November re-cap

November brought much of the same from the last 7 months. We stuck close to home, kept our bubble small, but found ways to stay active and keep busy. The unseasonably warm weather to start the month was a complete blessing for this mama who is not a huge fan of the cold.

I made a bold move and took Lincoln and Regan (Sidney declined my invite) to Minihaha one weekday after online school. It was busier than I would've liked, but we kept masks on whenever we were not alone in the woods (except a few quick photos). 

Lincoln scored a new remote control car for his birthday, which was quickly followed by Ryan purchasing a second one for himself. They are having a blast racing them around, and we are becoming experts in how to fix them when they break. All I can say is thank goodness for YouTube videos! 

Sidney's softball team continued to hold practices, and the unseasonably warm weather allowed them to practice outside the first part of the month. Her bubble was made up of her team, if she was going to be practicing with these girls, she was allowed to take a few selfies too :) 

The weather held out long enough that they even had a double header scrimmage. She had played great that afternoon and it was just what she needed to head into winter training.

Regan and I did a service project together as part of her confirmation and raked for the nunnery. Yes, that is a word that I recently learned and I think it's fun to say: nunnery. 

You're welcome. 

We met up, social distanced, with Grandma Jan a couple of times to do a swap of items and wish her a Happy Birthday. Can't wait til we can give hugs and squeezes again. 

Although no practices for Regan, she kept her 'bubble' small and hung out with her softball besties. I'm blessed to have great friends from her besties moms and love when they make silly faces in our Ring doorbell! 

Lincoln is getting stronger and faster playing hockey. Ryan is usually coaching on the ice. But I was able to watch one of his practices (COVID guidelines are very strict) and couldn't believe my eyes! By the end of practice, I came to one conclusion: he is going to be spending a lot of time in the penalty box with the way he fights back. Apparently Ryan is teaching him to not let down: when someone shoves, you shove back. 

In the thick of classwork, Regan is taking driver's education as part of her school day. She's not legal to drive yet, but I took her to a vacant parking lot and let her test her skills. She's getting better! 

And finally, we got to see Pepper quickly while we delivered an early Thanksgiving to Angie. Regan was in her glory for those few minutes. She kept telling me "I'm smiling, you just can't see it!". She (and her sibs) cannot wait for their first sleepover with Pepper. 

We have so much to be thankful for this November. We’ll continue to do our part staying home and staying safe. 

Friends from afar

We were blessed to spend some time with our dear friends who live in Germany while they were here visiting family. The kids had so much fun getting acquainted, having not seen each other in 5 long years.  And us parents picked up right where we left off, although social media and technology makes it easier for us to connect from afar. 

We spent one softball free evening (thank you coaches!) at Minihaha Falls with a bunch of Ryan’s college buddies and their families. We all wondered why we can’t pull this off more frequently, seemingly only manage to make it happen when Paul and Renata come to town.

 

 It was a perfect summer night and I loved watching this ice cream melt around Lincoln’s fingers, knowing it would leave him a sticky mess but with a fond memory of summer fun. 

 

As the parents get older, we seemed to have multiplied, and this was only a fraction of the kids! There were tiny ones too that didn’t make the picture or the hike down the falls. (I promised Lincoln if he’d smile nice I’d take him down the trails.....he was quite obedient!). 

While in town, with temps past 90, we decided a pool party was in order for Paul, Renata and the kids. They ran out to buy suits and we spent the afternoon poolside, enjoying each other’s company. 

 

 

 

 

Our girls decided they are joining Ryan on his next trip to Germany....in which case, I figured we should all join in! Look out Pollinger family, you may get to see our crew sooner than later!