Belly Itch Blog

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JJ Ghatt's Old Stuff

Here are the articles I've written in the past

Toddler Magazine

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Yes, I saw this at my pediatrician’s office today: A magazine dedicated to the world and psyche of Toddlers!! Yes, Toddler magazine is my new favorite mag…because my almost year old is definitely a bona fide Toddler! Well, technically, it’s not a new magazine, but it’s new to me and I’m loving it.

Look out now!

It’s quarterly and choc full of tips, photos, outfit ideas, meal suggestions. Okay. Me loves it! 😀

okay. I’m supposed to be packing for my Christmas vacation to visit the inlaws in the Islands. Warm sunny weather, here I come!

I have a short attention span and a eerie need to be sleep deprived. doh!

The Mom of Three Kids Diet

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When I read and/or heard Kelly Ripa announce one day that she doesn’t diet or exercise much and that her three kids and hectic schedule keep her skinny, I was like, “yeah right, lady. Tell me another one!”Seen here with daughter, Lola.

but alas, for the last few months, amid a rather ridiculously hectic schedule, my family’s loss, the frantic holiday season and all the normal mayhem that comes from trying to balance work life, a large family brood, I have managed not to pack on my usual extra 5-10 lbs for the Holiday season!!! I have even gone down at least one dress size (even though I do not believe I have lost any weight, per se).

Like today for example. I have to do holiday shopping. I have 3 hours of work meetings. I have a Christmas piano recital for my son. I will try my earnest to squeeze in a meal or a quick 30 minute run, but it’s not looking good.

And as I post this, my 6 year old just said, “Oh well, mom, I guess I have to make breakfast by myself! (so, I gotta go) Keeping up with two blogs adds to the challenge too, I suppose.

Kelly Ripa is my “Mom of Three Kids” Muse!! I do believe genetics have something to do with it as well, I must admit.

I’m not complaining but I do miss working out and eating, but I am loving being able to fit in my size 4s Again!! yippee!!!

What’s GG Up to Now…

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these days, GG has become quite the adventurous little girl.

She’s quite social indeed as well. For example, she picks up my cell phone and has pretend conversations on it. It’s the cutest thing.

She loves exploring and playing with toys. She’s getting a kick out of cause and effect. Hitting a piano and listening to the keys make noise. Check out my little Alicia Keyes? or better yet Florence Beatrice PriceShe has two new teeth coming in on top and on account of it, she’s been cranky, a little feverish and is pooping up a storm. My mom said I had similar symptoms when I was teething. TMI, I know. tee hee.

Oh and she is in total awe and in love with the Christmas tree. I must take a photo of her standing in front of it just staring. Too cute.

She is getting to become a daddy’s girl and goes ga ga over her brothers, especially the 3 year old who she is closer in age with. He’s a littlelot rough with her and she can take it but sometimes, she just wails and hollers at him to stop.

That’s the other thing, she is a mimic. She has nailed down the art of mimicking sounds and hand and arm gestures. I was holding her in my arms the other day while fussing out the boys and wagging my finger and she copied my gestures and mocked my nagging sounds perfectly!

my my my! i have competition for being the queen of the house, I see! (BIG SMILE ON ME…until she turns into a totally defiant teenager/daddy’s little girl. *sigh* let me enjoy these moments now and stop projecting the distant future)

Celebrity Pregnancy and Baby Making Announcements

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Usher and Tameka Raymond had their second baby, another boy last Wednesday, December 10 who weighed 5 lbs., 13 oz. and is named Naviyd Ely Raymond. The new baby makes for five boys and zero girls for Tameka who has three boys from a previous relationship.
I hear our favorite beautiful humanitarian baby-making/adopting machines are expecting another baby and rumors are circulating that she’s expecting another set of twins! Oh boy!
What fun! Good thing they have nannies. I love kids and all and my three bring me joy, but I’d be certified looney if I had to balance another set of three like the JoliePitts have. And now they’re gonna add another 1-2 or maybe 3 to the mix! God Bless em!

Quintuplets Born in Maryland

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wow! God Bless the mom, 28 year old Sudanese native Adwai Malual, who carried the babies into their 30th week of gestation. They were born December 2., 2008.

The names of the four girls are: Nyantweny, Nyandeng, Abyei and Athei. The boy’s name is Deng.

From my local MyFox network:

Mrs. Malual, whose husband serves in the Sudanese military, was visiting relatives in the U.S. when, four months into her pregnancy, she fell ill. After consulting with local Fetal Medicine Specialist William Sweeney, the mother entered the hospital for nine weeks of bed rest.

But Mrs. Malual insisted on walking into the delivery room. Dr. Sweeney told reporters the mother declared, “I will not be wheeled to my babies’ birth. I will walk. I’m from Sudan, and we walk in Sudan.”

Family members disclosed that the mother does not have health insurance. Hospital administrators said they do not expect to recover the costs of the multiple birth.

