Dear Barely Supermommy readers..
I would like to introduce to you, our latest addition in the family,
Sophea Natasha bt Sheikh Muszaphar.
We had a photoshoot session earlier today at our home done by Azmir Khalid. He does a lot of photoshoot for infant and babies.
He took beautiful pictures of Bella when Bella was a newborn.
And now it’s Tasha’s turn 
Our first family photo
Glad to share with all of you!!
Much love.. X
We finally have a name for B’s little sister!!! It doesnt took us long to decided on her name this time..
We think the name suits her well insyaAllah..
Daddy went to Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara today to register her. To those who doesn’t know, you have to register newborns within 14 days after the baby is born. If you took more than 14 days, you’ll be fine!!!
Malu lar kan kalu kena denda.. Haha..
So, we have decided to name our daughter..
Sophea Natasha
(insert fireworks here)
Hahaha..
Almost like her sister..
Sophea Isabella.
We love the name ‘Sophea’ so much.. It means ‘wise and beautiful’
we decided to keep it..
and daddy chose ‘Natasha’ because it means ‘strong’. This baby is a strong baby.. after all ups and downs during pregnancy and delivery, she made it through!!
And ‘Natasha’ also means ‘gift of God’.. Which she truly is
Owh.. And btw, B and daddy is in Kosmo newspaper today!!!
Check them out!!
Where’s Tasha’s pic? Nanti ok 
X
Today we brought B to her first visit to.. mamak shop!!! Hehehe..
You’re not a truly Malaysian if..
1) You don’t eat nasi lemak!!
2) You don’t eat durian!!
3) You don’t eat mamak food!!
Yes!! That’s my definition of Malaysian citizens
So.. #1.. checked!! (of course without the sambal!!)
#2.. checked!! (Yup, I’ve given Bella durian before!! Hahaha… and she loves it!!)
and today, time to proceed with #3!!
She finished 2 hard-boiled egg with an introduction to tose telur!! Her verdict.. she loves it!!
No worries, mommies.. no teh ais yet for Bella 
Yesterday we brought B to her first movie ever We chose to brought her to watch Sammy2 because underwater creatures excites her..
Since now she can concentrate on the screen better, so we guess it’s a good time to let her experience something different..
Ok.. thats us in the dark without the flash! Hahah.. B is on my lap and daddy is next to me.. Can see or not? Hehe..
B managed to last for a good 30 minutes watching the cartoon before she started to scream (at the turtle maybe!!) and wanted to walk around.. Hahaha..
We malu and left the cinema after that
We just got back from B’s music class and her first haircut!! Yay!! Not easy… it’s almost impossible to get her to sit quietly.. Only in my dreams!!
We found this place, that has toy cars to attract babies and toddlers.. I thought B will be excited..!
But not for long.. within 10 seconds, she became restless and wanting something new to distract her..
One after another..
Not easy.. not easy..
Fuhh.. lucky she doesnt have lots of hair like Rapunzel..
Maybe some of my Twitter follower knew that B had high-grade fever a few days ago 
For a doctor, fever is easy to treat.. simple and straight forward.. I know what to do.. But!! When my own child has fever.. I was SAD and WORRY!! That was my first “mommy reaction”. I prayed to God to just let me have the fever instead of Bella. She doesn’t have to go through this. She is just a baby.. (again, my emo mommy moment!!)
She was OK the whole day, very active and eating well, until about 10pm, I noticed her whole body was really hot (insert SAD and WORRY feelings here). Normally, if someone has fever, a doctor would have check the temperature straight away.. but me, emo mommy went straight to my husband mengadu Bella is feverish and busy worrying about her.. After a lengthy talk about how worried I am, then my husband said “What’s the temperature?” Gulp. Lupa nak check!!
I took her temperature using ear canal thermometer.. she was 38.6′C *almost fainted!* What?? Why? Then I look for any signs of infection (doctor mode is ON!)
So what’s wrong with her?? Almost blaming her play school dah at that time I double checked with her teacher, she said all her babies were well.. so, checked!!
