Long Catch Up

I can remember being in Middle School, wishing that time would speed up. I wanted to be grown up and it felt like time was passing at a snail’s pace. Now, I am wishing time would slow down. So little and so much happens- time just flies by.

Here’s some highlights since my last real update:

We had a fun summer (2014) filled with family, outdoor fun, pool visits and more. In July (2014) I was offered a job teaching a course online for the Pathway Program through BYU-Idaho. I had my first class of 40+ students in September. The sweet thing about this job is that as long as I have access to Internet I can perform my duties from anywhere. In fact my first week of the semester I was in Hong Kong visiting my parents.

Yes, you heard correctly, we took a 14 month old on 14 hour flight. Truman was actually really well behaved for the flights. The way there he mostly slept, he didn't sleep on the way back but he was pretty good and only cried once for less than 3 minutes. Dave, Truman, and I flew over together, we visited Hong Kong and Angkor Wat. Dave only stayed a week because he needed to return to his work responsibilities. Truman and I stayed for another 2 weeks and also visited Taiwan to see my Grandparents and extended family there. Jet lag for Truman when we got back was a pretty awful experience it was almost 2 weeks before he was sleeping normal.

Dave was offered a job at a law firm in South East Idaho in October (2014). He started the first week of November. The city that the law firm is in, is a teeny tiny town, we had a difficult time finding a place to live. Dave rented a skeezy room in the basement of some church about 20 minutes from work and he ended up having to live there until the week before Christmas. Truman and I stayed in UT and Dave would come down on the weekends.
It wasn't the most pleasant of experiences but we made it through.

We took Truman’s binky away just before he turned 18 months. We are STILL trying to get him back to going to bed at night without crying. I have yet to muster the emotional strength to let him cry it out for bed time. We are getting close though, we can only take so many hours of rocking him to sleep (slight exaggeration but not really). It only took him a week and a half to get over the loss of his binky. I am definitely glad we took it away before he could say binky. Before taking it away, when he wanted it he would go and point at his crib (since he was about 15 months he only had it when sleeping, in the car, or in public places that I didn't want him to scream at.) So, when he would point to his crib, asking for his binky once we took it away I just pretended I didn't know what he wanted. Rough but we all survived. He has recently seen pictures of it and will point longingly at it and sign “Please” and I just say it’s all gone and he moves on.

Truman is now in Nursery at church. Isn't it sad when the two hours that he goes to Nursery feels like a fantastic date hour with Dave and then splendid alone time for that last hour. But, man, those two hours a week are heavenly. Truman has done fantastic. Since the first Sunday, we have been able to just walk him to the room, he goes running towards the toys and doesn't care that we leave. Although, he did cry at their transitions and whenever the door would open on his first Sunday which doesn't really surprise me. With Nursery comes more germs that Truman is exposed to, so we have been fighting a many different illnesses since January. I get whatever Truman gets but he seems to recover like a week before I do. Lame. I can’t wait for the weather to warm up so we can open windows and spend time outside!

Truman is a busy body!! He rarely sits or is still for longer than 1 minute. It’s good for him, exhausting for us! He will/can say “Bubba,” (for Buffy) “Daddy,” “Ball,” “Balloon” (ball and balloon sound the same), “Kassie,” “YeYe” (which should be LaoYe but he shortens it, and it seems to be for both my Mom and Dad), “Crackers,” “Charlotte” and “Mama” but he doesn’t call me Mama he just screams it over and over when he is really mad. He usually communicates through sign, he uses the signs Please, More, Up, Thank You, Help, Eat, Drink, and All done.  

He loves to be outside, read books, bug Buffy, throw balls (or any toy), ride his tricycle, play with balloons, eat (especially fruit and vegetables), play with Daddy, close doors, hand feed Buffy her food (when she is trying to sleep), take baths, scream at the top of his lungs in the car (it’s such a gift), wear sandals or boots, brush his teeth, wash his hands, face plant into the couch cushions (sometimes people), take off his pants, and all around be naughty!

He slept the whole way to HK

Angkor Wat

Enjoying a turkey leg in HK

First Day of Nursery!