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.

There it is.

Kimberlee has found her hand.

She was just watching her hand as she moved it back and forth for a good while.

She also sucks her thumb. Well, she would suck her thumb if she would just open her thumb and let it in her mouth, but she usually keeps her fist tight and suck the length of the thumb. I am not even sure if this makes sense, but it is the best I could do. I guess I should say she sucks her fist.

Anyway, it is so wonderful to enjoy all these things with her. I was back at work at this stage with Nemi and I am really enjoying being home this time around.

Hair today, Gone tomorrow

Kimberlee's hair is growing longer and though in some areas she is getting bald spots, in other areas it is beginning to curl up. It is interesting to see that when I wash her hair and let it air dry, it dries curly and really cute. However, if I brush it out while it is still wet, it straightens out enough to where the curls are only at the ends.

My girl is so precious... Love you girl.

Ok Mama

So I often refer to Kimberlee as Mama when I talk to her, "Are you ok Mama?", "Hey Mama!" and so on. Well, Nemi ever so often will refer to her as mama as well, which is really cute.

Well, yesterday we were waiting at Kimani's job until he finished his shift and Kimberlee needed her pacifier, so I gave it to her and I ask Nehemiah, "Nemi is she ok?" and he reaches over and says, "Are you ok Mama?" It was so cute. It made me laugh.

Oh! Nemi you are such a great big brother. I love you buddy! [I cannot call you baby anymore because you are now 5 years old and you are a big boy].

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

2 month visit

Yesterday was my little Kimberlee's 2 month doctor's appointment. She is doing really well. Right on target with her milestones and neurological developments, which is great news. She now weighs 11 lbs 2 oz. She is 22.5 inches, which is petite on the scale. :)

I had several questions and the doctor was great at letting me know what is up.

1. Kimberlee has lots of congestion and that is how Nehemiah sounded when he developed asthma, will she also have asthma?
- No. Her congestion is in the nose not the lungs, so she will be fine.

2. She has lots of dry skin and I wonder if it is eczema (sp?)?
- No. She just has lots of dry skin, feel free to use Aveno for babies and it should clear up, but we will check again at the next visit to be sure.

3. We may start vaccinating her at 24 months or so, what do you suggest be our plan of action?
- Well, at that age, children may become a bit traumatized because we have to give them so many shots to have them catch up that they begin to associate the doctor's office with pain. However, I will not give more than two shots at a time or if you want one at a time. We will just have to meet once a month to be able to catch them up with all the vaccines.

4. Could we bring our own earrings when you pierce her ears?
- No. We use a sterilized set of earrings made with material that will not interact with the skin and we strongly advice you have her wear those first before you put in regular earrings on her.

Ok. So there you have it. It was a great quick appointment and Kimberlee is just fine. On my way home I got a call from Nemi's teacher that he had a poopoo incident at school and had to get him. My little fella' :( I think he just had a very hectic weekend.

talk to you soon,
ds

Daily Record Article

March 14, 2009

Rockaway couple share story of birth on TLC program

By Rob Jennings
Daily Record

ROCKAWAY -- Datnee Smith is sharing the birth of her daughter, Kimberlee, with a national television audience.

Smith, 31, of Rockaway, her husband, Kimani, and Kimberlee -- born Jan. 16 at Morristown Memorial Hospital -- will be featured starting Tuesday on "A Baby Story."

The episode featuring the Smiths -- the 1,116th during the show's 11-year run on The Learning Channel -- will chronicle their lives through the latter stages of her pregnancy and Kimberlee's birth in Morristown.

The couple said video cameras and crew in the hospital delivery room were not a distraction, mostly because they were so focused on what was happening.

"After a while, you forget about them," said Datnee Smith.

Met in college

Smith was born in Puerto Rico and graduated from Nyack College in 2002 with a degree in psychology. She met Kimani Smith, now a quality assurance technician at Alcoa in Dover, while both were in college. They married and have a 5-year-old son, Nehemiah.

