Baptism Pictures June 14- June 20, 2020

Sunday-
Normal Sunday yesterday, we had Sacrament meeting at 10.  Doug, Damon and Tyler did the lesson.  They did a run through of their lesson that they were going to teach later that day for their zoom Young Men meeting.

I played a lot of games with the kids, we played Splendor, Timing it Right, and Lattice.  The kids also played a lot of Monopoly.  They have discovered that game and have been playing it a lot.  Chris made up some rules to tweak it a bit and the girls like playing with him.

I tried a new recipe, and most liked it ok.  They all agreed they would rather have it with broccoli than the asparagus.

A family in the ward invited us over for ice cream in the evening.  The Luce's.  They went to USU as well and had moved away a few years ago and now have moved back.  They have a son Damon's age and a girl a year older than Chris.  We had a nice evening visiting.  I made some toffee to bring as a topping.

Chris was being silly putting just about every blanket we own on top of him.

Monday-
Normal day of laundry.  Mondays are hard because I never seem to be able to get anything done.  I got a bit depressed in the evening and was feeling like a failure as a mother.  The kids just keep fighting and valuing screen time about all else.  Jenna and Kaylee had a friend over and as soon as screen time came they left their friend alone in their room so they could go play.  I know I have taught them better, but they just ignored her.  Granted her mother was supposed to have come and picked her up, but she was running late.  Anyway, the girls lost their screen time for the next day -  I hope that they realize friends are more important that video games.  I worry about screen time addiction with all my kids, its what they love to do the most. They do play games and other things during the day, but it seems like they are just trying to pass the time until they get to play again.  I would love to get rid of all screens for a month or so, but I just don't dare, it helps me keep my sanity since it does keep the house quieter during that time.  I don't know what to do.  Part of me things that the kids are fine, and there are many out there that are playing so much more and that I shouldn't worry.  But the other part says what others are doing shouldn't justify what I am letting my kids do.  It's so hard to find a balance.

Tuesday-
Tuesday always feel less busy without the laundry to do.  Chris and I went and picked up his new glasses.  Change is hard for Chris - so he was messing with his glasses all day and by the end he was in tears saying that they hurt too much and were too tight.  So we will go back in today to see if we can get them adjusted.  I'm worried that we bought too small of a frame.  He is also having a hard time going back to a single lens- he had bifocals for the last 1 1/2 years.  So his eyes are having to adjust.

I looked at 2 years worth of pictures picking out the best for the girls' baptism video.  It is fun looking back  Everyone continues to grow.  We have had a lot of fun memories throughout the years.  Sometimes I wish we did more - as I compare with others- but I need to just remember what works best for our family and be happy.  We are more of a home body group and going out usually stresses me out and everyone else gets grumpy too.  So I need to remember to just be content at home and make home our special place.

We got an email from the Bishop last night saying that they are going to start having small groups meet in the church for Sacrament meeting.  They are only going to meet once a month or so, and it is by invitation.  But it is a small step moving forward, headed back to normal life.  No singing, wearing masks is recommended, and groups will sit every other row.  Such a crazy time we are living in.

Wednesday -
Morning run, I love the mornings with the soft light and the lake looks so pretty.  I'm not the fastest runner, but it is good to get out.

After centers Tyler and I went to piano lessons.  After lunch the girls played at the Shurtliffs and Drew came over here.  Kari had to come and type in their microsoft password so that Drew could use his account on the Xbox.  We visited for awhile and that was nice.  We both wonder about what to do about screen time, and how to find a balance.  Damon played a lot with Drew and played in the morning and then since he was playing board games with Drew while the others played video games at 4, he asked if he could play after dinner.  I somehow hoped that being older he would realize that he had had enough playing with Drew earlier, but I have let others not 'count' their friend screen time and let them play more later.  Sigh, it's just I wish they could be happy with what they did that day and use their other time to do something more productive or just be happy playing other things.

I was in the kitchen in the afternoon, I made Chex Mix, Muddy Muddies, and Rice Krispies.  With Doug eating a more strict diet he is not eating cereal anymore, so I needed to get rid of some cereal before it went stale.  I froze the Muddy Buddies, so we'll see how that works.  We finished a game of the Farming Game after dinner.  The kids get so loud playing, I usually end up with a headache, but everyone stayed happy for the most part.  During the last round we let people re-roll so that they could harvest the most they could.  Chris rolled a 6 harvesting his 100 head of cows and got $90,000.  He was pretty excited about that.  He ended up winning.  I watched a little bit of the Two Towers with Damon and Tyler in the evening.

