7th Year Fitness Journey: Running & Clean Eating

Wow! 7th year! I don't remember when did I consciously started on this journey but I was surprised to see since 2019 in my old posts. 

So yeah wow 7th year. Alot has changed since my 5th year. I broke my wrist in 2023, I broke another small toe in 2024. I was scared of having brittle bones. I was also under a lot of stress that year. 

Hubs gave me the idea of climbing Gunung Nuang together. So I said yes, started training by climbing 18 steps a day and brisk walking on alternate days. A week before the trip, I ended up breaking my toe so I didn't join the trip. 

I felt frustrated for missing out on the trip, although everyone who made it went through the most horrible experience. 

When I got better, around 3 weeks after the toe incident, I felt determined to get my fitness and bones stronger. So with the old running shoe and fresh off the toe incident I started slow jogging around my local park. At first I was struggling to finish even 1km. My lungs felt like it would burst. So I run walked. 

At the time, I had no idea whatsoever about running methods, pace, heart rate, shoes, zone 2 running. NO IDEA. This was in September 2024. I just ran cold turkey. I had hip pain when I first started running. I now realize that was probably weak hip flexor muscles.

I kept doing the same thing over and over for a few weeks. Until one day, I did the slow jog and finished a whole round without stopping. That was 1.7km. I was silently wiping the tears off my eyes. Felt like such a big accomplishment. 

I kept slow jogging every alternate day until I hit 5km. Mind you, it was a really slow jog. I think it was a 10min/km pace. I told hubs that I could "run" 5 km now without stopping. Hubs said you need to challenge yourself. Something like joining a half marathon. I was like, that's crazy. And dropped the subject. 

Over the next few days, I started researching about half marathons and found a training plan for 3 months. I started learning about the types of runs. Shoes. Nutrition. Heart rate zones. Fueling. I went into the rabbit hole basically.

One month after that, I registered for the Twincity half marathon. To think back, it was pretty crazy. But I was so in the zone and focused. When I find something interesting, I tend to obsess. So running became my life. I was scheduling my days around runs. Weekends were like, .."I have my long run, can't do that". 

And since I was a newbie, I wasn't strong yet. Kept getting shin splints, sore legs. Pain in all places. I was doing work and going to appointments with sore legs from running but I enjoyed it so much. 

Funny thing is, I didn't know there was a culture in running. There are running clubs everywhere. But up until now, I enjoy the solitude of running alone, so I never felt the need to contact running clubs or to run with anyone. 

Hubs follow me on long runs. But he does the slow jogs for a few rounds and we meet for breakfast when my run is over. I haven't been able to convince him to really be into run yet. He says its boring. No idea what's he talking about. I find it invigorating! 

So going into month 7 of running, I'm starting to add some strength training. I did alot of HIIT and body weight training before going into running but once I started being consistent, it became too hard to balance because of scheduling. Previously I needed rest after a running day. So I never had the time to incorporate strength training.. until now. 

I finally feel strong, running a 10km, then going off to appointments, walking and living my day normally. So strength training after a 5km feels good now. Starting to do weights. 

Running has definitely became the highlight and invigorated some things that has been lost. I love being in the student mindset. Learning, adjusting, improving. 

I've never been a runner my whole life and never found the urge to run. Even despised it a little to be honest. I've always been more of an active lifestyle, play tennis, swim, hike, badminton sort of person. Not running. But somehow running found me at this juncture of life. Funny how sometimes we just stumble into things. This is exactly that and it's just caught me unaware. 

In April, I've also started to change my eating habits. I think this is the year I'm becoming my strongest & fittest self. Best part is kids are getting the benefits of having a health conscious mom. 

Whatever I cook for myself is also for them. I learned to blend veggies into meals just to get them to eat veggies. They also eat broccoli/potato/carrots off the plate now. It's been a struggle to get them to eat veggies before but I think we're making great progress.

To being fit and healthy and best self. Till next time.

Dreams and then some

It's like 11.54pm at the moment. Lately, I've been sleeping late and waking up with panda eyes which is not good for Instagram close-ups. Yup, I'm thinking about stuff like that now. What a far cry from the days of sarong the whole day. 

I guess life changes in a split second. You have to savour every moment. 

You also have to make firm decisions that would propel you into a new life. Five years later, you'll thank the day you decided to make exercise part of your morning routine. You'll thank the day you pick up the camera and start sharing on youtube. You'll thank the day you started consciously avoiding things with an extensive carbon footprint. You'll thank the day you tentatively invested a little amount in the stock market. 

If you have dreams, it's easy to take the next step that would support it. It's never comfortable but it will feel purposeful and necessary. 

When I started out on social media, I didn't know which language to write in. I felt comfortable expressing myself in english but I'm aware that I would alienate the people who needed the knowledge the most. So I decided to brush up on my awkward bahasa and punch through. OK PUN. As they say. It might still be awkward but who cares. The important thing is that I'm conveying my message clearly.

I also wished that I could hide behind words and continue blogging forever. But if we don't get out of our comfort zone to do what is required, others will and then take away our dreams too. 

