Fun with the Grandparents

Over the last few weeks, the girls and I have been spending some time with their grandparents. It's been a lot of fun for all of us.
First, we got to go to a picnic at John Deere, where my dad works, to celebrate its 175th anniversary.  It was quite a big to do. There was ice cream, crafts, bouncy toys, face painting, or knee painting in Lily's case...

...and of course lots of tractors and mowers to play on. Ela has read a book about "Allie Gator" about a millions times, so she was especially excited about meeting Allie.  But she was happy to climb on anything that might move.  I'm so proud that I have a girl who likes tractors (and trains). 

The surprise high point of the picnic, though, turned out to be a bouncy slide. This thing was super tall, and looked scary to me, but Ela really wanted to try it (having been scared out of the regular bouncy toys by the fact that she could barely stay standing in them).  Convinced that I would have to retrieve her, I decided to let her go and watched as she climbed the ladder to the top of the slide.  When she got up, she was hanging out as far from the edge of the slide as possible.  I braced myself for my own trip to the top, then called to her to come down the slide.  To my great surprise, she threw on a big grin, and dove down...

Several trips later, she was still making the face of terror and giggling like a maniac. So I guess I have a future roller coaster rider on my hands.
A few days after the picnic, we headed up to Winston Salem for a visit with Zack's folks.  It was warm and a very short visit, so we kept it low key.  Ela's favorite part was a trip to the pool.  We tried to convince her to go to the indoor one, but she really wanted to come to the neighborhood outdoor one, so we slathered on the sunscreen and off we went.

Lily hasn't really been in many pools, so while Ela ranged all over, gradutally getting braver, we worked on getting Lily wet without upsetting her.

I'd say we had some success. By next year, she'll be chasing her sister around.

It's really nice being in North Carolina full time.  We love that visiting family isn't such a big production just now.  We intend to make the most of it while we can!

Zack Update

Zack is doing just fine. He had a super busy week last week, and he's recovering this week. He works long hours, but in his free time, he plays softball, studies, or goes to the gym. He volunteers at various events as well, such as making "fuel donuts" for the locals to burn for warmth. He has lots of pictures of the girls and enjoys showing them off to his friends in the office. He is keeping in good spirits. Zack has received a few packages lately, and is enjoying the coffee from home, among other things. He gets to call home regularly. Lily smiles when she hears his voice, and Ela tells him stories about whatever is on her mind at the moment you hand her the phone. She says she wants to give him a big hug, but doesn't seem too bothered that he keeps "sleeping at work". He seems to like our silliness. Zack wisely doesn't tell me much about what he's actually doing, but I get the impression he's figuring out the job and enjoying his work, though he's still feeling overwhelmed at times. He seems to like his coworkers and bosses pretty well. So all seems to be going well!

Beach Week

Last week, the girls and I headed out to Holden Beach with my family. The older Ela gets, the more fun this gets.  This year, we had rain for the first time in a long time.  So we decided to take the kiddos to the aquarium.  Ela could have spent the whole week there. 

We managed to pull her away by reminding her of the fishing trip we also had planned.  Ela was old enough to go this year.  Thankfully, the sun came out in time for that.  Ela giggled the whole time the boat was on its way out, announcing that it "tickled her tummy", and we had a great time catching mackerel. 

Minjee was a pro at getting our fish off the hooks.  Tristan got to be the shark catcher. 

We caught two, but I only got a picture of one.

The rest of the week we devoted to the usual beach activities: playing at the pool, hanging out on the sand, and dipping our toes (fearfully for Ela, excitedly for Lily) into the ocean.

It was a very fun week for all of us.

The Same But Different.

It has always amazed me how two little kids can be so very much like their parents and yet very different from each other. Zack and I have often discussed how much either Ela or Lily is like one of us, either physically or in attitude or preference. Yet the girls are very different little people. Lily eats anything that holds still long enough, Ela lives on air. Ela wants to snuggle all night long, Lily needs her space. It's really interesting to me to watch how they grow and emerge as their own people.

