Catching up!

Well...I knew I had to get around to updating this sooner or later, and now that classes and Christmas are behind us, I am running out of excuses. (If I wait too much longer, spring semester and 24 will get in the way, lol). Needless to say, these past few months, with a newborn, a toddler, a semester's worth of classes crammed into 8 weeks, moving around the world, catching up with relatives all over the place, trying to provide stimulating fun days for the kids, and all the while having my hubby in Afghanistan, have been the busiest and most exhausting of my life. They have definitely helped the deployment fly by, though! I cannot believe Martin is over half way done (down to double-digits! I need to put a countdown up, hopefully I will remember to do that after this). Vienna is almost 6 months old (and wearing size 12-18 mos), Hana is almost THREE (and about to start preschool), and Petunia turned four on election day (and now actually enjoys that second lap around the block--usually she fights like a madwoman to get into the stroller or be carried).

Vienna is doing absolutely fantastic. She is a delightful, easy-going kid. The only things she is really adamant about are: 1) nursing and 2) being held or cuddled with when she is sleeping (not a big fan of cribs, hammocks, swings, etc.). She is still in the 95th percentile for weight and the 75th for height for her age. We had to make an urgent appointment at the pediatrician's the other day (she got a small, but very odd, rash when I switched her to disposable diapers for travel between TN and FL, and I wanted to rule out MRSA or anything else panic-worthy). Luckily it was nothing major and it is now a distant memory. Anyway, when we were there, they weighed her and she is now over 18 pounds! She is a great eater. I feel like Hana ate more frequently at this age, but Vienna definitely is more efficient at storing that food, lol! She has three teeth (two on bottom, one on top) that have broken completely through the surface, and a fourth (also on the bottom) that is looking to peek through any day now. Her favorite food is banana-yogurt puree, and she does not like green beans. She is willing to use a sippy cup for novelty purposes, but when she starts to think you are trying to provide substantial nourishment through that route (or through a bottle), she will adamantly refuse (to guard against being weaned, lol). She loves her walker and her bouncer, and will push forward toward you when you call to her. She can sit up on her own, for limited amounts of time--then her non-stop urge to stand gets the better of her, and she topples backwards. She is insanely ticklish in the neck area. Hana asks to tickle her daily. She is also head-over-heels in love with her older sis. No one can get that girl to laugh like Hana can. It is so cute; Vienna actually tries to engage Ha in play. She will look at her sis and coo, and then dramatically react with glee to the slightest response on Ha's part. Vienna is also great about spending time with the family. She has a slight preference for females, and regularly enjoys napping on her grandmothers' shoulders. She loves the outdoors, and no day for her is complete without her evening bath. No matter how exhausted or cranky she may be by day's end, as soon as she hears that water run, and as soon as you start stripping her down, she is all smiles and coos. This weekend she will be moving out of the baby tub in the kitchen sink and into a bath seat or booster in the upstairs tub. She is going to love bathing with her older sister again!

Hana is doing fantastically! She speaks in complete sentences now, and people besides just me can easily understand her. She picks up songs, books, and TV dialogue instantly, and LOVES to talk or sing along with whatever is going on. She is also a HUGE fan of repetition. For instance, when we go to Disney World (which we do a lot now, as we are season passholders), she will literally want to do her favorite ride (Winnie the Pooh's Adventure) over and over again, the entire time. I think our record is 12 times in one day, although it's probably actually higher. When we turn the CD player on, it is always Jingle Bells, Rudolph, or Heffalumps & Woozles on repeat (for hours!). We went to Disney yesterday with Mimi and Pappy for Christmas; Ha rode Small World ONE time, and the entire evening, during our wagon walk with the dogs to look at lights, she sang its theme. Hana's current interests are: all things Disney (especially Winnie the Pooh, although she is a budding fan of the general Mickey Mouse gang [Minnie, Pluto, Donald, Goofy, Daisy, etc.]), cooking (especially if the recipe calls for sampling chocolate--you have to give her her own little dish of whatever good ingredients you are using, or else she won't want to give it up for you to put it in the recipe!)--we have been making ice cream and holiday goodies a lot! [Da's favorite of our new holiday recipes is something called Coconut Brittle (coconut, macadamia nuts, sugar, corn syrup, and probably some other stuff that I'm forgetting)]), Tumblebooks, coloring, painting, bubbles, pouring water, playing with her sis, feeding and walking the dogs, long strolls that involve wagons and touching lawn ornaments, play dates, the park, the YMCA, rough-housing with her uncles, chocolate milk, memory cards, Da's crazy videos--particularly the ones featuring Mr. Tim, and a lot of other stuff I am forgetting. Basically, the girl likes to keep busy. I am looking forward to her enrolling in preschool because I have been struggling to provide each girl with a really quality day (like what Ha was used to as an only child), since their needs are so different right now. Fortunately, Hana's separation anxiety is but a distant memory. If whoever she is with offers an agenda of fun, it's "see you later Mama!". It has been wonderful to watch her blossom. Oh, and she is willing to eat most fruits and vegetables now. I ended up having to do a barter system with her, which I was adamantly against doing, but her diet was getting too poor. Like Vienna, the only thing she really won't eat is green beans. She even prefers brussels sprouts to them! I also still try to hide veggies via purees. I made a tasty whole wheat mac-n-cheese today, with squash hidden in the mix, that both she and Pappy gobbled up! Another nice thing is that Ha lets me sing to her again. She went through a very long phase where she basically opted out of her bedtime song routine (after books, our chat, and prayer, and consisting of: Baby Mine, Gorosuko Ho, and Clementine) every night. Then all of a sudden she wanted it back in. She went through a much shorter phase where she didn't even want books, but that is well in the past as well. She loves going to the library to pick them out every week or two, and has a special spot in her heart for board books and also the Berenstain Bears. She is also a total comedian and way too smart. One of her favorite jokes: to point to someone in the family and call them a different name, and then squeal with glee. One of her smartest moves: I am a big fan of the SuperNanny Time Out system. In actuality, Time Out is not that bad of a deal for the kid, either (compared to spanking or something like that), so if Hana is being asked to do something she does not like, such as cooperate at bedtime, and you bring up a Time Out, she will get excited and ask for it, as it is better than the alternative. One time she did not want to go to the Y, so she would not hold my hand in the parking lot. I finally got her inside, and she had served her time and apologized, but when she realized she would still be going to the children's program there, she actually tried to take her apology back to stay in time out! ("No sorry. Time Out please.") Too funny. She is so hilarious and precious. She continues to take well to V and we have been very blessed that she adores her sister and really has shown no signs of jealousy, even when she sees me nurse her and knows that Vienna sleeps with me (Ha joins in at about 6 or 7 am each morning and we watch the Disney channel while waiting out her morning mood).

