Last week was our final week of summer vacation. School starts tomorrow. I’m trying to keep an open mind about distance learning and hope that I can be as supportive as possible.
I have to say, I do miss our annual trip to buy school supplies. There is nothing like that smell of Staples, the whiff when you walk in of plastic and wooden pencils. And fresh school supplies! So pristine and full of potential! Well at least this year, I didn’t have to silence my inner critic when the eight year old chooses a garish sparkly backpack featuring a licensed character. Something in me finds it hard to be supportive when confronted with so much glitter and shine, knowing it will have to be replaced come January.
I wanted to take advantage of the lack of screen obligations this week to spend time outdoors, and so we went on two outdoor adventures: a small walk along a creek on Monday, and for our Thursday adventure we went to Patapsco State Park. Both times the children whined that they didn’t like walking, but then ended up having a great time.
Patapsco was perfect for a hot hot day. The hike we chose was near a creek so the kids could play in the water. We didn’t bring any swim clothes, but they plunged into the water fully clothed and didn’t seem to mind. The river was pretty low so the three year old could go wading safely. Afterwards I asked the eight year old what made this adventure a good hike and she said, unequivocally, “It was near water.” I’ll have to file that one away for future hiking trips.
I tried out the hiking backpack carrier for the first time with the baby. It was a something that my brother had passed down to us last year. I had been reluctant to use it because I was afraid it was going to bulky. But you know what is truly bulky? Front carrying a baby in an Ergo while having a backpack of snacks and supplies on your back. My brother’s hiking pack had all sorts of pockets so lunch was tucked into a little space underneath the baby’s seat, while towels, wipes, one single diaper and hand sanitizer also had its own pocket. All the supplies and the baby on my back – with a sun shade! So easy and practical.
The hike to the waterfall was short but steep. There were a few moments where I almost pitched over with the baby on my back, but we all managed it to the water falls. We were one of the only people wearing masks, but groups seemed to be trying to give other groups some space, if not always 6 feet. The trail seemed unusually populated for a weekday morning, and I don’t know that I would feel comfortable there on a weekend, truth be told.
The baby fell asleep in the carrier during the hike and I successfully managed to get her out of the carrier and into the car seat without waking her. Which, as everyone knows, is a monumental achievement of stealth and smoothness. Also helps that sometimes she is a truly deep sleeper. (However, strangely not at 1:30am.) We stopped for ice cream on the way home, though the baby and the 3 year old fell asleep so only the eight year old and I indulged.
We also re-discovered the joys of fort building this week. Well, I had the joy of fort building. The kids had the joy of fort commissioning. We had gotten the kids this fort kit last Christmas. It’s gotten a good amount of use since then – great periods of frenzied activity with it followed by neglect. Earlier this summer we had even taken it outside and made forts in our backyard. This is definitely one of those projects where the kids dictate while I toil. “Taller!” “Can it have two rooms?” “I want a pointy roof!” Which is all fine – I enjoyed the building process, and afterwards I enjoyed the quiet as the kids dragged blankets inside and settled in. I did not, however, enjoy the shouts of disappointment when the forts were collapsed by sibling clumsiness.
Other things this week: my friend/ college roommate came over for “happy hour” – I’m really enjoying that she lives in the area and I hope she never leaves. I cleared out a bunch of space in the freezer by taking breast milk to the milk bank. I did some creative cardboard box building (more on that later). I discovered The Goes Wrong Show on Amazon. Not as funny as I want it to be, but still pretty funny. I do wish that it had more of the backstage view of things, but I don’t think that is the concept. Still contemplating my life choices, and wishing I had the time to do something on that front, but life doesn’t go as well when I neglect the children.
Quote of the week, courtesy of the eight year old: “The day after the pandemic is lifted, we should have a day off school so we can do all the fun things that we didn’t get to do before.”
Also – thing I said this week, that I never thought I would have to say: “Don’t put salami on your sister’s head!”
Last week’s meals:
Saturday: Pasta and meatballs. Super simple all made in the Instant Pot: layer some tomatoe sauce, pasta, frozen meatballs (made months ago because they are a good staple to have in the freezer), and more tomatoe sauce. Cook at high pressure for 22 minutes. On days I’m feeling ambitious, I will make the tomatoe sauce, but Simple Saturday is not for ambitious cooking. The Husband does note that I complicated things by making pesto to go with everything.
Sunday: Cauliflower Chicken Tikka Masala from Dinner Illustrated
Monday: Udon Noodles Stir fried with Vegetables. I believe I used zucchini, carrots and eggplant.
Tuesday: Sweet Potatoe and Chicken Thai Curry from Dinner Illustrated. I used Panang curry rather than red because that’s what we had. A definite winner.
Wednesday: Leftover Cauliflower Chicken Tikka Masala from Sunday. Threw in some potatoes to bulk it up. We had originally planned something else for Wednesday, but… life and consequences.
Thursday: Roasted salmon, pan fried Brussel sprouts and Instant Pot potaotes. Also ate sliced cucumbers on the side. I’ve come to embrace the idea that carrot sticks and cucumbers are a perfectly legitimate side dish.
Friday: Pizza take out while watching East Side Sushi. A lovely movie which left me craving sushi and wanting to sign up for a knife skills class. We streamed it on Amazon, and the subtitles weren’t working for the Spanish and Japanese dialogue scenes, leaving us clueless as to what was going on in many parts. It didn’t make a difference – you could totally tell what was happening. I can’t tell if that is a sign of good story telling, or simplistic story telling. Or maybe both?