the tortoises

We found a pet that we all agree on. 

Tortoises! Named Tuttle and Chomper.

Our next door neighbor has sulcata tortoises and they had babies on July 6. She so kindly gave us these two. Our kids are thrilled about that.


They are just tiny babies right now but they will grow up to be around 140 pounds. Huge! 


They will leave in the house for the next few years until they are big enough to go outside.

They get a lot of love.

Actually, it will be a bit of a miracle if they survive this little munchkin.

It was impossible to keep her away from them the first few days. Every time we turned our back she was all over them "watching with her eyeballs" which quickly turned into picking them up, poking their heads, or running through the house with them.



The novelty has worn off a bit and she understands better how we need to take care of them. But we still watch her like a hawk around these guys! We moved their tub up higher (to the stair landing actually) so she can't access them as easily. That helps, too. 


Everything about the tortoises has brought smiles to all the kids faces. Kacin, Layla, and Brinna give them the most attention though.

Do you think now the kids will stop bugging me for a dog?

Escape room 10: The Secrets of the Master at Brainy Actz*

Well, I think it was the worst escape room we have ever been to, but the company was good so the night was fun anyways.

We went with our friends to a yummy sandwich shop in downtown Mesa, Worth Takeaway. 

We picked up our food and ate in the car with the air conditioning on. With content bellies, we spent way too much time trying to get a jumping picture with the self timer on the phone. 


Look at Eric go with that high kick.

We mostly laughed at our valiant and persistent attempts.

It is impossible to get a clear jumping shot from a self timer as the sun goes down. And I'm sure the 110 degree temperature didn't help our cause. We learned our lesson, but had fun trying.


Then we headed to Brainy Actz to try the room "The Secrets of the Masters." Fun theme, but poorly executed, in our opinion.

We had been to Brainy Actz before and had an ok experience, but this particular room was a step down. I don't mean to be harsh, but this was probably the worst escape room I've ever been to. Some of the clues and the puzzles were ridiculous--to the point that the escape master at the end couldn't even explain to us how it was related to the answer. Some things didn't work. One puzzle we solved but didn't even know how. And they had a lock in there that you never used as a "decoy." Insert eye roll. A decoy lock is pointless.

And I still don't like the fact that they give you a walkie talkie to ask them questions and they come in to the room to give you your clue. It is a subpar way of communicating and distracts from the experience.

We still finished with lots of time left over.

The Secrets of the Master at Brainy Actz = * (one star)

Fun night because we brought fun people, but I would not recommend this escape room in Mesa.

back to school 2020

This school year will be another unlike any other. 

School was supposed to start July 22. Our district asked every family to decide if they wanted to their kids to go to school in person or online. Then due to Covid restrictions in the state, schools couldn't open until August 17th. Our district then decided to start everyone online on August 5th. Then those who wanted to transition to in person could. Our two weeks of break in the fall and in the spring were shortened to one week. As we were starting virtual school, our district changed the plan again and decided kids wouldn't be returning to school until at least second quarter.

I don't want my feelings and thoughts to distract from the purpose of this post--which is to celebrate the beginning of a new school year for my children. But I can't write this without expressing how strongly I feel that families should be given the option to start in person school or not. It worries me sick to think of the children with special needs or experiencing abuse and neglect and the vital role our schools play in the lives of those kiddos. Children NEED schools. Virtual teaching is not real teaching. It is a very, very poor substitute at best and a joke and waste of time at worst. Teachers are amazing and their hard work shows, but kids need real connection and real assessment, scaffolding, and experiences to do their best learning. I do feel optimistic about this school year and there is much that we are blessed with and I know we will be ok. But I worry about kids across our country and the decisions that are being made on their behalf without their voice.

Rant over.

Because we are ready for a great school year no matter how different it looks!

 

m
Back to school photos took place on all different days and at all different times. Which is reflective of the year.

Layla girl is in 3rd grade now! She is starting at our new neighborhood school this year. It will be/has been a whole new experience for us as it is a traditional model of teaching and the kids all wear uniforms. We really wanted her to attend our neighborhood school, but I have been very unsure of the "traditional" approach and I am so not a fan of uniforms at all. But we prayed and talked about it and we let Layla make the decision. She was nervous when she first started thinking about changing schools, but, after we discussed the options with her, she accepted the invitation to think about it on her own and then pray about it. After that, she came to us with peace and confidence that she had decided to attend this new school. We are proud of her for learning how to make a big decision. 

She picked a new backpack. She opted for a more grown up look this year.

Even though her school days have been all at home, she has chosen to wear her school uniforms just about every day. And no shoes.

She has four times a day that she is supposed to meet with her teacher and class for instruction. If we miss a meet, which we do at least once every single day, then she can watch the recorded lessons. But usually I just teach her the lesson myself. Sometimes that happens at 8pm at night. She doesn't mind doing school work at night if it means she can stay up a little longer. Haha. She has a list of assignments to complete each day. Thankfully, we did get two laptops from the school district to borrow for the year. That has worked out because we definitely do not have enough devices for four kids at one time to be learning virtually.

