caybee

Well done.

@ Jenn, I can imagine the look on her face when she thought you were going to nurse at the table I did try once at the table with family (though not at Thanksgiving - just the six of us, and everyone was fine with it). I used a cover, but it was just too awkward. Now when I'm at my parents' house and he gets hungry, if I haven't pumped a bottle to take over there, we lie down on my parents' bed and nurse for a few minutes, which is really pleasant. I hope to reach a point where I'm comfortable nursing on the sofa with family around. I'm getting better at covering, but he's getting grabby. He's also started this cute game where he'll dive on for one or two sucks, look me in the eyes, pull off and grin up at me, and then start again, but only when he's nursing for the emotional bond. If he's really hungry, he'll still latch on for a good 15 minutes or longer at a stretch. I wish I were more comfortable nursing in public. We were out of town last weekend. I pumped at the hotel but he finished that just before we went into the aquarium, so when he got hungry again, I resorted to nursing him in the public restroom because I couldn't find an isolated spot. I hated having to do that. I'm either going to have to get more comfortable in public or pump more and carry more gear, but being able to nurse him wherever and whenever would certainly be more efficient, especially when we travel.

Everything is pretty regular now. I nurse him right after work around 2 pm, then nurse him to sleep for his nap around 3:30 or 4 pm, then again when he wakes up around 8 pm, sometimes for an extended period. Then I'll nurse him to sleep around 10 or 11 pm if we're lucky, and I'll move him from the bed into his cosleeper. He usually wakes up hungry around 4 or 5 am, but if I bring him into the bed to nurse, he'll go right back to sleep after 15 minutes, and then he'll wake his dad sometime between 8 and 10 am for his first bottle unless I catch him once more before leaving for work. When I'm nursing him to sleep, he often does a Pete Townshend impression with a windmill arm around his head and down on me. I don't know if he's trying to stimulate production or whether he's just too restless to relax, but I think it's the latter because he kicks and arches a little also, though not like he did when he had so much intestinal discomfort. I've started swaddling him to nurse him to sleep. He protests at first, but he settles down once he's getting the milk and usually falls asleep within a few minutes.

@Anna, have you ever posted photos of your diapers? I'm sorry, I can't remember. I'm going to try to make some T-shirt diapers since those look pretty easy and fun, but I guess they'll need a cover? I've been using disposables more than I'd intended because he just outgrows the covers so quickly. The only ones he hasn't outgrown are his three Bumgenius AIOs. They're open all the way now, but they fit him well, and I hope he can keep using them for a while.

I think we've had at least one non-Muslim male USC in the MENA forum who petitioned a Muslim female successfully through Casa, and I think it was a K-1 visa, but I'm drawing a blank on the details.

World Market has a harissa that I like, a thick paste with a rich flavor. My husband likes a thinner kind he finds at the ME market in town.

No.

ok this is ridiculous/ diaper size 4 is for 22-37 lbs. size 5 is for 27+ lbs. If Ben is around 20lbs, does it really make sense that they're asking at daycare for a size 5? like #######?

a few times a week when he poops the poop goes all the way up on his back. so they need to change hios onesie because it's all full of poop. is it really the diaper? the diaper doesnt seem small at all. i just freaking bought a new box.

my question is, is it possible that the problem is the size, cuz he has always had this problem, or is it maybe that the cheap diaper i buy do that? should i go buy pampers or huggies?

Rayan's does that sometimes too for no apparent reason. A friend said her son's did that frequently no matter what kind of diaper she used. I wouldn't think getting him a 5 would help though, especially if the 4s seem to fit him well.

@ Staashi: LOL No offense taken, and he is killing my back - I feel like I did when I worked for USPS He doesn't look that big to me when someone else is holding him, but he has big thighs and Michelin Man arms. He kicks his legs constantly, "stands" in my lap, and can sit up up pretty well with good support, so I plan to get him something like an exersaucer for Christmas so he can burn off some of that energy and get some more mental stimulation. He's been reaching out and clutching blankets, our hands and faces, etc, for weeks, but a few days ago, he started grabbing toy chains, and yesterday while I was at work, he pulled the ring on the mobile above his bouncy seat and got a musical reward for the first time. He loves to "converse" with us. One of his favorite sounds is a drawn-out "ck" sound in the back of his throat - he's delighted when we say it back to him.

