My little fish's update...

I have posted a swim update every few months since it has been the one area that Cole has seemed to struggled with. Every session (12 weeks in length) he has made progress but this summer has been a breakthrough few months! He finally seems at ease and his limbs seem to be working with him as he coordinates his strokes rather than against him all willy nilly.


I have sat and observed for the better part of the past year as he attempted valiantly to keep up with his swim mates. He loves being competitive and he was frustrated that he wasn't going as fast and often tearful that his teachers had to keep assisting him. You could see as he got into the pool each week he was excited and ready to go and yet 10 minutes into class he would begin grimacing when he couldn't keep up. I had him begin practicing his arm movements in our big bathtub back in May and at some point he realized he was improving as he would practice without coaxing and the result was that his muscle memory began to kick in during lessons. His endurance has grown too which has helped him as well since he still has to work harder than the others. He now gets through the entire 30 minutes with a smile on his face. You can see he isn't "thinking" as much about his strokes, they are coming more naturally.


See below for videos of him doing both front and back stroke.

Front Stroke/Swim Lessons July 2012 from David Denham on Vimeo.

Back Stroke/Swim Lessons July 2012 from David Denham on Vimeo.

See ya at the lake...

This is our second summer with our boat "Time Out" and "she" truly is living up to her name. We have thoroughly enjoyed hopping on the lake almost every weekend, venturing out to find a quiet cove for my guys to fish in or a calm bay to float/swim/splash, getting away from the hustle/bustle of our daily routine.

It has been a HOT few weeks so Mr. Tucker has not been able to join us as often. Being in the water is fine but the boat deck just gets too uncomfortable for him as his brown coat soaks up the sun's rays despite the half-shade of the Bimini top.

We have acquired quite a few boat "toys", noodles, chair floats, water guns and the like but this year we decided it was time for a towable as Cole is strong and tall enough and he is swimming so much more confidently. So we bought a sturdy two-seater tube that serves as both a place to lounge and a place to ride. It has been a bit of a test to find the appropriate speed and angle that Cole is okay with. Too slow and he is putting his feet up to go faster, too fast and the fear shows immediately on his face. We cannot drive the boat on a straight-away for extended periods so having to circle is inevitable and hitting another boat's wake or a rogue wave makes the tube tip and dip which much like a roller coaster can make one's tummy do the same.

Mimi, Gunnar and Cole have ridden and Mimi was fearless, she would have gone 30 mph. Cole adores Gunnar and was all smiles as he sat next to him whirling around the lake. That is, until they both signaled to go faster and the tube hit a wake and out went Gunnar.

We recently took our next door neighbors out on the lake for the afternoon and Cole and Jesse had a blast riding together. Debbie and Jesse went for a couple of spins and then Dave and I got to ride with Jesse behind the wheel, he gunned it trying to dump us. Eventually, Dave went overboard (twice). I held on, LOL!

We are looking forward to several more weeks of "swimmable" days and realize how lucky we are to say "See ya at the lake..."

Batter Up...

The past six weeks we have had a calendar full of seasonal fun, fishing, boating, play dates, camping, backyard sprinklers, ice cream, and bike riding! Our evenings have been defined by swim lessons, soccer practice/games and T-ball (no practice just games).

No doubt, Cole loves to play with our various media devices, that is just part of the activity that his generation is growing up with but simply put Cole loves to move (like someone else I know, LOL). With him communicating interest in playing sports, he has had a busy summer trying some new things and doing a body good. Cole has learned a lot about teamwork, sportsmanship, and dedication and has gained an appreciation for what it takes to be a part of something.

He began T-ball the same week as soccer last month. The games each Wednesday are played a stone's throw from our front door in the park 50 yards away. His team is the Dodgers and they wear light blue t-shirts and hats sponsored by our local grocery, CUB Foods. Each week, he has excitedly put on his uniform and inquired what team they would be playing against.

T-ball with five year olds is even more comical than soccer with five year olds. The first few weeks, no one remained in position as they would all run for the ball. There are no outs, everyone gets multiple chances to bat so those kiddos out in the field after 5 minutes were bored, digging holes in the dirt, purposely kicking up clouds of fine dust, looking anywhere but from where the ball could be coming from. There were some close calls with balls whizzing by their heads and near collisions as four of them tackled the ball but they were laughing and having a grand ole time. Several weeks into the season, they are hitting stronger and paying a wee more attention. Everyone loves to play catcher and put the mask on.

Cole has played catch and hit balls many times with Dave and I previous to T-ball. He has a straight as an arrow throw and is a pretty good catcher. He keeps his eye on the ball and hits solidly. The very first time he went up to bat during a game, he strode up and batted left! The coaches were all surprised as he WHACKED it. They get three or four tries each time and Cole continued to hit pretty well. Though he throws right-handed, he has continued to bat left-handed and proficiently. Pop-Pop was very excited to hear that maybe he could be a switch-hitter someday!

Below is a video from his first game!

Cole's first T-Ball Practice from David Denham on Vimeo.

Our road trip to DREAM MAKER...

