2020 :: week 39

 

September 20

Sunday morning we took a family walk around the neighborhood. We have had some fabulous fall weather the past two weeks. However the temperatures were going to rise as we got into the week, so we wanted to take advantage while we could. Anthony said he would carry Miles if he got too slow, but we let him walk by himself for longer than we ever have on a walk. It was...slow. But we had plenty of time and he was very pleased with himself. We have entered the phase of parenting with him where we need to start letting him do more things himself, even though it is so much easier to do them ourselves.

September 21

Elliott had his first day of preschool Monday morning. We weren't sure if it was going to happen or not, but it is and he is loving it. I was very apprehensive because he had a lot of anxiety about preschool last year and at times it did not go well. In a lot of ways it was a relief when school was cancelled due to COVID in the spring. Elliott has clearly grown up a lot in the last six months because even though I could tell he was a bit nervous, he walked into school without looking back and had a great day.

September 22

Will and Lauren have been absolutely fantastic with participating and getting their school work done. I feel very spoiled. When I talk to some of my friends about how things are going with their families I hear a lot of frustration about keeping kids on task and engaged. No thanks to me both of my kids have been great about staying on task and being engaged in their virtual classrooms. I was wanting the kids to do their work in the dining room, but it was too distracting for them. I have tried to order them desks from IKEA, but they have been on backorder since July. They are good sports and making do. I also like these peeks into their bedrooms. They did most of the decorating themselves and each room reflects the occupants' personality very well.

September 23

The baseball bug is spreading. Miles now picks up bats, swings them and tries to get people to pitch to him. Are we going to be a house with FOUR baseball obsessed boys?

September 24

Lauren's current favorite book series is the Baby-Sitters Club Little Sister. The books are told from the point of view of 7 year old Karen, who is the younger step-sister of Kristy from the original BSC. Lucky for Lauren, my parents have about forty of the books from when my sisters were younger and enjoyed reading those books as well. Between her reading time during school and reading with me in the evenings before bed, she is averaging a book a day!

September 25

It was a rough week with Mr. Miles. I don't think he felt well. If I had to guess I would place the blame on his puffy gums and the four canine teeth that have yet to poke through. Whatever the cause, he was unpleasant and unhappy with me all week, especially Friday . He has started "retaliating" at me when I upset him or stop him from doing something, by messing up whatever he can get his hands on. He's not above emptying draws, pulling magnets off the fridge, emptying wipe containers or throwing toys in anger.

September 26

We spent the better part of the day taking our pool down Saturday. It was amazing to see the warped plywood. It warped very quickly after we set the pool up, so we felt like every day it didn't collapse was a gift. Turns out it was strong enough to last four entire months! I hope the pools open up again next year and we don't have to use this again, but the pool served us well this year and I am grateful we had it.

2020 :: week 38

 

September 13

Will and Lauren are working on perfecting their cookie making skills. They needed minimal help and I was pretty impressed with the cookies they made I love seeing what my kids are capable of as they try new things. Also, I am excited to not be the only cookie-maker in the house.

September 14

Miles has turned into a real nuisance. It has gotten worse since the older kids started school. I didn't realize how much time Lauren spent playing with him until she spent the day in her room doing schoolwork. Sometimes Miles will climb upstairs, stand outside her door and hit at it while yelling. It is sad and also very sweet. Nowadays he is always underfoot. On Monday he kept boxing me out when I was trying to move the laundry from the washer to the dryer.

September 15

Lauren and Will both spend most of the school day up in their rooms. The open floor plan of our house makes it hard for our older kids to concentrate. Lauren comes down during her science block to work on the gummy bear science experiment. They put a gummy bear in cups with water, vinegar, water & salt, and water & baking soda and then observed the changes over the course of the week.

September 16

Will, Lauren and Elliott got their teeth cleaned Wednesday morning. We started using a new pediatric dentist this year and the kids really like the office. Previously we took the kids to the same dentist Anthony and I used, but he retired and we decided to find a new dentist for the kids.

September 17

All of the sudden Miles started eating with a utensils! I stopped giving them to him because he would just throw them on the floor, creating a big mess. Even if he didn't throw them down, he seemed to prefer feeding himself with his hands. This week he wanted yogurt and I decided to let him try the spoon again. He quickly fed himself with little mess. I have given him a spoon or fork and every meal since and had no problems.

September 18

Lots of mom and Miles time this week. Miles decided to empty out my bathroom cupboards while I was drying my hair Friday morning. Miles LOVES to dump things out. As annoying as it is, it is forcing me to be creative and get rid of all stuff that isn't absolutely necessary. Miles' annoying behaviors are helping me become the minimalist I dream of becoming.

