Daddy's Homecoming!

Monday, January 23, 2012 - Preparations for Frank's return.  We made a poster to take to the airport to welcome Daddy home.  I arranged for a friend of mine to take some pictures of us when he got there.  And, I stayed up way too late making a dress for Faith's doll to match her own homecoming dress.  Sunday morning I learned he was coming home on Tuesday.  Prior to that he wasn't supposed to arrive for another week and I promised Faith that Dolly could have a dress!

 

Tuesday, January 24, 2012 - Frank' return home!  My friend, Christina went to the airport early to clear with the airline that she could come back to the gate with us and take pictures.  She was such a huge help!  Frank had been flying for about 24 hours and actually gave up a hotel in Baltimore so he could get home to us earlier.  He was one of the last people off the flight which was a little nerve wracking and of course we were all quite the show for the other passengers waiting in the airport.  We got a nice ovation from the folks there when Frank finally emerged from the jet way!

Welcome Home!

Faith August - 2 Years and 9 Months

As I write this I anticipate Frank coming home from his deployment tomorrow!  My main purpose in keeping up this blog has been so he can read updates on the girls and see pictures of them as they grow.  I have included in my 2012 goals to continue updating the blog at least twice a month for posterity's sake so that one day I can look back and see how my babies grew and what was going on in our lives.  We'll see how that goes :)  I also just finished a dress for Faith's doll to match the homecoming dress I made for her to wear tomorrow.  She is going to love it.  She is still very into dolly and being a great little mama in training towards her.
Sleeping:
We traveled back to Arkansas during this month and it was a pretty smooth transition and the girls did really well sleeping in the same room at my sister's house.  We've all had a bit of a cold the last week and the coughing is really wreaking havoc with Faith's sleep.  It will pass soon though and she is enjoying the kids' tea she gets when she coughs!  As I mentioned last month I stopped waking her to take her potty at night before I go to bed.  Well this month, she has done extremely well  having a dry diaper after 12 hours!  We have about one wet diaper a week on average and she cheerfully collects her sticker each morning, not for her chart but for her chest, leg, or Dolly!  Pretty soon I am sure we'll get to the day when it is panties only at bed.
Eating:
When we got back to Arkansas I put her back in her high chair which just sits in one of our chairs but found that her legs were too long and it was really uncomfortable for her.  So, that chair went to the other side of the table and now she sits in the bumbo with a place mat at the table and does very well.  The bumbo is simply for added height.  She does really well even when she sits only on a chair.  She has to take 2 bites of everything on her plate at a minimum because she is 2 years old.  She asked me one day how many bites I have to take, no comment :)
Skills:
Faith knows her birthday is in April (or Ape-A-Ril) and has become very interested in when everyone's birthdays are.  We've only just started talking about months in the home school pre-school that I am doing with Sabrina so it doesn't mean anything to her really that her birthday is in April and Rebekah's is in October but someday it will and I love that her vocabulary is increasing.  She continues to work on writing her letters.  This month she has been working hard on K (straight line down, angle in, angle out).  When we color she really would rather work on writing letters so it is obvious she is passionate about it.  She loves pointing out letter she sees everywhere, especially F and R.
Play:
This month Faith really started to enjoy the snow, which was good because Utah saw a lot of it while we were finishing up our time there.  She really likes to make snow angels and fall down and have me pick her up by the snow suit.  35 pounds of dead weight is no joke :)  As we received Christmas cards during this month, Faith loved looking at the family pictures people sent.  I usually gave her 2 or 3 while we were in the car and throughout any car ride she constantly asked what the mama, daddy, and children in the pictures names were.  She just loved looking at them, especially the kids and babies.  So, thanks for all the cards!  She continues to concern herself with everyone's owies and making sure they are getting better, it is really sweet.  I think she'll make a fantastic nurse if she decides to pursue it!  This has been a big transition month for Faith with so much travel (Utah to Vegas to Arkansas to OKC and back to Arkansas) but she did have some time for play; her favorite book (and Rebekah's) was one we got at the library, Moo, Moo Brown Cow and she really loves to play with her Cutting Food Box
Our Schedule (back in AR):
0800 - Wake, get ready, eat breakfast
0900 - Bible story, craft, worship!
0945 - Freeplay
1030 - Baking together, learning time
1130 - Sisterplay with Rebekah
1200 - Lunch
1230 - Chore, Outside time
1415 - Naptime
1600/1630 - Snack, dinner prep, solo play
1800 - Dinner, reading, bath, Bible story, bedtime o/a 1950

Rebekah Joy - 15 Months

I am so ready for her Daddy to come home and meet Rebekah again.  She is so different from the baby he left 6 months ago!  At her 15 month appointment she was 21lbs (only 1 pound heavier than at 12 months but still on track).

