Pony Rides

It was Eowyn's 3rd bday party this past weekend and I gotta tell you it was a wonderful celebration. At first the stress was palpable only because there was a great threat of rain, but once a few drops fell and the clouds moved along everyone was able to relax and just enjoy themselves. Marisol had created a sandbox where the kids went looking for "gold". And you know kids and sand are always a hit. They had a good time playing there well after the "gold rush" was over.

They had individual horseys made out of a stick and a horse head attached to it and each child got to decorate their own horse as they wanted. That was a great idea.

And then it was time for pony rides. The horse, Teacup, came in to the backyard giving each child a ride around the deck and Kimberlee and Nemi had a good time as well as all the kids that rode him. They all got to feed the horse carrot before he had to go home.

I wish my camera was working to have gotten more pictures because it feels good as a parent to see your child, along with everyone else's, playing and having fun. Seeing them right at that moment and know they are all having a good time.

The kids came home beat, but we had to bathe them before putting them to bed since I feel weird about putting them to bed with bug repellent spray all over their bodies. Right after that they crashed and slept well.

The next morning Nemi woke up opposite his usual self. Usually he wakes up saying, "I want school" and he gets right up to get dressed. This day he woke up and I said, "come on, it's time for school" and as he laid himself back on his bed he said, "No, no school. I want pillow!" Boy did I totally understand that, but alas I had to force him out of the house. (wait is this a sign of things to come as he gets older and begins to not want to go to school every day like he does now - I hope not).

Well, all of that to say, we had a wonderful time at the party. Happy Birthday sweet Eowyn, here's to many more pony rides..... or at the very least super cool birthday parties.

Dora was Here

Yesterday (Friday) Kimani had come home from work and he was on the lap top looking for a movie for us to watch once the kids had gone to bed.

It was about an hour passed the kids bed time and they were feeling it. For no good reason and with no set time to put them to bed the kids were just hanging out with us. So to play around a bit I said to Kimberlee that I was Dora the Explorer and began to sing the opening sequence song. Then I said to her that Nehemiah was Boots; she was Isa the Iguana and Daniel was Benny the Bull.

Kimberlee then turns to me and points to Daddy and says, "What's his name?" I said, "That is Swipper the Fox"

What I did not expect was for Kimani to turn around and laugh like Swipper (ha ha ha) and he said. "you'll never find her now" and he took Kimberlee's kid sized Dora doll and he hid it in the closet all the while I was yelling Swipper No swipping, Swipper No swipping, Swipper No swipping.

OMG!! Nehemiah and I began to crack up so hard. Kimberlee and Daniel ran after Daddy (Swipper) to rescue the Dora doll and when she could not reach it she began crying hysterical. It was the funniest scene ever. I could not move I was laughing so hard. Boots (Nemi) was laughing, but hiding from Swipper behind me and Isa (Kimi) was screaming to get her doll back.

I think what made me laugh so much is that I thought Kimani was completely consumed by the movie search so when he turned around and joined us in our make believe world, it surprised me so much. He jumped right into character. It was unexpected and on point I was literally rolling on the floor laughing.

Smooth Sailing

Recently we went to a friend's house to hang out with them and go in the pool on a hot day. I was not sure how Daniel was going to react as it was the first time getting him in the water. We strapped him up with a life vest and laid him on the round inflatable. Small enough for his little body to fit right in and be comfortable. Well, he floated around the pool and before we knew it he was sound asleep. He spent a good 35 minutes sleeping on the raft as we played all around him. it was so cute. As a mom i was never further than arms length away from him... just in case.

It was so sweet to see him sleeping as he floated around. We almost did not want to wake him up.

2/12

today was a very restful and relaxing Saturday. Had not had one of these do-nothings day in a long time.

Everything seemed to just work easily and seamlessly. the kids were great, the family went out to eat at Applebee's (mmmmmmmmm!!) and now just thinking of things to do since i am so awake.

I guess I can't go wrong with just getting more sleep. I wish our bodies had a storage area where we could document all the hours we sleep and them store them there and we could tap into it when ever we are living with fumes.

:) he he... such a funny thought!

Just the way you are

We have been addicted to Bruno Mars' song 'Just the way you are' since we first heard it and tonight the kids asked for it as we were cleaning up so here they are jamming to it. I took this with my phone so the quality is quite poor.

