April 2020 -

We are under a Stay at Home order from the governor of North Carolina.  This means that we should not leave our house (or yard) unless absolutely necessary.  With that in mind I started a list of things I haven't had time to do but would really like to get done and I got busy.  Number one on the list was refinishing the church bench.  We have had it for almost 24 years and all that time I have wanted to sand it down and give it a make over.  April 2nd was that day!!!

Steve helped me carry it out into the garage and I got to work sanding the whole thing down to a nice and smooth finish.  It took about two and a half hours to sand everything, but it was already looking better.  

I used the electric sander for all the flat surfaces.  

This side detail took a long time to get sanded since I had to do it by hand, but it was worth it to get rid of the years of built up dust and grime.  

Once all the dust was cleaned up and the bench was wiped down I started the process of applying the stain.

I love it already.

The staining went by so fast and the result was exactly what I wanted.  You can see the beautiful wood that was hidden under all the years of ... let's just leave it at all the years of.

It is soooo gorgeous.  Look at that wood grain.  The color is rich and luxurious,  I LOVE it!

The side detail turned out extra gorgeous.  

I was on such a high from getting this project done that I repotted the poinsettia plants we bought at Christmas.  I have never tried to keep them all year long and get them to bloom again.  This is the year.  I also got my garden starters done.  We will see how that goes.  I typically don't have much luck and end up having to buy plants, but maybe this year will be different.  We will see.

Naomi is doing online school which is not much of a change from what she is used to.  Lake Norman Charter has been conducting e-learning days for years in preparation for situations just like this one.  The transition was almost seamless.  I love the kids' school.  Nick is only having to keep up on his CPCC class because of the ruling that came from the state at the end of last month.  He is technically done with high school.  They only thing that makes him sad is missing chorus.  Mr. McSwain has really developed a confidence in Nick when it comes to singing.  For a kid who wouldn't talk much when he was little, we hear a lot of singing in our house.  I love it.  Nick also talked to a Navy recruiter, but decided not to join because he really wants to be a mechanic.  Jeremy is plugging away on his CPCC classes.  He graduates with his Associates Degree in May and is just trying to make it until then.  He received his letter of furlough today from Barnes and Noble which was a bummer, but now he has more time to give to his classes.

The iris in the front yard are blooming.  Spring is really here.  

I saw this on Facebook and thought it would be cool as a historical reference as to how the world has changed in the last few weeks because of the Covid pandemic.

♥️Just so I NEVER forget..... April 2, 2020

             Different Days we are living.😧

Gas price a mile from home was $1.47

School cancelled - Yes until May 15th (We are on week 3 of being home) 

All school functions cancelled - trips and PROM!

Self-distancing measures on the rise. Stay at home order in place. 

News now saying wearing a mask is recommended when in public.  People are making them.   

Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers (6ft) from each other.

Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors.

Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed.

Parks, trails, entire cities locked up.

Entire sports seasons cancelled.

Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled.

Cruises cancelled.

Beaches closed.

Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled.

No masses, churches are closed.

No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or more.

Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home.

Children's outdoor play parks are closed.

Bleach your shoes. 

We are to distance from each other.

Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers and everyone. 

Shortage of ventilators for the critically ill.

Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer. 

Shelves are bare. Meat, eggs & pasta are a surprise to find. 

All mail and packages are wiped/ sprayed with bleach before coming in the house. 

Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.

Government closes the border to all non-essential travel.

Fines are established for breaking the rules.

Press conferences daily from the President. Daily updates on new cases, recoveries, and deaths.

Government incentives to stay home for some. 

Less people on the roads - but still people on the roads. 

People wearing masks and gloves outside.

Essential service workers are terrified to go to work.

Medical field workers are afraid to go home to their families.

Crazy high unemployment rate with a looming depression. 

This is the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic, declared March 11th, 2020.

Why, you ask, do I write this status?

One day it will show up in my memory feed, and it will be a yearly reminder that life is precious and not to take the things we dearly love for granted.

♥️We have so much!

Be thankful. Be grateful.😊

☀️Be kind to each other - ♥️love one another - ♥️support everyone. ☀️

We are all one! ♥️stay home and wash your hands! 

Steve has started making bowls and platters out of all the cedar he has been collecting from friends who have downed trees and just want the wood removed from their property.  He is absolutely loving it.

The raw material

Before and after. 

