Il tre r in Italia

Horse Riding

2010-12-31T12:28:00.000-08:00

Ruth gave up ballet for her new love.... her horses. She rides once a week usually. This week she went to an all day horse camp from 9 am until 4 pm! She was a bit tired come the afternoon but still LOVED going. Friday we got to go to the camp in the afternoon and have lunch with her. The lady that owns the farm cooks a wonderful elaborate Sicilian meal every single day for the girls that go to camp. Friday we got to join. It was delicious but that certainly wasn't the best part of the day. Afterward the kids put on a show with music and of course.... horses! Ruth rode the ring showing everyone how she can stear her horse around the ring moving her from the inside to the outside and vice versa, showing us how to make circles with her horse, and ALL. It was WONDERFUL! I was so proud of her! She has learned so much and her teacher says she is almost ready to trot!

Ruth posing for the audience of parents before the show. What a ham.

Here are some pictures of her and her best friend, Jenestra...

Ruth showing us how she can ride the outside of the ring

Riding past Mom and Dad...

Talking to her horse to get her to go...

Sitting up straight, pumping her hands, and focusing forward...

and the grand finale.... turning her horse!

Russell loves the farm and loves the horses too. As soon as we go there he starts gasping in excitement to go visit all of the horses!

Christmas!

2010-12-31T12:03:00.000-08:00

We hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas! Here are some pictures of our Italian Christmas of 2010.

At the nearby hotel for a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner before Church

Russell's fit was so crazy that he knocked Santa's hat off of his head.

The kids are spoiled...

Christmas Day dinner at the Galley.

Russell LOVES his new anywhere chair from pottery barn kids.... he still won't get out of it weeks later.

Ruth steals that chair to play her new DSi constantly....

We are so lucky to have Christmas in such a beautiful country but can't wait to have our next Christmas back in the states...

My kids have the beat...

2010-10-24T03:19:00.000-07:00

Getting their groove on.

Ruths Soccer Game!

2010-10-24T03:08:00.000-07:00

Ruth's soccer season came to an end. The final day was a game where she scored a goal for her team and a trophy that she is oh so proud of.

Ruth is ready to start the game.

Go Ruth! Score that goal!
Ruth cut in and took the ball from this boy. I was so proud of her... She did really well at getting it from him (please ommit the fact that he was on her team.) Hehehe.

She is proud of her trophy BUT has stated she will not play soccer again. " Mom, I don't really like soccer." "Why not Ruth?" "Because when I play soccer I sweat. I don't like to sweat so I don't want to play sweaty sports...ok mom?" "Well most sports you sweat at and you have to do something...." "Oh but mommy I do ballet and I don't sweat and I get to wear spinny skirts. I can't wear those in soccer."

Just had to get away....

2010-10-24T02:34:00.001-07:00

So I just decided that I had enough of Sicily. As much as we love it.... we also get sick of it. So with little money in hand I called the airport on base. Decided we could just hop a plane to Spain. Why not? Its free, the hotel is cheap, and we can see all new things. So I phoned my friend Carol and asked her if I wanted to go. Of course she also wouldn't pass this up. The very next day, on this complete wim, we boarded the plane bound for spain. Our plan was to spend just a day and a half there BUT the planes going back were not accepting passengers so our 1.5 day trip turned into 5 days. We had a blast! It was so worth while and the three Amigas were MOSTLY inseperable.

We arrived around 6 at night and it was about 9 pm until we got settled in our hotel room. The kids napped the whole way there so we figured.... lets go investigate some true spanish food. The steak is so delicious in Spain! We ate and sat drinking Sangrias until almost midnight.

The next morning we got up and headed to the Zoo if Jerez. The kiddos had a blast at the zoo where we spent ALL day.

The next day we attempted to head home but after being at the airport all day, we realized, we couldn't get home. At this point we aren't too bummed really. There the Island of Cadiz we were dying to see anyhow!

So the next morning we set off on the adventure to tour the town of Cadiz. We took the first fairy in and the last fairy back. It was so much fun!

This is the "Im ok for now Mom" face right before the "Im going to get sick now Mom" face. The fairy ride was a bit rough.

We toured the town while the girls sat together playing the "Bubble Gum, Bubble Gum, in a dish game" Never heard of it. They did this for over an hour as carol and I rode the bus and listened to everything about the town and scoping out where we wanted to go. Russell got a good nap on the bus too!

After the full tour and some much needed gigantic department store shopping, we headed to the beach in the afternoon. The kids had a blast playing in the sand on the gorgeous beach.

The rest of the trip was just a blur of trying to catch a mac flight. Getting turned down again, checking BACK into the lodge, buying foods at the commissary and cooking ourselves in our hotel room to save money, etc.

So happy we went!

Pre-School

2010-09-19T23:45:00.000-07:00

My big girl goes to school now Monday thru Friday from 8 am until 1:30. I can't believe that she is gone everyday and just to think that it will be like this for the next 14 years. I will never have Ruth home with me again. I dropped her off with a smile on my face. Laughing with her while she was jumping up and down in excitement. When she walked in the line into school with the teacher I stood outside and cried my eyes out. I got in to car, and cried the entire way home. She rides the school bus every day now and I get teary eyed every morning when I send her on. She seems to like it so far. She isn't in love with school but I know that she just needs to make new friends and then she will love it.

Walking over to the school so excited and ready.
She looks so little in front of that great big school.

Waiting on her designated shape for the teacher to come get the class. This is where she is to wait after she gets off of the bus every morning.

And this is where I began to cry....

2010-09-19T22:59:00.000-07:00

Russell,
One year ago you were born. You have been stubborn from the beginning showing up late, the night before your scheduled induction. You surprised us with your weight at 10 lbs 3 ozs. You were amazingly handsome right from the start. Your stubborn personality is still here. You get so angry when we take something from you. Your growl and dirty look makes us laugh every time. Oh and lets talk about your "I am in trouble" smile... you are notorious for getting in trouble and then looking at us with a smile, your nose and eyebrows scrunched, and a goofy giggle. I know you understand the word no. You just think its a joke when we say it. You are always looking for something to do and always on the go. Unfortunately you never want to cuddle anymore which makes us sad. You would rather be crawling everywhere and finding something else to study for a bit. Although when you do want to cuddle on those rare occasions you still always want mommy. You are intrigued by things... you will sit and play with the same toy...putting each piece in different places until you learn all that it can do. You have learned how to walk but so far, choose not to. We catch you walking 4 or 5 steps and you aren't even wobbly and you go pretty fast, but then you sit down and crawl because you are faster at it. I know in time you will walk and cause us more trouble. I can't believe that our baby boy is 1 now, and those baby days will never be back. I love seeing your personality come out and learning what type of boy you will be, yet Mommy misses her little baby who I rocked to sleep everyday for 8 months. Russell, you are the best baby boy a Mommy could ever ask for. We love you so much.

Russell finding baby dinosaur eggs in the dino egg hunt.

Big brother Jack trying to show little brother Cole all of the eggs he found for them.

Russell digging into his bright blue argyle cake. Yummy.

Happy family!

The twins helping Russell open up his birthday present from them.

Its nearing the end and poor russell is so tired.

Labor Day

2010-09-19T22:49:00.000-07:00

Since Robert had the day off of work we enjoyed the day in a large american style waterpark called Etnaland. Because of the outrageous prices we have never gone before even though its just 15 minutes away. It was the last day for the year that they were open so the prices were right. We enjoyed ourselves! Woah...this one was fast. It didn't stop her. She kept going for more!

Lovin the slides.

Getting to be a little..... well you finish the sentence

2010-09-03T07:25:00.001-07:00

What a little devil. He climbed into the toy basket and up on the table! Our dare devil is always climbing.

Start Smart Soccer

2010-09-03T07:19:00.000-07:00

Not only are we doing ballet and full time preschool, but we are playing soccer too! And she is doing great at it! She is really focused!

Go Ruth!!!

Learning how to stop the ball with her foot.

Got her new shirt, her new shin gaurds, and a ball!

Festivale

2010-09-03T07:09:00.000-07:00

Friends and I went on a ladies night at the Festivale to celebrate the Saint Giacomo of a town an hour away. We had a blast stuck in this crowd believe it or not!

The bones of the St Giacomo that left this church and rode around the town for everyone to touch.

First Haircut

2010-09-03T07:03:00.001-07:00

About a month ago Russell had his first haircut by our good friend Anna. Even though she has no kiddos of her own she did a magnificent job at being patient with our very squirmy boy. It turned out perfect... except that he now lacks the long curls. Ah well... what a handsome boy anyhow!

Ruths 4 yr old checkup

2010-07-17T11:45:00.000-07:00

So as soon as we got home we had Ruths 4 yr old check up. She consistently failed her eye test. 3 times....

The nurse kept saying "Her eyes surely can't be THAT bad... she is just being shy probably." I knew it in my heart that she wans't just being shy and that she did know all of the shapes being asked and that something wasn't right. The doctor then wrote a consult to the optometrist. We got there and she wasn't shy at all. Talked to him, did everythign they asked her to. She had the puff of air blown in her eye, 3 sets of eye drops to dilate her eyes, and an hour long of questions "whats this, whats that, how many of them are there, which one can you see better, etc." The conclusion... her vision is far from par.

It turns out that she has many problems but most of them stem from a form of albinoism that she posesses. We had no idea that her blonde hair blue eyes meant she was partially albino. She has very little pigment under her eye which means she has a lot of problems in the sun. This trait also causes her eyes to "flutter" constantly. On top of that she is slightly cross eyed, has an astigmatism and is both near and far sighted.

But my goodness is she a diva in those glasses!

Baptism in Pennsylvania

2010-07-17T10:08:00.000-07:00

We are back from our long trip to the states and needed to get some much needed updates done! We did many things while we were in Pennsylvania and visited some really great people. We miss them all so much and can't wait to soon be in the states and just a drive away and not a world away. Here is a picture of the baptism we had for Russell. He slept through the service but we got a very nice family picture afterward!

Thanks for everything to everyone we saw while in PA. We miss you and will be close soon.

stateside

2010-05-26T04:10:00.000-07:00

So as we planned... the kids and I made it to the states. Robert unfortunately had to stay behind for a bit because of work issues *rolling eyes* and will hopefully catch up by the time we get to PA. Its a waiting game to know for sure... as usual.

