Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Great news for Stila fans

Stila is one of the first makeup brands I've ever used. In fact, most of my makeup collection, back then, were Stila - foundation, concealer, loose powder, eye shadow palettes, lip gloss and mascara.

My all-time favorite Stila products are their kajal eye liner (I reviewed it here) and lip glaze. Super LOVE 'em! It's a bummer that my favorite makeup brand is not available in Malaysia anymore. Why Stila, whyyy?? I was broken-hearted when I first found out about it. Kinda like the girl in this video, (except I didn't throw things).




Ok, I'm exaggerating. It's only a makeup (by the way, I wonder if this is an excerpt from an upcoming movie or something).

Anyways... back to Stila.

I have a great news! No, Stila is not coming back to Malaysia (at least not for now). But I have a few Stila stuff on sale at my blogshop, shoppersanctuary.blogspot.com. Items are limited tho (only 10), including a few limited edition eye shadow palettes that are sold out everywhere. If you're a Stila fan, you really don't wanna miss this because once they're gone, you will never see them again. Ever. And you really don't wanna be broken-hearted like the girl in that video.



Oh, and there's kajal eye liner and lip glaze too. I have those but in different colors (if they are not sold within 3 days, I think I might use them for myself instead!).

Once you've made up your mind, email me your orders at iza_mirilyea@yahoo.com. As usual, based on first come first serve!

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Tuesday, February 21, 2012

How I switched to Anmum Essential

When I first came across Anmum Essential milk, I was intrigued. No Added Sugars? Now that's something new. I don't think I have ever seen any growing up milk with no added sugars.



However I have to admit, I was a little worried about the taste. Would Ayra like it? What if she rejects it?

But her nutrition and added sugar intake are what I'm most concern about - not just how the milk tastes like. So I bought it anyway. Besides, it can't be that bad! Belum cuba, belum tahu. The TV ads were very convincing too that I just have to try it for my girl.

The first time I gave Ayra the milk, she drank a few gulps and looked at me with an expression that says, "this tastes different!". She stopped drinking, looked at it as if she was inspecting the milk. I just buat-buat tak tahu because I know if I asked her what's wrong, she would refuse to drink it. I acted normally instead (pura-pura tak pandang dia), as if nothing has changed. Seconds later, she continued drinking the milk. She drank it slowly and her mind macam tengah berfikir. Susu apa mama aku kasi ni? Rasa dia lain tapi rupa sama je. Ah minum je la, lapaq dah ni.

She finished the whole thing eventually! And from that moment, she has been drinking Anmum Essential milk every day. I didn't know switching her milk would be that easy! Besides being the only growing up milk with no added sugars, Anmum Essential is also the only choice that has advanced nutrients such as Gangliosides and DHA which are essential for brain development.


Bertukarlah kepada Anmum Essential, kawan-kawan!


In case you mommies are wondering how's the taste like... It tastes just like warm fresh milk. Creamy, milky... You know, just like what milk should taste like! And thanks to Anmum Essential, Ayra now drinks fresh milk too. Kalau dulu tak nak langsung minum fresh milk on its own sebab tawar, sekarang dah suka!

Oh hey, even si kenit has started drinking Anmum Essential now. I've mixed formula milk into her diet due to a sudden drop of breast milk supply. Was sad and disappointed with myself at first, but I knew this time would come sooner or later. Oh well... at least I managed to fully breastfeed her for slightly more than a year. And if anything, I'm glad the first milk I introduced to her is one with no added sugars, besides fresh milk!


Si kenit yang suka buat macam-macam facial expressions!


Other moms are also switching to Anmum Essential too. There's a Facebook discussion forum where moms can share nutrition and parenting tips and experiences at http://www.facebook.com/AnmumClub.

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Monday, February 20, 2012

Mama, the Princess Barbie

Last Thursday, 16th February 2012, was our 4th wedding anniversary.



