Negative

I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner.

One of our friends in our immediate circle tested positive for COVID.

Two days after we all hung out for NYE. 

Luckily, his symptoms were relatively mild - he did miss an entire week of work though.

Then two of his kids got it.

His wife and their other two kids are still negative.

Steve and I tested negative on Tuesday/Wednesday this week. 

Neither of us have any symptoms whatsoever.

The girls had to be tested (at home) when they got home from school Monday because it was their first day back from break. 

They were both negative. 

So we're just kind of waiting it out.

Since we're both boostered, we don't have to quarantine. 

It's been 8 days since our exposure. 

The CDC says that symptoms can appear 2 - 14 days after exposure. 

I'm taking every precaution because my 40th birthday trip is coming up and I'll be damned if we miss it because one or both of us have COVID. 

I'm holding my breath until the 14 days is up. 

Quarantine

Welp. 

It happened. 

I got the call last week saying that Ava had been exposed to a positive case of COVID-19. It happened during lunchtime when masks were down. 

Hooray.

I got the call around 12:45pm (I had meetings from 1:30 - 3:30 that I had to cancel) and was told I needed to come get her immediately.

So I did. 

I picked her up and went to go pick up an at-home rapid test. 

Walgreens was sold out.

Rite Aid was sold out.

I grabbed two at Wegmans (for a total of 4 tests) so I'd have enough to keep testing her.

I got home, tested her, got her set up on her tablet and went back to work.

(She tested negative).

Later that evening I had her draw me a picture of the lunchroom and where she sat, etc. 

It didn't make sense to me.

She sits alone at a single desk, socially distanced from others. Due to her multiple food allergies, she's always sat by herself. 

I was confused, but what the hell do I know.

I did know that our state was implementing "Test To Stay" which means that if kids are unvaccinated or whatever and get exposed, they can continue to go to school (and school only) if they test daily and are negative each day.

Our district had not implemented it yet, so Ava had to quarantine for the full 10 days. 

Here's what's super annoying. Ava is vaccinated. She had her second dose 6 days prior to exposure. So they did not consider her "fully vaccinated."

Yeah.

I emailed the health department people and asked about TTS since I really think her risk is low. 

They emailed me back pretty quickly to say they were looking into it and would get back to me. 

If Ava had to miss these last few days before Christmas break, it would break my heart. She'd miss out on all the fun festive activities.

But I told her we'd do our own little thing at home. Thankfully, her quarantine would be over on Christmas Eve. 

Then.

BUT THEN! 

Friday morning I get a call - I'm busy getting just Mila ready for school because Ava's staying home.

The call says "we didn't account for Ava sitting alone at a single desk for lunch, so she was actually NOT exposed and does NOT have to quarantine."

JESUS HALLELUJAH.

HOLY FUCK.

That's awesome.

So I rushed to get her ready and out the door.

Annoying, yes. 

But I'm just SO GRATEFUL we don't have to quarantine, I'm like whateverrrrrr. 

Thank goodness. 

May 19, 2021

It's a historic day 'round these parts.

There are new mask guidelines out.

The CDC says fully vaccinated people "can resume normal activities that they did prior to the pandemic."

"Fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance."

Local businesses around my area have already put out statements that they are either saying vaccinated people can go maskless - but not how they would exactly police that.

Other organizations I'm seeing are requesting proof of vaccination in order to go maskless. This is like where I get my eyelashes done at a salon. Due to the nature of the work, we can't exactly physically distance - employees will continue to wear masks, and they ask patrons to show proof of vaccination or mask up.

I will be honest. I will feel weird going maskless. I will feel naked. 

Steve is ready to go maskless. I understand. He has/had to wear a mask at work all day long. 

I didn't since I work from home. 

However, even after the CDC put out guidelines, NYS had to decide whether or not it would follow the same guidelines.

We heard Monday that yes, we would be.

And we heard that Wednesday, May 19 is the day.

Of course, there are people who have openly said "I'm not about to get vaccinated, but I'll lie so I don't have to wear a mask anymore." 

Ok - I guess? I mean, I feel for the people who cannot get vaccinated. Those with compromised immune systems, or kids under 12. 

My two littles will still need to mask up when they are out and about - for their safety and for the safety of others. 

So...I dunno. Part of me is like YES, OPEN THE FUCK UP. Restaurants are going back to almost full capacity and no more curfews. 

But part of me is a little hesitant/scared too. 

I guess we'll see how it goes! I'll be fully vaccinated Tuesday and Steve a full week after. 

Many of our friends (if not all of them) have been vaccinated also, so I'm SUPER excited to hang out with them again. We kinda stopped after our Halloween party because the numbers were going crazy. 