This is the start of a really cool bowl he is making for me.  

So beautiful. 

Since we were all so busy during the day we kept dinner simple and took a family walk afterwards.  This family time is a gift.  I love having the kids all at home for dinner.  I love having the time to FIX dinner.  

Stunning wisteria we saw on our walk.  

GENERAL CONFERENCE WEEKEND!!!!  April 4th it was really weird to have conference broadcast from a small room where the only people in attendance were the First Presidency and the speakers.  That didn't diminish the Spirit at all though.  The talks were all so uplifting and exactly what I needed to hear.  Since this is the 200th anniversary of the First Vision there were several talks about Joseph Smith and the Restoration.  There were several talks that really resonated with me during the Saturday sessions.  President Nelson talked about enduring trials.  He talked about being prepared and not having fear. Joy Jones, General Primary President, challenged us to focus on God and the role He has for us.  "Learning is integral to progression.  Don't let distraction hinder your progression."  Douglas Holmes, 1st counselor in the new General Young Mens presidency, challenged the youth leaders to encourage and teach the youth to lead and then get out of their way.  He told the youth to choose to be part of something big.  Be smarter and wiser and have more impact on the world.  President Eyring comforted us by testifying that God will lift us so we can rise to where we need to be.  We simply need to recognize Him in our lives.  He extended the challenge to "pray to be a vital part of preparing the world for Christ's Second Coming."  John A McCune, of the 70, taught that we are not spared trials or challenges but Christ will provide us support and strength.  If we remain focused on Christ we will see miracles and have peace.   Dale Renlund, of the 12, said that being grateful for what we have increases our spiritual reception.  Gary Stevenson, of the 12, told us that even though there appears to be so much darkness in the world if we will look around we will see that there is more light than dark.  During the Women's session that night, Jean Bingham, General Relief Society President taught that mens' and womens' roles are complementary and not competitive.  We need to combine our talents and resources.  We need to look for the good in each other.  It is all about trust and being united.  Dallin H. Oaks, 1st Counselor in the Presidency,  said if we look for light our whole body will be filled with light.  We can know the truth about eternity if we ask sincerely and stay focused.  Choose the truth.   President Nelson revealed a new symbol for the Church which focuses more on Christ.  He then challenged us to put our faith into action.  He called for a worldwide fast on April 10th for relief from the pandemic and for healing throughout the world.  

The new Church logo.

April 5th was a memorable day as well.  For me, the highlight of the Sunday morning session was Elder Jeffrey R. Holland.  His talk was entitled, "A Perfect Brightness of Hope" and was filled with nuggets that really helped me feel like there was still an abundance of hope in the world. This is my favorite quote from his talk.  " As the world battles an “all hands on deck war” with COVID-19, many still have hopes that have not yet been fulfilled.  When we have conquered it — and we will — may we be equally committed to freeing the world from the virus of hunger and freeing neighborhoods and nations from the virus of poverty,” and hope for safer schools and the gift of personal dignity for every child.  Many have deeply personal hopes in addition to these global desires, including marriage, overcoming an addiction, help for a wayward child, or for physical or emotional pain to stop. Because the Restoration reaffirmed the foundational truth that God does work in this world, we can hope, we should hope, even when facing the most insurmountable odds. …  We all need to believe that what we desire in righteousness can someday, some way, somehow yet be ours.”

“I testify that the future is going to be as miracle-filled and bountifully blessed as the past has been.”  

President Nelson closed the Sunday morning session.  His talk was so filled with amazing and inspirational words. He taught that we must hearken (listen with intent to obey) to Christ.  When we hear Him in our lives we set up a pattern for joy and success in this life.  At the close of his talk he shared a new proclamation to the world on the Restoration.  

Immediately after sharing the Proclamation he led everyone in the Hosanna Shout. This is typically only done at temple dedications, but he felt it was appropriate at this time to give praise to God and rejoice in His goodness. I found the handkerchief I had used during the Hosanna Shout at the Jordan River Temple dedication back in 1979.  President Nelson promised a memorable April Conference and he delivered.  

