Baby's Travel Gears

Hujung minggu lepas genap 5 bulan membawa bayi di dalam perut. Adakah masih terlalu awal untuk mula fikir tentang persiapan barang-barang baby? Macam awal sangat kot, perut pun masih belum kelihatan. Cuma kelihatan seperti seorang wanita terlebih makan, yang bertambah 1 kg setiap minggu, adanya. Maka merasa seganlah mahu masuk ke butik2 baby atau even melintas di mana-mana baby section. Apatah lagi membeli belah di dalamnya. Tapi bak kata kakakku di Perlis nun, it's never too early. Maka awal-awal dia sudah membekali adiknya ini dengan Baby's Checklist. Terima kasih, kakak!

Dari zaman belum kahwin dulu, sangat mengidam mahu beli Quinny travel set untuk baby. Hoho! Tambah-tambah bila tengok kakak-kakak yang dah ada anak masa tu, ke sana sini menolak stroller anak masing-masing dengan penuh bergaya. Oh sungguh convenient! Tapi itu di UK, dimana jumlah orang pedestrian lebih banyak dari kereta, sehingga kereta2 perlu mengutamakan si pedestrian dulu in any case. Dan public transport sangat convenient untuk ibu-ibu berstroller. Yang penting, harga Quinny travel set nya masih dalam lingkungan kemampuan poket! (ebay, car boot...a shopping heaven!).

Hence, bila balik Malaysia hanya mengigit jari saja. Beranganlah nak beli Quinny. Pergi survey harga dia kat Midvalley baru-baru ni, satu set Quinny Zapp (yang boleh lipat kecik gila!) dan compatible Maxi Cosi car seat berharga RM 1500! oh...oh! Tak banyak orang jual yang preloved punya kat Malaysia. Paling murah deal yang kami jumpa RM 1100. Still mahal! Nak beli kat UK and minta tolong kawan bawak balik seperti agak kejamlah pula.

Menjadi idaman kalbu kerana sangat convenient sebab car seat boleh angkat terus letak atas stroller nyer wheel. Jadi tidak mengganggu si anak yang lena tidur dari dalam kereta. Car seat juga boleh jadi rocker, so bila macam nak terbangun baby tu, boleh goyang2 kasi dia tidur balik. Menjamin daurah yang aman damai bebas tangisan. Best kan??

Baiklah, oleh kerana poket nipis maka beli yang penting saja dulu. Akhirnya dengan berat hati meng'eliminate' Quinny Zapp stroller dari list. huk! Maka berkeputusan beli car seat saja, kerana Ibu masih lesen L ya, baby? Tidak mampu drive sebelah tangan dan sebelah lagi pegang baby untuk dihantar ke nursery sebelum pergi kerja. Maka baby harapnya duduklah baik-baik di dalam car seat itu. Pilihan masih lagi Maxi Cosi, jenama lain tidak memuaskan hati atas berbagai sebab. Tapi....... brand new one berharga RM 899!! Tidak! Then terjumpa yang preloved with half price. Preloved pun preloved lah... janji Maxi Cosi dan looks new.

Ini MaxiCosi anda ye, baby? Sedang on the way dari Johor. Looks new tak? Warna merah pilihan Ayah. Katanya baru masuk dengan Savvy merah beliau. Habis, Viva kelabu ibu bagaimana? "Owh, macamlah Fateh nak naik kereta Ibu sangat," kata ayah. Sungguh sampai hati....

Baiklah, oleh kerana tidak membeli stroller maka perlu diganti dengan carrier. Ini pula carrier pilihan Ayah juga. Katanya, at the end of the day, he will be the one who's using it most. As, Ibu would just be responsible to bring diaper bags saja. Sekali lagi, sungguh sampai hati...So kene pilih yang terbaiklah, maka beliau memilih ini. Sungguh teliti Ayah memilih travel gears kamu, baca preview segala dgn penuh tekun seperti membaca website Paultan.org (website kereta faveret beliau) yang dia selalu baca. Oh!


Ini BabyBjorn Synergy pilihan Ayah berwarna hitam.Kerana hitam itu elegant. Sebab beliau memilih yang ini, sila lihat gambar di bawah. Sudah cukup menerangkan ke'best'an baby carrier ini. Yang ini beli di Ebay ye, lebih murah berbanding harga pasaran yang mencecah RM650. Tidak berbaloi. Nanti Makcik Syazreen bawak balikkan dari UK nun insyaAllah.

Ok, sekian update. Mahu pergi shopping breastfeeding set pulak. :)

Long Weekend!

Salaam..

Oh rajin pula saya mengupdate blog. Long weekend minggu ni, bersempena cuti Krismas. Bila hari akhir kerja baru kami tersedar yang kami tak ada apa-apa rancangan untuk ke mana-mana. Mak dan abah di Kuantan pula menghabiskan cuti di Perak. Maka tiada arah tujuanlah kami melainkan memenuhi undangan perkahwinan rakan-rakan di sekitar Terengganu. Barakallahu buat Kak Ayu, Hakimah dan pasangan masing-masing. Moga Allah memberkati pernikahan kalian dan merahmati kalian dengan zuriat yang soleh insyaAllah.

We are having a chance to have a sneak peek of the little one last Wednesday. It was supposed to be another two weeks for our next check-up but due to the stomach cramping, pelvic pressure and back pain over the night, we decided to have a check. Better be safe than sorry, right? Being expecting for the first time, even slight pain will send me shivers. So we took a leave for the day and went to KMC. We were late as this visit was not planned, so while waiting we went to have dental check up and scaling. (Okay... dentist itu puji gigi saya cantik :D huhuhu!)

