September 2020

Happy September!  COVID-19 continues to plague our world and shrink our social lives, but I managed to grab a few pics this month anyway.  Here's what we were up to.

September 1st was the first day of school.  This year the kids are fulfilling their academia with Distance Learning which means they have a full class schedule with their respective schools, but attend class and complete their assignments virtually through their district issued chromebook devices.  Teague and I are back at work, so not only are they responsible for completing their work daily autonomously, but they have the run of the house as well.  Not an ideal situation in my opinion, but 2020 tells us that we all need flexibility these days.  

Here's my cuties on their first day.

Maddox's first day of high school/9th grade

Presley's first day of 4th grade

Dylan's first day of 7th grade

This is just a cute pic of Coco on some warm and freshly folded laundry

The first weekend was also Labor Day weekend and the weather was still very warm.  Presley, Dylan and I made one last trip out to Battle Ground Lake for the day and met up with some friends.  It was a nice send-off to summer.

Then the fires came.  With all the hot weather we were getting, wildfires spread over Clackamas County in Oregon and east of Vancouver causing unmeasurable smoke in the area.  This pink looking sun was very pretty to look at, but the air quality forced everyone back inside and also caused school closures for a week.

Just a cute pic of Presley sleeping.

Since my birthday is in the summer, a co-worker surprised me with a belated gift....my favorite Dutch Bros. slushy drink and "The Office" stuff!  We both appreciate this show so much and have created an homage in our workspace that we add to often.

Here's a picture of Presley using a giftcard that she received for her birthday.  She loves this store!

When I was turning off Presley's light after she had fallen asleep, I noticed this inspiring note she wrote to herself for the following day.

A few times a year I get an employee pass to the Adidas store in Portland.  Presley needed new exercise shoes and was the only one that wanted to join me.  We had a lot of fun shopping for workout gear.  I hope this will spark some enthusiasm for her to get some fitness in....she's been less than thrilled to get outside these days.

A sweet pic of a man and his cat, Diesel.

Presley found a recipe for lemon bars in a tween magazine and wanted to bake it herself.  I found it to be more of a cake than bars, but it was pretty tasty.  She did a great job!

I work next door to Presley's school and had to drive over and get some supplies from her teacher.  While I was waiting in the office, I noticed a bulletin board from last year's Student Council and my favorite grade schooler's photo (flowered jacket).

Currently my job is only requiring me to work 20 hours a week as opposed to my usual 40 hours.  I'm not too sad about it.  Not only can I get home and make sure the kids are doing their school work and not thrashing the house, but I also have time to meet up with friends for lunch.

That is it for September.  We are healthy, but very tired of living this modified life void of social interactions.  We are trying our best to keep our spirits up, keep our energy up, and identify things to look forward to.  Until next time!