How old ARE you Dada???

Happy Birthday Babe!! While in quarantine, there's not much to do but stay home and celebrate. So, we started Stephen's birthday festivities early with a Friday evening barbecue with the Gates.

Lia's way of helping Miles up the slide -ha!

"ready?!..."

"Gooo!!!"

*giggle giggle giggle*

Facetime with Gramma and Grampa

Stephen spent the evening having an impromptu college reunion with a ton of his friends via ZOOM. He had a blast! They all chatted, toasted and took turns updating everyone on their life/telling funny stories. Stephen was just all cackles since he hasn't seen a lot of these people in a long while.

The next morning, I set up fun birthday decor and once Stephen woke up, we opened gifts. The boys made Stephen these super cute cards with hand prints and footprints. I have to say... they came out better than Pinterest *shoulder brush*  :P

The girls spent the day before making this amazing banner to wish Bob-o a happy birthday. I wasn't sure what to expect, but they blew me away! This banner is insanely cool. We had the Gates over for a big brunch and the girls were pumped to see it already hanging up.

Showing off their work:
Lia:  "Bob-o, this is you fishing (pointing to the guy on top of the "T"). You caught a fish. But... not the big one at the bottom of the pond. You also have a snake about to bite your BUTT!!"
Erin:  "Bob-o I drew you hitting a ball off the H!"
Halle:  "How OLD are you?!"
bahaha

Stephen's birthday panCAKE

After breakfast, my parents stopped by to wish Stephen and happy birthday. We all hung out in the front yard playing with the new bubble blowers I bought the kids and doing sidewalk chalk. Everyone kept their distance and it was fun to catch up.

The rest of the afternoon, Stephen was at the pond (trying to catch the big fish...no luck...) relaxing.

Miles went out to say Hi and perfect timing - he got to join in on the canoe!

We had a quiet and dinner and ended the night with some social distancing driveway sitting with the Devlins. Such a great time. Such a great birthday.

Cov-urkey Day

When COVID-19 became a real thing, we headed out to stock up on meat and produce thinking we've entered into some sort of Apocalypse. In the midst of this, Todd bought a turkey. A legit, huge, turkey. Looking back, it may not have been absolutely necessary as we have an inordinate amount of food now. But hey, what the heck. It's April. It's .... uh .... a day. Not sure what day. So let's do this. Thanksgiving in April amist a wide spread pandemic to which we re-named "Cov-urkey Day"

Turkey dance compliments of Stephen. Miles didn't quite understand what was happening. ha!

While the turkey was frying, the guys decided they wanted to capitalize on the recent rain and setup a make-shift water pump to try and fill the pond. Todd heard a rumor from a friend that he'd seen a rattlesnake back there, so our eyes were peeled. But, in the back of our minds, we're thinking "it's been 3 years and no terrifying snake. A rattler? nah"

.....

Yup. That is a dead 5-6ft rattlesnake. Why it's hanging from a tree? Ask Todd...

Meanwhile, the kids were outside playing. Happily playing.

And why wouldn't they be? Literal mud trucks. Miles was in HEAVEN.

Facetime with the Devlins

We made sure all the kids got to say hi

We pulled out all the stops. Fried turkey, stuffing, roasted broccoli, fried sweet potatoes, homemade potato chips, pasta, wine (essential) - YUM -

In Today's World...

Just so we never forget.... April 4, 2020

Gas prices $1.44 per gal.
School cancelled - yes cancelled until further notice.
Self-distancing measures on the rise.
Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers (6ft) from each other.
Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors.
Non-essential stores and businesses mandated to close.

Business still in operation only offering curb-side pickup to protect workers and patrons.

Unemployment rates increasing by the day.
Parks, trails, entire cities locked up.
Entire sports seasons cancelled - all sports at all levels.
Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled.
Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled.
No masses, churches are closed.
No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or more.
Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home.
Children's outdoor play parks are closed.
We are to distance from each other.
Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers.
Shortage of ventilators for the critically ill. Parts are being made by 3D printers and developers to outfit one ventilator to be used for multiple patients.
Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer.
Shelves are bare.
Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.
Government closes the border to all non-essential travel.
Fines are established for breaking the rules.
Stadiums and recreation facilities open up for the overflow of Covid-19 patients.
Press conferences daily from the President. Daily updates on new cases, recoveries, and deaths.
Government incentives to stay home.
Barely anyone on the roads.
People wearing masks and gloves outside.
Essential service workers are terrified to go to work.
Medical field workers are afraid to go home to their families.

People are lysoling boxes and mail before bringing it home.

The constant hand washing and cracking skin. 

Learning NOT to touch your face - so much harder than it sounds.

Knowing we're living in history. A worldly outbreak. 

This is the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic, declared March 11th, 2020.

One day we will read back in our photo book to remember these times. The good, the bad, the paranoid and the bored. 

Be kind to each other - love one another - support everyone. And above all. Stay home!  #flattenthecurve

11 Months (+2 weeks)

After the much anticipated wait, I give you our baby boy. Now 11.5 months old. Can you believe it?! Insane.

I had seen this Calvin and Hobbes comic and was so excited to get Carson out by the pond. The issue with that is we had to wait for decent weather.

