Dear Tobin,

Your prime season is coming up: outdoor play season. You are a kid who loves action and adventure, and those things are much easier to find when you’re able to leave the house. You’ve started baseball for the season, and you even joined me when I took Callum to his practice the other night. One of your good friends from school also likes to come along when his younger brother practices, and you were able to find each other and do some pitching and hitting together. I imagine you’ll be doing lots of biking and skateboarding this summer, too, though we do need to get some repairs done on your bike.

School has continued to go well. You often bring home math tests with 100% grades on the top, and I know you’ve been having fun being with your friends. After spring break, we decided to let you start eating lunch at school again. At that time, your school had COVID mitigation measures in place that included eating in your classroom rather than in the crowded cafeteria. Unfortunately, we just found out that next week you’re moving back to the cafeteria situation. This seems like poor timing to me. Just hours after you told me about that upcoming change, we got an email from the superintendent noting the rising COVID levels in our community and beyond. They still haven’t reinstated a mask mandate, and I don’t understand why now is the right time to push everybody onto those crowded cafeteria benches again.

I know you liked staying at school for lunch with your friends, but I think I’m going to start picking you up again. I definitely want to do this in the short term, because the week after next, your dad and I are going to be out of town. Mubby and Skitter are coming to take care of you, and while they’re fully vaccinated and double-boosted, I still want to do everything in my power to keep them safe. I would feel just terrible if they got COVID from one of you kids and I could have prevented it.

I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful few days. I’ve written out a long document with all the important times and places for you and your siblings, and it looks intimidating when it’s all in one place. I was telling your dad it made me feel proud of myself for storing it in my head most of the time. What’s most important, though, is that you’re happy and safe. I know Mubby and Skitter will do a great job with those goals. You’ll probably get more junk food than usual and more leeway in other areas, too, but I imagine it will be okay.

I have mixed feelings about going on this trip at all. I wouldn’t have chosen to do it now, but the groom is your dad’s cousin, and it’s important to your dad that we go. The groom is short on immediate family, so I understand that it’s valuable to show up and be supportive. I truly like both the bride and groom and am happy to be part of the bride’s official welcome. The wedding is at a resort in Mexico, so I imagine we’ll be able to squeeze some fun out the situation. I’m nervous about COVID, and I’m already steeling myself to get razzed about wearing a mask as often as I can. Lucky for me, I would never prioritize fitting in over sticking to my values, so I’ll just go ahead and wear my mask a lot, opinions of others be damned. You’re a bit crabby that we’re going without you, but it’s an adults-only event, and I wouldn’t want you to miss school anyway. Maybe, if we have a fantastic time, we can go again as a family some day.

You’ve gotten involved in Family Folk Machine again, now that it’s meeting in person. I don’t think singing is your favorite art form, but you’ve had fun hanging out with your friend Ben again. You also will be playing bass on one song in the concert. I’m glad your bass teacher is also a friend of Family Folk Machine, because he’s super flexible and willing to take on the task of helping you learn your part. You’ve been doing lessons via Zoom for the last few weeks, because driving out to Coralville for your lessons was not going to work with the baseball schedule. That’s not ideal—I’m sure in-person lessons are more effective, but I’m glad we have an alternative available. That’s one of the good things to come out of the pandemic: we as a society have a much clearer idea of what can be done via online meetings, and we’ve all learned the technology well enough that we’re not scared to use it when the moment is right.

Your current favorites: pepperoni pizza, Laundry Ball (the indoor sport that makes a lot of noise and seems never to grow old for you), watching Psych with your dad and Artemis, watching NBA basketball, playing basketball in area parks, playing baseball with your team, bagels with cream cheese, helping make stir fry for dinner, and listening to audiobooks.

You’re a kind, generous, funny, and helpful little guy, Tobin. I was watching an old video of you playing basketball with your dad and Skitter when you were two. You don’t need Skitter to lift you up to the hoop anymore, but your enthusiasm and joy haven’t changed. You’re a wonder, and I’m so glad to have you.

Love,

Mom