I measured the guys on 1 January -- they are all growing well, but Andy is getting really tall! Not that he wasn't before, I just cannot believe what his body is doing! He is defintitely in the mold of Harold Anderson -- what a great thing! I hope his body stays in that mold as he will have a much easier life. Andy is just under 5'2" -- and will be turning 10 on 20 January. The other guys are keeping up too. All of them are over the height curve, and their weight is slightly below the curve... I hope this continues.

Andy had a meltdown the other day. He started talking to me about not wanting to go to the new school since he wouldn't ever see his new friends again. After much discussion and many tears, it turns out that he had been talking to that kid again -- the one that really stirs the shit and upsets Andy every chance he gets. I wanted to go down to his house and beat him to a pulp. That little shit got Andy all riled up about the new school and it took me most of the afternoon to talk him down and explain that he would still get to see his friends at soccer practice, etc., and that at the new school, every single person was brand new as well. This was very upsetting for me because Andy doesn't really have any friends at his present school. He has a couple of people he hangs out with, but no one that has really clicked with him. (Of course, he thinks that that little shit is his friend, and I can't say anything against that kid, but I cannot stand him.) I am hoping that Andy meets at least one person at the new school who he can be good friends with.

I have been riding my bike a lot lately, as a matter of fact, that is all I have been doing exercise-wise. I haven't nerved myself up to step into the pool in about 3 weeks. It is just too cold. I know it would be fine once I am in the water, it is the walk from the locker room to the pool, over that freezing cold deck. All the pools are outside, so getting from the locker room to the deck can be a long and windy walk. Lately, it has been about 34 degrees first thing in the morning, and my dread of doing the walk has trumped my need to go swimming. I am hoping I can overcome this issue this week.

These days, James is really getting on my last nerve (Ron's too -- he yelled at James last night). James has decided that not only is he not old enough to get dressed on his own, but he must whine at all times. I swear, I haven't heard a normal voice out of him in weeks. I won't answer him when he whines at me, but he is still doing it. Then, when I frog-march him to his room, he produces these huge gusty cries -- obviously being as loud and as obnoxious as he can possibly be. The temptation is to whip out the old "you want something to cry about?? I'll give you something to cry about!!!" is very strong, but I haven't done it yet, and I am holding myself together, but it is getting harder and harder. I remember all of the guys doing this -- the year before they started kindergarten, they were such craps that I was grateful that they started school. I guess this is how you tell they are ready to be out of the house for several hours a day -- you cannot stand being around them because of their terrible behavior.

Ron is considering trying out the bike racing circuit here in Tucson. He wants to try a couple of races and see how it goes. The thought of going as fast as I can on a bike around a track scares the living crapout of me, so I don't quite understand why Ron would want to do this, but if he wants to do it, more power to him. When he does his first race, I will take pictures and post them here.