15 reasons to be glad that I am pregnant

1. Relishing the early weeks when only me and hubby knows that "We" are pregnant! ^_^


2. Knowing that I actually have exactly 9 months to fantisize & plan and dream...


3. Being pregnant is always the perfect excuse to be pampered...


4. Looking forward to your 2+1 months of maternity leave...eheheh


5. Not having to feel guilty that I am getting heavier


6. And of course, its bigger boobs and..hey....i now have a bum to look at....LOL


7. People giving ways to me at malls and when i queue up at the atm machines...


8. I'm getting a lot of attention from everyone


9. Feeling the kicks for the first time


10. Being able to talk and converse with my tummy as if I'm talking to another person


11. Our 'small-family' bonding time at every night before dozing off - just mommy, daddy and baby


12. Closer relationship with hubby


13. Feeling a little pair of heels prodding under at my diaphragm and knowing that soon I'll be meeting the little person they belong to!


14. Choosing baby clothes and planning what I'm going to buy.


15. Getting hubby to take photos of me smiling over my enormous bump so that, one day, I can look back and be amazed I was ever that size...hehee

and who says being pregnant is easy?

i have reached my 20th/21st week of pregnancy and i am:

1. having a really bad case of rashes on my right arm
2. having a really bad constipation if i don't take any bananas/papayas/prunes in a day
3. starting to have backache especially on my left side
4. eating everything that i can put my hands on
5. and that will result in me having heartburns afterwards
6. short of breath after a climb up the stairs
7. awake 3 times every night to go to the loo
8. getting less emotional/sensitive
9. tires easily
10. with a huge expanding belly!!!!

but, i am/have also:

1. felt my first quickening - a few weeks ago
2. proud of my tummy
3. looking forward to every check up with the gyne to see the baby during the scanning session
4. eating more healthily
5. more contious of my behaviour
6. having a closer bond with hubby during our 'talk-to-the-baby' sessions
7. have a new habit - rubbing the belly
8. excited to start buying baby stuff
9. starting to look for suitable baby names
10. trying to see the both of us as parents for our little one

KL - KT - KL - Ipoh - KL

been awhile since my last update...super busy at work and at home...alhamdulillah, Eid came and go...we had a good first Eid together as husband & wife...as planned, we went back to Terengganu to celebrate with Tok & Ki since Abah baru je passed away...nonetheless, we did planned to go back to Batu Pahat on the 2nd day of Eid, tapi tak jadi plak since the in laws came down to KL utk visit Aunties kat sini...so Alhamdulillah, that cut our journey short; instead of having to travel back from Trg - Johor, we only have to travel from Trg back to KL...

another death took place during Raya..(somehow I always feel that death comes in a pair of 3 - but this is just my silly supersition...:p)...Kak Lin's father in law (dearly known as Tok Wan amongst us) has passed away on the 13th day of Eid...somehow, he collapsed on the second day of raya that lead to a bypass operation the next day...the operation went well but somehow or rather, the Almighty loved him more than us, He then took Tok Wan back just a few days after he was discharged from the hospital...ironically it happened in front of Fawwaz, who was playing with his Tok Wan at that time...kesian Awasy, lost both his grandfather (Aki & Tok Wan) within the same year and just 2 months apart...Al Fatihah...

On a happier note, things are going rather smoothly between us and the families in Batu Pahat...Alhamdilillah, there has been no further drama cerekerama or tele-novela that happened during raya or after...but I do foresee future issues that might be arising in light of my little one popping out next year...*sigh*...but let's just take it one step at a time...I'll start to worry about it later on...anyhow, will be having my next check up with the gyne next Saturday...very excited about it...more excited to see how much the baby has developed since our last checkup last month...I believe I can now feel him kicking...we have yet to know the sex of the baby....but somehow i think it's a boy, though hubby is really hoping for a girl..hehe...tak kisah la...as long as my precious tumble tot is healthy and happy...

we've been scouting for a stroller these past 2 weeks....hubby really wants to get a Quinny stroller which I think is really expensive but doesn't have enough compartments for us to store the tumble tot's stuff later on...

