Thanksgiving 2021

For Thanksgiving this year, the Crockers came up a few days before and stayed a short while after.  

The twins were super excited to see Enisi!

My friend Natalie sells nail polish stickers (pretty much super easy at home manicure stickers.)  She found me some turkey ones just a few days before Thanksgiving!!

We continued our new 2020 tradition of handprints on the Thanksgiving tablecloth.  It makes my heart so happy to have a record of all who joined in our day of Thanks.

Intentionally flipped from last year, so that there is no "wrong way" to put it on the table.

Our lovely Bob Evans meal with all together!

At some point during the past year, I found a reindeer kit for Billy's car! Emily and Grace helped me with most of the decorating, including the car.  Sadly, it only stayed on about a week before he lost one of the antlers by putting down his window. = ( 

later days

Edit 12-28-21: backdated for Chronology's sake.

Karate, Candles, and Canoes (also Crockers, Kennedy, Carnival and Cider!)

 For our final Sunday date (my mom generously gifts us Sunday afternoon - kid free - outings each weekend) before my mom left for Texas, Billy wanted to Canoe down the river.  William also wanted to come, and since he doesn't get much time as an only child, we brought him along.  He was excited!  The trip was pretty fast, just over an hour.  

In fact, Billy enjoyed it so much that he took his parents the following weekend.  We needed three canoes: Enisi, Edudi, Grace & Juliet;  Billy, Emily & William; Me & Alice.  I missed out on pictures, because I don't trust myself to not drop my phone in the river.

One of our neighbors had up a sign for a church festival.  We noted the date, and spent a fun afternoon playing carnival games, eating tasty food and enjoying live music!

Emily and Abby wanted to do a coordinated costume this year, can you guess what they are going to be?

The final week before we started school, Juliet finally got to get together with her friend Kennedy!

I totally forgot to dig out the twins' 7 balloons for their birthday.  So, I blew them up and took pictures after we came back from the sunflower field.  Better late than never?

This little girl, my baby, was so excited to finally lose her first tooth!!!

Benjamin Franklin's father was a candle maker.  After learning this, William asked if we could make some candles.  After searching up supplies on the internet, I found that buying thrift store candles to chop up would be significantly cheaper than buying wax online.  So, we spent about a week taking turns with a vegetable peeler and knife, breaking the candles into wax pieces.

I scored a stock pot and sauce pan at a church sale.  Both had only metal handles,  which was ideal, since they were going straight into the fire.

Once the wax melted (it took hours for the fire to die down enough to put the pot on, then bring the water up to a temperature that would melt the wax!) it was finally time to dip!

Tiny little candles!

Grace joined us a little late, but her candles were still pretty good by the time we finished up (once the mosquitoes joined us.)

While Bill and Brenda were here, we also made the trip up to Uncle John's Cider Mill.  It was a beautiful day, so of course it was packed.  They got rid of the amusement rides that they once had, but between the jumping pillow, donuts, gift shop and car show, everyone had a nice time.

Watch out, Alice at the Wheel!

One weekend I volunteered at the Holt Art Commission (or committee or council or something.)  I just helped set up for the event, but did not return later, though I'm certain it was a good time. I'm documenting it just for my own personal reference.

As a delayed part of Alice's birthday, we drove over to Flint to check out a virtual reality park. It was pretty neat, but not fun enough to convince me to bring one home.

William is still enjoying his Karate.  On his latest stripe test, he earned a red stripe (which means he did really well and will test for his belt next week!)

Practicing his balance on a downed branch.

We had a nice visit with the Crockers, I'm glad they got to experience some of Michigan's nice weather!

later days 

3rd Week of November

253rd Day of Quarantine.

Today was a much cooler high of 47F.  It was sunny, with a mild breeze, so it didn't feel awful if you were bundled up.

Sarah tasked me with a project for a Christmas gift she was working on, and while I was upstairs sewing, I made another mask, a mask & doll mask set for Grace's friend Zoey, and a doll mask for Grace's Molly, that matches her mask.

