Wesley's birthday was just a week after lockdown. I had to try to hide my sadness from him - it really hit me hard just how much my kids were missing out on. His fifth grade teacher normally dedicated an entire week to each birthday child in class. However, since school was virtual, he didn't even receive a "Happy Birthday" over zoom from what I can remember. We couldn't take him anywhere fun since everything was locked down (our birthday tradition is to let each kid pick a fun place to go on their birthday). We had a very simple celebration and I decorated the house in a Mario theme for him. Events like this are a good reminder to me that sometimes life doesn't go the way we planned and that is ok. We need to allow ourselves to experience all the emotions, but then realize that we are in control of how we react. We can choose to become defeated, or we can choose to see how much we have to be grateful for. We can choose to make the most of a hard situation.
Once lockdown began, nature became my sanctuary. It was my refuge from the storm. It provided me an outlet to release my pent up frustrations. It was the only safe place I felt I could be outside of my home. While the rest of the world felt like a chaotic, scary, political mess, nature was a welcoming mother with her arms outstretched for me. She didn't judge. She was safe. I'm so thankful we live so close to nature and have so many hiking trails basically in our backyard. For months we literally didn't leave the house unless we were going to the store, or spending time in nature!
Eating lunch next to a waterfall!
The trees in our neighborhood grow these beautiful white blossoms every spring, and this sight brought me so much peace during a very dark time.
Here is another hike in my neighborhood that I would often walk when my heart felt heavy. Nature always seems to help my mind see the bigger picture and give me perspective.
One positive about lockdown was that my little family had the opportunity to spend a lot of time together. All extracurricular actives were shut down, so besides e-learning, life was very quiet and simple. I really made sure to find fun, safe, activities that we could all do together. One day we went for a bike ride along the Jordan river trail and then we got shaved ice (drive through - many indoor dining areas were closed), and we ate them under the shade of a tree in a nearby church. It was such a simple activity, but days like these reminded me that a simple life can be a very joyful life.
We had fun watching our chicks grow into awkward teenage birds!
We made Christmas cookies in the spring! The funny thing is that I don't even remember doing this activity. I'm so grateful for pictures to aid my memory when the stresses of life prevent me from remembering all these little details!
We did lots of fun (and messy) science experiments!
We had lots of bunny cuddles.
Blake upgraded to Wesley's old bed, and here is a cute picture of him with his car bed before we sold it!
It seems that anytime we do any type of art or science project, messes are an inevitable part of the process.
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