Deep End

There are two things that I distinctly remember hating about taking swim-lessons when I was growing up, and they both involve the deep end. I always dreaded the teacher saying that it was time to go over to the deep end, because that meant that we would have to do one of two things. We would either be treading water, or jumping off the high dive. And I hated them both.

In a lot of ways, my life seems to be like the deep end right now. I feel like I am constantly treading water- fighting not to sink, but never making any forward motion. My house seems to be in a constant state of chaos. I am really working to remedy this. I made a cleaning schedule, we are having family meetings, I even made a meal plan. But, with a little tornado that I like to call Evan running around, tossing things on the floor, pulling things out of drawers, and in general making messes, I feel like I will never get a handle on it.

It also seems that nothing can ever be simple for us lately. Take the power cord. We found one used on eBay for a quarter the cost of a new one. The seller was a power-seller with over 99% positive feedback. It seemed like a safe deal. Well, the cord came damaged, and we have spent the last 2 weeks trying to chase the seller down. (He has gone so far as to change his phone number. Over a $30 power cord.)

I have decided to pursue my love of photography, and I have been doing some portfolio building sessions for friends. (You can see some of my work here,if you are interested.)I decided that I wanted to upgrade from my Nikon D40 to a D80. So I ordered it up and I was so excited. But, after taking it on a shoot and experiencing awful focus issues, I ran some diagnostic tests, and the auto-focus system is just not going to work for me. So, today I shipped it back for a refund, and I am back to square one in the camera department. So, for my fellow photographers reading this, I would love your gear recommendations. I am considering switching to the Dark Side, I mean, Canon. Again, though, another situation that was supposed to be simple and just wasn't.

On top of all of this, since I last posted, I turned 25. 25 is a strange age, because, as Jessica Simpson so eloquently put it, "25 is almost mid-twenties". For some reason, even though the only tangible change to being 25 is that I can now rent a car without any extra fees, 25 seemed to really hit me. I spent a week feeling really old, and really boring, and like I hadn't accomplished much. Which is ridiculous, and I know it. But I fully admit to spending more time than was necessary brooding over this.

The one person who can always snap me out of any bad mood I may fall in to is Evan. He is just a riot right now. Walking like a mad-man, loudly expressing his emotions (read, screeching) and giving plenty of hugs, kisses and cuddles. He has been signing for more, hurt and "all-done" and has been saying "Daisy", "Deiter", "Dada", "Mama", and "Doggie". He loves dogs, and likes to point them out in all his books, and never seems to miss it if a dog walks past our house.

Today we found him playing with his golf clubs, and actually hitting the golf ball with the club. I don't know how he picked that one up, but it is cute. He has been chowing non-stop, and has developed a love for spicy food. He keeps me on my toes, he keeps me treading water, but hey, maybe the deep end isn't so bad after all.





As requested, here is a video of Evan doing his walking thing!