Fave pic

Highlights of the week  Gage did go swimming at our friend’s house last weekend for a few hours and Jason said the kids stayed socially distanced 80-90 % of the time, but that he had to keep reminding them.  I know he needed it, he did, but I hate making trade-offs.

We were able to have some time enjoying the outside.  Gage and I went to the closest Cleveland metropark, about five minutes away and enjoyed some time playing games, reading, drawing, and, yes, taking a walk.  I am at home among the trees.

Jason took the day off of work on Friday and we went to Headlands Beach (Lake Erie).  It’s the largest natural beach in Ohio, but somehow it was our first time there even though we’ve lived in Cleveland for 20 years.  It wasn’t crowded on a Friday morning and was very beautiful although the sand was rocky.  It’s less than 40 minutes from us so we’ll be back.

Our school district just announced that they’re going fully virtual for the first quarter.  I’ve been reading like crazy trying to get a handle on what homeschool will look like for us this year and I think it’s coming together.  I’ll be working on my lesson plans for August and September and ordering supplies this week and hopefully we’ll start next week.

I wrote about the authors I’ve been lucky enough to meet here.

Gage reviewed Megabat and Fancy Cat here.

I wrote a review of The Brave Learner here.

I posted my 5 word movie reviews that you can contribute to and earn money for charity here.

Books read Great resource. Another great resource. Dated.

Currently reading It’s early but I like it so far!  Such a great morning devotional book for this crazy time.

Currently listening

On the TV We watched season one of Cursed which was okay and The Old Guard that I liked better , both on Netflix.

Plans for the weekend Lesson planning, pursuing some testing and tutors, and remaining calm 🙂  I had a little freak out at the beginning of the week about the enormity of taking over Gage’s education this year that was not helpful.  Wine helped, but getting plans to paper will help even more.

Anything fun planned for your Sunday?

 

 

Fave pic Gage, who in the past has not shown any preference for how his hair is cut or even what clothes he wears, has been adamant that we not cut his hair.  I think he had a haircut in January and my mom tricked him into trimming his bangs a few months ago.  I’m just so happy to see that he cares about it to let it go for now.  We were cuddling when I traded my pony tail for his. He was not impressed.  His hair, “likes to be free.”  lol

Highlights of the week  I sent my homeschool paperwork into the school district and now we just wait to hear if there’s anything else they need.  Each state is different, but in Ohio it’s just a letter of intent and an intended curriculum.  As a first timer who is not using an established online school, the curriculum was a little intimidating.  I’d like to do a post a week on our homeschooling journey so I’ll save the details for that.

Could’ve been better  Gage pointed out a bump in his groin area last weekend as as soon as I saw it I knew it was a hernia.  Jason had his a few years ago, but his was near his belly button.  So, the virtual visit with the pediatrician confirmed it and said to find  pediatric surgeon 😦   I found the one we wanted and we can’t get a consult until August 31st.  So, I’ll have to keep an eye on it because we may not be able to wait that long.

Books finished  

Reviews posted review  review

Currently reading

Currently listening

In the mail 

On the TV We finished up the Polish miniseries based on Harlan Coben’s book The Woods.

Plans for the weekend Some nature walks and we’re going to try Ticket to Ride Rails and Sails for the first time.  We’ve been playing the easier side, the Great Lakes, but the world side looks much more intimidating with additional rules.  We are headed to our friend’s home tomorrow.  They have a big pool and Gage needs some fun time with a friend, even if we are going to be sticklers about the social distancing.

 

Fave pic This was my library stack.  I also have an Amazon/BN stack.

Highlights of the week Gage went to the dentist and found out his last seven baby teeth are all loose and he lost one this week!  The highlight of the week was making the decision to homeschool Gage this year.  There are so many reasons for this, but, in truth, I’ve always wanted to try it and thought at one point or another we’d give it a go.  I’m excited and a bit terrified.  I’ve spent most of the week reading with so much more to be done.  The hardest thing was notifying Gage’s school, one that’s been our family’s safety net for the last four years, and then reading the sweet messages from the other moms of the class when I told them.  As I research, I’m trying to be as open as possible to all of the different theories and ways to homeschool.  I notify our school district tomorrow with all of the proper paperwork (and my curriculum, yikes!) and then it becomes real.  I’m finally going to put my education degree to the use for which it was intended!

