Sept. 18 - Ayla's first Ramadan draws to an end

Tuesday, September 8 - I am still working on Ayla's daycare enrollment papers although I am doing so with a heavy heart. The thought of transitioning my baby to someone else's care still makes me feel sad. I wonder how I will handle it when the time comes? I know that it's hard for every mom whenever they return to work. And, I know many working moms do it but still, I wonder how I will do it :)

Maybe it's just to pass the time during Ramadan but,

today, I have started thinking about our Eid plans because I want to make sure that Ayla has the best first Eid. I am thinking about various options to get all of our family living in the area together and, there's a possibility that Dadoo and Poppy are coming. It would be really fun if at least one set of Ayla's grandparents are here for her first Eid :)

Ayla and I are continuing our busy days of increased activities. Today, we listened to more Baby Einstein music. We also worked on tummy time. At the beginning, she didn't really enjoy tummy time but now she's starting to tolerate it - she doesn't cry throughout tummy time but she also doesn't enjoy it. We are also continuing our reading routine or should I say, my reading to her and her trying to put the book in her mouth. Although when I read to her with emphasis in my words, little Ayla does often look at me and then, the book, and then me.

Also, today, Ayla reached a milestone achievement! After days and weeks of trying, Ayla finally put one of her feet in her mouth. It was the cutest thing in the world because she's been trying and trying to do so for the past few weeks and everytime she got close, she would "drop" her foot and it wouldn't quite get there. So today, she met with success and starting biting on her toes and drooling all over her foot. Like I said, the cutest thing in the world - you had to be there. It remains to be seen whether she will suck her toes.

When Zaid got home later, I went to TJ Max. You know why? I need more shirts to wear at home because my precious princess is always throwing up milk on my shirt so I go through several shirts a day and, I can't possibly do the laundry fast enough to have enough clean shirts :) Zaid got some precious time with his precious baby girl while I was out...

Later that night after we broke fast, I had a mini-test of love for my little one. I was

walking up the stairs with Ayla in my arms when I tripped a little. But what should have been a basic trip was complicated by the fact that since I had Ayla in my arms, I could not reach out and grab the rail so I fell down a little harder than I normally would. So there! I passed my first test of love for Ayla because I was willing to get hurt so that my baby would not :)

Wednesday, September 9 - Since I tripped yesterday, my leg has been hurting so today, I decided to go to the doctor in the afternoon to have it checked out. The doctor said that I was not allowed to bring our little darling to the office so I had to ask Zaid to work from home again :) Did I mention how my precious husband is unable to get any real work done when he works from home these days? Its because he can't concentrate with our little cutie patootie demanding so much attention. However, he occasionally has to work from home anyway as we learn to adjust to being new parents. Well, at least Zaid got to relax a little at home while he is fasting before iftar :)

Thursday, September 10 - After a great day as usual with my little bunny, we had Sarah and Samer over later in the evening. Samer Khalu was going to to to a friend's house to watch the kick-off of the NFL season so Sarah Khala

decided to come over and spend some time with Ayla. Before leaving however, Samer came over to have iftar dinner with us. As he played with Ayla, he kept thinking that he wished that he didn't have a prior commitment so that he could keep playing with her. Ayla was so adorable - she kept trying to put Sarah and Samer's hands in her mouth. In fact, it's almost like she was attacking them for teething purposes :) This habit of hers is getting stronger and stronger as she keeps teething. Zaid came back after a while but then later went to tarawi. After Same

r left, Sarah stayed and played with Ayla. I think the sessions that she has with Ayla are preparing Sarah for when she's a parent :)

Friday, September 11- Saturday, September 12 - Friday was a chill day. In the evening, Zaid and I spent time with Ayla. My how Fridays change once you become a new parent. But you know what, these are the best Fridays of my life :) On Saturday, we had plans to meet Sarah

, Samer, and Waheeda for iftar at Macaroni Grill in Reston (same place where we had the nice get-together with my cousin Ayesha from Canada). We also invited Nadia Phuppo to join us. During the day, Nadia was taking her MCAT so the iftar would be a good way for her to relax after the tough exam. While Nadia was hard at work on the MCAT, Zaid and I took one of our many trips to Babies R Us to get some much-needed stuff for Ayla. Today's mission was a toy box among other things. That's right, Ayla now has enough toys that we need to organize them. How cute because our house is fast becoming solely Ayla's domain!! After we returned from the store, Nadia came over since her test was over. She got some quality time with Ayla before we headed over to Macaroni Grill. Ayla was dressed to the nines; she was wearing her brown sweatsuit. She looked so adorable. At the table, Ayla had to be kept restrained by anyone who was holding her because she just wanted to grab the plates, glasses, and silverware. We took turns holding her as we broke fast. As we munched on our food, Ayla munched on...her hands and her toys

:)

Sunday, September 13 - Today was a very special day for me! It was the first day that I would introduce my baby to my favorite team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Today is the first game of the season for most teams and although expectations for my team are low, I am a loyal Bucs fan having hung in there as a child when the Bucs were in the midst of 14 consecutive losing seasons. I used to attend games with my dad back in the day, when they were wearing bright orange and white uniforms. As you may recall, Ayla's introduction to the Bucs came during her trip back from Tampa when she wore the adorable Bucs one-piece. I didn't make her wear the outfit today because it's still a little warm but I wore my jersey and I had Ayla sit next to me as the Bucs played. Yes, don't worry, I paid attention to Ayla and didn't stare at the game but still, her presence had a huge significance for me. Ayla was so cute because she kept staring at my bright red Bucs jersey (she's attracted to bright colors) and kept trying to put it in her mouth. She played on the floor next to me curious as to why her mom was so excited to watch the TV. The Bucs lost to the Dallas Cowboys but I still enjoyed the game. And, fasting went by a little bit faster :)

Ayla's Baba went in the morning to Ashburn to get us some delicious Pakistani food. Later in the day, he went to his Arabic class.

September 14-18 - During this week, I have started to think about what to give our little

princess for her first Eid gift. I think a toy that will allow her to learn how to sit while keeping her entertained is the best idea but I have my eyes open on the lookout.

I've also started to think of her Halloween costume. I've been looking on the web for some ideas. It's never to early to think of what my cutie should wear...

While I am fasting, our little one keeps getting more and more energetic. She is starting to make more and more sounds. She's making an "ababa ababa ababa" sound along with an "umma umma" sound. Hopefully, these are the forerunners to "Baba" and "Mama"!

Also, did I mention how cool she is in the bathtub? The little one lies down on her recliner in the bathtub and just stays chill usually putting both hands in her mouth. It's sooo cute because usually, she has soapy hands! She's so relaxed during the shower that even if soap or shampoo accidentally gets in her eyes, she doesn't seem to mind. Or, if she is a little chilly - she will have goosebumps but not really be concerned.

Our baby also took another huge step this week - she started eating oatmeal cereal in addition to rice cereal. Now that she is getting comfortable with rice cereal, we are introducing her to oatmeal cereal. The first time I gave it to her on Monday, she did not seem to like it, making a cute face and letting it drip out of her mouth. She didn't eat most of it. Although she started eating more of the oatmeal, little by little, I started mixing it with rice cereal so that she would enjoy a little bit more. It's sooo cute when she eats because she gets the food all over her face and, I must admit that sometimes I drop it on her high chair and lap :)

Ayla is also starting to jump in place a lot harder. It really looks like she's just going to take off like a rocket! I'm so surprised that something so little could have this month muscular strength...

Our little princess turned 5 months old on Wednesday, September 16. It has been five months of absolute joy. There are no words to describe how much I love her. I thank Allah everyday for this blessing.

On Thursday, we found out that Mommy and Poppy are definitely coming this weekend to celebrate Ayla's first Eid with her. We are sooo excited that they will get to spend this momentous occasion with her. Ayla will be surrounded by her loving family on this important day.

Nadia Phuppo came over today to spend some time with her niece. Ayla was her typical, excited self. She really puts on a show whenever anyone comes over :) I was sooo tired today from the lack of sleep and fasting that I was particularly happy that Nadia came over today so that we could make sure that Ayla had a nice time!

I was wondering how Zaid and I would do but I think we passed the test taking care of Ayla during Ramadan! I think we kept up with our little bundle of energy...

Until later,

Saadia

Sept. 7 - As we get less energetic during Ramadan, Ayla gets more energetic!

Monday, August 31 - Friday, September 4 - Ayla is beginning to squirm and move around more. When I'm changing her diaper, she is beginning to squirm. It's becoming so hard to make her stay still making it really difficult to change her diaper. What used to be an easy task is becoming tough :)

If you stand her up on your lap, she "jumps" up and down in place. She looks like she is ready to take-off. As long as you hold her arms, she keeps jumping. She's full of excitement as she jumps up and down. Perhaps she will stand or walk early?

The little bear is also developing a bigger and bigger smile and a deeper and deeper laugh. It's so rewarding as a mom to see her react to my smile and words.

She continues to teeth and for some reason, she is not using teething toys and rings as much as she is putting her hands, other people's hands, and other things in her mouth. It's so cute to see her try to put both fists in her mouth. And the drooling just keeps increasing :)

I'm trying to keep up with her growing activity but it is so hard with the fasting. Week 2 of Ramadan has drained more energy from me than Week 1. Speaking of Ramadan, Ayla is maintaining her "Ramadan schedule." She keeps getting up at sehri to eat no matter what time sehri is. And, she keeps needing to eat precisely at iftar time no matter what time iftar is. Poor Zaid is trying to keep energetic for Ayla despite his schedule - he drinks coffee after sehri and goes to work and then when he comes home, he holds Ayla while I prepare iftar.

