Flashback Friday

January 2009. 

I don't know how many times I've reminded myself that we didn't have to go through a pandemic and regular health check ups during this age. 

We drank in the germs.

Growth

Of course, with all of the growth of people around here this last year, we cannot forget this plant, which will not stop growing.  Ironically, Nicholas knocked it over about 2 years ago breaking its pot, and the larger container was all we had to put it in.  Since then we have a Jack and Beanstalk situation we can't seem to get over. 

November 2011

Public drinking fountains were still real. 

And we just climbed right in them. 

Braces

For Ben. 

Now if we could just get on a regular haircut schedule. 

Summer Break Ready

Watermelon and a shirt the color of--we are ready for summer break.  Very, very ready. 

School's Out!

All online learning, video uploads, Zoom meetings complete!  

Onward, to see what happens in August after a little summer break. 

Above Elaine had to teach someone to sing and sign the scales with her, and maybe more importantly agree to be videoed for classroom upload (or maybe also blog sharing...)

Home cooking turns interesting

Honey mustard chicken thighs were about wonderful.

This was disturbing to find. 

And then it didn't stop. 

That's about all it's good for in my opinion. 

There was a point early in our pandemic that Elaine accused me of watering down the milk to make it last longer.  No, dear girl, that is 2% milk vs your usual full fat milk you insist on drinking.  

Then there was meatball sub night, 

Which added on pretzels t the last moment.  

That was a carb heavy one.  

We'll work on more summer greens soon.  

Mothers Day

The girls (well everyone) helped with some weeding. 

The boys were this close without clobbering one another. 

And I had coconut cupcakes. 

A pretty successful day. 

Ben Grows

Having overtook me long ago, our 14-year-old is working toward towering over us all with his enviable hair growing downward nearly as quickly. 

Home Bakers

The girls have mastered chocolate chip cookies the size of a plate, even if they are a little creepy looking...

Makeshift Beach Night

Firepit in our dirt backyard. 

With some seating and brownies. 

And some very serious faces. 

Until the neighbors starting setting off graduation fireworks as a bonus. 

The end to a pretty good beach day at home. 

That Day We Pretended to Be at The Beach

When the farmers market is open and full of seafood, you steam and sear all sorts of things. 

That Day We Pretended it Was Vacation

Nice enough to spend the day outside, we hit the backyard together. 

Not sure when Nick turned 22, but Covid has messed up time. 

Argh, the dog has a spot. 

Flying. 

Throwing your sister. 

Stacking three high. 

Quadruple jump. 

And splash. 

Even if one was a little behind. 

And then, funniest of all, they all went and played in the sprinkler. 

Homeschooling

7th Grade. 

We really have been sticking to the homeschool assignments, and the kids have been doing amazing. Except for the part where Ben didn't realize the shop class, now called Tech Engineering, actually was carrying on where they left off with the bandsaw section....but we'll get caught up.  We have lots of tools around here that are plenty dangerous.

But when the girls had brand new content centered around descriptive statistics, plot and whisker graphs, means and MADs or medians and interquartile ranges, frustration set in for them.

So I've been spending an hour a day re-visiting some math that I think I didn't learn until graduate school. 

When Nick asked me what I knew about quadratic equations, I about fainted.

Nine days left until the end of the school year, and I find myself looking forward to it with the glee of a middle schooler...

The Covid Eye Exam

Right before the world closed, we had Ben scheduled for a much needed eye exam. 

We never would have believed that after canceling one appointment, the next would look like this with temperature checks and health questionnaires before entering the building and the whole place to ourselves for the appointment. 

The Covid Normal

Passing the time with a facial. 

Making a mess in the bathroom with tye-dye dye.

Maybe it is more normal than we think. 

That Covid Timeline

Some Tuesday morning recently, or maybe it was Wednesday. 

Elaine called down the laundry chute that she was hungry. 

In a normal world I would not be sending care packages to the second floor through the laundry shoot.  Well shoot, I thought I had corrected that chute.

But when the painters are finally willing to come back into homes to fix the warranty work, you let them block the children off in the upstairs and get to work. 

The Covid Shopping List

I'm used to weird things popping up on my grocery list. 

I'm not used to not being able to find ANY greeting cards at the store. 

I did find this thing...

And never did I believe that Clorox Wipes would join "horse" in the line of things I wouldn't be picking up. 

That Covid Hair

Nick was ready. 

Ben is not. 

So it went. 

And, we didn't do too bad. 

Home Hair Continues

Someday.