Since the last post was all Yousef....

My last post sat in my draft posts for over a month. Yes, life has been that busy. But here I am today to update you all about Lana and the latest happenings at home!

Lana is 5.5 months old now. She is currently rolling in both directions, all over the room. I can no longer keep her on her playmat so we lay out a blanket with a bunch of baby toys for her to explore and move about as she sees fit. :) The other day, she managed to roll herself up in the blanket by rolling over repeatedly and ended up looking like burrito! It was so funny I had to grab my camera:

Ok, so I should have taken the pic from the side. Not much burrito showing here, but cute little munchkin for sure!

And at the tender age of five months, Lana started eating solids! Woot! Woot! Mashallah she is loving it so far. I knew she was ready because every time she sat in my lap as I ate, she would open her mouth when the spoon came her way (mind you, I was the one eating:P) So it came as no surprise to me when she welcomed rice cereal with open lips. She's now eating squash, peas, carrots, applesauce, rice cereal. We'll be adding new foods slowly:) Here is a picture of Lana's first time eating carrots:

As I'm typing this post I look over at her, as she's laying on the floor on her stomach sucking her thumb, and she just smiles big at me. Like she knows I'm writing about her. :)

Yousef also had some firsts recently. Of course he's still obsessed with Thomas and all his friends. So I'm trying to branch him out to see the other fun things we can do together, like play-doh and finger painting! Here are a few pics I took about a week ago of him exploring

And that's all for now! We're going to play and grow some more for now!

Two and Terrific!

Yousef is turning two! This is a great time to reflect on how TERRIFIC (and terrible:P) he is.

I can't even begin to describe where the time has gone. But one thing is for sure: like the most expensive paper towel on the market, I've soaked it all up as best as I could. I frequently like to revisit Yousef as a baby (I think 2 means he has officially graduated baby status *insert sad face here*) by looking at old pictures and videos. They make my heart flutter and my cheeks hurt! While I miss those glorious days, I'm fortunate enough to relive those amazing moments now with Lana (who is 4 months old, but more on her later!).

Yousef is many things. He's rambunctious, fun-loving, a jokester, the sweetest kid you'll find, and one of the most opinionated little munchkins I know, to put it nicely!

Here are a few fun facts about Yousef:
-He LOVES, I mean L-O-V-E-S, Thomas the Tank Engine and all other trains.
-His love for Elmo is dwindling by the day.
-He fell off his tricycle for the first time a few weeks, cut his lip, and managed to push his tooth back (but so far he's ok!)
-He loves basketball and soccer. MashaALLAH he has quite an arm and a firm kick! Ronaldo in the making!
-He likes to wear his Jordans (shoes). Who knew a kid that small could have an opinion on what he wears?
-He should be called the ice-cream monster (or the sweet-toothed monster) <--We still fight that battle daily, sweets are not food, sweets are NOT food!
-He talks a mile a minute, likes to make eye contact when having a conversation (both make driving difficult!), and half the time (more than half) I don't undrstand what he is saying! But he in confident in his talking and LOVES to tell stories. More often than not he wakes up taking about "Thos. Choo choo twaaaain! *Insert a bunch of words I dont understand here* Mama, giddo, bye, oofy wi2i3 boom") (Transalated: Thomas choo choo train! Mom, grandpa, go bye bye, yousef fell boom!)
-Yousef is a parrot. Be careful what you say around him.
-He loves his baby sister and often likes to copy her as she kicks her legs on the floor. This can be very dangerous for Lana at times.
-Yousef is counting from 1-10 (he doesn't know what it means yet!), can chime in when I sing the alphabet song.
-He likes to sing songs with hand motions and loves ring-a-round-a-rosy!

Two weeks ago we had Yousef's birthday party (just an intimate gathering with the grandparents and aunt/uncles). Thank GOD for that. Aside from the fact that a two year old has no idea what a birthday party is, he was moody enough to make me THANKFUL that there was not a huge crowd there. Even with just us he seemed overstimulated, but he DID have a BLAST! Since Yousef loves Thomas so much, I decided to make him a Thomas cake! It took 5 days to make (I did a little bit each day) and it turned out OK. The hardest part was frosting the cake, but in the end it's the thought (and the taste of course) that count! Here are a few pics from the night:

He wore his Thomas costume for 4 minutes and 38 seconds.