I look at Bill & Melinda Gates with their philanthropic work. Simply inspiring. I could listen to him talk about eradicating Ebola & infectious diseases all day. He changed the world via tech and philanthropy. And managing to be humble.

If there's something we should be good at, it should be something we're already doing. I'm hoping that one day, my kids will say "mommy & daddy" as their inspiration.  

2019 and Burpees

I started becoming serious about exercise/working out since last year, after giving birth to Hassan my third. At the time, I felt like I lost myself physically and emotionally. I didn't recognize myself in the mirror. I was outwardly fine, but I had inner demons. Exercise helped me a lot.. improved my mood. Made me happy to see fat shrinking and everything tightening up.

Along the way, I slowed down, started feeling useless then started back. The body does not bounce back after 2 consecutive pregnancies I tell ya. It's hard work and diet. And you have to keep reminding yourself to correct your posture, because after literally being pregnant for 2 years, you just get used to slumping. It's all the nursing, the bump-carrying and the baby carrying.

Yeah I'm so jealous of my husband because he doesn't understand how much my body is being used! It's something that husbands will never understand. It's the mom's inner circle secret. And by the way, having the first child at 26 vs 3rd child at 30 doesn't sound like much difference but OWH the difference it makes. 1st child was a breeeze.

Anyway, point is, going into 2019, I'm gana up my game. Ganna stay consistent with 3 workouts a week at 20 minutes. How do I workout? There's plenty of workout videos for women out there.. I used to like Zuzka Light.. but then found Pamela Reif and I'm loving that at the moment. On top of that, we also walk around the park for 3-5km during weekends.

I would love to start swimming again at least once a week. We started cutting out sugary drinks this year.. I'd continue doing this.

Most of all, I wanna teach my children the healthy and active lifestyle from when they're little. So it becomes second nature to them.

So yup I just told you guys my health goal in 2019. Nothing too ambitious. Something to counter mommyhood and life fatigue :)

Happy 2019. May the new year bring renewed hope and success to all of you.

6 Mommy Budget Hacks

Hi!!! Having three children isn’t a walk in the park. Nor are they friendly for your wallet. That’s why over the years I’ve become very savvy with spending on a budget. I’m still learning and discovering new outlets but so far, I think I’m doing good. I’ve never been this earth friendly until I have 3 kids!

1. DIAPERS

The most budget friendly at this point will be cloth diapers. I thought about it, even purchased a bundle in 2013 but decided against it because it didn’t fit our lifestyle. So I settled with the next best thing – bulk diaper buying.

My kids wear Drypers. So far they’ve been very practical and does containment exceptionally well. Currently I’m using 2 different sizes, S and L. So I buy them in a box usually from Lazada or Tesco (online of course). They cost me an average RM75 per box.

If I have to buy them loose, I’ll pick a packet from 99speedmart. Their prices are the lowest.

2. MILK POWDERS

Ibrahim, my 2nd born is on soy milk, Isomil. An 800g tin would cost around RM80 in Aeon. Different 99Speedmart has different pricing. But so far the cheapest is at chinese supermarkets. My place is near a few of these chinese supermarkets. Their selling price for a tin is RM69. The catch? No debit/credit. Only Cash.

3. ONESIES & CLOTHING

Onesies are a babies staple clothing. My babies at home are in onesies 99% of the time. They’re just so convenient and versatile. I get nice Gap and Next rejects at Plaza Massalam for RM10 each.

4. SECOND HAND ITEMS

I promise this isn’t as icky as it sounds. We Malaysians love shiny new things. Why not go green and get second hand items. You have to be smart about buying 2nd hand. For me personally, I try to choose items that are NEW or LIGHTLY USED. Yes, they exist on the second hand market… and usually at a fraction of a brand new price. NEW/LIGHTLY USED items I’ve purchased before: sneakers, baby rocker, pregnancy waist extender & car seat.

Not everything secondhand is good. You’ll have to be picky but I assure you that it’s worth it and very satisfying when you score a great bargain. Some sellers only use things once or twice before deciding they don’t want something. Proceed with caution though, because bargain hunting this way is very addictive.

For important items, I always do COD, which means that you go pick up the items personally so you can see the condition with your own eyes.

My secondhand bargain port: Carousell App for nice novelty items, Preloved Facebook group, Preloved baby goods Malaysia Facebook group, Mudah.my, Expat KL group for furnitures

5. GENERAL EVERYDAY

Always try to shop at one place and get a membership. One that allows you to collect points and redeem vouchers sort of thing. I choose Tesco because I can either shop physically or online and it allows me to collect points both ways.

6. FURNITURE/ELECTRONICS

Always compare prices on LAZADA. They have the best prices hands down. I’ve done comparisons with Seng Heng / Aeon / Courts / Harvey Norman etc but LAZADA takes the cake for cheapest price. This goes for bigger brands like Panasonic, Tefal, KDK. We’ve purchased beds for our homestays on LAZADA. Cheap & arrives within 2 weeks.

Do you have any favorite hacks to share?

