Our Week - The One with Summertime, Week 6 (Cast Off, Library Hopping, CHURCH, and Fourth of July)

We finally got back on track this past week – Olivia’s cast came off and she started (somewhat) using her arm again, Jacob is well, Brian is well, and Olivia nor I got sick!  Woo hoooo!  We were finally able to get out and about a bit and it feels so good!  It was the most normal week we’ve had all summer long so far!

Monday, June 28

Monday morning, I headed to Publix at 8 to beat the crowds.  I love having the whole store mostly to myself.  When I got back home, we ate breakfast, and then the kids finally got started on summer homework.  Both of them have math and reading homework (8 hours of IXL + read one book 200+ pages and do a book report for Jacob, and 5.5 hours of IXL + read 25 books and take 11 AR tests for Olivia) and we hadn’t done a single bit of it aside from some reading. 

Both kids got out their laptops (thanks, Covid virtual learning), and got to work, and it was a very frustrating next 1.5 hours.  None of us are fans of IXL (the online math website the school uses), so all of us were a bit grumpy after it was done.  Heck, Jacob was grumpy before we even started… he hates summer homework.  Haha.

We all ate an early lunch, and then B and Olivia left to go to her appointment to get her cast off and pins out.  After seeing her actual broken elbow and holding the two pieces together while waiting for the ambulance that day, I’ve been having a ton of anxiety over the whole ordeal and I haven’t been able to stomach thinking about it.  Therefore, I knew it would not be wise for me to take her to the appointment.  Fortunately, B was willing to do it, and he said it was probably best that I didn’t come because it was pretty brutal for Olivia.  Instead, I stayed home with Jacob and we reserved some AR books for him in our library app and he did some magic tricks for me.  :o)

Olivia had four pins put in during her emergency surgery that have been holding her elbow together while it healed, and the doctor removed them right there in his office while she was wide awake.  Oof.  We asked him why they don’t put people under anesthesia to remove the pins and he said simply that the benefits don’t outweigh the risks of anesthesia. 

Brian said when they first arrived, they sawed off her cast (and she did well) and then they had to wait a few minutes to have her arm x-rayed.  Keep in mind the pins were all sticking out of her arm while they waited, but B said that didn’t seem to bother her too much.  The x-ray was next, and it shows the pins… it just blows my mind that they removed those while she was awake.  Ugggghhhh. 

After her elbow was x-rayed, the doc came in and said her bones looked good, so that meant it was pin removal time.  If her bones hadn’t looked good, I’m assuming the pins would have stayed in and they would have had to recast her arm?

B said that the doc could tell that Olivia was anxious about having the pins removed, so he got his “magic cape” to put between Olivia and her elbow.  That way she and Brian couldn’t see what was happening when they were removing them.  B said that it was obviously very painful for her and she cried a lot, but she got through it!

The doctor said that she is still not home-free – no rough play, running, jumping, climbing – until her recheck in four weeks, but she is finally allowed to get in the water, so swimming here she comes!!

When they arrived back at home, she was all teary eyed and sad and her arm was wrapped in a bandage.  She had to wear the bandage for a couple of days as the pinholes were expected to bleed for a while.  We gave her some ice cream and hugged and loved on her and praised her, but her spirits were still down.  The pin-pulling had obviously caused a tremendous amount of pain, and her arm was still hurting, so she was afraid to move it.

Once she was home and settled in, Jacob played video games while she watched (she was too scared to move her arm to play).  By the end of video games, though, her spirits had lifted, and she was willing to move her arm the tiniest bit more, and she finally let me take a picture of her without her cast!  She had brought home her entire cast and the pins, and she wants to keep them as souvenirs.  Lol.

I cooked dinner that evening, and then afterward, I got outside for a long walk by myself while B and the kids started a new 2,000-piece puzzle.  When I got back, we watched Breaking Bobby Bones and Walk the Prank, and then we Facetimed with my parents so they could see Olivia's newly un-casted elbow.  After that, it was bedtime for the kids and another show for B and me.

Tuesday, June 29

Tuesday morning was rainy, so I got up and did some yoga as B headed off to work at his company’s actual office… still so weird that he’s back to doing that two times a week!

