Alia Ibrahim Hussein and Eli Hussein W

hat’s the best birthdayday gift you’ve ever received?ceived? For some it may haveave been a surprise getawaytaway to a dream destinationtion or even the latest Louis Vuitton bag. For Alia Ibrahim Husseinssein however, it would be her son, Eli. “My water broke after my birthday dinner! I was unsure it was really happening butt decided to go into the hospital to get checked,hecked and was fully expecting to be sent back home, with the nurses telling me it was a false alarm. However, that wasn’t the case. He decided to come a bit early; I never expected to have a March baby as he was due in April. He ended up being a wonderful, albeit slightly belated, birthday present,” she smiles as she reminisces about the momentous occasion. Now four years old, Eli bounces all over their home-cum-playground. The energetic and cheerful Eli has a sunshiny personality that charms everyone he encounters. A play kitchen that’s almost the real thing sits across from a collection of pastel cushion play mats, a kid’s table full of Legos is surrounded by two bobo dolls that Eli gleefully smacks and pushes around, while a dozen other toys are placed carefully about the sunlit space. It’s a dream playground curated with so much care and love by doting mum, Alia. One would not even have thought that Alia had to go through a pretty steep learning curve when she first had him, considering her home is so well-stocked with everything a child would ever want or need. “I had no prior experience with babies; I was by no means a natural mother. Eli was actually the first baby I’ve ever held willingly in my armsarms, and I chose to do absolutely everything for him from the start. Everything from the feedings, baths, nappy changes to soothing him and paediatrician visits,” Alia shares. As with most newborns, it was a journey that required the monumental amount of multitasking, plus lack of sleep. Sometimes it even requires a change of habits to cope with a new baby. Every parent knows the initial struggle to adjust, and Alia certainly learned it first-hand when she had her first outing with baby Eli. “I learnt that quickly after the first paediatrician checkup—when I was caught with a poo explosion while I had somehow managed to leave his nappies, wet wipes and change of clothes in the car! I was a fly-by-theseat-of-your-pants kind of girl. Now I have a plan of attack every day,” Alia laughs. While some aspects of motherhood were expected, others were not, as Alia can attest to. The fact that she chose to make her entire home his playground and that she became a song and dance person just for her child, still manages to surprise her. “I’m constantly doing silly things just to elicit a laugh from my son,” Alia smiles. “The lengths that I would go to for my child! You give when you don’t feel like it, when you’re exhausted, when you’re sick and when you’re tired of putting your own needs and wants last, but you also receive so much!” she continues before Eli launches himself at her and latches onto his mummy to shower her with deserving kisses.