Hunt For Milkbooster

We're down to the last few days in Ramadhan, how are you guys holding up? It's my 2nd year fasting while breastfeeding in Ramadhan this year and as much as I hope things remain the same as it did last year, it didn't. :(

Firstly, my aunt flo decided to visit just a day before Ramadhan! A week before its return, I noticed a drop in my milk supply, there was even a day when I came back with just about 4oz of milk (after 3x of pumping!) That was the worst record in my entire breastfeeding journey.

It was also painful everytime I pump and direct feed Adeena that it got me thinking, "Adeena salah latch ke? Tapi takkan lah salah latch dah setahun lebih menyusu,". Turns out that nipple sensitivity is just one of the PMS signs, and true enough, a few days after aunt flo came to visit, the pain went off and my supply went back to normal, about 7-8oz per day. Well, not so normal lah compared to before, but I'll explain that later.

So, if last year I was able to fast the whole month without missing even a day, this year, I missed 8 days, thanks to aunt flo :(

Secondly, I wasn't able to yield as much milk as I did last year! You see, earlier on, I was able to get about 18-20oz a day. Those were the glory days - I was a milk factory!

Then, last year, it slowly dropped but I was still able to bring back 15oz consistently everyday, even during the fasting month. Shortly after Adeena turned one, my milk supply dropped a little more and I was only able to bring back 10oz everyday. At this time, I was worried but not too worried, coz the demand and supply were at par.

But now, it's getting even worse - I am only able to get about 7-8oz everyday; 2oz short of what Adeena takes everyday! This got me worried. Really worried.

My freezer that was once full to the brim with milk..

Is now only half full.. :(

I don't know how this happened because I rarely miss my pumping sessions. But I gotta admit, I no longer pay attention to what I eat (segala pantang dah langgar - kobis dah bantai, white carrot dah tak makan, alfalfa bagai dah tinggal, sayur hijau kurang, one time tu sebok berdiet lagi), and do not drink as much water as I did before. I also think it is also due to less stimulation 'cause now that Adeena is much older, she can go hours without milk, busy playing. 

So in my effort to boost my milk supply, I've tried avocado, coconut and soy, which none of them really showed significant result. I've also tried power pumping for 3 days, but it doesn't make much difference -- yet. Maybe the result would show if I had persevered and did it for a week or longer, but you know, it reallyyyy takes a lot of effort to do that! I know, I know, determination is key. And because of that, I will resume the sessions again soon after Raya, insyaallah. Let's hope to see some result then.

But what I want to share now is this milkbooster that I found recently. It's called Mom's breastfeeding chocolate!

It's a special chocolate made especially for breastfeeding moms to help boost their milk supply. What's different about this chocolate is that it has the little extra ingredients that are said to boost milk supply like - honey (madu), pennywort (pegaga), habatussauda, dates (kurma) and of course, chocolate. I thought it was brilliant! Finally, I would have the reason to chomp on chocolates without feeling guilty! Haha.

It has 8 pieces in a box, and you're supposed to take one each night before sleep. It tastes quite nice too. I was really excited and shared this on my social media accounts. Many have asked to make a review on it so after 5 days of consuming it, I am ready to make a review on it.

So did it really work for me? Well, unfortunately not 'coz I am still yielding 8oz daily.

Of course different people react differently on milkboosters, so this might work for you as it has worked for some! There's no harm trying, it's only RM29/box and available at PumpOnTheGo Facebook and Website. :)

I've always known that I was a picky person. And I guess my milk factory also decided to become one! Heh. Lucky for me, Adeena is turning 18 months soon. She doesn't need as much milk compared to before, but I still make it a point to make as much milk as I can, just in case!

Believe it or not, it has been 17 months, and I still haven't found my milk booster. So I guess the hunt continues..  Another 6 months+ to go to accomplish this mission, will I make it? We shall see.

Goodbye, Europe!

By the end of this entry, I realize how blessed all of us are, to be able to go back to the comfort of our own home and families, safely. My thoughts and prayers are constantly with the passengers and crews of flight MH17.
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It was our last day in Paris. We only have about 6 hours left before we boarded the train back to London. With limited time such as that, I told my husband we needed to go to La Vallée Village the Designer Outlet to see if there was anything worth buying.

There wasn't. La Vallée Village is just like Bicester Village in London (the look and feel pon are about the same), but the collection/brands they carry there aren't as variety as those in Bicester, much to my disappointment. We spent just about 30 mins there and decided to leave because we couldn't find something that we actually liked there. Even the Prada outlet didn't have the bag that I wanted, but we were told that it could be found in the boutique in Paris. (We were in Val D'Europe then still)

Lucky thing La Vallée Village was just behind our hotel, so we walked back to our hotel, took our luggage and decided to go back to Paris city to checkout the Prada boutique there. The rest of the family didn't come with us, so it was just us boarding the train on our own to Paris city.

Once we reached Paris city, we hired a cab to bring us to Prada. However, we had a hard time telling the cab driver to bring us to Prada! I was like, biar betol pakcik ni taktau Prada tu apa. Dah lah taktau Prada, English pon taktau. Grrr. The Internet signal was not helping either! It was so poor, I couldn't Google for the address to give to the cab driver! Pffffttt.

Anyway, while we were going rounds and rounds, trying to find the boutique, we saw Ladurée famous for their mouth watering macarons, but we were running out of time, so we were not able to stop.

