Covidmas 2020: Part 2

 On December 26, the four of us celebrated Christmas with our family in Salter Path. We enjoyed spending time with family, opening presents, and eating ribeye for lunch. We are blessed!

Riding to Grandma Barbara's house 

Hugging Gran

Hadley's tower of presents

McDonald's gift card

New shoes

Barbie Cake Decorating Playset

I made Grandma Barbara a 2021 calendar that included some of our favorite family photos from 2020:

12 puzzles

Bike Helmet

Hadley's new bike

Tal's mom gave the adults scratch-off tickets for Christmas.

Aunt EJ was the only winner. She won $10!

Cousin Brandi sang karaoke with Hadley.

Cousin sleepover at Grandma Barbara's house

Hadley (6), Harper (7), and Savannah (11)

Covidmas 2020: Part 1

Christmas came early for Savannah and Hadley. A few days ago, Tal put together the girls' big Christmas gift in our garage: a gymnastics bar and mat.

Also, earlier this week, the girls had the best time buying toys and treats with the Christmas money they received from Grandma Judy. Hadley bought a dog carrier, slime, and unicorn cupcakes.

Savannah bought three puzzles, the game Clue, painting canvases, a magazine, Twinkies, and Werther's candies.

On Christmas Day, our family spent the day at home instead of traveling. We celebrated Christmas by sleeping until 9 AM, opening presents, playing games, eating turkey for lunch, and watching Christmas movies. It was a fun and relaxing family day. 

Savannah (11) and Hadley (6)

We also opened the stocking stuffers that we bought for each other. A couple weeks ago, Tal and I took the girls on individual shopping trips to buy candy, toiletries, and small gifts for each person in our family.

Playing the game Clue 

Playing the game Life

Watching the movie Home Alone 2

Our living room at night

First Day of Winter

 The girls and I took a sunset hike on the first day of winter:

Covid Chronicles: Part 18

On December 6, Hadley lost her first tooth! Hadley was sad that her friends and teachers at her school wouldn't be able to see her missing tooth because she wears a mask at school. To solve the problem, I printed Hadley's photo below. Hadley loved showing her missing tooth to everyone at school the next day.

The girls and I have a new favorite treat: whoopie pies. We picked up several flavors, including egg nog, cookies and cream, and peanut butter, from a local bakery's food truck. However, our favorite flavor was the classic whoopie pie with devil's food cake sandwiched with white frosting (pictured below).

I teach Hadley's Kindergarten class for specials on Thursdays. In a recent lesson, we talked about the book series Narwhal and Jelly, and then we watched an Art Hub for Kids video to learn how to draw a narwhal and jellyfish. My drawing is on the left. Hadley's drawing is on the right.

Hadley loved assembling and decorating her gingerbread house at school. Also, it was Pajama Day!

Yesterday was Festive Friday! Hadley dressed up for Christmas and did the happy dance to celebrate her last day of in-person school in 2020. Starting December 23, Hadley will be tracked out for five weeks and return to school on January 25!

One of our family's favorite Christmas traditions is driving around town and looking at the Christmas lights.

Our nighttime ritual: cuddles, tickles, and giggles at bedtime. 

Today the girls and I hiked 1.6 miles at Shelley Lake with our friends Amanda and Tyson. It was a chilly morning in the 30's. To stay warm, we wore our hats and gloves and drank hot chocolate. We enjoyed getting some fresh air and exercise and spending time in nature with our friends.

Covid Chronicles: Part 17

Everyday Moments: 

9 months into the Covid-19 pandemic

 We've enjoyed exploring the parks in our area:

Hadley's driveway chalk art

On two evenings, our family hiked along the river. At the dam, The Army Corps of Engineers had released a lot of water from the lake into the river. As a result, the water was loud and gushing and created rapids and waterfalls in the river.

Sisters with topknots

Savannah and Hadley were excited to be reunited after Savannah returned from a weekend retreat at church:

Tal texted me sunrise pictures from his run at the Reservoir. Tal and his F3 buddies run 4 miles around the Reservoir twice a month.

Tal read with Hadley.

Christmas at our house

A couple weeks ago, Grandma Barbara visited us and surprised Savannah at the bus stop when she got home from school.

"You're on mute." #onlineteachingandlearning2020 

Last night Tal and I enjoyed having a date night, while our girls were at kid camp. We ate BBQ at one of our favorite restaurants and then watched a holiday movie at home. We loved having some alone time and adult conversation.