July 1, 2009 - Ayla's Aqeeqah and More

I'm back with more exciting news - including coverage of Ayla's Aqeeqah!

On Friday, June 26, preparati

ons for the Aqeeqah were in full swing. Every

one was focused on decor and food for the event. The cake - a mixture of chocolate and strawberry yellow cake - was to be baked by Poppy's co-worker's wife, Marge Talerico. The food - kabobs and chicken tikka - as previously noted, was to be catered by Bismillah Restaurant.

Mommy and I went to see a movie, The Proposal, leaving Ayla in Chacha Fu and Poppy's care. It was nice to spend time with Mommy as Fu and Poppy babysat Ayla.

Saturday was the big preparation day! Aunties Rahila and Valerie came around 2:30 PM to help us get ready for the Aqeeqah. Also, family friend Auntie Rehana came to help cook some delicious food. Other than the catered food, we had some delicious lamb and potatoes and vegetable and other sides. There was also great desert (ladoo brought from VA by Aunties Rahila and Valerie). The food the next day would also include fruit exquisitely cut by Poppy.

Later on that evening, while I was in the other room, Auntie Valerie also quickly decorated the dining room. It's amazing how quickly she transformed the room into a cute Aqeeqah-r

eady room. She's a natural!

I spoke to Auntie Rehana for a while and she was very, very excited to meet and play with Ayla. Aunties Rahila and Valerie were of course very happy to see her again. Ayla is indeed surrounded by loving family :)

Another big, big highlight of the day was Zaid coming back to Pittsburgh after his longest stay yet away from Ayla! Unfortunately, a Saturday morning meeting prevented Zaid from coming on Friday. Zaid's meeting turned out to be longer than expected and, traffic combined, to cause him to arrive at night around 8:30 PM. All week, Zaid told me how much he missed his little sweetie. He said he was very happy to have been busy in the evenings otherwise, it would have been tough for him going home early each evening only to miss Ayla not being there. And, Ayla missed him so much, missing his touch, his scent, and his voice. I also missed him sooo much too because I'm so happy these days to be spending time with our young and growing family :) Zaid and Ayla's reunion was sooo sweet.

On Sunday, June 28, we were all so excited about the upcoming evening. I made sure to convey my excitement on Facebook and received some generous responses. I had to make a quick run to Target that morning to get few beauty essentials. Then, I prepared my black, red, a

nd orange shalwar kameez and Ayla's cute, little pink and blue dress. Last but not least, before I got ready, Zaid and I decorated the family room (we were saved earlier as the Aunties and Mommy bought extra decor from Papermart!). Zaid, Fu, and I blew up balloons and then, Zaid and I put up the decorations. I was surprised because Zaid had some pretty good decor ideas. Not bad for a hubby!

Then, I got our baby ready. As usual, Ayla looked stunning in her dress. She truly looked like a little princess. It fit her nicely and she was ready for her debut for the Pittsburgh community. I looked at her lovingly and kept thinking to myself how lucky we were to have had Allah give her to us. I was anxious to present her to the community . I kept thinking about the Islamic significance of presenting a baby to others...

After getting her ready, I got ready with some time to spare. In the meantime, Ayla's handsome daddy went with Poppy to pick up the food from Bismillah restaurant. Before the guests came, I went around the house and took pictures of the decorations and the food. The cake f

or the event was beautiful (and delicious as we found out later!). It was a nice white frosting cake with the words "Ayla Yasmeen Sultan" and multi-colored flowers in frosting at top. The cake was half-yellow cake with strawberry filling and half-chocolate. It was a hit later!!

As the guests started arriving, they greeted us and were anxious to meet Ayla (especially the ladies!). Everyone came to see a glimpse of the newest member of the community. They had very nice things to say. They were also happy to see us after a long time. The uncles congratulated Zaid and then started doing what all Pakistani uncles do everywhere - discuss politics! The aunties, on the other hand, kept doting on Ayla all night. A lot of them commented on how it's been a while since they last held babies and I think this made some of them look forward to grandchildren :)

The dinner and cake, of course, were a hit. Before serving the cake, we took a few family pictures with the cake. It was nice and again, reminded me of the greatness of the moment. Mommy and Poppy certainly know how to throw a great party!!