Getting Ma Babies To Sleep Early

Both my babies are sleeping while I'm writing this. They usually go to sleep around 8-8.30pm. It started before Naila was born and hubs gave me this one baby sleep book. So being the excited first time mom, I read like, 10 parenting books even before I delivered. I ate them up.

But one thing I really feel I need is my sleep. If that sounds selfish.. well you know they say that you have to take care of your self first, to become the best mom for your children. Because you gotta give and give and give. What happens if you're out of steam?

That's when you start becoming mommy monster. Not that I've never been.. but the key word here is 'trying' to take care of yourself.

So that's why I started putting my babies to sleep early.

I love my alone time.. I think I'm more of an introvert, I need my space. Even from my babies. ESPECIALLY from my babies after a looonngg day.

And I love having adult conversations at the end of the day with hubs, as opposed to baby talk the rest of the day.

Anyway according to the books that I've read.. babies are programmed to sleep early.. you just have to help them go to sleep! I've got friends who complained that their babies won't sleep way into midnight.. and I think the babies are just too overstimulated.

Naila is currently 3 years old and Ibrahim is 11 months old.. Both have NEVER slept past 9pm except during Raya or special times. We went on vacation and they slept at 8.30pm outside. So yeap we trained 'em good.

During Naila's time I was very methodical.. as in we had a sleep routine down to the minutes. When Ibrahim came along, I had to adjust for 2.. and I might skip a few things one day.. and do it another day. But it's really the same routine overall.

NUMBER 0: Last nap of the day ends at 5pm, or 3pm depending on their age. Let them play outside.. burn some energy, swim or do whatever that keeps them occupied.

NUMBER 1: Start bathing them around 6.30pm. Or sometimes they eat first.

NUMBER 2: Eat dinner. Around 7pm.

NUMBER 3: Play... puzzles, books, colouring.. sometimes things get out of hand with 2 kids because they'll end up overexcited but I always try to get them to wind down. Maybe play with torchlight in the dark.. That's Naila's favorite. Until around 8.15pm. I'll squeeze in Maghrib prayers while the kids play & hubs take over for a few mins.

NUMBER 4: Lights off. By 8.30PM. Or earlier if I'm too tired.

They will doze off within 15 mins.

Rinse and repeat for the next 10 years! HAha.

I know it sounds simple but only if you start early. And as a parent, I had to stick to schedule every single day. I'm not ashamed to admit that I really love this part because once they're asleep, I'm FREEEEE.

I started training them since they're 1 month old.. before that newborns are just too little to care about routines. And newborns are adjusting to alot of things. They don't know the difference between napping in the morning and sleeping at night.

Everybody has a circadian rhythm or 'sleep wake body cycle' and in babies, they're not developed yet. So first thing is to teach them that we sleep at night.. starting 8pm, it's lights off for the baby. If the baby doesn't want to sleep, just let them lie there in the dark... with you of course.

If they wake up at 3am cooing and you smell poo.. just change their diapers as fast as possible and get back to bed. No playing, no making faces, no talking to them. I swear the baby will get it within a month. They'll poo and cry.. but they will be asleep when you change them.

The baby will be prepped by the time he's 2 months old. Some babies start sleeping through the night.. of course mine doesn't.. I bf my babies but I still manage to get them to sleep by 8.30pm and by 9 months, they're sleeping through the night.

I know, some people will be like, why do I need to put my kids to sleep early? I like having them around!

NUMBER 1: Babies need 14 hours sleep for their development. Some babies don't even like to nap...so getting them to sleep early is one way to fill up their sleep quota.

NUMBER 2: Good habits die hard. And I believe sleeping early is a good habit to have especially when they start school. And haven't you heard? Successful people wake up very early in the morning to start their day. Sleep early=wake up early. Subuh pun senang. Ehem.

NUMBER 3: Like I said... I get some alone time.. to zone out on my phone, to talk to hubs, to read, to clean up the mess etc etc etc. It does wonders on your mental health.. I promise!

So that's it! How I get my kids to sleep early.. I don't believe in having kids 'who don't want to sleep early'. It's probably because their not helped to sleep early.. They won't just miraculously fall asleep early. I Wish!

Just have to keep trying until eventually... they tell you when they're sleepy! I'm off to drink hot choc & read. In peace and quiet. Kids Free.

'Till then, TC.

Positive Changes From Playschool

Hi! My mom and dad weren’t very keen on the idea of me sending Naila to playschool from the very beginning. They said it’s too early for her. Naila will be 3 in October.

They could be right but I have a few reasons for sending her:

1. So she doesn’t get bored while I do work

2. It’s only 3 hours

3. It’s only playschool where she PLAYS the whole time she’s there

4. She and I need a distraction when the new baby swings by

My main reason has always been No.4 because I don’t know how am I going to handle a newborn and a clingy toddler at the same time.

Like any other moms out there, I combed the area and paid a visit to 4-5 centres before finally settling on one. I think it’s a mom thing because hubs really don’t understand ‘why can’t I make up my mind’. Of course I’ve got criterias! DUHHHH.

