Easter Weekend



So this Easter would not have a special Easter service at church, but we still had time to dye some eggs and hide some eggs.  The girls did get to wear some pretty dresses that morning while me and the boys wore our sweatpants to the zoom meeting. This year, the Easter bunny planned a special fun set of clues with various gifts found throughout the hunt.  The girls were also up at 4:30 AM to begin this fun day, but were kind enough to wait till 5:45 AM before waking me and Magan.  I had fun watching them on their journey of clues that led them outside several times (with a flashlight...remember it was 5:45AM), led them into our room in the closet, a quiet peek into the boys room, and even a trip back into their room (The Easter Bunny had visited everyone that night with clues in this easter basket hunt)...and finally to the secret hiding place for their gifts...Mom's photography studio.  The Easter bunny had gotten a couple of games that Ruby could play since she was always getting kicked out of spades and hearts...and the games of stomple and Ticket to Ride have become good games for the whole family. 

 

The Saturday before Easter, we went to what may be the only open green area with a picnic table not roped off in all of Birmingham.  We had a great meal from Margarita grill...where we were able to get Magan's craving...Queso Dip.  Me and the boys practiced our Frisbee golf throwing techniques, then me and the girls did some gymnastics, then we played I Spy, then I tried to "read their mind" and "read their palms" to figure out what they were thinking of...haha, Buby liked the magic I was trying...while Belle just rolled her eyes a bit.  It was a fun time, and then I remember falling asleep on that grass for awhile in the sun.  A good day.  A wonderful weekend. 

 

I also found the Easter Bunny's letter this year...so figured I would attach it below...

 

Hippity Hoppity Easter’s Finally Here!   Hey guys! I hope you like all the treats this year. 

Wow, this is a crazy year, but I am glad you guys are doing well, and quarantined at your house.  It did not bother me, but I am being safe and wearing a cute little bunny mask that one of Santa’s elves made me.  Did you guys know that they are making masks for many of the doctors and nurses?  Oh, and Santa and Mrs. Claus are also doing well, they are used to staying at home in the North Pole for most of the year. 

 

Belle…I heard about that crazy tooth you finally lost.  The tooth fairy told me that she came by your house every night for two weeks thinking it would be out.  I am sorry you are missing your friends during this time, but I have some prizes at the end of this adventure that will hopefully bring some smiles. 

 

Ruby…You are getting so big!  I can’t believe that you are already in kindergarten.  Do you like carrots?  I like carrots…but you guys would not be happy if I just brought carrots…haha…I found some of those candy carrots, how bout those?  I hope you like all the candy, and you will love the surprizes too!

Sam and Davis…You boys are also getting sooo big.  These little baskets just don’t hold all the candy.  Hey, I got you guys a few prizes too, but I am guessing those girls will beat you to the adventure, so they will probably just leave your prizes by your easter baskets.  I hope you guys will use your prizes to have some fun time with your sweet sisters. 

I left some treats for your mom and dad up high on the mantel, they get my leftovers.  And girls…I have hidden 12 eggs in the living room and dining room for you to find.

Ruby and Belle:  To find your prize, you must work together to find each clue.  These clues will lead you on an adventure, but at the end is your prizes.  I hope you can find them!  If you need any help, just wake your dad up, he used to find all the clues I left for him when he was a little boy. 

Clue #1 - This is a place that gets really hot, also where your mamma makes tater tots!  Oh, and I left you a garbage bag for your adventure…heee heee   you might find some prizes on the way!

You guys be good, and I’ll see you next year…

E. B.

PS…As I said before above, I hid a few eggs around the house, but I want to be fair, so Sam and Davis, there are 8 eggs hidden downstairs in the den.  Maybe you can find them while you play your video games. 



 

Quarantine Moments with Mom

I thought since I have a little extra time during these quarantine days and Scott is actually working through all of this (in the middle of the Dining Room), he hasn't been able to join in on all of the Fun Painting Projects the kids have had the joy of participating in with me.  Side note it was WAY over due with 4 kids growing up with lots of toys, cars and light sabers going through this house and bumping the walls.  I got caught up on editing the first week of quarantine and then started painting the second week.

We began with the kitchen storage cabinet then the walls.  Davis helped me with these and he was a happy helper for the most part.  We enjoyed our time together and checked behind each other to see if we had any drips.  He loved talking about the storage cabinet and where it had been, how it had been in our nurseries as babies at my mom's house.  What colors it had been etc.  UNTIL, it was  his designated game playing time (Scott had a hard time with no schedule so he implemented schedules that changed sometimes daily and other times weekly).  Once game time started Davis started getting short tempered and wiggly....it took me a minute to realize why.  I set him free and finished the rest that night plus the tops of the cabinets the next day.  Overall an uneventful and a productive day.
 
On day two painting the kitchen, I finished the top of the cabinets in the morning and then the boys and I tackled the car garage doors plus the door into the garage.  Again great participation with minimal complaint or issues.....It all goes down hill from here.

