Disclaimer: the photos are in reverse order for some reason. Just a heads up. A lot to pack in here as it’s been a big six months!
4th grade finishing up
You are about to be done with your 4th grade year – which is simply unreal. Your teach, Mrs. Schneider, I think I mentioned, is the mother of your best friend Cora. She’s not in your class but you guys hang out all the time at school and a lot of time outside of school. You got to go on some great field trips this year (see pics below when mom drove), you are starting to get into some challenging math (but you are still testing at or above your level), and you absolutely love school – so much so that you get mad at us for making you miss it to go on fantastic trips. You still love St. Joe’s as well. As we do every year we will re-evaluate whether to keep you there, but my guess is we will.
We also had another daddy/daughter dance and had a blast. I took you out to dinner, we danced, we took pics, and had a fantastic time. Your friends and you hung out a lot, but you still made plenty of time for me as you always do.
You are also using the computer on a very regular basis for both school and shopping nowadays. 🙂
Soccer
You are playing in the North Boise Futbol League (NBFL) and have a number of friends on the team from school. You had to tryout for this one and made the team. You play primarily defense, and are actually a fantastic defended. You have played forward a bit, but you, at least at this point, are not very aggressive and therefore defense is far more your speed.
You really love soccer. It is the sport that you have really taken to and that you have dedicated a lot of time to. I am going to go out on a limb and say you’re probably not going pro in it (as I write this I feel bad saying this, but when I picture you at 18 reading this I kinda laugh a little) but it is something you enjoy. You are also at the age when it is finally fun to watch your games as you are not all just absolutely terrible anymore (again, feel bad now – laughing when you read).
LA Trip
We did the LA trip this year. Last year we were scheduled to go in November but you got sick the night before and we had to abort the trip (your mom still whines about that to this day and I am sure will never forget). But this year we did it – flew out on an early Friday morning and back Sunday evening.
We started with renting a Tesla and heading to the American Girl Doll store in Century City. You wanted new clothes for your dolls and we of course splurged and got more. Ethan got some legos and dad got a new Travis Matthews hat. We met Kelly for lunch at Shake Shack, and then headed to the JW Marriott downtown where we were staying.
This was hilarious because it was really the first time you have ever sat in traffic. We sat on the 10 for a good 45 minutes and you kept asking why no one was moving. Your mom was of course getting car sick, you were asking questions, and your brother was whining. I was driving because your mom can no longer handle driving in congested areas.
Once we got to the hotel we went swimming and ordered food to to pool for a few hours. We then met Aunt Maddie and went to mexican food, El Cholo was the name of the restaurant.
Saturday we woke up and relaxed for a bit before heading to campus. We then walked around and mom showed you USC as the tailgating continued. We went to the bookstore and spent way too much money decking you out with all the gear that you see in the pictures (dad got nothing and mom wasn’t happy). After watching the marching band then come through campus, we walked over towards the stadium. We first stopped off at the National History Museum of Los Angeles because they had the shuttle Endeavor. After leaving the museum we went to the sold out game. USC was playing Washington, who at the time was I believe #2 in the country. There were 90k+ people in the stadium – more people in one place than either of you had ever seen. You handled it well (was expecting you to be overwhelmed) and we stayed for nearly the entire game. In the end Washington ended up winning by a touchdown (don’t feel bad, they played for the national championship later in the year). We then headed back to the hotel.
The next morning we got up and went to Pasadana to a park right next to the Rose Bowl and met Aunt Maddie and Justin. You guys played on the playground while we chatted with them and met their dog Thor. After a while we headed back to the hotel, packed up our things and went to the airport. It was a great trip on a number of levels – but for me the big one was the exposure for you guys to that many people, some real diversity, traffic, and some great food.
Friends
You have really cultivated a solid friend group. You have had friends over the years but seems like the last year has been different in that you all hang out not just at school but outside. Avery and Cora seem to be your besties – Sandrine, Ava, Lucy, Alexis, and probably a bunch of other names I am forgetting are also close friends. Maci in our neighborhood and you have become quite close, while you have navigated away from Ellie next door. It is a very interesting dynamic that is every-evolving.
All that said we are so happy to see you have so many good friends, and ones that (at least at this point) are respectful and sweet. You only deserve the best and so far you have surrounded yourself with such.
Layla
As I write this, Layla is about 11 years and 4 months old. For a lab that is rather old since they average about 10 years. Right now she is still in pretty good shape. She has a bunch of growths and lumps, but is still eating normally and has plenty of energy. I take her to the vet a couple times every year for a physical and get her blood taken at least once a year, and so far nothing bad has shown up.
I am writing about her because you have taken a serious liking to her over the last couple years. Not that you ever dismissed or didn’t like her, but as you have gotten older you have really connected with her and go out of your way to please her. You take her on walks around the block almost daily, you feed her about as much as I do, you bring her treats and buy her toys and you always give her a ton of pets.
I love this about you. You are so sweet and loving with her. My problem is that her time is short, and I don’t know how you are going to handle it when we have to put her down. Layla has been the dog to your mom and I well before you were born – but to be honest, Layla and I have spent the majority of time together. I trained her, I walk her, I feed her most of the time, I snuggle and kiss her and I am incredibly attached. This is not to say your mom is not involved or doesn’t love her…she just isn’t as attached or loves her as much as I do. I have always worried about how I would react when she dies – I am really going to struggle to keep it together. Now, I am more worried about you and how you will deal with it. I hate having this outlook of thinking about her death, but realistically it’s coming and perhaps not that far from now. I just want you to know how much you love her, how much she loves you, and what an incredible owner you are to her. She is so lucky to have you.
Well, as always, I am sure I have missed a million things. Next time I write to you you will be a 5th grader. I know it’s lame but I just cannot believe how fast your are growing up. Please stay sweet, please stay kind, and please love me when you read this as much as you do now.
I love you more than anything in the world.
Love, Dad
