The lil’ dude and his family…

Irfan’s birthday this year was planned a few months before. But because of his balinitis case and circumcision and what not, I was afraid that I wasn’t able to make it happen, but alhamdulillah, I managed to! Phewwww…

We invited family, close friends and some of Irfan’s classmates (most of them were away for their Easter holiday break) for lunch at Bianco, Damansara Perdana. Yes, that place yet again. :P Irfan had fun, we had fun and I think everyone else had fun too! Thanks to everyone who came and thanks for all the wonderful gifts. It was nice catching up, albeit sekejap, but it was great nonetheless. :)

Party ended at about 3.45pm and you’d have thought all the craziness has ended, kan? Wrong. While putting the stuff back into the car, Irwan ter-let go the car’s boot and it hit my forehead and I tergolek on the floor and was in a daze. I was quite unfazed too initially until I saw the amount of blood on the tissue! Went to SJMC and got the forehead stitched by the plastic surgeon. 3 stitches inside and 5 stitches outside. Oh well, like what the doctor said.. 8 is an ong number! :P Anyhow, all that matters is that Irfan had a great time on his birthday and let the pictures below speak for themselves. More photos can be found at Ted’s blog. And more and more photos will soon follow later on. Thanks again to everyone who made the party happen!!

Excerpt from Wiki:

Balanitis is inflammation of the glans penis (from Greek: βάλανος balanos “acorn”). When the foreskin (or prepuce) is also affected, it is termed balanoposthitis.

We were all looking forward to the long weekend last week because there was nothing planned (which is rare!) and we just wanted to laze around at homelah. But alas. While we were visiting my cousin and her newborn baby at my aunt’s place, Irfan complained that his penis was painful. I saw that it was quite swollen and there were some pus on his undies. Didn’t wait any longer and brought him to SJMC once we arrived home.

The paed said that what he has is balanitis and that he needed to be admitted (yet again!) and to be given antibiotics thru the IV (yes, yet again!). It is pretty common for uncircumcised boys to be getting this but it is my first time of ever hearing the word “balanitis”. She even scheduled for us to meet with the surgeon the next day to see if Irfan needed any surgery done a.s.a.p.

Like the previous time, I decided to take the home leave again because I just cannot stand sleeping in the hospital. We left SJMC around 1130pm on Friday night and got back to SJMC around 815am on Saturday morning. After the paed checked him and saw that that the swelling has subsided, I ran off for a bit to Bangsar for an important meet. By the time I got back to SJMC, Irfan was being wheeled out to the surgeon’s clinic. And 5 mins later, I was trying hard to not faint when he said that Irfan needs to be circumcised in a few days. Alamak! How to handle him lah? Mr I-cannot-sit-still-for-one-second?

So anyway, fast forward to Wednesday and he’s all circumcised and in pain and cranky. Everyone knows that a cranky toddler = cranky parents, so yeah, we haven’t really had proper sleep since errrr last week maybe and I don’t know if I can hold the fort any longer. Thankfully, we’re staying at my parents’ so at least they can help us out when we’re all knackered but when Irfan stays up the whole night and wants us to chat with him to take his mind off the pain takkan nak ask my parents to take our place? :P

Wish us luck for tonight!

I know that I’ve left this blog for the spider to build its web, but I really do not know what to write anymore these days. :( It did occur to me to close the blog altogether but we’ll see howlah.

Anyway, Irfan’s body started to feel rather warm on Saturday afternoon. By the time it was dark, it felt a little too hot for comfort so I gave him some medicines. He slept from about 8pm (and we were at BSC for dinner) in his stroller til about 10am the next morning. I wasn’t really sleeping as I was monitoring his temperature so I was really glad that we stayed in (almost) the whole day on Sunday. He was okay by this time but didn’t have that big of an appetite. Fair enough.

