D-Paradise Tropical Fruit World & Aboriginal Native Village

I took a drive to Melaka this morning to attend the opening of D-Paradise, a Tropical Fruit World and Aboriginal Native Village which has the World's largest collection of tropical, sub-tropical and continental fruits of over 800 types in a 168 acres of lush, undulating, tropical terrain at Lee Garden with the largest canopy walk in the world at 9km long.

D-Paradise has a diverse range of exotic wildlife, with rare species of flora and fauna. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see much of these attractions. In fact, I was looking forward to see the tribes which seems to be one of the main cultural attraction in that place, specifically the Padaung (Ring People) from the Philippines and the Agta tribe.

The Padaung tribe wear bronze rings around their neck and apparently, the ring makes for a whispery voice and those who wear them cannot yell. The rings are also worn on the arms and legs. The Agta are dark-skinned, kinky-haired pun nosed and thick lipped people who are less than 3 feet tall. They go bare footed. The men used to wear G-strings without shorts.

I would love to be in the presence of a swarm of dragon flies but did get the opportunity to visit the dragon fly sanctuary. There seems to be so many places of interest that I'd like to see such as the world's largest cactus collection, the pangolin sanctuary, mushroom farm, the mesmerizing bamboo garden, man-made bird-nest sanctuary, up close at the Crocodile Park (reminds me of Steve Irwin), the kongkang sanctuary (the so-called Malaysia's koala) and the everything else, but time didn't permit. I learnt that some of the animals will only come sometime next week in time for the launch by our very own PM this coming 15th November.

It wasn't really a fun trip this morning coz I didn't get to see what I was looking for. I got bitten by mosquitoes and the waiting time for the transportation was slow coz' the buggies haven't arrived yet. But was pretty happy to receive a basket of passion fruits which I love very much. (A good friend of mine used to stay in a farm and I love drinking the passion fruit juice which was simply refreshing!) PLUS a 2D 1N stay each at the D-CEO Village Resort which we were told valued at RM1,000!!!

My conclusion : it would be quite an educational trip for children and for those who loves nature, especially non-kampungnites. It's quite an expensive affair too coz the entry fee is RM49.90 for an adult and RM29.90 for kids age 4-11. Rental of a buggy for the whole day is at RM89.90. You definitely need a buggy to go round coz the area is extremely big. Though you can go cycling there, the hilly terrains can be quite a daunting task for some people. Accomodation : I'm not really sure, but at RM1,000 this seems to cost more than some of the 5 star hotels in KL. It's an interesting affair for foreigners though.

I think people like me shouldn't expect too much. My late grandparents used to stay in a kampung house (well, minus the 5 star treatment though) surrounded by lots of wild animals, pets, fruits and vegies. So, I can't comment much.










one of the Aboriginal Village

nicely decorated
wood carvings








The performance
theatre / stage
of the aboriginal tribe.







Bones, skulls
and more...







Entrace to the
gourd and melon
plantation.











Gourds






Monkey Cup
Pitchers
> a rare and exotic
insect-gobbling
carnivorous plant
in this World's Largest
collection of monkey
cup pitchers








Malaysia's very
own red berries..













Passion
Fruits













The pathway..














Some big,
long, red
chilli plant









Lone ranger : a pumpkin!!
D-Paradise has the World's
largest collection of pumpkins
which come in different
shapes and colours.

Genuine or a cheat?

Last night, when I was walking towards my car, there was this Indian lady of about 50 who came rushing towards me. She was holding a plastic bag and one of her hand was in the plastic bag. I was like getting really terperanjat and was ready to put up a kungfu hustle fight when she pulled out what looked like a piece of colourful beaded cloth.

"Excuse miss, I have this piece of cushion cover here which would look nice on your car seat. Would you be interested to buy it?"

"No, (with a hard-to-flash smile) thank you". I said.

"Miss, I need some money" (she started talking very very fast) "I dropped my purse in the taxi just now and need some money to go home"

"Sorry, I'm not interested, Auntie", I replied. I mean, if you dropped your purse, how did you ever pay the taxi driver then??

"Miss, how about you give me RM5 then? I really need some money". She speaks good English!

"Auntie, why don't you go to the shop over there and ask the shopowner?"

"Shopowner? Ok lah"..... and she headed off to another direction.

I kinda pitied her. What if she's really stranded there. Wanted to offer her a lift also I takut. She could be a cheat for all I know. So, how?

Jalan-jalan, cari......

This Raya hol, we took the kids out to 'hang-kai'. It's also meant to be a treat to the maid.Thinking that it would be a good spend some quiet time in KL, we headed to the KLCC Park, with the thought of going to KL Aquaria. Parking was quite easily available and only at RM1 per entry at the carpark beside it.

As we were walking towards the park, I was really surprised to see tons of human beings lepakking around there. Well, we proceeded to walk towards KLCC and boy, for the first time in my life, I felt like a stranger in my very own country. I turn left, I see foreigners. I turn right, I see foreigners. I turn around 360 degrees, I see foreigners!! They are everywhere... Bangladeshis, Indonesians, Myanmar(ians?), Nepalese, Thai. Hehehe, I pulak felt like the tourist now.

The pool was packed with kids and the female guard there was shouting over her speaker over and over and over to tell some (brainless) adults to R.E.M.O.V.E. their shoes before entering the water... Duh! Some nuts these people are! Kids are playing in the water leh.... Hmm..... no wonder our public toilet is pathetically unhygienic.

Well, speaking of toilets, I was scouting around for the toilet in KLCC to wash my kids' milk bottles and the very first toilet I went to was the PREMIUM toilet. Haiyo, pay RM2 just to wash bottles? It was jam packed everywhere, inside KLCC, outside KLCC, inside the LRT, at the LRT station, well... except the car park I suppose. Head also pening already. So, we decided to leave a.s.a.p.

But then, it's a public holiday, so they get a day (or more) off, so it's understandable that they too want to 'hang-kai' like us. Didn't take us long to get out of that crowded place.

It's so nice to stay at home and lepak. Tomorrow, I'm cooking one of my favourite dish, Sayur Lodeh, which I learnt to cook from my hubby's aunt's maid. yummy yummy....

Deeparaya Holidays

It's a long holiday for lots of people this week. For the first time in my life, I'm spending my hols in the city, and for the first time, I'm NOT taking any leaves in-between. It's so nice to work on such days coz it's stress-free and jam-free! I don't even have to rush home like I used to everytime a big festive holiday comes.