Eating:
Now that she realizes milk is a necessary part of every meal, I have started allowing Rebekah to drink her milk throughout the meal rather than all at once at the beginning as I had perviously done because if I didn't, she would fill up on food and not eat any milk.  She continues to love fruits and veggies and although meat is not her favorite, we've nipped the crying as soon as I put in front of her game that she thought she could get away with there for a while.  She really does love to eat and is generally pretty happy when doing so.
Sleeping:

Sleep has been pretty good this month except for some travel disruptions when we went to Vegas, twice, and then flew back to Arkansas but after a day or two of night wakings (and not long wakings either) she is back to normal.  She continues to take a morning nap most days but it isn't very long, maybe a half hour.  But if we are out and about the nap is skipped and then she goes down for the afternoon nap between 1:15 and 1:30, depending on how she is doing.

Skills:
Rebekah has learned how to climb steps this month and LOVES to do so.  I won't let her climb stairs in a house right now so she has to content herself with climbing at the park and onto her sisters footstool.  She is saying 9 distinctive words: Mama, Dada, Sister, Granddad (learned before Mama), Duck, Dog, Ball, Baby, and Shoe.  Her walking is improving and she is working at going down small steps.  She is a champion self feeder and has been for about 3 months but the doctor mentioned it the other day and I realized that I'd never said anything about it here.  Additionally, although I have been lax in teaching her any new signs, she is improving in the delivery of the ones she knows.  "Help" is looking more like the example than it did previously and she really tries to get "more" a little more finely tuned as well. 
Play:
Solo play is going so well.  I really think that my playing with her and the toys she has in solo play at the beginning of each week has helped out a ton!  It is like it shows her how to play with the toy and then she is happy.  There have been a few protests from her but the are short and then she resigns herself to her fate.  I think we'll start working on roomtime soon.  This Counting and Sorting Farm has become a favorite as well as her laptop; both of these have been good solo playtime and free playtime toys.  Faith got her the most adorable snuggle baby doll and she just lights up when she sees it.  She continues to love books and they were a primary source of entertainment during all of our recent traveling. 

Christmas in Utah

Last night the girls wore their Christmas dresses to church for the candlelight service and were such a huge hit.  They stayed with us throughout the service and did remarkably well, especially considering the service didn't even start until 7pm.  We sang a ton of Christmas hymns, including We Three Kings, so of course Faith loved it.

During breakfast this morning we were able to skype with Frank for a half hour.  During that time the girls opened their presents from us and from each other.  I am so very grateful that the technology exists to allow us to talk with each other so far away and on such a regular basis; it has made this Christmas so much better. 

After breakfast we headed to church in more adorable outfits.

We opened gifts from my in-laws after church and the girls really enjoyed talking with them.  Both girls went down a little early for naps as they were tired from staying up late the previous night.  After naps they opened the remaining gifts under the tree.  I actually liked breaking it up in this manner.  It allowed everything to get played with and it wasn't so overwhelming.  I also really like limiting the number of gifts given at Christmas.  The girls got plenty of new toys and I enjoyed it more than a feeding frenzy of toys.  Also, it allowed for plenty of reminders of how giving presents shows love.

Both the girls received purses!

Rebekah really enjoyed this block set I think her favorite part was the little dude in the car!

Faith LOVES shoes and these sandals were a huge hit; she wore them the entire rest of the day.

Rebekah's Mega Blocks Table was an instant success and will provide hours of enjoyment for both girls.

Faith received this tea set and both girls really enjoyed having a little tea party together :)  I can't wait for them to get back to AR and are able to do this on their little table.  I'll have to make some placemats!

Here is me in my new hat!  Go Hokies!

These were just the highlights.  There were several more gifts that the girls loved and we are so grateful for wonderful family and friends to share such a special time with, even if it was over the computer.  But the best gift of all is Jesus.  Merry Christmas.



Christmas Crafts

At the library this season we were able to find several Christmas books, the two most notable were We Three Kings and On Christmas Day in the Morning, both of which are obviously singing books so it is no surprise that they are my girls' favorite books right now. 
As for crafts, because We Three Kings was such a hit I decided we had to do crafts based on those gifts given to Jesus in addition to some others.  The first one was gold.  My mom had some old poker chips which the girls painted gold and put in a clear plastic box and placed under the tree.

I really couldn't think of anything super creative for Frankincense so we just bought some and lit is while we sang We Three Kings together.

We made a homemade spice mixture for our Myrrh and put it in a little organza bag and put it next to the other gifts under the tree.  The myrrh verse is Faith's favorite in the hymn.

These are our hand print sheep covered in cotton balls.

 I cut out the letters for Jesus and Faith glued Cheerios on to them while we sang J-E-S-U-S (to the tune of Bingo) and it helped her learn the J and the U, both letters were previously really hard for her to identify.  We covered a shoe box with paper and then glued Jesus' name on to it, filled it with hay (shredded paper) and placed it under the tree as a manger for baby Jesus.
 