After yoga, I got ready for the day, and by that time the kids were up so we all had breakfast together.  They watched a couple of cartoons while I caught up on some blog reading, and then I spent the next two hours cleaning out Olivia’s bedroom.  She is the messiest, slobbiest gal and her room was a nightmare, so I’d been dreading it.  It felt so good to get it done.  Meanwhile, the kids played with Play-Doh.  Jacob created a man out of Play-Doh and he asked me to take a picture to send to Pop, so I did.  I love when he actually wants to take pictures and he actually smiles.  He doesn’t do that very often anymore.  Haha.

We all had lunch together, and then headed outside on the back porch for some fresh air and reading.  We finished up Little House in the Big Woods, and neither of them were impressed.  That makes me so sad!  Gah, I love those books and I was hoping to be able to read the whole set with them!  Not gonna happen.  Lol.

After fresh air and reading time, we all came in and tidied up, and then everyone settled in for video games and work.  By the time I finished working, it was time to head downstairs to cook dinner, and then after dinner, we all worked on the puzzle some. 

Olivia and I headed out to take Maui for a walk around the neighborhood after that, and she and I met another family one street over who has a little girl Olivia’s age.  Her dad was telling us they’d love to get together for a play date sometime and we agreed!  There aren’t any small kids on our street, and we don’t know many people on any of the other streets, so we’d love to find someone close.  I grew up playing outside with all of the neighborhood kids my whole life, and I hate that our kids aren’t having that same experience.

Olivia had been begging all day to take her bandages off, so when we got home, I told her we could.  It was a bit of a challenge getting them off as she’d had a significant amount of bleeding from the pin holes, but she was brave and didn’t cry or freak out.  Meanwhile, I was soooo anxious.  I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to look at her left elbow the same again.  Waaaaahhhhh.

As soon as we got the bandage off, she immediately felt unprotected and it freaked her out a little, so she told me she wanted a new bandage.  Luckily, I’d taken all the extra supplies from the hospital after her surgery since we were being charged for them anyway, and I had everything I needed on hand to wrap it back up – gauze, ace bandage, special tape.

Once she was all wrapped back up, she and Jacob got ready for bed and we watched half of America’s Got Talent before getting them in the bed.  After they were snug in their beds, B and I watched the finale of Mare of Easttown, and it was soooo good!  I loved that show, y’all!  Highly recommend! 

Wednesday, June 30

Wednesday morning, I got up and went for a run, and then after I got showered, the kids were finally up… they’ve both been sleeping until after 8 this summer, which is highly unusual.  They’re usually up sometime in the seven o’clock hour.

We did the morning routine – breakfast, clean the kitchen, unload the dishwasher, water outdoor plants, take vitamins, and read the kids’ devotional together, and then they watched a couple of cartoons. 

After cartoons, the kids got ready and we removed Olivia’s bandage for good.  She was surprisingly okay with that which was good since the doc said we had to.  The inside of her arm was severely bruised (from the pin-pulling, I assume?) and she still had holes from the pins + her incision from the surgery, but all in all it didn’t look too bad (I say as I cringe, though.  Haha.)

After that, the three of us left B at home to work, and we headed to the library.  The kids hadn’t set foot in there in over 15 months because of Covid, and they were both like kids in a candy store.  They both picked out so many books to take home, and I grabbed one for myself, too.  I think they would have stayed there all day if I would have let them, but I dragged them out of there just before lunchtime so we could get home to eat. 

B made mini pizzas for us, and then the kids spent most of the afternoon reading.  Olivia had checked out a book about gross but true facts and she and Jacob had a FIELD DAY with it.  I’ve heard so many random gross facts this last week!  Haha.  Most of them are actually a bit intriguing and a lot of them are really hard to believe because they’re so gross.

They played video games for a little bit while I worked, and then at 4, B shut down his laptop for the day to take the kids to buy fireworks for 4th of July.  It’s legal here in GA to do the big ones right in your back yard if you want to, so we do. 

While they were gone, I stayed home to finish up my work for the day and then I got started cooking dinner so I could have it on the table when they got home.  It poured down rain all evening, so it was a nice and cozy evening. 

