Rachel

I took Rachel to the doctor today and my little girl is growing by leaps and bounds.When they did her measurements she had her shoes on so she was just a bit off from what we get here at home when we weigh her, but they said she weighs 35.2 pounds and is 38.5 inches tall. That puts her above the 95 percentile for both height and weight. She is getting to be such a big girl. On her birthday just three months ago she was only 36 inches tall. This girl is growing fast!

 Today we got to Skype with Jacob and it was so nice to see his face and hear his voice! We don't get to do that very often. I was confused though, because while we were talking to him, Rachel started acting out and doing things she doesn't normally do. Then tonight she had a really hard time going to bed. Bedtime is usually pretty easy for with Rachel. We just follow our bedtime routine and she usually goes right to sleep without a problem. Tonight when I left her, she was in tears. I went back in and talked to her for a few minutes, and then left again because I needed to get Kent to sleep. Again she started bawling when I left her and she starts calling out to me and telling me, "I want to go in the corner. I want to go in the corner. I am being naughty." I went in and gave her a minute in the corner to calm down and then I hugged her and we talked. She told me she missed her daddy. She told me she wants to say finally finally finally like Lilly did in her book. (Lilly says that on the day her daddy gets to come home.) It dawned on me that Rachel thought she needed to go in the corner because she was being naughty because she was feeling those sad feelings that you feel after being naughty. I talked to her more and she told me it made her sad when we talked to daddy on the phone today. I thought it would just make her feel happy to see him, but I think it made her realize how much she missed him and so it made her feel sad.

I'm so glad I can stay home with our kids and explain their feelings to them and love them and wipe their tears and kiss them better and just be there for them when they need me. I'm so grateful for Jacob and that he is willing to provide for our family even to the point of leaving us to take care of us and keep us safe.  I can't imagine not being able to hug and kiss my family and not being able to watch them grow and see all of the things they are learning. I am definitely the lucky one in this! 

Super Baby

I have the cutest baby! I just had to share!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Memories For Daddy Box

When Jacob left I bought a book for Rachel called Lilly Hates Goodbyes. 

It's a book about a little girl whose daddy is deployed and it talks about all of the different emotions she feels while her daddy is gone. I recommend this it to anyone going through a deployment with little kids. We LOVE this book. Rachel wants to read it everyday. One day Rachel threw a big tantrum (that has been happening more frequently since daddy left) and we got to a page where Lilly is being stubborn and being naughty and Rachel just said, "Oh!" Because she could relate. Also in the book Lilly has a Memories for Daddy Box that she puts things in to save for when Daddy comes home. Rachel has been dying to make a Memories For Daddy Box! She has been asking me everyday, but we were too sick to get a box. Finally we were able to get out of the house and go to the store and get some supplies to make a box. I let Rachel pick out the stickers and the colors and everything. Rachel loves it! 

She carries it around all the time, opening it up and looking at what is inside. I'm so glad we finally made one for her!

Something else about our Lilly Hates Goodbyes book. Rachel will pick it up and flip through it til she gets to the end where it talks about daddy coming home. She loves that part. I love the look on her face when I am reading her the book and we get to that part. She has the cutest look on her face like she is thinking about her Daddy coming home. I love it!

The First 2 Weeks

Well, it has been two weeks since Jacob left for Afghanistan and what a doozy it has been. It has definitely been the longest two weeks I can remember for a long time. A couple of days before Jacob left Rachel got croup and was probably sicker than I had ever seen her. She got over the croup just after Jacob left (or as he was leaving, I can't exactly remember) and she had a super bad cold. I'm talking fevers, a cough that would make her throw up because she couldn't stop coughing, buckets and buckets of snot, you get the picture. I actually wonder if we had RSV. Poor little girl was miserable. Then, my little girl who is so good at sharing, shared her cold with her brother, who shared it with me. We have all been super sick. The worst part for me was the fevers. They made me feel dizzy and confused and tired and they made it really hard to know when my kids had fevers as well. Rachel was the first to get better. Kent and I are on the verge of being better, but we are well enough to start getting out of the house. I think the reason we all got sick is because now that we have dealt with being sick and with out Dad, just being with out Dad isn't quite as hard.

It has been rough, but I can feel that we are being blessed too. I have had many texts from people checking up on us. Also, I feel like I have been blessed to be more patient. Usually when I get to the end of my rope, Jacob is there to help me and to pick up the pieces. I have been praying for more patience to be a good mom and not to get angry at Rachel when we are having a hard day and Heavenly Father has been helping me. I also had a sweet fried from church bring us dinner one night along with a few other miscellaneous goodies to help us til we could get out of the house. She was one of Rachel's primary teachers. Also, I have been doing a good job keeping up on housework, despite being sick and not having Jacob to help me, and housework is something I always struggle with.

