HOOS LIFE: Chloe Jones is Embracing Time with Family
Women’s lacrosse midfielder Chloe Jones played in three games for the Cavaliers in 2020 before the season was cut short due to the pandemic. Jones is one of seven children that have all been home together these last few months and Hoos Life caught up with her to see what that has been like.
Q: You grew up in a large family (how many brothers and sisters?), what was that like?
Jones: “Growing up with a lot of kids was definitely a lot of fun. I have three brothers and three sisters, being the second oldest. The youngest is 13 and the oldest is 24. It’s like having six built in best friends. We always had enough kids to form our own team in a neighborhood game. It is definitely never boring or quiet around my house.”
Q: How much time did you spend with your family in normal circumstances? Are they able to come down for games?
Jones: “Since going to college, I haven’t been able to spend extended periods of time with my family. The drive to Charlottesville is about eight to nine hours depending on traffic, so my family will come to some of the closer away games. They do make one trip down in the fall and spring, but it is often only a portion of the family depending on everyone’s school and athletic schedule.”
Q: What is your favorite family tradition?
Jones: “I think I have several: 1) Watching Christmas Vacation on Thanksgiving night, 2) Make your own pizza on Christmas Eve, and 3) Eating and making dinner every night together as a family.
Q: Do you go on vacations together? What have those been like?
Jones: “We go on vacations almost every summer to York, Maine. One time we went to Lake George, where everyone complained about not being in Maine, so the next year we went back to Maine. When we were little, we would drive our mom crazy about the schedule for the day. She ended up creating a schedule for what we were having for breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner and what we were doing for the evening activity. My little brother would memorize the schedule for the day and repeat it several times throughout the day. We play games on the beach every night ranging from lacrosse and hockey to games that we make up on the spot.”
Q: Have you all been together during quarantine? And if so, what have you been doing?
Jones: “We all made it home for quarantine with my sister coming in from Bangor, Maine and my brother coming home from Boston University. We have been going on a lot of walks, doing puzzles, paint-by-numbers and playing a lot of board games. Mostly we’ve been arguing about who is snoring at night and screaming at each other about people being loud.”
Q: How did you all balance being in the same house during quarantine?
Jones: “While there is definitely a lot of arguing, we all find our own space in the house to work or have alone time. It really has been nice all being together for a long period of time. That has been something we were unable to do for a long time because of college and jobs. At the end of the day, we all love each other, and the close quarters has not been much of a problem.”
Q: If you guys had a family business, what would it be?
Jones: “We would buy the old railroad station near our house and turn it into an outdoor bar/ a good bagel place/Chick-Fil-A. We don’t have a good bagel place in Slingerlands, N.Y., or a Chick-Fil-A. We would also open a home renovation company.”
Q: Do you and your family have nicknames for each other?
Jones: “Yes, we all have separate nicknames for each other, but here are the general nicknames used throughout my family:
Madison: Smoochie, Zoom Zoom
Chloe: Princess, ChloJo, C-Lo
Braden: Bubba
Brynn: B-ba, B, Brinderella
Avery: Avavee, A
Dane: D-da, D-Nice
Cade: CoJo, Baby Boy”
Q: What is the most unusual thing you have done these last two months?
Jones: “My mom and I have taken on a lot of home renovation projects during quarantine. We have painted our barn and renovated the inside. We have used a lot of scaffolding to reach the high places, which for me, is terrifying considering I am scared to death of heights.”
Q: What did you learn about yourself during that time?
Jones: “I absolutely need 10 hours of sleep to fully function on a daily basis. I also realized that silence is a blessing, but that the noise is comforting as well. The noise means that my family is safe and well, so the silence can be haunting at times.”
Q: Did you have a daily routine? Was there an activity that you did that you really enjoyed?
Jones: “I had a pretty basic routine where I would get up and do all my school work in the morning before lunch and then I would either help out around the house or read a book. I started enjoying reading for fun, which I haven’t done in a really long time. My mom joined a book club, so I would read whatever book it was that they were reading that month.”
Q: Do you have anything this summer that you want to focus on (lacrosse or other skills want to learn)?
Jones: “Lacrosse-wise I want to work on my footwork and shooting this summer to prepare for fall ball (hopefully) and the season to come. The little things go a long way.”
Q: How would you describe the women’s lacrosse team chemistry?
Jones: “I would say we are a really close-knit team, especially off the field. Most of us live with other girls on the team and that makes us not only closer as friends, but also as teammates.”
Q: What do you miss most about Charlottesville & UVA?
Jones: “I would say the biggest thing I miss is seeing my friends every day and being in one of the prettiest places. The liveliness of the town is contagious.”