even so, i could hardly speak. I just continued crying and managed to gasp, "Come. home. quick. i'm. vomitting."


To my great disappointment, he chided me, "You're only vomitting, then why are you crying. CHUP (Quiet!)."


I hung up crying more than ever. Why doesnt he care?!?!??! Well maybe to him it IS normal for pregnant women to vomit, despite me having not vomitted twice in the whole 6 months of my pregnancy. But cldn't he see i NEEDED to be comforted, even if its NORMAL?? Surely if HE was in pain, he'd want the same? Normaly but STILL AGONISING to be DYING ok.


Also because, I had been having cough + phlegm for the past 2 weeks. it seemed to be gone already but sometimes when i breathe, i will suddenly feel something sharp in my throat and will get into a coughing fit. I had to stop myself many times from continuing to cough cos i was afraid i'd vomit.


Being an inexperienced vomitter, i spilt them on the floor! Ok maybe he made me cry, but at least he had some sense to clean up my mess for me. I left him no choice when i spent the night in my parents' room anyway, in case i need to rush to toilet to vomit.



When i started to clean myself up, i looked in the mirror and almost fainted at the HORRIFIC view.

Right Cheek

Doc prescribed me with DOUBLE dose of Iron as well as Vit C for better absorption. *faint*

Oh yeah those red blotches.. they are BURST BLOOD VESSELS from straining too much when i was throwing up. They will got away after 3 days or so. The doc didnt look too concerned. Humph! Apparently my mum and sis (who throw up often) also suffer from this phenomenon. Altho when Ash saw my left cheek, she did say it was VERY bad she never had one like tt before. And that, cornily enough, assured me somehow. That i was really sick and in pain. Unlike what somebody thought. Humph!

Best part was i was given MC for the whole day so i got to rest at home some. and Thankfully, Z had some consideration for me and cancelled his lunch meeting with a prospective bandmember something or other. Although, i suspect it might also give him the excuse to "rest" at home after such a tiring short night. ;) At least he was there for me. And even better, he had class in the evening, so i had some time to myself as well. So it was a nice day after a horrendous night.

Thurs. 18/12





After a few days of scrimping and trying to stretch the $, finally came the time for us to be able to go out on a date. Properly.





Didn't even care that we've lost the discount coupon for the Flyer. We just wanted to go there. DIE DIE must go - as the slang dictates. The plan got cancelled many times before when we readjusted our monetary priorities.








Met him at the Esplanade right after work.

Check out the white thingies on the water in the background.

They are New Year message balls something or other. You buy a ball with 3 size range, write a msg w a marker on it and splash in on the water. Something like tt. Dont have details.

Oh God. We took like some 10mins to walk to the Flyer from the Esplanade. My feet could barely stand walking, and the evening was only beginning! We bought the ticket at about 6:30pm. Glad there was not a long Q and we skipped thru the fake camera shot. We were hoping to witness day to night change again, but alas it was still not properly dark by the time we got off.

Hopefully today is the last day of the week long Public Transport Commute for this 6.5month pregger me. My parents are coming back tmrw from "Honeymoon" *chuckles* and dad can start sending n picking me up from work pronto. (Ameen!!)


This morning, a miracle happened.

I caught a train at about 7:54am. This came about 4min after the last one (which by standard is long and wld be slightly packed). However, the priority seat just next to the 3rd door where i was standing was vacant. Unfortunately, there was another lady in front of me and she got the seat.

So i resorted to standing in front of 3 able bodied men. 1 sleeping. 1 was listening to iPod with a laptop bag on his lap. the other watching video on his PSP or something with a laptop bag also. I tried to bring on my courage and voice out to please for a seat. At the same time, i was coyly resting my hands just under my bump to make it look MORE obvious that im pregnant cos i was wearing this... wat some pple (read: the FC) call a TENT.

Suddenly, that very lady who got that priority seat rose and called me to sit. WOW. She's like in her 40s most prolly and would have wanted very much to have the seat for herself. But i imagined she was ever pregnant before and understood the pain of having to stand the whole 45min ride.

I felt very relieved and grateful that there are still some Singaporeans who are not selfish but do have that social graciousness. On the other hand, i felt a bit guilty. I shld have saved her from having to give up that seat by asking THOSE FIT GUYS to let me sit.

Oh well...

This is a journal entry about a 6 month pregnant woman's - my - feat to get a seat in the train during rush hour.

MON, 15/12

I saw the same uncle from last Thurs! I tried to make eye contact while standing in front of him but he was looking the other way and then buried behind the papers. I was hopeful that he would give me a seat again at Yishun like he did last week. But unfortunately, he didnt recognise me and i wasn't wearing a maternity top or i didnt really show, i suppose.

At the other corner, the priority seat was vacated and then filled by a Fit young man. I almost wanted to go over and claimed it but tot it was too dangerous to squeeze my way there while the training was bumping around.

So i stood. and stood. and stood some more. shaking my feet in between because it was hurting so bad. Nobody cared. Everybody closed their eyes.

30min later at Orchard, suddenly the uncle's eyes shot open and he jumped and alighted the train. I relinquished his seat most gladly. Almost too greedily. hehe.

However, it's too late. My Monday was already spoilt. I felt tired thru out the day. Had to resort to taking a nap in the toilet. twice.


TUES, 16/12

It was by some twist of luck that the train i got was fairly empty with lotsa seats. I was seated in no time at all. But i found it very difficult to catch a nap.