Our group already made plans for Memorial Day weekend and are planning a BBQ and then a month after that it's vacation time! With this same group. I'm so excited! 

#BYEKIDS

Today's the day. 

THE DAY.

416 days since my kids were in school full time. 

It's a day we've all been waiting for.

Not just because of the pandemic and all of that.

When Mila was born 9 years ago (WTF?) Steve's life of working 3 days a week and having 4 days off went OUT THE WINDOW.

He became a stay-at-home parent those 4 days and was on baby watch while I worked outside of the home.

We were very lucky that our kids were only in part-time daycare their entire lives. This is something I'm proud of. I believe in daycare 100% don't get me wrong. I worked in several throughout high school and college. So I've experienced the kids who were there from 7am - 6pm Monday - Friday. I just didn't want that for my kids if I could help it.

Thankfully for Steve's job, it allowed us to do this.

Right when things started to get "easier" (does that ever really happen?) we decided to have Ava! So now he was home with a 2.5-year-old and a newborn on his "days off" when I went back to work. 

So as time went on and the kids got older, we talked about what his days would look like when they were both in school.

The bus shows up at our house at 7:50am. It drops off around 4pm. 

That's 8 hours of kid-free time.

Ava was in preschool last year and while that was 5 days a week, it was only for like 2.5 hours. So Steve got a taste. A small taste. He had just about enough time to run some errands or do a quick side job.

THEN COVID HIT.

And the kids were home indefinitely.

we'd joke (lightly - since, duh we're not totally tone-deaf and realize how lucky we really are) that his countdown to free time was on PAUSE.

"I was so close" is what he'd say. 

So today marks a very important day. 

A milestone, even.

For the first time EVER, BOTH our kids are in FULL-TIME school. 

The house was all antsy with excitement last night AND this morning.

I helped get the kids ready since you know, it's kinda like the first day again.

But I did warn Steve that he's going to HAVE to get up and get the kids out of the house ON HIS OWN when it's his turn. I'm still going to be working out and showering so he'll need to manage.

I am doing him a favor though - I told him I will make their lunches the night before so he can just grab them. 

So excited this morning! 

Oh no, here we go. We've been lucky so far.

Wearing masks and being psycho about handwashing has been good for more than just COVID precautions.

Neither of our girls has had even a slight cold this cold season. 

Usually they are the kids with constant runny noses because of school and daycare.

I remember when they were babies, other moms and I would joke and call it "daycare nose" because what the actual fuck. How can a nose run that constantly but yes it's not sickness or allergies? 

Anyway. 

Ava started with a cough earlier this week.

Nothing crazy. 

It hasn't gotten worse. 

No other symptoms.

So when it was time to fill out the school survey, I answered honestly and said she had one of the symptoms listed. A cough.

I got a message saying to keep her home and follow the "Return to School" protocol. Which means doctor visit and COVID test to get cleared.

So of course, that's what we did.

(I'm SO grateful for having a flexible job).

I got an appt for 11am and off we went.

Ava and Mr. Hedgehog waiting to get checked out.

Poor Bubba fell asleep right before dinner.

Since she "had symptoms" the COVID test was more invasive than mine was. They did the brain-touching kind, but Ava did great. I knew she would.

I ran around all day I felt like. 

After her appointment, I stopped at Steve's work to get more washer fluid.

Then after that, I stopped by my friend's work, which happens to be our Allergist's office and signed paperwork for Ava to start allergy shots. 

She's just always suffering or has these flare ups that we can't figure out. I didn't want to start shots because she's just so small. And 4 shots is a lot.

But, her new pediatrician did convince me that her daily allergy issues is much much worse. 

So, ok. That's all the kick in the ass I needed. 

After THAT we came home and I had a 1pm call.

I took that call and then it was almost time to pick up Mila from school.

As soon as GF got in the car she said "I have a scratchy throat - it just started"

OK THEN.

As the evening went on, her runny nose got progressively worse.

I made the decision to just keep her home and go through this process again with her. 

Sigh. I guess I have to be happy that this is legit the first time they've been under the weather since A YEAR AGO.

That's very unusual for my sickness-prone children. 

And, I'd rather deal with all this now, before they go back to school full time in 1.5 weeks.

Back In School

Over the course of the last few weeks, CDC guidelines have changed and they are now saying that kids can be 3 feet apart and be ok regarding the transmission of the Coronavirus. They are also now saying that it's a low risk of catching this virus on surfaces. Everyone went nuts in the beginning to literally disinfect every single thing and were literally drinking bleach...and it's not transmissible on surfaces. Or, the chance is low. 

Whatever. 

Because of these new guidelines, many districts around our area were starting their reopening plans to get students back in the building 5 days a week.

There are so many factors. 

They sent out surveys to both students and parents asking what the preference is.

We obviously chose back in school full time. 

My kids have dealt with this entire thing in stride. But it's time. They need to be back in school with their peers and go through their curriculum in a more traditional fashion because neither Steve nor I are teachers. 

Kids will have to wear masks (they are actually pretty good about this!) and they have to be 3 feet distanced apart. There will be designated areas outside for mask breaks and they will likely spend a lot of their time outside anyway. I'm grateful we're heading into summer so kids can be outside more. 

Ironically, the date that I'm writing this (April 21) it's actually fucking snowing.

ANYWAY. 

There was a school board meeting last week indicating that things would change soon and that there'd be a survey going out.

Then the results of the survey were last night.

I was so on top of making sure I was around to watch it and then totally forgot. Fuck!

So I joined the Zoom meeting 27 minutes late. I had to stick around for a while before I gathered enough information to realize that they are opening schools back up full time for Primary and Elementary students!

HALLELUJAH!

COVID VACCINE

Welp folks, I finally got my first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine!

I was eligible a while back with having asthma, but due to my surgical procedure, I opted to wait so I wouldn't get a positive test and ergo not be able to have my surgery. 

I then had one booked for the end of May - it was the only available slot and the location was about 45 minutes from my house. The second dose would be early June. 

Now that the eligibility requirements have changed many more Vaccine Clinics are opening up. 

So, I went online and snagged a closer appt - both in proximity and in time.

Ready to go!

The entire process was super efficient and super easy. After getting the shot, I had to wait in the lot for 15 minutes to ensure no allergic reaction. 

My arm is SORE. Very sore - sore enough to wake me up in the middle of the night. 

I'm anxious to get my second dose on May 11. 

#doyourpart

We Hung Out With People!

It's no secret that the girls haven't hung out with any of their friends outside of our circle. 

Mila had made a bunch of friends during her short few years at school and since the pandemic hit, we haven't been able to see them much.

No more sleepovers.

No more indoor playdates.

Now that the weather is breaking and Spring is on its way, we are able to get outside and actually SEE people.

Nora is a little girl who Mila met in first grade and they became fast friends. Their first grade teacher requested to put them together in second grade as well and they loved it.

We had sleepovers, playdates, you know, all the typical little girl things.

Then COVID.

We were able to go to Nora's birthday party since that was a ropes course outdoors - the kids wore masks but had a great time!

Then we had a random nice day in November and we had an outdoor playdate.

And FINALLY! It was warm enough to play outside for an afternoon.

We were invited to go to the park near our house to play on the playground and to hike to the small waterfall.

I fell in at one point and got soaked up past my ankles. I took my socks off and squished in my boots for over a mile. 

Spending time with kids their age was everything. They ran off and just played and talked and talked and talked. Luckily we've spent enough time with this family that it's not awkward to chat with the mom - lovely (SUPER SMART) lady who is a college professor and has some really cool stories. Like doing research on sea turtles laying eggs and since they lay eggs at night, she had to hike five miles to find them at midnight to do the research in another country and ended up dislocating her knee! Then had to hobble FIVE MILES back to wherever she could get help! LIKE WHAT? This family was supposed to move to Australia for a semester while she did more research, but due to COVID, that got postponed. What a cool job, right? 

ANYWAY.

Now that the weather is nicer and we can be outside (and people are getting vaccinated) we'll be able to do more of these playdates. 

One Year.

Holy bananas you guys.

It's been a year. 

A YEAR of working from home, full time.

Because of a fucking pandemic.

A pandemic that our country has been unable to control.

A pandemic that started when we had the absolute worst person as our leader. 

A leader who did nothing to try to keep this pandemic from getting so bad.

And now all the people are suffering because of it.

It has now been one full year of working my full-time job out of my home.

Well, minus the 7 weeks I was unemployed. 

I absolutely, 100% cannot believe that we are at a year of this.

My kids haven't had any sense of normalcy in a year. 

My little one started her first year of REAL school during a pandemic and has lost out on a true Kindergarten experience.

All of this being said, I do realize that we are some of the lucky ones. 

Even though we were directly affected by it by me losing my job, we still ended up in a better place than before. 

So many people are still suffering in horrible ways.

No job.

No way to pay rent.

No way to pay for groceries.

Kids not in school.

So I'm still grateful that we have what we have.

It's so weird not knowing what life will be like in a few months. In a year.

Will schools be open?

Will we be able to travel?

It's just so weird that it's been legitimately 12 months since this all started on Friday, the 13th of March.

I remember the day like it was yesterday.

I remember texting my daycare provider to let her know that we wouldn't be sending the kids but that I'd still pay her for two weeks until "this got figured out."

