Eva the Fiesty

Jason here. Eva is easily our most spirited child. This morning we drove to the airport for my flight to Afghanistan. It was not nearly as bad as January, but still sad. Christine and I are hoping for an early return so it wasn't so bad for us. Eva, though, was another story.

I told her I was flying away for a while and asked for hugs and kisses. Eva got a sad look on her face, shook her head, started to cry a bit and then... she got MAD. No tears, all business. "You don't go!"
"Sorry Honey, I gotta go," I said. And then BAM, she hit me in the face!
Hitting is not tolerated in the family and it would have warranted immediate discipline but... it was just so funny and so Eva. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry, but Christine thought it was hilarious. (Christine here. For the record, I didn't think the smack was funny, just her pouty face.)

She hits too much and we need to address it, but dang if that girl doesn't have spirit.

Saying Goodbye

Jason left to go back to Afghanistan on Monday morning. Its funny how, when you have the least amount of time left together, that your conversation beceoms so mundane and ordinary. Must be a coping mechanism. Anyway, it wasn't as hard to part as when we said goodbye in January becasue we have high hopes for a reunion before the fall. Well, it wasn't as hard for me but the girls both cried for a good long while afterwards. Brendan understands more and was able to bear well even though he was pretty sad. It tugged at my heart to drive away but I have a sense of "I did it once, I can do it again".
The kids and I ran some errands to get our minds off of Daddy's leaving. We ended up getting some new flowers for the porch and a box of ice cream treats for a dessert to drown our sorrows. I made a long "to do" list to keep busy and now we wait for word once he's back at Bagram. Lets just say, my house is never so clean as the first few days after Jason leaves. :)

16 Months

I know I stopped doing monthly updates at a year of age but Darby has just done so much growing up this past month that I had to share.
1. She started the month off with a few tentative steps and now is a pro at walking.
2. Her vocabulary has taken off as well. She has almost 20 words that she uses with accuracy. Her favorites lately are "Mine" and "No". I blame that on Eva.

3. She dances to any song that has a good beat. She does this thing that Jason calls the "D.J. Bounce". She gets up on her knees, puts one fist in the air and bounces up and down. Its so cute.
4. She is learning her body parts. She loves to lift up her shirt and show her "beh-dee".

5. She is developing her sense of humor. She will purposefully try to make others laugh. Her own laugh sounds like a machine gun. And she loves to blow raspberries.
6. She is wearing 18 month clothes but could easily wear 24 month tops. She's long waisted.

7. She got two molars.
8. She blows kisses. Ah, it makes me melt.
Darbs, you are not supposed to grow up. Stay my little baby forever, will you?

PREP School Graduation

When we moved here we were so blessed to find the YMCA's P.R.E.P. School for Brendan. He has really blossomed. I cannot say enough good things about it. Luckily, Jason was able to be home for his preschool graduation.
It was a cowboy themed program before the actual commencement.

Brendan was chosen to give the prayer. It was hilarious! He started off with a "Howdy folks. Its time for prayer." Then he bent his head, folded his arms and began. He blessed his family and then all his "friends up on the stage". I'm glad we got it on video.

The cowboy songs were cute and then we heard from Ms. Rakia, his absolutely fabulous teacher. She teaches the summer camp Bubbs is attending so I don't have to miss her desperately just yet.
Then the kids changed into their caps and gowns. Can you say "ADORABLE"? He was voted "Most Ambitious" by his teachers, which I find amusing. Another kid was voted "Most Informative" and I cannot imagine what that house must be like if he is more filled with random bits of trivia than our son is. :)
Brendan also yelled out as he crossed the stage that his "family was right there" and pointed us out when he went up to get his little diploma.


Afterwards we got lots of pictures with family,




and friends,



and, of course, Ms. Rakia.


It was a special night and he feels so grown up now. He is SUPER excited for kindergarten and SO ready now.

