Beckett's song

Beckett is avoiding bedtime and wanted to sing me a song.

Green Smoothies and Beckett's first school meeting

Today was Beckett's first meeting with his teacher. Five kids showed up, out of twenty-two. Beckett took it very seriously. He wore his best shirt (the one he wore for picture day). He made sure he was muted when he wasn't talking. He raised his hand. He added to the discussion. He has learned from Carter's class meetings and he wanted to be grown up about it. He did a very good job.

Proud mommy moment. David let Carter make smoothies all on his own. He used frozen strawberries, mangoes, and mix of berries. But I was blown away when I noticed he also used spinach. At "green tasting party" he vocally denounced my use of green (despite the fact that it has always been in there). So, I was quite shocked to see him use it on his own. I guess some things really do rub off!

A little yard work

The weather is so nice. We have started doing some yard work. Many years ago, my friend Laura gave me some cookies-n-creme granite rocks. About the same time, David's brother gave us the leftovers from his rock project. We thought it would be cool to use them in front of our house like a river. Well, the grass grew through and over and it was a mess to keep clean. This is what it looked like:

Far left side

Center, between two bushes

I didn't think to get pictures until we had already begun removing the rocks. So this part is in process.

Right side closest to the door.

We removed every single rock out of the bed. We laid down a weed barrier, then we put a guide down to separate the rocks. We had everything except the black rocks and a handful of scalloped edges. We put the landscaping bricks down at the end to keep the rocks in. I had red bricks there before, but they didn't do a very good job. And, we made a row of bulbs in front of the rock river and put the cookies-n-creme granite rocks over them.

Far left side

Center, between two bushes

Right side, closest to the door.

The full picture

The fighting just got deep

We have finally hit a new child bickering low. Today at dinner the kids got into a fight because one accused another of reading his mind.

Homemade Masks from Grandma

My mother sent masks. The kids love them!

Roslyn's first visit from the Tooth Fairy

Carter and Roslyn are very similar. They are quick and decisive. They take charge and don't spend too long worrying about other outcomes. 

Roslyn had a wiggly tooth and she wanted it out. I wrapped the root in floss and squeezed. Out it popped. It bled a tiny bit, but stopped right away. She was very excited. 

Beckett will have a wiggly tooth and not touch it. He had two teeth literally dangling in his mouth and would not let me near him. One came out when he brushed his teeth and the other I grabbed when he was freaking out that the first tooth had come out. It is amazing how different kids can be!

Letters, Bees, and a Missionary Homecoming

The kids are getting letters back from friends. This is so much fun. Some of our friends send jokes, those keep us busy for a long time. Today, some friends sent us an activity. 

I used to have about 1,200 bees every year. However, they are just not hatching any more. I am not sure what is going on. I bought bees for the second year in a row. I have about 120.

The kids love watching them emerge from their cocoons or "hatch" in their hands.

A humming bird decided to come and get a drink right above our heads!

Roslyn sat on the back porch almost all day holding the bees and watching them "hatch" - she is the most intrigued by the bees.

She stayed behind when we went to a missionary homecoming for a young man in our ward. He hasn't been out for long, and he was serving stateside, but we were glad to have him home. We led the parade through his cul-de-sac.

He is Risen

Today we celebrated the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

We had a nice church service. We watched some videos on Christ's life and resurrection. We took pictures:

We made Resurrection Rolls. The crescent roll represents the tomb, the marshmallow represents Jesus, and the sugar represents the spices they used on His body. The kids prepared the rolls and we baked them. When you bite into the roll, the space is there, but the marshmallow is gone - just like Christ after he was resurrected. 

We used Fruit Punch flavored Peeps in ours. It was super yummy. 

We had a video chat with lots of different family members. It was more social connection than the kids normally have on Easter!

We ended the evening with a church video. It was a really great day to connect the kids to Christ.

Games from afar

Tonight after the kids went to bed, we played games with my brother, my sister, and sister's husband. It was lots of fun. We used Zoom and played until way too late. Even if there wasn't a quarantine - we still would not have been able to play in person because of the distance. However, because of the quarantine, we are able to play games this way. All the ways companies have adapted has made it easier to connect with people from far away.

Strawberry Garden

We got to go back to get more plants for our garden and Beckett got to help with the chickens. He didn't want to get too close to them, but he still wanted to help.

My new strawberry bed:

Carter had his school meeting. His teacher does such a great job connecting with the kids!

I got adjusted by my chiropractor today for the first time in 7 weeks. For those that know me, that is a big deal. I have been toughing it out because I do not want to go to the office and bring back who knows what. I was able to go to their home and get adjusted there.

Birthday Party

One of Carter's best friends had a drive-by birthday party. We drove by, but Carter jumped out while I was chatting with his mom. For the most part, they kept their distance. The two who are standing close together are brothers - so they were safe. It was nice to get my social butterfly boy out to see his friends.

We had a lesson on chickens. We went to a friend's house to get plants for our yard and Roslyn got to help with their chickens. She loves feeding them bugs, but also loves to keep some for her "collection." Snails are their favorite, but also hers.

"I AM SOCIAL DISTANCING!!"

I had to drop off something to a friend. I stood my 6 feed away as we chatted. Her daughters ran out to see Beckett (he is right in between them age wise). Girls have cooties, so he ran away. But, he can't be afraid of them or anything. So, he ran around their yard, while they followed him, yelling "I AM SOCIAL DISTANCING!! I AM SOCIAL DISTANCING!!"

I got this great idea from the internet to help Beckett with his currency. I set it up while they were at recess. I came back later and he had finished it when he was supposed to be outside. 

He had run out of pennies, so I had him go back through and substitute coins he still had for coins he needed. In essence, finding different ways to make each amount. 

With their tickets, Beckett rescued a toy from toy jail. Some toys are not really in toy jail, they are just not in the current rotation and are in storage. Beckett chose this (Carter received for his birthday two and a half years ago) and the boys put it together - together!

Some Days Just Work

Today just worked. I think I have given up on the rotation idea. Carter is just so competitive, he tries to be finished with his work first. There is no reason to make him work at something for 30 minutes when he can complete it in 5. So, I made checklists for the kids. They have responded to that a lot better. 

They were very motivated to get their work done quickly so they could just be done.

And they went above and beyond to do other jobs around the house. 

Carter and Roslyn are big on earning tickets. Beckett is not. He isn't motivated by that. I have to figure out what motivates him so I can keep him back on track.