Some divisions in my company has been required to take compulsary leaves. Come to think of it, if everyone is away from work, why do I need to go to work? Hmm.... I can make good use of my leaves and take it on any other stressed and jammed up day.

So, these few days I've been taking my kids out to long-kai here and there. As yesterday was the Deepavali hol, hubby & I took Brendan out to my hubby's aunt's place in Saujana. Later at night, we took the kids out to Sunway Pyramid. Was kinda surprised that there are still lots of people jalan-jalan there. I cooked Fish Curry just for the fun.

For tomorrow, we are celebrating (for the very first time as well) Raya at home. Our maid is a muslim, so I shall be cooking nasi beriyani and beef rendang for her and the whole family. hahaha. We may take this opportunity to take the kids and the maid out to long-kai in jam-free K.L.

To everyone out there, Happy (belated) Diwali, Selamat Hari Raya and Happy HOLIDAYS!!! Those travelling out there, happy get stuck in traffic jams!

A surprise SMS

*beep beep*

"Hi, Mei! How hav u been? Long time no share ya? ......... Just to update u, I'll tying the knot 19th Nov. Yup, finally! My fiance's ..........."

I got that message while I was driving to work last Thursday. I knew instantly that it was my Kor from college, and I knew that he's got some pretty good news coz I've not heard from him for months (and according to him, it's actually two years).

I really don't know know how we became Kor and Mei but that had been the way we call each other. My Kor has been someone whom I respect. He gave me the guidance and the confidence in many things in life. We shared lots of laughters during our college days. We used to have jamming sesssions together, and he's one very good singer and a guitarist. I'll be at the piano and together with the other band members, we'll have a good time jamming together.

Somehow, we lost touch when Kor went to UK to further his studies. It came upon by chance that I saw an email which I thought could be his. So, I sent him an email and the reply came to say that he was indeed my long-lost Kor!! He's now at the other end of East Malaysia.

Sometimes, God send us guardian angels without us knowing it. My Kor was my guardian angel in college and he's been a blessing to me in many ways.

Well, Cheers to you, Kor!

Kopi-O!

When Uncle Lim's first started its business at Ikano, I was extremely surprised to hear that business was quite good, despite of the higher than normal prices. The company was set up by my friend's father's good friend, and I was told that there were plans to expand, and it did.

Quite recently, my dad told me that our famous railway station kopi has now opened a new biz at One Utama simply known as Kluang Station. My dad wanted to pay a courtesy visit to his friend's new shop but I really didn't like the idea of going all the way to One Utama for a cup of kopi!! I mean... I get ALL I want to eat for a fraction of whatever the price listed there in Kluang!

As a young child, I loved going to the railway station for the (then cheap-cheap) nasi lemak, kopi, half boiled egg and (yummy, yummy) my all-time favourite toast bun with home-made kaya and butter.... As business grew, the nasi lemak became more expensive and without the "liao" like cucumber and egg some more. Each time hubby and I balik my kampung, we'll always try to stop at the railway station kopitiam, makan and then tapao a can of kaya to bring back to KL.

To date, I've not tried any of the two new kopitiams and don't know if I'll ever drop by there to see-see-look-look. For now, I'm happy with the can of kopi I tapaoed back from the railway station in my kampung Kluang and the occasional kaya that I get from there as well. Mum makes good nasi lemak as well, so not much of a worry there. Half boiled egg? sap-sap sui... can make at home.

Still..... the perfect texture of the egg, the softness and nicely toasted buns plus the fragrant kao-kao kopi is to die for lah.... Aiyo...... I think no choice but to make my way there to Kluang Station at One U.!!

Once upon a golden goose

Reading Chief's blog gave me an insight into the life of the farmer and the golden goose.

A quick look at the farmer's story:
Farmer had a good golden goose which laid golden egg.
Farmer started to ignore the once beautiful golden goose and once beautiful farm.
Goose fell sick, farm deteriorated.
Farmer sold goose to another farmer.
Farmer became richer and live life like nothing happens.
(right, Chief?)

It came as a surprise to me, though not shocking that the farmer sold his most precious golden goose. "Behind every successful man is a W.O.M.A.N." and that woman is his first wife, NOT the second wife.

The goose laid so much golden eggs and sacrificed its time and life to give its trusted farmer the best that he could give. Having overwork and not being taken care of, the goose sure pushed itself to continue doing more with the hope of having a once-wonderful-life. All these in return for peanuts. After all these while, it felt betrayed and sold off to another farmer, which no doubt, promised to nurture it back to health and all, it sure isn't the same as before.

It doesn't have the will to lay any more better eggs coz its heart is broken, its mind is confused, its health is at stake and most importantly, its sacrifice was not well appreciated.

However, the new farmer may be able to give it a better life, to heal its pain, to appreciate the goose... not because he loves the goose, more of because he could be even more richer than before, just like the first farmer.
So, how? What should poor golden goose do? Poor old goose.... being treated like a scapegoat....

Prizes in parenting mags.

After reading Loc Kee's blog about his SweetSweet winning some interesting prizes, it brought back memories of how I used to get lots of freebies for Brendan.

Well, I subscribed to a local parenting mag just before the birth of Brendan at a cheap-cheap rate of only RM3.++ per issue for one year (a special rate given to me by someone I know). So, I took the opportunity to send in some photos in some of the various contest form available. The various magazine features has so far entitled me to prizes ranging from baby toiletries from Johnson & Johnson (got that twice in 2 separate occasions), Crabtree & Evelyn and Do Re Mi products, Anmum milk, Fernleaf milk - kids and adults (got that twice - gave two tins away and haven't even finish the ones I have at home yet), Heinz baby jar food, Scotts Emulsion and Sweet Cherry products.

one thing I noticed about these magazines is that there's always a "pull" effect. When my subscription ended, I stopped buying the magazine until a friend said that Brendan's feature was in one of the mag. So, I went out to buy the mag. And since I bought the mag, I sent in some left-over photos (one of it more than a year old) to just simply "try my luck". Mana tau, the photos were published again, AND again, AND again.. It's like a never-ending cycle. Good ways to get people to buy your mags isn't it? To be fair to baby Eryn, I should also be sending in photos of her. Hmm....

Here's one of Brendan's "priceless moments" :




Mother & Baby Magazine
June 2004 issue
say hello to... contest
photo of Brendan taken at 2 months old

and another one :

Parenthood Magazine
April 2005 issue
Wild Wild Wet! contest
photo of Brendan taken at 11 months old

super micro mini skirts

I was driving out of my office and there was this college girl, crossing my path in her super duper micro mini skirts, swinging her hips from side to side, wearing a super duper low cut fitting blouse and carefully balancing in her super duper pointed stilettos. She was carrying a sling bag plus some files in her arms. I took a look at her face and I must say that she's quite 'cun' also lah..