We have had some hard days, but we have had some good days too. I can tell Rachel misses her Daddy a lot! She talks about him all the time and she pretends she is going to work in Afghanistan multiple times a day. She asks for daddy to come home. She also asks all day long for kisses from Daddy. We have been eating one chocolate kiss from daddy every night, and he has been eating one chocolate kiss from us every night too.

We  haven't been able to hear from Jacob quite as much as we would have liked. We have FaceTimed a few times, but mostly we have been using email to keep in touch which I think is hard especially on Rachel since she can't read his messages.

Here are a few pictures from the last little couple of weeks:

Missing Dad

Trying to drink water. 

Rachel going for a ride in her "car". She has been so stir crazy and keeps pretending she is going to the store or going to get gas.

Kent happy despite being sick.

Painting a picture for Daddy.

Being silly

Rachel putting me down for a nap because I don't feel good.

Rachel found this mirror and and been using it to "FaceTime" everyone.

Sleeping in my bed when he was sick.

Playing while mommy makes dinner.

Oops, its sideways. This is a picture of our flat Daddies. Rachel carries them around and sleeps with them and loves them to pieces. 

Wishing Daddy didn't have to go, or that we could go with him.

The aftermath from eating ritz crackers.

Being an Angel

Getting ready to go to Target. (She picked out the flower)

Some things Rachel has been saying the last couple of weeks:

I want Adam and Eve to come play with me.

I'm taking Adam and Eve to the store.

An angel came to me just like he came to Mary and Joseph. He told me that Mary was going to have baby Jesus.

I'm making a painted lady. (from Avatar)

When Piggie was falling off a cliff, a monster ate her. I wish Piggie could come to our house. 

Me: Today is Presidents Day!

Rachel: Oh! Can we have presents?

Me: Pres-i-dents day.

Rachel: Oh! Can we have presidents?

I want Daddy to come home.

Mommy, I am texting Daddy. 

I want Grandma and Grandpa to come play at my house.

I am going to work in Afghanistan to fight the bad guys.

I have a baby in my tummy and her name is Baby Elizabeth. The Grinch has a baby in his tummy too and her name is Cinderella.

Mommy, it is hard that I can't do things by  myself. (She said this when she couldn't get her socks on by herself.)

Mommy? Don't cry while I do this, okay? (I really haven't cried much, but I guess the times I did, it made an impact because she tells me this all day long.)

I want Heavenly Father to come play at my house. (Can you tell she has been wanting to see people?)

On Thursday, I took the kids to Target and the whole way there Rachel sang a song about how we were going to Target to see people. She has been going a little crazy stuck in the house with no people.

While FaceTiming with my mom she asked to see Grandpa. My mom had to tell her that he was at work to which Rachel replied, "Oh. Is he at work in Afghanistan with my Daddy?"

I know there have been tons more funny things she has been doing and saying, but now that I sit down to think about them, I honestly can't remember them. It has been a long too weeks. I'm glad we are getting better now and can get out of the house! We miss you Jakie!

Picnic!

We are all feeling mostly better, so we got out of the house and went grocery shopping! It was such a nice warm day out that when we got home we decided to have a picnic. Rachel thought it was the greatest thing ever, and Kent was pretty happy too because he got to eat some crackers! I can't believe how messy that kid can get from a couple of crackers! It's crazy that just a few days ago we had snow, and today it was warm enough for a picnic! I'm glad I live somewhere warm! The "winter" here is long enough for me! Rachel had to share her lunch with Piggie (notice the last picture). It was really cracking me up though because she was feeding Piggie ham. I love my funny girl!

Snow Day

The strangest thing happened a couple of days ago. We got SNOW in TUCSON!

The night before I got this bizarre alert on my phone of a blizzard warning. I texted Jacob about it and laughed. It had been 75 degrees that day, there is no way we were going to have a blizzard! The next day was I in for a shock! The biggest fluffiest snowflakes were coming down fast in our yard outside.

We didn't go out and play in it since we have all been super sick, but we opened all of the blinds so we could see it no matter what room we were in. 

The next day I looked out and could see it was melting fast, so I bundled the kids up really well and took Rachel out to see the snow for the first time in her life.

Our mini snowman. 

Tasting the snow.

As you can see from her get up we really aren't prepared to deal with snow here. She is wearing her daddy's coat and her mommy's gloves over the warmest clothes she owns, which really aren't that warm.

Kent bundled up and watching his sister play. He wasn't happy about not being in the snow too!

An Angel

An angel came to my house last night, and this is what she brought with her. All of this in the picture plus a big bottle of Gatorade. She did it just because she knew we were sick and that Jacob was gone. She didn't ask if we wanted it or needed it. If she had, I probably would have said no. She just told me she was bringing it by at a certain time. I want to be more like this angel and just act when I see a need and not wait to be asked, because most people don't ask. They just tough it out. Trust me, I know! Thank you to that sweet angel, and thank you Heavenly Father!

