Proud of you, Buddy!

Mark: the other night, you attended a sleepover with a bunch of boys from school. We had reminded you before you left that you may call or text us at any time. Even in the middle of the night. We always want you to know that we are available to pick you up or walk you through uncomfortable situations if your morals are being compromised.

So, why were we so surprised to receive a text from you at 2:30am?? We are so proud of you for texting us to ask if you could watch a questionable movie (Tomb Raider). Most kids your age would not have called their parents to get permission...especially in front of a roomful of friends. But you did the right thing. And incidents like this continually build our trust in you. We LOVE you so much!!!!

Brody Update

Reese has learned to count money in school! He came home with a homework page last night, and quickly completed it without assistance! Wow! I am so proud!

Mark was embarassed in class yesterday. And I'm afraid it's my fault. During the English lesson, he felt something weird in his sleeve. When he pulled it out, it ended up being one of Mommy's nylon knee-highs! Ooops! Must have snuck in there during the dry cycle. The whole class saw it and laughed. But, being the cool kid Mark is, he easily laughed along and played it off well. Sorry Mark! I owe you!!!

Marina likes to pull the chair over to the counter, climb up, and raid the snack cupboard! Little sneak! She also has a new fascination with Barbie Princess movies. So, she is constantly asking me if she can watch Swan Lake or Repunzil. Her other new favorite is Charlotte's Web (or as she says, Charlip's Web). She spent her own b-day money on these movies. And she loves when we set up the laptop in her room so she can watch them while she plays.

"Do I hear $250??"

Tonight was the annual 8th grade play/Silent Auction @ Calvary Christian. We've attended the last couple of years. But we weren't planning to go this year. Until....this morning when Mark begged us to take him. "Everyone is going to be there! Pleeease! We just have to go!"

Being that I just melt when my sweet boy begs us to take him anywhere that everyone is going to be.......I conceded, and did what any melting mother would do.........I enlisted Daddy to take Mark. (hehe)

Before heading out, Mark cleared out his wallet and counted his cash. Exactly $20 in singles. He proudly declared that he was going to use his own money to bid in the auction........on lunch with his teacher, the beloved Mrs. K! While we encouraged his determination for such a worthy cause, we also reminded him that there is a chance he could be outbid. But he figured it was worth the effort. So he and Daddy headed out, w/ Mark's very own $20 in his pocket.

I impatiently waited at home to find out how the auction went! Sure enough, Ryan sent me a text message....that Mark was in tears. He had been outbid by $100!!! I wanted to cry with him! There's no way a 10yr old kid can compete with a $100 bidder. It seemed so unfair. Ryan felt so bad for him too. So bad, in fact, that moments later I was receiving yet another text message from him...."I bought a puppy!" What?!?! Yeah, right! Nice try, buddy! "No really, I won the bid for a puppy!" Turns out, Ryan felt so bad for Mark's loss that he impulsively raised his hand to bid on a puppy. The bidding started at $250, and he had been certain that SOMEone would join the bidding. But no one did! So, the puppy goes to Ryan! And to little Mark, too. Who deserves it, I'd say, after all the ups and downs of the past few weeks.....just as long as the poor pup doesn't get thrown in the wash or left on the hood of the car or dropped into the toilet! (You gotta read the next blog post to understand what I mean). Wow. A puppy. Mark isn't so upset about missing lunch with Mrs. K anymore. Altho, lunch with her would certainly put him on cloud 9!

The Fate of the Ipod!

Poor Mark! He has had such a roller coaster week! Our story begins with his iPod-Touch that he had purchased with his own, well-saved birthday money! $250 covered the ipod and the cool black case. A couple weeks after his big purchase, he let his little brother play a game on the ipod. For some reason, little Reese decided to shove the ipod into his jeans pocket. And before the night was over, we realized with horror that Mom had thrown the little jeans into the wash...not knowing that the ipod was in the pocket! By the time we realized this, the load had gone thru a cycle, and needless to say, the ipod was drenched with soapy water. Even behind the screen. It was destroyed. And poor Mark was devestated. Yet he never yelled or lost his temper or blamed anyone. He just covered his face with his hands and sobbed. I felt horrible that I had done this to my kid! It's not like he had left the ipod in his own jeans and tossed his jeans in the wash. He had taken really good care of his possession, and I felt responsible for not checking Reese's pants pockets before washing them. So, I decided I would save up and replace his birthday treasure. But, Ryan decided, instead, to make a trip out to the Apple store and see if they would replace it. Sure enough! They replaced it, no questions asked. Phew! Mark was thrilled!

