Four Months Old!

Photo credit - Nadia

Milo turned four months old today! At his vet appointment last week he weighed a little over 6 pounds. Milo is no longer scared of his reflection in a mirror, but he still barks like crazy at random things like the broom, vacuum cleaner, a jar of parmesan cheese, etc. The funniest thing he does (in our opinion) is when he spins around in a circle chasing his tail.

He still occasionally chews on the cord for the Echo dot or my laptop or the kitchen chair legs, but the things we've said "no" to him chewing lately have primarily been the pillows that I put in front of the fireplace to block the draft of cold air, the Wii remotes in the entertainment center (if Paul fixes that door it will be a big help as the glass is missing in the door which gives him very easy access), and the dish towel in the kitchen. I relocated the dish towel from the oven door to the microwave door to keep it out of his reach, but I haven't moved the pillows that are in front of the fireplace. Soon after we brought him home we flipped the toy bins in the family room so they were facing the wall, but he had still been managing to  get things from the bins so Oliver and I moved all those bins to the basement. I have three kids, and I think at this point there aren't any toys for kids on the main floor of our house aside from those that are in the toy box. Many toys have been relocated to either one of the kids' bedrooms or the basement.. We do have plenty of dog toys on the main floor of the house!

At this point he averages one accident a day. The time he is most prone to accidents is at night when Ian or Oliver are chasing him around the house. Milo LOVES to run, and wow is he FAST!!!! The longest he's gone without an accident is two days. I'm hoping that by the time he turns five months old he's not having any accidents. We shall see. If he doesn't have any accidents one day, he usually has two the next day. He didn't have any accidents this week on Wednesday or Thursday, and then he had three accidents on Friday and also had one this morning. Thankfully we don't have to take him out as many times a day as we did at first. I formulated a list of nine times a day to take him out, and the kids divided those up so that each child has at least three turns a day. I was very weary of hearing them debate who was taking him out each time. This plan has eliminated those discussions which is a big relief to me. I'm guessing that over time we'll continue the trend of taking him out fewer times per day. Every once in a long while he goes to the door and lets us know he needs to go out, but the vast majority of the time it's at our initiative. I'll be thrilled when he communicates his need to go to the bathroom more frequently with us! The longest he's gone without any accidents is 2 days. I look forward to the day when he can go three or more days without any accidents.

He's learned the commands "sit" and "down." He is very confused by "leave it." He gets into the down position for leave it. We have to keep working on "leave it." He's making a lot of progress with "come." He definitely comprehends that command but obeying it is another issue. I've ordered a clicker and will begin using that for positive reinforcement along with the treats starting next week. He loves the puppy ping pong game that is helping him learn to obey the command "come." He definitely comprehends "come" but it's hit or miss if he'll choose to obey that command. We're also going to start working on the command "wait."

Nadia successfully trimmed his nails. We're going to start brushing his teeth 2-3 times a week starting next week. He's getting groomed for the first time on Monday. Since that costs $50+, I ordered a pair of dog clippers today so I can take over the grooming duties. We already own dog shampoo, and I recently ordered forceps and the powder needed to pluck the hairs from his ears. The puppy kindergarten instructor showed us how to do that this week. Evidently if we don't, he'll get ear infections. Have I mentioned that dogs are MUCH more high maintenance than cats? He isn't AS interested in the guinea pigs as he was at first. If he manages to get into Nadia's room, he always goes for the Legos first rather than the guinea pigs. We've had to extricate many Legos from his mouth over the last seven weeks. Buttercup is the bravest of our three guinea pigs in that she will come right to the edge of their cage to greet Milo. We only allow Milo to observe them under our very careful supervision.

He sleeps in Ian's room at night. The last time he is taken out to go to the bathroom is 9:30pm, and he usually sleeps until at least 7:00am. Ian wasn't very happy that Milo got up at 6:45 this morning. If he cries in the night, Ian will sleep on the floor in a sleeping bag beside his crate for part of the night. The guinea pigs now sleep in Nadia's room. The smell of their cage is definitely more potent now that their cage is in a room where the door is closed almost all the time.

Milo loves us VERY much. He is a very affectionate puppy. Karyss and the members of our family are his favorite people. Oliver doesn't let Milo "kiss" him, but he gives the rest of us many kisses. First thing in the morning and when we come home from church or some other outing are the times he is the most exuberant in showing his affection through his little tail wagging like crazy and giving lots of kisses. Prior to yesterday, the longest he had been left at home alone was 2 hours. I met a friend for lunch yesterday after dropping the kids off at another friend's house for a playdate. He was in his crate from 10:30-2:45 yesterday. Thankfully he never has any accidents in his crate whenever we leave him. We don't have any field trips scheduled until April 22, so he won't be spending much time at home alone over the next three months aside from Sunday morning when we go to church. My moments of wondering why on earth we got a puppy are happening less often than they were during the first few weeks. I will freely acknowledge that he is very cute, and I do enjoy holding when he's sleeping or in a calm mood. We plan to take him with us to Long Island when we visit Aunt Janet in July (Lord willing), and if we are actually able to take our longer than usual family vacation out west in September/October, we're going to ask our friends if they'll keep Milo at their house while we're away.

Thankful Tuesday

1. Nadia began an ASL class via Zoom through the library on January 14. I had previously taught the kids some ASL so much of what the librarian covered was a review for Nadia.

2. Paul and the kids went skiing at Elk Mountain on January 19. We planned to go skiing at Elk Mountain in January in 2017, 2018, and 2019, but the first time any of us went there was in January 2020. I took the kids. The reason Paul didn't go last year and none of us went the other three years was because it was held the week before Paul usually attends a trade show in Baltimore. We've had a WVIA membership (PBS station) the last several years because it enables us to go skiing twice a year for free, attend Knoebels once a year for free, Montage water park once a year for free, etc. Last year due to COVID-19 most of the events were cancelled, but since the skiing dates are held in January and February each year, they took place before the lockdown started in March. I didn't go skiing this year because of Milo. Paul and the kids left the house around 6:00am and didn't get home until after 7:30pm. Nadia and Ian have gone skiing a total of six times - four times at Ski Sawmill (one hour from our house) and twice at Elk Mountain (two hours from our house). Oliver has skied four times (twice at each place). All five of  us have skied together two times - at Ski Sawmill in 2019 and 2020. Paul had taken Nadia and Ian skiing in 2018 while Oliver was recovering from a fractured skull, but the ski trip last week was the first time he took all three kids skiing by himself. I thought all five of us would go skiing together next month at Ski Sawmill, but due to COVID-19, WVIA won't be having their annual ski day at that resort. Since it's an outdoor sport and when you are skiing you naturally want to stay six feet apart from each other to avoid your skis from getting tangled up, I'm not sure why COVID-19 would put an end to a day of skiing outdoors. The good news is that the kids had a great time skiing, and because we had renewed our WVIA membership last January, we actually got three free days of skiing from one year of membership. I thought we'd have to renew before Elk Mountain, but they gave us free lift tickets and rentals again based on what we paid a year ago. 

