Thirteen

Clare turned 13 in June. I am writing this in September. Writing about Clare turning 13 has been on my to do list all summer, yet somehow it never happened. But here we are!

She is officially a teenager. Time is a thief.

Clare had a great year in seventh grade. She went to dances with friends and had a large-ish role in the school play. (She played a character named Tina-Louise and really stole the show. She was so funny.) She did well in school, and was student of the month in both math and Spanish at the end of the year. (She missed the assembly where she was awarded these titles, because I let her skip school on her birthday. We went to lunch and she got acrylic nails. I wanted to spend time with her because she had a soccer tournament the weekend of her birthday.)

How else did we celebrate? We had a cookout with her favorite chicken kebabs, rice pilaf, and salad. I think I made ice cream pies. We also had a family celebration with pizza. Maybe that's when we had the ice cream pies. See, this is why I shouldn't wait so long to write these posts.

Likes at 13: Soccer, reading, the library, gyros from Shish, pickles and olives, hanging out with friends, Sephora, swimming, arguing, Taylor Swift, Henry Danger, going on rides, the State Fair, painting, Cherry (our cat).

Dislikes: Storms, "sweet meat", not being in charge, going to soccer when she is tired, when someone is doing something they shouldn't, loud noises, my pre-game soccer pep talks, not having money.

Clare is playing soccer for the Blackhawks. She is playing with (mostly) the same group she has been with for the last few years. It is a lot of soccer, but she seems to love it. She is also taking piano lessons and continues to do well. She barely practices, but we do what we can.

Over the summer, she went to a Minnesota Aurora soccer camp, and a sleep-away YMCA camp with her friend Amelia. She also spent a few nights at her friend Luci's cabin, which was a highlight. (Her BFF Lauren was also there.)

She still loves collecting fidgets, and plays with them a lot. She saved her money and bought a record player, and spends a fair amount of time in her room listening to Taylor Swift on vinyl. 

She dislikes talking on the phone, but has several group chats that she texts in frequently. 

We have had a few moments recently that seem to baffle Ben. Tears about seemingly minor things. As a former 13 year old girl myself, I totally understand. However, we may be in for a long year.

Even though we have hit the teenage years, Clare is still very much who she ever was. She is confident, fun, caring, stubborn, headstrong in the best way, and intelligent.

As my sister recently said: "For a family of people who think they're the smartest person in the room, I think you actually are." 

Clare, if you read this someday, just know how much we love you. Do what makes you happy, if you can. Stay yourself. Don't be afraid to share your opinions, but remember to listen to other people, too. Happy 13th birthday!

Ten

Newborn Christopher.

5-year-old Christopher.

10-year-old Christopher.

Ten!

I was feeling very nostalgic before Christopher's birthday this year. Partly because of the double digits, and partly because it feels like the end of an era. I have been an at-home mom (aside from various contract projects) for so long, and now both of my babies are getting older. (Also, I now have a job "outside of the home" even though I work from home 99 percent of the time.) 

I made the mistake of telling Christopher I was feeling sad about him turning 10, which meant that I later found out that he was also sad about his birthday. Because that is the kind of sweet, empathetic boy that he is. Empathetic to a fault, sometimes. I quickly went into overdrive assuring him that I was very excited to celebrate him, and he ended up having a fun birthday. (I mean, who wouldn't like laser tag with a BFF and sister; a trip to the Rainforest Cafe, or Jungle Cafe as he calls it; and pizza and ice cream cake with the in-town cousins? Yes, it was a lot of birthday, but I love celebrating the kids.)

Christopher is in 4th grade. It has been a bit of a rough transition. He had the same wonderful teacher for the past 3 years. And they were tumultuous years, starting with first grade in the fall of 2020.  This year, the expectations for classroom work are much higher, and he misses his friends who are no longer in his class. I know this will be good for him, though. Clare had the same teacher for fourth and fifth grade, and she was more than ready for middle school. (Although can I credit the teacher here? It is Clare, after all.)

Christopher struggles with transitions, but we try to ease the way for him where we can. Some of this he will just need to figure out on his own.  Ah, growing up.

Some of Christopher's favorites at 10: video games, video games, video games, and oh did I mention video games? (Current favorites include Minecraft, Pokemon Sword, Super Smash Bros., Fortnite, and the OG Super Mario Bros and Age of Empires.) He also loves reading (especially Big Nate and Diary of a Wimpy Kid), drawing, swimming, riding his bike around the block, playing board games, our new kitten, stuffies, and legoes.

Dislikes at 10: Being told to turn off the video games, basketball, school (sad), Harry Potter, cleaning the cat's litter box, when Clare gives him a "fresh cut". 

Christopher still loves all animals. Not coincidentally, he is also still a vegetarian. (14 months and counting!) 

He is full of random facts from books he's read, so I always believe him when he says something is true. He said this to me the other day, "I used to worry about all of the stars running out of juice, but then I read that when a supernova explodes it makes 1,000 stars." 

He is taking a Parkour (free running) class at a local gymnastics gym, which he loves. He is in Cub Scouts, and played baseball over the summer. We are trying to encourage him to try some other sports, like soccer, but so far he is not interested. 

