Hello 2009

So no pictures for this post. I don't have any because as a busy mom studying her butt off for the GRE I did not have time to relax enough to notice the very capture-able moments in daily life. I promise to do better. This year will be all about change. I guess we are joining in full swing with the new President and trying to make improvements. Eddie still is anxiously awaiting orders. We are really tired of the waiting and he keeps applying for every opportunity. Eddie's most recent attempt at moving involves us going back to Ft. Meade, Maryland. I never thought we'd actually be excited to go somewhere we've already been. What it really boils down to is we need a bigger house, we loved living in Maryland before, and the tour is guaranteed 4 years so there would be no anxious waiting for orders or fear of year long trips away from us to Korea, Iraq, Afghanistan. So while we are adventurous people who like the idea of going somewhere new and exciting, the comforts of going back to good ol' Ft. Meade are too appealing to just sit around and not at least try. Eddie is spending his free time studying for his test to promote to Tech Sgt. Hopefully he gets it this year. It's a hard one to make for his career field. Morgan is back in school and doing very well. We have applied for magnet schools just in case we don't get orders. The school we are zoned for is unappealing and I told Eddie we will move before I send her there even if it means moving into base housing that is half the size of what we have now. She is starting to branch out with her interests. At a playdate the other day I was delighted to overhear her say she wanted to be a rock climber. How cool? I am pleased that she has transitioned from wanting to be a princess when she grows up. This rugged attitude is more my style. The YMCA we joined has a rock wall and there are tiny kids younger than Morgan who climb all the way to the top. She has eyed it ever since we joined and I told her that if she wanted to be a rock climber she could try out the rock wall at the Y. I'll make sure I take pictures. Lorelai is almost two. I can hardly believe it. I still see her as my tiny baby because she lacks hair and the doctors tell me she's underweight. It dawned on me during the holidays that she was the same age as Morgan was when we moved into this house and I realized that we were not expecting the same level of maturity out of her. I realize all kids are different, but I thought I'd test her out to see what she was capable of. My first test was the transition to a cup. Morgan transitioned to an open cup at an early age when she was in daycare. I didn't know how the process worked so I figured we'd start off with a small bit at the bottom of a cup. I thought she'd fight and cry and spill it all for weeks and we'd go back and forth. To my shock she picked it up right away. It was so easy. She is very talented at carrying around cups of water without ever spilling a drop. I'm not brave enough to let her walk around with milk or juice, but at the table she drinks only from a cup and if we go out she gets a sippy cup. I'm so proud of her. Next on my list is going to involve some discipline. Morgan was responsible for picking up her toys at this age and we continue to baby Lorelai and do it for her. From now on she must help with the chores. More on that later. Today I made a freedom list. Even though school was over I had a lot going on with studying for the GRE. I still have some obligations involving volunteer work with the Girl Scouts and Planned Parenthood, but for the first time in years I have genuine free time. I will get the girls' scrapbook up to date, read all the unread books I've accumulated, go on more walks with the dog, take more photos of the girls so my family can watch them grow up, continue my PiYo and Step class so I can lose those stubborn 8 pounds I put on last semester, finally check out the Ansel Adams and Norman Rockwell exhibits I've been dying to see, spend quality time with the kids doing all the stuff I used to do before school took over my life, and teaching myself how to knit more than just the basic stitch and make more than just a scarf. I'll probably add more later, there is just so much more I want to do with life now that I can breath and relax. I probably wouldn't hold my breath for a lot of updates. My goals also involve major breaks from the computer. I spent the last two years glued to the computer for hours and hours doing homework every night. It feels strange to be away from it, like I'm forgetting something. But I don't need to be on as much as I am. All too soon it will be either time to get serious about finding a job or time to start grad school. I will be doing myself a huge disservice if I squander away that time sitting in front of my monitor instead of experiencing life with my family.