What Daily Life Looked Like

Here are some of the general ways our life changed during the lockdown. 

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All five kids went to online school. The girls were pretty much able to take care of themselves. They (and their teachers) knew how to navigate the programs that were necessary. The boys (and their teachers), however, had a bit of a learning curve.

Quinton obviously needed the most help.  He had a lot of printouts to do. He also spent a lot of time watching educational videos from his teacher and working on online learning programs.  He did pretty well, as long as I was there to keep him motivated.

A quick funny homeschooling story: On one of his assignments, Quinton spelled the word "pig" wrong.  He spelled it "peg." When I pointed it out to him, he said, "Oh yeah. I spelled it with a Brittish accent."

Joshua worked hard. His teacher praised him for being one of the only kids to complete all the work in one of those first few weeks.  He didn't need as much supervision as the other boys, but I still liked to have him nearby so I could make sure he didn't get sidetracked by all the fun stuff at your fingertips when you've got a computer.  Let's just say that more than once, I'd find that my wallpaper had mysteriously changed, etc. 

Bronson seemed to have the heaviest workload. The other two boys often finished their school work long before Bron. Poor kid.  I tried to be nearby while he worked.  He needed a lot of help (he was only in third grade, afterall). It seemed like I bounced between him and Quin all day long. 

Side note: Quinton did NOT like reading very much.  However, I think that over time it became more tolerable to him.  It was never quite as fun as being on a screen, but he grew to like our time together cuddling on my bed and reading. 

How cute is this? I snapped a picture when Joshua's fifth grade teacher, Ms. Batista, called our house to just check in on him and hear how he was doing with all the changes.  

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During this time, we forged a new (sort-of) tradition. The government started offering free lunches to all school aged children during the pandemic.  They did it for a number of reasons: kids that were on free or reduced lunch would no longer be getting their (maybe only) food each day, many kids have working perents who aren't there for lunch, and the pandemic put a financial strain on everyone.  

We decided that, even though we weren't hit as hard as everyone, we could surely use the free food.  So we went. nearly every day all five kids would load up in the van and we would get their lunch.  It was a drive-thru, grab-and-go situation in most schools (except that one I took a picture of where the kids had to walk up to the door and get their lunch there). After a few weeks, we became experts.  We knew which schools had the best lunches. We learned that NDPA did very nice, hot lunches and even pizza on Fridays.  Most of the other schools just had cold cuts, etc. But some of the other schools gave out breakfast food for the following morning along with their lunches.  See - it was a whole thing.  

Quick Quack Car Wash was on the way home from NDPA. Since we went there every day, and since our car is nearly ALWAYS messy,  AND since we were all stir crazy, I paid for the monthly unlimited wash pass.

Several times per week...

we would take a break from our school work...

load up in the van...

blast some tunes as we drove...

pick up a free school lunch...or two...

then hit the carwash on the way home.

It became a ritual that kept us all sane. Honestly, we have good memories of those lunch and carwash runs.

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You want to know what we DON'T have good memories of? Piano lessons going virtual!!!  Talk about rough!  For the kids, and for Nancy Maughan too!  Because she needed to see the music sometimes, their fingers sometimes, etc.  we HAD to make one person film while another one played.  At first I was the one filming, but with four kids taking lessons, that meant I was sitting there for two hours at a time!  We decided to make each kid take one turn filming and one turn playing. It obviously wasn't met with roaring enthusiasm, but at least Mom didn't realize how much you were slacking if she wasn't sitting there filming you, right?

As with many other things during the lockdown, taking piano lessons via Facetime wasn't ideal, but we did the best we could. And we were SO grateful for the technology that existed that allowed for it to even happen at all.  I often wondered how we could have done ANYTHING if we went into a lockdown when I was a child.

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Boy - being in a pandemic can be lonely!  Our boys were raised in a neighborhood where everyone spent a lot of time playing outside together.  Now everyone was told to stay away from each other. I saw a meme once that said, "Who knew that of all the things I learned in school, how to avoid Cooties would be the most applicable in real life!?!"