3. January 20 was Ian's spiritual birthday. Nadia and I made chocolate chip pancakes and bacon for his birthday dinner. On Sunday I bought him the latest Imagination Station book for his birthday gift. I got glazed donuts from the grocery store. I'm very thankful he's made a profession of faith, and I pray that he will draw closer to the Lord in the years to come.

4. The day Paul and the kids were skiing, Ken finished the master bathroom project. I painted the bathroom on Saturday. I haven't used the shower yet because Paul wants to spackle a tiny bit more in a few places first, but there aren't any power tools in our bathroom for the first time in years. Paul started the project 4 years and 9 months ago so I'm very, very glad it's done (or almost done in Paul's eyes). 

5. On Sunday afternoon we played Ticket to Ride for the first time. I had given the game to Paul for his birthday on January 3. I wish we had a routine for playing games more regularly, but I'm thankful when we do get around to playing a board game together.

6. Paul's mom was in the hospital from January 3 through January 21. We're very thankful she's back at home and hoping the procedures that were completed on her heart will prove to be helpful. 

7. Margie is recovering from her first chemo treatment, and she's very relieved that the oncologist decided she wouldn't have any more treatments given all she had to endure following her first treatment. We're praying one treatment was enough to eradicate the cancer. 

8. I enjoyed  lengthy phone conversation with Yvonne on her birthday (January 21) and with two of my friends on January 19 while I was  home alone with Milo. 

9. Milo had his second vet appointment last week as he needed a booster shot for one of the vaccines he got last month. He gained 1.5 pounds in a month as he now weighs over 6 pounds. He's learned the commands "sit" and "down." We're working on "take it" and "leave it." He has NO problem taking it, but hasn't a clue about "leave it." He has his second session of puppy kindergarten this afternoon. He's averaging one accident a day. He's more accepting of spending time in his crate. He still tries to eat a myriad of things he shouldn't eat such as the rubber floor mat. 

10. We've tried 100 new foods over the past five months! The most recent one that we really liked was Anzac biscuits, which is an Australian type of cookie that I definitely plan to make again. Since today is Australia Day, I'm planning to make three new Australian recipes later today (#101-103) - meat pies, damper (bread), and lamingtons (dessert). Not every new food has been well received, but usually at least one or two of us have liked the food so that not too much food has been wasted along the way. Oliver really liked the honey joys (Australian) and Pani popo (Samoan sweet bread recipe). 

Thankful Tuesday

 

1. Last week we received some gift cards in the mail from one of Paul's aunts. Ian and Nadia used theirs to buy Lego sets. Nadia had been saving up some money to buy a set that cost $90. She was still $10 shy with the gift card, but Ian gave her $10 of the money he got from his birthday last month. I was pleased with his generosity! Oliver hasn't spent his yet, but he's planning to buy a Paw Patrol toy (surprise, surprise!). We also received a gift card to Dunkin which all five of us will enjoy!

2. We also received a box from my Dad and Margie which was "supposed" to arrive on December 21. Oops! COVID has done a number on delivery services. I'm still waiting for our next Talkbox.mom box (which was shipped on December 28 and was supposed to arrive on January 4) as well as photos from Shutterfly that were "supposed to arrive on January 6. Our framed map of the US did arrive on January 6. I can't wait to fill in the state shaped photos once the Shutterfly package arrives! It's now hanging above our TV in the family room. I'm curious to see how many more states we'll be able to fill with pictures over the course of 2021 and the years to come! The box from my Dad and Margie included three books (two for the kids and one for Paul) and Doritos for Ian. Paul has begun reading the book.

3. Our church got a final total for the December giving toward the wells in Africa, and what we raised actually exceeded 150K, which will translate to 30 wells in Africa after World Hope matches what we raised. PTL!!!

4. Last Wednesday the kids had a play date. Tab picked the kids up around 1:30 at our house, and I picked them up around 4:20 at her house before taking Nadia to church. They had fun sledding down their big hill, playing with their dog, playing games, etc.

5. I enjoyed teaching the preschool class on Sunday. The attendance at the in-person services has been rising again lately and so I had eight kids in the class which was about twice as many as had been in the class lately. 

6. The youth group at FBC hadn't met together in person since sometime in November. They met in person this past Sunday night (wearing masks), and Nadia was very happy about that.

7. We started Ian's orthodontic treatment yesterday. He will be getting his expander in two weeks. Since I knew we'd be in Williamsport for his appointment, I scheduled a small curbside grocery order at Wegman's to get some ingredients that I couldn't get at the grocery stores where I usually shop. They were out of rose water (needed for  making Turkish delight), but they had everything else. I'll try to get rose water there at some point in the future. I also scratched Melopita (a Greek honey pie)off our list of foods to try because even Wegmans didn't carry the cheese needed for that recipe. Kohl's is right next to Wegmans, and they had sent me $5 off coupon that could be used on anything so I used it toward a pair of gloves for Nadia as she needed a pair for when she goes skiing or plays in the snow as she lost one of hers last year. The orthodontist is very close to a PetSmart, and they sent me a $10 coupon that could be used toward any purchase $10 or greater. I was planning to buy a pooper scooper, but they were out of stock of those. I bought a bag of guinea pig food that was usually $26 that was on sale for $23, and then used the coupon plus a $10 reward so I only paid $3 for 10 pounds of guinea pig food. Yay! Ian and I also got some cereal at Surplus Outlet and swung by the library on the way home. Nadia was happy Ian and I did those errands because she was paid $10 for babysitting Oliver (and Milo) for 2 hours. Over the past 12 1/2 years I haven't regularly gone to Williamsport, but that will be changing now that Ian is seeing an orthodontist there. He was very relieved that there was no mention of pulling any of his teeth. Hoping the orthodontic treatment plan will be successful and as painless as possible for Ian. I'm thankful we are able to pay for it.

8. Although we've also eaten some tried and true recipes recently such as lasagna and ham and cheese sliders, we've still be trying some new ones. Over the past 4.5 months we've tried 96 new foods so far! I really enjoyed the crème brulee, but I doubt I'll make it again because no one else was that fond of it. However, everyone liked the BBQ ribs we had tonight (I'd never purchased ribs before), and almost everyone liked the coconut bread I made today. Oliver absolutely loved the Jamaican bread. He had quite a few slices of it and said it was better than monkey bread! Since I have about 175 recipes on the list we are more than half way through the list. 

