All the Cool Kids are Doing It

He Must Have Heard Me

Because at 11:24pm he called and we talked on the phone for a whole 30 minutes! He's fine. Now I'm fine. Now I have to go read People magazine and try to figure out what is going on between Katie and Tom. Ew. G'nite.

???

I hate it when I don't hear from Bill. The last time I talked to him was on Sunday afternoon. I know that he's eleven hours ahead, and sometimes he's sleeping, sometimes he's working, sometimes the power goes out, sometimes the communication lines go down because a Marine was hurt of killed and the next of kin needs to be notified before anyone is allowed to talk to anyone else (keeps the rumor weeds under control). There's been a lot of tragedy within my husband's unit. He's on the front lines. Well, he isn't, but the unit he's with is, so of course my mind wanders. As I was playing with the kids before bedtime, I thought I heard the phone ring, but I wasn't sure. I checked the caller ID when I came downstairs and noticed that my KV had called. KV is short of Key Volunteer. To become a military wife you have to take Acronyms 101. Ok, not really but it sure would be helpful. Anyway, the KV is my point of contact with the CO (Commanding Officer or head honcho of my hubby's unit) So then my OCD mind flies off without me on all sorts of tangents and I have to chase it down the hallway reminding myself that if something bad were to happen, the Red Cross would call, not my KV and if something REALLY bad were to happen, two men would show up at my door and then I would turn inside out and my mother would have to raise my kids because I would be in a home. Anyhoo, my KV called to verify personal contact info, talk about upcoming events that are going on with the unit and to see if I'd be interested in joining a prayer group for these guys, cause really, what else can you do when they're in harm's way but pray?

It's been four looooooooooong months since he took off for Iraq, so Bill, if you read this, EMAIL ME!!! 'k, love ya!

Color my World

While reading last night, Trey wanted to extend the whole process of me being in his room by going over every little detail in his book. He came to the page with the rainbow on it. "Wook mommy, a wainbow!"
"Yeah, I see that."
"Thewe's wed, owange, yellow, gween, bwue and po-po"
"Purrrple"
"Po-po"
"Purrrrple"
"No, mommy, not purple, violet"

Brat.

Rhyme and Reason

Here's yet another reason why I love my husband. He has written some wonderful things to me in iambic pentameter, silly rhymes and things that are slightly corny but I love them all the same. He is, shall we say, politically opinionated but what Marine isn't? He's gained quite a following thanks to Robin. If you're interested in what one Marine's thoughts and views are on the war in Iraq, go pay my hubby a visit.

The Week Ends

The company I keep is, well, gone. Bill's mom and dad left uber early this morning and it's just us chickens again. We had a fun little week of outings here and there. Mostly, I was able to get away without the kiddos. Woohoo! I am so spoiled. This week is going to be hard. Are you sure I can't just leave them home? I'll be sure to put up baby gates and a bowl of water until I get back.

I've been on a quest to find a new bathingsuit. I'm sure you know the joy in that. I've never had much of a problem finding one I like. I guess I hit the season at exactly the wrong time, as in, after the major department stores are getting new shipments and before places like Marshalls and Ross get the leftovers. I've been to: Kohl's, JCPenneys, Macy's, Nordstrom, Robinson's May, Sears, WalMart, Target, Marshalls, TJMaxx and repeated a few of the bigger stores. I found one I liked at Macy's and wouldn't you know it, it was way out of my price range. $80 for a bathing suit? Ok, I would pay that price before I had kids and before I was married. I paid that price back when my paycheck wasn't going towards anything pressing but the desires of my heart. But now, there's the whole food, utilities, car issue. Can't justify it. For over a week I searched for a stupid bathing suit that I can get muddy. Finally, when all hope was lost, or so it seemed, I headed back to Kohl's (which is only about a year old in our area) and found it! AND it was 50% off. How do ya like them apples?