Thursday-
Jenna had her follow up appointment via a video chat.  We just talked with the Physicians Assistant, but it was fine.  She just looked at the incision and said it looked fine.  We actually had to take off the steri-strips so that she could look at it.  They had said that they would fall off on their own, but Jenna's had stayed on pretty well.  It is still pink and sore looking, but healing well.  She said that Jenna could go swimming on Monday, so Jenna was happy about that.

The girls had piano lessons.  Chris is doing lessons with me now - it wasn't worth the fight going to Haley's.  He still practices, but he really didn't like going to lessons, so I just help him with the songs he is learning.

Kaylee had an orthodontist appointment.  She is getting an expander put in next week so they had to make a mold to make the appliance. She did well with it, it never is a comfortable feeling.

The girls had a zoom primary activity.  They followed a video on how to draw a hummingbird.  It was fun.  Tyler played tennis with the deacons and Damon played outside games at a friends house for teachers quorum.  They can meet in person, they just can't meet at the church.

Friday -
I walked 5 miles with Kari in the morning.  We went around the lake twice.  It was great to walk and talk.  We even talked for 15 more min when we got to her house.  1 hour and 40 min of visiting was great!

Pretty normal day.  I put curlers in Kaylee's hair to get ready for taking pictures in the morning.

Saturday-
I woke up at 5:45 (I hadn't slept well either) and I woke the girls up around 6:00.  I wanted to get to the lake around 7 and we had lots of hair to do.  I redid Kaylee's braid and then started taking out curlers while she ate some cereal.  Jenna got in the shower so we could do her hair curly with a diffuser.  Kaylee's hair was so pretty and curly I feel so bad that I didn't take a picture here at the house.  The girls looked so pretty.  We loaded up in the van and headed to the lake.  There were a few sprinkles on the windshield as we drove over, but the clouds didn't look very dark so we figured we were going to be ok, little did we know. :/

We took a few pictures right at the edge of the first bend and then we were looking at some trees to take some pictures by when I heard a rustling in the trees.  I looked at Doug and asked, "Is that wind or rain?"  He said it was rain and we got out the umbrella and huddled under a tree.  At first it didn't seem too bad and we thought we could wait it out.  Then it started to really come down and it was causing splashes to come up and get the girls' dresses muddy.  We realized that we just needed to go  The girls huddled under the umbrella.  I wanted them to try and save their hair in the hopes of coming back later.  All of our shoes were drenched and Doug and I were sopping wet in the few minutes it took to walk back to the van.  Sigh - it didn't rain at all the rest of the day- so of course we were out during the 30 minutes that it was stormy.  I had even checked the weather the night before and it had said that it was going to rain later in the day, and I had wanted to get good morning light.  Oh well.

I had to throw the girls' dressed in the washing machine and we told the girls to play nice to try and keep their hair neat.  Jenna's stayed really well.  Kaylee's was still pretty but of course the curls lost their volume.  The girls were tired of playing nice by the afternoon so we just took some pictures at our house around 2:00.  It was so hot and muggy outside.  But the girls did pretty well and we got some cute pictures.  Ugh, I was so frustrated that all of my planning and time had come to naught.  I know it wasn't a huge deal, but I needed to get the pictures done so I could make the announcements and other things.  So anyway, I'm glad that it's done and that some of them turned out ok.

Summer 6/7 - 6/13/2020

Sunday-
Normal Sunday yesterday.  We had a nice Sacrament meeting at home. Doug talked about racial prejudices a bit because of all of the current events and riots that have been going on.  It is sad to see the country in this much chaos.  I wish that we could all just love each other and treat each other with kindness.

I helped edit my dad's history that my mom is working on.  She did a great job and it will be a great thing to have for our family.  I made a nice dinner of  baking chicken, mashed potatoes, asparagus, carrots, green salad, strawberries and peaches, and machine bread.  It tasted extra good since it was a fast Sunday.  We have been enjoying a half box of peaches these last few days and they have been so tasty!

We took our normal after dinner walk, but this time we did it around the Nature Center pond.  It was a hot muggy evening and we were all sweaty when we got back, grateful for air conditioning.

