Well, its almost time for R&R!! With any luck, Jim will be here with this by this time next week! Long story short, it was beginning to look like R&R was going to be pushed back. I got word from him tonight, though, that he was *almost* back to his base and should have caught a flight a couple hours later. Even if that flight fell through, it would be much easier to get between that one and his. So…he should be set to leave Iraq on time!!
Not much planned for R&R. We’ve decided to stick around here instead of going anywhere. The beach, the pool, outside play…just trying to squeeze 9 months of missed family time into two weeks.
Ben has several new words including bye-bye, baby and that. He is trying to run, mostly unsuccessfully…for now! Outside play continues to be a top priority with him. He is pushing two more teeth through…one left! In contrast to Elizabeth, Ben is a screecher (ACK! my ears) and, if he can find himself a writing utensil, will write on walls, furniture, etc.
Elizabeth suddenly seems so BIG. When I carry her and her legs hang down, they hit my knees. Long gone are the days when I could hold her entire body in the length of my one arm. She’s had another speech explosion, mostly in the form of complex sentences. She also seems to have had a big growth in maturity. Things that would have resulted in total meltdowns six months ago, slide off her back now.
Ben stayed in the nursery at my bible study for the entire time this week. First time ever! All the kids were in one room and he stuck close to Elizabeth’s side. But he stayed and was fine!