He was fine on Monday but started to get all phlegmy and chesty. So I brought him to SJMC that evening to see the paed but unfortunately she had some emergency so we had to wait to see an M.O instead. Gah. Had I known I’d have just gone to Prince Court. We waited from 7.45pm til about 10pm and I was really tired and Irfan was getting a bit cranky. (Like duh?!). I asked for him to be nebulized as the phlegm was really bad so my lil hero sat on the chair like a pro throughout the whole thing. Champion betul! His temperature was recorded earlier on and it was 36.8° and his weight was 17.0kg.

Yesterday night, his body started to feel warm balik. I gave him some paracetamol and took his temperature - it was 39.5°!!! Off we went to Prince Court to ask for the suppositories because there was no way in hell I’d let him go to bed like that!

We were at the hospital til slightly after midnight but Irfan’s temperature dropped to 37.3°. Phew. Doctor said that he probably caught a virus somewhere and we are to monitor his temperature for the next three days. If he doesn’t get better by Friday, I’d have to bring him in again for a blood test.

Hope he gets better soon as he’s really looking forward to go for his first school trip on the bus this Friday. And there’s also the trip to The Andaman Langkawi this weekend. Half of me wants to cancel the trip but everything has been paid for. We’ll see how it goes…

Here are some shots taken during the recent trip to KL’s Bird Park. That place is so much better than the Zoo Negara. Irfan was afraid of the peacock though. Don’t ask me why because when I asked him why he’s afraid, his answer was “Because I’m afraidlaaaaaa“. Hrmph.

So we were all in town for Raya this year. Irwan’s parents left for Kuantan on eve of Raya so it was just us and my parents for Raya. On Saturday, I went over to my parents’ in the evening to help my mom cook as my parents invited their friends over for makan-makan on the first day and so did Irwan and I. My mom made nasi tomato, rendang ayam, kurma ayam, ketupat, roti jala, kuah kacang and errr I think a few more that I have forgotten. We’re big on my mom’s cooking so all of us (Irwan and my younger adik included) helped her in the kitchen. Irfan was either 1) busy watching cartoon with my dad or 2) bugging everyone in the kitchen. :P

By the time we were done helping my mom cook, it was close to 11pm (and she had started cooking from 5.30 in the morning!!!) and the boys went upstairs to play wii while I helped to arrange the kuih raya. We left way past midnight and I was so ready to just sleep for the entire week!

I managed to get some shots of Irfan in his baju melayu, sampin and songkok before we left for my parents’ but he really wouldn’t sit still! Ah well, at least I got some pictures. :)

My parents’ friends arrived first and had their makan-makan session while the sky looked a tad gloomy. I was a bit worried in case it’d pour Garfields and Odies as our friends were arriving around 2 plus. The Koks and the Huans arrived first and a couple of minutes later the Chans arrived and I thought that I’d finally get a chance to have lunch (and breakfast!) with them. But unfortunately, more of my parents’ friends arrived so of course must let the guests makan dulu, right? :P

Anyway, didn’t get a chance to take pictures or anything like that as I was busy going up and down replenishing food etc etc for the guests but I think Irfan had the most fun!

The Gontiers arrived just as Aaron and family, Shannon and family, Danny and Kathey were on their way out. My parents’ friends were still continuously pouring in lah. I tak larat mau entertain already so I left them to mingle with the others. I finally had a moment to breathe and sit down to look at Alia and Johan’s wedding photos in Champagne. We couldn’t make the trip as it was held during Ramadhan and I don’t think I larat to travel up and down the whole of France while fasting. Heh.

I had my makan-makan session with the newlyweds and my Nani and the rest of the family from my dad’s side. Irfan was busy playing with Johan and he didn’t seem to mind so that left Alia and me some time to catch up. :)

The day ended around 8 p.m and the house was back to its normal self, except for Irfan who was still jumping up and down in his baju melayu and sampin. I fed him some nasi tomato and beef for dinner and showered him and gave him 8 oz of milk and he slept almost immediately.

