Well, on Friday, Jason and I both got an early Christmas present.....
A COVID Vaccine!
We feel very fortunate to be among the first wave of recipients. Neither of us had any side effects, and I thought it was even less painful than the flu vaccine.
Now, here's to hoping that distribution will continue quickly so everyone can get protected soon, and *perhaps* things can return to normal.
We spent the weekend at the cabin. Jason and I got some new cross-country ski gear for Christmas for each other, so we decided to open it up early and test out the skis, as we got a foot of fresh snow. We got out in the road before they plowed and had a lot of fun! So excited to get more into this winter sport. We need to find some hand-me down ones for the kids so they can join in too.
Alaina did spend time outside and built this pretty cool snowman:
In other news, I have a slot to get the COVID vaccine next Friday! Our hospital is one of the first ones in the area to distribute it, so I feel very lucky. So, perhaps 2021 will bring an end to these virtual holidays! Fingers Crossed.
Well Saturday was Jason's 43rd Birthday. Hard to believe that 3 years ago we had a big party and nobody was wearing a mask, lol! This year was much more low key. We spent the day up in Tahoe at the cabin. Although we had about a foot of snow on the ground the weather was mild in the low 40s.
We took advantage of this and and went out on a trek to cut down a Christmas tree for the cabin. For $10, we got a permit to cut down any tree in a designated national forest area. We got a beauty! And with a little furniture rearrangement, it fit just great in the cabin.
Even though it was a quiet birthday, it was some good family time.
Well, COVID Thanksgiving has come and gone.
We marked the day with a meal with my Dad and Marilyn. Jeremy came too but ate outside. Gary and Eileen did not come. What a weird way to "celebrate" the holiday.
Jason smoked the Turkey after a dry brine, and I have to say it was delicious. Even better than last year. I tried to make my first cheesecake, which was a slight fail due to a leaky water bath. Apparently the aluminum foil from the dollar store is not quite as leak-proof as one would hope.
Jason was on call the entire long weekend, and I was on call Saturday and Sunday, so my dad watched the kids for us on the weekend. They took a nice hike in the Marin headlands and enjoyed treats including donuts, candy canes, peanut butter cups, and milkshakes. Its good to be spoiled by grandpa!
My Grandma Ferschl died this afternoon. She was 97 and a half years old. She has been such a constant part of my life for the past 41 years--it is really difficult to believe that she is gone.
Gramma had been suffering for a while--she had emergency gall bladder surgery back at the end of February, and despite the fact that she has always been one tough woman, she never did quite bounce back.
COVID of course made everything much much worse. Basically from the moment she left her apartment for the hospital she was quarantined away from the family to protect her from contracting Covid. Only just recently, when she transitioned to hospice, was she allowed in-person visitors. I think that the loneliness certainly did not help her healing.
Recently, we have been able to FaceTime with her. Each day, she got a little bit sleepier and less interactive. On one of her last lucid days, she saw Alaina and said, "Oh I bet she wont even remember me." That sentiment broke my heart. And I hope it is not true. I will do my best to help Alaina remember her Great-Gramma!
At the end, Gramma just stopped breathing, and finally gave up her fight for good.
There are many things that I will remember Gramma for. I loved how she laughed (giggled really) and could fill up the room with her joy. I remember her squeezing my dimple when I was as small kid, and her exclaiming "look at your dimple!" She later did this to my own kids, I remember her enjoying a "7 and 7" when we went out to family dinners at Alioto's Restaurant, and how she would always order her steak extra well-done, like a "hockey puck". I remember her telling us stories of her jobs before she had kids--she worked as a telephone operator, and sometimes listened into calls late at night. She also worked in a market where she "demonstrated herring". She always had good stories to tell from days long ago.
Gramma was always was well-put together with coordinating outfits and neatly curled hair, even towards the end. She never liked to be the first one to hang up the phone when we talked. She wore her husband's wedding ring on a necklace around her neck every day. When my mom was sick, she was always worried about her (and my dad). She always reminded me of how special my mom was. She had a special place in her heart for Jason too. I remember her dancing at our wedding.
We were already planning a big 100th birthday party for her--and I think that until the very end she thought she would make it to the party.
I will really miss her.
Some of the weekends events included getting a new couch (I was allergic to the old one, probably because the previous owners had a dog). Since it was a big couch, the delivery people had to hoist it over the balcony (!!) and take the sliding gladdest door off to get it inside. It was a real feat.
We also spent some time decorating the cabin to our taste. Specifically, I am excited to be able to use a few heirlooms. The first is the quilt that my Grandma Harris made for me. This quilt has a special story. As an expert quilter, she made a quilt for each grandchild as a wedding gift. Though she did not live to see my wedding day, I have treasured the quilt since the moment I received it. However, it has always been in Chicago....until my Dad's moving truck came. And what perfect timing. We have a bed in Tahoe that looks like it was just made for the quilt. It gives me such joy to use it.
We also put one of her cool quilted wall hangings up in the stairwell.
Another treasure also came from the moving truck from Chicago--an antique hand-made wooden dresser. This dresser was in my the Harris' home, and I believe was made by my Grandma's father. It is a truly beautiful piece of furniture and it fits perfectly into Ethan and Alaina's room.
So, it has been fun making the space "ours". Next time we go up, we should have some time to relax!
On Saturday we "celebrated" halloween. "Celebrated" in quotation marks as most celebrations were cancelled. I had originally taken Friday off of work to attend the kids Halloween parades at school. But, obviously, that was no longer necessary, so I picked up a shift and worked while the kids had "zoom" halloween parties. And our local government discouraged trick-or-treating. I didn't even organize costumes.
