Easter hats

These are a couple pics from yesterday's decorating fun. Me and a friend made six different hats, with two being these adorable chicken hats (she's so creative), for the weekend Easter Day in the Park.

We'll be going on a walk-a-thon, weather permitting, Friday morning and then Easter in the Park on Saturday. It'll be Naief's first Easter egg hunt and hopefully as fun as I'm imagining.

I've debated about doing an Easter basket for Naief this year... it's a tradition in my family, and since talking to my older sister, I've decided to do something fun and not loaded down w/ sweets... a few sweets... no Easter basket would be complete w/out candy eggs and such... right... but I'll add a few other things as well.

Gonna do little treats for his friends and cousins... :) I wonder what the in-laws will think about that???

party pics

Here are some pics from today's birthday party... I thought Naief looked cute as a zombie...

Thanks for all the ideas for costumes. This was pretty easy until Naief decided that he didn't want to put paint on his face and decided to throw a little fit that included throwing some toys, which ended up w/ us putting him in timeout... all because mommy wanted to put paint on his face... poor thing! ;) hehehe

But... after we got there and went inside, he had a good time. There were lots of kids, close to Naief's age, and he really enjoyed it. He loved this little girl, Rihanna... sitting beside her on several occasions. All the kids were so good. No fights, no crying.... just fun.

few pics of Naief in California

Thought some of you might enjoy these pics of the baby, his cousin and my sis while here in Cali.

It's raining today, cold outside and there are so many low lying clouds that you can't see the mountains in front of my sister's place.... I love it. :) I've missed the rain, but, so far, there's no thunder or lightening or such.

Anyway... hope you like the photos.

Killer Puppy on the Loose

Imagine those headlines... and imagine a killer puppy looking like him..... awwww, who couldn't love a killer puppy looking as sweet as this!!

This is one pic from the birthday/Halloween party we went to this past Sat. It was so much fun and Naief really had a good time. He didn't cry one time, loved being around all the kids, and he even got to sit at the table like a big boy (in a booster seat) when we ate and had cake. He swung his little legs and seemed to be on a little heaven cloud.

One nice woman came up to me at the party and said that when she came in she actually thought Naief was a little dog and wondered when my friend, H, had gotten it. ;) I think the fact that Naief is still crawling really made the outfit! Not sure that everyone got the scary blood thing... but I did tell everyone he was a killer puppy... seeing that the theme was scary, atlho only the bday boy and his brother, and Naief, held firm to that. :)

I was really pleased at how well it went. I was worried he'd get tired, but he didn't really show any signs of that until the end. He loved all the toys and the balloons. I was worried that he might pop one in his hand or something, and even though he got ahold of a few, none popped... thank goodness. There was one little boy, in particular, who was so sweet to him. He'd come up and bring toys to Naief and even squat down to play w/ him. He was 19 mths and I found myself in amazement at the fact that this little boy didn't try to slap him in the face, kick him, pinch him or head butt 'em or anything (which is the case I'm usually up against)... not one child did anything mean to him... it was such a beautiful release... I can't even tell you how peaceful that was.... and all these kids were all around 2 yrs.

I really enjoyed the party and so did hubby ..... me, because there were other mommies to talk to and I was able to see that Naief is normal or behaving the way he should at this age, and hubby got to spend some quality time w/ the guys. I also found out that Qatar Airlines flies straight to the U.S. now. I didn't know this. You can pick up a flight outta Doha and fly right into D.C. No stops, nothing. This is good to know. I hate having a 7 or 8 hr layover in London.

btw... my dear friend, Puppy... I hope I did you proud w/ his outfit!! :) Next year we may do Chucky!!! he he heeeeeee

which way is up?

These are some pics of Naief in his first jellabeya, if that's how it's spelled. We also bought him a thobe and he wore it on the first day of Eid, and I must say, he looks adorable in it! :) If you want to catch his pic, go to Hashim's blog and it's there.

Can't hardly believe that Ramadan is over. It sure flew by... usually, in years past, it seemed to drag. I guess because I wasn't fasting.. or maybe because we have a baby now.

Naief is good, but has been changing a lot. He now puts his arm in the air as if he's going to wave, but hasn't figured out the waving bit yet. He'll look up at his arm, move his fingers and stare in amazement. He's also screaming now.... all places, all times. He screams from joy and screams a lot in anger. His favorite time to scream is at bed time. He enjoys those blood curdling screams that make him cough.... I'm hoping it's a phase and something all babies go thru, if not... I think we're in trouble. He's not much on routines... altho I'm sticking to my guns and keeping him on one, but most nights I have to make him go to sleep. Would you mothers say this is the way to go?

There are a few things that are worrisome to me and am hoping that you mommas out there can give me a few pointers. First, he absolutely hates to sit in his highchair and when I put him in it, he screams for a bit and then refuses to eat. Breakfast seems to be the easiest time, but forget lunch and dinner. Once he starts screaming at lunch, I can hardly get him to eat anything substantial and it worries me quite a bit. He'll settle down for a bit but once he's finished, he's finished and will scream 'maaaaaa' and insist on my taking him out of it.

He was acting like this in his car seat, but has settled down quite a bit, altho today we had the same problems. I'm letting him cry it out, both in his highchair and in the car seat, but is this normal?

He does the same thing in his stroller. It seems to be happening in any place where he's tied in. He seems to hate riding in his stroller and cries and cries until we take him out. I'm wondering if herein lies the issue. We're taking him out. If we don't, he won't stop screaming and crying, so I give in and take him out. So... he knows this and works it for all he can get.

The part about the highchair is that I don't think he's getting enough to eat. I read on the net that they'll eventually start eating, but when will this happen? When I stop putting him in the chair? I've tried feeding him in his walker, but I can't keep him still long enough to get anything in him and then he's going from place to place and is usually not interested in eating.