Billy and I have been on a movie kick. I think it's because we don't want to get wrapped up in other unfinished shows.  With Supernatural being over, I'm feeling a little bit of ennui, but I'm content now with the ending.

For dinner we had hamburger helper and corn.

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252nd Day of Quarantine.

Today we were still at 60F.  It was warmer than we are used to this year, and makes me happy. = )

I knocked out all kinds of projects today!  

We finished the salt dough ornaments that we made in Nature study yesterday.  They weren't fully hardened, so I put them in for another four hours, and that seemed to do the trick.  The kids painted them with the paint markers, and I added the ribbon to hang them.  They each picked one to send to Enisi and Edudi, so I got those boxed up and ready to ship.  These are the ones we are keeping.  I forgot to take a picture of the ones we are mailing.

I ordered a few more Christmas gifts (and feel like I must be getting close to being done!)  Speaking of Christmas gifts, I made Seven a reversible bandana to wear during Christmas time. = )

While I was digging out that material, I found a material that made me think of Erin Elise, and so I made her a mask.  And, while I was doing that, Grace came up and wanted to make a mask for Molly out of the scraps.  So, I did that too.  Doll masks take just as many steps as full sized masks, they just have less workspace.  = )

We also got Billy's tag renewal for his car, so I made up the check for that, since there is a fee if you do it through the website.

I also knocked out a few projects in the kitchen.  I needed to use up the other half of the fajita chicken from earlier this week, so I made some homemade chicken and dumplings.  It was too salty, so I need to tone down the bouillon, or up the water.  The dumplings were good though!

And, as part of my paranoia, I have been looking for ways to use up pinto beans, since that is something we have a lot of in our 'crisis' stash.  One of the recipes I found was how to make a pinto bean chocolate cake.  It doesn't take a ton of pinto beans, just a can, but my modified recipe worked really well.  The ultimate test, of course, was what the kids thought, and I'd say it was a success.   Grace cleaned her plate, and Emily and Juliet both used a tag to call a piece tomorrow. = )

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251st Day of Quarantine.

Today was in the 60s, you read that right, a balmy 65F in fact!  For the clothes we typically wear this time of year, we were shedding layers!

The last day of school ran long, still trying to push Alice to finish her 4th grade review, which is now new material...

We also made salt ornaments and our first year of table cloth handprints!

For dinner we had a delicious beef crockpot roast with potatoes and carrots. Started it at 8:15am!  The house smelled wonderful all day.

Supernatural had it's finale tonight.  I didn't hate the ending, but I am very sad.  To stave it off we watched my favorite episode (Tuttle) and Billy's favorite episode (The Ringbanger) of M*A*S*H.  They are actually back to back episodes in season one, which made it easy and enjoyable.

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250th Day of Quarantine.

The high today was 46F. 

For dinner we had BLTs with pringles and strawberries.

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249th Day of Quarantine.  Tomorrow, the state will rejoin us in our quarantine efforts, as many things are shut down or have lowered capacity for 3 weeks.

The high today was a cold 37F, and we saw flutters of snow!

I presented William with his shirt to match his roblox character!  (I couldn't buy one, so I had to make one)  It was well received, and he was so excited to wear it, and tell Avia, the doctor and the nurse all about his new shirt! = )

Today was a rushed day, but we made it through!  We quickly progressed through much of our routine this morning, and forwent a break, so that we could be ready to go to William's appointment at 10:45. We worked through material that would be hard to pack, or that we could not pack.

 My mom came over to help corral and load the crew.  Then, when we arrived at the Doctor's office, she sat with the girls while William and I went it.  I brought William's reader, but neglected to bring it inside, so she had to rescue us by sending pictures of the next few pages.

While we were inside, the nurse went out to the vehicle and got the girls' flu shots all taken care of! It was awesome.  Very time conservative. = )  William got all positive remarks from his doctor! He is well on the curve in height, and weight, giving him a nice 11% BMI rating!  The curve in his spine was recently reviewed by the orthopedic doctor, and he cleared him for now. (But we need to get x-rays every few years, as a preventative measure.)

