Happy birthday, my wonderful Tobin.

I just dropped you and Miles off for your first day of school.  Your dad said you seemed a little nervous.  I was busy running around taking yearbook photos, so I didn’t get a clear sense of your state of mind, but you seemed okay to me.  I’m sure you’ll settle in and do great.  You have seemed a bit crabbier than usual lately—I don’t know if the responsibility of being a first grader has been weighing on you, or you’re just sad to see summer ending.  Maybe it’s all the extra time you’ve been spending with Miles.  In any case, you’re thrilled with the teacher you were assigned, Mrs. Humrich.  I really like her too, and I’m happy that you’ll be spending first grade with such a kind, warm teacher.  She’s lucky to have you.

Photo by Gary Clarke

You and Miles spent a whole week at Mubby and Skitter’s house, and I’m sure you did all kinds of fun and crazy things.  Mubby sent regular reports, and it sounds like you ate a lot of treats and did a lot of fun things.  You went to a baseball game, went fishing, played miniature golf, went bowling, went to two movies, and more.  I admire Mubby’s energy and willingness to have so much fun with you.  I’m also glad that you’re having so much special time with your grandparents.

We reunited at a wedding, and we had a good time dancing together.  You’re a maniac on the dance floor.  I hope you never turn into a self-conscious preteen who’s too cool to dance (although, to Miles’s credit, he did make it out for a couple of songs).  You have plenty of flair.  At your request, I signed you up for taewkondo through the Rec Center.  That starts on Tuesday.  I hope you can channel some of your energy and benefit from the discipline and focus that come with studying martial arts.  If it turns out you really love it, we may look into a more serious class, but for now the 5-week beginners’ class seems like a good starting point.

We had some good times in August here in town, too.  The City Park amusement rides are closing down after this summer, which is sad but probably a good idea, considering how near collapse they have always seemed.  You and your brothers took a final spin on them, and you were kind enough to always ride in the same airplane as Callum so he wouldn’t be scared.

You also have been very supportive of Callum moving into the bunk bed with you.  He’s migrated back into our room a few times, but he spends most of the night in there, and I’m proud that you’ve been so generous with your space.  I remember you and Miles needing a little time to adjust when you moved into a big bed, so I’m sure he’ll get used to it before long.

Your reading skills have taken off like crazy this summer.  You tore through the Lunch Lady book series, and you’ve been working on reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone all by yourself.  Your dad is re-reading the series to you and Miles now, so you’ll be prepared for our Harry Potter World trip in January, but I’m very impressed with how well you’ve been tackling that big book on your own.  It also helps you not get too wiggly on road trips if you have something to read.

Photo by Denny

Your current favorites:  pepperoni pizza, vegetable beef soup (your request for your birthday dinner), the video game Splatoon, doing elaborate Minecraft projects with Miles, sneaking some Cherry Coke now and then, taking off your shirt, and playing piano.  In fact, your summer piano lessons were such a success that you decided to continue them this school year.

We didn’t do a friends birthday party this year, mostly because of our busy schedule of travel and with school starting so close to your birthday.  We’ll have to get a playdate for you and a couple of your good friends scheduled and make a mini-party of it.  Although you were disappointed that your good friend Ben isn’t in your class this year, your other good friend Aiden is, so that was good news to receive at the ice cream social.  Your teacher said it was fine to bring birthday treats today, so I made several batches of garden popcorn for you to share with your friends.  I can’t wait to pick you up this afternoon and hear all about how the first day went.

You’re a great kid, Tobin, and I’m so happy you’re mine.  I hope you adjust well to life as a first grader and never let anybody steal your spark.  I don’t think there’s much danger of that.  You’re awfully sparky.

Love,

Mommy

Dear Callum,

We’re going to Mubby and Skitter’s this weekend, and I am thrilled to announce that I am going to pack zero diapers.  You have still been wearing pull-ups at night, but honestly, I think you’re just about done with those, too.  You have been waking up dry every morning for quite some time now.  I’m glad I decided against buying the mega-pack last time we were at Costco.

Given my pessimism that you’d ever reach this stage, I’m pretty happy and relieved.  You’re happy about it too—often, after a successful event, you smile up at me and say, “Are you so proud?”  When I tell you that I am, you say, “I’m so proud of myself, too!”  I’m never potty training anyone again, but the one thing I’ve learned from having done it thrice now is that it’s a whole lot easier if you just wait till the kid is ready.  Our first attempt was so dismal and disheartening, but just a month or so later, it was a totally different experience.  You look cute in your Jake and the Neverland Pirates underpants (which is a show you never watch, but a third kid doesn’t always get a lot of choice in clothing).

You’ve been so successful that we’ve been able to confidently go on some adventures.  Your dad had to go out of town for work for a couple of days last week, and we did several interesting things to keep busy.  The biggest of those outings was a trip to the Putnam Museum about an hour away, and you handled the drive, an Icee from the snack bar, the public toilets, and the drive home with no problem.  I’ve got a spare set of clothes in the car, but we haven’t had to dip into them in a long time.

You love getting wet, so we’ve been enjoying all kinds of water fun.  We waded around in the creek behind our hours, went to the splash pad, and when we went to the fossil gorge, you immediately got shin-deep in the most algae-laden rain pool in sight.  I declined to follow you in there.  Fortunately everything you wear is washable.  Those sandals, which, like your underpants, are on their third wearer, have kicked around in our washer and dryer many times this summer.

