The Beginning

As a military family, separations are a part of our life. Gideon and I have been together through three deployments, engaged while living in two different countries, married and living in two different states, and multiple training operations. Gideon’s Officer Candidate School, which lasts for six weeks, is our first prolonged separation since we have had kids. And while six weeks isn’t that long for us, in the world of a 9 month old and 3 year old, it is an eternity.


The beginning of a separation is definitely an adjustment time. At first, you still expect him to come home at normal time and it almost feels like he is just at work for the day. Slowly, we are all realizing that he is not coming home at the end of the day.

Right now we are figuring out how we are going to do everything with one less person around. Mornings and daytime is still pretty normal. We, however, have to learn how to do dinners, bedtimes, and baths without Daddy. It has been going well so far, but there have been a few snags and things we still need to figure out.

To make things a little easier on the girls, we got them a Daddy Doll, which is a pillow with a full body image of Gideon. We also got Hadley a recordable book. She has already listened to it so many times that she has it memorized and can say it along with Gideon’s voice.

The beginning of a separation is difficult because we are adjusting to everything and the end seems so far away. At the same time, the beginning is also some of the easiest time because we haven’t had time to miss him too much and it still feels like he is going to walk in the door any minute.

Getting her recordable book from Daddy

Loving on the Daddy Doll at the airport

Date Night

With Gideon leaving for six weeks, we knew we wanted a night out for ourselves. It was long overdue, since it would be only our second date since Hadley was born. The first date ended early as a call to the babysitter revealed that Hadley had been screaming and crying for nearly two hours.


I was a little fearful of a repeat as Malia is still suffering from separation and stranger anxiety. I thought it would be okay though as our friends who were watching them are familiar to Malia and they brought their little boy who both of the girls love.

The girls did great and Gideon and I had a wonderful night out. We stayed local so our options were limited, but it was still nice to have adult time without having to worry about anyone crying, spitting up, throwing food, or complaining that “she’s bothering me. “

A few of our friends had mentioned a Thai restaurant in Montpelier. We decided to try it, since Thai food is not always the most popular with kids. It was as good as our friends said, with the exception of the Thai Sweet Tea which was beyond description.

We finished the night off with some Creamees. We were home earlier than we had told the babysitters, but it was still a nice night and one that we’ve decided needs to be repeated much more often. Now we just have to wait the six weeks until Gideon gets home.

Hadley is 3 Years Old

Dear Hadley,


Three years ago you changed my life. I thought I was happy before you, but I didn’t know how happy I could be until you were born. Today I continue to be the happiest, proudest Mommy because I have you.

At times it feels like no time at all has passed and at other times it feels like you have always been a part of my life. I think that is because I can’t imagine my life without you.

You make me laugh, cry from happiness, love, and frustration, make me want to scream, and make me always look forward to tomorrow while remembering to enjoy the present.

You are the smartest 3 year old I have ever met. You constantly amaze me with your thoughts and ideas and some of the things you say shock me while making me laugh out loud. You are also very dramatic. You can make the smallest thing into a tragedy. I try to remind myself that just means you are passionate and care about order and control.

Control is a very important thing to you. You like to feel in control and have become incredibly independent over the last year. You also do things on your own time and in your own way. A perfect example of this is potty training. You resisted all of my efforts until one day you decided you were ready. After giving up diapers, you only had two accidents and quickly moved from training pants to underwear.

You also transitioned into a big girl bed. By the end, you looked so big in your crib; now you are just a tiny dot in your twin bed. The happiness and pride you had when your bed was delivered was contagious and even the three big delivery men were smiling and excited for you by the time they left.

I think this year could be our most trying year yet. As you continue to grow and get even smarter you sometimes think you know more than Mommy. I wasn’t expecting that for a few more years, but you are an overachiever and reach most milestones before I am ready.

I am so proud to be your Mommy and am enjoying the adventure of watching you grow and develop.

Love you always.

Malia is 9 Months Old

Dear Malia,


Today you turn 9 months old. As always, you are calm, patient, and loving. Your personality is really taking shape, and I am finding out that you are a little mischievous and a bit of a daredevil. Whenever I put you down, you quickly move toward whatever you are not supposed to get. Your favorite off limit things are the cat’s food and water bowls, the dishwasher, the drawer under the over, Hadley’s train table, and pretty much any toy that Hadley is playing with.

The little daredevil in you is coming out as well as you love to climb. You are starting to climb the stairs, and you have climbed on the dishwasher door and into drawers. As the weather warms up, we are spending more time outside. You love to swing, the higher the better.

You are also becoming more vocal. The high pitch scream has evolved into lots of babbling, even though the scream remains. The rare times when you are frustrated or mad, another scream has emerged. I think you learned this from Hadley, which I’m sure will not be the last thing you learn from her.

Two more teeth came through this month as well. You have gotten longer, but you continue to be one of the chubbiest, squishiest babies I have ever seen. All of your chub just makes it even better to hug and love on you.

We celebrated your first Easter. You didn’t really understand the egg hunt, but I’m sure next year you will be right in there with the other kids finding eggs and eating the chocolates. By this time next year, you will be doing so many new things. I’m looking forward to it, but I’m enjoying all of the time now as I watch you grow.