Alexa, can the election be over already?!?

Mark said his shoes were wearing out.

I said I would order him some new ones on Amazon.

Later in the day, I saw this email:

Alexa is freaky.  Always listening.  I texted Mark we needed a safe word.  He wrote back, "How about, 'Hey Siri'?"

Since she knows my life, my students could ask Alexa who I voted for.  They really want to know.  School teachers = neutrality though.

We've been talking about the election.  I asked them why they thought our votes were private.  

"Because someone might erase your vote if you voted in pencil and they didn't like it."

"Because someone might judge you."

"Because who you voted for might make someone mad or sad or angry with you."

I asked, "Can you still be friends with someone if you disagree with them?"

They all said, "Yes!" like it was a ridiculous assumption to think otherwise.  Let's shout that from the rooftops.

Maybe Alexa can tell the others.

Halloween

Here's my third grade team.  I love these two.  About a month ago, Kate overheard one of her students say that Halloween was cancelled and she decided not on our watch.  Our whole goal for the day was to have fun (and give them obscene amounts of candy).  I think we accomplished our goal.

Here's our administration.  They are awesome.  No one takes Halloween lightly.  No one.

Here is the faculty.

And here are some more of my favorite people in the world.  They are troopers in every sense of the word.  They are diligent hard little workers and they are diligent mask wearers and hand washers.  I asked them multiplication questions and threw candy at them whether or not they got the answer correct.  Some of them even caught the candy (which is impressive because I'm not that good at throwing).

 None of them knew what I was dressed as.  A few of them ventured soccer player.  "Baseball!"  I said, "I'm a baseball player."

One little girl said, "You're a baseball player who throws candy!"

I'll take it.  (I'm also super good at tying shoes.)

***

On actual Halloween, we got a knock on the door and it was our neighbor's cute grandchildren.  We had NO candy; it felt like Halloween had happened the day before.  We had nothing.  Mark found some cashews in the pantry, which had a certain "no" about them.  We turned off the lights and crept around in the dark for the rest of the night.

(We went to the basement and watched It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown which Mark had never seen!  There are holes in that child's education but I'm trying to rectify them.)

Grateful Friday

 I'm grateful that Kate let me use some Halloween decorations so my class isn't completely sad sack.

I don't like Halloween and my students know it.  Two times the plug in jack-o-lantern that I have on my shelf has fallen on my head because the cord gets bumped and it is stretched to reach the outlet.

My students said the jack-o-lantern is trying to kill me because it knows I don't like Halloween.  But look at this:  I hung up some of Kate's stuff and I may eventually break down and get some of my own.

You can't be Halloween Scrooge and an elementary teacher.  Incompatible.

Mark is never one to overshare.  Occasionally he does want to share something and it takes me off guard.  Last night he said, "Do you want me to write a guest post for your blog?"

What now?

He said, "About getting accepted to USU."

"Oh, OK."

So he did.

Hello everybody! Today I got my first college acceptance letter, from Utah State University. There is an open house in Lehi on Monday, with information about scholarships, and there is a campus tour on the 18th of November that is free for high school seniors. I'm not sure if that's where I am going, I still have other colleges I'd like to apply to. I was not expecting to get my acceptance today, and USU actually sent the email to the wrong person. Mom had to forward me the email because they sent it to her. It's exciting and strange to be applying to college, but I'm so thankful that I have my awesome parents to help me through it all. 

Love Mark E.

editor's note:  Adam set it up that his emails come to me and since teenagers never check email, it's a good system.  The email did go to him, he just didn't see it.

I'm grateful that Mark is looking forward to his future and it also freaks me out because isn't he still 6 years old?!?

Emma sent this last night:

She's quarantined, but looking fabulous.

I'm grateful to be healthy (still tired, but feeling pretty good).  I'm grateful for how kind people are to me. It's a nice feeling to be inundated with "Welcome back!" and  "How ARE you?" and "I'm so glad you're here!"

My costume is a baseball player this year.  I went for comfort above all else.  I took my own mirror selfies this morning in an attempt to be like Emma.

I even got the stirrup socks! And a Mariner's mask!