April 6th I spent the day wiping down the kitchen.  The cabinets and the walls and the counters and the floor.  No surface was safe from my cleaning frenzy.  I even put a new coat of wax on all the cabinet doors.  I took a break to call my Mom.  She had been so busy on her birthday she hadn't had time to talk.  Everyone wanted to make sure her day was special and I love that she is so loved.  She has inspired so many people throughout the years and this tribute to her on her birthday was amazing.  Anyway, I told her I would call her later so she could enjoy her fans on her big day.  She is one amazing lady.  My day is always better when I get to talk to her.  

April 7th was another day of washing down the walls.  This time I got all the other walls and baseboards and doors and anything I could reach wiped down.  The wall coming down the stairs was the most disgusting.  The house looks and smells better.  

April 8th Nick woke us up in the middle of the night because a cyst he had on his buttocks was so painful he couldn't sleep.  After a hot compress it opened up and drained which took the pain level WAAAAAYYYYY down.  We put some antibiotic ointment and a bandaid on it and gave him some Ibuprofen and he was finally able to fall asleep.  Poor kid.  This one looked a lot like the MRSA on his leg so we will watch it closely.  

Also on the 8th I drove down to South Charlotte to pick up the materials to make some masks for our local hospitals.  Atrium Health had contacted the Church as asked if the Church could get some volunteers together to make 1,500 masks.  We all did our part to make this happen.  I really enjoyed the project.  It kept me busy and I felt like I was contributing.  

Nick and I also braved the grocery store.  We had to wear masks and only a set number of people were allowed in the store at a time.  The rows were marked with one way signs to help with social distancing.  It was really weird, but we are all doing our best with what we have.  There were so many blank shelves, but for the most part we got everything we needed.  

April 9th we made the agonizing, excruciating, miserable decision to cancel our cruise.  We had been looking forward to the graduation cruise since we got off the boat from the last cruise three years ago.  With the worldwide pandemic and the closed boarders and the horror stories of people stuck on cruise ships for weeks because of Covid, we decided it would be best to cancel.  As painful as this was, my Mom really put it in perspective for me.  She reminded me that Rachel and Justin had to cancel their wedding and their honeymoon (a tour of Europe for which they had been saving for years).  Everyone is affected by this pandemic.  We need to look for the positive.  My mom is the rock in all the crazy in life.  I am so grateful for her steadiness and wisdom.  I spent the rest of the day sewing the masks.  The kids were amazing and fixed dinner so I could sew the 30 masks I had signed up to do.  After dinner we started our fast as a family.

That is what 30  masks in the making looks like.  

30 masks done and ready for delivery.

April 10th.  The response to President Nelson's request for a world wide fast was inspiring.  So many people of different faiths joined in.  It truly was a world wide fast. Something as terrifying as a pandemic has brought the world together in ways that would not have been possible before Covid19.  Look for the good and you will find it.  

To keep ourselves busy during the day we FINALLY built the extra wood storage so the pile of wood on the side of the house would have a permanent home.  

It is moving day (FINALLY) for this pile of wood.  

Steve building the new wood house.  

Happily moved in.  It looks so much better.  The side of the house is clean again.  

That night for dessert, after we ended our fast, we discovered a new favorite.  I made apple crisp using apples that were going bad.  The kids loved it so much that they remind me to buy apples every time we go to the store now so we can make more.  

April 11th was an exceptionally busy day.  Steve took off in the morning to drive to Hickory to get some more stuff for his forge he is building.  I tackled the dirty, lower-level  windows and sliding glass door (inside and out).  I sewed on patches for a friend of ours who is a member of the National Guard and they were being called up for duty in South Carolina.  Nick and I then made the trip to South Charlotte to drop off the masks I made for Atrium.  On the way home we stopped at Papa Murphys (our favorite pizza place - 26 miles away from the house, but close to the mask drop off). Back at home Nick and I got the hamburger buns going and started the rest of the stuff for his In and Out Burger he found on one of his favorite cooking shows.  While we were busy in the kitchen, Naomi, Jeremy and Steve got all the wood put in the new wood storage (see above).  Dinner that night was amazing.

It was so delicious we renamed it Nick's Damn-burger!  We even made homemade fries.  

 Easter Sunday was fun.  We woke up and the kids went through their Easter baskets.  We had sacrament meeting and a lesson for church.  It was a chill day with ham, garlic bread, cabbage salad, and broccoli for dinner.  Jeremy wanted to try Grandma Hansen's peach cobbler for dessert.  That was also a hit.  We didn't go out much because it rained most of the day.

