Squadron Life

So much of our life here in Okinawa revolves around the squadron. Not only does Mike spend most of his time working there, but the majority of our social life is associate with the squadron or people from the squadron as well.  There are a few squadron traditions in particular that have kept us busy lately.  

First Friday

First Friday is exactly as it sounds. The first Friday of every month, the squadron has a social event where all the pilots and spouses and sometimes the kiddos get together to hang out.  Most of the time we go to the squadron bar, order pizza and just chat.  Other times they rent out the bowling alley or park pavilion so the kids can come and have fun too.  No matter what the theme, it's always a great time spent catching up with friends.  Many times the event will double as a "Welcoming" or a "Farewell" too.  When we farewell a family or pilot, the squadron commander says something about the pilot and the spouse.  Then the couple is given a chance to address the group. It's a nice opportunity to say goodbye to your squadron family... And they are certainly that: a family. I mean, we spend holidays, birthdays, typhoons, TDY's, and deployments together. We celebrate births and mourn losses. We watch our babies become toddlers and our husbands become fathers.  These first Fridays are the "Sunday dinner" that we don't get to have with our biological families in the States.  

Keep in mind that being a part of a squadron is like being back in high school again, in a way.  There are squadron colors that you wear all the time (blue for the 44th).  There are even "uniforms" in the way of party suits and Bat Babe dresses.  The spouses of the 44th each have a little blue dress made in the fashion of a flight suit. It has patches and a name tag like our husbands' uniforms.  We wear them on special occasions like namings and first Fridays.  Taylor, however, is the first to have her own Bat Baby dress!! Grandma Taylor made it for her to look like my Bat Babe dress.  She even has her own name tag with her call sign on it, Half Pint. She got so many compliments!  I think that this dress will become yet another handed down article that gives this "family" one more tradition to celebrate.

Fini Flight

Before a pilot leaves the squadron for another base or another job, he is given a final flight, or "fini flight" in a 44th jet.  When he returns from the flight, many of the bros (fellow pilots), Bat Babes, and kids come out to the flight line to welcome him back.  We all meet at the squadron, prepare with protective ear gear, and ride out to the spot where he will be pulling in.  A few weeks ago we went out to celebrate our friend Shotgun's fini flight.

Shotgun and his wife, Storm, have been a good friends to us. Shotgun watched Rusty when we've gone on vacations. They spent countless Saturday afternoons at Chili's with us drinking "Barack Obama's" (El Presidente margaritas). And they celebrated Taylor's arrival with us! They are headed to Vegas where Shotgun will continue to fly the F15 and Storm will continue as an intelligence officer.

The kids get special "earmuffs." Taylor tolerated her's pretty well!

Once out on the flight line, we wait for the pilot's return.  Taylor's buddy, Luke was there to celebrate Shotgun's fini flight as well.  Luke is 3 weeks older than Taylor and about 3 times as big! They are really cute to watch together though.  They both get really excited, kick and squeal!

Once the pilot returns, we all wait for him to power down and off load his gear, helmet, and G suit.  That usually takes a few minutes so it gives us photographers opportunities to catch faces like this one.  Thanks Shotgun!

As soon as he deplanes, his spouse, children, friends, or someone else's spouse or children soak him with water and champagne.  I am really not sure where this tradition originates, but it is always fun to watch!

Of course, you can't get by without the obligatory group picture of all the bros. When we return to the squadron, there is usually food and drinks provided by the pilot.

Shotgun and Storm, we are really going to miss you guys but we will cross paths again.  We will be sure to remind Taylor how cool her Uncle Shotgun and Aunt Storm are!

Taylor's Nursery

I have been waiting for several months for a few last items to arrive in a shipment here on the island so that I can put the finishing touches on Taylor's nursery.  Well, they finally arrived and I am proud to say, her room is done!! 

She's been sleeping in her crib since mid-July. The transition from bassinet in our room to big crib in her own room went better than I could have ever imagined! She is so easy going and spends most nights talking or cackling herself to sleep. It's really fun to watch on the monitor. 

I know I've posted a few times showing you her room, but this is the final product!! The Japanese paper lanterns are from a local store. I made the pink curtains myself. Though they are far from perfect, I am very proud of them!! The flower painting in the corner is an original from her Aunt Laura Koke.

The flower table is from Thailand, as is much of the fun details in her room.  The hanger for her jacket was hand painted by one of my Okinawan friends, Rumico.  I can see lots of tea parities in the future at this table!

