Back to Work in the Time of COVID-19

The last few weeks have been full of worry and angst, as we prepare to go back into the "regular" world. There's nothing normal about the regular world anymore, as social distancing, face masks and standing in appropriately spaced lines become ordinary.

It has taken a lot of time for me to get used to the fact that I'm going back to work. I'm personally not too worried about being back in the office-- my company has implemented a slew of safety procedures in the office, including daily symptom self-screening, face masks, continuing virtual meetings, 3-people per elevator, and encouraging frequent hand washing. I've decided that I'll bike into work for the spring and summer-- and as far into the Fall as I can convince myself to manage the cold.

The part that's been hardest for me is putting our kids out into the world again. At 4, and almost 2, they just aren't quite old enough to understand what's happening. Scarlett is a rampant finger-sucker, and I don't think I can even count the number of times a day I utter the phrase, "Take that out of your mouth" to either of the girls.

We've been lucky that we've spent the last three months safe, at home. And the province has collectively done a good job at flattening the curve and reducing case numbers. But as things get back to a semblance of "normal", case numbers will inevitably rise. And I don't want to even think about how cold and flu season is going to play out this year!

I'm trying my hardest to focus on the positive things we've managed to do during these last few weeks at home... Before being back to work. So, here are some highlights of our spring.

There was baking. Looooots of baking. The girls really love banana chocolate chip muffins. But I think they're solely in it for the chocolate chips.

Lacey and I have done a ton of window painting. She loved the giant rainbow we painted on our front window, and we have seen plenty of people stop to admire our handiwork.

We roasted marshmallows on the BBQ to make smores!

We watched all those seeds we planted sprout into hearty tomato and cucumber seedlings.

We went on worm hunts in the rain.

There was some sleepy moments... Because Scarlett plays so very hard, and crashes even harder!

There have been cocktails... Oh, thank you LuluBar for the COVID-cocktails.

 There have been bike rides and picnics.  

There have been games!

Perhaps one of my favourite things about our time at home has been the increasing number of times I have come across these carefully staged scenes of toys lined up in some sort of action narrative. Sometimes I'm actively involved in the play, but sometimes I find them without realizing the girls had been playing. And I wonder, what were these ponies all doing in the car? Where were they going?

                                     

There will be more good times as the summer unfolds. But for now, wish me luck, as I head back to work.

Love in the Time of COVID-19

Earlier this year, my long-time friend, Steve, told us that he was getting married this year. Just a small affair, immediate family and he and his bride's best friends.

To say I was looking forward to it is an understatement. I love weddings. I love love, and I love seeing other people in love-- especially Steve, who is cynical and mush-adverse in so many ways. 

As the pandemic set in, group events were limited and business began to close down. Steve and Mizcha got word that they would have to postpone their wedding reception. Their venue was one of the many business that was closing indefinitely.

Steve and Mizcha took it all in stride. They said they still planned to get married on their planned date, and they would have their party when they were able. Steve's sister sent out invitations so she could host the ceremony at her house. But as COVID-19 restrictions tightened, she eventually had to cancel that as well. 

But Steve and Mizcha still got married, and we still got to participate in our own small way. Steve's sister, Kate, married them on Sunday, May 3 in an appropriately socially distanced ceremony on her driveway. Her husband, daughter, Jeff and Gwen and Mizcha's best friend attended as witnesses.

I watched with Ashley, Steve's parents and Mizcha's friend, Dave, on Zoom. I attended wearing a yellow t-shirt with a dinosaur on it. 

Congratulations, Mizcha and Steve! I'm so glad you didn't let COVID-19 slow down your plans. 

Home in the Time of COVID-19

When we look back on the great pandemic of 2020, what will we remember the most? The crushing anxiety? The loneliness? The monotony? The barrage of negative media? Yesterday I read an article about a guy punching another passenger on a bus, and then coughing on the bus driver and peace officers who tried to break it up, then saying "I hope you get COVID-19"(he alleged he had tested positive). That is effed up, people!

But is that what I'll remember when I think back on this time, squirreled away at home? I really hope not.

