Dear Tobin,

Summertime was made for kids like you.  You’re so active and wiggly.  We recently had a spate of very hot (potentially dangerous) weather, and I nearly had to tie you to the couch to keep you inside.  You’ve been really into riding your scooter lately, and you have a little loop on the path in the backyard out to the park that you enjoy taking.  You’re proud that we trust you to do it by yourself, and you’re very responsible about always wearing your helmet and sticking to the zone that doesn’t require crossing any streets.

You’ve also done a lot of reading this summer.  Your first motivator was the library’s Summer Reading Program.  The prize package for completing the program included coupons to some of your favorite places (Bruegger’s, Panda Express, and Aspen Leaf Frozen Yogurt), and you’ve been very excited to use them.  You and your dad have a tradition of going out for bagels and dad/son time on Sunday mornings, and you were very proud to donate your coupon to him so his bagel would be free.  Of course, then he bought a bagel for you, but the gesture was noble nonetheless.

Even though all three kids have now completed the program, you’ ve still been excited about reading.  You got really into the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, and I think you’ve read almost all of them now.  You read some from the library, some from copies Miles already owned, some on your Kindle, and listened to at least one as an audiobook.  There are also a few movies based on the books, and as luck would have it, your dad never got around to cancelling his HBO subscription after Game of Thrones ended (not a dad/son activity).  Several of those movies are available on HBO, so you were pretty excited to watch them on the iPad while cuddled up in your bed.

Your face in the photo above expresses how you felt the first day of a sports camp you attended.  Being the social creature that you are, your favorite aspect of it that it was a week of full-day playdates with your friend Ben.  The two of you signed up to go to the camp together, and you had tons of fun together.  It was hosted on campus near your dad’s workplace, so one time over lunch hour he stopped by to visit you.  You and Ben had crammed your lunches into your faces and used the time you saved to play full-court one-on-one basketball.  That’s a lot of work for someone who’s only four feet tall (Ben is slightly taller, but you make up for it in commitment).

You got to try all kinds of different sports, including tennis, flag rugby, swimming, rock-wall climbing, and more basketball.  You would have been happy to do ten more sports, but you only had a week.  Maybe next year I’ll have to sign you up for two.

Photo by Gary Clarke

Baseball season wrapped up nicely, which gives us a lot more of the aforementioned free time.  You had a serious mid-season hitting slump, and I think you were feeling frustrated by it, but in your last few games you turned things around.  You helped take your team to the championship game of the Pitching Machine league, and you won.  You have proudly displayed your trophy on your desk.  As much of a time-suck as baseball is, you do truly enjoy it, so I guess we’ll be in for another summer’s worth next year.

You are a person who always wants to be out for an adventure.  We had some car trouble yesterday that thwarted our plans to go downtown, so we made the best of it by taking a walk through our neighborhood to the shaved-ice stand (thus checking an item off our summer activity list).  You enjoyed your treat, climbed a tree, and kept a good attitude.  The heat wave I mentioned previously had abated, and it was one of those rare, perfect afternoons.  It made me happy that we went light on camps this year and have the free time and flexibility to change our plans and find fun as we go.

We have a trip to Colorado coming up, and you’re so excited.  You just woke up, and the first bleary words you said to me were, “Just two more days until our trip!”  You’ve had your bag packed for about a week, and you’ve been guiding Callum in packing his bag as well.  We’ve had to make a few adjustments—you’re frustrated that he’s overdoing it on the stuffed animals and books and going too light on essentials, and during your first round of packing you packed all your t-shirts and would have had nothing left to wear for the rest of the week at home if I hadn’t managed that.  In any case, I admire your enthusiasm.  As long as you save a few books to read during the long drive and can manage to get along with your brothers, I think we’ve got it under control.  I’ll make sure you have enough underwear.

Your current favorites:  pizza (especially from Blaze), watching YouTube, reading, riding your scooter, jumping at the trampoline park, swimming, and having special time with me before the other kids get up.  You’re the earliest riser of the bunch, and I too cherish the moments we share on the couch during the quietest time of day.  “You’re writing about right now,” you just said, as you read my screen.  I can see your lovely curls in the photograph below while at the same time seeing them in my peripheral vision as your head rests on my shoulder.

You’re a treat, my sweet.  As long as you can balance the quiet with the wild, I think we’re in for a great wrap-up to the summer.  I’m excited for an adventurous vacation with my adventurous, exciting, energetic guy.

Love,

Mommy