First we realize once the paint has dried in the kitchen, that the kitchen storage cabinet is the SAME color as the walls!  I was so disgusted with the fact that the paint chips were so wrong...I just had to leave it for a few days before I could even look at it again.

The next day I begin painting the hallway.  Scott kept laughing at me with my headlight on my head b/c it was SO dark in that stupid hall!  Neither boy wanted to help....so I recruited Belle to do some rolling for me.  She did ok but when Davis walked through and saw how "well" it was going, he had sympathy and took over until....you guessed it "game time".
While I was painting with Belle, Ruby was hanging out with us.  I asked her to sing me some kindergarten songs while I painted and she was very excited to start singing.  She sang her all famous OH a Milkshake song, then again with the most popular British accent.  Then we played and sang A Tootie Tot.  She stopped right in the middle and got teared up and fell in my lap and said "Mom, I really miss my teachers."  Kind of made me get teared up a little too b/c I know how much she loves Mrs. Williams.
She was also very concerned about whether or not Stella and her other friends had lost their teeth yet.
Sam trickled in and helped me finish the hall too just for a little while.  SO glad I finished the hall in one day.  It was one of the worst things we've painted.  I think b/c it was so dark and a textured wall.
 
The next day I started the kids bathroom which was the easiest room I've done.  Sam came in at the end and rolled some for me.  The whole room took half the time of the hallway.
 
NOW for the worst room in the house, the one that almost made me cry.
MY BATHROOM!  I recruited the boys and didn't give them an option, they had to help.  We painted almost the whole bathroom starting early afternoon til almost midnight, did I mention it was the same day I had worked all morning in the kids bathroom.

We get to the the last few spots to roll and we run out of paint!  But before that happened I turned too fast while talking to Davis and spilled paint all the way down my leg and all over the floor.  We were all super disappointed not to be able to finish.  We started to walk out and realized that Davis had been rolling the paint too thick on the end of the roll and the big wall would have to be sanded down b/c it looked terrible with streaks all over it.

I wake up and looked in the bathroom the next morning to discover that the color was all wrong!!!!  I had picked the color out on the internet b/c we can't go into the store to get color swatches during quarantine.
I facetimed Benet' and she gave me the hard cold truth that I just needed to cut my losses and paint it over.
SO I go and buy another gallon of paint and begin painting the whole thing again and I also sanded down almost an entire wall.
I didn't ask anyone for help b/c I felt too guilty asking them to do the same room again.  Belle came in and tried to help brush the corners but that was a huge mess...not only b/c she kept having drips but b/c I over filled her cup.  So I poured some into mine (b/c pouring it in my cup would avoid a spill)....well I AGAIN spill my cup as I am reaching up to put it on the ladder.  This time all the way down the front left side of my shirt and it seeps through to my favorite bra.  I am in the bathroom with Belle ripping my shirt off and trying to clean my bra before it dries and also trying to get it off the floor and out of the grout, it was EVERYWHERE!

Belle decides she is finished helping too and goes with her dad and sister to play Frisbee Golf.  Davis goes to ride bikes with a friend and so it's just me and Sam (with a hurt ankle from running the day before).  He drops in to check on me and without my having to ask, he walks right in and starts helping me.  <3 .="" a="" afternoon="" and="" awesome="" br="" day.="" finally="" had="" hadn="" i="" in="" late="" laughs="" lot="" made="" nbsp="" of="" painted="" painting="" previous="" progress.="" something="" started="" t="" that="" the="" we="">We were in the home stretch feeling pretty good about ourselves and Sam goes into the toilet room sets the roller pan FULL of paint on the TOP of the toilet and walks back into the main bathroom to get his wash rag and SPLASH we heard it but neither one of us wanted to walk in there.....THE TOILET WAS BLUE!  The baseboard, the floor and grout and Blinds cover piece....I really didn't even know how to start cleaning it up.....Wow so much paint.....So wish I would have snapped a picture of that one but I was in panic mode.
 
We some how survived and have managed to laugh about it a lot.  I guess we laugh to keep from losing our minds sometimes, ha!
I gave myself about 4 or 5 days before I revisited repainting the storage cabinet in the kitchen but I did it all by myself and it is totally done now!  Pretty sure I'm going to need a few weeks before I pull that paint brush out again.  We also need to grow back the brain cells we lost from the fumes.
I guess I felt like I needed to get all of that painting done before someone told me life was going to go back to normal again...but it seems that life isn't going to go back to normal for a little while longer now.  Don't worry my list is still realllllllly long for things that need cleaned out, organized, edited, and done around here.  I think I may need those few more months to get through it all.

It is really weird, about two weeks before this all happened.  I clearly remember thinking....well I guess the 10 things on my list may have to get done when the kids move out at this rate, b/c there is literally no time to think about it at all right now.
I also told a friend that I love being so busy, but hate being so busy, and don't know how to slow down.....well God took care of that too.

I am unbelievably thankful for this time with my family and not feeling guilty about so many other things that can't get finished....b/c those things aren't happening.

