Virtual juice date
Hi friends! I hope you’re enjoying the day so far! It’s been quite a while since we’ve done a virtual juice date, so I thought that would be a fun post for today. So please grab a glass of your favorite morning beverage, let’s grab a pastry from the pastry counter, and hang out for a bit this am. <3
(wearing the coziest Barefoot Dreams cardigan and it totally lives up to the hype)
If we were having juice right now…
I’d want to hear about how you’re doing with everything going on. Like, how you’re really doing. I feel like so often we’ll say, “I’m good!” or “I’m hanging in there!” but there’s so much more than that. I’d love to hear what you’re up to, how the kids are doing, or anything you’re looking forward to this fall. I’m really looking forward to the Pilot’s and P’s birthdays in October. Any ideas on how to celebrate the big 4-0??
I’d ask you what kind of workouts you’ve been loving lately. There are so many great online options available right now. I’m still loving Les Mills On Demand, Peloton, barre, and an occasional studio hot yoga class. I started strength training a bit more recently – I was doing mostly cardio for quite a while because I really needed the endorphins – and it feels good to lift heavy things again. I’ve lost some strength and muscle mass, so I’m looking forward to building it back.
I’d ask you if you’ve read anything amazing or are watching anything good right now. I’ve been picking through Frida Kahlo’s diary for a bit each day and it’s magical! It’s completely in Spanish, which is good because mine has been a little rusty. TV-wise, I’m still enthralled by Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist. It’s just the lighthearted fun I need after the kiddos are in bed and I just want to unwind and eat a Good Pop on the couch. 😉 I was super excited for the return of Dancing with the Stars but zero studio audience and the fake dubbed cheering is a little bizarre.
I’d talk to you about school. What’s going on with school in your neck of the woods? We finally got the word that Liv may be going back to school in October for ONE day a week. Lolololololol. <— that’s me laughing maniacally until I start crying. Thankfully, I feel like we’ve found a groove a bit with a distance learning. It’s just that the screen time amount is far beyond our comfort level and it’s a lot of work and projects. I also have to admit that I’m really concerned about what a return to school will look like. I don’t want the kids to be scolded if they want to interact with each other and the thought of them eating in a classroom with an “X” for where they may sit, 6 ft away from everyone else, is troubling. I think we really need to consider the mental health impact on children for all of this and if school is going to turn into a prison environment, we’re considering alternate options and homeschooling. I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that because she really misses her friends and her teachers. :/
I’d tell you that I’m doing a Charcoal Mask Zoom pop up tomorrow and am so excited about it! It’s the first virtual pop up that I’ve put together and I’m so pumped that so many reader friends signed up. We’re going to do the charcoal mask during the call – I sent out samples earlier this week – and it will be so nice to see so many of the faces of friends who have been leaving comments for years. Any fun ice breaker type things we could do? I was thinking about asking everyone to share their #1 fave beauty or skincare product. Also, I’m considering planning more of these in the future as a fun virtual way for us to hang out. Please let me know if you’d be down!
So tell me, friends: what workouts are you loving lately? What’s going on with school for the kiddos? How are you, the kids, the fam? Any amazing reads or shows you’re enjoying?
Thanks for hanging out with me this morning and for stopping by the blog today. I’ll see ya tomorrow with Friday Faves!
xo
Gina
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Hey Gina – if we were having juice I would tell you that my kiddos (7 & 11) went back to school 3 weeks ago – we live in NY – and that they LOVE IT! The 6 feet separation/masks/new procedures were waaaaay more stressful for me than them. Kids are so so so resilient. The amount of screen time required for remote learning is just terrible for them physically AND mentally. We decided to trust the guidelines and so far (knock on wood) all is well.
Now I want a green juice…..
I just want to second Jackie’s sentiment. My son, who’s 6, went back on July 31. (We’re in GA. It made the NYT because it was so early and GA was a major hotspot at the time.) The decision to send him back was excruciating, but ultimately, we knew he needed to be with his peers and we were satisfied with the district’s guidelines. Those two things are what pushed us to give it a try.
We got a bunch of cute, comfortable masks, and he’s totally fine with wearing them. His teacher shares photos often, and the kids look happy and engaged in normal first grade activities. They do eat lunch in their classroom, but it’s not a sad event. They actually watch a video, like Odd Squad or something else from PBS Kids, which he loves! We have him strip down and take a bath when we get home, and we try to keep the school stuff away from everything else in the house, just as a precaution.
I cried the first day and felt miserable, but our confidence has grown over the last couple of months, and it is just our new normal. Keep in mind, that’s us as parents; HE’S been more than fine the whole time! In fact, we saw an improvement after he went back. He was more prone to tantrums in the late-spring and summer when it was just us at the house.
