The common question many ask lately is, "How are you all doing?" It's the question that we ask each other, the question we ask our friends, and the question many healthcare providers are asking their patients. This pandemic has brought on a lot of emotions from adults as well as children. Chapman, age 4, asks me daily, "Is the virus gone yet?" She just wants to go out and get a cookie at the grocery store like we did before all of this mess came about. Overall, our family has managed well. We have spent some much needed downtime just getting to know each other better and find things to do that we normally don't have time for. For instance, P and MK have been doing puzzles. They found one that their G-Mom gave them a few years ago that has remained untouched until now.....they conquered it and then sent me on a quest to find another one for them to do. Maddox has found a love for art. She has been pen pals with her two group leaders at church. They have two sons and each week the boys write to Maddox and request a drawing. She has done Elsa, Sonic, Pinkie Pie just to mention a few. She is a fabulous artist and even announced that maybe one day she will be an art teacher. Colin has spent many hours practicing his guitar - he received this as a Christmas gift and has been teaching himself how to play ever since. Pretty amazing. The two littles have had countless hours to just do what two little sisters should do....play together. Maryn is Chapman's best friend and, most of the time, Maryn feels the same way. Ryan went back to work full-time. Honestly, we all miss him. Ryan and I have always been a good team so having him home was a special treat. But, it does feel a little closer to normal now that he goes to work and returns to us for dinner and some family time.
Some of our favorite activities lately have included being outdoors on the canal.....one weekend, we biked the canal. The boys made it all the way downtown.....we stopped about two miles short, had a snack and biked back together. We also had the pleasure of borrowing seven kayaks to take out at Betty's Branch - a local spot for kayaking. The boys hung out mostly with friends and enjoyed jumping from a train trestle/bridge thing - oof! - and swinging into the river via rope swing. Ryan, myself, and the girls just took it all in. It's strawberry season and the children all humored me with a trip to a local strawberry patch to pick our own strawberries. We really need our own patch....we have indulged in many strawberries in the last month. Our latest at-home outdoor activity has been watching movies at night poolside. Once we figure out how to conquer the many mosquitos, this will be the best evening summer activity yet!
School is officially over for everyone tho we continue to do math and ELA with Maddox and Maryn. It is good for the routine. Pryce came down after he finished his final AP exam and proudly exclaimed, "Well, that was my last exam for the year and now I am officially a Senior!" He said this with such enthusiasm....while I should be SO excited, I almost cried. It's time like these that I realize how fast time really does fly and babies don't keep. This quarantine time has spoiled me in that my family has been together, under one roof, eating meals together daily, and relying on each other for 2 1/2 months. How often does this really happen in a family of 8? Rarely is the answer. Yes, we have a day here and a day there but nothing at all like the past 2 /12 months. I am thankful for this slowdown because I know that all too soon, the fast pace will begin to crank up again.
