first trip out of Singapore

Sorry for the disappearance. My dad was in town hence time was spent with him :) Daddy came back to spend the public holidays with Ahmad. He brought Ahmad to Karachi Restaurant on Sunday morning ... well, the adults had their breakfast but little Ahmad was cooing and talking (baby language). Travelling was a breeze for little Ahmad closed his eyes and fell asleep. Must be the cool environment in the car :) The next day was the highlight ... Ahmad's first trip out of Singapore. Daddy decided to bring us out to Angsana Shopping Centre in JB. He wanted to 'meresmikan' Ahmad's passport :) Coincidentally Nek Yang also first time entering JB with her new passport. Journey was smooth till we crossed the causeway and reached the JB customs. It was a slow, crawl. Poor Ahmad was agitated lying down, was propped up beside the window for him to take the surroundings. Cars in many colours, facinated him. He stopped being fussy! He was only fussy in the car. Partly due to being held for a long time. Below are picture taken before the trip as well as Ahmad with his passport.

Over the weekend, Ahmad get to meet up with my cousins. Little ones, that it ... below is Uncle Zul and then Ahmad next to his Zul's sister, Athirah. Cute huh ... Ahmad actually just woke up and was still stretching and stretching ...

Me & my very own playground :)

Here are the updates of my little hero ... now he responded to his toys. Especially his duck (compliments by God Mommy Nourol). He would actually quiten down when his toy duck is quacking ... can you believe that! Below are instances when he responded to his musical mobile. He would cooed and gargled as the little animals turned round and round ...
Here are instances when he was playing. See the glee on his face :) I really like the one on the right ... it looked as if he was talking! But see his resemblence to Donald Duck ... perhaps that's why he responded well to his quacking duck.
Here are pictures when he was left in his playground (compliments by Aunty Ida, Uncle Ghazi, Aunty Seri, Aunty Azza). He just kept quiet and he looked at the hanging toys. A few minutes passed ... guess what happened?
he started cooing to the little butterfly, moving round and round! His limbs would move about actively ... he was excited playing with his toys. He actually played in his playground for almost 2 hours, before he got tired. Wow ... wonder where he got all the energy ;)

Alhamdullilah ...

Finally it's official! I taken the Teacher's Pledge, vowing to do my utmost best for my students while working with parents and the community. Wow ... the pledge alone is enough to put some weight on my shoulders. The responsibilities and all ... and I'm not yet back in school. Scary huh ... many questions crossed my mind. Can I adapt to the new environment? Can I relate to my students? How can I arose their interest, especially the Normal Technical students? ... Well, that's enough worries for now. Here are the pictures taken. Got a chance ... make it several times taking pictures with the Minister of Education. Firstly is with Mak and second is with my D&T group. There was another one but the pictures are with the press. Oh yes, I was interviewed by Berita Harian. Sigh ... it's much more tiring taking photos for the press compared to taking wedding photos. Serious ... my cheeks were cramped from all that smiling :)
Alhamdullilah, I did well in my Post Grad Dip in Education. Despite the back aches, additional tummy load, I'm very thankful to Allah for giving me the strength to see through the course and doing well. Also my group of frens who drove me around, accompanied me during breaks, supporting me during workshop sessions ... thank you to all of you. Sincerely I enjoyed myself while in NIE. Thank you for making it wonderful :)

it's play time

here I am, playing and playing. I woke up @ 2pm and stayed up for 2 hours and just succumbed to slumber. Nek Yang put me in my cot ... but somehow I woke up once again. Umi then put me in my swing which I just closed my eyes and sleep.

Ashraf's Passport Photo

Here it is ... Mohammad Ashraf's passport photo. See how sullen he is ... he was very sleepy and complaining of his wet diaper prior to taking his photo. Hehe ... had to take his photo 3 times ... but alas, this picture is a treasure!

picture says a thousand words

the title above is true ... especially to Daddy & Bak who constantly visit my blog to view pictures and see their grandson develop :) here they are pictures & all ...