Books finished Crime readers will like it, I did! loved it!  A good place to start.

Books reviewed review

Currently reading     Ongoing morning devotional. 

Currently listening Reacher #13

On the TV We finished season 6 of Bosch and started the Netflix miniseries The Woods based on the Harlan Coben book.

Movies watched  Last night was our second monthly movie night.  We switched it up and everyone got to choose movies.  I made it through these three (the guys made it through one more and came to bed at 3 am!).

Plans for the weekend Nothing but completing my curriculum today.  We’ve been invited to a few pools this last week and have decided to stay home for another week or so.  I’m feeling okay about that decision since one of the kids who also plays at one of the houses tested positive for covid this week.  Stay healthy friends.

Fave Pic We went to a park last week and played Ticket to Ride New York before our nature walk.

Highlights of the past few weeks I took off last week for my mental health.  As  the COVID numbers rise and many of our friends going back to some semblance of business as usual, I’ve had to take a step back.  As adults who like spending time together the issue isn’t really about us, but Gage, nine, who has friends who are going to camp and playing together in their neighborhoods. Mask-free of course.  Trying to balance a childhood between social development and physical health is a challenge.  And we received the plan for his private school, either you’re all in or your 100% at home with live streaming of the classroom only.  I’m now considering other options.  Stressful decisions need to be made.

On the plus side, our library opened.  I used to spend hours there multiple times a week, but with local COVID numbers on the rise, I’ve decided to focus on a different way.  I go in, grab a few bags of books, bring them home and try to sell them on our FB page.  I go back to the library to put the holds for customers on the shelf and grab more books.  Keeps my exposure lower, but it involves more trips to the library.  I’ve also been filling our local Little Free Libraries with books from the library.

Gage had a bike play date with a friend this week with another one with a different friend planned tomorrow.  I think I enjoy the time with the moms maybe even more than he enjoys the biking.

Because the numbers in the area have been going up for weeks Jason has been working from home full-time again.  I admit that I like the arrangement.  He ordered himself new office furniture this week so I think he sees it as the new normal.  He also gave himself a haircut which frightens me.  He has a Zoom call with a new client on Monday so hopefully my mom can fix the damage.

Books finished  Kearsley was delightful, as always.  The audio was a nice diversion to the real world.

Books reviewed  review, review

Currently reading It’s intriguing so far.    Back into my morning devotionals and this one is perfect for the time we’re living in.

Currently listening Fun!

Read to Gage Jason and Gage love to talk about space, so I think Gage knew more about Galileo going into this book than I did!

On the TV We breezed through Bosch season 5 on Amazon Prime.   We started the second season of Hanna on Prime and watched a few more episodes of Dead To Me season 1 on Netflix

Movies watched I never got around to reading the book but we liked the movie.

June Movies post

Plans for the weekend  Our good friends finally have their pool ready and we’re probably going to go since it’s big and everyone can stay socially distanced and still have fun.

Fave pic We saw these babies twice on our walk last night and they let us get pretty close.  So, so cute.

Highlights of the week I sold a lot of books for the Friends of the Library.  I’ve been posting them on our FB page and making deliveries on Friday.  I had 7 stops yesterday and people bought anywhere from 3-20 books.  The deliveries are supposed to be contact-free but one mama sent her 5 year old running out with a check as I got ready to leave 😦 One person stiffed me $4 but another overpaid by $15.   Last weekend I had 6 people come over and shop the books in my garage.  I feel like I’m running a book business right now, but I’m not paying myself.

Books read We had our book club discussion on Thursday and none of us loved it.

Reading Love this author and all of her books.

Listening A nice diversion for the car or cleaning.

Posted Absolutely nothing.

Read to Gage It was fun to visit China, India, and Japan. After we read Rikki we watched some videos on real cobras and mongooses which was pretty cool.

Watching We made it through season 4 this week.

Plans for the weekend No big plans, but I think I’m going to try and convince my guys to make tomorrow Screen-free Sunday.  We’ve all become a little to connected to our chosen devices and a day off would be a good thing.   What are your plans?

