Now that we have our 5 laptops, things are going significantly better. Not perfect, by a long shot, but better and I’ll take that. The kids got most of their morning jobs (see list below) done by the time I returned from my walk, for which I was very grateful. They also seemed to work a bit more independently today, which was a big improvement. I think they are starting to get into a bit of a groove with this new and crazy existence we are all living in. It is amazing how adaptable we all are (most of all kids), isn’t it? Sometimes it seems like their needs are so simple and as long as they are met, they are pretty happy. I have put a huge emphasis on great food during this time and I think that helps. They really look forward to all their meals and that brings me joy to see them get so excited about what they are eating. And because we have virtually no where to go (and please don’t confuse that with nothing to do, because nothing could be further from the truth), I have been focusing a lot on our meals. I have a strong background in cooking, as all of you know, so now is my time to shine. It brings me such joy to cook and especially under these circumstances. When your world shrinks as much as all of or worlds have, food is one of the joys that remain. I have three refrigerators, two pantries, and an unlimited imagination for cooking, so I feel blessed. I have meals planned out until the end of the coronavirus, which they predict to be 18 months from now (well, not exactly that far out, but at least for a few weeks). I can’t tell you how excited the kids were when they sat down tonight at dinner and opened the lids to their soup. Just watching their expressions made it all worth it. As I was putting the plates and bowls on the table, I hear Graham yell out, “Come on everybody, hurry and let's sit down to the fancy dinner mommy made.” How sweet is that? Well, enough about food. Lest you think my day was perfect, unlike yours which was probably not, don’t jump to any conclusions. Garin had another monumental meltdown and I had one, as a result, shortly thereafter. Once we got that squared away, I had 5-6 errands I had to run, which were stressful. I had to run in to not one, but two Targets to pick up online orders I had placed earlier in the day. I don’t know about you, but Target freaks me out during the Coronavirus. I try to order everything online to be delivered, but most stuff is no longer available for shipping. So instead I order online for in store pickup, which is only one notch above actually having to traipse all over the store with people in masks and gloves or worse yet, no masks or gloves (I am a bit bemused by the variety of different masks I see, but I’ll save that for another day). I try to go in, run to the online pickup desk, get my stuff as quickly as possible without touching anything and then run back out, all while holding my breath! I then had to go to a CVS (yikes, that’s even scarier than Target), to pick up some medication. From there I headed to two markets to pick a few things we were short on. I know you’re probably wondering how I could be short on anything when I have 3 refrigerators and 2 pantries and you are right. But somehow when someone tells you you can’t have something or can’t leave your house, you want to even more. That said, I made my stops very short, left the kids in the car, got what I needed and got the hell out of there. Now please don’t go and report me to Child Protective Services for leaving my kids in the car, because I know you’ve left your kids in the car a time or two as well, and besides DPSS is probably closed due to Covid19 and wouldn’t take your call anyway. After our errands we returned to Hidden Hills, took our evening walk and had a yummy dinner, which you have already heard about. I then cleaned up the kitchen, which is all I seem to do anymore when I am not mom-teaching and did the other usual, yet dreaded nightly chores to get the kitchen/family room/classroom ready for tomorrow. The final chapter of my was day was spent on a lovely Skype call with 5 of my very old and dear high school friends. We laughed and shared our experiences of late, which was a perfect ending to what turned out to be not such a bad day, as these new and very strange days go.
Mommy out on her walk enjoying her one hour of freedom a day. It was 37 degrees out this morning!
One of the many lists that help keep us on track everyday. Keep them on a schedule - it works!
Garin’s contribution to help remind everyone to “wash your hands!"
Miles decided to do a slide-across-the-slippery-floor dance (picture Tom Cruise in Risky Business) to amuse me. He succeeded!
Back from my walk and trying to get dressed, with company, of course. It is forbidden that I would ever be alone.
Catherine in her Zoom meeting with Mrs. Fleischman, with Fitzy blissfully napping beside her.
Miles working on “esperitant” (otherwise known as an experiment), that he claims he remembers from his first year in preschool, when he was barely two.
It worked!
Mommy and Garin having a peaceful moment, after a less peaceful moment, a few minutes before.
The evening walk.
And what a gorgeous evening it was!
Fixings for our Turkey Meatball, Vegetable and Barely Soup (made with the homemade chicken stock from yesterday).
The finished product. It was so yummy!