Hanging at the Houston Home: Week 1

We survived.... hoping we can move to the point of "thriving" but, for now, the kids learned some new things, mommy got at least 40 hours of work in (probably a lot more.... too many to count!), we fit in some outside time, we had to establish new rules (which are now posted on the fridge with painter's tape), we said goodbye to our beloved principal whom I have had the pleasure of working with for 7 years, we visited Great Grandma from afar, and celebrated making it through our first week of mommy and kids working from home by eating our favorite ice cream in a culdesac near the restaurant!  Fortunately, daddy is considered "essential" so he will still be going to work as we are sheltering in place!  The sheltering in place started last night for our county.  I realized that I had not left the neighborhood in six days due to the busy work week.  It felt good to grab some take out last night and eat dinner at the picnic tables in our neighborhood. We have been eating all meals at our home.... making it challenging to provide school, entertainment and nourishment!  We are knocking it out but it is tough work! Praying for all the mamas who are in my same situation.... working a full-time job from home, teaching their kids, and missing daddy while he is still working away from the home.  I saw the post below last night and I needed to hear it!  I think this past week I focused so much on my job and getting the kids "work" turned in, that I didn't appreciate or enjoy the extra moments I had been given with them... the moments to eat allllllll the meals with them and get a little more outside time in with them.... to play the "floor is hot lava" and a game of Sorry!  I pray I focus more on those moments in the upcoming week. The work will get done.... they are only this little once!

Preparing to Work From Home

So I will officially start working from home tomorrow.... which means that I'm attempting to balance my professional work load, homeschooling a first grader and working with a preschooler.... prayers are appreciated as I navigate the new normal for a bit.  The coronavirus is impacting more people than I think anyone anticipated, warranting the shutdowns of businesses and restaurants (only providing take out now), the closing of schools (providing distance/e-learning), the emphasis of social distancing and spending more time at our home.  Grammy did such an incredible job working with my boys this week while I finished up supporting our families at school.  She had them working, playing, and they are already asking me this morning when she will be coming back over.... I think they loved every minute of having her at our house!  The weather has been beautiful here, giving us the opportunity to ride bikes, go for walks, and go for a family hike!  I'm praying that we can continue to enjoy the outdoors while keeping our distance from others during this unprecedented time.  

We are unable to visit Grandma right now.... so I was able to go outside her window and talk to her on the phone.  I was able to show her the engagement ring I had sized that belonged to her which was pretty special!

On St. Patrick's Day, Grammy and Grandpa managed watching all four while Linds and I were at work.... hence all the green!  We are trying to keep things as normal as possible for the kids, and we are finding a schedule or routine is beneficial for all of our sanity!

Currently, Linds and I are still able to meet for our weekly run.... we knocked out 10 miles in anticipation of a half marathon we have scheduled for the middle of May.  At this time, we are unsure if it will be cancelled or postponed but we are enjoying the exercise and socializing which will help us make it through the upcoming week at home!

I really wanted Zack to have a great birthday this year ...... I picked up his favorite food and got him an ice cream cake!  Apparently, the ice cream cake was not meant to last in its original condition..... I tried to put it into a very full freezer and took off part of the icing and lettering.  Then, I forgot to turn off the ice maker (which is where I stored the cake), causing the cake to have even more "character" than it originally did.  Right before we sang to him, Maddox decided to swipe his hand through the icing on the top and smeared the corrections I had attempted to make to the cake.... we just have to laugh at this point and realize that my attempt to give Zack a good birthday celebration should be enough! Everyone had a great time and it was special to spend time with family since those are the only people we will be seeing in the upcoming weeks!

We were able to fit in a family hike earlier in the day as well!  It was requested by the birthday boy and just what all of us needed!

 Zander is about to lose his other front tooth..... it is so wiggly!! I somewhat can't wait to see that gap in his teeth until the adult teeth come in.  His other tooth is already coming in so it won't be long now!

Unprecedented Times

We just found out today that our school systems will be out of school for at least two weeks due to the corona virus.  This virus has been moving quickly throughout all parts of the earth, causing it to be identified as a pandemic.  In the time I've been in education (15 years and counting) this has never happened.  They have cancelled all sporting events, church services and school.  I will still report to work on Monday.  Thanks to Grammy helping out, I think we are going to make the next few weeks work while children are not in school but the mommies and daddies still need to report to work.  While we are planning one day at a time at this point, we have tried to make preparations due to the uncertainty of this situation.  I think we have enough food, etc. should we not be able to access a grocery store within the next two weeks. We might be eating the same thing every day but we will make it work!  Prior to all of this happening, here is how we have spent our last week or two!

Linds and I went for our first run since she had Eli.  We made it seven miles and we are officially getting ready for our next half marathon together!

 We checked out the new local Cracker Barrel that just opened.  I introduced the boys to the game on the table we played growing up and the fireballs!  We would get these in a bag on family road trips so I had to grab some while we were there!

