Moving Spaces

I've decided to blog on Wordpress. You can click here to access the new site.

See you on the other side!

Returning the Favor

Yesterday my neighbor asked if she could drop her 1 year old daughter at our place while he tied up a few loose ends at home. I've never watched someone else's child before, so it was strange for me, but since Iman goes over to play some times, I thought it wouldn't be fair for me to say no. And what the hell... If I can watch 2, I can watch 3. Right?

The play date/babysitting went fine. Iman did most of the entertaining, in fact I just sat and supervised the group. It was kind of fun. The neighbor baby can crawl, throw a ball, clap and chase after Iman, so it wasn't a surprise that Iman just took the lead, and thoroughly enjoyed the position of being "eldest". Ayzah was also happy to see someone else in the house acting silly. It was a good combination.

On the other hand, I sat there and contemplated the favor. I'm sure that when my neighbor asked me to watch her daughter, she probably thought that she wasn't asking anything out of the ordinary, since my daughter goes over to play at her place. But I guess the difference is that I don't consider Iman a child that needs constant supervision. She can entertain herself and is quite self sufficient when it comes to play time. The neighbor baby however, is at that age where she gets into everything, and has no sense of danger. So it's not an even trade... is it?

With all that said, it was still fun to watch the kids playing together. Kind of a glimpse of our future, where Iman and Ayzah will keep each other thoroughly entertained - I hope.

Learning the Alphabet

On our drive home from school, I asked Iman... "What did the teacher talk about today?", and she replied... "She talked about ass." I was shocked. So I asked again... "What did she talk about?" and sure enough, Iman's reply... "She showed us an ass and then we got to paint it."

My mind was racing for an explanation, but Iman was so sure of what she was saying. So I thought maybe she was pulling my leg (these days she has a sure knowledge of humor). So I insisted that she was mistaken.

"Really honey, I'm sure you're getting it wrong, I know your teacher couldn't have talked to you about ass."

"Yes she did. She told us ass is for snake, and we got to paint an ass shaped snake."

Leaving her behind

She was so happy this morning when I woke her up. Excited to get ready in her new clothes and head to her school. We did a quick photo session before she left, showing off her back pack and new look. When we got to the class, her teacher welcomed her in with a big hug. She went in and sat down and the assistant teacher helped her pick out something to play with.

One of the kids was crying and another boy was running around. Iman was sort of quiet, I think that it was too much for her to take in at one time. It took a lot of strength for me to kiss her goodbye. Even though she spent all of last year at daycare, this was completely different. At daycare she saw me several times in the day. I could go to her whenever I wanted, and play with her, sit with her, feed her or just hang out with her. Today, I walked out of her school, and I can't go back until 1.

A part of me feels completely torn. The house doesn't feel the same, and I have nothing to do. Ayzah is equally confused, looking around, here and there. Just not knowing how to express herself. I just spoke to Omair, who asked "So, how does the house feel without our little star?" - Yes, truly, Iman is the star of our lives, it's just not the same without her.

Commencement

We are going to experience the start of something great tomorrow. Iman's first day of nursery school! It's something she's been looking forward to since the beginning of summer, and something I've always had mixed feelings about.

Traditionally all moms breath a sigh of relief when their kids head off to school in September. It gives them some personal space. I guess I might just feel the same way in a few years. But for the time being, there are some mixed emotions in my heart. On one hand, I'm glad that she's going to go out and spend time constructively among other kids. Her horizon of activities will broaden, and she'll get time for herself. I will benefit too. With Ayzah's morning nap, I will get a whole hour on my own. There will be quiet time to read, even watch trashy morning TV. I can do whatever I please (which is quite rare when you have a 3 year old around).

But on the other hand, there's a pinch in my heart every time I think that Iman will be gone all morning. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to enjoy the break (eventually). But for the time being, she's such an essential part of my day, that I don't know what my life will be like without her.

On the eve of Iman's commencement, I don't know if I am ready to let go of her little hand, and let her venture out into the world on her own.

The moral of the story is...

If you're a mom, you'll definitely relate to this.

It's been a long hard day at home with the kids. There was so much noise that you felt the neighbors could hear the baby howling. You're exhausted, sleep deprived and you feel like crying. But eventually the kids finally go to bed and you manage to get some "quiet time".

After an hour or so you decide to pop your head into the room and check on the kids. They look so adorable. Almost angelic. Sleeping so peacefully. So you decide to treat them to an extra hug and whisper an "I love you" into their ear before you go to bed.

BIG MISTAKE.

Never disturb sleeping children - not matter how cute they look.

Cheating on our Pediatrician

Finding the right doctor for the kids has been one of the most challenging things this past year. Iman's old pediatrician was situated on the other side of town, and wasn't really working for us in times of emergency, not to mention, he refused to take phone calls. So when we were acquainted to Dr. Malini who worked at the hospital near our house, it was perfect! She immediately won my heart, and cleared my stringent check list.

Things progressed well. When Ayzah was born at the same hospital, Dr. Malini was the first to see her. I was happy that the kids were in good hands. BUT... then she packed up and left. Damn.

Since I was really happy with the hospital, I took the kids to another pediatrician who worked there - Dr. Jalil. Not really my kind of guy, but he knew his stuff. I like doctors who chat with us, remember my kids names and win the children's hearts. He didn't have any of that, but we still stuck with him because Omair felt that his experience spoke for itself.

Then, we met Dr. Deepali. Same hospital, but a whole different personality. She was warm and friendly. On one of the appointments she gave Iman a pen and paper to draw with while she spoke to us. She was concerned about both girls, and even though we had gone in to show Ayzah, she dealt with a lot of our questions regarding Iman.

I was sold. But then there was the problem of switching doctors at the same hospital, without feeling weird about it.

Yesterday Ayzah was due for a vaccination. When we walked into the reception, Dr. Jalil was making his way to the cafeteria (which, by the way, is where he spends most of his time). So I ducked to the water cooler. Then while we were sitting in the waiting room, he made his way back. So again, I tried to hide the entire family behind a newspaper. When our turn was called, I made sure we all quietly entered the office (since both pediatric clinics are side by side).

On our way home, Omair asked why I put on the whole show, and I said:
"Well if we're going to cheat on our pediatrician, the least we can do is be discrete about it."