Next week will be the end of the first quarter, and I’m happy to report we’ve been able to keep numbers very low with everyone doing their part. (Ditto – knock on wood, for sure!)
I’ll give a third positive vote to partial in-person school. We are in NY with an 8 year old; we took the option for 2 day in-school and 3 days remote. He absolutely loved being back in the school…the first day I could see the positive change after having been home since March. He doesn’t love the mask, but he knew it was part of going back and he wanted to go back.
We did opt out of busing this first half of the year, and are lucky enough that we can bike to school or drive if that weather is bad. Biking to school has always been something he wanted to do.
If you do decide to (or are required to) send Liv back to school, just be open about it with her about what to expect and I’m sure that she will surprise you with how much she loves the change of scenery. Best wishes…
thank you! I’m happy to hear that you’re having a good experience. liv can’t wait to go back – i just hope it doesn’t rev up her anxiety <3
xo
this is so amazing to hear. i’m happy to hear he’s loving it and having a great time. crossing my fingers that liv has a similar experience
Agree with these. WE feel weird about the X’s or the six feet because we had 12 years + of schooling without it. But it’s all about presentation. The X doesn’t have to feel like prison, and I feel like teachers are good at making things fun. The students just know that thye’re not cooped up in front of a screen anymore, and that people are looking out for their safety by making sure they are distanced and masked while learning. It’s not that weird to them!
I’m teaching online now, and would WELCOME the chance to go back to the classroom in a very safe way. Remember that it’s not creating a “prison” environment; it is keeping students and teachers safe (while getting everyone back off the screens, which is AWESOME!).
i definitely agree that teachers are great about making things fun.
that is so awesome to hear! i agree – all of the time in front of screens is awful. poor liv sat at the table watching videos and doing homework for 8 hours today. i hate it. happy to hear it’s going well for you guys and crossing my fingers that she has a good experience, too
Hi! What color is the cardigan you are wearing? I’ve had my eye on it for a while now and love that color!
Oh and I should also mention that both of my kids (1st and 3rd grade) are back in school and are so happy. They go in every day for half days and they are thrilled to be back in a classroom with their teachers and friends – even if it looks different. I was worried as well as what impact this new school environment would have on kids, but they are so happy! I see lots of smiles behind those masks!
so so happy to hear this!
it’s the HE Pewter/pearl
SO comfy and perfect for layering
xoxo
Good morning! Just wanted to share that my 8 year old began 3rd grade in Georgia 6 weeks ago and it’s been wonderful!!!!! The first week one kid in the school (who happened to be in my son’s class) was sick with COVID. I was shocked that no one else got sick with it – the distancing guidelines worked!
that’s exciting to hear. from what i’ve read, transmission from children is extremely low so that’s reassuring that it’s going well for you guys
My kindergartner has been back for about a month now (full time in person) and she wears a face shield when they can’t social distance. They also eat in their classrooms at their desks, but they can still socialize plenty… trust me, my daughter has quite the stories 🙂 I feel the positives to being in person with their peers is much greater than the negatives of what social distancing asks of us. Kids don’t care, they just want to be ‘normal’ again 🙂
i agree- kids just want to be kids
that makes my heart happy to know she still has fun stories to tell.
If we were having juice, I’d definitely ask where your adorable shoes are from??!!
they’re from nordstrom! i got horrible blisters the first time i wore them, bu they’re broken in now. here’s the link: https://rstyle.me/+y63avYT9GNn6SUkseZZmWQ
xo
I love Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist! It is so fun and different than anything else on TV. It’s lighthearted but has some moments in it too that made me cry. Can’t wait for fall shows to come back on.
Our kids (4 and 9) have been going every day all day for about a month now. They love it! The idea of masks and all the protocols stressed me out big time. They do get breaks from the masks/face shields when they eat and have recess so they aren’t wearing them all day. Neither of my kids mention anything negative about school and are just happy to be with their friends and teachers. It’s definitely not the same but it’s something and I feel like so much has been taken away from the kids since last spring that going to school was something positive for them and gave them something to do and that was their thing. We also talked with our 9 year old about his options and what would happen with each choice so he was part of the conversation.
I love full-body strength workouts! Have any new ones to share???
all of the scenes with her dad make me cry! it’s so good and i also can’t wait for fall shoes to come back
so so happy the kiddos are happy to be back at school! liv CAN’T WAIT to go back. it’s reassuring to hear that it’s going so well for you. p ended up going back to preschool two weeks ago and she’s been thrilled about it
for full body, i’ve been doing bodypump! i kind of got in a rut motivating myself here at home 🙂 have you tried it yet?
