Friends, Food, and Fun!

What a great weekend! On Saturday, AC tested for his first green stripe on his white belt for Cuong Nhu and passed. Yay! I caught the tail end of the kids' test that took place before AC's test, and it was so cute to see such little people (the youngest was a 5 year old girl) following the teacher and taking the whole thing so seriously. We definitely plan to have our son try martial arts. AC always wanted to do martial arts as a kid, but his mother wouldn't let him because she thought it was silly and would just distract him from school. Personally I think it's a great way for kids to gain self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-defense skills as well.

On Sunday we braved the Arkansas heat and humidity to spend a lovely afternoon at one of Arkansas' many lakes with some friends (the wife is the half-Russian women I've mentioned before) and their two cute boys. They all ate Shashlik (Russian BBQ), while I had grilled wild salmon. There was also German potato salad, a really good pasta salad (which has inspired me to try and make some pasta salads of my own), and watermelon. After eating and cleaning up, we went down by the water where everyone else swam, while I lounged in our foldout armchair with footrest in the shade of a tree, hand on my belly to feel for Ziggy's kicks (of which there were quite a few!), and drank lots of water, read, watched the others swimming and catching small fish, and talked to my friend whenever she came over with one or another of her kids to get a snack, go to the bathroom, etc. It was wonderful! I always enjoy talking to her because she is full of advice about kids and really open about what has and has not worked for them. I may not always agree with everything she suggests (like how it's absolutely necessary to have a minivan, especially with two kids--I know families who are able to get away with only one small car), but I really appreciate her candor, and I have definitely gleaned a lot about child-rearing from her. Despite the heat, I had a great time and managed to avoid getting overheated. I think the key was minimal exertion while outside, staying in the shade, and hydrating.

Ziggy has been kicking more and more, and I absolutely love it! Sometimes it makes me laugh because it sort of tickles, and it always makes me smile. Sunday morning I was feeling for kicks in my belly when a funny thing happened. As usual Ziggy was kicking really low on the right side, but then all of a sudden, he must have rolled over or something because, when I looked down at my tummy, it was completely lopsided! The left side of my tummy was bulging out a lot more than the right side, so it looked like an uneven ski slope, and when I put my hand on the left side, I could feel that it felt a lot firmer than the right side. And then he started kicking me on the left side. It was just the funnies thing to see my belly looking so asymmetrical! I really wish AC had been awake to see it, but he was asleep as usual. He has been able to feel the baby kick a few times though and seems to get a real "kick" out of it:) Sorry, lame pun!

But seriously, I think feeling the baby kick has made us both feel a lot closer to him. He seems even more real now. It's been fun for me trying to figure out a pattern to when he kicks. He does seem to kick at around the same times each day, and I read that at this stage, babies are already developing their own sleep-wake cycle. I'm glad that he seems to be awake quite frequently during the day--I'd be worried if he only kicked at night that we have a real night owl on our hands. So far he doesn't seem to kick a lot at night or else it's not yet strong enough to keep me awake. The few times I've felt it after waking up to go pee, I've been able to quickly fall asleep again.

Anyway, all in all a great weekend! I'm looking forward to this Friday when we'll be having those same friends and some of AC's Cuong Nhu pals over for a pre 4th of July BBQ. More friends, food, and fun :)