exp's 5th annual ping pong tournament

happy sunday!


this post will be short and sweet as i have a dozen things that still need done before i start the work week. three loads of laundry sit on the bed of the guestroom, i have thank yous to send, lunches to pack, school work to review and scout wants to begin reading wonder tonight {again}. his reason for rereading it is he "was just 6 when he read it and he wasn't as mature as he is now so he'll get more from it".  it's true. he will get FAR more from it reading it as a 10 year. in fact, he's the same age as the main character in the book, auggie.  oh and how could I forget, our 13 year old is off to 8th grade camp all week. he's heading 3 hours away to the mountains of big bear. he's excited and though we'll miss him, we are excited for him too}.

but i digress, before any more time passes, i wanted to be sure to post about scout playing in my company's ping pong tournament two weeks ago. this was his second year participating and though he was good last year, this year, he was 10x better!  all that playing at our kitchen table which is a good  2 feet shorter and one foot narrower worked to his advantage. between his incredible hand/eye coordination and his competitive nature, the kid took 3rd in this all adult contest which had approximately 60 players. i played as well, but was out after the first round {luckily i didn't have to get publicly beat by my son). mr. g was there too competing and he did well, but played the guys that took 1st and 2nd in the tournament so he was out earlier. 

i was both in awe and so proud of scout.  i've seen him play and beat his friends, his parents, and our adult friends who come to the house, but it's a completely different thing to see him compete against adults i don't know.  i wish i could say i taught him all his skills, but it's christopher who has the skills and is home more to teach and play with scout. they are matched up really well these days. i think c only went easy on him the first year he was learning.

scout has always been a natural athlete and a fierce competitor in whatever he does, and today was just one more reminder of it. scout loved playing my coworker, mike, who played college tennis at villanova. mike {wearing the propeller hat below} wins our company tournament almost every year. on our way home from the tournament, scout asked aloud how much longer i thought it would take for him to be able to beat mike. i responded that mike is a bit over over 30. perhaps when mike is in his 40s when his eyes start losing focus, he'd have a better chance. he said "i'd love to be able to beat him". i didn't tell him that in 10 years, he will just be graduating high school and preparing for college. he won't be worrying about my company's ping pong tournament. to a 10 year old, that's a lifetime away, but to a parent of a 10 year old, it's just around the corner. *sniff*

for what it's worth...

i was up late last night catching up on laundry that i neglected over the weekend.
while the boys watched an episode of the new star trek discovery, i washed and folded
clothes in the guest bedroom. yep, this little 1960s home doesn't have a laundry room.
i make due with the guest room. since i had lots laundry to fold, i passed the time by watching
the curious case of benjamin button, based off the novel of the same title by f. scott fitzgerald.


i watched this film years ago at the theater with christopher, and remember thinking the storyline
was a bit odd, but i really enjoyed it. during the movie, there is a scene where one of benjamin's letters to daisy, the love of his life is being read. the words were powerful and completely mesmerized me. with the right font and paper, this quote would make a beautiful framed gift to a friend, a sibling, a spouse or even a child graduating from college.
i hope you enjoy as much as i do.

finn oliver at 13

one night last week, after the boys were in bed, i sat alone at the kitchen table reviewing some of finn's projects that he brought home from school. i came across a piece of paper that had his name written in the center of it, and from it, lines branched out to circles with a dozen or more words that all described what he loves. i forgot to ask him what this was all about. was it for his teachers, peers, a self reflection exercise?


as i read all the circles, i smiled and thought, most of these words are exactly what i would have written to describe finn's passions. this was comforting to me because as moms of teens know, we start to get pushed away as our kids strive for more independence. because of this, we sometimes question how well we still know our teen.
that little boy that followed me around the house talking incessantly about space and submarines is gone. he no longer shares every thought he has with me. he needs more time with own thoughts as he processes them and transitions from boy to young man.
this piece of paper reminded me i still know my 13 year old well. the best part is the realization that i know hundreds more things that he would never share on this piece of paper....all those things that make up his heart. i know what makes him laugh, the things that inspire him, his fears and what makes him feel safe and loved.


this is the beauty of being a parent. anyone who spends a day or week with finn will clearly learn what some of his passions are, but as his parent, i get privy to so much more. for this, i feel pretty fortunate. {i think the word 'space' appears at least 5x on this paper} 

finn oliver gerber, 8th grade, age 13