WED, 17/12

This morning i reached the platform at 8am. Before that i looked at the board. Train coming in 4min and next one in 6min. Actually im quite late already (by my standard) so i told myself i HAFTA get on the first train that comes.

When it did, other pple behind me overtook me to get to the door even before the train stopped properly! I made a tentative scan of the profile of pple sitting down. Mostly women, dozing men and newspaper reading guys. i cld prolly walk down the carriage till i find a suitable "candidate" to victimize but it wld be troublesome, embarassing and not to mention dangerous.

So i waited for the next one.

From the platform as the train slowed down, i could see there was a vacant seat just next to the door i was waiting. i calmly let passengers alight first and THEN went for the seat. But i saw already another middle aged guy smartly dressed with a laptop case dashed from the other door to the seat i was eyeing. I looked in his general direction with my head held high and absolutely DID NOT hesitate in any body lang TO GET THAT SEAT. He saw me and faltered.

YES! This time i won. Woohooo

1. I keep accidentally biting my inner cheek when chewing food

2. My "rear" cheeks dont feel comfortable when lying down on my back with the extra bulge.

Of course by then, it would be too late to take any precautionary measures.

3 weeks ago, i called up this Consultancy company.

At first, i wanted to know if they can help me write up the Business Plan for our partnership. Apparently, they can help with the WHOLE PROCESS of foreigners setting up their businesses in Singapore. Or another way to put it: All or nothing.

Cost:

$1,000 for doing and submitting the paperworks which includes doing up the Plan as well as filling in the form for the EntrePass which will enable the foreigner to work in Singapore.

$2,500 after approval from MOM and ACRA which includes registration of the business in itself. (Cost about $100 for a foreigner to register on his own with another singaporean partner)


The kind man warned me though that if the first application was rejected, chances of appeal and/or subsequent application would be very low. In other words, its CRUCIAL to get it right the first time round.


He was very initiative though. He asked me other questions to understand more about our situation. When he gotta know that Zubair was holding a Work Permit, he said the chance might be low if we go thru the Partnership route and explored other ways to do it.

First, he suggested that we apply for PRship straight away. Traditionally, we would wait about 6 months in the same employment and then had to get the employer to sponsor the application. However, this guy said that he can help us submit a convincing application at a fee of $1,000 (irregardless of outcome) without having to wait 6 months nor getting the employer to sponsor.


Hmmm... sounds interesting to our desperate minds back then.


Then he started to look at yet another angle. He found out that im pregnant due in Mar 09. So he said just wait till the baby's here then we can submit the PR application. With 2 points of support ie Child and Spouse are Singaporeans, the chance of approval is higher.


Although in the end, the result is still the same (ie we hafta wait till the baby's born), i feel very highly satisfied having had this 8min teleconversation with a Kadir from DNH Consultants.


1. I finally got Z off my back to do the Business Plan.

Mind you, its not cos i dont care... but i feel that its soooooo difficult for ME to write something convincing about a business i dont have a passion for.

2. I spoke to somebody VERY knowledgeable and got answers ON THE SPOT.

It was a sharp highly intelligent conversation hahaha (not from my part tho). Me asking Qns, he answered promptly. I like it. Makes me feel like i can depend on them... on somebody ... anybody... in this screwed up world of complicated visas and such.

He IS right though. After getting the PRship, it would be a BREEZE to open the partnership THEN. No need to apply thru MOM for this entrepass shit, things like tt. We wont even need to hire professionals to do it, we can DIY.

The heartwarming part about this phone call is that, he very early pre-amped (is this the right word?) me that he was going to Haj for a month and will only be back in Jan 09. and also when he asked how i gotta know his company, i said from your prayer time table i pasted on my work desk, he said, "Oh that's nice." It made me feel like, "Ok.. I can certainly trust this guy."

RULES:

TAG 10 PEOPLE INCLUDING THE ONE THAT SENT THIS TO YOU.

- USE THE 1ST LETTER OF YOUR NAME TO ANSWER EACH OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

- THEY HAVE TO BE REAL PLACES, NAMES,THINGS. NOTHING MADE UP!

- TRY TO USE DIFFERENT ANSWERS IF THE PERSON WHO TAGGED YOU HAD THE SAME 1ST INITIAL.

- YOU CAN’T USE YOUR NAME FOR THE BOY/GIRL NAME QUESTION.



1. What is your name: Julissa

2. A 4 Letter word: Joke

3. A Boys Name: Joseph

4. A Girls Name: Joanne

5. An Occupation: Jester

6. A Color: Jade.

=> Yes it is a colour according to Wikipedia

7. Something you wear: Jewellery

8. A Beverage: JUICE!!!!

9. A Food: Jemput2

10. Something found in the bathroom: JAMBANNNNNNNN!!!!!!!! LOLLLL (Malay for the toilet bowl)

11. A place: Japan

12. A Reason for being late: Just because

13. Something you shout: JANGANNNNNNNNN!!!!!!! (Don't!!) I DO shout this often at Zubair when he tease/tickle me


Hahaha this IS fun. I initially didn't read the rules properly i tot it was lame. But when i realised that everything has to begin with the letter J from my name.... I got nervous and excited!! I even had to google for a colour starting J! Imagine if someone's name starts with X eg: Xubi or Xuxa hahhaah DIE ah.