Here is that tantrum I was telling you about, when we didn't open his gift right away.

Family pic!

Someone opted to have a lollipop instead of cake!

Here is the messy, time-consuming, yet tasty Thomas Cake made by Yours Truly! :)

Milestones

Milestones. I do such a terrible job of documenting them and that has to change! So here goes nothing:

Yousef is, as I mentioned in my last post, beginning to strand words together to make very simple sentences.  The maximum number of words in a sentence that I can actually understand is three! Yay for talking!  The other day, we were sitting playing in his room while Lana slept in hers.  He ran to the door to close it, but as he went, I said "No, oofy, Leave the door open!" (in arabic).  He proceeded to make a gesture with his hand (put all five fingers together to make a cone shape) and said "Mama, no ifta7 bab!" (mom, no open door!) IT was the cutest thing ever! I laughed so hard, so of course he did it over and over, until I no longer found it funny. Haha, kids will respond to all kinds of attention, even the negative.

Speaking of responding to attention, Yousef has been giving us a very hard time sleeping lately.  I feel like we are Ferberizing him all over again!  For almost a week he was waking up in the middle of the night screaming and a few times threw up. That passed, and I thought, ok, we can sleep again!  Then he started deciding to stay up late (I'm talking 2 am) and on top of that wanted to eat waffles as a midnight (*ahem, PAST midnight*) snack! I kept thinking, this can't be good.  He'll get used to needing to eat at this time every night.  So I started changing him, reading a few books, saying prayers, and putting him to bed.  For a few nights he would lay there for 15 minutes, then start screaming and crying.  For the next few nights, he would be crying before we even put him in bed. And I'm talking the screaming at the top of your lungs, hurting-the-throat, kicking-your-legs, and breaking-your-heart kind of crying Tonight, his dad took him to sleep in the guest room. *sigh* Praying he doesn't get used to that! *This too shall pass* <--repeat!

I think all this crying may be stemming from one thing: I've started weaning him from a bottle (finally!). It better be gone by his 2nd birthday!  We are using a soft-tip sippy cup (for milk only, everything else he drinks normally).  As great as it is, it seems to be causing him a lot of frustration.

And even though he is having a hard time with those few things, including eating normal meals, Yousef has found a few things he likes: whole grain waffles, fresh-fruit homemade popsicles, ranch dip (sometimes eaten directly with a spoon, gross), just about anything sweet (God, help us!), and moonwalks at our local indoor inflatable playground! At $5 per entry for him, we'll be frequenting there a lot! Once he turns 2 the price goes up, but hey.... he slept like a BABY the day we went:) SO worth it!

Lana is now officially three months and 2 days old. TIME FLIES! My little sweet pea has picked up some rather idiosyncratic habits.  For one, about a week ago, she started needing to grab a fistful of her hair in order to fall asleep.  Sometimes she likes to twirl it and grab it repeatedly (almost like she's scratching her head).  It's too funny.  The other habit, I'm not so happy about. Yesterday she put herself to sleep THREE TIMES.  I know, you're thinking, are you crazy? She put herself to sleep and you're upset?!?!?! Well, yes.... because she sucked her thumb to do it! Oh boy that is one habit I despise, so we're going to go ahead and nip that one in the bud.  I will keep trying to give her the pacifier.   Usually she will accept it at night to fall asleep, but I have to keep my hand on it firmly in order for it to stay in place. Yay me!

Baby girl has finally started to push up on her arms during tummy time and is gaining better control of her neck. Although she does still have bobble-head bouts where it uncontrollably bobbles around.  It's too funny!  She has also mastered the social smile, mashaAllah.  She loves smiling at me and her baba and Yousef!

It's been a joy to watch them both grow, al7amdulillah.  I pray to Allah everyday to continue to bless us and to protect them!

Gosh, I'm really bad at this posting thing, aren't I?  Well, here goes nothing!

Things have been crazy busy lately.  Between still trying to adjust to life with two kids, family in town, ramadan (9th month of the muslim lunar calendar where we fast from dawn until dusk), and Mohamed's summer school class that kept him out till 10 pm for four nights a week (yikes!).... I managed to stay sane and write about it!