One week later, Mark brought the ipod outside to show a neighbor kid a song. He carelessly set it down on the hood of visiting Papa Joel's car. It wasn't until Papa Joel said goodbye and drove away that Mark realized he had forgotten to retrieve the ipod! Again, he was miserably distraut at his loss. I gave Papa Joel a call...with little hope that we'd find the thing. As we spoke, he looked out over the hood of the car.....and saw the ipod still sitting there! He had driven miles down a busy 4 lane street, stopped in a grocery store, and continued driving to his hotel....and somehow the rubbery grip of the ipod case had kept it planted on the hood of the car the entire time! So, he hopped out at a red light and grabbed the ipod to bring back to Mark. Phew! Another close call!

One week after that, Mark had the ipod sitting on the sink ledge while he was washing his hands, and oops...it slipped and fell into the toilet. Ugh! AGAIN! He didn't tell us all day until Daddy came home and tried to turn it on (to no avail). At that point, Mark fessed up to his carelessness. Aye! I've about had it with this ipod! It's too much of a responsibility for a 10yr old! And Mark agreed. Ryan didn't feel like it would be honest to go back to the Apple store and try to sucker out of them a new one. In fact, he told Mark that it would be stealing. And I agree. And I was so happy that Ryan chose to be honorable in this instance. So, we've tried all the little remedies that people have suggested....like using isopropyl alcohol to dry it out....and let it sit for a week in dry rice to soak up any addit'l moisture...etc... But no matter what, the thing won't turn on. So, Mark has pretty much counted his loss and decided to move on. I still get a pit in my gut when I think about it tho. Even tho it's a small loss in a huge world of need, I still feel so bad for my kid. :(

Happy Birthday Mark!

My baby boy turned 10 years old this week! That just seems so momentous to me. He's excited to be in the double digits. lol. What a sweet birthday week he's had too! We've experienced record cold weather this week, so he enjoyed 3 'snow days' @ home! On the morning of his birthday, I gathered the 3 kiddies around the breakfast table and we sang happy birthday to Mark. Then he blew out a candle that was in his blueberry muffin. So cute! That night, we treated him to his favorite restaurant for dinner...Portillo's. And Ryan watched a movie with him that Mark has been begging us all year to let him watch...Dark Knight. Ryan and I like that movie, but we hadn't allowed Mark to watch it (even tho all his friends claim to have seen it), because of the violence in the movie. But since he had turned 10 that day, and he is growing up so fast, Ryan decided to let him watch it. Of course, Mark loved the movie, and "wasn't at all scared!" (roll my eyes) So, it was a fun birthday for my sweet boy who has turned a whopping 10 years old! Phew!

"It's a Wonder-Full Life"

I'm finally catching up on my blogging!

We are so proud of Mark! Once again he auditioned for the school play, and this time he landed the lead role! Here's the little guy in action!








Here is Mark with his teacher, Mrs. K. She is one of his very favorite teachers!



I apologize for the poor camera-work. Mommy was trying to film Mark, while handling an antsy 3yr-old Marina. We plan to purchase the professionally filmed dvd for our keepsake...but here's a little taste of Mark's solo from our own (shaky) camcorder.

Stolen Markers & Sharpened Pencils...

Yesterday was quite an eventful day for my two boys.
First, Reese came home from school...strangely hobbling off the bus in front of our house. When he stepped inside the door, he had the look of mischief in his eyes. He said, "Mommy, guess what I have in my shoe." Um...I can only imagine! "What Reese?" At that point, he whipped out a fat, black dry erase marker. "I have a marker!" he declared with a smile. Normally a marker wouldn't alert my mommy senses, but the fact that he had sneakily brought it home in his shoe caused my suspicions to surface.
"Who's marker is that, Reese?"
"Mr. Hayek's"
"Did you take this from Mr. Hayek's desk?"
"Yes."
"Reese, when you take something that isn't yours, that's called stealing. How do you think that makes Mr. Hayek feel?"
Suddenly Reese's face transformed into one of sheer despair!
"Does it make him feel...SAD?"
"Yes Reese, it makes him feel sad."
He burst into tears, and I felt like the rottenest mother ever for pushing my sweet, naive boy to tears. Especially when this was one of the darlingest thing he's ever done! But true to my role as mother, I helped him close his eyes and tell Jesus sorry for stealing. Then I instructed him to give it back to Mr. Hayek tomorrow, and tell him sorry for taking his marker. Again, Reese busted out crying, "But I want a marker!" OK, he obviously wasn't getting the concept. So the issue was dropped, and I swept him up into the tightest, kissiest hug I could give him. He is my sweetest child!