Martin is doing great. This deployment is so much better than the last one he went on because he is on base all the time, we talk and email every day, and he is really [relatively speaking] very safe. Hana is also old enough to remember him this time around. He sends her great and hilarious videos through email. She sends him hand art, baked goods, and drawings. And she loves to chat with him on the phone, particularly when he is doing his famed "Mr. Tim" (his hand, with a face colored on it) impression. He is keeping very busy over there. They have a Grand Master in the base chess club, who he has gotten to play against, but up until last week, he has been swamped with classes. Yes, he is knocking out three very difficult classes during his deployment. He just aced Linear Algebra and Probability & Statistics and is working his way through a 24-week correspondence course in Calculus-Based Physics. Next semester, he is taking off from school involving his [applied mathematics] major and is toying with taking a philosophy class for fun or taking up a martial art. He has also had a lot of great visitors to the base (Bagram, near Kabul), including the President, Trace Adtkins, and a lot of 4-star AF generals. For those interested in sending him a care package, he is really into brownies, bacon that doesn't need to be refrigerated, and high-fiber foods. :o)

I have been doing great. I just finished my fall classes: Algebra (which, yes, I tested out of years ago--but I need to take it as a class to fulfill one of the prereqs for a nursing program I am considering applying for, depending on where life [namely the AF] tales us), Nutrition, Developmental Psych, and Sociology. Next semester, I was registered to knock out 3 huge prereqs for just about any nursing program: Microbiology, A&P I, and Chemistry in sunny Orlando...but, due to a variety of factors, we have decided to spend the 2nd half of Da's deployment in TN, and I am taking online classes instead. I finished all my non-lab science prereqs, so basically I am just taking classes now for the pure joy of enrichment, and because I think they will help me down the road. I am enrolled in Psychology of Adolescence, Medical Terminology, Chemistry in Everyday Life, and Professions of Caring. We are in FL right now and will be heading north to TN in two days--right now I should be finishing up packing, but I am really almost done and am in desperate need of a break! I am excited that Hana will be able to reunite with her playgroup pals (Tyler and Ethan--and possibly [briefly] Amilia) for more than just one visit; we are also looking forward to a day trip to my high school friend Malinda's family farm. Both girls adore animals. We are considering Tito Bryce's alma mater for Ha's preschool--but are also looking at some church-run mother's day out programs. Little Miss has shown basically zero interest in potty training--and that is a prerequisite for a number of schools. I also have to check out the kids' programs at the Knoxville Y--Hana was enrolled in a terrific gymnastics program down here.

Things we have been up to as a family... We have visited a LOT of family--we took a lovely trip up to Philly, and have also been to TN. Aunt Vici and my whole immediate family have come down to FL for fun-filled visits (and to cheer Tito on during his swim meets). We have been to Disney on 4 separate occasions now--I no longer need a map! We celebrated V's Baptism in late November, and Vici (her godmother) and Mark came down for that. Godfather Ky, as well as Uncles Drew and Bryce, also helped celebrate--as well as some other wonderful family friends. Cioc and Bapcia even came down for a surprise visit a few weeks later. We keep very busy and try to take advantage of whatever the community has to offer for kids. We are tremendous Story Time fanatics. It will be a lot easier getting around in TN now, as Bapcia gave us her car as an incredibly generous Christmas present. It is adorable, in excellent condition, and has a VERY well-working alarm, lol.

You are probably noticing that my paragraphs are getting shorter and shorter... I am getting tired and packing is looming over me a little more ominously now. I will try to blog more regularly in the future, but who knows? LOL. I am going to try to at the very least upload some more pix tonight or tomorrow. Love to all!