That's a wrap

Dear All 7 of my followers,

I am moving to wordpress. You can visit me at

http://midnightmama.wordpress.com/

Time for a change, hope it sticks.

Thanks & Salams :)

Mmm mmm, good.

This was my first time making chicken fraciase (sans white wine).



I got the idea from my sister and winged her verbal instructions. Hamdullah it was outrageously delicious and we ate every bite. It was SO tasty that there was dead silence at the table; something we haven't had in a VERY long time! I'm starting to like this BlogPress!

Salams, sisters ;)

Posted on the fly with my iPhone

Update


Salams sisters & Belated Eid Mubarak,



If this post seems disorganized and out of sequence, it's because I am disorganized and out of sequence.....life has been bananas, and solitary moments are rare.


Well- I might as well start of by announcing that my husband, little man and I welcomed our beautiful baby girl during the month of Ramadan. The preganancy was worrisome this time with health issues, and surviving the third trimester in hot, steamy summer and having a fasting Ramadan vegetable for a husband. I believe the stress of worrying about me and the pregnancy, and working too much contributed to his plight lol.

We left home at 430 am the morning of surgery; I had been dreading this moment because I am aware of the risks associated with surgery, and I inshaAllah I was leaving my little boy behind, blissfully asleep whilst Mima (grandma) watched over him. I always find the drive in to be so memorable. Ive passed this hospital a million times in my life, but it seemed so much more exhilerating, personal and memorable. We checked in, they took me behind the scenes to get changed etc, and the waiting began. The hospital was quiet, and as sunrise approached, everything came to life. The hustle and bustle began, and then it was my turn to walk into the chilly and sterile operating room.


Anywho- our little girl was born via repeat c-section, and the birth was amazing!!! I didn't think it could be all that, since my first c-section was quite shocking and depressing- and you know, there is so much out there about natural births being better (and I do agree although I've never experienced one) etc. We were much more prepared this time, and I felt SO present (thanks H.A.) and involved. My doctors were awesome, they took great care of us, and we had a little bonus in the operating room: the neonatologist that was present for the birth (I'm diabetic) turned out to be muslim! I couldnt see his name tag, but his long beard, and 'mark' on his forehead from prayer (anyone know what this is called???) clued us in right away. It might seem trivial that something like this would make us happy- it's just not very often we stumble upon another muslim.


After the spinal was in place, and the surgery began, there was so much excitement in the air. It was very quiet and intense. I felt like it took an eternity for baby girl to come out. She made her debut kicking and screaming, with a perfectly round head, black fuzz from head to toe, chubby lips and cheeks, and robust pink color! Alhamdulillah she was totally unaffected by my health issues. My husband whispered the call to prayer in her ear while my surgery was finishing up, so I missed it :/
Baby girl was in recovery with me for about an hour; I was allowed to hold & nurse her, and of course proud papa snapped a billion pics of her. She was kept in NICU for the first 24 hours of life as precaution, its hosiptal policy anytime a baby is born to an insulin dependent mother. It killed me not to have her with me, but she was perfectly healthy unlike a lot of her roomates. And we are so thankful for this.


Later that evening, when i was able to get out of bed and into a wheel chair, they took me to see her. She literally took my breath away. I swear I have never seen anything so pretty and sweet in my entire life. Right away I just felt my heart belonged to her, and the desire to cuddle her was overwhleming. She was so soft and tiny, and the minute she settled into my arms, I just cried and cried and cried, tears of joy and thanking Allah for this amazing and precious gift. Her twinkling eyes and faint kitten cries were just the most adorable, yet heart wrenching combination- simply because she couldn't room in with me yet, and I already missed her terribly.


When I fist got to my room after survey ,I had to share it with someone, and the minute I heard my roomate expectorating out loud in the common handwashing sink we shared, I lost my mind and demanded my husband to find me a private room (and he did!). I didnt have a private room last time either. I also loathed that there were tons of visitors and men in the room and I did not want to have to worry about modesty, especially with the post partum bleeding and nursing. The curtains did not provide compete privacy.