I’M GOING TO TAG:

1. Wana

3. Ain

4. Rina

5. Fatma


Yeah man im gonna tag 5 pax only lah. But others who's interested, can do also and let me know so i can read. This is fun man!

Thanks NADIA for tagging me!

My parents are off to M'sia for 5 days or so. That means i hafta go to work by train.

First day was Thurs. I was disappointed that when i got in the train, most of the pple seated were either ladies, or if men they were either reading newspaper or seating w their partner. So i stood in front of a Chinese uncle in his 50s. Beside him was another guy in early30s both buried themselves behind TODAY paper.

15min later, i was at Yishun and my feet started feeling sore. So i adjusted my footing. The Chinese uncle looked at me for quite a few seconds. So i braved myself. This is it. I made eye contact and promptly he asked me, "Do you want to sit?" Hahah i almost ROLLED my eyes but instead, i put on a sweet smile and said, "Yes, please."


Going back... me and Z were from having dinner and window shopping @ Plaza Singapura, as usual we went to the tail end of the train where its not as crowded. There were two 20s guys hotly concentrating on their PSPs fighting each other probably. One of them glanced at me and nudged his friend to which i think he said, "Just ignore"

My feet were already VERY SORE from walking for the past 2 hours, i didnt give up looking for a potential victim. I looked around some more and showed off my tummy... until an INdian uncle looked at me and i, again, shot the Q, "Can i have a seat, please?" He gave it up and it was heaven.

The sweet part of the journey is that... Zubair got a seat a few stations later... but soon after another pregnant lady came in and Zubair shot up to offer her his seat IMMEDIATELY. Heart warming. =)


Now this morning i was dressed to the nines for the Posh lunch. The only shoe to match is my 1.5" heeled pump shoes. I know this is gonna be bad news but i had no choice. So the plan is to KILL. Shoot my victim (metaphorically speaking ok) within the first minute of boarding the train.

I wont ever ever ever victimised another woman. Cos i know how much they treasure their seats. Besides, guys are supposed to be the tougher gender, right? So they should "EARN" it by being bullied by poor tired pregnant women like me. HA HA

Conscious consideration (i can't remember wats the suitable word) needs to be exercised when asking for a seat:

1. Try not to ask from another woman
2. nor Elderly
3. nor couples
4. Able bodied men are most suitable
5. Esp smartly dressed ones
6. and AWAKE
7. With no extra or bulky baggages
8. and Seated on the PRIORITY SEAT

So there.

Fri, 5th Dec 08


Thank God Fara told me there's a John Little sale at the Expo last week.



She bought a pram @ just $99 Usual price $169.



Unfortunately, i DO think its wayyyy much too early for me to buy a pram.. but i tot i should check out other baby stuffs.. Plus Zubair needs to expand his wardrobe now that he has to wear smart to work come new year, insya'Allah. (More news on this when its confirmed)



Fortunately or unfortunately, he was late. I had a brief look first to get an idea of what's actually available then waited for him at BK for dinner.


I was told by a family member that its too early to buy baby things bcos there's no space to put. But then again, its also right that we should buy bit by bit (PLUS @ a sale!) so it wont feel too burdensome later.


We saw baby's crib going at a lil over $100.... baby bedsheet... and of cos lotsa rompers n such. In the end, we bought a Bottle Steriliser for 6 bottles @ $69 SnowBear brand, a romper and 2 booties for the baby. ALL BLUE. Decided against buying a $20 Bottle and Food Warmer and a $20+ BPump. Like maybe i should wait and see if i COULD BF in the first place, see.


We both got a pair of shoe @ less than $20each, a Sintex 360 threadcount Quilt Cover bedsheet set @ $58, Crocodile's pants x 2 + shirt totalling $80 and some misc snacks which till now still not opened.


I would say i feel satisfied at having a great deal and like a world of relief swept me over when i get to spend money like it didnt matter. hahahhaa altho it only managed to be soothing for 2 days. Then i started gasping for breath.


Then over the weekend, we managed to arrange the other half of our wardrobe and settled in the 5 tier plastic drawer for baby's toiletries and clothes and one big one for his towels and such. But it seemed messier than when we started!! Another overhaul soon.

Felt soooooo wasted that i didnt fast the day before Eid cos it was a Sunday and i slept the whole day anyways. Totally forgot about it.


I'm very thankful that it didnt take much to persuade Zubair to go visiting with us. The Key Arguments:

1. Only 2 houses
2. I WANT TO EAT!!!!!!!!!

So we only went to my maternal grandpa's place and the Simei Cousin's. Just chilled. And reached home before maghrib. Now that's a first!

I actually wanted to go to my father's side - Kak Lynna's mother's place - bcos i know the food there will be MORE DELISh / more variety and i was craving for sweet malay cakes. Unfortunately, we were not really ready in time and i promised Z only 2 houses and i absolutely can't miss Simei's.. So decided to skip. =( Kak Lynna, ada belen kuih2 tak? he he he

Me & Syifaa' with matching Baju Kurung!

Just look at that cheeky Tweety Bird's Smile. GERAMMM!!!

Please excuse my red Clowny nose, i got a mosq bite just right there. Ergh!

The one and only picture i took for the whole day!! I cant believe i didnt take any pictures!! Maybe the fact that my sis nor cousins were there made me feel lazy to lah.

