One last time

That last post was kind of dreary and anxious, don't you think? Time for happier memories - Fall is perfect for nostalgia. October has arrived with cool evening breezes. We have all the windows open - partly to enjoy those breezes, and partly because I almost burned the house down, and we need to air it out. I left a pan of dry chickpeas boiling on the stove when I took the youngest and her friend to the park. I meant to just bring them to a boil, then turn off the burner and let them soak until dinner time, when I planned to make the panfried curry chickpeas recipe my son made up. Happily, the girls had a wonderful time at the park and played over an hour. Unhappily, my beans were boiling and burning all that time. We returned to a smoking house. Billows of smoke poured forth when I opened the front door.  I removed the charred pan from the stove and took it outside then opened up every window that raised - the scorched pot and charred peas are still sitting out back perhaps tempting racoons and other vermin. After six hours of open windows and high level fans blowing, the house stills smells like old campfire. I may have to wash curtains tomorrow.

Rather than dwell on that misfortune, here are a few more photos from our last month in Coronado. I've got one more batch to share from Dan's change of command/retirement ceremony, before I fast forward to the present again, whenever that might be.

First up: July birthdays, family bdays and country bdays

Our oldest girl turned 19 on the 3rd. Loved having her home for her freshman year of college, even though we are sorry she missed out on that experience. 

She is the party!

Ready for the Fourth of July parade. 

Here come the classic cars

Classic colors on the curb

Bagpipers piping by

Best treats to eat on the Fourth of July

Ready for more fireworks and fun!

Another birthday party

Had to fit in a few last surfing trips at the beach. They did, not me.

Getting glam for something.

A quick trip to a nature center

Another birthday! Fifth son turns 17! His gifts were mostly edible - +cash. What every teenage boy really wants, and what makes sense when you are getting ready to move in a couple weeks.

And just before our time in California expired, I finally was able to visit with blogging friend Gretchen! For years, we've talked online about visiting. We nearly made a visit to her a few years ago when we went north, but we didn't quite get far enough north. Sometimes the imperative of time running out is needed to make these things happen. So thankful we had a time for tea and to meet in person. Our visit could have lasted much longer, and I hope our paths cross again! 

More birthday scenes - a cakeball cake

The last birthday celebration on F Avenue

And then the cousins arrived!

Time for a few last games at the park - family competitions can get heated

Cloudy skies did not prevent beach time.

A last portraits of our home for six years. We never meant to stay this long, but we are so grateful we did. 

And a last glimpse of the front walk

 

March Madness

 Despite the title of this post, I don't really follow basketball, but our son just started playing. His first game was last night. They lost, but he had fun being on the court. It seems March came in like a lamb and is going out like a lion.  The month started quietly enough, but here we are at the end of March with a full calendar.

As a "Journal of the Plague Year," this blog hasn't functioned very well. I am an unreliable reporter. As we have passed the one year anniversary of the initial lockdown, it seems appropriate to stop and reflect, but I don't have time to gather big thoughts about the world, and only a minute to reflect on how our lives have changed, which is as much as a great many people's, and probably in relative terms, about as much as they usually change in a year.  The biggest shift has been having the high schoolers at home doing Zoom school and having more family time, which has been wonderful. The kids have been more pleasant than usual. We haven't moved or had a major life change, as some people have, nor have we lost any family members, thankfully.  My husband is looking for a new job, but not because he lost his.  I had a long list of projects I was going to complete with all of this free time, and none of them has been finished. 

Now the kids are back at school two days a week. Many California public schools remain closed, but our district is small and well-endowed, so teachers were amenable to returning, even though the state teachers' unions still are fighting against returning to their jobs. Many teachers still teach from home, because half of the students are still are Zoom. Sports, however, are going full force, with practice every day and games on Fridays for football and throughout the week for basketball. Cross Country season lasted 5 weeks and is already over, but track has begun. Church is back inside. Religious education has started up again in small groups.  We have some social events on the calendar. My husband is vaccinated. We are traveling at the end of the month. Life is almost back to normal.

I know in other states life is almost completely back to pre-pandemic normal, but it is hard to shed the perception that danger lurks in every breath and on every surface. Masks and hand sanitizer will likely remain in use here for a while longer. I have a friend who just caught Covid a couple weeks ago, and one who got it in between her two shots. The first friend just lost her sense of smell; the second was pretty sick. Neither knows anyone they came in contact with who had been sick. And both are fully recovered.

Aside from the return to school and activities, the big issue commanding attention around here is my husband's job search.  He has had some interviews, and jobs are available, but not in the number that we had hoped. My top choice for him is a job for a university that has a hiring freeze. This lack of openings is one of the most challenging parts of the pandemic for us personally. He will find a job, but it may not be the job that I envisioned.  We are going to have some hard decisions to make about what to do next. I keep hoping that just the right thing will miraculously show up, but that hasn't happened yet, despite our pleas to St. Joseph.  We have been working on some discernment tools to help navigate this decision, and I know everything will work out, but I am having to let go of some romantic ideals.  The reality is our family life has shifted quite a bit since those romances first formed in my imagination, so those visions are ghosts, anyway.   