Joshua and his best friend, Walker lucked out.  They figured out pretty quickly into the pandemic that they could still play their imaginary games accross the back fence.  Walker would sit on his deck and Josh would walk around our back yard while they dreampt up all kinds of battle sequences, etc.  Sometimes our little boys would pull up chairs and join in on the fun. 

Bronson had a few friends who would occasionally get on an app called Dischord and talk to each other.  All three had one or two zoom calls with friends. It was extra tricky because when you go to a charter school, your school friends don't live in your neighborhood so they were all pretty completely isolated. The truth is, all three of them were allowed to be on screens more than I would have liked - but when you are told to stay away from other humans, and when you need a break from your siblings, your options become limited. Again, it wasn't ideal, but we did the best we could.

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Church looked VERY different. We started in the front room with a song and a prayer. Then, David blessed the sacrament and Joshua passed it.  Afterwards (sometimes we would have a testimony meeting which was always ONLY me), we'd move into the family room for a Come Follow Me lesson so we could use the television if necessary. 

We started out trying to keep everything formal-ish. But it became more hassle than it was worth, so after a while, only David and Josh were required to wear church clothes and people began listening to the lessons while sprawling out on the floor. Oh well - pick your battles, right?

I've heard so many people talk about how wonderful this time was for their families. How it drew them closer to each other and closer to the Lord.  I am happy for those families.  I truly am.  But that was the opposite of our experience.  At first, I'd spend hours working on my Come Follow Me lessons.  I was excited to teach my kids.  But they would fight me and complain so much that after a few times where they brought me to tears and one or two times where I ended up screaming at them about what jerks they were, I stopped teaching all together.  David has taught weekly for over a year now and I STILL have no desire to teach again.  David has really cut down his lessons to a bare minimum - both in time and spiritual learning, and still to this day, Come Follow Me is one of the hardest, most contentious parts of our week.  There - enough about that.  I'm sure David is not going to want me to put this in our family history, but it's the truth.  And it IS, sadly, part of our family's history.

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On a lighter note, we spent a lot more time outdoors together. We went on walks fairly regularly. That was good!

Bronson joined us one Sabbath morning. This is our favorite Sunday walk - even before we knew the Layton Temple would be built right next door to there!

That's where the temple will be! Less than a mile from our home.

Here's another fun walk. It's the Nichols trail.  It's so pretty and shaded and feels way more removed from society than it is. The kids would sometimes make up spooky werewolf stories while they walked through it. 

Josh is King of the stump.

Bronson striking a pose.

It was a very fun trail. We went a few times. It was a little busy for our liking, though.  I guess we weren't the only family going stir crazy!

Our Little Earthquake That Shook My World.

Monday, March 18th. 7:00 am. We were just getting ready for our first day of remote-learning homeschool.  We we all a little nervous-cited about what homeschool would look like.  Bronson and Quinton were in my room, trying to get me out of bed so we could get started.  I think David was in our bedroom doorway talking to me.  

I felt/heard a low vibration. At first if felt like a large truck or a train passing by.  But it kept going and going. After several seconds, David and I both came to the realization at the same time - "Earthquake!"

I kind of froze. David thought it was awesome! He told the boys to get in a doorway, which they did.  I can't remember what I did.  I think I didn't do anything.  It wasn't powerful - just enough to cause some light fixtures to sway. It lasted for about 45 seconds to a minute. 

I'm SO glad David was there because his enthusiam kept any fear that our kids might have had at bay.  Josh came running up the stairs. We turned on the television and watched news reports. I went down to the girls' room to tell them.  They had felt it - kind of - as they were waking up. 

That was it.  There were sevral shorter, less powerful aftershocks for abut a week, but nothing major. What a way to start school, eh? 2020 just kept coming at us!!! I remember sitting at the mechanic shop while my oil was getting changed.  Masks were kind of a new thing and no one knew if we should or shouldn't wear them, but we all stayed away from each other.  I was sitting there in the lobby trying to avoid human contact while watching television reports about an earthquake and a pandemic.  It was like the Twilight Zone!!!