Lana is fast approaching her 3 month mark and I'm reveling in her new developments.  For this month it's: the social smile! She loves to smile at Yousef when he plays with her (and boy does she stare him down).  Lana is starting to smile at me when I talk to her, and the best time is in the morning when she first wakes up.  Thank God she likes to sleep in like her momma and Yousef, but when she's up,  she sure is a happy baby mashaAllah! She is growing nicely al7amdulillah, quickly outgrowing her adorable outfits (some she only wore 2 or 3 times!).  But I'm happy because she finally fit into this one:

Yousef is soon to be two years old, and mashaallah he has a lot to show for it.  He's starting talking in 2-3 word sentences.  Both in arabic and english. Yay! He has an affinity for basketball (or any sport involving a ball), he has a major sweet tooth, gives me the hardest time eating (not sure how he survives on two bites of an egg and a few crackers all day long), is starting to figure out how to play on our emotions, is very rambunctious and opinionated.  He cracks me up!  To prove he loves basketball, he must dress the part:

As for me, I'm about to start school again very soon, so life will get more and more interesting! But, I can't wait to have my regularly scheduled mom-time (even if it is school!).  Well, that's all for now:)  This tired momma has GOT to get some sleep:)

A Rare Opportunity

It's a rare moment in the Elkadi house where I'm actually home, both kids are asleep, and dinner's on the stove. PHEW! I can FINALLY sit down for a few minutes to update my cyber-fans on our happenings of late!

Well, Lana is 8 weeks old today! Almost two months!  Time flies by in a very scary way. Just today I was hugging Yousef on my lap when I realized he's already almost outgrown it.  He is hot and cold when it comes to cuddles.  Usually he wants to cuddle when Lana is breastfeeding (jealous!).  But most of the time he won't stop for a hug or kiss:(  I just have to steal them from him in passing.  My baby's all grown up! It's only a matter of time before he'll start telling me how embarassing it is that I hug and kiss him in front of his friends. *Insert Evil Laugh Here*

These past two months have been a roller coaster.  But compared to my two months with Yousef, this is like a kiddie rollercoaster!  I mean, yes, I have two now.  While it is difficult and challenging, at least I know what I am doing.  I have to say that I'm doing much better than I expected I would be, al7amdulillah!  We've had family in and out since she was born, so there was always help (even my 13 year old niece would help... with the dirty diapers too!!1 Thanks Iman!).  But with all that family, there's been little down time at home.  I'm in Sugar Land almost every other day.  In fact, I spent the entire weekend there this weekend due to much needed babysitting during "mommy time!" That's right. I treated myself this weekend to a photography class (can't wait to practice and post what I've learned) and a lil fun in the sun with some girlfriends!

But I digress.

Yousef is a sweet older brother.  He kisses and hugs her (sometimes while laying down on TOP of Lana.. but we'll get to that in a moment).  He protects her (once I caught him pushing his older cousin away from Lana and yelling "no, zido [cousin], no baby nana!" while he tried to kiss her and play with her, awww).  He sings to her (Baaaby Lana, Baby Lana, I love you!).  He lets me know when she's crying, he smiles when she wakes up.

But there's another side to Yousef's relationship to Lana.  Like any other toddler, he is jealous!  He tests me to see what I will do if he pokes her, pulls her leg, strokes her hair (sometimes he's really just doing this out of curiosity, but many other times he's looking at me defiantly waiting for me to react!)  So far we've only had two or three instances where Lana cries from something he's done to her.  He usually ends up kissing her instead of pulling her leg when I ask him to stop. It's sweet.

And Baby Lana loooves her big brother too! She loves to smile for him, and her cousins.  That's right, she's starting to smile.  It melts me heart (sorry for the cliche).

Well, naptime is over now, so I'll have to run!  I'm hoping to update more often now that things are starting to settle down more.  But for now, here are a few pics to keep you entertained:)

These next three portraits were taken of Lana at 10 days old by my friend Dessa from Awfully Pretty Photography. Check her out, she's great!

These photos are just a select few from the last two months:)

All dressed in Red, White, and Blue for the fourth of July. GREAT fireworks here in Baytown:)

Yousef's first trip to Chuck E. Cheese's!

My little American cutie:)

Makes me laugh, even in her sleep!

Yousef the BIG BRO!

