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Grandparents Fill In While Parents Serve In Iraq

Kathy Waters/Highlands Today

Savanna Weirick, 2, points out Iraq on a map at her grandparents' home on Wednesday in Sebring. Savanna is living with her grandparents while her parents are both deployed to Iraq.

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By MANDY SHEETS | Highlands Today

Published: November 29, 2007

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SEBRING — Every other night Savanna Weirick packs all her favorite things in a stroller and tells her grandparents she is going to Iraq to visit her parents.

"She has a great imagination," said her grandma, Judy Kelly, as she watched her granddaughter play in the living room of her Sebring home.

Judy and her husband, Mike Kelly, or Nana and Papa as Savanna calls them, have been taking care of the 2-year-old since September when her parents, Army Spc. Kairee and Sgt. John Weirick, were deployed to Iraq.

Pictures of her parents in uniform are displayed throughout the house on top of the television, on the refrigerator and even printed on pillows on the couch.

"That's Mommy and that's Daddy," Savanna said as she looked at a camouflage-print pillow with a picture of her parents in uniform looking lovingly at each other. "They're in Iraq," she says before kissing the pillow and setting it back on the couch.

The bubbly toddler, nicknamed Savanna Bean, loves "Dora the Explorer" videos, her "My Little Pony" coloring book and is looking forward to visiting Santa Claus at the mall.

But she has a worldly sense as well. She plays dress up in an Army uniform, has stuffed animals dressed in Camp Liberty camouflage gear and knows exactly where Iraq is on the map of the world hanging in her grandparents' dining room.

"We are just trying to keep her happy and not let her parents disappear out of her head," Judy said.

The Weiricks, who met during boot camp, are in the middle of a 15-month deployment and may be able to come home for a 20-day leave in May.

"We pray for them every night," Judy said. "And we kiss their picture everyday."

Every time the phone rings, Savanna perks up, hoping it's her parents. She even answers the phone "Hello, Mommy," just in case.

"They mostly just want to hear her voice," Judy said about her daughter and son-in-law. "They love to hear her talk and when there is a lull, I start to tickle her so they can hear her giggle. They love to hear her laugh."

Kairee and John set their alarm for 4 a.m. so they can call their daughter about four times a week.

"I think my daughter just about cries if she misses the phone call," Judy said. "It's really hard for them to be away."

Even though the retired couple knew taking care of their granddaughter would be a chore, they said they never hesitated when their daughter asked.

Savanna, who Judy says looks just like her mother, keeps her grandparents busy and on their toes. Although they joke about being old, they are never too tired for a round of "Ring Around the Rosie."

They say the biggest adjustment has been the 6:30 a.m. wake-up call, when Savanna hops out of bed, energized and ready to play.

"It's also a lot louder than we are used to," Judy said, talking over Savanna's babbling. "But she is very pleasant. We are so lucky."

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