This is Nick's Easter Sunday best for church.  The other two did not want their picture taken.  

There was a crazy wind and rain storm overnight.  Everything seems to be okay around our house and neighborhood, but other places in Charlotte got his pretty hard.  

April 13th I spent the day at LNC helping to clean the dust out of the computers in all the classrooms.  It was nice to see some of the staff at LNC and know that everyone is doing okay during this Stay at Home order.  School staff are considered "essential workers" so...  Meanwhile, back at home, Nick attended an online CPCC orientation in order to continue his application process to attend CPCC full-time in the fall.  

April 14th we completely took Nick's room apart trying to find the lost track jersey.  We did not find the jersey, but Nick's room looks a lot better.  The kids and I also took a barefoot walk around the block.  That seems to be the highlight of the day - we all love it.  

April 15th we got our tax stimulus check and we spent some time looking for ways to help those in the community who need help.  I signed up to have a couple of meals delivered to the Ronald McDonald House.  We also donated to the local food bank to help them buy food for those in need.  During this uncertain time I have been feeling so helpless and it was nice to know I was making a difference in the lives of others.  I will keep looking for ways to serve the community through this crisis.  I have also used my pent-up energy to really clean the house.  I have scrubbed the bathrooms (which really needed it) and then have turned that energy to cleaning walls.  The downstairs got done earlier and today it was the upstairs.  I cannot tell you what a difference it makes to have clean walls.  Even the kids noticed if that tells you anything.  After all that cleaning I needed to get out so I went for a walk and met up with some friends.  We talked for a bit and it was nice to see other people for a bit and know that they are doing well.  That night we lit a fire in the fire pit and made smores.  I am grateful that I am quarantined with people that I genuinely love.  This would be impossible otherwise.  

In honor of college commitment day we took pictures of Nick for the school webpage.  At this point he will be attending CPCC for automechanics in the fall.  

There was also another earthquake in Utah.  Things are so unsettled and it is really kind of scary right now.  We are all just trying to stay sane and busy!

April 17th - I finally found another copy of The Maple Leaf Rag to complete the one we have had in the family for years.  It is missing the middle page and so I have not been able to learn the entire piece which has been a huge source of angst for me.  My new copy arrived today and for the first time ever I was able to play the piece the whole way through.  IT WAS AMAZING!!!!  It is the small things in life that can really make things better if you let them.  

April 18th Steve got a call from a friend who had a cedar tree fall down on their property.  Nick and Steve loaded up the chainsaws and headed out to help cut it into pieces.  They were like kids at Christmas - getting out of the house + power tools = happiness.  I stayed at home and tackled the front garden which was being overrun with bermuda grass.  The thing about bermuda grass is that they have really long roots that connect all the stuff on top so you really have to dig down deep to get the whole thing.  It took me 3 hours, but it looks beautiful (for now).  Steve and Nick got home and Steve went to work immediately making wooden bowls.  Nick mowed the lawn, Naomi worked on art commissions and Jeremy plugged along with his final school work for college.  He is almost done with his associates and it is a good thing.  He is exhausted from these last four classes.  It has been a good semester but it will be even better to be done.  

April 20th a really weird thing happened.  I had a mole in my hair line around my face that had suddenly gotten really swollen and painful and then fell off in two or three pieces.  I made a doctor's appointment for when everything starts to open up again to make sure everything is okay.  But...WEIRD!   That night Steve, Naomi and I took a nice, long walk since the weather was so nice.  We have a new housing development going in near our house and Steve likes to wander through and see what they are throwing in their dump bins.  Naomi loved it because she got to climb the big pile of dirt and wander in a house that had been framed.  

King of the hill. 

 She had so much fun that the next day she made Nick come with us to experience the big hill and the houses.  They both loved it.

Sharing her hill with Nick.  He decided it would be the perfect place to drive his RC.

Checking out what is on the other side of this hill.  

April 22nd Nick and I went to pick up more masks.  We stopped for some lunch before picking up more pizzas.  The kids love it when I tell them I have signed up for more masks because they know it means pizza.  

April 23rd I spent the whole day making the masks and listening to the news.  Mask - good.  Watching news all day - not so good.  The Stay at Home order got extended another two weeks.  We are now under order to stay at home until May 8th!  Apparently NC is not very good at social distancing.  The number of sick are still climbing.  

