Juneish....

With the summer upon us and the outside inviting we are finding varieties of activities.  The older two have been protesting the racial inequities in America and speaking their minds and wearing their masks.  There has been some violence but they are staying safe and marching during the day.  Merrick and Grace are staying closer to home with their activities.  Grace is baking almost daily and has become an accomplished cake decorator.  Merrick is mostly playing video games but he gets shagged out of the house every so often.  Today he decided to make a phone stand to hold his phone.  Grace and the older two are spending a lot of time long-boarding in the sun and catching plenty of sunsets. Merrick and Grace and I tend to hit the frolf course in the earlier morning hours and challenge eachother with trick shots for doughnuts, sometimes the beat is for a car or a kitchen aide if they get a hole in one.  We all headed to EC for a quick day trip to see Grandprize's Nappin' Cabin and take the curtains back to them.  The kids had decorated each of the curtains.  We sat in the sun with socially distanced hotdogs and great time.
 

New Norm

This is more of a historical update than a first person account.  It is early September and although the Sit and Stay has been removed and we still hung around the house it seems ambition took a hit.  There has been plenty of lounging and our provisions are intact.  One meal was Goth night and it was a full on riot complete with pounding death metal while we ate our steaks rare.

 

Nine....maybe 10

 

Well we are in either week 9 or 10 of the shutdown, and it is starting to be lifted in some areas of the State.   The days all run together and keeping track of the weeks should be easier.  Ella was 16 in Quarantine and she took it all in stride.  There was a great parade with maybe close to 20-25 cars of her friends and family driving past the house all honking and waving.  It was really cool.  We posted signs in the yard, bemoaning the fact that the DMV was closed and she couldn't get her license, but that people could still honk at her.  The weather has been a roller coaster that is typical of April/May.  The ladies all spent some time tie-dyeing shirts in the early April sun and we chat with the family on the Friday computer hangouts.  It is not the same, but still great to see everyone.  Kids have been staying pretty close to home.  With the warmer weather there is a little more bike riding and long boarding.  Grandma sent us a big box of masks too.

week 6....

April can be a long month in its own right.  A shoulder season with schizophrenic weather patterns that change between seasons in a single day.  The quarantine is not helping with this.  Many of the state and national outdoor areas are closed.  Everyone is advised to stay home.  Schools have been shut down for the remainder of the year.  We are doing our best to 'shelter in place'  We did spend some time on the snowless cross country ski trails to out north and made a good 6ish mile loop.  The dogs did about 24 miles.  Even then we came across some people doing the same thing.  In normal times these trails are isolated.  But people are trying to do something while avoiding contact with others and using proper "social distancing."  We are eating well and have plenty of time to DF with things like camping doughnuts for breakfast, just because we need something to do.  Kids are antsy too and the online schooling is working but is not a great substitute for everything else that comes with the school package.

Birthdays cometh....

Easter and Birthdays mark this April.  The birthdays were a little quieter and contained far fewer people than normal but still the smiles and the mark of another year.  Grace entered her last tweener year and Merrick hit the Teenage mark.  Grace made all the birthday cakes, as ordering them wasn't really an option with the stay at home orders in place.  Shipping times were slowed way down on the presents but we did plan ahead for that so there were still gifts to open for the kids.  The online schooling is becoming more routine.  The kids are pretty good at getting themselves up and logged on to see what projects their teachers have left for them to complete.  The extra time has meant that everyone is willing to do family time together.  We have been hunting a killer, a mail order version of clue, and have had a some popcorn and family movie nights.  Short of that we are doing our best to flatten the curve on CoVid. 

Going Viral

 

The new going viral is CoVid and we are shutting this place (the country) down.  The schools have been shutdown and teachers and students are moving to online classes.  The restaurants are shut down, grocery stores have imposed limits and modified hours.  Elections have been postponed.  Several states have moved to a Shelter in place policy with enforcement.  These are strange times indeed.  Gatherings of 10 or more are prohibited and people are being asked to stay at least 6 feet away from each other.  It all feels like the beginning of an Orwellian dystopia.  Our acceptance of the changes comes with a cautiousness and trepidation.  Handshakes, using cash, sharing pens, gas station coffee refills are all a thing of the past.  Watching movies is not only a past time but also a bit cringe worthy as you watch the characters portray so many behaviors that have now become social faux pas in the last month.  We are adapting. Homework has become and online experience but the technology still allows the kids to interact with their friends and work in a small group.  Spending time playing board games and puzzles.  Moving our training online.  The basement furniture has been rearranged to make room for physical activities.  Ella practices her Lacrosse stick work and ball handling and Merrick has video training for Karate, Ella abrupt end to Lacrosse came with solo drills to practice, Sophia and Grace have soccer and B-ball to work on in the yard; once it dries out.  The spring snow melt and rains are keeping the ground soggy but we are still finding some time to get outdoors figuring the woods are, by their nature, perfectly socially distanced.  Merrick and I ran the dogs in the Oconto County Forest and we did a family walk at the Copper Culture State park.  CCSP was a new park for us to explore, it is small and cute and might be a good place to try fishing when the water levels recede.  We also took a short walk to check out Wequiock Falls.  We had been there in the past dry season, but if the water is high we figured it was the best time to watch the falls.

In like a Lamb

We scored an extra day for February this year and luckily for us it fell on a Weekend so we didn't have a longer workweek!  The month is short but we packed plenty in as usual.  It is dance season at school as a prelim to prom and the older two had plenty of fun.  The weather and our schedule cooperated enough for Amy and I to get out for some skiing, and few hikes in the snow as well.  The dogs got shaved and Hazel had to wear a vest to stay warm.  Grace is playing plenty of Bball although she missed two tournaments do to illness and most recently strep.  Ella wrapped up a production of Sweeney Todd in an amazing melodrama, cannibalism aside.  Her story was that she was going to auditions to watch a friend....she left out the part about her also trying out for the play.  When the show is about murder and you are the cop, that is a pretty solid role.  She was a natural and in her element.  March came in like a lamb with a beautiful 50 degree and sunny day.  It put a pounding on the ice and the snow, but the smell of spring and warmth of the sun was evident.