Ayla spent a lot of the night being held and, she also had a couple of quick naps. Re

member, her beauty sleep is essential! No matter what she was doing though, Ayla was definitely happy and enjoying the spotlight - she always seems to have an eye for attention :)

The rest of the night was so enjoyable. We all talked, laughed, and I met some new people in addition to seeing old friends once again. The day was amazing - it only added to the continuous dream of having a daughter in our lives.

On Tuesday evening, Ayla, Zaid and I opened the presents given to us during the Aqeeqah. We received very nice gifts from this loving community and are very thankful. Ayla is looking forward to using her new gifts!

I will be back soon,

Saadia

June 25, 2009

Today is my baby's 10 week-a-versary!! Happy birthday to her! Time flies so fast when you are raising an increasingly cute babe!

Though today was great because it was Ayla's milestone, unfortunately, it also turned out to be a sad day for other reasons - the death of Michael Jackson and Farah Fawcett - but more on that

 later.

So, we've been in Pittsburgh post-Baba about 3-4 days now enjoying time with Chacha Fu, Poppy, and Dadoo. Fu is recovering from back surgery so he's home these days. They are all enjoying spending quality time with Ayla - she is truly receiving the star treatment. 

When he comes home, Poppy occasionally takes Ayla outside around the neighborhood- sometimes he holds her and sometimes he puts her in the stroller. Ayla seems to really enjoy going out in the evenings when the sun is down and there is a cool breeze. Poppy has got the winning move with Ayla down pat - she loves when you hold her against your chest so

 that her head can rest on your shoulder and you walk around with her. 

Mommy Azra loves spending time with Ayla. She showers her with kisses; talks to her; and gives her cute little nicknames. She loves holding her even while doing chores. As a daycare nanny, Mommy has the magic touch with children. 

Chacha Fu - though taking it easy these days - tries to do as much as possible with Ayla. He holds her in his lap and talks to her. And, he tries to walk around with her though she is pushing the weight limit that he is allowed to hold these days! 

The family is also busy planning Ayla's Aqeeqah for Sunday, June 28. As mentioned in my previous post, we visited Bismillah restaurant to check out their food and prices. We decided to go with them. After calling family friends throughout the week, Mommy and Poppy visited the restaurant on Wednesday to put in the order. On Tuesday, Mommy and I went to Papermart to buy decorations for the event. I wanted to stick to the baby girl theme so I suggested metallic pink and baby pink paper plates, balloons, and other decor. Most of the decor was metallic pink - in my opinion, an upgrade over the regular baby pink. We had Ayla with us on the trip. 

She was sleeping on my shoulder - oblivious to the fact that we were shopping for her big party :) Ayla stayed asleep for awhile until she needed food. I tried to feed her in the car but it was hard because I had to feed her without the direct sunlight hitting her (it was!) so then, we went home. 

I'm really looking forward to the Aqeeqah! Still not over the fact that we have a precious little baby, I can't wait for the community to welcome Ayla. The fact that this is going to be her Islamic "welcome celebration" is something to really look forward to. Soon after Ayla was born, we made a lamb sacrifice in Pakistan so during the Aqeeqah, we will celebrate with great food and great friends!

Although the day started off wonderfully with Ayla's milestone, it ended as a sad day. Soon after noon EST, the news broke that Farah Fawcett had died of cancer. The news stations began covering the story that she had died, when a few hours later, it was reported that Michael Jackson had fallen into a coma. Before it really hit any one, it was announced that he had died. As the news started to soak in for me, I gradually became more and more sad. Over the last 15 years or so, I had felt that America was focusing on this music icon's weaknesses rather than his genius and abilities leaving the singer depressed in the later years of his life. It is likely that this depression had something to do with his death. The tragedy is that Michael's death would bring him the love that he needed in life. For me, he was a post-civil rights African-American hero who did not allow the color of his skin to be a barrier rather, transcending any limitations due to his color and bringing joy to millions of people in the world. I, along with countless others, grew up listening and dancing to his music and now, with his passing, feel all grown up. I hope Ayla will grow up listening to his music.

