Aidan

My grandson is a perfect clone of his father. For his upcoming seventh birthday he has quite the wish list: a computer (laptop); a digital camera; a violin; and a cell phone. I am sending back the old laptop my son gave me when his company replaced all of theirs; it weighs a ton and I never got the hang of it anyway. For the digital camera, my son is buying Aidan and his cousin matching $20 cameras...I believe the cell phone will have to wait several more years. As to the violin: his grandfather on his mother's side is a music teacher. I will leave that to that part of the family. Are we spoiling this child? Silly question.

And another fun remembrance of Aidan. His cousin Victor (who is living with them this summer) and he are having lots of fun at the neighborhood pool this summer. But they wanted to go off the diving board. In order to be allowed to do this, they had to pass a swimming test. This involved swimming a complete lap (back and forth) the length of the Olympic sized pool and then treading water for a full minute. After one failed try, Aidan made the cut. Victor, who is more slight in build, was determined to do this also. Patrick said he thought it would kill Victor, but he also made it. Then when Patrick looked around, he had a train of children behind him: "Mister, can you help me do it? Mister...??" So he spent the rest of the afternoon helping the children at the pool become qualified. Aidan will be quite a swimmer...his grandfather was an Olympic alternate; his father a state champion, and on his mother's side, all belonged to swim teams and competed.