Dr. Phil's Test

I've done some personality test with Dr. Phil...quite interesting. It tells you who you are...

Dr Phil Test from Spicy Flavours

And here is my result which I kind of agree with the analysis.  I dare not ask people around me how I am, because people might not be telling the truth, in order not to hurt you or people's opinions might be varying depending on their personality. But this test is quite honest .

At least I know I am not a selfish person :)

You may try and see whether you agree with it or not. It's just based on psychology analysis anyway.

Hasil Tuaian Pak Choy yg Pertama!

Akhirnya saya tuai jua pokok sawi pak choy. Konon nak biar besar sikit tapi mcm x besar2 pon. Bila baca dr blog Tanam Sendiri, sawi sebaik2nya dituai lepas 4 minggu semai sbb lepas tu ianya akan berserat so tak sedap dah nak makan. I guess mine mmg xkan membesar lagi so tuai aje la. Dibandingkan dgn yg dibeli dipasar, mmg la jauh kecik saiznya. Agaknya sbb tak bubuh baja, hanya siram air dan cahaya matahari, kalau extra pon sesekali siram ngan air beras atau air basuhan ikan. Tu yg terbantut tu!

Tapi macamana pon tetap rasa puas hati sbb akhirnya dapat rasa hasil tanaman sendiri. Free of pesticide or chemicals. Rasanya sgt fresh. 

Kat dalam raised bed, still ada sawi biasa nak dipetik. Dah semai kailan, kucai dan daun sup (sekali lagi) tapi so far belum bercambah lagi. I'm so excited to grow more vegetables!

Kerana Saya Seorang Ibu

It is my routine every weekdays to fetch the twins from school in the afternoon. Thanks to my flexible working hours, I can decide when I want take the lunch hour if there's no task to do.

Kecuali kalau ada meetings/site visits yg kena dgn time sikembar balik sekolah, then I would ask cik HB yg pegi menjemput. 

Kalau kata meetings/site visits abis right before the time sikembar abis sekolah, and normally akan ada lunch treats afterwards, saya mmg tak join sbb saya nak jemput sikembar dr sekolah.

So today pon sama, right after abis site visit, I was invited to join the lunch treats. Selalunya diorg akan pegi tempat makan yg sedap2 atau famous yg selalunya jauh dr Durian Tunggal.

So I told them I'm not joining.

Then satu mamat ni blurted out this " Ko ni anti-sosial la...asik x nak join ajeeeeee"

So saya senyum aje dan ckp saya ada tugas sebagai seorg ibu. I would rather x pegi makan free yg sedap2 sbb jemput anak2 lagi mendatangkan kepuasan kepada saya walaupun saya boleh amik servis van utk jemput/hantar diorg. Melainkan kalau keje saya dimasa akan dtg tak membenarkan saya jemput anak2, then mungkin masa tu baru saya amik servis van. Cemana pon utk ke sekolah agama, saya guna servis van jugak sbb x sempat nak tunggu diorg bersiap nak ke sekolah agama pulak.

Bukan apa, just nak make sure diorg balik dr sekolah dgn selamat dan xde lepak2 tak tentu pasal. Budak2 sekolah rendah pon sekarang mcm2 perangai. Tu belum citer part beli jajan yg bukan2.

Bukan saya seorg je mak yg menjemput anak2. Kebanyakannya mmg kaum ibu yg menunggu diluar sekolah. Kaum bapa ada la jugak tapi x ramai.

So kalau nak dilabel sebagai anti-sosial sbb x join makan2, it's ok. Mmg saya takde kawan pon kat tempat keje saya ni sbb rata2 kaum Adam, cuma ada seorg kerani perempuan yg masih bujang dan saya seboleh2nya malas nak lepak2 makan2 ngan diorg which is a normal habit for people working at site. Diorg ni dr breakfast, lunch sampai la minum ptg mmg bersama2. Saya lak selalunya tapau food from home.