When it was our turn, Dr. S just finished an operation and she was still in her scrub. Looking tired and a bit weary. I explained briefly my problem and first thing, as usual, she will do the U/S to make sure that the baby is fine. This time, Dr.S did a more detailed scan than usual, looking at every little inch of the baby possible. Measured his head, body and legs to give the average gestational age of 21 weeks. Check the heart, alhamdulillah 4 chambers was nicely seen with good heartbeat. Check both legs, hands and those little fingers, alhamdulillah looking good. InsyaAllah, there should be no problem the doctor said. I had the scan photo printed but too lazy to scan and put it up here. Hehe!

Then she sent me for a urine test. In case I had infection which could effect the baby. The test was cleared, the possibility of having infection was ruled out. So the doctor resulted to conclude that what I felt was just a stronger version of ligament pain, that is. Nothing to worry. But she asked me to come back at soonest if the pain get any stronger, accompanied with fever, vomit and bloody discharge. For the time being, she just let me go with a mild painkillers. I just decided to bear with the pain and not using those meds for the sake of the baby.

Baiklah, mari kembali ke Bahasa Melayu. Saya tak tahulah kenapa kalau nak terangkan sesuatu yang medically-related, saya lebih senang berbahasa Inggeris. Macam susah nak cari perkataan tertentu dalam Bahasa Melayu, mungkin sebab kebanyakan pregnancy website yang saya baca dalam Bahasa Inggeris, jadi saya lebih terbiasa dengan medical term yang mereka gunakan. Bukan sengaja mengada-ngada nak cakap English. Sila maafkan penulis.

Bercakap tentang si kecil, menurut pembacaan saya sejak seminggu dua ini sepatutnya dia sudah boleh mendengar suara-suara di luar. Jadi ibu kene rajin-rajin berbual dengan si kecil, rajin-rajin baca al-Quran atau mungkin bacakan dia bedtime story! Pernah sekali saya berdiri di tepi jalan, apabila tiba-tiba sebuah lori besar lalu berhampiran dengan saya. Serentak itu saya rasa si kecil tiba-tiba bergerak, macam terkejut dengar bunyi lori yang kuat tu. Semalam pula, saya pasang bacaan Quran dari adik Ahmad Saud, tak sedar komputer full volume tiba-tiba kuat betul suara adik Ahmad Saud ni azan. Si kecil yang mungkin tengah tidur terkejut lagi. Huhu... kesian anakku!

Sebut tentang bergerak, memang pergerakan dia dah sangat noticeable sekarang. Kalau Ibu jalan atau tengah kerja die memang tidur jek kot biasanya. Konon-konon rasa macam tengah dalam buaian atau cradle la kot tuh. Senyap tak bergerak. Tapi bila Ibu mula baring dan berehat, maka dia akan mula bermain bola sepak di dalam sana. Sungguh aktif. Kalau gosok-gosok kat tempat yang dia kick, nanti die kick balik. Satu malam suruh die pilih sendiri nak dengar Ibu baca surah apa. Ibu sebut surah satu-satu Maryam.... Luqman... Yassin... sampai kat Yusuf, terus dia kick! Okay, baiklah malam ni baby dengar cerita Nabi Yusuf okay?

Oh, oleh kerana mempunyai masa lapang di hujung minggu yang panjang ini, maka untuk pertama kalinya Ayah excited surveykan barang-barang untuk baby. Nanti kita cerita lain kali what Ayah has got for you, yea?

My biggest apology for turning this blog into a pregnancy rambles...

Surah-surah amalan ibu mengandung

Okay, bersambung daripada entry yang lepas. Tentang amalan surah-surah semasa ibu mengandung. Antara surah-surah yang saya tahu digalakkan untuk di amalkan semasa mengandung ialah:

1. Surah Yusuf: untuk memohon anak yang cantik rupa

2. Surah Luqman: untuk memohon anak yang cerdik

3. Surah Maryam: untuk memudahkan bersalin

4. Surah Yassin: untuk memohon anak yang teguh hati

5. Surah Al-Hujurat: untuk membanyakkan susu ibu.

Pada saya, tidak cukup dengan hanya membaca surah-surah ini sahaja, lalu kita boleh duduk goyang kaki sambil mengharapkan anak-anak kita eventually akan menjadi seorang insan seperti yang kita harapkan. Tarbiyah (pendidikan) untuk anak-anak pastinya bukan sesuatu yang boleh dilakukan hanya semalaman tetapi memakan masa sepanjang hayatnya. Malah tarbiyah itu bermula sejak sebelum dia dilahirkan lagi, hatta sebelum dia diconceive. Bagaimana? Dengan ibu itu mentarbiyah dirinya sendiri sebagai persediaan untuk mentarbiyah zuriatnya nanti.

Sebagai ibu, kita akan jadi insan pertama yang anak kita lihat hampir setiap hari dan pastinya insan yang paling rapat untuk dicontohi. Bayangkan, bagaimana kita nak menghasilkan anak yang taat menunaikan suruhan Allah kalau si ibu (dan bapa!) sendiri ialah individu yang sering melalaikan suruhan Allah. Bagaimana kita nak menghasilkan anak yang elok akhlaknya, kalau akhlak si ibu (dan bapa!) sendiri amat buruk dan tak bersesuaian dengan landasan Islam. Tak kan bila anak dah lahir baru nak mula berubah jadi yang lebih baik kan? Jadi persediaan jadi contoh terbaik untuk anak itu pastinya perlu dimulakan sebelum dia dilahirkan.

