Covid-19 Baby Boom

Media: covid-19 baby boom is coming.

Mena: What’s a covid-19 baby?

Me: In 9 months a lot of babies will be born.

Mena: Why is that?

I explain why, her eyes get big and then she starts giggling.

Maggie Pulled Her Own Tooth!

For the first time ever, a tooth was so loose that Maggie pulled it out and brought it to me with a surprised look on her face!

Class Zoom

Maggie got to see her classmates on March 30th after not seeing them since March 6th.  They were all very happy to see and talk to each other.

Walks

I've made a 10 am walk and a 2:30 pm walk part of our daily routine. Sometimes I end up with one ahead of me and one behind me. On this particular walk the distance was very notable so I posted on Facebook, "We’re not socially distancing; this is just what it’s like to go walking with a rabbit & turtle."

Another day we were having a good conversation while walking together. The shadows from the sun struck me as a neat photo of the three of us.

Loving Our Front Porch

The weather was so nice that we ate supper on the front porch.  Thankfully the weather has been nice for most of our stay-at-home time so we were able to go outside at least.

Safari Zoo

 We took a drive to the Safari Zoo so we could get out of the house.  We got off the interstate and merged into the line near the entrance.  If we'd come from the other direction, we would have been in a line of cars that backed up all the way to Ashland!  It was slow driving through the zoo with back to back cars so the girls moved around in the car.  Girls wished the traffic would have moved a little faster but overall it was a good outing!

Mementos

My mom dropped off a bag of mementos and the girls loved going through it all to see what I looked like and did in high school.

These are Trying Times For Sure!!

It's been a long week of staying home. We all need a break from coronavirus life and we're not getting it any time soon. After breakfast I tell the girls it is time for them to unload the dishwasher while I'm doing dishes by hand. I tell Maggie to take a clean cup from the kitchen back to the hall bathroom. She says no. I turn around & she throws it in the trash. I tell her she’s earned a job card. She yells, “it’s only one f***ing cup.” And now you’re picking up 100 sticks in the yard!

She came back inside in a better mood and the rest of the day went much better. There was a lot of laughter and support from other parents and family members when I posted this story on Facebook.

Sweet Potatoes

I was making sweet potatoes.  Maggie begged me to put the marshmallows on top "like Grandma."  I spooned us each a bowl and left the kitchen to eat mine in the living room.  I come back in and find a scoop of marshmallows missing from the middle!  She says to me, "I didn't get enough in my bowl.  I needed more."  From the middle?!?! LOL!

Working from Home

I needed us to find a balance for their school work, my work, and sanity.  I first created cards so the girls could track "to do" on the left of the envelope and "done" in the right pocket of the envelope.  Mena helped me carry the table from the basement to my bedroom so I could work with the door closed while on Zoom for my building or department meetings.  

As the week wore on and the novelty of being home started to wear off, I heard comments like, "I'm bored.  Why won't you do something with us?  When can we go somewhere?"  I told the girls that I had work I had to get done and they needed to choose what to do with their time.    

Maggie found ways to entertain herself but they weren't good ideas.  She rubbed liquid hand soap all over my electronic scale that measures weight, body fat, and water percentages.  The next day she said she was going to wash the flashlight where the battery had corroded.  

At one point Mena dramatically stated that her life was ending with the coronavirus.  She was perfectly healthy; this was purely a response to being stuck at home with me and her sister.  I would have told her to take the stage but the theaters are closed so...I came up with an idea.  

The left pocket holds cards I created with different toys or activities they could do that would be fun that they can pick from.  If they don't find something to do and keep interrupting me, then I would pick a chore card from the right pocket.  I only had to do that twice (once for each girl) and they started finding stuff to do by themselves!

Kahoa Posts

The Kahoa Families Facebook page has had ways for kids to connect by posting pictures.  One day it was show your pets.   Another day was show your strengths.  Another day was show what book you're reading.  Mena built a boat out of foil for one of the challenges.  She used her homework folder also "because I won't need it any more this year!"

Mena's School Email

LPS uses Google Classroom with the students.  Mena had been told to just use the classroom and not the email.  Then with the closure of the buildings, it was necessary to start using email with students.  Mena opened hers for the first time to find 367 emails going back 3 years!