English, Islamic and Play-based. Those are my criteria and they extend to little details like what is the daily schedule like, how many kids in the class, who’s the teacher… yada yada. To cut the story short, I found the right place at the end of April.

The trial was only two days, then I enrolled her full time in May. Now it’s been 3 weeks. She doesn’t say a word about school, even when I ask her. Teachers said she’s doing well. She cooperates and listens to instructions, plays along well with other kids. So I decided not to push her. She’ll tell me something when she’s ready.

Then came last week. We were upstairs, my mom, me and Naila. Mom said it’s time for dinner. Naila actually cleans up her stuff. We didn’t even have to ask! We were standing there looking at her quietly flabbergasted. She cleaned up the whole area!

During the same weekend, we visited my mil’s. Naila’s 1 year old cousin Addeen was there. To our surprise, there wasn’t any shouts or cries heard the whole day. We actually caught them sitting on the carpet together having a picnic. Naila gave a cup to Addeen and they spent 5 minutes ‘drinking’ together!

Just to get things straight, Naila is NOT a sharer and she doesn’t clean up her toys, no matter how much we encourage her. So she must’ve gotten these habits from her playschool. Major lovee.

It’s still early days but looks like she’s picked up some good habits already. It’s the only thing I ever wish for!

Meeting the one, Husbands & Babies

It’s getting to that stage where you wake up in the middle of the night and it’s hard to go back to sleep. Owh I remember this phase very well. The baby is squirming and kicking.

I was kinda lamenting my freedom in the first few months of having a new baby. You know, the multiple diaper change, feeding, burping especially in the middle of the night. Then hubs said ‘you wanted this baby’. That literally just shut me up. It’s true. It’s my mantra ever since we got married. 2 before 30. Paranoid I’ll be too tired by the time I’m 30… hahaha

I don’t know why I plan these things. I guess I felt like I had to fit it in with my other stuff like building a business empire (doesn’t go the way I planned it) and traveling the world (partly satisfied with it). Some people stumble into success seemingly overnight and that’s their blessing.

Everybody has their challenges and we can’t always see it. Darn social media for making everything look shiny and all glitters.

I’m ganna be honest here, I never liked babies. I mean you know, last time before I had one. Someone can hand over a baby to me and I’m gana be like, please somebody hellpp meee. I can’t see how people thought they were cute. I mean, CATS are cute. Babies… can’t see it. For sure NObody thought I would be a mom.

At least that’s the vibe I got. People also probably think that I’d be a shi**y housewife because I didn’t know how to cook and that I would marry late. In school I thought that I would marry late because other people had boyfriends and I don’t and I can’t talk to boys because I get nervous.

Actually that changed when I met hubs. The 1st time I saw him, he was more nervous than I am. I KNEW he was the ONE. For a while :) Then there’s many years of drama I don’t know how we even survived. Seven years. That’s how long we knew each other before getting married. Then the ONE wasn’t the one. But then what is he? Those were seriously confusing times.

When we finally got married, I thought to myself ‘who knew?’ And I’m glad, he knows me so well. He didn’t marry me for my cooking or housewifing skills that’s for sure. Lol. I’m glad I married that bespectacled, unemployed, alternative music nerd because he turned out to be a lasiked and working engineer 5 years later. Plus he tolerates my Taylor Swift binge and I caught him mumbling Wildest Dreams a few times. Love you hubs <3

And eventhough I used to be impartial towards babies, I think I did a freaking good job with Naila.

Pats on the back.

Okay now I can go back to sleep. Till next time.

Moving

It’s May, and guess where I’m writing this. In the new apartment.

So we decided to move again sometime in April. It’s a BIG RUSH, but we had to do it…considering a new baby is coming in July. The decision is actually sort of like a family restructuring. Lots of companies are restructuring.. my businesses are too and we personally needed to restructure our finances to brace the current economy.

I feel really sad about leaving our comfortable nest but when things get tough, the tough has to get going.. I don’t feel like it but that’s what they say anyway.

The move was a brutal 5 days. We had so many furniture to shift around because of the size constraint.. We moved into an apartment almost half the size of our current apartment! It used to be 1450 sqft of running space and now we’re one room less.

I decided to sacrifice my beautiful office. *CRY* Hopefully the pressure of working in a tight space makes me work harder.

One month before moving I started googling tips about small apartment décor, organizing tips and zen living.

I got rid of some of my clothes & hubs.

I got rid of things I kept from our wedding and school days.

I wept and tore and said goodbye to my printed memories. We gave away a bunch of stuff at the FREEMARKET. We stored sooOoo much junk. The big space we had just swallowed up a lot of stuff, it didn’t look like we had any.

Before moving, hubs actually said,

I said, “did you forget the last time we moved?”

Yes, he forgot. Because when it came for time to move, we had to hire the lorry for TWO days. Imagine TWO days. One day just to get rid of things. The other day to move to the apartment. We even borrowed his dad’s pickup truck to move loose items ourselves.

I wasn’t supposed to carry heavy stuff but caught myself arranging racks and drawers. Carrying many many boxes, baskets, plastics. Carrying Naila & the cat. Carrying carpets. Okay you name it, I did it.