We got each other presents (well ok, I only gave him a present; he gave me a card, chocolate and a little something from Kate Spade, but that's how things should be, right? Men should give more ;p) and went for a dinner. I wish I could say a romantic quiet dinner but it was actually the opposite. You can never eat in peace when you have kids, can you? But that's ok. The more, the merrier (haha, yea right)!

Later that night, I went through our wedding videos and photos. Ayra came and saw this...




Ayra: Who's that?
Me: That's mama and walid on our wedding day.
Ayra: No, it's a princess.
Me: *laughed* Princess Mama?
Ayra: No, it's a Princess Barbie

She went out of the room and came back seconds later, with this in her hand.



"See? It's a princess!" *points at my photo*

Haha. Kids are the cutest!

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Friday, February 17, 2012

As easy as wearing pants

Diaper time used to be a hassle back then, when Ayra just started walking. It was like a battle. Setiap kali nak tukar diaper, macam nak bersilat dibuatnya. I took off the dirty diaper, she rolled over. I opened a new diaper, she wriggled and rolled over again. I taped the sticker at one side, she pulled the sticker at the other side. Gahhh!

Babies just can't lie still, can they? Not even for 2 seconds!



Imagine if it was poo-poo. A lot of shrieking (me, of course) involved because her feces were splattered here and there as she tried to wriggle and move around. It was a messy situation. Sangat menguji kesabaran, especially when I'm in a hurry. Thank God it's all over.

Ayra is 3 years old now and she's semi-toilet trained (she poops in the toilet). No more diaper battles! Phew.


It's Raina's turn now tho.




But this time, things are a little different. She still moves around during diaper time, but it's no longer a battle coz I now have a "secret weapon".



Diaper pants!

I've been buying MamyPoko diapers for my girls ever since my first child was born up till today and it's the only brand for diaper that I trust the most. I've tried a few brands before but none can beat MamyPoko's superior absorbency. My girls can wear their diapers for hours without leaking, unlike some diaper brands. And I love MamyPoko even more, now that I've switched to MamyPoko Pants Extra Soft Fit range because it makes my life a whole lot easier! It has a stretchable waistband and leg gathers to ensure a perfect fit.



And it's SO easy to put on! I don't have to deal with tapes and whatnot anymore, and my baby doesn't need to be in a horizontal position. It's perfect for when you're out and about or even traveling. Last year when we were in Bandung, I couldn't find baby's changing room so I just took my girls to the ladies' toilet to change their diapers. Senang, tak perlu cari changing table or anything for babies to lie down. I don't have to bring my own changing mat either!


To remove used diaper, just tear off the side seams.


This diaper pants is suitable for babies that have started crawling or walking and always on the move. It's made of a breathable, extra soft cotton-like material so your babies would be comfy and they get to have fun all day long, running around, exploring their world in it without wet, leaky diapers bugging them.




It makes your life (and your lil one's) a lot easier, trust me. Less crying, less shrieking, less struggling during diaper time; more love and happy times spent together. What more could a parent ask for.


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She slipped off her pink stilettos at 12:00 AM |





Tuesday, February 14, 2012

When Men Are Into Beauty Products...

My husband has been a weebit conscious with his appearance lately. He has started doing workouts, play sports a couple of times a week, eat healthily (he even requested me to pack healthy homemade food for his lunch every day) and I even caught him admiring himself in front of the mirror, sometimes doing funny expressions and macam-macam gaya that made me go, "OMG, I did not just see that!".

Then just recently, he asked for my "expert" advice on skincare product for men.
"Saya nak kulit cantik macam awak". Awwhhh! Haha.

My mind immediately thought of Clarins Men, and after reading the good reviews on MakeupAlley (he googled for the reviews himself!), we went to Clarins counter at The Gardens the other day.

Good thing I was there with him. Dia rambang mata (which is so unlike him)!

"Whoa...Ab Firming. Macam best."
"Eh, ada deodorant Clarins for men jugak. How much is the deodorant?"
"What's a moisture gel? And do I need a toner?"
"I want a body scrub too".