Just to share, I personally met the founder/owner of Fish and Co at an
entrepreneurship seminar back in Uni, and he assured that strictly follows halal
requirements except for the fact that his outlets sell liquor.

He shared the Muslim market is important to him so his alternative strategy is to employ Muslim employees who can do the word-of-mouth validation for him to customers.

And its true, there’s always more than a handful of them around.
But like I said, info is only to the best of my (limited) knowledge, so you may want to get reassurance from the staff if you do decide to dine at these places. Strictly
seafood outlets like Fish n Co are necessarily foolproof all the time; I remember getting the shock of my life after 2 days of happily eating great fish n chips in San Francisco, turns out most outlets use beer-battered fish!

Ok i risk sounding country bumpkin-ish but the knife's unique! ahahah

So the very next evening, me and Zubair went to their best outlet at Park Mall, fondly called the Glasshouse. We were there pretty early and the crowd was non existent so we had EXCELLENT service attention. However, the downside was the washroom was under maintenance so i had to go to the main shopping center's facility and one level up at that. Ergh.

Another appetiser - FRIED CALAMARI

I wanted to order the Seafood platter, but was afraid it might be too much so ordered Calamari instead. A few min later, it finally struck me that Zubair doesnt really eat squid. So we had to send them packing. Hmmm well ... its nice... but its not really the kind of calamari i like... i love with more batter. The crispier the better. But it did taste nice.

Wow. It's been a long time since ive been to a cinema with Zubair watching an ENGLISH movie.

Upon reading the synopsis and seeing the trailer, i promised Z that it would be an adventure genre which he will like, as he did with Journey to the Centre of the Earth.

OK I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!

I WANNA GO ON HOLIDAY!!!

I DON'T CARE IF I HAFTA TAKE UNPAID LEAVE

I DON'T EVEN CARE IF ZUBAIR DOESNT WANNA GO WITH ME COS HE PREFERS TO GO BACK TO PAK. (ok bedeQ. i DO care. i NEED him to come with me. haha)

I JUST WANT TIME OFF. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR??

Why this bloody visa thingy so difficult??

Short post cos im very busy at work.

The past few weeks i've been wondering what to eat at home. That is to mean snacks or light meals. I have ice cream, chocolates, cakes and what nots... but i want something savoury.

I started to vow that when i have my own house, i will stock with plenty of food. Savoury and Sweet. and prolly sour. LOL. But But But...

Here comes the question: What?!?!?!

Every single food item i think of is either processed or junk.

1. Sausage
2. Instant noodles
3. potato chips
4. Chicken Ham

bla bla bla...

What shall i stock my fridge with that's easy and fast to cook yet not so unhealthy? But hopefully doesnt require any microwaving (i believe its carcinogenic) nor frying (lazy to bring down the hanging laundry).

Hmmm

HELP! I'm Drowning in an avalanche of work!!!!

Ok it's December, everybody's busy period.

For me, i have a report to do for Paris Boss arriving in 2 weeks, then i have a list of business renewals expiring End of Dec to generate and this list is exceptionally long because companies like to start their insurance at the beginning of the year, right?

On top of that, I had deliveries coming in, guests who needed coffee, 2 new colleagues starting Monday, new confirmed businesses and renewals as well as new enquiries for Quotations to be recorded - the paperwork i tell you! No of course there's no paperword to make coffee lah. LOL

And then as if that's not enough, Boss sprang a surprise on me to make a renewal report for a client with whom he has a meeting with at lunch time today and its 10am!

No time to even THINK about chat. And i already closed my NewPaper website. and closing this blogger window soon.

Ok ok... i better get going now.

Looks like i hafta come in Sat / Sun. (I simply dont have energy to stay till late on weekday.)

X'mas is looming and the company is organising a Xmas cum welcoming 2 new colleagues on board cum Paris bosses dept Lunch.

The only problem is, its organised at some fancy French Rest, not halal of course, and i guess with lotsa wine in their food.

I searched the web for an official website for this restaurant at Keong Saik Road but to no avail. I've found reviews tho to give me a hint of the menu. Lotsa meat, even the seafood is accompanied by some meat. And too exotic seafood i don't consume. But get this, people spend min SGD60++ per person! And that's regular period ie not Xmas lunch.

I find myself wanting to go because i have such fun colleagues now to chat around with so i definitely won't feel awkward. But even if i go, i won't enjoy / be satisfied with the food, so what's the point? I dont mind missing out on this expensive free meal. I'd rather have the office to myself to snooze or something. HAHA

The sad thing is, my first ever Xmas with this company, they brought us to Straits Kitchen considering our (mine and the then Master Mariner's) dietary limitation. 2nd yr, they thought i was gonna be away from Spore so didnt consider any halal place. Now that im the only muslim out of 12 pax and with the Paris bosses here, of course even Carousel to them is lowly. Tsk tsk tsk.

While one of my colleagues say it'd be "sian" or maybe a waste not to go.... im not really keen. Should i tell my office mgr in adv not to incl me? Will she think i'm an anti-social?

It's Tuesday again and we got to go out~! Hoorayyy


The plan was to go to Singapore Flyer because i got 15% discount coupon from AIA for upcoming Bday (i know, lame) as well as an upgrade to express boarding. Thought that 6.45 would be just nice to board for 30min...


When i met Zubair at Esplanade and asked to look at the coupon, he put on a straight face and said, "I didnt bring." He was always teasing me like that that i thought he was kidding about it too this time. Alas, he really didnt bring it!


