Daddy Chain

How do you put a positive spin on deployment for a little girl? How do you turn it into a lesson about learning exactly how "big" one year is? How do you find a way to tell Daddy all the great things that happen each day, when you can't talk to him each day? How do take the daily experience of missing Daddy and make it into daily task that is something fun? My answer, make a Daddy Chain!

Each evening before bedtime, since the day we said good-bye at company headquarters on January 6, 2011, we have added one link to our paper chain. Clara decides each day what to put on it. Obviously, the big things like birthdays, Colton's firsts, singing the ABCs without missing any letters for the first time made it on there. Some days we did something really fun like have a Mommy-Daughter Day or play date or sleepover. Some days the big deal was how many school buses we saw on the way home. Some days it's having a favorite food for dinner or dessert. Whatever Miss Clara deems important that day, it goes on there. It's also been a great way for her to practice her scissor skills and "writing" (things that the occupational therapist in me just HAS to love!). We have links from when were away in Michigan for visits and even added ones while Aaron was home for R&R. Sure, some nights we forget, but we always make it up the next day. And, some days Clara isn't all that into it, so she just tells me what to put on it and I take care of the rest.

As of yesterday there are 240 links to our Daddy Chain. It spans three walls, so far, and is winding its way around the dining room and living room. It's way more impressive in person than it is in a picture. It was also a surprise for Daddy when he came home for R&R. We hadn't told him anything about; it made a nice welcome home decoration. When he comes home for good we can sit down at night and take a few down at a time and review the past year. It will be neat to remember what we did and experience them again, but this time with Daddy.