That smile says I kept him laughing until the very end. Mission accomplished.
The Highlights
There is truly no greater love than that given by friends and fellow Army wives at the kickoff of a deployment. My friend Jenna was literally waiting for me in my driveway with a huge care package when I arrived home after dropping Brad off on post. Even better than all of the goodies (the highlights being wine and girl scout cookies of course) was her hug. I fell right out of the drivers seat into her arms and ugly cried for a few minutes before pulling myself together to see the kids. It was exactly what I needed. So many encouraging texts flooded in and various friends stopped by with sweet surprises throughout the afternoon. Day zero is difficult beyond anything I can explain. I do not wish the atmosphere of the bag drop and final family farewell area on my worst enemy. The heartbreak is literally palpable. The sounds of kids crying for their parents as they walk away haunts me. I am so thankful for friendships that light up my darkest days.
Eloise is STARFISH official and SWIM SAFE! Literally the day after I wrote my last blog post and predicted she would earn it soon, she aced her test. In order to earn her starfish badge she had to do a flip, dive to the bottom of the pool, toss in, and humpty dumpty (fall off the pool ledge) with an independent recovery to her float position. And then she had to float on her back for a full five minutes! It was incredible to see. The best part was seeing her lose her float positioning a few times, mostly because she was bored not because she couldn't hold it, and get back into it all by herself. It made me feel so confident that no matter what sort of dangerous water situation she found herself in she has the skills to survive. Now she gets to move on to learning to really swim and move herself through the water. I can't wait to see her progress by the time summer arrives. And Miss Brittany thinks Harvey is not far behind our starfish girl! He is jumping in and swimming to the surface totally on his own and sometimes floating with just one hand of neck support. Sometimes being the key. Other times he kicks and squirms. The cutest thing is now whenever we lay him down in his bed he says, "no kickers."
Speaking of badges, I earned a new boy mom badge this weekend. We attended our first Touch-a-Truck event, and Harvey may never come down from cloud nine. As anticipated, he was completely enthralled and thrilled to sit in the drivers seats of so many of the vehicles he swoons over in books. To see, feel, and climb them in real life nearly put him over the edge. He was fascinated by the seat belt of all things in each truck, and Eloise was so sweet and tried to help him buckle it every time. Harvey's favorite was the bulldozer. Eloise's was the pizza delivery van. Sounds about right!
The Small Moments
I told Brad the one thing I wanted on his departure day was for the same chocolate covered caramel apple my friend Cat sent me during my 30 days to 30 birthday celebration to arrive on my door step. I have been dreaming of it ever since I devoured it in October. He broke the news to me on his last day home that it was a seasonal item. Always one step ahead though, then he pulled out the ingredients and proceeded to make me his own version! Find yourself a man who spends his last day stateside making you homemade caramel apples.
My mom and I took the kids to Barnes and Noble on Wednesday after dance. I am not sure who loves trips to the bookstore more, me or them. The train table and Winnie the Pooh stage in the children's section are always a big hit. Harvey obviously found a book with wheels on it to zoom around. The highlight of this visit, besides a fresh stack of fun books, was Eloise calling the Hundred Acre Woods the Hundred Naked Woods. We all had a good laugh which was exactly what our souls needed.
I have declared Fridays at our house pizza party nights. Our first one was spent eating pepperoni pizza on the living room floor watching Happy Feet together. It was also the debut of Big Head Brad! Eloise thinks he is hysterical and squeals with delight when he arrives to hang with us. Harvey seems confused and mildly terrified. It makes me smile to see his handsome (enormous) face in pictures with us. Big Head Brad will be making future appearances at recitals, birthdays, beach days, holiday parades, soccer games, for popsicles in the backyard, first days of school, etc. You name it, he'll be there. I am thankful for the idea I stole from a few other military spouses I have seen use a big head daddy. Whatever it takes to feel connected. I do not recommend leaving a big head propped up on the couch to leave the room for any period of time. When you return, the sight of it may inflict a heart attack.
The Ways We Grew
Eloise is a true sour patch kid lately. One minute she is making me want to rip my hair out and the next she is making my heart burst. She has a new fixation on her clothes. Up until this point she has never really cared what she wore and has always let me pick out her clothes. Now she is dedicated to only wearing dresses or skirts during the day and nightgowns to bed. On particularly fiesty days she will only wear pink or red dresses. I am at the point where I am about to stock her closet with only dresses because I am so over the battle. On Thursday as I was dragging my sobbing sour patch into preschool because it was chapel day so she had to wear leggings and her chapel t-shirt, she did a complete flip to her sweet side. She stopped and asked where the preschool director was, who is usually always standing at the front door greeting students by name (I love our preschool). Eloise almost always gives her a giant welcome hug and didn't want to go to her classroom without it. We found the director in her office on the phone. When she saw Eloise with her arms open wide and a big goofy grin on her face she immediately ended the call and scooped her up before I could insist we didn't need to interrupt. What a difference a hug can make in the day of a child. Dress crisis averted. For now, anyways.
Harvey started hugging me tight during our bedtime lullabies this week. When I squeeze him right back he giggles. We go back and forth alternating squeezes and giggles until our songs are done. How did he know I could really use the extra hugs this week? At the Touch-a-Truck event he learned how to say and what it means to wait your turn and did it so patiently. We also saw him willingly hand over two trucks he was having a blast with to another little boy younger than him in the toddler play area. I have been drilling it into him that we share with our friends, so now anytime he is face to face with another kid his age he says, "hi friend." Harvey's reaction to Brad being gone has really caught me off guard. I didn't think he would really think much of it, but he has been so observant and sweet. Brad wears a Qalo silicone ring on deployments. I wear his real wedding band on a chain as a necklace until he comes home. Harvey loves to put his fingers through it anytime he is in my arms and tell me it is Daddy's ring in case I forgot. He puts his ear right up to the audio player in the Army bears we had made for the kids when he hears Brad's voice. At the end of the recording Harvey says, "Love you, Dad." Every. Single. Time. I tear up. Every. Single. Time. Just as much as his emotions have taken me by surprise, I am shocked by how much comfort Harvey has brought me this week. He is a mini Brad. When I look into his big, deep blue eyes, I see so much of my best friend.
The Witt-isms
"Hmm...okay. But where is Neverland?" -Eloise, after Brad showed her where he would be on a map. Priorities!
"This boy is on fire!" -Harvey, who has clearly heard sissy sing her favorite Alicia Keys song a few times.
"Look! So beautiful." -Harvey, pointing to the train he just built.
Looking Ahead
Stroller Safari | 6 days --- Our incredible zoo does a monthly program called Stroller Safari's. It highlights a particular animal each month and gives kids a behind the scenes, hands-on sensory experience. I am taking the kids this weekend to enjoy the March with Matilda (the wallaby) event. I am hoping it brightens up our first Saturday just the three of us. Weekends are tricky as everyone else enjoys family time, but I am determined to make the most of it for them.
Preschool Mother's Tea | 11 days --- Brad got to enjoy spaghetti with dad a few weeks ago with Eloise at preschool, and coming up shortly it is my turn for tea with mom. Harvey will stay home with Jenna so I can enjoy every special minute with my girl.
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