Ayla is also continuing to get more and more used to her crib. She is starting to stay in the crib longer without crying. She tends to stay on her back in one corner but now, she is looking around the crib. It looks like she will begin exploring the rest of the crib in a few days! Zaid and I know that we have to transition her to her crib for bedtime soon but it's sooo hard!! I don't want our baby to "move out"!! She's growing too fast! Whenever I think of Ayla moving to her crib, I think of how hard it will be when she moves out to go to college :(

I have to admit that knowing that our baby is in our room at night makes me think we protecting her. Plus, when I wake up at night to feed her, I love seeing her after I put her back to sleep in the bassinet.

The bassinet is so smug and cozy and the crib looks so big; it's like a microcosm of the greater world - so big and open!

Saturday, September 5 - We decided to take Ayla to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum today. We had been talking all summer about how we wanted to take our little princess downtown to see the monuments or a museum or some other tourist attraction. We figured that since it was hot by the monuments and Ayla would just get stuck looking upwards at the sky from her stroller, we should take her inside the museum. Plus, Ayla is not supposed to be exposed to the sunlight and there was just too much sun. Picking the Air and Space Museum was fitting because it's Ayla's Baba's favorite museum. Now Ayla was at the museum that her Baba liked to visit as a child :)

Although Ayla was in her stroller, Zaid and I took turns holding her. It was sooo cute watching her because she would look up at the suspended airplanes and aircraft in the museum. Of course, she was more attracted to the bright-colored models but she looked at all the models and objects. And, she absolutely loves to people-watch. She moves her head around actively catching glimpses of interesting people. We sat down in the cute McDonald's Cafe located in the museum just to catch a breather (low energy due to fasting). I sat down at the table and let Ayla either sit in my lap or stand on the table. I also let her stand and sit on the Cafe bar. She was sooo happy and so excited. She kept jumping in place, smiling, laughing and drooling. The sight was way to precious for words :) As Ayla kept playfully engaging with us, there was a couple at the end of the table that kept stealing glances at her. Mashallah, Ayla gets a lot of attention due to her cute smiles and playfulness!!

After a few hours, we left the museum to go home because we had some iftar plans for

the evening.

In the evening, we went to Bamian Restaurant to meet our friends Asim and his wife Fauzia and Jamal and his wife Arefa. Bamian is one of our favorite (especially Zaid's) kabob restaurant so it was only so fitting that we decided to meet her for iftar. Zaid and I got to Bamian first and we noticed a much "smaller" Bamian - the restaurant had closed much of its space to accommodate a wedding event. So, it was already cramped and then, Zaid and I noticed that there was a kid next to our table who looked like she had chicken pox. Although we were waiting on our friends, we had already decided to leave. Once our friends arrived, we told them that we felt more comfortable if we went to another restaurant and, our friends readily agreed because they are very understanding. This was the first time that Zaid and I had to deal with parental problem so publicly and, I think we passed with flying colors! It made me realize that from now on, we can't think of our convenience; we must think about Ayla first.

So we left Bamian and went to Nizam's, a delicious Turkish restaurant. We had a wonderful meal. And, our friends took turns holding and playing with a very active Ayla. Ayla kept standing on our laps and trying to swat the silverware and plates. This was the first time we realized that she was alert and strong enough to reach for the objects on the table. So, the rest of the night, whoever was holding Ayla had to be extra careful. By the way, tonight was the first time that Fauzia and Asim were se

eing our little googleberry!! After a long night of wonderful fun and conversation, we went home. There is nothing like iftar with your friends :)

Sunday, September 6 - It was finally me and Zaid's turn to host an iftar for family! After a few years of attending iftars at Sarah and Samer's and Adnan and Fawad's, we owed our siblings an iftar. And, this was going to be the first iftar that Ayla would host :) When we woke up, we started getting the house ready. We decided to use the classic "divide and conquer" method to get ready for the iftar. I took care of Ayla and Zaid did the cooking! He made kabobs and kabob burgers for dinner. We were expecting to host Waheeda, Sarah, Samer, Adnan, Fawad (last-minute surprise guest from NY!), Samer's brother Omar, and our friend Mustafa. Adnan and Fawad came a little bit before iftar and helped us set up. It was sooo cute to see the Chachas prepare for iftar from the help with the organizing and cleaning, taking care of Ayla and helping to cut the watermelon! After every one arrived and we broke fast, the energy level truly picked up and we all had a wonderful time! Ayla was in peak form (of course I fed her right at iftar time when she "suddenly" got hungry!). Everytime anyone would hold her, she would lean all the way back (ironically, she's so trusting of the person that she is hoping to trust!) and look at their face. Once she verified that the person was trustworthy, she would move on - try to touch their face, drool all over them (face, arms and shirts!) and try to put their fingers and arms in her mouth. While we all enjoyed conversation, Ayla always mostly took the person holding her out of the conversation because she was so actively engaged with that person. Mustafa enjoyed meeting and playing with Ayla. Omar also enjoyed her company. He was kind enough to bring some cute cute clothes for Ayla (a brown sweatsuit and a onesy with pants with little booties on the end). During the conversation, Weedy taught everyone about "The Bear" game - where you add the word "bear" at the end of the activity that Ayla is doing. For e.g., if Ayla is sleeping, then she is Sleeping Bear. I think this is how it goes but you will have to ask Weeda again for more clarification. Adnan didn't seem to get the hang of The Bear game but Weedy tried to teach him and we tried to help :) Ayla seems to be very lively around company - obviously she is a very social baby. Often she forgets to nap and eat when she's around company. Oh, lest I forget, the Chachas brought an awesome chocolate cake from a famous cake place in Georgetown. It was so delicious and rich!

The iftar was an absolutely wonderful time and we will have to do this more often in coming Ramadans!! Or, maybe, we just need to have more dinner parties.

Monday, September 7 - Labor Day couldn't be more timely this year because after the busy weekend we had, Zaid could use the day off! Of course, I'm still enjoying my long maternity leave :) Today, we both just chilled and just performed our most important job - taking care of our little juicy Ayla :)

Until later, Saadia

August 30 - Ayla starts to do more and more...

This week, Ayla expanded her horizons yet again. Although her mommy is tired from fasting, she worked really hard to keep contributing to our baby's development. But before I go on, I must tell you about this interesting schedule that Ayla is on. Zaid and I wake up for sehri in the wee hours and no matter how much sehri moves day by day this week, Ayla manages to wake up sometime during the middle of sehri. Therefore, Zaid and I decided that we should wake up 45 minutes before Fajr every day of Ramadan. That way, one of us can eat while the other feeds Ayla. I realize Ayla is a good Muslim and, plans on fasting one of these days, but wow, does she have the schedule down pat!! She apparently gets hungry when Zaid and I need to eat :) Maybe she just needs to stock up for her 2-hour fasts. As her Dadoo says, Ayla's doing the Islamic baby fast - after every two hours, she eats. In fact, now when she spits up her rice cereal, I think she's just rubbing it in that she can eat whenever she wants.

And, lest you think our beautiful princess does this only during sehri, she also happens to be hungry right at iftar - again, no matter what time iftar is on a given day.

Monday, August 24 - As you can imagine, I was exhausted from the fast. However, I de

cided that from now on, whenever I go to the nursery, I would put Ayla in the crib so that she gets used to it. Zaid and I haven't decided when we will move her there but I started putting her in. When I first put her in, the cuteness I witnessed was beyond words!! Ayla looked so small i

n the crib - it kind of reminded me of the first time we put her in her bassinet. She was lying down toward one side of the crib and she only occupied the middle space. You should have seen the look on herface. It was one of what the heck am I doing here. I turned on her Little Princess set mobile and she seemed very amused by the music. I also put a few stuffed animals and a caterpillar toy which attaches to the bars of the crib with velcro. Later on, Ayla would be attra

cted to this toy because it had teething toys attached to it. In fact, she would flip over to the caterpillar, grab it, and start teething. But this would be down the road not now.

What I did notice however was that whenever I tried to leave the nursery and come back to see how Ayla would handle it, she would cry. She could tell she was in a new place and she got scared as a result. So, I could tell some training was needed and, I decided that whenever we move her into the nursery, I will sleep with her there a few nights to get her used to it.

Today, I also started playing the music that I bought for Ayla last week. I played Baby

Einstein's playtime music. Ayla seemed to enjoy it sooo much. It made her hyper as she heard it for the first time while standing in her activity center. I played it throughout the day. She would smile real big and start jumping in place. Considering that the music is in my laptop, when she looks at the laptop playing music, she attempts to "attack" the computer, really trying to put it in her mouth. Combining music-playing with reading really made me feel like I was contributing to Ayla's development :)

Also today, Khala Sarah called with a special offer for Ayla :) First, she asked me to check my email. When I checked, I saw the cutest thing!! A cute Evite for Ayla's first iftar. Against a light blue background, it had a cute little elephant with a crown on it. The Evite was for this coming Saturday and would include Sarah, Samer, me, Zaid, Ayla and Adnan - a cute, little family get-together. Of course I replied yes - I was so excited and so was Ayla!!! I marked "Yes" and bringing one guest :)

Tuesday, August 25 - I am filling out the forms to enroll with Ayla's new day care provider. Boy, is there a lot of paperwork in this country. It's time consuming and now, I realize will take time away from me spending time with Ayla.