Then, Mr. Mark came home. He was beaming so bright, he could power all of New York City. What was his secret joy?? He waited until Daddy arrived home before he spilled the beans...apparently, when Mark had entered class that morning, he saw that Grace (his 3-year crush; his dream-girl; the one whom we incessantly tease him about. hehe) was rummaging through Mark's desk. "Grace, what are you doing?"
"Oh, I was cleaning up your desk for you. And I sharpened all your pencils."
Sharpened all his pencils?!?! Oh my! You'd think she'd declared her love for him! He melts into the floor everytime he thinks about her sweet, thoughtful pencil-sharpening skills. And, of course, Ryan and I see it as fresh, new material that we can use to tease him! (Mark laughs his head off when we tease him about Grace. And his face gets beet red. It's great!) So, before bed, when we brought the subject up again, we told him Grace must really like him after his amazing performance in the school play. He had the funniest reply! "She just can't resist showing me how much she likes me!" Oh please!!!! Someone please pop that big fat head before it explodes! LOL.

"The Talk"

The dreaded "Talk."
It's enough to incite every ouce of anxiety in a parent, right?

Well, we had "The Talk" with Mark on Sunday night.
Ryan and I thought the time was right because Mark will be entering 5th grade next year. And he will be attending public school. Plus he has lots of guy-friends on his football team and in his wrestling club. With all these other influences, we wanted to make sure WE were the ones to tell him the details, before he heard a distorted version from his friends. And we suspected that once we started probing, we'd find out that he already knew more about the topic than he'd let on.

Sure enough, as we began the conversation by asking questions, Mark spilled the snippets of info he'd heard from friends here and there. It wasn't much, considering the conversation that unfortunately permeates average boys' dialogue these days. But, it was still more than we'd realized he had ingested. So, we took the opportunity to fill in the gaps and explain things the way we wanted him to hear it.

Surprisingly, it wasn't nearly as horrible or terrifying or weird as I had envisioned all these years. When Ryan and I approached it in a very casual, informative way, it helped Mark to stop writhing on the floor with fits of nervous laughter, and he was able to look at us face to face and finish the conversation very comfortably. Of course, I'll never forget his initial response: "Eew! Why would anyone wanna do THAT!?!"

It ended up being a very sweet, special conversation. And we were super proud of some of the wise conclusions he drew without our intervention. An example is when we explained to him the way many guys in our culture view sex. They think it makes them cool and macho if they've been with several girls. Right away, Mark looked horrified and said, "But, that's cheating!" To which we responded, "Yes. That's cheating on your future wife." We discussed the importance of choosing your dates wisely; girls that hold the same values as you and have a common desire for purity. Again, he thrilled us when he decided that he wanted to start praying for his future wife, that she will make right choices, just like he is going to do. What a sweetie!

After it's all said and done, I think we accomplished our goal: to explain the basic mechanics of how it works, to reiterate that it's God's plan for marriage, and to reaffirm the fact that when people don't remain within God's rules for sex, they open the door to ugly consequences. Now, I'm pretty confident that when he hears kids make ignorant comments on the topic, he will be equipped with the truth. I also realize that this conversation isn't the big climax that I thought it would be! It's simply a stepping stone. A prerequisite to many more conversations. And hopefully he will always remember that he can talk to us about ANYthing! Lastly, we drilled into his head that he may NEVER tell his friends or siblings about the things we had just discussed. It is the job of each parent to engage their own child in "The Talk."

Phew! One kid down...2 more to go...

2nd Annual Brody Turkey Bowl

Roughly twenty competitive boys playing flag football in 32degree weather, refereed by some dedicated, fun-loving dads, followed by some warm, tasty cookies and hot apple cider served up by Mom.........Mmm, mmm! That's the recipe for another very successful Brody Turkey Bowl!

This week...