The long and short of it is that our family is lucky. Tom and I are both still employed, we are essential workers who are able to work from home, and our kids are safe and sound with us.  Are we exhausted at the end of the day from working, entertaining the kids, and making endless food that is bound to be rejected as "yucky"? Yes! But we're very aware that we are lucky to have our health and family and employment. COVID-19 is a lot of things, but it's definitely a stark reminder of how easily our world can be turned upside down. 

I have spent many hours stewing over all the terrible things going on in the world. Today the headline was that the company that runs Lysol had to publicly discourage people from ingesting or injecting themselves with disinfectant, because of comments made by the one and only US President Donald Trump. I'm not even going to touch that with a ten foot pole. 

But there have been a lot of good things happening in the world, and specifically in our home. I thought I'd share the things that we would have missed, (or might not have happened), if we weren't working from home.

There were snowmen. Or more specifically, a snow hoppy.

Lacey has been cruising on a balance bike for about two years. At the end of last summer, she was gliding like a pro, and we attempted to transition her to a pedal bike. In typical Lacey fashion, she wasn't ready for it, and doggedly refused to give it a real go. Fast forward to a week ago. We decided to give the big girl bike a try again, and after two tries, she was pedaling around an empty parking lot like a pro. The look of pride on her face when she realized she was biking all on her own... Gad, I will carry that in my mind until my dying day.

Scarlett, has been more than pleased to take over big sister's balance bike. And with daily practice, she's starting to move pretty quickly on that thing. Lacey was probably 2.5 when she started to figure out the balance bike, and Scarlett's not even two yet!

As many of you know, Scarlett has never been a good sleeper. After almost a year and a half of random sleep screaming, Every. Single. Night. She has finally started to settle into a (slightly) more stable sleep routine. By more stable, I means she's asleep by 8pm, there's a 50/50 chance she'll sleep scream at least once during the night, and she's up between 5-5:30am. No, you did not read wrong. What I just described is an improvement to her sleep pattern. Anyway, Scarlett wakes up so early, that she can barely make it to lunch time. It's become a common occurrence for her to nod off before, during, or shortly after lunch. 

We've spent a lot of time playing Anna and Elsa. 

We planted some tomato and cucumber seeds! Hopefully we planted them early enough that we will actually see some sprouting soon. Lacey started "helping" us with gardening two years ago when she was two. This was the first time she was actually a help! 

Scarlett and I had a talk about not drowning the seeds... 

There have been chats with familiar faces.

Scavenger hunts (we didn't actually make it through the whole scavenger hunt. Lacey couldn't find a snowman, and promptly lost interest).

There have been plenty of loopy days. The days can be long, but the weeks are short. And most of the weeks end with plenty of morning snuggles and sister-bonding.

We managed to acquire ourselves one amazing date-night-like meal... Which was eaten late, with a bottle of prosecco after putting the girls to bed!

But more than anything, I'm glad to be stuck in self-isolation with this guy: 

I maybe be the driving force behind keeping our household running, but that only happens, because he keeps me sane.

So, what will I remember from the 2020 pandemic? Time will tell. But I know there will be a lot of good memories wrapped in with all the crazy. 

The Story of a Troublemaker Toddler

It's after 5pm, I'm making dinner. Lacey is in the basement harassing Tom while he tries to work, and I suddenly notice... It's very quiet. Where is Scarlett? I hear a rustling sound.

Me: Scarlett? Where are you? Are you in the pantry?

Scarlett emerges from under the kitchen island, with a giant smile on her face.

Me: What is all over you? What did you get into?

Scarlett leads me under the island.

Scarlett: Yummy!

Me: What is that? Nutella!?

She demonstrates how she sticks her finger into the jar, and then licks it off.

I take away the Nutella.

Scarlett: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! YUMMY! MINE! MOMMY TAKE AWAY!

There's always something amiss when it gets too quiet...

Kauai and Anxiety Shouldn't Mix

We booked our Kauai vacation about six months ago, and had been looking forward to it ever since.  COVID-19 wasn't even on our radar. Yes, we'd heard about coronavirus, yes, we knew it was in China. But like so many other people, we had no inkling of how hard it would hit the world-- or how fast.

