Nicki And Adam's Family Blog

Our "leisure" activities involve...hiking, hiking, biking, and hiking. We have explored more trails in Wisconsin than we ever have before. Colin is a beast on the trails and can easily hike 5 miles without tiring. The other 2 kids complain...no shocker there. Below are a few pictures of hikes that have kept us occupied. We also spend lots of time exploring around Epic as well. 

This is a picture of Carrie doing Ballet Virtually. Yup, she "zooms" with her teacher and other classmates and does ballet. What a world we live in currently...

The Governor has just extended the "Safer at Home" initiative until May 26th. So basically we are quarantined until then. The cases have basically flat lined in Wisconsin, but... So here, we go. We have good days and bad days. Most days are good. The kids are doing a very good job with all their academics. I seem to be keeping up with my work and Adam is getting his work done (still at work mostly) as well. Mentally...that's another story. Charlie is having a really hard time with all this. Obviously, he hasn't been anywhere other than the house and occasional car rides to nowhere and hiking for the last 4 weeks. He is heartbroken, sad, and a whole bunch of other emotions. He cries. A lot. My heart breaks for him too. Carrie is doing great. She seems to get adapt real quickly to change. She is a happy-go-lucky kid without a worry in her life. Colin is doing fine as well. He is SUPER smart...so when I am teaching him, he gets everything I teach the 1st time wh...

So many people have talked about our kids being "behind" because of this time off.  Someone offered a unique and amazing perspective: What if instead of "behind" this group of kids is advanced because of this? Hear me out... What if they have more empathy, they enjoy family connection, they can be more creative and entertain themselves, they love to read, they love to express themselves in writing. What is they enjoy the simple things, like their own backyard and sitting near a window in the quiet. What if the notice the birds and the dates the different flowers emerge and the calming renewal of a gentle rain shower? What if this generation are the ones to learn to cook and organize their space and do their laundry and keep a well run home? What if they learn to stretch a dollar and learn to live with less? What if they learn to plan shopping trips and meals at home. What if they learn the value of eating together as a family and finding the good to share...

It may be a birthday he never forgets. Social distancing celebrations with friends/family from far away. Charlie is more mature than I could ever have imagined when he came into the house at  8pm after an event filled day and said "this quarantine has taught be how much people like me." That is powerful. How often do we go through our daily lives and NEVER say these words to people. We are all at fault. Maybe, just maybe, we can transfer the few things we have learned from this Covid 19 pandemic into our post pandemic lives. Let's hope. l'll let the pictures speak, but you can see the love simply from the faces.  Happy 10th Birthday Charlie.