Parentheticals

On Monday of last week Mike stayed home from work to help all of the sick people. By the time that Monday was over we decided that Mike was going back to work on Tuesday. Sara and Mike were the only family members that avoided the sickness all together. On Wednesday we opened up the Valentines day package from Grandpa Mike and Grandma Sheila, and the kids all ate the candy. Rea wants it noted that Gideon stole her candy, so she didn't get to eat it and that she didn't get to pick a date night activity either. We also saved the sour patch kids for a movie on friday, so we didn't eat those. For date night Alison and Mike put on a movie for the kids and then read together. It is a funny thing, but reading together is one of our favorite dates. Saturday morning we stayed in bed extra long talking about our budget, and our plans for retirement. The kids found it very boring, but we had a fun time. We even talked about going into semi-retirement by our 10th wedding annivers

On Monday we had a family night activity, which was making fudge. We hadn't made the expected fudge during christmas, so we did it then instead. Wednesday morning we had an amazing snowstorm. It was about 9 inches of snow, and Mike took three times as long as is usual to get to work. He came back home a bit early, because it started snowing again. Also on Wednesday Rea made a nocturnal animal museum in the playroom. It had books to read, and Sara ran a snack stand. There was a nocturnal animal petting zoo, and the stuffed animals were on a green mat that was partly folded up. They were arranged in the same order that they came out at night - sundown to midnight to morning. There was also a "drawing nocturnal animal" station with a chair at it. Wednesday night Timmy threw up in the middle of the night. He was surprisingly self sufficient: he changed into new clothing, and found a new place to sleep. Thursday morning he told Alison, who was surprised. We assumed he ha

On Monday Mike went to his new office for the first time. It is down near where 1800Contacts used to be, so he is not that excited about the move. They don't have car charging stations set up yet, so he has to drive carefully on mornings where it is cold enough to warrant the heater. Monday night we watched the Emperors New Groove for family night activity. The kids loved it, and the adults did as well. Kronk was (as always) the favorite. Wednesday we watched Paw Patrol, and ate popcorn for Timmy's date night. He had a fun time, which is sort of the goal of them. Mike discovered the SaltCon Math trade had started some time this week, so he has been adding his games to it, and perusing the games for trade. He really enjoys the math trade. On Friday morning Alison went to get an ultrasound to determine the gender and healthiness of the baby. It is a girl, and healthy. Mike was working from home at the time, so he stayed with the kids, although they didn't end up needi