Kerana saya seorang ibu, maka saya berkorban kehidupan sosial saya....

Kerana saya seorang ibu, maka saya dulukan keperluan anak2 saya....

Kerana saya seorang ibu, banyak lagi perkara yg saya sanggup korbankan utk keluarga saya....

Semua ibu2 macam tu kan?

Garden Update (September)

In the backyard....

Sayur sawi dan pak choy yg disemai secara campak2 aje dah membesar dgn jayanya :)

Daun2nya cantik x dimakan ulat sbb gunakan petua dr blog Tanam Sendiri...pakai sistem buddy i.e tanam pokok bunga marigold dan pokok halau nyamuk. Memang berkesan! Biarkan sikit lagi, agaknya lagi seminggu dah boleh tuai kot!

Bekas polistrin yg patutnya ada cekur tapi cekur x naik2, maka saya tanam pulak daun kesum. Nampak gayanya naik dgn baik...oh yes!

Bekas ni aritu semai benih daun sup (dibeli dr Mydin) tapi x bercambah2 pon. Maka gantikan pulak dgn tanam pokok bawang. 

Anak betik yg naik secara x sengaja kat patch sayur dah dialihkan keatas tanah. Kita tunggu samada dia akan membesar dan berbuah dgn baik ke tak...

Pegi Pasar Besar Melaka few weeks ago, jumpa anak pokok durian belanda dan delima. Jadi kita pon beli dan cuba tanam. Serai kat belakang tu pon baru je tanam.

Mahap la gambar pokok delima terbalik gini. Bape kali dah rotate, x mau jugak ok.

Yeay!! dah  dapat tuai ulam raja. Bestnya dapat mkn ulam yg ditanam sendiri. Kalau nak start bercucuk tanam, pokok ulam raja ni sgt sesuai utk beginner. Senang je ulam raja nak hidup dan membesar.

On the front yard....

Beli benih pokok bunga marigold dan dahlia dr Mydin dan semai dalam pot bekas pokok bunga marigold dan gerberra yg dah mati. Tu dah bercambah...harap2 membesar dgn baik dan berbunga banyak2 ye!

Apa nama pokok ni x tau tapi pokok ala2 keladi. Kami beli kat nurseri Bukit Beruang. Sepokok RM20, tapi cik HB argue2 dapat la 2 pokok @RM35. Balik rumah, pecah2 kan induk dapat la dalam 6 pokok. Nak tanam tu sikit punya seksa. CIk HB korek2 tanah penuh batu2 besar. 

Kami skrg mmg tgh syok nak bercucuk tanam. Rasa nak beli je pokok byk2. Tapi nak dapatkan laman yg menarik dan herb garden yg effective kena buat proper planning. I am still learning, thanks to blog2 berkebun Malaysia yg sgt informative. 

So that'a all garden update for September. We'll see kalau ada any update in October.

Tips untuk Ibubapa

Dilema Ibu Menyusu Badan

My sister baru je dapat baby lebih kurang 3 bulan lepas. Sebelum deliver lagi, dia dah bersedia nak bagi anak dia menyusu secara ekslusif.

Now dia dah kembali bekerja selepas 3 bulan bercuti bersalin. Masalahnya keje dia byk melibatkan outstation. Itu satu hal, satu hal lagi bos dia sgt la tidak memahami situasi dia sebagai ibu yg memilih utk menyusu badan secara ekslusif walaupun bos dia seorg perempuan.

Belum pon kembali bekerja, dah disuruh outstation, yg tu dia managed utk minta bos dia tangguhkan sbb dia ckp dia baru nak serasikan anak dia dgn babysitter, kalau awal2 dah kena gi outstation, cemana la kalau babysitter bermasalag ngan baby dia.

Tapi x berapa lama lepas tu, menyusul lagi arahan outstation. Makanya adik saya takde pilihan, dia hantar baby dia balik kampung utk mak saya jaga. Tak sampai sehari semalam, baby dia tunjuk perasaan - tak mau minum susu perah dari botol. Dari petang ke malam dia x nak minum dan menangis melalak2. Dia agaknya dah terbiasa dgn jadual menyusu yg selepas waktu petang, no more bottles but straight dr breast mama dia.

