Down By the Bay...

What a fun weekend! Many thanks to the K famiy for inviting us to share this special weekend with them! We had a great time, minus the trip to the ER for Mary Clare for an infected bug bite on her head. Here's our weekend in pictures:

The road along the water in Rockport showed many beautiful homes and gorgeous leaning oak trees:


Ellie at the beach


Sandcastles


Burying friends (Mary Clare wanted to play funeral...eesh, too many deaths for a 4yr-old)


Feeding seagulls


Mary Clare's catch


Ellie reeling it in!


Ellie loved fishing!


Out to eat by the bay


1000 year-old oak tree!


Kids on the stairs


DQ on the way home!

15 weeks, Happy Heartbeat

I had myself all worked up again about my appointment this morning that there would be no heartbeat, etc etc. I brought the girls with me and they got to hear that sweet sound!

Only one month until we find out if the girls will have a baby sister or brother! I can't wait! But I'm already stressed about finding something wrong on the ultrasound. This pregnancy has been really difficult emotionally after miscarrying just a couple weeks before conceiving this baby. I hope I will feel more at peace as the weeks go by. The virtue of the year is TRUST. I'm not learning very well, though.

We were able to attend daily mass with my mom after my appointment. The girls did actually fairly well in the chapel! And now I'm supposed to be packing up for our little getaway to the beach with some friends. I'll be without internet all weekend...wow. A good chance to find some peace and quiet and enjoy some good family (and friend) time.

It's been raining in Texas for 40 days. I think it's time we get some sunshine, God ;)

See you on Monday...Well, probably Sunday night! Back to the suitcases...

An Auntie Again!

Just found out today that my brother (the one in the Navy) and wife are expecting their first baby in February! I'm so excited! We have 14 nieces and nephews on Steven's side so it's time we add on to my side :) Only hard part is that they live in California, so we won't get to see this little one much, but hopefully they'll be visiting a lot and we can make at least one trip out to the west coast.

If you're reading this...Congratulations, Brice and Allison! We'll be praying for a happy and healthy pregnancy and that Brice makes it back to the states soon! Wow, my little brother is a daddy!

4th of July Festivities

Happy Independence Day! We are very proud to be Americans! And my thoughts and prayers are with all those who help maintain our freedom, especially my brother Brice serving the US Navy overseas.

Mary Clare at the Patriotic Symphony on the 3rd


MC and Daddy at intermission


The girls watching the Symphony, it's getting dark!


Cousins watching the squirrels and birds in Grampatti and Bop-Bops' backyard today, a rainy 4th of July


Cousins playing and watching "Charlotte's Web"


And the firework finale in our area tonight (dry enough for the display)! Sorry you can see the reflections in the car windows...the girls aren't quite ready to watch from outside!


(Notice that MC realizes in the middle of the video that she missed seeing her triplet cousins today. They didn't get to take their first trip down the street because of the weather, hopefully soon! I'll leave you with an adorable recent picture of them, 7 months old...)

At the Ranch

Our little cowgirl


Steven checking out the cattle


And the newly discovered giant spider in the barn, our own Charlotte! (The girls have recently been enjoying Charlotte's Web, the book and the movie)


And lastly, a little video of Ellie in the truck talking about the ranch. She refused to get out, scared of the cows. But she did go back to the barn later with Steven, she was so excited to see the spider!

Mary Clare the Swimmer!

At her last lesson this week. Isn't she doing great?

Ellie's Mini-Ice Cream Adventure

After Melissa's adorable documentation of her daughter's first Happy Meal, I thought I'd share Ellie successfully eating a miniature ice cream cone from the same lovely fast food restaurant...Enjoy!

Latin Mass, Coming Soon!

http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=52051

Looks like July 7th (07/07/07) is the big date for the release of the "motu proprio", which will allow use of the traditional Latin Mass worldwide!

I don't think I've ever been to a "Tridentine" Mass, but I do love the Novus Ordo (Ordinary Mass) said in Latin. I think it's really beautiful, and look forward to attending a Tridentine Mass in the future.

What I hope for most of all is for a unification with the groups in schism/separation with the Roman Catholic Church. I have several friends who are involved in groups such as the Society of St. Pius X, which exists in dispute of many of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council. It truly pains me when I see evidence of our division at our different homeschool events.

