Monday, April 28, 2008

Well....

I got up to nurse Kajanae and couldn't fall back to sleep, so I decided to do some technical work on my poor little neglected blog. :) First, I couldn't STAND the atrocious distortion of my new picture, so I removed my profile pic and added a new page element that allows me to add a picture at its real size.

Secondly, I re-enabled my comments. I have it set so that anyone can comment; this way, even those of you who don't have a blog (or if you have a blog with wordpress instead of blogspot) can still comment. I came to this decision after discovering that I can moderate the comments!! So...yeah...I'm really excited about re-enabling this to hear everyone's comments and input...but I can determine the appropriate comments from the malicious ones, which is really the key!

I also want to give an update on my recent health issue. I'm doing much better...the counting has really brought the severe deficit of calories in my diet to my attention. When I'm taking care of everyone else, it's sooo easy to just let no breakfast slide into no lunch...and no lunch slide into a quick, dinky dinner while catering to everyone else's needs. So...I'm quickly approaching my first weight goal, which is really exciting. From my perspective, from just looking at myself, I still don't see the problem...that is, until I hop on the scale. The scale doesn't lie...and was really my saving grace because I could see the problem in a concrete form. So I can continue nursing both of my younger daughters...and I feel SOO much better now that I'm more conscientious about my food intake...more energy, and just an overall feeling of better health.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Yikes!!

Well, I just changed by profile picture...and on the homepage I look like I have squinty eyes, and then on the profile page I look like my eyes are bulging all the way out of my head!! I hate pixel distortions. Oh, well..if you guys really want to see what it looks like, you'll have to click all the way through, meaning keep clicking on the pic until it's the only object on the page...then you can view it in its correct dimensions. This was taken at one of the many restaurants we visited in lovely Cancun.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

My Little Baby Kajanae

....is so precious to me...and I can't believe that she is officially a quarter of a year old. She's now three months as of the 21st.

Even though Kajanae is still so young, there is so much I could say about this precious little one...but words just wouldn't do it. She's irreplaceable..priceless...OURS. I still marvel over the fact that God has given her to me, to be her caregiver while she's on this earth. Kaji, I love you...I couldn't love you more...but even that is a fraction of the love that your Father in heaven has for you, precious little one. You are special. You are loved. You will do great things; this I know.

I suppose I should record some logistics as well, so that we can look back and see Kajanae's developmental progress, etc. I'm keeping a baby book for her and taking lots of photos like I'm doing with Kimora and Kariah...so I suppose this blog is sort of a secondary source of their growth and development. Recent milestones include:

~Kajanae has begun to exhibit an obvious recognition of Jamal and me; she'll still engage strangers and other lesser known faces, but she certainly prefers me, Jamal, my mother, and Corinne over others. She will search for me in a room and will often smile when she spots me!
~I speak a lot to Kaji, and she'll look directly at me and try to "talk" back.
~She seems pretty coordinated with her arms and legs...very good at pumping. Her kicks are getting stronger, too!
~When placed on her stomach, she will use her arms as support, lifting up her shoulders and head high.
~She loves to watch and observe her sisters; needless to say, Kimora and Kariah do provide interesting entertainment. Kaji will watch their antics for rather extended periods of time; she seems to be very alert and have a longer attention span than many 3 month olds.
~Kajanae weighs about 12 pounds now

Happy 1/4 Birthday little baby Kajanae Samaria!

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Aunt Flo

Well...Aunt Flo came to visit me for the first time since a year ago! I guess it's time to be more strict with the birth control (insert sheepish laugh). I'm telling you...I certainly haven't missed the cramps! Ugh!

Monday, April 14, 2008

Welcome Back!

As of Saturday night, our entire crew was officially back in A-town. No matter how wonderful and relaxing the vacation, something about coming home just feels right!

For those unaware, this spring break trip to Cancun, Mexico was in honor of my lovely sisters, Corinne, Acaijah, and Ciahnna. They've worked very hard this year with their academic work, and we're very proud of them. :) Each was allowed to bring one friend...and Corinne brought her boyfriend. We had a marvelous time spending the days on the beach, perusing the city in the evenings, eating out, and relaxing at the lavish hotel at night.

Being a very touristy place, knowing Spanish wasn't essential. However, we had fun speaking Spanish among ourselves and ordering in Spanish at some of the restaurants...even Kimora did that!

I kept Kajanae under the umbrella the entire time and kept all three girls slathered in sun screen. Some people think that I don't have to be as diligent considering my daughters' darker complexions...not the case. SPF 50 for my babies!

Jamal, my parents, and I had to keep a sharp eye on Kimora and Kariah on the beaches. As I've mentioned before, they're fearless around water. Although Kimora is only 3, she's a good swimmer in a pool. However, the ocean is a whole different ball park! She begged us to take her out deeper in the water. When the waves broke over her head...was she phased? No sir! Jamal took her out past where the waves break with an innertube...she thought that was boring in the calmer waters! Why was I surprised? Does Kimora ever choose the calmer, more rational choice? :)

I think that Kariah knew she was getting the short end of the stick. I didn't even want Jamal to take her out because no man is a match for the ocean...even a man like Jamal. I just wasn't comfortable with a 19 month old venturing into the deep waters. I kept her along the edge and would hold her hands as she jumped the smaller waves and the other waves that had already broken and were rolling in toward the shore. When Jamal would take Kimora out in the water, I would often walk along the shore with Kariah and help her collect shells, sharks teeth, and sea glass. Sometimes Kariah would bypass the gorgeous, intricate shells for a glob of jiggly, tubular seaweed! Go figure! :)

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Before closing, one other thing that I feel necessary to mention involves my doctors appointment today. I think I mentioned before that I've lost a lot of weight since giving birth to Kajanae. I've always been thin, but I've dropped below what is considered healthy for my height (I'm 5 ft. 9 in.). I've been in denial about this because I know that I've been eating as I was before; I told my doctor that running after 3 small children must take any and all excess off of me! She didn't buy it, and she said that something's got to give. She really doesn't want to tell me that I should stop nursing Kariah (in addition to Kajanae), but that would be the next step. At this point, she wants me to count calories and keep a food log to make sure I'm eating enough to stop dropping weight. She has set a daily goal for me of 2,200 calories. To be honest, I think everyone is making a bigger deal of this than is necessary. I feel very healthy! ....but I suppose I'll humor them, because they're probably right. Self force-feeding, here I come!! :-/

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Tropical Paradise

Hello all! It's been a while since my blog has been updated, especially updated by me! (I actually thought about deleting Jamal's post; I planned on copying it and saving it just for my own keeping...but he acted all offended. He's just VERY into PDA...or affection at any time, for that matter. So, I'll leave it posted because I think it's sweet...but it did embarrass me just a tad! :) )

Well...the end of last week consisted of preparations for our spring break trip to Cancun this week. We arrived yesterday evening and will spend the week here! For those of you who don't know, Corinne, Acaijah, and Ciahnna have their spring break this week. They each brought a friend...well..in Corinne's case the proper moniker would be boyfriend! :)

I'd better head to bed so I can enjoy tomorrow with the rest of the crew...everyone else (in my room, at least) has long since been "knocked-out"! Take care everyone; thank you to those of you who prayed for our safe travels. Buenas noches!