Quinny Zap & Maxi Cosy Travel System

we have yet to decide on it, but I'll keep an eye for mcLaren, pegPreggo and Graco as well...whichever that can offer us the best package with value for money...ini long term investment jugak for the babies to come...LOL

Graco Aerosport Deluxe

And yes...a few other good news on my girlfriends have also come my way...

Maya is to be dirisik during Raya Haji by Harith's family and Insya Allah will tie the knot by end of 2009.

Sarah is to be dirisik and engaged to Ilyas a week after Raya Haji and will tie knot in July 2009.

Ida & Zol has finally moved to her own place in Denai Alam.

Alif's work has been recognized and he's travelling to Hong Kong for business trip next week.

Mieko and Fakri have also moved to their own place in Denai Alam with their cutie pies and are planning for a small hse warming get together Insya Allah sometime next month.

JJ is still JJ (,"). Zila has started her new job at VADS, TTDI.

Nadya - last I heard, she's still working hard at UOB to fit in the title "Career Woman of the Year"...hehehe...

Prem has done her second follow-up surgery at HKL and is recuperating and will be back in the office next Tuesday.

Ash and Mizi are getting more and more excited day by day waiting for their daughter's birth in December.

Nurul is still working hard to convince her parents about her wedding plans with Jalil.

Teh will be off to Japan for her much awaited holiday in December.

Ummi and Lukman are on the look-out to get a place of their own.

As for me and hubby, we're thankful for all the wonderful things that have happened to us these past few months. Very much excited waiting for the arrival of our own little one next year. Blissfully happy with our marriage. And extremely grateful to have the love and support of our much beloved friends and families.

XOXO

19 Ramadhan

how time flies....believe it or not, today is already the 19th day of Ramadhan...another 11 days to fast and only 7 days left before I can go on Raya leave....yippie yay!!

for our first raya together, we are planning to go back to Terengganu to visit my grandparents...i suppose this time around agak meriah since we have all my brothers and sister going back as well but then we no longer have Abah with us...if not, dia laa yg paling busy nak make sure that the accomodations are all well arranged in advance...

raya leave apart, tonight we'll be going back to Batu Pahat together for the first time...feelings? nervous + scared + anxious...nervous for Fahmi, scared and anxious to be meeting people who hates me although I still have no clue why...for Fahmi's sake, hari² each solat, I pray to God that everything will turns out fine...I know how much this will mean to him...so, harap sangat-sangat yg we will not have any drama this time and tak dihalau balik ke ape...hehe...

for him, I will try my best to be this superwoman yg akan tahan kalis although kena bombard with bullets and atomic bomb....hihihi....though i must say, i would rather have a cut on my hand rather than kena perli or anything....how words can slice into a person's heart, only some will know...

so for what is worth, wish me luck...to meet up with my MIL & FIL...and all the RILs...roger & out

p/s: btw, somehow i think i felt as if the baby is moving this week...but i'm not quite sure if its really the baby or my stomache grumbling...hehehe...have yet to tell Fahmi, since he has so many things on his mind right now...mommy & baby's secret, alone, for now...;-)

Ramadhan - Penghulu Segala Bulan

"Hai manusia! Telah datang kepada kamu satu bulan yang mulia, bulan rahmat... dimana bulan ini mewajibkan kamu berpuasa di siang hari dan sukarela bersolat pada malamnya. Barangsiapa yang mendekati Allah dengan melakukan segala amalan sunat di bulan ini akan menerima ganjaran seperti melakukan amalan wajib di lain hari. Ini merupakan bulan kesabaran dan kesabaran itu imbuhannya syurga. Ini juga bulan sedekah dan bulan dimana rezeki orang beriman bertambah..."
(Diriwayatkan Ibn Khuzaymah).

Selamat menjalankan ibadah berpuasa to all my friends. Semoga Ramadhan kali ini membawa lebih keinsafan, keredhaan dan barakah daripada Allah swt. Insya Allah.

Living Your Life

A sudden turn of events have changed my family's perspective of life in the past couple of weeks. Upon reflection, I realized that life is too precious to be mulled and sulked over. Life and death is natural. It comes and goes and it will touch everyone in their journey in this world.

