Nathan...

We are so sad that we can't finish out the school year, especially since it's Nathan's last year at Draper.  He's had his math teacher, Mrs. Murray, for two years in a row now.  We are going to miss her!  She emailed me this today...

I am so sad about finishing the school year this way.  It is so very strange and so hard to not see our kids every day.  I have absolutely loved having Nathan in my class for 5th and 6th.  He is such a great young man.  I will look forward to following him as he goes through High School to see what he continues to do with his academic abilities and what he does as he adds on more with saxophone and next year with track and athletics.  He is a fantastic young man.  Enjoy every day with him.

So proud of my boy!

Delivery!

Madison has spent a LOT of time writing notes to her friends to lift them up during this time!  We set out today to drop them off and surprise them.  She had a total of 15 letters, and they were all amazing.  Sweet friend!

Covid-19 Quarantine....

This has been the weirdest time in all of our lives!  Who knew two months ago that schools, restaurants, churches and shops would all be closed?  Who knew we'd be on "lockdown"?  Here are everyone's thoughts on this whole quarantine.

Michael
LOVES:  family time, no commuting to work, more sleep, less stress, walks during the day
DISLIKES:  not going to church and not be able to go to restaurants

Marci
LOVES:  slower pace of life, family time, Michael cooking dinner (he's done it almost every night!), later nights and later mornings, chunking hair up in pony tail every day
DISLIKES:  restaurants/shops being closed, online church, worrying what people think when one of us coughs in public (remember when coughing during allergy season used to be normal?), how everyone has lost their friendliness through this (no one will even look at you anymore in public)

Madison
LOVES:  sleeping in later, not having to fix up everyday
DISLIKES:  online school, not seeing friends

Nathan
LOVES:  relaxed schedule, being with Max all day, daily bike rides
DISLIKES:  online school, not seeing friends, not being able to go out to eat, not being social

It's a strange time, but I think there's been some good that has come out of all this!  If it weren't for our parents who are living alone, I might honestly be okay with this going on for much longer.  I'm not completely hating it.  I am honestly getting used to this way of life!  Who needs work?  And school?  And plans?  :)

Quarantine for Nathan...

This quarantine has been good for Nathan.  He's gotten away from technology and has really branched out with his imagination!  He made a fort in his room and loved getting all cozy with everything he needed.  And he also made a ton of origami-ish things (several to protect us...haha)!  I love seeing him use his mind to create entertainment.  It took this quarantine to remember how to use his imagination!

A sweet note...

Nathan got a note from his ELA teacher in the mail today, and it made his day.  Mine too!  It was so sweet and made me tear up - I'm super proud of him.

Nathan,
Knowing that I will not get to see all of you in our classroom together makes me so sad!  You were the reason my days were filled with smiles and laughter - we had so much fun, didn't we?  I have loved getting to know you as a student and a person.  You are incredibly driven, creative and thoughtful.  I am so grateful to have been your teacher and learn these things from you.  Thank you for letting me care about you.  I wish I could give you a hug before 7th grade!
Love,
Ms. Kessel

Earth day!

The kids got me a dessert cookbook for Christmas (because during my surgery recovery, I was REALLY into Zumbo's Just Desserts).  There is a page with earth day cookies that Nathan has had his eyes on since the beginning!  I told him we could make them for earth day.  Well, today was the day he's been waiting for.  He loved making these!  Madison helped a little, but had a band meeting to get to and couldn't stay in the kitchen.  I think they turned out super cute!

Fast!

This kid is fast.  He's going to be the next Usain Bolt!  We have been riding bikes every afternoon, and go to a school parking lot for Nathan to run.  He races us while we ride our bikes (giving everything we have), and he still wins!  He can't wait for track next year...I think he's going to rock it!

Easter...

Well, today (and this weekend) was very different from our normal Easter weekends!  LTC was cancelled this year, which is always on Good Friday.  While our weekend was much less stressful, we are still sad to miss out on Bible Bowl!  This morning, we got up and watched our church online in our pajamas.  Then we opened Easter "baskets", which were much smaller than normal.  Baskets were packed in storage, so this is it!

Then we read through our Resurrection eggs and talked about why we celebrate Easter.

We got dressed and headed over to Gaga's for lunch.  Egg hunt afterwards, and these kids were still excited and ready to go (and competitive)!

We are thinking they have enough sugar to last FOREVER!

We came home and enjoyed the beautiful weather and rode bikes (while searching for homes to buy)!  It's become a family hobby - looking for houses!  We have been getting a bad feeling about our home we're currently building, so we are leaving our options open.  Praying that we make the right decision for our family!

While today wasn't a normal Easter, it was still a good day.  Time with family, and the reminder that Jesus died for our sins and that we will be with Him one day!  The world may be focused on sickness and death and uncertainty right now, but we know that God is in control and has a plan.  A good plan.  Happy Easter!

Game night...

Nathan was over at Papa's house with Chance, and Madison invited a friend (Katya) over for their church game night on zoom!  Nathan didn't get a picture of he and Chance, but they both had a fun night playing Scattegories with their church friends!

Exercise outing!

Well, it's week three of quarantine and online learning.  It'll be interesting to look back on all this one day...crazy times we're living in right now!  The kids have been cooped up a lot in this apartment, except for short walks with Max throughout the day.  Our schools are giving PLENTY of work, especially Madison, and they haven't had a ton of downtime.  Today, I was determined to get them out though.  We took a break and headed up to the high school parking lot (reminded Madison of what she's missing and made her more sad)!  She got some lunges in and performed her marching show for me!  Nathan was just obsessed with running.  The kid has an athletic ability for running.  He's fast.  Next year is the first year he can do track and I know he's going to do awesome!

They had a race, and it was pretty much over before it started with this crazy runner!

It's good to see them getting out and away from school work!  I love that it's kept them busy, but it's been a little too busy.  Still hoping we get to go back to school before the end of the year though!  If there's one thing about this time off, it's taught the kids (especially Nathan) that they don't dislike school as much as they thought!