My Life

God is so awesome and comes just right on time, I had requested him to send someone to purchase something from the kid's store and this client just walked in and bought a bed. A lovely way to end the month. Thank you Lord!

I am so thankful for the friends the Lord has brought my way. Sometimes I smile at the thought of how each one has played an important role in my life. I have come to accept that there are seasons in friendship. Some friendships come and stay a life time, some come just for a specific season,while others you do not talk everyday but when you do its like you have been together all through.One great lesson for me is to try and understand these seasons in friendship. I have a dear friend, I call her Shiru.I have known her for over 10 years and she has this contagious laughter and loves life. About 8 years ago, she relocated to another country miles away and I thought our friendship would die. But one thing I thank God for is the efforts she has made to keep our friendship alive. We are now married,have kids and yet our friendship has just grown with us .Today, I was feeling a bit down and guess who calls with her laughter? Esther. I keep saying she is like a guardian angel to me or ...

I have subscribed to Alive to God devotional and received this particular email today. It was titled “GIVING GOD CONTROL”. I have tried to summarise what stood out for me but you can get the full article on http://www.alivetogod.com/ God is looking for people with hearts that are 100% given over to Him. We sing songs about it, but do we really mean it? Many people are reluctant or hesitant to give God complete control of their lives. God has plans for each one of us and these are plans for our good and not to harm us. But sometimes we have more confidence in our own plans. As such we continue to hold onto the reins. What stops people from giving God the complete control? 1. Fear 2. Lack of trust. (They don’t really trust God) 3. A desire for control themselves. Humans want control. (Pride) 4. Some people are hesitant to give God control of their lives because they don't really believe that His plans for them are actually better than their own. 5. The idea that if they ...

Once the baby is breastfeeding and starts to wean, the eyes shift from the mother to the child. Common comments ‘ what are you feeding your baby on? They are growing so well. During baby clinics, pressure mounts because your child's weight gain doesn't seem to match that of another or a friend's child. Next time you take the baby for vaccination open your ears and eyes. It’s like people are sizing each other up, or trying to boost their image especially if their baby “seems” to be ahead of others. I know this is a sensitive topic but all am saying is, yes the mother/parents have worked pretty hard to ensure that their baby is growing well and that is ok and we appreciate the good job done, but hey do we stop to think about that other woman/family who is feeling like a failure because as per the society as long as your baby is not growing as well as we expect, the mother( most times) isn't doing a good job? Do we ask ourselves why isn't that child not growing as...

As I grew up, I had never been bothered about weight gain/loss, I was content. However, weight is such a big deal and whether you like it/not, whether you care/not that weight issue comes up. Stage One In Africa, during the wedding ceremonies, the lady is told to cook for her husband and ensure that he is comfortable. She is told the way to her man's heart is through the stomach (sincerely that is too much pressure for a young bride).The measuring stick on their happiness& comfort there after is how many kilograms have they added(Isn't that a fallacy?) . Stage Two When the lady is pregnant, it is loving emphasized that she should eat, eat& eat some more. I agree that we should eat but how much is enough? Should one eat for one or two? Eating a balanced diet is enough, I think the doctors agree on that on because eating for 2 has consequences. Once the baby is born, the pressure levels go a notch higher especially if the child is breast feeding. Advice give...

The past 2 days I came with Samara to work and thess are some of the precious moments I captured of her enjoying herself in a Moses Basket.

This morning we had breakfast as a family and left Samara behind. She could not understand why today she was being left at home yet the last two days she has been leaving with us. She yelled a bit but calmed down. We had our nice morning drive with Alex and he dropped off at work and I thought to myself how I was going to get to work before nine today. As am driving along Uhuru Highway, there is a silver car ahead of me that is really going slowly despite the lights being green. So anyways, I drive patiently behind the car and when the lights turn green, am all set to go and the driver starts moving at snail's pace but am there in the car saying move move before it turns red. All over sudden the guy just stopped and I break and bang,it was too late I hit his car. So I put hazard try to use my lovely gift to call Alex but cant even dial it, I had said how I would learn to use it today. Anyways the gentleman gets out of his car and starts asking me why I hit him, and I explain th...

Sometime back, a friend of mine would remove her mobile phone and we would ask her to hide it because it had been held together with a rubber band. It did not seem to bother her much, for her as long as it worked, it was fine. Many years later, I think I could now understand where she was coming from. Well, my beloved had bought me a lovely Nokia phone. But having Samara in our lives meant that the phone was not only used to call but found its way severally into her mouth. With time, the phone worked when it pleased and at times would decide it has an invalid sim card within it and hence will not help me communicate. I also had another phone, which was good enough, I could make my basic calls when the other refused to work. But of late it had been an embarrassment to the family, yes am serious.Samara discovered that its back cover was loose and so in front of visitors she would just dismantle it innocently just like another toy and give me the different pieces to return and the game...