The earthquake was seriously not a big deal. I know that. But it messed with my mental health in a MAJOR way!  I'm sure I was already stressed by the pandemic - keeping my family safe and juggling my new career as a school teacher with the rest of my life. But this kind of put me over the edge.  I just kept imagining what would happen if that earthquake hit in the middle of a school day (as it was,  Alison would have been at early morning seminary if school hadn't been cancelled). My boys go to school several miles from our home.  They're not in the neighborhood school. And David works all over the place - sometimes quite far from home.  What would I do? How would I get everyone back together again? These thoughts ran through my mind CONSTANTLY.  I wanted all my family nearby all the time (which actually worked out since we HAD to be together - except David). I jumped every time a truck drove by our house (still do a little bit). I started sleeping practically fully dressed just in case I needed to bolt. And I started clenching my jaw in my sleep. 

I'm telling you - 2020 was no joke!

All Heck Breaks Loose!!!

 I hardly even know where to start this post.  Life went to POT in March of 2020! 

Somewhere in February, we started hearing about a frightening illness in China. It reportedly had a high rate of transmission and high mortality rates.  Bronson remembers once going into Win-Co with Nicole to buy a treat and her telling him about the illness.  She said it could come to America.  Bronson thought she was just trying to freak him out. None of us really had a clue what was coming!  Maybe David did more than the rest of us because he listens to the news more, but even he couldn't have forseen the mess that was headed our way.

I assume that whoever is reading this history knows about COVID-19 and the history of how it came about, etc.  I will primarily focus on how it affected OUR family.  I know that every family who lived through the pandemic has lots of stories to tell.  I'm just going to focus on ours. 

The pandemic hit a breaking point just days after I had my thyroid surgery.  I remember sitting in the driveway with a bunch of other moms while we watched our kids play in the neighborhood.  It was while I was still recovering from the anethesia, so it was just two or three days after surgery.  We were talking about the rumors that our kids wouldn't be returning to school after spring break. We all thought the idea was ludicrous!  What about the kids with working parents? Or difficult family situations? What would everyone do? Just STOP learning?!?  It was crazy to even imagine!

And yet - that's exactly what happened.  The govenor closed all schools - giving them a week to figure out how to facilitate remote learning for their students.  We were shocked!  Then, he said that everyone except "essential workers" should stay home from work - figure out how to work from home for the next extended while. (David was considered an "essential worker" so he had to keep working). Then the accouncement from the church came, saying that all temples were closed and Sunday church meetings were suspended until further notice.

As you can imagine, we were all shocked and terrified!  It was a frightening time. We watched the numbers of cases and deaths in the US rise and spread.  They were still far away from us at the beginning, but we could watch it creep closer and closer every day.  Shelves at the grocery store were wiped clean - people fighting over toilet paper and bottled water. People's loved ones in the hospital or nursing homes were basically sequestered and could have no contact with anyone for fear of catching the virus. No one knew how to interact (social distancing and mask guidlines weren't set up yet). Some people were terrified, while others spread conspiracy theories and refused to follow any guidlines that were created.  It was a wild time. 

Our little family unit was in a strange place. When information started to become available, we learned that the disease was particularly dangerous to the frail, elderly community.  Mortality rates were very high for this category.  David spent his entire days working in the homes of frail elderly people.  So, even though David was kind of bugged by the fact that he believed it was a little blown out of proportion, we decided as a family that we couldn't live with the idea of being the cause of anyone's death.  Because of that, we were VERY strict in the way we ALL followed the CDC guidleines.  We had very little to no physical contact with people outside our own nuclear family.  Thanks goodness for technology, inspiration, and creativity. We actually had some good memories throughout the pandemic lockdown. 

Who Needs A Thyroid Anyway?

In the first few days of March 2020, I went to the Davis Hospital to have a thyroidectomy. After years of trying to get my Graves' disease under control, my doctor and I decided that it would be best to just take the whole thing out.  He sent me to an ear, nose, and throat doctor to perform the actual surgery.

Of course David took the day off and came with me. We had lots of help from family and friends with our kids.  I think everything went smoothly - I mean, I was pretty much out of it the whole time, so I'm not SURE...  I THINK I might have told the doctor and nurses that the Davis Hospital is a "white trash" hospital right before the anesthesia kicked in.  I hope I didn't say it out loud.  But seriously - I've had a LOT of surgeries and this was the least impressive hospital of them all...