The differences between my girls really were apparent last week in one specific way. Ela hates having her hair touched, much less put up into a ponytail or washed. It gets tangled fairly easily, and she is convinced you're hurting her from the moment you approach her head. I finally got tired of the constant battles and took her in to get a super short haircut.

She actually sat very still for the cut, fascinated by the pieces of hair as they fell. The resulting cut is adorable (I'll post pictures when I get my computer back). Ela loves it and spent the rest of the day prancing in front of mirrors. She still complains when I approach with a comb, but it takes much less time to brush, so the battles are at an end.

When we got home, Ela went to her room for quiet time, and I set to work getting Lily to take a nap. I got her all snuggled in my arms, and she presented me with her little, soft hairbrush. Amused, I ran it over her little fluff of hair. She loved it. I brushed her hair until she got so relaxed she fell asleep.

There may be fun girly hairdos in my future yet.

A Disclaimer and a Zack Update

Before I even start, I want to warn my lovely readers (I think there's more than one of you) that all posts regarding Zack while he's away will be incredibly vague. This is for three main reasons:

1) I only know what he tells me, and I seriously doubt he'll have time to write long, detailed e-mails about his life.

2) The internet is public, and I don't want anyone to think that what I write as speaking for anyone other than me. It's really easy for the casual reader to assume that since I'm writing about a military situation, everyone must go through the same stuff. This is almost entirely untrue. I'm not writing about military life in general, just my life (and Zack's) which happens to be affected by the fact that he's a service member. Our situation is not universal, please don't take it that way.

3) The internet is public (in case you forgot). Anyone can read this, including people looking for the kind of information a detailed account might give for less than friendly reasons. I don't want to help them.

Call me paranoid if you like, but I really do worry about what I say, who sees it, and how they interpret what is meant to be just my flippant musings. SO. If you are one of the many friends or family reading this, and you want more information, contact me in a more private setting. I'll be happy to tell you whatever I can (which honestly might not be much anyway). For those with slightly less interest in all the nuts and bolts, these posts should suffice.

Zack e-mailed recently to tell me that he arrived in Afghanistan. The travel was long and jet lag is rough, but he's there now and getting down to business. He seems to be settling in nicely, and he's already too busy to write much, but I'd pestered the heck out of him before he left about getting me his address ASAP, and he wrote to send me that. If you want it, you know how to reach me. He has not yet told me what is and is not appropriate to send, so for now I'll be sticking to letters. It's probably too soon for care packages anyway, right?

I was relieved at how upbeat Zack sounded when he wrote. He seems to be excited about the work he'll be doing, and much more satisfied with his decision now that he's there, so all is well for him.

I'll write a post like this every so often with updates.

Lily's Birthday Party

Lily turned one this weekend! I can't believe how fast this year has gone.  Of course we threw her a big party.  For possibly the first time ever, she had all her aunts with her at the same time, as well as her grandparents, godparents, and their family.  It was the kind of day that really makes me miss Zack, now that he's away, so I was especially happy they could all be there!

The party was in the morning, and the grown ups watched Lily open her presents while the kids went outside and found their own entertainment.

Mark shows off the frogs.  Final count: 24 captured.

We had a light lunch, and then it was time for cupcakes.  Minjee decorated them for us.

Not pictured: Mommy just waiting to grab little hands that reach for the candle.

Lily did not disappoint when it came to cake smashing.  She did a very good job keeping everyone entertained.  It was wonderful to celebrate her big day.  

Please hold...

Sorry about the delay between posts.  Zack's orders have been changed... repeatedly... and in the chaos I've kind of neglected the blog.  It felt weird to post anything when I didn't really know what to expect.  Then once things were settled, I was too busy enjoying my last few weeks with my husband for the year to be bothered with writing.  But now I'm back!
Rather than try to catch you up on all the fun we've been having while Zack was home for the visit.  I'm posting this lovely picture of our girls on Easter and assuring you that in the future I'll get back into the blog habit.  Happy belated Easter!