In a blink of an eye

November 2011...

Seven months later...

Time really does fly huh?

eenie meenie myni moe

If it were up to you..


Would you rather someone who make promises but sometimes falls short,
Or someone who promises but keeping it, no they will not.

Would you rather someone who pretends to be something they are not,
Only to realize they are not as good as we thought.

Would you be so eager to change, thinking that the current is so impaired,
but whose to say that the change is for the better when the current is the best we had.

Would you rather stake your fate in the hands of an accuser,
or in the hands of the unfortunate accused?
because in accusing, you can't help but to do what you accuse the other person of doing.

We can complaint all we want,
but until we are in the shoes of people we are complaining about,
only then we will understand that they are actually doing their best,
and we would have done the same.

Eenie meenie myni moe,
Catch the liar by the toe,
If he hollers, let him be,
My mother says pick the best one,
Eenie meenie myni moe.
If it was really as simple as that :)

Change? Are you sure the so-called change is gonna be better?
Nah, I think I'm good. For now.

What's with the I-dont-vote attitude?

Firstly, let me make this clear that this is not a political blog nor this is a hate statement. I'm merely writing this as a gentle reminder to myself, my child, my family, my friends and yes, to those who read this blog. Lately, I have been witnessing lots of people (friends included) that are openly admitting that they don't vote. Hmm, let's see...

Since primary school, we have been voting whether we realize it or not. We vote for the head of sports house, we vote for president of various clubs and we even vote for our favourite teacher for Teacher's Day. This tradition continues until secondary school and throughout our university life.

Okay, fine, one would argue that those were made compulsory, so now that they have a freedom to choose, they choose not to vote. BUT, bear in mind that some time in our life, we are attached to some kind of groups or association, be it our sports house during primary school, any clubs during secondary school, any college during university or any sidang during DPA. We are a part of this associations, whether we like it or not. The same way we are a part of this country.

We b*tched and praise about the presidents of our club and the chairman of our association because deep down, we care. We care because these people were elected to lead us. The same way should apply to the nation, no? I am a Malaysian, so I should vote because I care and I love my country, right?

Well, I don't know about you, but I care about who lead the country and who determines the future of this beloved country of mine. Not only that, I am concerned about my future's generation well-being, therefore it is only logic for me to vote and exercise my right as a responsible citizen.

As a colleague of mine eloquently said (pohon izin ye Puan Didi) "Passion of doing your work not only comes from sound ethical background, but also the love you have for your country. I believe working for the government should come hand in hand with at least SOME feeling of patriotism. You work for the government yet you don't care who rule the country? I say that's pretty messed up :("

Do vote...if not for ourselves, then at least think about what kind of future we are leaving our descendants. I vote, I made sure my family does and I think you should too.

Ramadhan 2010

I just realize that I haven't made an entry about Ramadhan this year. Part of it is because my work kept me sooo busy, I didn't even realize Ramadhan is nearing to the end.

This Ramadhan, I embark on another project "Chocolate Chip Cookies Project". Actually, chocolate chip and I, we go way back. My chocolate chip cookies is what saved me from near bankruptcy back in the days when I was jobless. I still remembered, my dad gave me about RM1k to buy an oven and the necessary things to begin my project. This was in Ramadhan year 2006, I had already quit my old job without actually getting a new job. That year alone, I managed to sell about 200+ jars of cookies and I got to "beraya" despite the lack of financial incomes. I even have my own special sticker :


This year, I decided to re-start the project again. But, this time around, I have to be realistic. I could not bake all-out like I did past four years, what with my job and the little angel at home. So, I took about 75++ orders and last weekend was the last batch I had to make. Whew!! I'm so glad I managed to finish all the orders.

To top that off, I have been getting a few cupcakes orders, but all the decoration was done by my youngest sister, who is currently jobless. Hey, we got that in common, I was jobless in Ramadhan too. I have also another three pending cupcake set and two red velvet cake to be delivered tomorrow. Gasp! And right now, I'm still in the office, working, blogging, helping hubby with his thesis.

Yeah, life is busy. But its still good. And I'm blessed. With a very supportive and loving family.