To mark the moment, we videotaped Ayla and took pictures of her with MJ coverage in the background so that she will later be able to know what she was doing when he died. Ayla is about 2 1/2 months old at the time of MJ's death and her father was a little over 7 months old when another music icon died, Elvis Presley.

Until later,

Saadia

June 22, 2009

I'm back (after a very long time please don't kill me)! I've had a very, very busy time with my little angel. As the pediatrician rightly predicted, Ayla wants to be held constantly. Anytime I put her down, she cries. The doctor said that she recognizes her mother and father's scent and touch and thus, feels most comfortable in their arms. So often, I have to walk back and forth, throwing Ayla over my shoulder and then, she falls asleep. 

Ayla continues to "evolve" :) She's "talking" a lot more; her cute noises constantly evolving. And, the faces she makes are sooo adorable. She loves to sleep on her mom and dad's bed upstairs. No matter how sleepy she is, she gets knocked out when you lay her down on the bed. She can sleep for hours. Ayla's also increasingly playing "launchy" - this is where she uses her legs to push off. You have to be careful these days with her because she squirms and wiggles so much that she can fall off the sofa or out of your hands. 

As you anxiously assume, a lot has happened over the last 11 days. On Friday, June 1

2, Zaid and I stayed home. We just kind of chilled with Ayla. 

On Saturday, June 13, Zaid, Ayla and I visited a friend in the hospital. She's also expecting and is on bed rest until then. It was Ayla's first return to the Inova Fairfax Hospital since she was born there. However, she didn't seem to understand the importance of her return visit because she was restless during the whole visit. After the visit, Khala Waheeda came over followed by Khala Sarah. Waheeda and Sarah were tired because earlier in the day, along with Sarah's co-workers, they walked a 10 k dedicated to heart disease. We made dinner and stayed in. Baba, on the other hand, went out to dinner as part of Salman 

Tajuddin and Amged Soliman's bachelor party festivities. When Sarah and Waheeda left early due to tiredness, Zaid came back to help me take care of Ayla who was very colicky that night

On Sunday, June 14, I joined my sisters to attend our friend Dalia's baby shower. I did not take Ayla with me because Zaid and I decided that she should spend the day with Zaid. This was great for him because he got alone time with her. He loves her so much and misses her when he's at work. When he gets home, he only gets a few hours with her before it's bedtime and much of this time, she's colicky. I was glad to leave Ayla with Zaid but boy, did I miss her during the baby shower!! There was this 6 week old baby there and I just kept thinking of Ayla throughout the event. Many people asked a

bout Ayla there and they wished they could have seen her. It's times like these that I'm happy I have my Mother's Day gift on me - a precious heart shaped pendant with a picture of a mother and daughter on it that opens up so that you can put two pictures in it. I have two precious pictures of Ayla inside. I had a great time at the baby shower but I was happy to see Ayla when I got home. It had been about 6 hours - the longest I have gone without seeing her. 

June 15-June 16, Ayla and I had one of our wonderfully fun days at home. Again, I did a little prep for Pittsburgh. And, I bought our tickets to Tampa where Ayla and I will be staying July 11-August 2. Also, very critically, Ayla and I wrote our Father's Day card for her Nana Jan so that we could send it in the mail to reach Tampa on time. 

The big highlight was Ayla's 2-month doctor's appt on Wednesday, June 17. She had her first shots for her immunization schedule. It was hard for me to watch! Though the shots were quick, Ayla cried so loud. I didn't want to see her in pain! I actually had tears in my eyes watching her cry. Our pain was alleviated with the cute little circular heart bandages that the nurse gave Ayla - one for each thigh. According to the doctor, our little one is now 21 inches and 9 lbs, 1.6 oz. 