April 24th I finally bit the bullet and cleaned the carpet in the living room area.  It was absolutely disgusting.  All the normal wear and tear plus the seminary traffic really created a cleaning opportunity.  I started at 9 a.m.  Steve helped me move all the furniture and I got to work.  Steve and Nick went to run errands.  Around noon I got a call from Steve saying his car was acting strange so they took it to Nissan and found that the camshaft sensor was going bad and causing the car to idle funny and have issues starting.  It was going to take a couple of hours and Nick wanted to come home.  Naomi offered to finish the last 1/4 of the carpet so I could go get Nick.  She was just finishing up when we got home. The reason it took so long to get clean is there were parts where something had been spilled and I had to get on my hands and knees and scrub the area.  I also found a spot were a green Expo marker had fallen apart and there were small parts of the marker in the carpet.  When it got wet the green expanded and created circles.  That took a huge effort as well.  After I finished the carpets we found out that the governor had closed the schools through the end of the year.  We had been really hoping to get to go back on May 15th, but that is not going to happen.  I had to go for a walk to wrap my head around everything that is going on right now.  

April 26th (yes, it took two days for the carpet to dry!)  I quickly washed all the walls and baseboards in the living room while all the furniture was out and then we moved the furniture back in.  While we were placing the church bench I noticed that the green spots were back.  *&^@#(#(*$%&!*@&$*& (Please excuse my language, but I was NOT happy).  It must have happened while I was cleaning the walls.  Some of the water from the bucket must spilled in just the right spots and I had to get the carpet cleaner out again.  I have decided that keeping the living room carpet clean is going to be a long war.  We came to a truce.  The spots are only slightly visable, but...  I can't wait to replace the carpet with wood flooring.  That will be a glorious day!!! 

The bright spot of the day was getting to have damn-burgers for dinner.  AND Nick got a job with a landscaping company.  I saw the "Help Wanted" sign while I was out for my walk the other day.  Cool.  He now has something to keep him busy until lifeguarding starts up.  

April 27th we had our first 8 am, daily Zoom meeting for seminary.  Several of the students finally confessed that the online lessons were not working for them.  They wanted to have a face-to-face class again.  It was really nice to have the whole class there (minus three who said 8 am was too early).  They all had a lot to contribute to the lesson and it worked well.  I am excited to get to do these until the end of the semester.  It is only going to be 8 lesson in total, but they cover some really fun stuff in the Book of Mormon.    After seminary was over for the day, Nick wanted to take his RC car down to the construction site and have some fun.  We got down there and he had been running the car for two or three minutes when it stopped working.  A screw had fallen out so we walked back home and he fixed it.  Take Two!  He had so much fun.  I swear if the little RC truck could smile it would have been grinning from ear to ear, like Nick.  I got some video of him doing donuts in the dirt, but I couldn't get them to upload.  It was fun to watch him playing with his truck.  

Going up the big hill.  

 

I can almost hear the truck yelling, "Eat my dust!"

Nick was in heaven.  

Back at home we prepared dinner for some friends who had just had their first baby and were adjusting to being home and not sleeping. 

April 28th Nick started his landscaping job.  He worked a 10 hour day and came home completely exhausted but happy.  I finally had a day to do something nice for all my seminary kids.  I had been thinking about them and worrying about them.  When I asked Nick what I should do he said, "doughnuts" so that is what I did.  I delivered Krispy Kreme donuts to each one of them.  Hopefully it brightened their day just a little bit. 

April 29th Naomi really needed a trim and so I did my best.  It turned out pretty good actually.  I planned my seminary lesson and got the house cleaned up (with the help of the kids).  Naomi and Nick mowed the lawn and Jeremy went to work.  Yes, you heard correctly.  Barnes and Noble called and asked if he would be willing to come in and help rearrange the store while it was closed.  He jumped at the chance. 

April 30th was more weeding in the front yard.  The kids helped make sure everything is looking really good. 

Although it has been a hard month of staying at home and worrying about this virus, we have gotten a lot done.  The house and yard are looking better than they have in a long time.  We are spending more time together and we still like each other.  Everyone is developing some new talents or refining old ones.  In general it has been a good time to reboot.  I am not saying that we want to continue with life as it is right now, but I am saying we are trying to find the silver linings.  There are blessings out there everywhere if you look for them. 

Please stay safe and healthy and hopefully we will get out to see everyone soon.