The last two days have been great just spending the whole day with Samara at the shop. She is the best sales lady so far. She was picking shoes and showing them to the clients. She doesn't fuss, just keeps herself busy and at times driving me crazy with opening drawers, picking things and dumping them elsewhere. At some point I thought I would go mad and decided I should just enjoy the moment and laugh.I laughed until she stared at me, think she thought to herself, this mummy must be going nuts. She had picked tissue while I was working on a document and decided to first wipe the shoes and whatever else she could and then opted to dump the tissue at the entrance of the shop. Now she is thinking fun am thinking imagine of the shop if a client walks in, you see how our worlds are so different. For now she has taken her evening nap and I have got some time to myself but am glad I had time today and yesterday to be with her. I sure will miss her tomorrow. Have a great evening

I have just got to work, something came up in the morning and had to be sorted out. Am looking forward to the the rest of the day. Samara is here with me(asleep for now) and am sure the day will be very different when she wakes up. Have a great Tuesday.

Our daughter is called Samara which means "protected by God" in Hebrew. At breakfast we always pray as a family, for protection and safety for her &the girl and as I leave, I always speak a blessing upon Samara. But this morning, it was such a hurried one. We needed to drop Alex at work, Samara woke up just before we left and we didn't have time to even bond with her. I quickly changed her diaper and requested our girl to assist me in giving her breakfast after we leave. We took breakfast in a rush, I hardly felt like I had taken tea so I resorted to carrying the whole flask to work. I felt guilty just to dash out like that without spending time with Samara and promised myself that I would call her when I get to work. I called home but she was eating and her mouth was to full to talk so I said I would call after a few minutes and when I called she had slept. Over lunchtime my girl called. Initially I thought she wanted me to say hi to Samara but when she starte...

Am already missing him and its hardly a few hours since he left. When we were dating, I got him a cup which was hollow inside and it said "am hollow without you". Sometimes that is the feeling I get when he is away. My beloved had to travel early this morning and will return God willing on Sunday. We sure do miss him when he is away. Samara keeps saying" Daddy" over and over again and how do I explain to her that daddy has traveled for business and will return after 2 or 3 days? It is like she knows and at times she will hear the neighbours door being opened and she rushes to the door or looks at me and says"daddy".Then I have to tell her no that is not daddy, daddy left for work. All in all, I miss him because he makes my life complete, at least I have something to look forward to in the evenings, he comes home, we catch up on the day's events and just bond as friends. When he is away,I get home, sometimes we go out with Samara for hot chocolate...

A friend recently sent me an e-book titled " Secrets of fascinating womanhood ", you can download it. I had been given the book last year,but hadn't read it, so i purposed to do so and it was worth the read, in fact am not through yet. A friend commented that "it is not a book to rush and finish the pages, it is a book that you read,ponder and evaluate yourself". I totally agreed and all I can say is that it is challenging, eye opening and has a very different perspective from our modern world ideals of being a woman, wife and mother. Wish everyone a good day and good read.

Am having an interesting day. Just had lunch with my sister Emma and it is always nice to meet and share our lives.I try as much as possible to tap from her wisdom. I got back to the shop and a few minutes later, 2 Somali ladies walked in. They were very excited about our new arrivals but as I said I haven't priced them so I promised to do so soonest and give them a call. We got talking and am not sure what the lord is telling me or teaching me but we started discussing motherhood, the breast pump and its effects. The lady shared with me the challenge she is facing with her 7month old who won't eat and she doesn't know which foods to give him. Breast milk he loves. Well being a mum to 16month old Samara I shared my experience..she asked me what I started weaning her with,I said baby rice, then porridge from Kirinyaga mills(now how do you explain where Kirinyaga Mills is?)anybody please help me. So I also encouraged her to give paw paw, bananas etc. I also inquired wh...

Thank you to all who have already visited the blog and sent encouraging email, text messages cheering me on with this new venture. Am so glad that Alex read through it on day 1 and said he was pleased(talk of a supportive husband), thanks hun. I also look forward to the day Samara will read and hopefully be proud of her mum. I pray that by sharing my life experiences, people can draw lessons, encouragement and strength to face life and its amazing challenges and joys. Please feel free to comment on the posts and topics. Ideas are also welcome. Infact if you would like to write as a guest on my blog, kindly let me know. This blog is for us all. Blessings Wa Karega

Finally I can take a break, thanks to Alex who just popped in. I have been talking to cartons the whole morning since i got to work. Oh let me start from the beginning. Well,SAS Impressions our company(SAS) had purchased a few goods from Philippines. The items were to be sent by air because we gathered it is fast, in fact we thought they would arrive on Saturday 7th May. Anyways the day(Saturday) came and we were told we can only pick the cargo on Monday and indeed the call that the cargo had arrived came on Tuesday. A friend referred me to a clearing agent whom her brother knows. So I went to their office in industrial area, gave them the documents and the guy promised I would get the goods on Wednesday. As I left the place I wondered how we just trust so much as human beings. Check this out, I am referred to a stranger,I go to their office alone(of course I have informed Alex of my whereabouts), I leave the stranger with a good sum of money, documents for the cargo and most of al...