Every morning, I bring Ayla in front of the mirror behind my bedroom door. She look

s at it, and starts smiling. As each day goes by, she looks at the mirror, then looks at me, often touching her face or my face and then, touching the mirror as if to "connect" the images in her mind. And because she drools, when she puts her hand on the mirror, there are drool streaks! It is unbelievably cute to see her realize that she and her mom are looking at the mirror.

Ayla is also in the process of adding and perfecting another skill to her repertoire. When I try to kiss her on her tummy, she starts laughing - that's right, laughing!! The first time I heard it, I was in shock with happiness. It was this cute laugh which is hard to describe - you have to hear it for yourself :) As the days went by, Ayla's laugh got longer and richer!

She's also starting to look at a person's face when he/she hold her so that she can "assess" just exactly who is holding her. When she recognizes someone, she just goes back to leanin

g on their shoulder. However, when it's someone she doesn't recognize, she starts crying. Other things that make her cry include when someone comes from behind her and tries to surprise her or when someone makes a funny face or sound.

Wednesday, August 26 and Thursday, August 27, Ayla continued to work on important milestones. I keep putting her on her tummy for minutes at a time so that she gets used to it but our little baby usually can maintain this position for a few minutes before she gets upset. She starts crying and just kicking her legs. Also, the cutest thing happens - she appears to get her arms stuck under her tummy which makes her more upset :) I just want to make sure she is not too late in learning to crawl. Despite her challenges however, Ayla's getting better and better about tummy time, better than last week.

She's also enjoying the toys that I bought her. So, it's easier to keep her entertained. Before, I used to hold her and try to play with her but now I can lie her down or help her sit and she enjoys the music coming from the toys.

In the evenings, the special episodes I refer to as the "Baby and Baba Show" take place albeit with Zaid having less energy. He's so cute because he tries to remain energetic for Ayla though he goes to work and is fasting. He comes home a little before iftar. During this time, I prepare our iftar dinner in addition to getting snacks ready to break fast while Zaid plays with Ayla. At iftar, we take turns breaking fast and then, eating dinner while the other plays with Ayla. Zaid plays with her, feeds her, and helps comfort her in the nursery. It's so cute because he will sit on the rocking chair in the nursery and rock Ayla to sleep often listening to the Qur'an on his I-phone. The sweet melody of the Qur'an calms Ayla down and often puts her to sleep. He also takes her to the balcony. All-in-all, he gets valuable Baba and Baby alone time :)

Friday, August 28, we had iftar at Auntie Rahila's house. Imran mamoo and family were planning to leave tomorrow for Kuwait so we wanted to see them again in addition to breaking fast with our lovely family :) Of course, we managed to take turns breaking fast while engaging Ayla. Auntie Valerie is so cute because she takes Ayla out for a walk to provide her with some peace and quiet. Rahila Khala is still trying to work out what she wants to be called by Ayla some day. Candidates include "Khala Dadi and Khala." Our Kuwaiti family branch took some more adorable pictures of Ayla. Ayla did cry a bit but we took her upstairs to Nadia's room and helped her go to sleep. And, the evening cannot be completely explained without telling you that Nadia took more adorable pictures of Ayla.

Saturday, August 29, was the iftar that Khala Sarah and Khalu Samer set up with much, much help from Khala Weedy! Ayla wore the cutest outfit - pink OshKosh overalls. Her first set of overalls. Earlier in the week, I told Sarah that Ayla would be dressed in some of her finest :)We had some delicious burgers and great appetizers not to be outdone by some delicious cakes including a home-baked Red Velvet cake from Sarah. Chacha Adnan also came to make up a cute, little family iftar. Ayla maintained her Ramadan schedule by needing us exactly at iftar time - but this time, it was not for feeding but because her teeth were hurting. Our little angel starts making humming noises along with crying when her teeth hurt. Sarah comforted Ayla while Zaid and I were breaking fast. Then, Sarah and Zaid took turns walking with Ayla outside. Sarah and Samer have this nice lake with a walkway around it which is very nice and makes for a relaxing scene. We were hoping to walk Ayla around it in the stroller but our little princess eventually started getting sleepy. We put her in Sarah and Samer's bed to put her to sleep.

I taught Sarah and Weedy Ayla's sleep routine. First, you lay Ayla down between two pillows. The pillows must be close to each side of her body. Then, Ayla starts "hugging" each pillow in turns eventually, putting her face against one pillow and falling asleep. While she does t

his pillow-hugging, you must put the pacifier in her mouth. She will suck on the pacifier while until she is fully asleep eventually, spitting it out :) However, during this whole time, you can't be playful or make funny faces while she is tired otherwise she will be half-playful and half-sleepy and she won't be able to concentrate on fallin;g asleep!

While Ayla was sleeping, the rest of us ate, had dessert and engaged in wonderful and funny conversation. It's sooo nice that Ayla will have loving family around as she grows up and...her parents also enjoy having close family around. Thank you Sarah and Samer for the nice, home-cooked iftar!

Sunday, August 30, Zaid and I met our friend Zeshan for iftar at one of favorite Thai restaurants. Ayla was being so active and so cute. Zaid and I took turns standing her on our lap. She kept jumping in place and, the little mischievous one kept trying to grab the silverware and swat the plates and glasses. She's a handful!! Zeshan remarked how cute Ayla keeps getting and how active she is. He's the uncle of a niece and nephew so he's got experience with little ones! It's just so funny how Ayla just goes about her thing not really worrying about her parents schedule and plans. It's true what they say - kids really are the boss :)

This weekend, we also took Ayla to the nearby Dunn Loring Park. Although it's not that big, whether Ayla was in the stroller or in our arms, she had her eyes wide open as she checked out the trees, insects, and scenery. We went right before dark so didn't have too much time but we will have to take her to the park again since she enjoyed it so much!

Talk to you soon, Saadia

August 23 - Hanging out with family, friends, and more

Monday, August 17 was a very busy day! In the morning, Ayla's mommy had to go to the dentist. Not something that mommy loves to do but it has to be done. Whenever I have to go to a doctor's appointment of any kind, I usually can't take Ayla so I have to have Zaid stay home and watch her. Zaid usually works it out so that he can stay at home with his sweetie - he's such a lifesaver!! So, while I went to the appointment, Baba and baby got to spend time together. When I got home, I had to rush and get Ayla ready and prepare her bag because we had a lunch date!! Yesterday, my supervisor at work invited Ayla and I to join my team for lunch at a local restaurant. And, it was supposed to be a surprise for the rest of the team. When Ayla and I walked in, my boss was so happy to see me and the team was very surprised! We had a great catch-up lunch. Ayla was in the hands of one of my colleagues the whole time because she thought that Ayla was so cute, she could not let her go! Ayla was wearing a cute little black dress outfit. The whole time, she kept standing, drooling, and trying to grab things from the table. Our little baby turned 4 months old yesterday and is showing increased liveliness as usual, constantly surprising us with new moves. My boss was seeing Ayla for the first time because we could never pick a mutually-convenient time to meet. He was nice enough to give us yet another cute gift for Ayla - a cute little chair, built perfectly for a princess. After we left, I was full of happiness that my whole team finally got a chance to see Ayla :) The other thought I had, after an hour of hearing about my colleagues' work issues, was that I was glad I was not at work these days :)

After lunch, Ayla and I had to rush to get ready for her 4 month old doctor's appointme

nt. This was a big-time appointment! Ayla was promoted to solid foods - she was asked to start rice cereal. Our little baby is growing so fast - I mean what a huge step, moving past only liquids! Ayla also gets to wear sunblock now when she's out in the sun. Wow, our little angel has gone beach mode! She also got some vaccines today and, like before, I got tears in my eyes watching her cry. For some reason, I didn't want Ayla to think I betrayed her and let her get the shots! As usual, our little sunshine started smiling and jumping when she saw her pediatrician. And, the doctor enjoyed playing with her. Today, our little girl weighed in at 11 pounds and 14 ounces and, she measured 23 1/2 inches in length! I guess our girl isn't so little anymore :) She jumped in percentiles for both weight and height and most importantly, remains very healthy mashallah!

Tuesday, August 18, was not a great day for Ayla. She was feeling a little unwell from getting the shots yesterday. She cried a lot due to the pain and she had a slight fever. I was going to have Imran Mamoo and family visit today but we decided to wait until tomorrow when Ayla might be feeling better. So, the rest of the day was spent taking care of Ayla and doing a few tasks at home.

Wednesday, August 19 is Ayla's Khala Sarah and Khalu Samer's wedding anniversary. It's been three wonderful years for them and this year, they got best wishes from their niece :) Ayla was feeling a little better today so Imran Mamoo and family paid a visit. Although they stayed for about 2 hours, in this time, Ayla went through all possible moods! She was happy and drooling. She cried sometime due to teething pain or pain from the shots. Zara and Maha were so excited to see Ayla play in her activity center and Zara seemed to be really impressed with the toy! They took a lot of wonderful pictures. And, Ayla received some very cute gifts - a pair of nice, gold earrings and a wonderful framed picture of embroidery containing Ayla's name, birthdate, and weight. The picture is sooo cute and now hangs in Ayla's room! Adnan Chacha

also arrived toward the end of the visit and stayed until dinner. It was sooo cute to see him spend time with Ayla. He definitely has the loving touch with her.