My beloved father has passed away on August 9, 2008. In my heart, I would like to say that he has been invited back by the Almighty and not that he had left us behind. He was not only a father figure, but he was a mentor to me. Always teaching me the meaning of being patience and how I must always think of the best of everybody in this world regardless of what people might do towards me, be it good or bad. I had always hoped that I had lived to his expectations. Not only with having good grades in school, but also to be a good daughter and a good muslimah - which is what he wanted the most. Insya Allah, all the things that he had always preached to us, the 5 brothers & sisters, are kept close to our hearts.

I believe Abah would have been proud if he could only see how his children had handled his passing away. Yes all the 5 of us had our sad moments. But we huddled, scruffled and we rise above it. Mama needed us the most and I am proud to say that she received all the support that she can get from her children as well as her son/daugher in laws.

We arranged for the jenazah ourselves. We were there during his last moments. We taught him how to mengucap. We held his hand during his final breath. We wiped his brows when the angels were pulling him away from his jasad. And we closed his eyes after the last breath was out of his mouth. We covered Abah in white. We rubbed oil to his muscle-joints so that they will not be stiff. We carried him to the mosque in preparation for the burial. We bathe him ourselves as one of his last rights. And alhamdulillah, we had many people who came to the mosque for the solat jenazah. I would say, arwah would have been happy with all of this. And our family is very much thankful for those who had came forward to lend us support and their helping hands - and yes not to forget all those condolences.

Life is very much fragile I would say. I've received my shocking eye opener now realizing that we, mortals, can be taken away by God anytime He wishes to. Not a second too early nor too late. When our time is up, the angels are there to bring us up. Just like what has been said in the Quran, our fate is written on our 'leaves' up in the heaven even before we are born. How we will fare in this world, and when we will die and of course how we will die.

With this reminder, I hope that when my time comes, when I'm invited back by the angel of death, I would have enough supply of all the good deeds that I had done in this world. I hope that all my sins will be washed away during my final bath. And I hope that I would leave behind children who are soleh & solehah enough to pray for my soul and guide me through the gates of Heaven.

Life is too short - too precious - too valuable to be wasted upon nothingness. Nothingness that comes in many ways - hatred, jealousy, abhorrence, etc.

Hence, from this day onwards, I will live, love and savour each moment that I have as if I'm dying tomorrow. For Abah, we hope that you are happy & peaceful now. Our thoughts, love and prayers are always with you. You have lived, loved and savoured your life in this mortal world like there was no tomorrow. And I would say, you have left behind a legacy that other people will remember for as long as we lived. You have touched our life and the life of others in so many ways that you can think of. With that, we thank you.

Al-Fatihah for Arwah Engku Abdul Rahman Bin Engku Chik Ahmad.
Son - Father - Brother - Teacher.

A Perfect Score

Today I received an email which makes me feel so proud of him. A snippit from the email:

'' Fahmi is always on top of his job. Recently someone new has been completing these requests, and while they were completed in a timely manner, the password and user ID were sent in the same email, which I believe is in violation of SOx compliancy. No one has ever had this issue with Fahmi, he is always extremely efficient, knowledgable, and accurate in completing the job. I can see him moving on to bigger assignments in the future because of his great work ethic and super attitude. Great job as always!''

I know he has always been doing an awesome job. Since our teams are working hand in hand, my first point of reference had always been him even before we had anything going on between us. I believe the rest of my team also feels the same way - a deep sense of trust: that he is very knowlegable and knows his area well. Today's email has proven just that point.

Super Kudos to my Fahmi.

What more can I say - apart from the fact that I have always been proud to be standing next to him even before, presently and in the future.

Marvellous job sayang! ;-)

Our First Weekend Together

I just love spending my time with him. We had our first weekend together as husband and wife. We didn't really do anything much. Just some lazing & bumming around. Ran a couple of errands. Did some banking. Catch two movies together. Went to a colleague's wedding. And last night for the first time, after a 2 weeks old marriage, we sat down in the TV room to watch The Covenent, together - our first TV session - although I must admit I was snoozing half of the time. LOL.

I know, I know, I'm being melodramatic here. But hey! Give the bride some space. We are still in our honeymoon period and we're loving every second of it. (Yippie Yay!)