Then she said, maybe teething kot.. usually teething demam malam…
Owh ye ke? Heheheh.. So, that’s the culprit… Blame it on teething!! Hahaha…
OK, the most likely culprit recognized.. Now I have to bring down the temperature as most of you have already know.. high-grade temperature can cause a child to have fit!! It’s called febrile fit..
So what to do when you have a febrile child in front of you?
Remove all clothing that can make her warm.. I only left Bella in her diapers.. This is to allow heat to escape from her body. Keep the room cold (air-cond on!)
See, she doesn’t look sick at all!! Happily playing and babbling to us.. Trying to chew the thermometer..
Then I took a few ice cubes.. and added with some water.. and cover her with cloth soaked with cold water. That is actually not advisable to do anymore as immediate drop in temperature can also cause fit in children. So I only put the cold cloth on certain areas like the forehead, underarms, neck and groins. And constantly check her body temperature..
Do not leave the cloth at one site for too long as it actually trap the heat inside her body.. What you should do is just lap, lap, and lap.. After half and hour on lap-ping.. I took again her temperature and it has dropped to 38.2′C.. and mommy feels better
After that, I feed her with more milk because fever cause increase in metabolic rate, and of course she will be hungry. As long as she is drinking milk or water, I should be happy..
That is Bella enjoying she ice-cold sponge bath..
After almost 4 hours of frequent intermittent sponging, fever still hasn’t subsided.. we decided to give her Paracetamol (PCM) via suppository. I just don’t want to disturb her sleep to give her the syrup version. Besides, the suppository supposed to work faster than syrup PCM… and her temperature slowly cools down after that.. but Bella didn’t had a good sleep that night. She woke up quite a few times, feeling disturbed by the temperature probably, and demanded continuous feeding.. I was just glad she still wants to drink. That’s a good sign..
The next day, there were only low grade temperature but otherwise she is a happy baby. Slightly tired because she didn’t have a good sleep the night before. Owh, and yeah, didn’t go to school of course!! By evening, her body temperature is back to normal Alhamdullilah..
That was our first experience with Bella having fever (fever jer.. symptoms lain tader pun.. ) Semoga Bella dikurniakan tubuh badan yg sihat, dan sentiasa dalam lindungan Allah SWT..
~Dear readers, this is the same entry like the one that some of you can’t open if you click directly from my blog. But somehow it is visible if you click from my FB page.. Pelik. Anyway, it’s originally written on Jan 16, 2012. Hope you can view this time.. X
It’s B’s first day at play school!! :D I woke up this morning with heavy heart.. B is a big girl. She’s going to away from me!! (drama sungguh!!) I carried my sleepyhead little angel quietly with the intention not to wake her up..
Then I realized if I were her, I wouldn’t want to wake up to unfamiliar faces, no mommy and daddy around. So, we woke her up, change her diaper and sleepsuit and talk to her. We told her that we gonna leave her at a new place. It’s called school where she’s gonna meet new baby friends, she can learn new things, play with more toys, explore the world with other babies.. Well, I assumed she understood what I was trying to tell her because she keeps nodding and smiling.. Hahahhah.. Then she kisses me (her kiss is when she open her mouth and put it on my cheek, then she pull back!!) Almost like a real kiss!! Sayu nyer hati ini…
We arrived at the place at 0815H, there were already 6 other babies and toddlers there and they look so happy crawling around. The youngest was 2 month old!! They watch me and my husband carried Bella into the house. They stare and stare and stare. Deep in my heart I was already worried my little B will get bullied by her seniors! Hahaha.. Very wild imagination indeed!! Then I passed Bella to her teacher. Her name is Reena. And Bella didn’t cry!! (Yay!!) I passed her a few more things for Bella during her stay like her milk, blanket, cloth diapers and more stuffs.. She introduced Bella to other babies & toddlers.. and they started to give Bella a friendly smile.. Haaaa.. lega! Not need to worry about bullying in school Hahahhah..
