Well, we haven't gone out much this week. We're trying really hard to keep with the social distancing protocol. Things are settling somewhat into a predictable routine. I still feel like my brain is fried by the end of the day, but I think that won't change as long as my kids are doing school at home.
Some great things about this week:
We started building a fence! If the weather ever cooperates, we might finish it one day.
We took a walk for FHE on a nature trail. It felt SO GOOD to be outside.
I participated in my normal yoga class via Zoom. It was almost as good as being there in person.
I celebrated my birthday! We all loved eating Reese's Puffs for breakfast and Black Forest cake after dinner. Though I didn't get sushi since the place was closed, the Taco Bell we got was still pretty tasty. I really love chalupas.
We got new books from the library in a surprise bag that James picked up outside. I'm so glad not to be reading the same 10 books over and over. I'm really glad our library is taking the precautions needed while still providing us with new reading material.
I'm trying to stay busy in my free time with good reading and sewing. Once in a while, I still listen to some classes from the Great Courses, but my brain is too dang tired to care as much as I did 2 weeks ago.
School is for certain at home until May 1. We can do this!
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Friday, March 20, 2020
The Quarantine, Week 1
Things have been so crazy recently that I don't even know how to make sense of all of it. At first, when I got home from my trip, things were still okay-ish. By Friday, things had escalated a lot. We found out after the kids got home that there'd be no school for the next 2 weeks, as ordered by the governor.
Sunday was really different than normal, but nice. We had Primary in the morning and then played board games. Cherissa, her mom, and Tayson came over for the sacrament, dinner, and family home evening. We're going to have them over every week until this thing is over.
Wednesday, I went to the school to pick up schoolwork for the kids. We have since settled into some kind of routine for school. My days are extra busy because I have to manage which kid uses which device, and their teachers have different expectations for what they need to do. Katie needs help with a lot of her work, so I've had to shuffle my schedule around so I can help her without completely ignoring the little kids. All things considered, we're making it work pretty well. Sometimes, we have 4 timers going at once.
James and I got Chinese takeout and went shooting for our date. It was especially nice to get a break from the house while still obeying the rules of social distancing.
Being at home is not so bad. The weather was nice until yesterday, when it started raining/snowing. Because of that, it made things a lot harder for everyone. The kids got bored after their schoolwork was done and complained a lot. I did manage to do grocery pickup. I didn't get about 15% of my items, which is a bummer, but they can all wait till at least next week.
I've been trying to use my free time (what's left of it) for sewing projects. So far, I've been able to do about 1-2 small projects a day. I've been busy enough that I haven't had much time to panic. The quarantine isn't bad in itself, but all the panic on social media is. Still, I don't feel that I can stay away from it all, so I'm trying to stay positive.
I feel especially grateful right now for a couple of things:
1. I got home from my trip to NC safely, and so did my sister Mara. There was an earthquake the day after she got home, so the airport shut down!
2. I bought groceries before my trip, and extras, too. Yesterday's trip didn't have to be as big as normal.
3. I have lots of food storage. Even if the store had nothing at all, I'd still be able to feed my family for a long time. I even have a huge supply of my favorite chocolate!
4. I'm a flexible cook. Making substitutions is nothing new to me because we used to struggle to make ends meet and ran out of things all the time.
5. I went to school for elementary education. Of course that's not a requirement for teaching my kids at home, but it gives me a little bit of peace.
6. There are a billion memes to read online. Being able to laugh is a great thing during these uncertain times.
I know that God is watching out for my family and the whole world. I have my moments of anxiety, but so far, things have really been okay.
Sunday was really different than normal, but nice. We had Primary in the morning and then played board games. Cherissa, her mom, and Tayson came over for the sacrament, dinner, and family home evening. We're going to have them over every week until this thing is over.
Wednesday, I went to the school to pick up schoolwork for the kids. We have since settled into some kind of routine for school. My days are extra busy because I have to manage which kid uses which device, and their teachers have different expectations for what they need to do. Katie needs help with a lot of her work, so I've had to shuffle my schedule around so I can help her without completely ignoring the little kids. All things considered, we're making it work pretty well. Sometimes, we have 4 timers going at once.