Our adventure started on friday afternoon when I finished with a karate tournament and flew to the airport where Robert and the kids had checked me into the flight and loaded my suitcase. I got there just in time to get on a C-17 headed non stop to DC. Boy was I in for it. Nothing like being strapped to a jump seat with the back up against the plane and your feet on cargo.... looking out of the back of the plane as it is all open as we head down the runway. It certainly was interesting... and stressful with two kids. 10.5 hours later we landed in DC.

I decided to recouperate and spend a day in DC. My mother in law, god bless her, came from PA to stay with me so I didn't have to do a mediochre hotel in the middle of the ghetto by myself with no car. We had a good time. We went to the petting zoo and spent the day just hanging out otherwise.

Now we are enjoying GA with Grammy Eck, Aunt Lizzy, and cousins Hailey and Stuart. Yesterday we ventured to the zoo where Ruth had a blast and Russell just thought, "Get me out of the sun". We will be to PA sometime in the first or second week of June to see everyone there and we can't wait. Russell will be baptised in PA, we plan to visit an amusement park or two, and so much more. Visit the blog often as I will have updates along the way of our journey through the states!

Here is another picture to leave you with!

HAPPY EASTER!

2010-04-05T02:44:00.000-07:00

We hope you all had a great Easter. I hosted Easter at my house. Ruth, Russell, and I had a great day with friends, lots of food, and another egg hunt.

The three inseperable cuties...

Looking at what might be inside!

The easter bunny

2010-04-05T02:34:00.000-07:00

As mentioned in my last post, we went to see the Easter bunny and to the base Easter egg hunt after dropping Robert off at the airport. Here are some cute pictures to share...

Robert has to go away for 3 weeks

2010-04-05T02:21:00.000-07:00

Robert left for Atlanta on Saturday. He will be there for a bit over 3 weeks. As soon as Robert began packing his bags Ruth became a different child. She has taken this Daddy's girl ideal to a new heigth. Thursday when Robert began packing in the evening she started whimpering and crying. She just wanted to go to bed and not eat dinner. So we allowed her to. The next day she woke up and the same thing happened. She was a mess. She didn't want to eat, she didn't want to go to ballet, she was sleeping all day, and she just wanted Robert to hold her. We thought surely there was something wrong. We took her to the ER (she had hit her head the night before and we were worried she may have a concussion). All was ruled out and Anxiety was ruled the culprit of this behavior. Its been 5 days since all of this has started and she is no different from last Thursday.

We tried to make the most of our time. The night before he left we stayed up late all curled up in our jammies and died easter eggs together.

She has only had one solid meal. Saturday, after dropping Robert off at the airport we went to the base easter egg hunt. This is where everyone and their mother asked "whats wrong Ruth" as she pouted around. I ended up giving her this big long speech in the grocery store afterward about how its not so bad and all of the fun things we will do and how little time he will be gone. She felt better for a moment in time. We ran home and ate... she ate good. She seems happy here but look into her eyes... the sadness in them melts my heart. This is the ONLY meal she has eaten in 5 days. I hope it gets better...

Cavallo anyone?

2010-04-05T02:13:00.001-07:00

So for those of you who have been to Italy, you know that cavallo is a highly chosen meat here as chicken or beef is in the states. Robert and I LOVE cavallo. For those of you who haven't been or do not know what I am referring to.... Cavallo is Horse! Its so delicious in a panini! Well...if Robert and I love the sweet taste of horse I thought... why not Russell? So we set off to the supermarket and found some Cavallo baby food. Oh yes; they do feed their children cavallo baby food. Russell loves it... I mean, loves it. It is by far his favorite. We know this by the way he kicks, throws his arms, hits the tray and pants in excitement for the next bite.

And on a side note: Another popular baby food here in Italy... Pasta (of course). Thats our next step!

Roberts Coaching Career

2010-03-19T00:34:00.000-07:00

His portfolio is building! As you all probably know he is the high school football coach here in Sigonella but really wants to take his coaching career further as it seems that he is passionate and good at what he does. After Sigonella NEVER having a winning record in its entire 50 years, Robert led the team in a 5-1 record last year.

Recently the semi-pro team came to town to teach the high schoolers some skills and advice. Robert went down to the practice to watch his kids working with the Catania Elephants. It ended up turning into way more than he could have imagined. The Elephants asked him to coach! Amazing in the least. We are talking former NFL players, top players from college around the US, and even some Italians that are amazing at this american sport.

On another note, our news station interviewed him. This story has been played constantly all over Europe so he is a star!

Here is the video for all to see.

Big Boy

2010-03-19T00:32:00.001-07:00

Who thinks its time for a new carseat? We have made the purchase but haven't installed it yet. This pictures tells me that I better get working on that.

Ruth's Pirate Party at School

2010-03-19T00:07:00.000-07:00

Ruth's preschool had a Pirate Day in honor of the letter P. We were invited to join in the celebration and it was so much fun to spend the day with Ruth at her school.

We sat in circle time, including Daddy, to learn about the treasure hunt that was to take place outside on the playground. The teachers drew a map of the playground as well as a line on where they needed to go. At the end...an X that leaded to the treasure.

Here is Daddy and Ruth listening to the story of the treasure... all of the kids wanted to sit by him for some reason.

Russell didn't mind all of the commotion. Mommy found a nice quiet corner to put me with my toys for most of the morning.

I am outside getting ready for the teacher to say go. Then I am going hunting for the treasure!
The map said down the slide, over the bridge, around the tree, then find the X

Guess who found the treasure! Yes indeed, Miss Ruth did! She stood there right next to her treasure and asked her teacher "Is it here? I can't find it?" The teacher did a little point to the left inconspicuously. Voila... Ruth was the winner!

Preparing for the big day

2010-03-13T03:35:00.000-08:00

Lately it seems all Ruth is focused on is her dance recital. She wants to practice what she is learning around the house constantly. I recently went up to spy on her in class and she seems so focused for a three year old. Of course I became a proud mommy the way she was sitting with her back so straight, concentrating on the teacher, and practicing her arm movements.

The class has ordered her dance costume for the big recital coming in May. She can't wait to see it in person but in the mean time wants to look at it online at least three times a day. She wanted me to share it with you all as she firmly believes your excitement is just as great as hers.

So here it is. The blue costume. It is a Earthy type of theme. Her class is the water. The other classes are butterflies, trees, fish, flowers, etc....

6 months now

2010-03-13T03:02:00.000-08:00

Russell... you are 6 months now.

We finally see your personality shining through. You are so much more rambunctious than your sister. You try to go everywhere yet get nowhere.... not yet anyways. You can't seem to sit still! These days we place you on our lap you are constantly kicking your legs and moving around trying to figure out how to crawl. If we stand you up on your legs you jump and jump. I am not used to this as you are so different from your sister who would still rather just cuddle in my lap than be as active as you are. I am not sure whether you two are just polar opposites or whether its just the "boy" in you. Right now, you are scaring me for the toddler years!

Russell, your blue eyes melt our heart. You have Mommy wrapped around your little finger like your sister has her Daddy around hers. We both love you of course just as much but it seems that when you are upset, want rocked, or want to cuddle, you only want your mommy. That's secretly OK with me and I really do love it. I will try not to tell you that.

What I love most about you right now is the way you admire your sister. You look at her like she is your everything. Like you want to be just like her. Like she knows so much and you are amazed by it. The look in your eyes and your little giggle you give her just makes me so happy to have the two of you.

Russell you have completed our family. You are great in every way. I can't wait to see what you have in store for us for the second half of your first year! We all love you more than you could ever imagine and we hope you feel it every moment of your life.

Weight: 18 lbs 13 Ounces
Height: 27 3/4 inches
Milestones:
-Rolls from back to belly but hasn't mastered the other way
-Kickes legs and "swims" with arms but can't seem to get belly off the ground to crawl
-Sits up for short intervals before toppling
-Passes objects from hand to hand
-Babbles all of the time
-Mastered the sippy cup
-Eats baby food twice a day
-Sleeps for an 8 hour stretch before waking for a bottle
-Can go backward in walker but not forward
-Loves the Jumparoo

Guess Who's Sitting?

2010-03-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

Russell is!

Oh and yes that is major drool. We are waiting for that first tooth. We can see it but it isn't through yet.

We still get the occasional picture that looks like this.... he will get the hang of it very soon though!

Russell admires Ruth

2010-03-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

Everytime Ruth is in Russells view he is full of smiles that melts my heart. They love eachother so much. After a month or two of temper tantrums for attention... held of course by Ruth... things are better than ever. With that I am leaving you with this video. I get to see it every day and it brings smiles to my face and tears to my eyes. So if you miss the kids... grab a tissue..it will have you giggling and crying at the same time. Love you all and miss you.

2010-03-03T12:17:00.000-08:00

Carnivale!!! What a blast that was! We left Russell with a baby sitter and headed into the beautiful town of Acireale for their annual carnivale. This time of year is full of celebrations in many towns throughout Italy. It is all about dressing the kids up in their favorite costumes, eating all the best food Sicily has to offer, walking the town until your feet fall off, throwing confetti and silly string, riding rides, and staying up until you just can't stay up anymore.

Ruth had her full princess gear on and we headed into the town...
Carnivale is known for its large beautiful floats running up and down the streets all night...

This year wouldn't be a true carnivale without the Michael Jackson float.... he wasn't just a craze in America you know!

Ruth and KK covered in confetti and having a blast...

The girls watching the floats...

At around midnight we sent the girls on the trampoline and a few rides before they finally passed out in the car. Can you believe she was doing this at midnight and still going strong?

What a great memory to leave Sicily with.

2010-03-03T11:52:00.000-08:00

The week of Valentine's Day, Ruth's preschool had a V-day party for the parents to come. I had so much fun watching how she interacts with her peers and how the school day usually goes.

This mat is where they all go frequently throughout the day to learn, listen to stories, or just gather everyone up for the next activity.
They all must wash their hands at the sink before having their snack!

She insists on having the head of the table at home so Robert has been formally removed from that spot... apparently it is the same at school too....

Russell and I are having fun while some of the other parents are snapping photos. This one was captured.... I love Russell in this picture.