*** This post has been in the making since Tuesday May 31. I am no longer in the hospital with Lana like it says below, we are home al7amdulillah!***

Yousef is a big brother as of Monday May 30, 2011!

This post will be short as I am updating from my mom's iPad at the hospital (yes, still).

Lana was born at 9:35 pm on Monday night. She came rather quickly, really. My contractions started around 8 am that day, but were sporadic until about 1 pm. My husband and I left my parents' house in Sugar Land (Yousef was enjoying the pool with nana and his cousins). On our way to his parents' house for lunch (my family was coming over later) we stopped by Baby's First store to pick up our new double stroller (yay!)

In the car, my contractions started becoming regular, so we went home to pick up the hospital bag just in case. At lunch at my in-laws house, the contractions became more intense and closer together. We inhaled some food (yummyyyy stuffed grape leaves) and left for the hospital. I was admitted at around 4 pm at 5 cm dilated (halfway!). It wasn't long before both grandmas came to keep me company at the hospital with my husband. I soon got the epidural and the rest was smooth sailing al7amdulillah. About five hours after I got to the hospital, Lana Mohamed Elkadi was born.

I was overwhelmed with emotions as they laid her on my chest. The weight of your newborn child on your chest after labor and delivery is beyond any feeling I can describe. But I'll try. You feel like you've been brought to life again. Like this weight on your chest is the biggest blessing you may ever have from God. Like nothing that just happened that day mattered but that very instant. At this moment you are comforted, like she is telling you "I'm here mom, it's ok." I'll never forget that feeling for as long as I live. Because it was at that moment I felt a new (and renewed) purpose in life-to be a mother to this amazing gift and miracle from God.

Yousef came to visit her about an hour after she was born. His grandpa brought him to the hospital dressed in a button down shirt, linen pants, and brown leather sandals. And there it was before my very own eyes, my baby is all grown up! Well, for the most part. We made the mistake of forgetting to hide the baby's gift to him (Hokey Pokey Elmo). So naturally, he was drawn to the furry red creature that seems to be the center of his world these days. And immediately, without even looking at me, he ran to Elmo and with delight called out to him "Elmo!"

It took us some time to get him to refocus on me and the baby. We changed his shirt to a new one I bought him that says "BIG BRO." Dad picked him up to see the baby and I, but he wouldn't look at either one of us. He was too concerned with Elmo. But the moment he laid eyes on Lana, he seemed as though in a trance. He looked at her with great curiosity as if to say "what is this little thing my mom is holding?" It didn't last long, and he was soon back on the floor playing with Elmo. Then, dad took Lana to him. He finally acknowledged her and stared blankly before giving her a small, gentle kiss on the head.  But again, it was back to Elmo. :)

Lana was born rather large mashaAllah, so during the delivery, her left collar bone broke.  Apparently it is very common with big babies, but it's hard knowing your baby might be in pain and there's nothing you can do about it.  I was very upset about this, but have come to realize that it was a blessing in disguise.  Had her shoulders gotten stuck, there was a risk of more devastating nerve damage.  So for this I say al7amdulillah, everything happens for a reason.

We ended up staying extra nights in the hospital, as Lana had jaundice and they wanted to keep her under the Bili-light.  The first night, he levels went up rather than down, so we spent another night.  The hospital allowed me to stay in another smaller room to "nest."  This means I was not officially a patient and was free to come and go as I pleased, but that I was allowed to spend the nights (and even eat!).  LOL. Eat.  I remember the hospital food being better when I was there with Yousef.  But it wasn't so bad this time, it was bearable.  Let's just say I'm glad to be home for SURE!

Around 5 pm on Friday June 3, we finally left after getting the final results of her last blood test.  Yousef and his daddy came to pick us up.  We gathered our belongings, took our first family pictures in real clothes, and headed on our way!  It is a such a relief to be home with my babies, my mom to help (God bless her), and my supportive husband al7amdulillah!

Keep counting your blessings, because we really have so many:)

A few pics of our first days together:

Lana all comfy and cozy! MashaAllah

Yousef's First Look at Baby Lana!

Our First Family Photo

Smiling because she is happy to go home finally!

Proud Big Brother!

First Family Photo in real clothes!

Yousef watching over his little sister:)

 Here we go, the adventure begins! Wish us luck:)

Yep, He's Mine

It's been ages! But I'm back, and still in one piece, so I figure I ought to update my blog before it's too late!