We did our best to have some fall fun this weekend despite the pandemic. The days are definitely getting shorter and cooler. The kids carved their halloween pumpkins this weekend. Neither chose a traditional jack-o-lantern face. Instead, Ethan carved a jail (symbolic of the pandemic, perhaps?) and Alaina carved a pumpkin on her pumpkin.
They did a pretty good job doing it mostly without adult interference and even cleaned up their mess (mostly). Win!
We also made my seasonal favorite, caramel apples. I always think about the "taffy apple" days at my elementary school--where we could pre-order caramel apples and bring them home at the end of the school day. Loved them then--and now! I had upgraded them by adding sprinkles--and they were delicious.
So, no hayrides or pumpkin patches, but, still some home fun.
Well, this was a big weekend for our family: we closed on a vacation home in Lake Tahoe! Now, if you would have asked me a year ago if I would ever buy a second home I would have laughed. Certainly, this was never something I wanted to do, mostly because I love traveling to new places when I have time off of work. Jason, on the other hand, has always waned a home in Lake Tahoe. So, in this sense, the pandemic has been a big win for him. CoVID certainly helped convince me that having a home away from home--a place that is easy and safe to travel to--is a good thing. And since I don't foresee big trips anytime soon, it seemed like a good time to take the plunge.
When house-hunting, we looked all over the Tahoe area, but ultimately bought a home in an area called Serene Lakes, which is just west of the Donner Summit. This area has two advantages: 1. It is about 30 minutes closer to our home in Marin than most other vacation areas and 2. It is super quiet (serene, really) and low key, which I something that was important to us. It also is home to North America's largest cross-country ski resort, and a big downhill ski resort called Sugarbowl. Plus a ton of hiking and biking trails for the summer.
Our cabin (name forthcoming, but I am thinking Pandemic Purchase might be pretty good!), is a rustic but charming house in the woods. We are about a 10 minute walk from the lake itself which has a nice swimming beach and storage for non-motorized boats (the house came with a canoe!).
Anyhow, we spent our first weekend up there--and I have to say it was lovely. Cozy, quiet, and really beautiful. I feel so fortunate that we were able to do this.
Well, it has been another special week of smoky home schooling.
Here is an assignment that Alaina "turned in" on how to behave appropriately during Zoom School. Who would have ever thought?!?!?!?
Our School district is going to start very limited in-person school on Monday, 4-5 kids per grade. What a joke. There is a lot of challenges with the teachers union and it is unclear if/when either of my kids will get back to in person school. Ugh.
Smoke: It has been another smoky week with another huge fire breaking out in the wine country last weekend. Here is a blurry picture of the full orange moon I saw this week.
So, yes, it is a tough time to live here. Our next-door neighbors announced this week that they (and their 4 kids) have decided to move to South Carolina (!). I think that people are really feeling frustrated with everything....and looking for alternatives. I am trying to stay positive and convince myself that at least the fires will go out soon--it is supposed to rain next weekend. We will see.
Lat week, Alaina became a Brownie Girl Scout--her troop graduated from Daisies. The troop leader did a great job doing a little ceremony outside with a cool balloon rainbow arch.
I have to say, I have such great girl scout memories, I know that I am living vicariously through Alaina right now....and I don't think she is quite as into it as I am! But maybe that will change.
When I was packing up things from the Park Ridge house I found my old girl scout vest--I remember my mom painstakingly sewing all the patches on (or outsourcing the sewing to my Grandma Harris)! By the time I finished in 6th grade, there was not any more room for another patch! Needless to say, the vest made the move. Maybe someday, Alaina will appreciate it!!
This weekend we celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Eileen did almost all of the cooking but brought it down to our place to serve in the back yard. Jason did smoke a brisket (which turned out delicious!), so I guess we contributed a bit.
My dad got to join in for his first Jewish holiday. He did enjoy the Matzoh Ball Soup!
Look at the three beautiful cakes Eileen brought: Honey, Apple and Fig. Delicious!
Lets hope that year 5781 is a bit better than 5780 was. When I think back, the last 12 months have been pretty rough--Ethan was diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis, Jason's Grandma died, and of course, we have all suffered with the pandemic, lack of schooling/socilaization and the recent fires.
I hope this is the turn of a new leaf!
Well, it has been an unprecedented week of bad air quality. Though there are no fires immediately close to us, much of northern California and Oregon are up in flames, and the smoke has blown in our direction. Last week was supposed to be the kids' first soccer practice, but all practices were closed due to poor air quality.
On Wednesday the sky was particularly eerie--it was glowing orange all day. This was apparently due to a high layer of smoke with fog below it, which apparently prevents all blue/green light wavelengths from being seen. I was working from home that day, and all of our interior corridors were pitch dark. It was apocalyptic-looking.
On Thursday the orange went away, only to be replaced by grey. And the grey has stuck around. You cannot see anythingonthie horizon at all. So now, there are no indoor activity's due to CoVid and no outdoor activities due to the smoke. Miserable! Though of course, not nearly as miserable as it would be if the fires were immediately nearby. So, we are thankful for that!
Well, its official! My dad has moved in! 2 weeks ago he handed over the keys to his Park Ridge home and hit the road for Mill Valley, CA. After a grueling 3 full days of driving with his girlfriend Marilynn, he made it to our place. He then waited for the moving truck (which got a bit delayed) until last Sunday. All of his stuff arrived safely (no broken items found yet!), and he has been spending the week settling into his new place.
It is so cool to be able to just stop by for a visit on my way home from work (his place is directly on the way home!) I still haven't quite gotten used to the fact that I can do this, but it sure is pretty neat.
He has made some good progress in his unpacking over the week. His bedrooms are basically done, and his kitchen is getting there. It is starting to look like home! (I'll post some unpacked photos soon!)
What a journey--he made an offer on this place over 6 months ago. So glad he is finally here.
