Quarantine news by Blaze:

From Blaze: I've been sitting in my room reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I have been getting to school early, meaning I get on the computer just before 9am to conference call with Miss Jess. I can message my friends in my class on the computer. I have been getting all of my works done which are: Imagine Math, language, spelling, reading with a book report, vocabulary, and a helpful task. The weather has been bad today, so we stayed inside. We had a giant earthquake yesterday, a 5.7 on the Richter scale! It was around 7:15 am. Moroni's trumpet fell out of Moroni's hand on the Salt Lake Temple. It is being renovated right now. I was in my bed when the earthquake happened and my bed just started shaking and I didn't know what was happening. It went on for a few seconds then it was done. Then we got all of our emergency supplies and put them by the front door just in case another big one hit. There were police sirens in our neighborhood and we watched them drive around. The Kennecott mine let out a toxic plume, so we couldn't go jump on the tramp for a while. The day before the earthquake was St. Patrick's Day, and we got to make and decorate rainbow cupcakes and eat on the deck by the fire. I'm feeling scared that another earthquake will come and it will be worse. We talked about hiding under a sturdy table during an earthquake. I have had fun playing Code Names and B.S. with mommy, Alanna, and Paul today, even though I lost both times. I think I might get sick of being in this house for so long with my family. Trump says it might be until August!

St. Patrick's Day...

It was a little sad not to be able to have family over for a St. Patrick's day dinner, but we still had a festive time on our own!

Thank goodness we have the trampoline so these kids can still have "recess"! 

Split Pea Soup, Irish Soda Bread, Scones, and colorful cupcakes made a tasty meal! 

Alanna is especially talented at using the air brush machine to decorate goodies!

Paul made a silly video dressed like this for Tik Toc. 

Blaze had an online art lesson and made this beautiful drawing of a deer! 

Corona Quarantine Day #3

      From Paul: I built a puzzle. Then we went to the Reservoir to ride my electric long board. We played X box. I want to get Corona, and then get over it, and then go hang out with my friends. It seems like online school is going to be a lot easier though. I was excited to move our fire-pit to the upstairs deck so that we can roast marshmallows more easily. I also hit 50 "likes" on Tik-Tok. It is an app that has funny videos like people dancing or being pranked. You can scroll through a list to view other people's videos, or make your own. I made my own posts with memes that I find on Youtube. I really want an Iphone 11 Pro. I've wanted an Iphone since I was three years old. I finally bought an Iphone 6, but it is outdated. I earned money to get it from mowing lawns and getting good grades. I got $100 for getting straight A's.

Corona Quarantine Day #2

We have been instructed to have church at home, with permission to administer the Sacrament at home. President Nelson announced at the October General Conference that we should "take our vitamins" and "expect a conference unlike any other you've had before". And now the world has been taken by storm by this Coronavirus, and we all need to stay healthy and any public gatherings, like Conference, have been cancelled!

Jackson had his first opportunity to bless the Sacrament in our home. James and Paul helped pass our Sacrament of graham crackers and individual glasses of water. It was a really cool experience to feel the Spirit in this way in our home, sitting on our comfy couches by the warm fire. We studied out of the Come Follow Me manual and were able to share thoughts about serving in our callings and families. 

We broke into our food storage supply of dried beans and rice cooked in the Instant Pot, and it was actually really good! Which is a great thing because the way things are going it may become a staple in our home! We went down to the bowl park at the end of our street and had a family game of soccer and touch football. It was so much fun to be out of the house in the Spring air enjoying each other. It was a bit eerie to be outside and everyone kept their distance. This will be a good opportunity for our kids to grown closer together. Hopefully we can make this time a memorable experience...memorable because it was a time of strength and unity rather than fear and uncertainty. 

3.14 Day...

This was our first official day of quarantine. The kids were so upset that I wouldn't let them play with their friends! It was announced the previous day that school would be canceled for at least 2 weeks, and we knew this thing was getting serious! Hopefully we can keep things as normal as possible and ride this thing out. Luckily, we had ingredients to make a chocolate cream pie, and it was so delicious!