Ok so we decided we were not fated to board the flyer that day and went to the library instead and borrowed 5 DVDs.


Zubair had an idea to go have dinner at Clarke Quay... but i had to turn down the idea cos my feet cldn't take it anymore and suggested Marina Square foodcourt instead. Thankfully he was happy with the idea cos the Indian stall makes nice chappati. Yayyy Win Win situation.




After that we really just hung out... looking at wallets, shoes, and stuffs. It's a miracle that i know how to window shop now. And then my feet started screaming again to sit down. So we took the opportunity to indulge in some ....

ICE CREAM!!!!!!!!!

Halal Hotel International Buffet

Venue: Furama Hotel

High Tea only available on Weekends and PH from 12 - 5pm.

Cost: $33+ per adult

Discounts: 10% Citibank, 20% DBS and something else i can't remember.

For reservations, call 65315366.


``````````````````

It was Sunday 12nn, Zubair just left for work when my sis came into my room and said, "Hey let's go out and do something!" Perfect! i thought. I was just about to go crazy having been couped up in my room all week. Ergh


Then mummy came in and said, "So where are we going? We don't have the car today though. Ayah suggested Straits Kitchen."


My face lighted up at the idea! YAYYYY a feast!! But ASh wasn't in the mood for local cuisine, wanted a mix of western and local.


Me, being the family's spokesperson and researcher (haha), called up Carousel first to ask if the menu is the same as the previous day's cos my parents just went there the day before. The answer is No BUT they were already fully booked.


Straits Kitchen's lunch is only served till 3:30pm and first slot available is 2pm. We just booked while thinking of other alternatives.


Sakura International only serves till 2:30pm. Altho the nearest one is about 8min by cab (excl waiting time), we felt it would be such a waste.


Suddenly, i remembered a schmate going to TIFFANY's for break fast some time ago. It was difficult getting their phone no via google cos apparently they don't have an official website. Not that i have found yet anyways.


The place matched our requirements ie mix of int'l as well as local food, opens till 5:30pm and has a table for the 4 of us. Since ayah is treating us, Ash and i forked out for cab rides.


When we arrived, I was pleased to see the ambience. Very elegant although the exterior looked old. Didn't have time to take photo though cos we were all famished not to mention 5min late for the reserved table. However, it was not full to the brim, unlike what you would find at Carousel and Straits Kitchen. I would have still preferred to sit on the outer side near the desserts tho, looks nicer.


Only 2 pictures of the spread:

Sashimis (?) which i totally didn't touch.

Cold dish seafood. Hmmm I took 4pcs of prawns but the squid is.... beyond my capability. LOL

Sweet drinks were available: Soya Bean, Bandung and Ice Lemon Tea.

Then there's Texas chicken wings (tasted like KFC) yummy! Mee siam!?!? Chicken POrridge, Briyani Dam, Fried Wanton, Some duck thing, some lamb chop, seafood spaghetti, a POrtugese vege tart, prata, siew mai and assorted dumplings, seafood chowder.

Hmmm not a lot of variety for a choosy eater like me. I dont eat duck nor lamb chops, neither would i have taken the everyday mee siam, porridge and prata. But i tried a lil of everything else.

I'm not a big fan of desserts but Ash was disappointed which the selections of items for the choc fondue : Marshmellow, dried fruits and stuffs. There were assorted cheesecakes, mango pudding and some fruit tarts. So funny, Ash said to me, "Are you sure you can eat those pretty lil things on spoons and small cups or are they just for decorations?" LOL

Conclusion: This is how chubby i've become.

Ok bear with me.


Friday was my poly check up. After registration, had to do blood test and GLUCOSE TEST!!!


I had NO CLUE whatsoever how it'd be so i was kinda surprised to be given an Orange flavoured dextrose 250ml bottle. The first few sips were even nice. But after that, i gotta know that i had to finish it within 5 short minutes and i could only take AT MOST a cup of water with that. Furthermore i had to continue my fast for another 2 hours, take 2nd blood test @ 12:50pm and THEN can go have my lunch.


The last few drops made me slightly woozy and nauseous. Thankfully, i declined the straw as i thought gulping it down straight from the bottle would be faster. Fortunately also, there were no other patients at the moment, so the nurses cheered me on.


At the nurse's room, i found out i gained 3kg from last visit!!! not good not good. You are only supposed to gain 2kg a month. At this rate, I'm sure to cross the 70kg boundary very soon. Yikes! The nurse asked if ive been taking a lot of sweet things. I told her yes i've been eating a lot of ice cream and chocolates even tho i dont fancy them much before but that 1 McD's Sundae can last me 2 days. But even at that she sounded appalled! I should only be having sweet treats like just twice a week =( Luckily its not that fierce malay elderly nurse. But this is a young chinese nurse who is about 8 months pregnant herself! So i take it all in with a smile.


I complained that i can't squat now with the pain at the ball of my feet. The doctor took a look and confirmed its slightly swollen. Oh My.


After that is listening to heartbeat. Doc commented that tummy size is good. SURPRISED i was. I tot my tummy was tooo small! And baby has moved up slightly above belly button now.


I waited for another 30min outside the doc's room to go thru my 1st blood test. My haemoglobin index is still in the red and was down by 0.3 units. However, the gynae was not too much alarmed cos its a minute change in reading that might be due to blood dilution (more blood being produced in my body) but reminded me to take the iron tablets DAILY.


The results of 2nd blood test and the Glucose test will only be available when i come next month. Erghhh too long to wait!


Paid $38.


We had lunch at KFC. =) we simply Love the KFC at Fuchun CC. Very cosy. And mostly staffed by the deaf and/or mute. Zubair was surprised when i stopped by Champion bakery and bought 3 diff buns on the way to the mrt. He said, "You can still eat?!?!" Well why not? He finished half of my popcorn chicken! :P


So this is the 2nd part of the day's exciting appointments. Now we are on the quest to go to NUH to see our darling baby for the first time!


There was supposed to be a shuttle from Buona Vista MRT. When we reached there at 3pm (appt at 3.45pm), we tot we've made good time only to find out that due to constructions surrounding the station, the shuttle is now available from Dover MRT, a station away which we had already passed earlier. To make things worse the queue was super long and the bus so small that we reckoned it'd take another 3 trips before we could board! Decided to take the cab then.


We reached the AnteNatal Diagnostic Centre on time. But there were a lot of pple there so we or rather Z drank his tea while i had another one of my buns at the nearby cafeteria. Back in there, we had been waiting for quite some time that when suddenly my name was called, i panicked!


I felt very nervous as she sprayed gel on my tummy. Oh no is it gonna hurt? I have no idea. At all. But i had not much time to dwell on it, soon we could see 2 arms and 2 legs and head of our 22 weeks old baby! The gender was very prominent. Z requested to see the face and insisted the nose is like mine! ape jer. And the lady spent a lot of time on the heart observing that all is well.


We were given two pictures.

The other one is of the face. I didnt scan that as its quite diff to make out anyways. I said to Nisa, "Even in tummy, very cute already." To that she said that im a typical mummy! hahaha ok ok i hafta admit i am lah. But but But isnt the head and the tummy just so.... cuddly?? It weighs 450gm now.


After the actual scan, it was standard procedure to see the hospital's doctor. He said everything is normal, limbs, organs, blood, as well as growth is good. Alhamdulillah. All personnels were asking if i were gonna give birth there at NUH. i said no i prefer @ KK. Doc asked why. I said cos its near my dad's office. He laughed. Nothing to do with anything. Well perhaps but i like it there. Looks new n seems to have most things related to baby and mummy. So he advised to get my poly gynae to refer me to hosp ASAP to familiarise myself w the hosp. Too right he is! I shall tell her then.

Paid $95

Zubair was sooo excited, he called Ammi right there n then at the hosp! While me smsed the family members. All of us are ecstatic and grateful to be having a......

I have always considered myself to be a shy person.

I'm not really a candidate to greet strangers warmly nor make easy friends at courses and the like... I dont chat freely with bosses... Say Hi to unknown neighbours etc...

However, i DO realise that after i started work some 7 yrs ago.. i began being a bit more outspoken. For eg: i'd be the one to place the food order for the family, calling customer service to ask status on whatever, etc...

The one day i was chatting with a group of ex colleague about going to the gym or dance classes when i got a shock. One of them said, "Yeah you thick skinned what..."

I asked why she thought so. She said bcos i dared to ask pple to give up seats in the public transport for me.

Hmmm come to think of it... Yeah i suppose that's a rather bold thing to do. I ask a couple of other experienced mother most said that they'd rather die standing than die from the embarassment of asking for a seat. So noble of them. Me im just so spoilt! It's all about ME ME ME and ME.

I Like dancing so i do it. I want slimming pills, so i shamelessly ask doctor to prescribe me. I want 2 Days MC, so i simply request it from the doc.

But you won't catch me telling my boss he has chilli on his teeth or asking for pay rise nor telling off a colleague for using me or whatever.

Conclusion: I'm MODERATELY thick skinned. depending on the situation. haha

Wow. My blog has been quiet for some time.

I was on course for the past 2 days. I've been waiting to go for this one a very long time man! Minutes of Meeting @ the British Council PDC centre which happends to be just 8 floors above my office! Nice.

I write minutes for the almost weekly dept meetings. While my boss said its exactly what he's looking for.. i feel like my format and/or technique is not quite right. Is my grammar correct? Should i be noting certain points down, like is it imp or not or can it be skipped? etc...


REPORTED TENSES

I wrote before in this entry :

Is it correct to say "She WAS my consultant"? Whereas she is NOT dead and
still IS a consultant.

How about "She was the winner of YESTERDAY's contest." Wouldn't using a
past tense mean that she is not the winner anymore? But the contest happened
yesterday~ :S

The presenter told us that TRADITIONALLY (meaning what we learn in sch) is this way:

"Dialogue" => Reported speech

"I write minutes" => She said she wrote minutes
"I wrote minutes" => She said she had written minutes
"I am writing minutes" => She said she was writing minutes

etc etc....

BUT a group of linguists think that the first reported speech doesn't make sense if the person STILL writes the minutes. Therefore, it is ALSO acceptable if you write it this way:

She said she writes minutes.

It is IMPORTANT tho that you be consistent.

No wonder i was sooo confused. Wah and to think that i came up with the same reasoning as these linguists. Cheeebah. LOL


PREPOSITION

I wrote:

Should i say "Can i speak to _____" or "Can i speak with _______" ?

Why is it I'm not IN the office but i'm AT home? When office and home
seems to be the same kind of place you go INTO?

The lecturer said that there's no logic in the English Lang. As in there's no formula to remember which word is accompanied by which preposition or whatever. All u can do is refer to the dictionary. A good dictionary (eg: Oxford's dictionary for ADVANCED learners) would give example for each definition.