After dinner, I gave Olivia her first bath post-cast, and it was the first time she’d gotten her arm wet in over five weeks.  She usually takes showers, but she’d wanted to take a bath just to ease her arm into the water… I think she was worried about it stinging, but it didn’t.  She ended up loving her bath so much that I let her stay in there for nearly 30 minutes.  I can’t even imagine how good it must have felt to wash that arm after all these weeks!

While Jacob was showering, I curled up in my reading nook in our bedroom, and then when I finished, I came downstairs to see Olivia curled up on the couch under a blanket, snuggling with Maui, and reading one of her new library books.  The perfect evening.  

We watched the other episode of Breaking Bobby Bones and then some of AGT, and then the kids read in bed for a bit while B and I caught up on The Bachelorette (which is really dumb this season, BTW).  I mean, all seasons are dumb, but this season is barely watchable.

 

Thursday, July 1

Thursday morning, B headed off to work and I got in a cardio workout before getting ready for the day.  Olivia was up bright and early and found reading in her bed, and then Jacob wasn’t too far behind her… they both wanted to get back to that gross facts book.  Haha. 

After breakfast, Olivia watered her sunflowers, the kids watched a couple of cartoons, and then they got ready and we headed out to another library in town.  Jacob had been looking for a specific book and we saw that it was at a different branch, so we headed there to pick it up.  We browsed for a good while yet again, and each kid brought home three more books.

By the time we left, it was time to meet B for lunch.  We ended up going to one of our favorite local restaurants and it was only the second time we’ve eaten out in our city since the pandemic started on March 13.  Crazy, right?  Now that B and I are vaxxed, we’re ready to start getting back out there, but we are being careful since the kids can’t get vaccinated.  It was SO NICE to be eating out and I had the yummiest BLTA (BLT + avocado) and sweet potato tots.  

After lunch B headed back to work, and the kids and I headed back home to tackle some more summer homework.  They ended up knocking out 90 minutes of IXL to put a good dent in it… we had some serious catching up to do since we’d done none prior to last week.

After homework, they played video games, and I headed to my office to work.  I knocked out a ton of blog work… it was just one of those super-efficient days which felt great!

By the time I finished working, it was nearly time for B to arrive back home, so I headed downstairs to get dinner started, and then after dinner we all went for a walk around the neighborhood.  It was storming not too far off from where we were, and we were treated to the most beautiful rainbow!

When we got home, it was time for the kids to shower, and Olivia begged to take another bath… this whole broken elbow has created a monster and I don’t think she’s ever going to want to go back to taking showers again.  Haha. 

While the kids got ready for bed, I read for a while and then we all worked on the puzzle for a bit, too.  We wrapped up the night with the rest of America’s Got Talent and the rest of The Bachelorette.

 

Friday, July 2

Friday morning, I got up and headed out for a power walk and then we did our whole morning routine.  The rest of the morning was spent cleaning out Jacob’s room, which wasn’t really so bad at all. 

After lunch, the kids and I made homemade blueberry muffins, and while they cooled, a ran out to the library one more time because Jacob’s hold for his summer AR reading had finally become available. 

When I got back home, the rainy afternoon was spent cozied up in my office with one of the freshly baked blueberry muffins and some hot cinnamon tea while the kids played with Legos and did video game time.  B got off early for the long weekend and he was able to join the kids for video game time, too.

Friday evening, B picked up pizza for dinner, and then we all settled in to watch Mighty Ducks 3.  We watched the first two movies last summer, and I’d been trying to convince the kids to watch the third for months, so I was surprised that they both announced they (finally) wanted to watch it.  Jacob loved it, but Olivia wasn’t a huge fan.  Boooo.

After the kids went to bed, B and I watched the new Kevin Hart movie, Fatherhood, and y’all, it was soooo good!  I laughed, I cried, and I love Kevin Hart even more after watching this.  It was great and I highly recommend it!  B loved it, too.  I wish they’d make more movies like this!

Friday morning I woke up with a lump-feeling in my throat and was worried I was starting to come down with the same thing B and Jacob had, so Friday night while we were watching our movie, I made myself a hot toddy (my Mama Cass’s recipe) and it knocked me out so good.  I slept like a baby and woke up feeling great Saturday morning and I’ve been totally fine since.  Hot toddies are just magic, y’all.  Mine was probably allergy-related because the grass pollen is still out here.  I wish it would get on outta here! 

