November Virtual School at Nana and Pop's

November Nana-School started off with a party. 

There were trees to climb, games to play, and a 'queen' to walk!

The good times rolled!

Bryce left and things quieted down, but only a little. Shane and the cousins played every day like their days were numbered!

Nana and Pop were on it when it came to Shane's school work. I texted them pictures of whatever the bus dropped off and they'd help him attend AND pay attention in his classes.

And they'd quiz him outside of class, too! There was a clear reward structure based on performance. That's the sort of thing I'd want to do with unlimited time and energy. 

Structure is good for kids. You don't want to overdo it, but I knew Nana and Pop wouldn't. There were tons of time to hit up playgrounds and have fun!

 

And hopefully Shane's positive energy and novelty made things more fun for everyone!

Schools are back to in-person in SC. Class sizes are small and the wee ones are the least likely to catch anything. Hopefully, they just took the masks off for a quick picture here. Evelyn and Cole are not the most extroverted, so they're not going to spend much time inside other kids' orbits.

We'll keep Shane at home for a week once he gets home. I'm not terribly concerned based on my family's precautions, but it doesn't hurt to be considerate (just not paranoid!).

In the meantime, I'm thrilled Shane gets the chance to be around his cousins. He plays with all of them.

I laughed out loud when I read the story. I showed Carrie and Shane the texts, too. He was home by then! It shows his visit had a lasting effect.

But that's getting ahead of things. One of the other perks of Shane visiting Nana and Pop is he gets exposed to new things. We have our own routines here and Carrie largely controls the TV. What she watches is different from Nana and Pop. I remember watching Nick at Nite shows and other things like Murder She Wrote at Jama's house from my own childhood. That knowledge has made me able to make references and jokes with older colleagues to connect with them.

I mentioned Shane got to see some Highway to Heaven to some of the barn people and Barbara said she loved Michael Landon! Variety is a spice of life. I'm convinced God wouldn't have made such a diverse world if he didn't want us to experience diverse things.

We kept in contact with Shane over the phone. I think he started to miss us more (or Nana wanted us to keep him busy some) the second week, because we got more calls then.

In addition to calls and texts, Nana wrote emails. 

Some were funny.

Shane has been enjoying taking baths, but after the typhoon in the bathtub last night, he will have to take a shower next time. We'll let him take a bath again in a few days after the memory of the flooding lessons. No one enjoys water play and simulating hurricanes more than Shane. 

Some were cute.

Shane asked me today what I would do with it if I won a million dollars.  I said that I would probably donate some and save some of it, but wouldn't change my lifestyle. He said he would pay for a 2nd week's rent for the beach house and for a cruise for all the family so he could have more good times with his cousins. He sure loves family. 

Some were future blackmail material.

Yesterday, I asked Shane to explain why his poop coats the front of the toilet bowl where there is no water. I asked him if he sat on the toilet backwards. He said, no, that that would be ridiculous. He also explained that he sits only halfway back on the toilet seat so that toilet water will not splash on him when his poop drops. He likes his poop to land in very shallow water so there is no splash. Since he has a voracious appetite and loves fruit, I have been cleaning the toilet more often than desirable. Once I made him clean up after his "art work" in the bowl. I have suggested that he put 2 squares of toilet paper on the front of the bowl where his "art work" is landing frequently or put 2 squares of toilet paper in the middle of the bowl to prevent the splash as he sits further back. Honestly, I have not had a problem with splash-back myself, but I can empathize that it doesn't sound pleasant. 

And others exemplified he's my son.

Pop picked up donuts this morning and is bribing Shane to work harder with one. It takes a lot of encouragement and hands-on supervision to keep him working on his assignments. Shane says he's tired when it comes to school work, but has boundless energy otherwise. Pop is very determined though and persists in getting Shane to work. Shane reminds me so much of our sons growing up. The twins worked too hard and you boys excelled at relaxation. I told Shane that his standard for work will determine what kind of house, car and lifestyle he will have as an adult. I think he is tired of me nagging him to work harder. Expect complaints when he gets home. hahah

Oh boy! Nana's a better writer than she admits. I can hear her telling the stories in her own voice when I read them.

There was one paragraph from an email that came to mind when we were discussing when we'd meet up for the hand-off.

Pop keeps trying to get Shane to do the See-Saw assignments, but Shane says he can do them next week, that there is no big rush. Good thing Pop is bigger and wil make him do some of those assignments. 

Natural consequences can lead to intrinsic motivation! And they did here!

I'm looking forward to seeing Shane again, but I'm also looking forward to the next time he gets to spend time in SC. Maybe we can make a whole family trip if we get a barn sitter. I've been ready for it, and Carrie brought it up!

Our Paths Diverge - Shane's Tale

Shane had the most fun weekend out of the three of us. He got to go to SC and play to his heart's content!

Bruce, Reyna, and Bryce were staying at Nana and Pop's. They'd driven down for a short vacation and even offered to pick up Shane on the way. 

Bruce and Reyna are long time family friends through church. If anything were to happen to them, Nana and Pop have already said they would adopt Bryce (which would make Bryce Shane's uncle and my brother in a weird twist of events!). 

Shane and Bryce have known each other from a long time ago. They've bounced on the trampoline together at Nana and Pop's old NoVA house and even attended the same daycare while Carrie, Shane, and I were moving to Charlottesville. 

It's been a while since they've seen each other, but Nana said they hit if off again right away.

She said that all three boys played supremely well together. There was no pairing up and excluding anyone. It was a happy company. She enlisted them as "the queen's guards" when she took Indy on her walks (with Indy being the queen). Shane dubbed them the "three musketeers" instead and they all ran along too far ahead to do much guarding!