The rocking chair in the corner (also from Thailand) has some wonderful personal touches as well.  The cushions and pillow were made by Grandma Taylor and the personalized blanket is from her Great Aunt Pam, or Grand Pam.

The name on the wall was the final touch I was waiting for.  The letters took over 4 months to restock at the craft shop on base... Oh the joys of living overseas. I recycled cherry blossom stickers from a shower gift to decorate the letters.

Finally, her welcome sign from her loving aunts.  This was used at my family shower in Indianapolis. I hope she feels welcomed in this beautiful setting.  I certainly love to rock her to sleep in the rocking chair or play with her on the floor. She must love it because she sleeps around 9 hours at a time, 12 hours total each night!!

4 Months Old

Taylor is growing and changing so quickly!! It's been so fun to watch her acquire new skills, make new  sounds, and learn new tricks.  Everyday seems to bring something new.  She turned 4 months old last week so I felt it an appropriate time for an update.

Here are her 4 month stats:

Weight: 13 lbs 0 oz - 32 percentile

Length: 24.8 inches - 65 percentile

Head circumference: 40.5 cm - 33 percentile

Nicknames: Tay, Tay-Tay, Baby Tay, Pun'kin, Pun'kin-doodle, Pun'kin Face, Sister

Gettin' zzzz's: Taylor is now sleeping in her crib in her own room for 7 hours consistently but has gone for up to 9 hours at a time.  She sleeps about 12-13 hours total at night.  Just recently she started consistently napping for about 3 hours in the afternoons. 

Skills: Rolls from back to tummy, blows raspberries, plays with feet, holds head up when on her tummy, pushes up on both arms, grabs toys with both hands, puts toys in her mouth, stands with help, giggles and talks. 

Likes: To roll, smile, watch TV with Dad, watch Rusty do anything, to put everything in her mouth - especially her hands, be swaddled to sleep, stand with help to chat, snuggle with Mom, and read books before bed.

Dislikes: To be on her tummy for too long (she still can't roll to her back), to fall asleep - she fights it every time

I took a few pictures of her on her 4 months birthday.  Here they are!!

Here she is with Rusty at 4 months both looking so serious.

Taylor and Rusty at 3 months.

3 Month Photos

We have been very lucky to meet and become friends with Melissa Nasky, the photographer behind Baby Monster Photography.  She has already taken our maternity photos, newborn photos of Taylor, and jet pictures of the family this spring and is going to take pictures of Taylor throughout her first year of life.  She calls it her "Watch Me Grow" package. It's very appropriate. By the time she is 1 year old, we will have a series of photos that will allow us to "watch Taylor grow" before our eyes!  

 36 weeks pregnant

 1 week old - The Grumpy Bunny

6 weeks old - Jet Pictures

Last month she took 3 month pictures of Taylor.  I was really looking forward to this session because Taylor had started smiling and was no longer the Grumpy Bunny we saw in her newborn photos. But of course, once Melissa started snapping frames, Taylor's cute smile faded to a grimace, then a pout, and finally a full on melt down.  I was so bummed because we got only one smiling face out of a full hour and a half of pictures!!  Even still, she makes a super cute "Sad Ballerina!"  Grumpy Bunny to Sad Ballerina... I guess that's progress, right?!

 The Sad Ballerina

Thanks for your beautiful work and life long memories, Melissa! Let's hope for more smiles at 6 months!

Time with Mommy

Well, Michael left last week for a 2 week TDY to Vegas.  While he's living it up in 'Merica, Taylor and I are having some fun of our own.  We get to spend lots of mommy/daughter time snuggling, talking, playing, and napping.  She's been really good while Dad's been away, but I can tell that she misses him.  She was more clingy than usual the first few days that he was gone, and I really do think he can sense his absence.  We make sure to send him lots of pictures and videos so he doesn't miss us too much. 

During all this one on one time, I've been trying to figure out who she favors, me or her dad.   When she was a newborn, I think she looked very similar to me as a newborn! 

 Of course, there are also some habits that she's adopted from me too.  Her pouty lip is so cute and 100% me!

 As she grows, I think she looks much more like her father.  What do you think? Who does she look like now?

Finally, a little shameless coaching. She's on her way to saying "Momma!" (Don't worry. I work on "Dadda" too.) 