The episode, which will be repeated several times on TLC, will run for the first time at 3 p.m. Tuesday. Datnee and Kimani are holding a viewing party with family and friends at their Hillside Avenue apartment.

Smith said she is a longtime fan of the show and, upon becoming pregnant a second time, applied online to participate.

"We were really excited to have conceived again," she said

Smith explained that she was diagnosed with endometriosis following Nehemiah's birth and that doctors initially believed she might not be able to have another baby.

Smith, who delivered Nehemiah by Caesarean section, made the unusual decision -- in accordance with her doctors -- to deliver Kimberlee by what is referred to as a VBAC -- vaginal birth after Caesarean. Most woman who become pregnant after having delivered a baby by Caesarean section opt not to proceed with a vaginal delivery due to potential complications, such as rupturing, that are more likely due to the previous surgery.

Smith's obstetrician, David Garfinkel, said that "VBACs, in general, are always a little stressful," adding, "A lot of physicians are not offering VBACs because of medical liability issues."

But everything turned out fine. Garfinkel, who estimated he has delivered about 150 babies per year for the past 15 years, said the delivery was mostly uneventful with the exception of minor fetal distress.

Kimberlee arrived weighing 6 pounds, 1 ounce, and was 19 inches long.

TLC provided the following synopsis of what viewers will see and hear on television starting on Tuesday:

"Datnee's plan is to deliver this baby naturally. She felt like her right to labor as a woman was taken away from her the first time around, so she is bound and determined to get it right this time. And when she is a week overdue, the doctor decides to induce her.

"As the pitocin begins, Datnee is feeling good and thinks she can handle this pain for sure. She and Kimani walk around the halls of the hospital to kick labor into high gear. But as soon as the doctor checks her and she is 5 (centimeters) dilated. He decides to break her water, which throws Datnee into very active labor and the pain intensifies. Datnee's cries for help go unanswered as she quickly dilates to 10 and is ready to push!

"As the pushing begins, everything happens very fast and furiously. It took about four pushes before baby Kimberlee finds her way into the world. She is welcomed with cries of joy as this family is thrilled to finally meet her. Kimani is so proud that is wife was able to birth this baby just as she had planned! And when Nehemiah meets his baby sister for the first time, he has nothing but love for her."

Kimani Smith said he was glad to have participated in the show.

"I thought it was a wonderful experience, to show the whole behind-the-scenes," Smith said.

TLC declined to say what, if anything, the family was paid. Datnee said they were given a pack of diapers, two boxes of Clorox wipes and were promised a DVD of the show.

Additional Facts

When to watch
The Smith family's "Baby Story" will air for the first time at 3 p.m. Tuesday on The Learning Channel.

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

Follow up

So yesterday I went for my six-week check up at the OBGYN and it went really good. Everything seems to be back to normal and I have only a few more pounds to lose to be back to my 'regular' weight. By a few I mean a lot more than I expected so, where are my workout tapes?

I am so thankful to have been refered to this OBGYN practice. They are really nice and a fun bunch of girls. The Doctor and the Midwife are really attentive and make it such a personal experience.

Kimberlee was introduced to the Dr. G for the first time since delivery and we had a great laugh reliving the labor and delivery. Dr. G is pretty cool. Kimani did not get to go with me this time and everyone "missed" him. He is usually the one that makes everyone laugh during my check ups, so they notice when he is not around.

Anyway, will chat more later.....

hasta la vista, baby

For Kimberlee

In my daughter's eyes, I am a hero.
I am strong an' wise,
And I know no fear.
But the truth is plain to see:
She was sent to rescue me,
I see who I wanna be, in my daughter's eyes.

In my daughter's eyes, everyone is equal,
Darkness turns to light,
And the world is at peace.
This miracle God gave to me,
Gives me strength when I am weak.
I find reason to believe, in my daughter's eyes.