Let's see.  Where have we been the last few weeks? Um, EVERYWHERE!

For one, Nana went out of town to meet her newest grandson (my NEPHEW), Ibrahim Kareem Monib.

Photo Credit: Nazia Abbas

Cute, yeah? I know, I'm jealous I haven't gotten to meet him yet either! But he'll be coming to Texas mid-June to meet his aunty and new cousin, inshaAllah!

Well, with Nana gone, we spend a lot of time at home--an on Skype.  Yousef needs his daily dose of Nana!  One day, we had called her on the laptop, and I stepped out of the room for a minute. I came back to find Yousef looking like this:

I laughed too.  He was really into their conversation! And he's learned a new word:

"eekom"--> (assalamualaikum=peace be upon you... the way muslims greet one another). It's adorable mashaAllah.

In the last three weeks, Yousef has also gone swimming twice.  He hasn't been since we were in Egypt in August 2010, so this was first time swimming as a walking (and too brave) toddler.  He had a BLAST! My friends and I headed over to Nana's house (who was out of town still) and we took him swimming.  The water was a little cold to begin with, so the first few minutes were difficult for us both.  BUT, he quickly forgot the cold and began splishing and splashing everywhere!  His favorite thing to do was stand on the step in the spa (me behind him) and sword fight using noodles with my friends. Here is a pic of Yousef in the pool!

Well, Yousef also went swimming with daddy yesterday while I was at a baby shower for a friend.  Dad says that as SOON as he pulled out the spray sunblock, Yousef starting whining like he was afraid.  He turned around and in an instant, Yousef was gone! He had gone all the way to hide in my dad's closet because he didn't like how cold the spray was last time we swam!  He started whining again as soon as dad found him.  Poor baby.  Guess the spray was a bad idea after all, I'll go get some lotion.

Finally, another highlight of the past few weeks was Yousef's "performance" at a friend's wedding ceremony.  The ceremony was held at a mosque in Sugar Land and we took Yousef with us.  He enjoyed walking back and forth between his dad, grandfather, and myself.  He also had no problem calling out "mommy" in the middle of the sheikh's speech! I was so embarrassed and went to go get him. But had a hard time keeping him in one spot (yep, he's mine!).  He found his aunt eventually and was playing with her. He wasn't obnoxious or loud (and our ceremonies are not quite as formal). Just super cute mashaAllah.

Later after the ceremony, he went to spend some time with my friends Mariem and Yasmin while we went to a celebratory dinner with family.  He apparently had a blast! But my favorite part of the night was when I had asked him what he did with them, he proceeded to babble in his Yousef-talk for 20 seconds and ended with "kha kha" <--insert snoring sound here!  He was trying to tell me that they were making snoring noises to try to get him to go to sleep! HAHA!

I'm really enjoying these last few precious days alone with him, which is why I need to wrap this post up!  I'm due in 16 days, pray for me! But I'll leave you with this:

I know Yousef is my son because:
-He likes to lick peanut butter right off the spoon.
-He loves to read.
-He seems to get ear infections without fever (Nana says I did too).
-He loves to be around people.
-He loves NANA!

Bubush n Raspberries!

Hello cyber world!  Sorry it's been so long, but with finals at school and current events I've been rather busy.  But after a few days of rest and relaxation I'm ready to blog again!

Yousef and I have been spending the last few days at home together.  With his dad busy at work and taking classes, we've been spending a little too much alone time together!  It makes for loooong days, sometimes stressful.  But I find myself falling in love with this little guy more and more everyday!  With the impending baby on the way, I'm cherishing all the time we have to spend with one another, when I've got nothing else to worry about in the world but him!

I've been telling Yousef about the baby since I found out (I'm pretty sure he doesn't understand what I really mean).  But he does enjoy pointing to my stomach, saying baby, and kissing it.  I taught him to do this, but now he does it on his own.  Anytime we're sitting on the couch he likes to lift my shirt to kiss my belly and give me the occasional raspberry on my belly.  This makes us both laugh for the next ten minutes, so he does it over and over and throws his head back in hysterical laughter.  How precious :)  Last night my husband and I were sitting outside in the backyard with Yousef (can ya say HECK YA for the awesome weather these days?).  Mohamed (my husband) leaned over to feel the baby and give her a kiss.  Yousef. Was. Jealous!  He quickly pushed his head away and gave him the dirtiest look!  It was soooo funny!  We laughed and laughed as he did it over and over again.  I'm wondering if he's protecting me, or if he's jealous that dad (whom he loves so dearly, probably more than me!) is giving someone else attention.  I'm interested to see how he'll be acting once she's here.  Boy oh boy.