When we came home from the doctor's, Zaid worked from home the rest of the day. This gave me an excellent chance to go to the mall and look for Zaid's very first Father's Day gift from Ayla. Zaid told Ayla that he wanted cuff links but Ayla and I had other plans. I looked arou

nd and decided to buy a back massager for a chair. Ayla and I knew that Zaid always sat down on these massagers whenever he visited malls so we thought this would be a great gift. Ayla stayed home but she told me what to pick up. She didn't want to come with me and let Zaid think we were buying his present!

On Thursday, June 18, Auntie Rahila, Auntie Valerie, and Nido Puppo came to visit. Nadia has been studying for her MCAT (yes, she has decided to become a doctor) and she decided to visit Ayla for a much-needed study break. As the Aunties and Nadia played with Ayla, I decided to get much-needed work done. I did a few tasks in preparation for Ayla's first road trip - to Pittsburgh. As always, Nadia took some beautiful pictures of our baby. Later on that night, Zaid "accidentally" discovered Ayla's Father's Day gift to him because I left it in the car. It's okay because I was going to give it to him before the trip to Pittsburgh because there was no way I could sneak it to him. He was sooo excited and sat in the massager for a while. Of course, he kissed and thanked Ayla :) So, her first gift to her dad was a winner.

On Friday, June 19, Ayla was visited by one of my co-workers, Laura. I tried to catch up 

with Laura about work matters and gossip but she was clearly enamored with Ayla. She kept holding her and walking back and forth with her. Laura was kind enough to bring me lunch - a relief considering that usually, I barely have time to make lunch. After Laura left, I continued to prepare for the Pittsburgh trip. I know what you are thinking, "how long does it take Saad to prepare for Pittsburgh?!!" Well, not only do I ordinarily take forever to pack, this time it's for real - I mean it's Baby A's first road trip but packing for a baby is a lot more complicated as I have learned. Originally, we were going to leave tonight for Pittsburgh but Zaid was way to busy at work to leave at a decent time so we decided to leave Saturday morning. Plus, we didn't want to make our first road trip with the baby at night. Also, today Chacha Fu had back surgery after months of back pain. He was in our prayers and every member of the family called himto check up.

Saturday, June 20 is the big day!! This marks Ayla's first road trip, her first visit to Dadoo and Poppy's house in Pittsburgh. Zaid and I had the best ride up, talking and joking as usual. I videotaped Ayla in her car seat and took pictures. My manoo slept most of the way and woke up for food and diaper changes. She seemed very happy and eager to travel! On the way, we listened to some nursery rhymes on the cd player. It's amazing how many nursery rhymes I have forgotten! This was me and Zaid's first road trip since January 2008 when we went to New York - a long time considering we used to road trip a lot. We had some stormy weather but we made it there okay. Usually, we just stop in Breezewood - halfway between DC and Pittsburgh - but this time, we made two additional stops to feed our baby. All in all, this was such a fun ride!! As soon as we got to Dadoo and Poppy's house, Poppy came right out of the house and straight to our car and picked up Ayla. Of course he was happy to see us but Ayla was the precious gift of honor because this was her first trip. Dadoo, Poppy, and Chacha Fu were sooo happy to see her. That night, we had a quiet dinner and we all enjoyed time with Ayla. That night, Zaid and I took awhile to sleep as we soaked in Ayla's first visit to Pittsburgh - we couldn't believe she was actually here!

Sunday, June 21 was Father's Day - Zaid's first ever!!! Ayla gave Zaid a cute card (remember her gift had been discovered earlier!) and she gave Poppy a nice Tweety Bird card. Poppy was very excited to get the card - in fact, he proudly displayed the card! We also called Ayla's Nana Jan and he was so excited, especially about Ayla's Father's Day card! He thought it was very cute and very thoughtful. After the cards, Poppy, Zaid, Ayla, and I went for a pre-scheduled trip to Bismillah Restaurant - a potential caterer for Ayla's June 28 Aqeeqah. We tasted a few of the food options and we decided to choose this caterer. Ayla was quiet most of the time -soaking in the scene. I think she is very excited about her Aqeeqah and she was enjoying her first Father's Day! And, Zaid and Poppy got to enjoy some time together. The day ended on a bit of a sad note - Ayla's Baba had to go back to DC :( Zaid was very reluctant to go back, leaving at 6 PM. And baby A was sad too - she loves her baba. She has only spent one night away from him and now, she will be away from him for a few nights. However, he's scheduled to come back on Saturday, June 27 - and Ayla can't wait!!!!