9. Milo learned how to jump over the baby gate. It's a relief to have those back in storage as it was a pain to walk over them. We moved the guinea pigs to Nadia's room, and Milo slept in Ian's room for the first time last night. Yesterday he didn't have any accidents (but he did vomit which frankly is more disgusting to clean up than urine). Today he had three accidents, but still I see a lot of improvement in his behavior. He's not nipping at the boys nearly as much as he used to. He's learned the sit command, and I'm now trying to teach him "down." He doesn't come when I call his name, but he does come if I say the word "treat." I'm requiring all three kids to help with cleaning up his messes and taking him out for walks so the dog is forcing them to learn more responsibility albeit sometimes it's like pulling teeth to get one of them to take him out. He's also more accepting of being in his crate (for the most part) than he was a month ago. As of today we've had him for exactly one month. The living room went from having a guinea pig cage plus a Christmas tree to just a guinea pig cage to neither of those. It looks rather bare at the moment as we also took the food bin upstairs since the guinea pigs moved up there. Hopefully Nadia will learn to sleep through the sounds of the guinea pigs gnawing on their houses. They can be a bit noisy! 

10. Paul's mom is still in the hospital, but she sounds like she's doing better than when she was admitted on January 3. We are praying for the doctors to have wisdom in the best way to treat the leaky valve in her heart.

11. Nadia and I watched two movies together last week on Disney+. Black Beauty was fine, but I really, really, really loved the movie Safety. 

Back to the 80's

When I read or listen to biographies or historical fiction, I often find myself thinking how I am glad I live in this time period and have my current "job." When we listened to a biography about Ernest Shackleton, I found myself amazed at what those explorers were willing to endure. I've been listening to Unbroken while exercising lately, and again I am astounded at what some American prisoners of war were able to endure at the hands of the Japanese. When we enjoy books that take place in the early part of US history, I think I would have been a vegetarian as I can't imagine killing animals, skinning them, plucking off their feathers, etc. Up until the last week or so I have never found myself feeling nostalgic about the past. I've heard other people over the years say something along the line of that life was better back in the 50's or some other time period. It might be because they really liked the music from a previous decade, because they feel the morals in our country have declined since that time, or because they have fond memories from that decade. In my opinion in many ways things were better in the 80's than they are now. 

For example in the '80's, three of our recent/current Supreme Court justices were approved by the Senate either unanimously (Scalia) or by a vast majority - 96 votes for Ginsburg and 87 votes for Breyer. That hasn't happened for awhile, and I don't see it happening again anytime in the near future. At that time the media (news on tv/ newspapers) was far less biased. I know that technology has come a LONG way since the '80's, but I'd gladly trade my cell phone for a landline, trade my Echo Dot for a radio/CD player, etc. if other things in our country could go back to how they were 40 years ago. I didn't pick the 50's because that was before the Civil Rights Movement. Yes, there were probably fewer divorces and such in the 50's, but I couldn't pick a time that included so much discrimination based on skin color. I'm probably forgetting something, but I can only think of one area in which there has been an improvement morally in our country over the past 40 years - the rate of abortion has dropped 50% in the US in that time frame. Worldwide there were over 42 million abortions worldwide in 2020 - the leading cause of death. Over 1 million babies have already been aborted in 2021, and it's only January 12. Heartbreaking! 

 2020 was a year I think very few (if any!) will ever feel nostalgic about. 2021 hasn't exactly gotten off to a good start. I am very concerned about the future of our country for a wide variety of reasons. I try not to mention politics on my blog, but it's been on my mind so much lately. Yesterday, when I woke up I was sick to my stomach over the grief I am feeling regarding the future of our country.

• Our obsession with gender related issues - boys can go in girl's bathrooms and vice versa, there is a push to eliminate words like mother, father, sister, brother, etc. from our vocabulary, and words that have NOTHING to do with gender (such as Amen, which is a Hebrew word that means "so be it" are now being modified because the letters "men" are found in the word). Can you imagine adding "wo" to all the words that contain those three letters?!?! I can't believe this is actually happening.
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• The fact that it seems our country is headed toward socialism. Hopefully our country will never resemble what it's currently like in Venezuela, North Korea, China, Cuba, etc. I'm also hoping against hope that spending trillions of dollars left and right doesn't land us in another Great Depression. If the country keeps heading towards socialism, I guess it's possible that some states will try to secede. Hopefully if that happens it won't involve another Civil War. 
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• The legislators who objected to some of the Electoral College certifications are being accused of "not respecting the rule of law" and are being punished in a variety of ways. In the past 20 years some Democrats had done the same thing regarding three other Presidential elections. This was the first time in 20 years that any Republicans had objected. They should not be punished for their objections just because OTHER people were breaking the law outside the Capitol. They had announced their decision to object long before anyone knew of the lawless actions that would take place that day. Personally, I have no idea if the election was "stolen." Paul is one who is convinced it was, and obviously there are people on the other side who are convinced everything was done completely ethically. In my opinion there was likely some fraud involved, but I have no idea whether it was enough to change the outcome of the election or not. However, the fact that 139 Legislators objected, gives me serious pause. Hopefully there will be a significant investigation so that if any of the concerns are actually valid, they can be addressed before the next election. I have no comprehension as to why any Legislator (regardless of their party) should be punished for objecting to the certification of the Electoral College. It feels like there is a double standard at play.
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• Speaking of a double standard, rioting is always wrong in my opinion. Some of the BLM/Antifa protests were peaceful in 2020 and some included murder, arson, destruction of private and public property, etc. Two wrongs never make a right. When those BLM riots took place, people and organizations raised tens of millions of dollars to bail out the violent rioters. The protests were supposedly on behalf of black people, and yet in many cases the arson and violence destroyed the homes and businesses of black people. Murder is wrong whether it's someone protesting against the police or protesting because they believe the election was stolen. I don't think that the consequences should be harsher for one than the other.
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• The one that is bothering me the most is the bias of the media. Because the media hasn't liked Trump the past 4+ years, they can say NOTHING good about him. A stranger standing in line to vote in November said to me, "Trump could have discovered the cure for cancer and the media would find a way to be mad at him about that." If Obama had helped negotiate the peace treaties in the Middle East, that would have been ALL over the news. I have a feeling few Americans know about it. Similarly, the scandal involving Obama in 2016 (Russia/Trump) was so, so much worse than Watergate (I'm not intending any sympathy for Nixon - he deserved to be impeached), and I doubt very few Americans know of what happened because the Media has kept it under wraps. In countries like China, the government controls the media. Our government doesn't control the media, but the media is very strongly biased toward the left, and social media has gone so far as to censor conservatives or even block them from using various platforms. Free speech means that some people are going to say things you don't like or agree with. I don't understand what happened to the Parler app?!? It's scary to think what could happen if Big Business, Big Tech, and the Democrats work together to crush dissenters. I'm planning on permanently deactivating my Facebook account. My friend invited me to join MeWe. We're also considering ending our Amazon Prime membership and trying to shop through Amazon as little as possible (probably use Target..com and Walmart.com more). Considering that exactly 50% of the Senators are Republicans, almost 50% of the Representatives are Republicans, and Republicans have full control of the legislative and executive branch in 24 states (compared to 15 states that the Democrats have full control), it's not as if Republicans are some radical, fringe minority group. Not that I think that minority groups should be censored either....

