a weekend

I've still to finish a post on our holidays, with pictures of our trip, but in the meantime let's see how quickly I can write a post on our past weekend before Cyndi and I go over to the school this morning. Jackson's teacher recommended him for the gifted enrichment program, and we've filled out some questionnaires and today we meet with a committee before Jack takes an initial test to measure "intellectual ability." I think that's some form of an IQ test. We prepared by going swimming last night and Cyndi made sure the boys had a good breakfast.

The beginning of the weekend is a bit of a blur. We went to a new Italian place in the far Northeast Heights and ate pizza, with a beer, a wine and an Italian soda. Saturday was going to be a big day, with an early registration for a chess tournament and then sign-ups for baseball. Elley, Nicholas and Lauren were coming over for dinner later, and I took out a chuck roast from the freezer.

On Saturday, we had a breakfast of blackberry pancakes and bacon. Both of the boys were being rambunctious, and Rylee especially was on a whirl. He just wouldn't listen to me, and I had to get stern with him. The chess tournament had a huge turn-out, but like us most of the parents had not pre-registered. That put a crimp in the organization of the tournament that never really got better. We also learned that it was going to take the better part of the day. The children would play four rounds.

These chess tournaments, since we are so new to this, are very stressing. We had a one-game tournament during the prior week for elementary school children, which Jackson played in. We got there early and Jack set up his new set from Santa. He would play in second position for his school. I asked the director if I could grab a chair and sit along the side of the room with Ry, which is how it was done at our only prior tournament experience. He said they were going to have the parents in a separate room. I looked around the room, which was filling up with parents eager like me to watch their child in competition, and I thought to myself that wasn't going to go over well. He said the parents could walk in for a few minutes during the play. That struck me as odd. Sure enough, the parents were directed into the room. Ry and I grabbed a seat in there. Equally certain, many parents did not comply and there was no followup to enforce it.

Just before play began, I checked on Jackson. He was already a little upset because the coach from the school he was playing against had moved him up a chair because the first seed from Jack's school hadn't shown up yet. Jack wanted to move his set, instead of strangers playing on it, and he wanted to wait for the first seed, but the opposing coach belittled him for not complying with her. After play began, Ry and I went inside the room with the chess players, and the opposing coach was hovering over Jackson during play. I could see Jackson was distracted, and I wondered why coaches were allowed to do that. Even worse, the opposing player's friend was "talking trash" to Jackson and even reached over and moved pieces on the board Jack was playing on. Jack held his own on that, I thought. Then Jack made a few mistakes and he became more despondent. He even tried to retire. He was devastated when he lost. The opposing player was good but Jackson could have beaten him. It hurt to watch Jackson so demoralized.

He sat there watching the players next to him playing a game on his board. It turned out that those players had already finished their game and were playing a friendly game. Ironically, the opposing coach thought Jackson was interfering with the game and asked the director to move Jack away. When the director did, I looked at him questioningly. He told me he had a complaint. I almost lost it. I said, complaint? I said, I wasn't going to say anything but now I have a few complaints of my own. The director became apologetic. He tried to tell me the coach didn't know how to play chess. I said that really didn't matter; she was a distraction.

Well, all that recap and support lifted Jack's spirits a bit, and we told Cyndi all about it when we got home.

The Saturday tournament was just as stressful. I remember back in fall when we went to the tournament at the school and I was so impressed with the children. This time I thought many of them were obnoxious and rude. In the first round, both Jack and Ry won their game. Jackson simply overpowered his opponent. Ry was playing a kid that was really a good kid, but as I watched the kid I swore he was secretly moving pieces out of turn and poor Ry tried to call him on it. That game ended when Ry put him in check and the kid thought he was in checkmate and conceded the game. The rule is that when both players agree who won, then the game is over. I told the director that the boy just didn't see one move that would have saved him from checkmate, but the director said that was the rule. The same thing happened a few other times that day.

So the boys having won their first games, I was relieved. At least they would both have a win.

In the second game, Jackson made some mistakes and he ended up retiring. He was devastated again. I grabbed him as he tried to leave the room and asked, did you shake hands? He said he didn't. I said I would insist that he do it. He did. I followed him out and we went outside to talk and we talked about many things. He didn't come around immediately but I knew he was listening. I was glad he won the first game and I was glad his second opponent was actually a good and gracious player. I thought this was a pretty good way to learn about losing a chess game in a tournament. It was also a pretty good way to learn about winning.

We went to lunch. On the way, we signed up for baseball. Nothing remarkable there, except that they are going to have an evaluation session for Ry to see which machine pitch league he should be in and a draft session for Jackson to see what minor league team he will be on. I figured Ry, because of his age, ought to repeat the first level of machine pitch, but maybe we'll see he should move up already. Either way would be good I think. Jack has had the same coaches for several years now and they want Jackson on their team again. It's been a great group of boys. The pressure is off Jackson for the tryouts for minor league, because his coaches actually hope he does poorly so they can draft him onto their team. The boys saw some friends at the fields and played with them. The boys got out their gloves, balls and bats later that day to play at home and all three of us played catch on Sunday in the front yard under the trees.