And now, on to DAY 5. This is what we’ve got.

How to Entertain Toddler on a Long Distance Drive or Long Flight

A short break from Krabi posts to talk about something really important. So important that if you weren't prepared, the whole road trip will be a disaster. It's how to entertain the little monstah during a long distance drive. 

1. TIMING

Timing is everything! The best timing is when the toddler is asleep! Me & hubs always choose to wake up really early in the morning to travel long distance. For Krabi we started the journey at 4am. For trips to Kuala Terengganu, for example, we woke up at 3am. You can also travel through the night, but we aren't really night owls.. so we prefer to catch some snooze before starting on a long journey. 

2. A CAR SEAT TRAY

Also known as a snack & play tray. You can get it from Lelong.my for a cheap knockoff or look for the real thing at baby specialty stores. I got mine for RM20 off Lelong. The table is sturdy but not hard. This is important in case of an accident, the tray won't hurt the toddler. You can use the tray for activities, and for food. Very handy. 

3. STICKER BOOKS

I scoured the internet for ways to entertain a toddler in the car or flight. For kids above 5 years old, loom bands are a favorite. For 2-3 year olds, It's sticker books. I went to a few shops looking for sticker books, and I found one in Aeon Big for RM10. Sticker books kept Naila occupied for 30 minutes at a time. 

Mickey mouse sticker books does the trick! 

4. TABLET WITH SOME NEW MOVIES & OLD FAVORITES

This works the longest. Naila has very limited screen time at home, so she's usually very excited for more. No complains when we let her finish a movie in the car. That's 1.5 hours off our hands. We wanted to bring headphones for her but forgot at the very last minute! 

5. SNACKS

When traveling, we allow things we don't usually allow, like eating chips and lots of biscuits. And kerepek. Or kerepet as Naila calls it. Plenty of milk cartons. Food saves the day when we were stuck at the Thai border for 3 hours. 

Also make sure to stop by for toilet breaks and freshening up every 2-3 hours. Makes all the difference in the world. Any other tips for long distance travel? 

No TV Lifestyle

At first it started out as just as a temporary thing when we just got married. It didn’t really matter. I have my laptop, and hubs got his. UNIFI was much more important back then. So that’s how we lived without a tv for the first year. In our second year, an aunt gave us her unwanted tv. You know, just something laying around. We enjoyed that for some time. I think it was like 6 months.

We started a homestay shortly after. Not wanting the homestay to be 18th century, we decided to give up our own tv. So the homestay has a tv, but we don’t. To be honest, it didn’t really matter. We went to the movies, and we had our laptops. Life was good.

Then we had Naila and I officially became a work at home mom. Man, thinking back I don’t know how did I survive the first year without a tv. I was probably too busy and too tired to even care that I didn’t have a tv. It would’ve been a good distraction tool for the baby. Whatever.

I don’t know how, but we ended up not having a tv until now! 4 years! It sounds so draconian.

I promise it wasn’t intentional. Just that we got used to not having a tv at home. I didn’t think it’s weird until people coming to our house started commenting, “NO TV??”. “Oh yeah I forgot to mention. Sorry. Now you would have to use your imagination to survive.”

Even my grandma says my house is quiet(?!?). I think she meant that as a compliment.

Yeah there are many times I almost caved and demand a tv. But to think of all the positive things happening because we had no tv. Naila doesn’t demand for a tv at all, same goes to both of us.

We read books a lot.

We do motor sensory activities.

Hubs have his fish aquarium hobby.

We play with Chanel our cat.

We do fair amounts of outdoor activities maybe 4-5 times a week.

Besides, there’s a lot competing for our attention even without tv. Like phones, and laptops. I’ve read somewhere that people have greater quality life without looking at screens. I hope so. I just feel like it’s a positive thing at the moment--this not having a tv.

Who knows what happens in the future? We might get a 60” inch tv to compensate all the years without it. Haha. Really I don’t know, but right now, this feels good. It’s effortless and we don’t think too much about it.

Everytime I fantasize having a tv, I’ll picture all three of us sitting on the sofa for 2 hours without moving or going anywhere. Or I’ll picture watching a tv series marathon on weekdays, while eating cookies and ice cream and ignoring Naila. No I really don’t want that. I was once a couch potato many many years ago. That ain’t pretty. So, no thank you.

I’m sticking to the no-tv diet for the moment!

On a side note, the other day, we hung out at ioi mall in Putrajaya. I underestimated this mall because the first time we got there, I wasn’t that impressed. It felt like any other big malls. Fast forward a year, we went for a family weekend outing of bowling, ice skating and dinner. I was amazed that the mall was so alive! There’s a lot of things to do with kids or on a date. By that I mean halal date. With the hubs.

We ate at the magnum place for the first time. My verdict? The price is exorbitant for a ‘Magnum’ ice-cream eaten with pricey biscuits. We ordered something that costs RM30, and I expected more.


Well, maybe the view of the water fountain justifies it. But I’m still sticking to Haagen Dazs for a dessert treat after this!

