Twas the Night...

...that C stayed away from home all night for the first time.

F and I returned today from an overnight stay away from C. We had a Regimental Ball that was out of town since there simply isn't anywhere here that will hold that massive number of people (92 tables of 10!!) There was child care provided on site there, but considering the number of children involved, we decided that we'd find a friend who could keep C here. A dear friend from PWOC and her husband and older children had her stay with them. C had been to their house before and spent a day with them when I was recovering from my surgery. She adores their boys and really enjoys their doggies. She ate well, napped, and even went to sleep at night without a fight! I am so impressed that she did so well. When I was her age, my parents would leave me with my grandparents or aunt and uncle. In the Army life, one doesn't always have the luxury of having family nearby, and friends are called on to stand in the gap. I am sooooooo incredibly blessed to have found such a family of friends here at Irwin-town. Makes my heart sigh that we're leaving so soon.

Diaper Talent

I think it's about time to push the potty-issue. C has taken to changing her own diaper, well, actually a pull-up. It's incredibly cute. She does the whole thing, including wiping. This is only a problem if it's not just wet. Then, she comes a-running, hollering "yucky! yucky!" Then we wash her hands...for one of the thousand times we wash each day: C just loves to wash her hands. I really don't want to deal with the potty until after we've moved. I'm not relishing the idea of taking a potty-training toddler on a 4 day trip. Yes, we're taking 4 days to do the drive, so we can stop and do a few fun little side trippy things on the way.

Tree's Up

and C is totally into it...all the time. I guess it's our own fault for having cute Hallmark ornaments that look a lot like toys to her. At first, the tree was a novelty, and she was good about asking Daddy and Mommy for an ornament to look at, would examine it, and then give it back to us to hang back on the tree. As the novelty wore off, she stopped asking, and just started pulling them off. She isn't very nice to them and has broken one or two. So, our poor tree looks awfully topheavy though. As she discovers new ornaments to mess with, I keep moving them closer to the top of the tree. Just another source for tantrums, but without the tree it just doesn't seem like Christmas.

Disney in a Downpour

The first time I was at Disneyland, I was 10 years old, and we went in the rain. This weekend, we repeated the experience. It was great...after we took a break from the park and let C have her nap, and stopped at Target to buy a new umbrella, a new outfit and rain coat for C, shoes for me (I'd only taken my sandals!) and a smaller travel-sling to carry diapers (etc) around with us. During the first go-round at the theme park, my feet were soaked and C was shivering. However, the second go-round left C with giggles and grins and cries of "more!" and "again!" and "fun!" Because of the rain, the crowds were really light, and we didn't have to wait long for any of the events and rides. One of our first stops was the Princess Fantasy Faire, where little princesses could get their pictures taken with three of the Disney Princesses. This venue thing is a great idea on Disney's part. Last time we were there, the Princesses would come out for an hour or so, but the line for each was out of control. I'm sure that way some families did nothing all day but scout the appearance sites and stand in line to see the Princesses. Now, the line for the Princesses is continuous, with the Princesses rotating through the day, and each little girl gets 3 princesses at one shot. Much more convenient. C, however was less than impressed with the live princesses, prefering images to the real thing.

On the other hand, C was thoroughly enamored with the rides! She is old enough now that she can voice preferences, and she asked to ride the "horse" (Carousel) and "elephant" (Dumbo) twice. She saw the rockets on the Astro Orbiter and asked to ride the "plane". The really great thing about the light crowd was that when she asked to do things, we were able to just go get on that ride before the inkling passed. We also went on the Small World ride, and although she started out on the seat, she quickly clambored up onto F's lap so she could see all the displays. The awe I saw in her face is indescribable. Of course, I couldn't get a picture of it because flash photography isn't allowed inside the ride. All in all, I know she enjoyed herself, and that made the whole day worthwhile.