An' when she wraps her hand around my finger,
Oh, it puts a smile in my heart.
Everything becomes a little clearer.
I realise what life is all about.
It's hangin' on when your heart has had enough;
It's givin' more when you feel like givin' up.
I've seen the light: it's in my daughter's eyes.

In my daughter's eyes, I can see the future.
A reflection of who I am,
An' what will be.
An' though she'll grow an', some day, leave:
Maybe raise a family,
When I'm gone, I hope you'll see,
How happy she made me,
For I'll be there, in my daughter's eyes.

Has anyone ever been able to take a picture of a child right as he is winking at you. this is a great picture.

And here is Kimberlee Ann. Looking like the nun she will become. :)

Just a spoon full of sugar...

I finally got my medicine for my cough. It is about time I got off my lazy butt. I should be a hundred percent by next week. Yeepeee!!!

No more cramps/contractions since I was discharged two days ago, so that is also good news.

talk to you later,
ds

No Title... Just the story

I am so tired I cannot think of a title for this blog, so I am just going to go right into it.

Tuesday night we were having a nice family night enjoying one of the few shows Kimani and I agreed to watch this season, Eli Stone. Once it was over we went to bed and I began to feel a little cramping in my lower abdomen. The entire area below my bellybutton began to just feel like a cramp that would come and go every so often. I made a mental note of the time and how often I thought I felt this cramping.

After a while I got up to go to the living room and when I saw the time, it was about 1220am. I made a second mental note that I had the reoccurring pain for about an hour now and it would come what seemed every five minutes. At this time I called the emergency hot line for my OBGYN and did just what Dr. Garfinkel said..."Drink about a bucket of water and call me in two hours"

OK so I drank the bucket of water within the first hour because I was really hoping it was braxton hicks. And I as i laid I prayed the pain would stop and that it was just from dehydration. Even if it was just 'hicks, I wanted the pain to go away. I thought that at 28 weeks this kind of pain could not be good.

So at about 4am I spoke to the doc again and he asked me to come in for a premature labor evaluation. Now, at this time I was concerned, but somehow I knew I was not in labor. I still went to the hospital because I did want to get checked out and I really wanted to sleep and I could not do that with the cramps coming and going. I was up all night already.

By the time I got there I was contracting every three to four minutes. They checked if I had effaced or dilated, and thankfully I had not. They also did a test to find out my likelihood of going into labor in the next two weeks and that came back negative, which was good news.

They gave me a couple of shots to stop all the contractions and we went home with the instructions to call/come back if the contractions started again.

At first i was not even sure if I should call the doctor or wait until the next day and go in to the doctor's office because I did not ever have any contractions with Nehemiah and I was not certain what was going on. I also did not want to make it seem like I was being a baby or whatever (I always think people think I am being a big baby and I hate that I think that), so I was home doing my Bradley breathing I learned from the book and just remained calm and relaxed with every cramp, well, contraction. I felt so good when at one point the doctor is looking at the monitor and he says to me, "well, you did the right thing by coming in because many women would feel the pain and not come. You are actually contracting and we have to stop this, so I am glad you are here. You are not in labor, but we want to make sure the cramps do not continue because eventually you will dilate." That lifted such a weight off my shoulders.

So needless to say, I am to take it easy. Dr. Kimani Smith has put me on bed rest, and I am not to cook, clean or even have intercourse for the next three months (yeah, we will see about those orders "Dr."). My only duty is to take Nemi to school and bring him home. Kimani is so loving, I love having him. He is so protective over his family, and concerned for our well-being. He is so much more than I ever expected.

Nemi too was so good. We took him to the hospital with us, because it being the middle of the night, we just could not get ourselves to wake anyone up to watch him so we took him and he did good considering his sleep got disrupted and he was in the hospital waiting area for about 5 hours.

Well, right now I still feel a bit dazed, and dizzy. I am going to rest some more and hope to just feel better over all. I want to get rid of this crazy cough that I have had for the past two weeks. I just want to be 100% again, could any one please help me.