So it is truly my prayer that this decree will bring these groups closer to communion with Rome. How exciting!

Aggies on EWTN!

(thanks for the reminder, Lillian!)
Click here to read about Aggies on Life on the Rock, but more importantly, a pro-life documentary called beingHUMAN, which will air tomorrow, Monday, at 5:30pm central on EWTN (a worldwide Catholic network, which airs in many cities and can also be watched streaming online here). Here is a description from the Coalition for Life's website about this amazing program:

The first episode, beingHUMAN: 40 Days for Life, is a call to action for the National 40 Days for Life that will occur this fall across the country from city to city. In the Fall of 2007, communities will be taking their faith to the streets to bring Christ's love to the sidewalks of abortion clinics for 40 days of prayer and fasting. National leaders, media outlets, and grassroots organizations are strategically organizing for this massive effort. One national leader stated, “This campaign could accomplish more in 40 days than one entire decade since Roe vs. Wade.”

Let's see if I can put clips here (the 2nd being one of our favorite priests from Aggieland!):

Update

Laundry has been sorted into piles (kid clothes, t-shirts, hanging clothes, undergarments and socks). We're getting somewhere, but we'll be gone all day so the piles will have to wait until I get home! TGIF!

Sleepless

Nah, not totally sleepless. Just a couple hours in the early morning where I don't feel quite right. A little snack and a good surfing on the internet gets me nice and tired enough to sleep a few more hours. I think it's a glitch with getting off the nighttime progesterone supplements. Although I'm still exhausted all day...

In other news...the laundry pile has gotten worse. It's a mountain that just can't be climbed at the moment. I'll get up the courage. Just not at 5:30am when a child sleeps in there (the master bedroom that is, where most 4 year-olds sleep!).

So, I've heard of kids that roll around in their sleep. But literally, Ellie is not happy unless she's rolling around the carpet of this computer room. There is a queen sized mattress on the floor with no one on it, more than enough room for a little 2 year-old! But she must be free, not only from the bed, but also from any clothing besides a diaper. Ah, the terrific twos!

One of her new favorite phrases is, "No talk, Mommy" (or no sing, no watch, etc) as she puts her finger on her mouth or my mouth. She likes to pretend to have her own "fwee yessa" with me when Mary Clare is in her swim lesson. But I cannot tell her to kick her legs. Nor can I watch her when she's concentrating on floating while holding the edge of the baby pool. She also doesn't care for me to sing during movies that she watches. I am so loved!

As far as car repairs, Orpah the Odyssey (our minivan) is still hospitalized. They cannot seem to find a reason for her transmission malfunctions. They're trying one last idea, we'll see if it works. I'm very doubtful. But we'll hopefully be rescued from our home imprisonment by my parents today. And we will have Steven's new truck to drive around this weekend if Orpah is not delivered back home.

That's about all the news here. I'll leave you with two pictures of Ellie the goggled-girl and Ellie the floor-sleeper. Have a great day, everyone! I'm headed back to sleep :) while my hardworking hubby heads off to work...I love you, honey!

My Little Fishies

I've always loved summer days at the pool and I'm glad the girls are as giddy as I am to jump into their wagon and walk down to the pool a few times a week! Yesterday, since our car is back in the shop and we're stranded at home, we even went to the pool TWICE! I remembered my camera the 2nd time...

Mary Clare ready for swim lesson


Ellie watching, with flip-flops of course


Yesterday the teacher had MC swim to her (instead of holding her while she kicked). She was instructed to kick hard enough to get your mommy wet. She did pretty good!


We'll see if the weather holds up for lessons today.
We'll see if I get the courage up to start conquering the laundry pile.
We'll see if I'm brave enough to post some more pics of my "problem areas"!
And we'll see if I get a chance to post a pic of Steven's new company truck. We are all SO excited! Especially since I'm carless this week, and this truck fits us all :)

Another Accountability Confession

This is my pile of CLEAN clothes that needs to be put away. I won't say it'll be done today since we've got swim lessons and dinner and still another load or two to wash. Hopefully tomorrow. This is why I liked Kristen's simple living ideas...we need less clothes!