He told me recently that he loves our family road trips and exploring new places. This year, we went to Utah and camped near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. He likes exploring these places, but his favorite parts of any camping trip seem to be s'mores and playing games as a family. Oh, and Ghost in the Graveyard when we camp with our friends.

It's so hard to capture Christopher in a post like this, but he is just so funny. He loves to make people laugh, although he hasn't yet figured out that the joke is less funny the more it is repeated. I am sure he will get there! 

Here is a conversation I had with Christopher recently, which I enjoyed and I think captures some of his quirkiness:

Christopher after his shower: I used so many things in there! Two conditioners, the body and hair wash, shampoo.

Me: I was wondering what was taking you so long.

Christopher: That wasn't why I took so long. I spent half the time putting soap into my belly button.

Me: That was a good use of your time.

Oh, Christopher. You are the best boy. I love how you still let me hug and kiss you, even though you are 10. I love talking to you and listening to all of your interesting observations on the world. Happy birthday!

First Half of 2023

Edited to add: I wrote this over a year ago and never published it. I am publishing now, dating it back to the day I wrote it, because I want to. Maybe I'll write about 2024 at some point. Maybe not. 

This winter felt interminably long. And yet, somehow, here we are halfway through June. Here are some updates on what we've been up to.

Ben: Had his hip replaced. Is old.  (Okay, one 2024 update: he had to have the surgery redone. Blah.)

Emily: Started a part time job. Is supposed to be writing an article for said job, but is writing this blog post instead.

Clare: Just finished sixth grade. Had a great year. Has suddenly turned into an argumentative teenager. (Okay, she has always been an argumentative teenager, even when she was two. It is just worse now.)

Christopher: Just finished third grade. Playing baseball. Hits the ball pretty well. Catches it only occasionally.

Let's see...what else. This month Clare had a soccer tournament in Oshkosh (or Osh-Gosh, as she spelled it). Ben took her to that while I took Christopher on his Cub Scout camping trip. Surprisingly, I had fun on the camping trip. Unsurprisingly, I didn't sleep well in the tent.

We spent May doing sports (soccer and baseball), school events (garden party, Christopher's class play, field trips), and swimming in Evansville over a Memorial Day weekend visit to the Cuckoo House.

We took a family trip to Utah over spring break in April. It was really fun. We took the camper and drove (through the Rockies, I was driving, I didn't love it) out to Utah. We spent a week exploring Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, and camping in a canyon along the Colorado River. It was so beautiful, but I didn't realize how much I missed trees until we got back to Minnesota. 

I also got in a weekend visit to NYC with Katie and Robby. We had a fabulous time, even when Katie accidentally took us to the Friends apartment rather than the comedy club we were trying to find. We ate good food and had fun hanging out together. I want to do it again!

March was long and cold and wet.

In February, we spent most of our time driving kids to various activities, including a school dance for Clare and Polar Cubs for Christopher. 

January: who knows?? We probably recovered from the holidays and stuff.

Here are some pictures:

Twelve

Twelve! Somehow. 

Clare is just finishing 6th grade, and it has been a stellar year for her. She was in the school play, is a member of the Student Library Council, is doing well in school, and has a great group of friends. She is at a 6-12 grade school, and it is small, but so far she loves it. I was incredibly proud of her this year, especially when she told me that she extricated herself from a group of friends that didn't feel right and found friends that like her for her. (She told me that she told herself when she started middle school that she was only going to be friends with people she felt like she could be herself around. This was after reading lots of books in 5th grade that took place in middle school.) 

Clare at 12 is still supremely confident, smart, logical (Vulcan, from her Dad), fun to talk to, and kind in many ways.  (For example, when Ben had surgery last month she made him a card, left him snacks and a bell so he could ring for help, and set up a very comfortable bed for him on the couch.) 

Clare wants to dye her hair blue. This seems to be the thing to do with her age group, as I know several unconnected kids her age who have blue hair. (One of her birthday presents is going to be a trip to the salon.)

Clare experienced the second best day of her life this year, according to her. She went to a live performance of Hamilton. (The first best day? When she visited the sets of the Harry Potter movies when we were in England last year.)

Clare still plays soccer year round. Would I be sad if she quit? No. Is she likely to quit? Also no. 

She is also still taking piano lessons, although she doesn't practice often.

Her number one hobby is reading. She likes mystery and literary fiction, but isn't big on fantasy (except Harry Potter, of course). 

She loves the show Wednesday and is still into American Ninja Warrior.

Some likes at age 12: Slime, fidgets, sticker books, Lego, Minecraft, reading, camping, ice cream (especially drumsticks), getting take out (local places Shish and Tavial are favs), experimenting with make-up, arguing, begging for a cat, needling her brother.

Some dislikes at age 12: Bugs, thunder, running, doing any chores that don't have something in it for her, most vegetables, meat with a "sweet" sauce, brushing her hair, not having a cat, when her brother cuts his hair really short.

This summer she is doing a few camps (clay and soccer), taking swimming lessons, and wants to do several summer reading programs. 

Clare had a soccer game the night of her birthday, but we ate her favorite dinner early (chicken kabobs, rice pilaf, Italian salad) and opened presents and had cake after her game. She also went to SkyZone on Sunday. I said she could bring a friend, but she chose to just go with Christopher. They had a blast.

(As for the cat. I have put it off for 3 years. How long can I go?)