Not one, but two *gasp*

Last week, we went to the SOGO sale. And I brought Sara along. What a big mistake! There are people EVERYWHERE. I left Sara with hubby and dive straight to the concourse area. And I came out with a couple of handbags, 10 minutes later.

I asked hubby which one should I but, he said he's willing to buy both for me. These are just ordinary handbags (I don't buy designer handbags), so I bought both of the handbags. Instead of feeling elated with my purchase, I have this nagging feeling of guilt, do I really need two type of the same item? But, I have my own justification.

Handbag no. 1 costs about RM120 and is quite small, suitable for office use. Handbag no. 2 is a tote bag, costs about RM 130 and is large enough to store all Sara's things when we go out. And my current handbag looks like this:

See, I'm totally justified. :)

I hate it when my work consumes my life...

When I got married,I have made a deal with my job. I will never put my job ahead of my family. Especially when I have kids.

Well, the sad truth is, for the past couple of months, I have let THE JOB rule my life. Okay, maybe not my life but my thoughts and emotions are often influenced by my work. Gahhhh!!! I'd come back home feeling frustrated and wound-up, all because of what had happened in the office.

It's almost three am and I'm still up, doing my meeting minutes. And my head is a jumble of thoughts, all with regards to THE JOB. Worst yet, I am constantly thinking on what more points to put in my never ending concept paper. My head is so full of ideas that I sometimes feel overwhelmed. And my desk is such a mess, I wouldn't be surprised if one day I drown in it.


It has come to an extent where I currently have a pen and book with me at all times to jot down things and ideas. I SO DON'T WANT TO BECOME LIKE THIS. And sometimes, when my mind is thinking about the tasks I left in the office, I didn't give my little angel the full attention that she needs. :(

I have a meeting scheduled tomorrow but I'm on leave. Yeah, I AM NOT LETTING MY JOB RULE MY LIFE. Ha!

My favourite kind of leader

My favourite kind of leader is those who admit,
rather than those who accuse.

Those who welcome and listens,
rather than those who decline and shut their ears.

Those who moves forward,
rather than those who are stagnant
and glued to their seats.

Those who are objectively rational,
rather than those who are subjectively emotional.

Those who teaches,
rather than those who refuse to learn.

And most importantly, those who respects
and offer respect in return,
rather those who are contemptuous and insulting,
and hiding behind a mediocre job,
saying that he has done more than most.

P/S : What happens when the nails actually deserved a knock on the head and the hammer is actually right?

P/P/S : I worked for a different hammer last week and that hammer is THE BEST! Taught me a lot and it has been an honor working under him.

Note to self : Nails do not disrespect the hammer, and nails can not be emotional. I sincerely believed that, as should you.

Pic credit to here

Confessions of a non-shopaholic

You see, I grew up in a middle-class family. And by middle-class, I mean that we often do not have the luxury of extravagant purchases. And I guess, being frugal back then has really stuck to me until now. I used to shop (not a lot) back in my uni years, but not anymore.

Shopping requires money, which is something I do not have to spare during my early years of working. The previous company I worked for is cakap-nak-bayar-gaji-2.5k-tapi-bayar-1k je-pastu-bila-nak-benti-offer-gaji-3k-tapi tak-bagi-pun. I'll admit, it's my fault. I was naively fooled by their empty promises.

But that experience really taught me to save money. For example, I have only four handbag since year 2003 (one from Padini, then my hubby bought me a Sembonia handbag, then my sister bought me a Guess handbag, and now I'm wearing an Esprit handbag - also present from hubby which I have worn since Sara was born). My first handphone was the big-ass 3310 in 2004, later I traded that for Nokia 6600 and then hubby gave me a Sony Ericsson W660i which I am still using until now.

My wardrobe collection is nothing to be proud of and my toiletries and makeup collection are even worst. I used to put makeup on when I go out during my uni years, but now, I hardly put on powder on my face. I only put on makeup when going to wedding or special event. I promised myself that I'm going to at least put on make up before going to work but that only lasted for 1+ year. I used pregnancy as an excuse after that.

This week, I'm going to buy an eyeliner. And moisturizer. And new lippie (I think the ones that I have is past its expiry date already). And some eyeshadow. Its about time my eyes got reacquainted with colours again.

With this entry, I am making a promise, I am going to live up to my blog name. Phat, not fat. Being phat.

