Corona Virus Quarantine Day #27: April 14, 2020

My guest writer today is the talented, sweet and hard working Finley Joseph Dorsey. He is 9 years old! Today it was our mom’s birthday. It was a fun day.  We made our own breakfast while mommy worked out.

Then we went downstairs and did a kid workout with mommy, it was fun today!  Then we started school.  School was fun today too!  My favorite part was the reading test.  Then we took GiGi out for a long time and played with her.  She is awesome and I love playing with her. Then we went to the barn and had pickle ball matches.  I had a close match with mom but the only one who beat mommy was daddy.  It was a lot of fun and I love the barn.

After there was a drive by birthday for mommy.  The Goodwin’s, Carpenter’s and the Phelp’s came by.  It was cool.  It was hard to see my friends and not get to play with them but it was nice of them to come see mommy.

Then we went inside and sang songs and played cards and opened mommy’s presents.  Mommy’s presents were a little weird (Fletcher’s) but also great.  Fletcher gave mommy a lot of presents, mostly little kid treasures.  He even gave her one Easter egg with one black jelly bean in it.  That was mommy’s favorite.  I gave mommy a card and a homemade necklace and bracelet.

Then we ate an amazing dinner, it was the best dinner ever.  Daddy got Texas Roadhouse and I ate salad, steak, a chicken finger and those incredible rolls.  I had a big dinner.  We sang to mommy and ate cake!  Then we had a dance party.  It was so fun.  Some people got hurt from the crazy moves but we had an amazing dance party.

After that we watched one of mommy’s favorites, The Greatest Showman.  I really like that movie too.  This has been a fun day because of mom’s birthday, and I love having mom’s birthday.

I think the corona virus is good because we get to spend so much time with our family and do so many activities at home.  I also think it’s bad because we can’t go to school or see our friends and we don’t get to go any places.  I miss my friends.  It also makes people really sick, that is really bad.  Today I am thankful for brothers and sisters, my mom and dad, Gi Gi and Zoey, even Cutie Pie and the barn, our beautiful house and a big space to run around in outside.

Love, Finley

Started my day with a birthday greeting from our family deers, school and lots of Fletcher and Gi Gi snuggles.

Mommy’s thoughts…

This day has been a little overwhelming to me. It is my birthday.  I am officially an old lady but that’s ok, I don’t feel old.  I am so incredibly grateful to all the people who reached out to me via text, call, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or those that even dropped by the house for a drive by birthday. It was more than a person can handle truthfully.

I am so blessed with amazing people in my life, starting with the people who live in my house.  Can I say happy “birth” day to my mom first please?  I do feel like when your child has birthday it’s also kind of your day in a way too.  I’m not so far removed from giving birth…it’s certainly an experience you never forget and are always grateful for.  So, I’m so happy to share this day with one of my all time favorite people.  Maybe the highlight of my day is when I was putting the kids to bed tonight, Cooper said “goodnight mom, happy birthday.  Can you please tell Gaga happy “birth” day for me when you see her tonight?”

Love me some Ellen Bell!

My heart.  I cannot handle that. It’s good to know that some of the stuff I say sticks.  I imagine him being 30 and calling me to say happy “birth” day on his birthday May 5^th.  I know I have that to look forward too!

We did my favorite things today…exercised, listened to a ton of music, danced, and played a lot of sports….and Finley is right, I got a lot of weird but sweet presents from Fletcher.  He did wrap them all himself in Christmas paper.  Which I suppose was appropriate because he wore Christmas PJ’s all day!  In some ways this day was not a ton different from any other day.

I beat everyone (pretty sure Cooper let me win) and lost to my hubby.  Glad he loves me enough to not let me win on my birthday!

Another highlight was when three friends did a drive by birthday with their sweet kids complete with posters, cake and wine.  It has to make you laugh just a little bit at the sheer craziness of a bunch of young kids wanting to get out of the car and play games together and knowing they cannot. We had to warn Fletcher not to jump in anyone’s cars.  That was not hugely successful.  Some of his favorite friends were there and he wanted to see his people.

We can see Fletcher struggling with the 6 foot rule.  He wanted to see his buddies so bad.  Poor guy.  At one point he ran into the woods with one of their basketballs in an attempt to get them out of the car to chase him.  Sweet boy.

I felt the same way.  The weirdness of this social distancing is that to keep everyone safe you can’t have contact with other people outside your inner circle, but in real life these people are a part of my inner circle.  Also, this concept to small children is incredibly hard to grasp.  The oldest three did well but the younger two wanted to hug their friends and act…well…normal.

