Our growing girl!

After posting an update on Heath this past month, Reese made it known that she was equally deserving of an update post!

Reese Jean is a week away from 16 months and has made quite a splash of development in month 15. She went from taking a step or two then dropping to the crawl, to now walking and even charging ahead on foot every day, all day. If she drops to her knees, she picks herself right back up to her two feet to move.

She has also introduced the high pitch scream this last month, finding her own voice amidst having a big brother around. It usually comes out when she is frustrated and doesn't have the language to articulate what she wants (that toy) and so she clinches her fists, shakes her whole body and lets out the roar!

Enjoying the horse at the Children's Museum

After the physical growth spurt of walking, her language started to take off in the last week and a half. This welcomed development has limited her scream a bit more as she expresses herself often with sign language combined with words for: more and please. She is trying out any word she can by repeating what we say and to our surprise is executing quite well for: thank you, water, cracker, Heath, Reese, carrot, bean, up, down, all done, orange room. For a girl who up until a year had only been saying dadda and mamma, this past season has been exciting! She has even started to make the connection of needing a diaper change with the sign for potty. When we took the diaper mat out at an event last week she laid down and rolled onto it, welcoming the change! My heart is so hopeful that this girl vs boy thing will make potty training a different experience for our future!

She likes to eat :)

Life updates: Kids, PhD, Job Search

KIDS:
Sunday, February 8th, Reese turned 1!

We celebrated that morning with a family pancake breakfast! She delighted in being sung to.

Her birth day was filled with beautiful sunshine that we enjoyed at the park.

And the following work week I told my pump

we broke up, and it feels amazing.
Reese is still nursing in the morning, when I get her at the end of a work day, and usually once more before bedtime. It's been a positive breastfeeding experience, but I was ready to ditch that pump and at 12 months old now, her diet is expanding daily. She has been sleeping in the kids' room and through the night for the past month and a half now and that has been glorious! Especially fun when they wake up together in the mornings and have self-entertained while mom and dad pretend like we are sleeping a little longer. This is what I found last weekend when I went in.

Reese was climbing all over Heath

Heath was reading her the Frozen book and had the CD playing

They have really been great siblings for each other recently, enjoying in a lot more shared playtime. We still have to explain to Heath that Reese is younger and doesn't understand that she is 'tearing up the airport runway' or 'blocking his racetrack path.' Heath has made up more songs for Reese which she enjoys with a smile, usually a rocking back and forth and sometimes attempts to join him. Yesterday he sung to her "Reese Jean I love you, you are my best girl!" My heart melted.

J'S DISSERTATION
Jonathan is making great progress this semester! He has recently received access to the database he is using for his dissertation (a nice bonus that it is paid for through a research scholarship he received!). His dissertation is 5 chapters and he has the first two 'completed' and progress made on the third. The database will help to fill the content of the remaining chapters four and five. He will have to go before his faculty after chapter three is done and complete another passing marker before the formal defense of the whole dissertation which we expect to be late spring semester.

JOB SEARCH
With J wrapping up his PhD program, his graduate assistantship will expire this May, prompting the 'what's next?' question. Another round of a dual career search for the Manz fam! :) Our field of higher education typically posts and hires through the spring season, February- April for a first cycle of positions posted. Then there is another wave after all those people shuffle and another wave later summer. So we have been bracing ourselves for the roller coaster that is the job search. We have been thankful for the opportunities at Virginia Tech and would welcome if those opportunities for us both continued, but have to be diligent in making this dual job search a broad one nationally.

This year I've been able to co-lead a committee around our aspiration for student learning: Pursue Self-Understanding and Integrity. I was sharing with the committee that it seems a job search places you in the perfect spot to embrace this self reflection in understanding who you are, what energizes you, what you feel called to while also holding to the integrity of applying those inner answers into the roles for which you apply. It would be easy to mass produce cover letters and jump at any job that your qualifications meet, or that the salary seems appealing. I'm finding the quiet reflection time where I listen to my heart and pray for God's calling for our family leaves me in a place of peace much greater than the rat race that is anxiety inducing. It is still early in the search season, but you can hold me to keeping that perspective and not losing focus- on my faith, in my values of family and well-being.

Reese lately

Reese Jean will turn one year this Sunday! Here are a few photos from the last month to mark some happy, growing moments.

She has started to push her feet back on the truck now, moving herself a few feet at a time!

A beautiful sunshine day prompted a family walk, with new winter gear from cousins Dustin and Kristi!

Her top two teeth have been working their way in this month, taking her out of school a few days last week with fever and general crabbyness. This shot was in a pleasant moment of her pj day. 

Super Bowl Sunday, I didn't tell her our team wasn't playing. As we grocery shopped that morning she got to experience her first ride in the 'car cart' at Kroger- she loved it!

Reese's Dedication

Here are the questions that we are asked during the ceremony: The response is  “We do, with God’s help”

QUESTIONS:

1. Do you acknowledge your child as a gift from God and are you here today to ask God’s blessing upon them?
2.  Do you dedicate yourself to raise your child in a way that pleases the Lord, and will you endeavor to share God’s story with them both through your way of life and the sacred scriptures? 3.  Do you today commit to raise your child within a church community, where you can receive the support and encouragement you need to raise them in a way that pleases God and leads them to maturity in Christ?

Life with Reese

We've been a family of four for 3 weeks now and I thought I'd better capture what that's been like before I forget!

Heath is transitioning beautifully to his big brother role. Although his initial meeting with Reese was hesitant, he has quickly come around to self initiated kisses and hand holding and requests to hold her. I've been most pleased with his ability to sleep through any baby noises during the night or afternoon nap. One harder night he was very tired in the morning and I think Reese must have woken him but he never got up or called out for us. 

The day my mom left Heath was sad to lose Oma, but I enjoyed getting my morning snuggle buddy back. The next day he came crawling into our bed like he usually does on weekends, only this time we were a snuggle bed of four! Heath have Reese's head mooches then wanted to hold her hand. So precious. 

Reese so far has been the easier second child we were hoping for, compared to Heath's challenging infancy. She has really only fussed to have a diaper changed or to be fed, mostly to eat though which is an easy need to meet. By night three she started sleeping overnight with a block of stretches time 3-5 hrs, eating then another 2 hrs sleep, then eating and dozing in bed together the remainder of the morning. Pretty fantastic! 

Getting sleep at night has made the biggest difference in this postpartum experience compared to the last. Every day has felt manageable. I was ready and excited to have some outings with Reese after the first week. Many other factors like her 5 hr birth, birth team postpartum support, and placenta pills have all contributed to this being a very positive transition experience for me and therefor our family. 

Feeling blessed.