Ramblings

So it has been eons since I last posted. I have since moved to the States, first back to Miami and now I am in Washington State and am in love. Oh, and I had another baby last year, woo!

Now having lived in WA for a year, we have for the most part settled. Even though next month we are moving to a different home (within the same town) things are for the most part settled and we are forming new ‘routines.’ Lately I have been feeling like I need to be doing more. Even though most days I feel as though I couldn’t bare anything else on my plate. Now that the seasons are changing and we are in the early stages of spring I can’t help but feel motivated and inspired. Don’t get me wrong I did love my official first winter.. 🙂

For quite some time I have been looking into all things home school. My oldest is 3 and I feel it’s time to start incorporating some routines and fun learning time. I feel learning through play at her age is so important. At this point my goals for her this year are to

• Begin to recognize her letters
• Begin to recognize her numbers
•  Explore and play outside as much as we can
• Start a mini garden in our new home
• Work on fine and gross motor skills

 

To be continued… 🙂

Real cold finally here!

For the past month or so the weather here in Kuwait has been great. Today, I opened the window to check out the temp and got a big fresh breeze of cold air! Finally, it’s here. COLD. I hope it sticks around. A lot of people I know don’t really dig the cold weather. I don’t get it.. I love cold weather. Granted, I’ve never seen snow or lived in an extremely cold place before. I am from Florida, BUT I just can’t get enough of cold weather, chilly weather. So, my daughter isn’t even really walking yet, but as soon as I realized how cold it was outside I bundled her up and took her little walker and we went outside!

Unfortunately where we are living we don’t have a back yard. But there is some place to move around. She checked out the slide and ‘walked’ around. She really loved playing with the leaves of the pepper plants that my in laws have. It was grand and hopefully we’re going to go back out with the papa later.

As of life; Things have kind of been the same lately. Nothing spectacular. We went to the Holiday Bazaar. That was ok.. She hated Santa. I’m hoping to go to a Breast Feeding workshop next week at Birth Kuwait. Something I have been wanting to do and am so stoked. We did visit the lovely Qout Market this past weekend. It was really nice, more people than I cared for, but nice. We got this tomato chutney kind of jam from Spoonful. As well as a granola from them which I really liked. A lot of the stuff was pretty over priced, I felt. But it wasn’t too bad. I did want to get a bite to eat but the food lane was pretty crowded and we could barely see the booths. I really enjoyed the booths that had kids toys and learning products. I am a total sucker for that kind of stuff. Needless to say we are really excited for next months market.

I also recently started volunteering at Bright Minds in their library section. I felt so honored to be asked. It also works out because she offered us free classes for the month. That works out great because my husband is STILL working on starting his new job. I am not even going to get started venting about that because I fear I won’t be able to stop. Ridiculous, RIDICULOUS, ridiculous. We got to go to a class last night and loved it. We really missed participating and missed our little friends. Anyhow, better end it here my little one wants the computer.

Till next time.

Days in a craze

I feel like it’s been a bit too long since I’ve last posted.. I did finish the lovely Divergent but haven’t had the time until now to write about it. Let me say, Divergent is one of my new favorites. I am waiting till Tuesday *hopefully* to get insurgent, the second book in the series. I am truly hoping that the series remains amazing. I don’t really care if this makes me sound lame, but I adore the Hunger Games series and have been wanting to read something similar to it. I’d say Divergent is similar enough! If you like reading about rebels, and people who are unique from society like the lovely Katniss Everdeen, then this series is worth checking into.

On a different note, things have been a little crazy this past week or two. I’ve been trying the weight watchers system with a friend and I’ve got to say it works, for me at least. I lost 5 pounds so far using it and that was pretty surprising to me. Of course it was with exercise and whatnot. But none the less, 5 pounds is quite awesome. I’m hoping to continue and not quit on it when I get bored. One thing I like about it, it’s not really a ‘fad’ diet. I’m still eating pretty normal. I do like how it motivates me to incorporate more veggies and fruits because they don’t count towards my points for the day. Plus, it’s pretty much calorie counting in disguise.

Onto a sweeter note! I did see the new Catching Fire movie this weekend. It was my first time leaving my little one with my MIL and the longest, she was still in the mall which made me feel better. Does anyone else feel complete anxiety when it comes to someone watching their baby/kids? I don’t think I would feel that way so much if it were my own mom, but that’s probably the ONLY person I would feel ok with leaving my baby to.. Anyway. I think, for me, it’s pretty safe to say I liked it more than the first movie. I had a good time and I thought it was obviously awesome. I don’t want to put in any spoilers, but I liked how they were more into the games than anything else. I felt like every time there was a rebellious moment I wanted to seriously stand up from my seat and fist pump “DOWN WITH THE CAPITAL!!” Hell yes. I loved the rebellious parts. I will admit, I went in my Hunger Games t-shirt and mockingjay necklace. And I did paint my nails like fire. I am a crazed Hunger Games fan, What of it? If you loved the books, definitely see the movies. That is all.

My little one has been taking more and more steps, standing longer on her own, but I wonder if she realizes? When she takes more than 4 or 5 steps it’s as if she says to herself whoa whoa, sit your bum down! And she falls. But when it comes to standing, when she does it without holding onto something for support, it’s usually to concentrate on an object she has in her hands. That’s usually when she doesn’t notice and thus stands for much longer than she walks. Don’t get me wrong, she can cruise along side things like couches and whatnot for a while and stand holding onto those kind of things but so far she hasn’t taken the big leap. Once she tried to come after me when I was leaving the room for a minute. I think she also is putting a hold on walking because she knows for certain she can crawl to her desired destination much faster. So why bother any other method, right? Silliness, I tell you.