here I am ... wide awake and playing with my Kakaks. They would call my name and I would fidget and move my limbs in response. As what Wan always says ... i am playing tennis with my hands and soccer with my legs at the same time. I like it when there are people who called me and surrounded me ... oh yes, I took a picture with my Kak Lang. How? Do we look alike?
oh yes, I loved sleeping in my swing, especially during the day. I would sleep very soundly that the noise from the vacuum cleaner would not stir me :P now, after I woke up on the swing, Wan or Umi would transfer me to the mattress so that I can stretch my limbs. Below is a picture of me stretching a bit before falling asleep once again.
This was taken last Saturday when Abi & Umi brought me to see Dr Fadzil and ICA (Immigration & Customs Authority). The doctor checked me to see if the circumcision went well. Happy to say, Dr Fadzil is pleased with my recovery that my consultation was free of charge!!! Thank you, Dr Fadzil :) Beside is a picture of me in my pram while waiting for my queue number to be called to the counter to apply for a passport. It wasn't easy for Abi & Umi to take my picture as I was fussy earlier on. Turned out that my diaper was wet and I don't like it! But once Abi changed my diaper, it's time for me to take my passport picture. Hmm ... no picture here. Will ask Abi to scan the picture for me. InsyaÁllah, I will have my passport on Thursday so I am free to go to Malacca to be with Atuk or even Qatar with Tok Bak!
Here are close up pictures of me ... btw is my nose sharp?

Updates ... updates

Time really flies by. So many things happened but just no time to put everything down in the blog. Here the updates in short ...
1. Mohammad Ashraf is already 5.1 kg
2. His circumcision procedure went well. He has recovered well too.
3. He has applied for his passport. InsyaÁllah getting it this Thursday.
4. During the day he will sleep in his swing while @ night, he will sleep in his cot or on the bed.
5. He has started sleeping 4 hours block @ night :) it used to be 3 hours block.

Now what abt pictures? Will put them tomorrow so Bak & Daddy, don't worry, k. I have taken some pictures of him but yet to edit them. Will do so tomorrow.

Ahmad is 2 months old!

Alhamdullilah ... Mohammad Ashraf is 2 months old. Time really flies. Seems like yesterday that I returned from the hospital. And now he's already 2 months old. Phew ... 2 months ... lots of lessons and adaptation. Ahmad now is very active when awake ... he would move his arms and legs vigorously. Seems like he's playing boxing and soccer at the same time. He would smile widely when his name is called too.

So far, there are no photos of Ahmad crying. So here it is ... crying after taking his bath. He was enjoying his bath but still kind of sleepy. So he was cranky after dressing up. Once he settled down in a comfortable position, crying subside and he gave in to slumber.
Here ... Ahmad just woke up from sleeping in his cot. He did not sleep much then till his portable swing arrived. Once he's in, he just sleeps and sleeps without a care in the worldKakak-kakak Ahmad just had their agama lesson today. Here we have them in their tudungs ... lawa tak?

Circumcision done

Last Saturday, Ahmad disunatkan. Alhamdullilah, the procedure went smoothly. Reaching the clinic, the nurse gave him some medicine to calm him down. After half an hour, he went into the surgery room with his Abah. 20 minutes later, both of them came out. The procedure was done. Surprisingly, we, including his Aunty Erah, Uncle Gee, Kak Hannah, Kak Hannis ... did not hear him cry. But the calm does not last long. 10 minutes after coming out of the surgery room, Ahmad started crying and crying non-stop, putting everyone in a frenzy. He was cranky ... but for the afternoon. Come evening ... he's back to his normal self. Alhamdullilah :) At least we don't have to worry about his circumcision when he grows older.
Here, he is ... calling his Abah Long, asking him to pick him up. This is after we have returned from the clinic. If you look closely, he follows some of his uncle features. Well ... now, it's a mixture of many features. Bit here and bit there ... but guess, Ahmad is satisfied now. His uncle, Abah Long, has finally carried him!
In the evening, after the circumcision, we realised Ahmad started sucking his fingers. Here, we caught him in the act. According to my aunt or to Ahmad's grandaunt, Nek Cuk ... babies who sucked their fingers will grow up to be smart. Not sure if it's true of not. To me ... it's an indication of him being able to make himself comfortable. An indication of his development :) ... it's a sweet sight, seeing him slowly putting his fingers to his mouth or when he moved his face so that he can put his mouth to his fingers.
As per normal, Ahmad's favourite activity - bath time. Now we need to soak his wound in salted water. We thought he would not like it or be difficult. To our amazement, he remained calm with a satisfied look on his face when we were soaking him. But he can't wait for his body to be soaked too ... kept moving his legs into a standing position so that he can move to a bigger bathtub.
here, i can't resist taking pictures of him in his new jumper, just after his bath. Ahmad is simply adorable here ...

