MJ Returns

It's been a wild 20 months. But ....

Life Lately

We've been doing pretty well lately, getting back into our school groove. The kids are enjoying school; they like their new teachers; and I am adjusting to peace and quiet in the mornings followed by the chaos of after-school activities in the afternoons.

Little Man has discovered a love of cooking, which I'm more than happy to encourage. He has become our official tortilla maker for Taco Tuesdays.

CC: Ew. I don't want any tortillas if he cooked them!
Me: Fine. You can have a taco salad instead.
(pause)
CC: Please pass the tortillas.

Sweet Pea continues her intense gymnastics schedule. She practices 16 hours a week, and complains that there isn't more! Her meets (pending Covid numbers) will start in November. She might skip a level this year, but that decision hasn't been finalized by her coaches yet. I am looking forward to a one-on-one Zoom with her head coach in the next few weeks, where we will learn exactly how she's doing and what her season will look like.

Meanwhile, CC has started on her year-round swim team and loves it. 

"I'm so glad I found a sport that I really love!" she told me recently. "And I'm so good at it!"

Well ... that's debatable. But I replied, "The important thing is that you're having fun, and staying healthy!"

Lastly, we love going back to our pre-Covid weekend routine: watching Army football games with Grandma and Grandpa. Last Saturday, the girls made molasses cookies with Grandma while we all cheered the Army team to its third win of the season. Go Army!

Cheers for School!

It has begun! 

"No fair! Summer was way too short!" complained Little Man. (But I disagree -- ha!)

For this blissful year, all three Morrisons will be at the same campus. Since Little Man and Sweet Pea have never been to school in this building, CC was the tour guide and escorted them to the cafeteria for breakfast and then to class.

They had a pretty good day. School breakfast was "awesome," but lunch was "gross." (CC informed them that next time, if they don't like the meal, they can pick a sack lunch at the end of the line that has a fruit, crackers, yogurt and granola.)

I pray that they have happy, successful school years. And please, please, God -- let us stay in person!

Visitors -- Finally!

It's been far too long since we've seen Brien (more than a year and a half, thanks to Covid!) so we finally make it happen this weekend. 

We'd hoped to have him down two weeks ago, for his birthday, but unfortunately he needed surgery for a large kidney stone. But as soon as he recovered, we brought him down for the weekend and celebrated his birthday anyway!

Even better, Brian and Bee were visiting the same weekend, so Brien got to see them, too. And it was wonderful for us to see them as well. Bee shared Rainbow Loom patterns with CC and Sweet Pea (and vice versa); CC and Bee skateboarded; Little Man demonstrated his birthday Lego sets; and we all enjoyed chatting and spending time together.

Brien was on a roll this weekend! He didn't mix up CC and Sweet Pea at all; he remembered Amber's name and didn't call her Rory once; and he was talkative about current events. He's such a dear, and a pleasure to have around.

Nine-Year Appointment

Yesterday, Little Man and Sweet Pea had their 9-year checkup at the pediatrician and, unsurprisingly, they're totally healthy. I didn't have any concerns about their physical health, but it's still nice to get their annual checkup and to hear confirmation. Especially since we skipped their well checks last year, due to Covid.

Sweet Pea is 49.5 inches tall (12th percentile) and weighs 52.5 pounds (12th percentile). No surprises there -- she's steadily tracking right along these last few years.

Same with Little Man. He's 50.5 inches tall (19th percentile) and weighs 54 pounds (15th percentile).

Both kids are following their own curve very closely, not deviating very much at all in the last few years. That makes me happy: they might not be large, but they're perfectly strong and healthy. Thank you, God!

Reunited at Last!

CC and her bestie, Tia, haven't seen each other in over a year, due to Covid (Tia stayed full remote for the whole school year, not returning to the building when students were phased in).

Alice once again decided to let each of our kids have their own Birthday Pool Party, and this year, they could bring a friend for their party. CC immediately begged for Tia to come, and managed to convince us all that it should be a sleepover. 