Favorite Pastime

Our favorite pastime as a family has got to be going to the park. It keeps you healthy, and it’s free! We go to the park around twice a week. Sometimes less, sometimes more. Thankfully we’ve got a park 5 minutes away from home.

During the weekends we prefer to find bigger parks in the city like FRIM. But last week, we went to Taman Tasik Perdana for the first time in like, 15 years! I remember going there as a kid, and so does hubs. It’s in the middle of the city, the opposite side of KL Sentral.

I gotta be honest, nothing’s changed. It’s still very well-maintained and bustling with activity.

Bubble play for kiddies.

Hugeee playground area. This was one tiny section. I didn’t take a photo of the whole area.

I don’t know why we didn’t visit this park earlier. It’s pretty awesome actually. Very big, wide pathways perfect for strollers. We no longer use strollers though, since Naila prefers to run!

What are your favorite pastimes as a family?

Where to Rent Baby’s Gadgets In Malaysia

Since Naila’s first month until now, there’s one website that I go to when looking for baby gadgets TO RENT. It’s www.rentatoys.com.

We rented the Fisher Price Open Top, battery operated swing when she was a month old.

Then rented the Bumbo seat plus tray when she was 5 months old…

…Little Tikes Toy truck/excavator when she was 9 months old…

VTech walker when she was 10 months old.

The renting process is pretty simple and can be found on their website. The rental is very cheap, compared to other rental websites. For example, the VTech walker is RM29 per month.

Mothers know that a baby outgrow their toys or equipment as fast as they change diapers. These toys cost a bomb too, which adds to the mountain of other things we have to spend on. It’s only economical to rent certain items like rockers, or electronic toys. It’s just that you have to understand that some toys aren’t brand new. You have to be ok with toys that are missing a knob, or chipped a little bit on the edges.

Usually I disinfect the toys with soapy water before giving it to baby. But the trade-off is that you get to keep a few hundred ringgits! I’d say that’s fair.

I like that they have a huge selection of gadgets to choose from, ranging from birth to 2 years old. I even planned in advance when I looked at their product page.

The service is prompt, my order is received usually a day after payment. For returns, simply inform the owner and they will schedule a pick-up for you.

So guys, if you’re looking for baby rental equipment and toys, please check out www.rentatoys.com and give them a try!

Look Fab with Running Shoes

I must admit, when it comes to footwear, at most I can boast about having one row of black leather shoes. Maybe some crocs mary janes in between. Yup. That’s me. When my hubs actually took me to shop for shoes, I’ll be the one like, OH YEAH and headed straight for the monochrome section. More so now that I’m a mom and monochrome is the easiest to match outfits! You know how Steve Jobs has hundreds of the same black sweater? I’m like that with shoes.

But there’s an exception. When it comes to sports shoes, I go wild! My pick is always running shoes because they’re so versatile. You know how sports wear can be a bit drab? I thought, why not spice up the whole outfit with fabulous running shoes?

How do you choose a good running shoe?

1. Must be COMFORTABLE. Exercise is no walk in the park I tell you. (No pun intended!)

2. Choose the correct size

3. Matches your personality

Some girls might prefer a pink colored running shoe…

while others might adore another colour.

However, do not wear a running shoe too tight or loose as it could cause an aggravated problem.

One of the problems caused by wearing a shoe smaller than your foot size are blisters. The painful blisters are formed with the frequent friction of a rough spot from the shoe to sensitive areas of your foot. For example, the part normally forms blisters are the back of your feet. Once you have the blisters, it would be very hard for you to walk. The pain just isn’t worth it.

I walk a lot but the ladies and men who participate in marathon events will surely acknowledge that a good comfortable pair of running shoes is what contributes to the confidence of the wearer. Well, even running in the park needs a really good pair of shoes!

Sublime Lime.

A person’s energy level may quickly decrease if the shoe for running does not provide comfort and support. The lack of support will bring feet and ankle pain. This is because long distance walking and running adds pressure to our tired feet especially if the shoe has thin padding.

Due to the same reason, you will experience heel pain which is the inflammation of your heel and sometimes your whole foot sole. The inflammation is mainly caused when you haven’t been active for quite some time or a dramatic increase in your physical activity routine.

Take it down a notch and do not put pressure on your feet especially when you are slowly starting to be active. Rest them well and follow your own pace when exercising.

It’s also important to change your running shoes after a while, because believe it or not, shoes have mileage in them. And like a car with high mileage, sometimes it’s time to say bye bye and change to a new one.

Soo the big question is, where do I find these fabulous running shoes? Your answer is Zalora. I’m sure you’ve heard of Zalora. They’re everywhere! Try and have a look at Zalora website as they provide a wide range of running shoes suitable for both men and women. They have local and international brands made available so you’ll be spoilt for choice. 

My personal favorite?

These!

Purplicious they say.

Take care and happy shopping at Zalora!

xoxo.

