Covid-19 Diaries Week 4

Day 22 April 4 - A Saturday school day, but the kids were so cooperative and focused that it didn't take long to get finished.  We spent the rest of the day playing, being outside, watching TV, and chatting with friends via text and phone.

Day 23 April 5 - With a thick cloud cover, it felt chilly outside today.  We baked and grilled and had a two hour strategy meeting with our education advocate in preparation for a tele-IEP meeting tomorrow as well as a check-in with one of Rex's therapists.  The time went by fast today... just like it always does on Sundays.

Day 24 April 6 - A bumpy day. The first half of this day was taken up by an IEP meeting which still didn't complete and will be continued in two weeks and during the second half of the day Craig had work calls for six straight hours.  The kids weren't too happy with such absent parents, but we made it through.  When I finally was able to leave for my daily walk around 6:00 pm, I noticed that a little bird family has made a nest in our front door wreath.

Day 25 April 7 - Our lawn was cut for the first time this season today and I am happy that some service fields are still able to work and work safely.  My littlest love is showing many signs of her relationship with learning normalizing in the safe, supportive and sensory environment of our home and the work she is doing now is vastly more productive and joyful than when we started three weeks ago.  I honestly cannot imagine what she experienced at school this school year to build such walls around herself about learning.

Day 26 April 8 - The weather has been amazing and today was like a May day.  We were outside as much as possible and I even took Ella and a neighborhood friend on a long bike ride - six feet apart.  It was good for Ella to see another face and chat with another fifth-grader.  We did a little bit of school and otherwise just hung about.  Ella had some red wash-out hair paint, so we gave her temporary streaks that turned out well.  Toward midnight, we were under a tornado warning, so we had to trek everyone down to the basement which was kind of challenging.

Day 27 April 9 - A rough start after last night's weather interruptions, but by about 8:30, we had the kids back on track (protein, essential oils, favorite activities to the rescue).  Craig made our weekly grocery run and found the store deserted, but well stocked.  He was even able to grab a few items our elderly neighbors had mentioned they needed, but not been able to find in recent weeks.  We had a pretty full school day and also ventured outside despite the biting wind.

Day 28 April 10 - We got bagels and cream cheese for breakfast from a local bakery which was quite a treat.  Lots of home school work today and by about 2:00 pm I hit a wall and ran out of steam and just wanted to veg out.  Fortunately, I had already prepared dinner, so taking it easier was not completely impossible.

This and that from Week 4

*So much Inside Out (the movie).  Emilia was even carrying around two small balls and when asked what she had there she said, "Core memories."
*Also, Mad Men once a day for Mama.  My girls now hum the Mad Men theme song when they play.
*Craig's been struggling with his professional workload this week given that the noise and activity level is quite high here despite all three kids doing incredibly well.

Covid-19 Diaries Week 3

Day 15 March 28 - Another glorious spring day with a high temp of 81.  We finished our home school work quickly to spend as much time as possible outside.  I planted some vegetable seeds in our little garden and we cleaned away dead leaves from our front yard landscaping.  Some late afternoon rain was fun for the girls.  For over a year and a half I have been taking a daily walk through a nearby cemetery which has recently come under new management. They have made a lot of improvements, including opening up the grounds to more than just pedestrians.  I love seeing the space used more by the public because rural /garden cemeteries historically were places intended as civic institutions for outdoor recreation.  There's now a bit of a revival to use cemeteries as cultural centers again and I am happy that this cemetery close to us is a part of it in a small way.

Day 16 March 29 - Breezy, but mild, so we were outdoors, of course.  We home schooled again today to free up our weekdays for our jobs as much as possible.  I made two kinds of muffins early in the morning and shared them fresh and warm with two families in our neighborhood. It was a good feeling to receive their thankful texts and to know I brightened their breakfasts. Our whole family helped me throw the Enchilada Orzo ingredients into the slow cooker, so dinner prep was lightning fast.  Overall, a relaxing day.

Day 17 March 30 - A no school day here, but I had some options for the kids to stay entertained if they needed help in that department (logic puzzles, painting, kinetic sand, maps, etc.) though with such lovely weather once more, they pretty much kept busy in the backyard.  We had a calm and low key day with delicious food.  I realized over the weekend that some new routines have already taken root.  For example, I now spend one hour each night after the kids go to bed picking up and cleaning - tasks I would normally leave for the morning hours while they are at school.  Also, breakage report for the last 48 hours: two dinner plates, one chair and a hole in the wall.  Only one was on purpose.  Oh and our schools are now closed until May 1.

