catch-up

I must start for apologizing for my absence in blogging. The last month has been quiet and busy all at the same time.

Champ finished swimming lessons for the year. He did exceptionally well as he shows no fear of water (good and bad). He will put his face underwater, jump and blow bubbles, but kicking and paddling are a little beyond him still. We will continue to work on that this summer. The good and bad of the lack of fear is he loves the pool, but will just jump in or dive in unafraid. That means mom or dad must be always nearby to scoop him up. The swimming lessons will continue through the years until I have full confidence in his swimming abilities.

Champ's school has also "transitioned" which means that the children all move to appropriate aged classrooms. Champ will not move until he turns 2 (end of summer) so some classmates moved up and new ones joined. The new students have been former classmates so he was very excited to re-connect. The first day his note home said "Champ and Amelie had a great time kissing each other all afternoon." That's right my not-quite-2-year-old has a girl friend. Each morning he gets in the car saying "Ami". It's funny how the two of them have been apart for 4 months, but the attraction has not faded. Ami's mom has even told me the two hug each other each morning. For all those who know this is actually Champ's second girlfriend. The first one at 8 months old, but she moved to Colorado last summer. We are in for serious trouble over the next 16 years!

We have also traveled and hosted visitors. We took a long weekend to Austin and had a great time with friends. Jeff went cycling on a route he wasn't quite prepared for and the hills of Austin proved to not let him down. When the cyclists wandered in soaking wet and a little sun burned, we knew it had not gone well. After some rest and fluids, he and Taylor looked quite a bit better. The rest of the weekend was nice and relaxing, just as we had hoped for.

Fortunately both of our parents have been able to visit within the last month. Jeff's parents stopped in with a business trip and enjoyed a day with Champ. He had a little flare-up with his asthma that didn't allow anyone to sleep, but he recovered. I have learned that toddlers do not make for good hosts. Living in a small house is wonderful except at 2:00 am when someone is screaming. The problem with small children is that their only communication is crying and illness is frequent and unpredictable. On to my parents visit...My parents, smartly, took this trip to stay with my brother and his wife. No small children, nice restful sleep. However 3 blocks away, teething kept Champ up every 2 hours, by 5:30 am he was ready to go. Fortunately nothing more serious, but Jeff and I did need sleep the next day.

Also a huge thanks to my parents, as the weekend of their visit Jeff and I got called into work. They were gracious baby sitters and even allowed Jeff and I a night out for our Anniversary. Yep, it's been 8 wonderful years, so Jeff only has 42 left in his promise.

And finally a new little guy update...both he and I are doing well. My belly is growing and Champ enjoys the opportunity to kiss his "baby brother" (my belly). We still have not finalized on a name and don't have the first thing ready in the house. The final trimester has begun, so the countdown to his arrival is clicking along.

All my love to all and thanks for keeping up with all of our ramblings.