Great Grampy

Felt inspired to take a moment to add a few October pictures of our final time with Great Grampy, who died on December 24, 2009...

Great Grampy sure loved babies...even when they were covered in spaghetti sauce!

Great Grampy and his little doggie, Dolly, listen and watch attentively as Susannah shares her coveted moon book with them.

Susannah signs MOON while Great Grampy shows tremendous interest in this most fascinating of topics! I doubt his interest was feigned for her sake; he had a love of learning that extended through his entire lifetime, and he retained the slightest detail about anything and everything. Such an exceptional mind he had!

Now it's Great Grampy's turn to talk to Susannah about the various moon pictures in the book.

This kid'll do ANYTHING for vanilla ice cream, especially if it's covered in Hershey's syrup!!!

We love and miss you, Grampy, and are so thankful you and Susannah got to meet.

January FUN!

Gone are the days of our laid-back "Angel" infant; replaced are they with these new days of our intense, highly-opinionated, ferociously independent, heavily-linguistic, mind-like-a-trap toddler. But we wouldn't trade her--or this stage--for anything in the world! Though some moments can be frustrating with a child who asserts herself at every opportunity and feels all emotions (especially disappointment) very strongly, most moments spent interacting with her leave you absolutely awestruck and with an overflowing heart. How quickly we forget that she is only 20 months old!

Just now, as I entered her room for the third time to remind her it is naptime, the conversation went like this:

SJ: Read Chicka-chicka boom-boom...up coco tree...look full moon!

Mommy: Susannah Joy, it is time to sleep. We are not reading books right now. We will read them when you wake up.

SJ: (closes eyes, signs SLEEP, then...) WAKE UP! (big smile on her face)

Mommy: No, it's not time to wake up. You need to go to sleep now.

SJ: Chicka-chicka boom-boom...full moon!

Mommy: Go to sleep.

SJ: Kiss Mommy. (I lean over and kiss her.) Kiss Elmo. (I kiss Elmo.) Missy? Rylie?

Mommy: Time to go to sleep. I love you.

SJ: Looka moon...crescent moon. (referring to the glow-in-the-dark one above her crib)

We do not lack the ability to express ourselves in the Wood house! She's become so frighteningly like me in so many ways that it's, well...FRIGHTENING! Seeing so much of yourself in your child is altogether fascinating and disturbing. :) While I marvel at her incredible ability to remember and associate people and events from months back, I also cringe when I see her throwing herself on the floor at the slightest disappointment. While I celebrate the observations she makes and the full conversations she can carry on with us, I simultaneously wilt when I see the intensity with which hunger and tiredness affect her little body and behavior. I dislike seeing my weaknesses displayed in this raw "little mirror" just about as much as I dislike replaying in my mind what I must've looked like in my moments of selfish sinfulness. Such is the relationship of parent to child...which is why Harry and I daily re-confess our dependence upon the Lord for wisdom and patience in shaping this little lamb's heart, mind, and soul!

But these challenging moments are well-littered with some of the most precious we could ever imagine experiencing, like:

• the way she refers to herself as "Sasi" (pronounced very close to "Saucy"...hmmmmm): "Sasi turn," "Sasi watch movie," "Sasi do it!", etc.
• at dinnertime when she spontaneously commands, "Lay down, Rylie!"
• when she asks to "wear Mommy neckace" and "hold Mommy eayings" (especially my snowman earrings, which she checks for everyday on both sides!)
• her delight in "pockets," and desire to put something into a pocket...even if it's not her own pocket!
• her love of dressing up...as a duckie, as a ladybug, in "Mommy coze (clothes)" and "Daddy coze" (The other day, she put my bra around her neck and proudly announced, "Milkies!")
• when friends visit and she looks at me very seriously and says, "Fend...kind...share... face happy!", listing off the reminders I give our slow-to-warm lovey each time someone new comes over
• her fondness for Elmo, whom she now takes everywhere: to bed, on her Learning Tower, to play with her, in the car
• the way she points out and excitedly labels letters everywhere we go...Kroger, the mall, the library, etc.
• her new phrases in which she replicates the pronouns we say: "Daddy hold you" when she wants to be picked up, "Give it/you Mommy" when handing me something
• when she gives herself the reminder "Try 'gain" if she's becoming frustrated with her inability to complete a task
• how she tells us "Stop! Wait!" at a red light, and then lets out a little gasp and exclaims, "Change light! GO!" at the exact moment it turns green
• her increasing use of descriptors: noisy, heavy, fast, quietly, pretty, happy, crying (to mean "sad"), sticky, hot, cold, up, down, on, off, under

Every moment is filled with new surprises and learning!