I return to the classroom next month for the second quad term, so I have some to do items on my job, too. I prefer the classroom for teaching, but will miss the ease of teaching from home. So now back to work. Below are some pictures from the last month. Spring is in the air, and I've been welcoming the return of our pink flowers around the house.  Lent is nearing its conclusion, all too soon; I still have more inner conversions to work on! But the kids are beginning to plan our Easter feast.  The difference between this Lent and last Lent is startling in retrospect. What will next year bring? 

A full calendar for this one: Swimming, ballet, religious ed, library visits and playdates

Hiking locally

A rock scramble to the top

The little free libraries in town celebrated the National Day of Unplugging with a scavenger hunt.

We visited 6 of the 12 or so in our town to find prizes - some of which we left for the next hunter, since we don't need more bookmarks and rubber band bracelets.

This one lives in a particularly colorful garden.

Seabee ball at home. Little did I know that when I skipped the ball two years ago to go on retreat, I wouldn't get to go again. Maybe someday we'll go as retirees.

Signs of spring

The climbing rose smells heavenly.

But its delicate blossoms don't do well as cut flowers.

I have kalanchoe in 5 colors around the house, but this is my favorite.

Runners!

Spoiled mongrel.

Hike 2. Three Sisters Falls.

This was great time of year to do this hike - it's often dry.

Hellebore on the path.

Lupine starting to bloom

A misty day kept crowds down and made greenery look magical.

What I did for my Christmas Vacation

Happy Epiphany! Or Happy 10th Day of Christmas! We celebrated yesterday with the church, although I didn't feel quite ready, and we kind of surprised the kids with it. Surprise! The Three Kings have been here! Of  course, only one small person in this house believes in Santa and the Three Kings and other magical visitors, and her belief in them is tenuous as she hears her siblings talk about returning and exchanging their gifts. But she hasn't quite lost the magic. I have sometimes wished we were one of those families who doesn't do Santa Claus because it would make it easier for me to buy gifts, but then again I love the delight and magic. The kids sometimes do get their Christmas wishes - this year's requests: air pods, kitchen knives, a GPS watch, fancy shoes, art supplies, and a swing. 

All month I thought about sitting down and sharing some thoughts on what I was reading, what we were doing, what was going on in the world, but time for musing has been slim, what with end of the term grading, Christmas shopping, cards, and the arrival of the college kids home.  Because our travel was limited this year (except the trip to OKC, which now, three weeks out, continues to be blessedly without illness) and because we had no Christmas parties, no Christmas concerts or performances, no cookie exchanges, no Church events, no extra gift exchanges, I felt like we had  more time to do family things, although those, too, were limited to walking around the neighborhood to look at lights, playing games, and watching a lot of TV together (mostly the Chef show and Broadchurch, plus the regular Christmas movies).  I did join with some of our little kid friends to carol around the block - although I think this was illegal. And we took a couple of hikes and met up with the cousins for a beach picnic that included a turkey cooked in the air fryer, squash and potatoes roasted on the campfire, and a delicious salad. A beach Christmas dinner. The cousins went home after sunset, but we stayed to camp in the only torrential downpour all year.  The boys ended up sleeping in the car, but the tent the girls and I were in only leaked a little around the edges. Proof of a good tent - this one is the Hobbitat from REI. 

We have also done more than our fair share of eating - the kids have been in a pseudo competition for who has the best kitchen skillz.  We have had home made bao dumplings and sushi - thanks to a friend who shared her deep sea catch - and homemade boba, complemented by mochi and kimchi from the Asian grocery.  I had just watched "Sweet Bean" with LK, which was a sweet Japanese film, a bit slow moving, about a dorayaki chef and the old woman who comes to help him with his red bean paste filling, so they also bought some prepackaged dorayaki.  Then we have had several smoked meat dinners: smoked tri-tip, smoked ribs, a smoked turkey. For Christmas dinner, we had prime rib. Homemade pasta was another feast. Add to these rich dinners, a large array of Christmas sweets, both made by our kids or shared by neighbors.  The new year should be time to cut back on these riches. 

I did want to sum up some reading over the past month - despite the full schedule, I did finish a number of books, possibly because they were plot driven quick reads and because I was helped by PMS insomnia and a need for a brain break after reading fifty-five first year composition research papers.  But now I am out of time. More in another post. 

Caroling

Christmas masks 

A "hike" around the neighborhood

God's Christmas lights

The owner of Funco Pop's house

Christmas Eve feast - dessert first! Pies for all

All the lights lit for Christmas dinner

The obligatory stairs photo

Thanks, Santa.

Fancy china for prima rib. Thankful for kids who help set out and wash the good stuff.

Legos for everyone.

A new swing! These have popped up around the neighborhood since the parks closed, and are happily shared when they hang near the side walk. 

Lots of beach time.

Christmas beach time with the cousins.

Forced Family Fun and Fitness. hashtag F to the 4th.

Unforced family fun - old classics coming back around. Pictured here: Mousetrap. Also played; Coronadopoly, Telestrations, and new Life. 

And eat!