Day 18 March 31 - It's been another good day.  The kids did a nice job with their school work and, considering we will home school for at least another month, I took some time to clean out and organize our home school/therapy closet.  Takeout Tuesday for dinner.

Day 19 April 1 - Emilia has been impatiently waiting for this new month because for some reason she thinks there will be thunderstorms in April. Apparently, she wants to enjoy one.  It's been a little bit tougher here today because of some not so wise in hindsight choices Craig and I made, but we got through.  Ella had her first distance learning classes today.  Been thinking of my Opa whose birthday it would have been today.

Day 20 April 2 - It was a no school day, but we did spend the whole day, off and on, talking about the composer and listening to the music of Frederic Chopin.  The girls danced a lot to the mazurkas and waltzes and Rex was visibly emotionally moved by these piano pieces.  The sunshine was back which lifted our moods.  Weekly grocery run and thankfully no shortages at our store.  Take out Thursday to support one of our favorite local Thai restaurants.  And in the evening my friend and I (separately but in a joint project) hid 120 Easter eggs in the yards of the children that are 6 and under in our neighborhood.

Day 21 April 3 - These beautiful spring days fill us with so much joy.  We're soaking up the sun and smelling the freshly cut grass, and sprinkling some hidden learning into the long, lazy hours.  I may have briefly fallen asleep in our hammock today until the girls came and held some newly picked chives under my nose to wake me.  Tonight, we were going to take these same ornery girls to see the Snow White ballet, but that's obviously cancelled, so I am glad we hadn't told them about their planned special night out with mama and daddy yet.  And another week comes to a close.

This and that from Week 3:

*The new dress code: Emilia pajamas or tutus, Rex topless, Ella sweats
*The number of different apps being used by teachers is simply overwhelming and then it doesn't help when they also change their regular class time to another slot, creating not only confusion, but also scheduling conflicts.
*I miss quiet.
*My two younger children are thriving with home school, lots of exercise, and free play.

Covid-19 Diaries Week 2

Day 8 March 21 - Brrr compared to yesterday.  The kids bundled up and ventured outdoors, but didn't last long on their attempts.  We watched TV and delivered small treats to the nurses in our neighborhood (left it on the porches - no contact).  We know this time is extra scary and draining for them and we think of them and their families often. Homemade veggie and noddle soup for dinner, peanut butter brownies for dessert.  We're going to gain so much weight during this quarantine.

Day 9 March 22 - The sun's out, but it's brisk.  Craig cleaned the gutters and the girls rode their bikes.  Watched Wonder (again) and School of Rock.  A shelter-in-place order goes into effect for our state tomorrow.  Nothing will really change for the five of us as we have been voluntarily sheltering in place for well over a week.

Day 10 March 23 - Spring break is over, so Craig is now officially working from home.  Today went well, but it could be an outlier... we shall see.  All three kids completed what I had in mind for them for home school (I am not really going closely by what the school sent), everyone got dressed, was fed and enjoyed quite a bit of outdoor time, so I consider this day a win.  On my solitary walk I noticed that the younger kids in our neighborhood are being adorable by leaving chalk messages and drawings in each other's driveways.

Day 11 March 24 - Rocky start this morning and even though things calmed quite a bit, it was still probably the hardest day since the beginning of the quarantine yet.  Despite the crazy, we were very successful with our home school work today, enjoyed pancakes for lunch, and even squeezed in an afternoon movie.

Day 12 March 25 - We're finding a sort of groove with the home school activities balanced against Craig's and my work schedule, but it's been another challenging day.  Emilia keeps asking to go out (to the theater, to a restaurant, to the mall, to the zoo), Ella misses her friends, and Rex is just bored without his daily therapy.  I washed all the bedding today and hung the blankets to dry in the sun.  The beautiful spring weather was the silver lining here - we may be able to clean and pack away our winter coats very soon.

Day 13 March 26 - A glorious spring day in our neck of the woods.  We weren't very productive today, but we made it through.  Our friends and neighbors operate a nearby Chick-Fil-A franchise, so we got our lunch from them today - local readers, Chick-fil-A at Kenwood Town Center is open and delivering orders to the parking lot.  They also have a tent in the parking lot where they are taking orders if you're not ordering through the app - it's like a makeshift drive-through.