One of her very best school friends... Sophie and Ruth are often attached at the hip....

along with Brianna.... they are certainly like the three muskateers. The teacher tells me that one can't do anything without the other two. I have to say though that I am glad she picked the ones that she did... the teachers tell me that Ruth, Sophie and Brianna are the best in class.

Where dreams come true!

2010-03-03T11:28:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness did Ruth have a good time at Disney Paris... again...(shes a bit spoiled).

We stayed for three days and although it was cold and a little rainy we still had a great time. We stayed at the DisneyLand Hotel at the entrance to the park. The hotel had its own breakfast with the characters every morning and a character parade down the staircase of the hotel lobby every afternoon. We all LOVED the swimming pool, including Russell who couldn't get enough. And a no parents allowed kids club that Ruth begged to go to whenever we weren't in the park. Our three day mini vacation was so much fun and was jam packed of great memories of just the 4 of us.

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!

Grammy Eck... this one is for you!

Grammy Haueisen.... this one is for you!

Russell is a piggy...

2010-03-03T10:46:00.000-08:00

So yes... Russell is eating like a mad man now. He had enough of formula around 5 months and we moved to cereal. Now he is downing cereal in the morning and two jars of baby food in the evening. I can't keep up with him.

Here are pictures and a video of his first time being spoon fed.

His big sister always makes sure he is spiffy clean.

Catching Up...

2010-03-03T10:42:00.000-08:00

Sorry folks... I am bad at this. No matter how much you all bug me... it takes forever to get caught up.

For that I will leave you with a picture Ruth took of her and I. In the mean time... I am working diligently at updating the blog tonight.

December 24

2010-01-10T03:08:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day was celebrated one day early again for the third year but it didn't get our spirits down and we still had a wonderful Christmas.

As you can see she is very excited to open presents with her lovies still in her hands
Daddy reading the letter from Santa.

Her horse and carriage for barbie that she was so excited to get. What is with Roberts face? Is he excited too?

Her favorite gift from Grammy Eck.... her bitty baby stroller!

Look at how happy they both are after being spoiled all morning...

Can you find the kids?

We spent dinner just the four of us but I still made an entire spread. It was so yummy and the best part was the leftovers.

Just some of the dance recital

2010-01-09T23:45:00.000-08:00

You all have been waiting for video of the dance recital. My internet is too slow to download some of the more lengthier videos. Here is one of the short clips. Sorry its sideways!

Jumpy house fun

2010-01-09T23:38:00.000-08:00

About twice a year the gym fills with Jumpy houses at the base and christmas time is one of them. First we have a huge tree lighting outside and then the kids are free to play in the jump houses for the rest of the weekend. Ruth has been scared of the giant blow up slide since we moved here. We have even forced her down in the past and she hated us for it and would not venture back up. This year we forced her again and consequently we had to spend every day all weekend all day at the jumps so that she could do the slide. We are proud of her....

The giant blow up speed slide

Jousting Braylee

Waiting for the tree to light

Delay in Posting

2010-01-09T23:35:00.000-08:00

Our computers were slowly going to crud around here. Both at the same time of course. So we had a slight delay in posting. It seems they both went down permanently and we were forced to purchase two computers at the same time... AAHHH! Of course we need a home computer and one that travels with Robert to work.

So now that our bank account is empty I can post updates. HA!

Ruth's ballet recital

2009-12-17T11:50:00.000-08:00

Ruth has been taking ballet for just a few months and she seems to have a ton of fun. She loves learning and can not wait to go to class and is the teachers number one helper.

We never get to see ballet class as it is always off limits for parents. We have no idea what goes on behind closed doors except what our little ballerina tells us! Seeing what she has learned today was so much fun!

Sitting as her teacher asked getting ready to start

Stretching as all good ballerinas must do.

Notice that None of the other kids are sitting still and doing what they were supposed to! Just Ruth and a few others actually listen.

Ruth with Brianna (left) and Sophia (right). Ruth goes to school and ballet with these two little girls and they are wonderful kids. They are the most well behaved alongside Ruth and so the three of them have formed their own click!

I am so unbelievably proud of the way she listened and followed directions and looked so darn cute!

I have a few videos but the internet is being slow so we will try tomorrow!

Baby giggles!

2009-12-17T11:11:00.000-08:00

For some reason I can't get videos to load on my blogger lately but I have many to show you!

Check this video out of Russell's cute laugh. The slightest touch of his collar bone area gets him gigglng and also whenever his sister plays rough with him!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Im6ZU0Di6I

Holidays are here

2009-12-05T07:21:00.001-08:00

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We certainly did and now it just means we are one step closer to the best holiday! Christmas is almost here and with that Ruth has met santa and put up our christmas tree!

Things are getting better slowly...

2009-11-14T08:53:00.000-08:00

She loves him....she really does...its just that she still craves more attention. She still acts out toward us but she is as loving as ever with him. She constantly talks to him when he is sad, holds him when hes happy, and feeds him when hes hungry.

The new kitchen island

2009-11-07T11:23:00.000-08:00

Unique to Sicily and oh so beautiful and perfect. We ordered a kitchen island with a lava rock table top. The picture painted on the top was hand painted with the town we live. Motta with its hills, villas, and castle. The mountain with the snow and steam.... we couldn't ask for anything better. We designed it ourselves and a wonderful man, Mario, made it by hand. It took twice as long as it was supposed to but Mario kept building it to spite two broken arms. The view we have everyday right outside of our home we can now carry with us where ever the navy takes us.

With limited kitchen space the extra shelves and baskets are wonderful...

The hand made iron work is wonderful... Mario knows what he is doing...

"Per La Famiglia Haueisen Sicilia 09" For the Haueisen Family. Sicily 09

Its Perfecto! Thank you to our Moms who helped pitch in and make it a wonderful christmas gift. We have wanted one for so long but never had the money to invest in it and now... we have it and are so excited!

ALL SMILES!

2009-11-07T11:16:00.003-08:00

His smiles get bigger and bigger each day and we can tell those cute little giggles will be here anyday!

Halloween!

2009-11-07T11:01:00.000-08:00

We hope all had a wonderful Halloween and are currently sugared up! We sure are in this house. We had a great time despite the bad day that started. With Robert as high school football coach in an invinsible season undefeated...the day had a poor start when the team lost the playoff game. It got to a better start when all of our friends came over for pizza and then trick or treating the neighborhood. The kids were adorable!

My little snowflake princess finally got her costume in the mail

Tootsie roll slept again...

Madison was a witch but her daddy wore the hat because she didn't want it anymore...

Baby Xavier was a greaser with his hair gel, black leather jacket, jeans rolled at the ankles and of course the patten leather shoes...

Joseph was ben ten..

We had a few more friends with us as well and people probably felt overwhelmed with 8 kids screaming trick or treat at once!

the fun run

2009-10-31T23:31:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Ruth entered into a race. A friend of mine had a daughter in the race as well and snapped a few pictures of her racing. He emailed the pictures to me today and I had to share. Number 1209 didn't win the race but she sure tried her hardest!

I should not have put these pants on her... they wouldn't stay up.

I was proud of her for doing the run around the base. I believe she was the youngest racer that went by herself. Most of the kids of her age were getting getting pushed in a stroller by their mom or dad because the run was long. My little runner was the last one to cross the finish line but she tried her hardest!

Russell loves his mobiles

2009-10-29T09:49:00.000-07:00

Whether it is his pack and play, his swing with mobile, or his crib... he is constantly happy watching his mobile. Although he has been smiling for a couple of weeks now they are becoming very prominant and more often in the past few days. I wish I could have caught some bigger smiles on camera of video but my timing has been a bit off...

trick or treating at fall fest

2009-10-29T09:44:00.000-07:00

On the base the kids get to go trick or treating every year and there is a festival with lots of italian vendors, more food than you can even bear to look at, and rides for the little and big kids. Ruths costume didn't come in the mail in time for this event last weekend but we picked up a dorothy costume and after needing a coat, not finding her red shoes, and losing one red pigtail.... she didn't look so dressed up but hey... she was happy she got the candy!

While Ruth had fun getting her treats, our little tootsie roll was out...

halloween is coming!

2009-10-29T09:38:00.000-07:00

and we are preparing for it with pumpkin carving!

Oh and yes Ruth colored the pumpkin with black permanent marker after I carved it... with her GREAT artisitic abilities. All that matters is that she is so darn proud of herself.

6 weeks old

2009-10-21T04:23:00.001-07:00

Many have asked for pictures of Russell lately. I finally found the time to sit down and post some. Sorry for the wait. We are all good around here. Ruth went through a period where she hated school but that is getting much better. She is in ballet now and loves it! Russell is now 12 lbs 8 oz's and is currently struggling with a chest cold that Ruth just got over. I hate listening to him congested... I hope he gets better soon.

So here are pictures of Russell and Ruth... enjoy!

She loves kissing her brother. He thinks she is nuts most of the time but he tolerates her well. Hence why he now has Ruth's chest cold. Oh and yes this rainbow color teddy bear is Russells favorite and always keeps him happy! *biting nails*

Listening intently to what she is telling him.

There is the close up of chubby cheeks.

Ruth's Swim Lessons

2009-09-25T03:02:00.000-07:00

About a month ago Ruth finished up swim lessons. She went all summer and did such a good job. The first 4 weeks of swim lessons she was scared of the water. She was in the basic level 1 that consisted mostly of 3 and 4 year olds. She wouldn't put her face in the water no matter how much her teachers tried. She wouldn't swim on her own... only with a life vest or clung to a teacher. This is video from the last week of swim lessons in which she is in a class mostly of 4 and 5 year olds who can touch (she is the only one that can't touch but that doesn't stop her!) She left the younger ones behind and jumped right up to level 2! Watch how she holds her breath and swims to miss lisa. Here they are practicing their kicking and are told "rocket ship arms" to glide through the water.

I also want to mention that the swim instructors were great! They came from all over the world to come teach these children swim lessons as well as work as a summer camp counselor. They made absolutely NO money for this and were stuck working endless hours 5 or 6 days a week. They taught Ruth so much and changed her into a new girl in the water... I am so grateful for that. Miss Lisa (in the video) as well as Miss Che Che are greatly missed by Ruth. Not only did she see them every day Tuesday through Friday all summer for swim lessons but they often came over for dinner or went out to dinner with us and we enjoyed their company all summer. Che Che and Lisa.... I sure hope you come back to visit next summer! You are missed greatly by us!!! Have a good semester!