I can see some people rolling their eyes and said "We'll see how long that will last". To those people, I say...pffftttt. ;p

Auf wiedersehen my dear, dear Germany :(

So it turns out that the octopus is right. D*mn. I didn't expect to feel this way, I mean, I am rooting for Germany to win, but I didn't expect to have such invested feeling over a football match.I am actually very sad and frustrated that Germany lost. The feeling is mutual to the way I felt when a guy I like doesn't like me back and stood me up on a date.

Hmph...One day you're in, another day you're out. Auf wiedersehen my dear team.

Oh, send my regards to Ballack. We'll see each other again in four years time.

And come that time, I will be prepared. If you're going to ditch me halfway through, I'll make sure I have another man team to date support.

*pic from fifa.com

A different kind of signage

I've seen witty and funny pictures of signage before, mostly originated from other countries *coughjapancough* So, it caught me by surprise to see this signage back in Kuantan.

pHatMummy and World Cup...

I don't really watch football. I don't really know all the players, nor can I tell the differences between EPL, UEFA and whatnot. I don't understand offside and I think I never will. :) HOWEVER, during my insomnia years in university (2002), I flipped through the TV channel and found this :

Oh my! Yummehhhh....

And I got hooked. Like, seriously hooked. I watched UEFA Champions League religiously that year. I never missed a match. I missed all my morning classes though. And luckily, that football fever didn't stick. I watched it on and off. On when Germany or whatever club Ballack was playing and off whenever he was not. Heh.

Anyways, I catch the football fever again during the 2006 World Cup, simply because it was held in Germany. And I was sooooo sure that Germany would repeat its history in 2002 by getting to the finals and WIN THIS TIME. But they lost to Italy, much to my disappointment.

Fast forward to current World Cup, here they are again, but this time I have mixed feelings. The reason : Ballack is not in the team, he got injured. Booooo! And I hated Podolski. I hate him sooo much, he's on the top of my hate list, along with Jalaludin Hassan. Haha.

And, this year, I think Germany has included another module in their football training, "How to act surprised when a goal is actually scored?" Lesson 1 : Control facial expression. Do not act surprised and DO NOT SHOW that you are furious or mad. Instead, kick the ball so fast with an indignant face and ignore all hesitation.


You are such a good actor, I can't help but to like you. And you remind me of Sark (in Alias).

Discovering moles

I've just discovered that Sara has two moles, in exactly the same places as mine : eyes and thighs. :)

I've been reading on the internet regarding moles and some of them are quite scary (as in early signs of cancer and whatnot) so I decided to go with a more light-hearted reading. Did you know that moles in body parts symbolizes different things? Check out this info: (taken from this website)

Moles on Body for Females: Front of Body

1 - Life will be challenging for you and sometimes things will not be easy. If the mole is red in color, however, no challenges will be too hard for you.

2 – A mole in this location indicates that you get easily stressed out. Learn to relax and don't take life too seriously.

3 – You are a busy and popular person. Your actions are efficient and you are liked by many people. It is likely that you hold a high position with a lot of responsibilities because of your ability to make good connections.

4 – This mole warns you that you should have good eating habits. If the mole is light, however, it means that you will have or already have a partner who loves you very much.

5 – This mole indicates that you have the responsibility of taking care of your family. It also indicates that you will be good at that and will be rewarded for that later on in your life.

6 – The mole in this location indicates that you are a very ambitions person and have big goals. If you have more moles of such significance, it indicates that you are likely to become a well-known person.

7 – The mole here shows that you are a kind and generous person. You are fair with people therefore people trust you.

8 – This mole means that your life will be easy. You will not lack support and you will be safe throughout your life. It's one the luckiest moles to have.

9 – This mole indicates your capacity to achieve great wealth. If it touches your navel, it means that you will become extremely wealthy.

10 – This mole shows that you are a very passionate person and have a high sex drive.(The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

11 – Your children are likely to be obedient and will bring you a lot of happiness. You will be (or are) proud of them.

12 – This mole shows that you are going to have a good life. Everything will be relatively easy for you to accomplish but there will be some surprises along the way.

13 – You will have a beautiful husband or wife and you yourself are likely to be good-looking.