 

Fave Pic  Last weekend I went to the Botanical Garden to pick up supplies for Gage’s week of at-home camp and found that some of the participants in theParade the Circle decided to get together even though the popular event was cancelled.  There were more participants than this but aren’t they cool?  They put on a parade for the 40 people who just happened to be there.  I was lucky to be one of the few to have our own personal parade 🙂  This also counts for a highlight of the week.

Highlights of the Week  Gage had his first play date – outside at the school parking lot riding bikes.  I shopped at a store other than a grocery store the first time since February.  I needed a Father’s Day gift and Tuesday Morning was having a going out of business sale.  Everyone but one person was wearing a mask so that was good.  I had a fellow Friends of the Library member come over to go over some plans.  We sat on our patio about 10 feet apart.  Baby steps and it’s pretty much all I’m comfortable with right now.  It  was nice to get back to some sense of normalcy.

Finished reading

Currently reading

Currently listening

Reviews posted Flawed Long Time Coming

In the mail After I saw this on Instagram I mentioned to Jason that if he ever needed a gift idea for me this was it.  This week he surprised me with it.  I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to have a Keanu coloring book 🙂

Movies watched   Last Saturday night we started our first family movie night.  We started at 8pm and Gage could stay up as long as he could stay awake.  You can see we chose come classics this first time.  He made it through all three beating Jason and me.  He went to bed at 1:30am and wants to do it every weekend, lol.  We’ve decided to make it a monthly thing.

Watching We started season 4 of Bosch on Amazon Prime and did watch the pilot of Dead to Me.  I’m interested in watching more, do any of you watch it?

 

Fave Pic Was able to spend some time alone in the woods this week.

Highlights of the Week Gage had online Lego camp this week for 2 hours everyday this week and he really liked it.  It also gave me two hours where I wasn’t responsible for entertainment.  A win/win.  I went to my first social distanced gathering as a few of us got together outside to say goodbye to a Library Friends board member.  She was our newsletter editor so now I need to find a replacement.  And I’ve been selling books for the Friends on our FB page.  The library’s not open but since I’ve been listing online every day we’ve made some money and gotten rid of some books.  Of course, I’m running this operation out of my garage so that’s fun, lol.  All of the deliveries are contact free so it works for me.  Jason worked two days downtown this week and it feels weird.  I like having everyone home, even if I’m going a little(lot) stir crazy.  Spent a few hours in nature a few days this week and that helped.  We also had another drive by birthday parade for another friend in Gage’s class.  I’m not sure what it means that I’ve put that under highlights 🙂

Review posted here

Books Finished Can’t wait to start the third book of the trilogy.

Listening to Book club read, I’m on the fence about it so far.

In the Mail

Puzzles Finished So challenging.  1000 pieces.  If anyone wants to give it a try I’ll send it on to you 🙂

On the small screen  Jason has been obsessed with season 3 of Bosch this week and we’ve watched nothing else.

Plans for the weekend I need to replenish some local Little Free Libraries with books from our Friends of the Library and I’m headed to the Cleveland Botanical Garden at noon to pick up a pack with stuff for Gage to do camp from home next week.

Fave Pic On Tuesday, Gage and I visited one of the Cleveland Metroparks that was new to us.  It was much needed to calm the chaos.

Highlights of the Week  We went to the Cruise the Zoo last weekend and had a good time.  It was nice to have someplace safe to go as a family.  The animals were sometimes so far away that you only saw glimpses but driving at 2 mph through the zoo with other family with kids hanging out of windows or popping out of sunroofs was a great thing to see.

Unfortunately, Cleveland, like many other cities, got wrecked last weekend.  It was devastating to see.  I watched the peaceful protest for a bit online and thought everything looked great. Everyone was respectful and there was no need for police presence.  I checked back later in the day to find that after that group had started the walk around downtown, others showed up and started the violence and destruction of property.  Cleveland was on curfew until Wednesday morning.  Jason went into his downtown office for the first time since March on Wednesday and called the place a ghost town.  Thankfully, there have been many smaller protests all over the suburbs here this week and they’ve all been peaceful.   I’m listening and reading and trying to come up with some personal goals to make myself more of an active ally.

Books finished read with Gage.

Reviewed (I’m so behind on reviews!) A Conspiracy in Belgravia

Currently reading loving it.

