What's been happening ...

Annie wrote this email to the Popper and Jomomma yesterday, it's a nice summary of what's been happening.

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Hi Beth & Popper,

I haven't chatted with you in a while so I thought I'd catch you up on what's been going on here.

We are still in the clutches of Old Man Winter. 2 inches yesterday. It's getting old. I'm glad we invested in a new snowblower last year. It's really come in handy.

Jeff has been gone most of the month, and is home mostly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Training seems to be going well for him. He really prepared ahead of time and is now on the last big simulator segment. He brings his own food down and is still eating healthy and getting lots of exercise. He left yesterday and will be home on Sunday for a week.

The kids are good. Not sure if you remember, but they are all taking music lessons. This 20 something, rocker type guy, comes over to the house on Wednesdays and teaches Peter -electric guitar, Kurt -keyboard and Erik -Ukulele. He was here earlier today and they are all sounding good. Kurt doesn't want to keep up with lessons, but we told him he has to go until school is out.

Kurt's wrestling ended a couple of weeks ago. He had a pretty good season and seems to not be interested in winning a medal, only a trophy. He's got quite a collection! He says he's planning to go at it again next year. Baseball is the next big sport for him. Jeff bought him some private coaching lessons for Christmas and he's been going the past couple of weeks. They start official practices the 1st week of April. Hope you can make it down to a game. He lost a tooth today at school. His teeth are only loose for a day. He can't stand it and pulls them out.

Erik continues to thrive. Physically and in school. He's really growing up! He and a group of 4 other boys competed in a speech tournament last weekend where they did a 7 minute skit about boys trying to have something similar to a "Girls Night Out" because they thought they were missing out. It was hilarious! They practiced really hard and memorized their lines. I have it recorded, maybe I'll try to send it to you. He's been doing gymnastics twice a week and can do amazing tricks on the trampoline. He'd be doing more at home if it would stop snowing!

Peter just finished swim team last weekend. They had a big party at the YMCA. He enjoyed it this year. He didn't make the goals set by Jeff to win a Go Cart, but he says he wants to swim again next year. For his birthday he got some running shoes, a bike helmet and triathlon clothes. I think Jeff is hoping for a training partner. I wish I could tell you that school was going good for him. He is failing Algebra (35%) and has C's in at least 4 classes. We have a meeting with the school next week to make a plan for him. I also have an appointment with a psychologist to give him a Neuro psych evaluation to determine if he has ADHD or any other learning disabilities. I'm not sure myself if I think he has it, but it would be good to know for sure, and they could help us figure out a little more about how Peter's brain works (visual vs audio learner and other things). He seems to have made some connections with friends this year and looks forward to catching up with them at lunch. One friend took him to the Auto Show on his birthday weekend. Another joined Ski Club with him and they went on a couple of trips together. Peter moved into the basement bedroom. All the boys are in their own rooms now.

Don't forget Jake. He's recovered pretty well from knee surgery. He's been inside most of the winter except for quick walks on a leash to take care of business. This past week, we have let him go without the leash in the yard. He's ready for spring squirrel chasing. The injury added a few pounds to his body. I can't believe our 35 pound rescue dog now weighs 80lbs!

Everyone is getting excited about our Spring Break trip to Cocoa Beach, FL. We're going to fly to Orlando next Thursday and stay for a week. We're planning to buy a used van to replace our current one while we're down there and drive it home. Jeff will have to go back to Dallas for a couple of days during the week for International training, but he should be able to help drive home (I hope).

Where are you? When are you planning on coming home? Catching lots of fish? Bike rides? New friends? We miss you!

Love,

Annie