He's also still sleeping w/ us, which I love, but he keeps me awake almost all of the night. I'm dead tired most days, and I'm starting to think we should start trying to get him into his own bed. His crib won't fit out of the door of his room, so I'm thinking of a part-time solution for now, and then when he gets a little older, I'll move him into his crib.

The problem is that he moves a lot in the night. He's either rolling around, twitching, or kicking the covers off, and w/ all of this, it keeps me up. I'm a terribly light sleeper w/ the slightest thing waking me... so imagine how it is w/ a baby that doesn't sleep in one place!

So... when you mothers were feeding your baby solids, did you stick to just one item or feed a variety of food at each feeding time? I usually try to feed at least 3 different foods in the mornings, 2 or 3 things at lunch and then 2 at night. I have also started w/ snacks like pudding and such, but he's not too keen on it. He'll eat some and then snub the rest. He likes fruit, but I don't want to feed him only fruit. He's a bit stubborn when eating and insists on my feeding him quickly. He's been like this since he was newborn... it's almost as if he thinks he'll die if he doesn't get another mouthful of food as quickly as possible. And what happens is that he gets mad and then refuses to eat the rest because I didn't get it to him fast enough. This is when he starts his screaming stuff.... it first started during the first week of Ramadan at my in-laws.... as it was his first go at eating solids and he loved them... but now, because of all the fuss and such each night, he's now throwing fits and I'm at a total loss. Maybe now that Ramadan is finished and he's eating at our house again, he'll settle down... or at least I hope.

Eid Mubarak to all my Middle Eastern friends and happy day to all my other blogger friends out there. :)


I will add that he seems more like a little boy now than a baby. He likes to crawl away from us now while squealing, especially when we're acting like we're gonna get him... and it's too adorable. He's pulling up to a lot of things and baby talks like crazy. His hair is really thin and some are pressuring me to shave it - thinking that it'll grow back thicker, but I don't believe it'll do anything. My sister, Jahooni, had thin hair as a baby and now has the thickest hair I've ever seen, and we didn't shave her head. I've seen babies that are 10 mths old and they have no hair at all... I wonder what ppl think that means?!

baby pictures

These are from a few days back. One of his cousins was wearing this and gave it to Naief to wear for a while.

Like father... like son :)

I think he'll look so cute in a little thobe.... can't wait until he's big enough to wear one.

Smiles to all of you :)

our shades

Couldn't help but to add one more tonight. This was taken a few wks back and it's a favorite of mine.... I think he looks just adorable here.

We go out riding around and whenever ppl see him in these shades, they can't help but to smile...

me too!!!

look at that face

I took this yesterday w/ my telephone while he was playing in his blow up pool.

There are a 100 balls in his pool and it still wouldn't be enough if I started to list all the reasons why and how I love this little boy. He's my love bug.... and I find myself wishing he'd stay this way... altho I know it's not possible, I just find that I adore him more and more each day, and know that one day he'll be all grown up and not slap me in the face early in the morning to let me know it's time to get up or give me kisses just because.

He said mama yesterday.... I was thrilled.... can't wait for him to hold out his arms and say it!! oh yeah... not sure if I mentioned it, but he's crawling now :)

some favorite old photos

these are some of my favorite photos from long ago. the first one is of my mother. this is one of my favorites of her... i have another but will have to look around for it. she's such a beauty.

the next photo is of my mom, my sister, jahooni, and me. this was my first perm. oh gosh, how i hated it. my mom had my aunt do it w/out even asking me first... yeah, you wonder how that can happen... well, it did. thought i was getting a simple haircut and look what happened! i wore a hat to school for days because of it and cried my eyes out for days. but.... eventually it grew out.... thank goodness! wasn't my sister such a cute little baby!!! look at that beautiful little smile on her face. funny how having a baby now makes me look at this photo differently! gosh... no wonder she's still so pretty... pretty baby, pretty woman. :)

the last photo is of my sister doing the chinese splits. i could NEVER do them... and it really errrked me that she could! she was a major show off and used to go down in the splits at a moments notice..... btw, she's still a show off.

anyhow... thought i'd share a few of my memories w/ all of you.

today is the 4th of july in the states. i miss that holiday. i love fireworks and it's the best day for being w/ family, bbqing outdoors and just enjoying the weather and life. my sister is having a fun day w/ steak and lobster... probably some beer and maybe my BILs famous margaritas....

Enjoy!!! wish i were there!! :)

new photos

here are some recent pics of the baby....

the last one makes me think "what you lookin at Willis"... why, i don't know. but it's the cutest look... i think. i tried my best to get him to smile for the camera, but the more i tried, the more he refused. one day..... :)

oh yeah, the one w/ him on the sofa is daddy babysitting... thought he start him early on the oud! :)

baby room pics

these are some pics of our baby's room. hubby painted shelves today that will be hung tomorrow and he's gonna paint the ceiling blue w/ white fluffy clouds this weekend.... i'm still trying to decide if we should add more animals or leave it as is... so maybe within a week or so, we'll decide. the beautiful quilt you see in the crib is the baby's quilt that my mom hand made for me. it's soooo sweet. it has numerous animals on it that she painted - horse, cat, duck, cow, pig, rabbit and a few others... so if you can't tell, i love animals. :) and i'm hoping that that love will be passed to the baby. and, i'm hoping that once i feel better, i'll be able to draw and paint a big vine w/ huge leaves on it above the door, and then paint his name either in the leaves or beside them... i think that'll be cute. we still have a few things to get for the room and for the baby... but at least it's starting to take a definite shape.... which is really exciting.