Mak pon terpaksa la call adik saya dan tgh malam tu jugak dia balik Tg Malim (padahal esoknya kena outstation). Terpaksa la amik EL esok harinya dan tak pegi outstation  dan of course kena la marah dgn bos. 

Tup2 x sampai seminggu kena lagi outstation!

This time adik saya tinggalkan baby dia kat adik saya sorang lagi yg juga breastfeeding anak dia. Terpaksa import Mak Abah dr kampung utk jaga baby dia kat rumah adik saya sorang lagi. Alhamdulillah, since malam dia boleh breastfeeding, she was ok.

Tapi persoalannnya bape kali nak park kan anak dia kat rumah org, walaupun kakak sendiri?

Adik saya mengeluh. Sebabnya bos dia sgt tidak memahami. Sebenarnya boleh aje tak oustation kalau bos dia considerate sbb ada je staff lain yg boleh pegi, i.e yg bujang ataupun yg takde komitmen keluarga. Bukan la nak elak x nak outstation lamgsung tapi berpada2 la nak hantar outstation tu. Org ada anak kecik xkan setiap minggu nak hantar outstation.

Nasib adik saya la walaupun bos pompuan, tapi pompuan yg berkahwin takde anak. Agaknya tu yg dia susah nak faham. Dia boleh ckp "awak dah rehat 3 bulan, jadi dah cukup la tu...kena cover balik keje2 awak 3 bulan yg awak cuti tu, saya ni langsung x merasa cuti 3 bulan!".

Macam statement jeles eh?

Adik saya ada terfikir nak resign tapi disebabkan dia adalah bekas pelajar biasiswa JPA, maka dia terikat dgn kontrak utk berkhidmat sekurang2nya lagi 2 tahun. Kalau nak bayar penalty pon, x mampu sbb katanya dekat 100k nak kena bayar!

Ni la masalahnya dgn polisi negara kita. We don't have option for taking longer maternity leaves. Kecuali resign. Tapi x semua ibu2 mampu nak resign disebabkan keadaan ekonomi keluarga dan juga kontrak belajar mcm kes adik saya.

Kita mungkin terlalu jauh nak dibandingkan dgn Sweden, yg mana parents diberi 480 hari utk maternity leaves and fully paid! Bukan saja ibu, bapa pon berhak mendapat cuti ini. Wow!!!

Masa kat Jerman dulu pon, saya dgr ibu2 diberi pilihan utk menentukan berapa lama cuti bersalin yg nak diambil. Kalau x silap, the first 3 months, gaji mereka akan dibayar sepenuhnya tapi kalau nak panjangkan lagi, gaji akan dibayar ikut rate dalam 70%, 80% gitu dr gaji penuh. Which is not bade eh?

Kalau nak Malaysia camtu, mungkin jauh lagi la kot nak capai tahap itu. Dah upgrade 3 bulan cuti ni pon, ok la jugak kiranya walaupun setelah bertahun2 requestnya. Cuma sebagai ibu yg bekerja, kita berharap majikan akan lebih flexible and have empathy towards working mothers with babies. Bukan la nak special treatment but at least be considerate when it comes to outstation works and be flexible with time for mothers who want to pump milk.

Sebab kalau ibu2 ini diberi kemudahan dari segi mcm tu, Insyaallah diorg akan lebih perform lagi. Jangan la nak kata kalau sibuk sgt pasal anak, berhenti keje je la jaga anak kat rumah. Iye, option itu mmg lebih menarik dan terbaik tapi sekali lagi nak tekan kan, x semua ibu mampu berhenti keje. Lagipon amat la rugi jika ibu2 yg ada kepakaran dalam kepelbagaian bidang tak menyumbang kepada masyarakat dan negara. Just bagi la sedikit kelonggaran sesuai dengan keadaan.

