We had day 7 of Miller's "8 day blitz" at her swim school, and WOW. I am absolutely amazed at what I am seeing. Miller went from a little girl who did not want her face wet, to a girl who is swan diving off the side of the pool and swimming under water. If I weren't seeing it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it.
After lessons today, we were invited to swim at the house next door to us. Miller and Colby swam for 2 hours straight, and Miller practiced all of her new skills. She loved swimming to me from the steps and jumping off the side of the pool.
We did have a little....or big...scare at one point. My back was turned to Miller and I was talking to Colby, and I walked towards the other end of the pool. I did not know that while I was walking away, Miller had jumped off the stairs and was trying to swim towards me. When I finally turned around, she was floating in the middle of the pool trying to get to me. I'm not sure how long she had been there, but seeing as how she was in the middle of the pool, she had been swimming for a while. I picked her up as fast as I could, and she sputtered, coughed, and then cried hysterically. She cried for a few minutes and wanted to be held, but then she was ready to get back in. I am trying to teach her to make sure mom or dad is "ready" before she jumps in. I think we need to have a code word or something.
Colby is taking the lessons as well, and he's working on perfecting his freestyle and breathing. He's a great swimmer and loves the water. It's hard to believe that just two summers ago, he was scared of the water and didn't want to get off the steps. Wow, what a difference 2 years makes.
This is going to be one crazy summer at the pool. It used to be manageable, but now with Miller's newfound love of the deeper water and lack of fear, it's going to be full time lifeguard duty for me.
As I was putting Colby to bed tonight, I said "Can you believe Miller is jumping off the side and swimming?" and he said with a big smile on his face "It is SO cool. I can't believe how proud I am." That sentence makes me prouder than just about anything.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
More Summer...
We had a wonderful visit with Nana and Grandaddy. We did a lot of sitting on the porch, a lot of swimming, and a lot of relaxing. We all enjoyed the new rocking chairs and porch swing.
Please come again soon, Nana and Granddaddy!
Colby had his first swim lesson here, and it went pretty well. It's definitely not as good as the old swim school, but then again, I don't think anything will measure up to that. However, it's obvious that the hours of traveling to and from the old lessons paid off....Colby swam a full length of the pool backstroke! I almost fell off of my chair- I had no idea he could do that. Our old lessons were in a short pool, so he really did not get to challenge himself with distance. If he can also swim a length freestyle, he can qualify for a year round swim team in the Fall. They usually don't take kids under 6, but they do occasionally. I guess the real question is if Colby wants to do it....this is where parenting can get tricky because I'm not sure when to push and when to let him make the decision. (however, if I had not pushed at all, he's still be afraid of the water!)
Miller will begin her Morgan Swim school class on Monday. This basically means they will teach her to swim in 8 days....I hear there might be tears, but that it's very effective. I will post an update on that soon.
I just received Colby and Miller's class picture in the mail. We miss our old school, and I think I miss it as much as Colby does. He had a year of ups and downs, but it ended on a positive note.
Miller's class photo was taken on our moving day, and the movers took away the box that had her picture outfit inside. The only thing left to wear was a yellow sweatshirt and jeans. I was so sad that morning when I realized she might look like a boy. And, well, she does look a little androgynous. Oh well! (Whoever took this photo needs to find another day job....I mean, seriously)
Please come again soon, Nana and Granddaddy!
Colby had his first swim lesson here, and it went pretty well. It's definitely not as good as the old swim school, but then again, I don't think anything will measure up to that. However, it's obvious that the hours of traveling to and from the old lessons paid off....Colby swam a full length of the pool backstroke! I almost fell off of my chair- I had no idea he could do that. Our old lessons were in a short pool, so he really did not get to challenge himself with distance. If he can also swim a length freestyle, he can qualify for a year round swim team in the Fall. They usually don't take kids under 6, but they do occasionally. I guess the real question is if Colby wants to do it....this is where parenting can get tricky because I'm not sure when to push and when to let him make the decision. (however, if I had not pushed at all, he's still be afraid of the water!)
Miller will begin her Morgan Swim school class on Monday. This basically means they will teach her to swim in 8 days....I hear there might be tears, but that it's very effective. I will post an update on that soon.
I just received Colby and Miller's class picture in the mail. We miss our old school, and I think I miss it as much as Colby does. He had a year of ups and downs, but it ended on a positive note.
Miller's class photo was taken on our moving day, and the movers took away the box that had her picture outfit inside. The only thing left to wear was a yellow sweatshirt and jeans. I was so sad that morning when I realized she might look like a boy. And, well, she does look a little androgynous. Oh well! (Whoever took this photo needs to find another day job....I mean, seriously)
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Summer!!!
Finding time to update the blog is becoming very difficult. I usually need a good chunk of time, but with school over and camp not yet starting, that just does not exist. I've decided to just post some pictures and not worry about how I'm writing or my lack of creativity....I just need to lay out the facts. So here it goes.
I forgot my camera over Memorial day at the mountains, so everything was taken with my phone. It was the first time it almost felt like a vacation with the kids, and a big thanks to Nan for all the cooking and cleaning she did for us. I didn't get pictures of Homer and Emily or Pop, but they were there, too!
On the first night, we took the kids on a hayride....
And we stopped to roast marshmellows....
And make s'mores.
This boy loves his s'mores!
The next day, we headed for the pool. This is the Summer for terrible photos- Miller has mastered the fake squinty smile, and Colby loves to give a tough guy pose.
Miller loved swinging with Nan. (this happens to be the only photo where she isn't "smiling")
We watched fireworks over the mountains at sunset. Not a bad ending to the day.
