tsunami

Milo, Walker, Eli, Miles, Liam

Liam's first game back after the doctor gave him the green light -

he managed to avoid clubbing anyone and scored the first goal of the game last weekend.

Once again, soccer has taken over our family's free time. For the first time ever, Liam and Milo are on the same team, which has made our lives a LOT easier. (Well, and the broken wrist took Liam out for the first five weeks...) This fall, their team, Tsunami, is a 4th/5th grade mix, and they are playing with some of their closest friends.

Tsunami is not the most competitive team in the U11 league. They've only won one game this fall and tied two. But these formerly ultra-competitive boys don't seem to mind - although they sometimes get overly-goofy, they are having a great time on the field together.

Soccer Moms

The best part for me of the boys playing with all their friends, is that I

get some quality sideline time with some of my dearest friends!

Post-game fro yo

I just posted this comment on a friend's blog who's son is just starting out with sports:

Being a soccer mom has its ups and downs. I have put in a lot of time under umbrellas and in soggy rain boots on the soccer sidelines, carting muddy boys all over town - and while sometimes I'd rather be curled up with my coffee on Saturday mornings, I wouldn't trade it. I have learned to love kids' sports. I love the triumphant sweaty faces running toward me after a game, the little thrill when someone scores a goal or makes a basket, and even the hard lessons that come with not making a goal. Sports have taught my children resilience and the interdependencies of teamwork like nothing else.

best years

Joel and I have been reminiscing about college lately. Maybe it's the fast pace of our lives these days. Or maybe the hard things that are happening to some of the people we love. I think a lot of it comes down to the many demands on our time that leave us feeling stretched thin and taut at the end of the day.

We remember college fondly, and not just because that's where we met. While maybe not the best years (I have to say, even though I'm busy, I am really enjoying my thirties), those truly were great years. We were independent, but still free of real-life demands. I remember a lot of sitting around in coffee shops reading. I remember long evenings drinking cheap red wine on a big front porch surrounded by people I loved - many of whom are still in my life. Those are the years of staying up too late writing papers, and sleeping in too late on Sunday mornings. The years when you really believe that anything is possible, and you're right.

College, for us, was about figuring out who we were and what we stood for. It was about finding equilibrium. And it was about having the time of our lives! We tried out different majors and different friend groups; learned how to rock climb and how to steer a raft down the McKenzie River. We drank too much, and then we didn't drink at all. We saved money, and then we spent it. We were vegetarians, and then we weren't. We worked hard and played hard, and we loved it all, even the hard parts.

A couple of weekends ago, my sister and I took a road trip around Oregon to visit our little brothers who just started their first year of college. Teja is in Bend, going to Central Oregon Community College and living in a funny little apartment in the woods with two other guys. They are proud of the dinners they make together, and of their Goodwill decor. None of them have cars so they bike everywhere and love it.

Kavi moved to Portland and is going to Portland Community College. He wants to be a firefighter so is taking EMT courses. He lives with his friend Chance in an apartment on a busy street in SW Portland. They eat a lot of noodles and are learning the bus routes. (Kavi is especially interested in the bus route to Lewis and Clark, where his girlfriend goes...)

We're a little jealous of them. They are at the beginning of some great years. It's true that life keeps giving us great years, and every new phase has its own beauty. I'm sure someday I'll look back on these years of having young children with nostalgia. But it's fun to watch my brothers starting out on their own, excited about what the future will bring.