Jadi, pada sayalah, surah-surah amalan semasa mengandung ni sebenarnya salah satu bentuk tarbiyah untuk ibu tu sendiri, sebagai persediaan untuk mentarbiyah anaknya pula nanti. Dengan syarat, si ibu bukan sahaja membaca surah-surah itu tanpa cuba berusaha memahami maksudnya. Apa salahnya ambil sedikit masa dalam sehari untuk mentadabbur ayat-ayat al-Quran tersebut. Baca maksudnya dan kalau mahu lebih faham dan hadam, boleh cuba baca tafsirnya. Rasanya dalam 9 bulan tempoh mengandung tu, sempatlah beberapa kali mengulang baca surah-surah ni. Kalau setiap kali baca disertai dengan tadabbur, insyaAllah secara tak langsung lekatlah mesej-mesej penting dalam surah ni.

Contohnya dalam surah Luqman, memang sarat dengan nasihat-nasihat Luqman kepada anaknya. Dan nasihat-nasihat Luqman inilah juga yang kita nak tanamkan dalam hati anak kita nanti. Secara tak langsung, bila kita selalu baca surah Luqman ni, kita macam dah ada guideline dalam otak kita, apa dia nilai-nilai core yang kita perlu bentuk dalam anak kita dan insyaAllah tarbiyah yang kita design untuk mereka pun akan mengarah pada nilai-nilai ini. Saya kagum pada rakan usrah saya yang memang mengamalkan surah Luqman sejak anaknya dalam kandungan. Sehingga surah itu dihafalnya dan dibacakan pada anaknya setiap kali dia menyusukan. Kalau anak dia nakal-nakal pun, dia dudukkan atas riba sambil pujuk dan baca surah Luqman. Sweetkan??? Dan anak dia memang alhamdulillah sangat mendengar kata. Kagum saya.

Surah Maryam sendiri ceritakan tentang ketabahan Maryam semasa melahirkan. Bayangkan melahirkan anak bawah pohon kurma sorang-sorang. Bukankah sangat tabah? Tambah pula selepas tu kene cerca lagi dengan masyarakat. Dibandingkan dengan kita, yang insyaAllah mungkin melahirkan dalam keadaan yang sangat selesa. Di hospital berhawa dingin yang lengkap dengan segala kemudahan perubatan yang canggih. Tambah dengan suami sebagai cheerleader kat sebelah kan, lagilah semangat kuat! Memang melahirkan itu masih menyakitkan tapi kalau dibandingkan dengan Maryam memang lebih jauhlah kepayahannya tu. Apa yang menguatkan Maryam ialah kebergantungan dia pada Allah, dan harapnya kita juga mempunyai kebergantungan yang total kepada Allah seperti Maryam. Buat saya sendiri, surah Maryam sangat-sangat istimewa dan signifikan. Kenapa? Saya simpan cerita ni sampai anak saya lahir nanti ok? hehe

Nak cerita satu-satu tentang semua surah-surah ni memang tak cukup dengan satu entry. Ibu-ibu sila pergi discover sendiri hikmah dan ibrah yang boleh digali daripadanya. Okay, nak pergi kenduri kahwin dah...pen off dulu ya?

Kenan atau Badi

Babak 1:

"Eh, lain betul eh muke akak dengan parents akak. Takde iras langsung. Dengan adik beradik pun lain ye?" saya bertanya pada senior sebilik dengan saya.

Waktu itu saya di tingkatan dua dan kakak itu di tingkatan empat. Wajahnya seakan-akan wanita Jepun. Dengan mata yang kecil, sepet dan berkulit cerah. Cantik juga! Sedang ibu bapa dan adik beradiknya yang lain, semuanya berwajah asli Melayu. Berkulit sawo matang dan bermata bundar.

"Owh... dulu mak akak cerita, masa pregnantkan akak, dia ada la berkenan kat sorang perempuan Jepun yang tinggal berjiran dgn kami. Hari-hari die tengok perempuan tu. Akhirnya, bila akak lahir, muka anak dia tak ubah macam orang Jepun..huhu!" katanya tersenyum-senyum.

"Oooo... macam tuu..." kata saya sambil mengangguk-angguk.

Babak 2:

"Kenapa keliling mata kakak tu macam lebam?"

"Owh tu tanda lahir. Dulu... masa mak dia mengandungkan dia, ayah dia pukul kepala ular yang masuk ke rumah. Sampai hancur sebelah jek mata ular tu. Bila lahir anaknya, matanya lebam kat belah mana mata ular tuh hancur."

Babak 3:

"Semalam ada budak tu datang rumah kita. Nakal betul! Geram jek tengok. Mujurlah awak dah tidur. Kalau tak awak pun geram menengoknya. Benda-benda tak elok macam ni senang lekat pada anak dalam perut!"

Pernah dengar tak situasi-situasi di atas? Situasi-situasi ini biasanya di gelar 'kenan' atau 'badi' di kalangan masyarakat Melayu. Biasanya dikaitkan dengan amalan si ibu dan suaminya semasa ibu itu mengandung, dan hasilnya anak yang sedang dikandung akan menerima akibatnya. Kesan daripada kepercayaan ini, masyarakat Melayu memang kaya dengan pantang-larang untuk ibu mengandung, untuk mengelakkan anak yang dikandung 'terkenan' perkara-perkara yang tidak elok lalu menyebabkan kecacatan.

Antara contoh pantang-larang orang Melayu:

• Tak boleh potong binatang nanti anak lahir tak cukup anggota
• Jangan mandi waktu malam nanti bersalin tumpah darah.
• Jangan duduk di tangga nanti bersalin susah.
• Jangan siang ikan nanti anak sumbing.
• Jangan sembelih binatang nanti anak lahir cacat.
• Jangan pukul binatang nanti anak akan terkena kenan binatang tersebut.

Oh, ini baru sedikit. Banyak lagi kalau hendak disenaraikan semua. Mungkin ada yang benar-benar terjadi. Namun untuk mengatakan itu semua adalah kebetulan, akan bercanggah pula dengan akidah Islam. Tiada istilah kebetulan dalam Islam kerana semuanya sudah ditentukan oleh Allah (Muqadimah Fi Zilalil Quran). Hendak dikatakan 'kenan' lagi pula boleh membawa kepada syirik, kerana mempercayai kuasa atau pengaruh lain yang boleh memberi kesan kepada kita selain dari kuasa Allah S.W.T.