I love Nemi's monkey dance and Kimberlee's step up and back move. They sure know how to have fun. And Daniel in the middle of it all. too cute.

Our first family picture.

What time is it? - Bed time

The title of this blog is a little jingle Kimani and Nemi came up with. It is really cute and pretty effective to setting the tone for the bedtime routine.

All right, here is the story: the other day (it was exactly last Friday) I said to Kimani at about 7:15 pm that it was time to get the kids ready for bed.

His response to me was, "No way! it is Friday! They could stay up late. We always stayed up late on Friday's when I was growing up"

Oh! No - not on my watch buddy. So we both got the kids in bed by 8 pm, keeping the routine in tact and then we were off to pillow talk, pray, you know - whatever. Well tell me why before 9 pm a certain Daddy Smith was out snoring. SNORING! 'Hey! Mister, it is Friday, we can all stay up late tonight!' ;)

You see Daddys may not fully understand the method to a Mommy's madness, but we parents need the rest, peace and quiet as much as the kids need it...

So once again Daddy what is that jingle, "What time is it?"

Daddy: "(snore, snore)"

Living the Stories

I hate it when I do not write for a while and then all my wonderful stories get all put in the back burner.

Well, I am exhausted from nesting and doing way too much here in the house, but I am sitting here thinking about Nemi and Kimberlee and all their crazy ways. Here are some random stories I do not want to forget:

-On our recent Christmas trip to Florida we took a late flight (9pm departure - and it got delayed [the nerve]). Once we were up in the air Nemi looked out the window and saw the street lights of the city he said, "Wow! it's Christmas, it's beautiful!" right then and there my heart melted "Aww Nemi, It is Christmas!"

-Nehemiah loves for Kimberlee to chase him. Just a few days ago they were running back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, but at one point Kimberlee took a detour and while Nemi was on the sofa waiting for her, she went to the room to say hi to Daddy. When Nemi noticed he said, "Wait a minute - Hold on." I cracked up as he stomped to the room to get Kimberlee to resume the game.

-We are trying hard to get Kimberlee to go to sleep by herself (instead of on my chest) and on her own (instead of me standing by her crib). So we are trying the Ferber method which tells you to allow your child to cry first for only one minute and then increase in increments as you see fit to allow the child to get used to putting themselves to sleep. Well, since Kimberlee and Nemi sleep in the same room he often gets up to give her the pacifier to help her quiet down. One night we found it funny that Nemi took on the Daddy roll and said in a 6-year-old stern voice, "No no no Kimberlee time to sleep." So funny

-Last weekend I had a 'family moment' like one of those times when you feel like you are doing exactly what a family should be doing. I was in the kitchen when Kimani announced he was taking Nemi down to the car with him to fix spark plugs or something. I stayed upstairs with Kimberlee preparing lunch. That moment took me back to the days when my Dad would fix cars with my brother in the garage and I would help my Mom fold laundry or clean the living room. As I peeked out the window to see them in the parking lot 'working so hard' it was nice to be in the past, but in the present at the same time.

- A few days after finding out we are having boy number 2 I said to Nehemiah,
"Hey Buddy! come say hi to your brother Samuel."
He responded, "Daniel?"
I said, "No Samuel."
Then he said, "Daniel!"
And of course I did what any mother who has had a name picked out prior to conception... I said, "Yes, Daniel"
We decided to change his name right then and there. We figured Nehemiah is a member of our family and he totally could contribute to the naming of his siblings. At least he did not say Bubba or Bofa or something like that. We cannot wait to meet Daniel in June.

This is all for now. Hope you enjoyed the stories as much as I loved living them.

Happy Birthday to Me

So I just turned... uh! never mind!

For my birthday, Kimani got me an Apple iPod iTouch. My first response was, "What is the iTouch?" I certainly was not fully familiar with this particular gadget. Well, I am falling in love with my new birthday gift.

I am having loads of fun, and I truly cannot remember when was the last time I got something so fancy, besides my wedding ring set. I am pretty excited and feel pretty lucky.

Now off to play with my iPod.

:)

Fun Filled Summer 2009

As Kimani and I were thinking about what we wanted to do this summer and where we wanted to go on vacation we decided to skip the one big even in the summer and spread the vacation love throughout all the summer months.