Thursday, August 20, Khala Waheeda paid us a visit. She had just returned from a nice long summer vacation in Florida. Boy, was her visit essential and timely because it allowed me to run to Target and get much-needed things for Ayla. Plus, I got Weedy's valuable opinions. I bought some toys to keep precious Ayla entertained and busy because she is growing so fast, she's getting bored with the basic rattles. I also got her some cute one-piece sleepwear sets. We also bought Baby Einstein lullabies and playtime music which should set th

e right moods for Ayla! While we were shopping, Khala Weeda wanted to hold Ayla the whole time because she missed her ever since we left Florida. It was so cute because eventhough her arms were getting tired, she wouldn't put her little "bear" in the stroller. Weedy ended up staying the night so we got a good chance to catch up on all things Tampa- and Mom and Dad-related and she got some valuable time with her little niece. Zaid was very amused to see the stuff that we bought little restless Ayla :)

Friday, August 21, is the last day before Ramadan this year. It was a low-key day with us doing some last-minute Ramadan-related tasks and errands. However, there was one very, very important development today! Ayla ate her first solid food ever - I mean ever!! Since she was going to eat solid food for the first time, I brought down her high chair for the first time. It's this precious, colorful chair called Fisher-Price Precious Planet High Chair. Ayla was so cute in her chair because she was so small compared to her chair. As usual, she was mad because whenever their are straps, she feels confined. Then, when I started to feed her from her little Disney bowl (has a picture of Sleeping Beauty, Princess Jasmine, and Cinderella on it) and her little pink and blue Munchkin spoon, she made that "What the heck is this stuff?" face :) Although it was a big milestone day, our baby spit up most of the food. She had the cutest face - with formula and cereal running down her face. And boy, was it messy! The food was everywhere - on her outfit, her bib, and on her highchair tray. It was the cutest thing ever!! So, we ended our first day of solid food with most of the food outside her mouth. I tried to capture the moments on video camera and camera but it was so hard to do so while feeding her :)

It was the first time in our life that we set the alarm for sehri thinking how much time do we need for sehri considering that Ayla may wake up at the same time for her bottle? For me, I think this Ramadan might be easier because at least I won't be working so I won't have to wake up early but then again, how would things be considering Ayla has her own "unique" sleeping schedule and I can't get rid of the sleepiness with coffee? And, for Zaid, he was thinking, how will I get any sleep before going to work between sehri and Ayla's nighttime feedings? We were about to find out :)

Saturday, August 22, is the first day of Ramadan. Ayla's parents woke up this morning at about 4:30 and boy, were they tired because they didn't wake up until noon after going back to sleep following sehri. After I fed her rice cereal again (she kept more of the cereal in her tummy and spit up a lot again) and prepared a to-go bag for her, we went to Ashburn to buy some Ramadan essentials (sehri and iftar food that we can't live without!). That night when we broke fast, I must admit, it wasn't too bad but then again, we were starting Ramadan in the weekend! The main adjustment was breaking fast and then soon afterwards, feeding Ayla. Our little darling's schedule is our schedule!

Sunday, August 23 was the classic lazy Ramadan weekend day. We stayed at home hanging out with Chachas Adnan and Fawad, who was visiting from New York. Fu was excited to see how much Ayla had grown since the last time he had seen her since her first Pittsburgh trip. There was of course, lots of cuddling and picture-taking. Since we were all tired from fasting, Ayla was the only one keeping our energy up. I would say the highlight was witnessing Adnan and Fawad see Ayla in her high chair eating eating her rice cereal. And, she rewarded their excitement by eating more cereal than ever. Oh, and they were so amused to see Ayla play in her activity center. This self-sustaining toy amuses everyone :) The rest of the time until iftar we just kind of chill as reality of Ramadan tiredness dawned on us! Unfortunately, the Chachas couldn't stay for iftar because Adnan had to drop off Fawad to the bus station to take his bus to New York. After iftar, we made a critical decision after deliberating over the past 2 weeks. We decided to pick Ayla's daycare specialist! I said Bismillah and called her hoping to Allah that we were picking the right person. And the day care provider for her part, was so happy that we had chosen her admitting that secretly, since she had met Ayla, she wanted us to pick her. She even held off on her other interviews hoping to hear from us first :)

Talk to you again soon, Saadia

August 16 - Interviewing day care specialists and more :)

Monday, August 10, now that we were back from Pittsburgh, it was time to get down to business - daycare, house and work matters, other tasks etc. :) As much as I did not want to think about daycare for my princess when I return to work on December 1, this week, I started looking into this matter so that I could find the best provider for her.

Today, Zaid worked from home too because after the 7 hour drive yesterday from Pittsburgh, he was exhausted. In my last post, I mentioned that we bought our little jujubee some toys. Well, one of those toys is an activity center that Ayla can stand in the middle of and spin around to play with a variety of toys. Today, Zaid and I assembled the activity center and we put Ayla in it right away. She's a little younger than the starting age of 4 months so we put a little blanket around her waist so that she does not tilt one way or the other although she still manages to! Also, her feet did not touch the bottom of the activity center and often, she leans one way or another depending on how she is sitting. She is very amused by the bright colored toys but can't reach most of them. There is also a toy on the center which makes different sounds depending on how many times you press them. It's meant to teach her about animals. I press it for her multiple times and she smiles. She has the most beautiful smile and this week, she starts developing a cute, little laugh :)

This week, her drooling has also increased. And, so has her need to put things in her mouth

because of her teething. From now on, both of these actions keep increasing.

Before I went on maternity leave, Zaid and I looked into various daycare options before we tentatively settled on one which provides in-home child care services. Today, I called the day care center and obtained a list of providers who live in our area. I began calling those individual in-home providers and started setting up appointments.

On Tuesday, August 11, Ayla and I continued to enjoy life at home. She loved playing in her activity center again today. Another big step Ayla and I took today is....reading!! I starte

d taking her to the nursery beginning today and reading a book or two to her every day. She is sooo cute because sometimes, she is calm and attentive while reading the book and sometimes, she tries to grab the book and put her in her mouth. She's also attracted to bright colors. Ayla's book collection includes many cute books with Dadoo and Poppy being big contributors. Dadoo and Poppy's books are so freakin' cute - every topic from farm animals (touch and feel textures!) to books about mommy and daddy kisses. Zaid and I read that early reading not only makes the baby familiar with the cadence of the parents' voices but assists with brain development. I also started organizing our googleberry's nursery today for that one day (tear running down my face :) ) when she has to move to the nursery. Right now, she's good to stay in the bassinet in our room because the it holds a baby up to 15 lbs. I don't know her exact weight right now but I think she's around 11 or 11.5 lbs. She goes to the doctor next week. In case I haven't mentioned it yet, her bassinet is actually a Graco Jungle Safari Pack N' Play. It contains a bassinet on the top and also becomes a play pen. So, a very useful baby registry item!

On Wednesday, August 12, we made the first of our highly-anticipated day care specialists visits. We visited with this wonderful Afghani woman. She was great and seemed to have the magic touch with Ayla. The only problem is distance so, the search continues for the ideal caretaker...As any mom, I'm very meticulous about this process and I prepared a list of

questions to ask each provider. I'm still not sure what type of child care is ideal - nanny, in-home provider, day care center etc - but Zaid and I are discussing all the options.

Thursday, August 13, sees us visit another provider, a nice Filipino woman who lives very close-by. Although she is very nice and lives close by, Zaid and I remain more interested in getting a provider who is Muslim so that Ayla can also learn about her culture and maybe, her language. One thing I noticed though after this visit...these providers love Ayla!! They rush to hold her and, Ayla also seems to be at ease. However, these visits make me think of the sad time when I have to return to work and leave my baby in some else's care :( And, the thought that Ayla would become used to being taken care of by someone else also makes me sad. When she sees me, she lights up and that brightens my day - I don't know if I want to let go of this mutual feeling and excitement!!

On another note, I am starting to get very relieved with Ayla's activity center. I mean, what a stress-reliever!! I come downstairs every morning and put her in the center. She seems so amused by it and, I get so much done. Of course, I have to help little bubble machine reach

most of the toys on the activity center, including the music tunes.

Friday, August 14 is Ayla's first Pakistan Independence Day! This morning I checked my Facebook page, noted all the Independence Day-related statuses, wrote my own, and came up with a cute idea based on one of Zaid's suggestions...I took pictures of Ayla with the little Pakistan flag that Zaid and I have. These pictures were so cute because Ayla actually held the flag. The only time I held the flag was when I was afraid that Ayla may poke herself or put the flag in her mouth. She was sooo cute because she did keep putting the flag in her mouth!! I don't think Pakistan's founders considered that in the future, babies may put the flag in their mouths :) What also struck me about this moment was that here was Ayla, a second-generation Pakistani princess paying homage to her heritage even though this little cutie hasn't even been to Pakistan yet. Inshallah, she will! I posted the pictures of Ayla holding the flag to Facebook and shared the pictures with our family - it was an instant hit!!