Ruth's first day at pre-school

2009-09-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

Ruth started preschool this week. She goes tuesdays and thursdays and seems to love it. I am not so sure about all the kids in her class (or their parents) but she has fun anyhow and the teachers reassure me that she is the best one in the class everytime I see them. Of course that makes me feel good yet I just can't figure out why she isn't such a sweetheart at home.... I guess that is the way kids work???

Before school we went into the front yard for pictures and of course she needed to pose in front of her rinky lemon tree she is so darn proud of!

She was so excited to walk into the school she had such a little strut so proud to pull her backpack behind her!

She found her cubby for her backpack in the hallway and is all ready to start the first day!

As soon as the teachers said "ok you can play" she found toys and was so happy I could barely get her to turn around for a quick picture before I left.

Russell James is here!

2009-09-09T07:50:00.000-07:00

Russell James is here!!!! He weighed in at an entire 10 lbs 3 ounces and 21 inches long!!!! I had an all natural labor as I had planned. My doula was great and I had a large support group behind her with Robert, my mom, and my mother in law.

I sat in my recliner after all morning of running errands when I heard a pop-pop. I didn't think anything of it and a second later the door bell rang. Well I got up to answer the door with Robert and sure enough that sound was my water breaking. When I stood up I felt my water but wasn't quite sure. I answered the door and there was my doula, coincidentally. So I asked her "what are you doing right now?" She figured I was going to invite them in for dinner and said "Well we are busy right now as we are about to take a bike ride as a family up through motta." Change of plans for all of us as we got around and got to the hospital. When my water broke it was 3:15 and after struggling through contractions to get a shower and my bags packed I got to the hospital at 4:30. I was just 4 cms dilated so I got monitored for a bit as well as the baby. Around 5:30 I was checked again and had gotten to 5 cms. Since the baby was fine and not in distress they allowed me off of the monitors and up for a walk. This created my contractions to be very close together and very strong. After just a few minutes of walking I was 8 cm's and then just 10 minutes later I hit 10 cm's. A few pushes and Russell was born at 7:26...just 3 hours after getting to the hospital. Because of his "hefty little body and broad shoulders" he got stuck for a bit at the shoulders and my wonderful doctor

worked at turning twisting and pulling while I finished the last push and luckily he came out with no complications.

We are so happy to have the little guy here in the world!

Beating the heat in Citta

2009-07-26T01:54:00.000-07:00

Every year we go to Citta Del Mare and with the heat as extreme as it is we decided to get away for the weekend and enjoy the pools and beaches at our favorite resort. It was our 3rd visit and just as wonderful as usual. The beach was very wavy and windy so we spent most of our time at the pools and playgrounds and such but it was fun just the same.

Right before we left for vacation we found this outfit at a new mall. She had been dying to wear it and for dinner one night at the resort I put it on her. She immediately went to our balcony and begged to get pictures taken of her in her pretty outfit. I'm in trouble...

When it comes to ice cream she is constantly in need of it. She begs for it all of the time and we frequently have to tell her NO...YOUVE HAD ENOUGH! So mommy promised her that every single day on vacation she could have ice cream. She certainly enjoyed the fact that Mommy wasn't going to say no!

One Italian game that Robert and I love to play is Bocce Ball. I can remember playing it a few times when I was little with my friend Sara but since we have gotten here we have learned to play as well as bought our own bocce set. The balls for Bocce are very heavy so we bought her own light weight rubber balls and we went out to the court and taught her how to play. She had a blast playing bocce and mini golf over the weekend!

This night it was mommy's birthday (Sunday) and I really wanted a cannoli style cake for my birthday. We went in treck of it after my birthday dinner and after a mile of walking in the dark we came across exactly what I wanted!! It was delicious. Ruth had no complaints trecking for desserts especially on her daddy's shoulders!

The breathtaking view from our hotel room. I wouldn't trade seeing this every morning when I wake up for anything and is what keeps us coming back every year. Next year Russell will be almost 1... the exact age Ruth was her first time here.

She is 3

2009-07-26T01:31:00.000-07:00

June 4th was Ruths 3rd birthday. Just 5 days after getting back from Paris. Mom and Dad got her a 12 inch bike for her birthday. We were sure that she wouldn't get the bicycle since she struggled with the tricycle even still. Little did we know that she would be riding like the wind in just two days of teaching her. Since then almost every night we go on a walk which consists of her riding her bike and Ruby and I running to keep up with her. She has already asked for her "baby wheels" off but... maybe next summer.

The weekend after her birthday we had a birthday party for her. It was a place called funny island which was full of fun. We had almost 2 hours of free play with all of her 15 friends.

She loves doing the rock climbing wall! Everytime she went to go the man running the wall would sing her buon compleanno (happy birthday) in Italian. She loved the attention!

After two hours of play the workers gathered everyone wearing a red jersey (all of the party guests) and put them all in this very special birthday room just for Ruths party. When I say they gathered them I am saying that they all climbed into the equipment, tunnels, slides, ball pits, etc and made sure they found 15 children with red jerseys. The workers here were amazing!

While waiting for the pizza and fries to be served we munched on chips and popcorn they served us and Ruth openned all of her birthday gifts from her friends. Then the pizza was served and the kids ate faster than ever before so they could go back out to the play equipment.

We struggled to get them all to say for the cake. Have you ever seen 15 children all complain about having to eat cake??

The cakes were absolutely delicious and it is certainly an understatement to say that American desserts do not compare to an italian dessert. They know what they are doing!

Buon Compleanno Ruth! You certainly are special to be able to celebrate all of your birthdays in Italy! We moved here when you were 11 months old and have gotten to celebrate your birthday in a unique and wonderful place!

Paris in May

2009-07-26T01:02:00.000-07:00

Paris in May. What a blast. It truely was fun and my mom and my niece Hailey got to come and meet us there so it was special vacation with them there. I do have to say though that Paris had highly overpriced and not so good food, children are to be seen and not heard, the sicilians are much more friendly and helpful than the Parisians, BUT the city is breathtaking in many ways.

We chose to rent an apartment for the week rather than getting a hotel and we really did enjoy it. We stayed in the attic of an old apartment building. It had everything we needed. The living room was all cieling to floor with this incredible view of the eiffel tower. Most nights we would pull out the pull out couch, everyone would lay on it and we would watch the amazing light show done every night at 10 pm.

The first stop was the extremely large Palace of Versailles. It was breathtaking but exhausting. It was extremely hot this day for Paris in May so it was exhausting. The gardens were gorgeous with many fountains like the one behind Hailey and Ruth.

The next couple of days was full of the usual site seeing. Going up in the eiffel tower, touring notre dame, taking a boat down the river, and shopping.

After all of that site seeing Ruth needed a couple of Ruth days. Two days of Eurodisney was a blast and she constantly had a huge smile on her face. Everything those two days were about her and she couldn't have been more spoiled.

We ran into all of the characters the first day. We needed a potty break so we all went into the bathroom and when we came out all of the characters were standing right there... literally a dozen characters to take pictures with, kiss and hug, and of course get their autograph.

The next day we did lunch with the characters as well and she got to dine with mickey and minnie and their friends!

Its been busy!

2009-07-26T00:45:00.001-07:00

Everyone has been waiting for pictures! I am sorry it has taken so long. I need to get back on the ball before the new one arrives so that you guys can see pictures of the baby when he is born and much more.

Many have requested a new belly picture. Here is a recent side view of me. I was 33 weeks here and I feel like I am carrying an overfilled basketball that is getting ready to burst at the seems!!
The heat is killing me... giving me kankles, making me exhausted by the end of the day, and I don't think there is a moment in the day that I am not ALL sweat! Yes this is our car temperature gage. NO that is not a mistake made by our car...it was actually 111 outside.... and that wasn't the hottest part of the day!

Robert gets the weather forecast every night while he is at work and they call when it reaches 100 and when it drops back below 100. Yesterday morning, before he left work, he got a call at 7:47 am saying that it was 100 degrees. THEN at 10:56 pm he got a call saying it had just dropped below 100. So from the time we wake up in the morning until the time we go to bed it is over 100. Why oh why did I plan to be pregnant in the summer?

Russell James

2009-05-09T04:06:00.000-07:00

This we have decided is the absolute and final decision on the name for our bundle of joy on the way. After long nights of searching through names, many frustrated moments about naming him, this just seemed to be an agreeance with all of us. We thought about it but did not say its final.... we were open to new names however the more we say it the more it grows on us. Ruth has started to call him Russell and I guess this is it.... no name changing... it is Russell James for good.

We can't wait to see your handsome face and welcome you to the world Russell! And in the words of Ruth "Grow big Baby Russell so you can come out of Mommy's belly and play!"

Sunny Sigonella

2009-05-09T03:56:00.000-07:00

The weather is finally getting nice here and today is our first day of HOT! Man o man and I dreading the weather while pregnant with the temperatures reaching 115 on those hot July and August days. I know where I will be..... sitting in the kiddie pool in the back yard all day.

On to more news. The Navy is downsizing and budgets are being cut by Obama left and right. We are at our one year window for re-enlistment and this time.... he has to request to stay in, proving himself to be an outstanding second class and worthy of staying in. This is called a PTS or a Perform to Serve. We requested it in April and so happy that we got approved! We are staying in the Navy... what a relief in an economy like this!

So now that we are told we can stay in we have to lean toward finding where we want to go. The more we thought of all of our few options the more we decided we would hate to leave beautiful Sicily in just under a year. We talked to a few people and currently have a letter to the Captain of the base requesting to stay here one more year on top of our year left (two years total). Again...writing a letter about why we are worthy of such extension. Between Robert's involvement in the high school as Sigonellas Football Coach as well as my involvement in the community with teaching karate... we are looking good. What is best is that there are many second classes leaving Roberts command and few replacing them so the undermanning at his job really makes it look hopeful. Many of you may be saddened by this news of us staying so far away another year but we are absolutely elated and, if approved, will have 30 days of leave to bring Ruth and the new baby home to see everyone!

Funny Island

2009-05-03T23:39:00.001-07:00

In Misterbianco, a town aobut 15 minutes away, they have a HUGE play area inside for kids. Its fantastic and wonderfully organized. Ruth has went twice and has so much fun for hours on end. We decided to book her birthday party there for all of her friends and its going to be a blast!