The recovery room in the "white trash" hospital was an experience.  David was allowed to be with me. It was a room with several beds divided by a curtain.  The man in the bed next to me was VERY vocal!  He was in pain, I guess. He moaned and whined very loudly!  It made coming out of anesthesia very strange.  But, after a while, he left us in peace.

 As far as the results went: in post-op lab work, they found a small cancerous tumor in my thyroid.  So I guess it was the right move to remove it!  The recovery was very fast and the scar is hardly noticable now (thanks to my ultra wrinkly neck that hides it). 

 

Quinton Turns Six!

What a darling little Birthday boy!  Quinton's sixth birthday was one for the history books!

I sure love this kid!  He is SOOOOO loved by his entire family - you can totally tell he's the youngest! He gets away with everything! When he's naughty, we all just laugh and say, "Isn't he adorable?"  But seriously, isn't he?!?

His day started out with opening his presents.  Then he went to school.

His kindergarten teacher is the BEST - literally!  All five of my kids have had excellent kindergarten teachers, but none have been as good as Ms. Angella.  She is a special human being!

Birthday celebrations in Ms. Angella's class are next-level.  They do it right before school ends, so everyone gets their backpacks and coats on, then they sit in a circle and the birthday kid comes up.

The birthday kid walks in a circle around a sun while the class sings, "The Earth goes around the sun, and Quinton turns one." Then, he stops and the student's parent shows everyone a picture of them when they were one. They tell the class what the kid was like when they were one - what their favorite thing to do was or their fave food, etc.  The whole process is repeated - the song while they walk around the sun, the picture and story - until they turn six. 

Then, instead of bringing treats (NDPA doesn't allow food in classrooms due to allergy issues) the birthday kid gives a birthday gift to the class. It is their favorite book which will go into the class library. Quinton chose "Fortunately." 

Finally, the birthday kid goes around the circle and each kid chooses whether to hug or high five them. Watching the kids genuinely celebrate Quinton was my favorite part of the whole thing!  It was so sweet!

Once kindergarten was over, Quinton and I still had half a day alone. We went to the store and he chose his own birthday cake.  This was the one he chose.  

Then I took him to his favorite restaurant for lunch. Yum!  Chinese food is the best!!

That night, we took him and the family to Golden Corral.  Talk about spoiled!  The staff even came over and sang to him!

After eating dinner at a buffet, nobody could eat the cake. So we just sang to him, let him blow out his candles, then we saved the cake for the next day.

Pretty good day, right? I think for our little six year old, it was "Practically Perfect In Every Way."

Some Random Pictures

So I obviously have very few pictures from the month that I was in bed dying.  But here are the few that I have:

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One of the worst parts about having neuropathy is that sometimes I will be going about my normal day and I'll look down to find something like this.  I have no idea how it happens. I just find myself bleeding, or a huge blister, etc.  It's happened more than once.  I have to visually inspect my feet daily.

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While I was sick, our neighbor Easton invited Quinton over to make a cute teddybear cupcake craft.  His mom, Melanie sent this photo to me a few minutes later.  Quinton's cupcake looks a little more....um....abstract than Easton's.  Ha ha! 

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One day, Quinton's class had a Spanish fiesta. He wore a red bandana with his white shirt and looked super dapper.  He's the one on the left in the middle row.  

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One night when I was super sick, my brother Dave called and said that he wanted to feed my family dinner.  He took everyone's orders and brought them food from Burly Burger!  I mean, full-sized meals and giant shakes!!! I don't even want to imagine how expensive it was for him! But it was so thoughtful! Everyone was so excited for their Burly Burger picnic on the floor.  What a kind, generous thing to do! 

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Quinton needed to get a cavity filled in February. He is pretty funny when he is on laughing gas.  He is always very quiet and stoic around people he doesn't know. The laughing gas didn't really change that. If anything, it made him even more stoic.  But, he did raise his hands slowly off the armrests of the chair and start performing a flowy, hula-like dance with them in the air when he thought no one was looking.