This week was quite a roller coaster ride for Mommy and Daddy!
(Starting from the youngest) Little Marina learned that shoving mini lego pirates' gold pieces up her nose nostrils is very unpleasant, makes her nose hurt, and makes Mommy very upset and anxious. In the process, she also learned how to blow her nose, with her mouth shut. (Thank the Lord, that's all it took to get those things out!)

Sweet Reese learned how to write the letters 'z' and 'w.' He also learned that, if he pulls a chair from the table to the counter, he can climb onto the counter, stand up, and reach just high enough to pull the big blue bowl off the top of the refrigerator. (That is, the big blue bowl that holds the remaining Halloween candy). Hmm...little Sneak!

Marky-Mark has had the roughest week of all. On Wednesday, he fearfully came home and showed me a behavior slip that stated he was to serve a silent lunch the next day...for spitting from up on the monkey bars. Not a huge crime, but still disrespectful and against the rules. So he accepted responsibility and served his punishment. Thursday, he came home from school visibly shaken, with yet another behavior slip. This time, he did something much worse. In an effort to make kids laugh, he had held up his snow glove, and pushed all the fingers down except the middle. I had to read it a few times to let that one soak in. Not MY kid!!! Not at a CHRISTIAN school!!! I told Mark I was going to let Daddy handle this one when he got home from work. And Mark said, "Oh no! That's the worst!"

He started giving me excuses, but I cut him off right away, saying, "Mark, if you start making excuses, you are only going to put yourself in more trouble! You know you were wrong. Just accept responsibility, Man-up and serve your punishment, and then move on knowing that Daddy and Mommy still love you!" So he quietly endured the agony of awaiting Daddy's return home (and inevitable punishment).

Being the wise father he is, Ryan had a very good talk with Mark. We realize that Mark doesn't understand the gravity of what that gesture means. So, I guess you can add that to what Mark learned this week...that sticking up a middle finger is like swearing at someone. He looked appalled when we told him that! He'd known it was a bad gesture. But didn't know HOW bad. Then Ryan reminded him that everyone in the 4th grade will probably hear about this little stunt. And Mark was equally appalled (and humiliated). Today, Mark intends to go apologize to his teacher, as well as his circle of friends, for not setting a good example and for doing something so wrong.

And Mommy learned that she should never think, "My child would never...." because you just never know. What's most important to me is that my kids would know they can come to us when they screw up. Even when they screw up big time. And we will hold them accountable for their actions....but we will also stand behind them and love them no matter what. I hope this instance can be the beginning of that kind of relationship with our eldest son.

Phew! Thank goodness it's the weekend!

The Secret Message

No sooner did I step into my steamy shower today, than a secret message slowly appeared on the glass sliding door. It was a huge heart surrounding the name "Grace," who recently is the object of Mark's affections. Wow! Now that's classic!

Funny thing is...I'm not sure if it was written by our young, dreamy Mark...or by his jokester father who loves to poke fun at Mark's innocent infatuations. Both cases are highly likely. But what I DO know is that it's time for me to scrub my shower! Any bath that can archive a message like that is definitely overdue for a scrub!

O-Town Smackdown

High hopes. Preparation. Dedication. Perseverance. These adjectives describe the Panther White Lightweights today as they entered round 2 of the playoffs vs. Frankfurt. It was their chance to beat this undefeated team after such a close call earlier in the season.

But, yet again, Frankfurt pulled off a win. The final score was 6-0. And thus ends our 2008 season. But what a great season it has been! As parents, we have literally watched this team grow and develop at a rapid pace right before our eyes. And it has been an amazing thing to witness.

Can't wait til next year.
Meantime, we get a couple weeks off. Then wrestling season begins! Which equals more cheering from the bleachers!

More football...sorry!

Mark's team took on New Lenox on Saturday...and they won! The final score was something like 33-12. A very exciting game! That concludes their regular season with a record of 5 wins and 3 losses. Now we have a 'by' week, then on to the playoffs. Fun times.

Since we were all the way out in New Lenox for the game, we decided to grab some lunch as a family, when Mark's game finished, and then we returned to the field to catch the Varsity game (another slaughter win!) while Mark played around the bleachers with some of his teammates.

Lots of football families spend the entire day on the field, as they have several kids on the various team levels. Next year, Reese will be old enough to join Superlight, and Mark will continue to play on Lightweight, which means we will have 2 games to sit thru. Then, when Marina is 6, she will be old enough to cheer for Superlight...and by then Mark will be on Varsity, so we will be one of those families spending the entire day on the bleachers, supporting our kids.

