November 2020 Recap

I'm still catching up with my blog -- writing about November 2020 in July 2021! Much like every other month, we really did out best to keep ourselves safe and healthy, which meant wearing our masks, limiting time with family, and focusing on outdoor activities.  Here's a quick look at our month in pictures:

The weather in Texas is usually pretty nice in November, so we got outside quite a bit. Early morning walks at the Arboretum are always a favorite activity. One of the neatest things about going so frequently was getting to see how the landscape changes with the seasons. There is always something beautiful to find out in nature!

Gene and I took a day off from work and spent the morning at Sheldon Lake State Park with Ruby. 

Ruby was tuckered out afterwards!

Because of Covid, we didn't get to spend much time with family or friends, but Gene took Henry over to Nana and Pop's one afternoon for some outdoor time with the cousins.  

It was also a very tense election season. Henry and I celebrated Biden's victory!

Henry had a day off from school for parent-teacher conferences, so he and Gene went to the zoo. Gene ended up talking to Henry's advisor while at the zoo! Fortunately, even with some distance learning, the boys both did well with school in 2020-2021. 

Here's a little peek at librarian life during a global pandemic: my library was closed to students but I still managed to get books to students by letting them place holds and by rolling carts into classrooms for booktalks and checkouts. It was a ton of work but it was so worth it to get books into the hands of my students! I would start each class period with two full carts, visit 2-3 classes per period, and run back to the library to restock the cart for the next set of classes. I even joined in virtual classes on Zoom to booktalk books on Sora (our ebook/audiobook platform).

Back at home, Gene was in charge of more weekday dinners because the boys and I didn't get home until 5:30 (late Kinkaid athletics). Gene loves to make savory pies for us -- they are so delicious!

Henry went back to in-person art class, and for an after-class treat would sometimes get boba tea from the little shop nearby.  

We sat outside and did some reading in the backyard,

Snickers discovered the joys of the clean laundry basket,

the boys played video games,

and the goats came back to the Arboretum. Obviously we had to go visit.

Snicekers went to the vet. No one likes going to the vet.  

And then it was Thanksgiving break. Dealing with students and worrying about Covid was so stressful that by the time we got to Thanksgiving break, I was worn out and spent several days just relaxing and recovering. And then the weather wasn't great, so we didn't do much with our holiday other than rest up and spend time together.  

This was actually our first Thanksgiving with just the four of us! It was really nice, but of course we missed spending time with family. Will helped make the pumpkin pie. Yum!!

Some funny pet pics:  Ruby loves to sleep this way.

And Orie bites the heads of dragons. #fierce

Will purchased a new video game with early Christmas money from Gramma and Grampa.

And we had fancy waffles for breakfast one morning.

Leftover turkey drumsticks

and another of Gene's delicious meat pies!

We took our annual family pictures in the backyard.

Goofy outtakes

The cats are family too!

That's it for November during a pandemic. It was unlike any other November, but we still had much to be thankful for, especially our family and our health.  

October 2020 Recap

Still catching up on blog posts in early July 2021 -- looking back at October 2020.  Here's a photo journey through our month:

October starts with Gene's birthday (47)! You can see Will's amazement looking at the balloons from Nana.  

Nana also made a Portuguese dessert (arroz doce) that she sent home with Gene. It was delicious!

Birthday gifts that Henry and I got at Local Foods. Gene really doesn't need anything, so foodstuffs are the way to go!

Henry had a random day off from school, so we spent it at the Arboretum. They've been bringing in goats from Rent-a-Ruminant to help "cut the grass" and it's so fun to see them at work. This was their first time at the Arboretum, but they've been back many times since.

Then we went back to the Arboretum with Will so he could see the goats too!

Another pretty day meant a quick hike at Cullinan Park in Sugarland.

Check out this amazing spider web!

Afternoon snack: cookies and hot chocolate sticks from Trader Joe's.

Gene did lots of baking.

And Henry made a model of a cell for a school project.

Henry loves violin and took orchestra in 7th grade.

Cat pics: Snickers loves to sit in the playroom at look out the window.

Always snuggling.

The kittens literally brought us so much joy!

It got cold enough that we turned on the fireplace.

And then we celebrated Halloween, pandemic style! We set up our chairs on the driveway and laid out piles of candy so trick-or-treaters could come and grab their own. It was fun!

Will decided he was too old for trick-or-treating, but Henry dressed up in his alien costume and hit a few houses on our street before coming back home to help pass out candy.

And that's a wrap for October 2020.