Thanksgiving 2020

Thanksgiving!  Despite some pretty harsh restrictions on gathering and a whole lot of things being closed right now, we had a fantastic Thanksgiving.  It was just a really nice, mellow, relaxing weekend full of great food and fun.  Because most of our family lives out of state and we usually have only a couple of extra days for the holiday, this year wasn't that different in a lot of aspects.  I've made Thanksgiving dinner for just our little crew lots of times, but usually we start the day with a Turkey trot race.  We went ahead and did our own, donning silly headbands and warm gear, we ran a 5k at the park down the road and called it good!  Dawson ran about half of it (in and out of the jogger), and Beckett scootered.  We also watched some of the Macy's day parade while I hit the kitchen.  Usually we miss most of it because by the time we get home from a race, it's over.  Bonus! Pies this year were a little different. Normally, we would have included a giant Costco pumpkin pie, but because we had already finished one up the week before, we took a family vote for what we should have instead.  The winners were Blueberry cream and apple, and although I personally was hoping for some pecan pie, the two victors were delicious.

 

Throughout the weekend, we worked on a new Mandolorian puzzle, and finished it!  Woo-hoo!  Somehow, it was missing 3 pieces, so we came to terms with that.  Still fun though.  Also, leftovers.  Glorious, tasty, effortless leftovers.  I would swear Thanksgiving dinner tastes better on day 2, but I might be biased since the lack of effort going into it might be swaying my vote. Normally, this weekend sometime we would start getting out Christmas decorations and the tree, but since this year isn't normal, we put it all up a couple of weeks ago!  It's been nice actually, and we are all looking forward to Christmas break.  This past weekend gave us a taste of what it will be and now we can't wait! 

We also went on a nice little bosque walk, before sunset and just as the moon was rising.  It was beautiful.  Sandhill cranes were congregating noisily down by the water and we saw both geese and the cranes fly overhead.  I feel so lucky to live near such a unique and beautiful area, especially in the desert.  The weekend was marvelous and we're hoping for more relaxing together time soon.  Happy Thanksgiving!  I sure do love these 4 people!  

Halloween fun - Covid Style

 Welp, here it is, Halloween 2020! This is one for the books for sure.  We've been eating and seeing and smelling pumpkin everything here for about a month now.  Fall has been warmer than usual, until we had a crazy 6-inches on the ground snowstorm a few days before Halloween.  It was crazy!  We loved it though, and made it out sledding before it was gone.  Sooooo fun.  Oh!  And Asher's Dodgers won the World Series!  He was so happy.  I mean SO happy. 

We still wanted the kids to have as much fun as possible, despite the continued restrictions.  The cases have been escalating, so no parties, no trick-or-treating, basically we've been told to do things at home with your family.  SO, we had the boys brainstorm costumes...Dawson wanted to be a parrot, so Corey and I fell in with that and donned some pirate wear.  Beckett and Asher didn't care as much, although in the end Beckett announced he wanted to be Iron Man (the boys have been watching a lot of the Avengers movies, and, well, Tony Stark is his fave), so I miraculously found a costume in his size about a week before Halloween.  Asher said he would be a penguin again (a hoodie costume from the past) and was happy as a clam with that.  We were a random bunch, but it was great!  We also carved pumpkins...Dawson donned a mask willingly because he absolutely hates the smell of pumpkin guts.  Speaking of Dawson, that boy won the virtual costume contest for his age group at his school.  We're pretty sure it was the extra 'squawk' he threw in when it was his turn to share.  So cute.

With trick-or-treating pretty much canned, the city put on a drive through trunk-or-treat, so we bought ticket for that- and it was actually really fun.  We went to Flying Star next, where they were giving kids in costume a huge cookie.  Then, since we were in the neighborhood, we thought, Krispy Kreme...and headed to their drive thru line, which was long.  After a few minutes, and some deliberating going on (we have tons of treats already...let's just go home...) some really nice people pulled up and asked us if we'd like a dozen doughnuts.  Um, wow thanks!  So, we went home.  Yes, there are still nice people in the world:)

That night we had a Halloween party with our family.  It was great.  We ate fun and crazy food (soup with bone breadsticks, and a vegetable skeleton), played a bunch of games and watched our traditional "It's a Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown."  Dawson had insisted on playing 'pin the nose on the jack-o-lantern', and we also had a contest to guess how many orange balls were in a jar as well as the favorite halloween egg hunt outside for eggs filled with candy and money.  Making due on a strange holiday.  I was exhausted, but over the next couple of days, the kids all said how much they liked it, so in the end all the effort was worth it I think.

P.S.  We grew this beauty from seeds my grandmother sent me before she passed away a few years ago.  Can't wait to grow more next year!

Fall Break in Chama

 For fall break this year, we HAD to get outta town.  We needed a change of scenery!  We've heard that Chama was nice for years now, but had never checked it out.  A few months back, thankfully, Corey had the foresight to think that we needed to book something early since the local rentals might fill up quick fast.  He was right, and after missing out on a couple of others, we finally secured one that we thought would work.  Yay!  