September 19

We went to the Louisburg Cider Mill Saturday morning. We weren't sure how it would go, but things were spaced out and we were able to keep distanced. The cider and doughnuts were delicious, as usual. I wanted to recreate a photo of the kids we took in the corn crib last year, but Miles was in a terrible mood and would not cooperate despite my pleadings. 

2020 :: week 37

September 6

We went for a drive Sunday evening to the Grinter Farm in Lawrence and checked out the sunflowers. The sunflower field hysteria has grown over the years here and if you go in the evening you will see photographers and people dressed up and perfectly coiffed attempting to get the perfect picture. I enjoy a good photo op as much as anybody, but the crowds detract a bit from the natural beauty. The John kids had fun walking up and down the rows, counting bees and collecting caterpillars. I did make them pose for a sibling pic. I felt so content as we drove home, listening to pretty music and watching the sun set.

September 7

It was a strange Labor Day. Our ward traditionally holds a picnic for lunch and then we spend the afternoon and evening at the pool before it closes for the season. This year with no picnic and no pool we found ourselves with a lot of time on our hands. Will and the neighbors played baseball on our driveway and listened to the Royals game.

September 8

The first day of school this year looked a little different than it did in years past. Due to COVID the start date was pushed back almost a month (from August 12 --> September 8), so it was the first time it felt "chilly" on the first day of school. Our school district is starting remote, with plans to move to hybrid, then in-person for elementary schools in October. All the plans are "subject to change," so it remains to be seen what will happen. Lauren has Mrs. Dearing and Will has Mrs. Breckenridge. Mrs. Dearing is pregnant with a baby due this week, so she was online Tuesday, but Mrs. Riley is going to be the long-term sub that is taking over things until December. My hat goes off to all the teachers this year, and especially to the substitute taking on a long-term job. To get the kids in the zone I made them walk around the block with me before they logged in. I have loved our morning walks up to the school together, and I think they help them wake up and get some energy out so they are ready to learn. It remains to be seen how long we keep this up. 

September 9

At times I can be very indecisive. I have wanted to get a sectional couch for our TV room ever since we knocked down the wall between our kitchen and family room in late 2017. Due to the configuration of the room it has been surprisingly difficult to find one that fits the narrow space and isn't absurdly expensive. My friend Stephanie helped me find this one at World Market recently. To save 10% I ordered online and had it delivered to the store. My dad helped me pick it up Tuesday evening, and after we brought it home and opened the boxes we realized there was a small puncture in the front of the sofa half of the couch. Though frustrating, we were able to exchange that piece the next day and get a $90 refund in the process.

September 10

Lately I have been feeling so grateful for Will. He makes being a his mom very easy. He is obedient, hard-working, diligent and helpful. On Thursday morning he had "gym" and the teacher wanted them to "practice" for the monthly running tests they will have when (if!) they ever return to school. The teacher said that he knew it was raining outside so they could do it later in the day and the kids essentially had a free 30 minutes before they had to log back in to their classroom. Will told me he was going to go ahead and run outside now because it wasn't raining that hard and he just wanted to get it done. He ran back and forth up and down our driveway for exactly 10 minutes. Then he came in and asked if it was okay to spend the last 20 minutes of his free time playing his new RBI baseball game on his Switch. I very much appreciate how responsible he is and that I can trust him implicitly. 

September 11

I was able to schedule Miles' 18 month and Elliott's 5 year well-child check-ups at the same time. The brothers are growing and developing nicely. Both are small, but what they lack in size they make up for in personality. Miles weighs 21 lbs 8 oz and is  30 1/4 inches tall. Elliott is 36 lbs and is 40 1/4 inches tall. They received 7 shots between them, but cried for less than a minute each. Miles seemed to be more upset by the betrayal of the situation than the pain. Elliott made the nurse smile after she asked what Royals players he likes (he was wearing a Royals shirt) and he listed off the entire starting lineup.  

September 12

I love watching Lauren play soccer. It is fun to see how she transforms on the field and is confident and gets in the middle of the action. She spent most of this game on defense and made several great stops. She played forward at the end of the second half and came *this close* to scoring a goal. This was Lauren's soccer game since last fall and she came home exhilarated and determined to practice and get better. In the evening Will went out front with her and they worked on passing the ball to each other. I love watching the two of them help each other meet their goals.

