Batter Up!

Edith and Atticus both started baseball last week.

It's a sentence I had hoped never to say. I have never played an organized sport in my life and pretty much hate all types of weather. So watching practice after practice after practice after -- well, you get the idea -- never sounded too appealing.

Edith had asked about playing last year, but it didn't happen for two or three reasons. This spring, however, one of her good friends planned to play and asked if Edith wanted to join. Both of the girls' younger brothers could be on the same team, too. With Covid cases going down, I didn't really have a good reason to say no.

Both kids are on different teams because of their ages, and each has had two practices. The first days on the field were beautiful 70 degree afternoons, so at least I didn't regret the sign-ups first thing (although spending 2.5 hours at practices between two kids on Saturday came a little closer).

Edith and Atticus have had some catching practice at home and a little bit of batting practice, so they are very much newbies. Luckily many of their teammates are as well. So far the highlight seems to be learning the team cheer, and Edith said she asked her coach when they would get their uniforms. Priorities, you know.

I'll report back in a few weeks on how they are doing, hopefully with photos!

Almost Vaccinated

Things moved fast after I wrote last week’s post. I said that I hoped Paul and I would be vaccinated by May. For once real life was even better. Ohio’s governor opened up vaccine eligibility last week, so those 40 and older could get their shot. Paul got his first dose at a mass vaccination clinic on Sunday morning. As of Monday night his only side effect was a sore arm  

I’m a few months shy of 40, so I’m in the last group to get vaccinated in Ohio. Even that starts next Monday, however. After hours of refreshing vaccine appointment websites, I finally snagged a slot at a Kroger 10 minutes from home on next Tuesday. Phew. (Vaccine appointments are notoriously hard to schedule in Columbus, but in the more rural areas of Ohio there are appointments to spare. I know of many people who have traveled 45 minutes or more to get their shot.)

My second shot is scheduled for the end of April, so the weight won’t be fully lifted off of my shoulders til mid-May. Still, it’s nice to have something concrete to look forward to. 

Light at the End of the Tunnel

I’m starting to make plans again, tentatively. 

Dad has his second shot. Both Paul’s and my mom have their first. If things go well, Paul and I will get the vaccine at the beginning of May. 

So maybe I can have a 40th birthday party this summer after all. A block party doesn’t seem out of the question in July or August. And we’re brainstorming vacation ideas that can be put together on a moment’s notice, depending on what the quarantine situation looks like. (Canada still might not happen.)

I suspect the kids’ school will be hybrid for the rest of this school year, but I have high hopes for five days per week in the fall. And Edith is already talking about her birthday party in November.

It’s hard to believe we’re a full year into Covid. Schools first shut down a year ago this week. Everything seemed so uncertain. And it still is, but now I’m more optimistic. We’re almost there. 

School-at-Home Field Trip

 

March 5, 2021: Penguins (and the kids) at the Columbus Zoo

Our school district is still hybrid for elementary students, which means that the kids are in a school building only two days per week. Last week, for the first time, we actually took advantage of our extra time at home by doing something special.

On Friday we started school-at-home about an hour early and cut recess a little short. That gave us plenty of time to visit the Columbus Zoo in the afternoon.

It was cold, but sunny and deserted. Actually, it was quite lovely. When we nabbed one of the closest parking spots to the entrance, I knew it was going to be a good trip. Not all of the animals were out because of the weather (including my favorites, the giraffes), but Atticus was thrilled to see the penguins of course. And I've never been so close to the lions, just on the other side of the glass. The air seemed to reverberate with the roar we heard, and Atticus scurried to my side when one of them gave him a long look.

At-home school days are often difficult and frustrating for all of us. Our field trip made the week a little lighter.

Photos: July --> February

Not doing anything = not taking any photos. But here are the highlights from the last few months of the few things we did see and do.

July 19, 2020: First day of bunk beds, and maybe the only time their beds were ever made.

August 6, 2020: Edith graduated to rollerblades not long after!

August 30, 2020: Vacation was canceled due to the pandemic, so we went to Cincinnati and walked to Kentucky instead.

August 30: The bridge between Cincinnati and Newport.

August 30: A playground in Cincinnati.

September 8, 2020: The first day of Zoom school. Edith's desk has never been so clean.

September 22, 2020: Visiting the conservatory with masks.

October 31, 2020: Halloween.

November 21, 2020: Edith's birthday, in quarantine.

January 2, 2021: Atticus finally visits penguins at the zoo! (Real ones, too.)

February1, 2021: First day of in-person school, just two days a week. Three days were canceled in February due to snow.

February 8, 2021: Atticus lost his first tooth on his second day in school!