Day Eleven: Summer Comes Early
It was 89 degrees today. I know in the early days of this social distancing experiment - about a week ago - I complained about cold rain, but going up to 89 degrees in such a short span of time is a little much. Jeremy said that with fewer people flying and driving, there will be less particulate matter in the air to reflect heat back into space. So, while it's a good thing for the climate long-term, for the short-term it means this summer is going to be extra hot. I guess we'll be putting our winter clothes away this weekend.
Jeremy fixed fencing all morning, then worked on the doghouse in the afternoon. The kids went outside to play right after breakfast. William went to the sandbox for a few minutes, but then decided he wanted to have another bath even though he had one last night. He just wanted to play in the water, but hey, I'm not going to complain. Taiya was out in the tent house they made for a little while, then came onto the shady porch and made a restaurant. She had a menu, fancy glasses, and pretty little plates. The menu items were apples, oranges, carrots, and chocolate. I had tea which she said was free, so that's a bargain! When this whole thing is over, I invite friends and family to come dine at her restaurant. She's an excellent waitress.
We spent some time writing cards to pen pals. My friend Laura organized a pen pal group among some of her friends and this week we got our first cards from some kids in Rochester, NY. Taiya and William were so excited to get real mail! I got out my box of cards I've accumulated over the years and we started writing. They had a lot of fun putting my return address labels on the envelopes, William was big on licking the envelopes, and Taiya put hearts on everything.
At some point in the afternoon, Taiya asked me if I would like to be a waitress at a restaurant with a buffet. "Because that's what you do all day here anyway! You'd be so good at it!" Ah, motherhood! So gratifying. Just like being a waitress. I do have a distinct memory of watching Cinderella for the first time with Taiya a few years into the whole mothering thing and being startled by how relatable the song the mice sing about "Cinderelly" was. Do the washing! Do the dishes! Night and day! Motherhood in a nutshell.
I did spend some time cleaning the porch, since we'll be spending a lot more time out there with the warm weather. This winter it became a dumping ground for tools, toys, gardening stuff, firewood, scrap lumber, etc. But if it's going to be our fancy restaurant location it needs to be a lot more spiffy.
I also reached out to my aforementioned friend Laura with this request: "Please tell me it's okay to not recycle right now, because I have no way to do so, and it's becoming out of control." And she, the wise, kind, and true friend that she is, said, "Everything is canceled. Recycling, reusable bags, everything. The only thing not canceled is mental health and keeping yourself physically healthy." Thank you for the remind, friend! I will try to swallow my guilt when I spend a few weeks or months throwing away all my recyclables. I know it's small potatoes in the scheme of things, but it is actually painful for me to toss cans, bottles, and paper in the trash.
I realized I didn't take any pictures today, so I'll share with you this one I took of one of Jeremy's boy scout badges that I found recently while cleaning. If you're stuck at home in a pandemic, it clearly is a good idea to have an eagle scout around, especially if they have their "Survive-O-Ree" badges.
Jeremy fixed fencing all morning, then worked on the doghouse in the afternoon. The kids went outside to play right after breakfast. William went to the sandbox for a few minutes, but then decided he wanted to have another bath even though he had one last night. He just wanted to play in the water, but hey, I'm not going to complain. Taiya was out in the tent house they made for a little while, then came onto the shady porch and made a restaurant. She had a menu, fancy glasses, and pretty little plates. The menu items were apples, oranges, carrots, and chocolate. I had tea which she said was free, so that's a bargain! When this whole thing is over, I invite friends and family to come dine at her restaurant. She's an excellent waitress.
We spent some time writing cards to pen pals. My friend Laura organized a pen pal group among some of her friends and this week we got our first cards from some kids in Rochester, NY. Taiya and William were so excited to get real mail! I got out my box of cards I've accumulated over the years and we started writing. They had a lot of fun putting my return address labels on the envelopes, William was big on licking the envelopes, and Taiya put hearts on everything.
At some point in the afternoon, Taiya asked me if I would like to be a waitress at a restaurant with a buffet. "Because that's what you do all day here anyway! You'd be so good at it!" Ah, motherhood! So gratifying. Just like being a waitress. I do have a distinct memory of watching Cinderella for the first time with Taiya a few years into the whole mothering thing and being startled by how relatable the song the mice sing about "Cinderelly" was. Do the washing! Do the dishes! Night and day! Motherhood in a nutshell.
I did spend some time cleaning the porch, since we'll be spending a lot more time out there with the warm weather. This winter it became a dumping ground for tools, toys, gardening stuff, firewood, scrap lumber, etc. But if it's going to be our fancy restaurant location it needs to be a lot more spiffy.
I also reached out to my aforementioned friend Laura with this request: "Please tell me it's okay to not recycle right now, because I have no way to do so, and it's becoming out of control." And she, the wise, kind, and true friend that she is, said, "Everything is canceled. Recycling, reusable bags, everything. The only thing not canceled is mental health and keeping yourself physically healthy." Thank you for the remind, friend! I will try to swallow my guilt when I spend a few weeks or months throwing away all my recyclables. I know it's small potatoes in the scheme of things, but it is actually painful for me to toss cans, bottles, and paper in the trash.
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