Her First Swim Lesson

(hard to see the pics, but one she's on the left kicking on the steps, and the second one she's holding the teacher kicking while Ellie looks on)

I'm so proud of Mary Clare! She had been talking about going to swim lessons all summer. I wasn't sure if the timing or weather was going to actually work out so I didn't tell her until she woke up from her nap today. She got really scared and didn't want to go. Slowly we (the teacher and I) eased her into it, asking if she wanted to sit on the steps. As soon as she started she loved it! It will be a fun two weeks of lessons!

Happy Father's Day!

Here is my sweet Stevie and his girls today (engrossed in the TV at my parents' after naptime). I hope that he, his father, and my father all know how much they mean to me and to the girls. We are so thankful for these wonderful fathers who show us God the Father's love every day!


(notice Ellie with the blankey, flip-flops were on too, and MC holds her new twin doll close)

I had to add this sweet picture of Ellie (with the other twin doll). It'll be fun to find out in a couple months whether we'll be holding a real pink or blue baby this Christmas!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And finally, my confession. Today for Father's Day, I generously ;) cleaned out my own minivan "for Steven". Embarrassingly, these were the contents of the inside of my car:



I think I'll list the contents for the fun of it...several pairs of shoes, 2 strollers, some CDs, a few dolls, a giant stuffed bear, 2 kids' lawn chairs, a poncho, 2 aprons, some bug repellent and sunscreen, a life jacket, a beach ball, a deflated raft, a toilet paper roll, a paper towel roll, 4 umbrellas (one was my moms!), a newspaper, a church bulletin, a carseat manual (for the carseat not in my car!), a tub of hand cream, 2 blow-up baseball bats, a toy shovel and rake, a baseball cap, a tupperware bottom, a water bottle, a smelly plastic Easter egg, an old t-shirt, work gloves, an old play camera, a cardboard box (did come in handy when Steven had to change a tire in the rain!), a tool kit, a car-jack kit, a foam baseball with a bite out of it, and several items of trash! Wow.

I'm happy to report that the car is vacuumed and only about 5% of those items are still in the minivan (safety stuff and strollers). We'll see how long it stays that way. Probably not very long. Now if I can ask a silly prayer intention to whoever the patron of car repairs is...please request that Our Lord be merciful to Orpah the Odyssey (yeah, the Bible character Oprah was named after)...she's been to the repair shop about 4 times in the past two months and I think the transmission is going out again. Hopefully this repair shop, or one of the other shops in their chain, can find someone who can repair our transmission correctly and fix Orpah's other issues so the B girls can be safe on the road!

And I can't post without a little praise report and congratulations to my dear friend Marie who welcomed her first child, Clara Lucia, into the world yesterday!!! Baby and Mommy are doing great thanks to the many prayers, especially from her greatest prayer warrior in heaven, her dear father who left this world last weekend. We can't wait to meet little Clara Lucia, YAY!!!

Happy 45th Anniverary

To my in-laws! What a beautiful celebration we had today with the amazing family they have raised! Seven children and 16 grandkids (+ 1 in-utero) who all love each other and enjoy their time together. I am so blessed to be a part of your family and glad to celebrate the day it all started. Congratulations, Bop-Bop and Grampatti!!!

Headbands and Flip-Flops

My girls have several little "signatures"...They each have their blankeys (Ellie's is called her "ray-ray") and Mary Clare sucks her thumb with hers, while Ellie sucks her two first fingers. They frequently carry dolls around on our different adventures. They are usually in matching or color-coordinated outfits (I have a color thing. Still trying to figure out how to match us today!). But they each have a "signature" that has been making me laugh recently...

Mary Clare has wanted to wear a headband in her hair for as long as I can remember. Now this doesn't mean she wears only a headband, because in that case her hair gets tangled and sprinkled with food and it still ends up in her face. No, Mary Clare wears a headband with whatever hairdo she has, usually ponytails, pigtails, etc. When she awakens in the morning, and as soon as she leaves the bathtub, she must find a headband. It's her little signature! And no matter how many times I try to hide them or discreetly remove them from her head after fixing her hair in a nice 'do, she manages to find another to wear!

