Another birthday in COVID

Thanks to MF for the giant dinosaur we didn't know we needed but is now part of the family. This little one has grown a ton in the past year. She's reading like a champ, can cut her own tomatoes and is a Minecraft and Pokemon guru thanks to big brother. 

We talk a lot about the little fireball inside her and harnessing that energy and power for the greater good like all great leaders, which she will surely be someday. 

 

Christmas joy

Thankful

Two weeks of a strict quarantine to make this happen, and even then we still felt compelled to open the windows and wear masks. I imagine it will be a long time before life feels normal again, even post-vaccine. But as Bandit said, it felt great to have 'humanity' in the house again. And the girls and I had fun getting ready with what they called "Operation Fancy House." 

 

Halloween was still spooky...

This was the year they trick-or-treated with masks. And instead of going door-to-door, we went table-to-table at the edge of the driveways where you got your candy trick-free. A neighbor hosted an outdoor haunted house the kids all loved. 

 

And life moves on...

Skateboarding at the park remains a highlight. Our beloved sitter bought the kids all rods and taught them how to fish. Scouts resumed outdoors, including a kayaking trip.

 

Back to school...

No option for the kids to return to the classroom this fall, which was a bummer. But the teachers are so committed to engaging the kids online. Small groups, games, lots of breaks. It's worked and provided consistency we knew wouldn't be there if the school tried in-person.

Family camping for 3 nights at Goshen

Hands down one of the most beautiful, fun family trips we've ever had. Kids slept with dad in hammocks, and mom used an air mattress in a tent. Swimming in the mountain lake was the highlight, along with "campfire nachos" (our new family favorite recipe).

 

If only every 1st grader had a Bandit...

Her creativity knows no bounds. She writes imaginative stories, sews, crochets and even does origami. Better yet, she's taught her younger sister to embrace creation and the two can spend hours together making beautiful things.

 

We had two sad goodbyes this summer...

Our favorite Canadian friends moved back, and we miss them terribly (Thanks to DMs for allowing us to crash their pool for a goodbye party.)

Then we fell in love with a Sproodle for a whole week while the family was on vacation but had to give her back when they returned... 

 

Then summer came, and the annual trip to the beach...

Nothing felt the same without swim team meets or color war games at the pool, 

and no cousins at the beach.

But the sky was still beautiful and the water too. All the same even if everything else had changed...

 

We adapted (and gave up on haircuts)...

The meditation lasted probably 30 seconds... 

and tended to our fairy garden... 
 

And suddenly we had free time to go hiking as a family...

and make pancakes that look like bunny butts....