Later, we visited yet another daycare provider - a nice, Pakistani woman. She was very nice and loving but we still had more interviews to go. Selecting Ayla's daycare provider will be such a hard but important decision! After we visited with the potential provider, we stayed in the rest of the night. With our precious little angel, Friday nights are different now but much better because I wouldn't trade this for anything else in the world :)

Saturday, August 15 was a low-key, run-of-the-mill stay-at-home and get things done day. We did a few errands. Next weekend is the start of Ramadan so we needed to do a few tasks.

Sunday, August 16, Zaid and I visited another daycare provider. Another Pakistani lady - but we have a good feeling about this one! After we visited with her, we went to Ashburn to visit Auntie Rahila. Auntie had very important guests - Imran mamoo and family were visiting from Kuwait. It was so nice to see the family!! We last saw Zareen mumani and Maha and Zara in

Winter 2006 when we were all in Pakistan at the same time. Maha and Zara looked so cute and had grown taller mashallah since we last saw them. They were sooo excited to see Ayla. They held her and cuddled her and they, along with Nadia Puppo, took a lot of cute pictures! It was very nice to catch up with all of them. Zara is beginning undergrad at NYU this fall so the family came to help her get settled in. Ayla was having a great time -excited to meet more of her large and loving family!!

More later! Saadia

August 9 - Back home and then...Pittsburgh

On Monday, August 3, Ayla and I, done with Grandparents Tour 2009, planned to get resettled at home. Today, I took Ayla to a doctor's appt. which was significant for one main reason - it was the first time that I was returning to the OB-GYN's office with Ayla since she was born. As soon as I checked in, the receptionist and nurses were so excited to see Ayla! In fact, the first nurse called the others to come and check out the "cute baby." They took some time to play with her before returning to work! During the actual visit with the doctor, my baby started crying really loud but there was nothing I could do. The doctor said not to worry because they were used to crying babies :) The rest of the day, I began to tackle some of the tasks that I left behind before the Grandparents Tour. When Baba came home from work today, he settled back into his "Ayla" routine, he took her outside in the balcony and played with her the rest of the night. Baba was excited to spend time with her again after a few weeks.

On Tuesday, August 4, Ayla and I continued to work on getting reorganized at home. Our little baby is getting very active. If you lie her down, she tries to sit up. And, she has begun swiveling her head from left to right to take in everything around her. Her activity has made me realize how fast she is growing. Not only do I need to spend time feeding and changing her, but I need to spend time playing with her. She is also putting things in her mouth, including her hands, and she drools a lot more. Today, we also set up the baby monitor and....I can't tell you how much easier that made my life!! Until now, I have been so used to leaving Ayla upstairs to

sleep and when she woke up, my freakish super-hearing allowed me to run upstairs and get her the minute she started crying. However, sometimes, I would run upstairs thinking she was crying when in fact she wasn't. The monitor not only put my mind at ease but allows me to get more done when she is sleeping and, to get it done with a piece of mind that my precious little Angel is safe :)

On Wednesday, August 5, I spoke to Ayla's pediatrician and she said that the pain that Ayla was feeling during her party in Tampa last Saturday was probably from teething pain. The doctor said that Ayla would occasionally be experiencing this pain from now on and she needed Children's Tylenol if she kept crying from the pain. And, I needed to buy her teething toys. My heart sank when I processed what the doctor was saying because the first thing I thought about was that my poor baby was crying non-stop last Saturday and I couldn't figure out why and therefore, was unable to help her. Kids count on their mommies and daddies to know everything and I felt bad that I could not stop my little cutie's crying :(.

This week, I also added Ayla's little "lounge chair" (my mom bought this in FL and I brought it to DC) to her bathtub. Boy, has it made life easier. It's sooo freakin' cool. Ayla just lies on it, sort of in a reclining position in her bath tub which I have now moved to the big bathtub in the guest bathroom (this is where Ayla's bath products are). Previously, I used to give Ayla a bath in the sink but now she has outgrown it. While I am giving her a bath, Ayla just kind of lies all chill. She's very cooperative during her baths; she seems to enjoy them a lot :) I have this yellow rubber ducky (like Ernie used to play with in Sesame Street) too which I have been contemplating letting her play with in the bathtub...

Thursday, August 6 is an important day - Ayla's mom's cousin is visiting from Canada!!! I haven't seen my cousin Ayesha and her husband in 7 years so I was really excited that we would see them again. Also, I only saw their oldest daughter when she was 6 months old and now, we were set to meet Rania, her little sister Zoish, and their brother Abdullah. Before we discussed plans to take Ayesha's family out on the town, Ayla and I started to pack for our trip back to Pittsburgh. We were planning to go for the weekend. It was to be a brief return to the Grandparents Tour '09 :). We decided to take Ayesha and fam to Macaroni Grill in Reston Town Center. But before we did that, they came over to our house for introductions. Zaid and Samer met them for the first time and we all saw the kids grown up! Sarah, Samer, Zaid, and I gave the kids gifts (Sarah and Samer gave them these great Disney ones!). Their kids w

ere so precious and very well-behaved. I kept thinking all night how much I want Ayla to grow up and be so well-mannered. And, Ayesha and Mujib were very excited to meet Auntie Fauzia's first grandchild :) The kids kept taking turns wanting to touch and hold the baby. We went to Macaroni Grill and caught up, re-lived old memories. Zaid and Samer got to know the fam better. And, Baby A spent time getting passed around. She seemed amused to see the new people! Afterwards, we walked around the town center, grabbed desert, and took some lovely pictures. It was a great night!!!

On Friday, August 7, Zaid, Ayla and I got up and finished packing before hitting the road for a return trip to Poppy and Dadoo's! On our way to Pittsburgh, we stopped at Babies R Us to get our googleberry much-needed toys. And, we stopped off at Rahila Khala's house to say hi to Nadia Puppo's cousin Tazeen. Tazeen and her husband had a cute little baby, Eshaal (a little over a year-old), who was excited to meet the "baby."

This is Ayla's second road trip. Our little superstar has been on a boat, on a plane, and in a car all in 10 days. She's traveled by sea, land, and air - she could join the military :) Traveling to Pittsburgh for Ayla this time was old hat! We got to Pittsburgh around 8 PM and Dadoo, Poppy, and Chacha Adnan were so excited to see her. They all noted how much Ayla had grown since the last time they had seen her. You can tell that Dadoo is a day care provider because she loves little ones and is sooo good with them :)

On Saturday, August 8, the family continued to "catch-up" with Ayla :) They enjoyed s

eeing how much Ayla had progressed since the last time they saw her, how much she could do. Ayla could now sit up. She was smiling a lot more, recognizing faces. She was up most of the day, foregoing her usual napping! I think she was excited to see her grandparents :) Chacha Adnan also got a chance to spend time with her for the first time after a long summer studying for the bar exam. Zaid and I took advantage of the family being able to watch Ayla and we went and saw a movie. It was nice to go out on a quick date but I gotta admit that during the movie, I kept thinking about my baby! After the movie, Poppy and Adnan went to a dinner and Dadoo, Ayla, Zaid and I spent the rest of the day enjoying each other's company.

On Sunday, August 9, our short trip to Pittsburgh was going to come to an end. Whenever we have to say goodbye to the grandparents, it's sooo hard for me because I know they want to spend more time with Ayla. I really wish Dadoo, Poppy, Umi Jan, and Nana Jan lived in the DC area so that they could witness all the precious moments of Ayla growing up. My mom and dad have called me a lot over the past week saying how much the missed Ayla like, Poppy and Dadoo did following our last visit to Pittsburgh. And now, you could tell by Poppy and Dadoo's eyes how much they were going to miss Ayla again. And, we will miss them a lot too but, see them again soon inshallah :) Our wonderful trip to Pittsburgh was capped off by a 7 hour trip home because of traffic but our little jujubee was as cool as a cucumber!!!!

Until later! Saadia

August 2 - Last week in FL

My Dad said that on this trip alone, Ayla has grown sooo much and he couldn't be more right. Her facial expressions, sounds, and movements have developed so much over the past few weeks as we get more and more of a hint as to what Ayla's personality is like.

Monday, July 27, I ran a few errands and then, Ayla and I hung out at home. Waheeda is spending more and more time with Ayla. She loves walking around with her on her shoulder and talking to her. She's also sad these days because she says that she will miss Ayla when she leaves after this week. Weedy has become a second pair of eyes and ears for me: she helps me keep Ayla's things in order; remember when she needs to be changed and fed; and she helps me prepare her diaper bag among other things.