James and I got Chinese takeout and went shooting for our date. It was especially nice to get a break from the house while still obeying the rules of social distancing.
Being at home is not so bad. The weather was nice until yesterday, when it started raining/snowing. Because of that, it made things a lot harder for everyone. The kids got bored after their schoolwork was done and complained a lot. I did manage to do grocery pickup. I didn't get about 15% of my items, which is a bummer, but they can all wait till at least next week.
I've been trying to use my free time (what's left of it) for sewing projects. So far, I've been able to do about 1-2 small projects a day. I've been busy enough that I haven't had much time to panic. The quarantine isn't bad in itself, but all the panic on social media is. Still, I don't feel that I can stay away from it all, so I'm trying to stay positive.
I feel especially grateful right now for a couple of things:
1. I got home from my trip to NC safely, and so did my sister Mara. There was an earthquake the day after she got home, so the airport shut down!
2. I bought groceries before my trip, and extras, too. Yesterday's trip didn't have to be as big as normal.
3. I have lots of food storage. Even if the store had nothing at all, I'd still be able to feed my family for a long time. I even have a huge supply of my favorite chocolate!
4. I'm a flexible cook. Making substitutions is nothing new to me because we used to struggle to make ends meet and ran out of things all the time.
5. I went to school for elementary education. Of course that's not a requirement for teaching my kids at home, but it gives me a little bit of peace.
6. There are a billion memes to read online. Being able to laugh is a great thing during these uncertain times.
I know that God is watching out for my family and the whole world. I have my moments of anxiety, but so far, things have really been okay.
Thursday, March 12, 2020
NC Trip, Spring
I had a great time in NC!
Thursday, my flights went without a hitch. I do not regret flying from Vernal, even though it meant a 6-hour layover in Denver. I explored the airport, read a book, and had some delicious food. My flight offered movies, so it went by quickly despite my being crammed in a middle, last row seat.
Friday, I met with Brinson, Ceci, Myles, Colbey, Mara, and Carmel for lunch at Cookout. It's kind of a tradition. I really love their hush puppies. We then went to the Craft Exchange with Rachel. It might become another tradition, because it's just like a thrift store, but just for craft materials, like wood, cloth, thread, beads, paper, etc. I got a whole bunch of fabric and some misc. stuff for only $14. Next, we went to Bennett Place, a Civil War historical site. It was pretty interesting. After a quick dinner at home, the whole family met up with Myles's fiancee at the Videri Chocolate Factory in Raleigh. It was so interesting to see the process of making chocolate. Of course I didn't leave empty-handed either.
Saturday, Mom, Mara, and I went on a walk. It felt good to be out in the crisp, spring air. Things in NC are much greener than where I live. I went with Mara to lunch at Panera since she was meeting a friend, and then we went to the church to set up for Colbey and Micheal's wedding reception. Several hours later, we had it all set up. It was actually pretty fun to be involved in the process. Usually I'm at home with kids. The reception itself was great. We ended up with the perfect amount of tables and food. It was nice to relax and socialize a bit. I helped with the taking down part, thankfully much shorter than the setup.
Sunday, we went to church and then took naps afterward. I had a lot of trouble sleeping in, mostly due to the sunshine. The time change on Sunday was no help either. We had a yummy dinner followed by Frozen 2 (since most of the family hadn't seen it) and Myles's birthday cake.
Monday was just like Thursday: lots of walking in the Denver airport and some yummy food. I got home by 5:40. James and the kids had a good time while I was gone. Everything was clean, and James had a yummy dinner waiting. I was exhausted by this point because I hadn't gotten enough sleep and had to get up at 3:30 A.M. (my time) in order to get on the early flight. Yuck.
I'm mostly recovered now. The snow is all but gone, so I've been washing all the winter stuff to store away. I don't mind the extra laundry. It's one of my favorite days of the year: putting away all the boots and coats till at least 6 months from now!