Fun at Home

R and R is about two weeks long so we had another week with Daddy Jason after the Vegas trip. It was all about having fun (well, and a little about getting some lose ends tied up). Here are some pictures.
We saw Kung Fu Panda 2 in 3D. Awesome!

We ate out a lot and had treats.

The kids wrestled and rode and snuggled and attacked their daddy.


Jason also tried to take some one on one time with each kid. He and I got a date too and spent our evenings together staying up way too late and enjoying each others' company. It was a great two weeks.

The Return

My favorite day of the whole trip was actually Sunday. We went to sacrament meeting out in Henderson and then made our way over to the house for the BBQ. I don't think I have ever met a nicer family than Alisa's. I had such an enjoyable time talking with her aunts and uncles and cousins. They even liked my kids and Darby won many of them over. She fell in love with Alisa's nephew, Brennan, and would crawl up to him and coyly smile. It was funny. She doesn't flirt with many people. She had a fabulous time crawling all over the huge house, and Brendan and Eva had a good time too. It was a time just to visit and play with no deadlines. We stayed all day long. When we were about to leave, Brendan asked it he could take on of the flowers for me. What a sweet boy! Eva, not to be outdone, wanted one too (it was NOT for me, it was for her. She even fell asleep holding it.)

The next day we woke up really early to make it to the airport on time. The kids loved riding the shuttle from the rental place to the airport. They thought it was so neat. The flight back to NC was not as bad as the flight prior. Darby actually fell asleep (miracle of miracles) and the older two were more entertained.


Also, the flight back is only 4 hours (not sure why . . . wind thrust or something?). Plus, we were gaining hours, not losing them so when we arrived home (FINALLY), it was almost bedtime. It was so nice to be home but I love any chance we get to spend with family who now live across the country. It doesn't happen very often.

Fred and Alisa's wedding day

As it turned out, Jason had to be at his brother's house by 10 am in the morning and we wouldn't see him again until the wedding at 4pm. I wasn't relishing the idea of seeing Vegas sights by myself with three kids in a car I had never driven so we stayed close to the hotel. We had watched TV, had lunch , walked over to an ice cream shop as a treat and had naps. Then came getting everyone ready. Luckily I have had much practice on Sundays and that went smoothly. The girls had new matching dresses, Brendan had a tie on and I got to wear my new dress that I LOVE!



And I even made it to the wedding early. Yay for me! As soon as we arrived Eva wanted to find Jason and didn't want to leave his side. Who wouldn't with all this Scottish swagger? :)


Unfortunately, he was needed as part of the wedding parry so she was given back to me. Not so happy. But Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Jerry were a good second place.

Sweet Bostyn tried to entertain Darby for me too.


Here's Brendan giving her hugs as well.

The wedding was wonderful. Fred and Alisa are two of the kindest, funniest and most unique people I have ever met. I adore them. There wedding was the right blend of tradition, humor and style. Alisa looked gorgeous. Fred and the McDaniel brothers were handsome in their McDonald tartans and the groomsmen were all dapper in their formal kilts. The pastor was inspiring and funny all at once. The vows were sweet and they walked out to "Walk the Line" by Johnny Cash. Now if only my kids hadn't been so noisy I could have really enjoyed it.


I enjoyed the reception as well. The food was AMAZING and it was so fun to sit and chat with family.




Lots of pictures were taken afterwards. Here is a picture from inside the house of the area where the ceremony was held. It was a gorgeous house.

Later on in the night Jason's brother, Brad, gave the toast (he was best man along with Jason) and it was wonderful. I got a little teary-eyed in one part. Then there was dancing and the cake. Some seriously yummy cake, and the cutest I have ever seen.


Once again we put the kids in a room with cartoons early on in the night, but they managed to "escape" once or twice. Eva got a dance with Daddy and Brendan got to talk Uncle Brad's ear off.


The party wound down around 10pm and we left with the understanding that we'd meet up again tomorrow for a BBQ. Good times!

Vegas!!