It was getting dark and two thoughts came to mind.

1. If someone were to grab her, sure gone case. Cannot even walk properly, how to run. Holding so many things, how to fight back. Well, that's not her concern I guess.

2. Her bums were soooo small and her skirt looks like it belong to a young girl going through puberty. The skirt was so short, it's just below her bum. One blow and *tah dah*! got free show already. Those boys in her classes must be having a super duper good time when she walks in. I don't know how she's going to sit properly. It's so short that I don't even think she can sit on her skirt! Simply reminds me of Britney Spears' and Christina Aguilera's dressing. Can save lots of space in the wardrobe. Washing also easy.

You see ar, people like me also stare. How can it not attract all the guys' attention?

Seriously, I do admire these girls with such bods. Hmm.... either I'm getting fatter, or they're getting smaller.

Happy Birthday to me?!

My name is Brendan, and I am TWO today! I'm so excited becos all my favourite people in my life are here over this weekend! Uncle L came all the way from Singapore to see me. Uncle L came with his girlfriend as well. We have fun playing ball. Then, Auntie C was here too! We had a giggly good time at night before I go to sleep And my very favourite kong-kong! Everyone says kong-kong always manja me. I'm just a toddler!! I deserved to be pampered!!

So... I've been laughing, squealing, giggling and jumping (and poh-poh says "whining") around the whole house that I'm losing some of my baby fats!! hahaha. Hmm.... But I ate a lot what, so that should make up for the losses. Mummy never really give me junk food and sweet stuffs but today, I get to eat my own cake, sweets, chocolates, mummy's fried chicken, mummy's homecooked mee (I eat porridge most of the time so this is a big change), mummy's dessert and junk food! I've never seen a birthday cake specifically for myself. Mummy said I had my own homemade cake when I was one year old, but I can't seem to remember that. I remember celebrating poh-poh's birthday when I was about 18 months old though. Mummy didn't allow me to eat the curry chicken she cooked later that night.

I even had two lighted candles up close. Mummy never allow me to play with fire. Of all the presents and angpows, I like the new mini learning computer mummy bought for me. That is a new change to my regular DIY toys and hand-me-downs. Auntie C bought me a mini computer earlier on, so I can be considered an expert in this IT stuffs (daddy says "not!!"). I'm a big boy now but that doesn't mean that the attention should be given to mei-mei. Afterall, I'm a toddler and I deserve to be given the same attention! Mummy wanted to take me to some petting zoo yesterday but she was too busy accompanying poh-poh to the hospital, and then had to fetch Auntie C and Kong-Kong from the bus station. Well, it's ok, mummy. I'm already having lots of fun at home.

Mummy is getting all sniffy because time passes too fast for her. Poh-Poh is getting all sniffy too because it reminds her that she's getting old. I think everyone is getting sniffy because I'm such a cute little boy! Kakak is sniffy because she remembers her son who's going to be 6 years old next year. Kong-kong says everyone is sniffy because the cold bug is passing around everywhere. Well, I don't think so! hahaha

Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to darling me......
Happy Birthday to me!!!


(patters off to continue playing)


click here : me & my red-red, ang-ang egg

Berbuka Puasa in McDonalds?

Hahaha! I couldn't help laughing when I received this poster via email.

I really do wonder what kind of people go for such a ramadhan buffet. Imagine, having to eat the cholesterol high spread is really gonna make you puke! Gosh! if this is for real (err..... it's not right?), I can imagine the sight of bloated stomachs and the amount of fatty food that you have to digest - burgers, cheese, fats, carbonated drinks, sundaes, fillets, burgers, burgers and more burgers!

I don't even think they can handle the demand. I mean, you have to be real quick in making the burgers and ayam goreng to top up with the demand. Oh gosh... squashy burgers, cheese and creamy fillings, the crumbs... lying all around.....

I eat one whole big mac already I feel so full, what more this never ending supply of fast food!! And that, from 6:30pm onwards?? No need to sleep man, can sit in the toilet the whole night.

Oh boy! I'm feeling squeamish already..... Gotta go grab a cup of ginger tea...

Datin Seri Endon Mahmood

Gosh! I stepped into the office about half hour ago and my colleague informed me that Datin Seri Endon Mahmood, our PM's wife has just passed away approximately one hour ago!

I've been following her news when she underwent treatment for breast cancer in the states.

I've always look upon her as that lady full of courage, feminism, passion in life, gentleness and also her showcase of the nyonya kebayas. I love her book, The Nyonya Kebaya. The book somehow show me the beautiful person that she is and the love she has for such traditional but beautiful things in life. I'm especially touched by the perfect couple that she and our PM is. They seem to be ever sooo in love with each other after all these while.

In memory to one of the most beautiful woman in Malaysia.....

Astronauts

I was amused at one recent news on the naming of the Chinese Astronaut. Taikonaut? When I first read that word, I did wonder why they choose taiko... coz in my opinion a taiko is someone prominent in the underworld groups.. (ya, see how naive I can be?) When I read further on, Taikonaut seems to be the better choice due to it's easier pronounciation over two other proposed words. Apparently, taiko is derived from the word 'tai-kong' which means 'space' in chinese.

Once, I remember hearing a joke by a radio DJ, Tim, over Red FM.

He said something like this : a person who goes into space is known as an Astronaut. The Russian Astronaut is called as a Cosmonaut. The Chinese Astronaut is called a Taikonaut. What do you call a Malaysian who sends its first Astronaut into space??

One call came in and the guy said something-naut (can't remember the word).

Tim later said that the Malaysian Astronaut will be known as a DATUK.

hahahahaha! Good one, Tim!

Falling leaves...

I'm on leave today, and am I glad to be home, away from the hustle and bustle of the city life, esp. in this fasting period! The jam seems crazy at times.

Anyway, I took Brendan to the kids playground in one of the housing area near my apartment this morning. As we were approaching the playground, I saw one guy sitting all alone on one of the see-saw. He was wearing this shirt with the words "Kontraktor Alam Flora" on it and a rake on the ground just right beside him.

Wah.... damn shiok man... get paid just sitting around doing nothing, relaxing under the shady tree. Dry leaves were strewn all over the ground and it makes me wonder what (the heck) was he doing there, lazing around.