Until later, Saad

June 11, 2009

Since the last time I posted, viewership for the blog has shot up - from 1 follower to 6 followers! This represents a 600% increase (is that right...my qualitative skills have deteriorated during maternity leave). I know it may be asking for the sky but I'm hoping to compete with the number of Twitter followers that Ellen DeGeneres has for The Ellen DeGeneres Show - 1 million followers. As you can tell, since we are not working these days, Ayla and I watch Ellen everyday. We both dance during Ellen's dance sequence. We also watch The View as Barbara Walters and the other ladies discuss the world's most pressing issues (like whether Adam Lambert was robbed on American Idol - he was). Anyway, before I continue, I want to thank the viewers because without your support, this blog would not be as cool :)

Although I'm excited that viewership of this blog is up, I realize this will be accompanied by increased demand for more updated postings. Here's a sample of what I have already heard and am facing: The day I notified everyone of the blog, Khala Sarah and Khalu Samer visited the house in the evening. Sarah said she couldn't help it - she already couldn't pay attention at work and now the blog had made it worse (side note: she is already suing Ayla for being so cute that it causes her to lose focus at work; Adnan Chacha is defending Ayla, initial court date unknown. For more information, go to www.sarahgnajivsaylaysultan.com).  Khala Weeda said that she checked the blog three times during work yesterday hoping for an update to no avail. By th

e way, Zaid is worried that Sarah's law firm, Slevin & Hart, and Weedy's place of work, US Peace Corps, might be suffering now due to lost productivity because of Sarah and Weedy's obsession with Ayla. For his part, Poppy, after asking about 10 questions related to an electrical problem we had at the house recently (it's a long story: I say the utility closet blew up. Zaid says a transformer blew out. Zaid might be right but I will not concede until the investigation is complete), asked "When will you be updating the blog?" And, Auntie Valerie commented on the "adorable blog" asking that I keep it updated so that you can all watch our sweetie pie grow. And I realize that there are still others like Fu who is not working and thus, may want to check the blog 80 times a day. So, due to rapidly rising demand, I will do the best I can to keep this updated while working around Baby Seux Zeux's (one of Ayla's many names) schedule.

As many of you know, we are engaged in two wars - no, not the War on Terror battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan - but Ayla's War on Tummy Pain involving both the Acid Reflux Monster and the Gas Monster. Although Ayla is bravely fighting on these two fronts, my sweetie pie may now be engaged in a third struggle, that against the Colic Monster. Sometimes, she cries for hours at a time. She also wants to be picked up a lot otherwise she cries when we put her down. Not sure if this is related to colic or if she definitely has colic but this is a possibility. I hope we are not spoiling her but I love picking her up! Despite possibly facing her third opponent, Ayla will stand bravely in front of the Colic Monster and inshallah, defeat him. As you kno

w, she's a born winner having passed the Car Seat Challenge in her third day of life. As Nadia Puppo has informed me, not every baby passes :)

On Monday, Zaid and I took our cutie pie for a "trip" (a stroll around the neighborhood). Ayla's eyes were wide open most of the time as she checked out her surroundings. She looked cute in her stroller and made adorable little faces. I don't know if you know this but Zaid and I often create little songs for fun occasions and we created one for this event: "We're going on a trip! We're going on a trip! We're going on a trip! We're really, really hip!" Don't laugh at our song because otherwise, we will dig up vital info on all of you :)

Ayla is growing so fast, changing every day. She has added new moves and new games to her repertoire. One new move is "The Compact". This is where she bends her head and chest down to her legs - closing like a Compact mirror does. She continues to play "Roller Coaster" and "Phone Phone." I often call her Climbey because she plays "Climbey" - a game that involves her "climbing" up the chest of whoever is holding her. She also plays "Nibloo Bear" - this involves her nibbling on the clothes of whoever is holding her. Last but not least, there is "Grabby Time" where she grabs anything she can get a hold of - my hair, our clothes, her hair, etc. And for those of you who have not heard, if you put her down in the bassinet and come back 15 minutes later, she is on a completely different

 side of the bassinet in a different position! She also plays "Squirmy Time" - this is when she waves her arms and kicks her legs wildly about. Most interestingly, she is also keeping her eyes open most of the time and she "talks" a lot, constantly developing new sounds and noises. It's sooo cute because these noises are random and unexpected! 

