Fun Orthodontist

Caeden was supposed to have an orthodontist appointment way back in March, but of course, they had to close their office for COVID19. He had a chain break a couple weeks ago, so I finally called on Monday and asked if that was considered an emergency.  It was! So, we got out of the house today!

It was annoying to have to wear masks (mostly because we wear glasses and they fog up when you have a mask on too), but we totally understand and complied! 

I had to sign a paper verifying the fact that no one in our house has had fever, cough, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, fatigue/exhaustion or been around anyone who has. We were asked to use hand sanitizer as well.  No problem!

Dr. B fixed Caeden right up, and we scheduled his next appointment. This was the first place we had been inside besides our own home in 53 days. We talked with Dr. B about how, strangely, no one seems to be talking about how this shelter-in-place is so detrimental to mental health!

As we were leaving, Caeden said, "That was fun!" He is such a social boy; this shelter in place order is pretty hard on him.  And you know it's getting to a person when a teenager genuinely says that going to the orthodontist was fun! We do love Dr. B and his staff though; they're great.

 This evening, Jeremy and the girls and I took a walk around Arrowsmith.  We kept seeing these square concrete slabs that we had never noticed before. Sylvia decided they were spots for posing as a statue--until we saw one with a half-barrel planter on it and remembered that they all used to have them. I think the barrels just disintegrated and were removed. 

Another weird thing related to COVID19...

We received this information today for returning Chromebooks and other school property and getting the kids' items from their lockers.  They won't be allowed in the building.

 And, you know, the murder hornets are coming! (I actually read that praying mantis kill them, so I'm not worried because we have lots of those!). I also saw that these are shark birds are sure to arrive this summer in the midwest...!  ;)

Rapid Change due to COVID-19

This morning, all 5 of us woke up at home.  Annah drove all 3 kids to the Benton's house for breakfast, then Sylvia and Caeden went to school.  Annah and Allison then went back to the church in Bloomington to join the choir for the rest of their tour.  They spent part of the day in Springfield, visited some historic Lincoln sites, went to the mall and Annah got 2 more piercings in one ear, they ate lunch and got back on the bus to head back to GU campus for the night.  Tomorrow they were scheduled to sing in the beautiful basilica in St. Louis, then have their end-of-tour concert back on campus Sunday before starting classes back up on Monday.  

When the choir bus was about an hour from campus, the students received an email from the school that their spring break would be extended another week and classes would be going online for the rest of the semester.  Their situation was a little different, since they were bound for campus already, but other students were told not to come back to campus until after April 6 to get their things.  

Annah FaceTimed us (Jeremy was working from home, as it was announced yesterday afternoon he will be doing for at least the next few weeks) and we could hear Doc answering questions for the students after having just talked with campus administrators.  Although, Annah was in tears last night about not wanting to return to campus to finish the rest of the semester, she now said she was in a bit of shock to learn she wouldn't be.

Jeremy grabbed some trash bags and a couple suitcases and went down to meet Annah on campus right away.  The choir was met by campus security and debriefed.  They checked to see if any of them had any symptoms of the virus--none did.  They allowed them to ask any questions they had, and took the students' advice to make a video for the rest of the student body answering these questions.  The choir was able to come together and cry through The Lord Bless You and Keep You before saying goodbye as their minds whirled with the thoughts of all the moments they've shared and those they are now sacrificing.  They were blessed to have hugs and tears together today.

Annah FaceTimed me again as she and Jeremy packed up her things from her dorm room. 

She said she was overwhelmed by so many emotions, as anyone would expect.  She was so fortunate to have her daddy there for a little comic relief and a strong arm to carry almost all her things down the 3 flights of stairs to the Prius.  They couldn't fit everything, so at some point we will have to go back to campus.