The timing really worked out well in that Kathleen and Stu rented a moon bounce to celebrate Evelyn's birthday. Evelyn didn't want a party. That was convenient in COVID times and the pandemic had driven down demand/prices for moon bounces, so Kathleen had been able to get a big one for the whole weekend at a good price! Shane and Bryce became the party goers and it was a fun weekend of climbing, bouncing, running, and playing the disaster survival game as a team on Roblox that Shane loves.

The boys had the time of their lives.

Nana said that Bryce begged to stay an extra night. Reyna said he cried when it was time to leave, too! 

I couldn't be happier that Shane got the opportunity to be with everyone. By being at Nana and Pop's he gets exactly what he needs and what I can't provide here right now. It's good for him and good for them, too. Shane brings a lot of positive energy and he plays really well with all of his cousins. I'm a proud dad. 

It's good for Carrie and me, too, as we've got plenty on our own plates. We're hoping everyone loves the time Shane is in SC and praying everyone stays healthy!

Pre-Funeral: Lots and Lots of Family Time

Sunday is church day. The first wave hit the early service. Carrie and I went to an adult Sunday school class in an attempt to avoid the noise, worship, and be home in time for Aunt Beth and Claire's arrival. 

It turned out it was an 'off' Sunday for the class.

Oops.

Going to church was still a community building exercise. We got to meet someone that Nana and Pop babysit for, at least. Shane's played with his daughter before (and maybe will again!). Who knows? Maybe we'll visit the class again next time.

We all met up at Nana and Pop's after service for Arby's. 

Shane has been fantastic with the cousins.

Saturday morning, it was just him and Aiden. Shane entertained the baby and "never once asked for electronics."

Shane would move to South Carolina without me if he could.

Pop picked Aunt Beth and Claire up from the airport.

They hung out and talked for a while before they left to meet with Kevin and Cindy for dinner in Gaffney. Kevin and Cindy took Beth and Claire home to stay with them before the visitation tomorrow.

Carrie had a work emergency and retreated to the hotel while we were talking. I found myself at Kathleen's house with the kids!

Tenley and Evelyn mostly played on their own and with Kathleen (They actually sat and colored!? What is this!?).

The boys were two peas in a pod.

I walked back and forth between the groups, but hung back and let the kids be kids. Evelyn was learning to drive.

Not well. She'll do better when she learns to let off the gas after she hits something.

Here's a picture from later on to show what some of our afternoon was like.

The boys had the tablet. Shane convinced Cole to buy Minecraft with a gift card he had.

The girls clung to Ka. They had some trouble sharing (both books and Ka!).

Stu disappeared for an errand, but came back later on. I think we spent about three hours at their house? I'm a little foggy on the time.

Apparently, that's a record for Cole. Normally, he doesn't hang around with friends past three hours. People are crabby by that time.

Not so with Shane. Their time is limited and Shane's so happy to see everyone things went well! I got a blurred picture of Kathleen trying to play Ghosts in the Graveyard with the boys.

Shane and Cole retreated to tablet land while the girls were put to bed and we waited for Carrie to come pick us up.

Carrie and I brought Shane back to Nana and Pop's about the same time they were getting back from Gaffney. The three days of fun took the sting out of the drive time, but tomorrow is when we'll get to our real purpose for making the trip.

I guess we went to SC after all

One of my cousins passed away on December 30th. It was 'Little Matt." He was 24. I found out New Year's eve. We spent the week waiting on word of when the funeral would be held. 

When we did hear, my original plan had been to drive down with Patrick Monday morning and return Tuesday evening. I wanted to miss the minimum amount of work, because it was the first week back and SOLs were the week after. I, also, wanted to have the minimum impact on Carrie and Shane. I didn't think Shane would understand that I was going to visit Nana and Pop's for serious reasons instead of showing up to play.

Carrie insisted she wanted to go with me for support, though. She knew what it would mean and we drove down Friday to allow us time to be with family beforehand.

Matt, Renee, and Aiden were already there! Pop opened up the garage door when we walked up. He and Aiden were playing in the car. Aiden and Pop bonded while they were in St. Louis for Urbana and now he's the favorite.

Matt and Renee had planned on driving home after the New Year's, but chose to stay until after the funeral.

More family means more fun on my side of things!

Uncle Matt made sure to put in some bonding time with Shane.

Indy is always happier when more kids show up, too.

Kathleen brought her kids by, so that everyone could play.

Pop started teasing Shane and Cole right away.

The rules are a little different at Nana and Pop's than at our house. Furniture is climbable!

Evelyn and Tenley went straight to dinner. Kathleen had picked up bbq on her way over. Aiden joined.

Eventually, the whole clan settled in to eat.

The older boys just had to run off their excitement first.

I took a few pictures and gave everyone time to get their food before I put my phone away to grab my own.

We ran out of table space at the big kid's table, so some of us had to move elsewhere!

Shane and Cole hopped on the Switch when they were done eating. They played Splatoon.

Carrie and I said our goodbyes and went to check into our hotel after a while. Matt, Renee, and Aiden were still in the upper room and with all the comings and goings we decided a little quiet would be a good idea.

We stopped at Walmart on the way and found a nice outfit for Shane to wear at the funeral for about $20. I laughed and took a picture of a rack full of "Shane pants."

There will be time to mourn later, but for now it was all joy seeing everybody.

Audiobook note: One the drive down, we listened to The Wizards of Once, by Cressida Cowell. She's the author of How to Train your Dragon, so I thought it would be a hit with both Carrie and Shane. Carrie's pickier with audiobooks than Shane, so when I saw it was narrated by David Tennant? It helped keep us entertained for the drive!