He also points to the baby's clothes (frilly, girly dresses and such) and says "baby."  But for some reason I can't get him to concentrate and look at my belly when she's moving inside!  (who am I kidding, the kid's only almost 19 months old!).  Ok, that freaks me out. 19 months.  He will be 20 months older than him sister (inshaAllah, God Willing <--a saying you may see me write throughout my entries. Nothing happens except by the will of God, so I say it alot!).  Yes, so 20 months.  That means SHE'LL BE HERE BEFORE WE KNOW IT! Yikes!  And to think I feel so unprepared.

A friend was joking (she's due around the same time as me) saying "well, at least you know what you're doing!"  Well, yes, with a newborn, I do.  But with a newborn and a feisty toddler?!?!?!  THAT is new territory for me.  God help me. :)

I've been wanting to take Yousef to the zoo for a while now, but we just have not had the right weekend to go.  I'm hoping I get to take him sometime before the baby gets here.  I can't wait to see what he'll do!

We went to his doctor last week for his 18 month check up.  Everything is going well alhamdulillah (<--Thank God, I Will also use that frequently).  He is continuing to grow (mashaAllah<--what God has willed).  And he got four shots.  Poor baby, it was depressing to see him scream and cry like that.  Yousef rarely cries, he's a great kid mashaAllah.  I can only hope the little one will be as good as him!!! :P  Anyway, there should be no more shots until he's 4, so yay!

Some new things he's doing now:
-trying to blow bubbles
-saying "bubush" for bubbles
-taking me around the house and pointing to things he wants. occasionaly he assigns words to objects ("adoo" for fruits. "apol" for apple. etc.)
-playing with his new car ramp
-continuing to throw balls (and other objects) a little too well!
-still throwing his food on the floor when he doesn't like it or feels like he's finished. Lord. help me!
-putting on his dad's shoes and trying to walk around
-bringing me my scarf when he sees i'm getting ready to go out and says "bye bye!"
-sometimes he tries to put the scarf on himself
-carrying anything that looks like a purse on his arm and waving bye bye so i'll take him out!

There is much much more.  But I'll have to go be productive if I want to get anything done before baby girl gets here! Toodles!

A great resource!

Windows of Opportunity: Guidelines for Tricky Childhood Transitions

New words!

Some more words yousef says:

Teeta = titeena = pacifier
Oos = juice
Sasa = masasa = lollipop
Koya = kora = ball
Amo = uncle
Eeya = amira (aunt)
Dooda = radwa (aunt)

Plus he will copy any words we say... Even the bad ones!

Slippery Slopes and Slides

It seems like I'm losing a lot of battles these days.  I know that TV for children under the age of 2 is a big NO NO.  I recall once learning in my child development classes that it can be a huge risk factor for ADD (don't have that verified).  But I find myself resorting to cartoons every few days.  Yousef LOVES Sesame Street.  He doesn't seem to like Calliou or anything fully animated.  He loves the puppets on Sesame street (can't blame him!).

The first time I tried it was when I needed to study and he wouldn't leave me alone.  So I set him up with snacks in the high chair and turned on my laptop. The rest is history.  I also noticed he ate a little more when he was watching it (he already gives me a hard enough time eating!). I can BARELY resist it when he comes up to me and said "coon" because he wants to watch cartoons. So cute! I now only use it for no more than 30 mins at a time (well, per day, only 2 or 3 days a week) and if I need a mental or physical break. Or I just want him to eat.

Which brings me to the slippery slope part of my post.  Well, first we'll discuss his eating habits. Wait, WAHT eating habits? It drives me NUTS! I feel like a failure when he refuses to eat.  I absolutely HATE this phase.  All the things he once loved he won't eat anymore:(  His eating is very sporadic and limited.  He loves rice and molokheyya (egyptian soup we eat on rice), used to love PB sandwiches (now he just licks off the peanut butter), used to love broccoli (doesn't care for it much), and LOVES LOVES LOVES meat and chicken. Yousef also likes to eat yogurt, oatmeal, or cereal for breakfast.  Usually this is the only meal of the day he actually eats.