In our family devotions tonight we were reading from Daniel 2, and one verse in there says that God "deposes kings and raises up others." I believe in the sovereignty of God. He is in control even if it seems that everything is out of control. We are praying for Biden to be the best President possible. Our joy and peace are from the Lord not from our circumstances. Even if a worst case scenario ends up happening and we go through what Venezuela is experiencing right now, our hope, joy, and peace can't be taken away if they are found in the LORD. Ideally I'd like my kids to be able to grow up in a free and prosperous country as Paul and I have experienced for around 50 years, but even if that doesn't happen, their future in Christ can be secure.

Three Kings' Day

Some people celebrate Epiphany or Three Kings' Day on January 6. In some cultures the kids receive most of their Christmas gifts on January 6 rather than December 25. We celebrated the holiday in three ways. I made a Rosca de Reyes (Kings' Cake). The cake is really a bread that is braided in an oval shape to symbolize a crown. In some places they put a small plastic baby inside the cake to represent Baby Jesus. In other countries they put beans or coins in the cake. I wrapped three $1 coins in wax paper and hid them in the cake. I let the kids pick where on the cake they wanted me to cut their piece. Nadia and Oliver each had a coin in their cake. This means there's still one coin in there to be discovered tomorrow. I learned from past experience and cut the recipe in half. Since it was a Christmas related holiday, I read the kids a book about Saint Nicholas that I received in the mail recently from Voice of the Martyrs. The kids put their shoes out for gifts on St. Nicholas Day in December. In some cultures they put their shoes out for Three Kings' Day. I decided to buy the kids three gifts for Three Kings' Day - two puzzles and a Spot it game. 

Milo had three accidents so far today - all on the family room carpet. I can't wait until he is housebroken!!!! Tab picked the kids up around 1:30 and took them back to her house for a play date. I picked them up around 4:15 so that I could take Nadia to her Bible Bowl meeting. This meant Milo and I had the house to ourselves in the afternoon. He was very happy when the boys and I came home! Paul is going to pick Nadia up from church at 8pm on his way home from work, which means he won't be at work as late today as he was yesterday. He got home from work at 8:45pm last night, and when I woke up at 2:30am I discovered he was already up and getting ready to leave for work. That is a very long work day! It's going to be like that this whole week because they are short staffed at the moment.

One thing that I've hardly done at all over the last ten months is make plans for field trips, vacations, etc. If I made a list of ten of my most favorite activities, planning field trips and vacations would be one of the ten. Any plans I've made over the last ten months (which have been very few and far between), I've done with the attitude of "don't hold your breath - they might be cancelled." The first thing to be cancelled in 2021 was Nadia's weekend at Camp Susque. She had never participated in a winter camp there because it conflicted with Upward Basketball, but she was scheduled to participate in a weekend for middle schoolers later this month. They are going to offer the camp virtually, but she's not interested in a virtual camp. I can't blame her for that. We are accruing quite a credit at Camp Susque because I had registered Nadia for camp there last summer, all three kids for a Christmas around the world program that was to have taken place last month, and Nadia for Frost Camp - and all three events were cancelled. I look forward to the day when I'm able to resume planning field trips and vacations. I do have some ideas for a possible vacation this fall out west, but before I actually start planning the specific details, I'm waiting to see if COVID will be far less of a factor at that point. I'm thinking if we actually do go on the trip that we'll drive instead of flying. My current outline would last 3.5 weeks,  include spending time in 12 states where the kids have never been before, and include 30 national park sites plus some science museums and other sites. Thankfully many of my favorite things to do are still possible during a pandemic such as reading to my kids, purging/decluttering, and hugging my boys.  

Thankful Tuesday

1. Milo is making progress with not having accidents in the house. He had one accident on Friday, one accident on Saturday, zero accidents on Sunday,  two accidents last night, and two accidents today. We're hoping tomorrow can be another day with zero accidents. I'm also thankful that he was able to attend an individualized Puppy Kindergarten class today. We have several things to work with him on over the next two weeks before his next class. Honestly the class is more for US than him although they did also groom his face and clip his nails while we were there. I really hope that six months from now I think we made the right decision to get a dog. 

2. I bought myself a pair of boots at a yard sale this summer, and I have really, really been enjoying wearing them on Sundays to church. Nylons really don't keep my legs very warm when I'm wearing a skirt or dress to church in the winter. Now I just need to buy myself a pair of snow boots because Nadia has claimed mine.

3. We finally found a bone that will keep Milo's attention for a longer time than another other bone or chew toy that we've purchased for him over the past 3+ weeks. This puppy is expensive!

4. Millie's knee replacement surgery went well yesterday. She came home from the hospital today! Paul's mom was transferred to her usual hospital yesterday, and today she was in less pain thankfully. Margie's chemo treatment went smoothly today. We're praying that the side effects won't be too bad.

5. Each December our church has a special "Christmas blessing" offering that is used to build wells in Africa. The wells each cost $10K. This year our pastor set a goal of hoping that $100K would be given toward the wells, and over $120K was given! The church partners with another organization that matches what we raise each December, which means what we gave will translate to 24 new wells in Africa! Each well services an entire village - typically around 750 people, which means the money people in our church gave last month will help about 18,000 people have clean water! PTL! Our pastor went to Sierra Leone once to watch one of the wells being dug; he said the women and children began singing and dancing when the water spurted out of the ground. Here in the USA we take clean water for granted, but clean water is something we should be very thankful for. It is really a blessing to have a part in helping others around the world.

6. The kids really, really loved the rolls I made for dinner one night last week. I think those Portuguese rolls plus the focaccia bread are their two favorite breads I have ever made. Previously their favorite was the garlic cheddar biscuits I make that are similar to the ones served at Red Lobster. I also really liked the French apple tarte Normande that I made last week. YUM! We tried 91 new foods in the last four months! The boys really loved the Yorkshire pudding. The word "pudding" doesn't seem to fit, but rethat's what it's called. 

7. The kids are enjoying the new snow we got on Sunday. After almost exactly two weeks of no kids playing together in the neighborhood, the kids have played outside with other kids the past two days.

8. Yesterday we finished our 700th chapter book as far as the books I've read aloud to the kids or we've listened to an audiobook together. It took as a few weeks more than 8 years to accomplish that. Enjoying books with the kids is one of my favorite parts of being a mom. Right now we're listening to Peter and the Shadow Thieves on CD from the library, and I'm reading the kids Inspiring Entrepreneurs. Yesterday we read about Elijah McCoy, which is where the phrase "the real McCoy" originated. I'm learning right along with the kids sometimes! 

9. On Saturday I finally got around to doing some spackling and touch-up painting around the house. I don't even want to admit how long that had been on my to do list. Some of the dents were recent from the dog, but the one that had been on my to do list for a long time was in the living room where Ian had banged the guinea pigs' food bin into the wall. 

10. Our pastor preached a sermon from the book of Jude this past Sunday, which is not a book I've heard too many sermons on over the years. Next week he's starting a series on the book of Ruth. I greatly prefer exegetical sermons to topical ones so I'm grateful!