So our plan is to do at least two big outings a month. I am really excited about that. Some of the things we will doing are listed below:

M&M Factory
Hershey Park
Ballooning Fest
Cherry Blossom Festival
Montauk Lighthouse

and several other things we want to do... I am so looking forward to it. Our goal is to really connect with each other and enjoy, no savor, each and every moment we have together.

A day at the park

Today we had a hectic start to our day. Kimani had to be at work at 4am. We had to be in Brooklyn by noon for a meeting Kimani had and we were all sleep deprived, even Nemi. Kimberlee was up from 4 until about 630. She was hungry but she did not know it, so all of my attempts were refused until I was ready to pass out and she realized she was hungry and cries like I have been ignoring her needs all this time... then she feel asleep on a full stomach and Nemi is up within the next hour asking for pancakes.

After Kimani's meeting we decided to just bite the bullet and go to a near by park to enjoy the not-so-cold weather instead of going to the house and sleep.

Let me tell you we had such a great time. It was truly the best 25 minutes we spent today. Though we were exhausted and in much need of a nap we took the kids out (Nemi and his cousin) and had a great time seeing them play in the park.

We wondered why we had not gone out there before. It is only two blocks from the house and very many times we wanted to do something that was not as far as Central Park and not a museum where silence and stillness is required. With Nemi and ourselves bored out of our minds that park would have been a great outlet. Not sure why, but we were glad we went today. Nemi filled our hearts with joy as he decided to forgo the stairs to go to the slide and go up an "obstacle". We were so proud of him. He is really coming out of his shell and trying things he would consider scary in the past.

It was really perfect because it was empty when we first arrived so we had the park to ourselves. I took lots of great pictures even though I was in photo-shoot mode and the kids only wanted to play. It was kind of funny that I would continue to stop their flow for a picture. Most of the times they ignored me... good for them... they just wanted to play... and I wanted to capture their joy.

-ds

Favoritism

So is it fair when children have a favorite parent? As parents we try hard to make all things equal and for all the children to feel as important and loved and wanted. But how about when the children say to themselves (and others), "I belong to ___."

And is it more unfair when that favorite parent is NOT the one who carried the child in their belly for nine months, seeing their body take on a whole new look, and then have to go under the knife to finally meet the child, and be recuperating from that surgery for YEARS to come.....

Hello!!! it is perfectly clear who the favorite parent should be, but no the jury has spoken and the vote was for none other than daddy. And yes he is a good daddy, but how about the momma.

Well, now there is another child who is clearly making it known that mommy is the preferred parent and no daddy, you do not get to be jealous in any way because for the past 5 years plus 9 months of belly time, I have been second and it is time for Mommy to be mommy and love every minute of it.

Yes, Nemi will FOREVER be daddy's boy. I have even asked him if he was mine in the midst of mending his wound and kissing his hurting knee:
MOM: "Nemi are you mine?"
NEMI: "Daddy's."
MOM: "Nemi are you Mommy's or Daddy's?"
NEMI: "Daddy's."
MOM: "Nemi come on, are you Daddy's or Mommy's?" (As if switching it up on him will really make a difference, I mean I am trying hard here.)
NEMI: "Daddy's."
MOM: "Oh! Ok. " (I guess I lose the battle again, but beware... I shall win the war, har har har har)

Well, this has been a fun little tug o'war that Kimani and I have always had. We love our Nemi, and now we look forward to Kimberlee wanting only Mommy, har har har..... :) I am having too much fun with this.

until later,
ds

Wazzz up

Well, I am home today. It is Monday and usually I am at my part time job, but today I am enjoying the nice rainy - cold - windy day. Being cooped up inside does not bother me much, if I have not done it in a while.

Wow! it seems like this year is turning out to be quite challenging. I love seeing how God shows off his glory in our lives, but I am not crazy for the difficulties we have to endure in order for that to happen.

This is a picture of me on the train. I was sooooo bored on my way home I started taking pictures of the people around me. Those were weird so I got rid of them and took pictures of myself. I had such a blast. The conductor would walk by and tell me, 'are you that bored?' that made me laugh even more. I ended up taking like 11 pictures. it was so much fun. Now the level of fun was a direct correlation of the level of boredom. I am sure had I been on my right mind I would not have even done this. I may have considered it, but not gone through with it.

I hope to talk to you all soon.