Day 14 March 27  - Craig made our weekly grocery run.  Our local store continues to be well stocked with the items we need and we do not feel an urgency to over-buy.  Craig and I decided yesterday that due to our work schedules, Saturday and Sunday will become home school days, so that we can take two weekdays off and focus on our jobs.  So, no home school today, but there will be tomorrow.

Caught red-handed with the Silk carton

This and that from Week 2

*Thankful for the weather that allows us much outdoor time
*Homeland
*Struggling to remember what date and day of the week it is
*Completely overwhelmed by the daily communications received from the kids' schools

I Spy

Every once in a while Ella puts together an I Spy.  It's creative which she loves, but also forces her to work on some more challenging language skills.  If you're easily amused like us during these weeks of quarantine, you may enjoy her work.

Covid-19 Diaries Week 1

I keep reminding Ella this is a historic time that she'll be telling her grand-kids about some day. So, I thought I'd journal a little to help her remember.

Day 1 March 14: The schools in Ohio have been instructed to close.  Our family has postponed the vacation we had booked for spring break.  We're hunkered down on a rainy day with some homemade curry, chess pie, books and movies.

Day 2 March 15: A pretty typical Sunday for us.  Spent some time in the backyard, grilled burgers, watched sitcoms, kids played.  Governor DeWine ordered restaurants and bars closed, except for carry-out, delivery, and drive-through.

Day 3 March 16: Home school activities in the morning, afternoon outdoors on the trampoline, swings and around the campfire (bonus: all the fallen branches were picked up from around our property to feed the fire).  We made grilled cheese sandwiches over the fire to boot. A before and after photo from this day below (the after doesn't really do justice to the mess):

Day 4 March 17: St Patrick's Day and only one of us can claim to have any Irish ancestry.  We still incorporated the day into our home school work.  I am not ashamed to say we listened to The Cranberries to represent something Irish.  We also read W. B. Yeats (about whose work particularly regarding fairy lore I once wrote a lengthy paper in college).  Leftovers for lunch and once the sun came out in the afternoon, we went outside.  The Primary Election scheduled for today was postponed overnight.

Day 5 March 18: The rains have arrived, so that makes things harder.  Got the school work done and just relaxed.  I feel a great need to cook and bake to the point where after dinner last night I made double lemon buttermilk muffins.  Nothing productive ever happens after dinner if you're me in a non-emergency state.

Day 6 March 19: First day of spring, mild but dreary and wet.  Got through the school work, but not feeling motivated for much at all.  Ella and I started reading Home of the Brave and Emilia is doing an amazing job learning to locate countries on a map.  After just one day working on this, she can independently locate six countries, our home city, and the state where her grandma lives. Things tend to be calm until just before dinner and then for some reason the crazy breaks loose until bedtime.

Day 7 March 20: We got a few hours of sunshine today and made good use of them before the temp is forecast to drop 40 degrees.  Craig ventured out for a solo weekly grocery run (store well stocked) and in order to support local small business, we got carry out lunch from our little corner cafe.  Our plan is to do this once or twice a week for local restaurants until the social and physical restrictions are lifted. School work check, provisions check, house not totally falling apart (yet) check.  Ready to binge Homeland now.

This and that from Week 1

*Less laundry because we don't get dressed or fully dressed each day.

*My child who struggles to eat and drink due to (school) anxiety is chowing down like there's no tomorrow.

*So thankful for our backyard when it's not raining.

*A little academic work goes a long way.

*We've made it through without increasing daily tech time so far.

*Mad Men and The Office - enough said.

*168+ hours in quarantine so far.  No one in, only Craig out as necessary.

Happy 11th Birthday, Rex!

Happy birthday to our only son, our middle kiddo, our resident snuggler, head of mischief, connoisseur of fine Italian meats, expert foot stomper, tickle seeker, lover of barber shops, home improvement stores and hiking trails, giggle meister, overcomer, owner of a big and devoted heart, loved in four countries, and the all around best son and big/little brother we could ever have.

We say it all the time

and you know it so well:

we love you without limits,

you are more than enough.

Keep living forward, beautiful boy,

and we'll gratefully come along

for the extraordinary adventure.

Pablo and Frida

For the final day of Art Appreciation Week at school, may I present the grand finale: Pablo and Frida...