After half an hour, a phone rang. It was that man's phone. He was chatting with someone over the phone happily. He later took out a shiny golden piece of plastic from his pocket and started picking up his rake and walked away from the playground. The packaging looked so suspicious and I really do wonder whether the authorities (his boss) knows of what he's doing.

Fish Story

Today, some of my friends and I were sharing thoughts on recipes for toddlers and came on the looooooooong topic on fish names...

For me, I like going to the fish section at the hypermarkets to check out on the names and the prices coz' the I don't really recognise some of the fish slices at the morning markets most of the time and the prices and be high. I normally go for mah yau, se pan or hong chou for my son.

Can't help but post part of the "e-conversation" here. Can be quite funny too.

C.Nee : My gal loves fried fillet. Try to fry the fillet first without salt ya), then cook the fried fillet with some water and soy sauce. Very yummy....
Y.Leng : .....eh, what fish fillet u r talking abt? .. r u talking abt the 'ikan sebelah' which we can get from the market or the frozen type?
C.Nee : 1 piece of fish potong horizontal like "ma yau" (cantonese), "beh kah" (hokkien), "hong chou" (cantonese)...any fish lar...If can get fresh one lor....frozen not so good. "beh kah" (hokkien), "hong chou" (cantonese). Very fragrant when fried.
Chanel : For steaming ok ah?How the fish looks like, got picture ah?
C.Nee : Venice, pls help with the fish terms. Errr....same look lar...."beh kah" is the one without sisik, with dark shinny smooth skin. Jenahak has got red,black skin with big
sisik....sometimes myself also cannot recognise, will ask the fishmonger.....
Venice : i still wondering what fish lar chin nee. can u pls resend the photo to me again
C.Nee : Haha....remember liao....in english , it is called Mackerel. In hokkien, it is called "tua pan"......
Sharon : there's a few type of mackerel. One of it is considered "tuk"
C.Nee : Tuk is the ikan tongkol, I believe..
Venice : in bahasa malaysia is called ikan tenggiri. in cantonese called kau yue. taste very good when fried it but steam is a no no coz doesn't suit the taste if u steam it. Ikan tenggiri can oso make fish ball, buy from market which oredi pre pack then can have home made fish ball
C.Nee : Ok, let me get this straight:-1. Ikan tenggiri = 'kau yue' in cantonese and "tua pan" in hokkien.This is a not scally fish, usually used to make fish ball, mamak shop use to fry it and sell in pieces of make fish curry. Another variety is the fish look very much like tenggiri but in rounder body is called ikan tongkol.
2. Ikan senangin = 'mah yau' contonese and "beh kah" This is a longish, white and scally fish.
3. Ikan jenahak = hong chou???
4. Ikan parang = 'sai tou yue'??
correct??
Sharon : no lah. Beh Kah is not senangin (mah yau). Beh Kau is "ang hu" / "ang chor". You can get mah yau slices from wet markets.
C.Nee : Sharon, ang hu and ang chor different ler.....
Sharon : Aiyo... I pening already..
C.Nee : Ang hu = ikan merah (cheap). Ang chor = jenahak (expensive) black red colour. Almost look like "se pan".

So, what's the conclusion? I'm really confused.

I think the summary is :
senangin - mah yau (cantonese), beh kah (hokkien), threadfin (english)
jenahak - hong chou (cantonese), ang chor (hokkien) {black red colour}
parang -sai tou (cantonese)
kerapu - sek pan (cantonese), garoupa (english)
kurau - ??
tenggiri (longer body) - kau yue (cantonese), tua pan (hokkien), mackerel (english)
tongkol (rounder body) - mackerel (english)

Laughing baby

Babies.... They are such magnificient beings created by God. No matter how stressed and tired you are, they bring you the joy and gives you the medicine for the sadness. They are what I call the "antibiotic" solution after a weary day.

When I was much, much younger, I used to frown on parents with babies who cry, poo, puke, makes a fuss, scream etc. Then when I got older, I couldn't imagine how people can have babies living with them, draining out all the energy from their daddies and mummies. To me, babies are always so so so cute. Well, "nice to play with" according to most of my single friends, but "not to take care of". Then, when I got pregnant, I knew my carefree lifestyle is over. Caring for a baby takes lots and lots of time and effort (not to mention the money). I knew that there's lots of responsibilities, there will be the lack of sleep and the adjustment of my lifestyle to suit a new comer to the family. BUT...... I didn't expect more than that than what I had imagined and expected. It took more than that to be a mother!! Well, time is the factor that brings you through the phase day by day and by God's grace, I'm still taking a day at a time, absorbing all the baby vibes around me. Though the thick and thin, I know that I'll pull through....

Here's one of the many many many best moments I've ever had in my WHOLE life....


Eryn (4 months) laughing at the sound that daddy is making.

Little Echo.

Grandma & Daddy were sitting in the hall. Mummy was having dinner at the dining hall. Mei-mei was kicking in her bouncinette and Brendan was sitting around minding his own business.

We were all having a conversation.

Mummy : blah blah blah... we have lots of things going on lately and I'll be very busy.
Brendan : bee-shee
Grandma : blah blah blah... so, I'll follow Raymond back to Kluang in his new car.
Brendan : kah
Daddy : .blah blah blah.... we'll take turns to take leave.
Brendan : liff
Mei-Mei : *gurgle gurgle* weahh....... (crying for milk)
Brendan : weahhh weahhh... ( going towards mei mei )
Mummy : Brendan, don't disturb mei mei
Brendan : mei mei
Mummy : blah blah blah..... ok, I'm going to pump now (takes pump towards the room).
Brendan : (eyes brighten up) ha ha ha... pom pom pom.... ( follows mummy to the room ).
Mummy : don't be a busy body, Brendan.
Brendan : bor-jhee.
Mummy : ya ya ya, bor-jhee. Kepochee lah you...
Brendan : ha ha ha ( pretending that he's holding the breastpump and pumping milk )

Youth English Camp

Here's something I hear from a friend who's helping to promote a Youth English Camp this coming school hols. I've never heard of such camps. Further to my earlier post before this, it's actually a good opportunity for parents who can afford to send their teenage kids to this camp, founded by Dr Robert Lam, a former TV news personality and renowned professional speaker who will be the newest and most exciting endeavor to help youth speak, write and communicate better. He'll have certified instructors from Canada to join him in the camp as well.

The Youth English Camp will be held this coming November 13th to 18th in Awana Genting Resort, consisting of a 6 days / 5 nights package of exciting and enjoyable activities targetted at teens 13-16 years old. At RM3,000; the fees seems to be relatively reasonable compared to other similar camps around the region.

