little hearts

Teoman and Tomris have started watching TV.

Screen time started before this.  With the iPads and iPhones - listening to music, Face-timing their Baba or relatives.  Later, playing some simple games.

Slowly it grows and gets out of control. Now I'm to the point where I would hide all my electronics if I didn't need them to talk to Tolga everyday.  Tomris takes the phone or iPad and presses the home button, then presses all of the app buttons - and because she's one-and-a-half - she presses the home button again, before the app even opens.

I went to school the other day and found she had deleted my grade book from the iPad.  Thankfully it is constantly backed up on iCloud so it didn't cause any problem - but that's the effect of her pudgy little finger incessantly tapping.

So I allow them Paw Patrol - an innocent ten minute show about pups that do rescue missions.  Teoman has also found Dora, which I'm not as fond of ... Dora has to get away from semi-scary things sometimes: snakes in the cactus, alligators in the river, Swiper the fox ... I'm not sure these are so healthy.  But when one of them saws Paw Patrol, they both run to the couch, sit back on the cushions and wait expectantly.  Tomris used to call it "Double", but now she says something like Paw Patrol - aw rol, I think.

They are such good friends, and it is so precious to see.  It has been hard, and Tomris still needs me too much for me to manage them both sometimes, but it is getting easier already too - just because of the fact they can play together, and Tomris will even play on her own too.

Our dear children.

I talked to my parents on Face Time.  Teoman now always says, "Hi Gramps! How are you!"  and Tomris said "dar-ful damp!"  Careful Gramps.  It's her new line when somebody is driving.  I think Teoman learned it from me, and now they both tell me when I drive too fast - its like they can sense when I'm driving mad, pulling out too fast because of how another person was driving.  They are like my conscious reminding me of the cargo in the vehicle.

I took them to church today.  There is a chapel on the American Base.  The chapel - technically is for any religion because its lead by the Navy's chaplain - a spiritual guide for the soldiers of any faith.  But their services are generally non-denominational, and the congregation is American.  The chapel is inside the American Base, which is inside a Turkish military base.  I have to go through to checkpoints in order to go to church.  The first is the Turkish one - they check my ID and my license plate to see whether I'm approved, then under my car, hood, and in my trunk.  I drive into the base to another checkpoint that has cement barriers raised from the ground that are hydraulically lowered once I pass the "100% ID check".  Inside the base is the chapel, a school, a grocery store and a mini-Walmart.  Okay, it's not Walmart, but that's the closest I can get to describing it.  The stores have American goods at discounted prices - but you need a special ID/pass to shop at these places so I can only look longingly at their maple syrup and Reeses Pieces and cheap electronics.  The grounds are clean, with a park, a playing field, and a track.  It's empty on Saturdays and the luxury of the grounds feels like America.

I went to church early today so the kids could play in the park. The playground is well made which can't be said for most Turkish playgrounds.  The weather was beautiful - 60 degrees and sunny - and we were the only ones playing on the playground.  My mother or brother-in-law would have come with me, but ironically, they can't come to church.  I have to get their name on the list to enter the base, and I haven't done it.  They would come for the park, but not for the church.  It's so American ... which I'm pretty sure is NOT what church is supposed to be.  But that's another topic.

When Tolga comes with me, he was the one who pointed out to me that he was the only Turkish person there.  Except the nursery - they have one hired Turkish woman who helps out.  Teoman and Tomris were so happy to be outside, running in the sun.  They weren't as excited to go to church, but once I got them in, and think they were curious about the singing and the people.  They also enjoyed the crackers and peas I brought for them to snack on.

After the worship, I brought them to the nursery for children's church.  I've only been there three times in the past month - maybe six times over the years, but they are already eager to get me in the rotation for children's church.  I only recently began dropping the kids off at children's church because I want to see the kids in a different environment, see if I can leave them and how they will manage.  Teoman does really well - according to those watching.  He listens, drives his cars, and participates.  Tomris follows.  The first time, she was happy the whole time.  The last two times, they have had to bring her back to me.  She was sucking air from sobbing so much.  My dear girl.  I told them to ring me today if she cries.  I think they wait some, and try to get her past whatever it is that sets her off -- but she's pretty stubborn and when she wants her mama, there's no changing her mind.  They rang me today, and I stepped out of the chapel right away.  The kids were playing outside and Teoman was leading Tomris away, holding her hand.  She was sucking air from sobbing.  The helpers told me how sweet Teoman was with his sister - telling her not to cry, that he was there, giving her a flower and patting her.  My dear boy.  I picked her up and she stayed with me.  I couldn't go back into the church because she wanted "Milk!"  Her comfort these days.

I took them out to eat after church and went to the market.  I fed them M&Ms to keep them sitting in the cart while I got the few things we needed.  Tomris fell asleep at one point, but by the time we got home, neither wanted to sleep.  We played and Tomris got more and more fussy, so I had to put her to sleep.  I had bought stuff for borek and my mother-in-law offered to make it.  Teoman went to the table and said, "I want to eat borek!"  It wasn't ready yet, but he heard and knew what it was, and apparently his little heart had a craving for it.

I put them both to bed early.  We watched an episode of Paw Patrol on the iPad.  They fought over holding the iPad until I was able to set it up on a pillow and convince them both to leave it be.  Teoman fell right asleep after the show, Tomris wasn't ready - she tossed and turned and tried to get up.  I was close to giving up with her, but she eventually settled in a slept on me.

My heart is so full.