Our final Christmas craft was making a birthday cake for baby Jesus which we enjoyed after our Christmas dinner tonight.  Happy Birthday Jesus!

Faith August - 2 Years and 8 Months

Faith is such a cute little mama.  She still loves her dolly but has taken a new interest in certain stuffed animals and is equally as loving to them.  She is always very concerned if the dolly or bunny is crying and wants to make it better.  She loves babies and looking at them and talking about them and is very gentle when touching them. 
This month has been filled with Faith singing!  She has always loved to be sung to and she has always enjoyed singing but this month she has become so much better at remember the words after only hearing a song a few times.  She knows all 4 verses to We Three Kings and The Friendly Beasts (a new favorite carol!)  She also really enjoys and knows most of the words to Two Steppin' Round the Christmas Tree and Cowboy Christmas both songs my dad has been shamelessly playing for her at every opportunity.  As a side note, Rebekah gets incredibly excited when hearing the intro to these two songs as well.

Feeding the ducks in St George

Sleeping:
Nighttime sleep continues to go well, she is not really interested in nighttime potty training and I don't want to push it because I enjoy my sleep too :)  I figured once we back to AR I will start a sticker chart with her again and see how it goes.  Naps are still good but she has about 2 days every 2 weeks where she just doesn't sleep.  She is quiet but she just never falls asleep.  It is a reminder for me that eventually naps will turn to rest time and then unfortunately disappear all together, what a sad day that will be but I don't foresee it for several years. 
Eating:
I realized I hadn't put this in but for several months now, Faith has really like to eat her food whole, without me cutting it up.  She also REALLY enjoys dipping her food in some kind of sauce or condiment.  My parents drink a lot of coffee and have a cup with nearly every meal so I have been letting Faith have some (decaf) every once in a while.  I usually pour about a tablespoon in her milk and she will drink it that way.  Faith was the first to catch a 24 hour stomach bug this month that was passed to both me and my mother the next day.  The day she was sick she of course ate very little but about 2 days later her appetite returned and she continues to be a good eater.
Skills:
Faith is really enjoying writing letters on her doodle pro.  She does really well, actually, I am continually impressed.  I don't know if this is a skill per say but she has become much more confident in pouring water on her own face and head.  While wrapping presents for Christmas she learned how to tie a simple knot.  She really enjoys cutting paper and fabric which I let her do while I am sewing.  Her vocabulary continues to improve and she is a little parrot whenever my parents and I especially are talking.  She continues to parrot what I say in my reading.
Playing:
Faith is really doing very well and sharing with Rebekah; I am continually proud of her for playing so nicely with Rebekah.  She occasionally has a hard time with the fact that during free play the toys that are in Rebekah's purple bin belong to her and Faith can't get them out by herself.  She will insist that she is sharing but I have had to remind her that those toys are Rebekah's to share.  That usually seems to do the trick.  She is currently in love with the doll house my sister got her for Christmas.  She loves playing with it alone and with me.  Twice this month we've travelled to Las Vegas to visit my sister and Faith really loves hanging with her cousin, Sophie who is 9 months younger than Faith.  It is really sweet the way they enjoy each other.  We've visited the Cedar City Aquatic Center several times this month as well and she really enjoys that, although she doesn't really like the water splashing on her head.
Our Schedule: (very fluid except for meal and sleep times!)
0800 - Up, bready for the day, breakfast
0900 - Freeplay or errands
1000 - Outdoor time
1100 - Craft, get lunch ready
1200 - Lunch
1300 - Freeplay
1415 - Nap
1630 - Snack, solo play
1800 - Dinner, reading time, bath, Bible story, bedtime o/a 1950

 

An Early Christmas

The weekend before Christmas we motored down to Las Vegas to celebrate the holiday early with my sister and her family.  My brother-in-law works for a casino in town and Christmas is becoming a popular time for people to come to Vegas so it is a hard time for casino workers to rest for the holiday!  Friday it was a pretty nice day so we drove out to Red Rock Canyon and did a little hiking and rock climbing.

A giant lizard on display at the Red Rock Canyon Visitor's Center

On Sunday morning we opened the gifts to and from the Siquians.  We were able to talk with Frank while we opened his gift, St Petersburg, the board game.Hopefully I'll get a chance to break it out and learn how to play before he gets back so I can teach him!  Faith received a house for her dolls.  Rebekah was given this awesome counting farm which has provided us with some excellent solo play times since then!  From my parents Sophie received a sandbox which was a huge hit with all the kids, especially after Mervin added the balls from the ball tent to substitute for the sand.  From the Theisings, Sophie got a purse that I made and my mom embroidered her name on plus a toddler couch which was a huge hit with everyone, including Lady.