Sunday, May 30, 2021

September Fun 2020

September was not a very exciting month. There was no soccer which was sad. We had a lot of free time, but nothing to do. The kids continued with Zoom school daily and I continued working from home all but one day per week. Aba decided that she wanted to watch the kids again and after a lot of consideration, we decided to do it, but to be extra cautious because we didn't want to get her sick. We took the kids out of Sonshine since they weren't taking many COVID precautions, which was sad for me because it meant more time with them home while I was working, but they didn't mind. It was also better for Zoom school because it wasn't really working well doing it from Sonshine. Emmett couldn't really do it on his own and both kids ended up late or not on at all at some point or another. There was also the day I forgot Clara's Chromebook in my car and Dada had to bring her our laptop and teach her how to sign on so she could use it. Needless to say, the kids were so excited to be able to spend time with and hug Aba again! They waited in front of the door jumping up and down and screaming the first day! She was also a much better teacher than me!




Although the teachers tried to make Zoom school fun, it really wasn't. Clara tried to help the little ones have fun since kindergarten in Kingsburg is usually so much fun. We did an apple taste test like she did when she was in kinder and she made special crafts for them. They were pretty excited the first Friday they all got to wear their school shirts! Emmett started drawing penises on everything and we had to have a talk about that. Luckily their work was pretty easy and they were usually all done by 11:00 and could then play while I worked. Clara put Emmett down for naps while I had meetings in the afternoon and read and played violin. It wasn't ideal by any means, but we made it work and we were definitely more fortunate than a lot of people.







Clara's worries about computers glitching!



Proud teacher


These describe Bailey's and
Emmett's personalities perfectly!

The kangaroo obviously needed a penis!

Our basement master suite was finally finished at the end of the month (after almost a year) and we were super excited to move in! The kids were equally excited to move their playroom to our old bedroom. They even helped build storage things for the playroom! It was really perfect; Bailey and Emmett did Zoom school in the playroom, Clara did it at her desk in the breakfast nook (the new music room), and I worked in the middle of the in the dining room. All of the kids needed minimal assistance (thank goodness for Bailey or Emmett would have needed a lot of help). Clara's highlight of the month was going to school to pick up a popsicle and Lincoln face mask. Any time she got to leave the house was super exciting (and rare aside from walks/bike rides).





Beginning of the reading nook

Playroom first draft



We had to quarantine again because Dada got really sick for several days (two COVID tests said he was negative but I haven't seen him so sick in years). Clara was sick for 12 hours and then perfectly fine and Emmett and I were completely fine. Emmett did not do so well with school when Bailey wasn't there and it was a lot more work for me. We did a lot of yoga to stay sane! We also watched a lot of TV and managed to finish the Jurassic Park movies. Emmett burst into tears when the T-rex killed an Ankylosaurus (after literally cheering on dinosaurs for killing each other) and Clara was only a tiny bit scared.  Let's hope it was the last time quarantining because it is not fun!



Since we weren't really spending time with many people, we instituted Saturday BBQs and game night with Tios. They came over every Saturday and we ate and then tried to escape the kids and play games. At one point we ended up in the basement playing around our bed so the kids would leave us alone! Saturdays were the highlight of the week for everyone!


Who doesn't feed their kids ice cream on the floor?


Sunday, May 16, 2021

Zooming Into School

Unfortunately, school started via Zoom. We were able to meet the kids' teachers and see their classrooms prior to the start of school. Emmett had wacky Wednesday at daycare the day we met his teacher and was very nervous and shy. Clara was so excited to meet her teacher and was in love with her. Both teachers seemed super nice and tried to make the best out of a not great situation.




The first day of school the kids and I went to Lincoln and Washington to take our traditional first day of school photos. We managed to get them done and get back home in time for Zoom! Elise wanted to start school too!














Bailey and Emmett are in the same class which was so helpful. Emmett was so nervous about the first day and Bailey was there to hold his hand, just like she did their first day of preschool. My refusal to let my kids use technology backfired when Emmett had to do everything online and had no idea how to even turn on a computer. Luckily Bailey had to do Zoom at the end of TK and was able to help him out. She was also very helpful with their work since she could read some of it. Clara decided to make the first day more interactive and do the calendar and other things they would actually do in class. She even set Elise up with some work to do while they were in "school." 











The first day of school was filled with technical difficulties and I felt so bad for the teachers. They handled it like champs and I was so impressed with Bailey's and Emmett's teacher and the was she handled 24 five year olds who had trouble sitting still and listening. Although the situation was not ideal, we made the most of it and managed to get work done and even have a little bit of fun!








Zoom glitches are one of Clara's worries



She wanted to make crafts with him
like she did in kindergarten