Ok I could keep writing but I don’t want to make this too long. I hope I don’t take so long to blog again because this is a result, trying to type everything I have been meaning to blog about into one post.

Cloth, cloth, and more cloth.

I know the easiest way to do things when it comes to diaper changes is to use disposables. Especially once your little one starts on solids (at least if they are EBF). Using cloth diapers may not be everyone’s first choice. They can be pretty pricey depending on which method you chose. Whether you choose prefolds, flats and covers, all in one’s, the list goes on! And I know I did a lot of research while I was pregnant. There’s something about using cloth diapers that, to me, feels so rewarding. Not to mention they look so much cuter on my little one’s bum than disposables!

I didn’t use them in the first stages of my baby’s life. I started around 6 months because of we had most of our belongings in boxes and were waiting to move over seas. Prices of diapers in Kuwait aren’t as bad as in the States.. But there are other factors that come into play when deciding to go cloth. When you see the amount of babies in this country alone, and think how many disposables are being put into landfills.. Where does it all go? What really happens to it? Why are we so comfortable turning our cheek to reality? Thinking about our future, my child’s future, is the main reason I choose cloth. I don’t have enough at the moment to cloth diaper full time. So we use disposables at night and for going out, but it lowers the amount of diapers I use dramatically. Pretty much all of my friends use disposables, I don’t judge anyone who makes that decision. I think sometimes it just doesn’t come up. No one talks about it.. If we do talk about it, how do we without making our friends think we’re judging them? 

Washing cloth diapers in Kuwait can sometimes be a hassle as well. At least with the kind of washer my mother in law has, which she’s told me is a popular kind here. It’s damn right annoying. So, I’m going to *try* to do some hand washing and see how that goes. I’ve found some decent methods and hey, it’s an extra workout right? I’m thinking it won’t hurt to at least know how to hand wash in case I ever need to. Besides, I really don’t like having to coordinate with the maid my mother in law has and sometimes it just seems like it would be easier to wash the diapers in our own bathroom. I’ll try to write an update on that and which way works best for me. I’ll try to add pictures 😀

What are your thoughts on cloth diapering? If you use cloth, what kind do you use? What works for you and your little one?

Slow Days- vent.

Everyone has slow days. Not everyone enjoys them. I have only been in Kuwait for almost 5 months, so I’m on my way to adjusting to life without seeing my family and friends whenever I’d like. I miss them so much.. It used to be that slow days were voluntary. I maybe didn’t want to socialize. Now, slow days are a regular thing. Currently, my husband is going through paper work to start his new job so thankfully he is home more often. But when he works it’s even more difficult. I can say though that I don’t know what I’d do if I didn’t have my little one. Which by the way, she is slowly on her way to walking sometime soon.. I hope!

If I didn’t have her, I would probably be bored out of my mind by now.. Even though she usually keeps me busy, I do have my moments. Here in Kuwait, as a new expat, I’m still trying to get paperwork sorted. So, I don’t have a drivers license or anyway to really get about besides having someone take me somewhere and that’s not always an option. I am grateful I recently made a very nice friend. She’s pro breastfeeding, pro attachment parenting like I am. I have fun hanging out and hanging out with friends regularly keeps me sane. It reminds me of home and reminds me of things that I used to do. Next step is getting a license (hopefully).

Trying to cope and become familiar with living in a different country is difficult. Difficult when you’re shy and an introvert. When it’s difficult to socialize. I can socialize and open up a bit more when I feel like I can click with someone. I found one person so far that I feel I click with and was able to open up some.

ANYWAY.

I just started reading Divergent. Anyone heard of it? It’s supposed to be similar to the Hunger Games.. And I am a huge fan of that series. I don’t know what it is, but I freaking LOVE the Hunger Games. So when I heard there was a series out there similar to that one I had to get it on my nook. I haven’t read too much yet due to my little one waking up from her nap but so far I like it. I will write about it once I’m one. Here’s to good books and better days.

.

Impulsive bread baking anyone?

 

The little one decided to wake up a little early this morning. We had our breakfast, I nursed her, and I got to thinking.. Why not start my own blog? It’s something I’ve always been interested in and I am in a point in my life where I feel like I should be writing things down.  That way one day my little one (s) can read through this blog.

Anywho! This morning sumayyah was being pretty fussy so I decided why not go whip up a new recipe I found last night on Pinterest? An Amish cinnamon bread I found on a fellow bloggers site. It turned out to be pretty eventful. I realized there was no milk in the house. Thankfully around here most neighborhoods have little baqalas so susu and I walked on over to grab some milk. It was my first time going there by myself. I did get some strange looks. i doubt they see many american women walking around with stretched lobes and a baby in a sling. and the whole time susu was holding onto our list. Mommas little helper!

This recipe was so simple and fun to make. It gives you two loaves. I ended up doing the two loaves and a second batch that I put in a bundt cake pan to take downstairs for the whole family.  Hopefully they like it as much as much as the hubby did. It just felt so good to finally be able to make A good bread. I’ve been wanting to for quite some time.

To conclude my first post, I just want to add that I’m an American stay at home mom living in kuwait. I  have so much to say and I can’t wait to get started.

the recipe came from redfly creations. Thank you!