For the last week I have been seeing many things reminding me of what life was like one year ago. March 16th is the big day that I look to as my “one year mark.” We flew home from Mexico on March 15th, so March 16th was day one of quarantine and of being “Safer at Home.” What a year it has been! It seems fitting on this anniversary of our quarantine start to write my 2020 recap post. I have always wanted to do a year in review post so I have a quick way of looking back and seeing what we did in a year. 2020 might be a bit different because of COVID, but we made memories and it will be good to look back on them one day.
In January:
In January our family headed to Florida! We met up with my parents, my brother, and niece for a week of fun. We spent a full day at Magic Kingdom, Sea World, and Busch Gardens. Brandon and M also attended a Pro Bowl practice. In the middle of making incredible memories we battled a high fever (M), a night of throwing up (Brandon), and the coldest temps of the year in Florida. We ended our trip with a day at a science museum with one of M’s room buddies from Ethiopia. It was an incredible week. In January we also went to our dear friends home to watch the Super Bowl, and we didn’t even think it was strange!
In February:
T turned 8 and celebrated with a crafting party. M made his first science fair project. Brandon had emergency eye surgery after his retina detached. This caused us all to have quite a scare. After surgery he had to be facedown for almost a week. T lost and found her BAHA at a Skateland church event. T also performed a flexibility routine in the talent show at school.
In March:
Brandon and I barely got in our annual trip to Mexico because everything fell apart and COVID -19 rocked the world. Brandon was able to celebrate his Birthday with the lazy river and reading by the pool. We actually arrived at home late on March 15th and went into an immediate quarantine. We went from the calm book filled days of vacation to a world of chaos and remote learning overnight. After two weeks at home I went on the shopping trip of my life, one that last me 10 weeks! We also learned what things like “remote learning” and “zoom” meant. We spent Spring Break in isolation, but did get in some time outside. We learned about fun podcasts and fell in love with Adventures in Odyssey. We also completed our first (of MANY) 1,000 piece puzzles.
In April:
We laughed and cried (well at least I cried) as we watched the teacher’s parade down our street. The kids and Brandon did lots of biking around town and on the Mt. bike trials. We celebrated Easter at home and had a fun Easter basket scavenger hunt. Our ground outside was leveled and grass was planted! Our month ended with a piano being delivered to our home.
In May:
We attempted some extremely distanced playdates. I celebrated Mother’s Day in the parking lot of the pet ER as Buttercup had some mystery illness causing him to drool for several days. Four vet visits and almost $1,000 later we learned he had a cold. M had a bike crash which earned him a few stitches and a booster shot. We started up several zoom therapies. We ended the month with sickness for everyone but Brandon.
In June:
We celebrated the end of the school year with another teacher parade and a water fight with neighbors. The kid’s fevers continued which lead to many Dr’s visits and a couple rounds of covid tests. We were able to celebrate M’s 4th grade graduation with a lovely drive through ceremony. It was so special for M and for us! I finally went shopping again and really stocked up! We watched some area fireworks with friends, and began attending outdoor church in our parking lot. The kids got really into fishing and rollerblading. Sometime around this time we started having a family movie night.
In July:
We celebrated the Disney+ launch of Hamilton with a new TV and Disney+! We enjoyed more fishing, state park hikes, our new grass, and lots of basketball. My Jamie girl came to visit. We finally set up our swing set and gave her a fresh coat of paint. Brandon taught the kids Risk and they played a game that lasted for almost a week. We ended the month with a trip to a Shelly safe bakery for my Birthday! Yum!
In August:
We saw more Dr’s and made the decision to do homeschool for T and virtual
school for M for the first semester. We fell for an internet pool scam that
gave us the world’s tiniest backyard pool. We celebrated M’s B-day with a
distanced outdoor party with a very special family. The kids and Brandon made several trips to a
local ice cream shop. We also went on a
little getaway to a cabin in the wood. While
on vacation the kids drove ATV’s, learned the game Ticket to Ride, and went on a beautiful hike. I officially began my new job as the Children's Ministry Director at our church.
In September:
We started school and figured out a workable routine. We learned that T and I made a great team and truly enjoy doing school together. M’s first semester virtual class was awesome, and he made fast friends with his classmates. My parents came for a quick less than 24 hour, outdoor only visit. We had mold removed from our basement. We also began a Friday tradition of having campfires with our neighbors. We truly have great neighbors!
In October:
Brandon’s parents came for a quick outdoor only visit. We had a covid safe Halloween day of fun with our neighbors including two different scavenger hunts and candy exchange stations.
In November:
We did some super fun reenactment pictures to celebrate 10 years since we first met M. I cooked my first Thanksgiving turkey. We had a special zoom scavenger hunt game with my family. Covid cases were crazy high and everyone stayed home for Thanksgiving. We fell in love with a new to us show called Sue Thomas F.B. Eye thanks to our new Hallmark Movies Now streaming channel!
In December:
We created new traditions like reading an Advent book and
making paper chains. We had Christmas
zooms with both families and the kids were able to open lots of presents. We
ended the year playing in the snow with friends. Over Christmas break I began organizing cabinets.
In a year filled with isolation, we were able to make memories together. 2020 is not the year I imagined it would be. It was a very hard year in many ways, yet I look back and celebrate many joyful memories.
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