By the way, fascination with Ayla continues to grow. Poppy looks at pictures of the little one every night. My dad (still has no name that Ayla can call him though Nana Jan may be in the mix) had pictures of him and Ayla blown up for the house and his medical clinic. Both of our moms - Dadoo Jan and Umi Jan - always call the house to see how we, I mean Ayla, are doing. I think even if Zaid and I were like, "We are on fire", the two moms would still be like "How's precious little Ayla?" :) Grandparents are so cute!

Okay, I hope you enjoyed this entry. I'm going to sign off for now but I will be back again soon!

Love, Saadia

June 8, 2009

Over the past few days, my precious baby has not only kept me busy but she has been busy herself. On Tuesday, she was visited by Khala Sarah who is always very happy to see her and spends some quality time with her. As you may or may not know, Sarah has also created the Khala Dance Party (KDP), an exclusive dance sequence between her and Ayla and between Khala Waheeda and Ayla. This unique exercise involves Ayla waiving her arms and legs about. This is all I can tell you as I am not privy to KDP. 

On Tuesday, Ayla was also visited by our friends and her new auntie and uncle, Arefa and Jamal. They were very happy to meet her for the first time. They brought us baby essentials - diapers, onesies, wipes, etc. The gift was based on Jamal's experience with other babies and is the perfect starter kit for parents with new little ones! Jamal and Arefa also kindly offered to help feed Ayla's parents by making them food. This is very, very sweet of them considering Ayla's parents are very sleepy and busy these days and barely have time for themselves :)

Wednesday and Thursday, my baby got a lot of beauty sleep during the day but this means she is more awake and hungry during the evening and night. I spend a lot of time looking at her, pinching myself that Allah could give me this miracle. She is starting to make a lot of cute noises and she keeps her eyes open for minutes at a time. I know she is taller and has gained weight but it's hard to say how much until we visit the doctor's office. She appears to be making the transition from newborn to little baby. When Ayla's sleeping, I try to get other things done but I only get so far. 

On Wednesday, Nido Puppo posted some beautiful pictures that she took on Facebook. They are so precious; she took these pictures on Thursday, May 28 when Mohsin mamoo was still in town. The best pictures are the ones where Baba is helping Ayla stand. 

On Thursday, June 4, we also took Ayla to the mall. I went to get a haircut and Zaid took Ayla for a walk. They also ran into Zaid's friends, Babak and Stephany and grabbed dinner. Of course, his friends commented on how cute she looked! As usual, she was wearing a very cute outfit! We've been taking Ayla out for a couple of hours at a time. 

On Friday, Zaid participated in Impact Day, an annual community service requirement of all Deloitte employees. Zaid managed the effort of Deloitte employees to set up for the Race for the Cure in DC on June 6. Deloitte set up the event for the Susan G. Komen For the Cure. Zaid ran in the event on Saturday. All in all, Friday and Saturday were very exhausting days for Zaid and he enjoyed spending time with Ayla on Friday evening and Saturday. 

In fact, Saturday was a fun family day. We were supposed to go to Babak and Stephany's house for an event but we were so late that we had to make spontaneous plans. We took our baby to the Ritz Carlton in Tyson's Corner to have tea and dessert. It was fun and relaxing as the three of us have not had that much time to spend with each other either due to family and friends visiting or Zaid's busy work and school schedule. While we were at the Ritz, a nice couple with a 9 month old baby remarked about how cute Ayla is. We followed up our time at the Ritz with a sushi dinner. I had been craving sushi for a while because I could not eat it while I was pregnant. Ayla was very chill during our time out. She looks like she enjoys being out. I think she will be very social as she grows up! We wrapped up Saturday by watching Smallville at home. Ahh, a family-oriented series for a little growing family :) Poor Ayla has to deal with her parents' TV tastes. Don't worry, the time is not far off when Zaid and I will have to adapt to Ayla's TV schedule - cartoons and children's variety shows! I had so much fun this day - again I am so thankful to Allah to have Zaid and Ayla. 