So, it’s time for us to go.. Daddy said goodbye to Bella, then it is mommy’s turn.. Air mata dah bergenang dah tp control sbb all the kids were looking at me!! Hahaha.. Malu lar kan!! Nanti they will ejek Bella.. “your mommy cries!! your mommy cries!! shame.. shame!!” again that is just my imaginary scene I have in my head After I said goodbye, I told her we will be back in 4 hour time, after her school finish. And she smile again.. I feel relieved that she didn’t cry but at the same time I feel sorry I had to leave her there despite my husband had told me a hundred times that it is for her own good. (Yeah I’m quite a drama queen!) I do understand the reason but I just feel like crying!!
But.. before I make a scene, my husband immediately called me out from the house.. He knows if I stayed longer, I would sob there. Hahahha…
In the car..
Me, “I want to eat roti canai”
Him, “Which mamak?”
Me, “Tak kesah, yg maner senang parking, I’m hungry”
Him, “OK”
and we back to our usual self :) Prayed to God to protect Bella from any danger and harm. And may she cope well with her new environment and make new friends.. Be a good girl, little B.. Amin..
During school time, the teacher sent me 7 pictures of Bella. She definitely knows the meaning of reassurance 
We feel better after seeing these pictures. At least we know she is not crying and coping well. The last thing that we want is for Bella to feel traumatized being left there.
1230H, were already in front of her play school. I went inside and saw Bella happily watching nursery rhymes with all other kids. Somehow these kids are very well-discipline. They don’t run around and scream. I wonder why… Hahahha..
Teacher Reena gave the the summary about what she did for Bella for the past 4 hours, what time she had her milk, play, and short nap. Guess what else she told me??!! “Bella is quite fond of this little boy named Ryan!!” Hahahha.. I just left her for 4 hours and.. she likes boys??!!! OMG!! So I asked which one is Ryan.. and teacher Reena showed me this adorable little boy with curly hair… aaaaaaa… so cute.. I wanna hug him too!! Hahahahh…
So, that was Bella’s story, first day at school. She did well.. And mommy survived too!! Tomorrow I’m going to start back to work after a super-long leave!! I’m starting to think that I have separation anxiety syndrome too!! 
Hah!! The title caught your attention, right? Hehehe..
No lar, not asrama.. we are sending her to a nursery, just a half day nursery. Some of you might know that I am gonna go back to work real soon.. well, it’s actually next week. And no more mommy at home to take care of Bella.
It’s not easy to find a nursery for a 6 month old baby!! I have called up probably half of nurseries in KL (ok, I might have exaggerated that a little ) but no place accepted her.. poor little Bella.
The main reason why we wanted to send Bella to a nursery is because we wanted her to socialize more. She needs to see more people.. We noticed that she is becoming more aware of her surroundings and refused to be carried by strangers.. It’s called stranger anxiety syndrome and that’s not good. Bad for mommy and daddy too Hence the decision to send her to nursery/playschool. Tak lama, only from morning till noon.. 5 hours of socializing with other babies a day will do good for her. Besides, we are also looking for nursery that teaches babies and play with them, not just swaddle and put them to sleep. Bella doesn’t really sleep during daytime. After she wakes up in the morning, she will play and only sleep around 3pm.. that is almost 6 hours of play time!! And trust me, she is a handful!!
After many phone calls, I finally found a nursery that suits our criteria Not too many babies (nanti sakit, menjangkit susah..) who teaches flash cards, play with them, do baby massages and grooming too!! Hahaha.. I was surprised (and excited) when I heard the word grooming..*wink* rupanyer potong kuku jer (alaaaa…)
So, last Friday, we went to see the place, typical childcare centre at one of the double story terrace near our house.. After meeting the caretaker, we are definitely sold!! We like the program that they have for babies there. Since both of us are working, that is the best we can provide her.
So, Monday will be Bella’s first day at her nursery. And because of that, I postponed my first day of work from Monday to Tuesday (hahaha.. alasan!!) I don’t think I can work thinking of Bella’s first day at the nursery..
So, wish us luck people.. Semoga Bella tak nangis byk, and semoga mommy pun tak nangis tinggalkan Bella.. *sobsobsob*
We (I was reluctant, but my husband was super excited!!) introduced semi-solid to B today.. We can’t wait until she reaches 6 month because I’m gonna start work soon. Well, 5 and a half month will do anyway..