Over the course of the day, Disney World has closed, so Sylvia and Caeden will not be going on their band/choir trip to perform there over spring break. More places are closing and more sporting events and concerts and performances and gatherings of large groups of people are being canceled by the minute today.  Sylvia is dreading the musical being canceled.  But everyone is beginning to sacrifice and stay home in order to prevent the spread of the virus.

Jeremy and Annah stopped to eat and to get gas in Greenville before heading home, and were home by 9:30--less than 15 hours from when Annah left home this morning.  That is a lot to change and emotion to fit into one day, and a lot of stuff to fit in a Prius!

I know it will be challenging in many ways to have all 5 of us at home and working through emotions of all that is lost in these days.  However, I will choose to be grateful to have my family together!

I am so thankful we have Jesus to walk us through the challenges of life!

New Glasses and a New Friend?

Caeden has needed new glasses for a while, and last night at wrestling practice they got smashed.  I super glued them back together and got him an emergency appointment this morning to get his eyes checked and order new glasses.  Our eye doctor combined her office with several other doctors and they built a huge and gorgeous new office.  This was the first time we'd been there.  It is very nice.

A funny thing happened while we were in the lobby filling out our paperwork before seeing the doctor.  Caeden was sitting next to me, and I was trying to get him to pay attention as I asked him the pre-existing symptoms questions quickly.  I saw a guy walking towards us, looking at Caeden, but I didn't recognize him.  (This happens everywhere we go...people he knows from wrestling or other things that I don't know.)  The guy was holding his clipboard of paperwork and he kinda whacked Caeden on the arm with it in a teasing way and said, "Hey, what's wrong with you. Pay attention to your mom.  Help her out."  Then Caeden looked up at the guy and didn't recognize him and the guy realized he didn't actually know Caeden either.  He then said, "Oh man, I'm so sorry! You're not who I thought you were!  I swear you look just like this kid I know...same hair, same clothes, same shoes...I'm so sorry!"  We all laughed.

I think Caeden actually enjoyed picking out his new frames.  Hopefully they come in soon, because I don't know how long the super glue is going to hold his lens in his old pair!

Influenza

At the end of the school day Tuesday, Sylvia started feeling sick all of a sudden.  She was excused from musical rehearsal and pep band and sent home.  Thursday morning, she worked way too hard to get ready to go to school.  I took one look at her and told her we were going to the doctor instead.

When she told the doctor her symptoms, we were told it was definitely Influenza. They've seen so many cases this week that they were out of tests, so we don't know if it is A or B. Because Sylvia is old enough to describe her symptoms, the doctor was confident in prescribing TamiFlu since she hadn't even been feeling bad for 24 hours.  We got the last one at CVS.

Doc also recommended resting and fully recovering NOW at the beginning of the sickness, rather than pushing herself and drawing it out longer.  So, Sylvia missed 3 days of school and stayed home alone today resting as well.  When we got home, we saw her determined to "go back among the living" tomorrow.  She had taken every piece of clothing she had worn this week and all her bedding down to the basement to be washed.  She said she took a long hot shower, and she is determined to go to church and her cello lesson tomorrow.  I think she is feeling better!

We are thankful for the TamiFlu!  I think it helped her recover more quickly.

Annah did her favorite puzzle this week.

Caeden played a lot of Xbox and did weird dances and never stopped talking this week.

He also went back for his second and third tries at contacts.  Doc got the contacts in his eyes, and he got them out, but he could never get them in.  He is done trying for this year.

I had an order for a custom made hat.  I also decided to re-evaluate Crafted With Care. Even though I would like to put all my time into making crochet things, I don't have the ability to do craft shows and get my things seen in-person by people who may actually buy them.  I've decided to just make things I want and post photos of them on my social media.  That way, if people see something they like they can order it, but I won't have something sitting around that I won't use.  

The girls and I went to see a free community theatre production of Godspell Friday night.  It was a beautiful night for an outdoor show.  Sadly, it was literally the worst production of anything I've ever seen. We knew a few of the stage crew, so we stayed to chat with them after. And we knew that even though it was painfully awful, the cast had worked really hard and we stayed out of respect to their efforts.  

