Keeping up with the Kiddos: Outside is a Thing

So glad the coronavirus was considerate in its timing, to arrive at the very height of our northern summer. We have found it most convenient to enjoy the company of others and the restart of church from an outdoor perspective. From the majority of engagements requesting/requiring an outdoor venue, to being a bit more grateful every social interaction, daresay it has made the summer even more enjoyable than usual.

Synchronized S'mores

Our kids agree—they probably spend the most time outside and have become familiar with every square inch of our yard and those of all our neighbors. Elia in particular has become familiar with many of the inches below the yard too, and often returns home as a muddy semblance of her former self. An inspection of our backyard typically reveals multiple pails, bottles, and frisbees caked or drowning in mud, strewn about like a junkyard trailer lot. And they’ve enjoyed our kid pool and swing set immensely.

Yeyo Ka ki koh

Reh ba?

This summer is fading to fall, and we’ve accomplished a lot but have had few notable adventures due to government conspiracies and biological weapons, or something. Haven’t read the news. What has been notable is that all fun now occurs outdoors, an excellent turn of events. We have outdoor church, outdoor youth group, outdoor Ultimate Frisbee, outdoor family photos, and spent a great week at the Outdoor Banks in June. Other than that and a fun April jaunt around PA family, we have stayed to our state.

With nowhere to go, biking has never been more crucial—Sophers figured out a training-wheel bike and now confidently cruises with the fam to local playgrounds, with Dad toting 2 and Mom enforcing traffic safety protocols. The Duplo table and new indoor trampoline have also become the latest fashion, getting excellent use many hours of each day. Elia and Sophia each have their own separate art desks now and have progressed to new levels in creative abilities. We also acquired Dad’s old chess table, so now we are fully stocked, locked and loaded for a year of home schooling.

Evel Knievel revving her engines

Elia has made a most dramatic shift to big kid (even though she would have told you that 10 years ago). Of course dramatic could be used to describe most everything Elia-related. Always doing, going, talking, growing. She still loves princess dresses and consistently wears the jewelry, and now she’s reading better, learning chess, mastering swimming, and hopefully soon diving back into piano. Her neighborhood gal pals are her lifeblood. As we continue reading the Bible before bed, we find that Elia is paying attention more and more, always asking clutch questions that prove we are not just preaching to two chimps and a chipmunk.

The infinite tiara

While her sister guns at break-neck pace, Bay So can slow-go, smell flowers and contribute to quiet. There is a reputable theory that she spends about 95% of her waking hours thinking about special treats and how to coyly obtain more of them. The Bay So smile now exceeds expectations, a vast improvement over its former state. She has done well plodding her own course even with her big sis home from school, and she lives for 1 on 1 time with mom or dad.

A dream, a wish her heart made

Incarcerating all who stand in her way

Ezra is a changed man, recently shedding some extra head weight with his ENT surgery at Akron Children’s. His operation and recovery were a success, and even though they presented us with a most emotionally fragile toddler, his throat chasms were far less horridly fragrant than we expected after Nugget’s run-through. While he still can’t express his thoughts clearly, we can tell his hearing has improved while observing his reaction to blenders, lawn mowers, etc. He has begun saying some words with greater diction and we hope to hit an acceleration point soon. Destruction is still among his favorite chores, but he’s starting to offload that responsibility to our littlest critter…

So good he can do puzzles backwards

Dimmy. Her tiny baby body has grown as a unit, still maintaining prior proportions: thigh rolls for days and an intergalactic hairdo. Still crawling and babbling the cutest of babbles, her favorite hobby used to be eating rocks, until mean parents blockaded the house plants with bar stools. Now she enjoys potty play time, fridge magnet demo, and King-Kong-ing the Duplo table. She’s changing the fastest—another major milestone is her ability to inhale any form of food. It’s most fun when it’s saucy. I mean, that’s what she said. You know, if she could talk.