The original plan was to run to McDonald's then return to the doctor for the girls' shots, but since we knocked it all out at once, we went through the drive thru and headed to our grocery appointment.  We were early, but still had a tiny bit of school left, plus our read aloud.  

We finished up and were some of the first to arrive in the hour block we picked.  Sadly, my car is still at the mechanic (yep, month 3) and most of the time, this is not a problem, but it was particularly annoying today, when we were trying to knock our our school in the car.  The good thing about Billy's car over mine, though, is that there was more light by which to work.

By the time we came home, we brought in and put away groceries, cleaned out our work form the car, and Alice was doing her second round of math (she's still playing catch up, but making great strides!) it was almost 4pm, and our cleaning lady came today.  So, it was rush rush rush. 

For dinner we had chicken fajitas.

I finally got to sit down and relax once I got the kitchen cleaned and some laundry started.  Now, it is time for bed.  Sadly, the kids get to go first!

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248th Day of Quarantine.

The expected high today was a chilly 45F.

Alice progressed with her math, finishing and entire 4th grade unit today.

We had chili cheese dogs for dinner.

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247th Day of Quarantine.

The expected high today is a cold 51F.  The wind is something else today, I'd rate it as a Fresh Gale on the Beaufort Weather Scale.

I left my grocery order too long, and with the uptick in corona virus cases, I could not get my usual Kroger time (or any time near it.) So, I'll be saving the big trip for Tuesday.  We'll pick it up on our way home from William's well child visit. I've also set a reminder in my phone to schedule it earlier in the week, so that I can get my preferred day.

Billy and Alice made up some gumbo tonight.  It was really tasty.

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later days

First week of September

176th Day of Quarantine.

The high today was 77F.

I slept in this morning and it was lovely.

For lunch, Billy picked up Arby's.  

Billy and I started burning the basement door, but even at 3 hours of fire and heat, we just got it started before the rain moved in.

For dinner we had teriyaki chicken with rice.

Enisi took Alice to pick up a 'birthday' cake so that she could celebrate with her too.

She picked a peanut butter ice cream cake. = )

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175th Day of Quarantine.

73F was the exceptionally cool high for the day.

This morning before we started school Emily, Grace and Juliet all matched up their outfits.  I had them get dressed today since I knew that the Crockers were on their way.

They actually arrived just as we finished our morning routine.  Since it was Friday, we had a lot of one on one activities (dictation and narration.)  So, Brenda got to spend some time with those who were not 'testing.'

As soon as we finished our day, Brenda took the kids for ice cream, and I went out to run some errands.  My first stop was dollar tree, then I failed an attempt at buying some ten dollar roblox gift cards at game stop, then we went to 5 below, my next stop was Target, I collected lots of goodies for the kids' Halloween morning.  My final shopping stop was Menards to get a second hinge for the basement door, but sadly they were out of the one we needed.  On my way home I found 2 garage sales and picked up a few treasures. = )

We had pizza for dinner, because we need a pizza box for science next week.

Enisi, Grace and Juliet snuggled up and watches some videos, since they wore Enisi out pretty quickly after her long, straight trip up here.

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174th Day of Quarantine.

The expected high today was 85F.

We started the day on time, and enjoyed a typical start to the day.  As soon as they finished handwriting practice, it was time to rush.

William and I loaded up and were on the road by 9:15.  We didn't hit any traffic slow downs, except for the 5 or 6 vehicles that were pulled over by the state police along our route.  I guess extra patrols are out with the upcoming Labor Day holiday weekend.

We arrived with a scant 10 minutes to spare, and I had William chow down on a lunchable since he wouldn't be eating anything solid for several hours.

I remembered to bring William's reading practice with us while we waited for him to be called back, but totally forgot my book.  Thankfully they do have guest wifi in the building, since I get little to no reception and there are no magazines or books to be found.

He was more emotionally prepared this go round, and went back bravely and came out one tooth fewer and another tooth covered.

William watched An American Tail on our trip home, so I've had "There are no cats in America" stuck in my head for the afternoon.  Billy placed a pick up order for us at Wendy's since I promised William a milkshake, but he couldn't use a straw.

