Welcome to the new school year, which is not full of bus rides and meeting new teachers and all that.  The kids are sitting at home, on laptops, on Zoom.

This is so weird.

But, I did take the traditional first day of school pictures, even if they didn’t go anywhere.

Ane, 11th grade:

Tad, 9th grade:

Rerun, 5th grade:

Thumper, 2nd grade:

The boys all had new T-shirts to wear (Ane picks out her own clothes), but I didn’t even bother putting shoes on anyone for pictures because it’s warm and we’re not going anywhere….

Yesterday was Obachan’s birthday, but in the current situation, having a party was a little hard.  Just a little.

So we arranged to all be with her at the nursing home, talking with her in shifts.  But she did get a cake.

We all got to say hello through a big folding glass screen, but had to use a microphone and headset so she could hear us.

After months apart, it was so good to finally see her and talk with her.

We’ve all missed her so much!

We bought the Honda Odyssey in June 2006.  I went digging through my files and found the pictures from the day we bought it.  The first real drive we took with it was just a couple of days later, when we drove over to Fort Casey (via the ferry to Whidbey Island) with Ane and Tad to meet up with Friend and Doc.

Look how little the kids were!  Don’t ask me why Ane is biting her hat.  And please remember that the Webmaster and I have changed in 14 years…

Anyway, we only spent the day there, but the kids had a good time.

But it was our first “road trip” as a minivan family, and I remember how much I loved ALL THE SPACE that we could use.  After stuffing both kids for ten months into the back of my aging Ford Contour, it was AMAZING.

And now I look at these pictures of tiny little Tad, and it’s no wonder that he doesn’t remember any other car than our Honda Odyssey.

Today is my niece Bette’s TENTH birthday!!!  Happy birthday, sweetie!  Miss you lots!

Well, we finally did it!  We finally found and bought a new-to-us minivan!  We traded in our Honda Odyssey yesterday, since it needs a new transmission and it was just easier to let the dealership take it.

Easier for us, anyway.  For Tad, not so much.

We had owned this minivan since just before Tad’s first birthday.  He doesn’t remember life without it.  And he was very emotional at the end.

Proof yet again that change is a very hard thing for Tad.

But say hello to our new 2012 Toyota Sienna!

Tad hates it.  Rerun warmed up to it quickly.  Thumper did not care.  I think it’s great, and so does the Webmaster.

Ane was indifferent because she drives our Fiesta pretty exclusively.

We are a complicated family.