Perfecting the cookie

 

Micah has been finding solace in the kitchen.  He is taking a summer school culinary class through UCLA so he finds himself learning about nutrition facts, healthy diets, and much more.  In the meantime, he has perfected the chocolate chip cookie so well that Noah requests that Micah make the cookies!  I try not to feel offended.  Will Micah find a calling in the kitchen???

Happy birthday Daph

Quarantine birthdays via House Party is the new way to celebrate.  It was Daphne's birthday and the cousin's sang to her and wished her the best 10th birthday.  I wonder how long we will be social distancing...  will we celebrate all of the summer birthdays like this???

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to my partner in life...  this pandemic has really made it very clear that we are in sync in how we raise our boys, how we view our world, and what is important to us. We gifted Jawsh handmade cards, repurposed flowers (which he really appreciated) and Micah pretended that we went out in the world and bought him coffee beans (unfortunately the bag was empty).  Happy Father's Day to the best Dad...  we stayed in this year... what will we do next year???

Post party

After Noah's Bar Mitzvah, we had dinner and then Noah met with his friends for a post party.  We hired a mentalist, Jon Finch, to meet with the teens.  He did card tricks, read minds, and amazed us all.  After the mentalist show, Noah hung out with friends talking and playing video games past midnight.  We think he had a great time.  How will he feel tomorrow???

Noah's Bar Mitzvah

We are so proud of Noah...  he had a wonderful Bar Mitzvah with family and friends Zooming in to watch and support him. He did such an amazing job going through the service and his speech was so relevant and inspiring.  To say that we are proud of him is an understatement.  Even though we had to celebrate this huge milestone distant from all of our family and friends, we still felt the love and support from them.  How will Noah look back at this time in his life???

Noah's photoshoot

The pandemic has affected all aspects of our lives and yet we still are so blessed... we have our health, our home, our jobs,  and Noah's tallit came in time for his Bar Mitzvah.  We are so fortunate to live in Playa Vista because there are so many beautiful landscaped areas.  We went to the Central Park and took some photos of Noah.  He was cooperative, for the most part, as it was hot and he wanted to get out of his suit.  Will he remember these days when he gets older???

Last day of Hebrew class

Today was the last day of Hebrew school for the boys so they celebrated by making a cookie in a cup.  The kids met over Zoom and microwaved all of the ingredients and then they played games with their teachers.  I am very thankful that the boys have a place to see friends and have a little bit of normalcy during this time.  When will they start Hebrew class again???

BLM

 

The Black Lives Matter movement was important enough for us to come out and support our local community.  It was definitely a large turnout of over 500 people.  We found the corner that was least populated and stood firmly for equal rights for all.  It's been so long since we have been around people that it was definitely making me feel uncomfortable at times.  We saw neighbors, friends, and kids from my elementary school with their families which made this feel like a community that I am proud to be a part of.  We have been reading Stamped with the boys, discussing racism, and hopefully the future they live in will learn from the experiences that we are having now.  When will we all be able to say, Black lives matter???

Face Masks

Noah was assigned to make a face mask by his science teacher.  He constructed it out of Bounty Paper Towels and rubberbands.  He did a nice job creating this although he can't really wear it outside.  We are continuing to social distance, we are wearing face masks, and not going out.  It's been 11 weeks.  Is this our new normal???

Just keep swimming

Micah created this drawing and Jawsh had some fun animating it.  As we head into another month of distance learning, social distancing, and Zoom everything... we just have to keep on swimming.  When will this end???  

Night walk

We have been taking walks together throughout the day.  Night walks are especially fun because there are less people out and we can enjoy the sounds of the frogs from the creek.  Here are my guys...  we are lucky that we all get along.  How long will this last???

Rice Krispies ala Lucky Charms

The Tuesday tradition of Rice Krispy Treats continue.  Tonight the boys picked out the marshmallows out of their Lucky Charms cereal and added it to the mixture.  What will they think of next???

Beach antics

We are very fortunate that we live about 5-10 minutes from the beach.  We are still not going towards the water because there are just too many people without masks and not social distancing.  However, there is plenty of beach for everyone and we have enjoyed our time there.  Jawsh and Noah have been throwing the football around and Micah has been into digging holes.  I don't know why... he just really enjoys it.  So, as I sit and watch the waves roll by and breathe in the salt air, I am thankful that our family is healthy. Will we head into the waves next time???

2 Point Perspective

Noah and Micah both have Art class and have been working on different pieces but sometimes their assignments overlap.  The boys were both assigned a 2 point perspective piece and they drew their bedroom.  They did a nice job drawing and it doesn't hurt that their Dad is there to help them along.  What other art assignments will they complete this term???

Remote Teaching

15 years of teaching has not prepared me for this moment... teaching remotely is quite a challenge!  Zooming with my first and second grade students, lesson planning, and making sure that the curriculum is being taught well can be really stressful.  There are a lot of factors that we are all dealing with and it's hard to tell if I'm being effective.  While I am teaching, Jawsh is in the living room working, and Noah and Micah are working in their bedroom studying.  Micah has been Zooming with his math/science teacher daily, but Noah's teachers have not scheduled online classes so it can be pretty frustrating.  When will this end???

Venice Canals

As each Mother's Day passes, the less I want to have a day to myself but time with the boys.  Although we are still in full quarantine mode, we took some time to take a walk at the Venice Canals.  The Venice Canals are near Venice Beach and there are four canals that are about a quarter mile long.  There are beautiful bridges and homes.  I have never been and I was pleasantly surprised by the walk.  The paths were a little narrow which made it tricky if people walked past us so we would find ourselves on the steps of someones front yard to make sure we weren't too close.  All in all, we had a nice time and I was thankful that there were not too many people and that we were able to able to enjoy the beautiful weather outside.  When will we visit the canals again???

Purim Play

Before COVID-19, the boys were working on a play about Purim with their peers in Hebrew School.  We got to view it today over Zoom during Shabbat.  It was fun to watch the kids reenact Purim.  Micah played Moses and Noah was the narrator.  What play will they act out next???

Rancho Palos Verdes

Today we took a scenic drive down the coast in Rancho Palos Verdes.  There was so much marine layer that it looked like we were above the clouds.  It was a beautiful day to drive... we could see Catalina Island and Malibu.  When will we take our next drive???

Happy Earth Day

In honor of Earth Day, all of the cousins participated in an Earth Day contest.  Noah made Darth Vader out of a toilet paper roll and Micah made ObiWon Kenobi out of a Yoplait cup with Jawsh.  Sophie made a cactus plant holder and Daphne made various items out of a t-shirt (i.e. bracelets, dog clothing, etc).  Kaitlyn made a Timothy Chalamet doll and Emma made a flower out of paper.  Out of all of the recycled items, the Denver cousins won the first annual family contest.  What will they make next year???

Mofettas

In honor of Shavuot, a spring holiday known as the "Festival of the Giving of the Torah" the boys made mofetta. It reminded the boys of crepes. They participated with their Hebrew class and joined a Zoom with a Kosher chef. They had a great time and added whip cream and fruit topping. When will they make this again???