11. Nadia finished Math 7 on Teaching Textbooks right before Christmas break began. I had planned to have her do Pre-Algebra on Teaching Textbooks next, but I decided it was time to do something different with her for math. We're giving Khan Academy a whirl for the next few months. So far it's working out well. Also, math is going MUCH better with Oliver now that we've gone back to the same math textbook I used with his siblings. Hopefully he will use the Beast Academy Levels 2 and 3 at some point because I bought them just for Oliver. Ian is doing well with Beast Academy Level 5 at the moment. Math is usually the trickiest subject for all three kids so I'm grateful that at the moment it seems to be going smoothly. 

12. The Steelers made it to the Playoffs!

13. I hadn't bought pumpernickel bread in a long time. I really do enjoy a peanut butter and honey sandwich on pumpernickel bread. Yum!

14. Aunt Janet gave me some money for Christmas, and I used it toward a personalized framed map which I will fill with pictures of us in each state. I've ordered prints to fill seventeen of the states with photos. If we go out west in the fall, we should be able to add quite a few more photos to our map later this year! I'm excited about having this visual way of tracking our progress over the coming years. 

15. Usually the kids open Christmas gifts on multiple days, but this year they opened almost all of their gifts on Christmas morning because we haven't seen any relatives since November, but last week Paul brought home the gifts from his brother and sister-in-law. We each received a gift card (CVS, Barnes & Noble, Red Robin, and Wendy's) as well as other gifts  - gum, coloring books, toys, etc. The kids wrote all their thank you notes last week during the Christmas break. 

16. Just like Milo creates a lot of messes around the house, doing artwork with the kids can be a messy endeavor, which is why sometimes I have avoided it. In the last couple of weeks we had fuchsia colored oil pastel ground into the off-white carpet in the dining room and  two of my vinyl kitchen tablecloths permanently stained (one with paint and the other with Bombay ink). There are times when I want to say we're only going to do colored pencil projects this year, but I'm trying to persevere. The kids did two projects last week - a charcoal sailing picture and a cardinal with a Tombow pen. Today the kids did a mixed media project of a candle that utilized both oil pastels and Bombay ink. Paying a monthly fee for the art classes definitely keeps me motivated to keep doing art projects on a regular basis even if the messes try my patience. Considering my lack of talent with art, I am very grateful it's possible to stream art classes into our home. 

Fifty-one!

Today is not our 51st day of school. It's our 107th day. Yesterday was Paul's 51st birthday. Nadia was quick to remind him that now it's only four more years until we can attend the "Best Years Fellowship" events at our church. He opened his gifts before breakfast. I had bought him a game (Ticket to Ride), a book on the Revolutionary War, one jar of peanuts, and two bags of peanut M&Ms. On January 1st we played the game I got him for Christmas for the first time (Catan). I gave him a haircut before we went to church. After church, we went through the drive-thru at KFC. We go there usually at most once a year. We usually have donuts for breakfast on the morning of each family member's birthday, but we bought the donuts yesterday in conjunction with picking up the KFC so we had the birthday donuts this morning instead of on his actual birthday. We didn't have any birthday cake, but I had made him white chocolate macadamia nut cookies a few days ago as his birthday treat. We got a few inches of snow yesterday afternoon. I shoveled the driveway before dinner yesterday, and the kids all played outside in the snow. It was the first time in almost two weeks that the kids played with any of the kids in the neighborhood, partially because our next door neighbors have had COVID recently. It was nice to see kids playing outside again. When we got 19 inches of snow last month it was colder out so the snow wasn't good packing snow. This time it was around 35 degrees out so the snow packed together nicely. Today Nadia made a snowman, and Oliver made a snow chair. 

Milo made progress two weeks ago and then regressed last week, but he's making positive progress again. He only had one accident on Friday, one on Saturday, none on Sunday, and so far today he hasn't had any. His previous record had been 46 hours without an accident, but he's now beaten that record as it's been more than 48 hours since his last accident. We (mostly Nadia) take him out VERY regularly. It will be lovely when he gets to the point where he goes to the door to let us know when to take him out in contrast to us watching the clock and taking him out 1-2 times per hour, but not having messes to clean up is a huge relief. I wasn't sure our carpet would ever be the same! Homeschooling went much  better today than it did the week before Christmas. I purposefully didn't include Spanish or art in the lesson plans for today to shorten our school day a little bit. I also bought him some bones that really help keep him occupied better than any of his other toys. They cost a little more than $4 each which makes me wish they lasted longer than they do, but they are definitely a big help. I'm going to see if there is a way I can add more smell/taste back to the bones to get more mileage out of them.

We are praying for relatives who have medical concerns. Millie (Paul's sister-in-law) had knee replacement surgery today. It went well, and we're praying for her recovery process. Paul's mom was taken by ambulance to the hospital yesterday. Because of the snow, they couldn't take her to the hospital where she usually goes. We're praying for the doctors to have wisdom in caring for her. Margie is starting chemo tomorrow. We're praying that it will eradicate all the cancer in her body and that she'll have as few side effects as possible.

Happy New Year!

I remember in 1999 many people approached December 31 with fear because of "Y2K" and the worries of what chaos might ensue. I think that more people are eagerly anticipating turning the calendar over to a new year THIS year than any other year of my life. Sometimes individuals have reflected that a certain year was hard for them, but this is the first time in my lifetime when I think MOST people have thought this has been a rough year. I realize what we've experienced is so trivial compared to what others have endured at other times and places. As eager have people have been to enter 2021, I have to say that my attitude for months has been that I didn't think things were going to be drastically better in January 2021. Hopefully sometime this year life will begin to take more steps back toward normal. Time will tell. Last night I let Oliver stay up until 9:30. I've never let the kids stay up until midnight on New Year's Eve before, but given how many things the kids could not experience this month (such as spending time with grandparents or cousins), I decided to let Nadia and Ian stay up until midnight last night.

We haven't established traditions for celebrating New Year's Eve or New Year's Day. In our area many people eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day. We aren't interested in adopting that tradition. I typically make monkey bread for breakfast on Christmas Day, which is why I didn't make panettone on Christmas Day. This was originally an Italian bread typically enjoyed on Christmas Day, but this bread is now eaten in several different countries on either Christmas or New Year's Day.  Yesterday I baked 5 dozen white chocolate macadamia nut cookies in preparation for Paul's birthday (January 3) and also baked a panettone for us to eat for breakfast today. We got pizza for dinner last night which means the kids can have leftover pizza for lunch today. I making Milanesas de carne for dinner tonight, which is a treat as I rarely purchase steak. Usually Paul works on New Year's Day. He'll go to work tomorrow as usual, but he's staying home with us today which is a treat. 