The Next 3 Years

Mike and I got our next assignment last week!!  Though we thought our time here in Okinawa would be coming to an end this fall, we were informed that we would only be approaching the midway point of our time here.  That's right.  We have been reassigned to Kadena AB and will be here for another 3 years.  We will switch from the 44th Fighter Squadron to the 67th this winter.  At that point we will be a part of the Fighting Cock family.  I would be lying if I didn't say I was a little disappointed to be called a Cockette... but as cousin Emily has suggested, I'm going to try to change that to Cocktails! 

This is not a complete surprise to us. The squadron commander has been talking to us about this for a while now.  It is not common to be assigned here for 2 consecutive tours so this speaks a great deal about Mike.  They like him and respect him enough to keep him around for that much longer! It really is a great opportunity for him and a good move for his career. We are honored to have so many leadership figures pulling for him.  

As for me, I am slightly disappointed that we won't be moving a little closer to home.  It's not a bad thing to stay in Japan.  We have cars. I have a job. We have friends here and the squadron is a wonderful family away from family.  But I do feel very far from home.  I was also looking forward to something new as well.  But to fix that, we plan to move to a new house and maybe even get a new car!

We are looking at this next assignment as our chance to do all the things we didn't get around to the first time around.  We've started our "must accomplish list" and it includes the following:

Go to the Karama Islands (off the coast of Okinawa)

Stay at the private cabin at Okuma military resort (on Okinawa)

Learn Japanese (Lynn)

Go to Thailand together

Go to New Zealand together

Meet family somewhere in the middle for another family vacation

Take Taylor to Tokyo Disney when she's a little older

See Kyoto and Hiroshima

Try new restaurants

These next three years will be a challenge but we will make new friends and continue to enjoy our time in Asia.  All are welcome to visit any time and we look forward to more trips back to the States.  Know that we wish we could be closer and more involved in your lives.  We miss you all!!

Shot, Lynn and Taylor

Giggles from Taylor

Taylor had her first full giggles and we were lucky enough to catch them on video!!

I don't know that this clip needs any other introduction than that.

LOVE HER!!

Splish Splash

Taylor loves her bath!

Just thought we'd share a video of Taylor in the bath this evening.  She already splashes around and gets everything all wet! She's going to be a water bug!

Of course, we couldn't forget to show you a picture of her in her cute robe!

That's My Daughter In the Water

On Memorial Day weekend, Mike, Taylor and I spent a day exploring a new part of the island.  We headed north and stopped at Camp Schwab.  The beach there is one of the few gradually sloping sandy beaches on the island.  We took the opportunity to let Taylor stick her feet in the ocean for the first time!  She handled it very well but was a little confused when water rushed over her tootsies.  The water was cold so we weren't ready for a full body dip, but we can now say Taylor has been in the ocean!!  Check out the video of her first experience with the waves!

Taylor says, "Rock on, Dude! I love the water!"

Happy First Father's Day!

This weekend we celebrated Mike's first Father's Day.  It was a great weekend spent hanging out around the house, going to lunch with friends and showering him with gifts.  He had to spend most of Sunday writing papers for his Masters classes, but he still took some time in the morning to snuggle with Taylor and Rusty on the couch.

Daddy opening his Father's Day card from Taylor.

Mike with both his kids.  

As one more Father's Day gift, Taylor and I came up with this list:

10 Reasons Why Mike Is the Best Dad Ever!!

1. He is a really good snuggler and Taylor loves to nap on his chest, especially when golf is on TV.

2. He is a really good listener.  Taylor loves to talk to him. See the video on this post for proof.

3. He makes Taylor smile.

4. He wears the Baby Bjorn, even in front of his buddies, just because he likes to have Taylor close.

5. He dances with Taylor to her favorite songs when she is upset or sad.

6. He calls her his "jellybean" when she's all curled up like a bean.

7. He gets up in the middle of the night to change her diaper before I feed her just to get a little more facetime with her (and to give me 2 more minutes of sleep!)

8. He loves to dress her up in all her cute, CUTE clothes!!

9. He gives her a kiss every morning before leaving for work.  In fact he gives her kisses all the time!

10. You can see by the way he looks at her, he loves Taylor so much and that love grows everyday.  As a mom, I couldn't ask for more than that! 

Michael, Happy Father's Day! I can't wait for many more to come.  Thank you for sharing in this roller coaster called parenthood with me. It's been so fun to watch Taylor grow, change, and thrive.  She has so many wonderful qualities from you and I can't wait to see how she becomes more like you as she grows. You are a great father!! I love you!