Someone asked me if he snacks a lot.  Honestly, I'm not sure I know the answer to that question.  I tried the whole "no snacks so he'll get hungry" thing but it was hard.  And it didn't always work.  So he DOES snack a bit (veggie chips, peanut butter crackers, raisins). I try to keep it healthy.  Well, I do. No more comments on that. :-P

Anyway, the true slippery slope we are on is drinks.  He barely wants to drink water.  And thanks to many people around him, he LOVES pepsi and cokes.  I really wanted to avoid this for as long as possible.  I NEVER give it to him willingly or in his own cup--it's only sips here and there.  But what he also likes a bit too much is juice.  TOO MUCH SUGAR! And when he does drink water, it's rare or straight out of the bath tub (gross!).

Ok, I'm starting to think this post is whiny.  I don't mean to whine.  I'm just expressing my concerns of late and honestly looking for any pointers!

Anyway. On to the slides part of our post.  Islam and I took Yousef to the new park in Mont Belvieu  (small town east of Baytown--yes, my Houston friends, there is life beyond Baytown!!!!).  It's a really nice park and he had a BLAST!  It was my husband's first time to really go with us to the park since the weather's just now getting lovely and Yousef didn't quite get the whole park thing when he was younger.  We had a picnic at the park and played for almost and hour and a half.  Here are a few pictures I took (I tried messing around with the camera to get some good shots, but I don't have skills YET) :)

such a neat swing!

slides are my favorite!

dad, you're so awesome!

mom's favorite shot!

"but i don't wanna leeeeave!"

out like a lightbulb after a good play and a good cry

mommy loves you!

Ok, toodles for now!  Can't wait to start a new week and have more adventures:)

Addendum: my first edit! (using my mac, nothing special... let me know what you think!)

They are Here! They're REALLY here!

No, the post title is NOT a display of excitement.  It's shock and awe.  What am I talking about, you ask?

THE. TERRIBLE. TWOS.

Whoever discovered the trend of kids being bratty and so unbelievably annoying was a smart person.  I guess it helps to have a label on this sporadic and quite draining behavior.  It helps me feel I'm not alone and that I"m not cray.  According to psychology, my 17 month old (almost 18!) will begin to act this way around this time.

What is "this way"?  Well, autonomy, for one.  He wants to do EVERYTHING HIMSELF.  Which would be welcome if he was good at it.  But hey, he's learning so I have to foster that.  So I allow the cereal at breakfast to be spilled onto the highchair tray and eaten off, even if it's with his hands.  At lunch, flying boiled carrots and peanut butter sandwiches are NOT a reminder that I'm living in a warzone--just that I'm living in the home of a young toddler "finding his way."

Then there's the tantrums.  We haven't quite reached the peak of the tantrums, but they sure have started--just yesterday in fact!  Yousef is not only finding his way, but also his voice--and consequently losing it.  The throaty cry when he doesn't get what he wants (or when grandpa leaves our home) is starting to become a norm in this house--in JUST TWO DAYS!  I mean seriously, who finds their voice that fast?  :)  Well, I know he means well, but this is where it gets really hard.

I mean, I'm stuck in between a rock and a hard place--do I give in and spare myself the headache?  Or do I let him stick it out until he realizes he's not getting his way.  OF COURSE I'm an advocate of the second.  It seems it would be a faster way OUT of the terrible two's, I'll just have to go out and buy me some more Tylenol.  The hardest part about this, however, is convincing others close to Yousef that it is OK to let him cry it out.  He will not be scarred for life if he doesn't get to watch a music video on my cell phone, nor will he resent me for the rest of his life if I deny him a piece of chocolate.  He simply needs to learn discipline, respect, and patience.

I am bracing for this new adventure in raising my son, with a heavy heart knowing he's "all grown up" (trust me, I know we still have a long way to go, but in his short short life, this is a HUGE step).  But I also face it with determination (hopefully unwavering) to stick to my guns.  I know, I know, choose your battles is wise.  But I guess I'll have to weigh my options to see which battles are worth fighting.

