ONLINE COMICS - MIND FOLDERS EPISODE 6: OLDER AND WISER

Older; yes. Wiser; not so much.

I WONDER

As I look up at the sky
I start to wonder
If only it can speak
It will speak of things it has seen
Things that that are way beyond us

As I look up at the sky
I start to wonder
If it is the same sky
The same one when I cried for the first time
When I took my first step

As I look up at the sky
I start to wonder
The sky that greets us every morning
Plays dress up every single hour in different shades of colors
Different shades of wonderful

As I look up at the sky
I start to wonder
If only I could touch it
Thinking my life would be different
As I look up in awe of God's creation

29 WEEKS PREGNANCY UPDATE

I'm now in my third and last trimester of pregnancy. Third trimester always consists of sleepless nights, trips to the toilet at ungodly hours, your back threatening to fail you anytime, leg spasms and cramps in the middle of the night, nesting while driving your hubby crazy(actually everything in pregnancy drives Wan crazy), graduate as a non-stop complain master and many many more!

My previous most recent visit to the gynae was a glucose test visit. So as usual I had to drink(and keep it down) the glucose water. I'm not a fan of thick isotonic drinks and the glucose tasted worse than that(plus it's not chilled). I managed to finish it in 15 minutes( supposedly 5minutes and of course the uncle taking my blood test had to make noise LOL, sorry!) which was a big improvement from Adam's time when I took half an hour to finish.

Baby was doing fine, looking at us during the scan. The verdict was out. I had to go through cesarean section again this time round. Having gone through both before, I would want to go for normal delivery this time. The labor pain was crazy but it was nothing compared to aftermath of a Cesarean. The first time you have to walk after delivery, the care of the wound, weeks of no coughing, no sneezing, no laughing, no walking, no carrying of anything including baby and many many more.

Then again, whatever is safe and for baby and myself is always the best choice. And in this case, Cesarean section as my placenta is already covering my cervix.

Gynae told us to head straight to the hospital if there is any bleeding. Till then, I need to be careful and live like a queen. Kidding. No but really, I need to be really careful.

Adam has been so awesome. He talks to the baby, sings and helps out a lot. I'm blessed to have him and may he be the best that he can be.

Love,
Ja

AMARI HOTEL JOHOR BAHRU POOL EXCESS ROOM

Since they first opened, we were intrigued to stay at Amari Johor Bahru. Honestly, it's because of the awesome location. Thus in July(omg, it's already August), we made a short trip to Johor Bahru. We booked the pool access room. Omg, best decision ever.

Once we reached Komtar JBCC, just cross over using the traffic light and go up the escalator beside Morganfields restaurant. That's it. You will see the lift leading up to the lobby of Amari which is at the sixth floor. It is super convenient. The staff were efficient and friendly.

Most importantly, the carpet in the room was clean. Adam is highly allergic to dust, so everytime we stay in a hotel, we will definitely know if the room is clean or dirty. If the carpet and room is dusty and dirty, Adam will start having reactions within the first hour. He will have non stop phelgmy coughs and his eyes will be very watery. So it is really nice that he was totally fine this time. 

We went on a weekday so it seemed like it was our own private pool right at our doorstep. How awesome is that. So after we reached, we rested for abit and headed out to Komtar and City Square for dinner. Ok fine, not for dinner. For shopping. After our legs threatened to give way, we packed so much awesome food and headed back to our room. We just slacked the whole night. Truly, our kind of night.

The next morning of course we had to go for breakfast. I loved it. It had a similar vibe to the breakfast set up at Double Tree by Hilton. Baba drove in early to join us for breakfast.

And guess what, they had apam balik!! What!

Wan loved the live coffee station. He had three teh tariks!

After a hearty breakfast, we chilled by the pool before checking out.

Presenting my swollen face.

It was such a nice and relaxing short trip. We decided to come back again with baby next time InshaaAllah. And of course, we will definitely go for the pool access room again. No doubt.

Till the next staycay,

Ja

THINGS TO HELP YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING - PRACTICAL TIPS

I used to hate waking up early in the morning. Living here in Singapore, we kinda have no choice. Even as preschoolers, class starts at 8am. Even so when I was still in my teens, I still can stay up all night and sleep all day on weekends.

However, since I became a mum, there is no such thing. When I was still a working mum, I could still rest if I was unwell or wanted to sleep because I cold easily put my child under my parents' , in-laws or hubby's care but now that I'm a SAHM, I'm kind of expected to do things on my own.

So I had to help myself be happier on mornings. Even gloomy, stay-in-bed kinda mornings. These are things that worked for me.


1) WHY

This is the most important point for me. I had to revisit this point almost all the time. Why. I've heard that why-power is way more powerful and useful than willpower and I sincerely believe that.

