Tuesday, August 18, 2020

A DAY IN THE LIFE: 1ST DAY OF (VIRTUAL) SCHOOL EDITION! {8.13.20}

Welcome back, friends!

And...
 
Since I did a Day in the Life post on the first day of school last year, I thought I'd do it again this year and maybe even make it a little blog tradition. Also, I haven't done a Day in the Life post since then so I figured it was time. (You can read last year's HERE.) Obviously, last year's post was a whole heck of a lot different than this year. This year we didn't do the traditional first day of school pictures on the porch and I didn't get a picture of Mason hopping on his bike to leave for school and meeting up with the rest of his buds at the stop sign. There was no back to school breakfast with my friends in downtown Mckinney. And there was no empty house for most of the day. (The part that I love most. 😂) I wasn't even able to snap a sneaky picture of my big 7th grader getting off the bus.

I'm hoping we can have a second "back to school" day once the kids go back in person and get to do all these things then. Fingers crossed!

Now on to our Thursday, August 13th, 2020.

6:15am

Since I didn't think to make this a day in the life post until 8am, you'll have to just believe me when I say my alarm went off at 6:15am and I very grudgingly rolled out of bed. Matthew's school offers optional morning workouts before school each day from 7-8am and Craig was taking him. (#thankgoodness) But I wanted to make sure he was up, ate a little something, had water, his mask, brushed his teeth, etc.

They left around 6:40 and since Mason didn't need to be up until 7:15, I opened all the shutters, picked up little messes downstairs, fed Charlie and let him out into the backyard. And then I sat on the couch in the sunroom scrolling through my phone until it was time for Mason to get up and get moving.

7:15am

Mason woke up, came downstairs to shower (in my bathroom...why not use your own?!!), and I made him some scrambled eggs and bacon. He got dressed, made his bed, and was at his desk with his snack for later and a bottle of water, ready to log on by 7:55am for the 8:00 start time.

8:00am


If you missed my post about all things #backtoschool, I talked about how our district is handling distance learning this year. A quick overview is that we'll be virtual for the 1st three weeks and then we have the option to come back in person or not. (We will be back in person.) But for now, they will follow their regular bell schedule virtually in elementary, middle and high school. (The young kids do it a little differently I think but I don't know anything about that.) The teachers are teaching live on zoom. All the documents they'll need are loaded into Canvas (which is the platform our district is using) and it's actually very organized. 

All students in grades 3-12 got brand new Macbooks issued to them and they will use the same one until they graduate. I had someone DM me on Instagram yesterday to ask if they were Chromebooks or Macbooks and honest to goodness...I don't know the difference. But our district's website says "Macbooks" so there ya go, I guess? This is the first year they've done this. Usually, it's just the high schoolers who get them for their 4 years but with this new policy, both my boys will hold on to theirs until graduation.

Also, I have no idea how it works with the younger kids but I'm guessing you can request one if you need one. Or maybe they changed it and EVERYONE gets one now? I feel like they'd need one just as much as the big kids since everything is done on zoom.

Anyway.

I stayed in Mason's room with him for the first 10 minutes or so to make sure everything was working correctly and to see if he needed anything. And I was able to sneakily snap this picture of him saying the Pledge of Allegiance with his class.


8:15am

Time for some Charlie snuggles and a wild game of fetch! Poor guy has had a double eye infection for a week and the morning goop is no joke. It's also incredibly hard to get out of his fur once it dries.


So...bath time!!


While he is not a fan of bath time, he is cooperative. He also loves the blow dryer after he gets out!


(Rug HERE. Super soft!)

Charlie ran off like a crazy animal when Craig and Matthew got back from his morning workout, so I got ready for the day.

8:30am


Of course, I washed my face with my Cleansing Balm. (If you haven't tried this stuff yet, what are you waiting for?!! Seriously. I'm about to have to reorder.) I followed it up with the Vitamin C Treatment and the Sheer Renewal Cream.