Soalnya, perkara ini semuanya membawa kita kepada persoalan akidah. Tanpa kita sedari, kerpercayan terhadap fenomena 'kenan' atau 'badi' ini begitu berakar umbi dalam masyarakat kita tanpa kita sedar yang kepercayaan ini sebenarnya merosakkan akidah kita. Sememangnya perlakuan kasar dan tidak beradab terhadap makhlukNya yang lain sangat ditegah oleh agama Islam, sama ada semasa tempoh mengandung atau tidak. Tidak ada langsung, nas-nas dalam al-Quran mahupun hadis yang mengaitkan perbuatan tersebut dengan nasib bayi di dalam kandungan.

"Memang la takde dalam al-Quran dan hadis, tapi nih based on pengalaman orang-orang tua la..."

Kalau bukan al-Quran jadi sumber rujukan utama kita, apa lagi yang boleh kita rujuk sebagai orang Islam. Adat dan amalan nenek moyang, tidak semestinya bertepatan dengan syarak. Kita sendiri sepatutnya arif untuk membezakan adat mana yang boleh diikut dan ditolak berlandaskan syariat Islam yang kita fahami. Adat melenggang perut misalnya, termasuk dalam adat yang dianggap khurafat dan boleh membawa kepada syirik kepda Allah Ta'ala. Dalam adat ini, jantina anak ditentukan dengan menggolekkan buah kelapa dari atas perut wanita mengandung, dan perutnya di lenggangkan dengan jaluran kain tujuh warna untuk membetulkan kedudukan anak. Perlu pula kasi pengeras kepada si tok bidan. Tiada nas al-Quran malah tiada kaedah saintifik yang boleh membenarkan adat ini. Maka mengapa perlu kita terima?? (Nak tau jantina anak pergilah buat Ultrasound... itu pun ada kemungkinan salah jugakan?)

Keimanan kita kepada Allah dan akidah kita yang benar, meletakkan semua perkara yang terjadi di atas dunia ini sebagai ketentuan daripada Allah S.W.T. Tentunya sebagai ibu yang mengandung, selalu saja saya terfikir dan berteka-teki tentang bagaimana rupa anak yang dikandung ini, sempurnakah dia, bagaimana sifatnya nanti. Tentunya debaran menantikan saat kelahiran itu lebih terasa, dengan tidak sabarnya hati untuk melihat wajah si kecil itu nanti. Tetapi perasaan itulah yang sepatutnya meletakkan tawakkal kita pada Allah di tempat tertinggi. Kerana kita faham dan tahu hanya Allah yang menentukan segalanya dan Maha Mengetahui.

Bagaimana pula dengan surah-surah amalan semasa ibu mengandung?

Bersambung dalam entry seterusnya nanti...

Of blue or pink cot..

Salam...

Yeay! It was the time of the month again! (and you see why I update a new entry here...hehe!) It was the most awaiting moment for me each month (yes, I even set a countdown for it). The time to see how our little one progressing inside. I have a rough idea that Fateh has definitely much grown up from the last time we see him, looking at my growing belly and the increasing number on my weighing scale. Oh... I have finally reach 70 kg! Congratulations to myself... I have never thought I would reach that number. Now I am much heavier than Muhammad. huhu! But most of my friend who bumped into me said I'm looking fine, a bit plump but the belly definitely not showing under my abaya and hijab.

Okay, back to the antenatal check up. We got the first place again... hehe... of course, no one ever come as early as 7.30 a.m as the doctor's office will only be open at 9.00 a.m. We registered and went for breakfast at my parent's house. For this visit, we bring Abang Hadif (my 3 years old nephew) along to have early introduction to the little Fateh. hehe!

Dr. Su went briefly through my record and we have a bit of chit chat before she directed me to have the scan. Oh yes... my favorite time. And subhanallah how we are amazed to see how our little one doing in there. Muhammad pick Hadif up so that he could clearly see his little cousin.

Budak gemuk in my belly

He was happily sucking on his thumb the first time we saw him but he lost it for a while and was struggling to get it back in his mouth again. Huhu... cuteness. I guess he was shocked when Dr. Su poked him with the prob. And Fateh was definitely giving his full co-operation this morning. Like he knows that mummy and daddy come to see whether to buy him a blue or pink sleeping cot. The last time we saw him he was laying on his stomach, but now he rest nicely on his back. Dr. Su did not find it difficult to find out whether we are having a girl or a boy, we saw that 'thing' straight away. huhu!

Then as usual, Dr. Su measured his head, his body and legs to figure out how many weeks along we were. Average measurement showed Fateh gestational age around 19 weeks which is exactly similar if we were to count the first day of my last period. And he weighed around 292 grams (10 oz) compared to 109 grams (40z) the last time we saw him. So, I guess he's doing fine in there. Ayah said Fateh has grown that much because Ibu eats too much. huhu! Takpelah Fateh kan? It means Ibu fed you well. hehe! Oh, and Abang Hadiff said hi!, he can't wait till you come out to show you how to ride a bike.

Alhamdulillah...alhamdulillah...alhamdulillah. All in all we are very well. Positive fetal heartbeat, positive fetal movement, placenta at the right position... what else could we ask for. Thank you Allah, for taking care of us.