Why do I need to wake up early? Why are mornings so important? Before you sleep at night, take time to set goals for the next day. Daily goals always work and it makes you feel more productive and accomplished at the end of each day.

Your goals doesn't have to be in the form of chores but rather things that you want to do or get done. For example, fold laundry, try the new drink from a cafe or even watching the latest episode of your favourite drama. Things that makes you feel happy will help you get up a happier person in the morning.



2) SLEEP

Sleep. Seriously, sleep. Our body needs rest. As we grow older, we tend to overthink and our minds work eventhough our eyes are closed. A method that worked for me was to place my phone away from me. If I can't reach it, I won't use it. That doesn't mean you can't look stalk your favourite instagrammer or play your favourite game. You need to limit your screen time by giving yourself a bed time. Let's say, at 11pm, place your phone aside, beyond reach and just close your eyes. It was kind of hard at first but it gets easier over time and you feel well rested in the morning.



3) DON'T RUSH

I hate morning rush. For the longest time, I had to rush every morning just so I could get that extra 10 minutes of sleep. Prepare things you need the night before. Lay out your clothes, shoes, watch and bag. Minimize planning of things in the morning. It will just exhaust you. If you are into meal prepping for the week, that is even better. You can just grab your prepared food and heat them up.



4) FOOD

Looking forward to breakfast is one of the things that gets me up. Plan ahead, probably the night before, on what kind of breakfast you want. If it's something you like, you would most likely get excited and look forward to breakfast.



5) ELIMINATE COMFORT

Lastly, this is a very practical yet slightly cruel method. When I hear my alarm, I will turn off the fan/aircon (it is really warm and humid in Singapore) and roll up the blinds to brighten the room. After 5 minutes, everyone including yourself will be forced to get up (angrily and feeling irritated) as the room is too warm and bright for sleeping in. Works every single time.



If all else fails, get yourself a baby. You will forget the meaning of sleep. Just kidding. Hope these tips will help you as much as they helped me!


Love,
Ja

SIMPLE THINGS IN MOTHERHOOD

I heard it. It sounded like it's coming from somewhere far, somewhere unreachable. My alarm. I opened my eyes slowly letting the sharpness of light cut my vision. It is another day. In my head, I could almost hear the gears starting to turn and move like they're used to.

All the reminders and information I stored in a folder inside my head started to spill out. It's Thursday and Adam was supposed to bring kiwis for a fruit salad activity in school.

I felt a dull ache on my lower back as I tried to twist my body to the right instinctively. Unknowingly, a slight smile formed on my lips as I felt a surge of warm energy traveling through my body. Adam was sleeping so soundly with his legs on the pillow where his head should have been.

In that precious moment, I said a little prayer and thank Allah for letting me be right there at that moment. Sure, tomorrow will come but where will I be mentally, physically and spiritually?

I shimmied over with whatever leftover energy stored in my body and scooped him up onto my chest.

I live for moments like this.
I guess motherhood can be challenging but at times, it is the best thing you can ever get out of life.

Love,
Ja

17 WEEKS PREGNANCY UPDATE

 It's getting too real now. The tummy is showing. Well, it always has but this time it's a baby. Mornings are still a little difficult sometimes. On good days, I can just get up, break out in a song and twirl my way out. Well, not literally but you get the idea. On bad days, I just wake up with a lump in my throat and my back threatening to fail me. Nevertheless, I'm just thankful that I am given a another chance at the baby game.

Adam has been nothing short of wonderful. He helped me alot around the house and of course he has his bad days too but they are managable. What did I do to deserve this ball of sunshine? Alhamdulillah.

Diet wise, I'm pretty much eating anything I want. I started this pregnancy at 47kg. Now I'm about 49kg. The last time I was this light was when I was 15. The past year, I lost 10kg because of all the medications and my health conditions. When I was out during raya visiting, almost everyone asked me about my now sunken face. Ya, well, I've been really unwell and specialists are suggesting its PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I battled with chronic hives everyday, bad acid reflux; I pukes everyday, palpitations (my heart rate would go up to 140bpm for nothing), anxiety and many other things. I used to go to sleep every night feeling scared that I won't wake up. Then I woke up feeling afraid of what's to come. It was horrible. I couldn't eat or do anything that makes me happy. I think I'm feeling better now with this pregnancy although they do creep op on me once in a while.

I told Wan I was so tired of being sick every single day and he told me to pray and think that Allah is washing away all my sins with every sickness that I had. That gave me strength and I forced myself to stay positive and be grateful no matter what. I have lots to thank for.

I don't know what's what but I'm hoping I will feel better over time. Does that even make sense? I'm hoping it does.

Praying and eating hard,
Ja