The Denhams were overdue to take a long road trip and by that I mean 400+ miles. They have become our signature family adventure. In recent years, we have trekked to Outer Banks (several times), Montana, Denver and Pennsylvania accumulating miles like status points. People think we are nuts for traveling with a young kiddo and a 85lb lab but we like to think that it makes the most sense. Yes, it may take longer for us to reach a destination but we have so much more under our control than if we were at the whim of an airplane/airport/pilot/weather that could alter our arrival in a heartbeat. We can eat/pee/rest whenever we want. There are far less people affected when meltdowns of the behavioral variety occur (that goes for me and Dave too) and best of all, Tucker can be with us as we vacation or visit; he and Cole are serious road warriors.

With a bit of planning, 99% of our trips have been a success (the one where we hit a blizzard and drove behind a semi because it was the only thing we could see for nearly two hours was the other 1%). Everything gets tucked into its accessible place, movies are downloaded, grab bag of surprises purchased, snacks at the ready and we are off.

Our most recent journey had us heading back east to Gigi and Pop Pop's new place down at the Jersey Shore. A hot forecast, refreshing pool, ocean air and family awaited us. Approximately 22 hours of drive time. It was an easy ride, good weather, nice dog-friendly hotel. We used to drive straight through but it just wears us all out so we decided to go as far as we think we can and stop for the night.

We arrived at Dream Maker late in the afternoon, a bit weary but excited. Tucker smelled the salty air and couldn't wait to get OUT of the Explorer. It was our first long trip in my car and though we thought things might be tight, it held more than we anticipated and gave Tucker more room than Dave's truck. After getting the tour of the house, the dock and the beautiful view of the inlet, we unloaded and got settled. Cole jumped into the pool and we started happy hour. Drinks continued to flow as we motored out of the inlet for a sunset cruise, the clouds mixing with a sky/sun that you can only see when you are near water.

We had a day to unwind before Trisha and the girls arrived for the week. Cole showed Pop Pop all about Ninjago and we enjoyed a day of sunshine, seafood and relaxing. Early morning out on the dock, a family of swans came down to drink from the fresh water outlet, babies in tow. We saw them many times that week since we were up as usual with the sunrise. The area Mom and Dad reside in is a working class neighborhood, unlike the glitz just up the road in LBI. Their neighbors were fun and friendly which was so nice to see. Dad had just put the pool in and it was quite the topic of conversation amongst the locals and because it literally is right off the water, random people were stopping to inquire about how Dad had gotten variances to put it in. :-)

Trish and the girls came down on Monday and Cole and his cousins spent hours in the pool and the lagoon. Every hour it seemed they were pulling up the crab trap or spraying each other with the hose. A pre-dinner boat cruise became our routine before feasting on mussels or fresh fish (or both). The kids played so well together and were exhausted at the end of the day, their cheeks pink from the sun.

Pop Pop had splurged on a three-seater tow tube so we took that out one afternoon in the bay. Trish and I rode for quite awhile as each kid took a turn. Our hands ached but Samantha, Cole and Makenna LOVED it. The bumpy waves of the ocean took tubing to a whole other level. The kids did some fishing too but no one was successful at catching anything. The evening before the 4th of July, the neighbors came over for drinks at dusk and we watched an early fireworks show from Mom and Dad's dock, what a great seat!

4th of July morning was HOT and sunny. Dad's assistant and family were coming down for the day. We swam, drank and ate all day! LOL. The kids floated in the raft, went on a boat ride and spent 95% of their time in the pool. The day flew by and before we knew it, we were heading out to watch the fireworks on Dad's boat out near Barnegat Light. The sun set and BOOM. A great light show anchored amongst hundreds of boats!

The next day dawned and we were all a little groggy. Tucker took his morning nap dockside as the rest of us eased into our morning. Our plan for the day was to all head to Tice's shoal where everyone "parked" their boat and then "walked" to the island where over a boardwalk you found the Atlantic Ocean. We headed out for a short boat ride where we then weaved our way carefully around the other hundred plus people who had the same idea, found a spot, then jumped into waist deep water holding coolers and gear over our heads and made our way to the beach on the other side. The kids had a blast jumping waves and building sandcastles. It was crowded but so odd because you could really only get there by boat. The people watching was at its best. After a few hours, we made our way back to the boat and headed to Dream Maker for more swimming and dock time. The sunsets over the inlet had been amazing all week and that evening didn't disappoint either.

On our last day of vacation, Trish, Dad, the kids and I headed over for an afternoon at the tidal pools near where Barnegat Bay enters the ocean. At low tide it was very cool to walk along but the wind and current were extremely dangerous so the kids couldn't swim. It was still loads of fun poking around and finding sand crabs and such. In all the years I had spent down the Jersey shore I had never seen or been to these nature preserves and beach parks. It was really a totally new perspective and experience for me! Cole crashed on the couch when we got home and didn't wake up for dinner or Pop Pop's birthday celebration. After a full week of sun and fun, he was down for the count.

It was a wonderful week spending time with my parents, sister and the girls. Dream Maker is an oasis in a little spit of the Jersey Shore I never knew existed. I'm so happy for my parents that they found it.