I have a bit of a deer in the headlights look but that's Halloween at an elementary school.  It isn't for the faint of heart.

Yesterday

 I went to school and I was so very happy to see my students.  Before school they pressed their faces to the window by my desk and squealed when they saw me.  It is so easy to love third graders.  They hugged me and told me they'd missed me and they were glad I was back.  I was glad I was back too, even though I had to dig through a pile on my desk so deep and extensive it threatened to engulf us all.   

I was so very exhausted by the end of the day.  As in I took a nap and was worthless all evening.

Emma sent this:

She's pictured with her cute roommate Heather.  They're proudly pointing to the ballot box.  I felt a little teary when I saw it.  (Maybe because I was so beyond exhausted.)  Also though, it matters to me that my girl can vote.  This year marks 150 years since women could vote in Utah.  I appreciate all who went before and the women who made it possible that my little girl could exuberantly express herself with a ballot.

Well done, sister suffragette!

Patent pending

 We were discussing (like you do) how MOD pizza can get away with their "no name cake" which is basically a ding dong.  (Well, it's better than a ding dong.)

Adam said that anyone can make the cake, the name is what is trademarked.

I decided I would trademark my Covid Hug, which is where you hug someone on their back.  My tagline is--when you are infected but in love.

Adam said it was like this figure skating move.

Yes, I did a google image search.  It is called having nowhere to go and all day to get there.

Mark called it, "The Fault in our SARS."

What it comes down to is, we're not wasting our time over here.  Things are happening.  Decisions are being made.

Quarantining

 We try to stay apart as much as possible.  Mark either should stay away from me because he doesn't have it or stay away from Adam because he does.

His test was negative but we maybe tested him too early and he's been sick.

There's been a lot of this:

pajamas + coat + so. much. hair.

I french braided his hair a few weeks ago and it has only gotten longer.  

I've been making Mark work despite our general feelings of malaise.  He finished his online course yesterday that he was supposed to finish in the summer.  It's an upside of me being home.

I also ordered the bare minimum cap and gown situation possible.  The website started with the $457 package and I just kept scrolling until I got to the $29 cap and gown and tassel.  I didn't even get the souvenir tassel.  I may have with Braeden but that is the difference between your oldest and youngest child.  

I love that guy though, even though I'm cheap when it comes to graduation swag.  I watched enough Sportscenter commercials with him to prove my devotion.

Covid

 So...I tested positive.  I couldn't believe it.  I kept reloading the website and entering my information again, hoping for a different result.

I feel really bad that I didn't know until Wednesday that I was sick.  I was tired and I didn't feel great but that's pretty much been my 40s.  

Covid is extra fun because in addition to getting sick, you get to majorly inconvenience your family and friends and coworkers.  Awesome.

At the same time, I recognize how fortunate I am.  It doesn't affect my employment (besides hassling everyone) and Adam can work from home and Mark can do his school work from home.  Also, I'm not deathly ill, which is a blessing.

I'm grateful for phone calls and texts and emails from dear ones who are cheering me on from afar.

For example, Emma:

Our college kids have to quarantine too and Desi who is quite literally one of the best people I know called.  She said, "So I have nothing to do today (she's a full time student, works, is Relief Society president and has a full social life so apparently she's also a liar!) and I was going to the grocery store anyway and then I was going to take a drive to Pleasant Grove anyway.  I was wondering if you'd like me to go to the store?"

We haven't really done a shopping trip since we returned from Florida so I texted her a list.  She doorbell ditched us and I sent her a Venmo.  She's terrific.  That is all.

I'm grateful not one of the people that I have inconvenienced (and possibly made sick) has made me feel like an inconvenience.

My parents called to check in Friday evening and I had just heard another round of tragic news.  A boy in Mark's class at school (and also in our stake) had died in a car crash when he was hit by someone driving under the influence.  On the heels of losing another man in our neighborhood, I sort of had a come apart.  I told my mom crying jags were maybe a heretofore unknown symptom of Covid.

There are some kind souls in Pleasant Grove who put lights on the mountain at different times.

One light represents Collin, and one represents Landon.

I came across this and it feels like the perfect thing right now.