Since I was a child, I've set goals for myself at the start of each year. I don't label them resolutions. When I looked at the goals I set for last year, some ended up being impossible to accomplish due to COVID-19.  Here are 21 goals where I'm hoping we can see improvement and/or accomplish this year:

1. Continue to earn more Junior Ranger badges. I'm not going to strive for a certain quantity of them due to uncertainty related to COVID.

2. Paul and I didn't go on any dates in 2019 or 2020. Hopefully we'll go on at least one date in 2021 as we'll be celebrating our 20th anniversary in August. Also, we're starting a new tradition this year in which each child will get at least one date per year with each parent.

3. Continue to make progress toward using more Spanish and less English throughout the day.

4. Memorize Matthew chapters 6-7 this spring. In August I'm planning to have us start memorizing the book of James together as Nadia and Ian will be studying Hebrews and James for Bible quizzing starting in September. I haven't decided yet whether I'll have Oliver resume attending AWANA next fall. Ian's tenure in AWANA was cut short due to COVID. 

5. Continue to help Ian and Nadia each learn to cook some meals independently. 

6. This summer (or fall) I'd like to enroll Ian in a coding class.

7. Hopefully visit some states the kids have never been to before. This will depend on what happens with COVID this year. I'd like to take the kids out west in October if life has returned to what it was like in February 2020.

8. Continue to try many new recipes and follow the meal rotation plan I've recently typed up, which will mean we'll generally go at least five months before I cook the same meal twice. I have 84 new recipes picked out so far to try in 2021.

9. Ian stays seated during meals.

10. Oliver transitions to reading chapter books independently and finish learning how to write all the uppercase and lowercase letters in cursive.

11. Milo learns to obey commands, only go to the bathroom outside, only chew his toys, not bite us, not beg during meals, and not terrorize the guinea pigs. 

12. Kids improve in their manners such as holding the door for other people, looking people in the eye when talking to them, and answering questions with a descriptive sentence.

13. If life is a lot closer to normal in December, I'd like to take the kids to NYC in December for the first time to see the Christmas lights and the show at Radio City Music Hall.

14. Take the kids to see a Blue Angels airshow for the first time if possible.

15. Take the kids white water rafting for the first time. 

16. I would like to exercise at least three times a week - on the elliptical when it's cold outside and taking walks with Milo when the weather is nicer. I'd also like to drink more water. I don't drink anything else, but I know I don't drink as much water as I should.

17. The kids complete at least 21 more art projects on Creating a Masterpiece over the next 4 months.

18. At some point this year I want to start Oliver on a musical instrument - probably either the piano or recorder.

19. The kids and I started reading through the Old Testament at the end of August. I'm thinking we won't fully accomplish the goal until the spring of 2022, but we'll read a good chunk of it in 2021. This fall we read Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Ruth, 90% of Numbers, and about 1/3 of Psalms.  For our family devotions we're going to use the books from the Inductive Bible Studies for Kids series by Kay Arthur and Janna Arndt. From January through May I'd like us to study the books of Daniel and Revelation because the kids know almost nothing about eschatology at this point. I haven't determined the entire list of studies we'll complete this year yet, but I do plan on studying James in the fall. This fall we completed three of the studies from that series; they focused on the names of God, prayer, and Jonah.

20. Have at least one photo taken this year that includes all five of us (or all six of us if we include Milo).

21. Over the next four months Nadia and Ian need to learn the location and capital of all of the countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia/Oceania. They worked on North and South America this fall.

Towfighi kids on 12/25/2020

ABC's of 2020

Doing a puzzle in January - long before I knew we'd do MANY puzzles in 2020.

I decided to do an alphabetical "year in review" post and include some of my favorite photos from over the past year.

A - One of our two stops on the first day of our vacation was to the Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio. This was a highlight of the trip for Paul, Ian, and Oliver! Nadia and Ian had taken art classes at the Christian school the past three years, but due to COVID we didn't pursue that for this school year. The kids are enjoying taking art classes online through our membership with Creating a Masterpiece; Nadia has done 25 art projects over the past few months and the the boys have done 21. We love to listen to audiobooks! Not counting the ones we're in the middle of right now, the kids and I listened to 143 chapter books together this year!  We've begun saving one book for just when Paul is able to listen with us (usually Saturday night and all day Sunday) - typically a biography. I paid for some through Audible, but the vast majority we got for free through Hoopla or Overdrive via the library. Nadia has been enjoying playing Among Us the past two months online with Ava.

B - In January Nadia joined a Bible Bowl team at our church. At that point she was on a team with three seventh grade girls, and they were memorizing the books of Hebrews and I and II Peter. Because of COVID, the annual competition wasn't held. In September Nadia joined a team with two fifth grade girls and one eighth grade girl, and they are studying the book of Matthew. Because she turned twelve years old in June, Nadia is now allowed to babysit. She and her friend Evanna babysat a preschooler together for several hours once, and I have paid her to babysit Oliver on multiple occasions. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, she has been able to babysit more than I anticipated. She likes being able to earn more money! All three kids got new bikes this year. Nadia sold her 24" bike and claimed my bike as her own. Ian and Oliver received new 24" mountain bikes this year, and Pop Pop built Oliver a bike ramp. Birthdays were very different in 2020. For the past 12 years we've had extended family at the kids' birthday parties. No relatives came to our house for Nadia or Ian's birthdays. We spent Oliver's birthday at Aunt Janet's house, and we saw Grandpa and Margie a few days later. 

A field trip to Gettysburg in February before I had any idea we'd go on very few field trips this year!

C - Although COVID-19, coronavirus, and cancelled are probably the first three "C" words that come to mind for 2020, I'm going to pick Cincinnati because we enjoyed our time that area in October. The playgrounds along the riverfront, the IMAX movie about dogs, the Ark Encounter, and the Creation Museum were among the top six experiences of our family vacation this year. In January and February the kids took a computer hardware class for four weeks, Oliver began learning how to write in cursive in August, and as always friends and family have been fighting cancer. One of my friends died of cancer in October, and two of my friends lost their spouses to cancer in August and November. Margie was diagnosed with breast cancer and had surgery on November 9. Once Nadia finished watching all the episodes of Full House, she switched to working through all the seasons of the Cosby show. I've sung in an adult church choir consistently since the fall of 1986. COVID brought an abrupt end to our choir season at the beginning of March, and it looks like the choir break will last at least one full year.

D - We paid for a subscription to Disney+ in December 2019, and due to COVID-19 some movies that were originally going to be released in the theatres went straight to Disney+ instead. Paul and the boys have also really enjoyed watching two seasons of Mandalorian this year. Baby Yoda is so cute! Last year I assumed we'd only have the subscription for one year, but we paid for another year earlier this month. One of the reasons we made this decision was because we usually pay for at least four months of cable tv each year to watch the NFL, but we didn't do that this year. The kids get a new privilege and a new responsibility each time they have a birthday. Nadia's new chore now that she is twelve years old has been to do the dishes at one meal each week. Thankfully, the five of us rarely see the doctor aside from annual physicals. This year we spent more than usual in the "medical" category of our budget ($1,500) because Paul saw the doctor a lot more than usual. Thankfully all the test results came back normal (aside from showing he has carpal tunnel). He had a colonoscopy, stress test, upper EMG, and lower EMG. 