Sewing

I sewed an apron to use in my classroom when we go back into the school for class.  Maggie wanted to sew a pillow cover using the pattern from her workshop.  

I was trying to clean up the kitchen and do the dishes.  Maggie wanted to sew RIGHT NOW and was mad that the pins weren't staying in the fabric for her!  I needed to show her how to poke it back up to hold it in place, but first I needed some Diet Dr. Pepper to help my patience as I balanced being a stay at home mom/teacher!

Later I was showing her how to iron the seam so it would be easier to sew.  She got me with the iron.  You can see the steam hole where it didn't burn my arm; thankfully we didn't have any water in the iron.  I used lavender essential oil and it never blistered!  It healed nicely.

Sharing a Room

The girls decided to start sharing a room which was easily accomplished because Mena only has a mattress, no bed frame.  At 8 pm, I posted on Facebook, "Mena drug her mattress into Maggie’s room tonight. I’m hoping for no head bonks from Mena while I’m sleeping!" Later I commented, "1 head bonk so far...8:45 pm." A coworker commented, "Flip the head and feet!"  To which I replied, "that would be too logical; plus why listen to your mom when you can make your own decisions?!?!"  My mom gave a laughing emoji; maybe something to do with my behavior as a kid?!  I don't know what that could have been!  My coworker came back with "girl I totally get that...my two girls would do the exact same!"  Mena has kept her bed that way for a month and the girls are enjoying being together more during this stay-at-home order.

The Great Lincoln Egg Hunt

I printed 2 of each egg since we have windows facing 2 streets. There was much discussion on matching patterns versus random placement. Then there was a process of counting windowpanes, counting eggs, some division, and some inconclusive answers on how many panes could have an egg further complicated by a discussion of whether we could put more than one egg per pane. My brain is tired from attempting to follow the conversation & guide the girls to calmly reach a consensus.

Coronavirus Math & Science: Puppy Chow

The first day the girls were with me during the school closure for Coronavirus, we made puppy chow.  LPS posted review materials for the girls to do that week we were out of school.  They did their work in the morning while I checked on my work stuff.  Then in the afternoon we found something fun to do.

Sinus Surgery

I posted when Maggie was sick so I'll post about my surgery.  Wednesday of Spring Break, I had sinus surgery.  My dad drove me to the surgery and my mom stayed home with the girls.  So the rest of our spring break was spent around the house while I slept or laid around.  Not as much fun as previous spring breaks, but it needed to be done.

Spring Break Fun

Monday of Spring Break was full of doctor appointments, one for each of us!  We went out to Culver's for lunch between appointments and then went to Lost in Fun after all 3 were done.

Tuesday of Spring Break, the girls had friends over.  Mena invited Katie and Maggie invited Natilee.  Natilee wasn't here when I got these pictures of the girls climbing the tree in the side yard.

Presents for the Kids on their Step-Mom's birthday

The girls each got a present on their step-mom's birthday!  They assured me that she got presents, too :)

Maggie Learns to Sew

I took Maggie to a 4-H workshop on learning to sew.  She picked out her fabrics and we took my sewing machine to the county extension office.  She was doing pretty well with learning how to cut out a pattern, pin it together, and sew it.  She got through the first seam or two and then she got her finger under the needle.  The needle cracked her fingernail, went through the top of the finger and out the front of her finger.  It was scary, but one mom got me ice, while another mom got something to stop the bleeding, while I was washing it in the sink.  We got her bandaged up and back at the sewing machine.  She didn't want to touch the machine so I had her practice the foot pedal while I fed the material through to be sewed.  By the end, she was feeding the material through again and said she wants to make more pillow cases to cover the couch pillows in the living room.  She gave this pillow to her step-mom as a birthday gift.

In the Newspaper!

The Director of the federal Office of Special Education Programs came to visit the preschool classroom at Kooser Elementary where I work.  She really liked our program and my little friend really liked her.  She was awesome with my student who kept calling her "my princess."  Our picture made the school newspaper and the front page of the LPS website!

Maggie's Class

Maggie said 11 of their 12 eggs hatched cute, little chicks!