Oh, I almost forgot.  A couple more words Yousef says:
-two
-titth (six)
-haat (give me please)
-go

That about wraps this post up.  This momma is TIRED as heck.  G'night all!

Mechanic Shops and Cupcakes

I'm looking for a place to record my memories.  I've started this blog to do just that.... If you're looking for profound mommy advice or deep thoughts, you are probably in the wrong place.  I've mostly started this to keep a record of my child(ren) growing up.  But you're thinking, well, Yusra, you're just 17 months too late?  Well 17 months late it is... you know as that cliche goes, "better late than never!"

A little bit about me: I'm 24, mother of Yousef (17 months), a teacher by degree and 2 years experience, a daughter to two amazing parents, a sister to four other wonderful ladies, a wife to my husband Mohamed, and an American-born-and-raised Egyptian Muslim. Phew, so many identities!  But overall, I see myself as a fun-loving person who is somewhat particular (yet so unorganized) and a lilttle competitive (taboo opponents would LAUGH at "a little competitive").  I'm a lot of thing, but this blog will mostly be about my life as a mom.

So, since I'm 17 months late, let's get you up to speed:

My son, Yousef, was born October 7, 2009 (seems so long ago!) at 11:30 pm.  The month that follows was, and still is, a blur.  I recall sleepless nights, random feedings, frustration, elation, mild relaxation (thanks grandma(s)!), and a strength in me that I honestly never knew I had.  Through the immense exhaustion, I found a part of me that was still glad to be waking up 4 or 5 times overnight to keep this lil guy happy and well-fed.  I felt so blessed and honored to have gotten this opportunity to care about something other than myself.  I felt that I had been entrusted by God with a responsibility so great that He says "Heaven is under the feet of mothers."  WOW.  I had been chosen (not planned) to become a mother.  Surely God would not give me a task I cannot handle.  So I decided to truck on, through the exhaustion and practical mental incapacity to ensure that I completed the job entrusted in me, to raise my son a God-fearing and productive human being.  By the way, most of you know, that's a lifetime job and I'm still being employed. :)

A few of Yousef's milestones and triumphs:
-He was lifting his head while we were still AT the hospital, mashaAllah
-He loved sleeping on his stomach (<--most Drs and magazines will warn you against this, but it worked for us!)
-He got his first tooth at 4.5 months (and the rest followed quickly after)
-He wasn't big on solid foods (even though I thought he wanted them because he was a hungry hungry hippo) until 6 months
-He started using sign language around 7 months (signs he knew and used: more/again, milk, bath)
-He walked at 12.5 months, two weeks after his first birthday

Things Yousef says:
-baba (first word)
-mama
-dido (gido=grandpa)
-tata (teita=grandma, dad's side)
 -nana (grandma mom's side)
-dadda (car, this has nothing to do with car in arabic or english, and even though he says "cai" and "bia" [arabiya=car in arabic] he uses it anyway)
-no, no, no (any explanation needed?)
-nano (sinano=teeth in arabic)
-dih (this)
-tany (more-started 3/28/2011)
-appa (pick me up)

Things Yousef can do/loves to do:
-Point to hair, stomach, hand, foot, eyes, nose, mouth, butt
-Play with cars (do boys come pre-wired?)
-Play with balls (again, prewired?)
-Likes to read books, understand when I tell him to put one book back and get another
-LOVES. TO. DANCE.
-Loves anything with buttons (cell phones, laptops preferred. special place in his heart for the IPad)

That's all I can think of now!

Let's see. Today is March 29, my mom's birthday.  We came to spend the day with her.  I stopped by Sugarbaby's cupcakes to get her a few cupcakes for the occasion.  As soon as we got out of the car, Yousef saw a mechanic shop across the street.  He pointed to it and started saying "baba! baba!" Those of you who know me, know my husband owns two mechanic shops.  I was amazed that he was able to recognize what a mechanic shop looks like in a completely different place and in a different context.  These lil guys surprise me.  Babies are way smarter than we give them credit for. 

Especially Yousef.  He knows how to manipulate people.  He knows who will give him what he wants and who will let him get away with ANYTHING.  I don't need to mention any names--most moms can relate!

Ok, I think I've written enough for my first post.  I'll be updating as often as I can--but it will be tough with two classes and baby two on the way (June 8, fingers crossed!).  I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing:)