This sweet boy is in 4th grade! I can not believe how much he has grown up. It is weird to think that he is not in his early childhood days anymore. He has a new teacher this year. He goes to in person learning two times a week in the morning. The other days he has a short meet with his teacher and class and a few paper/pencil assignments. It is quick and easy. Maybe a little too easy. But I am hoping that we will find a groove and his teacher will get to know him better and we will be able to help him learn and grow a lot. Thankfully, we have found an awesome respite provider who can be here in the mornings when he doesn't have school to help Perry stay on task and working towards his goals.

Perry has been really excited to play with friends a couple of times each week. He loves listening to Harry Potter on audible every night, too. He is becoming more independent in the kitchen and with his time and that is a lovely thing to see. This guy brings a lot of love to our family.

Kacin is a sophomore! This is going to be a good year for this guy. He is happy and confident. He has a good class schedule. He decided to join cross country and he is continuing on with wrestling. He is a sweet, fun guy to be around. He is maturing so much. I am proud of him and excited to see all that he will do this year.

He opted to take two of his classes online and then if school ever resumes in person then he will have four classes and seminary in person.


And this guy is starting his Junior year. How is that so?? I hope he gets to live it up this year! 

Kyler is wise and hardworking. He has a good mix of interesting classes. And a job. He is running cross country and will do wrestling again, too.

He is doing a similar schedule to Kacin with a couple classes online the whole year and the other classes will be in person as soon as that can happen. 

It's a very untraditional back to school, but we really are making the best of it. We are staying flexible, but working hard. This will be a good year!!

Escape room 9: Rush Hour at Escape Zone AZ****

Escape Zone Arizona is a great escape room option in Tempe. We went with some friends to try out the room "Rush Hour."

I'll brag right here and tell you that we rocked it. We were only a few minutes behind the best record time.

This room was TINY. But that's because it was set up to feel like a subway. Definitely four people was the max in the room. I am glad we had four people for some of the puzzles, but two or three would've worked just fine, too. 

There was variety of good puzzles. And the puzzles took some brain power and creativity, but they all made sense. The puzzle master was super friendly and made the experience really great, too.

 Rush Hour at Escape Zone Arizona in Tempe=**** (Four Stars)

We are looking forward to trying the other rooms at this location. Such a fun night!

mini family vacation 2

It was Kyler’s turn to plan a day for our family. We got Mod pizza for lunch, turned on a movie, and then spent the evening at the river together. He wanted to go through the part of the salt river he hadn’t done before. We loaded up the kayak, paddle boards, and a picnic dinner and headed to the river in the late afternoon. We put in at tubing stop 4 which I think is Goldfield.

It was two to a paddle board and three to the kayak. Though we rotated who rode where.

And we rotated how they rode. Perry loved to hang his feet off the back and kick. Or he loved to rock the paddle board back and forth “to make it go faster.” With two on a board it was easier to kneel or sit to paddle, but we did some standing, too. A few people got whacked in the head with the paddle when their paddler wasn’t paying attention and a few accidentally fell in the water.

We saw plenty of the beautiful horses along the way.

We pulled over at this little cliff for a snack. There is a rope swing there, which would be fun to come back to with older swimmers and when the water is deeper (it was still pretty low that day).

We made another stop around Phon D. Sutton to let the kids play in the water for a bit.

They spent some time trying to catch the little fish. No luck.

So the thing about taking our family to the river, and on any outings like this, is to roll with the punches and view it all as one big adventure. The juggling who sits with who, the fighting, the mishaps in the river, the slower pace—you have to accept the crazy and maybe even enjoy it in order to also experience the fun, the bonding, and the beauty. I’m so glad we choose to do stuff like this as a family no matter what.

Kyler made a good pick. It was a really great evening.

times like this

There are some pretty good coronavirus videos out there these days--the Holderness family, the Johnson Files, JP Sears, etc. So many good ones. It sure makes me laugh to see all of the emotions of coronavirus wrapped up into someone's short humorous clip about life these days. And we all laugh because they are on point. Masks, zoom calls, homeschooling, rollercoastering between anxiety and confidence--life is unlike anything we could've imagined.  And what can you do but either cry through it or laugh? I do tend to choose laughter. But in times like this, it actually seems more appropriate to do both. Hopefully it's just because we are laughing so hard that we cry.

I'm writing today simply to remind myself about this thing called grace. I've been trying to figure out how to manage online school for four kids. Meeting all of their needs. While caring for a preschooler. And our home. And myself. and my medical appointments. I need to give myself a little grace. 

I read recently that "Grace is radical generosity." I need to give that to myself. And to everyone around me. But it's much harder to give it to myself. So that's why I need this reminder today. 

Be generous with mercy, love, forgiveness, and patience for myself. Come what may! In times like this, be generous with grace.

(side note, but the picture above is from our 2020 well child exams. Everyone is growing healthy and strong. Brinna remains on the small side in the 10th percentile for height and weight. I'm so grateful for medicine for the areas in which our bodies need some help. And we have such a good, knowledgeable  understanding doctor!)