-This is a sponsored post-

-All shoe photos are taken off the Zalora website-

Family-friendly Parks in KL

Me and hubs love walking and occasionally trekking. Before we had Naila, we already had a momentum going with the park visits. The first few months after baby, we were just trying to get the hang of the new ‘normal’. Every outing is a big event and requires a minimum of two manpower, so we never really thought of resuming the park outings.

Then the time came when Naila got just a little bit bigger and a bit easier to manage. There was the time when my parents went to the park and it sounded nice and we went. Never stopped since then.

Post-baby is a little bit different though. There’s the stroller, the heat and other things you gotta think about. So here’s my personal review on the parks around KL!

Taman Tasik Titiwangsa

This was the first park we took Naila to, and it’s really nice (partly because I myself have nice memories running wild as a kid in this same park). It’s stroller friendly, with wide lanes to maneuver. When it gets too hot, there’s shade everywhere. Also this is the park to try out a lot of things, like kayaking, tennis, badminton, in line skating. At one time there was a Zorb ball. This park has the most kids running around so I would say this is the most fun park for families with children. Babies have a lot to see. Not forgetting to mention there’s a café too.

 

Baby friendly rating: 8/10 (points deducted for noise and heat)

Kid friendly rating: 10/10

Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM)

Our favorite spot on weekend mornings pre-baby. So how does it fare post-baby? The walkways are decidedly small, but we manage to make a big round with our stroller without any problems. We haven’t tried hiking with the baby yet—that’s a whole different planet to consider. It feels humid but we’ve always loved the natural shade provided by the canopy of trees. Once we got here at 10AM when the sun was already high, but inside FRIM it felt like 7AM! This park has a totally different vibe from Tasik Titiwangsa. You’ll see bicycle enthusiasts in full gear zooming past, going up the jungle tracks; people jogging lost in their mp3 players. There aren’t that many children, must less activities because they cater more towards the hikers. But we love the natural jungle setting.

Baby friendly rating: 9/10 (walkway could be a bit wider)

Kid friendly rating: 6/10 (could be more, depending on what you expect of a park)

Taman Botani Putrajaya

We heard soo much about this place prior to going there ourselves. One thing people always mention about Taman Botani is their bike ride. Sadly that’s the one thing we can’t do yet with baby.

We loved the wide walkways that are wide enough for bikes AND for joggers and walkers and strollers. There are shady trees, really good spots for photos and an eatery. We’ll definitely be back.

Baby friendly rating: 9/10

Kid friendly rating: 9/10 (run wildly, cycle wildly)

Taman Wetland Putrajaya

Wetland is a little bit hit and miss. I don’t know what it is, maybe it’s that time of the year or maybe it’s just the rainy season. Maybe it’s the landscape. Pros: wide walkways like Taman Botani, information centre. Cons: SO much mosquitoes. Poor baby was swarmed by mosquitos, the horror. Otherwise it’s a nice recreation place. I’m not sure if we’ll be back though, because Taman Botani is just 5 minutes away.

Baby friendly rating: 5/10

Kid friendly rating: 9/10 (run wildly, cycle wildly)

Do you love hanging out at the park? Do you take baby? What are the preparations that you do before heading out? Surprising necessity is actually an insect repellant!

Till next time.

April Recap In Pictures

 

Life is crazy. My hands are full juggling everything. I think I grew another hand just to accommodate! Alhamdulillah my life is full, blessed. Sometimes I fear I let everything slip by. One month is seriously so so short.

But.. we managed to sneak in a short weekend getaway to Cameron Highlands! We’ve been here three times in two years so that’s saying something. When we arrived it was cool and raining. Major love. It’s our first getaway as a family and Naila was sooo easy to travel with.

Also, we finally got help! Bhea is a LIFESAVER. I was getting really overwhelmed with my work, Naila, housework; and so started advertising for an extra pair of hands literally. She’s Naila’s new weekday nanny and my part-time housekeeper!

Yeap we love her!

Mom said Naila has too little toys so I went and get her Joey the jiggling elephant!! And I got her a bumbo seat with tray just in time to start EATING.

Favorite thing to do in April. She started blowing bubbles in March and never stopped since!

We have been working on our apartment since December, and finally we put it up for short rental this month!!

That’s it for now folks! I’ll check in soon. Definitely in May.

Take care xoxo.

Whirlwind 2013

Salam everyone!

Thinking back the year 2013 is such a roller coaster. In the beginning of the year, me and hubs sat down with Chanel (no baby yet!) and wrote down what we wanted for the year. I remember hubs saying ‘we can’t put having a baby as a goal, because babies are a gift.’ I guess God thinks we’re ready because in February, I conceived.

My pregnancy looked very easy, I was active throughout all 10 months (gasp) and I think it gave my husband a false impression on how difficult pregnancies actually are. However despite having a relatively easy pregnancy, I had a challenging time managing my other responsibilities.. which required me to drive a lot, walk a lot, and meet a lot of people. I remember my baby kicking hard when I was driving at 8-9 months. I don’t think I ever sat still my whole pregnancy!

Thinking back, because of my condition and my hectic work, me and hubs travel less this year. However, we still managed to make that one week getaway to Langkawi in January and Cameron Highlands in March.

