Shiny Sliding

The kids have made an interesting discovery.

Joy's shiny blanket . . .

. . . is a wicked fast vehicle for stair sliding.

After a few high-speed runs, the kids put a big couch cushion at the bottom, so they won't get hurt crashing into the wall.

Just make sure you don't slide out of the blanket on the way down! (Leave it to Anna to have yet another brush with chaos while sledding.)

A Double Concert

This afternoon . . .

. . . we moved all the music books and binders off the piano . . .

. . . and Daddy adjusted the Zoom audio settings on our laptop (while the kids played catch with Eddy, who likes being caught but does NOT like being picked up) . . .

. . . in preparation for not one but two Suzuki concerts.  Anna and Daniel finished their piano books (Suzuki 2 and 3, respectively) at about the same time, so they decided to hold a double concert performing the songs they've learned.

It was interesting to see how their musical styles compared.  Anna's playing was elegant and polished, while Daniel's was fast and exuberant.

The musicians also held a post-concert discussion with their two grandmas, who had attended via Zoom.  Huzzah for technology!

Windy Tennis and the New Library

We headed to the tennis courts today for our first lesson since fall.

It was really windy, and really cold.  I guess that isn't too surprising, since last week's lesson was cancelled due to snow.

What did surprise me was the amount of progress the town has made on our new library over the winter.  Six months ago there were just a few metal beams and a big crane next to the tennis courts.  Now it's starting to look like a real library!  I can't wait to see what it will look like on the inside. :)

Extreme Bedroom Makeover

So far this week, the kids have . . .

. . . written and decorated some friendly notes . . .

. . . used dice to determine which chapter of the scriptures to study yesterday . . .

. . . used our blooming maple tree as a chair . . .

. . . measured stuff . . .

. . . and made their beds!  At least, the girls have.  They say it makes their room look a lot nicer.  Maybe the boys will try that extreme makeover technique tomorrow.  Hey--a mom can dream.

Daniel Speaks

We weren't planning to attend in-person church for another week until our J&J vaccines take full effect, but then Daniel was asked to give a talk today.  I wanted him to have the experience of speaking from the pulpit, not into a laptop microphone on our couch, so we masked up, social distanced, and left the church building right after the service.  I'm fed up with being so cautious, but hopefully we won't have to do it much longer.

Daniel was a little nervous about giving the talk he wrote.  He was asked to speak on something he'd learned during the pandemic, and he chose to talk about appreciating his family more.  Joy warned him that after he spoke, lots of grownups would praise him and make him feel awkward.  Sure enough, lots of people told him he did a good job (which he did).

After church, we decided to unwind by taking a leisurely family bike ride.  I love spring weather!

Snowy Cherry Blossoms

One of my favorite harbingers of springtime . . .

. . . is the gorgeous weeping cherry in our back yard.  Every April, we're treated to the sight of thousands of little pink flowers on its graceful branches.

This particular April morning, we awoke to find those blossoms dusted with snow.

Apparently, winter wanted one last hurrah before spring starts coloring in the landscape again.

While snowflakes drifted down outside, the boys read Life of Fred books in their PJs . . .

. . . and Joy studied for three math tests.  That's right, three.  She wants to take calculus her first year of high school, and the administrators say that's fine as long as she scores at least 85 percent on the final exams for Geometry, Algebra II, and Pre-Calculus.  She's working hard to prepare, and I think if anyone can achieve that goal, Joy can.

Sisters in a Tree

A few months ago, I wrote how glad I am that our boys like playing games together. In that same vein, lately Joy keeps saying how happy she is that Anna is both able and eager to do some Joy's favorite things.

Now that Anna is a confident bike rider, they go on sister bike rides at least once a week.

Anna's also tall enough to reach the branches of our pine trees now, and the girls like climbing together, even if they have to haul up a big umbrella to keep the rain off.  Hooray for fun sister memories!

A Philosophical Moss Cookie

Today was a nice day for a hike.  I thought of trying a new trail, but didn't have time to look up a good one nearby . . .

. . . so we headed to good old Whitetail Woods . . .

. . . to eat bread and cheese on our favorite boulder . . .

. . . while Eddy and Spike basked in the sun.

At some point on our hike, the kids found something they dubbed a "moss cookie."

The painted rock perched on this sign says, "Everything happens for a reason."  So . . . what was the reason we found a moss cookie?

Our Vaccine Spot

 My goal for today was to make a vaccine appointment, or figure out how to get one in the near future.  I spent an hour or two poking around vaccinespotter.org and making lots of phone calls, only to find that one place after another was booked solid.

I unexpectedly struck gold when I called this little pharmacy in Newton, MA.  It was a 45-minute drive from home, but they had several openings for this afternoon.  I booked an appointment to get the Johnson and Johnson single-shot vaccine, then called Phillip so he could make an appointment too. 

