Amina Endorses Sure Steps

When Amina first got her Sure Steps I was doubtful. When Abby, her PT put them on her and pulled that strap tight, Amina yelped so loud I was convinced that after a few weeks of wearing those things, my daughter would be well on her way to having lotus feet that would make any Chinese aristocrat jade with envy.

I am pleased to announce now, however that after a few days, Amina was used to them, they aren't too tight and they actually do a remarkable job improving her pronation and stabilizing her balance. Within a week she was more comfortable pulling herself up, crusing and even standing on her own for a few seconds. We are crossing our fingers, but it looks like she may be walking within the next month or so!

Oh, and they don't come in fuschia, but they do have cute little pink and purple flowers on them and we've been successful in making them work with her summer ensembles. :)

Parenthood Lessons #3

Reflections on Motherhood - The First Complete Year

WHAT DOES MOTHERHOOD MEAN TO ME?

Here's an overview of what I have learned in my first FULL year as a parent:

1. Before becoming a mother, I thought I knew what the words commitment, love, hurt, compassion, loyalty, dedication and sacrifice meant, but now I realize I was just scratching the surface. Its like when you become a parent, all of your emotions are intensified - you don't just love, you love HARD, and if someone or something hurts your child, it hurts you more than anything you could ever experience yourself. Your children's successes and failures become your own and you want to do everything you can to protect them.

2. All of the things that were really important to you before becoming a parent, become even more important to you. Your family in invaluable, your friends become your family, your financial security becomes less about whether you can splurge on that new pair of shoes for yourself and more about what you can do for your baby or your family now and in the future.

3. On a similar note, all of the things that were insignificant to you before, become even less significant. You have no energy to hold grudges, no desire to be around people that bring you down and no time to participate in idle gossip (well, except if its really good!)

4. Your time is precious. Sometimes I think about how quickly the past year of Amina's life went by and I start to panic, only 4 more years until she starts preschool! 15 years until she gets her driver's license! 20 years until I get to help plan her 21st birthday bash! I find myself rushing home from work early just to spend 5 or 10 extra minutes with her, when before I may have stayed 5 or 10 minutes later to finish up. Getting up in the morning doesn't seem so bad because I know I'll see that little goofy face. I'm sad on the rare days when I'm out late and don't get to see her before bedtime. I'm constantly brainstorming ways I can spend more time with her and less time with just about everyone else.

5. You want to nurture ALL children, not just your own. I work in a field where unfortunately I see abused and neglected children everyday. Before I had Amina, the social worker in me wanted to make sure the kids I worked with were "safe and had their basic needs met". Now, the mother in me makes me pull out my lotion to grease up those ashy elbows, buy a comb and brush from the store to brush those lint balls out, give you my sandwich if you're hungry, $3 to buy something for later and my cell phone number to call me if you need anything else.

6. You lose your tolerance for triflin' parents. As a parent who would do anything in the world to make sure my child has what she needs and wants, people who put their children behind themselves or their mate or their addiction make me sick. The social worker in me understands it, but the parent in me is disgusted by it.

7. The stakes are high. Raising children is the most important and most difficult job I have ever had. Trying to figure out how to manage my life and raise a productive member of society without screwing up consumes most of my time.

There's a ton of other things I can add, but these are the things that have been on my mind the past few days.

Amina was fortunate enough to spend the Mother's Day weekend with her mother and father, grandmother and grandfather and two great-grandmothers. Such a blessing because not everyone is lucky enough to have all that family around.

I know it's a little belated but Happy Mother's Day to all of you Mothers out there! What does motherhood mean to you?

What's That Number One Zodiac Sign?

TAURUS of course! (And I'm not just saying that because I happen to be a Taurus too!)

A year ago this time, this is what Amina looked like:

What a difference a year can make!

Amina was born on Saturday, April 21, 2008 at 1:14pm at Abington Memorial Hospital by Dr. Lisa Geer-Yan. I was induced because she was small for her gestational age and they wanted to get her out into the world to grow. I was in labor for 24 hours! I tried to go natural, but around hour 14 or 15, things started to get a little rocky and I got an epidural. Ameen and Tasha were in the room when I delivered and Tasha took pictures of the delivery (yucko). My mom got there about 2 minutes later. It was a beautiful, amazing and disgusting experience all at the same time.

Despite all of the ups and downs we've had this year, Amina has truly been a blessing and we couldn't ask for a more beautiful, wonderful, special child. She is and will always be our little princess. Thank you to all of you who have shared your time, your gifts, your prayers and everything else with us over the past year. We are looking forward to many, many more wonderful years with Amina and all of you sharing those joys with us.

In case you were wondering, Amina share's her birthday with Andie McDowell, Tony Danza, Queen Elizabeth, Charlotte Bronte, Sarah Michelle Gellar. (Nina Simone and Mark Twain also died on this date).

P.S - I bet you think Amina looks all cute in her little birthday tiara, we'll here's the scene about 2 minutes before:




Don't be fooled by that pretty face!!!















More pictures of Amina and her friends on her birthday:

Labor and Delivery

Amina will be a teenager oneday. I've already started composing the speech I'm going to deliver every time she gets on my nerves, ahem: "Your father and I were perfectly happy before we had children. Do you know I was in labor for 24 MISEARABLE hours with you? And you treat me like this!? Look, at these pictures! Do you see how happy we were BEFORE I gave birth to you? And do you see what we look like AFTERWARDS? Ever since your arrival on this earth you've been causing us grief! Go to your room!" Still a work in progress but you get the picture.

BEFORE:

AFTER: