Adjusting

I have learned in this short month that children do not adjust to change easily at all. Losing a parent, by any means, will mess up an entire family system...nor does it do anything for my sanity. I see issues in the way both of the girls are handling daddy being gone.
Harli was so little the last time we had to deal with something that lasted this long. In the past three years the longest he was gone was a month for training. But now...
Harli, who is five, is learning the fine art of the attitude. Not fun. Not fun at all. I can't count how many times I have taken something away, put her in time out, denied her something just because she seems to have forgotten how to follow simple instructions. It's hard, and if this is a sign of things to come I am dreading the teenage years already.
Ryanne, who is just 23 months, can no longer sleep through the night. At about 3am she is screaming in her room. I cannot let her cry it out, she will cry for hours. I have to eventually let her share the couch with me. She is also taking lessons from her sister in the selective hearing department.
It's only been a month and I am exhausted.

On the upside, we are ready for Christmas. Gifts are wrapped and under the tree. I hope that they enjoy their new things.

I wish I could have gotten Ryanne the Elmo Live doll that we were playing with at Walmart the other day, but I have already gotten her holiday presents.

WPT for Babies and a new home for Duke

Is it possible for a child to have the intuition to get ahead in a game of poker?
I am thinking it could be, and Ryanne may be the next superstar.

We went to game night at a friend's house. Ryanne happened to wake up a few hands towards the end. (Well, as close to the end as you can foresee before everything can turn around.) She put in the ante. She made bets, she raised, she even checked a few times. And guess what...WE WON!

It was awesome; it was fun. It should have been something for everyone to see because it was just too damn cute.

Now we are just waiting on her bracelet to be sized appropriately (I guess they only make those things for adults).

Duke, the boxer that showed up on our doorstep not too long ago, has found himself a wonderful home. He was such a great dog. We all hated to see him go. He just had one major flaw. Digging. It wasn't the dig in the middle of the lawn...it was the dig at the fence, get out kinda thing. Now, he wasn't the kind of dog to wander. Usually he'd get out and head for the front door, but his digging would allow Rebel to get out, and Rebel is a runner. Just me, I can't leave the girls in the house to go chasing dogs. I think he needed a family that could entertain his energy level. So now he is on a nice 6 acre lot (some wooded, some not) with another dog, a few horses, and three growing boys who can play all day long. I am happy for him, and I am sure he is having a blast!

Dr. Doom and the Tallied Votes

Today Harli had an appointment with the dentist. I think I was dreading it more than she was considering she is awful with people poking at her. But, really, can you blame anyone for that? Surprisingly, though, everything went well. She even went with the dental assistant by herself to get an x-ray. Her teeth look great. They can see her 6 year molars developing and if you look closely you can see her adult teeth moving in. The dentist said those won't be in for awhile though. She earned herself a treat for being so good.

More exciting news about Harli. The Cute Kid Contest that she was entered in and had everyone faithfully voting has finally tallied the votes. She came in third. Awesome! So we get to start her collection of savings bonds with a $500 prize.

Side note: I am actually cooking a legitimate meal tonight. No Spaghetti-Os or chicken nuggets tonight!

Family Pictures

Before Ryan left, we were given a wonderful gift. Family
pictures. We haven't had pictures done since Harli was
little. It was about time. Katelyn has an amazing eye and
an even more fantastic personality.

Click Here to see the amazing family pictures taken
by the amazing Katelyn.

Little Miss Mommy

I guess my days of changing diapers may be numbered.

Harli: "Mommy, baby sister's diaper smells like peepee."

Me: "Okay. Bring her here, I'll change her."

Harli: "No, Mommy. I can do it."

And, guess what. She can. With a little help, of course. What a great big sister. Too bad Ryanne is showing signs of wanting to use the big girl potty.

Week one down

Today marks one week of daddy being going. I think the girls know it. The attitude seems to be coming out in full force. Only a minimum of fifty-one weeks left. That sounds better than counting days. In a few weeks I can change my count down to months and that sounds even better. I'm not complaining. This is our life. We knew it had to happen, why not just get it done and out of the way. (Until the next one, of course.)