As the pharmacist swabbed my arm, she asked if I was ready for my shot.  I told her I'd been ready for a year.  She chuckled, then jabbed me with the needle.  OUCH!!!  Glad I only have to do that once!  Now Phillip and I both feel like we have a mild case of the flu, but I'm glad we're a step closer to immunity, and that we're doing our part to end this pandemic.  Take that, COVID!

Home Church Again

 A few weeks ago, Phillip and I decided it was time for our family to start attending church in person every week, instead of every two weeks.  The limit for attendees had been raised to 100, so there were plenty of open seats, and we wanted our family to get the spiritual and emotional boost of worshiping with other saints as often as that was available to us.

Well, the only constant is change, especially during this pandemic.  This week, I read about an increasingly widespread COVID variant that is more dangerous for Phillip's and my age group (1/3 of the people it hospitalizes are in their 30s and 40s), so I felt it would be wiser to worship at home again until we get vaccinated.  It was surreal and a little sad to get our family's makeshift sacrament tray out of storage for our home sacrament meeting today.  I thought we were done with that for good.  Still, I'm grateful that we have that option, so we can worship safely during this crazy time.

On a happier note, one of the women in today's Relief Society meeting mentioned that she has a ton of daffodils blooming in her yard, and anyone who wanted to was welcome to come pick a bunch.  Anna and I went over this afternoon to pick a bouquet for our family room . . .

. . . and an accessory for Anna's hair.

Kids of Waterdeep

Since the kids often have trouble finding Sabbath-appropriate things to do on Sunday afternoons, they recently suggested that we buy "Lords of Waterdeep"--a board game that they really enjoyed playing at our friends' house last month.  We've gotten kind of tired of Catan, and thought it would be nice to find another game for our family to play together.

The new game arrived Monday evening, and the kids been playing it every chance they get this week.

Daniel has even played against himself once or twice, 'cuz that's how Daniel rolls.

I found the game kind of intimidating at first, because there are so many different things you can do on each turn.  Joy, Daniel, and Anna talked me into playing with them though, and I got the hang of it after the first round or two.  It's really engaging, and I like the fact that so many elements are different each time you play.  I suspect the kids will burn themselves out on Waterdeep if they keep playing it every day, but it's fun and interesting enough that I think they'll come back to it again before long.

In the Sleepy Arboretum

We met up with another homeschooling family today . . .

. . . to explore the Acton Arboretum.

We quickly realized that we should have waited a few more weeks, since most of the plants are still asleep . . .

. . . but at least Anna made a couple new friends.

By the end of the walk, Daniel had made a new friend too.  He and Jack discovered that they both love Minecraft Dungeons. :)

A Car Wash and a New Mower

I was all set to start ELA this morning when Daddy asked who wanted to help him wash the cars.  As all the kids hustled outside, I weighed my options: should I be a stickler about having four lessons a week, or foster Daddy-child bonding, reinforce the value of work, and get my grimy van cleaned?

Sorry, homeschooling.  Bonding, character building, and grimy van scrubbing won out today.  See you on Monday.

With school cancelled for the rest of the day, Anna and Todd decided to work on their biking skills.  When I asked why they were walking instead of riding, Anna explained that she's helping Todd get the hang of balance-waddling . . .

. . . which is much easier to do when you're going downhill.

In other news, we bought a new mower, which arrived today.  We could barely start the old, used mower we bought two years ago, and it was definitely time for a replacement.  Although, in retrospect, maybe we should have followed my sister's suggestion and just bought a pair of pygmy goats to mow our lawn.  The goats would have been cheaper, more environmentally friendly, and a whole lot cuter.  Maybe next time.

Springtime Yard Work

Over lunch today, I asked the kids whether any of them would like to earn $1 for doing 20 minutes of yard work.  They readily volunteered, then Joy reminded me that our state's minimum wage is $12.75/hour.  I reminded her that many parents expect their kids to do yard work for free.  She took the hint, and that was the end of our wage negotiation.

We then headed outside to clean up the debris of last autumn.  We gathered spent hosta leaves . . .

. . . trimmed old hosta stems . . .

. . . chopped off dead hydrangea twigs, and took all the refuse out back to toss down "Compost Hill."  The jobs were pretty straightforward, but they took a lot longer than I expected, and we were pretty tired by the time we finished, so I paid the kids $5 instead of $1.  They definitely earned it.

Will Write for Prizes

General Conference weekend is here again!

It's time to sustain the Prophet and apostles . . .

. . . and play Conference Squares to earn prizes after each session.  Each child can choose one prize for every six topics they mark in a session.  They can earn a maximum of four prizes, but sometimes they are limited by the fact that some topics on their sheets don't come up in a session.

In order to maximize her returns, Joy asked if she could earn four prizes by taking notes.  Since the whole point of the prizes is to encourage the kids to pay attention, I was more than happy to approve her request.

After earning just two prizes during one of yesterday's sessions, Anna decided to start taking notes too.  She also chose to mark the Conference Squares sheet next to her, just for fun.