A Good Birthday

Having a birthday five days before Christmas is not the greatest. Last year, despite our best efforts, Mike's 40th birthday was not good. So the kids and I really wanted to make this year better. His birthday was on a Sunday and we still had a couple days of school/work left, so I knew we would be in town for the big day and could do something special. 

I splurged and bought Mike a Nintendo Switch video game console - and let the kids in on the secret. I was shocked and proud that they all kept it a secret ... even Dec, who was beyond excited about the Nintendo! Mike did know that it would be good when D kept asking if we would open presents at breakfast. There was also a big box from Gma, Gpa, and Auntie that they were very curious about. I had not shared that secret with them.

We let Mike sleep in on the birthday proper and then Dec begged him to open his presents. The Switch was a big hit, although I had not realized that it didn't come with any games. So Mike got a few ordered for pick up later that day (ooops!). Dec could hardly wait to "help" test out the birthday gift. Then Mike opened the mystery box ... and found a slackline ninja warrior course. 

I made eggs and bacon for breakfast, got Mike a couple McRibs for lunch, and made a successful (and significantly less disastrous than last year) dinner of pork chops, au gratin potatoes, and strawberry shortcake. It was a good food day for Mike! [Our grill was broken last year, which is part of why the pork chops dried out. Mike grilled the chops this year and they were much better. We had a flame up issue that we feared would ruin dinner yet again - but instead, gave the chops a perfect char.]

It was a fun and relaxing day and the kids were in great moods. Mike put up the slackline course even though he had said he wouldn't (no one believed him)! It is quite difficult and will be a good challenge for the kids. My gift was watching Mike get tangled up in the ladder on the course. We also made sugar cookies and spritz cookies to bring north for Christmas. Basically I was in the kitchen all day while everyone else played video games on the new Switch. Mario Kart and Animal Crossing were big hits!

I had one final surprise up my sleeve and enlisted the kids to help me pull it off. They were so proud and excited to be part of the plan and did a great job. We hurried to make sure showers were done and dinner was cleaned up. Quinn distracted Mike while I made a couple whiskey drinks and hid them in our mailbox. 

At exactly 7:10, we headed out the door for our walk and I yelled to the kids that they could watch "one show only" ... except they knew that this night, even though I said one, they could watch two. Because at the end of our walk, I grabbed the drinks and our two neighbor family buddies walked to the ends of their driveways to toast the birthday boy and visit across the street from each other. Mike was so surprised!

Later that night, he told me that it was the best birthday he has had in quite a while. That's exactly what the kids and I were going for! They were so happy when I told them that we made Daddy's day really special. And now I know, involve them in the plans more often. They are great helpers!

At Home: Week 4

Happy 2021!! It's New Year's Day. But in typical fashion (that is not entirely my fault), we are not even close to done with December stories. So it'll be 2020 here in blog world for a few more posts. Which is pretty on brand, since we were still opening Christmas presents today ... (also not entirely my fault. and totally worth it ... wait about five posts, and you'll agree)

Week four of the great self-isolation / distance learning / work from home experiment was decidedly better than week three (granted the bar was really low). We had spent the weekend outside on the lake and by Monday, Mike decreed the rink ready for children to boot skate (no blades yet). It's so interesting - and not at all surprising - that attitudes, spirits, and general outlook on life improved dramatically the more days in a row that we were able to get outside and get the energy out!

Because snow fell on Sunday, the rink needed to be shoveled. But the ice wasn't solid enough to support Mike (or so he said) ... so maintenance was outsourced.

On Tuesday, a "warming shack" was popped up in the yard. It seemed to be used more for snack consumption - and in the case of Quinn, one virtual math class. It was also a great conversation starter when Mike and I were out on our nightly walks around the neighborhood. Apparently not everyone has a fish house in their back yard.

It wasn't all ice and rinks around it (only 95% - give or take). We were also getting ready for Christmas and the kids made homemade cards for their awesome teachers. It's always so fun to see the unique and creative ways that they each show they care.