I told him to get just the basic products for a start - cleanser and moisturizer. Even the sales assistant advised the same thing so we bought those two (and a couple of body care products for myself).

Anyway after only 2 days, my husband said he noticed some improvements on his skin. He's pretty excited about it and told me that he wants to buy Clarins deodorant stick pulak. Erm...What's wrong with drugstore brand again? I use Rexona jer kot. Over tau! ;p

And then he said, "Apa salahnya... Awak ada berpuluh barang muka, saya ada 2 je".

I laughed. He is sooo exaggerating.


Well, except the part where he said he only has two.


"Tak payah la guna deodorant mahal-mahal. Guna yang selalu awak pakai tu je pun ok".

"Saya nak ketiak saya lawa jugak!".

ROTFLOL.

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Wednesday, February 08, 2012

I ♥ Instagram

I've been taking a lot of photos on Instagram lately and I think I've become a little bit obsessed with it. It's just the coolest photo sharing app for iPhone and I'm addicted! It's kinda like Twitter where you can follow anyone you like, but instead of a feed of 140 character sentences, you get photo feeds! You can like and comment other people's photos. You can share your Instagram photos on Twitter and Facebook. You can add filters and borders to your photos to give them cool vintage-y looks. It's awesome! There are more than 10 filters and my current faves are Amaro, Earlybird and Valencia.

Here are some of my favorite shots taken using Instagram. Most of the photos I took are objects of my affection of course: my kids and yes, food!


Charlie Brown Tiramisu. Looks cute but tastes horrible!


Sleeping Ayra


Beadings on my new kurung


I'm bored, mom.


Chicken kabobs


Teman mama sidai baju


Black and white. Spots and stripes.


Rainbow cupcake. Looks like a tie-dye effect.


Afternoon nap


Trees, drawn by my 3 year old.


Strawberry-banana-cream cheese french toast in the making.


US 7 woman vs US 4 toddler


The Girl On The Pink Bike.


Pretty pink shutters


Yummy treats from Wondermilk


Waterfall jacket from Dressing Paula


Sparkly shoes

She slipped off her pink stilettos at 1:00 AM |





Thursday, February 02, 2012

"No Added Sugars" Milk

When I first found out about how much sugars Ayra had been consuming in her previous growing up milk powder, I was so shocked. I couldn't believe it. According to this sugar calculator, she consumed 7-10 teaspoons of added sugars every day! That is waaaayyy beyond the recommended amount for her age!

I was worried. Too much added sugars is not good, especially for growing children. They are just empty calories that can increase the risk of a lot of health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and other diseases.

I knew I had to do something. I had to change her growing up milk - one that contains no added sugars.

That's when I found out about Anmum Essential. I switched to it immediately!




Just so you know, Anmum Essential is the only growing up milk powder with no added sugars.

You should be aware of claims about the absence of specific types of sugar in a product because there could still be other types of added sugars present. Like for example, if a product claims that it has "no added sucrose" or is "sucrose free", it could still contain other types of added sugars such as corn syrup glucose or glucose syrup solids. So always ALWAYS check the labels and ingredient list and look for products that are labelled as "no added sugars" or "less sugars" or "sugar free". Even the Ministry Of Health says that "no sucrose" doesn't necessarily mean "no added sugars".




I think I've seen a few growing up milks with such claims about their formulations and wonder what they mean.

Growing up milk powders are supposed to be all about superior nutrition for growing children so it's important to use one that has no added sugars. You can watch Professor Davies, who is the Director of Children's Nutrition Research Centre, University of Queensland, Australia and Dr. John Monro, Principal Scientist of Institute for Plant and Food Research, New Zealand, talk about added sugars in children's milk in these videos:

1) Do children need added sugars? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZG6WX9YBPo
2) Sugar intake recommendations http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBw6rlMiOT4
3) What are added sugars and how to find them in your child's milkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBw6rlMiOT4
4) Definitions of added sugars http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1me2SK5QZcY
5) Types and amounts of added sugars in your child's milk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyti7vynTxI

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