After my quest was complete we actually went out and DID things. Thursday, we headed out to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. They have a new lion enclosure where you can be about an inch away from their faces. It's so cool to be so close to a lion without the fear of having your face eaten off. There was a pretty big group of kids all up in Miss Lioness' face that day and she didn't seem to care. An ocelot was on the other side of the display and she was lickin' her chops in anticipation. Trey wasn't too interested. What's wrong with that boy? A lion! Right there! I finally got his attention when I started to compare and contrast the lions with our cats. Whatever works, right?

Friday was our beach day. My inlaws rent this supercute condo right on da beach so we were able to walk with all of our gear. That's a good thing when you consider babies+sand+carseats. Not fun. If you ever head out to the beach, take baby powder. It will get that sticky sand right off your feet. Swear! My son is a little water baby when it comes to the ocean. He's terrified of the pool, but the crashing waves, rip currents and sealife have no hold on him. He goes right in, gets knocked over, and keeps on going. Don't ask, I have no idea what his little brain is doing. Leah spent the afternoon hanging out under the shade of the umbrella, luring all the little boy babies over. She was supercute in her pink bathingsuit and grass skirt. Wouldn't you want to come over and say hello?

Now we're back to the normal stuff. I have more than a week's worth of laundry, bills to pay, stuff to do. But hey, there's only 98 days till Bill gets home!

100 Days

For those of you counting (Judy =Þ) we are down to 100 days before Bill gets home. I'm not sure I'll make it. When he went off to war in 2003 he was home after four months. When the whole thing started, we had no idea how long it would take, so four months was great! We knew it would be seven months this time, give or take a week. S-E-V-E-N M-O-N-T-H-S. That's a long time to be away from someone you love, and actually really like to be around. A lot has happened since he's left and who knows what will take place before he gets home. Here's some things I'm betting on:
*Leah will master walking
*Leah will have at least two more teeth
*Trey will start a new preschool
*We will celebrate nine years of marriage
*We'll have lots of days at the pool/beach
*I'll do a load of laundry every day and still not be caught up
*I'll say goodbye to a good friend after her six week vacation here as she heads back to the home the Marine Corps has given her
*I'll be spending lots of time with my best friend until she heads back to the home the Navy has given her.
*Perhaps I'll wonder why my friends and I all ended up with these service men that drag us around the country and are called to leave at the drop of a hat.
*I'll lose my temper with my kids and then hug them tight
*I'll sit in a blow up pool with my son and daughter and eat popsicles and not care that they're dripping all over the place.
*I'll try to clean my office...again
*I'll make many trips to Costco
*I'll make more to the commissary
*I'll make an effort to watch all those silly reality shows coming out in July
*I'll pack up another care package to mail out to Iraq
*I'll scour the Oriental Trading Company catalog for patriotic items to decorate the house with for Bill's homecoming
*I'll start to plan the welcome home party, our weekend getaway and Trey's fourth birthday party which all happen within three weeks of each other.

Then, I will sit down with a nice glass of Pinot Grigio and wonder how the heck I got where I am today.

Sing with me to the tune of "100 bottles of beer on the wall"

100 Days till Bill gets home,
100 days till he's home
You get thru one
Now it's done
99 days till Bill gets home...

Happy Father's Day

Bill,

We are so proud of you and we love you so much. Happy Father's Day to the best Daddy in the whole wide world. We can't wait for you to come home!




Bill & Trey (2 mos)


Daddy's Little Slugger


Trey 12 mos.


Leah, brand new




Daddy's Little Princess


Yes it's true...We're all nuts.


Four More.


Proud Marine, the night before heading off to Operation Iraqi Freedom III




<


Forever thinking of you,
Jen, Trey & Leah
(oh yeah, Mozart and Autumn too)

So, What are You Doing?

