Testing experts

I feel like a grumpy, old broken record, but were disappointed to have another week disrupted by illness.  Both kids developed cold symptoms, and Noah stayed home from school on Wednesday.  He was feeling better by Thursday, so he tried to go back, but at that point he began coughing.  Coughing is NOT a good symptom to have during Covid times!  So, over to the school I went at 10:45 on Thursday to bring Noah back home.  He wasn't able to get in for testing until the next day, and we got his results (negative) the following day.  We home tested both kids, as well, so that we could have a rapid result to guide our decisions.  It's really frustrating and time-consuming to go through this process for a PCR test every time there is a sniffle or cough, particularly when they aren't feeling all that bad, but that's the requirement for returning to school.

This breaks my heart every time 

This is how Noah spent his "sick" day!  He wasn't feeling all that bad.

Noah created his own "shorts" after he got a hole in the knee of his pants.  And now he wears them to school!  

We have seen a ton of hot air balloons lately

Daylight is waning in the evening, but Noah was not deterred.  He created a zip line, complete with lights.

The four-day weekend was just what we all needed, and Mother Nature delivered the most perfect weather and peak foliage to lift our spirits.  On Friday, we had parent-teacher conferences (via Zoom) on Friday, and both kids got a great report from their teachers.  I hate feeling so detached from the schools, so it was nice to see some of the kids' work and hear how things are going so far this year.  Afterward, we spent some time at the river with Frankie, followed by our last Palmer's creemee for the season.  We splurged and finally let Frankie have a doggie sundae, too.

Frankie photobombing our parent-teacher conferences

Mills Riverside Park

Puppy Sundae!

We love Palmer's Creemees

Other Fall fun weekend activities included apple picking and an afternoon at the park with friends, a family dinner and bonfire. 

Noah with his best buddies

Matt showing off his juggling skills at the apple orchard

I barely made it on the wagon ride!

Moms enjoying some chat time while the kids played

Perfect night for a bonfire!

Since Monday was a holiday, we had a Girl Scouts hike up on Mount Mansfield.  We drove up the Toll Road and then hiked across the ridge of Mount Mansfield, so we were able to enjoy some spectacular views and colors from the top of Vermont with a more manageable amount of hiking.  The Toll Road was a white-knuckler for this mama that's afraid of heights, though!

Looking at the highest point in VT on our drive up

Our troop ready to hike

Evie on the trail

Climbing up the rocks

We made it!

Glorious views

Foliage in every direction

Beautiful girl at the top of Vermont

Sporting events were also a highlight of the weekend.  Elliot's football game and Evie and Noah's soccer games were lots of fun with friends and family.

Last, but certainly not least, we were very excited to see Carly a few times over the weekend while she was home visiting from college!  We have missed that girl!