We bought the bottled baby food last night and I hide it in the cupboard coz I haven’t finish googling how to wean your child chapter yet!! But her daddy was super excited..! I only finished till the chapter where it explains how do you know when your child is ready for solids.. Heheheh.. I already have a mental checklist that B is qualified..(yay!! she is qualified!!) to have solid food from now on.. Let me put it down in writings..
Checklist #1 : She can hold her head up herself. Her neck control is up to par for a 5 and a half month old baby. yay! – PASSED!
Checklist #2 : She can sit well when supported. That means her back bone is getting stronger. Not all baby can sit on their own at this age but as long as she can sit with support, that will do. Baby has to be in upright position to allow them to take the food – PASSED!
Checklist #3 : Good weight gain. Yes! In general, baby has to double up their birth weight by the age of 6 month.. In B’s case, her birth weight was 3.6kg. Meaning her target weight at the age of 6 month old is 7.2kg. But in real life, Bella’s current weight at 5 month old is 7.3kg!! Itu sudah bagoos – PASSED!
Checklist #4 : Knows how to chew!! Yes, how can you eat without chewing!! Do you notice when babies were younger, they have spontaneous reflex to take their tongue out when they are hungry? Isn’t God great! That reflex is for baby to tell us that they are hungry. As they grow older, around 4 -5 month, slowly the reflex will disappear to allow baby to learn how to chew. As the reflex disappear, you might notice that you baby will salivate less because the chewing and swallowing skill comes together to prepare baby for solid food. – PASSED and PASSED!!
Checklist #5 : Bella is already eyeing on our food!! Hahahha.. everytime we eat, she will make us feel guilty for not giving her some! Enough said!!! Hahahha.. – PASSED with flying colours
So, the excited daddy, armed with silicon baby spoon, happily took the baby food, bib and sit her up on the chair.. 
Labu & Jagung Manis!!! HAhahah..We chose this flavour because this is the least stock on the rack at the supermarket. We thought this must be the best flavour, that’s why it is very popular (but after tasting it, poor baby!! Nanti mommy buat sindri yg best utk Bella ok!! Pinky promise!!)
Check out B’s funny faces when tasting the baby food!! 
And finally it is mommy’s turn 
I, with my full ability trying to prove to B that the food is yummy Hahahhaha.. and she did look convinced, didn’t she? Nyum nyum..
According to my resources (Cheewahh! Suddenly I made it sound very intelligent!!) we have to continue the same taste for a week or so, just to familiarize our babies’ taste bud so that they (baby and the taste bud) wouldn’t get confused.. ok, will do that! Sorry B, pumpkin & sweetcorn it is for the next one week!!
On top of my over-the-counter bottled food, I will still continue B on breastmilk. In al-Quran stated that mommies are highly suggested to continue breastfeeding up until the baby is 2 years old. So, I will do my best to continue my little Bella with mommy’s milk. Alhamdullilah so far so good, susu is enough for Bella’s daily needs
Hope you don’t mind sharing your baby’s favourite food and your secret recipe, ladies!! Sharing is caring *wink*
Till then, XOXO
No wonder it hurts y’all!! Bella dah tumbuh gigi!! I just realized it this morning.. and her daddy was so excited, went to grab the camera and asked me to hold her lips so he can take her gigi picture Tak sempat Bella nak pose.. hahhaha.. Cepat nyer gigi dia tumbuh.. according to my paediatric book (nerd!) gigi should come out around 6 month!! Mind you, Bella is not even 5 month old… Pengsan lar mommy jadi mangsa gigitan!!
By the way, I have been trying the most popular method as suggested by most of you.. Tried to push her to my boobs whenever she bites. Guess what she did.. she bites even more!! MasyaAllah this girl.. her fight or flight response is maturing!! Hahahha.. she choose to FIGHT!! That’s mommy’s girl, Bella!!
Now I’m moving on to psychological approach.. talk to her while she’s feeding.. wish me luck!!
Love X
