Kissy Face

Yousef puckered up his lips and made a big smootch noise and gave me air kiss after i kissed him today. it was too cute. I don't think there is anything more rewarding than the love your children show for you.

Yousef or Hamza

I wanted to just tell a short story on how we decided on the name Yousef for our baby boy who is now 9 mths MashaAllah.

When we found out i was pregnant, we were discussing names shortly thereafter. We found a moslem baby names site and browsing all the names.. I picked out three and hubby and  i agreed on quite a few and couldn't choose just one. So we chose the name Hamza. Although this is not my favorite name of all time and InshaAllah if and when we have another boy i will name him by my favorite name. But anyways i loved the name Hamza. So cute. So when my family started asking me what would we name our baby alot of them said they could nickname him Hammy for short (if he was on the chubby side meaning he is a pig). I freaked out.. ahh! a moslem named Hammy, are you kidding after something haram.. i started to think too if kids chose to tease him in school what would they say.. and so i prayed about it.. because the name you choose to name your child is very important as it will stick with them for life, and i didnt want people to nickname him anything especially something with a bad connotation.


In this time i was listening to Mishary Rashid recite Surat Al Yousef.Thought about the name and how i liked it even before i was moslem. (Joseph) Yousef had a very nice sound. Anyways i didnt bring it up to hubby and decided to wait, and digest all the information first. Going back to think of the other names we chose.(Yousef still stuck out in my mind though) with hubby not knowing anything this is what totally sealed the baby boys name in my stomach..

Hubby had said when he was about 15 or 16 his sister would tease him (by a very respectful way) and say "when you get married your going to have a boy first and name him Yousef and forever after you will be known as Abou Yousef" So his sisters all started calling him Abou Yousef when he was just 15 or 16. I had heard the stories before, but it didnt really mean anything til the last time he was talking about it. Hubby didnt realize to at this time i had considered changing the babys name to something else other than Hamza.

So when i told him i wanted to change the name from Hamza to Yousef. He thought about it a little. I could see he liked the idea because he had a huge smile on his face.
You know, (he said) deep down always wanted to be known as Abou Yousef, but i didnt want to force my wife to name our child that.. and kind of had my mind set you would choose a different name, but i couldnt be more happy" he smiled and looked at me "Okay Umm Yousef, Let us go to eat now" and we went for halal chinese.

Little did i know that the name would fit our little boy so perfectly.. i look at him and sometimes inside myself and say Hamza.. no no no that wont do.. he doesnt look like a Hamza..

Ya Yousef, Yebni Yousef. His name suits him just fine. and i am so happy we chose that name for him.
Alhamdulilah

The names we had picked out:
Hamza, Younus, Hafiz, Hakim, and Yousef. (we had a few others but these are the ones we agreed on)

Expecting.. Coming Soon.

To get some more sleep that is..
Anyways in other news even though Yousef is only 8 mths i want to have another one. (We want 4 or 5 more InshaAllah) and though i am still young enough, i'm not getting any younger and i want to have them close in age. Hubby said when Yousef is 2 we can have another. So I took that to mean when Yousef is a year old because if i was able to conceive shortly after Yousef turned 1, then Yousef would be almost 2 when the baby was born.. :) Not trying to hurry them along just hoping they won't be so far apart in age. So InshaAllah things will work out. and Sometime soon will be adding baby #3 to my blog posts InshaAllah!

It's a big world baby

Safiya and i were hanging out this morning, and she wanted to see cartoons on youtube and i found this video. (below)While listening to it,  i cried my eyes out.. MashaAllah she has gotten so big and its crazy how fast the time goes by.. Makes me happy and sad all in the same time.. This is why we should cherish every moment we have with our little ones because they won't be little forever.  Make sure you give your little ones extra hugs and kisses today!! InshAllah.
   