BTW Enzo is soooo handsome!

<EOM>

Love cold pizza for breakfast. Other times, I'll eat it cold or reheated in the oven.

What a distinct voice. Glad he'll still be on Wait-Wait, Don't Tell Me.

I'm glad too. I haven't had a chance to win his voice on my home answering machine.

Sorry he's leaving Morning Edition though. It will be like losing a carpool buddy.

Very good information on the car seats. So we'll get Rayan another rear-facing one when he outgrows this one. He now weighs 20 pounds at 15 weeks. This could get interesting.

She's precious, and her name is beautiful. Congratulations

I'd be interested to know what effect if any being raised essentially bilingual for the first three years of his life, even with an invented second language, has had on the son's ability to learn other languages. It's my understanding that Klingon is as much a language as Esperanto is, so I don't see any harm in what the dad did, especially since he said he didn't push his son when it was clear his son didn't enjoy communicating in Klingon. But if he wanted to start him on a useful second language while he was young enough to absorb it easily, something like Spanish or Mandarin might have been a better choice in the long run.

I had never realized Moon founded the Times.

That's pretty amazing.

They are more of a capture risk and has been pointed out, most of them can't open their own pickles.

I open the pickles in my family.

From the new USCIS memo dated October 9, 2009, referenced above:

4 Process Changes

B. I-751 petition filed by a CPR currently in removal proceedings

USCIS has original jurisdiction over all pending I-751 petitions. An IJ cannot review an I-751 petition pertaining to a CPR in proceedings unless USCIS has first adjudicated the petition on its merits. If a CPR is in proceedings and USCIS has not yet adjudicated an I-751 filed by that CPR, USCIS must first adjudicate that petition. An I-751 petition should not be held in abeyance or denied by a service center solely because the CPR is in pending removal proceedings. If the IJ has administratively closed the proceedings to await a decision by USCIS on the I-751 petition, the ISO will expedite adjudication and route the file through appropriate channels to the ICE Office of Chief Counsel having jurisdiction over the proceedings.

So if the OP is in removal proceedings, it looks like the I-751 can still be adjudicated (though they would still have to give an acceptable reason for filing so late).

The paragraph above the quoted one does state that once a final administrative order for removal has been issued by an IJ, an I-751 will be denied.

Yes

No

Yes

My husband and I are primary caregivers of a three-month-old who can't have the vaccine, so we got it, and I'm hoping some immune factors will be passed along to him. The thought of him catching this scares me. Too many babies and pregnant women have died from it.

The fact that you paid for your fiancé's plane ticket a couple of times might have caused them to wonder whether you were paying him to help you get a visa, so they were extra hard on you, as others have said, to see if one of you would break and let something slip. But you held your own and made it through. Now you will have one more story to tell your grandchildren Congratulations on the visa, and best wishes.

We were in a similar situation. Out of respect for my parents, we lived apart and went through a few weeks of premarital counseling prior to our civil ceremony. My husband moved into my apartment, and I bunked with my sister who lived five minutes away. The arrangement worked well for us, and USCIS didn't question anything. We filed for his AOS a week after his I-94 expired, but as others have said, the sooner the better so she spends minimal time, if any, out of status. Since we were married by a justice of the peace, we walked out with marriage certificate in hand and could have filed that day if we'd had everything else ready to mail.

Jenn, in looking back at my journal, we had a four-hour stretch one morning two weeks after Rayan was born, although that was unusual. I am pretty sure he was sleeping four to six hours at a stretch regularly at night by the time I went back to work at eight weeks. These days, he will sleep eight or more hours at a time, although I cosleep with him a lot, so it's possible he's waking up and nursing without my knowledge sometimes. It seems like there's a large variation between babies, but I think you'll be getting that four hours before much longer. Good luck.

how is that possible?

Sometimes I fall asleep nursing him on the bed, and we end up sleeping face to face. A couple of times, I woke up in the morning to find him nursing. Maybe I helped him latch on, but I wasn't awake enough to know it.

