Ebinsanyusa (Things that make me happy)

I've decided to take note of the things that make me happy so every Wednesday I'll be blogging about things that have made me happy in the last week. I realised it's so easy to focus on what did not go your way and forget the simple things that God put in your life to put a smile on your face. 

So, introducing 'Ebinsanyusa' :)

I recently started using 'Soft & Beautiful Just For Me' hair products on Mwagala's hair and I'm in love with them. Plus they smell so good! Score! I switched from another hair product because I couldn’t get all the products and I was a bit worried but I’m so glad it all worked out. It really helps to soften her hair and make it easy to work with. Plus the scalp conditioner is not too greasy. Did I mention I love it? *sigh*

I’ve been reading again! I cannot tell you how much I have wanted to be able to sit back and read a book without worrying about Mwagala ripping the pages out. I started reading a book by Francine Rivers called ‘Sons of Encouragement’- five novellas about biblical men of faith. I’m loving it. I already finished one part which had me jumping for joy! I’m learning a lot about God’s mercy & faithfulness.

I’m driving a manual car! *fist pump*  The first time I drove alone I was so nervous that I couldn’t even eat breakfast. But now I don’t panic. And I’m enjoying my newfound freedom. Yay!

11 months old

Mwagala is 11 months old today! I can't believe how fast time flies! Just one more month till she's one year old.

I've not been very good at monthly updates - I'm sorry :( But I hope this sort of makes up for it.

Weight: 10kgs
Clothing size: 12-18 months
Milestones:

• Standing on her own for about ten seconds.
• Saying 'Mama' - when she REALLY wants my attention, Taata, Jajja, Bird, Ti -to (meaning tick tock for the clock), Bye bye, butto (meaning button), Da (meaning dance), 
• Dancing. For real! She puts her hands up and moves to the beat! Hahaha!
• Eating solids without a fight. This one took a lot of prayers. She would eat just a little before but now she eats three full meals and snacks in-between. *fist pump*
• She has four teeth now! And many times she'll do a test run on Mama *smh*
• Potty training. We're doing pretty well on this one. She is not very comfortable going in her diaper anymore.

The first time she stood on her own.

Potty training

Likes:

• Yoghurt
• Chicken
• Rice
• Bananas
• Her books
• Her toothpaste
• Music
• Car rides
• Playing with water

Dislikes:

• Saying bye to Mama or Taata
• Having a song end in the middle of her dance
• Washing her hair

Food: She doesn't like pureed food anymore so I just roughly mash her food. She likes to hold a whole banana and bite into it herself. She's still breast feeding but mostly in the morning and at night. Her favorite foods are chicken & plain yoghurt. 

Not what I imagined...

I always wanted a little girl and when I found out I was expecting a girl I was thrilled! I had always imagined what it would be like to do her hair, dress her up in pretty little dresses and eventually have girly conversations.
I also imagined that she would sit still while I do some chores and that she would enjoy playing with her toys while in one place.
I was so wrong. My Mwagala is not capable of sitting still. Once I put her down and surround her with toys to play with she reaches out for something else - the remote control, one of my beloved books or a shoe.

I've been finding it quite frustrating since I spend most of the time saying 'No'. And that is usually met with a smile and even more determination to do what I'm firmly telling her not to. But I'm beginning to come to terms with the fact that she is discovering all sorts of things and that I should let her. So what if I dreamed of a little girl who would sit still? I've got a beautiful, adventurous and very energetic little girl. I'm going to enjoy that. And stop saying no just because I don't want her to touch something. If it's not dangerous then I'll keep my mouth shut.
And she seems much happier with this new me so I guess it's working :)

Valentine's Banquet

Usually we don't celebrate Valentine's Day. I have nothing against it but I just don't pay much attention to it. Anyway, this year our church decided to have a banquet in honour of Valentine's Day for married couples and couples in committed relationships at the Kampala Serena Hotel. So we decided to go and have some fun.

We sent Mwagala off to her grandparents' house and got all dolled up for the event. It was awesome! The food was good, the music was fantastic and my date was so much fun :) The photos were taken with my phone so they are not the best - sorry :(

The venue

The 5 course menu - yum!

Me & my handsome date :)

The centrepieces

We had a great time. It was nice to have a date night. It's so easy for us to focus on Mwagala and forget to have time for just us.

And I had to get my hair done before the dinner so I drove to the salon and back all by myself in a manual car! I was super proud of myself. No more excuses :)

No more excuses

I don’t  like to take risks or do things that make my stomach knot up. Trying new things is difficult for me most of the time so I usually come up with excuses. I usually find a way to get out of something if I’m not sure that I will be good at it. So I have made a resolution this year (Sure I know it’s a little late to be making new year’s resolutions but better late than never, right?). I have resolved to not make any excuses this year. I’m going to put myself out there. I’m going to do what I’ve been afraid to do. I’m stepping out of my comfort zone. And boy, do I love my comfort zone! So predictable and safe! But oh well. Time to grow up!

So here are some of the thing I will be pushing myself to do:

•  Drive a manual car often especially in the city centre. I already did this one weekend and goodness me it was nerve wrecking! But I made it through so yay for me. No more excuses on this one. I'm going to keep doing it.
• Add more colour and style to my wardrobe. I realized I have no colour in my wardrobe. I’m a safe-colour kind of girl so I have greys, blacks and whites mostly. My excuse was I always wanted to be able to match without thinking about it too much but apparently matching is soooo out the window so I’m learning to be bold. (Hopefully, I will be bold enough to post some photos of my progress? *fingers crossed*)My other excuse was buying new stuff is so expensive and blah blah. Well, I’m going to find a way to afford the nice things I want. (I’m liking this new me already J )
• Start collecting ideas for our dream home. We have the plan and the land but I hadn't really gotten into the spirit of planning for the interior of the house because I didn't know when we would start. Well, I’m going to believe that it will be very very soon and start planning for it.( I’m excited about this one.)

Those are just a few of the things that will be changing this year. It’s a big step for me but I need it big time. Life is too short to be making excuses. So 2013, here I come. No more excuses!