Nothing about this is normal, yet ironically, so much about it is.  As I said in a previous post, I know from my own students and 27 days of cataloging our own quarantine experiences that people are loving being at home with their family.   When I asked my students every single one of them said they miss being in school and sports but they love all the extra family time.  In our own home each of our kids, even the 5-year-old has said every single night that the corona virus is bad because we can’t leave or see friends and it hurts people…but it’s also good because we get to spend so much time together.

If I take one thing away from all of this quarantine business it’s that.  Kids crave family time.  They don’t really miss the hustle and bustle of busy school and sports life.  That should tell us all something I think.  I hope and pray that when this is all over we will return to normal life but with a new lease on life and a new commitment as a community that family is what matters above all else.

I heard from so many family members today…and I am grateful.  Family members with whom I share blood and those that have become part of my family through life experience.

To everyone who posted on social media or texted or called…just you thinking of me and taking time out of your day to send me a note really means a lot to me.  And those of you that know me best, know I mean that.  For those of you that showed up at my house with your kids and your cars and your smiles…you made me cry and helped me feel so loved.   So Kelli, Heather and Suzanne…you are good friends and I love you and your families.  To those that called, wrote me cards or said things that reminded me why I am the way I am…thank you.  Your kind words mean so much to me and I am grateful to know you and love you.

To my own children, who tried so hard to make this a special day for me…there isn’t a gift in this world you could give me more precious than you.  I wanted to be a mom more than anything on this entire earth for as long as I can remember (there Is video somewhere of me about Ellen’s age saying I wanted 24 kids…GOD help me)…You 5 human beings are the best gift I could ever ask for and there are no amount of prayers I could say that could possibly tell GOD how grateful I am for all of you…but I’ll keep trying.

My cards from my sweet babies.  

To my husband, I can hardly even type this without tears…thank you for loving me the way I always dreamed I would be loved.  I’m so blessed to have you by my side as my best friend and partner.  You are the best dad I’ve ever seen and I do not know a better man than you.  Thank you for going out of your way to make my day special and for always making me feel special.  To my in laws, Jim and Dixie…he is not this way by accident and I am so thankful that you showed him what it means to truly love someone and how to be an incredible person.  You deserve to be celebrated because as a parent, I know this doesn’t happen by accident.

Finally, two players, Ellie and Lauren Wheeler (sisters) showed up at my house tonight with flowers, my favorite kind.  I’m sure at some point in my interactions with them I’ve probably mentioned that and they committed it to memory, that’s pretty incredible. They also brought cards, my favorite type of gift (I don’t think there is anything more powerful that the written word).  My heart was overwhelmed by this gesture.  Four other current players, EB, Olivia and Ashlyn Lovett and Lauren Wheeler posted messages on social media.  I cannot even count the number of former players who texted me.  Each one warmed my heart so much.  There have been a lot of times in recent years where I have wondered why I do what I do.  Sometimes it seems like a thankless job or one that I give more to than I get back.  It is moments like this one that slap me back to reality.  I have met some of the most incredible people and now have this enormous extended family…most of whom texted, called or messaged me today…that…I will cherish forever.  Also, for those of you in that extended family  that are reading…I’m here…always!  I will always be your person when you need me so never hesitate to call.  I am blessed to have been your coach and later in life to call you my friends.

So many volleyball girls texted, called or tagged me on social media.  I was so overwhelmed by all the love I got today from this part of my family.

I thank GOD everyday that I found a vocation that I believe he created me to do. Not everyone is going to like me and that’s something I have struggled with my whole life…but hot damn…I have a pretty amazing circle of people that I know would show up guns a blazing if I needed them…and I’m so blessed.  Sorry for all the sap today.  I am entitled…it’s my birthday.  So forgive me and allow me this day to be a sappy little lady or a sappy “thick” lady as Fiona called me today.  Yep…nothing says happy birthday like that comment 🙂

But seriously…thank you…all of you for making my day so special.  I go to bed tonight with an incredible grateful and happy heart.

My “gifts” included a lot of treasures Fletcher found around the house.  He wrapped them all himself. I got four homemade bracelets and a homemade necklace.  The kids worked so hard on their cards and gifts.  No one is a better gift giver than Bryan Dorsey so I’m glad to see some of his greatness rubbed off on our babies.

Some highlights from the day!  Me and my peeps.  Had to capture the true quarantine moment as our face masks were delivered today!

Bryan took this sweet picture of me and our smallest child snuggling tonight while watching the Greatest Showman.  If there is anything better than a movie and snuggles, I’d love to hear what that is!  Tonight at bedtime Fletcher said I wish I could snuggle you all night because you are so warm.  I’ll take that as a compliment my sweet boy! 

Stay safe my friends and thank you for an amazing day!

#celebr8awesome

#dorseyshenanigans