14 – You love your children and they feel safe with you. You have a close connection with your children.

15 – You should learn how to manage money because otherwise it is likely that you will lose some.

16 – You cannot keep any secrets because you love to gossip.

17 – You are a happy person and it is likely that you are or will become prosperous.

18 -You have some unstable traits and have a tendency to spend too much money.

19 – You are a positive person to whom life will be easier than for most.

20 – You treat everyone with respect and therefore everyone respects you in return.

21 – With little work you will easily succeed in life.

22 – You are a very ambitious woman therefore whenever you truly decide to set goals, it is more than likely that you will achieve them.

23 – You can be quite a heartless and cold person at times. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

24 – Your life is full of challenges. If the mole is read in color, it means that your love life will be successful but there will be only one problem with that – your desire to flirt will cause you to have only short relationships.

Moles on Body for Females: Back of Body

1 – Your marriage is likely to be rather challenging.

2 – You will have many responsibilities in your life and it's a good decision to remove this mole.

3 – This mole shows that you may be lacking elegance. Some people prefer to remove this mole because of this meaning.

4 – It will be quite hard for you to stay in the same job for a long time.

5 – You are intelligent, creative and it will be easy for you to become well-known and respected.

6 – You will have an unstable career. It is a good idea to remove this mole since it's quite negative.

7 – You are a reliable and trustworthy person therefore your friends find it easy to tell you even their deepest secrets.

8 – Your life will be safe and easy. This mole is one of the best moles to have.

9 – You are a very patient person but if you are annoyed too much, you can snap.

10 – You are very good with numbers therefore would be a very efficient accountant. In general, you are good with managing money.

11 – You have great interpersonal skills and therefore it's easy for you to make friends.

12 – You have many reliable friends therefore this mole is considered to be very good to have.

13 – This mole indicates that you can be quite insensitive at times. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

Moles on Body for Males: Front of Body

1 – You get stressed quite easily. Because of that you should try to calm down and control yourself.

2 – Your life will have some challenges but you will solve any problems that you will encounter.

3 – You should make sure that you eating habits are good. If the mole is light in color, it means that your wife loves you very much.

4 – You will have a happy life and very little worries. However you should pay attention to your health.

5 – You are a very ambitions person with great dreams.

6 – You are popular and your life has many challenges. People like you and trust you. It is likely that you will achieve great heights in your career.

7 – Your life will be easy and you will be safe no matter where you are.

8 – Your life will be easy and there will be little unexpected problems. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

9 – Your children are obedient and bring you much happiness. You are proud of them.

10 – Your wife is likely to be good-looking. You are likely to be good-looking too.

11 – You will enjoy great wealth and life will be easy for you.

12 – You are likely to have many children.

13 – You are likely to inherit a large amount of money.

14 – The same as mole 13.

15 – There will be some challenges in your life.

16 – You will travel many times, both for pleasure and work. The smaller the mole, the more happiness travel will bring you. If the mole is very large, it means that travel will bring more problems than happy events.

17 – You will be very successful and are likely to rise high in your career.

18 – You are likely to do a physical work and you are a hard working person.

19 – You find it hard to get recognition for the work that you do. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

20 – It is likely that you will have a profession that involves dealing with money. This mole also indicates that you should take great care in dealing with money, especially if it's not yours.

21 – You love spending money and it will be hard for you to save money. You should therefore practice to tithe so that the money supply would never end for you. If the mole is on the left hand, it means that you spend more than you earn. If it's on the right hand, it means that you easily attract money.

Moles on Body for Males: Back of Body

1 – This mole indicates that you will have a comfortable life and it's likely that you will become wealthy.

2 – You are likely to suffer from backache. Your life can be challenging and therefore it's better to remove this mole.

3 – You will have many responsibilities in life.

4 - Friends may backstab you and you may experience betrayal. Therefore it's better to remove this mole.

5 – Your friends are likely to backstab you.

6 – It will be hard for you to hold the same position for a long time. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

7 – The same as mole 6.

8 – You will generally doubt your own abilities to make sound decisions. You cannot motivate yourself enough therefore you require some push from others when you try to achieve your goals. On the more positive side, you will have a very good wife.

9 – You are likely to be successful and wealthy and you will find success in starting your own business. You will be much better off being an entrepreneur rather than working for someone else.