The blue slides were her favorite and she spends most of her time of those when there.

She loved this ride. She sits on a ball and zooms across holding on to the rope. By the way... for all those wanting to see my baby belly... take a look in the background.

She got so worn out she tried going up the stairs here and turned around and said she was tired and was going to go to sleep right there.

Festa Della Fragola!

2009-05-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

The strawberry festival!! And oh how we LLOVVVEEE strawberrys in this family. We had so much fun at the strawberry festival and there was so much to do! We ate, rode rides, ate, played, ate some more, went to the park, ate some more, and then went home!

Yes we just went to eat. This is what a pregnant woman does these days! We started with chocolate covered strawberry's, then off to strawberry slushies. (then we had paninis and lasagna to mix it up a bit.) Then we ate strawberry cannoli, hhmmm oh and then took a whole crate of strawberrys home with us. We are going to be strawberried out in a bit.

Here are lots of pics so enjoy!

MMMmmmmm.... Dad these strawberries are great!

Look at those crates of strawberries! We got just one crate!

The Italian Polizia and Ruth...

I love this picture of them

The park....

Watching the fish with Daddy...

Play zone!

Riding cars....

Hannah Obsession

2009-04-27T00:16:00.000-07:00

Ruth has a new found Hannah Montana obsession! She loves to dance and sing to her in the car and in the house. We finally caught her on tape only by telling her that she is a celebrity like hannah montana and celebrities get recorded. I am going to have my hands full!

Happy easter!

2009-04-18T03:42:00.000-07:00

The easter bunny was certainly good to Ruth! Funny story first....

Ruth got an ear infection just before easter and had to take amoxicillin and was unhappy about this. She refused to take it the first night so i picked up the phone and pretended to dial a number and talk to the easter bunny. I then relayed an imaginary message to Ruth that if she didn't take her medicine the easter bunny wouldn't come.

She then took it and insisted that I call the easter bunny and make sure that he knew she took it so he would come to her house. I got ready to do the pretend dialing when she says "No I want to talk to the easter bunny and tell him!" AAAHHH!!! So I dial a number of someone whom she won't recognize the voice of and my poor friend had to be the easter bunny for a moment in time. IT WORKED! She took her medicine without fail every morning and night!

After opening baskets and loading up on chocalate we went to our friends dave and carols to have dinner with a bunch of friends. Here is Ruth with her two best friends all dressed up for a windy cold and rainy day.

As if Ruth didn't have enough chocolate in the wee morning hours, we had an easter egg hunt so the girls could make sure to eat more chocolate.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter sunday!

Miss supermodel!

2009-04-16T01:48:00.000-07:00

Ruth was chosen to be a model for the base thrift shop fashion snow. She was modeling this absolutely adorable blue summer dress. She did such a good job modeling with this lady!

She even did a supermodel spin at the end of the stage.

Oh I should also mention that she was the very first model to make the catwalk for the show!

Chocolate!

2009-04-16T01:45:00.000-07:00

We decided to take an ITT trip through the base to the Condorelli chocolate factory... almost the hersheys of Italy. It was so very small and we went through quick but the free chocolate they let us taste test was absolutely delicious to say the least!

This is Ruth waiting for the bus to come pick us up on a rainy day. She was sitting in the car yelling "Chocolate!" at the camera.

Karate

2009-04-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Karate is still going great with three classes and 50 students total. 5 months pregnant and still managing to do karate although my Gi is getting tight and my belt is getting shorter and shorter!

Family weekend in Palermo

2009-04-15T05:40:00.000-07:00

On Roberts weekend off in February we headed to Palermo for a fun family weekend. We strolled parks on the water where Ruth loved to play in the grass and discover flowers and such.

That night we spent a couple of hours walking around downtown to get something to eat when we discovered the play area for kids. She had a blast on rides and playing with a little italian girl in the ball pit.

what have we been up to all this time without posting pictures?

2009-04-15T05:00:00.000-07:00

Although its starting to get warm in sunny sigonella it is still cold up on the mountain and there is nothing better to do on those cold days but head up to Mt Etna and sled with our friends!

It's a....

2009-04-08T00:13:00.000-07:00

BOY! (On the left side of the pic you will see a little pointy thing pointing to the left... this is the clear sign its a boy!)

!

Lots of updates

2009-03-01T02:05:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness again I let this thing fall behind. I have lots of pictures and lots of fun stuff to report. The pictures won't come this post...maybe later.... but the verbal updates are here!

First let me say that my Martial Arts class is going fantastic and I even opened a school in Mineo to now have 55 Students! WOW! This takes up 4 nights a week and makes me a busy chick!

I have also been featured all over the European Military News twice for this. My cousin in the Netherlands apparently even saw me! You can go to http://sigonella.afneurope.net and I am one of the current top five stories plus search Karate and you will find my first story as well!

One more very important note to get out that some may not know..... RUTH WILL BE A BIG SISTER! We are expecting September 2nd and are so very excited about this as well as Ruth. I am out of my first trimester and starting my second and still so very sick. When will this end? I never had a belly with Ruth and wore my regular clothes until 5 months but this child already has me in stretchy or maternity clothes and yet I am losing weight everywhere else because of being so sick!

I suppose that is all the big news for now. I need to get the house cleaned up and get to the store when Ruth wakes up from nap. Then maybe later this afternoon I will have a moment to sit down and post ultrasound pictures as well as the usual Ruth pictures.... bear with me here....!!!

Martial Arts in Sigonella

2009-01-08T23:16:00.000-08:00

First let me say that we hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New year. Ours was great and was spent together having quiet family time since Robert took the day off of work. It was our first holiday together since we moved here!

When we first moved here I attempted to begin a kids martial arts class in Sigonella. MWR was hard to convince and all these rules and regulations came about and I could not start. A few months ago MWR called me and it started to get rolling. This week was my first week teaching. I have two classes going right now in the Marinai Recreational Center on the housing base where we live. One is full with a waiting list (younger children) and one (older children) is half full with many anticipating to join in February. I am also getting many people to beg me to open a class in Mineo as well! Everyone is going nuts over Karate and its the new craze. I am getting overwhelmed with the amout of people begging me to fit just their one more kid in the class or to just take their kid that is not the right age yet, or to give their child private lessons, its amazing! I have to go early before class for the eager little ones who want to practice before class and stay late to talk to parents who want to endlessly thank me!

Tonight AFN or cable station showed up, did an interview with me and video taped the kids and I doing class! It will be on Next week which I will make sure to send the link to their website which will contain the news clip! There is also rumor that the newspaper wants to do a news article and take pictures! I am overwhelmed.....

December 23rd...two more days!

2008-12-23T13:03:00.000-08:00

We are just so excited for Christmas Day!! We try to do as many christmas related things because in two days it will be all over. Tonight there was a santa outside of someones house a few blocks away for kids to visit and hot chocolate and cookies. It was so exciting so we bundled up quick and got over there to get one last picture with Santa. Ruth firmly announced to santa for the THIRD time that she NEEDS a bike and a camera for christmas.

This then inspired us for an entire evening for baking cookies. Ruth did a great job at unwrapping the hershey kisses for inside the cookies. She also did a great job at eating them just before I could get them in the cookie dough.

Sleep over

2008-12-23T12:56:00.000-08:00

Ruth's best girl friends are Kay Kay and Madison. These two girls are so darn cute and Ruth loves spending time with them. They recently came to our house for a sleep over. They had SSSOO much fun!

Ruth and Kay Kay pretending to be babys with their bottles and baby food while watching the old school christmas pooh.

The three of them taking a bath together. Not sure what Ruth was doing with her hands in her mouth.

The football fans...

2008-12-23T12:51:00.000-08:00

Ruth and Robert are very hyped for the Steelers season and try and catch every game on TV together. Ruth LOVES her Pittsburgh Steelers, her jersey, and watching the games on TV. I am not sure whether she truly loves these things or just loves the fact that Daddy loves them. Either way she is a true steelers at heart!!

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-14T07:40:00.000-08:00

The reason I say....Happy Holidays and not Merry Christmas is because Ruth is learning about other religions this year and not just Christmas. She is starting to fully understand the concept of Christmas. She understands the two most important things Baby Jesus was born and Santa brings lots of presents! Two of Ruths best friends, Kay Kay and Madi, twin 4 yr old girls, are Jewish. Miss Carol, their mommy, began to teach us about the 8 days of Hanukkah and the beginnings of Judaism. I have reinforced the idea of what Kay Kay and Madison do to celebrate and explain the little that I do know. So Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

Ruth met Santa clause. Scroll back through last years post and you will see the screaming little girl who was absolutely terrified of Santa. This year things went better. She was still nervous and shy but she went willingly, told him she wanted a bike and a camera, and gave a partial stare/smile at the camera. Mean Mommy told her if she cried and didn't talk to Santa then he wouldn't bring presents. So she willingly climbed up there and spoke quietly to santa.

I will leave you with a picture of Ruth and Santa. We hope everyone has wonderful holidays and will begin to post much more....or try.

Updates on the past 4 months

2008-12-14T06:48:00.000-08:00

Wow, I am sure am amazed that time flies like it does without posting. I am horrible I know. Things have been very much on the hectic side.

Since the last post in August we had a wonderful visit from aunt susan and uncle chuck whom she loved at first but after a week Ruth began to not like Chuck. I was busy getting things out of the car after a long day trip and Chuck was outside chatting with me. Ruth came running down the driveway and fell and skinned her knees pretty bad. She was crying so hard with big gator tears rolling down her face. Susan came to the door and said "Chuck what did you do to her!" I stated "Oh he pushed her down". Of course Susan, Chuck, and I knew we were just kidding but Ruth, on the other hand, thought we were 100 percent serious. This led to Ruth being scared of Uncle Chuck after loving him for over a week. She kept telling me "Uncle Chuck pushed me down!" LOL. Eventually she loosened up but it sure was hilarious. We went all over the island and saw so much while they were here: Palermo, Agrigento, Catania, and so much more but what I will always remember is "Uncle Cuck pushed me over!"

Just a few days after Susan and Chuck left we had a nice, but too short, visit from my Mom, Grammy Eck. Grammy Eck came bearing an entire suitcase of clothes for Ruth as usual and she absolutely loved that. We again hit Palermo, Agrigento, Catania and more just the next week. Ruth was such a good sport to see the same things all over again and do the long car rides all over again ultimately resulting in the usual car sickness.