Thanks to everyone for all of your thoughts, prayers and well wishes. I've been able to chat online with Bill a couple of times since the whole ordeal which has given me a small sense of comfort. For those of you who don't know, my husband is attached to a grunt unit i.e. the guys who are always in the news because they do all the physical work during a war and lets just say they know how to use their assigned military equipment. My husband is NOT a grunt. He's an admin guy. He does paperwork. He's the one who presents these guys with reenlistment paperwork, or discharge papers. He's not a fighter. My husband turned down a full scholarship to college to join the Marines. It's been his dream for most of his life. Yeah, I don't get it either. BUT if he hadn't joined, I never would have met him and had my two beautiful children and my very best friend. He wasn't always a paper pusher. He used to be one of those Marines you would see marching in the Rose Parade every stinkin' New Years Day. Eight years of concerts and performances and gigs and brass quintets and parades and so on and so forth. I thought anything would be better than the musicians erratic schedule. What a silly little woman I was!! But hey, the band goes to war too. You think I'm joking? I'm soooo not joking. They returned for their second turn in Operation Iraqi Freedom before Bill did. Who knew?

So, I'm looking upon one of the busiest weekends of the year. My verybestfriendinthewholewideworld is moving down this weekend. She'll be here for the summer while her hubby attends a class down in San Diego. I'm so happy she's going to be here. She currently lives up in the Bay Area and it's horrible not having her here to just meet up for lunch or hang out and drink coffee together. My inlaws are also flying in tomorrow. They'll be here for a week to help me entertain the youngin's and give me a much needed break. I think the piles of my hair all over the house may be an indication that I'm a bit overworked and just a wee bit stressed. The third thing on the list for tomorrow is that we have some family friends coming down from Moreno Valley which is about two hours north of here. My mom's best friend that she's had since seventh grade, her husband, their son, his wife and their two kids will all join us at my house tomorrow. And guess what? I still have to clean. So why am I not in bed so I can get up and do that tomorrow? Because there is an invisible force in my monitor that refuses to let me go.

On Sunday, we will go to church during the eeeeaaarly service (9am...how in the world did I drive an hour to make it to a 7am class during college?) in order to be ready for lunch by noon. My grandpa and his wife are driving down from the Los Angeles area to meet little Leah (hey, it's only been a year) and my in-laws will join us and since it's Father's Day I should probably throw my dad into the mix there somewhere as well. My parent's have been split up since 1985 so the whole family lunch thing on Father's Day may be normal to you, but to have three father figures in one room, at the same table, where no one is getting married or has died is kind of unheard of in my world so I felt the urge to share this with all of you.

With all of this cleaning and planning and family togetherness coming up I am off to stretch out in my glorious bed and read one of the 47 Parenting magazines I have waiting for me on my nightstand and hope and pray that the kids don't wake up before sunset...for any reason whatsoever!

Remember...

Please keep my husband in your thoughts and prayers, along with the rest of his unit. It's been a difficult 48 hours for them. Eight men will not be returning. They've made the ultimate sacrifice. Remember their families during this horrible time.


**************************************************************************************
Killed Wednesday when an explosive detonated near their vehicle near Ramadi, Iraq; assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

• Marine Lance Cpl. Jonathan R. Flores, 18, San Antonio
• Marine Cpl. Jesse Jaime, 22, Henderson, Nev.
• Marine Cpl. Tyler S. Trovillion, 23, Richardson, Texas
• Marine Lance Cpl. Dion M. Whitley, 21, Los Angeles
• Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Cesar O. Baez, 37, Pomona, Calif.; killed Wednesday by small-arms fire in Iraq's Anbar province; assigned to 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

Reason Number 468 Why I Love Costco

I have a love/hate relationship with Costco. For starters, it will always be Price Club in my head. Why the name change, people? I remember being dragged to this dark, cement warehouse as a kid by my parents. There was only one store in the whole area and it took a year and a half to drive there. Or, translated from seven year old brain: 30 minutes. It was boring, there was nothing cool to look at (who cares about a 5 gallon container of pickle chips?) and it took way too long to finish whatever it was we were doing there. And then, I saw it. In all it's pink splendor. It was--The Barbie Dreamhouse. Oh, how I ached for that plastic mansion. Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleeeeeeeeease can I have it? It's oooonly $50!