Monday-
Another week. I was able to get the wash started early.  I went for my morning run at 6:30. I have been feeling slow lately and had to walk a bit.  I have been going for 4 miles around a nearby 'lake.'  It's a man made body of water at a park, but it is very pretty and peaceful in the morning and I enjoy the scenery.  I listen to a conference talk and then switch to an audio book.  Right now I am listening to the Bear and the Nightingale.  It is a different book, Russian elements and had an old folklore/fairy tale feel to it.

I made some dr. appointments and did odds and ends around the house.  We started watching a National Geographic documentary about North America's Most Amazing Animals. It was fun to watch.  The kids enjoyed it as well.

Tyler has started watching some PG-13 movies since his birthday.  I try to watch with him when I can, or Damon does.  We have watched the Hobbit movies and now have started the Lord of the Rings.  We are one the first movie.  I do like the cinematography of those films.  They did a good job.

Tuesday-
I had a Dr. appointment for my yearly check-up and took advantage of the trip to get some other errands done.  I'm so grateful that the kids are old enough to watch themselves for the most part.  I was able to return some items at Marshals, pick up books from the library, buy some new running shoes at Academy, and buy a display case at Hobby Lobby.  I didn't get everything done, but it was enough to feel productive.  I hope to get some other stops done today.  The thrift store only accepts donations on certain days, so I couldn't stop yesterday.

The kids have been having fun filling large balloons with water.  There are two huge water balloons on our patio right now, they just roll around and are fun to hold.

It is getting hot and humid.  We are watering the flowers for the Shurtliffs while they are gone on vacation and their flowers are just drooping - I hope they don't die.

Doug is working on things in the Bishopric to get ready for us going back to church.  They have to figure out how to seat people while social distancing and how to clean before and after the service.  I think it's great that we are trying to open the church up, but it seems like a lot of work for 40 minutes of worship.  I think they are going to encourage those who want to stay home, to continue to do so, and only those who really feel the need to go back to church.  We'll see how it goes.

Wednesday-
I tried out my new shoes running in the morning.  They felt different but good.  I didn't have to walk so that was good, but I still felt slow.  Sigh, I just don't seem to have the energy that I used to have.  I feel burned out all of the time.

Centers - I am been enjoying joining the kids with their centers, it makes me get things done in the morning. :)  Tyler had piano lessons and then I worked on pictures a bit in the afternoon.  I took Kaylee into the orthodontist in the afternoon.  It was her first real appointment.  She had spacers put in so that she can get an expander.  Her teeth are a bit sore this morning.

We went to the pool after dinner.  It was a bit cooler than when we went on Saturday.  It also looked cleaner, so maybe they put in some clean water.  The day wasn't as hot and there was a bit a of a breeze, so it felt cooler out of the water.

After baths and putting the girls to bed I read a bit with Chris.  He was given a great big book with 5000 facts in it from the librarian at Broadway.  He has been loving it.  He was reading some of the facts to me while we were cuddled on the couch and I was so tired that I feel asleep for a bit.  I am always tired lately.  I would think that exercising and eating pretty well would give me more energy, but it doesn't seem like it.

Thursday -
I was feeling kind of down today, sometimes I'm not sure why.  Just feeling like  I can never get anything done besides the basics: cleaning up, making food, etc.  I took Chris to pick out some new glasses at Walmart.  Because of Covid we couldn't even go in to look until there was another helper there to assist us.  We checked back twice and on the third time we could go in.  Then we had to get our temperature checked, hands sanitized, answer questions, and not touch any glasses.  We could point and then the lady would take them off of the wall so Chris could try them on.  Then she would have to clean them all before she put them back.  It is so crazy of all the things we have to do.  They are maybe going to announce some plans for the next school year on Tuesday, so we'll see how that goes.  I wonder if we will just do more home schooling.

Doug announced that a Panda Express was going to open up close to us. Chris over heard this and started doing his happy dance.  He is pretty silly and brings a smile to all of us when he is happy.  I played Liar (BS) with some of the kids last night.  Jenna was excited that she got out first.  The others were having fun trying to sneak in cards or catch others lying.  It was a fun game.  We also played 99.  They learned this one at school, since it is good for math practice.

Friday-

The days all seem to be the same.  Friday was only 2 days ago, but I can't remember what we did.  I'm sure the kids played and I made food.  :)  OH, I did get a hair cut, that was nice.  I decided to go short again.  Chris played at a friends house.  I had to basically force him to go.  This friend and him sometimes don't get along, so he didn't want to play with him.  It ended up being fine, but it just crazy the amount of effort it takes to make Chris do anything he doesn't want to do.