I'm very sorry this happened to you. Unfortunately, when you post photos, videos, and other personal information on public message boards and hosting sites, you are vulnerable to those who might not have your best interest at heart and who take pleasure in making fun of total strangers. That doesn't excuse what this person did to you, but once your personal information is out there, there is not much you can do to prevent this sort of thing from happening.

A few years ago, something similar happened here. Someone who was not, to my knowledge, even a member of VJ copied photos of MENA couples from VJ and reposted them elsewhere in order to ridicule the women and promote an agenda. This is why you will see very few photos of MENA couples on VJ, at least the longtime members. It's too bad it has to be that way, but ultimately, you're the only person who can control your personal information. You could try to challenge them on the blog site, but you may not get very far. I'm sorry, but you may need to take it as a hard lesson learned.

Jenn, in looking back at my journal, we had a four-hour stretch one morning two weeks after Rayan was born, although that was unusual. I am pretty sure he was sleeping four to six hours at a stretch regularly at night by the time I went back to work at eight weeks. These days, he will sleep eight or more hours at a time, although I cosleep with him a lot, so it's possible he's waking up and nursing without my knowledge sometimes. It seems like there's a large variation between babies, but I think you'll be getting that four hours before much longer. Good luck.

I hope that this incident doesn't further tarnish the image of Muslims as a whole, because I'm sure most denounce what the attacker did.

They have tarnish themselves with acts such as this.

If I'm tarnished by this man's act, then, so are you Nagi.

Will you agree that radical Islam is giving Islam a bad name?

No. If you are too lazy to understand the difference that's your problem, not that of ordinary Muslims.

He does understand the difference and that's why he wrote that. There's a different between Islam and Radical Islam. We understand and accept that. So those who practice Radical Islam are, by nature of their acts, giving Islam a bad name.

What's publicized and recognized by the public matters far more than the actual facts. Yes, it'd be nice if everyone stopped for a moment and considered the differences. But they won't and because of that, the "average" person will condense Radical Islam into Islam itself. Therefore the common perception will be that Islam and Radical Islam are the exact same thing. That is why Radical Islam is giving Islam a bad name .

AND why it is SO important that Muslims are VERY vocal in their condemnation of this and other violent acts by Muslims. And save the "yeah, buts" for a later time.

Good for CAIR! I saw another group voice their disgust. I don't remember the name, Impact?

Here's some more:

AIF and MPV Unite in Wake of Fort Hood Shooting

Organizations encourage education and community involvement

Press Release

For Immediate release

Muslims for Progressive Values

ATLANTA, GA; LOS ANGELES, CA - November 6, 2009 - The American Islamic Fellowship and Muslims for Progressive Values unite in voicing their concern and condemnation of the shooting at Fort Hood in Texas. The organizations send prayers and love to those affected by the shooting.

While the religion of the alleged shooter, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, has not been confirmed, his names are often associated with practitioners of Islam. Thoughtless and groundless violence cannot ever be justified by any religious or personal beliefs and actions such as the shocking events in Fort Hood go against Islamic teachings of love and respect for life.

AIF and MPV expressly encourage people to continually educate themselves about conditions that contribute to such tragedies and to work with those organizations, like AIF and MPV, who work to help eradicate society violence through continuous community involvement and awareness.

About the American Islamic Fellowship

The American Islamic Fellowship (AIF) seeks to provide an open forum and spiritual community based on Islamic principles for the diverse voices of people of faith and to become an integral part of the Islamic and Interfaith communities locally, nationally, and internationally through the implementation of critical thinking, scholarly study, spiritual awareness, community action, and educational outreach.

About Muslims for Progressive Values

Muslims for Progressive Values (MPV) seeks to bring together progressive Muslims and friends who share their values to work for a more humane world. We welcome all who are interested in discussing, promoting and working for the implementation of progressive values - social justice, human rights, economic opportunity, and separation of church and state - as well as tolerant and inclusive understandings of Islam.

Muslims for Progressive Values

Public Affairs Office

pa@mpvusa.org

(323) 842-2869