Quinn had a virtual Bingo night with her hockey team - and even though she didn't win, she was so happy to see the faces of her friends and teammates. Hockey starts up again January 4th and she is ready!

Wednesday night was the big night here. Mike decided the ice was ready for kids ... with skates. After dinner, they all put their blades on and Fiona did the inaugural puck drop. We did it in full MN Wild style and as the puck dropped, she said "let's play hockey." Then she shrieked because Q and D were all over that puck!

It was so much fun to see them out on the rink, skating, battling, tumbling over the boards (we might need higher boards), and enjoying the fresh air. The rink looks so big until you actually start skating on it. Coach Mike says that it will force people to work on their stick handling - and their hockey stops! [Also, please admire Mike's rink light. And yes, we can control it with our Alexa device.]

On Saturday, we were sick of our house and Mike wanted to test out his brand new BIG ice house. So he put it up in the yard and we had lunch in the fish house. Creative? Desperate for a change of scenery? We didn't think too hard about that question. Indeed, there were two different fish houses in our yard in one week. We really were the talk of the block!

Holiday Piano Recital

Sunday morning, all the kids could talk about was going back to the lake to skate again. All the kids (and adults) could do was move very slowly because we were so tired from the exercise and fresh air the day before. There was a lot of moaning and groaning and working up to doing anything. Nonetheless right after lunch, we headed back to the lake, knowing that there was a definite chance of it going sideways quickly because the humans were wiped. But firm in our belief of the power and benefit of fresh air on attitudes!

We got a small dusting of snow mid-morning, so the lake was less glass and more white. It was perfect for making patterns with the hockey sticks we brought - or spraying people with hockey stops. Fact about snow on lake - it is much harder to spot protruding branches or holes in the ice. Mike had quite the dramatic wipeout! The attitudes were a bit edgier than the day before, but we still enjoyed skating around for about an hour. Then we needed to pack it up because we had big afternoon plans.

Miss Fiona was going to be playing Away In a Manger in her second [virtual] piano recital. We had enough time when we got home to decorate our gingerbread cookies and then she called in Q's assistance and disappeared to get ready. There were lots of giggles from the bedroom. Dec, to his chagrin, was banned. We were reminded yet again both how big the girls are getting and How We Need More Bedrooms!

Fiona emerged fully decked out in her holiday gear and looked fantastic. She even asked me to put her hair up and decided the high ponytail I did is her new signature look. She was both super excited and very nervous. Thankfully this time, she did not have to go first, which helped a lot. It also wasn't her first recital ever, so she knew more of what to expect. Her sweet friend E also takes lessons from the same teacher, so we got to watch E and her brother play. And Quinn knew several others from hockey [Q is debating whether she wants to take lessons or not. It's in the mix with softball and gymnastics. Q may have her mama's tendency to over-commit]. 

Fiona played her song very well and was super proud (no tears!!). I was told very firmly to not video her playing during the recital, but she let me record this encore after the fact to share with you. Enjoy!

Lace 'Em Up

As I mentioned before, Week 3 was not our best week. Both Mike and I had crazy weeks at work and all three kids were over distance learning (they at least spread it out so only one kid was losing their crap at a time ... ). They were stressed. We were stressed. No one was the best version of themselves. So I'll spare you much more recap than that. Key takeaways from the week:

- Mike flooded the rink. It took two days to fill it up. Our flat-looking yard is not flat. There is a very deep corner where I was worried we had a pool instead of a rink. Quinn and Declan were so excited and really great helpers. The rink looks awesome. Everyone should have a dad as cool as Mike!

- Quinn made a batch of rolo pretzel Christmas cookies all on her own - including oven work. I simply yelled up instructions and she took it from there. Mike did supervise the oven work, for the record. 