Saturday-
I went for my morning run.  I usually go on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays.  The other days I do P90X3 workouts or some of the HIIT workouts that my friends have posted online.  I run pretty slowly, but I go for 4 miles.  If I get under a 10 min mile I'm doing good.  Usually I am over though.

My friend Natalie went with me to the beauty supply store.  She helped me pick out some hair color and helped me dye my hair.  I've never really colored my whole head before, just highlights.  Once in Vernal a friend colored it with a washable color.  I was excited and the color turned out really well.  It is quite red, which I was hoping it wouldn't be too red, but it is just from my natural undertones.

Doug and I went out to lunch at the Thai Cottage - the food was really good, but they served it on paper plates and plastic silverware.  Covid-19 is affecting everything.  It really is a drag.  It made eating out not very fun.

Other pictures: Jenna finished a blanket for her monkey.  Her stitches are very good.

 Damon finished his hand crank phone charger.  You have to crank for 5 minutes to get 10% of a charge, but hey if you're desperate. :)

Jenna's Surgery week 5/31 - 6/6/2020

Sunday -

We had our church a bit earlier this week.  Doug had more meetings planned so we had to work
around his schedule a bit.  We had leftovers from Damon’s birthday so I didn’t have to do as much
food.  I did make rolls, but I started them a bit late so they were a little bit small.  

We had a few zoom church meetings in the afternoon.  The RS did one at 1:00, Elder’s quorum was
at 2:00 and the youth had a combined meeting with the Bishop at 3:00.  

We have been working on a large 2000 piece puzzle that we borrowed from the MIller’s.  It’s a pretty
picture of an ocean scene with a rainbow with tropical trees.  I tend to work on it the most, and probably
more that I should, but it’s fun.  

We usually walk around a ‘lake’ in the neighborhood on Sundays if the weather is good.  It was a
pleasant evening and not too hot and humid.  We brought the Frisbees and the girls had fun going
through the Frisbee golf course.  

Monday -

We started centers since school is now over, but it is just a good way for everyone to get their piano
practicing done and a few other things that everyone needs to do.  We usually do piano, math, typing,
reading, and writing.  I took Jenna and Kaylee with me up to the hospital.  Jenna had to get tested for
the Corona Virus because she was going in for surgery on Wednesday.   She tested negative, so
surgery was a go.  I took Kaylee with so that we could stop and get them a Chick-fil-a meal.  They had
been given a gift card from their teachers and I owed them lunch from their birthday.  It was an early
lunch, but of course they still enjoyed it.

We went swimming in the afternoon at the Miller’s, mostly because Jenna is not going to be able to
go swimming for awhile after her surgery.  The kids had a great time, even though the water was a bit
cool.  Chris opted to stay home.  I’m done making him do fun things.  He is old enough to stay home
by himself so I think he will miss out on a lot of fun things this summer.  

Tuesday -

Normal day of centers.  Damon had an orthodontist appointment.  It is such the procedure that they
have to do because of COVID-19.  We send a text when we arrive.  Then we answer the questionnaire
saying that we are healthy, then they text us back saying that we can enter the building.  I’m not
allowed to wait inside, so I go back to the van.  I’m glad that the appointments usually don’t take very
long.  Damon is almost done with his Invisaline - hopefully by the fall he will be all done.  

I taught the girls how to crochet last week and they have had a lot of fun with it.  At first they just knew
how to chain, so they made necklaces and bracelets for themselves and all of their stuffed animals. 
Then Jenna learned how to work into the chain and she did surprisingly well with her stitches.  Kaylee
didn’t learn how to do the next rows until yesterday.  It was a bit harder for her, but she did pretty well. 
We got onto Pinterest and looked at all of these fun projects that we could make.  Kaylee asked if I
could make this little hanging basket thing.  It wasn’t too hard, so she watched me for an hour
crocheting this little basket.  She was so cute, helping me getting the yarn out of the spool and getting
so excited as it was taking shape.   

I made orange chicken in the evening and then I helped Jenna get ready for surgery the next day. 
We packed a bag of things to do and gave her a bath.  We had to wash her sheets, pajamas, and
blanket too.  It was convenient that I was planning on washing the sheets that day anyway.  

I had book club in the evening.  We actually risked getting together in our hosts pool.  It was great to
visit in person.  We had had a GNO last week that was the first time we had been in a big group all
together.  It had been so nice to see friends and visit.  