Camping notes for parents' knowledge :
> a whole new concept of self-discoveries through English language learning
> Using creative and dynamic communicative approaches, kids will be engaged in problem-solving exercises, active discussions, role-plays and interactive team sessions
> lots of space for cultivating the spirit of adventure and cultural awareness.
> safe, fun and education program within the outdoors, supervised by a team of experienced trainers

Check out part of the brochure appended below.

hee hor hee hor

" ... we have oredi sending out the skillers last week. The shongs pleesenthird will only know later once we get the confirmation from the organising people. The tare-gate group is.... "
(practically translated as ".... we had sent out the circulars last week. We'll only know the songs to be presented upon confirmation from the organisers. The target group is...").

Well, that was 'pleesenthird' by the presenter in one of the many presentations I attended quite recently. Sometimes, I have to stretch my ear to understand what was spoken. My colleagues like to call these people the "hee hors" (started from one sentence which was something like this : "he went to the...." It then became "he hor, went to the...").

Sometimes, the china-beng, err...... the chinese can't seem to speak properly. I can understand the grammar mistakes but when the pronounciation (especially the "r") goes haywire, it's really, really hard to comprehend what is being said. With all the "lahs", "lor", "hah?", "mah", etc in our malaysian conversation, things get worst when more rojaks are added in. I'm one of those who use a lot of Malaysian slang, but only in my casual conversation mah...

I have lots of friends who can't speak proper "Inggrishh". "England" no good, I can understand. But when you hear it in a public presentation to dozens of people, where lah you going to hide your face?

Something should be done to improve Malaysian's English (I'm not saying mine is good coz I've only got a credit and not a distinction in my 1119 English exams).

*beep beep* I received an sms on my handphone. "hee hor hee hor" it read.....

"mandi kerbau"

Brendan saw mummy entering room.
Brendan follows.
Mummy's not in the room. Mummy's in the bathroom.
Brendan goes : Eh? Mama? (softly)
Mummy : (silent)
Brendan, knocking on bathroom door : Mama? (softly)
Mummy : (silent still)
Brendan : Mama? Mama?! (louder)
Mummy : (silent than ever)
Brendan : MAMA?! MA MEE?! MA MEEEEEEE!!!!
Mummy : Yes, Brendan? Mummy's in the toilet. Mummy wants to pom-pom (shower)
(Brendan takes a stool to the bathroom door and opens it).
Brendan : Mama? (softly again) pom-pom? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
(Brendan closes door and runs off happily....)
sigh!

Milestones : girls vs boys

People always say that baby girls develop faster than baby boys. They tend to walk earlier. They learn to talk earlier and they mature earlier.

Now that I have a boy and a gal of my own, I can indeed see the difference. Incidental or not, I really wouldn't know.

Eryn will be exactly 4 months old tomorrow. This morning, while I was getting ready for work, I heard a huffing and puffing sound from my gal. I turned and saw that she had overturned herself from her back to her tummy! She was struggling to put her hands properly under her so she can push herself up. wow! I think Brendan only did that at almost 6 months old. Eryn also started gurgling and babbling at 2 months. Brendan was very late, in fact, he's not even speaking in sentences yet.

Eryn already know how to find her way to put her thumb into her mouth at around 3 months while Brendan did it much later, after exploring all his fingers and fists before getting to his thumb.

Bottomline : Kids grow up so fast nowadays....

Childhood Games

Once, I was sitting down watching Brendan playing with some older kids (well, he was trying to mix in with the older boys but I don't think they even know he exists. Brendan always prefer older children) when I heard laughters and screams from another group of children, playing catching. This brought me back to my childhood memories.

The game of catch or Police & Thief as what my cousins and I called it (in mandarin) used to be one of our main games whenever we were at my grandparent's house. My grandparents used to stay in a huge wooden kampung house in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by ample space and lots of trees. My cousins and I had a fun time running around the whole house playing that. This used to be one crazy game coz the 'police' will try to catch all the 'thieves' to be brought back to the jailhouse, which is drawn as a circle on the sand. The 'thieves' can only be released when they are tagged by another thief.

One of my all-time favourite is Belon-Acah (also known as galah panjang) which I used to play with my cousins on weekends and in school on weekdays. Everyday before school starts, my schoolmates and I will divide outselves into two groups to play this game. As a school sprint runner, I always managed to sprint my way through the square boxes. We'll play till we're all sweaty and when the school bell rings, everyone will line-up to enter our own respective classes with sweaty and flushed faces and wet uniforms.

For a not so hyper-game, we will choose to play guli (marbles), kite or the chicken feather game. On rainy weekends, we opted for Batu Seremban or bottle caps.

We normally play guli by digging holes in the sand (my grandparent's house are full of sandy area) with the intention of hitting our gulis with other gulis and subsequently into a hole.

For the kite and chicken feather game, we'll find old newspaper, kayu lidis, strings, chicken feathers, rubber pieces (to stuck the chicken feathers) and make our own kites and chicken feather item. It's kind of a surprise that our kites can sometimes fly up so high in the sky. The chicken feather game (don't know what it's really called) requires us to use the side of our feet to hit the item straight up in the air as many times as possible and not letting it drop down to the ground. The person who can do it the most times win the game.

Batu Seremban and the bottle caps are my favourites as well. I normally play these games with my female cousins. We will hand-sew pieces clothes and fill it with some red seeds (it comes from one type of tree) collected at my grandparent's house. Alternatively, we filled it with sand. This is one game which I'll definitely play with my gal when she's bigger. {Ivy, we should keep this game going.. :)}

Come CNY, we always keep those undented bottle caps to play. Each game requires 5 caps to play.

Some other games we played are congkak, rubber band throwing (using rubberband to "top" on another rubberband to gain more rubber bands), "bao-fu" (spiders which we catch from pandan leaves), one-legged catch, hide-and-seek and other stuffs like climbing rambutan and playing house on the mango tree. There's also another game which I can't remember the name where we draw boxes on the sand, and we throw a stone to one of the boxes and we jump on one leg into each individual boxes.

Speaking of rubber bands, I love the game of Zero Thousand (or Zero Point) where we'll use rubber bands and tie them up into a long rubber rope. We are to cross and jump over the rubber band rope which is held by two persons. The initial stage of the game starts from the ground and then the rope will be raised to the ankle, knee, buttocks, waist, chest, shoulder, ear and finally the head.

Most of these games are divided into teams and the selection of team members are via lat-talilat, tali-tamplong! (palms up or palms down), or one-two-zom! (stone/fist "kills" bird, bird "kills" paper/palms open, paper "kills" stone).