In the mail

Movies Steve McQueen gambling his way through life.  Watched this true life inspirational movie with Gage.

My 5 word May movie reviews

TV Jason and I watched a few episodes of and liked it for a few laughs.

Plans for the weekend  Although we’ve got a few things happening next week I don’t think we have anything set in stone for the weekend.  How about you?

Fave pic Taken from our driveway Memorial Day evening.

Highlights of the week We had my parents over for Memorial Day.  The guys even got in a convertible ride before the rain came.

I’m the current president of our local library Friends group and curbside pickup starts Monday.  That means I started tentatively planning and working on things this week.  Exciting.

I received all of Gage’s end of year and summer stuff on Wednesday, but I’m keeping him in ‘school’.  I spent 30 minutes the last three nights planning a schedule and lesson plans for each day.  Sound mean?  I couldn’t take one more day of hearing “Mom, what can I do now?” “Mom can I have screen time?” “Mom,  mom, mom…”  So he has mom school until the early afternoon.  To entice him he has a list of everything we’re doing that day and a list of required chores.  Once everything is crossed off he gets $1.  I’m considering it a $5 a week allowance 🙂  I’m actually having a good time planning fun things to go along with the hard stuff.  Today he tried oragami for the first time and is so proud of his little fox.

Reviews posted The Starless Sea by Erin Morganstern  Megabat by Anna Humphrey

Finished reading love this series! fascinating.

Currently reading

In the mail

Watching We finished season 2 of Bosch and loved it.

New recipe a day challenge

Plans for the weekend  Our friend had a pass to Cruise through the Zoo that she couldn’t use so we’re taking Gage tomorrow.  The zoo is still closed and we’ll have to stay in our car, but I’m more excited about it than I should be 🙂  It takes so little to entertain these days.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the state of what’s going on in this country right now.  I plan to devote some meditation time this weekend to try and figure out how best to use my voice and my resources.

What’s up in your neck of the woods?

Fave pic The librarian at Gage’s school is retiring (and moving to Hawaii, lucky duck) so Gage had quite a few assignments that were aimed at her retirement.  For his art assignment he made these to book covers.  She always rewarded the kids with parties – but they had to earn them.  She went all out and the kids will definitely miss her in the fall.

Highlights Gage finished all of his 3rd grade schoolwork today so I’m officially calling him a 4th grader.  I can’t believe it.  I have loved being his pseudo teacher these last few months.

We had a drive by birthday party for a classmate of Gage and we even got a little family time at Lake Erie.  Even ordered takeout from Gage’s favorite restaurant, Aladdin’s Eatery.  It almost felt like a normal Sunday.

Some have struggled with the pandemic lock down and I almost feel guilty for enjoying this extra time with my son and husband so much.  Gage is nine and it’s such a wonderful age.  He still loves his parents, listens most of the time, and still loves to cuddle.  I am soaking in every moment.  And Jason and I are still speaking, laughing and cuddling too.  I’m a lucky woman.

On the downside Gage always had lots of time at summer camps.  This year before everything shut down I had only signed him up for two weeks, one of them cancelled but will be doing online stuff with the kids.  The other is still happening but Gage will not be going.  It was chaos every year and there is no way that the Science Center will be able to keep the kids as separated from each other and the public as I would need to feel comfortable.  So, I found some online places that do interactive camps and have signed him up for a few and hope to find more.  We’ll be venturing out into nature this summer and having some outdoor play dates, but we’re keeping this summer low key.  Hopefully, the fall will look better, but given the COVID numbers that have started to climb back up since everything started opening this month, I don’t have a lot of confidence.

Finished reading read this for book club (we had a fun Zoom meeting on Wednesday) and I’ll have my review posted Monday.  I really liked it. Gage read this and wanted me to read it too.  I loved Megabat!  I posted my review of this cool chapbook here.

Currently reading

Currently listening

In the mail

Movies This will mess with your mind.

Watching We’ve watched some of Bosch season 2 and a few episodes of Travelers season 2.

New recipe a day challenge I made my first coffee cake and my first pot roast!

Plans for the weekend Nothing special planned.  Jason is playing tennis for the first time in many months so we’ll see how that goes.

What’s going on in your neck of the woods?