Happy Thanksgiving

While we missed seeing all of our friends and family for the holiday, we are more thankful that ever this year.  

It was just the five of us at home this year.  The boys had a great time helping to prep the pie.

Since it was just us we opted for ham over turkey.  Leftover ham sounded better than leftover turkey.  I did greatly miss my moms stuffing!

After lunch we spent the afternoon watching Back to the Future and then ended the day with a zoom with my family.  All in all it was a thanksgiving to remember!

Happy Veteran's Day

 Jack's den needed to talk to a veteran for one of their cub scout requirements.  One of our past cubmasters served in Desert Storm and was willing to talk to the boys all about his experience.  They were a great audience and i think they learned a few things.

We talked about how we can honor our veterans and made cards for a local nursing home.  

The boys seemed to enjoy the craft and when I dropped off the cards the nursing home was thrilled.  

Happy Halloween

 Like everything thing else this year, it was different from the typical Halloween.  We invited another family over to celebrate.  

Jack was a completely adorable ninja.  He said it was the perfect costume to protect him from Covid :)

For about the 10th year in a row the Mario Riding Yoshi inflatable was worn.

Max opted not to wear a costume.  He was the fire tender of the evening.

Instead of going door to door I made baggies of all of the kids favorite candy.  Once it got dark we hid them in the backyard and the kids hunted for them with flashlights.  It was so much fun!  They had a tough time finding all of their baggies - in fact two weren't found until the next day.  It was obvious the raccoons enjoyed the candy :)

Pack Hike

One thing about the fall went really well - Cub Scouts.  We had several outdoor activities and the boys loved it.  We hit up the park for a one mile hike and some fishing.  It made for a pretty perfect afternoon. 

Apple Picking

There isn't a lot that feels normal this year, but apple picking was close.  The playground may have been  closed and one of my sweet boys may have been cranky as heck, but we did it!

Jack was thrilled with his spoils.  Max and William just wanted to climb the ladder.

By the end of the afternoon we were all happy and ready to head home.  I made a pretty darn good apple pie if I do say so myself!

First Day of School - August 24, 2020

 After what felt like the longest spring break ever it was time for the boys to return to school - although not in the way they ever have before.  

Max and Jack started 7th and 2nd grades 100% virtually.  It was an adjustment.  Thank goodness I'm home to help!

Since William's school is so much smaller they were able to go back in person with lots of precautions in place.  

It isn't what it was in the past, but this 'normalish' milestone was a welcome one for all of us.  At this point in the year Jack is now attending school in person two days a week while Max is still all virtual. 

Visiting the Farm

 We have cousins that live near Branson and decided to make a side trip to check out their farm.  Tony and Cheryl were such gracious hosts - especially considering we called the day before and basically invited ourselves over.

My city kids go to see so many amazing things! The vineyard was beautiful - they thought it was pretty cool to see how grapes grow.

Between the sheep, and the dogs, and the chickens, they couldn't decide what was the best part.

Seeing eggs in the chicken coop was pretty crazy for Jack!