an almost ordinary day

When an unseasonably warm day popped into the forecast for a Wednesday in December, we decided to make the most of it. Wednesday is our most flexible day with less live online classes, so I usually take the kids out to lunch and run a couple errands.  By "out to lunch", I mean we get some fast food and eat it in the car or at home.  We haven't "dined in" since March, and the outdoors are typically not a great option in December in Minnesota.

But this day promised some enjoyable outdoor time, so we made plans to go to an art center I had read about in the newspaper, pick up Subway, and then go to a nature center.  The art center was better than expected.  There were 4 or 5 outdoor exhibits.  The kids enjoyed exploring a labyrinth.  There was a mural memorializing the death of George Floyd.  There was an interactive exhibit intended for visitor to make a collective project during this season of social isolation.  And there was an exhibit memorializing each death from Covid-19 in MN.  Each mask represented a life lost.  At the time it was installed in early November, there were around 2,500. Then we had the fall surge, and now we have surpassed 5,000 deaths in our state.

After the art center, we got Subway and went to the nature center for a picnic and some outdoor exercise.  The day almost felt normal.  The kids were doing their usual bantering back and forth, goofing off, and high-energy burn-off, and our activities felt barely restricted.  

Except it was a Wednesday and the kids should have been in school.

Except for the constant reminder of the masks around our necks ready to pull up over our noses should we need to interact with someone outside our household.

Except the Art Center's indoor spaces were closed to the public so we could only explore the outdoor exhibits.

Except I had a fleeting thought of inviting a friend and her kids to meet up with us, but under the current restrictions we weren't supposed to gather with folks outside our household.  Not even outdoors.

Except when we were ordering our food at Subway, the worker had to have people wait outside, because there was a limit of 5 customers at a time (and we were four).

Except normally the kids would join in with others in a game on the play structure, but instead they stuck to themselves.

Except once we returned to the van, we passed the bottle of hand-sanitizer around without thought.

Except we were in a hurry to get home in time for Lydia's virtual piano lesson.

Except on that day 82 more Minnesotans died from Covid-19.

Except on that day 3,159 more people died in the US.

Except on that day 12,544 people died worldwide.

sparkle on, Lydia

My girl who hates needles and has been my fiercest opposition when it comes to getting shots decided to get her ears pierced.  How sweet and nostalgic it was that Donna, the same friend who gave Lydia her first hair cut, also pierced her ears!

Sparkle on, Lydia!

Happy 13th Birthday, Brett!

Brett turned 13 on December 2!  It was a Wednesday, so we had our normal obligations.  But our friend Bonnie stopped by first thing in the morning to set the tone for a special day.

Brett likes stadiums and jumbotrons, so I bought this scoreboard birthday banner and let him customize it.  

Brett wanted to outdo Lydia with her cake and asked for a 5-layer oreo cake.  I learned from Lydia's cake that the layers take so much frosting.  So I talked him into three layers but two cake mixes.  Instead of cutting the 8 inch cakes in half, I kept them whole and made three of them, rendering a taller cake (that was the selling point for Brett).  With the extra cake batter, we make cupcakes.  The boys took the cupcakes over to our friend's house, who had dropped off gifts for Brett and Lydia, and left them on the doorstep. 

I crumbled up oreos and mixed them in the buttercream frosting.  It tasted like cookies and cream! Brett also wanted to make bath bombs. It was messy and they didn't stick together very good, but we have been enjoying them in the tub!

We had Chick-fil-A and funyuns for dinner. Brett got WWE themed gifts from Reggie and Lydia: a t-shirt and a puzzle.  He got a chrome book from us.

Brett does a really good job of staying occupied in all his downtime.  He oozes creative juices.  He is so creative (and distracted) that there are unfinished projects everywhere! Earlier this fall (before Covid-19 was surging in our area) we participated in a Special Olympics car parade and Brett did a punt, pass, kick event. He placed 2nd in our area!

Happy 12th Birthday, Lydia!

Lydia was flipping through a grocery store catalog that came in the mail a few weeks ago.  It was filled with platters and prepared goodies you could order for entertaining over the holidays. She came to a page featuring a four-layer chocolate cake with pink frosting and topped with ganache and peppermint candies. 

"I want THAT one!" she exclaimed.  

She doesn't ask for much.  She's a pretty low-demand kid who has grinded through this Covid year with only a few meltdowns.  A twelve-year-old should celebrate her birthday with friends, and that wasn't going to happen.

But cake I can do.

On her birthday, which was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, our dear friend Bonnie stopped by to say "Hi" and drop off a gift. 

Reggie and I went to the party store to pick out Lydia's birthday balloon and get gumballs for the cake.  Lydia hates peppermint, but loves bubble gum!  Lucky girl, bubble gum was 75% off, so she has enough gum to last a couple months.

Her other request was to have Red Lobster.  She loves shrimp!  Reggie got Lydia a purple t-shirt that says, "Once upon a time there was a girl who loved books and guinea pigs.  It was me. The End."  Brett got Lydia a set of oil paints.  We got Lydia a piano - which we gave her back in October.

We also tried out an escape room in a box.  Lydia likes puzzles and riddles, so she had fun with it.  I put a little request out on Facebook and Lydia got a few extra cards and gifts in the mail that brought her some birthday cheer!

Lydia loves art and music!  She is taking a virtual art class through community education and piano lessons through outschool.  She is also rocking a 4.0 in school.  She loves to play Roblox with her cousin.  This is a very weird first year of middle school.  I'm partly thankful she is getting a pass on the social drama of 6th grade, and at the same time curious to see how it will play out in 7th grade.  She has always been very sure of who she is, independent, and content with cozy clothes and a good book.  I'm still waiting for the horrors of tweendom to show up, and won't be disappointed if we bi-pass it.  I am very proud of who she is and who is is becoming!