Now...onto all else that she's doing as of January/early February at 19/20 months!

Legwarmers!!!!

Grammy gave the babies two pairs of LEGWARMERS to keep them toasty this winter! Susannah wears hers almost daily under jumpers, over tights, under/over pants when we go out for stroller walks. Above, she admires herself in the mirror with her "stripey legs"...and is quite enthralled by what she sees!

After announcing confidently, "Cute!", she proceeded to kiss her reflection!

Pushing Nozu and Piggy through the house in her bunny cart. They "share bunny cart" regularly. Sometimes, when Elmo wants to ride too, things get a little tight in there, but somehow all of these inanimate objects manage to make it work!





Wedgit Play




There are moments when we watch our little Strawberry play and think to ourselves, "She's suddenly so grown up!" This day is mid-January was one of those times...






"Elmo sit down, watch," she tells him as she gets the Wedgits out of their bag. Her latest achievement? Zipping and unzipping any zipper she finds! This gives her independent access to her Wedgits. :)

"Tack Wedgits, Mommy...up, up, up!"

Looking particularly "big girl" in this picture! She loves trying to dress herself (though she's nowhere near independent on this task!), naming each article of clothing she puts on. On this particular day, she learned the word "jeans" and pointed out her "jeans" to Mama all day long, in addition to showing me her "sweater"!

Mailbox!

Susannah loves seeing the "mailman" and "mailtruck" come down the street to put "lettas in mailbox." Daily she lets me know when it's time to "Go check mailbox!" What's really funny is that, whenever she hears Rylie and her visiting friend Missy go crazy barking at something outside, she excitedly calls out, "Mailman here!" while running to the window! (Other times when they start barking she'll look up and tell me, "Missy mommy," as Missy always gets excited when her mommy picks her up each afternoon!)

It pays to be a preschool teacher turned Mommy! I have had a real mailbox in my basement for years after a lesson on the mail I did with my deaf preschoolers, and I remembered it when Susannah started to express her mailbox fascination. She will play with it for hours, opening and closing it, putting the flag up and down, and taking Christmas cards and saved first birthday cards in and out of it!

Diggers and Loaders

At Daddy's school there is a lot of construction happening as the campus is renovated. My neighbor Melissa and I took Judah and Susannah to watch them work on a recent morning! They were enthralled temporarily...but mostly liked the freedom to run about the campus and play on the nearby playground! :)

Watching the backhoe scoop mounds of dirt from a deep hole in the ground with Judah. She loves going to "Judah house" and talks regularly about him and his "Mama Missa" and "Judah Papa" who "fix fix guttas (gutters)." Our gutters were damaged with a "Boom!" during the December snowstorm, and Susannah two months later recounts this tale. She then tells of how Thomas ("Judah Papa") and Elijah ("Wija") came to our house to work on them!

FREEDOM!!!!

Playdough on the Learning Tower

One of the greatest gifts Susie Joy received for Christmas from Grammy and Grandpa was her "Learning Tower." Cumbersome...yes. TOTALLY INVALUABLE...YES, YES, YES!!! She climbs herself up onto her tower to help me cook pumpkin oatmeal, to play playdough by herself for upwards of an hour alongside me as I prepare dinner, to wash her hands in the kitchen sink, to bake doggie cookies for Rylie, to read to Elmo or Nozu, to eat her snack on the counter. I recommend the Learning Tower to all parents of toddlers!