On a random note, I had a headache the other day and bought Excedrin on a whim. It actually WORKS!!! Since having kids, the regular meds (ibuprofen, acetaminophen) don't do anything for my headaches. I don't get them too often, thankfully, but I'm really grateful to finally have something for when I do.
Thursday, my flights went without a hitch. I do not regret flying from Vernal, even though it meant a 6-hour layover in Denver. I explored the airport, read a book, and had some delicious food. My flight offered movies, so it went by quickly despite my being crammed in a middle, last row seat.
Friday, I met with Brinson, Ceci, Myles, Colbey, Mara, and Carmel for lunch at Cookout. It's kind of a tradition. I really love their hush puppies. We then went to the Craft Exchange with Rachel. It might become another tradition, because it's just like a thrift store, but just for craft materials, like wood, cloth, thread, beads, paper, etc. I got a whole bunch of fabric and some misc. stuff for only $14. Next, we went to Bennett Place, a Civil War historical site. It was pretty interesting. After a quick dinner at home, the whole family met up with Myles's fiancee at the Videri Chocolate Factory in Raleigh. It was so interesting to see the process of making chocolate. Of course I didn't leave empty-handed either.
Saturday, Mom, Mara, and I went on a walk. It felt good to be out in the crisp, spring air. Things in NC are much greener than where I live. I went with Mara to lunch at Panera since she was meeting a friend, and then we went to the church to set up for Colbey and Micheal's wedding reception. Several hours later, we had it all set up. It was actually pretty fun to be involved in the process. Usually I'm at home with kids. The reception itself was great. We ended up with the perfect amount of tables and food. It was nice to relax and socialize a bit. I helped with the taking down part, thankfully much shorter than the setup.
Sunday, we went to church and then took naps afterward. I had a lot of trouble sleeping in, mostly due to the sunshine. The time change on Sunday was no help either. We had a yummy dinner followed by Frozen 2 (since most of the family hadn't seen it) and Myles's birthday cake.
Monday was just like Thursday: lots of walking in the Denver airport and some yummy food. I got home by 5:40. James and the kids had a good time while I was gone. Everything was clean, and James had a yummy dinner waiting. I was exhausted by this point because I hadn't gotten enough sleep and had to get up at 3:30 A.M. (my time) in order to get on the early flight. Yuck.
I'm mostly recovered now. The snow is all but gone, so I've been washing all the winter stuff to store away. I don't mind the extra laundry. It's one of my favorite days of the year: putting away all the boots and coats till at least 6 months from now!
On a random note, I had a headache the other day and bought Excedrin on a whim. It actually WORKS!!! Since having kids, the regular meds (ibuprofen, acetaminophen) don't do anything for my headaches. I don't get them too often, thankfully, but I'm really grateful to finally have something for when I do.
Thursday, February 27, 2020
The Flu, Blah, Curly
Poor Lewis ended up getting the flu. His fever started last Tuesday night, and it wasn't terribly high, but it wouldn't stay away and spiked to 103 by Thursday morning. James took him in in the afternoon and was able to get some medicine. Though Tamiflu isn't cheap, it definitely works.
I've been feeling grouchy and tired all week. I'm kind of in between projects, and I hate that. I'm also ready for my family members to stop coughing their guts out all the time. It's not everyone, but some people have been keeping me up at night with the coughing.
I'm just ready for winter to be over. Things are melting, but still really cold. I'm tired of cleaning up the same junk over and over, especially from kids who should know better. The house stays a lot cleaner when they play outside!
I started the Curl Girl Method but haven't been super successful yet. I hate inconsistency. I'm going to get my hair cut in NC so I have less to work with. Hopefully, that helps. I leave for NC in only 1 week! So excited!
I've been feeling grouchy and tired all week. I'm kind of in between projects, and I hate that. I'm also ready for my family members to stop coughing their guts out all the time. It's not everyone, but some people have been keeping me up at night with the coughing.