We learnt that same word with diff meaning can lead to diff sentence struction eg: "Approval"

1. Liking something / somebody. Eg: John's mother approves of his fiance
2. Agree to something. Eg: The board approves the minutes of meeting.

Something to that effect. It was CRAZY i tell you. I kept making the mistake of writing "to discuss ON the terms" when it should have just been "to discuss the terms". You only add ON before its noun ie "The discussion on the terms".



Note-taking & summarising

I also learnt 4 diff styles of minute taking in the form of a table/seat plan, mindmap or blank sheet. But the one i like most is the A4 Minute book with columns like Who, What, When.

Reminder to self: Always start a new topic / agenda on a fresh page. In case they get back to that topic, u can add it in easily.

When summarising, no need to include arguments, jokes bla bla bla... Its our duty to be impartial, leave out the unnecessary and spell out the conclusion.


How to Write them Down?

There are 3 types to write down the minutes: Narrative, REsolution and Action.

Resolution will only write the decisions made or resolved problems. Only relevant to board meetings.

Action minutes will only list down the list of actions to be taken.

Narrative, the most common, tells of who says what as well as who has to do what.

There is no hard & fast rule how the layout of the written minutes SHOULD be. But you should list down:

1. Date & Time
2. List of Present & Absent participants
3. Title of meeting

You can have two column tables or numbered points with bullet subpoints. You can be concised, or you can write as much detail as you want. You can write in TRADITIONAL reported speech or the modern one (as long as you're consistent). This all depends on the CHAIR. Clarify with him/her how he'd like it to be or refer to previous style or both.

3 types of Tone Register

There are Strict, Professional and Informal tones in minutes.

Strict is for when you sit in Board Meetings - Imagine a Judge. Professional, like a management meeting. An Informal is like one between friends.

Strict / Professional / Informal

Appended / added / tacked on

Reiterate / insist / urge

Note: It is important that you keep the consistency of the register through out your minutes.

Rights & Obligations

We always have this traditional image of a minute taker. A silent lady at the corner of the room with her legs crossed and a notepad in hand.

I didnt know that its ok to:

1. Ask Q to clarify what the presenter meant. (chances are you're doing the rest a favour too)
2. Stop the chair from proceeding to the next point so u can finish writing

etc etc...

This is useful so that you can write ur minutes down more clearly. You know, i used to audio record the whole 1.5hr session of the meeting. I had tried listening back to the track but very diff to pause n rewind, i gave up.

It's also important that u take 5min or so to go thru ur notes in "downtime" of the meeting (eg: pple joking around) or right after the meeting so u can fill in info gaps.

There are lots more that i've learnt in those 2 days i cant simply summarise in this blog. You can msg me tho.

-----------------

The training was a small one consisting only 8 pple. 7 of us clicked very very well. It is the first time i went for lunch w coursemates. Bcos i work in the same building, I am the designated tour guide and brought them to Amoy St on first day then Lau Pa Sat on the second. 3 of us lives in the north so we even went back together!

One is 6 months pregnant. When pple ask when she's due, i cldnt help but add, "Then u hafta ask me when im due also." They never fail to look surprised to know im 5 months pregnant! Im not showing just yet.

one or two of them have been complaining of how tiring this training is. A lot of Work. I cldnt disagree more. i LOVE British Council trainings. They are always interesting and Keeps you involved with lotsa hands-on practices. Granted, the lecturer is a bit rigid/strongly principled.

It's a shame that the friendship ended there. The lecturer forgot to take our emails to be circulated. Oh right.

It was 3am. My eyes were only half open. Wondering, "Are these soft nudges the baby's kicks?"

Ever since my last check up some 3 weeks ago, i started feeling something in my tummy... BUt they were either very fast rhythmical beats that i cant imagine a baby could pull or a single quick single poke that was sooo random i cldn't determine what it was actually or if it was even there.

Then i read the weekly pregnancy "growth chart" that between 20 - 22nd week the baby's bone is growing harder so that the kicks will start getting harder now.

It's 3am now. I was lying straight on my back in bed. While im pretty sure the soft nudges were the baby's kicks, i dare not declare nor proclaim it so. To avoid being disappointed if its not.

But suddenly! I involuntarily let out a big gasp. my back arched automatically forward as i did so. Oh my goodness! That was the first real real real real baby kick! Really!!

Oh boy... had trouble going back to sleep again while the baby happily kicking away though it was as hard as that first one. Funny... Seems like he knows what im thinking and trying to shout out to me that he's there! Doing the kicking. =)

Our new colleague has been with us for almost 2 weeks now.

On her first day, she looked very serious and grim. She looked like a 30+ tough (as well as chunky) claims person. We had sorta expected a slim aloof lady joining us... just the sorta guy the mgr would hire. LOL

However, over the next few days I gotta know her better and she's really a funny bubbly girl... just like me! She giggles at everything~

She's also 37 and single with no intention to get married. She looks young lah! Maybe cause she laughs all the time. I think she would make a good lunch partner too.

So now i feel like i have more "friends" in this dept. *All smiles*

The first to a start of Going Outs at Nights without Zubair...

