Monday, June 15, 2020

Spring 2020

What beautiful weather we had this Spring ...
it seemed to last forever!  A blessing
we could be outside for much of the shutdown.

Tim decided in February that the beams on the front
patio needed to be replaced or removed.
One thing led to another and a big project was
the result!  We made plans, 
bought tile and capstones and started on March 3rd.
If we would have known in advance how much work
 it would be,  I don't think we would have done it ...
but thankful we did!  I'm so happy with the result.

These pics tell the story ...
The Boyce Thompson Arboretum had their annual members
plant sale on the 13th.  I bought lots of new plants to 
 landscape the front yard.  Looking forward to things growing! 
Job completed - time to enjoy!!
I also enjoyed a lot of morning back patio time!
Trying to grow things other than cactus:
4 Morniga trees from Rachel and
a little garden.  This is a tough climate for most things!
For 3 weeks I watched these 15 quail eggs in a pot
on my back patio.
They hatched on May 2nd! 
 The mother left the nest with 6 babies 
but didn't return for 4 others or 5 unhatched eggs!
So I became a quail mommy of 4 ...
One died shortly after so I was down to 3! 
We had play time on the front patio!
I raised them for 5 weeks.  When I thought they
were old enough I set them free.
One returned and became my friend ...
Gail the Quail.  
This was where she wanted to be...
but a few days later she didn't return.
We've seen a covey of quail with 
babies this size ...  I'm believing
my 3 have a new family and 
will visit again someday!

The end of Arizona's STAY AT HOME 
was May 15th!
Restaurants could open on the 11th!
The girls took me out to Postino's for a
Mother's Day treat on the 16th!
It felt so great to be out and actually felt
quite normal!  
We had Amos over for his 6th birthday spend the night 
on May 19-20.  We had a great time with this special
guy!  Then we shared a great Birthday dinner at the Nelson's!
So great to be able to hang out again!
A couple days later we had Caden and Letty spend 
the night so Clay and Ray could have some time alone!
We had fun with these 2! 
Re-opening meant a busy week ...
Grammy and Papa were pooped!
Rachel and I met at Costco for a huge shopping trip!
Fun to be able to do it together!
On June 8th we watched the Nelson kids so
Deb and Jonah could celebrate their 13th anniversary!
We took the kids to the Macs later where Deb and Jonah
met us!  How fun to be all together -
the kids hadn't seen each other for months!
Everyone is growing up way too fast!
Not sure what's ahead ... the country is in such turmoil,
but still searching for answers.  My journey down the
rabbit hole is very intriguing ...
let's see where the Summer of 2020 leads us!

Sunday, May 31, 2020

The Shut Down 3/15 - 5/15

What a weird couple of months this has been.
An unprecedented time with so many thoughts
and feelings.  Here's a brief summary of our 
experiences during a very confusing time ...

The Coronavirus started in China in Dec 2019
The first case in the US was Jan 21, 2020 
The first US death was on Feb 29, 2020

On March 13th a National Emergency was declared.
Then states started shutting down ...
Safer at Home was on for most states
and many countries all around the world.

It started with '15 days to Slow the Spread' on March 15th ...
Then '30 days to Slow the Spread' till April 30 ...
Then another 15 days till May 15th.
When this all started, we were in the midst of re-doing our
front patio. (see Spring 2020)
  Tim was ahead of the fashion trend with his PPE ... 
facemask, gloves and gown 😂
At first it wasn't too hard ... working from home,
stocking up and staying home ... the slower
pace was a nice change! 
We started a family group text on March 18th.  
We kept in touch and sent around funny memes
 until about May 18th.  It became harder, 
more confusing and less and less humorous.
Clay shared his working from home spot
(which hadn't changed for him).
So James shared his 😂
We stocked up and limited our trips out.  
We didn't leave home from March 15 - April 15th!
There were social distancing lines waiting to get into
Costo.  We went during the Senior hours ... finally 
made it to the entrance after an hour lined up outside!
Laughing kept us going, especially at first.
The Nelsons and Macs sent these around ...
Their time was so different from Tim and I's.
It was so quiet here but not so much for them ...
funny funny!
We sure missed being with our kids 
and grandkids!
I think we all could relate with Letty!

Tim and I decided to re-watch Lost during the 
Quarantine.  We forgot this was on the hatch
door!   Weird days!
We had a few Zoom get togethers with the kids and 
friends!  It was fun but I sure like in person better!!
These were strange days for people all over
the world.  Weird to think about our shared
experience.  Trying to find the good.

This is how it felt as time passed...
So here we are on May 31st!
Where did last 2 1/2 months go??
Arizona is opening up slowly.
We can get haircuts, go out to eat & shop in most stores.
... not sure what's ahead
but glad to be moving on a little!

I actually enjoyed the time, except for the
burden in my soul for those that were
really struggling and for the families who lost loved ones.

I loved having time to sit on my beautiful patios
and think, read, ponder and research.
So many things just weren't making sense ... 
so many questions.   I'm feeling like I'm 
on a trip down a rabbit hole ... one revelation
leading to another.   Only time will tell if
my intuitive wanderings prove to be true. 
I'll keep you posted!

... And now rioting all across the US???
So very sad and tragic. 
What is going on???
The rabbit hole is getting deeper ...