Monday, January 11, 2021

So Long 2020, Welcome 2021

I'm taking a bit of a break in my 2019 catchup blogging to celebrate the fact that we all got through 2020 and a new year is here! It's kind of tempting to jump on the "2020 sucks" train, because in lots of ways it really did. I was heartbroken several times for the way my kids lives were different, and I had at least one melt-down over being stuck in the house. But the kids did not struggle as much as they could have. They were all able to adjust and make the best of what they got. I'm sure that is mostly because we were fortunate to not have to worry about job loss. Ben was easily able to transition to working from home. We also are in a great school district that did the best they could for the kids, and we are surrounded by kind and helpful neighbors who were there for us as we tried to be there for them. So overall, and am grateful that we had the year we did, when so many had to deal with much worse. It would also be impossible to be entirely sad for a year in which my kids were healthy and grew so much. They are becoming the kind of people I'd still like to be, so that's a hard thing to regret. 


Karalee
Kara is 14 years old, nearly 15. I can hardly believe she is so grown up. We now share a shoe size, and the same taste in music and movies. She is my sweet heart, and in 2020 I enjoyed taking her to see a few shows downtown at the Fox. We saw Wicked and Summer. I am thrilled to have someone to see shows with! She is so good at taking care of other people and animals. When I was getting tired walking the stairs at the Fox to find our seats, she grabbed my elbow to try to assist me. I felt like such an old lady, but a loved old lady! Kara has continued her Tae Kwon Do this past year, and recently earned her second degree black belt. I am so proud of her dedication. It was not always easy doing class over Zoom, especially when we were in Idaho, but she diligently did it anyway. We did not have a swim team this summer, but she is hoping to swim again this upcoming year. She graduated from middle school and started her freshman year of high school. It has been a different experience, but she has been a trooper, and was relieved to go back in person starting in November. It's nice to see her friends in person, even if it is from a bit of a distance most of the time. She has already started making new friends since she went back and is excited to tell me all about them. When I look back over the past year, she seems so much mature and calm. She advocates for others, and stands up for what she believes is right. Kara had her first driving lesson in Idaho with Papa. She was terrified, but just recently let me know she's ready to try again. She is excited to learn to play the guitar and continue working on her art. I am in awe of her talents. This year, Kara's goal is to be more cool tempered, less reactionary, and make lots of friends. When she grows up, she would like to be a Twitch Streamer or Youtube Content Creator. One person she admires currently is Tommy Innit, because he has accomplished so much at a young age because of his work ethic. (Every year, I ask the girls if they'd like me to leave off height and weight, but they still say they want it recorded and reported. I'm glad they are proud of their bodies.) Kara weighs in this year at 126lbs and has grown to 5'7". She is hoping to get a few inches taller, but... time will tell, haha! What do I know anyway?

Here are Kara's favorite things this year:

Color- yellow
Animal- parrot
Food- Porco de Risado from Mi Lupita (I have no idea if I spelled that correctly)
Song- Two Time- Jack Stauber
Game- Minecraft
Movie- Sandlot
TV Show- Dream SMP
Best Friend- Lorden
Play Activity- video games
Toy- switch
Non-play Activity- watching streamers on Twitch
Person she would most wish to see- Laynee- her cousin
Outdoor Activity- chalk
Outfit- big sweatshirt and leggings with combat boots
Favorite thing to do with Mom- going to shows
Favorite thing to do with Dad- play video games
Food she doesn't like- cooked spinach
One thing she doesn't like- being bored



