Monday, December 18, 2006
Basketball Moms
The transition was quick, but this weekend I became a basketball mom. And I loved it!!! I'm getting to know parents on the teams and the girls playing. I cheer them on, and wish I could be playing too! I think it's actually creating a bond between Samantha and me, giving us more to talk about.
Samantha is the oldest daughter, 13, and as everyone has said to me, "You know how teenagers are..." Well, honestly I didn't know how teenagers could be because I haven't spent much time around them (besides Japanese teenagers who aren't really like American teenagers) ...but anyway, as I mentioned in earlier posts, she has been quiet around me and now finally we have something to talk about.
There's another mom who has daughters on the same teams. Her name is Judy and she is very friendly. She asked if I could ever do babysitting for her, or carpool to games, so we exchanged numbers. She knows both my boss and his ex-wife, Etna, very well so she was able to give me the inside scoop on both of them and the kids. Although I do love watching the game, it's fun to have a friend to sit and gab with. She's giving me lots of tips on how to communicate better with the family and express my needs and desires to Tom. I feel really lucky to have met her.
Generally, I'm just feeling more a part of the family. The 11-year-old son, Tommy, got really upset this weekend so I got to have a heart-to-heart with him about his relationship with his father. Having divorced parents and only seeing his father intermittedly is hard on him. He wants to spend more time with Tom, but Tom goes on a lot of dates and splits the little time they have together with his own interests. I'm sure Tommy is jealous and feeling rejected, so I recommended (per Judy's advice) that he write a letter to his father asking for some one-on-one time. He seemed to like that idea so when I get back next week I might ask him if he's made any progress on that and help him get started.
I also met the mother in the picture. She is awesome! I immediately wished I could live in that house instead of this one, or at least have a bedroom in both like the kids! The house is warm and clean, and feels lived-in. It reminds me of the farm in Oregon, with two dogs and two cats and lots of art projects lying around. Etna is young and really beautiful and I could talk easily with her. I really hope my being here helps her, too, as she's been doing more than her share of driving. (I don't know if I mentioned, but Tom doesn't drive so I'm doing so much driving here!)
Today's my day off and I'm off to hang out with Nathan. I'm going back to Oregon tomorrow for about a week. So excited to see my baby brother and hug him til his limbs go numb! I haven't seen him in over 2 years!!! I'm not going to let go until I depart on Dec 26th!! Watch out James!!!!!!
Samantha is the oldest daughter, 13, and as everyone has said to me, "You know how teenagers are..." Well, honestly I didn't know how teenagers could be because I haven't spent much time around them (besides Japanese teenagers who aren't really like American teenagers) ...but anyway, as I mentioned in earlier posts, she has been quiet around me and now finally we have something to talk about.
There's another mom who has daughters on the same teams. Her name is Judy and she is very friendly. She asked if I could ever do babysitting for her, or carpool to games, so we exchanged numbers. She knows both my boss and his ex-wife, Etna, very well so she was able to give me the inside scoop on both of them and the kids. Although I do love watching the game, it's fun to have a friend to sit and gab with. She's giving me lots of tips on how to communicate better with the family and express my needs and desires to Tom. I feel really lucky to have met her.
Generally, I'm just feeling more a part of the family. The 11-year-old son, Tommy, got really upset this weekend so I got to have a heart-to-heart with him about his relationship with his father. Having divorced parents and only seeing his father intermittedly is hard on him. He wants to spend more time with Tom, but Tom goes on a lot of dates and splits the little time they have together with his own interests. I'm sure Tommy is jealous and feeling rejected, so I recommended (per Judy's advice) that he write a letter to his father asking for some one-on-one time. He seemed to like that idea so when I get back next week I might ask him if he's made any progress on that and help him get started.
I also met the mother in the picture. She is awesome! I immediately wished I could live in that house instead of this one, or at least have a bedroom in both like the kids! The house is warm and clean, and feels lived-in. It reminds me of the farm in Oregon, with two dogs and two cats and lots of art projects lying around. Etna is young and really beautiful and I could talk easily with her. I really hope my being here helps her, too, as she's been doing more than her share of driving. (I don't know if I mentioned, but Tom doesn't drive so I'm doing so much driving here!)
Today's my day off and I'm off to hang out with Nathan. I'm going back to Oregon tomorrow for about a week. So excited to see my baby brother and hug him til his limbs go numb! I haven't seen him in over 2 years!!! I'm not going to let go until I depart on Dec 26th!! Watch out James!!!!!!