Chama is beautiful, and the leaves had started to change, making it magical.  On the way up, we stopped in Santa Fe for some yummy food at El Parisol and Chik-fil-A (I know, so disappointing to get chain food too, but we had some time to kill so we accommodated our crew). We rented some kayaks (tried to buy some a few months prior, but of course those are all sold out for now, ugh) so we could make use of Heron lake and El Vado Reservoir, both of which were a 10 minute drive from our rental.  Unfortunately, they were both VERY low, and the lake had actually been drained ever more a couple weeks before we came up.  It was still pretty, but so so muddy too.  Yuck.  We still headed out on a kayak adventure and made the most of it...paddling out to a tiny island and eating lunch.  The funniest (and saddest) part of that morning was when Corey took his first big step on the 'shore', and we watched in horror as he sunk almost knee deep in mud.  It was crazy!  

Fishing was on the agenda too.  Beckett has been begging to fish all summer and we finally made it out to give it a go.  Now, truth be told, Corey and I are not so adept at fishing.  We fished as kids, and I still remember my dad showing me how to gut a fish, BUT, neither of us has done it as adults when there wasn't someone else around to do the 'dirty work.'  Corey bought a bunch of gear, and studied up before we went, but it was still a little frustrating.  We didn't catch anything, but our big boys are all able to cast a rod now....YES!  That's a start, and we'll take it.  We're not done with this fishing stuff, and will definitely be trying some more this year.  Bonus:  The canyon we hiked down into to fish was breathtaking, I mean I could've been anywhere.  So, so beautiful. Also, we have found that Becket is a master rock skipper.  Nice!

Our rental had a hot tub and game room, so the kids had a great time playing foosball, air hockey and darts.  The firepit was fun too - lots of s'mores and stargazing. We ate lots of great food, took in some clear mountain air, enjoyed to amazing views, watched movies and relaxed.  A trip into town brought us to the Chama Railroad- always cute and nostalgic, and the boys love trains, no matter their age!  Getting out of Albuquerque for a few days was so great!

Starting School (ONLINE)

So, this year has offered up so many unique experiences, and starting school online for all three boys is the newest adventure.  This year was going to be a hallmark year for all three boys....Dawson starting kinder, Beckett starting middle school, and Asher’s first year of high school.  All of this still happened, just not in the way any of us could’ve imagined.   The first couple weeks were a ‘soft’ start to be sure transitions were smooth  and that the kids understood how everything worked.  They have all gotten the hang of it and are moving forward with the school year, even Dawson has become a pro at signing into his google classroom, participating in discussions and doing assignments- even muting and unmuting himself when he needs to.  I feel like I need to be very close by in case of a technology issues for Dawson, so I linger close by for his class times, even though he shoos me away and actual tech crises have been rare.  The kitchen is akin to a work break room most days- everyone bustling around doing their thing, eating, making little messes, fitting in a game of ping pong, then suddenly  disappearing when class starts up again.  Mostly, I am just really proud of the resilience these boys are showing with little to no complaining, best efforts being put forth, and actual learning going on.  Oh, and the silver lining to it all...I haven’t had to do my super sad, crying in the car as I drive away goodbye with my kindergartener yet....postponing the inevitable I guess, but I’ll take it!  Here’s to the 2020-21 school year and whatever it may bring!

 

Summer’s End

We rounded out the strangest summer EVER with loads of pool time, playing outside (soccer, scooters, trampoline), homemade popsicles, games, and lots of yummy food.  We also hit the local farmer’s market while Asher played some soccer with friends. Oh, how I love a farmer's market.  We made the mistake of buying a gigantic honeydew first thing, then Corey was sweet enough to haul it all over the place while we shopped.  Oops.  Corey and I have still tried to get in some 'date nights' whether it's a bike ride, getting some take out, or a stroll around the botanical gardens...it's still a great time and I'm thankful for the break.  The zoo finally opened (except for the indoor exhibits) and we loved getting back to see all the awesome animals.  Beckett has taken to making things out of cardboard, most recently several large ships to float in the pool!  Dawson learned to swim last year, but this summer, in lieu of lessons at the local pool (all cancelled anyway), Beckett stepped in as his instructor and taught him all of the strokes - and did a fantastic job!  Dawson has officially gone from a fish to a well trained fish.    Things on the Covid-19 front haven’t changed significantly except that we now have to wear masks when we’re outside doing anything at all.  Bummer.  BUT, we are hoping that all of our efforts pay off and that things will be closer to normal as soon as possible.  It’s funny, but there are truly some great things that have come out of all the pandemic weirdness...and then some things we are missing desperately.  We’re still loving family dinners, having everyone home together, Corey’s commute (nada), having a daily workout buddy (Corey, however, getting up at 5:30 am is still sometimes a struggle) and teaching the kids to cook a bit.  Continued downsides- masks, cancellation of extra curricular sports, no social gatherings, restaurants, theaters, and museums are closed. We’re good though!  And feeling so blessed through this nutso time.  Next challenge:  Online school, but we are ready to tackle that too!

Here are a few pics from our summer shenanigans....