Oh! one last thing, I am going to have to call my dad and ask him to reconsider coming up at the end of the year. Not having Kimani in the room with me because he had to stay in the waiting area with Nemi was a bit of a killer. Kimani had no clue what was going on, and I had no support when the nurses left. We need to leave Nemi with someone when we go to real labor and I hope he could come up and help us. Right now our option is for Kimani to take me to the hospital and then go to Brooklyn to drop Nemi off with Kimani's parents. I cannot even imagine how long that will take and the chance of traffic or an accident delaying his return already makes this whole plan futile.

You know I am going to ask my friend/neighbor if we could leave him with her if it happens during the day - and then later take him to Brooklyn. If I go into labor in the middle of the night, I am sure traffic will not be an issue so Kimani could do the NY run; that way we could leave him there for days if we have to.

So keep us in prayer. This turned to be a bit long... sorry.

-ds

Batman Begins... for Nemi

Oh! the little milestones we get to experience.



We have been contemplating getting for Nehemiah a full size bed because his crib turned into a toddler bed and then to a full size bed... However, Kimani's colleague was selling a twin size bed (headboard and everything) and we thought, you know we could always just use his current crib for the baby and just get him the twin size bed.



Oh! goodness... when he saw the bed he was all excited and he was helping his daddy put it together and everything so when Kimani finished he made the bed with the Batman sheet set and Nehemiah was all over the batman sheets and yada yada yada, until......



it was time to actually go to bed.



He kept going back to his crib (well, toddler bed) with his pillow and saying, Night Night... like telling us, 'I am supposed to be on this bed...'



Well, eventually he did fall asleep on the twin size bed, but it was weird to see him in that big bed. We are so used to seeing him in the toddler, which he has been in that bed since he came home from the hospital and to suddenly see with our own eyes that he is growing up and needs a 'big boy' bed it was a bit surreal... Like wow! he is actually gonna be 5. We knew for a long htime he needed a bigger bed but to see it here in the house and him laying in it was tugging at our hearts.



Kimani thinks he will not take it well that the new baby will be in 'his' crib when she comes... I said, 'do not worry, he will be fine'. I mean, what else am I supposed to say. This is one of those things that no one has a choice in the matter, Nehemiah is getting big and we are having a baby. So we are all going to have to adjust to the changes and keep it moving with an open mind come what may.



-ds

Happy Birthday Ice Cream!!

yeah!

I love love love Cold Stone Ice Cream and I am soooo looking forward to going over today and getting my free birthday ice cream. yum yum. My favorite combination is the chocolate ice cream with almonds and either oreo cookies or brownie. They are both good, but having both cookies and brownie is a bit much. In any case, there is nothing like some good birthday ice cream and when it is free it is just even better.

--

Nemi - the Higglytown Hero

So Nehemiah is a little hero in his own world. Here is what happened.

It was time to take him to school and like I do every morning, I told him to get in the car and give me the seat belt. While he is doing this, I usually throw the car keys from the back seat on to the driver seat, along with my wallet and his backpack. That way when I finish with him, I just get in the front seat and have all the things I need.

Some how or other, I do not even know how it happened, all the doors locked without me noticing. So I closed Nemi's door and tried to open my door and... "Oh! Oh!". I try his door... "oops!!" I remained calm because the morning was nice and chilly so he was not going to be in a hot car. So I happened to have my cell phone in my pocket to call Kimani to ask someone for a ride to the house to help us out. While I am leaving a message on Kimani's voicemail, Nehemiah begins to play with the door handle and since he cannot open it because of the child lock, I tell him Nemi pull the other piece (or whatever I said). So he did and he actually unlocked the door himself and I quickly opened the door before he locked it again. I was so proud of him. He was the hero in his own rescue - though he did not even know he had to be rescued.

Good job Nemi.

Kimberlee's First Shoes

I love these little shoes. They are so absolutely perfect. I received them from one of the moms I met at Nehemiah's school. She is so kind to me. Her daughter is in Nemi's class and she is so cute.

