Sara Writes: Eid Namaz, Brunch at Curry Leaf, & Fun With Gubby

I was ready to sashay this Eid with my newly achieved weight loss! Usually Ramadans are an instant weight gain for me every year. This year though, I planned way too well and didn't gain a pound; in fact I lost two! It was an exciting thought to be wearing new and pretty clothes on Eid this year because I wasn't worried about my weight. *Claps*

On Eid morning we woke up really early (my least favorite part about Eid) and quickly showered to get dressed for Eid Namaaz. I wasn't too excited because just last night I'd found out it was going to be held outdoors this year (oh yes, leave all the pretty indoor venues because it is so appropriate to spend hours under the sun on a day when we have heat wave). Anyway, my opinions weren't going to be taken so I just had to focus on being dressed for the bad weather. I chose a gorgeous red lace dress for my wow-moment and paired it with a black top. A pretty red scarf with roses and plaids perfected the outfit. Finally, my outfit was accessorized with a gold leaf brooch, a gold ring with black blings, a red blingy ring, and some sparkly gold and red bracelets. Oh and of course I wore that big beautiful smile of mine (imagine flashing that idiot smile like Gilderoy Lockhart from Harry Potter).

When I was done dolling up I went downstairs to get ready to leave. Just as Abbie & I finished a delicious bowl of Kheer, SIL walked in with my precious niece Gubby in her arms. Now this was seriously a really adorable sight for Gubby was dressed up in the most adorable Eid outfit. She was wearing a really pretty white dress with pink roses and green leaves. A pink legging on her soft plumpy legs flashed beautiful white shoes with roses on them. She looked like a doll! She looked like an adorable white cake (baker within me awakening!).

Gubby darling was really the highlight of the day! Her outfit was prettier than any of ours, she looked more adorable and gorgeous than any of us, and she was certainly the happiest too! It was my darling's first Eid and she was bringing it in with great style! I usually do an 'outfit of the day' collage on my Instagram when I doll up like this but today it was Gubby's spotlight!

Gubby & I posing in our Eid Namaz outfits

On her head, Gubby wore a big bright head band. Glittery flowers in pink, white, and silver looked so adorable on her. She's a fashionista, I tell you! Usually babies pull their hair accessories off but this kid doesn't even touch her's. It's as if she knows how pretty she looks and likes it!

When I was looking for Mehndi inspiration on Google I'd come across baby hands and feet too. People had applied Mehndi on their tiny ones' hands on Eid. I gave SIL the suggestion to try and apply some under Gubby's feet while she slept. I had very little hope that it was possible because Gubby tosses around in her sleep a lot but SIL did a great job! She managed to get Mehndi done on both of Gubby's hands and under one of her feet! This baby was totally celebrating Eid in style! She even showed off her super tiny gold ring! *laughs*

Mehndi on Gubby's left hand

The car ride all the way to the venue was fun because Gubby was in super 'Masti' (fun) mode. She kept giggling and shouting and being all cute! *plants a huge virtual kiss on her plumpy cheekies* But after the fun began the stress of being outdoors. We were supposed to walk through some overgrown grass from the parking lot to the prayer venue and I was hyper ventilating thanks to my fear of bugs! But I somehow survived and we found a nice spot in the prayer area. The weather was a disaster. No, disaster is actually a pretty tame word for how hot it was. We tried to sit with our backs towards the shining sun so we could keep our eyes open and not be blinded by it. Our faces were in the shade that way but oh dear our backs were BURNING! I swear it was so bad. I kept thinking why they had decided to do it outdoor when half the world was available to host prayers at.

Our backs felt like we had decided to sit in an oven that was gradually increasing in temperature after being preheated for hours. A bigger concern though was Gubby. We took off her leggings so that she'd feel a little less hot and also her little jacket. We kept fanning her with a diaper bag and Abbie's dupatta and covered her in our shadows so she wouldn't be directly under the sun. She wasn't even bothered *laughs*! She kept playing around and smiling. She kept climbing onto my knees and into my lap whenever she saw some random person coming near (fighting the urge to smooch her big time!) and thanks to her being so adorable the time we spent being baked under the sun passed away. She cried a lot during the namaz and another lady's kid kept trying to snatch her toy away from her (Step away from my niece ... step away, yes .. that's right!). While I prayed she spotted the blingy bracelets I was wearing and decided she wanted to eat them right away. I couldn't say or do anything obviously so I just stood there waiting for the namaz to finish while Gubby pulled off my bracelets and began chewing on them! *laughs*

Gubby drove us all to brunch!

When namaz was done and we were back in our car, with the AC now blasting on high because we were roasted, SIL changed Gubby into some comfortable clothes to let her cool down and relax. She spent a few minutes in just her diaper too during which Abbie and I enjoyed tickling her and blowing in her stomach to make her laugh!

Next, we were headed to Curry Leaf (yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!) for our Eid brunch! We reached there about half an hour before they opened so we waited in the car. Gubby was allowed to play free because she hates being tied up in her car seat while we waited. She giggled around, playing with each one of us in turns, and then finally hopped into bro's lap where she stood up against the steering wheel and pretended to drive! *laughs* This kid is so adorable, she makes my heart melt!

Of course Curry Leaf is always a treat! The delicious food, their great variety, and yummy Indian flavors make it my favorite fancy dining spot in the US. Up until Eid we had never been there with Gubby so this was her first time (not counting the time SIL came here pregnant!). It was also her first time sitting in a baby up-chair at a restaurant. Somehow these tiny milestones make me so emotional ... my first official chotoo (little one) is growing up so fast. Bless her! *Inserts heart emoticon here!* She really loved sitting in that chair with all of us and kept pulling out her tiny little tongue seeing us eating our food. SIL handed her a little bit of naan to chew on bit by bit so she wouldn't feel bad and hungry. It was such an adorable sight! Aaaaah ... she grabbed the naan with both her tiny hands and chewed on it a bit. She was so happy with her own personal piece of naan she kept laughing away! (Okay, heart officially melting now!).

Eid brunch was a super tasty affair and I loved the quality family time I got to spend. As Abbie called it, we had a tiny 'guest' this time with us, who loved her naan and totally destroyed the paper table mat before we left with happy, satisfied, and over-full stomachs! We were heading home for some more Mehndi applying time, Eid gift giving, catching up on sleep, and dolling up for an Eid dinner later that night ...