Welcome to the World, Samara!

Some good friends here have just had a baby, Samara. She’s been eagerly awaited as her parents are not only good friends but both absolutely gorgeous and we just couldn’t wait to see what she looked like. Her mum is Egyptian/German, with gorgeous cocoa skin and curly hair. Her dad is a Kiwi, all blond hair and blue eyes. Thankfully she didn’t fall foul of the rule that sometimes good-looking parents produce ugly kids (hello Jolie-Pitt kids, hello Princess-unpronounceable, child of Peter and Katie) and she is utterly divine.

We were invited round to meet her last night – as a 6 pound baby she is teeny-tiny so I didn’t feel brave enough to hold her, but it was great to catch-up with her new (exhausted) parents. And it wasn’t just a catch-up, we were greeted with delicious Egyptian food (loving sharing cultures!) and once everyone had arrived, a suboa took place.

This is an ancient ritual dating back to the time of Pharoahs, according to the Egyptians present. It consists of placing the baby on a cushion in the middle of the room, shaking her gently, and banging a cymbal next to her ear, whilst telling her how she must behave as she grows up. The mum then steps back and forth over the baby seven times, and then we all formed a circle and danced and clapped our way round her. All the while Egyptian music is playing in the background.

It was BRILLIANT and beats a boring, staid British christening hands-down. In typical Brit fashion I was concerned about a) stepping on the baby and b) the baby going deaf with all the shouting, but once I’d got over that it was all systems go.

Thanks so much for inviting us to be apart of it. Samara, just as soon as you’re old enough for me to be able to hold you without fear of breaking you, I’ll be back for a proper cuddle. Welcome to the world!