No.

Puhhhleeeease???? I'll do anything!

No.

But moooooooom!

Noooooooo.

Costco, you evil beast you. Dragging kids in and then not letting us get the only thing our little heart's ever desired.

A few years later I ended up being the stationary point in the frozen section while my dad and step-grandma ran around the store getting stuff for a huge get together. Let me tell you what a barrel of laughs that was. They told me how wonderful it was to have me just stand there so they didn't have to worry about manuevering a monstrous cart around the aisles. So glad I can be of help.

As an adult, I know the value of a dollar, or at least that's what I tell my mom. For some reason, I love to have things in bulk. Some psychologists would say that people who were in risk of doing without in their childhood, or lacked certain basic necessities growing up tend to be Costco junkies. I never went without necessities but times were tight for a few years so I love to see six toothbrushes ready to go when I need them and plenty of toilet paper stored in my garage. I love the fact that they are so inexpensive and have no problem buying "Kirkland", or Costco brand. I may not remember a whole heck of a lot from college, but the thing I do remember in all of my business and CEO classes (yeah right, like I'd ever be a CEO, hahahahaha) is that generic brands are often manufactured by name brands and sold to the store so the big guys can still make a profit while the consumer saves by buying store brand. Paper towels, toilet paper, baby wipes, contact solution, batteries, antibacterial kitchen wipes, juice boxes (manufactured by Hansen's), tortilla chips, luggage: all Kirkland brand. And now....the best of the best and the whole reason for this post:

Costco has started carrying.....

Diapers! Kirkland brand diapers that are just as good as Pampers and I got a box of 284 for $29.99. Oh yeah, baby. That's a whopping 11 cents per diaper. Better priced than Wal Mart. I'm doin' the happy dance.

Now, if Costco would start carrying Downy wrinkle release in gallon form, I'll be even happier.

What Will They Think of Next?

Sunday morning as I was getting ready for church, I felt the familiar rumbling of an earthquake. Cool! Earthquakes have never scared me and my first thought was, 'if this doesn't quit soon, I'm going to have to stand in the doorway'. I know, I know, standing in a doorway protects you from an earthquake as much as baby oil protects you from the sun, but it's what I was taught at a young age and it stuck. My second thought was, 'Hey! I have two babies downstairs. I should really make sure they're ok.' This is the first time since Trey's been born that I've felt/have been awake for an earthquake and haven't had to deal with their safety in these circumstances before. It was over fairly quickly so no worries. They didn't even seem to notice that anything had happened and now the mystery as to why my cat made a mad dash through the house, wide eyed and bushy 30 minutes prior to the quake made sense. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law were back at their hotel and I had to call them to see if they found the earthquake to be as exciting as I did. "Did you feel that?!"
"Yeah, what was that?"
"THAT was an earthquake!"
"Oh! Hey mom! We just experienced our first earthquake!"
Ha! Rookies...

It was deemed moderate by the experts, measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale. It was generated out in the desert, about three hours from here and apparently was felt from Los Angeles down to the U.S./Mexico border.

Tonight being Tuesday, was my night to pack the kids up in the car and head over to mom's for some sanity and good cookin'. We had the tv on and all of a sudden the annoying weather alert/testing system pops on the tv with it's chalkboard scratching 'eeeep eeeeeeeep's when I see "Tsunami warning..." What?? Did I just read that right? Tsunami? Certainly that can't be here. The ticker goes by again. "The following counties are in effect for a tsunami warning: San Diego County..." What in the world?? There was a warning from San Diego all the way up to Vancouver, BC. Hmm, that's a pret-ty big area to be warned. Good thing my mom lives on the upper floor. The news reported that there had been a 7.7 earthquake off the northern coast of California and there was a threat of another natural disaster. At first this just struck me as bizarre. And then it became comical. My husband is in a foreign country where people want to kill him and here I am 'safe' at home and about to be washed away by the great Pacific. Alanis, anyone? "Isn't it Ironic..."