Tom, the girls and I, along with Ashley, Andrew and Zoe, left for Kauai on March 5th. It's impossible not to love Hawaii! The humid air, the warm sun, the sand, the tropical fruit, the fresh seafood! There are rainbows in the morning, and chickens and roosters running around everywhere!

We spent the first week with Andrew, Ashley and Zoe on the south side of the island in Poipu. This is where we stayed with my parents in 2017, and it was both drier, and more family friendly than the north or east side of the island. We fell into a routine of hitting the beach at least once a day.

Lacey was living her best life. She loved the beach (although she actually loved the pool more), specifically digging in the sand.

Scarlett on the other hand, found sand to be incredibly traumatizing. Standing in sand was basically the worst thing we've ever made her do. Getting vaccinations, taking antibiotics, being held down for pink eye drops paled in comparison to standing in sand. According to Scarlett, we are clearly monstrous parents.

Scarlett also found the beach to be an insurmountable amount of hard work. She fell asleep at the beach twice during our holiday.

On about the fifth day of our trip, Tom got an email from work that said when he returned from our holiday, he would have to work from home for a two-week self quarantine. Tom and I both couldn't believe it! That seemed absolutely unbelievable, and unnecessary. We wondered why his company was over-reacting so much!

We continued our holiday, and made a stop at Costco to stock up on food. Costco cuties (back when it was totally normal to take your kids to Costco--- remember that!?)

We continued to watch the American news coverage of COVID-19, as well as our home province news. Stories revolved around how not enough testing was done. How the virus was accelrating in Italy and Iran. A sense of unease was creeping in. Maybe this WAS a bigger deal than we'd initially thought.

On March 10th, Tom's parents arrived and joined us in Kauai.

We enjoyed a day at the beach, got some family shots, and the girls gloried in having grandma and grandpa at the beach with them.

And then, March 11th. Trump declares all flights to Europe will be suspended.

Initiate sense of impending dread in the pit of stomach. Yep, there it is. Oh man, am I ever going to sleep normally again?

I'm sure everyone who is reading this experienced some form of this anxiety in their own way, shape or form. Suddenly, it became very clear that sh*t was getting real, and... What did this mean? How bad was this situation at home? How bad was the situation in Kauai? We still had another six days left in our trip... These were Europe flights, but things were changing so fast, we didn't know what to expect. Were we going to be able to get home? I've experienced true anxiety only a handful of times in my life, and this was by far the worst of all.

Logically, I knew that we were actually probably safer in Kauai than we would be at home. There had only been 2 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on the island, and both were travel related. Someone from a cruise ship, and someone returning from the mainland. But logic isn't the best weapon against anxiety. It should be, but it's not.

Still, we had six days left! We might as well make the most of our time on holiday, right?

So, we took a long, winding, nausea-inducing ride up to Waimea Canyon. We have made this trip twice before, and still, I never learn. If there is a next time: TAKE GRAVOL.

We enjoyed the views.

We enjoyed the chickens! I know... They're just disgusting roosters and chickens. I'm sure the locals think tourists are crazy taking pictures of chickens. But in the sunlight, all colourful and iridescent, they're actually quite beautiful!

We enjoyed the ultra-touristy plantation train. My favourite picture from this outing is little Zoe sticking her head out of the train!

Tom and I managed to get away for an evening out on our own. We ate an amazing meal -- I'll just let the photo of it speak for itself. It was delicious.

The last few days of our trip were quite rainy, so we shopped in the rain. Went to the pool in the rain. And all the while, I felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. Stories of the overflowing hospitals in Italy were all over the news, and dire warnings and forecasts for what was to come for Canada and America were all the headlines. I mean, at one point, the Canadian governement issued the statement that, "It was time for Canadians to come home, before it was too late." WHAT DID THAT MEAN?! That's very vague and unsettling, Canada!

The day before we returned home, our city declared a state of emergency, and our province declared a public health emergency. The Canadian government announced that they were re-routing international flights to four airports, and that they would be screening for symptoms of returning travellers. All in all, it was a relief to head home.

