Seventh grade. Pretty much suits no one. All the awkwardness and puberty, plus the post-pandemic crazy. And yet it suits Jake. He likes seventh grade. He likes his middle school. And he’s becoming the best version of himself as most people detour into unrecognizable. Last week Ms. Mooney calls me. …
Now that our eight weekends of soccer tournaments are nearing an end, the boys are dreaming of Disneyland. We’re driving home last weekend and they’re telling me everything they want to do. I’m not quite as enthusiastic and so the hard sell begins… James says, “You can go get a massage while we…
We get home from our epic Christmas in Banff and I kid you not, sleep in our beds for three nights before heading back to the gopher great beyond, otherwise known as Lompoc. It’s our first All Stars tournament, just down the road from where Elon shoots his rockets into…
In mid-December the Raptors head to the Area Q tournament in Lompoc. It’s exciting because we never expected to be here and we’re out in the world, and it’s the first tournament experience for most of our team. The fields of Lompoc are gopher nirvana. There are holes and mounds…
As I noted in this year’s annual card, there was a day deep in the pandemic when Nate and I were lamenting the loss of an ENTIRE All Stars season. Serious loss aversion. We’re in the living room and he says to me, “Mom, my dream is to play in Bakersfield.” …
My dearest Jacob, Let’s just pretend it’s springtime off last year and I haven’t fallen victim to the pandemic blahs and watching endless hours of Survivor and… drumroll please… it’s Jacob’s birthday letter time! I do in fact think twelve-and-three-quarters truly suits you, and I know most people have never said that about…
Back on January 11, 2016, I started this blog and then saved it in my drafts folder. I was actively trying to land a new job and certainly didn’t want to stall my chances via one Google search linking my name and the word Barforama… So here we are, having landed that job,…
It’s official. All good things must come to an end. And while young men (or old boys, depending on the day) are always in need of new headphones, new swimsuits, and pants that cover their ankles, we’ve officially reached a new era. An era where Santa has declared piles of…
On my birthday I woke-up early of my own accord. Kind of normal but usually I gauge the time based on how many rooster wake-up calls I’ve endured. Where was the cock-a-doodle-doing? Must be a special bout of birthday luck. I didn’t give it much thought and enjoyed my first…
As I think I’ve mentioned, after school car rides are the best time to get all the hot goss. I especially hear a lot of stories on Mondays and Wednesdays, when I’m in charge of getting Nate and Cruz to Mustangs practice. Last week Nate casually mentions they “kind of had…