The girls made edible cookie dough when we got home.

Caeden practicing guitar in the car before his lesson.  This summer, he has finally hit the point where he really likes to play, and will pick up one of his guitars several times a day or stay up playing into the night.  

Cello Recital

After such a difficult semester with her wrist tendonitis injury, and so many months of not being able to play cello, it was such a pleasure to see and hear Sylvia play in recital tonight! 

Gram and Krampa were here too!

Dr. Ransom and her husband started the "Friends and Family" recital program off with a sweet and lovely duet of Smile by Charlie Chaplin.

Sylvia played the Allegro from Concerto in B-flat Major by L. Boccherini. It is an incredibly difficult piece, a lot of which is played in thumb position.  Over-practicing this piece is how Sylvia developed tendonitis, and she was afraid she wouldn't get to perform it. When she was in occupational therapy, she wasn't allowed to play at all for a couple months, then it was very limited as she started to ease back into it.  She has only had 2 lessons with Dr. Ransom since returning to playing, and Dr. Ransom has been so pleased with Sylvia's recovery and return to playing. It is an answer to so many prayers that Sylvia was able to perform at all, and even this piece, tonight!

So proud of our girl!!!

April Fool's Day

Spring Break is over, and the kids were back to school this morning...

Sylvia had another occupational therapy appointment today.

 She didn't really enjoy it when Alyssa had her try the hand bike, but she was happy to find out that she will only have one more day of therapy!

Some of th costumes for the musical arrived today! 

"Back to normal" at our house tonight--homework and practicing and laundry and book bags everywhere!

On the first day of Spring Break, Annah called a musical rehearsal for the leads, and I had to open the school so they could get on stage.  I decided to practice some of the music, since I'll be playing.  So, we were at school for a few hours on the first day of Spring Break.

On the second day of Spring Break (and the first), Caeden had [optional] track practice.  A new timing system has been purchased, and the coaches were figuring out how to set it up and use it.  Caeden was glad to have practice, and we were at school again on the second day of Spring Break.

On the third day of Spring Break, Sylvia "The Hammer" Lopshire had another early morning occupational therapy session.  

Sylvia is making good progress in her occupational therapy!  Her pain is gone, and now she is working on strengthening.  She is even allowed to play her cello a little bit this weekend!!!

My little piano student Juana, is so much fun.  She is working through the My First Piano Adventure books by Faber and Faber.  We like singing and playing along to the silly songs!  

This Friday we got to gobble and run like turkeys!

Last Saturday, Annah spent much of the day writing 5 essays and completing her application for the Illinois Gold Apple Scholars Program.  She was invited to interview, and Jeremy took her to ISU for that part of the process this Saturday morning.  She won't find out if she is selected for the program until mid-May, but it was an honor and a good experience for her regardless of the outcome.

After her interview, I got this text from Jeremy.  (The girl has a serious love for Noodles.  She went there Friday night, and all 5 of us went again after church on Sunday!)

Saturday was SUCH a gorgeous day, even I spent 2 hours outside raking up pine needles in the yard and pulling dead leaves out of the flower beds!  Jacob stayed for lunch after his piano lesson, and he and Sylvia walked down to the park.  They are silly.

I think this is such a cool picture of the youth group kids playing a game this afternoon! 

Spinach Orzo Soup for Mono

I took Annah to the doctor yesterday, and got the results this morning: She officially has mono.  It is really hitting her hard--everything is swollen and achy, and she just feels so exhausted.  She will be taking some half days off school to try to get extra rest.  Today she came home at noon, and I made her some healthy soup.  I just made it up as I went, so there's no recipe.  But, Annah really liked it and told me to write it down.  I don't measure anything when I'm cooking; I just dump stuff in until it looks like how much I want in there!