In other news, Miller picked out some Dora underwear, which she proudly wore for about 30 minutes until she peed in them. Then it was back in her diaper. We are so scared to force the potty training. A quick look back in the blog reminds me of that!
The kids will begin summer camp at their new school in a week- hurray! We went to visit and met their teachers, and they seem to love it. (Please, Miller, do not say "cheese"....)
I am thrilled with Colby's teacher for next year; I think making him repeat a year of preschool is the right decision. They teach reading and math at this preschool, so he will be challenged. The delima I'm facing is what I will do with Miller when she is turning 5. Do I put her in early and only have them one grade apart? That seems strange. But, she already knows all of her letters and can count up to 25, so something tells me she'll be ready. I know I don't need to worry yet, but it seems like giving kids an extra year can be a really good thing. From what I'm hearing, no one ever regrets giving them an extra year, but lots of people regret sending them young.
Colby is really starting to feel comfortable and make some friends here. In the car the other day, he said to me "I like it here, mom." I almost cried. He has had such a hard time, and it's so wonderful to see him having fun and playing with friends. Our neighborhood has so much going on, and that helps. Every Friday, there is a gathering on the main common area where adults bring food/beverages, and the kids run around like crazy.
Last night, they had a family camp out on the common area. There were about 30 tents set up, and this was ours.
We decided that Lee and Colby would camp, and Miller and I would sleep at the house. Miller hung in there until about 8:30, so we walked home to head for bed. This is the photo I snapped on the way back.
Colby wore his headlamp, so I could see his little light running around from our master bedroom window. He had a blast, and I do not understand how he keeps going and going. He spent 4 hours in the pool during the day at a birthday party, and he ran around last night until 10 PM when he finally crashed, and he was back up at 6AM.
Meanwhile, Miller had another bad dream, and I had to comfort her and tell her that Colby was not, in fact, trying to steal her chocolate cake. Miller has very vivid dreams, and at least once a week, she will SCREAM at the top of her lungs. We always sprint into her room, thinking she has fallen out of bed. When we get in there, she is still asleep and tells us something that has to do with food and her brother. First it was "Colby took my pizza!" and then a few nights later "Colby took my ginger snap!" and then last night "Colby took my chocolate cake!" The poor girl was cursed with a devilish sweet tooth and a brother who taunts her. Of course she's going to combine the two in her dreams for the ultimate nightmare.
That's about all the happenings for now. Nana and Granddaddy are coming to visit this week- we can't wait!!
I forgot my camera over Memorial day at the mountains, so everything was taken with my phone. It was the first time it almost felt like a vacation with the kids, and a big thanks to Nan for all the cooking and cleaning she did for us. I didn't get pictures of Homer and Emily or Pop, but they were there, too!
On the first night, we took the kids on a hayride....
And we stopped to roast marshmellows....
And make s'mores.
This boy loves his s'mores!
The next day, we headed for the pool. This is the Summer for terrible photos- Miller has mastered the fake squinty smile, and Colby loves to give a tough guy pose.
Miller loved swinging with Nan. (this happens to be the only photo where she isn't "smiling")
We watched fireworks over the mountains at sunset. Not a bad ending to the day.
In other news, Miller picked out some Dora underwear, which she proudly wore for about 30 minutes until she peed in them. Then it was back in her diaper. We are so scared to force the potty training. A quick look back in the blog reminds me of that!
The kids will begin summer camp at their new school in a week- hurray! We went to visit and met their teachers, and they seem to love it. (Please, Miller, do not say "cheese"....)
I am thrilled with Colby's teacher for next year; I think making him repeat a year of preschool is the right decision. They teach reading and math at this preschool, so he will be challenged. The delima I'm facing is what I will do with Miller when she is turning 5. Do I put her in early and only have them one grade apart? That seems strange. But, she already knows all of her letters and can count up to 25, so something tells me she'll be ready. I know I don't need to worry yet, but it seems like giving kids an extra year can be a really good thing. From what I'm hearing, no one ever regrets giving them an extra year, but lots of people regret sending them young.
Colby is really starting to feel comfortable and make some friends here. In the car the other day, he said to me "I like it here, mom." I almost cried. He has had such a hard time, and it's so wonderful to see him having fun and playing with friends. Our neighborhood has so much going on, and that helps. Every Friday, there is a gathering on the main common area where adults bring food/beverages, and the kids run around like crazy.
Last night, they had a family camp out on the common area. There were about 30 tents set up, and this was ours.
We decided that Lee and Colby would camp, and Miller and I would sleep at the house. Miller hung in there until about 8:30, so we walked home to head for bed. This is the photo I snapped on the way back.
Colby wore his headlamp, so I could see his little light running around from our master bedroom window. He had a blast, and I do not understand how he keeps going and going. He spent 4 hours in the pool during the day at a birthday party, and he ran around last night until 10 PM when he finally crashed, and he was back up at 6AM.
Meanwhile, Miller had another bad dream, and I had to comfort her and tell her that Colby was not, in fact, trying to steal her chocolate cake. Miller has very vivid dreams, and at least once a week, she will SCREAM at the top of her lungs. We always sprint into her room, thinking she has fallen out of bed. When we get in there, she is still asleep and tells us something that has to do with food and her brother. First it was "Colby took my pizza!" and then a few nights later "Colby took my ginger snap!" and then last night "Colby took my chocolate cake!" The poor girl was cursed with a devilish sweet tooth and a brother who taunts her. Of course she's going to combine the two in her dreams for the ultimate nightmare.
That's about all the happenings for now. Nana and Granddaddy are coming to visit this week- we can't wait!!
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