Pictures will be added later...

Today was Drew’s 1st music class! He is about 5 months younger than Hailey was when she started, but he needs some outside learning and social interaction as well, so we figured it was time. He is in the same class with the same teacher that Hailey had when she was 3, Ms Virginia. She is such a fabulous teacher! She is very exciting and loving and really does catch and keep the kids’ attention. When class started at first, Drew was very wary of going and sitting with the other kids (all the moms sit along the wall), but Virginia asked Hailey to come and sit with them, so Drew quickly followed. Today they learned about quarter notes and then drew their own and played them on the keyboard, played scales (do re mi etc) on the keyboard, and played the instrument game (Ms V sits behind a board and plays the instruments and the kids guess what she is playing). They also danced using rhythm sticks to Beethoven’s 5th. They sang their presidents and states and capitals and also songs that we knew about the manatee, weedy sea dragon, and puffin. We also learned a new one about the lion fish.

Drew did pretty well considering it was his first class. He was no where near as outgoing as Hailey was…she left me for her first class and never looked back, I never had to coax her once! Drew will take a little more work, but he should get a lot of practice this “semester”. He is just a little more shy and wary, but on the good side…it doesn’t take much to get him to do something if he sees Hailey doing it. She runs around saying hi and talking to people, playing with other kids, and joining in on activities. He wouldn’t do these on his own, but if he sees Hailey doing it, he is right there with her. What a great influence she is!

The last few days haven’t been that exciting, other than the fact that it has been in the 60s! Today it is 30 degrees and we are expecting snow! I am very thankful for the nice weather. It gave us a chance to get outside and play comfortably for 3 days in a row. We are expecting similar weather this weekend, yay! It took a little time to warm up on Saturday, so we took the kids out mid afternoon. They got to play in the backyard for about an hour and a half. It was great for them! I think Heath and I spent most of the time cleaning up the yard and the toys, respectively. Sunday warmed up early, so we were out right after lunch (which is early for us =) Heath worked on the car a bit while the kids played out front and then we rode our bikes to the park and let them play on the playground until the sun went down. It was nice spending the whole afternoon outside minus the freezing fingers and toes and bulky jackets! I think everyone in this house is ready for spring! Since we don’t really get snow here, the cold weather just isn’t worth it. The only benefit is that it kills off the bugs! Yesterday Heath was at work, but I let the kids have two “recesses” to enjoy the last day of nice weather. Drew even got on his little trike for a while and was riding it back and forth across the street. He is a little slower with the bike thing than Hailey was, but I hope since she rides hers so much, he will catch on soon!

If you have noticed that we do a lot of things in the afternoon, it is because I decided (yes, I did it voluntarily) to stop putting Drew down for naps. I know, sounds crazy that I chose to stop his naps! We have been minus naps for about two weeks now. With the cold weather, there just wasn’t enough activity between the time Drew woke up from his nap (around 4) and the time he went to bed (about 8-8:30). So if he did nap, he wasn’t falling asleep till 9:30 or 10. I figured it would be more beneficial for him to get the sleep that he needed at night in one block instead of being selfish and taking nap time. It has worked out for the better, I don’t worry about doing things in the afternoon now and I am not constantly thinking about how we are missing naptime! He gets pretty cranky around 6, but at least he goes to bed on time. It doesn’t really make as much difference as it did when Hailey was little. Around this time I was at the end of my pg with Drew and wanted to nap too and then I had an infant so I wanted her to still nap. Now, I already have Hailey awake with me, what’s one more…that time isn’t used for “me time” anymore, so no big deal =) Ok, this is getting long and rambling. (This paragraph was mostly for me =)

My Tricia (yep, my Tricia =) and I talked yesterday and she gave me some news that I suppose put me in a reality check. We aren’t sure if this is completely accurate or not and are trying to find out, but apparently the Air Force has a new policy that states all graduating residents will be deployed within the first 7 months at their first duty station. I had tears in my eyes and my lip was quivering as she told me this and the anxiety only got worse through the evening as I realized all the things that would mean. Yes, I know we are military and deployment is always a possibility, but I never really thought it would happen. So, that means that he would be deployed some time this year! He would miss Christmas, birthdays, and numerous other holidays with us, he would miss at least 6 months of his kids growing up, he would either leave me behind with a brand new infant and miss the early months of that one or he would miss the birth experience entirely. I would be alone on a new base with most likely no support whatsoever (since all the places we applied for are nowhere near anyone we know) because we wouldn’t have been there long enough for me to form a close group of friends, and on and on.

I am not wallowing in self pity, I realize how many people deal with all of these issues every day, I am just very surprised. Sigh… It would be better for him to be deployed when the kids were older, it doesn’t seem like he would miss as much, maybe they don’t change quite as fast. Anyway, that’s what we’re thinking about. We are also, of course, very anxious to find out where we are moving (as is everyone else we know). Heath got an email saying that they can contact the board if they have not heard their new assignment by the end of April. UGH! I hope we don’t have to wait that long! What if we have to get passports or something?! I am hoping and praying for early March!!! I want to know!!! Well, I should end this, I can feel my blood pressure rising again (and it is hard to type this one handed while Drew is “doctoring” my arm =)

I should have more about classes and stuff later. Hailey and Drew both start gymnastics classes twice a week and art classes next week along with Drew’s music class and Hailey’s piano lesson (taught by yours truly =)

Oh yeah, one of Drew’s new favorite things to do is to rock out on the air guitar! It is hilarious!! He makes a weird face and this morning he even had a scary noise to go with it (it was more like yelling-kind of a hard rock noise, haha). He doesn’t just bust out either, he takes the time to pick up the "guitar" and put the strap around his neck before the jam begins, and then at the end, he takes the “guitar” off and puts it away! He sure knows how to crack me up! That is definitely some imagination there!

Drew also loves to cook in their little kitchen and he is ALWAYS making me tea and cake =) I am a spoiled mommy!