Oh I love how dynamic my job is. Am excited right now why? At the moment I am hosting 2 lovely Somali ladies who have just purchased an item and have requested to sit at the shop as they await for their taxi to come pick them. Interesting huh!We are trying to communicate about the coming soon baby and am learning alot about their culture.The elderly lady seems to prefer boys but the young lady says she already has 2 boys and would love to have a girl.Though in their culture she says at 15 the girl has to get married, yet if it was a boy, he would give them a heir who will be named after them. let me get back to my new experience.

I don’t normally read newspapers everyday but I was reading the Monday newspaper and this headline catches my attention “IMF chief leaves his future in hotel room”. I read on and it says the IMF boss was charges with attempting to rape a hotel maid in New York .The Daily Nation continues to state that this man who had a real shot of becoming the next president in his country most likely may have sunk his dreams through this allegation. And am left wondering how choices we make can turn our lives upside down and inside out. This spur of the moment incidences can save a life or can destroy a life. Reminds me of myself, one morning after New Year (don’t remember the exact year), we were driving with my cousin to town from my mum’s home. So we reached some place and there was traffic and I decided its early in the morning and I don’t want to be late, so I made a U-turn just like other motorists before me and as I completed the turn, right at the middle of the road was policeman with th...

On my way to work this morning, I heard that Samuel Wanjiru had died. Wanjiru has been in the public limelight for his success in running and also for some family wrangles he had with his wife. Recently they had reunited with his wife, dropped the charges and resolved to work out their marriage without interference of their in-laws. Then this morning the man is no more. How short is life? Thoughts that linger in my mind are this was such a young family which had lots of wealth but publicly had marital issues. Who would they have turned too to discuss their issues and hopefully turn their marriage around? Wealth is good but how do we manage it? Are we prepared to handle money? Can God entrust wealth in our hands and know that we will be good stewards with it? The most unfortunate thing is that this family's struggles have come to the public but how many more families, especially young families are struggling with similar issues of extra marital affairs,violence(emotional,physica...

Are there things you use and you bless God for the person who invested them? Well I sure thank God for Nursing Pillows. I was just looking at some pictures of when Samara was born and I recall how being a first time mum I had no clue on how to breast feed. Yes we think it is straight forward right? Just place the child on your breast and things move on? No, at least for me, I remember, Alex, myself and the baby all struggling to hold my breast to help Samara breast feed seriously and at that moment the doctor walked in and we cried out “please assist us “ . Can you see how we are trying hard to learn this new skill? Do you know breast feeding is such an art , for me I was scared of all the expert mums who visited us at hospital until I had to request a few friends of my mum who had come to visit over lunch time to please excuse me to breast feed because I hadn’t mastered the skill and hence was feeling shy to do it before visitors. So next time you want a gift for a first time,...

Am reflecting on the time that my hubby and I decided that I would stay home until Samara will be 6months then we would know what to do with me. Staying home with the baby was the most rewarding thing that a parent would ask for, seeing your baby grow under your eyes, however what worried me was the financial aspect, we were relying on one income from my beloved and I kept thinking what will I do after the 6months.. You see my mum’s family people are entrepreneurs, my grand ma hopped from one town to another to provide for her 8kids, my aunts are in business, my mum is also in her own business but did I have the guts to start a business. They say the more educated you are the more fearful you are to start your own business because you know most start ups fail..but would I go back to employment? Well I remember mum encouraging me to pray and ask God to guide me and for sure he dropped ideas into my heart but did I have the guts? It took months of planning with family, research, even e...

Oh yes never in my wildest dreams did I think I could say that but that’s the feeling am experiencing right now. I am running the first kids furniture store in Nairobi and it allows me to interact with various people who I have never seen and may not see again. The interactions just warm my heart, someone has just peeped through the door and said "hi Sylvia, that lead you gave me to pursue a certain corporate for insurance has bore fruit, I have an appointment with them for next week, if it materializes we shall eat mandazis together". How fulfilling is that, am not after the mandanzis but just that am helping someone attain their goal or targets in their job just makes me know am in the right place. You know my job calls for having a lot of faith as I have repeatedly said, today you open the shop and not even one client pops in, another day another month the lord sends clients your way and you go lie phew thank you Lord for remembering us, but what I love most about my jo...

I don’t know if you are like me but I used to dread morning good byes, initially I would dodge and sneak out of the house then I read that its not good to sneak out of sight like that on your child, looking back I think I wouldn’t want anyone to sneak out on me like that. So I graduated to facing Samara and telling her mummy is about to leave you with auntie and you have a good day and she would really get stressed, so I stopped and if the weather allowed I would go outside with her, give her a kiss hand her over to her auntie then give them a ride in my car to the corner of the compound then she would gladly wave good bye without tears. But for the past two days my girl has grown, we say our good byes nicely at the door and she goes to her auntie without tears and am so shocked but glad hope she keeps this up.