So, the warning was canceled and the coast is still here. The state is still attached to the rest of the country and everyone is fine. Visitors joke that we have no seasons here in California, and we joke back, sure we do: flood, fire, earthquake & drought. Well, now we have five seasons. Tsunami!

Party Perfection

The Princess had a Royal Bash. This little girl is so spoiled and she has no idea. We had a great time. The house was decorated in pink tulle, pink princess crepe paper, pink, white, and purple balloons and pink flowers. Do you see a theme? It's to make up for the fact that there will be a Pirate party here in October. Aaarrrgh!!

Leah did what every normal one year old does at her party, she slept through the first half. I had the older kids make princess (or wizard) hats out of craft foam and foam stickers. It was a lot of fun. I think the adults enjoyed making their princess hats as much, or more, than the kids! Bill's mom and sister had such a great time with it that they will be sporting them as they walk off the plane today when they arrive home. Yes, our family has a strange sense of humor.

Leah can move out of the house now. She's ready. She has two upholstered chairs and a couch, a kitchen, a horse to use for transportation, a new phone and a full wardrobe. She's ready to go!

Trey had a great time "helping" Leah open her gifts and is having even more fun helping her play with everything. I was worried that he would take over and not let her play with her own things, so I've been watching him very closely. This morning, after I got the play kitchen out of the box (yes, it's out, Teresa!) they were sitting together, cooking when I see Trey fall backwards. Apparently, I have to watch my little princess more than the boy. At least she's learning to get what she wants, I suppose. Yeah, that's it.

The entire week has been gloomy doomy for my Ohio family to enjoy. Now that they've flown home, the sun is shining. Unreal. Hopefully it will stay nice for when Bill's mom and dad come out on Saturday. They have a supercute condo that they rent right on the beach (can you say 'jealous'?) so hopefully they'll get to enjoy it and maybe we can even take the kids out there once or twice.

Now that it's Monday, the party is over, the house has been cleaned, messed up and cleaned again, my eye has finally stopped twitching (a sure sign of stress) I must get back to my normal life of laundry, dishes, diapers, more laundry and grocery shopping. Oh the joys of motherhood.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Baby Girl

From the time I found out I was having you, I wondered who you would become. I was amazed all over again at what God can do to create such a complex little person. Would you be a carbon copy of your dad, just like Trey? Would Trey love you as much as I already did? Would you be a girly girl, or one of the guys who just happens to have fabulous shoes? Would you grow up to be so-very-tall like your momma or be blessed with recessive genes and be more on the average side? What color are your eyes going to be? Are you going to need your first haircut at 13 months like your brother? Are you going to have a hard time learning to nurse, like he did? Who are you? What am I going to name you? I've had Leah picked out since 1996 but now I'm not so sure. The bigger you got, the more I loved you. Trey was so excited to have a baby sister and your daddy was a little aprehensive about having a little girl in the house. Silly daddy.

I expected to go through all of the same symptoms of labor that I did with your brother: cleaning the window sills with a Q-tip, having regular contractions, being generally irritated. I didn't even realize that I was nesting when in fact I very much was. I started dinner and in the middle of cooking I decided that we needed brownies for dessert. Not boxed brownies, brownies from scratch! I didn't pick up on my little symptom and neither did your daddy. That night I had a dream that one of our friends who is a midwife decided it was time to check me and that I had dilated to 5cm. Ha! Wouldn't that be nice? We had our appointment with our midwife the next day and I told her about my silly dream. I mean, there was no way, and it was 6 days before your due date. Trey was late, I knew you would be too. Well, Cdr Black was very excited about my dream and decided she was going to check, just in case. Guess what, little one? I was in fact 5cm! She told us to walk around for a couple of hours and then come back to bring you out. Um, well, that would be great to walk, however, I have to pack!

