5 years 7 months 11 days

Day 2049. This virus that we've been battling seems to make a comeback just before you think you've conquered it. I wasn't feeling too great yesterday, and Tammy has been getting worse today, while Sammy is getting better. As for me, I've not had the sleep I usually have in the morning with Sammy home. Yesterday Randy took Tammy and Emmy to kindergarten, while Sammy stayed with me. I was able to stay in bed for most of the time, while Sammy was listening to his headset and playing with Alexa. At 9:30 am I got up to get ready for my 10 am student; it was very hard for me to get up.

I taught from 10 to 12:30 pm. Randy was able to warm up leftovers and left just before I was done teaching to pick up Tammy and Emmy and take them to tennis. I really wanted to get some rest and lie down, but that's not possible with Sammy around. Every few minutes I needed to get up to help him with what he wanted. At 2:30 pm I gave up and got up to make the kids' sandwiches  and get ready to leave. At 3 pm Sammy and I left the house.

We took the subway and then a train and arrived at the train stop where we were gonna meet up with Randy, Tammy and Emmy. We had to take an elevator down and back up on the other side to be on the platform of the train going the opposite direction. A few minutes later they arrived. Emmy had been asking me to come to soccer with him, and as my student was at 6:30 pm (and then canceled), I told him I could finally come. And so instead of Sammy getting on the train and Tammy hopping off to go to ballet with me, I was the one getting on the train, and Randy and Tammy got off the train. Sammy was going to ballet with them, while I was taking Emmy to soccer practice. Sammy had such a terrible time at ballet because he wanted to be inside the classroom so bad that Randy said he'd never take him there again.

Emmy and I rode the train, then the subway, then walked to the school where the soccer class is happening. Emmy switched from Monday to Friday for the second semester, and I had never been to the new class. When we got there early, there was only one other kid. In the end, there was a decent number of kids, but it was definitely not the same as in the Monday class. On Mondays the kids were 4 and 5 years old. This class had kids from 3 to 6 years of age which is probably why they did a lot more playing instead of technical training. Emmy was still having fun and giving his all, when they played a match. He and another boy were the best players. Emmy was right on the ball for most of the time and ran as hard as he could. And he scored two goals. He also got hurt twice. Once he fell on his knee, cried, got up and continued playing. Another time a ball hit him very hard on his chin. He fell and cried hard. It looked so bad that I even walked over to him to pick him up and carry him to the side. All the parents there couldn't believe it, when Emmy continued playing after two minutes.

At 5:30 pm the class was over. Emmy got changed, and we left the school to go home, where we arrived around 6 pm. The others were already home. I went to the kitchen to cut up their fruit and gave it to them. Once they had eaten, we went downstairs for piano practice.  I was so proud of Emmy, when he practiced without a fit for a change. Back upstairs, they went into the bathtub, then I read them some stories. I still had a student at 8:10 pm, so I sent them to bed after having prayed for them and sat down at the computer to teach. After I was done, I got myself something to eat, then I went back to work.

This morning was very unique in that Tammy slept next to me until my alarm went off at 9:30 am. That's a first ever! We both got up and got ready to leave the house at 10 am. Tammy, Emmy and I walked to the subway, rode it downtown, then walked to the music school for their weekly piano class. We were a few minutes early and the only ones of the class there. Then a kid arrrived that had only joined us once before and who didn't seem to know any basics. Later our kids' friend arrived really late, so there were four of us.

The teacher started with the greeting song, then a guessing game about breakfast. Then they did the finger warmups together. Next they played "Mister Baker", then we opened a new page of the book. It was a song where there was a new note introduced - la - that they had to move their finger over for for the first time. Also, both hands did not always play the same notes, but one had paused at times, while at other times both hands played. Finally a new challenge! As it's going to be three weeks until our next class, now they have something to work on. They were excited. And today they got to play the drums one time. She had them hit the drums for each note of the song - with the correct hand. 

After the new song, it was time for the clapping exercise. Tammy went to the front to do it with the teacher, while I did it with Emmy. The teacher was singing a song to the clapping, and she got faster and faster. Tammy can do it really well, so it was not a problem for her. The teacher then wanted to play the piano and asked Tammy to do it with Tammy, and we all did it again. It did not really work out for the two of them to do it together.

And then it was already story time. And for the first time in a very long time it was a new story, even though the kids already knew the story. Then they got their stickers and stamps into their assignment books. She told Tammy and Emmy that they were candidates for a ribbon at the end of the semester if they kept practicing that much. She did the good-bye song, and the class was over. We got dressed and left to walk to the subway

We rode two subways and got off by the McDonald's opposite the swimming pool. Randy and Sammy were already there. We had a great time eating there, and the kids were excited about the new toys in their Happy Meals. After having eaten, we crossed the square to the swimming pool. It was a warm, sunny day, so we could walk short-sleeved without our coats on. We paid, then walked around the building to the wheelchair entrance. We got changed and walked inside, straight to the warm-water pool.

We had about 25 minutes until their class was to start, and we were all having lots of fun in the warm water. I was with Sammy most of the time. At 1:45 Tammy, Emmy and I got out and went to the cold-water pool for their class, while Randy stayed with Sammy in the warm water. The kids had to swim back and forth again, moving legs and arms correctly. Emmy reminded her that she had said last week that they'd get to jump off the 1m board. And so after they had swum to the other end of the pool, they got out and she let them jump off the board. Only two kids were too scared and jumped off the side of the pool. Tammy and Emmy were very excited and couldn't wait to jump in. They were first in line and had no fear at all. They got to jump in twice and would have continued, but the teacher had other plans.

After half an hour the class was over, and we returned to the warm-water pool that felt hot after the cold water. We spent some more time in there having fun with each other, then we got out and walked to the changing rooms. The diving teacher was there again and talking to our kids. Emmy asked for lollipops again, and he actually gave them one each again.

We left the pool, walked to the subway and rode two subways home. I was so tired that I had to close my eyes on the subway and let them have my phone to watch videos. By 4 pm we were back home.

I went straight to bed and got a little nap in. Just before 5 pm my alarm went off, and I got up, even though I didn't feel like it. But I had a student at 5:10 pm, and I enjoyed teaching here. When I was done at 6 pm, I went to the kitchen to make dinner for the kids. After they had eaten, I asked them whether they wanted to play their songs they are performing tomorrow one more time, and they said yes. But they actually wanted to do piano practice, not just the song, so we also did the new song. In any case, it was  shortened version of piano practice.

Back upstairs we decided to skip the bathtub tonight having been at the pool. They got ready for bed, and I read them some stories and prayed for them, then they went to bed. It was nice for me not to have to teach from 8 to 9 pm for a change. I got myself something to eat, ate slowly, and slowly got started working on today's pictures. Now it's 1:15 am, and I have yet to load the dishwasher.