I really don't mind tho. It's so fun to hang out with other football families, and cheer each others' kids on. And it's fun to see Reese and Marina proudly cheer for their big brother. It's also a good excuse for Ryan and I to sit close on the bleachers, like we did in high school, and share a pack of M&Ms or some nachos. lol. Good memories. Good times.

"These are a few of my FAVORITE things..."

The scent of Marky's thick, buzzed haircut. It smells like a cushiony foam pillow mixed with shampoo. The way his freckles dance across the bridge of his nose and his belly laugh when his dad cracks a joke. The way he wrestles with his little brother, taking a beating from the 5yr old that is out for real blood, while keeping his cool and his sense-of-humor at arms' reach.

Watching little Reese sleep, all snuggled up in our bed. His fine silky hair draped across the pillow. The way he scrunches up his tiny, little nose when he laughs. And his shyness that rears its head up when we drench him with tickles and attention and compliments. The way he always busts out with random rhymes from school or quotes from movies.

Marina's chubby little neck that I could kiss on all day long. The way she sets up all her toy animals in a straight line on the coffee table with total precision and care. Her eyelashes framing those jeweled-blue eyes that make me want to melt. Her frown when she's unhappy that can easily be turned into dimples with a quick tickle or swinging embrace.

The Underdogs

As I was sitting on the sidelines @ football practice yesterday, I gained a new appreciation for the sport. Also for the coaches. Mark's team will take on an undefeated team on Saturday. His coaches have reviewed video footage from that team's previous games and have learned their plays and their setup on the line. Like any good coach, they are coordinating our plays based on the other team's strengths and weaknesses.

I was watching some of the creative offensive plays that our coaches were teaching the kids, and I was thoroughly impressed. Usually my attention is on the linemen, where Mark plays. So, watching the offensive guys practice (center, QB, receivers, running backs, etc) was new to me. I was surprised by how much creativity and cleverness goes into those plays. The coaches have to be prepared, sharp thinking, and ready to adjust at every moment of the game. I am so proud of our coaches. As they worked with the kids, I was amazed at how much choreography goes into their movements. Faking a pass, using large movements, being quick and purposeful in every step. It was so fascinating to me.

I'm excited to see our guys take on this tough team tomorrow. We will walk in as the underdogs. We will be underestimated. But, like the last two weeks when we played and beat 2 tough teams, if our guys can be focused and pull off some of these crafty, well planned plays, I really think we stand a chance. We'll see how it goes!

Fourth Grade

Today is Mark's first day of school! He is entering fourth grade at CCS. His teacher this year is Mrs. K, whom Mark was hoping to get.

He is excited to be back at school with his friends. But he is also nervous about the heavy workload. His goal this year is to not talk in class and to be a leader, showing his friends a good example.

Last night, we had some special family time, eating peanut butter cookies and flipping thru Mark's baby albums. It was fun to see how big Mark has grown. It was fun for Reese and Marina to see pics of Mark as a baby. They especially laughed when they saw him in diapers. I guess they never realized Mark was once an infant. LOL.

We started this morning off with a special breakfast with Daddy, out on the front porch. Mommy made 'sunshine muffins' and video taped Mark's remarks as he prepared for his first day of school. Then Mark geled up his hair, put his new shoes on, and went outside for our traditional first day pics. Then Daddy drove him to school. Here's the little stud-muffin himself. So handsome!

Catching Up Part 2

This week, Mark had a rough time in football. He missed an entire week of practice while we were away at camp, and the very next day after returning home, he had to play in their first season game. The team seemed a bit unorganized, and they ended up losing the game. Sad day!

When the coaches reviewed the video footage of the game, they noticed that, among other players, Mark had not given much effort at all! So the following week of practice was like boot camp for the team. The coaches seemed to be on a mission to discipline these kids.

A couple of the coaches took it much too far, in my opinion. I don't mind them being tough with the kids, and working them hard so that they grow physically and mentally as players. But a couple of these coaches were using very raw words and were cutting these kids down personally, including Mark. They were saying things like, "Did you leave your brain back at camp?!" and "Come on girls, this isn't dance class!" and "What's wrong with you?! Pay attention!!"