After five long days and baby going back to special care for 24 hours for double phototherapy (she had pretty bad jaundice) we came home to begin our life as a family of four.

She is amazing; simply the sweetest little girl i know.


















Posted on the go with my iPhone

Be Warned

If for some reason, there is a brother reading this post, let this be a lesson to you:

Never, ever tell your pregnant wife you are bringing home fresh pizza, and then come home without it.

Ive got two words for a situation like this. Pine box, baby.

Pine.

Box.

Suburban Cowboy



He just loves wearing his new snow boots in the house, with no pants on. It is the cutest thing. He struts around like he's the new mayor in town!

He's got just a bit of status chubbicus left in his meaty little legs. Oh it pains me to see the pudgy legs go, but he's growing into a toddler now!

Oh No She Didn't.....Part II

Oh How I love Eid Swaps. Well- Since I've only swapped with my homeslice HMM aka UmmSalihah , I should clarify that I adore Eid Swapping with her! Everything she does is so incredibly thoughful; take a look at this:


The beautiful handmade eid card with a lovely message inside.


Gorgeous Bobbi Brown eye shadows, skin and foot treatments, and lovely beaded bracelets. I am loving the Saudi, alcohol free perfume. Its a musk, which is my favorite- it just agrees with my body chemistry.



Chocolate (some not pictured hehe), Sohan Halwa, henna and miswak! PLUS fantastic CD for my son, by Yusuf Islam (aka Cat Stevens)......the songs are so adorable, especially "Ramadan Moon". I am so very thankful for this. iBaby LOVES it.


Three very off the hook GORGEOUS hijabs. Im lookin' good these days thanks to HMM!

I picked up the package on Eid, my mail carrier doesnt like to leave pakcages at the door (Im so appreciative that has concern for other's belongings). It came just in time, as my stress levels were alarming because of the impending move, and it totally caused me to take a step back, reflect, and be thankful :)

Thanks sis, it's perfect :)

Finally, A Moment to Catch My Breath

What a week it has been. I am so relieved that the big move is over and that alhamdulillah we are very happy in our new apartment. We were cramped in a 600 square foot upstairs apartment with one bedroom, and finally found a great apartment with two bedrooms, groud floor, private entrance and approx 1000 square feet! It is so freeing, in so many ways to be here. No more clutter, more closets, iBaby has his own room now and adjusted immediately. We are all sleeping much better. My only regret is that we didn't do this sooner, however we waited to get the best deal possible.

Eid was OK. Alhamdulillah we are well, and lived to see another one. We moved right smack in the middle of Eid, so we didn't do anything special. My hub went for Eid prayer, and I stayed home with a coughing, sniffling little boy. He is OK, had a touch of croup.

Inshaallah I am excited to have more space, and now we can have family and friends over for dinner. So many jumped in to help us move last weekend. My husband would like us to make an authentic Tunisian meal to thank them all for their time.

I have been off from work for about a week, and how I loved it. I went back to work this yesterday hamdullah, but I miss being home with my little tribe. My son is now communicating with two words at a time, and it KILLS me to be away. Last night as I was leaving, my son looked at me and ask " I come?". I got in my car and cried. He is too sweet for words. The other day I was feeling a little weepy about a few things, and I started to cry. The little bear came up to me and asked "u cy-in, u ok?".

Im driving a loaner car from the dealership we got my wheels from. Our car has had some serious problems that cant seem to be fixed. It has less than 10,000 miles, and I certianly hope we don't have a lemon on our hands inshaallah.

We had a new bed delivered to our new place the day we moved in. Buying a mattress is basically a gamble. There is really no way to know, in the showroom, if laying on a bed for 15 seoncds is going to really give you an idea of what it will belike to sleep on it. Our first night here, we were drop dead exhausted, beyond what we thought possible. We managed to eat, get showers and we COULD NOT WAIT to go to sleep. It was like sleeping on concrete. My husband ended up on the couch, and I seriously contemplated the floor. What a dissappointment! We have decided to give it time, two weeks- before we send it back. So far- its getting really comfortable!!! I think its a keeper!

That's about it for boring updates. i hope you are all well and had a very blessed Eid!

iMuslimah