We rushed back to my parents house to drop Hadiff and tell them the good news. Of course Uwan was all happy to hear that her guess was right about the gender. And we called Opah in Perak to break the news as well. Then we went back to Kerteh as Muhammad need to conduct a daurah this weekend and we were not done with the preparation. It has been so long since the last time we deliver ISK and alhamdulillah the daurah went well. May Allah bless our little effort. And now I know that Fateh get excited as he moved and kicked a lot upon hearing Uncle Fathi's great ISK video. Okay, dah besar nanti boleh kasi ISK ye, Fateh? InsyaAllah.


Alhamdulillah ya Allah.. Alhamdulillah...

Random thought!

Mummy was reading this pregnancy website about the development of the baby and mom at 17 weeks of pregnancy:

"Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — his lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now, and he's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. He can move his joints, and his sweat glands are starting to develop."

"When you're pregnant, your developing baby needs calcium to build strong bones and teeth; to grow a healthy heart, nerves, and muscles; and to develop a normal heart rhythm and blood-clotting abilities. If you don't get enough calcium in your diet when you're pregnant, your baby will draw it from your bones, which may impair your own health later on."

Mummy: Owh, no wonder la...I had cramp on my hands and fingers for days kan? After drink Anlene Concentrate (the one with 4 times more calcium than the normal milk tu, okay iklan Anlene kejap) then the cramps disappear. Rupenye Fateh needs calcium more and I haven't given him enough lah.. poor Fateh. Fortunately Fateh know how to get it from me.

Daddy: That's why I told you to drink your Anmum, but you refuse...see?

Mummy: Hehe... tak sedap. That's why.

Daddy continue his work on the laptop and mummy carried on obsessing on her pregnancy website..

"Speaking of packing on the pounds, that what it's all about for baby this week. He's adding fat stores that will keep him warm and cozy after he's born. Your baby's weight will increase approximately six times over the next four weeks. Good to know you're not the only one tipping the scale!"

Mummy: Owh... this week Fateh start building up his fat jugak! Olololo comel...chubby,chubby anak ibu!

Daddy: I see...

Mummy: But wait, kalau Fateh has no enough calcium then he withdraw from me kan? Why now he's building fat but he didn't withdraw any fat from ibu eh? I have lot of excess one spared for him... boleh reduce ibu nyer fat!

Daddy: Errr.......

Alhamdulillah..we are all fine!

I have always been a nervous freak. Our last antenatal check up was on the 10th week of pregnancy. Although all seems to be nice and healthy, (the fetus has start forming with a good strong little heartbeat) I am still worried as we have not yet passed the first trimester. I have always heard that the first trimester is full of uncertainty. About the baby and about yourself. And so I waited anxiously for our next antenatal check up, which was scheduled 5 weeks after that.

For me 5 weeks seems like 5 years. I counted the days and keep close eye on every little things that were happening to me. I have always felt pressure on my pelvic and the pain sent me to clinic for a check up. The doctor found that the pain is due to infection in my uterine tract, which is normal for pregnant women. I have also experience some lower abdominal pain here and there. Which the doctor explained as a normal round ligament pain. A good sign that the baby is growing and my uterus is making room for him/her. My doctor assured me that everything was fine...but I'm still worried. Every day I make du'a to Allah, as only Allah has the supreme power of taking care of everything while we human are totally incapable.

We saw His mercy during our 15th week check up. I was telling Muhammad that I thought I felt Fateh was moving a few days before the check-up. I sometimes felt a fluttering sensation when I laid still. But Muhammad was in doubt, he said it is impossible for me to feel it this early and the feeling was just in my head. (as I read too much of pregnancy websites!). Owh by the way, Fateh is the name that we usually use to call the baby ever since we started trying to conceive. Since we don't know the gender of the baby, so we decided to call him/her Fateh, just for the ease of calling. Okay? (Don't worry, we have other name reserves for Fateh when he/she come out..hehe!)

But I want to assure Muhammad, that I really felt the movement. And so I told Fateh to show dad the real kick during the scan. Off we go. I was... as usual, as nervous as I can be when the doctor put the cold blue gel on my stomach and shove the probe to find Fateh. It was easy to find him as he grew much bigger that the last time we saw him. Subhanallah. From just 3.72 cm CRL he has grown to 9.85 cm. And by the time we found him, I guess he was busy performing his Dhuha, looking at his prostrating position. Oh, and he is also busy sucking on his fingers looking at the movement of his lips. I thought that was the most adorable view I have ever seen.

Fateh during 15 weeks

Okay, it's now time to show dad the real Fateh. When the doctor shove the probe a bit more, Fateh seems distracted and starts moving a bit. He opened up his fist and the doctor showed us his little fingers. Cute! And he started to trying to turn himself around (I guess he was finished with his Dhuha). And so we saw him kicking the uterus wall a few times to showed us his strong legs. Mummy was all win to see daddy's shocked face. I told you, he is as active as he can be already, dad. Thanks Fateh! Now daddy would really believe us. Hehe!

The doctor then measured Fateh's leg, head, CRL and hands to give us the average of his gestational age 15 weeks. Everything seems to be very well and we are very happy. Alhamdulillah. All praise goes to Allah for He is All Knowing.

We take this happy news as also a test from Allah. A bigger test indeed rather than the failed fertility cycles. I felt that this is a test of higher level of tawakkal to Allah. Anything could happen between this point and labor. Even though we have safely passed the first trimester, I still heard stories of second trimester miscarriage and still birth during third trimester. I can be worried as hell and take whatever precaution to prevent anything bad to my baby. But in the end it is Allah who decides the fate. And the pen has dried and it was all written. This is also a test to our gratefulness. A test of returning everything to Allah, whether in difficult times or happy times like this. Muhammad has never failed to remind me to prostrate in shukr for every little good news and relief that we had. He also reminded me of our difficult times, with tears and pains, and how Allah has given us His rahmah and thus we should forever be grateful. I know my shukr is not enough, but I can't stop but to thank Allah for all this.

