December 29

I got up early (for me) for a Saturday so I could go with Adam and Brady to the latter's last swim class of the season. I knew he had the chance to pass his swim test so I wanted to be there to see him achieve the big goal. And... he did it. He got his medal and certificate of completion.

I can't lie: as I watched him touch the wall after his final lap of freestyle and then successfully complete a flip turn, I felt a tinge of sadness rise in my chest. After several years, we're done with swim lessons. Another chapter of their growing-up years is, in a tangible way, officially finished.

It's always bittersweet when a familiar, comfortable constant comes to an end. They will, of course, move on to other activities: there's the next season of baseball in the spring for the boys, and whatever else Abby may decide she wants to try out, too. And there will always be more new beginnings. So though I feel a wee bit of nostalgia over this chapter's conclusion, I'm interested to see what the future will hold. Football? (No.) Soccer? (A little more palatable.) Hockey? (H-E-double no.) Track? (Could be.) Anything could come to fruition. And for that, I'm thankful.