I'm really trying to learn this new routine at home. I was up with the kids this morning, made our daily pour-over, and got the kids through their first meal of the day. Before we were shut down, I roasted a few pounds of coffee so I didn't have to worry about roasting coffee in the middle of the work week. It seems like we always run out at inopportune times. But since I haven't been able to work, I've actually been looking forward to roasting another batch, so of course it feels like it's taking forever to use up what we have. I'll roast in smaller batches for the next few months. Maybe next time I'll take some photos or video to share. It's a fun process, and delivers an exceptional product (in my opinion) at a reasonable price.
So many things going on with all of the kids home every day. It was funny, we got up yesterday morning and had to argue about whether it was spring break or not. As far as I'm concerned, there is no spring break. The kids don't agree. So our schedule today was a little more flexible than our regular school day schedule, but we still sneaked in a few learning experiences.
Since Lexie, our oldest, was little, we have been signing the kids up for Miss Angie's Music. For anyone who doesn't know Miss Angie (she's a local celebrity), she is one of the most talented people I know. She is a wonderful musician, but her ability to engage and interact with kids, particularly young children, is what sets her apart. Really, I think she could have her own TV show. Since we can't leave the house, Miss Angie's Music now has a subscription service online, so we haven't missed any of the action. She also has a lot of content on her Facebook page. If you're looking for a fun, engaging activity for your young children, check out some of her free stuff online. And if you love it, which you will, try one of her classes. She normally works through many of the local park districts, when we aren't all confined to our homes. Anyway, we spent some time with virtual Miss Angie's Music today. It was fun because the older kids are usually in school when Annie goes to music class, but they all still remember Miss Angie's songs and love participating with their youngest sister. Thanks Miss Angie!! I hope the online thing is successful enough that she continues even after we all get back to normal, it's great to have something fun for the kids to do while we are cooking, cleaning, you know all of the glamorous daily chores of any regular household.
I spoke with my web development team today for the office. It's funny, every time I've ever spoken with the owner of the company, the first question he asks me has something to do with video development. I mean, EVERY time I've talked with him, this is the first thing he talks about, regardless of the purpose of the phone call. So finally I'm putting something together to start publishing video content for the office. I have one million excuses not to do it, with the top reasons being "I don't like seeing or hearing myself on camera", "I don't know what to talk about", "I won't be able to produce the quality of video that I would want to provide". Well, I'm throwing it all out the window and putting some videos together of common questions and concerns that we get routinely at the office. I hope the content is helpful for someone. And I hope I find a way to enjoy producing the videos...
I started some tomato and hot pepper seeds in the basement this year. They were growing fairly well under fluorescent lights, but one of those sunny days a few weeks ago I let them outside. The consequences were not good, to say the least. I don't know what happened, but they either didn't like the amount of sun, or it was still to cold. It kind of stunted their growth and they haven't grown much since then. But you know something interesting, I usually throw a few seeds in each pot and then cut down all but the one that I happen to deem the "healthiest" looking plant once they have their first set of true leaves. Well let me tell you, I'm lazy so I leave the cuttings where they fall, and some of those poor, cut down tomato plants have grown new roots and are thriving! I mean, they are doing way better than the ones that I thought were healthy and didn't cut down. Maybe this says something about our current condition, and maybe I'm just reading too much into it. But maybe getting cut down will lead to us growing stronger and healthier than we would have been if we hadn't been through this experience. Maybe...