Those were the days.........

Kiasu-ism

I was at the Hytex warehouse sale yesterday. Boy! Those nice and pretty bajus were really cheap. I bought more than one dozen shirts for Brendan, more than one dozen dresses, tops and pants for Eryn, six for my sis, one for my mum, two for my maid, two for my maid's son, one dozen for a friend and my brother's girlfriend's SIL and two for me all at the cost of approximately RM100. That's a pretty good bargain.

I have to touch on the pathetic attitude of some of the parents there. The mad rush to grab the clothes when the workers were pouring them out were crazy. These clothes were as low as RM1, but there's no need to rush to grab it. Come on.... can die one ar if you don't manage to get those bulk of cheap clothes. These people were pushing and fighting and grabbing the clothes.

Don't care what sizes they are. Don't care what designs they are. Don't care if they behave like hooligans. As long as can get hold of it, can already. Eessshhhh.......

So, each time these happened, I'll go to the quieter corner and select the left-overs. Once the mad rush is over, I'll go over to the earlier mad place and look for more left-overs. There was this quite well-to-do and educated woman (based on the jewelleries and branded watch, shoes and clothes that she wore) who got tons and tons of beautiful clothes. I admire her for having the eyes in selecting the clothes until I realised that she's so damn self-centred. She had four basketful of clothes and then literallty booked one whole area, blocking others, and selecting the ones she wanted and dumped the rest. She was then down to two baskets. Then, again it happened. She went round picking another two baskets and again chose the nicer ones and dump the rest. And again it happened!! sigh!

There was one man who placed his son on top of the clothes. Another placed her daughter in one corner to sleep. And many others with children lingering around under the hot sun.

But I really cannot tahan when I saw this woman pushing and grabbing clothes while carrying her daughter of approximately two, or maybe three, in front of her. Her daughter was pressed and was screaming and crying in pain. She wouldn't give a damn and I was so pissed off I walked towards her, gave her a stare and told her off "Eh, you tak malu kah? Tengok anak you lah!! Nangis macam gila pun tak kisah! Malu lah!". I think if their child fainted also they wouldn't give a damn.

Such is the kiasu attitude of some people. Cannot get, try elsewhere lah. There are tons of clothes lying around. Why forsake your child's life for the sake of a RM1 baju?

The next time I go there, I'm going to bring my camera and take a shot at these people.

Malaysian Idol and the power of SMSes

I've always loved American Idol, but am not a follower of Malaysian Idol season 2. In fact, I've only watch 1.25 episodes of Malaysian Idol 2. 1.25 episodes because the first time I saw one of the episode of Malaysian Idol 2, I was appalled by the types of participants that were selected! My viewing lasted only for a few minutes. The 2nd time I watched Malaysian Idol 2 was when my hubby tuned in to watch the finals on TV.

I was playing with my two kids when I heard Daniel's voice. I asked dear hubby if that was one of the finalists and he said yes. Gosh! We're talking about Malaysian Idol, man! How could he ever be one of the finalist, I debated! All of us in the household (my mum, my maid, my hubby and myself) agreed that he doesn't qualify to be one of the finalists, let alone being the winner. And when Jacklyn Victor came in somewhere at the end, it was a far far cry on who is the best.

Nita can sing, but her voice can be quite unstable at certain times. She's got this habit of pursing her lips which can be quite irritating. She's tall and definitely a head-turner I would say.

It was pure entertainment for us all when both Nita and Daniel performed together. hehehehe. Quite a funny sight, one tall lady with one short guy....

Well... well... well... it was a sudden surprised when I realised that Daniel won, and winning by more than 65% of the total votes seem to be even more surprising!

Daniel mentioned something like he was chosen to be the winner because of his talents!! err...... talents? Actually, I don't really know what he's singing leh.....

He also mentioned that one parent called him up to say that he makes a good role model for the younger generation or something like that. There you have it! It's the power of the teens and the young adults that generate the SMSes for him!! These are the youngsters who have the purchasing power, the decision to decide who should win! Come to think of it, Daniel is quite charming and confident of himself. No doubt the teens will vote for him. He's probably got that "x-factor", that seasoning that will push him further.

Ha Ha Ha... the telcos are making big bucks out of all the SMSes. Ha Ha Ha... Daniel has the final laugh as well. He won, and he deserves it. You must have fans to support you, or else... down you go. So... congrats Daniel. and to you too, Nita. All the Best!

Live or Let Die?

Yesterday. I've just received news from my friend on the update of her SIL (sister-in-law). Her SIL is currently under confinement after being induced last Monday.

This is not an ordinary pregnancy, nor an ordinary delivery.

Earlier this month, my friend's SIL (let's just call her Mrs A) who was then 5 months pregnant with her first baby, was asked to go for a termination (I would prefer not to use the word abortion here). Mrs A's amniotic fluid level was very low and her doctors (experts & GH) diagnosed that the baby's kidney isn't growing propotionally with the baby's size. They indicated that should the baby be born alive, she might not be able to survive.

There were lots of debates going on among some of us mothers on the termination issue then, esp. when 5 months into the pregnancy is considered to be a late stage for termination. Many felt that the baby should be given the chance to fight out on its life, while some looked at the difficulties and problems which will happened later.

One mummy puts it as this : "I would prefer to let baby decides its own destiny... before that I would communicate with baby & let baby knows whatever happens, baby is still precious, much awaited, never forgotten. Could be therapeutic for the mum... to bond with a soul... "

Another mentioned this : "If it doesn't cause any danger to the mother's health, I would choose for baby to go in a natural way too. I personally feel that it's more painful to abort the baby - as we know they'll sometimes they tear apart the baby alive. Even though baby might have only short time to live, but it'll get mummy's and daddy's kisses, hugs and being cradle in the arms before leaving - whatever comfort we can provide. Though it's painful especially for mummy (& daddy), but with good emotional support & understanding, i think mummy also would like her baby to have the best we can give. "

One parent puts it as this : "Let's try and look at this from another perspective. Should the baby make it to full term, but with certain obvious defects/handicap, it will take a lot of effort, time, money, patience and sacrifices from the family members especially the parents, in order to help him/her in life. We have read about kids with illnesses that require special attention and long term medication and in such cases, one parent will have to quit his/her job to ferry the child to and fro. Some even exhaust all their savings and sell their property just so they can afford the high expenses involved in giving the child the best help they can find."