Ellie's current signature is her obsession with Mary Clare's turquoise Old Navy flip-flops ("wop-wops" as she calls them). They are a few sizes too big, but she insists on wearing them wherever we go. Right now she is laying on the floor with her blankey wearing only a diaper and the flip-flops! She wants to sleep in them and when she awakens in the morning she panics while trying to locate them around the house. She has thrown a fit the past several times we've gone to mass because I make her put on her regular sandals. And this week when my cousin was visiting, her 2 1/2 year old daughter kept trying on the flip-flops when she found them lying around, both Ellie's as well as Mary Clare's or my flip-flops. Ellie would fall to the floor sobbing, saying "Mer-Mer's wop-wops!!!" or "Mommy's wop-wops!!!" It was kind of funny watching her reaction. This week we also went to an art class for our homeschool group. Surprisingly, Ellie decided she wanted to wear her "tor-shoes" (tennis shoes). But not surprisingly, she carried the flip-flops around the whole time we were at the art class!

What "signatures" do your kids have?

Feast of the Sacred Heart

Today is the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Our Lord. We will spend part of it at the funeral mass of my friend's father, a true servant of Christ, and wonderful husband and father.

I pray that God has mercy on the soul of Grant R. and that his family and friends all be filled with the peace and hope that only Christ can give! I also pray that the arrival of Marie's baby tomorrow is a true gift of hope and joy in the midst of sadness. God bless them all.

Minimalist Living

If you haven't yet, check out Kristen's post about storing treasures in heaven, having only a handful of outfits for each of her family members and keeping possessions to a minimum. I am awed and inspired by these minimalist ideals, but imagine that if I tried to purge my home to be like this, it would fill a dumpster and clothe a small village of young girls! Must work on this virtue of simplicity...

A Beachy Day!

The day at the beach was just what we needed! Watching the waves roll in, and feeling my stress and emotions roll out with the water...

My girls and my cousin's girls had such a fun time in the sand and sea. Only wish the day was longer...and that I would have remembered my camera! Oh well, hopefully there will be a few more days at the beach this summer.

From Death to Life

I am once again faced with the need to process all the life and death around me. With the loss of my dear friend's father, death becomes real again, and yet as she will deliver her first child the day after burying her father, life is real too. A day doesn't pass when my email inbox is filled with prayer requests from various groups asking for prayers for a young mother with brain cancer, a little boy diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a priest undergoing heart surgery, a childhood classmate who died, or a toddler in a near drowning incident...and all in my circles of friends and acquaintances. It is hard not to stay up late wondering just what this whole life, suffering and death is all about.

But I think our children, raised in the Faith, give us the best answer. In Mary Clare's simple questions and encouragement that "it's okay, he's happy in Heaven, he's with Mary Clare R., Agnes, and Augustine" make me so thankful to have a God who speaks to us through others, especially our own children. We all laid down together tonight and remembered some stories about Mr. Grant. And I thought about the beautiful example of a holy marriage and loving family example that Grant and Clara have taught me. Later, as I was whining to Steven about my eczema-attacked fingers and lack of needed sleep this week, little Mary Clare came from the bathroom with my tub of lotion. Such sweet relief to my hands and my heart!

Tomorrow, God-willing, we will be graced with a much-desired trip to the beach with my aunt, my visiting cousin and her two young daughters. I think it will be just what I need in the midst of this busy and emotional week (I've also just started a tutoring job). But my heart is with my friend and her family this week and I pray that the example of Mr. Grant's life will be an encouragement to me, to all the husbands and young men he encountered, and to all those close to them. May his soul rest in peace, and may God grant us the faith and the hope that through suffering we are united with Christ, and through death, we are united with him forever.

Mr. Grant, Rest in Peace!

My dear friend Marie's father Grant passed away on Saturday after a brief illness. I am so sad and shocked. Her parents are the dearest couple, always opening their home, generous, with a heart for Christ and for others. In the picture above, Marie sings with her dad at our house blessing Mass in February. Sadly, he will miss the arrival of Marie's first baby this weekend. May baby Clara Lucia's new life be a sign of the eternal hope we all have in the life to come and may Mr. Grant pray for our peace here on earth. He will be dearly missed...

TGIF!

Mary Clare requested she be video taped for the blog tonight. Here's what happens when the girls are up too late and get the giggles! And yes, she's saying TGI Fridays, since she asked me what word was on the cup she was drinking from. I thought it was kind of appropriate as we finish out the week...Thank Goodness It's Friday!

