FTF

1. Scrapbooking - It's a creative outlet and feels productive at the same time. I have the freedom to highlight my photos and memories however I choose. No two pages are anywhere near the same. It's doing something for myself and for my family at the same time. I have the fun of creating the pages; they have the enjoyment of looking at them and reflecting on our memories. Both kids already at 3 and almost-2 enjoy looking through the scrapbooks, seeing pictures of themselves and remembering the fun things we've done. Especially in the military life I love having the memories of things we've done together, the places we've traveled, the places we've lived, friends that come and go, and especially documenting the kids' lives when Daddy isn't always here to see it first-hand.



2. Winter in Texas - I am getting so spoiled living down South. Growing up in Alaska I know what winter CAN be. Winter in Texas reminds me of summer in Alaska. On the "cold" days in Texas it reminds me of fall in Alaska. Now it does truly get cold here in Texas, it can be damp and windy and below freezing on occasion. The key is it isn't very often and it doesn't last very long. You may have to wear a jacket & choose to stay inside on Monday but by Friday you can wear a T-shirt and go to the park. Being an outdoorsy girl I really love that you can easily spend time outside year-round here. And yes it does get VERY hot in summer but its not so bad if you're not pregnant and besides that's why they invented A/C, ceiling fans, spray parks, sprinklers, kiddie pools, and popsicles!

3. Cali Napping - This has become a rare occurrence but when it happens it is so wonderfully quiet in here. Ahhhh! This girl does not like to sleep and its been months since she stopped taking her daily nap. She still goes in her room, we read a story (or three), she gets in bed, I sing to her and walk out. Five minutes later I hear her rustling around, rummaging through books, sorting through baby doll paraphernalia. In the beginning I'd go in there every few minutes and tell her to get in bed, to leave her toys alone, to only take one book to bed. I realized I couldn't' force her to fall asleep and I was only driving myself crazy going back in there every 5 minutes. Now I just expect her to stay quiet and stay in her room. She does come out though... she can't find her baby's shoe, she wants to put a dress on, her feet are cold, she's thirsty, she has to potty... you name it she'll think of an excuse. It's not so bad though because I know that the trade-off for her not taking a nap is that she will be fast asleep by 7:15. On a day like today where she is still sleeping soundly at 3:35 she will be wide awake until at least 9:30 saying... I'm not sleepy, my hands are cold, I want different music, I'm sad Daddy's not home, I need lotion on my cheeks... But I tolerate it because I understand her. I never liked to go to bed early either, and to this day am very much a night owl. It's hard to be frustrated when I know exactly where she gets it from.