Spring Things

It seems we've gotten busy again; a whole month just flew by! 

Schulz Family News Coloring Contest: Levi's first actual attempt to stay in the lines...I was so impressed! :)

I made us up some no-sew masks to bring to the hospital for Levi's eye appointment. Not super attractive, but they got us by!

This was the last day of enjoying six ducks! We are now down to four due to a presumed lucky coyote. 

The apple tree in full bloom was a beautiful sight! We got a frost the next week but I think all of our fruits and vegetables survived besides a couple tomato plants!

Another wiener roast! Levi is slow-cooking his brat while Matt helps Micah finish his.

Matt has made some good progress on the landscape project the past several weekends. This is the house that Levi and Micah built in the meantime. 

We had a graduation ceremony and celebration for my brothers before they embarked on a month-long journey out west for their "senior trip." Levi was the commencement speaker. I told him he was supposed to talk about graduating. So for his speech, he described everything that had happened so far at the ceremony: "So, first Jesse played a song, and then they walked out and around the circle, and then they sat in the chairs." Then he proceeded to hand out the diplomas before the boys filed out.

2020 Graduates at the Massner House:
Justin - BS Mechanical Engineering planning to work at Raymond in Muscatine;
 Jonathan - BS Electrical Engineering planning to work at Collins Aerospace in Cedar Rapids;
 Travis - HS Diploma planning to attend Iowa State University for Computer Engineering.
(Clearly the more years of schooling you complete, the shorter you become.)

We have been well entertained by the "vlog" the boys are doing each day of their trip through the national parks of the west. It has been an adventure, especially with many places being shut down due to the "pandemonium" going on!

Two dreary rainy days in a row required something fun...so we had a full day of Cinco de Mayo celebration!

The kids made maracas and a pinata in the morning!

They took a break from dancing to Mexican music to pose for a picture. 

I tried to convince them about the "siesta" thing after lunch, but the boys didn't buy it very easily. Then it was time for the fiesta!

Tacos for supper with bunuelos for dessert. Basically a fried pastry covered with cinnamon and sugar. Nothing healthy about this but it was a treat!

Then it was pinata time! Inside was all of their leftover Easter candy. :)

Micah crawled into this fish well and told Levi to lock it for him. Of course, Levi always obeys his little brother when he has a bad idea. I didn't even realize this contraption existed so I didn't come running very quickly when they told me he was locked inside something. Oops!

This scene happens after every shower...everyone huddles on the ground crying with their towels over them. 

More landscaping...this is where we've left off on this wall for now!

Mother's Day with my four beautiful uncooperative children! They sure keep things fun and lively around here. I am such a blessed Mommy (and wife)!

Levi's eye appointment in Iowa City was on the 12th. Camille and Shelby came over to be with Micah and Joanna while we were gone. This was one of the kids' first chances to actually freely interact with other human beings for a couple months. They loved it! Levi's appointment went well. His eyes are starting to show improvement, though we can still expect to be in glasses for several years yet. COVID-19 made it an interesting experience with all of the screening stations we had to go through before getting to the doctor. Levi kept his mask on until about halfway through his appointment; then he decided he'd had enough.

Whipped iced coffee is my newest fascination! Who knew instant coffee whips into something so beautiful?! To make it "healthy" I use my own natural sweetener, and when I'm looking for low-calorie I use unsweetened almond milk in place of regular milk. Take a picture while it looks pretty, then mix it all together and enjoy the delicious frappe!

Another day of landscaping...and puddles!

Up until a couple weeks ago, this wall did not exist. The old wall was taken out two years ago and has been turning into a mudslide ever since. Progress has been so quick lately...now that Matt knows what he's doing and has plenty of free nights and weekends!

A little extra help doesn't hurt either...

We got a new mountain of rock!

Look what else Daddy made for the kiddos! He's the best!

Joanna loves asparagus! Matt mentioned something about stinky pee the first time he dished it up to her, so now she calls it stinkies. "MORE STINKIES!!! STINKIES!" Is all we hear on asparagus night now!

A major highlight of our lives was being honorary attendees at church on the 17th. We got to be five of the eight people in attendance at Burlington church! In Burlington they were inviting a different brother to pray at each service so it was Matt's turn and we got to go along! The kids were thrilled to go to the "big church" again. It was probably a good practice run for the next Sunday when we started in-person services again!

That same day we welcomed new baby cousin Narra Charleen who joined Seth and Brenda's family!

And I welcomed in the final trimester of my own pregnancy at my 28 week checkup last week! Wowee, has the third trimester ever knocked the wind right out of me. It is about all I can do to keep meals on the table for my family anymore. But the baby and I are healthy, for which we are so thankful!

Last Thursday, we and Andrew and Hannah sang quartet for Joyce Eland's funeral service in Iowa City. I thought we were getting off easy singing in a small church until we found out it was getting video recorded for those who couldn't attend! It was certainly a blessing to be a part of the day since I am, as Brad termed, an Iowa City "Alum." Joyce will be very missed by the Iowa City congregation.

Saturday was another landscape work day...

The current status of the new wall!

Since Matt conveniently got put back on as trustee a few months ago, I am back to being his secretary, so the two of us were in charge of writing up the new guidelines for reopening church in Burlington, as well as organizing a seating chart for this phase of social distancing. It might sound like a burdensome task, but I have so enjoyed having a diversion from the day-to-day household activities. With nothing going on lately, I have missed having new things to keep my brain occupied!

Which explains why I haven't written here for a month.

Sunday was a big day as we had our first day back in church with our Burlington church family! No matter how many guidelines you try to set up, social distancing certainly does not come very naturally at church, especially for young children. Hopefully with more practice and experience we will start to get into more of a routine. It was such a blessing to worship together again!

As of June 1st, Iowa is pretty much reopening everything back up again as long as social distancing is practiced and vulnerable people stay home (the three exclusions to reopening are indoor playgrounds, adult day care centers, and live indoor performances). School is allowed to open for summer classes, and high school summer sports are allowed to proceed. Even social gatherings over 10 will be allowed if people are kept six feet apart...which is pretty limiting, but at least it is an option and makes graduations and wedding receptions doable. After attempting "social distancing" in church with young children, I am thinking we will probably be avoiding most other situations that fall under the "social distancing" category. It is virtually impossible for the two of us to keep a 4, 3, and 1 year old "socially distanced" from others...especially when I am six months pregnant and can't carry anyone for an extended period of time. Maybe this is when a child leash would come in handy...

We celebrated Memorial Day with an impromptu Schulz family gathering at the cemetery visiting Matt's mom's grave. Later, my parents and Jesse came over for a wiener roast. We got a heavy rain storm after eating supper and spent the rest of the evening inside.

We are so thankful and blessed with the beautiful heritage that "Grandma Karen" passed on to her children and grandchildren! The flexibility of this family - for this many of us to be able to show up with twenty minutes' notice - is probably a characteristic that came from her. :)

I think that about sums up our month. I'd love to have a less abrupt ending, but...well, I'm tired. ;)