It hasn't been long since Chris left but my sisters, Sophia and I have been busy! Like I said earlier, it has been a great distraction having my sisters here but I also know the importance of keeping Sophia in her every day routine. I have noticed that her behavior has been a little different and I think that's from a combination of things. She has always been a stubborn little thing but in the past couple of days there have been a more tantrums and episodes where she kind of just pouts when she doesn't get her way. As my mom said, this is the age for all that but I also think that she's probably feeding off of my energy and notices that I'm a little different. I woke up this morning ready to start anew. I've given myself a couple of days to be sad and mopey and now it's time to make a conscious effort be strongER and not let the fact that I miss Chris affect the way that I act towards Sophia's tantrums. This is where acting as a single parent gets draining but as Chris and I talked before he left, we find it extremely important to show stability in the way we react to Sophia. For example, only raising the voice when something is extremely important or beneficial to her health/well being. That way we hope to instill in her patience and understanding not to sweat the small stuff! The girls have been amazing as well...I truly believe that they are so mature for their age. They are strong when they know that they have to take something away from Sophia and really don't take her screaming personally. I know that she already misses Chris...heck she misses him as soon as he leaves for work in the morning. We have a few random toy phones around the house and she's been calling dada ever since he left. One of her favorite things to do is find pictures of dada around the house and blow kisses to him. We said goodnight to dada last night with a recording that I made before he left and prayed for him as we said our goodnight prayers.

On a much lighter and happier note, Annie, Sophia and I went on a walk yesterday morning and saw a lady setting up for a yard sale. From accross the street I saw a Tiny Tikes toy kitchen complete with stainless steel appliances, a water dispenser on the fridge, a microwave, oven and even a bread box. The lady told me she was selling it for 25 bucks! Needless to say, I bought it and Sophia has been having a BLAST! As she starts to move more into her 'make believe stage' I think this toy kitchen will be perfect. I love that as she gets older, cooking and hanging out in the kitchen will be something that she does with me and this toy kitchen is the perfect way to start! I also can't wait until Chris and Sophia can play with it together as he seems to lose all sense of being a 'big tough marine' when he's playing with Sophia. I love it! :)

I've got another week and a half of hanging out with my sisters and not too long after they leave Amanda and Chris will be flying out to stay with me for a week! Before I know it, a month will have gone by and i'll be that much closer to having my best friend back.