January Highlights:
- Luke’s snowboard team gets their team hoodies
- Luke tries out for high school volleyball team
- We take a trip to Mammoth and see some of the Olympics qualifiers, including Chloe Kim who Luke meets in person
- Lilah plays at winter recital – she played her own composition, City of Stars (La La Land), Somebody to Love (Queen)
Lots of Snow Trips with a Detour into Volleyball
Last year, I think I remember our team snowboard trips being every other week, but this year the schedule has changed to pretty much every week which meant we took 4 trips to the mountains in January. We did, however, mix it up a little bit by skipping team one week and driving up to Mammoth instead to take advantage of some powder conditions. We were pumped when we heard a storm was approaching our favorite mountain, but unfortunately it only dropped about half the amount of snow originally forecast. Still, it meant we were able to test out my new all terrain tires in the snow (they did great) and get a few morning runs in the fresh powder before it all got spread out and carved up.
One of the highlights of the Mammoth trip was Luke getting to meet Chloe Kim. I had no idea he had met her because this all happened in the lodge while I was waiting outside for him for what seemed like forever. Luke said he recognized Chloe in the lodge so he wished her good luck to which she responded by saying thank you and giving Luke a fist bump. He was really happy about the encounter. When I asked him why he didn’t get a picture with her, he got a bit of an annoyed look on his face and proceeded to tell me that it would have been rude to ask because she was on her way to compete and he didn’t want to interrupt her flow. Good for him. He was still stoked about the encounter and happy to hear that she ended up qualifying for the Olympic team after securing second place in the slope style competition.
Other than the brief escape to Mammoth, Luke has been pretty consistent in riding with his Big Bear team on Saturdays. In the process, he has added a red team hoodie to his wardrobe which he wears while he’s riding with his group, but also sometimes dons to school. In a way, it’s good the schedule of team meet ups has gone to consecutive weeks because I’m not sure how long this season is going to last. We’ve now seen several weekends where temps have hit the high 50s during the day which is not conducive to keeping the white stuff around too long. Guess we’ll just ride it out as long as it lasts.
In addition to snowboarding, Luke has also had two tryouts for the high school volleyball team. For not really having played volleyball until the last half of his 8th grade year, he’s really not too bad. It will be cool if he makes the squad as it will give me something new to photograph ;), but more importantly it will be a new experience for Luke to play a competitive team sport at this level.
Lilah Performs in One of Her Last Recitals
Lilah killed it at her latest recital. She played three songs and was virtually mistake free on all three songs. I was bummed that my camera shut off in the middle of her City of Stars (from La La Land) performance as this happened right when Lilah began getting into the fast part of the song. Oh well, at least I managed to capture half the song, her composition (called Ickle Me) and a nice cover of Queen’s “Somebody to Love,” which she basically played flawlessly.
Found myself getting a little wistful at this recital though, realizing that it would be one of the last ones before she is off to college. Mrs. Shelley, her instructor, also expressed the same sentiment. I suggested that maybe Lilah could take some refresher classes over the summer if it worked out, still holding out hope that this musical journey continues long after lessons are over. To that end, Lilah did express interest in having a keyboard again so that she could keep playing when she’s away at school. Music has definitely become part of her weekly routine as she never needs any reminders to practice or drive over to her lessons.
She is such a strong, willful and independent being. I love the way she seems to become good at whatever she chooses to do. Even though we all live in the same small house, I don’t really see her all that much because she is dedicated to her pursuits – which includes her studies, swimming, Kiwins volunteer events, and music. Perhaps that is her way of preparing us for when we’ll go through extended periods of time without seeing her at all.
Lilah’s first choice of college is still UCSB, which I guess would be cool since it’s not so far away, especially from my work. Who knows, maybe there will be opportunities for dad and daughter to have an occasional lunch if that happens. Part of me would like to keep her here with us forever and ever, but I know that would only hold her back. For now, I’ll try to enjoy having her near for as long as I can, savoring the moments before the inevitable time comes for her to start her new journey, which we’ll always be here to cheer from the sidelines. Love you my daughter!
That’s all for now. More next month!