Bila la agaknya kita kat Malaysia boleh bekerja in flexible time and reduced working hours?

To Vaccinate or Not?

Early this year, a friend of mine becomes very viral about vaccination - the negative side effects. At first, I was sceptical, thinking people worry too much about anything.

Pollutions, processed food, GMO stuffs - everything!

So I think it's just another parenting stuffs.

But I keep reading on whatever she posted on FB. Believing is one thing, educating yourself is another thing. So I told myself, don't be sceptical, get the knowledge, study the situation and open your mind about things people are sharing.

Slowly, after reading quite a lot on issues of vaccination, autism, eczema, asthma and so on, I've realized this is not a fiction, it's for real. 

Then I joined this group in FB called Our Healthy Unvaccinated Babies and found out a lot more. 

It appears to be a serious issues for many years by now in the West but in Malaysia, people are not much exposed to the negative side effects of vaccination.

Honestly, up to now I have a mixed feelings about vaccination.

For many years, I thought we are so lucky our country has this good policy of having babies/kids to be vaccinated against epidemic/dangerous diseases. Twins had their vaccinations complete according to KKM's requirement and I took MMR as an extra vaccine as that time MMR was not given for free under KKM. 

When I went to Germany, and wanted to get the twins to kindergarten, among the documents the school asked was vaccination list given to them. 

So that's why I thought vaccination is very important and at that time  I've had never heard any parents would refuse vaccination for their babies especially when it's free.

Then came Insyirah, I followed the vaccination schedule religiously. But when I took her to paed in private clinic, and she suggested that we take  the additional vaccinations (not given under KKM) - the pneumoccocal and rotavirus - I refused.

Not only they are so costly (rotavirus priced about RM600 for 3 doses and pneumoccocal about RM200/RM300 per jab - 3 jabs required to complete), I was sceptical about having so many types of vaccination. Already under KKM there are so many jabs needed and adding some more was making me uncomfortable.

But I did ask around on the necessity. Some friends said if you send your baby/kid to public daycare then it might be necessary as diseases/germs are easily transmitted. So having vaccine means extra protection to the kids. Some said, it is not necessary because the reasons why all these vaccines created and cost you so much is because the medical people are making money out of this.

I remember during my visit to the paed's clinic when Insyirah was not well, I talked to a  mother who shared her story about how she took all the vaccines including the extras one for her first born, but her kid  still having the diseases. So she decided for her second born, she took only those provided under KKM.

Before Insyirah was one year old, I have started giving her solid food including chicken, fish and other stuffs. She was ok with all the food I introduced to her. But I noticed after she had her MMR jab at 1 year old, her skin is allergic to chicken and some kind of fish. That's why after reading about side effects of vaccines, I think MMR is related to her allergy.

But then, do you read blog called Cerita Erina? About a mother who lost her baby due to pneumonia and now she is campaigning for pneumoccocal jab to be mandatory under KKM.

And why  I am having these mixed feelings......

Because as much as the doctors/nurses ensure you that vaccinate your kids is the best thing to do, if you ever read about DES - a medical drug given to prevent miscarriages back in 40s up to 70s in the US, is later on proven linked to cause more cancer to the babies in the womb - you'll know human's creation is not perfect and totally safe.

So that is what I am concerned about - the negative side effects of the vaccination. It would cause you a lifetime regret if your kid has a medical issue related to vaccine, wouldn't it?

But to go against it - I'm still not sure. We have a lot of foreigners around us from those countries with diseases like TB, Hepatitis B and so on, so without vaccinations - are we protected?

Tomorrow Insyirah is scheduled for her next jab at 18 months and there would be 3 types to be given - DTaP/DT, IPV and Hib.

I don't know whether I should skip it or not....

To those who still not aware about vaccines, get yourself educated. I am trying to understand more on the vaccine and I'm amazed with those parents who have made a firm decision not to vaccinate their babies.