2020 :: week 36

August 30

We attended Sacrament meeting at church for the first time since March! Last Sunday the ward leadership sent out an email saying that we were authorized to hold sacrament meetings in person this Sunday for people who were interested. The meetings are capped at 40. There was a sign up genius for a 9am slot. When that slot filled up they opened up a 10:30 meeting. When that filled up they opened up at 12pm meeting. It amazing how small 40 people in the chapel feels! It was very easy to distance. The rows were marked so you could only sit every other row, though with the side pews no one was even that close. There was no singing, but an organist played a sacrament hymn and closing hymn. People that didn’t feel comfortable coming in person could continue to have their own sacrament meeting at home. Anthony spoke, but there was no broadcast to people that chose to worship at home. There were jugs of hand sanitizer all over and after the meeting they asked for volunteers to wipe down the pews, door handles, etc. Everyone but Miles was wearing a mask. It was strange how...comfortable it felt being in the quiet chapel, listening to the prelude music. Our ward will rotate with their other wards in our building, so we will only be able to meet in person every 3rd week. In between we will continue at home. Even though I am enjoying home church, this Sunday did feel more distinctly like the Sabbath.

August 31

Life with a toddler is two steps forward, one step back. Monday was especially like that for me and Mr. Miles. Monday is my "laundry day," and I plan on doing laundry all day until it is done. Besides making dinner and keeping the kids alive, laundry is the only thing on my agenda. Doing that has made my life so much easier because I *almost* never get overwhelmed with laundry. The kids help me sort and put away their own laundry. This week Miles pushed buttons and stopped the dryer, messing up the timing and then after I had sorted and folded his clothes and bedding he tossed them all over my bedroom floor right before I was going to take it upstairs and put it away. 

September 1

Yep, there he is again. Pulling stuff out of drawers while I attempt to get ready. He is very much in the "underfoot" stage. He likes to be close to me, and he is so busy! He is also teething and is not discriminating in the slightest about what he puts into his mouth. Thank goodness he can't open doors yet. The older kids are learning the close the toilet lid and shut the bathroom door because Miles loves splashing in the toilets--yuck! 

September 2

Lauren has started soccer practice again. They do a pretty good job of spreading out and keeping distance while practicing, but it remains to be seen how this translates into game time. I was on the fence about signing Lauren up, but so far it has been a good decision. She has really gotten into soccer, practicing at home in our yard with her brothers more than she ever has before. She is also enjoying seeing her friends, many of them for the first time since March. We had signed up for the spring season that was supposed to start mid-March, but after getting delayed a few time ended up getting cancelled.

September 3

Meet the teacher night looked a little different this year. Instead of walking up to the school, visiting each kids' classroom and dropping off school supplies we signed into WebEx and listened to their introductions at home. The introductory lectures were twice as long as they have been in the past due to all the contingencies and remote learning components. We will be starting the school year fully remote, hopefully going to hybrid two weeks after school starts (if case counts decline). If we do switch to hybrid Will and Lauren will be in the classroom Monday and Tuesday and remote learning Wednesday through Friday. Both teachers seem very nice and both kids have friends in their classes so it looks to be a great, albeit unique year.

September 4

Friday evening Anthony and I went on a date for the first time in...a long time. We celebrated our 14th anniversary at Old Chicago because we had a gift card to use. I feel like that is very apropos for our relationship. We didn't chose to go there because it was our favorite restaurant, though the food was fine. We went because it was practical. It was a gorgeous evening and we were able to eat outside and talk about the state of the world and our plans for the upcoming year (though we mostly ended up talking about the upcoming week).

September 5

Miles marks 18 months of Miles! It is hard to believe he's only been a part of our family for a year and a half. His personality has really emerged this summer. He is very playful and loves to laugh. He likes to read books, go outside and be with his older siblings. When the big kids are playing outside I will often look down and see that he has brought me his shoes, which we assume is his way of saying, "I want to go outside too!" He prefers to feed himself and has gotten quite adept at using a spoon. Fruit, cheese, rice, pasta and yogurt are always hits with him, as well as the perennial John-kid-favorite, Belvitas. The stack of favorite books in his room include Go Dog Go, I Like to be with My Family (Daniel Tiger), Moo Baa La La La, and Animal Orchestra. He safely and very carefully climbs up and down stairs, which has led to the older kids quickly learning to keep their bedroom doors shut, lest they want their bookshelves and Lego creations to be mauled by their curious baby bro. He was a late walker, only starting to walk in June, but is now walking with purpose everywhere except the stairs. He has twelve teeth, the eight front teeth and four molars. The molars were the source of a lot of grumpiness this spring and early summer. He loves to chew and he loves his pacifier, which is is generally only allowed to use when he is in his crib. He sleeps for about twelve hours at night and takes two 90ish minute naps a day. We like to joke that he loves social distancing and having everyone home with him so much. He's pretty sweet so we enjoy being with him too.