Spinach Orzo Soup

yellow onion
celery
carrot
minced garlic
*spiced ground meat
broth/buoillion
orzo
fresh baby spinach
anise, crushed red pepper flakes, black pepper, paprika, Italian herbs, Mrs. Dash

Make a mirepoix with your favorite cooking oil/fat. This time I used yellow onion, carrot, celery, and garlic in butter.  (Most times I use olive oil or coconut oil.)
Add spiced ground meat. Cook until vegetables are almost tender.
Add broth and orzo and simmer until orzo and vegetables are cooked to desired consistency.
Add several bunches of fresh baby spinach, and continue simmering until it's just wilted. Slurp it up!

*I often buy several pounds of ground beef and several pounds of ground turkey and cook it all up together with chopped onions and minced garlic and freeze in 1-pound bags so I have it ready for quick cooking.  That's what I used for this, only I wanted it to taste spicy like sausage, so I added a bunch of anise, crushed red pepper flakes, black pepper, paprika, Italian herbs, and Mrs. Dash to give it some kick!

Randoms of the week

Just some random photos telling the story of our week...

Annah had to give up taking Art for her senior year, but this semester she is taking Yearbook with the Art teacher.  She gets to decorate a senior ceiling tile, and decided she wanted to do it with heat embossing with some of my old supplies.  She got to teach her art teacher about heat embossing today, and made this little fingerprint caterpillar to demonstrate.  

2/5/19 - It just makes me happy that we have 3 teenagers who love each other enough to sit together on the couch and enjoy having conversations!  I love them all so much.  My 3 hearts.

Musical auditions were this week, and the cast list was posted.  The show is Mama Mia (much to Annah's excitement!), and Annah has been cast as Donna and Sylvia as Tanya.  They will have lots of fun putting it together!

Caeden and I served the preschoolers in THRIVE at church this morning.  Our story was the miracle of Jesus turning water into wine, and we did a fun activity with food coloring and water!

Also, the kids played "basketball"--Caeden vs. team "Everyone Else."  Haha!

The girls, sitting in the sanctuary with friends at church...

Sylvia has a cold this week, and is thankful for the wonders of Robitussin and NyQuil. 

Velocity was canceled this afternoon due to snow and ice, so Sylvia and Caeden went to youth group with Jacob in Colfax this evening!

Emma is home from Florida for a little while, as her family is working to sell their house back here. She invited the girls over to swim yesterday morning, and they had such a fun time with her!

Poor Sylvia had allergy testing done yesterday.  She has been trying really hard to go dairy-free for about a year, and it has helped her feel better.  Today she had 69 scratch tests for food and environmental allergens, and she not allergic to any of the foods!  

The test results did show that she is a highly sensitive/allergic person though.  She is allergic to all trees, weeds, and many molds and insects. 

The allergist talked with us at length about the difference between an allergy and a sensitivity/intolerance. (An allergy is potentially life-threatening.)  It was very interesting and helpful.

 Last night we saw Little Shop of Horrors!  Normal Parks and Rec put on a great show.  I took the kids and picked Samuel.  Joyce, Ryan, Gretchen and Rich all met us there.  Amy P was the music director, so we also saw her and Scott, Lynn, and Carol.  It was a lovely evening for an outdoor show, too!

Annah and Ryan have such great memories of being in this show at Ridgeview their sophomore year, and it was a challenge for them not to sing out loud with full voices, I think!  But, they enjoyed getting to see it on stage.

At the end of the show, the cast came out into the audience as parts of the man-eating plant. One guy made a bee-line straight for Sylvia and gave her a tiny "cutting" of the plant to keep.  (Pretty sure he spotted our little cutie from the stage and had to make a connection with her.) 

It's a beautiful, hot morning here in Arrowsmith.  Sylvia is watering Tracie's flowers for her this week, and I went with her this morning.  Our friend has such a lovely little patch of Arrowsmith!