Dear Tobin,

The spring thaw is coming (and going, and coming again), and you are so ready for it. You are not a person who is happy being stuck inside, and I can see you itching for outdoor adventure again. Even though I initially said you needed to choose between spring soccer and baseball, you begged and begged, and I eventually relented: you’ll be playing both. That will mean a lot of hauling around town for practices and games, and now of course Callum wants to play both as well. I’m sure your dad will handle the majority of that, so I am grateful to him in advance for all that legwork and emotional support. It will mean lots of active outdoor time for you, so I’m sure you’ll be happy.

Your fifth grade year is now nearly two-thirds done. As usual, the winter was a bit of a slog, with managing snowpants and hats and boots and gloves, but you got it done. You seem happy with how the year is going, and your report card indicates that you’re doing well. We have your conference later this week, so we’ll get to hear from your teacher about all the things you’ve been doing. You have a good friend group, and every day you spend the walk home telling me about the day’s soccer games and drama. Someone’s water bottle always gets stolen (but eventually returned), there’s always a funny anecdote about silent ball, and you often have mud-stained pants from diving for a soccer ball.

Your bass lessons have gotten derailed by your sports schedule, and we’re hoping to squeeze a few more lessons in before soccer and baseball start. You still have some music in your life with Family Folk Machine and the school band. You’ve been playing saxophone, and you had one concert so far in the fall after just a few weeks of lessons. It was…a sensory experience. I remember Artemis’s school band making a lot of progress between the fall and spring concerts, so I look forward to hearing yours later in the season.

You went to a birthday party last weekend that sounded like my personal nightmare: Go-Karting. Naturally, you loved it. I knew the second I saw the invitation that it was exactly the kind of thing that you would want to do and that I would feel anxious about until you were safely home. It was all the way in Cedar Rapids! Drivers don’t even wear helmets! You don’t even have a driver’s license! Your one concession to my mental health was to agree to wear a mask whenever possible, so at least I had that. You had a blast and have requested to have your birthday party there in August. We’ll see about that.

Your basketball season has been a little bit frustrating. You had originally planned to be on a team with your friend, but his mom got mixed up and signed him up for a different team than the one she told me put you on. Your teammates don’t show up consistently to practices or games, so there’s a lot of pressure on you. At your last game, only five players from your team came, and the other team had nine. That meant that in order to play five-on-five, you and your teammates had to play the entire game with no subs. Still, you did great. You were hustling and rebounding and made some good shots. I do wear mom-goggles, of course, but I still think it was pretty obvious that you were MVP. Later that afternoon, you watched an amazing final minutes of the Hawkeye men’s basketball team, in which they came from behind for a spectacular overtime victory.

That’s part of why I ultimately caved on the soccer and baseball issue. It’s not something I fully understand, but sports are very enjoyable and fulfilling activity for you. You’re even becoming a more gracious loser. I guess this year’s basketball experience has helped you in that area. I didn’t keep careful score on your last game, but I think you may have won that one. I’m glad the season wasn’t a total wash.

Your current favorites: your fuzzy grey sweatshirt (as evidenced by these photos, which I swear were taken on many different days); sports of all kinds, but especially basketball right now; books by Stuart Gibbs; playing chess with your siblings; playing with your friends; pizza, including your famous homemade variety; stir-fry; and our special-occasion trips to Coralville for Popeye’s. We don’t have any big spring break plans, so I’m hoping we can build a list of local fun things to do. I anticipate the trampoline park, movies, and another Popeye’s excursion will be on that list.

You continue to be a bright light, a force that makes any day better and any room happier because you’re in it. You still enjoy my hugs and being with your family, so I’m going to soak up as much of that as I can get. I’ll even sit through some baseball games because you’re there.

Love,

Mom