Back to (Virtual) School

 This year everyone headed back to school, virtually. Our district has said only three weeks virtually and then fully back to school! They are headed back to the classroom on September 2nd.

Everyone has zooms all day everyday! The girls' schools both have it set up as "A" and "B" days. They have different classes everyday, and its been going pretty well for them. We've had a few technical difficulties along the way, but nothing too major.  I have been very impressed with our school district's management of this virtual time.  

Graham is in 4th grade, and he has a fabulous teacher.  He is loving school already, and I can hear him laughing and participating all day long.

He even got a virtual shout-out!

Jane and Sydney are starting 7th grade at a new school.  They actually have one class together this year.  They have adjusted to this new schedule well, but they are both anxious to be in person!

Did I mention that we split up Jane and Sydney into their own bedrooms? I am so glad we did it, so that everyone could have their own space to do school.  More details on that soon...

Clare is a freshman in high school!  She will also be at a new school this year, a freshman center.  She is rocking her classes so far!  

Everyone is ready to go back to school, but I think it will be kind of bittersweet.  It will be so quiet here when all the kids are back at school!  We have had some long days, but I have (mostly) enjoyed this crazy/exhausting time of virtual school.  

Colorado during Covid

We decided to head to Colorado for a longer trip this year.  Since Casey has been working from home, and we were all desperate for something to do, we hit the road early!  We were jam packed in the car, but the kids were troopers.  Thank goodness for downloaded movies!!!

We had such a great trip!  Lots of family time, outdoor activities, games, and so much fun!

The annual cousin pic!  Fittingly, the bear on the shirt wore a mask this year!

We had a great hammock set-up!

The kids spent lots of time swimming this year.  After every trip, they would come home saying it was too cold and they were never doing that again....but they couldn't resist!

Clare attempted a mud mask.  All natural!

Adults night out!

A new addition of horseshoes this year.  Casey was crowned the horseshoe champion after our make-shift tournament.

Hiking!

The girls did some embroidery.

Jane's Lane!

Sydney even led us in a church camp sing-along one night.  It's not the best picture, but it made me laugh.  She was using pens/markers as her conducting sticks.  That girl loves to sing!

There was lots of time for fishing this year.  Everyone went, and everyone had success!

Casey and I even went out for a day of fishing.  I hadn't been in many years.  What a fun day!

We taught the kids how to play Rummy this year.  Graham loved getting the jokers!

Lots of target practice with the BB gun!

 Megan and I went with the kids on an awesome horseback ride.  What a beautiful shot!

Colorado is such a special place to us, and this year it felt like even more of an escape.  It was a literal breath of fresh air to get out town and not think about all of the craziness in the world.  

So Long, Sixth Grade

Jane and Sydney have gone to the same school from kindergarten through sixth grade, but now it's time to move to middle school.  

The end of 6th grade is a much anticipated time at Evans Elementary.  There is the final walk of the halls, the big party, and lots of fanfare.  However, when you're not in school, none of these things can happen.  Thankfully, there were still some celebrations to be had!

One of the best things the girls has taken from Evans is a great group of friends.  They are lucky that they have so many friends living in our neighborhood, so we spent the day celebrating with all of them.  

We started the day with a drive-thru parade with all of the teachers.  Jane and Sydney have had some great teachers since they started in kindergarten, so it was fun to bid them all farewell.

Each student was given a bag of goodies and a balloon.  As the bell rang, the students heard the school song and released their balloons.  

We finished the day with a gathering in the cul-de-sac with lots of 6th grade families.  As I was reading through some texts on Sydney's phone, I saw that one of her friends wrote "that was the best day ever."  I'm so glad that they had fun, even if it wasn't how they imagined it would end!

Here's to the class of 2026!

Graham is 9!

Graham had been counting down to his birthday for weeks!  The day finally arrived.  

He requested biscuits and gravy for breakfast, and I happily obliged.  We did school at home, and just hung out in the morning.  Early afternoon, the Kona Ice truck came and surprised Graham.  Several neighborhood friends joined in and enjoyed sno cones...from a distance!

Later in the day, Graham had an awesome birthday parade with our family and lots of his Thunder friends.  

We had burgers and tater tots and birthday cake made by Clare! 

He got lots of great stuff!  Cowboys gear, nerf guns, football cards, Dude Perfect merch, and a lots of video game stuff.  He was one happy boy! 

There's something to the quarantine birthdays.  Lots of family time, keeping things simple, and celebrating our nine year old!

clare's birthday... in quarantine

post written by clare

this year my birthday was good, good but weird. i couldn't go anywhere or see any friends so it was just the six of us at our house all day. i woke up to breakfast in bed and then just did stuff i would've done on a normal day because tbh there wasn't a lot i could do to really spice it up. but then tiffs treats came and it was from one of my friends. so that was really exciting. then my other friend came and brought me sonic and it was so good to see her because i hadn't seen her since spring break. then later that day my other friend had cupcakes uber eatsed to me and they were delicious. so many yummy treats.

then i had to do some school, but it was kinda nice because i didn't have to do that much. then we got chick-fil-a for lunch and i made my cake, and the cake was bad but whatever. 

then we just did normal stuff until that evening. deedee called me and said that she had something to drop off so i went outside and my whole family had a birthday parade for me. it was so fun and by far the best part of my day. everybody made signs and it was so much fun !!

 my day was pretty good and definitely one i will NEVER forget !!!

also you should go follow me on instagram @clare.eoff !!!

Quarantine 2020

This blog is usually used to mark our annual events, our traditions.  But this year we have a season unlike any other.  We have been quarantined in our house for the past two weeks.  Our spring break was extended by one week due to the Coronavirus, and this passed week our school district began E-Learning at home.  Casey is working from home as well.  We are supposed to stay at home, leaving only for essential tasks. 

Obviously, this is a change from our normal routine, and it has been met with different reactions.  Clare is so sad to miss school and all of the social aspects.  Jane and Sydney are desperate to hang out with their friends, and Graham seems somewhat unaffected.  He is happy not to have to go to school, and seems content to play video games virtually with his buddies.   

Here are a few pictures of life during quarantine!

I tasked each kid with the job of cooking dinner!  Jane opted to make lasagna, and it was delicious!

Church has gone online!  Graham even attended in his undies!

We've had lots of time for outdoor activities!

All of our schooling has moved to E-learning.  The girls are very independent with their stuff, and I have to help Graham as we move through each subject.  I have been quite impressed with how well they have transitioned to this schedule.  

This was our first day.  You can see Casey working in the background.  Things have changed a bit from our first day...Clare now completes most of her work in her bedroom!!! 

We are trying to go with the flow, and make the best of this very unusual time!