Tuesday, July 28, Weedy and I went to the salon and before we did so, we went out for breakfast at a cool breakfast place. We were pretty excited to discover this place. Mom hung out with Ayla at home. Mom really enjoys spending time with Ayla alone; she recently remarked that Ayla seems more like Waheeda's little sister rather than her niece :)

Later that day, we decided to visit Auntie Nayyar in Plant City. There we were joined by my friend Imrana, her daughter Alina, her mom, Auntie Riffat, her mother-in-law Auntie Ruby, Auntie Razia and Auntie Nayyar's daughter-in-law. The aunties were sooo excited to meet Ayla - a precursor of things to come because Ayla is scheduled to see other members of my Tam

pa community on Saturday, August 1. They took turns holding her and they took a lot of pictures. Alina is 2 1/2 years old and she enjoyed meeting "the baby" so much that she wanted to take Ayla home! Ayla also got some really cute gifts including a nice, maroon langa from Imrana :)

On Wednesday, July 29, Ayla and the family was joined by a very important person - Baba returned to Florida!!! Zaid changed his flight to an earlier day so that he could spend a couple of days in Tampa. Mom, Ayla, and I went to pick him up and he was sooo happy to see his little girl!! He sat next to her on the way home and when he got home, he cuddled with her for a while. After all, this is the longest he has gone without seeing Ayla. And, of course, Ayla was so excited to see her Baba :) Zaid could not believe how much she had grown and changed since he last saw her on July 12. After he played with her, he gave me a wedding anniversary gift - a beautiful set of black and silver earrings and necklace!! I was so surprised because it's exactly what I wanted and I can't wait to wear it. Last week, Zaid received my anniversary present in the mail - nice cuff links. I sent it to him as a surprise because I knew he was expecting me to give it to him when I saw him. Later that evening, Zaid, Waheeda, and I visited Uncle Wali because uncle wanted to see Zaid and, he was very happy to see him.

On Thursday, July 30, Zaid, Ayla, and I decided to take a mini- and, I mean mini-vacation :) We decided to go to Clearwater for the day and night scheduled to come back on Friday. Zaid and I wanted to celebrate our anniversary and we wanted to take little boo-boo with us. We were so excited!! The plan was to go to Clearwater first and meet our family friend Uncle Fida. Un

cle and Auntie Shaheen were nice enough to suggest to my parents a while ago that wh

enever me and Zaid were in town, we could stay at their condo in Clearwater Beach. During this vacation in Florida, Zaid and I have been thinking about a variety of options to celebrate our anniversary. We decided to settle on going to Clearwater for a day and a half and while we are there, to take a dinner cruise and stay at Auntie and Uncle's condo. When we got to Clearwater, we met Uncle first to get keys to the condo. He surprised us and took us out to lunch to an Indian buffet place. It was a delicious start to our mini-break. He also gave us some snacks from his store to take to the condo. We barely had time to get to the condo (nice place by the way!!!) and get settled before it was time to get ready for the dinner cruise. The cruise was amazing!! This 3-hour cruise, given by Starlite Majesty took place from 7-10 PM giving us a chance to see the beautiful sunset and the beautiful surrounding water. There was a live band on board which didn't bother Ayla

when she wanted to catch some ZZZZs :) Zaid and I kept walking around the boat to make sure that Ayla got a good view of her surroundings including the water. We took some really cool pictures on the deck! I will always remember Ayla's little hair blowing in the wind and her eyes squinting in the breeze :) This is a memory that I will always cherish - I mean, I can't believe we took our baby on a cruise!! After the cruise, we headed back to the condo.

On Friday, July 31, we tried to make the most of our half-day in Clearwater before we had to head back to mom and dad's house because we were expecting guests this evening. In the morning, we woke up and had some delicious breakfast from Dunkin Donuts. Then, we went to the beach for a while where Baba went swimming while Baby Ayla and I watched. Again, Ayla really seemed to love soaking up the breeze and water. Our excursion was cut short however because of an oncoming thunderstorm. After we got packed up, we left to go return the keys to Uncle Fida. After a quick lunch with Uncle, we headed back to mom and dad's house. As soon as we got there, we had about an hour before we received guests - Auntie Riffat, Uncle Zaheer, Zahid, Rizwana and her son, Ayub. It was soo nice to see Uncle and Auntie - who seemed really happy to meet mom and dad's grandaughter - and to get to spend time with Rizwana and Ayub for a while. Rizwana was my best friend growing up so it's nice to catch up with her since she lives far from us (Atlanta). Ayub is 2 1/2 years old and we have barely gotten to know him. The one time I saw him was last year, briefly, at Sophia Khan's wedding, which I had to leave early because I wasn't feeling well. Rizwana was excited to spend time with Ayla and Zaid and I were playing with Ayub. It was really cool to see one of our dearest family friends - Auntie, U

ncle, and family - with a new generation of the Tampa community - Ayla and Ayub!!! I remember dad and Uncle with us when we were kids and now, here they were with their grandkids :)

On Saturday, August 1, Zaid, Weedy, and I decided to go to this great breakfast place to introduce Zaid to the local food :) There's nothing like a great brunch on a weekend. Later, we spent time with the family before getting ready for the Ayla celebration at Auntie Tasneem and Uncle Kadir's house. About a month and a half ago when I told mom that Zaid, Ayla and I were coming, she mentioned to Auntie Tasneem that she was going to organize a gathering for the Tampa community to meet Ayla. To her surprise, Auntie Tasneem volunteered to do it! We owe Auntie and Uncle bigtime!! Ayla will have to thank them when she's a little older :) I was wearing a bright, red and orange shalwar kameez and Ayla was wearing a cute, summer, white, sleeveless shirt and pant set which she got from Rizwana the day before. As soon as we arrived at Auntie's house, she was greeted by the anxious Aunties and Uncles who had served as family members for me growing up. For me, it was nice to see this Tampa community who had seen me grow since childhood welcome my baby. All the Aunties came to get a close look at her as mom and I were in the "Aunties" section and Zaid and Dad were in the "Uncles" section. Unfortunately, after a while, Ayla started crying. And, the poor baby kept crying all night. Later, we would find out that she was probably having teething pain. The Aunties took turns trying to hold her to calm her down. I tried. Mom tried. Zaid even took her and walked with her outside. Dad even offered several times to take her. Finally, Zaid, Weedy, and I took her upstairs to one of the rooms. There, Ayla finally started to calm down and feel at ease. I was glad that Ayla was feeling better but sooo sad that she didn't get to go back downstairs and enjoy her party. We didn't even get to take pictures - all the pictures we took were at home when we returned.

On Sunday, August 2, I was feeling sad. My great trip to FL was ending as we were due to return to DC this evening. I had so much fun while I was here - it's nice to return to your

hometown (especially when there is much more to do). I felt like I got a lot of R & R and got a few tasks done. Mom and Dad got to really get close to Ayla and she kept developing very fast while we were her. Weedy got to spend more time with because in DC, she gets so busy. Unfortunately, I spent most of the day packing (while the fam was enjoying spending last-minute time with Ayla) because I had procrastinated! While I was packing, mom brought out a little gift for Ayla and it was one heck of a gift - a little, one-piece Tampa Bay Buccaneers windbreaker!! All my life, mom had gotten me cute, Bucs-related items and now, she had gotten something for Ayla - hopefully, the first of many cute Bucs that Ayla will receive :) When we were driving to Tampa airport in the evening, Dad, mom, Ayla, and I were sad that a wonderful 3 weeks was about to come to an end. When we boarded the plane, Ayla got the "Awww, she looks so cute in her Bucs outfit" look :) We sat down and I continued to remain sad that I was leaving FL. As I always do when I leave Tampa, I started tearing (and I"m

sure in her heart, Ayla was too!). Ayla and I can't wait to come back soon.

July 26 - More adventures from FL

Ayla and I continue to enjoy life in FL with mom, dad and Khala Waheeda.

Ayla has her routine down pat - she goes to bed around 10-11 PM these days, and wakes up around 4:30/5 AM, 7/7:30 AM, and then, 9:30 AM for feedings and diaper changings. When she wakes up, she goes to the family room and sees a very anxious Ummi Jan ready to play with her. Mom talks to her and entertains her before she puts her down on the big mattress in the middle of the room where Ayla lays down, waves her arms and legs and starts her communications routine. She now makes more and more interesting noises - with her lips and her mouth. Ayla also constantly moves her head around to look at things, often swinging her head from side to side really quickly. She kicks a lot and moves her arms around a lot -definitely more active. When she cries, it's louder. Our baby is getting bigger and developing a personality mashallah!! I have also now taken to calling her "Googleberry."

Everyday, I get so much joy in watching mom interact with Ayla. To see my mom holding my daughter is an experience for me that words cannot describe. Mom has so many cute names for Ayla - Cookie, 7-Up, Booglie, Bubble Machine, and Pancake among others. I can see mom's love for Ayla growing day by day and when I think how much I love my mom, I hope and pray that one day Ayla will love me as much. And, just as my mom has never hesitated to make me, Sarah, and Waheeda happy, I will do everything I can to provide the same level of comfort, happiness, and love for Ayla that mom provided for us :)

She's also beginning to recognize people and demand attention. If I, or mom, dad, and Waheeda are in the room, she kicks and waves her arms in place. However, if we walk away or she senses that we are not near her, she often cries. And, of course, she wants to be picked up a lot too.

Ayla's also beginning to drool a lot (she goes through more bibs and clothes now) and put anything she sees in her mouth. Early teether perhaps?

On Sunday, July 19, Ayla was visited by her mom's friend from high school, Shreya, and her mom. They brought Ayla some cute baby outfits and stayed a few hours during w

hich Shreya and I relived some old memories. Shreya kept saying that she couldn't believe that me, her friend since 1993, was now a mom and she kept looking at Ayla lovingly.