When I saw this comic, my original idea (and what we had set out to do) was this:

Adorable. However, the close up shot tipped the scale on sweetness, so the official photo was selected. And the overalls. Did you see the overalls?! In.Love. (credit to Becky on that idea) #worththewait

This little booger @ 11.5 months:
- He's on his feet! This has been a recent accomplishment and he's SO proud. He's still trying to figure out how to get down. We've have a couple naps where he starts to cry, we go in there and realize he's stuck. Stuck standing up

- He is getting better with his solid foods. It's a slow go, but we're getting better.
- The transition to the cup has been...well...pretty non existent. We've tried a ton of different styles and he just doesn't seem interested. We'll keep plugging away here...
- He's gotten close to escaping through the dog door but hasn't taken the full leap (thankfully)
- Loves ice, strings, balls, shoes, going on walks, being outside. Hates grass, shoes on HIS feet
- Has graduated to the big tub and loves to crawl around and splash in the water.
- His current favorite activity is taking toys and putting them places. On the table, in the bin, in the tub, through the slats of the gate. All the things. I think cause and effect is super interesting to him.
- Not a big book buff. He'll look at them but reading doesn't keep his attention for as long as compared to Miles
- Can climb up on things. But doesn't know how to get down.
- Wearing 12 & 18 month clothes. Will likely be into mainly 18 month by the summer.
- We're on a solid schedule! Wake up around 7-8am. Nap at 10am and 2pm and bedtime at 7:30-45pm. It's been amazing.
- He can sign milk and all done. The "milk" is not as consistent, but his "all done" is so cute. Waves his hands in the air and seems to say "a du!" I've been trying to get it on camera, but no luck so far.
- Sucks on the neck of his snuggies.
- His curls are coming in and I'm so excited :)
- Has 6 teeth!
- Has a cackly, gurgly laugh. It's so funny
- super wiggly on the changing table making thing quite interesting.
- If you sit on the floor, there's a 99% chance Carson will think of you as a jungle gym and crawl/climb all over you

Sweet little squinty smile

One thing that's great about this whole quarantine thing is watching these boys learn and grow. Carson is just a sweetie and Miles is this determined little dude. Watching Miles figure things out - you can just see his brain working. It's amazing. Stephen and I are just beyond thankful for these little boys.

Happy 11 months Carson!

COVID Diaries - Week 1

We survived the first week of "quarantine". While it didn't become an official Shelter in Place until March 25th, we've been distancing ourselves from pretty much everyone and everything - living the life before it was required. I keep thinking to myself, "is this seriously real life?". It's so strange. Strange to think this will be a historical moment in time that we'll look back on. So we're wanting to tally this "adventure", the weird things we find ourselves doing and document just how we get/got through these days together.

Before this whole thing hit, Stephen bravely set out to stock up both households (Short's and Gates') with the essentials.

Yes. Alcohol is an essential item.

I did a pickup order at Target for diapers, wipes and formula. They were having a sale. So on top of stocking up, I took advantage of the sale. Stephen, the Target worker and the lady behind him weren't quite prepared for the sheer number of items I purchased. (2) Carts and some semi-judgmental looks later, Stephen calls and says "Babe, I look like a hoarder!" My response "Baby's gotta poop!" Classic.

The kids have been doing great overall. We've had our fair share of days where things are just inside out and upside down. Their emotions are everywhere and they don't understand why. Stephen and I are trying to come up with more way to differentiate their days to keep things interesting or structured in a way. So we've bought them some new toys, outside play things and some educational items to help with our best effort to home school. (If anyone else out there is like us, I'd say Amazon is doing GREAT during all this lol)

Miles and I have studied Math and Science:

Art:

Engineering/Architecture:

And have worked on his colors:

Miles is teaching Carson about cause and effect:

And brotherly love:

Carson is also enjoying some sensory play:

this kid loves him some ice

And gym class:

Stephen is teaching Miles the appreciation of a good days work:

Which is rewarded by some time in your happy place....wherever that might be. For Stephen, it's here:

For Miles, it's here:

OR here:

Miles enjoying an oreo treat thanks to Aunt Becky

All of us are missing our friends. We've taken the "I'm going to run down to the Devlins", brunch, happy hour or dinner outings for granted. When all this is over, we know better. But for now, we'll make do with what we've got.

FaceTime happy hour with my girls group

Stephen keeping it real with the Devlins

The Devlins' response. Ha!

We are so hoping to see our friends soon, but for now, we're thankful to have The Gates as part of our bubble. I think the kids are too...

The real news and social news is insane. Both with terrifying and hilarious all at once. I have to admit, I am enjoying the memes.

But some things that come across are more alarming and further solidify the point to STAY HOME....

I mean.... it works I guess? But wtf!

We're home. And we aren't going anywhere anytime soon. So, cheers to all of you out there!! Stay safe!

ps. I know Carson's 11-mo pics are late. Promise - they're coming! Can't clothes shop and his outfit won't arrive until Sunday. But for now, hopefully this will tide you over.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S - Brought to you by Miles

Okay, so we all know Miles is working on his speech. He's trying new things and working really hard to have you understand him. For Stephen and I, we've learned his "language" pretty well. But, understandably, others might have a hard time.

I will preface this post by saying his attempts are getting better, we're seeing progress and by no means are we wanting to make fun. But, the similarities here are uncanny.....and pretty funny

He'll get there. We know he will. But I just had to mark this as moment in time so we can go back and giggle with him when he's older :P