February Album

 February is somehow almost over. High school track practice starts tomorrow. It all feels so sudden. Ready or not, track season is upon us! I still have a few weeks before middle school track season begins, but that hardly matters because Jeff asked me to help with the high school team until then, so it's full steam ahead. The high school has been unable to find a 6th assistant coach. (which does not bode well for me getting an assistant on the middle school team...) I agreed to help out at the high school practices for three weeks until my middle school season begins. Hopefully spending time with the 130+ kids on the high school team will help me get used to coaching track, as well as maybe make my 41-person middle school team seem more manageable when the season starts. 

On Tuesday, I went to do a conditioning workout with Jeff and Coach Winger and a handful of dedicated middle and high schoolers. We did six 400 meter repeats. Jay had a great workout! He beat me in every 400! I wasn't expecting to race him or try to beat him because I know what times he's been running and they are faster than I was ready to run. But with the strong breeze, my shorts, and my snazzy shoes, I kept speeding up until I was ahead of Jay for most of the last 400. Then, as we were coming around the final curve into the 18mph headwind on the homestretch, Jay "slingshot-ed" past me and left me in the dust! I couldn't match his surge at all. It was the first time that Jay has legitimately beaten me head to head in running, and it was an amazing feeling as a parent! I carried, birthed, and raised this person and now he is stronger and faster than me! It was an exciting moment as a parent. 

Starting during that track workout on Tuesday afternoon, we endured a three day windstorm this week that caused temperatures to drop from the glorious mid-50s down to the teens. At the same time, I came down with a thick head cold, the main symptoms of which were deep fatigue and cement-like congestion, with the accompanying throbby headache. I was pretty wimpy from Wednesday on this week. It's still not all the way gone, but I feel somewhat functional again five days later. Rose came down with it, however, so she and I stayed home from church together today. 

Here are two dozen pictures from the month of February:

Amber has such a soft sweet childlike profile.

Blast from the past: Amber used to sit on Jeff's back during every single family prayer, but a year or two ago we made her stop because she was getting so big. She gave Jeff a hug for old time's sake one night.

Amber and I went to Costco after an appointment one afternoon. This girl. Vegetarian through and through until it comes to Costco hot dogs and lemonade.

Ugghhhh I started a music note reading intensive study with Amber during February because she was still not really reading music during her piano practicing. I got flashcards, wrote out the sayings that help teach the notes on the staff, and we went to work every morning for 15 minutes. It was pure torture for both of us for the first 3 days, and then Amber started slowly coming around and being less frustrated. She learned the "All Cows Eat Grass" and other sayings, and started getting the hang of telling the notes apart. Then we started over with the bass cleff the next week. It's still not perfect, but now she can mostly quiz herself with the flashcards while I listen from the kitchen table. This process is SO HARD, and I think I deserve a Most Longsuffering Mother Award or something.

Amber, selecting a pile of reading material.

Mother daughter painting time. While Jay and Rose were at the youth temple trip last week, Amber had a whole list of Things To Do With Mom. Painting was at the top of the list. In a 5 second attention lapse on my part, Amber opened a bottle of blue acrylic paint and spilled a big blob onto the carpet. Then she tried cleaning it up by rubbing it in with a paper towel. By the time I finally got that mostly cleaned up, my creative juices were running dry. We still had our mother daughter painting time, with great effort on my part. 

Another item on Amber's Mom-time-list was to go on a walk together. I was pretty tired after the painting, but how could I say no to the sweet request of my 8 year old asking me to go on a walk with her? We spent so much of her childhood going on walks "out back" behind our house together. I hope she keeps those memories forever. This time around, I couldn't help but notice how much older Amber seemed, and even though she still dashed around exploring, it still made me a little sad that she is growing up just as fast as her older siblings.

The cracked dry mud looked cool.

Rose got wind that Mom's paints were out, so she joined in on Sunday afternoon. Jay didn't want to paint, but he still gravitated into my room to hang out while the girls and I did art.

When I was feeling limp and pathetic and sick one night this week, Amber yanked off one slipper at a time and gave me vigorous 10 second foot rubs to help me feel better.

Jeff held the high school track parents' meeting via Zoom, and he made sure to be presentable from the waist up in his coaches polo shirt. It made me laugh. Heart patterned onesie on the bottom, coaches polo on the top. I did ask his permission to take this picture.

Amber is getting better and better at making scrambled eggs. I feel reluctant to say yes whenever she asks if she can make herself some eggs for dinner, because it used to be so messy, and it still can get pretty messy on an off day, but last time she made eggs this week was her best stovetop session yet.

Amber and Jay have such a funny teasing wrestling relationship. Jay: "I'm being taken down by an abnormally athletic 8 year old!"

Saturday morning cartoons. I love how they were all snuggled up next to each other. I hope I never take my kids' sibling friendship for granted.

Two dragonesses doing art atop their hoarde of cardboard bricks. Seriously, I finally got them to clean up their art table and the floor around it from all of the scattered papers and supplies, and that cleaning unveiled the cardboard bricks which were stacked against the wall under the table. So naturally they pulled them down to play and then left them out. I just have to close the door to this room. My life is easier that way.

Snuggled up with Rose and our tissue box, watching sacrament meeting via Zoom today.