We were home just after one.  Once everyone had eaten, we completed our scant afternoon list.  We finished our afternoon reading of Alice in Wonderland 10 minutes before the 4pm electronic ban lifts!  I was so excited, considering we spent a 4 hour chunk of our day on the dentist expidenture!

For dinner, Alice made us tortellini alfredo.  And cleaned the kitchen.  5th grade and up my children plan one meal and cook it once a month.  I am very excited to have 5 fewer meals to create. = )

After dinner, Billy placed and started to install our new basement door!  It looks so much better than it did and I am so impressed that he made it from scratch.

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173rd Day of Quarantine.

The expected high today is 81F.  The day started out rainy, but it turned into a pretty afternoon.

For Form I geography today, the little ones made a Lego model of our "classroom."  They did a great job.  The big girls were a little jealous, because the still had to do their map drills.

The rain ended just early enough that they were able to have outdoor recess.  I told them I wanted a picture of all 5, since I hadn't gotten one at all this school year. = )

In our lessons today, we ended up doubling up on Ancient History and Science.  Thankfully, we had a cool experiment, that the big girls enjoyed, and it kind of made up for missing out on the Legos.  Here is Alice showing off her marshmallow and toothpick rhombicuboctahedron.

And, three weeks in, we finally had our first Poetry Tea Time.  We had apple cider tea with a variety of biscuits and some nice poems.

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172nd Day of Quarantine.

The high today was 80F.  A thunderstorm blew in late in the afternoon, and cooled everything down. = (

I punched holes on the other side of the paper for my poor little leftie.  So she turns her pages "backwards," but doesn't have the binder rings in the way! ; )

Today, Grace finished her Kindergarten review, so she earned her stuffie!

Adding in the extra subject (in order to make Thursday a shorter day) hasn't been nearly as bad as I thought.  The kids haven't complained, and today we even finished earlier than 'normal!'

I spent an hour or so of my afternoon tying down the Littlest Pet Shop toys that I scored at a rummage sale to a carboard display.  They'll be going to Elizabeth for her birthday in October, but I rarely regret taking care of thing early. = )

They fit perfectly in the box that I had set aside, but I worried about part of them breaking during shipping, so I moved them to a bigger box that I could pad a little bit.  Now the twist ties are facing up, so it doesn't look nearly as good.  Luckily, I've got a few months to think on it and come up with something to make it a little fancier. = )

We are still reading Alice in Wonderland, but only have a few chapters left.  Next Friday I hope we can watch the animated film!

For dinner we had chicken fettucine alfredo.

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171st Day of Quarantine

The expected high today was 81F.

Today in school the kids did their first picture study: The Last Supper.  I was so impressed at how well the did on their memory drawings!

We squeezed in an extra subject, at the beginning of our "feast" block and it was not too bad.  Hopefully our Thursday will feel nice and light since William and I are making a third trip down to Ann Arbor.

In between morning work and science I ran to Carl's to grab the cream (and a few other things.)

I started cooking the meatloaf at 3pm, since it always takes so much longer to cook than the recipes recommend.  Hopefully it will be ready by 5:30!

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170th Day of Quarantine

The expected high today is 65F.

After online church I swung by Sarah's to add recycling to her bin.  She had a few ripe tomatoes on her vine that she let me pick to bring home.  After that, I drove down to pick up my grocery order.

Once the groceries were put away, I changed into my 'painting' clothes and burned all the assorted wood pieces that had accumulated in the fire pit.

Billy came out and finished fashioning the door for the basement, then I got to work painting it.  While I had the paint out, I also repainted the ramp and step to the shed.  Sadly, I was out of paint and couldn't paint the side door deck.

We had Chinese for dinner (sweet and sour chicken and chicken low mien) that Billy ordered while I bathed all the babes.

After baths were finished, I made meatloaf to cook for tomorrow, and fried up the rest of the hamburger meet to store in the freezer.

As I was setting up for the week, I found that we did not have the cream (a critical component) for our science project on Monday.  I checked the hours of our local grocery store, but they close at 6pm on Sundays.

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later days