Monday, July 20 was mom's birthday. We bought flowers for her on behalf of all the sisters and Zaid. Ayla got mom the cutest card - one that soon found it's way into mom's memory box :) The rest of the day we just chilled and hung out with mom. Dad brought beautiful flowers - one each for mom, Waheeda, me, and....Ayla!!! So cute, little flowers for Ayla along with a cute note from Dad - "Dearest Ayla, Welcome to the Family!" Now, that will find it's way into my memory box (aka Ayla's scrapbook). Just like Mom, looks like Dad is starting to fall in love with little Ayla too :)

On Tuesday, July 21, we went to mom's friend, Auntie Munaza's house for some favorite eats of mine - dhai bala and radish roti. I am constantly craving these foods and Auntie Munaza is one of the best at making these so she invited me over. If all goes well, Ayla will adopt some of my food cravings :) We stayed a few hours - Auntie really enjoyed meeting and playing with A

yla. My baby cried a bit before she took a nap for awhile. She was oblivious to the wedding video we were watching.

On Wednesday, July 22, I did a little quick shopping. Again, I have to get the maximum number of errands and tasks done while someone can watch Baby A :) The rest of the day was chill. Dad continues to carry on his internal and external games

of "Yes" every evening! Dad and I used to spend so much time talking to one another growing up - it's nice to see him spending time alone with Ayla now :)

On Thursday, July 23, I took mom to a salon for her birthday present. We spent some great time together while Weedy and Ayla spent time together at home. Weedy and Ayla are

developing a strong bond - she calls Ayla her "Bear". Whatever Ayla does is associated with "Bear". For e.g., if Ayla is sleeping, she is "Sleepy Bear" or if Ayla is drooling, she is "Drooling Bear." It's sooo neat for me to see Weedy playing with Ayla because Weeds was the last baby in our family and now, here she is playing with the new baby in our family.

On Friday, July 24, Ayla, Weedy, mom and I went out to lunch at one of Mom's favorite places, Sweet Tomatoes. We enjoyed the buffet while Ayla snacked on one of her bottles. I really enjoyed going out to lunch in my hometown with three of my favorite people and moreover, it's sooo cool to take Ayla to lunch in the city I grew up in.

Saturday, July 25, we visited Uncle Wali and Auntie Shahnaz again, this time at their home. They were so excited to finally meet Ayla. Our baby, however, didn't quite feel comfortable and the poor baby cried most of the time, with mom and I taking turns to keep her calm in another room while the other spent time with Uncle.

Sunday, July 26, is me and Zaid's 6th wedding anniversary!! Time flies when you are having fun :) And, this year is especially special because of the arrival of little Ayla. Today was the second anniversary day that I did not spend with Zaid however he sent me these beautiful roses!!! In the absence of Zaid, my parents also made it a special day. They gave me nice flowers and my mom took me out to a nice Asian restaurant. I spent so much of the day just thinking about how this anniversary was particularly special because of Ayla's arrival. I have always loved Zaid and Ayla's arrival, I feel, kind of completes that love because she embodies our union :)

Talk to you soon! Saadia

July 18, 2009 - Ayla takes her first flight and hangs out in FL

On Thursday, July 9, Ayla, Zaid, and I continued preparations for our trip to FL on Saturday.

When Zaid came home, we took a walk around our neighborhood with Ayla's stroller. Ayla loves going outside. She loves the fresh breeze, the natural light, and sounds of nature. She moves her head around quickly to take in everything. In fact, if she is inside and she is crying and then, you take her outside, she immediately becomes calm and starts looking around.

After this, we went to my office at ExxonMobil to retrieve a baby monitor that my dear co-worker had donated to me. What an adventure, I couldn't get in to the building because my access pass was outdated! Wow, you disappear from the workplace for three months to raise a little one and you are shut out!!

On Friday, Zaid worked from home to that I could get a few things done in prep for our trip. We were also visited by Samer who wanted to see Ayla since he wouldn't see her for t

hree weeks. One of my dear co-workers, Melissa, also visited. She wanted to see Ayla and drop off the baby monitor. Originally, she was going to

visit us in the hospital but that day, I wasn't feeling well. A few weeks back, she gave us a cute baby blanket. She also calls Ayla Baby Gator in honor of her alma mater, University of Florida. Man, Ayla gets the most adorable things! That night, we took it easy, watched Smallville, and tried to sleep early.

It's funny that no matter how busy we get doing things for Ayla,

she has no worry in the world and continues to be relaxed as she goes about her normal schedule of eating and sleeping :)

Saturday, July 11 was the big day - Ayla's first trip on an airplane!! We got up early knowing that since this was Ayla's first flight, it would take longer than we planned to be ready and...we were right! We left at about 10:10 AM for a 12:25 flight from Dulles Airport. Ayla was wearing a very, very cute red fleece one piece suit that had the word "Twinkle" on it.

When we got to the airport, we decided to park close to the airport so that we would have an easy time transporting everything. At the Southwest counter, we had to register Ayla as a passenger. I had called earlier in the week so a notation was made. We were surprised to learn that we needed to bring a birth certificate for Ayla. The man at the counter said that it was in the fine print when we bought the ticket. He allowed us to take the flight but he said that we needed the birth certificate on the way back. Zaid's plan is to go to FL this weekend and then return the weekend of July 31s-Aug. 2 so he could bring the certificate back with him. By the time we got through the line, we had a few minutes to get lunch and change Ayla. So, Zaid and I did one of our classic multi-tasking - I took care of the diaper and he bought lunch (side note: I love Potbelly's!).

As you may know, Southwest Airlines has an interesting seating policy - you get seated in groups A, B, C. Apparently, at Southwest, children do not board before all others board so we had to wait for "family boarding" - right before the B group boards. We took our seats at the back of the aircraft. During the flight, Zaid held her in his arms sitting in the window seat. Ayla was amazing the whole time - she was either curious with open eyes and smiling or she was asleep. If anyone was disturbed during the flight it was me - there was a lot of turbulence and I was holding on to my seat praying! At the end of the flight, Ayla was given a certificate signed by the staff of the airplane marking her first flight. It's sooo cute and her second certificate (don't forget her successful passing of the Car Seat Challenge!).

Ayla's Ummi Jan met us in baggage claim and we headed for home after installing Ayla's car seat. She was surprised to see how much Ayla had grown because she had left after staying with us for the first 6 weeks following my C-section. When we got home, Ayla's Nana Jan greeted Ayla with so much happiness. Zaid and I looked around the house and were surprised to see how prepared mom and dad were for Ayla's visit. They had a baby bathtub, a bassinet, a swing, and other baby products! It was sooo cute - the house was so baby-ready :) After we got home, mom and I ran to Macy's quickly (cute new mall across the street!) to take advantage of this one-day sale :) The rest of the night, we just chilled enjoying conversation and food.

On Sunday, July 12, Zaid spent the day with the family because he was going to leave later that night. But, before he left, we were visited by Auntie Tasneem and her family, including her son Ali, his wife and his little daughter, Iman. Iman was so excited to see "the baby" and wanted to play with Ayla who was in her swing. She tried to shake the swing a few times to get the baby and she kept trying until her father told her not too. Iman is cute; a future friend for Ayla in the Tampa community. They left after a few hours. Then, we spent a few hours with Zaid before he had to leave for FL. Baba was going to leave his baby again for an extended period for the second time! Ayla and I were sad that he left :)

On Monday, July 13, I went with Ayla and mom to do some much-needed shopping. It's so much easier to shop with Ayla when I have someone with me because then I can connect her carrier seat to her stroller (we have 3-in-1 stroller, car seat, and carrier seat) without straining my back. While we shopped, Ayla loved being in her stroller. She either makes cute little noises (her sounds are becoming a lot more sophisticated now

, she can say consonant sounds now!) or she gets sleepy. After a few hours, we went home to hang out.

On Tuesday, July 14, Ayla, mom, dad, and I visited Uncle Wali as soon as dad came home. Uncle had surgery and we visited the hospital to lift his spirits. Although we took Ayla, we decided not to take her into the hospital because we didn't want to expose her to the possibility of infection or illnesses. So, mom and I took turns keeping her in the car as the other visited with Uncle Wali. The trials of being new parents! Although Uncle didn't see her this time, he would see her in the near future.

On Wednesday, July 15, mom and I went for a sushi lunch with Ayla. My little boo-boo was once again, calm and curious as we ate at this cute place across the street. Mom and Dad's neighborhood is growing fast with new places constantly popping up!

During this week, I also started gathering ideas for mom's birthday present as her b-day is on July 20. I started secretly looking at salons. I also started looking around for day cruises because Zaid, Ayla, and I want to go on a cruise during Zaid's visit.

Wednesday evening, Ayla's Nana Jan walked around with her in the neighborhood. He loves walking with her on his shoulder both inside and outside the house. This is known as the game of "Yes" where Dad keeps saying yes as if Ayla is talking to him and confiding in him. It's dad way of providing positive reinforcement :) Though Mom doesn't have the game of "Yes", she lovingly cuddles with and talks to Ayla. Plus, with Mom, I have a true babysitter because she does all - changing, feeding, playing, etc!

Thursday, July 16, Ayla made an un-announced trip to Dad's office, Midtown Clinic. His nurses, particularly Gloria, were sooo surprised to see her. Before Ayla was born, the office staff sent us some nice gifts for her. During this visit, we brought the staff flowers and cake as a belated thank you :) Gloria and another nurse have been with us since me, Sarah, and Waheeda were little so it was a nice surprise for them to see Ayla as a baby. They had waited a long time to see Dr. Ghani's granddaughter so it was a visit well-appreciated!