10 – You are intelligent, creative and wise. You are highly respected by people who know you.

11 – You are indecisive when it comes to love and marriage.

12 – You have a tendency to be messy.

13 – You may experience a broken marriage or a very unstable relationship.

14 – You will be earning a lot of money. (The location of these moles on body can be slightly different to the ones shown in the picture.)

15 – You are a charismatic and popular person and you are likely to become very successful.

16 – You are very intelligent and people find it easy to trust you.

17 – Your life will be full of challenges. It's a good idea to remove this mole.

18 – You are a hard working person and this will pay off indeed. You will become a recognized person and will enjoy many great relationships.

19 – You will live far away from your home. You are always on the move.

Disclaimer : These are just theories and assumption by the website owner and in no way reflect my opinion and judgment. :)

Random musings

1. 1. A fellow PTD died, and everybody is shifting blame. Some are blaming the deceased for not being able to differentiate a common flu and influenza-type flu. Some are blaming the PASKAU for the rigorous training method. Some even blamed the clinic that said the deceased only suffers from normal fever. Some blamed the administration of the course programme for letting this situation get out of hand. Some are wondering the relevance of this type of training for a public service officer who is not going to require this level of stamina and fitness to fulfill their everyday routine. And I? I wondered whether the people involved in this whole thing are even bothered by her death? Did they go to the funeral? Did they console and express their remorse to the family?
   
   
2. 2. In Mac 2009, I was elated when I found out that I was pregnant. I was always somewhat reckless and a bit clumsy at times and I tried my best to live a healthier lifestyle because I am now responsible for two lives. I was never the one who eat my vitamins everyday, nor did I do all the light exercise or the suggested good things to do when you are pregnant. I just keep tabs of the baby. I can't proclaim to know much, but I do know this : Active baby is good thing. Must remember to make sure that baby is moving at least once every two hours. If baby is idle, I will eat, take a bath, start to talk, exercise with hubby ;) until the baby reacts. (And yes, in that order ;))
   
   
3. 3. My hubby and I are ready to have our second child. In fact, we've been ready for two months now, but my aunty still visits, complete with her truckload of emotional baggage and stomach cramps! Heh. I know its been only two months but we need baby NOW! I miss holding a newborn and I would very much prefer a baby now so that when it comes Ramadhan, I am out of the dreaded first trimester. (I have awful morning sickness that last all day).
   
   
4. 4. I am impressed with my fellow friends who have been doing so well in their respective agencies. I feel a tinge of pride when my fellow batchmate receive glowing recommendation from their bosses. In retrospect, I am also somewhat ashamed and disgusted by some that are blatantly misusing their power and influence. We are supposed to work for the greater good, no?
   
   
5. 5. I have a weakness for books. I can never put down a book, once I started reading it. My hubby once gave me the Harry Potter : The Deathly Hallows when I was heavily pregnant at 8 months. He gave me the book at midnight and although I know that I won't be able to stop reading once I started, I also could not sleep knowing that the book is silently calling out to me. So, I give in and spent the whole night awake reading the book. Recently my sister bought the Cecilia Ahern "Thanks for the memories" book. And whaddayaknow....I fell asleep reading it! That was a first! I find myself skimming the pages, just reading without any invested feelings. Ngeeee....I think I'm getting old
   
   
6. 6. My ability to memorize is better than my capability to comprehend. It has work to my benefit so far, when I'm not sure of anything, I'll just recite whatever it is I remember from my conversation with others. BUT, as I slowly creeps into the dreaded three-oh, I find both my skills to memorize and to understand, is going down the drains :(
   
   
7. 7. I have four meeting minutes that I am supposed to finish...umm....yesterday? Heee....
   
   

The emotional Mother's Day..

This is the second time I got to celebrate Mother's Day but since I am away, so no special celebration or anything like that. Anyway, this year, I thought I'd jot down the kind of mum I'd like to be.

I'd like to be a mom like Lorelai (of Gilmore Girls). She's her daughter best friend, but still draws the line if needed to. But, I secretly think that I'm more of an uptight person, not to the extent of Bree (Desperate Housewives), but I do share some quality as hers.