We had a light lunch and chocolate milkshakes at Flying Star, looked at a house Cyndi and the boys like to look at, and we got back to the chess tournament by 1. The third round had already begun. One of the officials had told several parents the wrong restart time. The director moved things around and Jackson and Rylee were playing. Jackson won his. Ry played a very obnoxious little kid but he was also a very good player and Ry lost. The boys both lost their final games and we drove home to start the dinner.

Ry wasn't sure if he wanted to play in the tournament but said he was glad to get the tournament experience. He wants his own Santa chess set now. Jackson said he could move to varsity now that he had played a tournament. There's another one next month.

Speaking of Santa: I'm sure Ry is wise to the whole thing. He overheard me talk about the skateboarding shop and ordering the firehouse Lego set on Amazon. He's not saying, but he knows, I'm certain. We started unpacking and sorting the firehouse Lego pieces (there's thousands), the one Ry got from Santa, while we were in California. Karl watched us enthusiastically, anticipating Roscoe someday building one. It took a few weeks to get it started. The set comes in two stages and as Ry and I sat down to do the first stage it was apparent that were many pieces missing. We were trying to substitute, but it became more and more difficult and we finally had to stop. We hardly got off the ground. So I called Lego tech support, and they knew exactly what bag of pieces was missing and would send them from Denmark. In the meantime, we decided to start on stage two, which is the second floor and the roof.

Ry has done all of it by himself. He is so engrossed in it now. I stand around and he allows me to find the pieces from the bags we put together to help sort them all out, but he has built it himself, piece by piece, except for one roof feature that he asked Jackson to help him with. It is now nearly completed, and he loves it. He's already playing with it. He's planning to add on other buildings. He carries it up to the bedroom at night, along with the shoebox of bags of pieces, just to be able to see it when he wakes up. He devoted most of Sunday to it.

Jackson spent most of the day Sunday designing his Cool Club website. He's researching new software tools to code the page, as well as researching things like copyrights and licensing. He designed a new console, with its own unique USB ports. I told him he ought to send it off to the Patent Office. He has since put together an online employment application. He and his friend Zach talk about it on the phone. Guess they're going into business together. 

First thing Sunday morning,  Jackson, Rylee and I also went to the skateboard park. Right now, they are using the new scooters they bought with Christmas gift money. We stopped first at Starbucks where the boys get their Kid's Hot Chocolate with Extra Whip and our baristas put them into tall cups for lots of extra whip cream. Jackson also got a donut and Ry an apple fritter. They each gave me a piece and saved a piece for Cyndi.

Ry says he can't wait for Dixon's Apples again so he can have one of their apple fritters. Jackson wants lots of their apple cider. We're not sure of the fate of Dixon's Apples, which suffered freeze, fire and flood all in one season last year.

We stayed a few moments and played our Set card game (a traditional game from Ariel's childhood) before heading to the park. Cyndi got it out for Jack and Ry last week, and Ry and I played one night before bed. Later Sunday, we all went together, with Elley, Nicholas and Lauren, too, to see "We Bought a Zoo."

Funny, when I thought I should write about our weekend, there were so many details I wanted to share about things they said, things they did. Can't think of them now, but here's something I did remember. We've been battling over bad language. We call it cussing. Finally, I said that when they use those words they are looking like a baby. Since that discussion, both of them, particularly Jackson, has cut the words out. Now, whenever I cuss, of course, they tell me I'm acting like a baby.

They are such good boys. I love the way Ry gets so engrossed in his projects and talks about them. I love the way Jackson is growing up, getting so mature in the way he talks and thinks. And I love that he still asks permission. Ry not so much.

Meanwhile, Ariel is back at work in NYC. She's going through a pretty intensive interview process for a really great new job, making wedding plans, and being busy with everything else. Chris is the midst of graduate program applications and interviews. They are planning a honeymoon in southern France and the Alps that includes some climbing and mountaineering. Ariel is very excited for June.

chez nous

I've talked about it before, but it's something we still continue doing. Ry and I leave the house around 7:30 in the morning every Saturday and Sunday. Our first stop is Starbucks for an Americano espresso, a hot chocolate with extra whip cream, and a maple pecan scone.

on the lip of the half pipe

After we back out to drive to the skateboard park, where he's practicing new tricks and skills, there is a restaurant called Chez Bob on our way.

Ry is in first grade now. He talks a lot about things he just learned in school, repeating what he heard his teacher say. This week it's even and odd numbers and compound words.

biking at the skateboard park

He reads everything in sight, including shop signs and road signs and billboards along the streets. And so he reads the sign for Chez Bob. He knows chez is French; he knows it's pronounced shay but he like's to say chezz instead to be funny, and he knows it means the place of Bob. So he applies the word to all manner of places, like Chez Sanchez, and wants to know how to spell other French words and also Spanish words.