From the prospective of one father who wrote this : "...but wouldn't it be even more disheartening to see the baby born only to see her fails to survive due to the known outcome? Can you, as a mum, carry on with a frightening life for the next few months just to bet with the fact that she will not be able to survive soon after birth? I would go for 2nd, 3rd or even 4th opinions and if all conclude the same, I would rather seek to end it sooner... "

It was later made known that Mrs A's baby was was diagnosed as having the Potter's Syndrome.

Potter's Syndrome is one of several serious or fatal kidney abnormalities. In Potter's (or Potter) syndrome the baby's kidneys do not develop in the first few weeks of life in the womb. The baby's kidneys are essential for the production of amniotic fluid in the womb. If there are no kidneys, there is little or no amniotic fluid (this is known as oligohydramnios) to expand the womb around the baby and to allow the baby to grow and move. The womb remains small and in its confined space the baby's lungs cannot develop properly. Many babies with Potter's Syndrome are stillborn. In those who are born alive, the immediate cause of death is failure to breathe (respiratory failure) due to underdeveloped (hypoplastic) lungs, usually one or two days after delivery. Even if this problem is treated the baby cannot survive without kidneys.

Anyway, Mrs A was admitted to the hospital last Monday after admission in the hospital for two days. The doctors had decided to terminate the pregnancy the baby. The induction started at noon. The baby was still kicking actively then and there was still a heart beat despite not having any amniotic fluid left in the womb.

Sadly, the parents don't know if the baby is a boy or a girl as they didn't have the heart to look at their baby.

Nen-Nen -every single ounce matters

Brendan (23 months) always stand by me whenever I do my breastmilk pumping at home. He'll even try to help "pump" by holding the handle and pressing it down. Sometimes, he'll laugh and then say "mama nen-nen".

I normally try to pump 3X at the office to maintain my milk supply. But how do you juggle your pumping schedule when there's meeting to attend here and there? No choice but to find time to fit in somewhere lor.

I remember attending a press launch when Brendan was around 4 months+. While the press launch was going on, I suddenly felt that my blouse was wet when I crossed my arms. Dang! I quickly used a folder and hold it high up my chest so as not to make it too obvious. Luckily, I was wearing a striped colourful red top on that day otherwise got free show liao. I left early and turn my car air-con to full blast.

I used to use an electrical breastpump and pump in the toilet at that time. People are quite sua-ku then. Once, I came out from the toilet cubicle and noticed some ladies standing at the entrace of the door waiting for me to come out. When they saw me, they started laughing. One of them said "oh, it's you! We were wondering what sound was that and got scared!" Aiyo..... So, now I got myself a manual Avent pump, and I pump in the server room. More privacy and cleaner. Well, there are still colleagues of mine (male colleagues some more) who come knocking on the door just for the heck of it. sigh!

Well, breastmilk is worth it. Every single drop of it. When Brendan was in the care of my mum in Johor, I used to transport my glass jars of breastmilk in a cooler box and take it back home in Johor. Now, I just can't imagine that I used to carry my cooler box from the lrt station to Puduraya, and then board the bus home and then quickly put it in the freezer for Brendan's one week supply. Week after week it was the same routine. I used to get worried when my bus is delayed or when I have to take a later bus - afraid that the milk will all melt and get spoilt.

Anyway, now that my kids are both with me in KL, I don't have to worry about the weekly transportation. I also don't have to stay up late or get up early to pump milk. I just need to direct breastfeed Eryn from 9:30pm onwards. She gets up about 3x at night for her feeding, but it's so much more easier than having to pump them out.

Brendan's first "tanglung" celebration

Well, the mooncake celebration is finally over. Feeling very jelak already with all the mooncakes.

This year's mooncake celebration happens to be Brendan's very first. He was very fascinated with the colourful lanterns and even more excited with the idea of playing with candles.

We had a resident's get-together at our apartment poolside 2 Saturdays ago with lots of food and lanterns and food and more food...

Brendan wanted more! So last Friday, I took Brendan down alone, walking round the apartment blocks. And again, the following night, we had tanglung stroll at the lake by the garden at Taman Wawasan Puchong. Last night, we had a short mooncake gathering at a friend's place in Puchong.

I remember playing with lanterns when I was very young. My maternal grandma used to stay in a big kampung house in the then rural area. My cousins & I used to have tons of fun playing and walking from my grandma's place to the rest house area (about 1 km away) with our beautiful transparent paper lanterns. Sadly, we don't see much of these kind of lanterns nowadays. The plasticky and musical ones are really so noisy and some can be really horrible looking as well. I wanted to buy Brendan one but he just hated the sound. So, we opt for the normal colour paper lanterns. Well, why not? It's cheap. Can use and throw away if it gets burn.

Am hoping Brendan won't come bugging me for the lanterns tonight.

click : photos of the tanglung festival

Who is this?

A conversation between Brendan and his po-po (maternal grandma) :

Po-po : Who is this? (pointing to mummy)
Brendan : ma ma
Po-po : Who is this? (pointing to daddy)
Brendan : dhat-jee (as in "daddy")
Po-po : Who is this? (pointing to baby Eryn)
Brendan : mei-mei
Po-po : Who is this? (pointing to her ownself, at the neck)
Brendan : neck

TV talking to me?

It was after dinner. I was sitting down chatting with my mum while carrying Eryn on my lap. Hubby was playing with Brendan while the maid was cleaning up the table.

Out of a sudden, everyone froze and looked at each other.

"hahahahaha...". The sound came from Eryn. I mean, Eryn is only 2 months+ !! What sound could that be? A laughter? All heads turned to Eryn.

Again........ "hahahahaha.." Eryn was "watching" TV and she thought that the newscaster was talking to her! She started babble & smile and laugh again.

Everyone started laughing.

"EEEEEEEE!!!!!"
Well, that was Brendan, screaming away, trying to gain our attention. sigh!

"Arb-beet"

Every day after work, Brendan loves to spend time playing with his daddy and mummy. We just have to play with him to avoid him disturbing his little baby sister (which he normally does in the daytime) by pinching her nose, trying to twist her arms and legs, pressing her cheek, hitting her head, climbing over her and trying to squash her. Oh boy! It can be such a big headache sometimes.

Last night, Brendan was up to his whining again, trying to pull us away from the attention that we're giving to his little mei mei. So, I had to shower him with some time by playing with him so he won't feel so left out. I started introduce some new games which he started laughing away heartily. I then started putting two small balls under his armpit as part of the game. He found it amusing, trying to hold the balls tightly under his arms. That was it. The whole night, he went running round the house with one hands up in the air and the other hand under his arm, laughing away while saying the word "Arb-beet". Yes, he was playing his armpit game. There he went, "arb-beet!! hahahahaha... arb-beet!! hahahahaha..."