I have old kids!! One is a sophomore in college and one is in her second year of her masters (my husband and I got married at 18 so I’m a spry 43).. The younger one is bummed to be at home with us instead at college and the older one has an apartment about an hour away.. she’s been visiting with us this week and will leave this morning and I will cry like always!! Oy, this part never gets easier, I love them so and they are so nice to have around.. I wanted to thank you for suggesting Cody to me on the bike.. he is so funny and I love that.. I ah e also been loving Jen Sherman’s yacht rock rides on Sunday, they are cheesy and still hard (for me!!)..Thanks for being a positive light on the internet!! You always share such nice things..
i can’t imagine the girls leaving for college. i know i’ll be a crying mess haha
ok i haven’t tried jen’s rides but i need to give them a try! thank you so much for being here and reading
An idea for the Pilot’s 40th, I just did this for my husband in August and he loved it. Since a big gathering was out of the question, I used the site Montage to invite his friends and family to leave birthday messages for him. The site compiles all the greetings into a montage set to music for him to watch on his birthday.
He loved seeing the messages (I reached out to everyone! childhood friends, cousins, fraternity brothers, old co workers) from so many different people and he got to spend his day reaching out to those people thanking them and reconnecting during this crazy stay at home time. It was so special, I highly recommend!!
Love this idea! I’ve never heard of this company. Thanks for sharing!
We did this for one of my coworkers & it was fabulous!
this is SUCH a fantastic idea – thank you thank you!
Highly recommend reading The Vanishing Half. It’s a novel and I couldn’t put it down!
i’ll download it now – thank you!
Well my 3 year old is back and having so much fun at school and my 4 month old got kicked out of daycare yesterday because he wanted to be held all day
wait, he got kicked out for that?!
I know, right?! for a few months anyway. The teachers couldn’t hold him and he would cry. He also has some reflux and chokes and vomits if he gets too upset. Hopefully he will outgrow the reflux soon and will be happier when he can sit up.
I have to tell you I started out totally virtual and recently moved to a 2 day a week hybrid for my 1st grader and I am thrilled with it. I initially thought a hybrid schedule would just mess up our schedule and was like no I’ll just wait until it’s back to “normal.” to send her. But I’m realizing that there just isn’t going to be that normal flip switch so I am trying to roll with the slow wave. The school and teachers are doing the most amazing job! The kids are in the same classroom for the entire day and but they spend a lot of time learning outside and my daughter loves it! I was so concerned about her having to wear a mask for that long, for the distance to be hard…but I guess the kids are just way more adaptable than I realized bc they all come out wearing their masks but you can tell by their eyes and jumping around they are all SO happy to be there and each day.
I have to remind her in the car it’s ok to take it off- she forgets it’s on. (we got the 32 degree pack from Costco and they are pretty comfy)
yes, i agree that there isn’t going to be a “normal” switch (even though i wish there could be)
it’s reassuring to hear that it’s going well for you! thank you for letting me know
I’m a middle school teacher and we just went back to school using a hybrid model. Half of our students are face-to-face, and half are learning remotely, and I am teaching both at the same time ;).Families got to choose their preferred learning method during these crazy COVID times. It’s the hardest first week of school I’ve endured in 21 years, but it feel so very worth it to meet my new students in person (and online). Students that come to school can’t believe how much they missed it and are so grateful to be there. Most don’t even complain about wearing masks and sitting physically distanced. Lunch is eaten in our huge atrium, but they are seated in chairs which are spaced apart the requisite six feel and it looks as awkward as the students feel it is. Still, they want to be there and so do the teachers. I hope you are able to find the best learning model for your daughter and feel at peace with your decision.
thank you. i’m interested to see what the lunch situation looks like. thank you for the work you doing teaching kiddos – it’s a crazy time and parents are so thankful for you
I am still loving LMOD, and their addition of live classes is really helping mix it up! Sometimes the sync between the audio and video is a little off, but it is still the closest thing to a GroupX class that I’ve had since…March!! Also, I am glad I’m not the only one who feels that way about Dancing With the Stars! The cast is great this season, but I didn’t realize how different it would be with distance rules in place. Good for them for keeping the cast and crew safe, though!!
We are homeschooling this year due to COVID. I was not comfortable with the safety of being in a classroom right now, nor did I think my daughter (who has anxiety and sensory issues and was a poor sleeper similar to how you have described Li)v would do well with the likely back-and-forth between virtual/in person learning, masks all day, and all day without breaks/in the same classroom. Homeschooling is surprisingly going REALLY well (I am teaching kindergarten and 2nd grade). We home school for a half day and then they have the rest of the day for purposeful play–reading, listening to audiobooks, playing outside, going on hikes, building skills (they’re really into working on new gymnastics tricks, haha), arts and crafts (my daughter is taking an online art class!), etc. If you are considering it and have any questions about these grades, feel free to reach out. I am honestly surprised how great it has been–for ALL of us. I would not leave this type of comment except that every one you got so far was like “school has been ok!” and I wanted you to know that homeschool can also be ok if that is what you feel most comfortable with! 🙂