You thought our crazy hectic time stopped when our company left? Oh no. Just a few days after Grammy Eck left we headed on an interesting trip to the states. The hectic part began right after Grammy Eck left when we tried to find a flight. We had it all planned that we would leave on the third of October however we soon find that there are only 10 seats left on the military flight...this is the flight that EVERYONE wants because it is a commercial 767 that is so very nice with great service...better than a regular civilian commercial flight. Because it is so wanted it was NOT going to happen that we would make it on with 10 seats. Not to mention we were traveling with our friend Carol and her twins as well as our friend Mandy with her son. So it was immediately watching for the next available military flight. When I say military, I mean military. We stumble across a flight on the 27th of September almost a week before we planned to leave. So we scrambled our bags together and headed off to the airport, three adults and four kids. Interesting I know. So there we are...standing on the flight line looking at this huge grey plane that is much bigger than anticipated. A C-5 cargo plane that is absolutely gigantic. The seating on the C-5's have only 76 seats and they face backward at the very top of the airplane...what a hike up!! We get seated and strapped in and soon after get ear plugs and realize their are no windows, no food or drinks, and no flushing toilet. Oh boy..... Spain here we come. We make it safely to spain in the middle of the night and spend a night in a hotel in which the kids will NOT sleep. Then have to check out of our hotel room to wait about 7 hours in the airport waiting for a 9 hour flight in the same C-5 headed to norfolk. We made it safely and spent another night in the hotel in which we got in the middle of the night again and got up at 430 in the morning to head to the civilian airpot. After three days of travel and 4 take off and landings we FINALLY make it to San Diego.

Almost three weeks with our friends from San Diego was great. Ruth had a play mate she shared everything from bedroom to sippy cups every day. Ruth grew up with Baby Charles when she was a baby. We lived just a few paces away from eachother in the same complex and spent every waking moment together. When we first arrived it was as if they had completely remembered eachother even though they hadn't seen eachother since they were 10 months. Toward the end of the visit Ruth's other best buddy, Kylie came to San Diego to see us. Kylie's mommy, Lorraine, and I were best of friends from before the kids were born. Our husbands left us when we were just first pregnant on deployment and returned after the kids were born. Lorraine and I will always have a special bond as I was there for every moment of labor coaching her through it and in return, she was there for me during my labor, leaving her three month old with family in the waiting room to make sure that I had someone special there. We had a great time for the three short days we had together and the kids got along great.

After three weeks we got on the airplanes again headed for Philadelphia. Grammy Haueisen was there to greet us along with Derek...Roberts 6 yr old cousin. We spent two days in Philadelphia swimming in the hotel indoor pool and spending both days at Sesame Place!! Ruth was fascinated with Elmo, Zoe, and her all time favorite...Abby Cadabby. Ruth was in awe with live shows, chances to hug all of her favorite characters, and ride all the fun rides. Her favorites were dinner with the characters and the parade afterward. I was so happy to be able to give her the opportunity to experience seeing live what she watches on TV every morning.

We then went to spend the time with Grammy Cline as well as many visits to Grammy Haueisen. We had a great time and wished we would have had more than 8 days to spend with them.

Then it was heading back to Norfolk Virginia to try and catch one of those "nice military flights" again meeting Carol and Mandy while reuniting all the kids together for yet another long trip. With only 35 open seats an airport full of people we can only pray that we will make this flight. After all this traveling we are sure that our nerves are way too shot to handle a C-5 again. While sitting there for hours we patiently waited to hear the magic words over the intercom system, "Rebecca Haueisen you may proceed to luggage check in." We made it!!! Which made every bit of traveling so much easier and it only took 15 hours to make it back. We made it home just two days before Halloween after 30 some days of travels across the world and back.

Things have calmed down greatly since we have been home however our lives are still busy.

Camping again?

2008-08-24T07:53:00.001-07:00

Robert has been coaching football all day every day all week. He has only been home but a couple of hours each day and Ruth got to see her daddy no more than 30 minutes a day this week. Of course it was just one week of two-a-days training however it was stressful at home with Ruth constantly wanting her Daddy. To get away from the stress of school for both of us, work for both (I start back subsitituting this week), football, and everything else stressing us...we went camping again. This time it was just the three of us and we had a fantastic but quiet time. We spent most of our time on the beach or cooking by the tent. Ruth went to bed early and Robert and I played cards and watched a movie...something we haven't done in quite a while. We woke up the next morning to head straight back to the beach for fun in the sun before heading home.

In times past Ruth has been not so sure about the water...only entering with her on our hips. This time however she was a water baby and was running in and out by herself all the way up to her neck! It was a blast to watch her and here are some pictures for you to enjoy as well!

Attempting to say cheese and make a goofy camera face for me....

Jumping in and out of the water with Daddy...

Rolling around and letting the waves crash up over her...

Lets see what kind of mess I can make by pouring sand and water in my water shoes!

All this fun required a nap with Daddy on the beach. Her face is totally saying "Mom...quit bothering me...what is it with you and that camera?"

JUMPY HOUSE!

2008-08-17T00:19:00.000-07:00

Ruth is so definitely spoiled and because of this we now know why she acts the way she does....spoiled. She has been to party after party, playgroup after playgroup, and the neighbors house...all of which have jump houses. I just couldn't resist buying one when they came into the NEX the other day. She is in love. She better love it for 199.99. It is good for children up to 8 and reviews say that it holds up for years. I hope she certainly gets her daddy's money's worth out of it!

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She is all girl!

2008-08-11T23:56:00.000-07:00

Ruth is always doing the girly things at home and away from home. She cannot get enough of her baby dolls while she is home. At Miss Mandy's she is constantly playing dress up with hats, purses, and of course you won't catch her without a baby doll in her hands!

I just thought this picture was adorable. Thank you Mandy for taking this picture and not missing a priceless moment while she is in your care!

Bedroom!

2008-08-10T23:46:00.000-07:00

FINALLY! Ruth's bedroom is finally put together since we initially started in April! All of you probably know what crap I have been going through to get a boxspring from the Navy Exchange. This whole process did not come together NOT because of the NEX but rather someone we met the other night at a barbeque. The exhange STILL has not gotten the boxspring in yet but once again, promises me this week. Tomorrow actually. The words "domani" are very frequently used in the Italian language. Domani means tomorrow and is a word day after day. We went to a barbeque on saturday night across the street and there was a couple with a little girl Ruths age. I knew of them and have talked in passing but as we sat there enjoying a conversation for the first time she randomly says, "I have this full size boxspring in my storage area that is driving me nuts! Its taking up room and I can't use it because someone borrowed the mattress." How so very exciting! So I offered to take it off of her hands. She said "Of course." and we got in her car, drove to her house, dug it out of the storage closet, placed it on her roof, and drove it back to the house right away. We ditched the barbeque for a few minutes and put her bed together before going back over. There is still a lot of work to do on her room but she is sleeping there for good now. We need to hang some of her pictures and place a few more nick nacks and picture frames on her dressers and night stand.

When you thought I wasn't looking

2008-08-07T23:17:00.000-07:00

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I learned that we all have to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of your time and money to help people who had nothing, and I learned that those who have something should give to those who don't.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn' t feel good, and I learned that I would have to be responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and productive person when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn't looking.'

LITTLE EYES SEE A LOT. Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, friend)
influences the life of a child. How will you touch the life of someone today? Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

Gelato Man

2008-08-06T11:50:00.000-07:00

What is the one thing that reminds you of a small town summer day, 50 cents, and an irresistable tune? Thats right; the ice cream man! We have a very nice italian man who now rides around the neighborhood with his Gelato truck selling us homemade gelato and granita for only 1 euro. He has around 30 pots in the back of his truck, each filled with a different flavor of his deliciously creamy ice cream in so many different flavors. Although there isn't the traditional american ice cream man song, he does have an interesting honk that is unique to us and even Ruth screams "Ice cream" every night when he rides around. I took a pictures so that all of you in the states know what an italian ice cream truck looks like. They are pretty popular to see on the side of the road on a hot summer day in the cities, but now we have the joy at the end of our driveway.

All those old toys

2008-08-06T11:38:00.000-07:00

How is it that my daughter has every toy in the world yet plays with none of them? Toys are only novelties for the first week or two then they just work their way to the bottom of the toy basket like everything else to never again be played with. I will get everything out of the toybox and reorganize the toys, clean them, find all the little parts and pieces for each toy, and neatly place them back in the toy box with those old toys right on top while reminding her of how much fun she used to have with them. Nope...not interest. We payed around one hundred dollars for this little quad toy and the outrageous amount to ship it here for it to be played with for a couple of weeks non stop and then become a porch ornament. This is coming all to mind only because Ruth is usually in daycare during the day and doesn't get the time with her toys. Many of you may know that we are dealing with all sorts of crazy illnesses in this house that we just cannot place our finger on right now and until diagnosed and ruled not contagious sick Ruth has been spending these glorious past few days with sick Mommy. In the mean time I am yet again reminded she is spoiled and doesn't even use what we buy her.

The only thing that has surpassed time and has become the prized toy that was worth the money... her kitchen. We bought this kitchen for christmas last year and it is the only toy that has past the test of Ruths liking. Even sick, cooking in her kitchen cheers her up.

Camping again...

2008-08-02T22:56:00.000-07:00

Two weeks after our first camping experience we decided we loved it and went again. This time though, we went early and got an excellent spot. We had a beautiful view of the ocean right from out tent and at night and early morning you could just lay there and here the waves crashing on the rocks and sand. It was so beautiful and peaceful. We went for two nights and Ruth loved every minute of the beach. We can't wait to go again...

The view from the front of our lot...

The view taken right out of the tent door...

Camping in Siracusa

2008-07-15T06:08:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went with a group of people on an adventurous camping trip to the beach in Siracusa. Yes little ol me went into the wilderness and slept in a tent. We had so much fun around the campfire and snorkling the next day out in the crystal clear ocean. Ruth had some friends with her that she enjoyed running around with and playing in the sand. Fun was had by all and Robert and I plan on camping next weekend in Ragusa at the beach. Enjoy the pics...