Datnee

Nemi's new song

Oh! yeah!
Oh! yeah!
Oh! no!
Oh! no!
Oh! yeah!
Oh! no!

it is so cute how he sings it. He also loves this songs which he makes sure to shake his finger as he says no.

'No, no, no Jesus will never fail.'

though he never sings the rest of it.

'what he says he will do and he will never fail
Place your trust in man and he will surely fail
Place your trust in God and he will never fail.'

He just stays stuck in the chorus like a broken record.

'No, no, no Jesus will never fail.' imagine him with his finger high up in the air, saying no no no.

too cute.

Oh! Nemi

Lately you have been doing so many cute things that it is hard to keep up. One story that I think is worth looking back on is this one.

Last night you, me and your dad were on our way back home to Jersey from your grandparents in Brooklyn and like we usually do we stopped at Dunkin Donuts right outside the Holland Tunel. Your father got coffee for me and him and he treated us all to donuts. You ate up your glazed donut like you had never had one in your life. Unfortunately, I did not have any wipes or napkins to clean your hands, so both your hands were covered with the sugary glaze. You must have been sleepy already because the next thing I know you were sleeping with all four fingers of your left hand in your mouth. I began to laugh and it startled you, which made it even funnier because you kept your eyes closed as you changed positions and took out your left hand from you mouth to make room for your right hand. All four fingers straight into the mouth. too cute.

New Chairs :)

Check out our new chairs. We were so tired of our chairs looking dirty and just plain nasty from all the food that have fallen on them and the stains that have remained through the years. I had several pairs of jeans I wanted to so 'something' with and could not think about anything, then one day I was wanting to go to the store to get some material to cover the chairs and it hit me to use the jeans. I ran the idea by Kimani and he loved it, then my mother suggested we keep the pockets and Kimani thought it would be great to have the pockets and leave little notes for each other on them. I loved the idea and put the pockets on too.

they look great. Two chairs with big pockets from Kimani's jeans and two chairs with smaller pockets from my jeans.

too cute.

Outing at the Park

Nehemiah is doing soo cute, he enjoyed himself so much at the park recently. He keeps relying on us to help us through the things that seem difficult for him and I am to the point that I have to get him to be more secure in his own abilities and strength.

So he was at this park and wanted to go down the slide and I refused to help him up and then I caught this picture of him climbing the stairs to get to the slide. I was so proud of him that he actually made his way up there.

I love you very much, Nemi, you can do it honey. We believe in you.

Mom and Dad

Six Flags - Great Adventures!!!

Hey everyone, we waited all summer to go to Six Flags, Great Adventures and we finally had the chance to go with the church's youth group. It had been so long I had been on a roller coaster, I was not sure what it felt like or what to expect. We went on so many rides, I had a great headache from being tossed around and banged back and forth and up and down on these rides.

By far the most fun one was Medusa the ride was smooth and the dips and turns were not all that hard to handle. The most exciting was El Toro you seriously felt like you were riding a bull. it was seriously fast and up and down and left and right (it was my favorite). The scariest was Kingda Ka - very fast departure (so fast that you have to close your eyes because the wind is coming so fast at you) then when you come up it is fine, but coming back down you are looking right at the parking lot (I closed my eyes) then you do one more hill and it is over - very thrilling. I was shaking after that ride, when it was pulling in to the station to let us off, I felt like I was melting into my seat. I would do it again though.

We went on other little rides like twister and batman just for the fun of it. We missed Nemi a lot, especially when we saw the Bugs Bunny Land, and the Wiggles World. We thought it would be a great place for Nemi to have fun. We may take him when he is older so he could have fun on the kiddie rides.

Well, maybe one summer we will get the season pass so that we could go often, we had a great time, and in the midst of all the people we were able to just enjoy and draw closer to each other.

Until next time.

Funny Story #2

So I was cooking a potato salad today and left the eggs out a bit too long. At one point I saw Nemi running with and egg. I decided to follow him to see what he would do and he ended up putting it in his favorite hiding spot... behind our bed. Our bed is positioned where the headboard is up against the window and right below the window is the heater. So Nehemiah often throws all kinds of things behind the headboard. Books, toys, brushes, anything he could find. So when I looked back there he had thrown the uncooked egg back there too. it was a mess. Thank God it was not there long enough to be rotten, otherwise we would have had quite a stinky situation in our hands.