Mummy turns 30

29th November 2011

Happy birthday to our beloved mummy!

We are all proud of her for all her achievements and most importantly we are very glad that she is our mother. We love you very much, mummy and we hope that you will have a great year ahead and many more to come.

Syifa Hana's latest looks

27th November 2011

Our new baby sister is one month old yesterday. We are happy to say that she has grown well. She can now smile when engaged in a conversation and can tell who are those familiar to her. When "strangers" carry her, she seems uneasy and may cry a bit, but she will soon be comforted when being carried by either mummy, daddy or the maid. Another achievement is her ability to support her head when she's enjoying some tummy time.

Durian polo

17th November 2011

Just want to share a different species of durian which in Brunei we call as durian polo. It has a sweet smell (rather than the pungent smell normally associated with durian) and is less sticky. Good for beginners and the taste is delicious.

My study partner

15th November 2011

As a student, one thing that I cannot avoid is homework. It can be tiring sometimes, but it really helps to have a partner beside me, especially when he is funny and adorable. A bit distracting at times, but I don't really mind. What's important is that my work is done. Who am I talking about? Look at these pictures!

Stuntboy Safwan

11th November 2011

One quality that Safwan has is that he is adventurous. Recently, he decided that Safiya's bicycle is not too high for him to climb. At first mummy thought that our maid put Safwan on the bike, but apparently Safwan figured out the way to climb up and down without falling down. He even stands up on it and looked at his reflection on the oven glass door.

Nini Laki and Nini Bini who happened to be at our home during that time was excited although a bit worried. Nini Laki said that he's glad that one of his grandchildren will help him pick fruits from the orchard when he grows up, judging from the climbing skills that Safwan had shown!

Syifa's Aqiqah

9th November 2011

Another obligation that we performed in welcoming the birth of our baby sister is Aqiqah, which refers to the slaughtering of an animal (a goat, in our case). According to a source, there are many benefits in the performance of Aqiqah. One is announcing the birth of the baby. Another purpose is inviting family members, neighbours and friends to celebrate the blessed occasion. The poor is also offered with food and cooked meat from the Aqiqah.

Aqiqah is commendable to be perfomed on the 7th day after birth, but since daddy was away last week, mummy decided to wait until daddy is around so that he doesn't miss out much. We need him here anyway to distribute the cooked meat to family members, friends and neighbours. After all, daddy will definitely feel proud to convey the news himself regarding the birth of our baby sister.

Dinosaur fossil

7th November 2011


One of the souvenirs that daddy bought for me from his recent trip is an egg-shaped "rock" complete with tools, inside of which is a dinosaur "fossil". I was excited at pretending to be a paeleontologist but patience is unfortunately not my best quality. After a while, I became tired but thankfully mummy came to the rescue... hehehe...

This is the rock half way throughout the process.

And finally...

My very own T-rex fossil... thank you daddy (and mummy)!

Welcome home, daddy

5th November 2011

Daddy is home! Hehehe... a week might be short but being apart from daddy for that period is definitely a long time for us! As a sign of celebration, Safiya and I made a banner with mummy's help. We also traced our hands, together with Safwan and baby Syifa.

Since we have yet to celebrate daddy's birthday, mummy made some moist chocolate cupcakes and blew some candles. Nini bini was the chef; she cooked chicken dhal stew with rice for the birthday celebrant.

Another excitement when having daddy back home is during unpacking time. What else... souvenirs, of course! Daddy bought lots of stuff for us. Thank you daddy!

Holding Syifa for the first time

4th November 2011

Oh... it's a bit scary to have such a fragile person in our arms but today is a happy day for us because we held baby Syifa for the first time! Of course Safiya and I were sitting down the whole time but still it was a thrilling experience. It also reminds us of the time when Safwan came into the picture last year... sweet memories!

As for Safwan, he can never stop kissing his new sister. He doesn't show any sign of jealousy so far and doesn't complain when mummy had to attend to Syifa. He sometimes wants to be carried or held like a baby though, and also demands to rest in the baby carrier at times, but that's about it. No tantrums, anger or sadness... and we hope things remain the way they are. Good for you, Safwan!

Shaving on the 7th day after birth

2nd November 2011

As taught by the Prophet PBUH, a newborn's head should be shaved on the 7th day after birth. It has been said that shaving the head removes harm from the baby, removes weak hair so that stronger and firmer hair replaces it and it is beneficial for the head. In addition, it comforts the newborn and opens the head's skin openings, and along with this is the strengthening of the baby's eye sight, sense of smell and hearing (Read more here).

Yesterday, with the help of a close relative, we managed to fulfill this obligation. Quite unfortunate though that daddy is not around to witness it but mummy made sure she took video recording of it for daddy to watch later. The process was easy since baby Syifa was sound asleep throughout.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

1st November 2011

Daddy is 34 years old today!

Happy birthday to you!
Although you are now thousands of miles away,
Always remember that we love you very much
and we are proud to have you as our dad.

Hugs and kisses from
Syafi, Safiya, Safwan & Syifa