Ethan on TV .... Strange But True

Click on the title above to see my younger son provide some advice for swimmers in shark-infested waters.... well, not totally shark-infested, but you'll get the point.  You have to wait a bit for it, and the clip doesn't show off the abs he has been working so hard on, but that's okay.  Still fun to see your child on TV!

Mighty Mom

A close friend from college. We saw each other and caught up a bit at reunions, but she didn't share this latest accomplishment:

Coach Diana Caskey Featured as 'Mighty Mom' (Video) - GoColumbiaLions.com—Official Web Site of Columbia University Athletics

Wow! Hopefully she will understand my bragging about her a bit .... so Proud!

The Funniest Friggin' Thing

Had a great laugh this morning.... watching Matt Lauer trying to keep a straight face as he did follow-up on the story that Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston are now engaged.

According to Us magazine, Bristol and Levi have explicitly stated that they believe in abstinence and are currently living apart until they get married.

Holy Alaskan Crab, Batman! This Palin family just keeps on coming, with more real-life tabloid fodder for ridicule than previously thought possible.

We can all believe Bristol when she says she was afraid of her mother's reaction to her and Levi's new pre-marital status, but does she really think it's normal to have marriage counseling prior to getting married?! And does she really believe "Ricky Hollywood" is going to clean up his act by going to college and getting a real job? And who does the Governor ... er, ex-candidate for Vice President of the United States ... think she is fooling when she says in her statement that Bristol, at 19 years old, is now an adult and entitled to make her own life decisions which she will support? (Completely rhetorical question.)

I bet John McCain sleeps exceedingly well each night, without any regrets about not getting elected. Can you even imagine?

Breathe In, Breathe Out

What exactly do you do when your youngest child begins to leave the nest?

Some of you may think ... "Yippee!" Other readers will immediately think, "It will never happen." Some mothers will no doubt also feel "I could never send them away at such a young age." Others will start researching the subject and buy books like "Dates For Empty Nesters."

With my youngest at camp for almost a month, my reaction to her departure and absence has been mostly a combination of the four sentiments above (yes, I did buy the book; almost completely stupid, but not totally). When we said good-bye to her at camp two weeks ago, we did so hastily and without emotion or regret. It has been abundantly clear every step of the way that this particular camp has Loads of experience in all things related to children's emotional development, as well as parents'. The counselors are clearly instructed on how to best handle parent-child separation, as they are able to quickly capture the children and hurry us parents off-site without being rude. The counselors do this by having pre-scheduled swim assessments, job assignments, and meal departures that occur regularly and en masse. In other words, we barely hugged good-bye, and the ride home was easy.

The rest of the week fell into the "Yippee!" category. More time alone with my other children (probably to their utter dismay, truthfully), more time for things like reading, working out, cooking and working, and of course, more time for ... sleeping and other adult activities. The first week was fun, really. While the house was definitely much quieter, the difference was somewhat welcome and not completely disheartening.

Week Two was a completely different story, more in line with "I will never let her leave me again." The house became utterly and totally barren; a grown-ups' wasteland.  True, we still have the dogs, but they aren't noisy unless you're outside with a ball, and the Quiet became completely distressing.  My anxiety over my children's growing up and leaving home became palpable. By the end of the week I felt myself growing increasingly anxious, and increasingly worried about Julia. We were able to talk to her only once.  She said she was having a great time, had received our letters and care packages, and was loving archery and water skiing.  Then she asked us to be at Visitors' Day as early as we possibly could.  Not a good sign, or so I thought.

When we got to camp and saw her, we were totally amazed. She was Completely and Utterly Happy! She looked so grown up -- it looked as if she had grown at least two inches; she knew every campers' name and called to them as we walked the grounds; and she was so confident about her place at CCSC that she was already making plans for next summer.  She was so obviously and genuinely happy that she left us in a bit of a daze. It was as if she, and we, couldn't have been more delighted at her own good fortune to be at this particular camp. She and I were almost in tears, of course, when we saw each other; she hardly left our sides throughout the day; and she dashed over to give us one last hug before we left. But, she clearly was happy to have 1.5 more weeks at camp, and was happy to see us go so she could prepare for the camp dance that evening.

I was amazed. I'm not usually that surprised by my children, but Julia's happiness and growth was something that completely surprised me. The only way I can understand my surprise is to realize that sometimes you have to make a genuine effort to see your children through others' eyes. This was the first time I did this with Julia, since I hadn't seen her for two weeks -- the longest we've ever been apart. Perhaps it takes distance and separation to view your children with an unbiased, unjaundiced eye. I know this has been the case with my older girls, as I'm repeatedly delighted by their happiness and personal growth when they return home for visits from their own homes far away. My pride in Julia, and my niece Charlotte, combined with my excitement in seeing them make a transition to becoming part of the World, began to outweigh my sadness in seeing her grow away from us.  Of course, I also began to realize that now Julia will likely want to enroll in a boarding school (hopefully close by), study abroad (eventually), and marry someone from a foreign country whose environs entice and excite her (which her father, actually, would totally support!).  Exciting stuff for all of us, though tinged with the inescapable sadness that she will never be the cute toddler we chased through the house or that crawled into our beds during a thunderstorm.  Just as I am (almost) totally distressed that I will now forever be the shortest one in my family .... ugggh.

On a Side Note:

On our way home, Bill and I listened to a program called "The Moth" on NPR (I was driving, and driver gets to choose, mostly ....). I'd never heard it before, but was an instant fan. "The Moth" is a storytelling collective, where famous and not so famous people get onstage around the country to test their storytelling skills and relate a personal story. I was particularly moved by a story from rapper Daryl (Run-DMC) McDaniels about his relationship with Sarah Maclachlan and her song "Angel." If you have time, it's definitely worth a listen; like a great short story, it's something I will never forget. I tried downloading it here, but could only do the entire episode so did not. If you're interested, you can find Episode 204 of The Moth by clicking HERE. I'm not sure that everything happens for a reason, but when you hear his story, it makes you wonder.