When we came back, I was admitted to a room right away. I still was not feeling a single contraction. It wasn't until I got to 6cm that they started to come in with enough force that I had to stop and breathe. Instead of trying to be SuperWoman like before, I asked for my epidural nice and early in order to catch Mr. Anesthesiologist. What a difference a good anesthesiologist makes! THIS time, it actually worked and laboring was actually pleasant. There were several contractions that we missed the pushing opportunity on because we were all too busy yakkin' it up to notice. Finally, we got down to business and the doctor put his hazmat gear on and got in the catching position. I pushed like a pro. There's some things your body doesn't forget how to do. When I saw your little head I started laughing and it was so hard to try to finish getting you out since I was giddy with excitement. In a matter of seconds, there you were, on my tummy. You were so warm and tiny and beautiful with dark hair and slate blue eyes. You looked like Trey. I couldn't believe my little princess was finally here.

You have been an absolute joy. You are such a mellow, sweet baby. You are starting to get your moments as you head into your second year, but the nursery workers at church still fight over who gets to have you first. You miraculously are average in height and weight which makes me so happy. No 95% baby this time around! You hair is dark, like mine, and you have beautiful grey eyes. You and Trey are the best of friends which is every mother's dream. This year has flown by. It's so hard to believe that you've been part of our family for an entire year. There are so many exciting things to come, and this past year has been a year of exploration and development for everyone. I thank God for you every day.

Happy Birthday Leah Noelle! We all love you and are so thankful that you are here!

Leah
Originally uploaded by Jen in San Diego.

Priorities

It's Tuesday morning, 10am. Bill's mom and sister will be here in 24 hours. I should not be online blogging. I should be cleaning my house! My little princess turns one on Friday and her birthday bash is Saturday. The house must be in tiptop shape for all of her wellwishers. Here's what I've done sofar:
*Cleaned/organized the garage (it doesn't make sense, I know. It's just one of my 'things')
*Dishes
*Cleaned the kitchen
*Cleaned the family room
*Started on the dining room

Unfortunately, she spiked a fever of 103 yesterday and it's not too easy to get a lot done with a sick baby in the house. She's still her usual sweet self, but with a little more clinginess thrown in there. Here's what I still need to do:
*Finish the dining room
*Clean the living room
*Clean the utility room
*Do the floors of the entryway, downstairs and upstairs hall along with the stairs themselves
*All the bedrooms
*All the bathrooms
*The office
*Order the cake
*Pick up goody bags and whatever it is I'm going to put in them
*Buy the rest of the food I'm going to be serving for Saturday
*Pick up the helium tank on Friday
*Figure out what the heck I'm going to do to entertain the older kids at the party

Anyone who would like to take a quick vacation to San Diego is more than welcome to stop by and help me out. There's free cake! I'll even let you take a balloon home and tell you which beaches to go to, and which ones to avoid and maybe thrown in a free meal at In-N-Out, after all, that IS what a hamburger is all about.

Ok, off to grab my swiffer and some pixie dust.

You Had me Worried there for a Second

I just got today's mail. It's 10pm. Amongst the junk mail and campaign fliers was an envelope from my husband's state of permanent residence, indicating that we finally got our state refund. Wait a minute. This does not feel like an envelope with a check in it. What now? I need this check to pay off furniture I bought to put in my house and I need it asap because once July hits, my carriage will turn into a pumpkin and I will owe JCPenney aheckuvalotta money if the interest is calculated in there, which, I'm trying to avoid hence needing the refund now.

This is what they basically said: Jen, you have no idea what you're doing when it comes to filing state taxes, especially when it's not your state. Leave the tax forms to a professional. Yes, your attempts were good. However, you are not a CPA. Stick with your day job. We're decent folk here at the IRS and even though we had to correct a few things, you're getting more money than you thought you would, but we're going to take about three more weeks to get that to you.