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I olny have three pictures of Valentine's Day. I had planned on being in surgery for my thyroid and not really celebrating, but my illness bumped that back a little ways. So I was home after all and recovering from pneumonia.

David surprised me by giving me a huge, soft, Minky Coture blanket.  When he gave it to me, I bawled my eyes out!  I'm not sure if that was the effect he was expecting it to have on me, but I was so grateful and touched! It was beautiful, unbelieveably soft, expensive, and the most thoughtful, timely gift I've ever recieved! I probably didn't do anything for him. I was a loser that month, I tell ya!

The other two pictures I have from Valentine's Day are of food (shocker). One is of a tray of Sushi from our local grocery store.  Sushi is kind of a love language for most of the people in this family.

The other is of our traditional heart shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's. It just wouldn't be Valentine's Day without it.

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This one doens't have a photo to go along with it, but I want to keep it in our family history.  One day while I was lying in bed with pneumonia, I overheard Bronson and Quinton in the other room.  They were being kind of snippy with each other - not really fighting, but certainly not being kind to each other either.  Quinton said something (I don't remember what) and Bronson retorted with, "Sucks to be you, Quin." I wasn't thrilled with this kind of talk and honestly, I expected Quinton to say something rude back. Then it would escalate into a full blown fight within a matter of minutes as usual.  Instead, Quinton quickly replied, "Actually, Bron, it doesn't suck to be me. I have a really good life." And the fight ended there. Basically, I'd witnessed a miracle.

The Month That Time Stood Still

 On Monday, January 27th, I went in to the Crossfit gym for my scheduled turn at the playcare center. On the drive there, I started to feel a little sick. I thought, "Oh no. I don't want this right now!" Luckily, I didn't have any toddlers or kids that needed me to hold them that day, so I just tried to keep everything sanitized and not hold any kids on my lap that day.  By the time my shift ended, I was feeling pretty miserable. 

This is the one and only pic I have from early on in the month during the strep throat week. I think I was trying to show off my cool nails.

I went home and set up an appointment with my doctor's office. Oddly enough, I don't really have a doctor per se.  I have a MILLION specialists, it seems, but not a regular family doctor.  So I just saw the person on call.  I went in and told them my symptoms, they ran a strep test, and it came back positive. Slam dunk. Strep's easy to treat!  I picked up my antibiotics, climbed in bed, and waited to feel better.

But as the days went by, I didn't get better.  In fact, I got really, really sick.  I drove the kids to school, then I would go home and lie in bed, staring at a wall for most of the day. It sucked!  But I was hesitant to go back to the doctor because I was already on antibiotics.  After a week, however, I caved and went back.  This time a different doctor was on call.  I told them my symptoms, they ran a flu test, and it came back positive.  So now, the strep was gone, but I had picked up influenza. Crap. It was a bad one. Puking, fevers, cough.  I'd had my flu shot too!!

Back to bed I went for another week of wall staring.  Again, as the days past, I got more and more sick.  Finally, after two solid weeks of being virtually bedridden, David took me back to the doctor's office for a third time.  I don't even remember it super well.  All I remember is that I was so tired and hot and out of it that I wanted to lay down on the floor in the waiting room, but David said I shouldn't. Again, we saw the doctor on call.  This one ended up taking an x-ray and diagnosing pnemonia. I THINK he said something to the effect of "I would send you to the hospital right now, but your oxygen levels aren't bad enough." but maybe I imagined that part. 

He prescribed some pretty heavy duty drugs and I eventually started feeling better. But it literally took a month out of my (and therefore my family's) life.  I missed so much! My kid's school and sporting events, my church calling, my business, even family dinners, etc. were just put on hold for a month.  

People brought us food, treats, took my kids to school and events, and checked in on us often.  I was so grateful for all the help others gave us.  But the REAL hero was David! He worked all day, took care of the kids and the home and the laundry, etc at night, and nursed me with patience and gentleness. It's no secret that he doesn't love doing all those chores (nor wrangling the kids to help) but he literally did it without complaint. He was so wonderful! So were the kids, really.  They helped out a lot during that time and were very understanding of how absent I was for a while. I was very blessed.