Robert and I enjoying the shade...
The kids were so messy by the end of the trip...covered in bubbles and dirt

Daddy and Ruth out in the crystal clear ocean

This is my favorite... Ruth was supposed to be sleeping in the tent. I told her that she needed to lay back down, watch her movie, and not get up. After gasping, she thought I couldn't see her and quickly threw the sheet up over her head and quietly whispered to herself, "Hide, Hide."

The girls around the campfire after the children were in bed.

Ruth really should be eating lunch! Instead she is enjoying her new pooh chair we got just for camping.

Angela Burshteyn

2008-07-09T12:07:00.000-07:00

I spoke with the people at CAPPA, a labor doula organization, that informed me of the information I was looking for. As we were transitioning out to Italy there were some family issues that arose with Angela. When the family issues became too much she resigned her position as California state director for OSD and soon thereafter, on July 10, 2007, she took her own life. She leaves behind two school aged children who I worry about tremendously, although I know there is nothing I can do.

Angela, you meant so much to us and I will never forget your smiling face and the love you had for Ruth. You will be missed greatly....

In Memory of Angela Burshteyn
California State Coordinator for Operation Special Delivery
who passed away on July 10, 2007

Two Horses
Author Unknown
Just up the road from my home is a field, with two horses in it. From a
distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or
are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing. Looking into the
eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind.
His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for
him. This alone is amazing. If nearby and listening,
you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the
sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field.
Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know where
she is, so he can follow her. As you stand and watch these two friends,
you'll see how she is always checking on him, and that he will listen for her
bell and then slowly walk to where she is, trusting that she will not lead
him astray. When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she
stops occasionally and looks back, making sure her friend isn't too far
behind to hear the bell.
Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because
we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over
us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need.
Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by
the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we
are the guide horse, helping others see.
Good friends are like this. You don't always see them, but you know they are
always there Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours.

"Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle."

*Taken from CAPPA newsletter February, 2008

Ruth's Doula passed away...

2008-07-09T00:47:00.000-07:00

As I was sitting and thinking in peace and quiet (after bedtime) the other night I realized...I haven't heard from Angela lately. I sent her an email but it has been a few days and I hadn't heard back from her. So I drop Ruth off at Mandy's and decide that I am going access her website and get her phone number again and call her later tonight. Well its almost 10 oclock and I can't seem to get any work done because of all the searching I am doing. Her website is no longer up and running. This makes me even more troubled. It isn't like her to not return an e-mail and not renew her website that once had pictures or her and Ruth on it the day she was born. I do a quick search for her and I find an article in CAPPA (a national organization of doulas) that states, "In loving memory of Angela Burshteyn who passed away on July 10, 2007." Now I have been spending all morning trying to find her obituary, her children, any news article or anything on what happened to her!

Let me explain what Angela meant to me. I found out I was pregnant almost as soon as I found out Robert was getting deployed for 6 months. Calculating out the dates made me realize that Robert would be deployed for the birth of our first born baby. I was directed to a website called "Operation Special Delivery" that offers free labor doulas that help during your pregnancy, are there for your birthing process, and after the birth. Soon after applying for a free doula, Angela showed up at my house in San Diego. She came in with stacks and stacks of papers and I was overwhelmed. She sat in my kitchen, at my table, for hours and explained all the papers and helped me fill them out. All of this paperwork was so SHE knew what I wanted in my delivery room and how I wanted things done so SHE could take care of everything and not me. Wow she was amazing.

She met me at the hospital a couple of times to go to my prenatal appointments and held my hand. She called me on a weekly basis to ask how I was feeling. I called her one night and said, "I think I am in labor and I am on my way to the hospital!" She met me there and sat with me, walked with me, rubbed my back and told me everything would be ok. The hospital sent me home that night in labor and she begged to come stay with me. I convinced her into going home with her family and getting some sleep but she was not happy with me :) Two days later my water broke. I called her immediately to tell her. Her husband answered the phone and said, "Um she is sleeping right now, can I take a message?" I told him I was in labor and needed her but to let her sleep a couple of hours. Well that didn't happen. When she heard she rushed right down to the hospital with donuts and muffins for the ENTIRE nursing staff and myself. It was 8 am but she had been sleeping when I called. Why? Because the night before she was in the hospital at a 20 hour birth until 6 am. With just 1 hour of sleep she climbed out of bed and rushed to my side. For no monetary value, just volunteering her time to a military wife all alone. She coached me through my entire labor and delivery and helped with EVERYTHING.

Soon after getting home from the hospital Angela made the one hour drive from her house to mine to see Ruth and make sure I was ok. She helped with breastfeeding and became my friend.

Our relationship didn't stop there. She became a close friend. I can recall many times sitting with Ruth alone in our house on the phone with her till all hours of the morning. We always had something to talk about. I can hear her distinct voice in my head as I write this right now.

Angela became the president of Operation Special Delivery for the entire state of california soon after Ruth's birth and she began to become a nationally recognized labor doula. She began appearing on all the local san diego new stations to promote OSD. All of the San Diego news stations did a live interview with Angela...with little Ruth in her hands...holding her tight and presenting her with pride that she had helped Ruth and her mommy while daddy was deployed.

I haven't talked to her in a year now, tomorrow will be one year since she died, but I do miss her despite the fact that she has been gone a year now and I didn't know until today. It is hard sitting and thinking of her sitting at my table. It is hard to think of us sitting at Denny's together at 5 am before we appeared on the 6 am news. And it is especially hard to think of Angela holding Ruth the many times she has.

We had a going away party for all of our friends to get together one last time in San Diego. Angela showed up with her husband and two children and seemed to be the life of the party. At the party she gave Ruth a stuffed animal with a photo album of her and Ruth together. That photo album means so much more than it ever did. We will cherish it forever and someday when Ruth can understand...I will show her it again and tell Ruth all about Angela and what an angel she was to us when we needed her.

I havent been able to find anything on Angela. You see she has two school aged children that I am worried about. Angela was married to a wonderful guy in San Diego but he is just the "step father". She grew up, married and had children in Midland Texas. When those children were just babies, her husband became very abusive and at one point tried to kill her. She fled with both children to San Diego. She made a life of her own and met her wonderful husband who is from Russia. I am worried where those children are and how they are doing. I have no way of finding out.... I just wish I knew....

Happy 4th!

2008-07-05T01:06:00.001-07:00

We hope everyone had a wonderful fourth of July!! Ours was interesting. Robert had to work, as he does EVERY holiday. He worked until 7:30 and then came home to get us and we all rushed out to the fireworks. We got to the football field at the base and there was a loud band, food, and lots of fun.

At first Ruth was scared of the loud music and stayed cuddling tight to daddy and whining.

Soon she realized that the music was ok and actually FUN! So she got up and began to dance with all the kids.

They announced the fireworks were going to start so she got excited and sat patiently waiting in her pooh chair. We warned her and talked all day about how there would be pretty lights to watch in the sky but that it would make a loud "boom boom." and that it is nothing to be scared of. Well this pre-talking didn't work. She still clung to daddy crying and cringing with each bang.

The fire works lasted a short while as the result was not good at all. The first set of fire works went about 10 feet in the air, exploded and lit the whole field on fire and this was the view. They continued the fireworks through the fire for a short while but with all the smoke and flames it was hard to enjoy it.

The coaches daughter

2008-07-05T01:02:00.000-07:00

Many of you may know that Robert is one of the new football coaches for the high school here on base. What many of you may NOT know is that Ruth has volunteered to be his assistant. Ruth was playing with his whistle in the car. She figured out how to blow in it and of course made us go deaf. All of a sudden the noise went silent. When we turned around she was sleeping with the whistle in her mouth! Roberts response, "Thats my girl right there! The coaches daughter!"

Ruth and Joseph

2008-07-05T00:53:00.000-07:00

It has been way too hott outside to even go out to play during the day. So when it starts to get dark she meets the neighbor boy outside. They have a blast running around the yards, picking flowers in Josephs yard, copying eachother, and screaming in excitement. She has so much fun and always talks about him and wants to go to his house. She can't seem to say Joseph so instead she calls him "Jo Jo," but he responds to that too.

Customer Service

2008-06-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

This is more of a rant blog, than a picture/brag about Ruth blog. Why does customer service have to be so crappy at the NEX over here? I am not sure either; but let me start with my day.

I go to the store this morning with two intentions. One-To get Ruths hair cut and...Two-To return a toy she got for her birthday that she already has. So she falls asleep in the car and so I do my shopping first while she is sleeping and the haircut later. I go to the toy section and find a similar toy for her for 7 dollars more than the one I am returning. I go pay for it and then look at my receipt..sure enough they charged me 12 dollars more. I go back to customer service and she won't even come look at the label she just says "Well I will call toys to tell you why its different." So the toys lady says, "It is a different product or something and the price is 27.99 not 22.99 as marked." Well too bad right? I mean how obvious can it be? The shelf says "Leapfrog Word Whammer 22.99" and the name of the toy is the..yup you guessed it...the Leapfrog Word Whammer. No confusion for me...only for the toy clerk. So then I stand and argue with her that i want my 5 dollars back as she insists she can't do that. So then I get the manager of the toy department and he argues with me that the toy department forgot to put up the new prices since everything just got "marked up"...I didn't think they can do that but let me continue. FINALLY after 30 minutes of arguing he says "OK" and I get my 5 dollars back.

