Sumaya loves dolls

It is crazy how sumaya will automatically gravitate towards dolls, put them to her chest, and pats them in the back while rocking back and forth.

Initially.

Then she throws them on the floor.

Sumo and Boo Boo

Sumi has had an obsession with Big Bird lately, or in her words, Boo Boo.

It started getting a little cold out

But that's not stopping sumo from enjoying herself.

Our Morning Walk

It was such a beautiful morning and I wanted Sumi to breathe in the nice air, most especially because our garbage has been stinking up the whole place (blame it on Sumi's sticky poo), so we decided to go on a little walk around the neighborhood.

West Hartford is a town known for its perfectly manicured lawns. People are mostly nice here too, offering a wave or a pleasant, "good morning." It was awesome though to see something quite out of the ordinary this morning featured right on someone's front lawn:

I have no idea what type of mushroom this is, but thought it would be cool to take a picture of it. It's so rare to find someone who allows such things to grow (in the front mind you). There is also a deeper lesson to all of this...Behind those perfectly manicured lawns and white picket fences, people have problems. It may not be seen (facebook profiles are like perfectly manicured lawns), but they are definitely there. So, it was a breath of fresh air to find this fungus, declaring its existence to the world.

Sumaya seemed to enjoy it as well (or, maybe we have an IPhone addict in our midst)!

Time to Say Good-bye

Salaam habibty Sumaya,

You may think we're horrible parents for doing this, but since you were about 7 months old, we have been using the jumperoo to put you to sleep. You didn't mind actually- you would just keep jumping until you fell asleep on yourself. Well, my dear- those days are over. I am a little apprehensive as to whether or not you will be able to sleep in your crib by yourself, but the broken jumperoo has left us no choice. We have to take the plunge, and there's no looking back.

You may think this is silly, but we would even un-do this oddly shaped contraption and take it with us to Mama Mervat and Mama Fufu's place. :)

The Broken Jumperoo:

Dear Sumaya

Salaam dear Sumi,
Today, you are 15 months old. With mama and baba both working, you have been spending quality time with both us but on separate occasions...and you still cry when we leave you with the babysitter for two hours on Friday.
Yesterday was the tenth anniversary of Sept.11, 2001- a day in which extremists attacked America in the name of Islam. I worry about the ramifications this will have on you. I want you to love Islam with all of your heart, to love Allah and His messengers and to spread that love. I don't want you to be bullied, and I hope by the time you go to school, Muslims will have made a more positive impact on our society. The past tens years have been fraught with attacks against Muslims, but have also given us the opportunity to engage with non-Muslims about the proper teachings of Islam. It's what made me decide to become a chaplain. I hope you understand one day that every time mama leaves you for work, it's with the intention that others may see a Muslim just trying her very best. America needs to see us out there, working, engaging, and smiling.
Please always smile. You have a beautiful smile and I love how your eyes half moon every time your cheeks rise.
By the way, just so you know, you love to give your mama and baba kisses. You love pointing and saying baaaybeee to anyone in close proximity. You say keekee for giddo and foo-huuu for mama fufu. You also like to whine when we don't let you play with our cell phones. You're learning and growing everyday and I pray that Allah keeps you on the straight path my beautiful Sumi.
Love,
Mama

Apple picking

One cannot really take advantage of living in Connecticut without visiting the various farms in close proximity. Today was a beautiful day to go apple picking. I have never went apple picking before and was very excited to visit Rose Berry Farm in South Glastonbury. I went there once before with Sumi and picked up some raspberries, but Ahmed had yet to see the beautiful acres of tilled land. When he saw the view, all he could say was, "Wow, subhanAllah!" We ended up getting 8 lbs of gala apples while munching away as we picked.

Such small things in life can really be a great catalyst for reflection and enjoyment. I really hope we get to visit and support our local farmers more frequently. Here are some pictures Ahmed took with his Iphone since his SLR would be too bulky to carry around while picking apples.

And of course, there are two tiny teeth marks on almost all the apples we picked ;) A Sumi trademark, if you will.

Sumaya loves the car seat...sometimes...

Sumi and iPhone

Sumis new goals

Sumi's Spot

Sumi loves sitting on the welcome mat right in front of of the living room door. We've coined it "Sumi's Spot." If you look further into the blog, you'll find pictures of her there doing some sick push-ups too :)

Enjoy!

Sumi at Fern Ridge Parkness

Sumi on Eid 2011