I have to confess that I can not relate to people who are bored in this strange quarantine/shelter in place business. Some days it feels like I don't get a chance to sit down, let alone run out of things to do.
Also I have a tendency to go overboard on non-essential things.... like candying violets for Miriel's birthday. haha. All of the girls happily helped me pick a bucketful of violets and Emmy insisted on dipping and sugaring almost a third of them.
Cecily's class is learning about culture and they were supposed to learn about a cultural food and either make it or draw it or build it with play-do. She opted to just use the springerle roller on play-do.
But then I decided I kind of wanted to make springerle soooo..... I did. (Stress baking.) They rose nicely, but they tipped to one side. I don't get it. How do you all make such perfect looking cookies!? I used to be able to! *sigh* Anyway, we got a picture of Cecily holding her Great Grandma Beutel's roller and Great Grandma Marjorie's springerle board.
They were having a slightly rough day so we pulled this activity out of the dim recesses of my memory. Hang your head over the edge of a bed, cover your eyes and nose, stick glasses on your chin- suddenly your frowns turn into smiles!
Learn about traditional cultural dress and recreate it with things you have at home- we just so happen to have this Dirndle looking apron... and Swiss braids for my Swiss miss!
The weekly toilet paper hunt was getting extremely old; I was tired of going to three different stores looking for it and it was a point of stress for certain other unnamed individuals. Late one night I found a big case, in stock!, online so I ordered it. And now I don't have to go Christmas shopping!
In true hoarder fashion they built a castle. ha.
One night, after they had been in bed for a while and were not sleeping, I went into their room to find this fort. They were very mad that I made them take it down, but it was 11pm (!) and they were fighting. They rebuilt it in the morning.
Flat Stanley came home from California wearing a tiny mask and gloves made by Aunt Peggy. He managed to see some poppies and visit Disney and check out the dessert around Lancaster before everything shut down.
We flew a kite one afternoon.
A good time was had by all.
Checking out a rainbow.
Emmy has to read 15 minutes everyday and she doesn't love the booklets that come home in the packets. So I pulled out this old gem. If you look very closely at the inside cover, one of the student names is "Eddie W." Somewhere along the line Dad bought some of his old school books- probably at an auction- and then they found their way to my bookshelves, and now Emmy is learning to read from the very same "Fun with Dick and Jane." Who wouldn't prefer Sally's tea party getting rained on and Sally getting stuck under the table until Dick rescued her?
Sometimes the only way to get through school without someone screeching to be picked up is to stick her in the highchair with a handful of fruit loops.
We love spring! And swinging!
I taught Cecily how to whistle on a blade of grass.
These two goobers were busily making the garden, complete with fence and string line. ha. Too bad it's not even tilled yet.
School, sand, and snacks.
One rainy afternoon we made knitting spools with popsicle sticks taped around toilet paper tubes (since we have plenty of them now... for crafting!).
Cecily loved it, which I loved, because hooray for finding a fiber art that she likes! She knit the whole ball of leftover yarn and ended up with a 15 ft long snake!
We are definitely not bored over here...
Also, I'm not sure if 11 years ago I would have thought to put "hunting rabbits" on a list of things I'd enjoy doing with my spouse... :P
No one else I'd rather be quarantined with...
Pretty flowers.
Bob requested haystacks for supper, and then Betty dropped off dirt cups for dessert. SO gourmet and fancy, haha. And classy paper towels for napkins because there were none on the shelves that week.
She was pleased with her dirt cup.
Very well satisfied.
Some days it is just so hard to get up and get everyone on track and the weather is too nice to be inside all day so we tried to do some school outside.
When did she get so big??
The girls helped me pick more violets to make Violet Jelly! I saw the recipe while looking for birthday cake ideas for Miriel Violet and was intrigued. It was good! I like the taste; not sure if I'll add it to my regular canning schedule though- it requires picking a lot of violets!
Goofball. She's like a ballerina thug in that vintage Burrus hat. And those shorts came out of the bottom of a drawer I'm sure!
Miriel turned 1 on the 30th. We did not get to have a family party, sad day, but we decorated and made cakes anyway. And Lembas bread shaped sugar cookies for our little elf princess.
We put our candied violets on the cakes. Simple and elegant and very springy.
Pulled out the giant tissue paper decorations for the fourth time. :)
Miri-miri is well loved...
The night before her birthday, the older girls all neeeeeded to sew her presents. *sigh*
Cadence did too, so "she" sewed a little butterfly.
I found this adorable little mouse that comes in a matchbox- it's so cute!
Cecily knitted another, shorter, snake and we added button eyes and a felt tongue. haha. Whatever.
And Emmy "made" her this little 'blanket' that HAD to be made of minky and HAD to have some ribbon decoration.
Trying so hard to get to the cake while we sang.
She was not at all shy. :)
I filled the big cake with a layer of our homemade violet jelly. So good.
A fork aided in the destruction...
We recorded her eating cake right after lunch to send to the grandparents, then delivered cake and cookies to the farm and Matt & Lena. Bob's Mom and Sharon and girls stopped by in the evening to trade presents for cake. Ha. Social distance birthdays are weird, but not all bad.
It still doesn't seem possible that she's 1 year old already!
Blessings.