 We have been enjoying the spring-like temperatures with some bike rides. Maddox is acting like he has always known how to ride a bike..... I only have to help get him started and then there is no stopping him!  True to his "Madman" nickname, he was trying to ride his bike down curbs on our last bike ride!

Zander lost one of his front two teeth and the new one is already coming in!  It was pulled out by daddy with pliers and there were a little more tears than the last couple that have come out.  He bounced back quickly and is showing off his missing tooth proudly now!

 Maddox got to attend a birthday party for one of his friends (Nathan) at Jump-n-Fun!

 Maddox also had his first baseball practice.  He is so excited to be playing like his big brother this year!  Zander will be playing machine pitch this year and Maddox will be playing coach pitch/t-ball!  We had our first practice for both boys and spent three nights at the ball field this past week.  Now that all sports are cancelled until at least April 1st, we will enjoy a little bit more family time at the house before we are at the ball field at least four nights a week due to these cute, baseball players!

 I had my grandma's engagement ring sized!  I'm so excited she wanted to give me her ring while she is able to see me wear it!  I had a necklace made after Grandpa passed with his fingerprint and his handwriting with "I love you" on the back.  I love having both my grandparents with me on a daily basis!

 It was a crazy week at work.  I found out the principal that I have worked with for 7 years will be moved to a local middle school.  This is just so hard for me to process because I had hoped he would be both my boys' principals through 5th grade.  I know God has a plan in all of this but it will still be a hard transition without him at our school.  Linds sent me this picture on Friday, making the tough week a little easier. 

I really liked this prayer that a friend posted online.  It seemed important to remember and keep in mind as we go through a very unexpected, unprecedented time.

 Today we were able to practice at an indoor baseball facility.  It is so sweet seeing the boys do something they enjoy together!

Aunt A's 40th Birthday Celebration in California!

Zack and I had another big adventure as we headed toward the west coast to celebrate Aunt A's 40th birthday.  Uncle Jay coordinates races all around the country.  We decided it would be fun to watch him in action and spend some time with Aunt A and her friends, celebrating her milestone birthday! Zack and I had never been to California and rarely fly on a plane so this seemed like an incredible opportunity and a big adventure for us!  We headed out early Friday morning on a flight to meet up with Amanda and her friends in Atlanta for the flight across the country!

When we arrived at San Francisco, we immediately went to check out Fisherman's Wharf which was near our hotel. We got to see the Golden Gate Bridge at a distance and the cable cars and trolleys moving about. 

We ate lunch at the Blue Mermaid, having gained an extra 3 hours due to the time difference.  We ate a delicious lobster mac-n-cheese, crab dip, calamari, and grilled chicken club sandwich.

 Then, we went to check out Lombard Street (the really curvy road in most movies).  We got an incredible view of Alcatraz from the top of the street we climbed to check out Lombard Street.

We got to see the Painted Ladies, this street was made famous in the show "Full House" that I watched growing up!

We walked through Golden Gate Park and went into the Japanese Tea Garden.

On Saturday morning, we went to Pier 39 to see the sea lions!  We also ate an amazing breakfast of crepes and fritatas as Eight AM. It was one of the best breakfasts I've ever had!

 Then, we made our way to Napa Valley to meet up with Uncle Jay.  We got a couple more pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge since we drove across the bridge on our way out of the city.

We stopped at a winery on the way to our hotel.  It is always fun hearing the history of a particular winery.

 On Sunday morning, I ran the Napa Valley Half Marathon!  It was so much fun to see Uncle Jay coordinating this huge event and to run through a course that had such incredible views of the wineries.  I even got to see hot air balloons in the distance as I ran the course.  I had a personal best with a 1:48:02 overall time (8:15 pace) and while there were some rolling hills, I appreciated the incline or decline of this race!  I felt great through the whole run!

 I also got to meet Catt Sadler from ENews!  She was running the race so it was neat to meet a celebrity who was also running that morning!

We went to explore St. Helena after the race.  We ate brunch at Lovina.  I had a breakfast sandwich on an English muffin made at Model Bakery... it was incredible! The mimosa was pretty tasty as well!

 In the afternoon, we explored Chandon (a winery) nearby.  Then, we walked around Napa for the evening.

On Monday, we toured a castle!! It was pretty incredible and we finished off the tour with a wine tasting!

We spent most of the day Tuesday traveling back.  We got some pretty sweet pictures of our boys while we were gone!  We are so thankful for Grammy and Grandpa watching them while we had a big adventure! 

 Grammy and Grandpa had all four at some points while we were gone! They are amazing!

Zander has Reading Week this week so he is enjoying daily dress up days... like Career Day and Dr. Seuss Day! 

While it was so much fun to travel, we are also thankful to be home with our boys and enjoying the every day adventures of raising two rowdy boys, outnumbered and loving it.... wouldn't have it any other way! ;)