Things To Do on the First 10 Days of Zulhijjah

I found a super-cute muslim website, with a very chic title and design at http://www.owhsomuslim.com. Cool eh? Here's a sharing from their latest post!

The month of Dzulhijjah is the last month of the Islamic Lunar Calendar. What’s so special about it? It’s the month of Hajj, where pilgrims embark on a wonderful sacred journey in Mecca to please God, masyallah. As Muslims, we should make use of the first 10 days of Dzulhijjah and maximize in doing good deeds. Here are the things Muslims ought to do:

1. In order to completely embrace Dzulhijjah, one should learn and get to know the importance of the month. The significance of this month has been highlighted in the Quran, especially on the first 10 days. So let’s increase our knowledge and receive great blessings and rewards from Allah, insyallah!

Related verse from the Quran: show

Related hadith: show

2. The next good deed we Muslims ought to do is to remember and glorify Allah. To do so, recite “Laa ilaaha illallah” and “Alhamdullilah”! In addition, increase in doing good deeds such as praying on time, fasting or doing charity during the 10 days mentioned. It is also sunnah to glorify Allah (takbir) from Fajr prayer on the day of Arafah (9th Dzulhijjah), up until after Asar prayer on the last day of Tashreeq (11th to 13th of Dzulhijjah). After each prayer, to takbir:

“Alahu akbar, Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar (Allah is great, Allah is great, Allah is great)
Laa ilaaha illallah, wallahu akbar (None has the right to be worshipped except Him)
Allahu akbar wa lillaahil-hamd (Allah is great and to all praises belong to Him)”
Hadith from: Ibnu Abu Shaybah in al-Musannaf / authenticated by Al-Albanee

Related hadith: show

3. The 9th day of Dzulhijjah is the day of Arafah, where on this day, the pilgrims gather at the mountain plain of Arafah, praying and making dua’ to Allah. For those of us who are not in Arafah, it is mustahabb (HIGHLY recommended) to fast on the day of Arafah! By doing so, according to a hadith from Muslim, our sins from last year and the coming year will be “deleted!” masyallah!

Note: Arafah will fall on Monday, 15th of November 2010. So try to fast on this day!

Related hadith: show

4. Though Qurban (Udhiyyah – Sacrificial Slaughter) is sunnah and not wajib (compulsory), we Muslims should participate in the ritual if we can afford it (monetary). It is indeed a pious, sacred and righteous deed loved by Allah! If you could do so, ask your nearest mosque or Islamic Community Center for further details.

NOTE: For a person who wants to participate in the Qurban, one is not allowed to remove anything from their hair (cut hair) or nails for the first 10 days of Dzulhijjah [Hadith from Muslim]

Related verse from the Quran: show

5. Make loads of nice dua’s for the pilgrims; such as your mum, dad, grandmother/father, siblings, aunties/uncles, neighbours or even your friend from the internet/social network who have embarked upon the Hajj. Make dua’ to Allah for Him to safeguard the pilgrims from misfortunes and for their safe returns, and also for them to attain Hajj Mabrur, insyallah.

The big news!

Salam,

I know I have been keeping this big news from everyone for a while. Although I have been giving obvious hints through the 'Little Us' widget at my right sidebar, but I just feel so bad for not announcing it officially. You have to know it is not easy to keep this thing shut. (physically I can't though because I have started to eat like a monster and looks like a monster too!) It is like, you are graduating (yeay! among the biggest event in life, right?) but you keep it as a secret from everyone. Difficult isn't it? I mean, it is among the biggest, most awaited things all this while and now it is happening but I can't shout it to everyone. Yes, I am pregnant. Alhamdulillah!

Muhammad was advising me not to blurt it out until I passed my 'safety zone', the first trimester. Since our doctor was putting my pregnancy at high risk, I was indeed in a worried state every little seconds. So earlier, I just let my family and close friends know about this. Alhamdulillah we are now passing 13 weeks pregnancy, which means the risk of miscarriage has much reduced. Although the possibility is still there. Please make du'a for us.

Since I have nothing to do (plus I am only left with pregnancy brain now) so I decided to scan all the scanned photos of our baby week by week and upload it on this blog. I am so kind to labeled the scan photos as how the doctor described it to me during our visits so at least the black and white thing make some sense for us. So let us see how our little bean has grown up since the first time we saw him/her!

Our first U/S scan to confirm my pregnancy. During this time, the baby might just consist of a ball of cells (called blastocyst) which has just implanted. Notice the worrying 5-7 cm ovarian cyst on the right ovary and the fluid around my uterus. That is the reason why they are putting my pregnancy at high risk. We are worried that the cyst might grow bigger and the fluid will increased and drain my respiratory organ.

My second U/S scan when I had slight brown bleeding during work. Only shown gestational sac which measures 5 weeks and still the big ovarian cyst was obvious on the right. The doctor said we only had 50-50 chance at that time since the bleeding shown a threatened miscarriage. Had another scan at 6 weeks but the doctor did not gave us the scan photo to keep. That scan should show a rice-grain sized embryo.

Our fourth U/S scan on the eight week of pregnancy has almost clearly shown the embryo itself and the yolk sac other than gestational sac. Now the doctor can just measure CRL to determine the gestational age instead of measuring the gestational sac. Fetal heartbeat was seen for the first time and the cyst has shrunk to just 2.7 cm! Alhamdulillah!

Our latest scan on 10th week. I read that by the end of this week, the baby has graduated from its embryonic period and can now be called fetus! Which means a big sigh of relief for me as somehow the baby has passed the high risk of physical birth defects and miscarriage risk has much reduced. And I should expect a rapid growth after this (plus more and more weight gain! oh no!). The baby measured 3.72 cm with estimated age at 10 weeks and 4 days.

