First Swim Meet

Caroline has proven herself to be quite the swimmer! She competed in her first swim meet a couple of weeks ago, and ended up capturing the title of Top Swimmer (High Score) in her age division.

Waiting for her first race

We had no idea what to expect going into the first meet. Caroline had been practicing with Sunkist since June, and we knew she could swim, but did she know how to handle herself during an actual race? Shawn and I read everything we could on the Sunkist website, and we tried to prepare her...

"Be sure to swim your hardest all the way to the wall - don't slack up before you get to the end - hit the wall with BOTH hands!"

"Put your toes all the way to the end of the block, and don't jump in until you hear the horn blow! When you hear the horn blow, GO!!"

"This isn't practice. You actually want to beat the person in the lane next to you. Move your arms fast! Kick your legs fast!"

We tried to explain to her what a "DQ" (disqualification) was, even though we weren't entirely sure of what all constituted a DQ, ourselves. (And yes, she did get "DQ-ed" in the breaststroke due to improper kicking. The other swimmers were disqualified as well.)

All of this being said, when it came down to it, Caroline swam her heart out and performed beyond our expectations! She won two of her heats - the 50 yard freestyle and 100 yard freestyle relay. She had awesome times in all of her strokes, i.e. swimming the 25 yard backstroke in 29.52 seconds, and the 25 yard freestyle in 25.63 seconds! (25 yard = one lap; 50 yard = two laps)

When she swam in the 100 yard medley relay, they put all of the age groups in the pool at one time. Caroline swam the first leg, which was backstroke. Shawn and I were amazed when we saw her swimming as fast as the 10-11 year old girls and boys!

We had so much fun watching our baby girl! While it sure was fun playing sports when we were kids, it's a totally different feeling to see our child practice something, enjoy it, and succeed at it. We are so proud of her! The next meet is in a couple of weeks...

Tired, after winning first place in the 50 yard freestyle

SHARK!!

I'm sure my son will kill me one day for sharing this story, but I can't resist, especially after the long months it has taken him to do #2 in the potty. As he did "his business" today, he described his excrement with enthusiasm as it exited his body: "Mommy, it's a snake! It's a snake!"

He dethroned and surveyed his work. I must say, it was very impressive - sorry for the graphic description, but it even came out of the water just a bit.

"Mommy! It's not a snake! It's a SHARK! It's a SHARK!"

I have no idea what goes through that boy's mind sometimes, or how he comes up with the things he does, but that was my entertainment for the day.

Summer Came and Went...

Well, I must say, I've been a terrible blogger. So much has transpired since my last entry, so I'll just hit the highlights...

• We've spent all summer potty training John Michael. As of the last couple of days - literally - he is finally trained. I haven't changed a dirty diaper in two or three days now. WOOHOO!!

• We had a whirlwind summer. We made a couple of fun trips to my dad and Betsy's new house in San Destin, and Caroline spent a week going to basketball camp at East Central Community College.

• Turns out, Caroline is quite the little athlete. Not only did she prove herself to be a quick study at basketball, but she picked up tennis quickly, and also joined the Sunkist swim team, where she is naturally strong and fast. She seems to have grown about two feet in height, and she is pure muscle!! The girl doesn't even realize the potential she has, and Shawn and I are chomping at the bit for her to be just half as competitive as we are! I know, I know...she is only six.
• John Michael is talking and growing - no longer is he a baby. Although I've made him promise me to always be my baby boy. He truly is a joy, and I'll have to post more later about all the hilarious things he is saying and doing right now.
• Caroline decided to give herself a haircut while she was staying with my in-laws over the summer. She wanted bangs and took matters into her own hands. Surprisingly, she did a pretty good job. She cut fairly straight across, but she started too far back, so she ventured too far into the "mullet" category. I was heartbroken because her hair was all one length! But she was so proud of herself, and we've made it work.
• Caroline started first grade a couple of weeks ago, and she loves it. She acts like a miniature adult, and we are constantly having to remind her that she is NOT. One funny thing that happened this week, was a boy in her class told her that she was "hot," and that he wanted to marry her. She was completely nonchalant about it - "I mean, I don't even really like him, Mom. But I guess I'm his girlfriend," she said. "Caroline, what does HOT even mean? Were you sweating or something?" I asked. "UH!! No, Mom, it means I'm PRETTY." Come on...since when should a six-year-old know that?? We've only just begun.....

My Birthday

I had the pleasure of having a girl's night after a tennis match to celebrate my 33rd birthday. What could be better than some Mexican food after kicking some tail on the tennis court?! It was a great way to spend some time with some great friends!

Easter 2010

We really enjoyed spending our Easter with each other at home, going to church at Pinelake, and letting the kids hunt their Eggs and explore their baskets. It was a nice quiet Easter Sunday, celebrating our risen Savior.

First Egg Hunt

John Michael has really gotten the hang of hunting Easter eggs this year. His first hunt was with my Bible study class, and the weather was beautiful! I had to pry him away from the playground when it was time to start hunting the eggs, but once he got the hang of it, he caught on quick! At one point, he walked up to an opened, empty egg. He picked it up, shook it, inspected its empty contents, and threw it back down on the ground. This kid knew what he was doing!

Gathering the eggs, making sure the contents were worthy for collecting.

A boy and his basket full of eggs.

My Favorite Words to Hear

"I wu-jew, Mama."

Translation: "I love you, Mama."

John Michael now says these words unprompted and without solicitation. He doesn't even have to hear me say it first. Isn't this what every Mama waits months and months for their baby to finally verbalize? Yes, he totally has me wrapped around his little finger.