It's a big world baby, and your little for a little while
Its a big world baby, you can fiddle in your own style
Its a big sun, Its a big tree, Its a big boat, Its a big sea
Its a big dog, Its a big plane, its a big cloud, with a little bit of rain
It's a big world baby, and your little for a little while
Its a big world baby, you can fiddle in your own style

Its a big house, Its big chair, Its a big zoo, its a big bear
its a big street, its a big car, its a big sky, with pretty little stars
It's a big world baby, and your little for a little while
Its a big world baby, you can fiddle in your own style

Its a small book, Its a small shell, Its small bird, Its a small bell
Its a small cup, Its a small toy, Its a small girl, Its a small boy
Its small coin, Its a small ring, Its a big world for every little thing
It's a big world baby, and your little for a little while
Its a big world baby, you can fiddle in your own style

Fake Hungry:

Our appetites can be quite the pranksters.  It often fools us to think we are hungry, when often, we may be suffering from something completely different.  Distinguishing between false hunger and true hunger will help you know when your body really needs food and when it needs something else.

1. Hunger Due to Eating the Wrong Food: Symptoms include craving high sugar foods or feeling “hungry” soon after eating a meal.  If you just had a big meal that is high in simple carbohydrates and did not contain fiber, protein or healthy fat, all of which help provide a sense of satiety, you may have experienced a drop in blood sugar. In this case, have a healthy snack, such as a piece of fresh fruit and nuts, or cottage cheese or celery and peanut butter or 1/2 of a sandwich on whole grain bread).
2. Emotional Hunger: Sometimes, our appetites can go haywire when we are experiencing boredom, fear, anxiety, stress or loneliness. Try taking a walk, journaling, listening to some favorite music, calling a friend or chewing a piece of mint gum instead. Read a book, go to a “safe place” like a library or museum or park where you will not be tempted to overeat or distracted by food. Take a bath, meditate, or think about what REALLY would satisfy you, vs. eating to stuff down emotions you do not want to confront.
3. Hunger Due to Sleepiness: Experts at www.WebMD.com state that two major hormones, leptin and ghrelin, affect and control sensations of hunger and fullness. Ghrelin stimulates appetite, while leptin, made in fat cells, alerts the brain that you have had enough to eat. Lack of sleep causes a significant drop in leptin levels as well as an increase in ghrelin levels, a so called double whammy for appetite control and feelings of satiety.  Daytime fatigue may lead people to overeat (often, high sugar, nutrient poor foods) in an attempt to get an extra surge of energy. This is equivalent to placing a Band-Aid on the true problem. It provides only temporary relief, which is soon followed by a crash in energy levels and a resurgence of “hunger” leading to more snacking, increased sugar cravings, etc….a vicious cycle.  If you are feeling mid-afternoon hunger pains, try: a brisk 10 min walk around the block (fresh air helps, as does exercise, to boost alertness and increase circulation), a cup of green tea (high in antioxidants and low in caffeine relative to coffee), a 1/4 cup of almonds and a small apple (high in protein, healthy fat and carbohydrates, low in sugar, and a good source of magnesium and fiber). Even taking a few deep breaths can help curb fatigue!
4. Hunger Due to Thirst: We often mistake thirst for hunger. Try drinking a glass or two of water to identify whether you are truly hungry or just slightly dehydrated, in which case water is the perfect antidote!

When you are really experiencing true hunger, however, it is pretty clear to identify.  For instance, a growling stomach will cause us to be cranky and unfocused…until we get some food, that is! If it has been four hours since your last meal or snack, you may well be truly hungry. Don’t ignore true hunger…doing so may exacerbate it and cause you to overeat to compensate for the missed calories. It is important to eat regularly and consistently to keep energy levels elevated and avoid dips in blood sugar. Try to include fruits and vegetables at each meal and snack, along with some protein (cheese, beans, lean meat/poultry/fish) and some healthy fat (avocado, olives, nuts, oil). This whole foods approach will help keep you at a healthy weight and lessen the likelihood for emotional hunger to rear its head!
Written by Brooke Joanna Benlifer, RD (www.brookejoannanutrition.com) for Sheer Balance

Stop screaming already

Image via Wikipedia

Yousef and Safiya love to scream and lately it has been driving me bananas!!
They take turns and even wake each other up in the process so neither one of them can nap.
and Hubby wants to sleep in the car.. lol.. too bad it is too cold and he'd freeze.. that would be hard to explain..

In other news Safiya thinks the snow is ice cream and wants to go outside to eat it.. She whined for over an hour to let her have some" icee cweam"
i then distracted her with Dora coloring book and crayons..

But ice cream does sound good about now..