Welp. We are still here. At home. Under governor's orders to stay home and stay isolated as much as possible to stop the spread of the virus. We leave to go pickup groceries and see Nana, but that's about it. Lots of iPad time for both school and play. Unfortunately, our home sale fell through due to some issues with the sunroom. But ironically, it's been our favorite spot of this quarantine business. So the jokes on them. In all seriousness, it's been really nice to get to stay in this house for a bit longer. We are fixing some things and will re-list it for sale soon, but in the meantime, we can enjoy all of this togetherness in our comfy home.
Schools across the nation were cancelled for the rest of the school year, so we've been doing homeschool for two months now. It's been quite the adjustment. I've never wanted to be teacher, especially not to my own children. Thankfully, they are old enough that they can do a big portion of it on their own. The real challenge is keeping them focused and getting it finished every day. Roblox is a game on iPad that they play with their friends, so it's basically been a bribe to get schoolwork done for the day so they can "play" with their friends. Millie's teacher sent this to her students <3
One of Syd's assignments was to give herself a tail ;)
homeschool headquarters
Inbetween school assignments, we find fun things to do to move our bodies.
And sometimes we howl at the moon.
No, seriously.
We had promised our dining room table to Nana, so once we got that out, we decided it was the perfect sister sleepover spot!
Game night swagger
Ugh. Slime.
My arch nemesis. Why do they love it so much?!
biiiiiig stretchums
lots of puzzle time...and staring out the window wishing we could see other people and go places
thankfully that schoolwork can be done anywhere at anytime since it's all on the iPads
Millie made a cake! It was on her school bingo board to bake something. Syd was soooo annoyed that she wasn't allowed to help.
Syd made up a whole board game during Girl Scouts! It's actually pretty fun...pirate theme and all.
Millie has really latched on to "miss jaspies"
Syd's very own baking project: homemade pop tarts!
Class Zoom with Lily (her body language cracks me up)
They get to still go to Sydney H.'s house and her mom likes science...so this counts as school, right?!
The girls have gotten to participate in several science experiments!
Syd still picks Lily up 50 times a day for a quick squeeze. Lily doesn't like it, but she doesn't really fight it. *shrug*
Millie does such a great job watching/replicating those how-to-draw YouTube videos! Her minion drawing is so good.
Her unicorn is really lovely too!
Easter time! New pajamas! Spring is here and everyone is happy!
In keeping with tradition, the girls stayed at Nana's for a sleepover and woke up to do easter baskets and egg hunting!
This is an egg decorator that Syd just adores.
The girls have such a special bond with Nana! <3 <3 <3
Easter morning means mimosas and homemade cinnamon rolls!
silly rabbit
cute lil family pic, ammiright?
throwback pic of me and Brandon
JKK and Millie went home after Easter brunch, but Syd and I decided to stay the night at Nana's. We've been doing girl sleepovers at Nana's and it's awesome! Mom and I have been watching old movies together and loving the time together. FYI - Fried Green Tomatoes is still so intense! and Steel Magnolias holds up!
Sometimes I do a double take thinking it's the real Jasper :(
more song lyrics from Millie
Millie's ceramic fox and Syd's ceramic kitty are pretty purrrfect
We had a big Monopoly Jr. run where we played it non-stop for a week. Battleship and Life also had their moment. And of course, Sleeping Queens.
fly sister, fly!
Sydney H.'s mom brought down some American ninja warrior gear for an afternoon of PE! The girls loved it.
We like to live dangerously by putting the hurdles on concrete.
Millie went to Nana's for a single sleepover, so Syd had a single sleepover herself in the dining room. Ha!
spoiled by Nana
Gosh. Look at that real laugh. Lots of Yahtzee when we go to Nana's!
This was the cutest thing ever: Millie made a bus for them! Can you see the seats and the steering wheel? There's even a headlight.
Getting texts from the girls is new and I love it!
little lady
Millie's first real chore: folding towels weekly now.
Millie's start to her bday wish list - it's never too early, ya know?
Barbie break from school
exciting game of Life
Aunt Leann posted this and I can't get over it. Love all three of them.
Earth Day! Millie drew a wicked cool pic for it.
Video: reduce, reuse, recycle
Syd had to pick an animal to learn about, so she picked a tiger! We also had to make a tiger, so in keeping with the Earth Day theme, we went with a recycled version.
roar! nice stripes
the most perfect handwriting
Syd also made a recycled can pop top bracelet
Millie recycled a piece of posterboard into a makeshift TV. She pretended she was a reporter and made a video for a school assignment. She's a natural!