I think I was kind of made for quarantine.  I have everything I need and love all right here with me and it is kind of amazing.  I do miss everyone else but will enjoy every moment I can with my people.

I won't waste these days but I will enjoy them and get some work done as we get to it.
Playing games and watching them play has been some of my favorite times.  Snuggling is at the top of the list and just talking while we work.
Sam and I love joking and laughing about this Meme right now:

Davis can make some musical notes in his pants while bending and stretching to paint.

Belle and Ruby and I have been snuggling and watching The Good Witch this whole break every chance we get.

Oreo has been getting more loving than he probably wants but he's taking it like a champ.

Listening to the kids do their lessons on Wednesday nights is one of my most favorite things.  Sam has blossomed and seems so confident and shares smiles while he does his talk.  Wow has he come a long way from that little sweet boy who was so nervous to talk to people, he couldn't even force a smile back then.

Davis' lesson referring back to the Pigeon Books was my most favorite message he has shared.  I loved how he applied so many principles to something so simple and easy for the girls to understand.

The girls are getting better each week with applying their lesson in different areas.  Belle's river representing the Bible and the streams that come off and spread the message was also my favorite.

I get to see a little glimpse into their hearts and thoughts as they apply their Bible knowledge into their life and something they understand.  It is the BEST part of Quarantine.

Ruby whispered to me "Mom, I love dad working at home."
I have to admit I do too.  There's no travel time and we get to share our lunch break with him too.  He may like to be more structured during this strange time than we do, but we can roll with that too and we are probably more productive b/c of it.

God thank you for your protection during this strange time and thank you for this beautiful family I am stuck with.

Mr. Flynn's Quarantine 80th Birthday Parade

Mr. Flynn is in the Alabama Boxing Hall of Fame, he is boxer, a trainer, can throw his voice, deer charmer, squirrel raising character.  He was one of the first ones I ever spoke with at the Chelsea church of Christ, and told me about them being more like a family than a church.  Mr. Flynn doesn't sugar coat anything, and when he starts "ciphering" on a bible subject, you better watch out, because he will hit you will some hard truths, and say it in a way everyone can understand. 

 

But I must ask again...Who is Flynn Gerald?  Who is this man that instantly makes people feel that he is in charge?  Who is this man that makes others laugh just by him cracking a grin?  He will tell you right away that he loves the Lord.  His children are faithful, and his wife is as sweet as can be, but who is this former Far-East Welterweight Champion boxer, voice throwing extraordinaire, fisherman of any lake or sea, story telling comedian?  He is just Flynn and the stories he tells have kept me laughing for several days.  His tales are told by others with the same hysterical response.  Flynn Gerald is just a man, but his stories are legendary. 

I can't remember all of the Flynn Stories...but I did write down the tagline that was supposed to help me remember the story...Flynn goes to a High School Dance...Flynn closes down Desoto Caverns (I am sure this was probably him throwing his voice)...Flynn scares a recently widowed woman into thinking her husband is alive...Flynn tells me about my best defense....Flynn watches me jump rope (Yeah, I think Flynn just told me to stop, he said it looked like I was having a fit)...Flynn fights the karate champ...Flynn punches the strongest man...Flynn messes with a drunken black man by throwing his voice...Flynn takes Chris fishing during a tornado...Terry throws Flynn through the wall of his garage...Flynn and Brian take turns breaking each other’s ribs...Flynn and the ladies workout sessions...Flynn breaks Chris’s ribs...

 

And today he turned 80!  Wow, after this parade Mrs. Wanda thought up and Magan facilitating, Mr. Flynn went into his boxing gym and hammered that bag in a way I still would never be able to do.  I would want no part of the ring with him.  I may be able to make it a round in another 10 years.  He is my brother in Christ...and a man I have grown to respect in many ways.  The Junkin van went around the loop for a second time, playing "Eye of the Tiger" in our van...I hope to do this again in another 10 years.  We all stayed within 6 feet for the quarantine, but it was nice to see all of our friends come out and celebrate our good church friend during this difficult time. 



 

 

 

 

Home Bible Class

We have decided to let the kids lead us in our Wednesday Night Bible Class, and give them opportunities to find lessons on their own to teach us.  We have had some good lessons...

Davis taught us about the Pigeon Driving the Bus (the Pigeon being like Satan tempting us to drive the bus, and you do not want a pigeon driving the bus).  He also taught us about a story about Jonah and to trust God when being told to do something.  He then taught us about 3D printing and how you have to be patient as each level is printed...just like God is patient with us.

Sam taught us about Jesus being the Promise (Genesis), the Prophesy (Isaiah), then the Fulfillment in John 1.  He also found a comparison of the Armor of God being needed to the skills needed for Call of Duty.  And another was around us being the clay being molded by God.

The girls teamed up to first have the barbie dolls show us a youtube movie telling the story of Esther.  They next used a picture drawn by Belle of a stream to illustrate that we evaporate into heaven, and we are full of God's water.  And last they shared some animal pictures they drew, and each animal reminded them of a bible story (lion, Daniel; bird, Noah's ark; Forest animals, Creation).