- By mid-afternoon on Friday, when I was desperately trying to meet a work deadline and dealing with constant interruptions, it is possible that my temper was a teeny tiny bit short. Allegedly. So Mike packed up the gang to go explore for an hour or so and left me with a quiet house to finish up my work day.

The bonus of their Friday exploration was that when they went down to O'Dowd Lake to wander around, Mike thought the bay was frozen enough to maybe skate on. So Saturday after lunch, we grabbed warm clothes (learned our lesson from the week before), skates, helmets, and Mike's auger. The ice was perfect glass. It's been cold, but there has been any snow so you can see right through it to the lake bottom! Those ice conditions are pretty rare, so it was really exciting to get out, let the kids experience it, and take advantage of it. Fun fact: lake skating is the best. Mike and I can't remember the last time we were lake skating, but we immediately remembered how much we love it!

Glass ice does make it tricky to guess how thick the ice is. So once Mike drilled a few holes to verify quality and thickness, it was deemed safe to skate. Hooray! While we waited near the shoreline for him to drill, the kids and I spotted several turtles swimming under the ice. It was so cool to watch them - and yet have six inches of ice between us. Fiona even spotted a huge snapper! Its shell was bigger than a foot diameter - and it was amazing to watch. 

The turtles paled in comparison to skates though. Quinn almost crawled out of her skin in excitement and could.not.wait to get her skates on. It had been over three weeks and she desperately needed to skate! All five of us laced up and we spent two hours skating up and down the bay. There were skating drills (Coach Mike is always coaching), games of tag, superman dives, races, and so much happiness. It was exactly what everyone needed! 

After we were done skating, we went over to Thole Lake where the ice was definitely not thick enough to walk on. But it was fun to stand on the shore and break the ice skim with giant rocks. By the time we got home, everyone had rosy cheeks and big smiles. We made hot cocoa and enjoyed a very quiet bedtime!

Ice Ice Baby

After a day inside, we wanted to get out and explore on Sunday. I put Mike in charge of the plan and he decided we were going to check out Cedar Lake Farm regional park in New Prague. After lunch, we grabbed our stuff and headed out. In hindsight, we should not have been distracted by the beautiful sunshine and instead should have looked at the temperature. Warmer coats would have been a good idea!

However, despite getting cold faster than we expected (that wind was brutal), it was a great place to explore. Our favorite discovery is that the lake was frozen over enough at the shoreline that we could slide around on the ice a little bit. Wow have we missed skating! You have never seen five people so happy to slide on ice in their boots. The kids could not stop smiling and would have been content to stay at the lakeshore the entire time. 

However, their parents felt differently and wanted to explore the trails in the woods. As we followed the trail, Teacher Mike came out in full force. We stopped for a lesson on barb wire and why you never ever ever [Quinn!] climb wire that looks like it. Then we stopped again so he could point out deer rub on a tree trunk. He asked if anyone knew what it was and all three kids answered immediately that it was deer rub. I honestly don't think I've ever seen Mike look so proud. No one can say that Teacher Mike is skimping on the life skill basics (How To Spot a Deer. Why to Avoid Barb Wire.). 

We climbed a big tree, accidently wandered through a bunch of prickers, discovered mom's secret talent of de-prickering people, and checked out more ice along the shore. However the wind was getting to all of us and we were cold! We hustled back to the car as fast as ten legs could hustle and turned up the heat.

When we got home, everyone was very excited to discover that I had added hot chocolate and marshmallows to the week's grocery delivery. Mike even added some peppermint liquor to the adult cups and it was quite delicious! It warmed us up nicely!

Then after cocoa, it was time. We finally let them watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Fiona loved it and belly laughed multiple times. Dec smiled a few times, but it might have been a little over his head. Quinn watched the entire movie straight-faced. I caught her cracking a smile once - but she knew I caught her. So she was careful to not smile again. 

They all claimed that they enjoyed it and said they would watch it again. But sheesh - tough crowd! Maybe it just couldn't compete with the discovery of ice and the thought of lacing our skates back up!