Irwan, my brother and I played a game of Monopoly on wii after we have freshened up and around midnight Irwan said that he was hungry and was craving for some indomee. So after ending the game, we all went to Damansara Uptown for supper. I finally got my kerang rebus and we were eating noodles like there was no tomorrow while Irfan was still asleep on Irwan’s lap. By the time we sent my brother home and reached Andalucia, it was already past 2 a.m.  Penat betul!

We went for a friend’s open house on the second day of Raya for lunch and Irfan was having fun with the abangs and kakaks there and didn’t even notice that Irwan and I weren’t next to him. He basically mingled with the older kids and entertained himself and only after everyone started going home that he felt alone again. He came to us and said “Jom balik!”. Yes, sir! Heh.

We had a BBQ session with the Chans and the Koks at Andalucia that evening and I let the kids play with the remaining bunga api we had. Irfan was having fun with his bicycle and it was on that night that he finally got the right way of cycling! Yay! And again, the night ended way past midnight. Haha! Basically by this time, Irfan’s bedtime schedule was all screwed up! Takpe, Raya setahun sekali. :P

We visited the in-laws on the third day of Raya and had lunch with them. Spent most of the day at SS3 and Irfan and his grandma went out to visit a friend who came over from Jakarta. We left SS3 in the evening to get ready as we had a (simpler) makan-makan session at my parents’ with the in-laws and a few of my parents’ friends. My mom made prawn noodles that night and it was yummylicious! Yes yes, I should get all the recipes already and start practicing like s.o.o.n! :P

That was basically how the first three days of Raya went for us. Irwan and I both started working on the fourth day and we’re looking forward to more ketupats and lemangs in the weeks to come. Heh.

Irfan had his 3-week break early August but I sent him for  the “Summer Programme” for one week and the week after that he was with me as my parents were abroad. Life with Irfan is getting a bit simpler on one hand, but on the other hand, it’s getting a tad complicated. As he is very much independent these days, he tends to have his own mind and ways regarding certain things. Clothes that I’ve laid out for him for the past 3 years plus or so may not be as “happening” as he wants them to be. So he’d spend an additional 10 minutes staring at his clothes and choosing what he wants to wear. Nevermind that sometimes he looks like a clown. :P Weekday mornings prove to be even crazier than before because on top of choosing what he wants to wear, he chooses what he wants to eat as well and it just drives me nuts at times because it delays our schedule even more!

His diet is also starting to change. Things that he used to like, he just doesn’t want them anymore these days. However, rice is still his main staple. He tends to eat lesser during dinner and although it used to worry (and stress!) me, I just let him eat whatever he wants. Don’t get me wrong - he still eats. Just that it’s not that big of a portion like how it used to be. But he still eats plenty during lunch. Probably because he works hard in school? Heh.

Speaking of his school, as of last week he has been promoted to the upper class with the older boys and girls. And so far, he has been ok in that class but he tells me that he misses his teacher from his previous class as he was very attached to her. And ever since being in the class with the older kids, he told his teacher that he doesn’t want to drink milk in school anymore as he’s a big boy now and will only drink his milk at home. Malu ka? Hahahahaha!

His latest craze is the iPod touch where he learns how to spell simple words and writes ABC and 123 on the screen but I was told by Dr. Sharmila (his paed at Prince Court) that when it comes to these things, one should always go back to basics. Well, he gets his basics from school (he holds the pencil real well anyway) so he gets to use all the techy stuff with uslah. At least it keeps him still while we’re out dining and such. :)

Got him his flu jab last Saturday as we’ll be in Europe in December and with the H1N1 and everything else around, I didn’t want to take any chances. He needs to get the second jab next month and I think we’ll get ours too. A family friend of the inlaws who was in Frankfurt got the H1N1 and slipped into a coma for 39 days and passed on. Sigh. Quite scary, innit? Hopefully we’ll be okay then. Dahlah winter. Ish! One can only pray and doa. InsyaAllah.

p/s: No pictures of Irfan as I haven’t touched my camera in more than a month! Eeeeep!