Spelling tests are a breeze for Ry. Jack was missing words on his spelling tests, and his teacher wrote him a nice note, basically saying he should do better and it's just a matter of learning them. So I quiz him the night before the test. It only takes a few minutes for him to get them down cold and this week he got all of them correct. He tells me things he's learned in school, but the subjects are becoming more sophisticated and expansive: human physiology, history, political science, astronomy. His class had a field trip about a month ago or so to las Golondrinas, the living museum on the way to Santa Fe, and while we've gone a couple of times as a family I think the experience of going with his class and his teacher, along with the volunteer docents and artisans who guided the class, made a big impression.

chess tournament in school cafeteria

Jack had a chess tournament last week. It took place in the cafeteria of his school. I was quite surprised as there were easily over a 100 elementary-aged kids playing; probably a half dozen schools, both public and private, and each school had about three teams of five players each. The parents sat at the edges of the room, and there were assistant tournament directors monitoring the play. The director outlined the rules.

It was fascinating to watch the children and how their personalities were displayed during play.

another angle

One boy wore a jester's hat; a few of the older kids feigned indifference; small children displayed decisive and aggressive play beyond their apparent maturity, moving pieces quickly, slamming them down. Others wrote down the moves studiously, carefully moving. I saw one young girl "con" her even younger opponent into a draw when she was losing.

Jackson played a girl who seemed a little older. As Ry and I watched him play, Jackson took his time to move and to record the moves, and then fidgeted and swayed in his seat while waiting for his opponent, as though he were listening to some internal music. It wasn't distracting; it was just kinesthetic.

zooming in to Jack's game

Many of the games were over, and Jackson still seemed to be playing defensively. I couldn't detect an end game. Then I noticed Jackson methodically taking pieces and then he had two queens. You knew it would not be long. The girl sat patiently. She knew. Jack took his time to write down the final moves. It was excruciatingly painful. Just move your queen, Jack! He wrote some more. The girl waited. Finally, he moved his queen. Checkmate. Jackson and the girl shook hands above the chess board, an etiquette that starts and ends each game, a particularly impressive sign of sportsmanship because it requires both players to reach over the table to extend their hands.

The boys each had teacher-parent conferences Monday. The reports were good to glowing. They are both doing exceptional in mathematics. Ry has many good friends in his class. He writes wonderful stories about skateboarding. He was last week's VIP, which meant he got in front of the line, and got to bring in things to show (some Legos, a plush Angry Bird), and had a big poster with pictures of him and his family and his favorites things. Jackson's teacher wants him tested for the "gifted" program and thinks he should apply to the academy for middle school. He and his friend are part of what his teacher calls the Geek Team and she sends them off to other classrooms to set up and fix computers. Jack talks about going into business with his friend now. The boys are off this week for Thanksgiving. There will be turkey in Belen. As we drove to Belen last weekend, "Albuquerque Turkey" came on the Saturday morning children's radio show. Sung to "(Oh, My Darling) Clementine ", it goes something like this:

Albuquerque is a turkey,
and he's feathered and he's fine
and he wobbles and he gobbles
and he's absolutely mine.

He's the best pet that you can get,
better than a dog or cat
He's my Albuquerque turkey,
and I'm awfully glad of that.

Albuquerque is a turkey,
he's so happy in his bed,
'cause for our Thanksgiving dinner,
we had egg foo yung instead.

For Christmas, Jack has already put together a modest Christmas list for both him and Ry. It's some new Wii game. Ry desperately needs a new skateboard and there's Legos he's sure to want. Jack wants a tournament chess set that includes a clock. And maybe they'll get scooters, too. Ariel and Chris are coming just before Christmas and we've talked about maybe seeing the luminarias together in Old Town on Christmas Eve, after supper in Belen and before it's time for the boys to go to bed. Jackson wants to be involved in Santa this year. Ry overheard me tell someone where we got his skateboard. I told the kid the name of the store. I don't remember if that was a Santa gift, but later Ry asked me if I bought it. I think he was figuring out something. He usually says he can ask for anything from Santa because Santa doesn't buy the gifts, he "steals" them. And the boys are very excited about our newest idea of driving out to California on the day after Christmas in Poppa's small RV. I told Mom & Dad, and they were excited.

The last soccer games were this past weekend.

Ry tackling

It turned out to be such a great season for both of them. They had good coaches and, just like the baseball season in the spring, you could see their skills and knowledge rapidly rise. Ry was fast on the field, and the coach said he was the best tackler out there. Jackson scored goals in the last two games, and was making spectacular midfield headers.

last soccer Saturday this season

It really boosted his confidence. The best part of his last goal was seeing his sheer joy. It was a spectacular shot. He couldn't believe it scored. Jack had an iffy start to the season. I'm not sure he was really enjoying it, but as the season and his playing developed, you could see his enthusiasm and involvement rise. He started talking more, both calling out plays and cheering for his teammates. I think Ry was enthusiastic the entire season, because he just loves to run with other kids.