Tak tahu nak senyum ke nak nangis...

Mummy's forcing me to play on my own while she's doing her school work. How can? Pfft.

Somehow I don't mind being distracted by you, again and again...

SMS exchange with "Ayah" at noon today

F: Sayang how r u doing? Takde gambar Shaura lagi ke? 12:01:11pm

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Z: (Pretends to be Shaura) Ibu kata Ayah nak bawak gi jalan-jalan. Nak gi Egypt? See! Shaura dressed as Egyptian! 12:29.22pm

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F: O.o 12:29:31pm

Photo Tips & Tricks #1: Editing your photos (The fastest way)

I love spending time on Facebook. With real-time live feeds, I think it's the best social site by far. Twitter is fun to just rant and do some "people-watching" through the conversations and RTs (retweets) but you can do many more with Facebook such as uploading your photos, putting up notes, play games...the list just goes on and on. 

The best part about Facebook is that you can re-connect with your long lost friends. Well, I get to catch up with my ex-boss from the Prisons recently. We share a common interest in photography so it doesn't take us long to just talk and share tips on the subject. Thing is, many fail to realize that it's not the gadget i.e. the camera or lens that's important. It's the editing skills, no matter how blurry and dark the photos can be that you can salvage, that's important.

How to turn your normal photo...

into this?

I'm going to share my best kept secret in editing my photos. I only took minutes to change the above look - NOT with the professional help of Photoshop which can cost you thousands of dollars but a free software by Google called Picasa.

What did I do? 

(1) Simply increase the contrast

(2) And add a soft focus effect

Yes! That's it!

Picasa is so user-friendly, it doesn't take long for you to fall in love with its various tunings and effects. Experience the magic of the software and go to http://picasa.google.com to start downloading. Again, it's FREE, people!

Just like Ikea's tagline "You don't have to be rich, to be clever", you don't need expensive professional help. All you need is just you and your creativity :)

Have fun experimenting!

Shaura's simple life

Hello Mummy's friends! I'm Shaura Marissa. I love living my simple life. What do I do everyday? Well, I eat, sleep and pass motion. I love to Zzz the most as doctors around the world have encouraged babies to sleep to help them grow. Well, I trust you, doctors! We went to Bedok Polyclinic today for my second jab of Hepatitis B vaccine. It's good to know that my weight has increased from 2.675kg to 4.5kg in just one month. Mummy says I'm as heavy as her ancient tyrannosaurus laptop, whatever that means! :S

I cry every 2 hours for food i.e. 90ml of milk per feeding - a good improvement as I used to only consume 60ml. Mummy keeps on complaining that she's tired but I hope you understand, Mummy, that I need the extra energy boost and immunity to support my overall mental and physical development. I was such a small, teeny weeny baby when I was born, it kind of increased my confidence to know that I'm growing well. I'm proud to show you my chubby cheeks! They get chubbier and chubbier everyday, much to Daddy's delight of course. See pictures below taken from Mummy's Blackberry. (Psst! She doesn't like her phone. If you're kind enough to exchange your iPhone with her, please please do let her know. I'm sure she'll be more than happy to accept that exchange :D)

I know, I know. Mummy loves capturing my un-glamourous moments, especially while I'm sleeping and unaware of her actions. She's also easily excited at my slightest attempt to smile or giggle. I get annoyed with her kisses but it's heartwarming to know that she dotes on me, having read the latest news on a father who beats his own daughters. Must be painful, don't you think? Guess I'm blessed that my Mummy and Daddy are not like him.

Mummy likes to bring me out for outings. We went to a cool place called Orchard Road last Thursday to meet Mummy's cool friends: Aunt Huda and Uncle Den who just got married last week, Aunt Dyla and hubby, Aunt Netty, Aunt Luk, Uncle Ariff, Uncle Aiman and Uncle Iskandar.

Mummy has many friends, I'm having a hard time remembering the names! -_-

More pictures, here!

The best things in life come to our lives without price tags.

Dear Shaura Marissa,

You have officially turned 1 month old. As new parents, we're still unsure if you're crying for milk, are uncomfortable with the wet diaper or are simply having too much wind. We think too much, you see. We are still learning and decoding your every ohhs and ahhs but we have improved, don't we? With time, we'll just get better. We promise!

We love you because...

Time to smell nice!

My world now revolves around you, baby!

Independence Day

Mak Ilah (my mum) will be leaving us today. It got me a lil' worried as I know Shaura seems to be more attached to her than to me, Fazlan and my mum-in-law. Good news though...my high fever and postnatal blues are gone. I shall learn to be an independent mother from now on, of course, with the help of Fazlan, Mak and Ayah.

Bye, bye Mak Ilah...till we meet again in JB. That said, it's about time that we make a passport for Shaura.

A promise

Mothers and mothers-to-be, be prepared and read more about post natal blues. If you feel that you're undergoing a depression, talk to your loved ones and let them know about your condition before it's too late. It affects 15% of mothers - many of whom are new mothers. In chronic cases, mothers will have suicidal thoughts or have the intention to hurt their babies. I'm glad I'm just weepy - the crying will just start out of the blue. Having an open talk with hubby, my eldest sis and some friends certainly helps.

To Fazlan and Shaura, thank you for your undivided attention, love and support. This article says baby blues (not to be confused with postnatal depression) will go off in a few days. Mummy will get better, I promise!