Kiersten

Kiersten is now 12 years old. Before the Covid quarantines started shutting things down, her basketball team won 1st place in their league for her age group. We were so proud of her and Ben as coach. She played with a great group of girls. She has also done her best to keep up with her fencing via Zoom. Unfortunately, her Fencing Club has not been able to meet in person still, but she is determined to stick with it. We definitely need to get her new equipment and uniform as soon as they start back up, as she has grown like crazy! She is a whole shoe size up from me now, but that does not stop her from trying to steal my shoes from time to time. She was pleased in November when her uncle borrowed her basketball shoes in order to shoot hoops with Ben. Kiersten has started rescuing my old clothing from the Goodwill pile, and transforming them into super cute outfits. A few items, I've kind of wanted things back, but I do realize they don't quite look the same on me, haha. Now that it's gotten colder, my coats and jackets keep going mysteriously missing every morning. There is one in particular that I think she has just completely taken at this point. Kiersten graduated 6th grade with straight As and halfway through 7th grade, she is continuing that streak. She loves reading and watching Anime. She has started to enjoy painting, and has been doing a lot of landscapes lately. I think we may run out of places to put them all. My favorite is a small scene with a flower she gave my as a birthday gift. Kiersten is the nicest person you will ever meet. She strives to make everyone happy and comfortable, and is a great friend. She told me that her friends recently decided she is the Mom of the group. She feels people's feelings along with them, which can be good and bad, but her empathy is just off the charts, and I really admire that about her. I love listening to her jokes. She loves a good belly laugh. When we were in Branson before Christmas, we saw a magician, and she quite enjoyed that. I think her favorite part was knowing how he did a couple of the more simple tricks. She has also taken up baking and crocheting this year, and it's fun to have those hobbies that we can enjoy together. Kiersten's goal for 2021 is to get healthier and stronger. She would like to be an astronomer or a fashion designer when she's older. The person she admires is Dad because he is successful due to how hard he works, and he cares about doing a good job for people. Kiersten is weighing in at 109lbs and has hit new heights of 5'5". She is anxiously awaiting her opportunity to outgrow Kara in the next few years. 

Kiersten's favorite things:

Color- colorado gray
Animal- panda
Food- baked beans or sushi
Song- Snowman by Sia
Game- Clue
Movie- Enola Holmes
TV Show- Holmes on Homes
Best Friend- Eva
Play Activity- trampoline or Uno
Toy- Purple Bear
Non-play Activity- painting
Person she would most wish to see- Grams
Outdoor Activity- Soccer
Outfit- ripped jeans, fancy tee, and earrings
Favorite thing to do with Mom- tea time
Favorite thing to do with Dad- play video games
Food she doesn't like- corn and carrots
One thing she doesn't like- accusations



Evangeline

Evie has had a pretty good year as well. She also played basketball for coach Daddy, and I believe her team was 3rd place for the season. She tried out Lacrosse this fall and loved it. We will definitely be putting her in that again soon. She finished up her final year with the Girl Scouts, and sold lots of cookies. She finished 4th grade like a champ and started 5th grade with a bang. She is a little sad about some of the typical 5th grade activities that won't be happening this year, but she keeps her head up and finds joy anyway. She loves her teacher, and was happy to go back to in person learning in October. She doesn't love that the kids are separated into small groups they have to stick with though. She wants a chance to talk to all her buddies again. Evie was able to get a little swimming in at the beginning of the year, and was looking forward to summer swim team. We've really got our fingers crossed for it to work out this summer. She turned 10 in July and is a proud tween. She loves being a big kid and getting a little more independence when I'll let her have it. Evie joined the Jr Mustangs cheer squad and has had so much fun with that. She particularly loves tumbling, and has gotten great at 1 handed cartwheels. She is also continuing to take ballet and tap. She didn't take hip hop this fall, but definitely hopes to get back into that next year. The class sizes were very limited because of Covid, so we couldn't get her in for this year. Evie is such a positive light in our family and knows just how to make us smile. She can get a bit sassy, but does her best to also be kind. She is very smart and keeps me on my toes for sure. Her memory puts the rest of us to shame. Evie has been very into reading and doing squishy makeovers this year. We ended up with lots of creative looking squishies. She is a great story teller, and that has translated well to writing for her. She tries very hard to keep her teachers entertained. At the beginning of the school year, her CCL class was learning about simple machines. They were assigned to draw an idea for a machine, and Evie misunderstood. She ended up planning and creating and testing a very elaborate launching machine with some help from Ben, before she realized that all she needed to do was write down an idea and draw a picture. Her teacher was impressed, and gave her extra credit for her efforts. She learned so much from doing all that, so I guess that's a silver lining to the confusion that was remote school. Evie's goal for this coming year is to exercise more. She wants to get strong like Daddy. She wants to be a doctor when she grows up, but doesn't yet feel comfortable deciding what type of doctor she will be. The person she most admires is her Aunt Katie because she is living her best life, and Evie says she'd like to have a life just like that. As of today, her weight is 86.4lbs, and she is 4'11" tall. She was so sure she'd be over 5" finally, but as she too, is in the same shoe size as me now, I think she'll be getting there soon enough. 