One of the main reasons Jason was able to be home at this time was that his oldest brother, Fred, was getting married on the 21st. All the McDaniel family would be there. It was the first time that has happened in over 5 years. So we spent the first week of leave playing around here in NC and on Thursday we flew to Las Vegas. I was able to get nonstop flights so we couldn't have to get on and off a plane with three kids and it would take the shortest time possible. Still that was over 5 hours. On a full, crowded plane. With three little kids. Beyond bedtime. Yeah, it was about as much fun as it sounds.
However, since it was a flight to Vegas, the rest of the passengers were so excited (aka drunk) and noisy that no one noticed our cranky kids. Actually, Brendan was pretty good. He had the iphone games and was happy. Jason sat by him and Eva. She colored and fought with her brother and eventually watched a movie on the DVD player. I didn't hear too much from them but Jason looked really frustrated by the time we got off the plane so it must have been bad. Lucky me, I sat by Darby. I cannot even begin to describe how exhausting that flight was. My rationale for the late flight was that the kids would fall asleep. Well, Darby never did . . . and we encountered all that entails when dealing with a baby. At least she had her own seat and I didn't have to hold her, though I did some of the time anyway.
We arrived at the Vegas airport around midnight our time. We rented a minivan (good for trying out in case we ever want a larger vehicle) and drove to the hotel. There was a misunderstanding about our hotel room so we ended up spending more to get a two bedroom suite. SO worth it!
The next day we got in contact with the family and made plans to see everyone. We ended up at Circus Circus, where Jason's parents were staying and where the cousins were hanging at the pool. It was SO nice to see everyone. Brendan loved playing with his cousins. He and Bostyn seem to really get along and the oldest cousin, Drew, is such an amazing kid that Bubbs tagged around with him a lot of the time. Brendan surprised me by jumping right in, even underwater. Yep, he's SO ready for swim lessons in June. I held Darby most of the time while Eva played with Jason. I got the worst sunburn I have had since my track days in high school. Good thing my face lotion has sunscreen in it so I didn't look like a lobster for the wedding.
That night was the rehearsal dinner where we met most of the bride's friends and family at the house (AKA mansion) they rented for the wedding. The food was excellent and the people were so nice! Our only hiccups were, once again, the time difference (our kids were officially past their bedtime before the dinner even started) and the fact that there was a pool at the house that Eva wanted desperately to get in or throw things into. Eventually we put the kids in a darkened room with cartoons to get them out of the way.
When we got back to the hotel, Jason left again to be fitted in his kilt and find out what was expected of him in the ceremony. I promptly fell asleep, knowing that tomorrow would be a busy day.

Our First Fun Outing

When things settled down a bit after Jason's return, the kids went down for quiet time with the promise that when they got up we'd do something REALLY fun. It just so happened that the Fort Bragg Spring Fair was going on that weekend and it seemed the perfect family outing.
So we packed up the kids and went on post. Darbs spent most of the time in the stroller but seemed okay with it. She and I waited on the ground while Jason took them on the first ride of the afternoon, the ferris wheel. A big hit.
When Brendan saw the big slide he HAD to go on it. The funny thing was though, he chickened out at the top. You can see in the picture than Jason with Darbs and Eva by herself went sliding down, while Bubbs was frozen at the top.

Eva LOVED it. Darbs seemed indifferent and when Brendan finally did come down (seriously like 5 minutes later and with much coaxing), he seemed to enjoy it.



I went on the twirly rides with the kids since Jason cannot stomach them, and he went on the scarier and rougher ones with them.



Many rides they went on by themselves. Eva thinks she's hot stuff here because she's "driving".

Darby couldn't go on many rides but we did take her on the carousel. This picture was taken before the ride began. As soon as it did, she screamed bloody murder and kept saying, "No, no, no" while trying to climb on me away from the undulating horse. I guess her biggest fear is a merry go round. Who knew?

Back on solid ground, or rather, stroller, she was happy again.

It was a very fun day, topped off with a dinner at one of our favorite places, Carolina Ale House. Yum!