What I really want to emulate is Bailey's (of Grey's Anatomy) style of parenting. She's focused on her job but still managed to provide full attention to her child.

One more resolution I have for this year, is to communicate better with my dear hubby. We do have our ups and downs, and I do take my share of the blame. I really, sincerely hope that we can communicate better, particularly in front of Sara because she's such a fast learner, I wouldn't want to set a bad example in front of her.

I know that this may be a wishful thinking, but I do want to be my daughter's best friend. I want her to be able to tell me anything. Even though I am pretty sure that I'll lose my temper A LOT, but I want to be the person she turned to, whenever she has problems.

I want to support her in every decision that she makes, I want to stop saying NO to every little request that she makes, I want to give her everything she wanted and beyond, I want to be so much and most importantly I want to be enough. For her.

I do sometimes wonder what if she likes another mommy figure more than me. Would I be okay with that? Would I resent the fact that somebody else is closer to my daughter than I am?

I want to be supportive but can I hold my temper when she does something wrong? Can I not yell at her when she fights with her siblings or cousins? Can I patiently answer her endless question?

Can I hold my breath and calm myself if she ever decided to throw tantrum in front of random people? Can I strain myself from resorting to hit her if she fights me back?

Can I be the mother she wanted? Can I provide all the love and care she need? Will my love be enough for her? Or would she want something more? More than me?

I guess my greatest fear of being a mom is that I will never be enough for her. I am afraid that she'll want more, more than what I am able to give. Gahh, this is emotional.

Being away from her especially on Mother's Day really hurts. Mummy misses you Sara, and Mummy can't wait to come back home.

Public speaking

People who knew me on the first glance will most likely say that public speaking is right up my alley. Oh, how I wish that was true. Sure, I've been a public speaker since my school days but those were not pure talent, those were hard work.

I can only talk in public if I have a preconceived speech. I am not one of those spur-of-the-moment talker. I memorized all my public speaking text. In fact, I'm such a good memorizer, people will think I spoke spontaneously.

So, recently, I had to give a talk about national security. Yep, as if that topic wasn't intimidating enough, I had to also explain the current issues, past histories and what not. Gahhh! I don't watch news. Current issue to me is what happens in the last episode of my favourite current television show.

But, you had to do what you had to do, right? And what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?? Pfftttt. Whatever. Yeah, from now on, I will watch news and keep track of current affairs. NOT! Okay, fine. I will. Some day. (And may that day come soon enough!)

Energizer Night Race 2010

Whew! I actually made it. I actually finished the 10km Energizer night race run. I've had my moments of doubt, infact I wasn't sure whether I should go through with it.

I ran the first 2km (I know, I'm as surprised as you are!) I have never been able to ran 2km non-stop, not even during I was fit. Its just seeing all these other people ran with such an ease motivates me. Of course, after the 2km, I was alternating between jogging and brisk walking.

As I reach the 5km mark, I started thinking to myself that I can actually do this, its not that hard anyway. I kept a steady pace and I felt elated throughout the way. Even though I know that my sister was wayyyyy in front of me, that didn't dampen my spirit. I was determined to go through with this.

My spirit began to falter at 8km mark. I was heavily panting and the only thing that kept me going was sheer willpower (plus a whole jesting and shitload that I KNOW I'LL GET from dear hubby and friends). I try to amuse myself with lots of things.

I remember thinking how I could gloat and boast if I actually finish. I thought of Sara and imagined the moment where I would recite this story to her. I looked at other people and then I caught a glance of this one particular guy who was steadily running and he was wearing a black shorts. It was night time, but I could see clearly because of all the lights. There's nothing interesting about the guy except the fact that HE WAS DRENCHED with sweat so bad, he looks like he peed in his pants. Eughhh!! *no more looking at other people*

The last kilometer was a real challenge. When the secretariat tells all of us, "1km! 1km more!" I looked at the poor guy and screamed "Seriously??!! I thought I only have 200m more! Arrgghhh!" I'm such a bad sport. Anyways, I finished my race at 1 hour and twenty minutes. Not a very good time but considering I didn't undergo proper training and I only have 2 session of jogging for the whole month, I think actually finishing the 10km is an accomplishment on its own.

