August/September 2020

 We're still having fun doing puzzles.  Sometimes all three of us work on a 1000 piece and other times the girls do a smaller one together.  They are always surprised how quick the 200-300 piece puzzles are to complete after doing all the harder ones.  😁

School started Aug 13.  Everyone in our district started remotely until after Labor Day.  Then parents had the option to stay virtual or continue face to face. You are allowed to make a change at the end of each 9 week grading period.  The girls are sticking with remote learning through the end of the semester,.  The teachers have worked really hard to make virtual learning much more interactive than in the spring. It's amazing what time to plan will do!  😜  Both girls have been working really hard, they miss their teachers and friends, but have enjoyed more interaction.  We did go ahead and take our traditional back to school pictures even though they haven't actually gone into the building yet.

Now that it's cooling off just a little then girls have gone back to playing outside in the back yard.  My mom came up one day and snapped this SUPER cute picture!

The girls got to spend the night with my parents over Labor Day weekend like they have the last few years.  Nathan and I enjoyed having some time to hang out alone.  Masks were worn and extra precautions were taken, but thankful for a little bit of normalcy.  The girls favorite part of the weekend was getting to play with the two sweet kitties that live in the neighborhood.  They are strays, but several people on the street feed them and take care of them.  They have gotten super friendly and come running for pets and love when they see the girls.  The girls also had fun making an adorable paper kitty craft. 

We decided that since they girls are doing remote learning I would only sub for the teachers who are teaching remote.  I have worked 2 days so far and have another 2 lined up later this week.  It is REALLY weird to teach in an empty classroom.  And there is definitely a learning curve to on-line teaching.  But I am super thankful to get back into the classroom a little bit.

September 2018

The girls were super excited to spend the night with Grammy and G-pa over Labor Day weekend.  They had fun swimming, baking cookies, going out for ice cream, and watching movies.  Nathan and I enjoyed some time alone too. We did a little shopping, ate some yummy food, and watched a series on Netflix.  Nothing fancy...but definitely enjoyed!!

The weather has either been super hot for pouring rain so we haven't gotten to enjoy any time outside.  Hopefully cooler fall temperatures will be here soon.  We've had lots of indoor fun with legos, puzzles, Wii games, and visits to the library.

Hannah's class already had their first field trip.  We went to the outdoor science center that they visit every year.  3rd grade is there for a little longer than previous grades.  We started with a picnic lunch (brunch...it was 10:30), then did an hour hike in the woods (SUPER HOT) and finished with the indoor animal room.  The kids were finding evidence to make conclusions.  All in all a fun day!

We finally had one morning that was cool enough to ride bikes to the park, but it started raining shortly after we arrived so we left.  Thankfully it wasn't pouring so we were just damp and not soaked on the way home.  Looking forward to some cooler weather.

September 2017

The calendar may say that it's fall, but in Texas it still feels like summer...ugh!!  I'm not ready for the cold, but temperatures that aren't in the 90's would be nice.  We did have one weekend where it was in the mid 80's so we went to play at the park.

The girls spent the night with my parents one night Labor Day weekend.  They had so much fun swimming, watching Little Mermaid, and meeting Auntie Kara's new kitties.  Nathan and I enjoyed a date night.  We went to see the latest Planet of the Apes movie and then out for dessert.

Over the summer Hannah wanted to learn about cheetahs.  So we checked a book out from the library and she wrote a list of facts.  Then we worked together to create a power point presentation.  She was so excited to share it and thanks to Chrome Cast she got to use the big TV to present.

The girls really enjoy puzzles and I recently realized all the ones we had were too easy.  So I picked up a few 100 piece puzzles at a consignment sale.  They have already put 2 of them together.

My sister plays in a group called New Life Symphony and they do several concerts a year.  Most of them are a mix of classical and church music.  They recently did a children's concert with fun movie music.  Concerts are in the evening which conflict with bedtime, so we crashed their Saturday morning dress rehearsal.  The girls LOVED hearing all the music and even got to go up on stage during the last song.

Both girls continue to LOVE school.  They are having a great year.  I have stayed fairly busy subbing.  I've worked at least one day a week since the 2nd week of school.