On Sunday, June 7 (my half-birthday), Zaid, Ayla and I had a lazy Sunday relaxing and watching a little Smallville. I taped a great video sequence of Zaid and Ayla. They were both lying next to each other on the ground. Ayla was looking at Zaid with big, beautiful brown eyes. She was making cute noises, "talking" and touching Zaid's face. And, she was squirming and kicking her legs. It was the most adorable sequence! Whenever, we film her, she looks right at the camera. She's a born superstar!! 

After a little chillin', we decided to go grocery shopping. As we began our journey into parenthood, we want to cook more often at home and cut down on eating out. I went to the Asian store and Zaid took Ayla to Halal Co. We made a nice Asian stir fry dinner. Adnan Chacha was also over. As all other visitors, he was here to see Ayla because he had not seen her in a while. There's a pattern here - people call me and Zaid and tell us they want to visit. They then come by, say hi to us and then, make a beeline to see Ayla. Adnan was happy to see Ayla and play with her. He noted how much she had grown up since the last time he saw her. So, we all enjoyed our dinner, some funny conversation, time with Ayla, and watching the Orlando Magic-LA Lakers Finals (Orlando lost!).

All in all, we had a great weekend because Zaid, Ayla and I spent a lot of time together - a harbinger of things to come and inshallah, a wonderful life together. 

June 1, 2009

Baby Ayla and I spent the day at home today. We are still getting used to just the two of us being home together and enjoying every minute of it. She just turned 6 weeks old on May 28 and she is so adorable. She's about 8 pounds now and is developing enough muscle to push off with her hands; kick her feet; climb up people's chests and move her arms around. And for the last few days (maybe more), she's been able to stand up for a few seconds at a time, almost minutes. The best feeling is when she lies against my chest. She's knocked out cold! However, I have to often put her down to do some housework, cooking, and errands before she wakes up to eat. Although I'm on maternity leave these days, this schedule is more hectic than my work schedule! There's still so much I still want to do - work on Ayla's scrapbook; make a musical picture collage of her; etc. I can never seem to get to these things. 

Today, Ayla has been feeling a lot better. Yesterday, she was in discomfort and cried most of the day due to tummy pain. Tania was here yesterday for a couple of hours and unfortunately, had to see baby Ayla crying a lot. Today, Ayla has been sleeping more during the day and seems more relaxed. Ayla also took a nice, soothing bath. She enjoys the warm water and is very calm during these baths. 

This past weekend was the first time that Baba missed a night with Ayla. Baba was in NYC helping Chacha Fawad move from NYC to Pittsburgh. Yesterday and today, Baba made up for lost time with Ayla.

During the night, Zaid and I went with Ayla to the grocery store. With my mom having just left, Zaid and I are still trying to figure out taking Ayla out for mini-trips. So far, we have taken her to doctor's appointments, Auntie Rahila's house twice, Zaid's graduation ceremony, and dinner with his graduate friends. It's not that Ayla is not social; she has been receiving many visitors - both friends and family - at home. Zaid and I look forward to taking her out more. Tonight, she looked so cute in her carrier which we attached to the grocery cart. My baby did well, sleeping and then, staying awake to check out the food she will consume in the future!

We came home, caught the very first Tonight Show with Conan O' Brien and slept very late. My little booboo kept me up most of the night because of her irregular eating schedule but as always, it was worth looking into her big brown eyes and hearing her squawk and squeak. She's sleeping in her bassinet well these days after a period of sleeping with me and Zaid because of tummy pain. I miss her sleeping next to me but I know she is supposed to stay in the bassinette.  

I have so much more to say about my baby but I will wait until the next posting. 

Signing off for now,

Ayla's mom aka Saadia aka Seux