End of the School Year...

Originally we were told that we would be out of school until May 15th - that was back when the COVID stuff was just starting out. Since then it has gotten a little out of control. Cases are spreading rapidly and everyone is trying to stay away from each other. Today the Governor announced that he will continue the Stay At Home Order and we will not report back to the schools for the remainder of the year - but we will continue remote learning.

This totally broke my heart. I sat at the dining room table and just cried. I was upset at the thought of missing my kids... not saying goodbye...the lost moments of graduation and sports and so much more...Blake not being able to go back to his second grade class...missing his friends...both of us struggling with the learning routine at home.... the list goes on....

This is history - never in this time have schools shut down like this. It is crazy. All I can do is hope and pray that it will pass before the Fall. We have already been told that schools will look very different in the near future. I am not even sure what that means - but I know I have to do my best to stay strong and be there for my Blake and my current students. I owe it to them to make school life and learning as fun and engaging as we can during this time.

Strawberry Picking

Each year, we have the tradition of going Strawberry Picking at a little farm in Rolesville called The Collard Patch. We started this tradition way back when Blake was 2 years old! We even took Memommy with us for a few years when she was able to go. Blake has always loved strawberries and he loves picking them even more!

This year I was worried that we wouldn't be able to go picking because of the Coronavirus/COVID pandemic. However, our little Collard Patch place took some very healthy measures to make it still possible!! We love that place!

We practiced ou social distancing (not getting near others) and they had hand washing stations for before and after picking. It was great to actually get out of the house and feel somewhat normal for once. I am so grateful that we were able to share this traditional experience together in even the most trying of times.

We also shared our tradition by taking strawberries to Memommy and sharing them with others (distant door drop offs to keep things healthy). We want to share the little happy moments with others.

Sidewalk Chalk Art

When we are stuck at home on sunny days - we do sidewalk chart art and we eat freezy pops! :) Even though we are living in uncertain times, we are trying to enjoy all the happy and sunny moments!

Fishing Fun

When you have a lot of time and it's gorgeous weather - you go fishing!!! Thankfully we are still allowed to go to the family pond despite all of this Coronavirus stuff. So, we thought it would be a great time to let Blake do some big boy fishing for the first time.

He was VERY timid and squeamish about all of it to begin with. He did NOT want to touch the worms or the fish to begin with....and he was scared of everything. However, after the first few fish - he was a pro and started to get real brave about holding the fish for pictures and throwing them back. He wouldn't stop and he didn't want to leave.

The guys racked up! Blake caught about 10 fish...and we lost count with how many Joyner caught. They had a blast and I loved watching them and taking pics. I think Joyner and Blake will be great fishing buddies in the future! :)

Stay-At-Home Life and Garden

We are all in Stay-At-Home orders with this Coronavirus stuff still taking over the world. Cases are continually rising in the US - especially North Carolina AND Wake County. So- that means we are doing LOTS of stuff at home.

Blake and I are slowly transitioning into our remote learning with school. It officially starts next week. In the meantime we are spending lots of time on the screened in porch and doing walks on our Greenway Trail - next to our new house.

We also thought it would give us a purpose for us to have a garden - something to tend to daily while we are stuck at home. I have NEVER had a green thumb, but thankfully Joyner is the gardening king and he got our family garden started - Blake and I just followed directions. HA!

Joyner got everyone a little something. I got flowers for the front porch and watermelons and tomatoes. Blake got cucumbers and bell peppers (yellow are his favorite). Joyner got his peppers for his sauces and blueberry bushes. We can't wait to see how everything grows and we hope we get some veggies!