It was so nice to see Tia again! We ate pizza for dinner, played games, made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, went swimming at our neighborhood pool as well as Alice's, and had a blast. MJ and I were pleasantly shocked that they were fast asleep by 9 pm. Definitely the best-behaved sleepover ever!

School in the fall can't start soon enough, when these two can see each other every day again.

Together Again

It's so nice to be together with extended family again! I truly feel that we're past this pandemic, and I couldn't be happier.

For Sweet Pea and Little Man's First Communion, Uncle Jon, Dane, Hayden, and Memere and Pepere all spent the night (Aunt Susan was already in town with some girlfriends, but met up with us at Mass the next morning). The cousins were chaotic and loud and oh so happy. We watched a movie and played games and attempted a slumber party (that ended rather abruptly at 11:30 pm).

Little Man and Sweet Pea's First Communion

I didn't realize May 23 was Pentecost when I scheduled Sweet Pea and Little Man's First Communion, but what a beautifully appropriate day to celebrate such an occasion!

The weather was perfect. Grandma and Grandpa, Memere and Pepere,  Aunt Susan, Uncle Jon, and Dane and Hayden were there. Little Man and Sweet Pea had been preparing all year for this special day. Yet it almost didn't happen.

You wouldn't know it from the pictures, but Little Man threw such a temper tantrum that morning about the clothes he had to wear, that I didn't think we could get to Mass in time. Ten minutes before we were supposed to leave, he was still stark naked, screaming, "NEVER! I'M NOT WEARING THAT!!" and MJ and I were at our wits' end. (An unforeseen consequence of the pandemic: he hasn't had to wear "nice" clothes or shoes for over a year.) Finally I had to resort to threatening him in my nasty Dragon-Mommy voice. It wasn't the best way to start off his First Communion, but fortunately the rest of the day went smoothly.

Like CC, Sweet Pea wore the dress my mom made for my First Communion, but picked yellow for her ribbon color. Little Man had a coordinating yellow shirt, and wore the tie MJ wore for his First Communion. I had it embroidered with MJ and Little Man's initials to make it even more special, and believe me, Little Man was a big fan.

I am thrilled that both Little Man and Sweet Pea had something special to wear from us. And because their First Communion happened during the pandemic, naturally they had special masks to wear.

We came home afterwards to relax and celebrate. After lunch we enjoyed the lemon cake Memere made, and it's a good thing, too -- because shortly afterwards, Amber ate the rest. 

Among their special gifts were beautiful name signs to hang on their walls, Bibles, rosaries, and books. Grandma gave Sweet Pea the pearl necklace that her godmother -- with the same name -- gave her when she was young! 

Congratulations, Sweet Pea and Little Man! We are so blessed.

School Pictures

Look at these cuties!

(They aren't required to wear uniforms this year, because we've been fluctuating between virtual/in-person/hybrid school, but I bribed them with Krispy Kreme donuts to wear their collared uniform shirts. Everyone was happy.)

Overnight Visitors

We are finally starting to take steps towards normal life ... like in The Before Times. As of last week I'm fully vaccinated, and MJ has natural immunity from his Covid infection earlier this spring.

Last weekend, we had overnight guests! Memere and Pepere came to see CC's jazz recital, and spent the night afterwards. (I had a LOT of cleaning to do in the guest room, which had become our crafts/storage room for the last year.)

It was so nice! We played poker, gave lots of hugs, ate and laughed and talked like old times. Sunday morning I went to Mass with them for the first time in 14 months. I was full of emotions, being back at our church, going through the Sunday morning rituals that I've missed. Next week our whole family will begin attending Mass again, starting with Sweet Pea and Little Man's First Communion.

We wrapped up the visit with a nice brunch before Memere and Pepere headed home. That night, the kids found dollar bills under their pillows. Hmmm ... I wonder how those got there?

More visitors coming next weekend! Wahoo!

Batter Up!