Once in awhile, a comment like that is okay. But to keep hearing those coaches spewing words like that onto 9yr old kids...not cool. WE don't talk that way to our kids. Why would we let someone else?? What resulted was Mark giving almost zero effort in practice all week, and tears as he came off the field, so frustrated with the coaches, and finally, Ryan having to pull the coach aside and tell him to backoff!

Yesterday was game 2. Ryan and I did all we could to pump up Mark before the game. We encouraged him that this game is a chance to show his coaches that we've been practicing at home and that he's ready to be aggressive and focused out on the field. Mark was excited to get out there and show them. Unfortunately, he never got that chance. The coaches ripped his butt off first string and benched him for most of the game. They told him that if he wanted more gametime, he would have to show more effort at practice.

Again, Mark came off the field after the game (and incidentally...another loss), with tears and frustration. I felt so bad for him. But I also took that moment as a teaching tool.

You see, almost everything has come easy to Mark throughout his short lifetime. School is a piece of cake. He rarely has to study for tests and can easily pull off an A. Sports have also come easy for him. His husky size has made him a great lineman, and a first choice for coaches, no matter which team he's played on. He had walked into football as a 7yr old and was immediately placed on first string defense and offense (something the coaches told us they rarely do).

He then entered his 2nd yr of football, the biggest kid on the team who could almost effortlessly push a line of opposing players back off his QB. Now we enter Mark's 3rd season, which has required him to move up to a greater weight class, with new coaches, bigger kids, and a much greater skill level...yet again, they put him on first string offense and defense, while the rest of the 9yr olds that moved up with him are getting very little playtime.

For the first time, Mark is having to work his tail off in order to keep that first-string status. And he's getting benched for lack of effort. I think it's a very good lesson for Mark to learn. To have to work hard, through heat and muscle aches and shouting coaches, in order to obtain a desired priviledge. Kinda cool.

So, I pumped him up again, after yesterday's discouraging loss, and I told him that this next week in practice is another chance for him to blow his coaches away with his effort. He has the chance to earn his play-time back for the next game. And he has the opportunity to show himself what he can accomplish when he truly gives 100%. Our conversation lifted his spirits quite a bit. But I still didn't feel like it was enough, after such a tough, emotional week.

So, after dinner, I suggested that Mark and I hop in the car and return to the football field to catch the end of Varsity's game. When we got there, it was halftime, so we were able to watch quite a bit of the game. He was so excited to see the skill level those kids were at. As we sat there, he kept talking about what it will be like when he gets to that level. I thought that was really neat. It put a taste in his mouth for greater things, and showed his the reward that awaits, if he will only stick it out during these grueling, rough practices.

By fourth quarter, he noticed some of his teammates playing catch over past the bleachers, and he asked if he could go play with them. I said yes, and quietly sat and watched the rest of the Varsity game alone. I knew that it was probably just as beneficial for Mark to play with his teammates, on a friendly basis, and get to know them OFF the field. That will hopefully build comradery and loyalty, that will translate into even greater effort ON the field. He walked away from that day with a renewed excitement for the game of football, for time spent with his team, and heightened spirits that will hopefully bring him through another week of boot camp. LOL.

Mark's Date w/ Mommy!

Today was a special day for Mark and me. After breakfast, we went out on our usual morning powerwalk. But this time, we left the stroller and the 2 younger kids home with Daddy, who had stayed home from work today to heal from his sunburn! On our brisk walk, I asked Mark to tell me all about the waterslides he'd gone on yesterday at the waterpark. He ended up describing in detail his entire day. And I loved every moment of it.

It's so fun to hear him tell stories from his perspective. He really is a neat kid, and I love to get to know him more and more as he develops who he is.

By the end of our walk, we were dripping with sweat. Good times. We suited up and headed out to Phillip's waterpark. Again...just Mark and me. As Mark patiently waited, I enjoyed every second that I was able to lay on that lawn chair and catch some rays without having to look after little Reese and Rina. Finally, Mark convinced me to get up and go on some waterslides with him. I can't remember the last time I went on a waterslide. Probably pre-motherhood. So, it was pretty neat for Mark to see that I was willing to go on the slides with him. We hit every single one. And I got awfully drenched. Even my hair...which is another rarity for Mark to witness. He and I both savored every moment. Then, we jumped into the pool and practiced swimming for his swim test at camp. It was so fun to splash around and have each other's undivided attention. It was a very fun date w/ Mommy!