Wednesday- 

I woke up at 5:56 to Jenna by my bedside.  I assumed she was nervous about her surgery but then
she told me that Kaylee had thrown up.  She had complained of not feeling well yesterday, but was
totally fine after breakfast.  So Doug and I got her settled on the couch and Jenna was able to get
back to sleep.  I was supposed to get up around then anyway so I got ready for the day and then woke
Jenna up a little before 7:00.  She was able to have some juice at that time, but then didn’t get to eat
after that.  We left for the hospital at 7:15 and got all checked in.

 

Jenna had surgery for getting a cyst removed from the back of her neck.  It had gotten bigger over the
last few months and was bothering her when she laid down.  We started this process back on April 23
to see her regular Dr.  He looked at is and told us that it was probably a cyst and that could be
surgically removed.  He sent us a referral to a Dr. O at Texas Children’s Hospital.  Dr. O is a plastic
surgeon.  So we set up an appointment to see Dr. O.  The hospital is under lots of different rules due
to the Corona Virus, so we have to enter from a certain door, and have our temperature taking and
wear masks.  The appointment went well and we scheduled an ultra sound to get more info and a
surgery date.  

We were all set to go, but then I started wondering about our insurance.  So I postponed our ultra
sound a few days so that I wanted to make sure Dr. O was in our network. So over the course of a
week I spent hours on the phone talking to our insurance and the hospital.  I kept getting put in circles
and being told that a different department could help me.  It was pretty frustrating.  I finally learned
that yes, Dr. O was in network and the hospital gave me an estimate of our share of the costs - we
have a high deductible plan right now, so our part is roughly going to be $4000.  Doug and I did the
math, and it was still cheaper to have the surgery now than wait and change our insurance plan.  So
we decided to go ahead with the surgery.

So we had the ultra sound last Thursday and the surgery was on the following Wednesday. After we
got checked in to the hospital we waited for about 1 hour and 45 min. During that time we spoke to
several nurses, the anesthesiologist, and a specialist to help explain what was going to happen. She
helped explain the 'sleeping medicine' to Jenna and she helped us pick out a smell to have in the mask.
Jenna chose cotton candy. The Dr.also came in and marked where the incision would be. While we
waited we played games and Jenna read some Garfield comics. At one point we were so busy playing
that Jenna said she forgot she was going into surgery.

At 9:45 they took Jenna back and I went to the waiting room. Jenna said she could only count to 6
before she fell asleep. The surgery lasted about 45 minutes and the Dr. came out and talked to me.
He said the surgery went well and that they were going to send the cyst to a lab to have it tested. I
had to wait another 10-15 minutes until I could go back to be with Jenna. She was pretty out of it. She
had a hard time sitting up and talking. I gave her a few sips of Gatorade and helped her wake up a bit.
We stayed at that station for about 10 minutes then they took out her IV and helped her into a wheel
chair to go home.

She slept on the way home and for about an hour after that. Then she watched
Frozen 1 and 2. By the end of the day she was acting pretty normal and feeling pretty good. Her neck
was a little sore, but the worst part was taking the tape off of her neck. It was so sticky that it really
hurt to take it off. She slept well - I thought I heard her call out in the night and went up to check on her.
She kind of seemed awake and gave me a hug, but she said she hadn't called me, it must have been
a dream.

Thursday

It was kind of a busy morning, mostly because I slept in a bit. I felt behind, but it turned out ok. We
have been doing centers and I have started doing them with the kids. This way I have 15 min to do
all of the little things that I want to do each day, like write in my blog. :) The girls had piano lessons today
and then Kaylee went to Hannah's birthday party and Jenna went to the Shurtliff's to play. We had
our church zoom activities in the evening. The girls had a fun guess who is who by looking at baby
pictures and guessing who it it.

Friday-
The weekends don't seem too different lately, during the crazy Covid school year or summer. We did
our centers and normal screen time. Damon was invited to a friend's birthday party in the afternoon so
we didn't see him much. The girls went and played at the Call's house and Carter Call came over here
play. I'm glad that we are able to play with friends again, it helps the kids be happy and entertained.

We bought a half box of peaches from a truck along with a lot of ladies in the ward. I had picked them
up on Wednesday but they weren't ripe yet. They have started to now ripen and they are so good.
We have been eating them for almost every meal. Not much is better that a juicy ripe peach.

Saturday-
Normal chores in the morning. I took Chris to his annual eye dr appointment at noon and then the store
afterwards. Chris's eyes are the worst of the families besides mine. We had him bifocals for the last year
and a half, but now we are going to go back to regular glasses and see how he does.

