I am officially a Gold member. It took me long enough--just a shade over 2 years--but now I can host images and I'm ever so excited.

The beach retreat was wonderful! Both my sisters, my nephew, most of my dearest, most incredible friends and tasty food and great conversation and shopping. What more could a woman want? I tell you--I left the retreat feeling spiritually and emotionally filled. There was just this warm glow in my chest that has continued to linger over the past 10 days. I have the best friends. And best sisters. I am so incredibly fortunate. And blessed. I have these intelligent, funny, lovely women in my life who enrich me beyond measure. The warmth and love I feel emanating from them reaches me across the miles and across the days. Even now, I can smile and feel that *je ne said quois* that keeps me humming in my every day life, knowing that I have good people around me to prop me up and encourage me and love me. My life is very good.

Last week was to be my first week watching the Nephew but Amy decided Monday morning that she wasn't quite ready for the separation. She called at 6:30 and said she wasn't going to work, that she needed more time and more practice separations. So instead of going to work, she came to get me and we went shopping instead. And then she left him with me for about 2 hours while she went to the bookstore and did my grocery shopping. (How much does that rock?)

The next day, I went to her house and picked him up and then had him for the next 8+ hours. He slepted for 5 of those hours making it a very easy babysitting time. Wednesday, though, he woke up with a fever of 102 degrees. A visit to the doc revealed nothing out of the ordinary--blood counts all in normal range, urine culture clean, blood culture clean, no infections. But he had no other symptoms of illness besides the fever. It went away on its own by that evening and he's been fine. He did start to have a little bit of a cough 4 days later that may or may not be related but his lungs are still clear and he's had no other fevers except that first one.

So, tomorrow, Amy promises me that she's going to work and the baby is coming here. I'll believe it when I see it. (And I don't mean that in any sort of negative way--I think Amy should take as much time as she needs/wants before re-entering the workforce, if indeed she wants to go back to work.) I think she'll be fine tomorrow. Our practices last week were good for all three of us.

Oh, one amusing thing. When I went on my usual Tuesday afternoon cribbage "date" with Russell while Joey was at piano lessons, his almost-three-year-old daughter was completely enamoured of the baby. She kept patting his arm and his little head. Then she looked up at my with her big blue eyes and said, "Do he squish?" I assured her that yes, he does squish and asked her to be careful *not* to squish him.

Yesterday was Kid's Day in our family. It's a tradition we started when Joey was 3 and realized that Mom got a day and Dad got a day but she didn't. So we turned Memorial Day into Kid's Day. It was great. We let her bring a friend and we went to one of those family fun places where they have go-carts and bumper/squirter boats and arcade games and laser tag and pizza. Then we dropped the friend off and took Joey home to open some gifts. She played with some of her new stuff and then I made spaghetti for dinner at her request. (She says I should be a spaghetti chef because I'd make a lot of money with my good spaghetti. What a sweetie.) Then she took a shower and while her hair dried, we played a new game (T@boo Jr.) and then she read her H@rry P0tter chapter before going to bed. All in all, a lovely day.

I did a small photo shoot with Amy and the Nephew and this in my favorite picture of the bunch.

I think I'll order some prints of that for her and for me. I've got the perfect frame for it, too. She gave me a lovely wrought iron frame awhile ago and I haven't put anything in it yet.

So, tomorrow it begins. I hope he's a happy camper tomorrow or it may be a short day. I've got plans to lunch with a friend but other than that, it'll be a quiet day at home with the babe. I'm looking forward to it.

Ta!

--L