This morning before I left for work, he said "mama...", lifted up one arm and then said, "arb-beet!!" while giving me that cheeky smirk. Kids.... they give you headaches, but they provide you with tons of never-ending cuteness you can't resist.

Termites Infestation

When I came back to KL after my maternity leave, I saw a huge termite mount under one of my bookshelf. They happily destroyed some of my books and the parquet floors. Hubby treated it, and the affected area and we thought everything was ok until one night I heard some light tapping sound at one corner when I got up to breastfeed my daughter.

I went on all fours and tried to figure out if it was actually the electrical wires sparking. Nope. Put my ears on the floor and... AND.... aarrrgghhhhhh! I knew instantly that it must be termites under those parquet floor. My mind was not at ease and I couldn't sleep the whole night, creeping on all fours trying to see which other areas were affected. Woke hubby up to tell him and he just said "ok, just don't disturb it. I'll look into it tomorrow". Well, there I was, lying wide awake. I'm the kind of person who must put my mind at ease over a problem like this. Well, I managed to sleep after a while but woke up early and starting checking up the big heavy solid wood wardrobe in my room. I had a feeling that it has to be more than one area being affected. True enough.. there were termites under the wardrobe by the signs of the mud trails. Hubby treated the wardrobe while I tap tap here and there to see if there's more. Yup! There were indeed more. Infact, I found three new parquet areas affected.

Hubby made some calls, got some quotations and within 2 days, hubby treated ALL the areas again, got a contractor to remove the parquets, bought some tiles and got the contractor to replace the parquet with tiles, more treatment again while I moved my kids, my mum and my maid to an aunt's place temporarily due to health concerns over the chemical treatment and the dust emitted.

Everything and everyone was kelam-kabut. Hubby had to go for a biz trip to Hong Kong in-between and I had to do a lot of shuttling here and there, transporting stuffs up and down. The apartment was like a garage. Well, I think a garage is tidier than the apartment. It was full of dust everywhere.

We'll be moving back this Sat. after staying for almost 2 weeks at my aunt's place. There be lots of cleaning to do and our apartment is now cleared. We've filed out complaints to the management who is now looking into getting a pest control team to treat the whole area.

During this time, I managed to read up on the species of white ants and the treatment available. Some pesticides are so toxic that it has been banned in other countries. There's so much options available, from drilling, powder, baits, etc.....I found out that Sentricon proved to be the best. We did the normal treatment using chemical, but am hoping that the management will get to the root of the problem using the Sentricon system.

I don't know whether it's me or what, but I seem to be seeing a lot of pest control vans on the road lately. Eeshhh..... termites! Thinking of it makes my bulu roma stands!

AdBall 2005

Just came back from Adball. This year's theme was "Studio 54" , themed after the legendary famous nightclub in New York in the 1970's It was literally the home of the rich and famous. It was held at its usual place, Shangri-La Hotel. Upon reaching there, I was swarmed with tons of people in Afro hairdos, plastic-framed shades, bell-bottoms, platform shoes and other retro fashions, with glittery neon lights.

AdBall is an annual function organised by MAA (Malaysian Advertisers Association) and being in the media line, you get to see lots of sporting people attending the dinner function.

Anyway, my colleagues and I were there. I think I've reached the stage of getting older coz' my party mood wasn't really there. It was a fun night though.

My colleagues and I came dressed up. One of my colleagues was dressed in an Elvis suit, one in Austin Powers, my CFO came as Dr. Evil, my boss in some retro hairdo. I chose a short white bobwig, with big shades, shiny top and a bell-bottom pants.

It was quite a fun night, but I think I've reached the stage of getting old coz' my party mood wasn't really there. I left earlier while my colleagues boogey the night away.

A mother of two

1st June -the day of my inducement. I've read a lot about it and it is really scaring me. People talk about the pain, the long delay, the complications, etc... Well, I have to go through it. I'm one week overdue. My baby is still comfy inside, but she's gotta come out.

I went to the hospital at 8:30am. The nurses checked on me. Waited for the doctor and at 9am, he came in. He inserted some sort of a pill in me to dilate my cervix and sent me to my single-bedded room to wait for the "signs". And so I waited, and waited, and waited... The nurse came in every half hour to one hour asking if I felt any pain. I kept saying "no" "no" "no". I was beginning to get worried. Why wasn't I dilated yet? Why isn't there any pain? Why am I not having a show? Tried to watch TV, but the TV only had one pathetic channel on. I tried tuning it but tak jadi lah.

It was the doctor's halfday today. He came back at around 4:30pm. Checked on me and said, "you're only at 2cm dilation". ONLY TWO cm? So? What you want me to do? "Nurse, I'm doing an A.R.M." Hey! Tell that to me also lah. Not the nurse. You think I don't know what is A.R.M ar? I've been doing lots of self-study and research.... Anyway, chuik chuik... The A.R.M. was done. So, the wait began. I waited, and waited, and waited... again! Nothing much happen! The nurse kept reminding me to tell her if I felt any pain and if I felt the urge to pass motion. Time passes... nothing happen. No show, which was very wierd, and the water bag was only leaking, no gushing or anything. 5:30pm came and the doctor checked and said he'll cut the membrane bigger coz nothing seems to be happening. No pain, no reaction. The baby heartbeat's was normal. So, again I waited. This time I'm only at 3 cm dilation.

With Brendan, I had a show at 9pm+, started having contraction at 1am which went on and on every 5 minutes. I delivered Brendan at around noon. Almost 12 hours of painful labour!!! Hubby rushed back from Penang to Johor only to find me huffing and puffing away during my first labour. haha
There I lay down, responding to some SMSes, looking at the baby's heartbeat monitor, relaxing myself and doing some light breathing exercise. I was thinking to myself, this time sure beranak at almost midnight one. Wait so long also nothing happen. There were mild contractions and they were like mild period cramps to me.

At almost 7pm, the doctor said that he's going home for dinner and told the nurse to call him once I show the indications. At 7pm, I was beginning to have more pain and was already at 5cm dilation. The nurse called the doctor and poor fella, I think he hasn't really sit down at the dinner table when he was called back. Surprise! Surprise! I delivered at around 7:40pm.... The push was quite easy... The nurse said "eh, u tak sakit ar? You sudah boleh push lah.." he he he
It was a good labour... The inducement was no problem to me at all. Everything went on well.... And now, another chapter of my life as begun.....

Eryn Lim Shu Jynn

D.O.B. 1st June 2005