My Daughter the Poet

It's been over 3 weeks of our stay at home order, and the kids haven't been to school since March 12th. The teachers have given each child their Chromebook computers to work on and are giving them daily lesson plans. It is really helping and the kids have been fantastic stay-at-home students.

Adelyn is in the middle of a poetry unit and has had to write a lot of different poems. I have been absolutely blown away at what a good writer she is. Some of her poems almost bring me to tears. Here are my favorites:

Good Friendships
A good friendship smells like fresh muffins just out of the oven.
A good friendship tastes like homemade buttered bread.
A good friendship looks like a rainbow.
A good friendship feels like the softest blanket.
A good friendship sounds like happy laughter.
Friendship makes you comfortable.

Blue
Blue is the sky on a summer day.
Blue is a butterfly flitting about.
Blue is a blueberry right from a bush.
Blue is my new jeans.
Blue is the mountains from a distance.
Blue is a sapphire shining on that bracelet.
Blue is the ocean water full of life.
Blue is all of these things and more.

Black
Black is night.
Black is a fright.
Black is a bat.
Black is a fancy top hat.
Black is those sunglasses.
Black is your eyelashes. 

Out & About (When that was a thing you could do)

We were still able to leave the house and enjoy some entertainment while Scott and Wendy visited. Addy had a birthday party so Brian took Cameron and his parents to the Pacific Science Center. They had an awesome time exploring the ENTIRE museum. We also enjoyed a wonderful seafood dinner. It was a great time and we were glad that Scott's backpack was found at the airport. The kids were excited to see the surprises inside, including Brian's pinewood derby car when he was a kid and his cub scout belt. Addy got homemade spring dresses for her American Girl doll.

It was a great trip that truly feels like a lifetime ago.

A Visit Just In Time

Two weeks ago Scott and Wendy came to visit. The trip had been planned for months and the COVID-19 news had really just started to increase nationally. Luckily they were able to come and go with no challenges or health risks, but it was certainly a sign of things to come. Cameron still had hockey that weekend and Addy was still selling cookies, so those things continued. But Cameron's Rugby was cancelled and other things were starting to announce they would be closed. We made the most of it and had a great time while they visited. Photos of fun at home cooking apple crisp, crab dinner, playing hockey and selling cookies.

What a Week

Wow. I hardly know what to even say during this crazy time in the world. In one week, I went from a regular day working in the office with the kids at school and Brian at home and now I am working from home, the kids have no school for 6 weeks and thank god for Brian being home. I can't believe how quickly this all happened. I continue to think just how lucky we are and how grateful I am that we are not severely impacted by this while I know there are so many families that are. Last summer the kids had about 8 week of summer vacation, they will not go back to school for another 6 weeks and we got 1 days notice. It is truly unbelievable.

Today was the kids first day of "homeschool" and they were super excited. Cameron even made a very detailed schedule that he wanted to follow. Brian had all of the resources from the school organized and the kids were hard at work! In fact, they worked so hard that they were exhausted and by 2:00 and were down for the count taking a much needed a nap! Maybe this homeschool thing will really catch on.

2020 Ski Trip Getaway #2: Chapter 3

Sadly we had to head back to home and couldn't enjoy a 3rd day on the mountain, but we really had the best time. It was another beautiful drive home and we stopped at Smith Rock and it was beautiful. The kids were great on the drive and I was awesome for the one hour I drove out of 7 (sorry Brian, I really hate driving). It really could not have been a better trip. From the weather, to the conditions, to the friends we stayed with- it was spectacular! We would definitely do it again.

2020 Ski Trip Getaway #2: Chapter 2

Our first day headed to the mountain was an early start. We were on the road by about 8:20 and it was  clear very quickly that we weren't the only ones who decided to ski over president's day weekend. Traffic was slow but we still got there right as the mountain opened and it was a beautiful clear day. We started the day together and everyone loved the runs. Instantly it was clear that Marshmallow was the favorite run for the kids and I. We met our friends for lunch and we skied almost the entire day. The wind picked up at the end but overall it was a fabulous day on the mountain! No rain, no accidents, no drama!
We decided to get an even earlier start on day 2 and it was great. We got there before it officially opened and we saw first chairs go up. This day was somehow even better than the prior. It was a perfect blue sky and no wind and the opened their chair on the very very top called Summit. We all did it. Maybe we all shouldn't have done it, but we did. I'm so proud of Cameron for making it down Beverly Hills without falling! We had seriously the best day skiing and only left because we were so tired from all of the runs we got in we just couldn't ski anymore. It was officially the best day of skiing I've ever had!

2020 Ski Trip Getaway #2: Chapter 1

Last month, we had our highly anticipated ski trip #2 planned. This time was to Bend, Oregon. I have an ex-coworker that recently moved there and invited us to stay with them. Mt. Bachelor is Brian's favorite place to ski, so we decided to make a trip out of it.

It was a long drive to Bend but the kids were awesome, and we made it there in about 8 hours with stops. Luckily, there was no drama and the weather and mountain passes were great. The only tragedy was that our very favorite restaurant along the way wasn't even open yet because we got such an early start. The kids got along great with each other and of course had the best time in the hot tub. So far, without yet doing any skiing, the trip was off to a great start and we were looking forward to 2 days on the mountain.