Playing playdough with "Aunt" Jackie, who came by for a visit one evening recently. "The Berry" still rolls balls and smashes them into "pancakes" just like Aunt Jackie taught her that night! :)

Learning how to use a teeny rolling pin to flatten playdough before stamping it with a cookie cutter

Beulahland Visits

Susannah and I continue to take Mrs. Fletcher, our former neighbor, to visit her husband at Beulahland, a wonderful Christian nursing home set in the idyllic town of Raphine. Susannah always walks around and greets each of the residents, sometimes requesting to wear a lady's necklace for a bit. Mrs. Fletcher calls her the "One-Woman Entertainment Committee"! :) While we give Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher time to visit alone, we explore all of the critters on the Beulahland campus.

Our first stop is always Popcorn, the resident pony. Susannah eagerly gives Popcorn apples and carrots each time we go.

"Hi, Horsie!"

Next stop, the "bawk-bawks" (aka--chickens)

The resident kitty walks alongside Susannah as she heads toward the swingset.

At the swingset, she encounters Maggie, the on-campus family's sweet beagle. She knows all of the animals by name and talks about them when I tell her we are going to Beulahland.

After our most recent visit, Daddy came home from work and said, "Susannah, where did you go today?" She thought for a moment while a smile spread across her face and she responded, "Fetcha! See Fetcha!" This is the way she says "Fletcher"...referring to the couple we get to serve weekly during these trips. What a privilege and delight it has been to walk alongside this lovely couple in this season of separation due to health issues...

As always...THE MOON!!!!

Now Susie Joy and Judah both love the moon perhaps equally! Melissa and I will call each other to meet at the corner separating our houses when the moon is particularly clear, as the babies love nothing more than to gaze upon its beauty!

We took a short walk as the sun was going down one early evening, and the moon was already visible. Susannah sat entranced after declaring excitedly, "Oh wow...crescent moon!"

Such a dollbaby....

Christmas with the Family

Our Christmas week this year was full of abundance: an abundance of time with loved ones, an abundance of generosity from grandparents, and an abundance of life-changing events. We drove to North Carolina to spend a few days with Harry's family in a beautiful mountain home owned by our sister-in-law's aunt and uncle. Susannah had a great time playing with her cousin, Diana, who is just a year older than she is! She paid a bit of attention to sweet baby Ian, too, but this little guy wasn't nearly as exciting to her as a two-and-a-half-year-old girl!!!

Susannah and Diana sitting on the porch swing

Susannah and Diana playing play dough with cookie cutters and other fun kitchen tools!

She'll play play dough for HOURS ON END!

Harry and I took the two little girls on long walks through the mountain roads outside the home several times during our few days there. Had to take advantage of the beautiful 50-degree weather after our 28 inches of snow in Staunton the weekend before! (Notice they didn't even need coats above!)

Little girls running down a mountain road...so cute!

"Purposeful" is the best word to describe our hard-core walking toddler when she's on the move. Just don't get in her way and certainly don't ask to hold her. She'll let you know when she needs a break, and it's usually not til she's walked a solid thirty minutes!

Playing the piano back at the house

This was Susannah's first piano experience, and boy, did she love this opportunity to play music!

Colonial Heights with the Hansen Family

While we were in NC, my (Lacey's) Grampy took a sharp turn for the worse, and he died on Christmas Eve at 90 years of age. This was such a sad, heavy time of grief for our family, because not only did his death mark the end of his earthly life and his time with us on this side of Heaven, it also marked the passing of one more member of an exceptional generation. Grampy was a survivor of the Great Depression and a veteran of both WWII and the Korean War, where he served as a pilot in the Navy. He left behind a wife of 62 years, four grown children, 9 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. Men and women with the kind of character that is shaped from such hard life experiences are hard to find in today's America... Grampy is deeply missed, especially by Grammy, who daily grieves his absence. I am so grateful to have had 31 years with him in my life, and am even more grateful that Susannah was able to meet him three times in the course of her short life.

The bittersweetness of Christmas this year really sunk in when Harry, Susannah, and I arrived to my parents' empty Colonial Heights home on Christmas Eve night. My parents had been in NJ with Grammy and Grampy for almost a week at this point, accompanying them through the final days of Grampy's life--through the arrival of hospice, through those dark hours of cancer's final death blows, through the passing of that suffering human into the arms of Jesus in Eternity. As much as I longed to be there, I knew it wouldn't be appropriate to have a toddler in the midst of such circumstances. God gave us peace about staying at my parents' house for some peaceful family time until my parents' return on December 27.

