Week 7

Wow.
7 weeks.  With all the feels.
Depending on the day, at least one child is having a "COVID Crazy" moment where they burst into tears, wanting to see their friends and go back to a normal life.
I tell them I don't know when, if ever, that will be.
That's difficult.
I want to be honest - sugar coating isn't my way.
The kids have handled a lot in the past few years.
But I don't have the answers.  Not.  Even.  Close.
I almost lost it when I was at Wegmans the other day.  The Flower Section was gone.  It felt like all the HAPPY was being taken out of the world.
That made me sad.
I'm just tired and doing the best I can.

Caroline learned that one of her friend's mothers is ill with the virus.  I could see the color drain from her face as she realized how close to home things were starting to be.
Then, as she and Autumn were sitting on the sidewalk, social distance kibitzing, a lady that I know from around the 'hood (but doesn't know Caroline) walks by the girls and says to Caroline "OH YOU LOOK LIKE YOUR MOTHER!!!"  Caroline was only sightly horrified. 

We're hitting a groove in school.
7 more days of lessons and we're halfway through the school year - in a 12 month school year - we're exactly where we should be.  Which is good.
I was stressing about the kids being behind public school kids.
I'm not anymore.
I purchased a math curriculum for Caroline for next year.  Looking at ELA, history / geography, science, foreign language, art  / art history and health now.  We'll get there.  Who even knows what life will be like at that point.
We were talking that Caroline might try some online intro classes at the local community college.
We'll see.
And we'll jump off that bridge when we get to it.

Kids are Zooming for dance classes here and Facebooking for the ones in Oklahoma.
More activity does their brains good.
The boys earned Nerf guns from the Spring yard cleanup.  Right before Benjamin went outside to play I heard him say, "I have my gun.  All I need is a sweatshirt and a cape."
Obviously he didn't get the memo from The Incredibles.
Caroline took her earnings and got herself some SIX swag.
I got a nice better looking yard.
We all won.

I'm loving the time I have to do more sewing.  This dress was made out of old curtains.  I was channeling my inner Katie Scarlett.  Or was it Carol Burnett?
Either way, the dress was cute.

The Youngers helped sew masks.  Because who wouldn't want a mask with dinosaur skeletons on it?

he's smiling.  Really.

Quarantine hasn't been all bad, though.   Nate found the Christmas presents he bought for the other kids and hid TOO well.  Everyone was excited to get their gifts when we located the stash in the basement.  

We've had more Adventures in bread making AND direct buying produce from restaurants.  We even got a sourdough started.  I'll let you know how long it takes for me to kill it.  

We got new Dance Phase t-shirts.  

Because, let's face it, we'll always be a Dance Phase Family.  

#dpfam

Benjamin has fallen IN LOVE with watching Toe Bro on YouTube.  

The fungus and ingrown nail removals are his favorite.  

Told you we're weird.  

Sam continues to get up early every morning.  

I'm thinking it's catching up with him since this is what he looked like by 7:30.  

Nate was happy with all the meat we got our hands on.

THIS is what a typical lunch looks like at our house.  Books all around.  

I love my kids.  

Here's to a good Week 7.  

Stay well.  

The Start of Week 6 of Social Distancing

Dang.
It's past the middle of April.
It has been five weeks since we've had any outside activities.  No  church, dance, volunteering, library, exploring or venturing further than WalMart for groceries once a week.
In some ways it feels longer - almost as though I can't quite remember what life was really like before COVID came.  In other ways, five weeks doesn't feel long at all.
It has been nice, actually.  I feel badly to be enjoying myself when other people are hurting and dying - but I'm trying to savor these days and enjoy.  It's so good to have Jim working from home.  We've had adventures in sewing, baking, mulching, cleaning out and board games.  We've read books, watched movies, worked a LOT at school, planned our next Adventure to the Canadian Maritimes, listened to new musicals and experienced the awesome awesomeness of a distillery that delivers gin and vodka hand sanitizer - I'm looking at McClintock, You beautiful People, you!
Sometimes the feeding and watering of 5 other people gets wearing.
I've been going on a lot of walks and listening to a lot of history podcasts.  That has been wonderful.

This is thee cherry tree in our yard.
For reals.
I've never seen such gorgeous blossoms.  

LILACS!
I missed my lilacs So.  Much.  when we were in Oklahoma. 

We got our COVID cuts on, too. 