Friday, July 17, I went to the new, cute mall across the street again, Wiregrass Mall. This was the first time that I took my time and walked through the boardwalk. I really enjoyed myself - I couldn't believe that such a cute mall had come to a place that only a few years ago, was so barren. Growing up, I was so used to going to Tampa just to see any semblance of life because where we grew up, Zephyrhills, there was nothing to brag about in terms of shopping. This mall even had a crepes place and I'm looking forward to hanging out in this mall with my family in the near future and Ayla! While I was here, I found the perfect place to get Mom's b-day present - a nice new salon. Sarah, Waheeda, and I decided to take mom there in the near future. Today, I also ordered an anniversary present for Zaid. Other than one other anniversary day (my second in 2005 due to a work day), this is the second anniversary day that I would not be there. I ordered some nice cuff links from Kenneth Cole and had them sent to our home address in VA.

On Saturday, July 18, Waheeda arrived. Ayla was looking really forward to spending time with Khala Waheeda because although they are both in the DC area, Waheeda and Ayla's schedules along with the distance between Northern VA and NW DC do not allow them to spend as much time as they want together. After Waheeda got here, we surprised mom and told her that we were taking her out for her birthday. That evening, we took mom to Jasmine Thai, a restaurant in North Tampa which likes going to. It was a fun time- Ayla took turns either sitting in her stroller taking in the sounds or sitting in our laps posing for pictures. Mom was very happy.

So, Ayla is just enjoying chilling in FL hanging out with the fam, meeting new people, and enjoying the weather.

Talk to you soon with more adventures from FL, Saadia

July 8, 2009 - Winding up in Pittsburgh, ISNA, and more

I'm back to report more adventures of Baby A. After we opened the Aqeeqah gifts on Tuesday night (June 30), we had a couple more days in Pittsburgh. Mommy, Fu, and Poppy continued to enjoy spending time with Ayla. Baba was still home this week although he wasn't feeling too well.

We put up some of the Aqeeqah pictures on Facebo

ok a

nd received really nice comments about Baby A and the rest of us. Everyone said that we were a cute family. Ayla's sooo cute and we are

having so much fun with her; I wish that she would remember these days. She's getting so much love and having so many adventures. Unfortunately, the time when you are the most carefree, you don't end up remembering!

I think Zaid really enjoyed having Ayla in the house he grew up in! Our little booboo continued to make more and more noises and expressions. Since the TV was not working in the main room these couple of days, Ayla spent a lot of time upstairs with Poppy and Fu watching TV in Mommy and Poppy's room.

On Thursday, July 2, Mommy and I had a nice lunch at Panera and then we visited a family friend to inquire upon the health of their daughter. Ayla stayed at home with the guys. We spent this last evening in Pittsburgh just having fun and talking.

So, I trip to Pittsburgh was winding down. We had so much fun and there were highs and lows. The highs including the Aqeeqah of course, Mommy playing with Ayla first thing every morning when I brought her down. Mommy would spend so much time having cut

e conversations with her. Another high was Poppy taking her outside every evening and walking around with her saying "mini mini coo coo". The lows included Ayla applying fo

r a job working for Chacha Fu (at his invitation!) and then, getting rejected!! I think he said something about her application not being organized and her experience level being "low." Then, just when you thought it would be amicably settled - Fu offered to pay her for some

"work" she did for him - there was still disagreement. Ayla apparently did $4,000 worth of work according to Fu but he decided to pay her $4 million because she is "cute" though Chacha still felt he was doing her a favor.

On Friday, July 3, we returned to VA because my dad was going to be in town for the weekend for the Islamic Society of North America annual convention. We left Pittsburgh around 3 pm and returned home around 8:30 PM. Ayla and I were sad to leave Pittsburgh where we had so much fun. During the ride, Zaid and I realized that we had left one of Ayla's most necessary items in Pittsburgh - her stroller! We lucked out though because one of Zaid's fa

mily friends, Uncle Rizwan, was coming to DC on Saturday to attend ISNA. Whew!!

We saw Dad at night when he returned from and ISNA-related meeting with Uncle Hisham. The last time dad had seen Ayla, she was about 9-10 days old. Now, he was seeing her after she became 11 weeks old. This was the longest period that an immediate family member had gone without seeing Ayla. He was happy to see how much she had grown up and kept saying that she had developed quite a personality.

On Saturday, July 4, Ayla's first Independence Day, we had other plans to celebrate the nation's freedom - going to ISNA. We woke up in the morning and relaxed a bit (it's so great to be home and open the day with a nice breakfast and a warm cup of coffee!). We chatted with Dad further before he went to ISNA. Once we became organized and got Ayla ready, we left for ISNA around 3 PM. We stayed at the conference for about 5 hours (don't worry, we got the stroller back!) and had a lot of fun while meeting some friends. We saw Auntie Tasneem and Abu Bakr from Tampa. Auntie was very excited to finally meet Ayla and gave her some cute, red bangles. And, we saw Aslam Chacha after

many years. It was ve

ry nice to catch up with Chacha and to see the family. Chacha was so happy to see Ayla; it brought tears to his eyes as he also recalled seeing baby Zaid for the first time many years ago. We ran into other friends too - ISNA is a great place to catch up with old acquaintances. We stayed for the main speeches hoping to see a lecture by Hamza Yusuf but he was bumped to the next day instead joining a panel instead. Rather than the lecture by Yusuf, we did see a few really interesting people - Imam Siraj Wahaj, Pastor Rick Warren (spoke at Obama's grad

uation). The panel that Hamza Yusuf sat on also included Yusuf Islam. Zaid, Ayla, and I left around 8:30 because we knew that we were getting close to Ayla's bed-time after a long day. Ayla was calm at times but many times, Zaid and I had to walk around with her to calm her down. Zaid even stood with her like a proud dad behind the ISNA cameras. He looked so adorable holding our little daughter. There were a lot of people and I think, Ayla missed

the comforts of her home :). Everyone we met though, enjoyed meeting her. We saw dad again that night before going to bed.

On Sunday, July 5, Dad left early to attend ISNA. Zaid, Ayla and I got up, took it easy, did a few errands before Dad, Sarah, Samer, and Waheeda returned. We hung out for a while and then, Zaid dropped off Waheeda and took Dad to the airport. It was nice to see Dad though it was for a short period, we knew we would see dad again in FL on July 11. Later that night, we returned to ISNA to see if we could catch Auntie Tasneem and Chacha again in addition to meeting a few other friends. First, we went to the bazaar but we didn't get through all the aisles because along the way, we kept bumping in to people. Then, we met Auntie and Chacha. After about 2 hours however, we left for home. All in all, it was a fun weekend and Ayla was exposed to a big, national conference environment! And, I'll always remember the look on Zaid's face throughout the conference - one of beaming joy as he showed off his baby to family and friends :)

On Monday, Ayla and I were back in our home routine. My day was made much easier by the fact that Zaid decided to work from home. This allowed me to run a few errands in addition to attending to some tasks and starting preparations for FL. Having Zaid at home is great because this allows me to get a few things

done. Without him, my typical day involves doing all my tasks with my cutie pie Ayla on my left arm! She loves when I walk around and hold her. This allows her to sleep and/or bury her face in my chest. Whenever I put her down, if she is not sleepy, she's restless unless I pick her up again. I must admit however that though it's difficult to get things done,

nothing makes me happier than the feeling that my baby needs me to hold her :) With Zaid at home, I was able to take a much needed trip to the mall and able to get groceries for the rest of the week. However, Ayla is a load for Zaid when he's working from home! Though he loves spending time with her, he has to multi-task - like feeding her and taking conference calls or putting her on his shoulders while he sends emails! Zaid is an incredible dad - Ayla and I love him so much :) :) :)

Tuesday, Ayla and I remained in our home routine but this day was historical as far I was concerned. Today was Michael Jackson's memorial service at the Staples Center. It was a fitting tribute to a man who left the world a better place. I could barely keep my composure - I frequently cried through the 2-hour memorial. During this time however, I noticed that Ayla was sniffling, sneezing and coughing a so I called her doctor.

Wednesday, Ayla's little

cold had gotten worse so I scheduled an appointment with her doctor who confirmed that she just had a cold and recommended that we take a few actions to help her get better. Ayla's too young for any medicine so we had to beat the cold the old-fashioned way - sitting in a steamy room and using a humidifier. At the doctor, Ayla weighed in at 10 lbs, 5 oz. Mashallah, my little darling continues to grow so fast!! When I came in, I told Dr. Lee that Ayla was not feeling well - lots of restlessness, crying, sneezing, coughing, and sniffling. However, as soon as Ayla saw Dr. Lee, she started smiling, making cute noises and giggling. She showed up her own mom! Dr. Lee was joking with her and saying "Your mom says you are being fussy but you look so playful!" The doctor also gave me some advice for Ayla's upcoming trip to Tampa.

When I returned home, I finally completed my first batch of Thank You cards - for the gifts received during my April 6 baby shower at Exxon Mobil. This shower was actually the only one I ended up having because the shower that Weedy, Sarah, and Samer were going to throw for me in late-March was cancelled due to my bed rest :( Though I completed this batch of thank you cards, there are still many more to go!

Later on that evening, Khala Sarah dropped by for a visit because she wanted to see our cutie before Ayla went to FL. Sarah spent time with her in the nursery and apparently the two of them came up with another game, "block, block, choo choo, block." I hope to tell you more about this in the coming days...

I'll be back soon, Saadia