Growing Baby!

Apparently, although I still can't believe it, there is a growing 11 week-old baby inside me! I just read that nearly all organs are formed, fingers and toes have separated, kidneys are starting to function, and the little one should be about 1.6 inches!

I just heart the sweet heartbeat at the doctor office; music to my ears!

On a related note, a little prayer request for my friend Karyn...Her baby should be arriving tomorrow at 32 weeks. Please offer a prayer for them!

And two other prayer requests...for Deacon Michael, a good friend of ours who will be ordained to the Holy Priesthood on Saturday. And for Roxy and Gerardo, also friends of ours who will be married in Holy Matrimony on Saturday. Two beautiful sacraments in one day! Now to figure out if there's any way we can attend these beautiful ceremonies...

Bye Bye Bubba!

My little brother Brice just got orders TODAY that he leaves TOMORROW to head overseas with the Navy. He and his wife just moved to California two weeks ago and now he leaves again! Hopefully he'll be back for Christmas and Allison will get settled into her apartment there and get plugged in with all the Navy wives. If you could, please offer a little prayer for his safety and for their peace (and my parents') as he continues this Navy journey with lots of time away from family. We miss you already Bubba! Enjoy your first trip overseas!!!

4 New X 2 Meme

I still seem to have writer's block, but here's a meme to get something out of the recesses of the pregnant mind...

Four new things in the past 4 years:

1. 4 new souls. Since Mary Clare was born over 4 years ago, the blessings of the past 4 years include...Agnes, Elizabeth, Augustine, and NewestBabyInUtero (likely to be named Peter or Theresa)!

2. Our first house. This is our 5th home in ~6yrs of marriage and we are positively thrilled that our dear friends were gracious enough to sell us their beautiful home! We are already making such precious memories here and enjoying all the space, the backyard, the garage, and the neighborhood park and pool!

3. Regnum Christi. About 2 1/2 years ago I felt God's calling to this beautiful lay movement. Through Christ, the movement has helped me to grow in my faith, my prayer life, my apostolic life, and my life as a wife and mother in so many ways. I have been blessed to encounter so many friends, mentors, and families who each draw me closer to God through their own witness. I am forever grateful for this calling and pray that I will continue to live it out to the fullest, in service of Christ and the Church.

4. The information highway. When I think back to our wedding and to college, I often think "I wish we had Google back then!" It's amazing how much technology has improved our communication in the past few years, from email to blogs! And now we have a digital camera, Apple computer, and high-speed internet to connect us even better. Sometimes I'm not sure how good the internet is for me, but I really can't imagine life without it (especially since we have no TV)!

Four desires in the next 4 years:

1. A few more souls :) I pray we'll be cuddling the one growing inside me this Christmas, and hope that God might entrust one or two more precious little ones to our care in the coming years.

2. Security. My hardworking husband has spent the past 4 years completing his degree and working so hard to provide for our growing family, while allowing me to stay home with the girls. I know as he continues to succeed in the workforce, he will be rewarded financially for this hard work. God has always provided for all our needs, but we both still worry about all the financial stresses surrounding us. Hopefully in the next 4 years, we will have more financial security and the opportunity to travel a little more to visit friends (especially my "nun" friends), family, religious sites, and wonders of God's creation (although the girls are perfectly happy watching snails and "doodle" bugs in the backyard)!

3. Organization. I plan to start homeschooling Mary Clare in a more formal way this fall, which means I need to get started on better organizing my home and all my teaching supplies! We now have the space to be organized, I just need to do better at keeping things in their place and cleaning up after all of us!

4. Health. I pray that our family continues to have good health in the coming years, and hope that I can do better at keeping our family healthy, especially through eating better foods and doing more exercise. I was so blessed to have a sweet community of girlfriends in our last town who walked together at the park every weekday morning. I felt so healthy during that time! I need to find or create a similar group here, or get involved in some other activity like dance, which will always be my favorite means of exercise. Must pray about this more!

Well, I do hope that everyone has a beautiful weekend and hope that some more of you will share your "4 New X 2". If you haven't done it yet, I TAG YOU!

Memorial Day at the Zoo

Our zoo is free on certain holidays, so even though there was a rainy forecast, we decided to chance it and head over to visit with Steven's family afterwards. We were so thankful that the 2 hours of dry weather yesterday were the ones we were at the zoo!