Spring baseball has started, and with it, Little Man is getting his first real taste of baseball: in a machine-pitch league. He was on a team last year, but the season shut down due to Covid after just 2 weeks of practices. And he barely remembers playing T-ball as a 5-year-old. But after some initial misgivings, he really got into it.

Unfortunately, after the first practice, our family had to go into quarantine for 24 days. By the time Little Man rejoined the team, he'd missed tons of practices, their first game, and valuable team-building time getting to know his teammates. 

It helps that, although he has virtually no experience with the game, he is the fastest kid on the team and therefore a valuable base-runner. And although his batting average was low to begin with, he is improving rapidly and even went 7 for 8 in back-to-back games last week.

I am proud of his hard work and how far he's come since the beginning of the season. But I am most proud of his attitude: he is always hustling, listening to his coaches, paying attention to the game, and never complaining when he sits out an inning or strikes out at bat. Recently another team mom told me she overheard him consoling a teammate after a strikeout, and I was so happy that I could have burst.

The Hammerheads lost their first 4 games, but then they tied a game ("That was the best tie I've ever seen!" raved Little Man) and have since won 5 straight. The playoffs start soon, and things are looking good!

Photo Friday

This week we had our VERY LAST DAY of virtual learning! For the rest of this school year, the kids go into the school building five days a week. It's so strange how we're all celebrating something that used to be taken for granted. Cheers to our last month of school!

Talent Show 2021

Sweet Pea and CC decided to enter the school's virtual talent show again this year (and again, Little Man declined). This time CC is the one doing piano, and Sweet Pea chose gymnastics. Check out their videos!

Baby Goat, doo doo doo doo doo doo ...

There's a sweet family not too far away that owns a goat farm. They allow one family at a time to schedule "baby goat playdates" to play with the goats, help feed them, learn more about them, and generally just swoon over their cuteness. I couldn't wait to sign us up!

Little Man was all about the goats -- he held them right away, got right down on the ground with them, and scampered around the pasture. Surprisingly, it took a little time for the girls to warm up. But after a little while, all the cuteness won them over -- they couldn't resist some adorable baby goat cuddles!

Apparently multiple births are very common among goats, especially Mini Nubians. We saw several sets of twins, and even these triplets, who are just a few weeks old.

We were lucky enough that one of the mamas had just given birth the day before. This precious little girl was only one day old!

We ended our visit by bottle-feeding some of the month-old Boers. (Notice that as CC feeds one, another is chewing her shoelaces! CC couldn't stop giggling. These goats chew everything!)

I think this has to be an annual event from now on!

Photo Friday

Guess who's going into the school building four days a week?!?!

And guess who's even happier than the kids?!

CC is TEN!

I've known this day was approaching, but still, it's hard to believe! Our little firecracker is TEN years old! 

She is silly and sweet, smart and feisty, affectionate and creative and passionate. She is quick to smile, and equally quick to roll her eyes. She still loves playing with her dolls (most recently, her Harry Potter figures), creating clothes and accessories with my sewing machine, arts and crafts of all kinds, and reading anything she can get her hands on. When she's outside, she plays in make believe worlds with Sweet Pea and Little Man, rides her bike, and practices on her new roller blades.

Her favorite foods are sushi and salmon, and her favorite color is still pink (although not exclusively -- turquoise is a close second). She is trying jazz dance this year, and loving it even more than I thought she would. She is thrilled to be back in school, but still calls me on her Gizmo every day during recess. 

Instead of a cake this year, she requested whoopie pies. She chose dinner for breakfast -- waffles with sprinkles (and whipped cream), and sausage links. Her huge gift from us is BUNK BEDS! She slept in the guest room for the last two days as MJ and I prepared everything, and she was just beside herself to see her new bed for the first time.

"Best birthday ever!" she gushed, as I tucked her into her new bunk bed for the first time. How many more years will she continue to say that? 

Oh, our precious firstborn, our tiny little one, you are magical and make my heart swell with love. We are so happy you're on this journey with us!