I had no idea when I took this photo that the rabbits would only be in our house for two months.

E - We are finally making progress with learning a foreign language as the kids and I are speaking more and more Español!  Hopefully we'll make even more progress towards becoming bilingual next year through our subscription with Talkbox.mom. The three topics which I think were in the news the most in 2020 were COVID-19, riots and protests related to the Black Lives Matter movement, and the Election. As usual, the candidate I voted for didn't win. I'm praying about the special election in Georgia that is taking place in a few days. 

F - Paul turned fifty years old this year! We have been wearing face masks or face shields for the first time in our lives. Paul wears a face mask far more than the rest of us because he wears it at work. We hope that sometime next year they will no longer be mandatory. Nadia completed a personal finance class online this summer, and she also finished watching every single episode of Full House. We got our first chest freezer this year, which was somewhat of a miracle given the shortage on them due to COVID.

G - Four different guinea pigs lived in our home this year. Jenna is four years old. Sadly, we experienced the death of a pet for the first time this year as Ian's first guinea pig, Patches, suddenly died in February at the age of three. In April we brought home two more guinea pigs - Peppa (Nadia's) and Buttercup (Ian's). Unfortunately the younger ones sometimes wake me up in the night with their loud chirping. Nadia has Peppa and Jenna out a lot. They are accustomed to being held and purr quite a bit.  - - This year we also got new garage doors, and Ian got new glasses because his second pair of eyeglasses were broken by another child at Bee's Backyard in February. During the quarantine, the kids and I played 74 different games at least once! 

H- is for hoverboards! Grandpa and Margie gave Oliver a hoverboard for his birthday in August, and Nadia bought one during a Prime Day sale at Walmart in October. 

Two of Nadia's friends who came over for sleepovers several times this year.

I - The kids and I spent a week on Long Island with Aunt Janet the first week of August. It was different than our previous three trips there due to COVID and also a lengthy power outage, but we still had a great time. All three kids participated in group ice skating lessons this year, which was a first for Oliver. 

J - Although MANY our trips to National Parks were cancelled this year, the kids have earned 72 Junior Ranger badges altogether, and 50 of those were earned this year. That would never have been possible if it weren't for the fact that some can be earned from home without actually visiting the site.

K - Although some science museums have been closed since March due to COVID-19 and others have only partially reopened, the kids had a blast at the Kentucky Science Center. We also enjoyed visiting the Kentucky Derby Museum. 

L - It was a shock to have all the libraries closed for four months this year. This fall I got another library card and switched to using the Lycoming county library system as our primary library. 

M - We got a Bichon Frise puppy on December 12 named Milo! On the first day of 2020 we had two pets, I would never have guessed we would have six pets in our home by December 12. Because Nadia began studying Matthew in September and we opted not to have the boys join AWANA by Zoom this fall, the kids and I have been memorizing the Sermon on Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7). So far we have memorized chapter 5 (which has 48 verses). Ian and Nadia have been playing Minecraft lately.

N - We have had very brief shortages at other times in my life due to a snow storm or something like that. I can't ever recall any other time in my life where we had SO many national shortages this year. The list is lengthy and contains a wide array of items such as: toilet paper, napkins, pasta, bicycles, freezers, bread, cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer, etc. Thankfully the grocery stores have been close to fully stocked lately. 

O - We had to attend church online for three months. Church still isn't back to "normal" - no choir, for example, but we're very thankful we can attend in-person again. We also picked an orthodontist for Ian this fall. He will begin phase one (expander) in January.

P - Puzzles is the "p" word that first comes to mind. We spent FAR more hours doing puzzles this year than ever before. I spent FAR more money on puzzles than I had ever spent before. Oliver has moved beyond 100 piece puzzles. With assistance, Nadia has done up to 1,000 piece puzzles. We listened to audiobooks for many hours while doing puzzles together during the spring. The kids couldn't attend Camp Susque this summer as they usually do, but they were able to attend Pocono Mountain Bible Conference instead. Ian continues to excel at playing the piano, and Nadia has been enjoying taking an online photography class.

Q - It's usually challenging to come up with a "q" word, but this year it's easy. In 2020 Q is for quarantine and Queen Esther. The kids and I were quarantined for three months this year. Paul continued to go to work, and he took over the grocery shopping during that time period. We originally had tickets to see Queen Esther at Sight and Sound in April, but due to the lockdown we actually went in December.

R - Nadia didn't make it to any of the WGRC skate nights in 2020 for a variety of reasons, but the boys dramatically improved in their rollerblading skills this year. All three kids own their own pair of rollerblades, and I've been taking the boys to a roller skating rink once a month. 2020 is also the year when Ian enjoyed rock climbing for the first time. He learned to enjoy ziplining in 2019. I love seeing him conquer his fears! We also had two pet rabbits for two months this year. Unfortunately, we had to take Cocoa and Coal back to the SPCA as they were spraying pee on each other and our house as well as chewing baseboards and such. We all love to READ. I'm not sure how many books Paul and I read, but I can say that both of us read more books this year than we had read in one year in quite awhile. Ian and Nadia each read at least 60 chapter books this year. I tried a lot more new recipes than usual - 87 over the past four months. We usually go to several concerts each year. This year Paul and Oliver didn't attend any concerts. Ian, Nadia, and I were able to attend The Roadshow (put on by Compassion) in Wilkes Barre in early March. 

S - We went skiing twice in one year for the first time this year! I took the kids to Elk Mountain (first time any of us  had ever been there) in January, and all five of us skied at Ski Sawmill in February. 2020 was the year Oliver learned how to ski! Probably the words that come to most people's minds for 2020 that start with "s" are safe, social distancing, six feet, and hand sanitizer. I signed us up for a Six Flags membership in early January thinking that we would visit five different Six Flags parks this year. Because of COVID we only made it to two of them, but the kids and I did spend five days at Six Flags this summer, and Paul joined us for one day. Because the parks opened later than usual, we will be able to go to Six Flags for free through the end of July 2021. Ian and Nadia received scooters for Christmas last year, and so all three kids rode their scooters quite a bit during the lockdown. We started the year without the use of either of our showers. In November we agreed to hire someone to finish the master bathroom shower which was been a project Paul began in May 2016. I  believe that project will be completed in early January. So in early 2021 we will likely have the use of TWO showers for the first time in years!

T - I think we all would agree that we've had our temperatures taken FAR more in 2020 than any other year of our lives! In past years we've seen Paul's family the most (since they only live an hour away) and the Towfighis the least (since they lived in Turkey for 15 years). This year we haven't seen Wendy's family at all, whereas usually we see them 1-2 times a year. So in this upside down year, the kids and I saw the Towfighis more than any other extended family member (I'm not counting Paul as he sees his brother and dad at work). They came to our house in June, we met at least some of them at Six Flags (MD/NJ) on three occasions, and we saw most of them at Refreshing Mountain in September and again at our house for a couple of hours in November. Finally in November we were able to spend time with Paul's extended family after not doing so for more than 10 months.