Video: Millie reporting for duty
Piddy has wanted a bike basket for years! She is such a little hoarder, of course she needs a basket. Oh, she uses it too. On the daily!
We aren't the only ones that have been enjoying the sunroom.
Nana let them make slime. She's so patient.
more cute new jammies - they've grown so much we've had to go up in sizes this year!
Don't you think Lily's arms look super long here?!
Flashback to 2012! Looks a lot like quarantine: snacks and drinks, drinks and snacks
Beautiful walk around a local lake to look for snakes. We've heard there are a lot around here, so the girls and I thought we would see for ourselves. Turns out, we are a bunch of 'fraidy cats and jumped at every little thing. We did see one snake on some rocks...quite large. I don't think we will do this again. Nosiree, not for me.
Ladybug! As we've learned in our James and the Giant Peach book, they are also called ladybirds in England. Neat, huh?
Text thread from Millie asking for ice cream. The Elmo gif got me.
Spring 2020 school pictures!
Glad we could document the hair growing out ;) she's photogenic no matter what.
tango twosome
never too old to feed the ducks
Getting her game face on for Girl Scout zoom meeting
Syd had to send out wildflower seeds to five people to plant for her since our troop can't plant a community butterfly garden. We are missing so much in this dumb isolation period. But I bet these butterflies made those five people smile...
Another fun game night. JKK can never say no. He's a good sport.
Little sister got a harness to go outside!!
Syd loves taking her out back. It's sweet....just her and her kitty.
I let the girls watch Goonies for the first time! It was fun! And it was during a wicked thunderstorm, so it was a little scary in parts. And Syd felt so bad for Sloth. She almost cried every time he came on. Sweet tender-hearted gal felt so sorry for him. Millie wants to be Andy, of course. Me too, Mills...
They are pretty good at sleeping together now.
Nephews Nick, Jack, and Luc are all graduating high school at the end of May! We had planned a trip to Wisconsin to celebrate around Memorial Day, but we had to cancel due to the virus. So instead, we will reschedule for a later date. Kathy had us take some pictures of ourselves with a favorite quote to put together for a video for the boys. I can't wait to see it! I love how our pics turned out.
Syd's turn for a single sleepover at Nana's!
Our little friend Elle had a virtual dance competition that the girls enjoyed watching and cheering her on!
Millie making videos...her specialty lately. Usually she's the star, but this time it looks like Lily is the subject. And Syd must be the backup camera man? Assistant to the star? Cat wrangler?
Big day: Lily's first camping trip! The state parks reopened May 1 and guess who was the very first people in Devil's Den State park?? We were ready!
It was honestly so lovely to have her with us. We've all grown closer to her since Jasper died. It would be sad to leave her behind. She loves being outside but she gets scared easily. So mostly she stayed in the RV and looked out the screen door.
Happy to see that Barbie Camper again! We haven't been camping since last October!
Lots of bike riding and walks. We didn't bring the iPads - because 1) they need a technology break, but 2) there is no cell service at all in Devils Den. So it would be pointless. The good news is that is forced JKK and I to also have a tech break. It was a great trip. Perfect weather. Lots of reading. The girls rode their bikes a ton! Very relaxing.
There is a small beach on a nearby creek that the girls love to go play. We even let them go by themselves some this time. They just wade around throwing rocks.
Syd in storytelling mode
s'mores are a must (I prefer wine)
Lily hasn't mastered the leash yet
rock painting
these make me so happy - we brought them home for our front porch
We love to go to the Devils Den amphitheater to play around. The girls like to perform on the stage. I actually like to workout there because it's private and shaded.
They made up a play!
Video: the girls perform Peter Pan 2
Big daddy finally getting some down time. Being the interim CFO the past few months has been a big job! On top of his real job! Happy to have him all to ourselves for a bit. He got to read and rest and smoke cigars and just hang. He and I played a lot of cards. It was so nice, in fact, that we decided to extend our trip a few days longer! It was a good decision.
In the evenings, the girls got to go inside for movie and popcorn time. The bunk beds have been so fun for them! Lily did great in the camper. She's such a little trooper. I think she just liked being with her people.
This kid is growing up beautifully! She's thoughtful and kind. We are always so proud of her.
Piddy gets real excited about these hikes! I love her enthusiasm for outings. She's not lazy.
S'mores at least once a day, every day.
We did have to fit in a little school time while there, but it was mostly just reading.
And then sadly, it was time to head back to civilization. We were there 6 days and it was wonderful.
Back home means back to school! Blerg.
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