Anyhow, I've done the booking for Hubby's return ticket to AMS - KUL. Have completed mine today as well. Still contemplating where to go during our weekend in Amsterdam. A friend suggested London. But another colleague suggested Paris to us last night. Our preferences? Whichever that has the most attractions for us to see, the easiest & cheapest mode of tranportation and the best deal to offer.

So, here I am, still googling on whatever that is necessary for the both of us. Which reminds me: to get the Dummy Books to Amsterdam and the country we'll be visiting during our extra weekend there. Another reason to visit MPH this weekend.

Our 'Business & Honeymoon' Trip

I received my Global Credit Card yesterday. Checked the details and everything seems to be in order. But I can't quite remember what was the PIN No which I have set initially when I submitted the form (*Wonders*). Excitedness is creeping in. It's my first business trip abroad. A 12 hours direct flight in Business Class - that is if I managed to get the ticket. Else, we would have to transit either in Germany or in Singapore. I would pick the earlier. ;-). And the best part would be, hubby will be going with me. So it's more like a business + honeymoon trip for us. Yeay!

Was planning to do the ticketing by today for myself and hubby. But I received an invite for a CWT session for tomorrow. Since this is going to be the first time I'll be using the card, might as well I just wait for the session so that I can listen to what they have to say.

Been asking and googling around on what to do during our trip to Amsterdam. We have one extra weekend to spare. Currently, there are 3 options. To go up north to Copenhagen, Denmark. Or down south to Brussels, Belgium. But my preferred choice would be to the west across the channel to London, England. Same choice as my hubby. (,")

Our travelling option would either be by train or by bus. It's pretty hard to get a cheap flight ticket from NL to London. So, its either we book the Eurotrain return trip from Brussels - London. Or we can take a bus from Amsterdam and go straight to London. The latter seems to be more cost saving since the ticket will be much cheaper and we'll save some for the hotels. Anyhow, anybody has got any tips for all these 3 places? Please let us know.

Food Tasting

Our Solemnization Ceremony

99 stalks of Roses

Somehow or rather, he never stops to surprise me...on our Akad day, I received a gorgeous bouquet of red roses from him...my feelings: very very surprise & superbly happy....and of course...i was deeply touched....I knew he doesn't really care much about giving flowers to me...but having to receive it hours before the akad...now that i would have to acknowledge, to be one of the most romantic gestures that somebody had ever done for me...thanks a lot sayang...i loveeeeee the flowers very very very much...mucho gracias~ ;-)

the flowers were deep red in colour....beautifully wrapped in a lilac tissue - which goes well with his hantaran for me...and there were 99 stalks of roses, which was still wet with morning dew when it arrived right in front my door step...and of course, there was a card as well....needless to say, with a meaningful message inside....;-)

the night after our akad, he mentioned that 99 stalks of roses carries a certain meaning...after some googling, I've found that:

Red Roses: I Love You

99 Stalks: I Will Love You Till The Day I Die

( http://www.samuelgoh.net/love/roses.htm )

after knowing this, i definitely vote the roses to be his most romantic gesture eversince we have been together...so baby, thanks a bunch for the roses....i shall remember this always....and of course....i will also love you till the day i die...

xoxo

Hantaran Nany to Fahmi

All hantaran from my side was created by my sister, Kak Lin within 1 week...:p apart from the Sireh which we get Alip to help out....i love the the roses...and babybreath...

Sireh

Wedding band

Watch

Laptop

Shoes

Baju melayu & sampin

Shirt & pants

Cupcakes

Belt & shades

Chocolates

Perfume set

Hantaran Fahmi to Nany

Sireh

Dowry & wedding band

Duit hantaran

Watch

Perfume set

Make-up set

Handbag

Fruit basket

The whole collection.. I think I miss the Pulut Kuning for the single pictures..

The small pink roses deco in front is actually to hold my engagement ring.. We were engaged for 10mins just before the akad nikah...;-)

1 + 1 = 2

It's the happiest day of our lives,

When we said 'I Do',

And nothing else mattered, except for me and you,

Now that we are bound together,

And one has become two,

I love you with all my heart,

My love, my husband, my Boo....(,")

xoxo