Me and Ash, 1st sis, went to to Orchard to enjoy a free Foot Spa trial @ TruSpa.

Actually it was supposed to be an eye treatment for me and a back massage for Zubair that he badly needed. But we kept postponing the appointment for the last 2 months cos we were too lazy to get up early or whatever silly reasons. Now that he's started working and no chance to go at all, i decided to bring the sis instead to get rid of the lady who always call to follow up.

We were required to fill in a form when we got there. And cocked up they did. They kept getting The choice of my free treatment wrong and they had scheduled me for a back massage! 1. i DONT like being massaged. 2. I'm pregnant! I dont wanna be touched by the "professional" And then they had to break a bad news to me that the eye treatment lady was on medical leave so i had no choice to do the foot Spa... Again.

Me & Zubair had tried their foot spa before and which i wrote about here. But i might as well do the same treatment so i could chat with the sis.

It turned out to be horrible hurried job. PLUS the massage function on the chair i was on didnt work anymore. ERGH

Then we were forced to put up with this newbie "spa consultant" who un-interestedly tried to get us to buy a package THERE & THEN. We tried to tell her we are waiting for our bonus in Dec (liar liar pants on fire!) then she just kept talking giving lower options bla bla bla.

She opened with a SGD 3k Free & Easy package with $4050 worth of credit that can be "shared" between 2 pple. Then she lowered to 2k plan.. and then she tried to get us to buy a $200 x 6 items of something.

At this point i stopped listening. But sis said, "Oh i think this credit system is a good idea... but i dont know if its for me cos i work in the west so its quite far for me." To our great surprise, this silly lady began lecturing us about being Sincere. If we're sincere we would commit. Just as she also lives in the far west end willing to go all the way to Tampines for her spa.

"Hold on a second, babe," I felt like telling her, "Eh Hello. We're talking about SPA treatments, not a school or job that we're responsible for. Who cares about sincerity? It's the convenience that we want. We can choose any spa that we like. And you're not doing a good job of impressing us!"

But because Sis felt obligated to stay polite, we meekly continued to listen to her useless persuasions until she decided her game was up.

I felt a bit apologetic afterwards like i had subjected my sis to a 20min lecture when all we wanted was a free foot spa which turned out mediocre at best.

Oh well... at least we were hanging out, rather than working like some people i know. *wink*

That's the boy i'm talking about. He was "jeling"-ing (peering?) at the Foxy Mama...

I finally met Sue & Baby! I asked her along to visit Fara & her baby and she much needed the excuse to go out.. so...

Lil SiddiQ - 2 months old

Would have been fun-ner and more kecoh (chaotic) if Nisa had been there. Alas, She had to attend a wedding.

I hafta say it was the most empowering feeling to go out on my own without Zubair. I dont need him. At all.

Anyways. We chatted for hours!! While feeding, burping and changing the babies in between.

Poor Fara had only about 15min to prepare for our arrival. I had confirmed with her if she'd be at home on Sunday but didnt say i was coming till the last minute. I intended not to burden her to prepare anything (read: food) for our impending arrivals. Then i forgot to tell her earlier on that day and i realised this could cause chaos for the host as well. The house might not be ready to receive guests. Sorry Fara. She is such a proper host kept on apologising that she didnt prepare anything for us etc etc... But she still served us the yummiest mutton something with ghee rice, which to my surprise i cleaned it up! (i was allegedly turned off by rice otherwise.)

Hearing them mamas talking about all the Dos and Donts, i felt fear. I think i'd be a very inept and unprepared mother who knows nothing. They brushed it off saying that my own mum will be there to guide me as im still staying with them.

True but still... i have no inkling for eg that...

1. You were supposed to push in the belly button
2. Dont let boys cry too long as they are more prone to fits
3. No need to bind babies after 1 month.
4. Sterilising ur baby's bottle is VERY important
5. the pros and cons of electric / manual breast pump

I even have problem recognising babies' faces. To me all babies look the same esp if their skin colour is similar.

There was a fearful moment when the babies were first laid out on the bed and two mothers were not around then i panicked and thought, "Oh no... which is which now??"

Pakis and Malays have very different practices of baby caring as well as after delivery caring for the mothers. Traditional Malays have all sortsa spices to air out the body to prevent wind, all sortsa herbs to drink to shrink and heal and lose weight effectively... Imagine, herbal baths, therapeutic (spellcheck!) massages not to mention the layers and layers of cloth to bind the tummy so it wont protrude leaving a hideous pregger tummy.

Pakis would press the baby's head this way and that to "shape" it. It seemed torturous to our untrained eyes. and they would dress the baby hmm... heavily even in treacherous Singapore weather.

One tip i learnt tho that right from the beginning, DONT EVER let ur baby sleep between u and ur hubby nor rock him to sleep. Bcos the baby won't ever let go of u nor sleep on his own thereafter! Thank Goodness i've already convinced Z that the baby should sleep in his own cot / bed, preferably in the hallway (not much space in my room) for fear one of us might roll over and suffocate the baby!

Oh another thing about traditional Pakis is that they mostly dont wanna know the gender. At first, Zubair didnt wanna know either wanted to keep it a surprise... Its a nice thought but again i told him, "But we need to know to buy pink or blue, gown or ... whatever it is that boys wear." He said oh ok. Good.