I made a peach crisp with our peaches today and we went swimming at our pool in the evening. We had
to sign up and fill out a waiver to go due to Covid 19 but at least we got to go. Jenna just floated around
keeping her neck dry. She seems to be doing well from her surgery.

Other random pictures: my kids get very excited when I buy regular carrots. They love peeling them
and eating them like rabbits. Damon cleaned out some of his room today and got rid of all of his
participation medal from i9 Sports. He had fun with soccer and flag football.

Memorial Day and Damon's Birthday 5/24-5/30

Monday
The Shurtliff's invited us to join them at Spring Creek Beach.  We had thought about going anyway, but were deterred because of the weather.  It had rained during the night and the morning still seemed cloudy and cool.  But the idea of being with friends outweighed the dreary weather.  We quickly got our beach stuff together and headed over.  We went to a spot that we had only tried to access once before.  The water had been high the last time, making beach access a bit tricky and due to the rainfall the night before the water was again high.  We chose to make an adventure of it and waded across an inlet that went up to my ribs to make it to the beach area.  The kids of course had fun, even more so having friends.  I am so thankful that the quarantine is letting up just a bit so that we can be with other people.  We are ready to socialize again!

The rest of the day was just about like normal.  Doug and I went to the store together - which actually isn't normal.  I made molasses sugar cookies with Damon and the girls and then I got dinner ready while the kids had screen time.  We had hamburgers with a yummy fruit salad.

Overall a nice day - just so glad that we did something fun and different in the morning.  I was getting depressed with the idea of the holiday being just like any other normal day.

Tuesday
Well it is the last week of school for the kids.  They don't have much to do, and most of it is optional.  Chris did a scavenger hunt and the girls made school memory books.  I went to the dentist and had the worst cleaning ever - the technician was so hard on my gums.  Our end of year treat was getting a Kona Ice slushy.  Our neighbors reserved a truck to come to our neighborhood, so we walked over and got some.  It was a hot day, so they tasted refreshing.  The Shurtiff kids came over to play after that.  The girls played in the sprinklers outside while Drew joined Damon upstairs playing video games.  I made a stir fry while talking to my mom.  She just finished writing my dad's history and I am trying to help by editing it.  Its been fun to read more about my dad and his earlier life stories.  We are working on a large puzzle right now and I find that I like going over there and working on that instead of doing more important things.  sigh, oh well.

One important thing that I did get done today is that I called the Dr. office for Jenna.  We are in the middle of scheduling a surgery for her.  We haven't had to deal with surgeries before, so this is all pretty new to us.  Makes me grateful for our good health and less than risky kids - no jumping off of houses over here.  So I think we got things figured out with the estimate and what our insurance will pay.  The overall cost is over $10,000 but we will only have to pay our deductible plus 20% after that.  We have a high deductible plan right now, but we figured it was still cheaper than having the other play with what we would save on monthly payments.  So Jenna will have her ultra sound on Thursday, and her surgery next week.  Hope it all goes well.

Wednesday-
The girls had their "awards party" on a zoom call.  It was definitely different.  They had a great 2nd year, but I feel bad for all the craziness at the end.

 I had a GNO in the evening - our first get together since the quarantine.  It was so good to visit in person.

 Thursday-
We picked up the girls' school supplies and said good-by to their teachers.  Mrs. Sherrill and Mrs. Hebert.

 In the afternoon Jenna and I went to get her ultra sound.  It was really fast.  The hospital seems so empty since so many optional surgeries have been put on hold.

 The girls have really gotten into crocheting.  They picked it up really fast and Jenna's stitches are really good.  They made bracelets and necklaces for themselves and their stuffed animals.

Saturday
Damon's birthday!  It seems like this year I didn't do very much for the kids.  Since we couldn't invite anyone over or do much of anything it seemed a bit anit-climatic.  But we had presents and Damon asked for banana cream pie and key lime pie.  We still did our Saturday jobs and then opened presents after that.  Damon built his new lego set and he made the science kit.  It was a color blending crystal experiment.

Damon is a great son, he is thoughtful and willing to help most of the time.  Of course he can be a bit bossy and self centered too, but we're all like that.  He really is a great help at home.  I'm so grateful that I can leave the house and know that the kids are looked after.  He has grown so tall.  He is 5' 7" now and he voiced dropped awhile ago.  He is growing into a nice young man.  Crazy to think that he only has three more years of high school.  We need to start working on getting his learners permit.