God blessed us with an invitation for Christmas dinner at the home of our dear family friends the Polos. Betty called on Christmas morning to tell us we didn't have a choice: we were to show up that afternoon OR ELSE! I know better than to cross Betty, so we eagerly went! Susannah had a DELIGHTFUL time playing with the three grown children in that home...children who were her age when I baby-sat for each of them! We all talked and laughed and marveled over God's goodness in connecting us over twenty years ago...

Susannah fed Krista, age 13, about 20 pieces of pepperoni from the appetizer tray!!!!

Poor Rody was excited to see Susannah go to bed while she visited Grammy and Grandpa's house...

Can Big Bunny (bought for his grandbabies by Grandpa when they were itty bitty...and the source of tremendous LOVE!!!!) fit through the tunnel? You bet!

More play dough time with Grammy the morning after she and Grandpa arrived home from NJ...

As Grandpa set up the beautiful lit snowman in the backyard of their home, Grammy and Susannah took a closer look. At night, this shimmering structure was the object of much adoration by both Susannah and Sophie, who would stand at the bay window in awe!

We celebrated Christmas with the whole family on the eve of December 28. After a lovely dinner, we had our [3 hours] gift-opening time...a source of tremendous overindulgence for us all thanks to Grammy and Grandpa, who give so generously it almost hurts!

Harry and Seth (my brother)...smiling at...nothing in particular!

My new berry-colored wool coat was opened by both babies "together"!
(Susannah Joy on the left at 18 months; Sophie Grace, right, 22 months)

How precious are these two blue-eyed, strawberry-blonde toddlers? They truly love each other deeply. They take turns naturally, share toys with little encouragement, and ask about one another's well-being regularly. Jenna and I pray that their relationship will transcend that of cousins and perhaps become an enduring friendship.

Still working diligently and patiently on this present..."together" (as Susannah reminded us through sign/spoken English throughout the opening process!). Shortly after this shot was taken, Sophie Grace climbed onto the box and decided she would make faster work of this drawn-out project!!!!

"BCD's" for the tubby...just like those in Grammy's "baf"!

Gorgeous pale pink rosebud-y dress for this spring and summer...

The hit of the evening: a new rocking horse from Grammy and Grandpa!!!!! Both babies were absolutely ENTHRALLED with this rocking, singing, mouth-moving toy! We have since named him Pretzel and he resides in our living room. In a short video I took, Susannah "neighs" so loudly and then looks with glee at Grammy and Grandpa as she rides. So endearing is our horse-loving baby girl...

A big kiss for the horsie!

Both babies got a set of three noise-making farm animals. These live in Susannah's crib, so I get the joy of waking up to their chorus almost every morning! :)

In addition to a doll stroller and baby, Susannah also got a baby carrier. She has become a wonderful, gentle little mama!

A new baby doll from cousin Sophie! Her eyes open and close and she smells like baby powder. Such a pretty baby!

A puzzle of chunky shapes...all of which Susannah labels!

Seth and his sweeter-than-sweet fiancee Natalie (who is the best play dough player IN THE WORLD with Susie Joy!) received hoodies from Charlie's Bar, a hot spot in Somers Point, NJ (my grandparents' hometown), that has the world's greatest buffalo wings!

Susannah helps Uncle Matt (Jenna's husband) open a big present...

...just before helping Aunt Natalie to open HER big present! These babies got around, especially where big presents were involved! :)

Aunt Natalie's gift was wrapped in this huge "blob" of protective paper within its box. Susannah liked this paper better than she did anything else! After adorning herself in it...

...she walked all around the house "modeling" it for about 20 or so minutes! Note to self: Get her a long blob of brown paper next year and save time and money :).

Our family gave my parents a book containing photos of their yard from the summer. Dad spends a tremendous amount of time, and has since they moved in over 30 years ago, in the yard to create a sanctuary of beauty from God's creation. I had "snuck around" and taken about 60 pictures in mid-June, which I then compiled, along with selected Psalms, into a photo book. What fun it was to make...and to give!

We are abundantly blessed in every way, and remain humbled that God would be so good to us...