Ellie and Daddy looking at giraffes (which she was most scared about before arriving at the zoo)!


Elephants with the famous Baby Mac that the girls like to talk about!


Okay, this orangutan did the strangest thing, which I didn't get on camera...He stood on his head and urinated into his mouth! Thankfully the girls didn't realize what he was doing. But my pregnancy nausea was a bit strong at that moment!


Daddy w/ his girls


The clouds are getting dark. We have just told Ellie she can have an Oreo cookie when we get to the car!


It's looking really black as we arrive at our car:


And as soon as we start to pull out of our parking space, the rain starts to pour! We were watching this the rest of the day...


I was so happy for our fun zoo morning though! And we had a great time visiting with family afterwards. I even got to play with those adorable triplets for awhile. So cute!

And a special prayer and remembrance for our friend who died in Iraq this year. May Sean's soul, and all those who have died protecting our country, rest in peace. And may those who mourn their passings be filled with the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

My Favorite Place to Be

On a lazy weekday afternoon...

(on my parents' couch watching all my favorite TV shows about having babies, decorating houses, and Fox News).

This is where I spent many a day while pregnant with Mary Clare, just resting my body and relaxing my mind with television (we don't choose to have TV at our home, so it's a special treat). My parents always feed us well and keep the girls occupied amidst their own busy work day. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for giving us a home away from home!

And here is why I could lay around watching TV...sleeping angels...


And Happy Pentecost to all! May the Holy Spirit fill your hearts and enkindle them with the flame of God's love!

Ellie talking

Here's Ellie talking at the breakfast table. She keeps mentioning an airplane, which I finally figured out was a little bag on the counter (from their clay) that looked kind of like an airplane shape. She had me stumped!

Colors All Around!

Mary Clare singing this song from Barney and including some signs she's been learning from the Signing Time DVDs:

My brain...

...is apparently lost during pregnancy. I can't seem to focus on anything for more than a few minutes and every time I try to write a post I don't finish it. Hence all the pictures! Our life has been rather scattered with the events of the past months, and a lot of little things (like our minivan and lawnmower) have been falling apart. Meanwhile my poor husband has been given a new territory for work which entails a commute of about an hour and a half, which means he gets home very late. So my afternoons of exhaustion and slight nausea seem to last forever!

I don't mean to whine; we've been very blessed. But there just seem to be those weeks where time stands still and not much accomplished. I can't believe that I am about 9 weeks along in this pregnancy. It's been a rather emotional few months, and I'm still having a hard time grasping that I'm actually pregnant and the baby appears to be alright. My clothes are getting tight so I went through my maternity clothing bin for a second time and actually found some clothes that I like! That was exciting! I spent Monday washing probably 6 loads of laundry and folding around 20! I have a problem with leaving a mountain of clean laundry for a week or two before I have a day of folding. It makes me feel so good when the mountain is gone though.

So the girls are enjoying their little backyard pool and keeping each other busy with little games around the house. Mary Clare talks about the new baby all throughout the day...she tells strangers, "You know last time my mom was at the doctor she had an ultrasound to see the new baby" and family, "You're going to have to tell my mommy gradulations because she's going to have a baby" and me, "You have to share your pregnancy with everyone. Let's write a letter." Today she made a card for my baby shower, "Baby Shower Blair" with a drawing of me and the baby. She likes to think of new names she likes for the baby, and asks me how big the baby is each day.

Ellie on the other hand is just happy to be able to communicate and order everyone around. She is very particular about what cup or plate you give her, and it's very evident that she's 2 years old when you see her little fits when she doesn't get her way or her dropping to the floor when she prefers not to hold your hand in a parking lot! She has her own little ways of saying things that are just so cute and make my heart melt. Wah-wer is water, ray-ray is blanket, Mer-Mer is Mary Clare and so on. Sometimes it's a little frustrating since her older sister had a very well pronounced vocabulary at a very young age, but it's also so sweet to have a little baby-talker!

I'm going to post a couple videos so you can see my cutie-pies in action :)

The New Pool

Fitting it in the minivan was a feat!


Posing with NeNe


Even late at night, the pool is a real novelty. More pics of real swimming should be coming soon...