A positive sign of fetal heart beat was also shown. I asked my doctor about the rate but the doctor said that they would not bother to measure the rate during this stage. It will usually matters in later months as we progress with the pregnancy. My doctor also showed me the developing umbilical cord and placenta which will takes up the role of the yolk sac later on. Another reason to breathe a sigh of relief! Alhamdulillah!

All in all, it was so far a healthy pregnancy. The doctor was happy and we are over the moon. She was happy enough to let me come once a month so I'll be seeing her during my 15th week. Not like typical first trimester, alhamdulillah for me it was indeed an easy first 3 months. I have no morning sickness at all...except for light headache which come and go. I am more optimistic. I hope we could always stay on the bright side and the sun will never stop shining.... Keep on praying.

Ar-Raqaiq is now on .com!

After a lot of hard work and efforts, we are proud to present you our brand new website! Ar-Raqaiq is now on .com and we have changed the name from Ar-Raqaiq Modest Clothing to Ar-Raqaiq Wardrobe. Thanks to our webmaster, my beloved brother, Adli who is willing to spent his precious time and talent in making this website a reality!

We hope with this new website will make it easier for our customer to browse through the products and place their order. This website is still in its beta version so please excuse us on any inconvenience while you are browsing it. We are still currently working on the online payment and we are sorry to say that our customer could only place order through this website but the payment still has to be through bank transfer. We will inform you once we managed to set up the online payment for the website. It should not be too long from now.


The collection that we have in our website are still from the previous Summer Collection. Since it is now winter season in Syria, it is quiet difficult for us to get the suitable clothing for Malaysian market. We hope to find something nice for you during the next Spring season inshaAllah... For the time being, we are planning to held After Eid Clearance Sale. So please watch out for our promo!


So, please come and visit us at http://raqaiqwardrobe.com! We can't wait to see you there!

Oh... and yes, anyone who are interested to get web design service from my brother Adli, please leave us a message at this blog and I'll provide you with his contact number.

Bad...bad blogger I am

I know... I know...

I have been a bad bad blogger...

I have not being fair to this blog although this blog should meant to be my main home. I still write.... seriously I am. I don't know why, I enjoyed more being at my other home, My Journey to The Motherhood, this lately. I have lots and lots of thing to write about stuff related to that blog and I have really updated it more frequently.

There are so many things happened since I last wrote here. The Ramadhan, our Eid and perhaps among the most important event of our life! But often when I start writing, I will stop halfway and leave it as a draft. Okay...excuses, right?

I promise I will try to be here more often....I promise. As punishment, I will make myself wear a dunce cap and write, “I will update my blog more often,” 1000 times on a chalkboard.

1..2..3 and still counting...

Happy 3rd Anniversary, sayang...

Much Love,
Ur wife

Bowling Spree!!

Salaam..

We've had great fun last week...alhamdulillah. On Monday, I went for bowling friendly match between our company and a client. I was not actually on the list but it happened I was at the Manager's room when the coordinator came in, looking for people to replace those who can't make it. I am no good at this game and am always defeated each time I played with Muhammad. But I decided to just gave this one a go.

Alhamdulillah the game was good. I scored over than 100 in the first game (which I know is not amazingly high score but the highest so far for my record..haha!) . I made some throw for second game before I excused myself as I have to made my way to mum's house that night. I was never expected to get anything out from the game but I won a chic rice grains container! Yeay! (btw, I was actually aiming for the polished Samsung microwave oven!hoho!) Anyway the rice container would be useful as the one that we already have is not 'kebal' enough from 'kutu beras'!

Then it was Saturday when we had our company's Sport's Day. Only two games provided; Futsal and Bowling. So I choose to play bowling again. I though I've had enough practice from Monday's game! huhu! I was hoping to score more than what I scored on Monday but instead I only managed to score 93... poor game eh? I was paired with the nice Kak Fa'e whom also very good at bowling. She scored about similar points as mine. I was quiet disappointed for my achievement on that day so I left early as I want to accompany Muhammad studying at home. Owh... and I fell on the bowling alley right after I throw the bowling ball as I slipped on the slippery lane. And to add spice to it, the incident happened in front of my Manager and he can't avoid but to laugh at me. But the throw resulted in spare by the way so it paid...kui2!

When we were back at the office this week Kak Su was telling me that I actually won something! Haha! I thought she was joking or I might just win a consolation price for falling on the lane. Then I found out that the game is not counted by personal score but by pairs. So my score added with Kak Fa'e scores put us at the second place! Wooohooo! hehe Alhamdulillah! So today, I brought back home a brand new Adidas 'balik kampung' bag as a present. I was bluffing to Muhammad about how good I am to have to win the second place in the office. And it ticked him off so he called for a match tonight!

Okay readers... please pray that I'll beat Muhammad tonight at the bowling alley... and we really meant serious business here! huhu!


Update: Muhammad won the game last night. I lost very badly...hukhuk! I was like "Why? Why? Why the ball rolled down the drain each time tonight?????"

Blog and blog

Salaam..

Thank you for those who left me with kind words of comfort from the last entry. Alhamdulillah I'm coping and have started to prepare myself for any possibility. I know that only the best could happen and I leave everything to Allah. For the time being, I try what ever I can to perform my best at the company. Please make du'a for me.

I am sorry if I can not update very frequent here now, as I have 3 blogs to maintain (including this one) at the moment;

For this one, I wrote about general things. My outlook on life, my experience, sharing of opinions and knowledge, whatever I thought I could share freely and could bring benefits to others. You might have known it well as you read this.


For those who noticed, I have this banner at my side bar. This is another blog of which I shared my battle with PCOS, the treatments, endless doctor visits, how I felt about it , my hope and dreams to see the little one. But I made it as private though and only certain people that I felt could benefit from it is allowed to read. And it is woman only site! If any of you felt that you should read it, I will happily add you into our little family.

