June

June seemed to go by rather quickly.  We had some fun highlights:

Lincoln loves to help with yard work.  We did less yard work this month than usual.  We had a very dry ending to Spring.  The lack of rain means the grass hasn't been growing like it usually does.  Kimball usually mows the lawn every 5 days, but he has been able to go 7-10 days between mowing.  It has also been abnormally hot.  The first half of Spring was unseasonably cold and the last half was warmer than normal.  I have a feeling we are in for a hot Summer.  I'm already bracing myself. 

Joseph took the four older kids canoeing one day and Eden was left home with me.  She felt very left out so I took her out for ice cream.  She had a great time eating her pink ice cream.  (My phone needs a new protective glass put on it so my selfie pictures are less than ideal these days.)

We took a day trip to Taughannock State Park which is near Ithaca.  We enjoyed the easy hike to a beautiful waterfall.  The kids also played in the water on some of the flat rock surfaces.

Lincoln refused to be in the family picture I took because their was a dog behind him, but then felt left out so he had an individual picture taken once the dog was no longer behind him.  The dog wasn't near us, but it was close enough and big enough to make Lincoln nervous. 

I found out that one of my dearest friends is moving at the end of the Summer.  We have decided to get together as much as we can before her family moves.  We have to make the most of the time we have left.  Thank goodness things have opened up enough in NY that we both feel comfortable getting together with our kids.

Jonah and Lincoln had a Lego mini-figure war while Sage and Annika accessorized a Snow White Lego set.

The three little ones had dental exams.  The dental office opened for business the week before our appointments.  Unfortunately, only one child was allowed in the office at a time.  Thankfully, Joseph was home that morning so he could sit with the kids in the car while I took them in one at a time.  Eden was scared for her dental exam so I ended up sitting with her.  I'm thinking it was all of the extra gear the hygienist was wearing.

We celebrated the last day of School.  School let out 7 days early since the students and teachers worked through Spring Break.  Rebecah finished 4th grade and Kimball finished 7th.  They will both start new schools in the Fall...Middle School and Junior High respectively.  Lincoln and Annika will start in Kindergarten.  Everyone will be in a new school!

We have desperately needed to put new epoxy on our basement floor.  The kids ride bikes down there and that results in a lot of concrete dust.  It can't be healthy to breathe in concrete dust so we decide to make this project a priority this Summer.  We did one half of the basement at a time and now it looks so clean and fresh.  We are going to try to make it more of a play area and less of a workshop. 

Like most schools throughout the country we had to pick up and drop off personal items and school items in a safe/distant way.  The only personal items Kimball had at school were his awards.  He earned an award for being on the Honor Roll all three years of middle school.  The second award was for being on the Honor Roll all three years plus scoring an 85% or higher on the standardized state tests.  Kimball didn't think either achievement was that exciting, but I still took pictures.  The kids were given a Class of 2025 t-shirt to honor their efforts.  

 

Kimball had a few last hurrahs at school.  The day school let out his group of teachers bought ice cream for their group of students.  The kids did a fairly good job wearing their masks when they weren't eating their ice cream.  It was a nice way to say good-bye to friends and teachers.  The second event was another ice cream "social."  The teachers stood in the parking lot waving as the kids drove by with their parents and at the end of the line there was an ice cream truck and the kids could get an ice cream before leaving.  Kimball was just there for the ice cream!

Annika got a new bike this month.  Her old bike was a hand-me-down from Rebecah which was given to us well-loved.  The chain kept coming off, the bike seat had already fallen apart and it was just time for a new bike.  She loves it, but she is so sweet to share with Lincoln when he wants to ride it....and he does enjoy riding it.  I love that they have no qualms about her riding an orange and black bike and him riding a purple and pink bike.

The State of NY has been slowly opening up with good results.  I'm glad more businesses are opening up, but I'm happy it has been slow since we haven't seen a spike in new cases like in the Southern and Western states.  It's crazy to see the numbers escalating in other states and sad to realize that people care more for their "normal" life than to be safe and healthy.  I understand that it's hard on people not to socialize and masks aren't fun to wear in the hot weather, but I hope we don't start seeing a huge increase in deaths.