Evie's current favorite things are:

Color- all pastels
Animal- sheep
Food- spaghetti
Song- Heather by Conan Gray
Game- Minecraft
Movie- Soul
TV Show- Emerald Secret
Best Friend- Lydia
Play Activity- scooter
Toy- Gaffy the Giraffe
Non-play Activity- Lacrosse
Person she would most like to see- Grams
Outdoor Activity- riding the scooter
Outfit- leggings with a skirt and cute top
Favorite thing to do with Mom- play games
Favorite thing to do with Dad- watch him play games
Food she doesn't like- beans, baked or black
One thing she doesn't like- PTI (this is Ben's favorite sports TV show)



 As for old Mom and Dad, we just did our thing. Ben has been working from home since March, and has taken over the craft room. As much a I'd like that room back, I do enjoy him being home, and it's better than when he was trying to work upstairs and I couldn't vacuum or do the dishes! We had a fun Spring Break trip to Cancun in March before the Covid shutdowns for his Mom's birthday. We all had lots of fun, and didn't want to come home. We unfortunately had Covid right after we got back, but didn't find out right away as we didn't qualify for testing at the time. We got through it okay, but Ben's asthma got really out of control, which was a bit frightening for a week or 2. He finally was given the antibody test to confirm that Covid was what we'd had. I still am not back to smelling and tasting as normal after 9 months! But it's getting better and I'm glad about that. My exchange surgery was delayed on account of Covid, which was hard, as those expanders hurt so much. But in July I finally got them out, and my body has felt so much better ever since. Ben ended up having surgery the day after me for a hernia, so we were a hot mess over the 4th of July, but it was worth it for us both to feel better. We decided to stay with his Dad in Idaho for several weeks, since Ben was working remotely anyway. It was so needed, and the girls loved fishing, riding horses, playing with the dogs, cliff diving, and seeing a few family members. We were really able to recharge and reset, and I really appreciate Kerry letting us stay for 3 weeks! I also took the girls camping for the first time ever. My sister and her girls camped with us, and it was such a lovely time. I can't believe it seemed like such a daunting, unpleasant undertaking to me, because it was so great! I didn't even have any trouble sleeping on the ground. Maybe we'll camp again sometime. Ben stayed at his Dad's to work, but did help us set up the tent and prepare the fire pit. Our November cruise was obviously canceled, but we were lucky enough to be able to take a couple's trip to Aruba instead. We took every precaution, and felt like we couldn't have been safer with all of the precautions that are being taken there. We were pretty nervous to travel and unsure if the trip would even happen, but I really don't regret it. We were more socially distant there and on the flights, than we've been able to be here at home. My mom was kind enough to come watch the kids for us, and that went off without a hitch as well. Kara and Kiersten both started in person school while we were gone, which had me nervous, but it couldn't have gone more smoothly. They are getting pretty self sufficient, it turns out. Like I said before, there are lots of things I'd have changed this year if I could, but we really were blessed, and we did our best as a family. There were some disappointments, but also lots of treasured memories, laughing, and fun!

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