Earlier this month we celebrated Easter. Our day was pretty similar to the way we’d normally spend it outside of attending church in person and we were missing our family. The kids woke up to Easter baskets which kept them busy right up until church started. We streamed Mars Hill Church online followed by brunch just the four of us. Don’t get me wrong, we certainly missed the company of my parents, brother and sister-in-law but the meal was a pretty relaxing experience because I didn’t have to balance eating and conversation with playing hostess. In the afternoon the we set up an egg hunt in the yard and the kids had a blast searching for the ‘big golden egg.’
Earlier that same weekend we dyed eggs which were later eaten in deviled egg form at Easter brunch. Thomas lasted maybe 5 minutes while Natalie could have dyed eggs for hours; she’s our arts and crafts kid while Thomas would rather run in circles. Thinking next year we’ll try something more creative using shaving cream - been taking notes from the extra minutes I’ve spent on Pinterest digging up stuff for the kids and I to do during our afternoons together.
Another DIY activity (which I’m mostly regretting right now - I’ll explain why in a moment) that I did with the kids is make bird feeders. I bought a giant bag of bird seed at Meijer so we’ve done it two ways: the first using this video which uses a package of gelatin and cookie cutters - super cute and very easy. The second using pinecones that we gathered on our last hike to Calvin Nature Preserve and peanut butter rolled in the bird seed. Much messier but took more time for the kids to do. So, while the first option is cuter/faster/less mess, the second might leave your surfaces and kids hands feeling sticky but will keep them busier for longer.
And why the regret?… because at this very moment I have birds dive bombing our kitchen window where the feeders hang. There’s now bird poop all over our window sill and the window panes have never been dirtier. ‘It’s all for the kids,’ I keep telling myself.
Last week Natalie turned five! She made the decision to delay her big birthday party with friends until after the quarantine vs. trying to do some make-shift virtual or drive by party. On her big day last week we still made a big deal of her day just the four of us with dinner, cake and presents. She requested strawberry for her cake and hotdogs for dinner - a girl after my own heart. Earlier in the week we used some of our time together in the afternoon to create a paper chain specifically for her party which allowed her to practice her scissor and stapler skills.
We haven’t seen our parents since the start of social distancing minus the visit of my mom and dad two weeks ago for a quick driveway hangout. They gifted both the kids bikes for their birthdays and it seemed almost criminal to not use this time at home to practice riding them. Despite the lack of hugs we were really happy to see them. My mom also brought up their Easter baskets she put together for them and the kids were thrilled.
The kids had their annual check ups at the doctors office this week and both are as healthy as can be. Natalie got all her most recent immunization shots and is good to go for Kindergarten in the Fall and Thomas took his flu shot like a champ. Both measured in higher percentiles for height and weight with special attention on Thomas who, the doctor said, “is going to make the football coach very happy someday.” Currently, Natalie’s only got Thomas by 3 pounds and together they weigh over 80 lbs which explains why pushing the double stroller up hills gets me winded these days. They better learn to ride those bikes real soon.
Steelcase is getting ready to ramp operations back up to 100% which means other departments are likely soon to follow. My hope is that this will happen perhaps even by the end of May. Fingers crossed. I’m on my third week of part-time but despite the hour reduction the work keeps coming and if anything, seems to be ramping up with all the Post Covid preparation talk. I like the idea of looking forward. It leaves me hopeful and motivated.
Jeff’s work schedule remains busy but he too is getting eager for business being back to normal. We’re both creatures of contribution and don’t do well with sitting still for extended periods of time. The other day he commented that I am good at ‘doing things’ which is 100% true. I make daily lists for myself including things like painting the front door (which I accomplished last weekend) to mopping the floors. I find checking these things off my list hugely satisfying and between that and DIYing with the kids, I’m golden. As for Jeff… praying for that good ole sunshine so he can get back out on the golf course again soon.
With the recent return of cooler weather we’ve retreated back indoors and that’s resulted in a bit more screen time for all. We’re still up to date on our usual Westworld on HBO as well as The Expanse on Amazon Prime, but also added The Last Dance from ESPN - the first two episodes were released last weekend. It’s really great. On our most recent date-night-movie-night we opened a bottle of red and rented Bohemian Rhapsody (way over due) and we enjoyed that as well.
I finished The Dream podcast season two all about debunking the Wellness Industry and my biggest takeaway is that we probably don’t need to be taking our multivitamins, but probably still will. I’m back onto the Joe Rogan Experience per a friends recommendation and that’s been extremely informative. Right now I’m halfway through Dan Crenshaw’s interview. I’ve been able to fly through podcasts lately during my daily walks which have replaced my TDM workouts; I mentioned this in a previous post but through all this I’ve discovered that I really dislike virtual home workouts. I cannot wait until the studio opens back up again.
Leaving you with a fun pic of me and my boy Tom. Like I said, while this time with the kids in the afternoon and us together as a family at home has been more than plentiful… it has provided me with these precious moments that are becoming favored memories. Cheers my friends.