The other day, I ordered this 5 for $25 (shipped!) deal from Tarte so I got a couple of little Shape Tape concealers to test out different shades. (If you need help deciding what to get I definitely recommend at least 2 of the concealers, a lip gloss and that Squeezy Clean face wash is divine!! This is a fun little deal if you want to try some new products!)


I decided to actually wear foundation on this day in honor of the first day of school but I didn't go crazy with the makeup. And this $5 mascara is THE BEST. I know a ton of you are believers now too!!

8:45am

Time for 7th grade!! Matthew wanted the lights dim and cozy.


He seemed to have things well under control so I snapped a couple of pics and left him to it.


9:00am

I headed back downstairs for a little housework. I swear our dog is the messiest one in the house which is really saying something. I counted at least 10 toys strewn across the living room (forgot to snap any pics) but it was a disaster. He's like a mini tornado when he gets into his morning playtime routine.

After straightening up the living room, I headed to the laundry room to throw on a load. 

Yes, I have mismatched appliances. I hate it. But I was in a tight spot when I had to replace our washing machine a few years ago and it was the only color they had that could be delivered that day and I was desperate!

Laundry BasketRug | Wash & Dry signs (I'm going to get the "fold" one too but I may have to get it online.)

I just gave this room a full makeover but I still need to do just a couple of more things (on the other side of the room) and then I'll show yall the whole thing.

9:15am

I had to grab the laundry basket from the sunroom (pool towels, random clothes, swimsuits) and dropped the robovac out there so it could do a little sweep of the room. This vacuum makes my life so much easier.

(sunroom tour and info here)

I started the dishwasher and since it was the first day of school, I gave in and lit one of my new fall candles. Don't worry. This is literally the only fall thing I have going on in my house right now. Don't send me hate mail for pretending it's fall in the middle of August. haha 

I love all the apple scents any time of year.


9:30am

Time to work! This is where things get (even more?) boring, friends. And why I don't do many "day in the life" posts. 😂 I went up to my craftroom and worked on Etsy orders. Sign orders, earring orders, cup orders, burlap prints...all different kinds of orders. 


Love this little "Be Kind" mini!


And these were a few earring orders.


I also did a little Anniversary Sale shopping in between because it was my first day to be able to shop! You can see what I purchased so far HERE.


After I got my orders packaged up and ready to go, I dropped them at my front door for the mailman to pick up. This was just the start of that day's stack.


11:30am

Quick hi to Charlie and then back upstairs to work some more after stopping by the boys' room first.


I heard some rustling in Hammy's cage when I got to the top of the stairs so I peeked in on him. He's such a cute little thing!!


Back to work cutting vinyl decals for tumblers...


...while watching Twilight. (I told y'all last week about my shameful love of Twilight. But really. Don't knock it til you've tried it. You might be as surprised as I was to find out you love it.)


I was also busy finding deals, sales, and fun finds and posting them to my Facebook Deals Group. (Are you a member?! You should join us!!)

12:30pm

Matthew had lunch around 12:30 so I went down to eat with him and see how things were going.  I didn't remember to take any pictures. 🤷‍♀️ Then it was back to work.

1:30pm

Mason's lunch period and "recess" were happening but he'd already eaten by the time I realized it. We hung out for a while (aka-I annoyed him with all the questions when all he really wanted to do was play Fortnite for a minute) and then I got back to my own stuff.


3:30pm

I made some chocolate chip cookies as a little back to school treat for Matthew. That boy will only eat them fresh from the oven. The second they cool off, he's done. Such a diva.  😂 Mason had already run off to his buddy's house and for some reason he DOES NOT LIKE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES. What?! Blows my mind.


Quiet time with the best rescue dog there ever was while we wait 13 minutes for the cookies to be done!



Pilsbury at it's finest. 😉

4:00pm

Quickly unload the dishwasher...


...and check on Charlie before heading back upstairs to work on my blog post for the next day.


To see how this post turned out, click HERE!


5:30pm

Back downstairs (not nearly done with the blog post) in order to make sure Matthew is ready for baseball practice. This one wanted to go outside and he looked too stinkin' cute.