 I'm glad we managed to get a holiday in before everything went into lockdown. I'm sure it will be months or longer before people start to feel safe travelling again.

So... I do not recommend travelling at the onset of a global pandemic. In the future... We'll try not to do that again! ;)

And another week left to go on our self-quarantine.

Lacey the Four-Year-Old

It seems surreal that four years have gone by since Lacey was born. That tiny little squalling baby is now this goofball and firecracker, all wrapped up with a pink bow.

This year, Lacey was once again spoiled beyond reason by family and friends. Her Auntie Ashley made her some amazing My Little Pony themed cupcakes for her family birthday party. Then she was showered in gifts, and ran around shrieking in joy until it was bed time. At which point she bawled hysterically from being overtired and over-excited.

The following day we hosted a kids party at a local rec center in their indoor play structure. Lacey once again ran around shrieking in joy, was showered in gifts, and then collapsed at home in bed for a well deserved nap.

But not before 13 ravenous kids devoured this entire butterfly and flower cake in one go.

The changes that we've seen in Lacey the last year have been a joy to watch. She's grown as an individual, as a student, as a big sister and a part of our family. 

She's a force to be reckoned with, like we always knew she would be.

Happy fourth birthday, Lacey! We love you!

Adventures in Single Parenting

Over the last year, Tom has been on three work trips that have summed to four weeks of travel, and four weeks of adventures in single parenting for myself. He did a week in Italy in May, two weeks in Norway in November, and a week in the UK in January. 

I think it's universally accepted that being a single parent is hard. But I don't think you really truly GET how hard it is until you live it. And even then I had many benefits. For example, I knew my 1-2 weeks stints had an end in sight. And, I had two sets of grandparents ready to leap in and help us (and, help us they did).

The week Tom spent in Italy in May is a distant memory for me now. I was still on maternity leave then, so I wasn't juggling as many schedules. Overall... I think it went well? I can't even remember what happened. I felt like I had a village to help me through it, and it wasn't so bad.

I was back to work for the two week stint in Norway in November. As it approached, my trepidation grew. The nights were long, with Scarlett's constant disruptive sleep screaming. But we made it through the first week in one piece. And then... Then the weekend hit. I got up early on Friday morning with Scarlett, and she promptly puked all over me. After she puked I plunked her in the tub to wash her down, and she was the happiest clam you've ever met. My parents came over to help me out so I could catch up on some sleep after the long week. I woke up from my nap and felt awful - - queasy and woozy. I soon found myself puking. And as I was throwing up, I could hear Scarlett screaming downstairs, because she had projectile vomited all over the kitchen again.

My parents volunteered to stay overnight to help me out. And Lacey woke me up at 1:30am. She initially thought she had to go to the bathroom, but after we talked a bit, I realized she was feeling queasy too. And a few minutes later, she puked in a garbage can. However, as it turns out this puking instance was a real milestone parenting win! This was the first time Lacey successfully puked into a garbage can! Can someone give me a high five?!

The only upside to this stomach bug was that my parents never caught it, and it was relatively short lived. We were back to work and daycare, and limped through the last week. The girls watched anxiously at the arrivals gate for Tom, and it was a happy reunion.

And hey, Tom got some beautiful photos of Norway too! 

After the two week trip was under my belt, I felt like I could handle the single week in January like a pro. But... As luck would have it, January hit our house like a freight train. After Christmas, I caught a cold bug that hit me hard. I ended up with pneumonia, and a cough that lasted for weeks. Of course, Scarlett caught the bug that I had, and promptly got an ear infection. Aaand then it was time for Tom to head to the UK! 

Here's Scarlett at the peak of ear infection misery. Poor little bubby! 

Aaaaaand, then Lacey proceeded to have a raging fever for nearly five days. It yo-yo'd back and forth and back and forth for days and days before finally breaking. 

It was a looooong looooong week. 

So I have concluded where work trips are concerned, sickness and chaos are sure to follow. 

We did have some nice moments while Tom was gone. 

The girls tracked the days until he would come on a sticker chart. 

Here's Lacey "reading" a story to Scarlett.

And here is how we deal with jetlag in our house...