I had work travel last week for, I think, the first time since March 2020. And I have work travel this coming week, too. It’s really starting to feel more like the before-times. I put off telling the kids about my trip but they were actually great about it. Maybe now that they’re back in school it’s easier for them when I leave, compared to this summer when they were used to us being in the same place nearly all the time.
Amaya started off the week with a “bang braid”. Our compromise was that it was covering the side of her face, not straight down the front of her face like she originally wanted. Good compromise.
With the time change, it’s much brighter when we go to the bus stop, and so pretty this time of year. Snow is coming, though. I think the kids are looking forward to it, so at least someone is.
A (fortunately) rare occurrence, but Amaya had homework this week. She had to write about ways she was respectful. Her list included:
- Helping Milan
- Playing with Harper (I think she said that Harper didn’t have anyone to play with that day)
- Raise my hand to speak
- Listen to Miss Boomer
- Saying Thank you
Gotta love the little hearts over her i’s. <3
Amaya also had her 2nd week of gymnastics. She left school with her friend Claire and Claire’s mom dropped her off after class. This week it was bars and beam.
I left for NY on Wednesday morning and Sophia helped us hold down the fort. Off they went to swim on Wednesday afternoon!
Loved getting bus stop photos from Sophia! (So helpful that she can come mornings I travel so Jason can still get to work on time.)
Steven’s killing it with his patch. A totally seamless transition for our boy. In fact, on Saturday he wore the patch for 6 hours! Even though he only needs to wear it for 2 hours, the extra time is helpful so we’ll roll with it if he does.
Fall Friday at the bus stop!
And some pictures of the boys at school this week. It looks like the boys have such a fun, engaging classroom!
Saturday was a BIG day for the Cline Kids – COVID vaccine day!! Steven, Sammy and Amaya had their first dose of the COVID vaccine as part of a school district vaccine clinic. They all did great! Sammy, who gets the most nervous, sat on Jason’s lap with his head buried in Jason’s shoulder and was a total rock star. So proud of these kids and so happy that they’re on their way to protection, protecting others, and much lower risk of disruptive quarantines.
Amaya is writing a book about Chanukah and I’m so tickled by how she spelled “Jewish” as “Joowish”. There has also been a lot of debate over how to spell Chanukah. For the record – despite the Cline Kids’ insistence on a leading “C” and, perhaps, a good argument for it – there’s no one right way. Chanukah & Hanukkah (and some other variations) all work!
The kids, for the first time, played a game of Monopoly on their own. Amaya ended up dividing her money up between her brothers and the boys played to the (long) finish. It was so cute to watch and it made me really appreciate the value they get out of same-age siblings because they’re truly on a level playing field when they play games together. Sure, they all have their individual strengths and games they win more often than others, but developmentally they’re equal competitors.
Amaya and her Daddy
It was a quiet, snowy day here. The kids had Hebrew school in the morning where they focused on Hanukkah and even made their own beeswax candles.
At Amaya’s request, we had pancakes for lunch.
The kids and I played Ticket to Ride. Sammy was the “kid winner” – his 4th time. He seems disorganized with his cards but has a great strategy.
Chess with Daddy
And Amaya spent some time making squishies. She had the idea to use toothpicks for finer elements of painting and it worked really well.
That’s all for us! Have a great week!