Swim!

Dax has taken several swimming lessons in the past and had yet to learn anything more than holding on to the side of the pool and kicking his legs while giggling like a maniac. This year we decided to try something different so we enrolled him in private lessons.

He's had four sessions and has already made more progress than ever before. He used to REFUSE to put his face in the water and was terrified of "touching the bottom" because that would mean that not only his face but HIS ENTIRE HEAD would be in the water and that was just unacceptable. It was even a chore to wash the boy's hair, such was his dislike for water on the head and face.

Now he will happily be thrust below the water to touch the bottom or leap from the edge of the pool without hesitation. He's getting better at floating, superman style, on his tummy with his face in the water (and his eyes open). But his biggest accomplishment?

He can float on his back all by himself.

I'm so proud of my little swimmer.

Lumpy Lumperson of the Clan McHive

As I've mentioned here before, Dax has this weird skin condition that causes him to break out in hives at the slightest touch. It is no longer concerning to those of us who are familiar with this tendency but it can really freak people out sometimes.

For example: The other day he had a bit of a collision with someone at karate and got an enormous lump on his head. Only it wasn't really a lump. It was a hive and it went away within 15 minutes. But his teacher and several parents thought he really must have gotten knocked pretty hard so they were impressed with the fact that he wasn't even crying.

Today he took another bonk to the head and got an actual lump but that lump also hived up like crazy so that it was so huge that it actually made his hair stick out in back. Even I had a moment of concern but it is half the size it was earlier and he seems to have forgotten all about it.

The other day at the gym one of the Kids Club employees pulled me out of class frantically explaining that Dax had a horrible rash. She neglected to check his file in which I had them place a note explaining that even his own sweat will cause him to break out in hives. I went on in and checked on him just to make her feel better and reminded them again that they could pretty much count on him being riddled with hives every time he came there since he was both sweating and taking a few bumps while he played.

It's possible he may outgrow this (and I hope he does). In the meantime, it is mostly just a hassle. He isn't self conscious about it and it doesn't seem to bother him other than the fact that sometimes it makes him itchy (and then we give him benadryl).

Of course, if he's anything like I was as a kid (and he most definitely is), he will learn to use this to his best advantage. I'm sure there will be many "Get Out of Gym Class Free" moments ahead.

Mother's Day

I forgot to tell you about my Mother's Day. Not because it wasn't worth talking about. It was. It was a lovely day.

First of all, I got this beautiful gift from Dax. He decorated the pot and planted the flower at school. Now he helps me take care of it.

I also got a handmade card and some weight lifting gloves (which I totally wanted so don't think it was a strange gift). I slept in. I did nothing. It was awesome.

At one point Dax, apparently tired of mommy getting all the special treatment, asked when kid's day was. Cat, wisely, pointed out that "Every day is kid's day!"