Works for me! Good thing I have a couple of shows scheduled for this month so I can cover my pumpkin butt until we get our *new* check!

Let me tell you a tale, a tale of a fateful trip...

My dad has a pool. This was a very cool thing to have growing up when I was there on weekends. It didn't matter that it was January and 45 degrees outside. If we wanted to go swimming, we would. That's what the fireplace is for, right? To warm our crazy little bones after we couldn't take it anymore. The pool also acted as a popularity booster to my step-sister. Oh, but we could see right through those kids. They still came over and told us stories of how the previous owners would just let them come over and use the pool whenever their little hearts desired. The fence would be unlocked and they could come and go as they pleased. Well, those times are over buddy! We spent hours, day and night in that hole in the ground. We tried to figure out a way to sleep on one of the rafts in the middle of the pool without being caught. We were never successful.

Fastforward ten years. All three kids are grown and out of the house (a step-brother is in that equation). That poor, sad pool has been neglected. It was still maintenanced but no one would swim in it's sky blue wonder. We were all too busy or had moved too far away. Six years later I had a one year old and decided it was time to reconnect with the patriarch by using the pool. It makes sense in my head! We bought Trey a little wetsuit with those big floatation bricks sewn in. When he had that suit on, he looked like a buff little body builder since it made his arms stick out to the side a bit. Bill had the day off so we decided to bring the boy to the water and show him what grandpa's was all about. He loved it. This child took to the water like he was meant to be there. Bill and I had to tag team it since we were tired of the pool way before our little man was. For two hours we took turns floating him around, splashing, bouncing and every other "ing" you can do with a toddler in the pool. Finally, it was time to get out. Silly parents. What are you thinking. Begin screaming. My son can outscream any girl to this day. He carried on so loud and so long my dad came out of the house wondering what we had done to this poor child. He screamed as we took off his suit. He screamed as we said our goodbyes. He screamed all the way to the car and half of the way home until he finally fell asleep. We decided that there was no way we could take him to the pool without each other for support and he hadn't been back until last week for fear of the "episode". Now, my son was not water deprived. We live ten minutes from the beach and before we moved into this house, we were maybe a mile from the water. The kid was at the shore: a lot. The sand is a good distractor from the water so the screaming wasn't an issue. But, back to the pool we go.

This Memorial Day was unlike any other in that it wasn't raining! It was a beautiful day and I decided that instead of staying home and feeling sorry for myself since my husband wasn't home to grill burgers and hang out with me that I would call up dear ole dad and invite myself over to swim. My step-sister has since moved back in with her little one so there's an excuse to see the baybee. Trey had his handy dandy life vest to keep him afloat and Little Leah had her cushy floating ring to keep her busy...and alive, while I got Trey into the pool. The kid sat on the steps. For a half hour. Until I pulled him off and made him hang on to me while I went around the pool. What happened to my water baby? He'll run out into the waves like there's no imminent threat of drowning and being pulled out to the depths of the sea by a rip current, but don't you dare make him move off those steps of the pool, especially while he has a life vest on! He held on to me for dear life. I put him back on the steps and showed him how I could be uber cool and dive into the pool. "I wanna do it mommy!" What?! How can you jump in the water if you won't even get in? So, I took him to the deep end and he stood on the side while I treaded water trying to convince him I would catch him. The only way he would jump in is if I held his hands. Do you know how difficult it is to tread water and hold hands with your three year old while he's standing on the side of the pool? It's not easy. After a few tries of that, a little convincing and me saying that there was no way I could hold his hands anymore without drowning (I didn't tell him the drowning part) he finally lept into the water without hanging onto me first. He never went under and it took a lot of convincing for him to kick while I pulled him along but at least he didn't scream this time!

Where was Leah this whole time? Suffering from second baby syndrome in the shallow end, hanging out in her little floaty with my sister and Leah's cousin. There's a whole lotta summer left so I'm gonna make my son a fish if it kills me. How's he gonna learn to surf if he can't swim?