As soon as I saw these shoes I placed them on Kimani's pillow and when he got home I told him, "I think Kimberly is coming home in these." He is so in love with his daughter. We are so in love with both our children. I do not even know if the shoes will fit her when she is three days old, but for Kimani and I it is perfect for her to come home in. I had Nehemiah's outfit picked out so early on and when Kimani was getting him dressed to come home (with his Mommy-crocheted booties, sweater and hat), I could not hold in my laugh because Nemi was so skinny and everything was so big on him. I still remember that day. It was cute.

Anyway, we are so excited to have another baby join our family. We hope Nemi adjusts well, we shall see...

Until later,

Momma

Time flies when you are having fun.

I had planned to blog all about this pregnancy, and keep up with all the details about having this baby, but that surely did not happen.

So let me see what I need to update you on. We are having a baby girl... we are going to name her Kimberly Ann... I am on week 24 as I write this... thus far I have gained one pound... I look smaller in real life than in pictures. I feel great.

So many stories to tell you... Nehemiah has been so sweet with this pregnancy. We would ask him where the baby is and he would come up to me and kiss my belly. So cute. Now that we all know it is a girl, he would say 'Hi Baby, hi sister', always melts my heart. I know that it is a bit abstract for him still, but I am sure he will do fine when she gets here.

I had thought about applying for The Baby Story (on TLC), but one of the requirements is to get concent from my OBGYN as to how they feel about being recorded and all that stuff. Well, my doctor (Dr. Karen) is not interested at all to be on TV, but his partner does not mind. After thinking about it we decided not to go through with the application because we did not want to deprive Dr. Karen the opportunity to deliver this baby if he happens to be on call that night, and he has been so supportive and he has worked so hard with us to be at this stage, that for us to apply and get in would be bittersweet since it may mean we would have to deliver with the other doctor. It was fun to consider it though.

Right now our biggest concerns are:
1. Setting up Nehemiah's room to welcome the baby. We do not want to wait until last minute.
2. What will happen with Nemi when we go deliver the baby... we have no idea who will stay with him. The current idea is to have my parents 'move' in and help us out. Worst comes to worst we will take him to the hospital with us and he could hang out a the nurse's station. (ha! that will be fun - I could see them going crazy already) I pray we deliver overnight so that he could just sleep the entire time if we have to do that.
3. How I will get Nemi to school once the holidays are over. I am thinking of asking the other moms from the classroom for help, but i sooo do not want to do that. I think I will end up having him home with me instead of inconveniencing anyone in any way.

I guess in the whole spectrum of the issues happening in life and in the world all around us... these concerns are by no means a point of worry, but I rather worry about these things than the economy.

all right, talk to you soon,

Datnee and baby :)

We made it to the end of the first trimester.

This is so exciting. (just so you know, it has taken me an entire week to write this - I kept on falling asleep). Finally, we are at the last week of the first trimester - week 12 - we saw the baby again this past Monday. Since we could not hear the heartbeat on the Doppler they did another sonogram. I really like our OB-GYN. Thank you Leah for recommending them.

This first trimester has been fun. The first month was a piece of cake, of course, since we did not even know what was going on. I say we as if Kimani feels anything at all, but anyway - you know what I mean. The second month was interesting in that my appetite change drastically and my taste buds were doing their own thing. And the third month was absolutely exhausting. I actually lost 5 pounds between the second and the third month. I was sleeping so much that even if I was hungry I just could not make it out of the bed (but mostly couch) to make something to eat.

Now I am beginning to learn the signs my body gives me to differentiate hunger and bionic fatigue, so I eat a little something before I knock out so that I do not sleep on an empty stomach.

Thank you Lord, that I did not throw up once. I am so grateful for that.... I hate puking. Well, it is not like anyone really loves it, but I just hate feeling like I am suffocating.

Well, I will keep you posted on our progress.

Talk to you soon.