Subzero grilling 🥩
Not even a below zero temp/wind chill can stop this guy from grilling. He’s a devoted grill master.
Tag: COVID-19
Lullaby 🎶
When you tell the Amazon echo dot to make an announcement, it will sometimes preface your announcement with a sound. We knew this from announcing “dinner time!” which is preceded by a dinner bell ringing.
Last night Jake and I were sitting at the table with the boys (the girls were in bed) and we could hear noise from upstairs that didn’t sound like sleeping. Jake told the echo dot to announce, “go to bed.” Little did we know, that phrase triggered a gentle lullaby tune before the “dad voice” announcement, “go to bed.” The four of us looked at each other couldn’t stop laughing.
100 Days
This morning, Shecklet #3 announced that she would soon be a third grader 😳 I told her, let’s enjoy where she’s at in 2nd grade for right now 😂
I think the reason behind her statement was that it’s her 100th day of school today. There must have been discussion about where they are in the year and how many days are left. Time, please don’t go too fast!
Crafty Saturday
It’s freezing here in MN. I know that’s not surprising. However, when the high temps are in the single digits and the “feels like” temps are below zero, there’s not much that you can safely do outside. (Jake and Shecklet #4 went skiing last night for a couple of hours before the temps really dropped and it was 🥶.)
I told the kids today was going to be a “screen break day,” so not to ask me or their dad to watch movies or play video games. They asked if we could invite one of their aunts over, and I told them they could see if she was free. She was. And she brought over some of her her craft supplies.
The kids made perler bead creations and did a few projects with the Cricut, including a super cute birthday banner for Shecklet #4’s upcoming birthday. I sorted a new batch of perler beads throughout the afternoon/evening while the crafters worked. At the end of the night, we finished sorting the whole bucket of 8,500 beads!
Here’s what was made today.
Rite of passage
Shecklet #3 has wanted to get her ears pierced for a while, but the timing has always been off. First it was basketball season and then lake season. Pandemic season seemed like the perfect time to finally schedule an appointment for her to have it done.
I originally thought I’d take her to a tattoo/piercing parlor, but the location we checked out a year and a half ago isn’t doing piercings right now. Enter kid-friendly option Rowan Piercing, located in select Target stores. Trained nurses use numbing cream and kindness to put the kids at ease. It was a great experience and Shecklet #3 is thrilled with the results!
Before and preparing for earring placement:
During and after piercing:
After:
Without a mask. Now her job for the next six weeks is to clean and twist the earrings 2-3 times a day. Knowing her, she will take this responsibility seriously.
Sledding with friends 🛷
We spent the afternoon with friends (birthday party, pizza, sledding, and pie. The hill by their house went two directions – one way was steeper than the other, so the big kids built a jump on the steeper side, of course.
First Reconciliation ❤️
Shecklet #4 received her First Reconciliation this morning! We are so proud of her for taking this next step in growing in her faith!
Sewing donuts 🍩 🧵 🪡
The Shecklets’ got a sewing craft as a part of their “share” gift for Christmas. They started making their donuts. Shecklet #4’s is completed, two are in progress, and one hasn’t been started yet.
The kids are learning how to backstitch, whip stitch, and stuff. It’s fun to see some of their creativity come out in their designs.
3 year ANniversary
Three years ago I laid down on an operating table and put complete trust in my surgical team to remove the tumor pushing on my brain.
Today, I celebrated my 3rd ANniversary (AN=acoustic neuroma) on the slopes with my family, snowboarding for the first time post-op. (And first time in 11 years!)
Post-op life continues to be a blessing – in spite of many challenges that have taken place. (Not just surgery side-effects.) As a simple reminder note to myself: some of the things I still deal with are the same as what I faced immediately after surgery – SSD, sense of taste gone on half of my tongue, and my right eye doesn’t close as much as my left when I smile. Fatigue is still present and I take naps several days a week. I think a lot of it has to do with my brain filtering noise – tinnitus as well as household noise. I’m grateful to have a family that continues to understand that resting is something I simply need in order to have the energy to make it through the day.
A few individuals remembered this ANniversary and reached out to me this year. I’m grateful that they have done so. 01/23/2018 was a life-changing day for me and the support my family received leading up to it and after it will never be forgotten.