Administrators declined to say whether fertility drugs were used to aid the pregnancy, citing regulations protecting patient privacy.

i’m back

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thank you for the kind words, thoughts and prayers.

my 22 year old cousin was tragically killed in a horrific car accident while visiting Sierra Leone recently. she was a very smart young woman. i remember holding her when she was a baby and watching her grow and flower into the strong determined and beautiful person she became.

her loss has been very difficult for the family not only because she was so young, but because she was filled with so much promise and she dedicated her young life to her country and encouraging the youth to return there and help build it. her dad, my uncle, is really messed up over it and i’m going to try to be there for him and her brother. no replacement, but one good thing that’s come from her passing is the way the community and families have come together. i hope we can continue in this vein and it won’t take another tragic loss to bring us back together.

she certainly was/is an inspiration to us all. she will be sorely missed, but I know she is in a better place and I will see her again.

i’ve found solace helping moderate her facebook memory page, helping plan her memorial and in setting up a scholarship fund in her memory and honor. please email me if you want a link and would like to donate to the fund.

in any event, she was laid to rest, finally today. there will be a Washington Post news article about her life in the coming weeks so that more people can know and learn more about this incredible phenomenal young woman.

on a short hiatus

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hello readers. i had a tragic loss in my family recently. so i’m going to take a little break.

infant massages: calming and soothing for mom and baby!

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Man, I forgot how wonderful and therapeutic it can be to give your infant a massage. Technically, GG is still an infant until she turns 1 this month. The other day she was cranky and fussy because she is getting a new set of teeth up top. It was a rough afternoon when I recalled how wonderful INFANT MASSAGES are for baby and mom. I did my old ritual and that worked to calm her down and get her back sleeping.

For my first born, who I admit got the benefit of getting the most massages, my ritual was the same:

First, if it was shampoo time, I’d give him a nice wash and a gentle scalp massage for over three minutes using a calming baby shampoo infused with soothing ingredients lavender, jojoba oil and lemongrass.

Second, I’d slip on a diaper and put him in one of those cute baby robes.(and you thought it was just cute for the baby shower. nope, it has real functional properties)

Third, I’d start with his legs, and use either Burt’s Bees baby bee apricot massage oil or Johnson and Johnson’s Lavender Bedtime lotion. I’d pour a small amount in my hands and rub vigorously so the lotion or oil wouldn’t be cold. Then I slowly massage one leg, kneading it repeatedly. I’d start with the top of his tiny thigh then using both hands wring downwards until I got to his ankles. Then repeat with the other leg.

He’d coo when I’d get to his teenie tiny feet because I would put gentle pressure at the heal and press upwards several times. Sometimes, he’d close his eyes. His tiny toes would curl around my fingers. Other times, he smiled. It made me feel good to bond and know that he was doing okay.

Fourth, I’d move to his arms next and repeat the leg procedure with his arms, ending on his palms. Sometimes the palm massage tickled and he’d giggle a little, but remain at ease all the while.

Then, I’d turn him over, peel back the robe and massage some oil or lotion on his back.

Seventh, turning him back to his tummy, we’d start the healing aspect of the massage. Using my right hand, Id cup my hand like a backward “C” and then motion like I’m making an upside down U, and turning back as if I am turning a knob. That was/is the best remedy for relieving Gas bubbles which often gets trapped in tiny tummies not used to releasing gas on their own. Whenever my babies would cry uncontrollable and have a really hard tummy, I’d do that maneuver to break up some gas or encourage them to poop! It is also a must do treatmeant for a baby with an upset tummy, especially those that are exclusively breast fed and who’s mothers don’t give them water. I think those babies are more gassy and collicky than others. But I digress.

Finally, we usually ended the massage with a light temple and forehead stroke.

By the time I’m done, I have a much more relaxed and calm baby, ready for a long long nap or for bedtime!

That stuff works wonders! All natural, BABY!!

While searching for an image for this post, I discovered this company, Liddle Kidz, that has a school, teacher certification and parent classes all about infant massages! Imagine that!?!

who’s preggers: Celebrity roundup

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Singer Deborah Cox revealed her pregnant 7-month belly in her video for Beautiful R U. Deborah and her husband Lascelles Stephens already have two children:son Isaiah,5, and daughter Sumayah,2.
British singer M.I.A., (aka Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam) who sings one of my favorite tunes these days, Paper Planes, is pregnant with her first child with her fiance Ben Brewer
Singer Usher revealed that he and his wife Tameka are expecting their second child next Week, on December 15. The family is seen here with their son Usher Raymond V and Tameka’s three boys from a previous relationship.
Jill Scott is rumored to be pregnant with her first child with her fiance, drummer Lil John Roberts. Jill Scott announced her engagement to Lil John Roberts in June of this year.
Kimora is looking quite preggers here no, but this is an old photo so who knows? I believe she and Djimon have been trying so…

“Diavian” from Sister Sister and “Alicia” from Moesha? She’s 29 year old Alexis Fields was due shortly after this photo appeared on YBF back in July. I’m sure she had a baby since then. Alexis is “Tuti” aka Kim Fields baby sister. They look so much alike!

YBF reported last month that Dave Chappelle is expecting again. Dave’s wife Elaine is 3 months pregnant. 35 year old Dave lives with his wife Elaine and two sons, Sulayman and Ibrahim, on a 65 acre farm just outside of Yellow Springs, Ohio. Those two names are very interesting and special to me.

Reality show chick Boots, Clarisse, from the Flavor of Love and Charm School is 3 months pregnant.Not pregnant, but I just found this pic of Monica and her kids on the YBF site that I love. They are beautiful.