 

Saturday, July 3

Saturday morning, I woke up feeling great and we had our homemade blueberry muffins for breakfast.  After breakfast, I got in a cardio workout and did the usual laundry loads, and then all of us headed outside.  It was finally a sunny day and Olivia was thrilled because she was finally able to get back in the pool for the first time since she broke her elbow. 

We stayed out there all morning and afternoon, eating lunch on the back porch, too, and then when the sun and heat hit its peak for the day, we came inside.  The kids played video games for a short stint, and I edited some pictures, and then we all got ready because…

WE FINALLY HEADED BACK TO CHURCH FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 16 MONTHS!!!!

Woo hoooo!

Yep, we’ve been watching church virtually every single weekend since everything shut down March 13, 2020.  We did attend our church’s Easter mass, but it was on the football field and not in the sanctuary, so this was Brian’s and my first time setting foot in the sanctuary in 16 months.  The kids had been in there several times during the school year, of course.  I still can’t believe it had been that long for B and me, though. 

When we arrived, we were excited to see that my Mama Cass, my momma, and two sets of aunts and uncles were all there, too, so we were all able to sit together near our usual spot like always.  Our church is still doing social distancing, so there is tape on the pews where we were allowed to sit, so we did split up in taped off areas, but we were all in the same two pews and it was just so so great to be back. 

In normal times, we would have all gone out to eat together afterward, but we’re just not quite there yet, so we all went our separate ways afterward.  My little fam picked up food from one of our favorite pubs down the street from church, and then we also swung by DQ to grab Blizzards, and then we took everything back home to eat.

After dinner, we watched a couple of episodes of Walk the Prank with the kids, and then B and I watched episode one of a new show called Sweet Tooth on Netflix.  B has been wanting to watch it, but I wasn’t too enthused.  It’s a fantasy type of show, which is not my thing, and I wasn’t a huge fan after the first episode.  B liked it, though, so we’ll probably keep on going.  Have any of you watched it?  Pleeeease tell me it’s worth the watch??

 

Sunday, July 4

Sunday morning, we woke up and had cinnamon rolls for breakfast and then the kids watched cartoons because we didn’t need to watch church since we’d already been.  B and I spent the entire morning prepping for our 4th of July celebration – we cleaned off the back porch, B mowed, I prepped the veggies for the burgers and B made homemade guac – and then we all got ready and headed to my MIL and step-FIL’s for lunch.

My brother-in-law’s birthday is July 5, so we celebrated him, and they had made all of his favorites – grilled chicken, lawnmower potatoes, scalloped corn, fried okra, garlic green beans, peas, jalapeno cheesy bites, and fresh watermelon.  It was all so delicious, and it was nice to be over there after taking a few weeks off.  We all sat around the table after dessert (homemade chocolate chip cookies), catching up, and then we spent some time in the back yard before heading home.

When we got back home, the kids played video games and I squeezed in about an hour of work, and then it was time to get ready for the 4th of July festivities.  On my way downstairs to prep, I walked past Olivia putting hair clips all in Jacob's hair while he played video games.  Lol.  I can't believe he puts up with that kind of stuff.

We had my parents, my brother and his roommate, my Mama Cass, my Uncle Billy, and my father-in-law all over for dinner.  We grilled burgers and hot dogs, and my momma and Mama Cass brought homemade mac n cheese, baked beans, and coleslaw, and we had that along with B’s guac, fresh watermelon, and homemade s’mores bars that B had made on Saturday.

We ate on the back porch and spent the whole evening in the back yard playing Cornhole, staying out there well into the night to do fireworks.  My Mama Cass pulled Olivia’s front tooth and she has a brand new smile now, too!

As per usual, our neighborhood SHOWED OUT with the fireworks and they were just everywhere you turned.  We had a 360-degree view of them right from our back yard… so convenient and fun!  B shot all of our fireworks right in the back yard, too, and the kids loved every second. 

We finally made it inside and everyone left sometime before 11 and the kids were beat.  They both collapsed into bed and passed out despite the fact that the fireworks were still going strong.  B and I stayed up until after midnight, and thankfully, the fireworks died down right around our bedtime. 

It was such a great Fourth of July and we were soooo grateful to be able to get together with a bigger crowd this year after such a small get together last year during Covid.

Happy Wednesday, y’all!