This one is my boutique blog. Updated whenever the new stock arrive. Owh by the way I have just updated it recently with the new collections that was just arrived from Syria! Feel free to browse through it and tell me what do you think. If you are interested in any of it, just leave me a message. And it have a journal linked to it, where I shared about my opinion on muslimah fashion and what's new in Islamic fashion industry.

So I might be here and there. If I don't updated here, I might be rambling something at my other blogs...huhu! Aite... that is all from now I guess.

Another Life's Chapter

My life is like a drama, or a novel plot. That was what my friend used to say. Too many suprises and unexpected things keep on happening. They said, they have no clue on how I'm coping.

Well, I thought that this particular chapter of my life is going to have a good successful ending. Working in a well known engineering consultancy firm as a project engineer seems like a very promising prospect. I am looking forward for it. But Allah has better plan for me of which I do not know. The journey has just started but it seems like it will end soon and I have to start again somewhere else.

It was my second day at this new place when I was told that I cannot continue working here. To practice engineering in Malaysia, you have to be registered with the Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM). That was what stated in the contract. But I can't! Simply because I'm a UK graduate and that they did not recognized my Bachelor degree. So, who said studying overseas is that great? It doesn't mean anything now... To obtain that qualification, I have to continue my master or sitting for a special examination.

It is ironic. I got to enjoy my dream job for a day before I am sacked. And now I'm almost jobless. I left my previous job and it will be shameful to beg for the position back. I don't know what to do. For a while, I kept on thinking why is these all happening to me? And why me? I was angry but I don't know to whom. The firm? BEM? Petronas? Who? I ended up crying so hard.

After office, I drove to the nearest beach all by myself. I texted Muhammad saying I will be back later than usual. I sat on a rock with a mushaf in my hand. I looked at the wide blue oceans, listened to the calming sounds of waves. I let the breeze soothed me with their soft touch. I opened Quran hoping to get an answer. I read and read till I almost finish a chapter. I did not find any exact answer but I found the calmness back. It has washed away my pain.

I went back home. I was tired and I desperately need a deep sleep. I went straight to bed while Muhammad was helping me with some house chores. He woke me up when my usrati came to our door with tears in her eyes. She was in need of soothing words as she was facing her difficult time as well. I immediately tried to forget my sadness and put up a smile on my face. For I know I should spared a room for her in my heart.

And so we talk with tears in our eyes. Muhammad was so nice to serve us with hot tea and some biscuits. By the end of it we were laughing to our silliness, knowing that what we have gone through is nothing compared to others who suffered more severely. She ended up staying over for the night. And another usrati came in later to join us and she also stayed over.

Later that night, I laid down on bed trying to get a sleep. I wanted to forget everything that happened that day, but the bad thoughts kept on coming to my head. Muhammad was at my side wiping each and every tears that were rolling down my face. My mind wandered blankly. Dzikr keeps playing on my lips... Allahu...Allahu...Allahu... to encounter the bad thoughts. Muhammad was looking at me, I saw tears in his eyes. He felt the pain, I know.

The next day, on my way to work, I listened to Maher Zain's InsyaAllah. It somehow gave me some strength as I will see the manager at the office that day. I will leave everything to Allah. InsyaAllah he will show me the way...


update: I am given 3 months of probation period to show my values to the company. If I succeeded then they will consider on keeping me. If not... I will be a fulltime housewife... huhu! Make a lot of du'a for me please... I desperately need it.

Nostalgic Moccacino

I was walking along the aisle to find any 3-in- 1 hot drink as we are running out of it.

Guess what I found?

A G-Day Moccacino 3-in-1 yeay! And it was the only one left on the rack. I never thought I could find it again! So without hesitate, I grab it! (I usually takes long time to decide on what to buy..hoho!)


You might not know the brand well but for me it is very special. Why is it so special?? It reminds me of my time when I was in Jordan at Fateh! I remember to have it everyday for breakfast and tea time and I like it so much that I almost finished the whole pack of it! (Sorry girls!huhu!) And not forgetting the time when I have to spend the whole day of sharing sessions and by the end of the day, a sister bring me a cup of hot moccacino to refresh my tiredness. So, it is not a usual hot beverage for me, it reminds me of the sweetness of ukhuwah everytime when I sip it! It reminds me of these faces...

I miss you all sooo badly!!

Okay... have to admit other than missing these girls, I miss the sweets along the Syari' Jami'ah as well (yang ada keju warna putih pastu ada mcm kuih cakar ayam kat atas tu then curah air gula tu... apa eh nama dia? Sedap sangat2!!! Kalau boleh pos sile pos. Haha!) Okay I'm joking! Nanti ada hamba Allah yang baik hati pergi pos manisan tersebut ke sini pulak.

Muhammad has been warning me on requesting something on this blog since I never expect someone would actually takes some effort to get the thing for me and posted it. (tisk...tisk... terharu!) Remember when I wrote about my dream birthday present a month before my brithday? (read HERE) Last week I went to the post office to claim the present. That nice-kind-gorgeous soul is my beloved Kak Su.

Cool bukan? Siap ada rehal special untuk dia nih. Sayang nih!

What so special about it is, it has translation per word and insyaAllah would be easier for my quest to memorize surahs. (May Allah help...) Before this, I would take sometimes to translate kalimah after kalimah before trying to memorize the whole ayat as I found it easier if I know the meaning of words by words. InsyaAllah I will try my best to benefit from it if may Allah gave the reward to Kak Su too. Ameen...



ps: Okay Kak Su, I need to know your birthday. Muhammad 'mewajibkan' saya to repay your kindness.... (padahal saya memang berniat begitu, tak payah suruh pun saya buat..heh!)





-sipping the hot Moccacino-
Khadeeja