I'm just ready for winter to be over. Things are melting, but still really cold. I'm tired of cleaning up the same junk over and over, especially from kids who should know better. The house stays a lot cleaner when they play outside!
I started the Curl Girl Method but haven't been super successful yet. I hate inconsistency. I'm going to get my hair cut in NC so I have less to work with. Hopefully, that helps. I leave for NC in only 1 week! So excited!
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Salt Lake-cation, Sickness, Science Fair, Serger
We had a great trip to Salt Lake for our midwinter "we're sick of all the snow and cold" trip. Travel went without too much trouble. Only one kid threw up. We put the kids the bed once we arrived at the Air B'n'B and then just relaxed. Friday, we went to the Aquarium, ate lunch, and then went to the children's exhibit at the Church History Museum. It had just barely opened! We also went to Temple Square to see the Christus. Afterward, we went to Mara's for heart-shaped pizza. Everyone was so tired by the time we got them to bed, we didn't hear a single word out of anyone.
Saturday, we went to the Natural History Museum, ate lunch, and then traveled home. Mara, Ricky, and Emma joined us for most of the activities, and I think the kids had a great time. The trip was just long enough to be fun, but totally exhausting. James even found 5 minutes to buy me a rose and funny card. I stuck to my diet and brought all my own food, even though it was hard. Rice and beans just aren't as appealing as fast food when they're right next to each other.
Saturday, people started getting sick. All but Samantha have had some combination of headache, fatigue, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, and fever. Since Lewis isn't feeling better yet and his fever was pretty high this morning, James is taking him in to the doctor this afternoon. I hope it's not influenza, but I have my suspicions. Poor little guy just curls up on the couch all day. When he's not feverish (thanks to ibuprofen), he still isn't himself. As much as I hate all the messes he creates, I at least know he's feeling okay when he gets into mischief.
We finished the science project yesterday! All in all, it took 6 hours of work. I need to remember in the future not to leave things like that to the last minute.
I've been learning how to use the serger that I got for Christmas. At first, I was totally intimidated, but now, I love it! Between a Great Courses class and the manual, I have a pretty good idea of how to use it and what to use it for. I've already made a few drawstring bags and have a couple of doll dresses to work on in the next week or so.
Hopefully everyone feels better soon. The fighting and whining were so much worse this week, and I don't think I can take it anymore!
Saturday, we went to the Natural History Museum, ate lunch, and then traveled home. Mara, Ricky, and Emma joined us for most of the activities, and I think the kids had a great time. The trip was just long enough to be fun, but totally exhausting. James even found 5 minutes to buy me a rose and funny card. I stuck to my diet and brought all my own food, even though it was hard. Rice and beans just aren't as appealing as fast food when they're right next to each other.
Saturday, people started getting sick. All but Samantha have had some combination of headache, fatigue, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, and fever. Since Lewis isn't feeling better yet and his fever was pretty high this morning, James is taking him in to the doctor this afternoon. I hope it's not influenza, but I have my suspicions. Poor little guy just curls up on the couch all day. When he's not feverish (thanks to ibuprofen), he still isn't himself. As much as I hate all the messes he creates, I at least know he's feeling okay when he gets into mischief.
We finished the science project yesterday! All in all, it took 6 hours of work. I need to remember in the future not to leave things like that to the last minute.
I've been learning how to use the serger that I got for Christmas. At first, I was totally intimidated, but now, I love it! Between a Great Courses class and the manual, I have a pretty good idea of how to use it and what to use it for. I've already made a few drawstring bags and have a couple of doll dresses to work on in the next week or so.
Hopefully everyone feels better soon. The fighting and whining were so much worse this week, and I don't think I can take it anymore!
Thursday, February 13, 2020
Heads Visit, Melty, Hernia, Science Fair
The Heads came to visit last weekend. I worked with Rex on Friday doing intake. We had a pretty busy day. Everyone showed up and took a long time on their paperwork. It reminded me that my own health is very good. Some people have some horrible problems that they have to live with every single day. We had dinner at home and then played some games. I wish I had one I could win at consistently. Scrabble isn't it. Saturday, we hung out and had pizza for dinner. Well, not me, so I had my biggest case of FOMO since I don't know when. The sacrifice has been worth it, though. Our guests left on Sunday after sacrament meeting. It was nice to go to the adult class. The stake took over Primary due to ward conference.
