Our Family Blog

This month we decorated the tree, wrapped gifts and made gingerbread houses with the pod. Happy Holidays to our friends and family! We miss hugs, laughter, sharing a meal and visits.

Like parents across the nation we struggled with creating a COVID safe Halloween for our kids. Our solution was an outdoor party with our pod. The kids hunted for candy, held a costume show, decorated pumpkins and played beautifully together. Hosting and attending a party felt like such a luxury, it was great!

To escape the cooped up COVID feeling, we went on a weekend trip to Clear Lake. The air was crisp, the scenery was stunning, and there were so many birds – herons, egrets, osprey and bald eagles! Our afternoon was spent on horseback, learning how to ride in an arena then going on a trail ride. The kids were naturals and we all enjoyed the animals and scenery.

Sorrel the bearded dragon joined the family today!

Northern California continues to experience fires and smoke. Each day, the air quality is like a roller coaster. When the air is clean we rush to the hills for a hike. When the air is unhealthy we lock ourselves inside and play Legos. We have so much empathy for those who have lost their homes or loved ones.

We are so grateful for the kid’s school pod! The social interactions, peer feedback and other families help to create a situation where our kids continue to grow and thrive.

Between raging wildfires, pervasive smoke, scorching hot weather and fatigue about COVID, it has been a challenging month! Despite all this, our kids still view the world with joy, curiosity and creativity. Hayley and RJ spent a week in San Diego for a smocation (to escape the cloud of smoke in the bay area). Grandma and Grandpa helped them with their school work, played games and took them swimming. After a week, we reunited, brought the kids home and returned to our normal routine.

Just before school started up, we took a road trip to San Diego. It was a great trip! We celebrated RJ’s birthday, jumped waves at the beach, swam in the pool for hours and formed sweet memories with grandparents.

The school year began with remote learning and our kids joined a school pod. Playing with kids in person and doing school work were both forgotten skills! It will take a few weeks to get back in the swing of thing.

We are back on the hamster wheel – work, school, life and waiting for science to conquer covid-19. What would we do without science?

While it’s hard to imagine the end of this pandemic, it’s been a great opportunity to spend time outdoors as a family. Simple things like swinging, hiking and going on a picnic make us all so happy!

With my new job I have holidays off (yay!) so we took a fourth of July road trip to Tahoe where we climbed rocks, hiked, had a picnic, kayaked, met some cows, checked out an old ranch and went to a water park. It was refreshing to get away, even if only for a weekend.

This spring we settled in to remote learning. Hayley became an independent, motivated learner and adapted well to school via the internet. RJ was not very interested in class video conferences, but was willing to do school work at home. While he is growing in all subjects, he amazes us with his understanding of math concepts that are grades ahead. Our lives are simple yet full.

George Floyd’s death ignited discussions of white privilege, institutional racism and discrimination of the criminal justice system towards people of color. We hope this revolution leads to change.

While it has been challenging to be confined, some positive things have emerged this month. Our children have grown closer than ever to one another and have developed a new sense of independence. We’ve had time to complete non-urgent projects and further customize our home and yard. We’ve become more flexible and better able to let go things of beyond our control. I wonder what ripple effects will result from this pandemic.