Swim Lessons and Such

We finally joined the Y. Held off for a long time, but finally did it. So that means yoga classes, hot tub, weight room, and swim lessons! We started our first swim session in March. Tommy, Samson, and Dancy all fell right into the swing of it with enthusiasm and joy. Thora and Katie...Katie's swim teacher said she was fearful and nervous, but never gave up and got over her fears. Thora needed some emotional coaching from me squatting right at the poolside. What really pulled her out of it and got her to brighten up was saying that I'd take pictures and videos to send to Lori!

{Thora, Samson, Dancy}

When we got home from swim lessons, Thora had to call Lori, of course. And even though I gave Thora my room for quiet, she had to come be where everyone else was and demand that we be quiet. She may be 4, but once a threenager, always a threenager.

Um, I know it's this thing that parents are super biased with their kids, but she's adorable! Dancy (5) fixed her hair. Right after this picture, she turned to the map and identified Australia as Austria. So I took the opportunity to show her European geography connected to composers that would excite her: Austria (Mozart), Germany (all the Johanns: Brahms, Bach, Strauss), Czech Republic (Dvorak), Italy (Vivaldi), France (Bizet). I missed Norway (Grieg) and Russia (Korsakov and Tchaikovsky). She got giddy with glee that they're all neighbors and "Little Einsteins!!!" She's one track away from having that CD mastered.

We had Samson's birthday party and apparently I took zero pictures. But here's tidbits: When he and I were planning, I asked him who he wanted to invite to his party. "Brittany...Zaki because he's my best buddy...Ruth...and Coltyn because he's my best buddy...Ruth because she's my best girl..." Now, let's back track a little. Who is Brittany? When the kids were at Ruth and Coltyn's in February, they all got together with Ruth's friend Brittany, who happens to be one of Lori's best friends, and I know her, too, from growing up together at church. So when my kids came back from Ruth's and were all excited to tell me they went to Brittany's house and I was confused, they clarified, "You know, she's LORI'S friend!" And I actually did understand. Samson loves her enough that she made the top of his invite list and he still talks about her. So, back to the list now. I asked if he wanted to invite Grandma. He hesitated, then declined because he doesn't like her pillows. I said, "Well, she wouldn't bring her pillows..." Then he approved her to come to his party as long as she didn't bring her pillows to ruin everything!

So we had his birthday party at our house again because it was warm all week until the weekend, just like last year. We planned zero activities and just let everyone enjoy each other's company and lunch. Not each other's lunch. Just lunch. We had my mom, brother Jake and his wife, Amber, Brittany, Shad's parents, Ruth & Coltyn, and local friends Hiram & Aly and their kids Hailey and Spencer. Baked potatoes, brownies, and a little bit of football with a foam ball. When you're 3 and you skipped your nap because you were partying hard all day for your birthday party and you end the night by staying up late to have a movie night with your sisters. He hardly stirred as I lifted him from the couch, carried him upstairs, maneuvered him into the bottom bunk, and pulled my arm out from under him.

Ha! Different day. The boy fell asleep with a pony tail in. It was funny.

And then one night during dinner, I turned to Shad in exasperation and asked, "Why can't kids be functional at eating?!" His response: "Because they're DISfunctional."