First month of quarantine...

Dear Maya and Emi,

Ummm...what to say, what to say.

Everyone who reads this blog post now already knows and is sick of hearing about it, but thinking ahead to when we reread this in the future I'll spell it out a little. Thanks to a nasty little virus called Covid-19 most of the country (and large portions of the world) have spent much time quarantined lately. For us this week marks two full months. No school. Not much work for me. No hanging with family. No play dates. Just us in the house focusing on staying healthy, educated, and sane. Omg!

So that's why it's now been over two months since I've posted in here. However, over on Instagram I've been making almost daily logs of our comings and goings (especially homeschooling you two with the help of your amazing teachers and school staff). So instead of trying to recap all of that for a blog post I'm going to be copying and pasting all those posts right here. I'll split it into two posts because it's gonna be a LOT of photos--and most with itty bitty text on them. Sorry but it is what it is!

Okay, next post to come tomorrow!

Love you both!

Such a roller coaster...

Dear Maya and Emi,

I know Mommy always starts these blog posts off saying we've basically been on a roller coaster since the last post, but I don't think it's ever been quite so true as this time.

The very day after the last post, Papa Stan fell and broke his hip. While he was in the hospital he had another health scare that, luckily, didn't amount to anything. But mommy spent lots of time in the hospital that week and we've been cheering him on through his recovery ever since. 

Then a couple weeks later Poppy had a fall and went to the hospital. He also had some underlying health issues discovered once he was admitted, and the whole family rallied around him and Nanny that weekend. Unfortunately he doesn't have much time left with us, plus his mental faculties come and go unpredictably. But it's beautiful to see that the love and laughs he has for you two has been constant. We're treasuring every moment we can.

There have been other hard moments in the last month, too, including a fire at the healthcare office we use/work for. The saving grace in all of this is that you two have been pretty well behaved for the most part, despite schedule upheavals and stressed parents. We are so thankful for that!

In the midst of all this, here are some small moments I captured in photos:

Grandma's birthday party (William was there but having a cranky moment out of frame)

Emi dressed to the nines to visit Papa Stan at the rehab facility

Maya's first salon experience--thank you, Aunt Kelsie!!

 

Baba trying to learn how to braid

Our new Tuesday dinner tradition--Kids Cook Night!

Four thumbs up!

Emi smiles

 

Playing outside in pajamas on a nice day

Well, mommy's going to get some work done while you two are playing nicely. Love you both so much!

Pokemon meets Dr. Seuss

Dear Maya,

It's taken me a couple weeks to upload the photos from your birthday party and birthday trip because work and home life has been busy. And now that I've uploaded them, I notice there are way fewer photos than usual. There are a few reasons for that--one is that you're older and not as willing to have a camera in your face these days. The other is that both Baba and I were sick at some point during the festivities so things were a little rushed and simplified. Ah well, I think you had fun anyway!

Your birthday party was, of course, Pokemon themed. Original plans had Baba making pizza for everyone and mommy making a homemade Pokeball cake. But things happened and we ended up with store bought cake and subs and a quiet party with some family and a couple of your friends, one of whom slept over. Mommy didn't even get a photo of you blowing out your candle like I usually do, but I love the smiles with your friends and sister in the other photos!

 

A few days later you and I went on your overnight birthday trip to Springfield, Massachusetts! They have 5 museums there--2 art museums, a science museum, a history museum and the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss! The weather wasn't great but I think we got to see every corner of each one of them. Some of the highlights were recreations of Dr. Seuss' studio and living room, the planetarium show about life in space, the African animal exhibit, and the intercultural dress-up area in one of the art museums. For you, I think the gift shop was a highlight as well!

 

That night we stayed in a hotel and couldn't find anything on TV except Spongebob the musical which mommy enjoyed a lot more than the Spongebob marathon that was happening earlier. We ordered pizza and ate it in the room and snuggled. Perfect! The next day we went to the outdoor Dr. Seuss sculpture garden that we'd skipped over due to rain on the previous day. After that we headed home with a stop to look at toys in another store along the way. Your Christmas and birthday money were burning a hole in your pocket so we got some stuffed animals and foam slime. 

Happy birthday once more, my dear. Love you so much!