Must be something about August. I remember feeling this way about this time last year too -- not long after Kates and I had learned we were going to have a baby and we started sorting out the changes in our lives …
Here we are again. Kates is preparing to start another school year -- her eighth! -- and we are both looking forward to get back into something of a routine …
We’re also optimistic -- and sort of bracing -- for what could be a year of more changes. We have no idea what lies ahead of us … But then again, who does, really?
Stay tuned.
* * *
Phoebe survived her first week of daycare … Though Thursday apparently wasn’t so good. Pheebs spent much of the morning screaming and refused to eat, an odd behavior that’s come up here at home recently, too. Eventually, our caretaker placed Phoebe in her car seat; that worked and she took her bottle there …
Phoebe also began gripping things this week. … The developments are so small, but there’s no way we could have known any of this stuff was so exciting without experiencing it. Over the last few days we’ve watched in wonder at her take a hold of her bottle and hold onto some of her toys -- if only for a few seconds. Tonight, as she sat in her bouncer, we watched her pull on a bear hanging overhead … But perhaps the most fun has come in watching her pull out, play with and replace her pacifier …
I also discovered a new game with her last night as I was playing with her after work. Holding her under her shoulders, I started swinging her from side to side in the air like a pendulum and saying “tick, tock.” … She started laughing heartily and was loving it …
Those are the best moments lately, when she gets that huge, toothless, clown-like grin on her face and it melts the rest of your crazy world away …
Another good time, we took a nap together on the couch this afternoon -- while watching the Saturday baseball game.
* * *
The other highlight of our week? … How ‘bout these Beijing Olympics!?
I’ve often said I’m a bigger fan of the winter games, and therefore, didn’t expect to get very excited about this summer’s games … We didn’t even bother watching last weekend’s opening ceremonies -- though we had plenty of other things to worry about …
Then Kates and I happened to turn it on Sunday night. We got sucked in and there was no looking away …
We caught that amazing 4x100 freestyle relay race on Sunday night -- and remained in awe on Monday as everyone was talking about it and calling it the greatest race in Olympic history … Heck, we were in awe all week as Michael Phelps won gold after gold after gold -- right on to tonight. Kates and I have just watched the U.S. win the 4x100-meter medley relay, securing Phelps record eighth gold medal and his place on a list of Greatest Sports Accomplishments -- ever. The dude’s pretty remarkable. ... Though, I will say, it also was amusing to watch NBC piling on the pressure and drooling over the idea of him actually winning all eight gold medals as the days passed ...
Meanwhile, we just heard, with tonight’s race, the swimmers have broken an unheard of 20 world records this week -- so many were falling so fast that earlier this week it seemed like every news channel was airing segments about why the records were falling, with the space-age swimsuits, the architecture of the Beijing “Cube,” even the special wave-swallowing bouys in the pool …
In addition to Phelps, we’ve gotten to know names like Jason Lezak, Kirsty Coventry, Natalie Coughlin, Aaron Peirsol, Christine Magnuson, Rebecca Soni and Dara Torres …
And we got to know Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson. We couldn’t stay up long enough Tuesday night to watch the U.S. battle China for the team medals (I agree: those Chinese girls look way too young ...), but we thought we could make it through all of the individual competition Thursday night … It didn’t happen. Kates and I parked ourselves on the couch, prepared to be there into the wee hours of the morning. But Kates barely made it through the first rotation, and I, barely being able to hold my head up when the contest started, was out before the third rotation …
I woke up just as Shawn Johnson was finishing her floor routine and saw Nastia fall into her father’s arms after learning she’d won the gold. Kates woke up for a few moments to see the screen and say “Nastia did it, huh?” before dozing off again … Fortunately, I was coherent enough to turn on the DVR, if only to record the post-competition interviews, and actually got the early morning re-broadcast of the entire competition … Watching it later, the whole thing still gave us chills …
A couple other things …
I would have shrugged you off a week ago if you told me I’d be watching the sand volleyball. But Misty May and Kerri Walsh have been darn exciting to watch …
And who knew a marathon could be so mesmerizing … But I watched almost every minute of tonight’s run from Tenemen Square to “The Bird’s Nest.”
I’m sure I’m forgetting to mention things … How can next week get any better?
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