Nice.  It sounds like you were in the same exact boat that my hubby and I are in.  Minus the fact that he’s not much for zhongwen.  I’ve taught him a few key phrases, but I don’t think it’ll advance too much further than that   The long distance is hard, but I’m getting used to it.  The problem is that once I get used to the distance, I have a hard time getting close to him again when I finally get to see him.  I just can’t win :-