Ruth is still sleeping so I swing by the furniture department to check on full mattresses. You see...I have been needing a full mattress and box spring for quite a while now. I ordered and recieved a transhipment of new bedroom furniture for Ruth (took 2 months) all while the NEX was still waiting for mattresses. 2 and a half months after I begin asking for mattresses and boxsprings is today...the lucky day...they tell me they indeed have mattresses and boxsprings! YAY! SSSOOO I buy them and head on my way to get Ruths hair cut before going to the warehouse to pick up the long awaited mattress and boxspring. I get her haircut, head to the warehouse. NO ONE is willing to help me out and ask what I need. I stand there for 20 minutes...all the while I notice they overcharged me 20 bucks on the mattress!!! Here we go again. I get in the car drive down to the NEX and go to customer service AGAIN. Fight AGAIN about the price mismarked and get my 20 bucks back. Maybe I am stubborn but 5 bucks is 5 bucks and 20 bucks is a lot on a one person income. So then I head BACK to the warehouse. Finally they decide to help me out....this entailed them informing me that they never did get the boxsprings in. HHMMM. So lets see here. They tie the mattress to my roof all the while telling me that it is stupid to do that and it is not going to make it to my house. Only because they want their 65 dollar delivery fee. DUH....NO I have a luggage rack that will do just fine for 6 miles of back roads. So now I have to go BACK to customer service...with a mattress in a box strapped to my roof. I get my money back for the boxspring and still cannot use the mattress anyhow because there are no boxsprings. Almost 3 hours after arriving to the store I get to come home with a mattress. I get it out of the box...it is a one sided mattress. What is this? I have never seen a one sided mattress. I contemplated the idea of it being the boxspring but sure enough..it is the mattress. I call in and ask them to explain how this could be for 250 bucks...a one sided mattress. I get told, "Maybe its the box spring because I know that we got the boxsprings in and not the mattresses." He goes to the warehouse and looks and calls me back and says, "This is the new generation of mattresses...one sided." My next move probably was not the best. I started screaming that is stupid BS and I will make sure to bring his mattress back to him and get my money. I looked online... sure enough mattresses are now being made one sided so you no longer have to flip them. OOOPPSS. So I called my ol friend Pipo at the furniture department and appologized for cussing him out. Now...I just want my boxspring!!! Which do they have them?? The furniture department says the do the warehouse says they don't. A new shipment comes in tomorrow...maybe I will finally get the boxspring on that shipment. Who knows. Ruth has had her big girl furniture FOREVER and the dresser drawers were made wrong and do not fit in the dresser...waiting on those to come in the mail. Her bed has been waiting for a month now to have a mattress AND a boxspring and we haven't gotten there yet. When it finally gets completed I will snap a few pictures of the completion of the process and post them here. In the states this would be so much easier....

AHH let me add...my batteries for my camera have not been charged in a while and I NEED to get on the ball with that so for now...no new pics. SORRY :(

Birthday Party number 2!

2008-06-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

We had Ruth's birthday party last weekend, but I am just getting around to posting pictures. The kids had a blast and we had a total of 24 kids in attendance! Thank goodness it wasn't at my house! All the children were dressed for the affair in Luau gear but not only that...many of the parents were in their get up too! Her luau turned out awesome so take a look!

We had a pull string pinata that was a flip flop and a surfboard pinata for batting at. The kids had a blast collecting all of the candy! By the way I should say that Robert and I made the pinatas ourselves with a collective total of 16 hours of work on them! Only for them to be smashed to smitherines...

Daddy is trying to help Ruth pick up some of that candy!
Her flip flop cake. Both of the cakes turned out great.

The cake table with the pinatas and the surfboard and flip flop cakes and dec it up with pineapples, cocunuts, and hibiscus flowers was my favorite part.

Ruth licking icing off of her finger. She stuck her finger in before anyone else had a chance for a piece.

Ruth attends a CDH home

2008-06-19T00:32:00.001-07:00

Ruth has been going to a Child Development Home for about a month now and seems to love it. I get a lot of homework done and even get my cleaning and errands run before she comes home. Mandy, her daycare provider runs her daycare out of her home with her son who is 4 months younger than Ruth and a baby that is 9 months old. She loves helping take care of the baby and playing with Landon all day. Mandy does a lot of craft time for the kids and makes things fun. In these pictures that I will leave you with Landon and Ruth are making their own lunch...PIZZA! What fun.

First the sauce Then the best part...the cheese

Pepperoni..

LETS EAT!

The "new" hammock from Brazil

2008-06-13T23:16:00.000-07:00

Daddy bought this hammock before I was even in existence and it has never been out of the bag! Can you believe that? All my life my Daddy was hiding the best thing ever! It is such a shame because I LLLOOOVVVEEE this thing. Daddy said he bought it in Brazil...I don't know where that is and I sure don't care as long as I can swing in it!

Potty training doesn't stop me from stompin around in my red boots!

2008-06-11T12:59:00.000-07:00

Ruth is potty training and is doing very well. She hasn't worn a diaper for 2 weeks now and is doing great! Rare accidents occur but that will probably be expected for a while. Since she hasn't mastered pulling her undies down yet she mostly runs around naked when in the house so she can go at last second when she needs to. The funniest thing is when I put on her favorite show. She has a show that sings a song that goes something like this "Stompin around in my red boots, just stompin around in my...red boots." She called it her "Stomp Stomp Show" and while demanding it gets into the hall closet and digs out her red rain boots to wear just like the kids in the show. Her naky booty is just so cute with her boots on stomping in the living room!

"two-ball"

2008-06-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

One of the many presents from her birthday at grammy's was a new pink and purple t-ball set. She calls it her "two-ball" because it comes with 2 balls. She yells frequently throughout the afternoon, "I wanna two-ball mommy!" She is actually very very good at it which makes Daddy so proud.

Sigonella Elementary Carnival

2008-06-11T12:51:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we went to the carnival on base hosted by the elementary school. Ruth had a blast and although we do not have any pictures at the carnival we have some "after" pictures at home. She played the dime toss and won believe it or not! She won sidewalk chalk and she thought it was great to be able to draw on EVERYTHING outside. She sat very still and proud to have her face painted like a kitty cat too!

Ruth is 2 in Italy too!

2008-06-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

We haven't had a large birthday party yet in Italy but one is coming this weekend. On her birthday she got a new barbie 4-wheeler that she absolutely loves! She had to go to daycare in the morning but she came home to a new toy from mommy and daddy that she loves riding to the park everyday on. Mommy and Daddy also got her a bedroom set but it did not make it by her birthday. It made it to Italy in time but its currently getting cleared by customs. We will post pictures when it is all here. For now...here is video of her toy from mommy and daddy.

Mommy made her chocolate cupcakes to eat for her afternoon snack when she got home from daycare since it was her birthday. Yes...she is licking the icing off of her arm!

After dinner we took her to our favorite Gelateria and had her favorite Chocolate ice cream at the look out point in Motta on the main road. We sat and watched the "vvrrooommm vrrrooomms" and then"caaas" aka the mopeds and cars and commented everytime one past. Then we walked down to the candy vendor on the street for some swedish fish. Boy do you think she was high on sugar for her birthday?
Here is the video of Ruth riding away for the first time! She was scared at first but after a while she jumped on and took off!

Ruth is 2!!!

2008-06-11T12:14:00.000-07:00

Ruth is 2! She had the privelage of having a birthday party with Grammy and Pappy in the states. Grammy hosted an awesome Tinkerbell party that was a blast!

Openning gifts was so much fun and I got everything I ever could think of! Including this loud barbie guitar that Mommy and Daddy can't stand! Thank you so much Uncle Tommy and Grammy!

Weis's did an awesome job on the tinkerbell cake and it was delicious too!

Vacation to Citta Del Mare

2008-06-11T11:56:00.000-07:00

After leaving Pennsylvania we had the wonderful of Dean and Katrina coming out with us. They had a great visit and we enjoyed them being here so much. While they were here we took them to our favorite resort for 4 days. Here are some pictures of Dean and Katrinas visit at Citta Del Mare with us...

The beautiful view from our hotel balcony.

This is the best family picture we have had in a while. I am proud of this one :)

Ruth loved chasing the balls down the miniature golf course and digging them out of the hole.

Spaghetti dinner at the resort. Scary right? The scariest part was that she was served an adult portion of spaghetti and she cleaned the plate! In Ruth's words "mmmmm......Buono!" (Good in Italian)

Daddy and Ruth playing in the Med

Ruth was burrying Dean in the sand

Ruth loves her Uncle Dean so much!

Dean and Katrina's Wedding

2008-06-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

Of course it has been a long time since we have made a post. Actually somewhere around 2 months. I do appologize for anyone who does check. Life has been very busy with many travels but now that we have settled in we have many updates, pictures, and even a video to share. Enjoy!

In May we made the venture to states again, only this time with Robert in tow. We headed to Pennsylvania for Dean (Roberts brother)'s wedding. Ruth was the flower girl in which 5 year old Derek pulled her down the aisle in a wagon. It was perfect and she did great!

Nothing like eating gummies and saying cheese at the same time!

Ruth and her uncle Dean. This picture is perfect considering that Uncle Dean in her hero.

Vacation to Florida

2008-04-10T11:10:00.000-07:00

The first day we were in Florida we went to visit our old friend Rebecca from San Diego. We missed her so much and we were so excited to see her. She took me to build a bear workshop...an experience that I will never forget!

The lady was telling me what to do and I did everything she said. First was to jump up and down.
Then I picked out clothes for my new poodle and Rebecca helped me make sure she looked good!

Help me put on the shoes Rebecca!

Rebecca gave me a penny to throw in the pond at the mall. I loved it so much that I made Rebecca give me more until she was broke!

While in florida we stayed at my great grammy and great pop pops. Pop pop was my favorite and I had to sit on the couch with him all day and draw.

When not sitting on the couch with Pop pop, the pool is where it needs to be.

Easter Sunday was wonderful!! YAY, I am two fisting chocolate for breakfast! Easter is officially my favorite!

We went to the Florida aquarium with Grammy, Hailey and Stuart. We had so much fun looking at the fishies and grammy was nice enough to carry me around to make sure I could see all the fishies.

And the aquarium had a sand box too!

The last thing we did in Florida was the childrens explorations museum.

We went back to georgia and we went to Ollie Koala's (like a chuckie cheese) where we climbed in the climb house, made new friends, and then ate pizza!

Vacation to Georgia

2008-04-10T10:48:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been so long since I have been able to post. Our 4 week stay in Georgia and Florida was great! We are finally back and settled and able to share these photos. Enjoy!

Going to the beach was her favorite place to go with Hailey and Stuart. She spent all day walking around with her cousin Hailey...

and putting her feet in the sand with Stuart too!

It isn't fair that I don't have a huge trampoline like my cousins and I want one!! She loved jumping for hours on it. As soon as she woke up, she got down out of bed, went to the back door, and said "Hop, hop Momma!" while jumping up and down.

I am trying to master the big kid swing! With my cool shades on, and my tongue out, I make concentration the key. The cool thing is that this jungle gym set is at a restaurant! No more impatient two year old waiting at the table for food. This time I had trouble getting her to sit when the food came!

Stuart and I could spend hours digging in the sand if Mommy would let me...she made me go eat! I LOVED this restaurant!