I knew that for every hard work, and the bun baking in the oven will be unveiled towards the end of the year. In October, 2 weeks after I celebrated my birthday, and after many guesses from everyone, baby Naila decided to pop out! And my husband was offshore for a good 3 weeks! And alhamdulillah my business was running well with minimal supervision.

Towards the end of the year, I feel very humbled and thankful. Having a baby makes me humbled. Makes me value time more. Makes me appreciate women more, especially my mom and my grandmas. I am thankful for having an easy pregnancy, a memorable birthing experince, a healthy baby and a great support system during my berpantang recovery period, and people to care for baby while I needed to get work done. 

I don’t know what else to say… I’m just in that thankful mode, ya know, great things are still happening—ongoing—the love hormones are still flooding my system. So yeah, I can’t wait for another great year! Maybe more travelling this time? Maybe to visit baitullah? Who knows?

Have a great year ahead!

Baby Hiking

Look what I found!!

A baby hiking gear! For rental too!! Visit them at www.babybarnitems.com 

Happy Eid

Ramadan has come and now gone, but hopefully we did our best. Definitely wasn’t easy for me.

Happy Eid everyone!

My Favorite Business Magazines & Books

1. Personal Money Magazine

I have these subscribed. Personally the best personal finance magazine in Malaysia. What I love the most about these books is the fact that it’s not for businessmen. It talks about taxes, managing your income, how to invest your money, study cases, and the latest government initiatives. A lot of financial jargons, but simple enough to flip through to find something useful for the average joe.

2. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

One of the most inspiring biographies. I finished this book in like, 3 days! If you wonder how did Apple get so famous and successful, you'd know why from the very beginning of the book.

3. Rich dad Poor Dad series

And I mean, the whole lot. If you weren’t born with a silver spoon in your mouth, you’d get a lot of good from reading these books. They open up your views on how running a business can get you financially free.

I read them when I was 16, accidently because I was bored. You can safely say they change my whole life and the reason why I quit engineering so easily. I also got feedback from others who’ve read the books, and they had the same revelation that I had.

My favorite books in the series: Rich dad, poor dad, cashflow quadrant, and guide to investing.

4. Richard Branson, Losing my virginity

Sometimes business books can be fun-reading like this one. It’s fun, inspiring and gets you moving whenever you reach a tight spot in your life. Makes you realize that if you don’t work hard, you won’t get what you want.

Of course, there are lots more, but I’ll highlight them in a different post.

Happy reading!

Dear 30 Year Old Me

It’ll be less than 5 years from now, but I hope you’re not the same person as I am now (I hope you look as young as I do though!) I hope you are 30 times better than I am now, someone I can look up to. I don’t know where will life take us. But I do know that you’re still dreaming big and aiming for the stars.

So how’s the family doing? How’s Chanel? Any kids yet? Will our first be a boy or a girl? Am I juggling work and family well? Is the husband working for a multinational company in a high flying position? So um, how’s the mandarin going? Are we healthy? Do we still go on weekend hikes or exercise together? Do I finally cook a mean soto ayam? Have we prepared for Haji? Are we living the life???

I know, too many questions. It’s like a good book I guess. You read chapter by chapter, trying to guess what’s what but you end up with more questions than answers. That is, until you get to one point when everything is revealed. I wonder if everything will be revealed at 30. Or maybe that’s just too young still. Maybe when I’m 60 or 70 I’ll be able to look back on my life and smile. It doesn’t matter. I just hope that you’re on the right path and that you’re happy.

I hope you’re treating both sets of parents well. I hope you make husband’s favorite mint tea everyday and still be his best friend. We’ve long established the secret of togetherness yeah? It’s honesty. Always, always. SHARE. Tell the truth. Communicate. Ego-less. Patience. Try not to be so annoying when you argue. Don’t try to be such a smart-a**. For goodness sake don’t go on a rampage because you’re making things WORSE. Have you learned how to say sorry without looking like you’ve just tasted a pinch of lemon? I really hope so. You have to be better than I AM.

I know you hate to look back. But don’t forsake where you come from. Don’t ever forget the people who left a mark in your life. Always have fun. Remember first year in college when you got stuck in Ipoh during midnight with friends and you took a shoddy cab that drove too fast, has no air cond or seat belt with a door that wouldn’t close? You and your friends were kinda terrified but laughed so loud once you made it back. Ok bad example, that was potentially dangerous.

Don’t forget God. Remember that you’re returning to him sooner or later, so get your act together.

Well you know I could write forever but mostly it'll be questions. You can’t help me out with that, can you? Because you’ll have your own questions then. Whatever it is, whatever life throws at us, I just hope to be steadfast and be the best khalifah we can in this world. That’s the reason why we’re here anyway isn’t it? We’re merely weak human beings on this vast land. Everything that we own while alive means nothing when we die. The only thing that matters is how much good you’ve done while living. O I really hope you’ve shared a lot of goodness. Inspired people to be their best. That sort of thing ya know?

Last words, always have the courage to be yourself ;)