We took a fun trip out to the farm mid-month to celebrate Papa’s Conservation Farmer of the Year award.  The Adair County Fair was a modest one, but you can always find something fun to do, even if it’s just running back and forth on bleachers.  You weren’t quite as interested in the animals as your brothers were, but you liked the ice cream, bouncy house, and fireworks.

You have been learning a lot lately, and it seems like your language skills have advanced a lot.  Suddenly you’re able to express much more sophisticated ideas through complex sentences.  You’re still sorting out the details, though.  Today, I told you we needed to run errands, and you were pretty crabby when you realized we’d be taking the car instead of actually running.

Photo by Denny

It’s going to be tough on you when your brothers go back to school later this month.  You’ve gotten pretty used to having them around this summer.  They’re spending next week at Mubby and Skitter’s house, so we’ll see whether you relish being an only child for a week or if you miss them.  I might miss them—the older they get, the better they get about playing with you, so I won’t be able to count on them to entertain you while I get tasks done or take a little break.  Still, it will be fun to have some time just with you.  Last year we did some fun toddler programs at the library, which we can do again, and maybe we can go to Tot Time.

Your current favorites:  playing outside, riding your Strider bike, reading Pete the Cat, Little Blue Truck, and The Monster at the End of This Book at bedtime, Hershey Kisses (your potty success rewards), and dumping out enormous tubs of Legos that you decline to put away.

We’ve had a lot of good fun this summer, Callum.  Thanks for being my sweaty-headed little adventure buddy.

Love,

Mommy

Happy almost-end-of-summer, Miles.

Your biggest accomplishment of the last month has been your latest film, RU DUM.  It combines your love of silly sound effects, flashy scene transitions, and proctological humor.  The first two were pretty easy to do with iMovie, and the third came naturally out of you (you’re not the only one around here who can make fart jokes, though I think mine are somewhat more subtle).  It’s a fun and funny film, and you did a good job working with other family members, mostly Tobin, to showcase their talents and come up with a satisfying final product.  You even threw in a little stop-motion animation.  That was nice to see, since every day when I picked you up from animation camp earlier this summer, the only thing you talked about was werewolf game you played with your classmates during breaks.  I’m glad you learned some actual animation skills too.

Your dad and I have both noticed that you’ve been sweet and fun with Callum lately.  You and Tobin have been getting along pretty well, too, as a matter of fact.  You certainly still have your squabbles, but I’ve noticed what an effort you’ve been making to engage and entertain the little guys rather than get huffy when they desperately seek your attention.

I’ve noticed Callum making the exact same squinty-eyed annoyed face as you, but that could just be genetic.  I don’t think I yelled once on our drive home from piano lessons yesterday, and that seems to be the time and day of the week when we’re all most likely to melt down.  Sometimes things get better.  I’ve been a mom long enough to know I shouldn’t get cocky, that the mood can shift quickly, but overall it’s been a pretty peaceful summer.

We got your class assignment for next year, and you were happy to learn that you got Mr. Moore.  I don’t know him well, but I have a generally favorable impression, and word on the street among elementary schoolers is probably the best indicator anyway.  I’ve talked to one of your best friends’ moms, and unfortunately her son is not in your class.  It wouldn’t hurt you to widen your social circle a little, but we can also make an effort to get you guys together more on evenings and weekends.

The school year is descending quickly upon us.  I’ve been busy with PTO meetings, doing the kind of organizational stuff we do to keep things running.  You’ll be getting back into your school year activities, which for the fall will probably be Let Me Run and piano.  We have generally done swimming lessons in the fall, because it’s easier to get spots than during the summer, but I’m not sure they’re really necessary for you anymore.  The last few times we’ve gone swimming you’ve done great, strong and confident in the deep end.  I’m sure you could still use some honing of particular strokes, but in terms of recreational swimming, you’ve got it under control.

Fifth graders can start doing a band instrument through school, and I told you that you could choose either band or to re-start piano after your summer hiatus.  You got a little burned out on piano by the end of the last school year, maybe because the spring is always so busy for us with all the other activities that happen then.  After thinking about it for a while, you chose to re-start piano.  I think your dad was a bit disappointed by that, because he was in the school band and had positive memories of it.  I’m fine with your choice, because after one year of middling payoff as a clarinet player, I let band go and stuck with piano.  Your dad appreciated the social elements of band, particularly marching band, and I admit that the marching band is the only thing I find interesting at any football game, ever.  Still, as an adult, I play piano a lot more than your dad plays saxophone.  I suppose you could still change your mind.  I imagine you could get started fairly easily, since you already have a good grasp on beginning music theory through piano and choir.

You can also touch your tongue to your nose, which has to be useful for some instrument, right?

You’ll spend next week at Mubby and Skitter’s, where you’ll surely have a great time, and the week after that, the back-to-school scramble begins in earnest.  I know you’ll do well and have a good year, but I’ll miss what has been a really great summer.  You’ve slept in, read books, watched a lot of stupid YouTube videos, gone to museums, gone to the library, taken a trip to a lake, eaten plenty of ice cream, made a movie, and brushed your teeth nearly every day.  Cheers to a summer well-spent, my sweetheart.

Good job looking evil, but I can see right through it.

Love,

Mom