I love it when things start melting! It's usually around Valentine's Day (tomorrow) that we can see the whole road in front of our house. So far, that's holding true.
Rex recommended that I get seen for my hernia that I've had since I was pregnant with Samantha. It bugs me a little bit if I've been lifting weights heavier than 20 lbs. Not only was the appointment short, I found out that I can wait until the second half of summer to get the surgery done, and it will only take 30 minutes. I figured it would need to happen eventually, but I haven't really had the time to do so since it means 6 weeks of no lifting anything. James was working last summer, and I still had a nursing baby. We have a lot of travel the first part of summer, but once we're back, I can get the surgery and recover with James to help me before school starts again. I'm really not nervous about it. I'll get to be asleep this time. It was pretty nerve-wracking to be awake for my hand surgery a few years ago.
Joseph is working on a science fair project, and he chose slime. It's kind of fun to do experiments, so that's what we're going to do all of Monday. We'll be in Salt Lake today through Saturday for a fun trip with the kids. I hope everything goes smoothly!
I love it when things start melting! It's usually around Valentine's Day (tomorrow) that we can see the whole road in front of our house. So far, that's holding true.
Rex recommended that I get seen for my hernia that I've had since I was pregnant with Samantha. It bugs me a little bit if I've been lifting weights heavier than 20 lbs. Not only was the appointment short, I found out that I can wait until the second half of summer to get the surgery done, and it will only take 30 minutes. I figured it would need to happen eventually, but I haven't really had the time to do so since it means 6 weeks of no lifting anything. James was working last summer, and I still had a nursing baby. We have a lot of travel the first part of summer, but once we're back, I can get the surgery and recover with James to help me before school starts again. I'm really not nervous about it. I'll get to be asleep this time. It was pretty nerve-wracking to be awake for my hand surgery a few years ago.
Joseph is working on a science fair project, and he chose slime. It's kind of fun to do experiments, so that's what we're going to do all of Monday. We'll be in Salt Lake today through Saturday for a fun trip with the kids. I hope everything goes smoothly!
Thursday, February 6, 2020
Too Busy, Lewis and the Potty
I kind of hate it when every day after school has stuff going on. I like having at least a day or two where we get to stay put, but that hasn't been the case this week. Most of the things haven't been so bad: soccer and Primary for the boys, grocery shopping, going to the temple, parent teacher conferences...they just all take up time. We do have a ward Valentine's dinner tonight, so I'm excited for that. I really hope people like the games, and if not, that they don't tell me. ;)
Lewis turned 3 on Sunday! We had his cake and dinner on Saturday: German chocolate, dinosaur nuggets, and tater tots. Though I'd like to say he's potty trained now, that didn't happen. We gave it a really good try for a couple of days, and though he had some successes, he's not willing to continue wearing underwear. I'm going to wait 3 months and try again. I am confident that he will train within the next 6 months. He's mostly ready, but mostly isn't quite good enough if I don't want to hire a carpet cleaner to come in every day. I'm really not upset about it. The other boys were 3 1/2 before I even attempted training. It would've been nice to do it earlier, but oh well.
Lewis turned 3 on Sunday! We had his cake and dinner on Saturday: German chocolate, dinosaur nuggets, and tater tots. Though I'd like to say he's potty trained now, that didn't happen. We gave it a really good try for a couple of days, and though he had some successes, he's not willing to continue wearing underwear. I'm going to wait 3 months and try again. I am confident that he will train within the next 6 months. He's mostly ready, but mostly isn't quite good enough if I don't want to hire a carpet cleaner to come in every day. I'm really not upset about it. The other boys were 3 1/2 before I even attempted training. It would've been nice to do it earlier, but oh well.
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