Haiti Bound....

As many of you may have heard by now, Matthew is Haiti bound as of Thursday night. His ship, the USS Bataan, is heading south to provide food, fresh water, (his ship has the capability to produce over 100,000 gallons of fresh water a day!) medical assistance, and ground support. When he got the word yesterday, we were both pretty bitter and disappointed that he would have to leave again so soon after returning home from his seven month deployment. Today we've both made an effort to be a little less selfish and to focus on all the good work the Bataan can do to help so many in need.

Matthew was told to bring enough personal supplies to last for three months but we're hopeful that they will only be gone for 4-6 weeks since his ship was scheduled to pull into the yards for repairs in early February so they should be given priority to come home once some other ships arrive to help with the relief efforts.

It's been a difficult day for me... I still have a lot of pregnancy hormones running rampant through my body so I'm super emotional and have done a lot of crying today, but I know we're going to get through this somehow. Thankfully my parents are here through the beginning of February and Matthew's parents will be in town to help out as well until he returns.

In other news, Hank and Ally are both doing great! Hank was at the doctor on Tuesday and has almost reached his birth weight again! I visited with an awesome lactation consultant again yesterday afternoon and was reassured that things are going really well this time around and I got the okay to quit waking Hank for feedings at night! :-)

Ally continues to amaze me with how well she is handling this transition! She loves to get Hank a pacifier and try to plug it into his mouth, she gives him sweet gentle kisses, and runs to his side if he starts to cry. We're so proud of her and couldn't be more pleased with how well she's dealing with all of this change and upheaval in her little life.

Since a blog post is never complete without pictures, here are a few recent ones.

Hank & Daddy

Hank getting his first dose of tummy time

A lazy morning on Mommy & Daddy's bed

Ally and Daddy saying goodbye before leaving for Haiti

So sweet!

Daddy, Ally & Mommy... it was too cold outside for Hank to get out of the car!

Ally checks Hank out during tummy time

Surprisingly his ear doesn't come off like Mrs. Potato Head!

Some extra lovin' for MoMo

As always, thanks for checking in on us. We'd really appreciate any positive thoughts and prayers in the coming weeks- for the millions of Haitians that are homeless and missing loved ones, for Matthew and his shipmates - that they would be able to make a positive impact in the Haitian relief efforts, for Matthew handling the separation from his two favorite kiddos well, and for me to find a way to handle two kids on my own while still giving them each all the love and attention they deserve! Thanks again!