U - 2020 was Nadia's seventh and final year of playing Upward Basketball. The first several years my parents would come to at least one game, and Paul's parents would attend several games. 2020 was the first year that we didn't have any extended family members attend any of the kids' games. Thankfully their season ended right before the lockdown began. 

V - Nadia took one semester of voice lessons this fall for the first time ever (by Zoom). She was motivated to complete her piano books so that she wouldn't have to pay for the voice lessons. Originally I thought that the kids and I would be going on five vacations this year - three without Paul and one with Paul. Three vacations were cancelled (to Chicago in April, to MD/DC in May, and to Canada in August), but the kids and I did go to Long Island in August and our eight day family vacation in October to Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana, and Pennsylvania DID take place although it certainly was far different than what it would have been if we weren't in the middle of a pandemic.  I prayed for a vaccine this year more than I've ever prayed for a vaccine before.  Paul and I had never paid a bill at a veterinarian  prior to this year, but we visited three different vets this year -in February for Patches (guinea pig), then for Cocoa and Coal (rabbits), and finally this month for our puppy, Milo.

W - In previous years we haven't had a plan for regularly incorporating current events into our curriculum. This fall I subscribed to a year of World Watch News, which is an approximately 10 minute show that is aired M-F. I expect we will continue to keep this subscription, as the kids and I find it to be enjoyable and informative. 

X - Although we have belonged to swimming pools in the past, we hadn't done so recently and didn't plan to join one this summer, but in light of everything that was cancelled this summer, we joined the Exchange pool in June and swam there for quite a few days this summer. 

Y - Nadia joined two youth groups in January. She attends First Baptist's youth group on Sunday nights and CWC's youth group on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings. Nadia has participated in a theatre camp every year from 2013 to the present. She participated in two this summer, and Ian participated with her in the second one called Youtheatre. It was his first time ever participating in a theatre camp. It was NOT his idea, but he loved it. 

Z - Oliver asked for a pet for the first time this summer. In early August he received two zebra danios. We enjoy watching them swim around when we're sitting at the kitchen table. He named them Henry and Zuma. Sadly, this morning we discovered they had both died. Probably the "z" word that comes to mind first for 2020 is Zoom. I had used Zoom previously to participate in faculty meetings from home, but Nadia used Zoom a lot this year - to just chat with a friend or her cousin Rachel OR for Bible Bowl and youth group meetings during the lockdown, and she even participated in a play that was performed on Zoom in October.  Nadia usually is on Zoom, Facetime, or Kids Messenger video from 8:45-9:30 each night, and she stays on it until 10:00pm one night per month. 

Three Months Old!

Milo turned three months old today! I had been thinking of his age in terms of how many weeks old he was, but I think I'll switch to thinking in terms of months; I remember going through the same transition with my three babies. He might not have received a new toy on Christmas Day, but we bought this little puppy a LOT of things this month including a variety of toys. Ian and Oliver care for him and play with him a little bit, but the vast majority of his care has been attended to by myself, Nadia, and Paul. Nadia takes him outside the most, and I spend the most time with him when he's inside during the day time. He sleeps in his crate in Nadia's bedroom at night. 

Training a puppy is challenging. My friend, Cheri, has trained nine puppies over the decades. She currently has four large black dogs. She said it takes three days. Well it's taking a lot longer than three days to train Milo to do his business outside, but when I read about the breed I knew that was listed as the biggest disadvantage for Bichon Frise - one of the hardest to house train. He goes to the bathroom almost every time we take him outside, but the problem is that sometimes he has an accident shortly after he comes inside even after he's just gone outside. Ugh! Honestly he was doing better with not having accidents last week than he has been this week, which is very frustrating and discouraging. There are definitely times I regret that we got a puppy. If I wasn't allergic to many dogs, I would never have gotten a puppy, but considering how much we've spent on him over the past 18 days, there's no way we're giving up. We're in this for the long haul. Aside from learning to only go to the bathroom outside there are many things he needs to learn - what he can chew, not to bite us, not to beg when we're eating, not to terrorize the guinea pigs, etc. I am always thankful to get a break from dog supervision when he takes a nap. Never in my life have I owned a pet who required SO much supervision all day long. It's exhausting. I keep reminding myself that he won't be a puppy forever. At some point he won't require so much of my time and energy. I do enjoy it when he takes a nap on my lap. I signed him up for puppy kindergarten. Normally it's a group session, but due to COVID he's instruction will be one-on-one. His first session is next Tuesday afternoon. I'm hoping that the trainer will help him, and I assume I also will learn some tips as well. She said the class usually lasts 6 weeks but that when the training is individualized it usually only lasts 4 weeks. It will save us $50 if the training takes 4 weeks instead of 6 weeks. Time will tell. If Milo is nipping at Oliver, he ignores Oliver's commands even if Oliver screams NO at the top of his lungs. Hopefully the training will help.

• He's only had one accident in the past 18 days in his crate. He sleeps inside his crate in Nadia's bedroom.
• At first he was very fierce if he saw his reflection in a mirror or the glass of the fireplace. He would bark and growl and carry on for quite a long time. I haven't seen him do that recently.
• He also goes into guard/attack mode when I'm using the vacuum cleaner or mop. He also used to do that with the broom (seriously?!?), but lately the broom doesn't seem scary to him. Another thing that caused him to bark like crazy was when Oliver was pulling a shirt over his head. A headless person is VERY scary to Milo! 
• We have baby gates up in two places to protect the guinea pigs. We keep all the bedroom and bathroom doors closed. This means the places he can go inside the house are the family room, kitchen, foyer, stairs (going upstairs), and upstairs hallway. 
• I brush him every day. Nadia has clipped his nails once. I have ordered shampoo and ear cleaning solution for him. We have given him partial baths in the kitchen sink when his backside has needed to be cleaned. Now if I could trim the fur around his eyes a little bit so we could see his eyes more clearly. I think we'll have to wait until he has a professional grooming. 
• He wants to be with people 24 hours a day. He loves to give kisses. 
• He's gotten better about being outside in the cold/snow. I bought him a jacket at my Aunt's suggestion, but he doesn't like wearing it so we've only used it a couple of times.
• He takes at least one nap a day on the blue sofa in the family room. 
• He tries to eat EVERYTHING (grass, leaves, any crumbs of food he can find, the rust on the stove, etc.) and has chewed just about everything aside from our walls. Thankfully he's been doing better lately with not chewing the cords in the family room (my laptop and the Echo dot). The newest thing he's taken to chewing is the dish towel in the kitchen.
• Although Bichons are not known for being "guard" dogs, he definitely barks when the door from the garage opens or when Ken has come to work on the master bathroom.