Knows:

• How to spell his full name
• How to spell my full name
• How to spell Irwan’s full name
• How to spell his friend’s name
• How to get to my parents’ home from his school

Memorizes:

• My handphone number
• Irwan’s handphone number
• My car plate number
• Irwan’s car plate number
• My parents’ car plate numbers
• My inlaws’ car plate numbers
• Our home address

He’s been such a joy to us since April 2006 - albeit some dr-jekyll-and-miss-hyde moments with him - that I cannot imagine life without him. I am not even sure how I am going to cope if and when #2 or #3 comes along. Can I love his adik(s) as much as I love him? Can I give his adik(s) the same attention I have been giving him? Can I be fair to all my children? And if I feel that I can’t - should we still proceed to get pregnant? Dilemma dilemma.. Or should we just eff it and just do it? Pft.

but it was fun! :)

We watched Transformers on Friday night and Irfan behaved rather well and sat through 85% of the movie. By midnight, he couldn’t keep his eyes opened so he slept in my arms as the arm rest couldn’t be lifted for him to lie down on his seat. Ah well, janji he’s comfortable. Heh. Anyhow, Irwan was drooling over you-know-who but I have to admit, I think she’s waaaayyy hotter in the previous movie. Even the fighting scenes were much better in the previous movie. But the movie isn’t as bad as what the critics wrotelah. And Irfan loved the Camaro (Bumblebee) and the Corvette (Sideswipe).

The next morning, Irwan and Irfan were at the pool from 10 a.m til past noon! I think if we didn’t have a lunch date with the inlaws, Irfan would have probably stayed longer in the pool. He is soooooo hitam legam I tell you! Ish. Anyway, after the two boys had a quick shower, we left for Bangsar Village and had lunch at Basil. Good stuff I must say! After some shopping, we headed home to put Irfan down for a nap because we’ve got dinner with some friends later that night.

Irfan slept past 8 p.m (from about 4.30 p.m) and we had to apologize to our hosts for our delay. Irfan finished off a whole plate of rice, fish curry and omelette as well as two servings of ice-cream and when he was done, he plonked himself on the sofa and watched Bolt while the adults chatted. Chat punya chat, didn’t realise that it was almost midnight until Irfan said that he wants to go home and sleep. Haha. 

The next day, we went out with my parents for lunch and went to check out some houses for my brother. While driving, Irfan sat on the floor at the back of the Cygnus and when I asked my mom to check on him (since Irwan was napping while I was driving), the lil’ fella was already asleep! So Irwan picked him up and when we arrived at my parents’, we moved him into my car and he was still asleep. Even after arriving at Prince Court and putting him in the stroller he still slept. After we were done at the hospital, we transferred him back into the car and he still had his eyes closed. We then went to Pavilion for a bit because I needed to get some stuff and he was still snoring away! By the time we got home, it was close to 6 p.m and after 3 hours odd of nap, Irfan finally got up!

And we’re looking at another eventful weekend in a few days’ time and next weekend we’ll be off to Kuching! ;) 

p/s: Pictures #14 & #16 of Irwan were taken by Irfan with my 5D.

Me: Irfan, how do you spell your name?

Irfan: I-R-F-A-N. Adam!

Irfan: A-D-A-M. Irfan!

Me: How do you spell my name?

Irfan: N-A-D-I-A. Mama!

Me: How do you spell your father’s name?

Irfan: I-R-W-A-N. Papa!

Aiyoooooooo….!

Anyhow, after seeing x amount of homes, we have finally decided on one that we just saw over the last weekend. It’s not too big, but it’s not too small either. And what I love about the house is that it has loads of long and tall windows - perfect opportunity for photo ops! ;) I’ll be going over later to view for a second time and if both parties agree on the price, I’d like to think that the (headache) hunt is over. And then comes the headache on the minor details. Ish. More eye-candy shots below:

p/s: These aren’t the photos of the said house. I didn’t snap photos of the house because I didn’t want to intrude the owner’s privacy. However, they do have some resemblance of the house. :) 

On one of the days during the long weekend, Aaron and family, Danny + Kathey and our family made a trip to Lentang Waterfall off the Karak highway. We left our place at about 8.40 a.m. and traffic wasn’t that bad until we arrived at the Karak toll - that’s where the backlog started - but the journey was smooth after the toll plazas.