6 Months!

I can not believe that it has been 6 months already since this sweet little baby boy joined our family! A whole half of a year! That means I am just about half way done nursing him, what a sad thought! My baby is growing big WAY TOO FAST!

Kent weighs 21.4 pounds which is exactly what Rachel weighed at the same age.
He is wearing size 18 months clothes, except for onsies. He is in size 24 month onsies.
He is wearing size 4 diapers, but that is only because I bought a big box off of Amazon. Once it runs out he will definitely be in size 5. He soaks through size 4 at night time.




Kent loves bath time. Bath time just got a new element of fun for him because now he can scoot. He flips onto his tummy and chases toys around the tub now. The other day he was having so much fun, and I was having so much fun watching him, that I didn't even realize until I went to get him out that his water had turned cold. He didn't even mind, he was just having fun. Then when I get him out of the tub and put Rachel in the tub, even if he has been in for a long time, he tries to get out of my arms and lunges toward the bath tub again.

He isn't really great at sitting up by himself. He can do it, really well on my lap or even on the ground, but because he is so wiggly and wild, I don't dare leave him sitting up by himself because he tips over quite easily. He would much rather be on his tummy where he can move around than sitting up anyway.

He is really funny about eating. He wants to eat food and he complains at us if we are eating and not sharing, but he won't eat baby food. Rachel didn't like baby food either, but she was pretty good at eating regular food. Kent isn't very good at eating regular food yet. He chokes or spits it out. I'm kind of at a loss at what to do with him.

One thing he does like to eat though is crackers. He loves any type of cracker and can feed it to himself. He also like fruit snacks. (Am I a horrible mother because I feed my 6 month old fruit snacks? Oh well, he loves them.) If Rachel is eating a fruit snack he will try to get it from her. Always.

Kent loves his Mommy and loves to cuddle and nurse and be held. He will grab my face and give me great big slobbery kisses, and I love it!

Kent watches my hands really close whenever they are moving. I really need to start showing him Baby Signing Time because I think he would start catching on soon. He is always watching my hands and he loves anything with movement, so I think he will be a good signer like Rachel is.

He is scoot/crawl/plopping, and is getting into everything. He is a busy boy and I love it!

We FaceTime with Grandparents often, and Kent has never really shown an interest. After Jacob left, we got to FaceTime with him and Kent looked at the phone and got his studying face on. Then after a minute he got this grin on his face and he kept looking at it. He knew it was his daddy. 

He loves songs! He lights up and watches me really close when I am singing to him.

He drinks out of a sippy cup, and a water bottle. He loves water and always wants me to share when I am getting a drink.

He loves to eat paper. Any paper he finds is in his mouth and being chewed/drooled/ripped to death.

He loves playing with toys, and he always has his hands busy. He is either using them to move around or to grab at something. Seriously, this kid is never still. 

Kent can shake his head no and he knows what it means. Yeah, I'm in trouble with this kid!

I remember when Rachel was this age and younger, I could set her up against things (like the couch or a chair)standing up and she would hold on to them and just stand there. Kent is a little to reckless for that. I can stand just fine, but he won't hold on.

He loves to be outside. If he is ever really really mad, all I have to do is walk outside and he is happy.

Kent has the cutest little giggles. Rachel at this age would only laugh for a select few people, but Kent is pretty generous with his giggles. I made it a goal that while Jacob is gone, I will make each of my kids laugh every day. They make it pretty easy on me.

Kent wants whatever Rachel is playing with. It doesn't matter what it is. If she is playing with it, he wants it. He can crawl onto her lap now and try to get it too.

He loves Rachel. He tries to hug her and kiss her, and Rachel tells me, "Mom, Kent is eating me!" He also likes to pull her hair, and pull on her clothes. He pulls my hair too.

Kent has one tooth and it is super cute. I thought the second tooth would follow really quick like it usually does, but he has had this one for a couple of weeks already with out signs of a second tooth in sight. It is a sharp little tooth though. I was feeding him today and he totally bit me and made me bleed. Yesterday he bit me while I was nursing him and it startled me, so I pulled it out of his mouth really quick and he thought it was hilarious. He started laughing and then he couldn't go back to nursing because every time he would go to suck, he would start laughing again. I'm sure he thought I was playing with him.

He is the happiest little baby. He has his moments when he whines and cries, but its never anything a little attention, milk, or a nap can't fix.

Kent doesn't sleep through the night. He wakes up multiple times and I'm convinced he does it just to make me tired. He usually wakes up the first time just as soon as I fall asleep, or just before but while I am trying.  When we would be going to bed Jacob thought I was funny because I never wanted to turn out the light and go to sleep because I knew that Kent would wake up and want to nurse as soon as I did.

 

There are so many more things I could write about this funny boy. He makes my days brighter and my nights longer.  I can't imagine our lives with out him. We love you Kent boy!