8 weeks old

time really flies ... now Muhammad Ashraf is already 8 weeks old. This morning after his meal @ 1.45 am, he refused to sleep. He started playing by himself and only succumbed to slumber @2.30 am. Can't wait for him to grow older. Am really looking forward to the time when I can bring him out, shopping or going for a stroll. In fact, now I realised I went to MotherCare or other baby-related shops more often and can spend hours there. So many things to buy or consider getting for my junior. Especially with the sales going around now.

Sweet Aunty Siti

Siti Sofea or Aunty Siti to Ahmad, has started her first year at Madrasah. She will be schooling with her brother (Uncle Haziq) @ Masjid Tentera Diraja opposite NUS. She was simply excited and can't stop talking about her class and what she learnt. So far she has learnt how to take ablution. Wonder what she will learn this weekend.
By the way, isn't she sweet?

Playtime ... @ 7am

After his morning meal, Ahmad refused to sleep. He started laughing and talking (that is, baby talk). He would move his arms and legs and was simply active. Since he was wide awake and showing no signs of sleepiness, he had his bath and simply enjoying himself in his nice, warm tub of water. Here he is, after his morning bath, fresh and sweet smelling, waiting to be massaged and clothed.

Here he is once again but with his dad ... who was entertaining him. We tried offering him the pacifier, thinking he wants to sleep but turned out he wants to play ...

and so he played till his next meal time and he fell asleep once again ...

Ahmad's first raya

This AidilÁdha marks our first raya with Ahmad :) it's a raining day and somehow the Raya feeling is not very strong. First and foremost, quite a number of family members were not around. Also, we missed some of them along the way. But most importantly is for us to be grateful for we have.

As for Nazzer & i, we are blessed and grateful for the little bundle of joy Allah SWT has given us. He has brought joy and happiness to us. He is now growing fast and getting stronger each day ... responding more and more to his surroundings. Now he's just 7 days away from his two months birthday. SubhanAllah ... time really flies.

The latest Ahmad's stats -

height 58 cm (average is 55 cm)

weight 4.9kg (average is 4.5kg)

Had his 6-in-1 jab last wednesday ... cried a bit but quiten down when given pacifier. Next jab will be the end of Feb ... but most importantly, Doc said that he's growing well. He was cranky afterwards but crankiness soon disappeared and he's back to his normal self ... my little dear one. According to his Uncle Haziq, he's definitely chubbier now.

my cousins ... (Ahmad's that is ... )

Kak Ngah (Nurul Hannah) baru aje menyambut hari jadinya yang ke-6 31 December lepas. Oleh kerana sibuk ngan persanding Uncle Boy (Fadhli), sambutnya pada 2 Jan. Perasan tak siapa yang tersembunyi di belakang cake? Kak Hannis. Perasan tak siapa yang takde didalam gambar? Ahmad lah ... waktu tu, Ahmad sedang dibuai mimpi.

wah ... kakak-kakak semua dah start tuition agama lah. Kak Long (Nur Atiqah), Kak Ngah (Nurul Hannah), Kak Lang (Nur Aliyah) & Kak Cik (Nurul Hannis) belajar mengaji, menulis dan solat. Mula-mula, semua tak duduk diam ... sekejap-kejap masuk dapur, nak airlah, nak makanlah. Kak Lang tersasul panggil Ustazahnya ... Mustafa ... hmm, nampaknya kita kena sponsor Ustazahnya rotan tak??? Di sini pula ... gambar Kak Humairah dan Abang Syamil ... semua sepupu Ahmad. Abang Syamil dah 9 bulan, Kak Humairah pula dah 6 bulan. Ahmad ... coming to 2 months soon. Kak Humairah dah pandai tiarap. Tidur pun tidur tiarap. Abang Syamil pula dah pandai merangkak, duduk. Eee ... bestnya!

7th weeks & going

There was no updates for the last 1 week ... so here they are ... in photos & all ...

Ahmad's first time in his little playground ... only babies allowed! Ahmad was playing and looking at the hanging animals till he fell asleep ... in the jungle playground itself ...
Ahmad's favourite session after bathing time ... he likes being massaged. So I have no choice but to learn how to massage babies. Good skill to have as it relaxes the baby and can be used to pacify them when they cries. It works for my little one ...
Here he is in his cot in Ubi ... this week is his week @ Wan's place ... photo taken when he just woke up and before he cries for his meal :P
me in my new clothes ... courtesy of Aunty Erah ... nice or not ... also my first time in my pram ... courtesy of Uncle Gee ...