Look at this big kid. When did he get so old? And so big? But more importantly--why does he have his dirty cleats on my clean white rug?!!?!!? Good thing he's cute.


Dad and Bubs left for practice so Charlie and I played fetch for a bit. He is the funniest thing when I throw the ball towards the front door and he jumps off the couch at a full sprint and slides smack into the door. Every time. 😂


Back upstairs to work a little longer on the blog post while Mason is at a friend's house down the street. We decided on Wingstop for dinner that night and Craig and Matthew would pick it up on the way home. I don't usually cook on Thursday nights because I'm always working late on the Friday Favorites blog. And Wingstop has the very best ranch ever so even though I don't LOVE wings, I do love that I can use the ranch on my salads all week.

7:30pm

Time to pack things up and go downstairs for the rest of the night.  (Mason was home by now and watching TV with me in my craft room while I finished up.) Thursdays are always such late work nights.  I jumped in the shower and when I got out, I listened to my latest audiobook while I slathered on my oils and creams for my nighttime routine.


This is basically a compilation of stories of so many of the gymnasts that Larry Nassar abused for decades. It's not for the faint of heart.

8:00pm

Boys came home with dinner! We eat late around here a lot and no one really minds. We have baseball or football practice Monday through Friday nights so we either eat really early (like 5pm) or fairly late (8/8:30ish). And the consensus is usually that everyone would rather play with their friends or whatever as long as they can and then eat later. Works for me.

After this, I completely forgot about taking any pictures. And I was doing so good!!

After dinner, we played with Charlie who typically gets a huge burst of energy around this time and cracks us all up. (What did we do before this dog?!) The boys took turns taking showers (again...in my bathroom even though they have their own) and I finally shooed them upstairs around 9:45. I make them turn lights (and electronics) off by 10. Their phones lock automatically.

10:00pm

As soon as I sent them upstairs, I jumped into my bed to watch some Big Brother and finish the blog post while Craig watched TV in the living room. 


Finally finished up the blog post by 11:30 which included my Nordstrom Anniversary Sale picks! (You can find them all in this post.)


12:15am

I'm a total night owl so I stayed up for another 45 minutes scrolling through blogs/social media/Pinterest before calling it a night around 12:15. I always fall asleep immediately (listening to Friends with an earbud under my pillow and my phone laying facedown...yes I still do this...😂).

Hope you enjoyed hearing a little about a day in my life!


SHARE:

14 comments

  1. I love day in the life posts! We still have a week until school starts back...virtually until at least Oct. 5.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This post. I love it so much. I love YOU and your fam too!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I hopped over and read your blog post about listening to Friends every night to fall asleep. I did the exact same thing (same progression from portable DVD player, then adding ear buds, then Netflix) but with West Wing. I'm so glad to know I'm not alone! I, too, need to mindlessly listen to something so my brain can turn off and relax. I still listen to something every night but I've expanded my repertoire now. I feel seen right now!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh my gosh, no way!! Yes, portable player, then ear buds then Netflix. (And now I've been forced to buy all the seasons on Amazon since they removed it from Netflix. Boo!) Too funny! I do switch back and forth between Friends, Cougar Town and Parks and Rec now though. Maybe I need to add in some West Wing! ;)

      Delete
  4. I love day in the life posts! Thanks for sharing! I also love to see how virtual schooling is working for you! We start back after Labor Day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I kind of feel like a little bit of normal life will begin after Labor Day! I hope!?!

      Delete
  5. Jennifer4:50 AM

    What app do you use that auto locks the kids phones? My kids are getting first phones soon so new to all the tracking/parental control apps. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We've used Kidslox for years. I blogged about it a few years ago. It's not the most high tech parental control app but it works for us! https://www.thatinspiredchick.com/2017/11/got-kids-you-need-this-app.html

      Delete
  6. GIRL. I worked from home yesterday (seriously, i wish i ALWAYS did....) and I literally watched all four Twilights as my background noise lol :)

    ReplyDelete

I love hearing from you! Drop a comment below!

BLOGGER TEMPLATE CREATED BY pipdig