It wasn’t difficult finding the place and since it was still quite early - 10-ish a.m. - there weren’t that many people around and we managed to secure a nice spot. We didn’t go all the way up but we didn’t stay at the bottom of the stream (yuck!) either. After taking out the stuff from the car, we ate the nasi lemak that Irwan bought first because everyone was starving. Heh. Afterwards, the boys and girls (sans Nadia and Danny) went into the water and had some splashing fun time.  The water was just too c.o.l.d laaaaaaa and besides, I had more fun playing with Aaron’s 85mm f1.2 and 135mm f2 than being in the water. Haha!

Irfan and Naomi had their share of playing and fighting with each other. One minute they were arguing like couples do and the next minute they were on their best-est behaviour. Irfan also satu hal lah, always like to irritate the h*ll out of Naomi. Sigh.

Aaaaaanyways, the lil’ dude is down with HFMD (again!) but it’s really really really mild. Even milder than the mild one he had when he was 1+ years old. I don’t know where he contracted it from but his principal called me around noon yesterday saying that Irfan complained of being tired and lethargic and his body was quite warm. I brought him to SJMC (or Sime Darby) later in the evening and last night, his temperature shot up to 39 degrees. I inserted the suppository given to me by the paed and he was okay throughout the night.

This morning, while I was changing him, I noticed a spot on his thigh and alarm bells started ringing. I immediately called up SJMC and made an appointment to see his paed. 5 seconds later, I changed my mind because I knew it’d be a l.o.n.g wait at SJMC and called up Prince Court to see a paed there instead. Since it was our first time there, I chose a Dr. Sharmila and she proved to be a good choice I made. :) At the hospital, we detected a few more spots on his palm, but thank god his mouth is clear of ulcers. I remember that the last time he had HFMD, the ulcers were driving him nuts. So for now, he’s off school for one week and hopefully the spots will disappear soon. He’s his normal self - running about and jumping around - so I guess that’s good.

I voiced my concerns to the paed regarding Irfan playing out actions with his cars and even conversing with them or sometimes scold the cars like how I scold the other cars on the road (eep!) and she says that that’s normal - his right brain doing the work - and since school these days are so left brain oriented that I should just let him be. And I should also stop saying “no” to everything that he wants to do (which I think is harmful etc etc) because it’s like snipping the flower off when it wants to grow. Instead, I should work my way around the situation. Sigh. This parenting business is quite tricky, innit? :P

Anyhow, he’s 37 months old already and I taught him to repeat with me the Al-Fatihah the other day and he was doing good. Maybe I should teach him mengaji soon? Alif-ba-ta-…. ;) We’d also like to send him for Mandarin classes, so we’ll see. Don’t want him to feel overwhelmed with all the activities and I’d really want him to enjoy his childhood with lots of playing and learning and playing. Heh.

Before you all start to congratulate me and all that.. nolah.. I’m not pregnant. Haha. Here’s the newest addition: 

Yerp. I got me a (used) Canon 5D Mark I. Cannot afford the Mark II, so Mark I pun jadilah. :P And yes, my first Canon lens is the Canon EF 50mm f1.4 I got from Aaron. Maaaann.. Canons are expensip! But, I’m happy with my purchase. :)

Pentax gears have all been sold off. Sigh. If it wasn’t for the fact that it’s so blardy effing hard to get Pentax things around here (Sh*iro sucks!), I’d still stick with Pentax. Oh well… not my rezeki, I guess? Anyway, I love the 5D and I am absolutely loving the lens. Managed to take some pictures over the weekend and I was totally blown away…!