May Round-Up!

The month of May has ended, and we've plunged head-first into summer break and June! We slowly but surely saw a few things pick back up in May, and we are grateful for life returning to normal a little bit at a time. Here are some of our May happenings!

Brooke and Brecklyn wanted to have a tea party at the beginning of this month, and invited G-Jo to join us. They coordinated all this themselves, which was not a problem, but I was surprised! They even picked out their own outfits and asked G-Jo to bring a fruit tray :-).

Brecklyn and Brooke

We had a lovely time drinking tea from a special tea set I own and eating dainty treats!

Brianna and G-Jo

The first Sunday in May we had parking lot church services like we had been for the month prior. That evening, however, we met back in our building for the first time since March 22nd. We were extremely careful to stay socially distanced, not shake hands, wash frequently, etc., but it felt SO GOOD to be back together in one room again.

Worshipping with our brethren in the parking lot

That same Sunday, after evening services, the big kids went home with Grampy and G-Jo for a sleepover. They were incredibly excited to get out of the house and away from us for a while, but the little girls were also super excited to have Momma and Daddy all to themselves. We took a walk around the neighborhood that evening, and Brooke and Brecklyn were so cute and energetic!

Brooke, Brecklyn

I loved watching them skip along holding hands!

One day, I took the kids over to Mom and Dad's house for a weekly bible study we've been doing with them. While we were gone, Chris started making himself lunch, got distracted, and not only burned his food but melted my {favorite} spatula, as well. The house smelled terrible when we got home. RIP spatula!

The kids and I were finally able to go to some non-essential appointments this month that had been rescheduled from March and April. Bren and I both had our teeth cleaned, and I had a consult for Invisilign braces.

The same day Bren had his teeth cleaned, he lost a tooth!

A few days later, Brianna lost one, too!

Our Mother's Day celebrations were very low-key this year. We went to church, then over to Russ and Lisa's house for a lunch made by the guys. After getting ready for church, I came out into the kitchen that morning to find my crew working on a dessert for lunch. Sights like this make my heart happy!

Sometimes I come upon funny little scenes the kids set up while they're playing. This one was a product of Brooke Ellie :-).

Miss Caroline turned THREE years old this month! For the first time since March 15th, we got together with the S family for an evening of fun, laughter, and play. We ate a meal, sang Happy Birthday to the birthday girl, and had cake!

Brecklyn, Sadie, Brianna, Brooke, and Caroline

It felt so good to be with friends, and we ended up staying later than we normally would because we were so hungry for time with other humans. The girls all snuggled up on the couch to watch a movie which meant the adults got some really good visiting time in!

Caroline, Brooke, Brecklyn, and Sadie

We not only had a play date with the S family this month, but we also spent a day with the W family at their house. Angie and Jesse moved into a new house in February just before all the COVID craziness hit, and pretty much haven't been able to have anyone over since they moved in. As soon as we all finished school for the year, we made a plan to see their house and spend the day together. They have a beautiful backyard that feels really secluded even though it's in the middle of town, complete with a creek that run just behind it. 

I took this photo of my kids before they were all soaking wet. Brooke was already there, but the others took a little longer :-).

It was such a joy to see my kids play and have a great time with Z and N! We can't wait to have more play dates with them. 

That same day, Chris went back to work in his office for the first time since March 16th. He won't be back in his office five days a week quite yet, but it's a step in the right direction!

Sadly, the recent forced shut downs of businesses has hurt our economy and small, local businesses immensely. Now that restaurants and small businesses have been given the go ahead to open back up, many of them are implementing new policies and social distancing practices that are putting extra strain on their profits. Very simply, what this means for many businesses is that it's no longer profitable to remain in business. I just hate this for our economy! One local restaurant that has decided to close its doors permanently is Billy's on the Square in downtown Tulsa. Billy's has always been my favorite restaurant in downtown, and it's almost always where we eat when the kids and I meet up with Chris for lunch during the week. Before they closed their doors for good, Chris, the kids, Tia and her girls, and I all went for one last Billy's fix! 

Their char ham & cheese is like no other!

Good-bye Billy's! We have enjoyed you through the years, and you will be missed!

Being home so much over the last few months has had me itching to do some house projects. I've been wanting to paint an accent wall in our living room for over a year, so this month we finally got that accomplished. I couldn't love it more!

Our corners are all curved, so figuring out where to stop the color was kind of difficult. I think it turned out great, though!

While we were completing that project, I told Chris that I wanted him to paint below the chair rail in the kitchen/dining room the same color. Then, I changed my mind and decided I wanted a beadboard wainscoting instead. I'm so grateful for a handy husband who's willing to indulge my requests! Also, for my dad who gives great advice for these kinds of projects and loans us his tools :-).

Since we finished school this month, we've been making a few more trips out to the lake to soak up the sun and enjoy the weather before it gets crazy hot. 

Brianna, Brecklyn, Brenson, Brooke

Yay for sunshine and scooters!

And beautiful views of the lake!

Brecklyn, Brooke, Brenson, and Brianna

Because our playhouse gets lots of use, it gets dirty really easily. This month, the kids and I took an afternoon and cleaned it from top to bottom. We wiped walls, organized toys, and vacuumed the rug. 

We even cleaned all the windows, the front porch, and cleared out the nasty cobwebs from under the eaves. It's so nice when it's all fresh and clean!

We're not sure what this summer holds for us, but we are looking forward to finding out! It's been so refreshing to spend time outdoors and connect with more people this month than we had been able to in some weeks. Here's to a summer that's going to be GREAT!