Finally, we told the cab driver to pull over at a row of designer boutiques, where one of the sales assistant assisted us to the way to Prada. Finally someone that understands English! Once we reached the boutique, naturally the first thing I asked Dominic the sales assistant was (yes I remember his name because he was so good loking!), "Do you speak English?"

LOL. Because like said, all the French people there either purposely refuse to speak in English or do not know English, it made communication soooo difficult! His reply was, "Yes. Why, is it that hard to find someone who speaks English here?" Hahaha.

We learnt later from him that French people are actually the laziest people you can find on earth. They do not want to learn or progress, thinking that they are the mightiest race in the world. That explains the stubbornness and refusal to speak/learn English!

Anyway, long story cut short, we finally got what we wanted here. We were actually there to get a Saffiano for my elder sister. (I was aiming for Alma from LV all along) So imagine my surprise when my husband told me, "If you see anything you like here, get it,"

I couldn't believe my ears. I was like, "No wayyyyy, reallyyyyy? But, we will still go to LV though, right? I will still get my Alma, right? Righttt?"

And all he could say was, "Taknak sudah" like always. Hahaha. Mak apa lagi nyahhh. Shopping bag ahhhh. :P

No, that's not the bag that I bought hehe. It does remind me of LV's Alma Epi, though. Oh and while I was busy trying out different bags, the kids were busy snacking away -- in Prada! Haha. 

The sales assistants were all really cool about it too. In fact, I think the sales assistants there are way friendlier compared to the ones in Malaysia. This is one thing I notice that is good about the people there - the educated ones that is. They don't judge, if you know what I mean. You can come into the store with some stupid baju and selipar; they will still entertain you nicely.

We were also served with drinks once we were done with the purchase.

So, any guesses to which bag from Prada that won my heart? Yeap, gotta be the Saffiano! Hehe.

As soon as we left the boutique, we found the time in our hands. Just an hour to go before the train leaves us! We were supposed to drop by LV, but there wasn't any more time! It was either rush, of pay €180 each for the next train!

Long story cut short, we managed to board the train on time.

Unfortunately the rest of the families that were still in Val D'Europe then didn't manage to board on the train on time! They thought it would be a waste to spend €180 each, so they took the bus instead, that took them a whopping 8 hours of journey back to London. It was a horrible experience for them apparently, but well, still an experience! (Although I don't mind not experiencing it hahaha) :P

The next day, we had a few hours left before our flight back to Malaysia, so my husband and I decided to quickly checkout the Louis Vuitton boutique in Oxford Street to get my dream bag! :D :D

Yes, I was wearing the same outfit from the day before because the rest of the bajus were already packed in the luggage and would be troublesome to take everything out again! Baju semalam pon baju semalam lah, janji I finally got my white Alma, the bag of my dreams! :D

Then, we headed home, packed our bags and headed to Gatwick Airports to catch our flight home to Malaysia.

All in all, it was a hectic but definitely an exciting trip to Europe. We had good memories there, both good and bad, but will we ever go there again? Definitely! (Gotta think twice about Paris though) :P Until we meet again, Europe! xoxo.

Hello Disneyland, Paris!

As a kid, I have always wanted to go to Disneyland. I mean c'mon, tell me you've never dreamt of meeting Mickey, Minnie and Donald in person! Don't forget the princesses! So you can imagine how I felt when I saw Disneyland right in front of me. I gotta admit, it was as exciting for me as it was for the kids! :D

Upon arriving, my husband and I wanted to try this Hollywood Tower ride because apparently it's quite freaky.

But the queue was tooooo long that we decided to try another ride, the Rock n Roller Coaster.

I thought it was going to be some kiddy, unadventurous ride, but boy was I wrong! I remember praying really hard (and mengucap many times too!) that I don't get thrown out! It was super fast weh, my heart almost stopped. The flashing lights and loud music by Aerosmith blaring in my ears were not helping to keep my nerves calm too! As soon as we survived the ride, I promised myself not to ever go on any rides again! I'm too old for this! Hahaha.

Lol, can't get any more epic than that! Hahaha. After that, we went to look for our kids (feeling lucky to be alive and all) and concentrated on making the day FOR them. Haha.

First stop, was the Monster's Inc Scream Academy.

They had this awesome "scream monitor" where you scream as loud as you can, and see how high the scream meter goes. The louder you scream, the more energy you create for Monstropolis!

Then, we went to the kiddy ride section where the kids went on rides, and met Mickey in person! Aydein was of course, the happiest! Kept going on and on about Mickey hugging and kissing him on the cheek. :P

Of course, a Disneyland visit wouldn't be a Disneyland visit without a visit to the princess castle! :D

Then it was time for the parade. During this parade, all of Disney characters will come out with their moving decorated floats to greet the children!

Not sure if it was Adeena's white bear outfit or the fact that she's just a people magnet as mentioned before, but one of the fairy god mothers came near us and patted her gently :)

Once the show was over, we then proceeded to "It's A Small World" ride. We were asked to seat in a boat that sailed through the tunnel where puppets of children around the world greet us in the traditional costumes of their countries.

Just before we left the place, we had the pleasure of watching the Disney laser show and amazing fireworks right outside the castle. It was spectacular!

It was a beautiful ending to our trip in Disneyland. Before leaving the place, we got ourselves some gifts and souvenirs for memory sake and left the place happy. :) Until next time!