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The one who made me lucky enough to be a mother. Happy Mother’s Day to all who mother her so well right along side me. https://www.instagram.com/p/COrRmX2ptmW/?igshid=19wf1qmisyxs3

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I mean, fine, I forgive you for making our lives come to a complete stop. https://www.instagram.com/p/COLfyyjpoo-/?igshid=160fmnq4v4e6f

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This adorable girl joined our family this weekend. We completely forgot how much work a puppy is and how much they turn your schedule upside down. Just like adding a baby to your family, nothing quite prepares you, but it doesn’t take long before you forget what life was like before her. (We’re not quite there yet. Ask me again once she’s crate trained 🤪) https://www.instagram.com/p/COHHckIpELI/?igshid=13qb3wco1qebk

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Olive and my mom collaborated to create her birthday cake. They work together every year, but this year was definitely the cutest yet! https://www.instagram.com/p/CKxAjJ5pmUl/?igshid=41q6scgby5xd

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We have felt covered in love by our friends and family. Thank you so much to all of you who have grieved along side us. Finn was there for every big moment of our family’s life and it is hard to feel his absence. I took this photo right before I woke her up to begin her goodbyes. In many ways, the grief she is feeling now is not just for Finnie but an opening of the wound of losing her Gaigai three years ago and a tapping into the sorrow she’s felt the last year of losing so many of the things she loved. It has been heavy around here but we bravely hold on to hope. Both of her grandmoms got the first dose of the Covid vaccine this week and that has let in a little light during a dark season. https://www.instagram.com/p/CKEzxf_pVwi/?igshid=11ibus2c09kts

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We said goodbye to our sweet Finn this morning. It was very unexpected and very sudden and we are heartbroken. He was a huge part of our family’s story and will live on in our hearts forever. https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ_kBomplsR/?igshid=ffhtaapoyrse

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Spreading Christmas cheer is our advent activity for the day. This little love, who I see is struggling, can still hold so much space for others in her heart. https://www.instagram.com/p/CJG7k4qp1Zx/?igshid=1nkv667cl6fwa

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Happy Twelfth Finneversary to this very good boy. In some ways the last nine months have been good to our old boy: more walks, more food being eaten, more hands to scritchy scratch. But he’s also very ready for us to resume our lives so he can begin a very strenuous nap schedule. It’s hard to watch our sweet boy grow older, sleep more, lose his footing more easily. But just when we think he’s reached geriatric puppyhood, he steals something out of the trash, dashes out of the door of thrusts a tennis ball into our thigh. https://www.instagram.com/p/CJC4CABJG15/?igshid=1csq9kzwmwbn4

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Hopeful. https://www.instagram.com/p/CHJVv1IpU2T/?igshid=1cmeykqts4du8

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Heidi and Olive worked so hard this afternoon to make our candy chute cute. I love the way it turned out! https://www.instagram.com/p/CG_KYWlp3i1/?igshid=9c45m272apf2

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Voted, admired the BLM mural and explored the globes. Do you have a plan to vote? https://www.instagram.com/p/CGntIkHJW_u/?igshid=1oabqb7crdar

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A post shared by Carrie Ochal (@cochal)

Olive is working on follow up for a Gifts of Man lesson. She is asking people what they believe has been humans greatest invention. Will you help her by commenting below? #montessoriathome #montessorielementary https://www.instagram.com/p/CFaGPJFJCn2/?igshid=m7302cb2yo3w

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Olive started third grade today. Instead of being the oldest in lower el, as she normally would be in her third year, she’s the very youngest in an upper el classroom. She’s been feeling nervous but there are a lot of things that she’s really excited for, too. We’re very grateful to have a virtual option this year, and, despite all of the differences, I think it’s going to be a really great year. https://www.instagram.com/p/CEJxlWhJwUJ/?igshid=td1e8cmvrw0z

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We completed our #100booksofsummer challenge! We read so many really excellent books and, if I can get it together, I’d like to post about our favorites in stories over the next month. One thing I loved about this challenge is that Olive and I traded books as we read them so we got to have a mini book club on the ones that really impacted us. https://www.instagram.com/p/CECV4yFprS6/?igshid=1cgfy17ltsuqw

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{My favorite thing} about July 4th, 2020. We strictly quarantined for two weeks and then drove down to spend 2.5 weeks with my mom. Olive made the sweetest memories with mom, swam for hours every day, had her Mimi camp and had a magical Fourth of July. She said that while she was with my mom, she didn’t even remember there was a pandemic going on. That is the greatest gift we can give her this summer. https://www.instagram.com/p/CCTboxLJ0cQ/?igshid=11odfvdfm64gt

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Olive has been with my mom for the last week so I have no idea what she’s read but here is what she finished before leaving. I got a ton of reading/listening done while she’s been gone and those will be in the next set. She’s really enjoying the Phoebe and her Unicorn series. That unicorn has a huge vocabulary! She also loved The Doll People and asked me to read it, too, so it’s on my list. #100booksofsummer https://www.instagram.com/p/CCEk3ZaJYPE/?igshid=10doyypcsskc

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{My favorite thing} about June 22, 2020...seeing her relaxed and happy and filled to the brim with love. We are all so happy to be here with my mom. It finally feels like summer. https://www.instagram.com/p/CBv_8MMJMAF/?igshid=1qm3pwsu20ynf