Nate said he wanted his hair cut like Grandpas.  

We're not going anywhere ever anytime soon...WHY THE HECK NOT?

He ran around with this for a while...now he has a 1 all around...

The cats have been loving having everyone around.  

Even if it results in cat poop haiku

We've been able to practice our cornhole game.  Somehow, I can only balance myself to throw if I have a beer in my non throwing hand.  Hmmmmmm.....

The flowers are beautiful and all...but a distillery?  That delivers?  Gin and vodka Hand Sanitizer to my door?
Definitely a silver lining.  

Everyone got new shirts from the Easter Bunny.  How did he  know their favorite saints?
The shirts are great conversation  starters!  

The boys put together the Saturn Rocket on Easter.  It will be hung up in the basement closet Jim's awesome new office.
The office turned out great, actually!  We're so glad we refinished the basement and put it in before we went to Oklahoma.   

Lots of sewing and mask making going on here.  Nate is becoming proficient with the machine.  

Besides...who can resist a mask with Freaking.  Christmas.  Narwhals on it?!?!

The  Fantastic Four wish you a happy, healthy week..  

Week 4

And so begins our fourth week of social distancing / COVID isolation.
We've had trips out in public to the grocery store only.  Twice, I think.  I had to go an extra time because I forgot to buy bacon and Nate had to memorize "Night" by William Blake for school and the ONLY way that was happening was if I could use bacon as a reward.
Some may think that is ridiculous.
I consider it appropriate use of energy conservation techniques.

The past few weeks have been a strange range of emotions.
We're all healthy.  Still employed.  Safe.  Well fed.
There are times where I enjoy and am truly grateful for the slower pace of life - and taking time to smell the flowers.

Don't bother smelling cherry blossoms.  There is no smell.  When you inhale, the loose petals all go up your nose.  Not that I know this from personal experience...it's what I've heard.  ;)

I love to watch the kids play board games and poker.  For the most part, they're getting along.  They're realizing that we all have to be together and the choice is theirs as to if it's enjoyable.
I love that the pressure is off with school.  We've done more hands on things and had a better time in general because we don't feel like we have to "keep up" with the public school kids.

Benjamin has pretty much mastered his multiplication facts 0-13.  Not bad for Grade 2.  He took some time the other morning to make sure Hamilton was getting ahead in math, too.  It was sweet.  

I love that we're reading books and baking bread and eating all our meals together.
I love that Jim is working from home and we get to see each other so much.
I love to watch cheesy Star Trek episodes as a family. 
I love that I can make my *favorite* meal - sh!t on a shingle - every.  single.  day.  for lunch, if I want.

Not that it's all sparkly unicorn farts and rainbows...but things are good.  Better than we deserve.

Then I feel terrible treasuring a time when SO many people are hurting.
We've had two parishioners die this week and there can't be funerals.
I've had a friend from high school lose two grandparents in the past three weeks and others that are  seriously ill from COVID.
A friend from St Ann's passed away leaving a husband and two young children.
Celebrating Holy Week without being in church is different.  It's a small sacrifice to make, to keep everyone safe.  I never realized how much strength and joy we draw from the people around us.
When this is all over, I'm just going to hug everybody.
All.  The.  Time.
Hug Party.

The virtual Dance Phase classes have been an absolute life saver.  We are so grateful for our Oklahoma dance family.
We've been using the classes as PE for school and I haven't seen such big smiles from everyone in weeks.  Dance Phase is one of a kind.

We've made a reading corner in our bedroom.  Nate has finished another Percy Jackson book  I've finished "Prairie Fires" and "Killers of the Flower Moon"  Next up is "Tulsa Burning" and a re-read of "Boomtown".  I'm am so very grateful to be where we are right now...and I'll always have more than a little of my heart on the Oklahoma prairie.

That all being said...if ONE MORE PERSON asks me if I know the "Tiger King", I might scream.
I know where it is - right off 35 before Paul's Valley - we would see the signs and drive by on our way to Turner Falls and to get fried pies...but let's just say it's not the type of place that we would go out of our way to see.  You can tell that something is not quite right there - even by the highway advertisements...

This picture DOES sum up perfectly life in Oklahoma, though!

I am in the process of making masks for everyone, just in case we all need to go out somewhere.  Nate has christened himself a "Cubs Ninja".  

Fingers crossed to an uneventful Week 4 of Isolation.