I can proudly say, I know I am a lot of things, but quitter ain't one of them! *woot*woot*

Run Baby Run...

I have always loved watching people running (influenced by Forrest Gump). The idea of challenging yourself, testing your limits and pushing yourself to the max has always been hanging at the back of my mind.

So, when I saw the night marathon in Putrajaya around two-three weeks ago, and I was like, wow! this is great. I was sooooo keen to join (BUT must get proper training!!). I was determined to join next year.

But then, I heard about the energizer night race and I thought to myself, why wait next year? why don't I start now? Without thinking, I called my sisters, we registered and paid the entry fee.

Now that I had the time to think, heeeee....am I truly ready for this?? I mean I have never ever ran that far before and I am not exactly "fit" nor do I have the stamina. I mean, I can barely jog for 5 minutes non-stop, let alone do it for 1 1/2 hour (which is the qualifying time to finish)

So, ready or not, here I come ;p (wish me best of luck peeps!!)

Women and tears...

And they say women use tears to gain sympathy and to manipulate men...

Pic from utusan

Pfffftttt.

Ridiculously OVER-priced

Did you noticed that some baby products are ridiculously OVER-priced? Sure, some expensive products have superior quality but I do believe there are alternatives that can offer the same benefit at a fraction of the price. For example :

Exhibit # 1 : Baby bath seat

This ergonomically shaped bath support is very useful for first time mommies to bathe their child. You can have free reign of both your hands during bath time. Priced at Rm 70++ at Mothercare, but I got mine for only RM16.90 at Giant. :)Exhibit # 2 : Baby pouch / Baby carrier

The cheapest I found was RM50++. I sew mine (okay, my mom sew mine) using existing cloth at home which costs me...nothing!! :)

Exhibit # 3 : Swaddle

I am a firm believer of swaddling my baby (during the initial stage until 2 months++). Some people just use traditional napkins to swaddle their baby, but if your baby is as big as mine, the width of regular nappy is not sufficient. I've come across pretty and modern swaddle (Bumblebee, Kiddopotamus etc.) priced at RM35++ EACH and it just struck me as being obscenely OVERpriced. So, what I did was : I went to Kamdar/Nagoya and bought cotton flanel fabric with cutesy design, cut them in square, trim the edges (if you don't have the edging machine, you can always sent them to any tailor and get the edge trimmed for very reasonable price. nak tempah dengan saya pun boleh)

Exhibit # 3 : Birthday party crown

The cheapest I found was RM30. I made this myself for less than RM10. ;)

Being the thrifty person that I am, I chose to find cheaper alternative or to DIY. Very easy, I tell you. Wait for my step-by-step instruction on how to sew a baby pouch and how to make a birthday crown for your little girl.

A simple no-fuss life

Most women change when they journey to mommyhood. For me, the most significant change I see in myself is the way I pack my own stuff. Makin lama makin sikit sebab barang Sara banyak sangat ;p

You see, I am a fairly simple person. I want to have an everyday routine such as moisturizing my body with lotion or cleaning up my face before sleeping but it just seems too...fussy. Heh.

Every year, my resolution would be to at least clean my face and put toner and moisturize before going to sleep but every year, I just can't bring myself to do that.

Every night, my resolution will be to wake up early and blow dry my hair, put some make up on before going to work but when you wake up at 7.45 and you have to be out of the house at 8.00, mana la sempat kan?

Recently I went to Cameron Highlands for a workshop for 3 days and 2 nights and guess what I brought?Yup, just an overnight bag which became the topic of interest of everybody. Macamana ko boleh bawak semua barang ko? Cukup ke? Keciknya bag...etc..etc...

Inventory of all the items : 1 work blouse, 1 jeans, 1 cardigan (not in pic), 2 sleeveless shirt, 2 t-shirt, 1 pair of track bottom and t-shirt (for sleeping), toiletries, undies (not in the pics of course!) and a jacket, shawl, black pants I was wearing. Oh, I forgot to bring my comb so I didn't comb my hair for three days. I almost looked like a hyena on the third day ;p (almost being the operative word here)

My so-called toiletries are not even worthy of mentioning. Oh, how I soooo badly want to have these kind of stuff in my toiletries bag..

pics credit to google and the site owner

But then, it will be just too.....FUSSY, no?