Well, obviously we're still figuring it out.

Trying To Keep Them Engaged

It's no lie that this whole "homeschooling" thing sucks.

And we are in the group of people who aren't actually suffering all that badly from it.

Both Steve and I have jobs that are flexible enough to allow us to make it work while the kids are NOT in school full time. 

I'm not sure how other working parents do it! What if they can't split their week up and what if they can't work from home?

Regardless, it's not an ideal situation for many reasons.

Both of my girls are social creatures - and Mila had the opportunity to make friends and develop those relationships during K - 2nd grade. 

Ava didn't get that opportunity (as much).

Because I work full time and Steve is doing homeschool Monday - Wednesday there are not a lot of extracurricular things that we participate in.

It's just too much.

It's all via Zoom, so parents have to help get set up, etc.

There was ONE extracurricular thing that I was excited to sign Mila up for.

It's a once-a-month art "class" on Mondays from 4:30 - 5:30pm. 

We could sign up for all or just a few. We signed up for all because what the heck.

We logged in, got our materials ready and both girls got to follow along and do their art. They drew a panda together.

There were several kids logged in and two of Mila's friends were also on. It was cute to hear them say "hi! I miss you!" to each other.

There was also one kid who legit whistled the entire time and had his microphone on and no one told him to mute. So that was loud. 

And yes, they are still in pajamas, even though it's dinner time.

We have 6 more "classes" to take us to the end of the year-ish. The first one went ok. Mila said she enjoyed it and will do it again next week. It ended around 5, so it was only 30 minutes.

I think it's a great way for her to interact with some kids she normally wouldn't during her two days in school. 

Happy Chinese New Year! (A little late)

We originally planned to celebrate Chinese New Year on the weekend of February 12th. We didn't get the chance to because we ended up having to quarantine because of the positive cases popping up at Steve's work.

So me and the girls ended up going to my mom's after 2 full weeks of staying away.

My kids have never experienced celebrating this holiday and to be honest, we didn't like actually celebrate. 

We did have the traditional "hot pot" for dinner. A big pot of soup with a ton of items to cook in the broth.

Noodles, meat, shrimp, veggies, tofu. 

All cooking in this amazing-smelling broth.

Mixed together with some sort of Chinese BBQ sauce mixed with thick soy sauce and hot sauce.

The smell was so nostalgic.

I think I had 4 bowls of soup and goodness. 

I'm so glad my girls got to experience a little of it! 

They also learned how to say "Gong xi fa chai, hong bao nah lie" which means in English "Happy Chinese New Year, hand over the red pack of money" lol.

It's Just a Matter Of Time Now.

OH. MY. GOD. YOU. GUYS.

Remember last week when I said Steve started taking his temperature? 

Well, he's still taking his temperature. 

TWO more guys at his work tested positive. 

One guy he worked with for three, consecutive days. Not necessarily in "close contact" (15 minutes, no mask, less than 6ft apart). 

Like I said before - Steve ALWAYS wears his mask when he's there. Unless he's taking a sip of a drink or eating, if he's with people, he's masked up. 

He says he's generally a car's distance away from people, too. 

But I don't believe that for a second. 

I've gone to his work 3 times in the last 2 weeks. (The last two times I sat in my car in the parking lot and he came outside). And dude. People are walking around maskless. There are people who approach my husband and come within 6ft for sure (if they are showing him a part, or need him to look at something that they're pointing at for instance). 

So, he went and got tested the same day we found out that the one guy tested positive. 

Thank GOD Steve's test came back NEGATIVE. 

Phew.

BUT.

BUT! 

He was on the phone with another work buddy and told him the place he went to was open until 10pm. Steve convinced him that he should also get tested. Even if he felt "fine."

This guy lives about 50 minutes away but he did it. 

He made the drive.

AND HIS RESULTS ARE POSITIVE.

WTF.

So now that's two people two days. Three people in the last 2 weeks. 

AHHHHHHH.

I'm not sure what to do!

Steve tested negative, but there's a chance he will test positive. He will go again on Monday.

Should I get tested?

One thing is for sure - we are staying away from my mom, sister and Steve's parents. 

My mom is 74.

My sister is considered "medically fragile."

And Steve's parents are also old and his mom has MS. 

So we are not going to visit with them for 14 days.

But that begs the question. If we're trying to keep them safe, shouldn't we be trying to keep the world safe, too? But we haven't been told that's what we should be doing. 

I'm not going to go out grocery shopping - I will finally have to utilize curbside pickup (we do not get delivery where we live - although with the pandemic, I'm not sure if stores have changed their rules about how far they will deliver). 

Do I send the girls to school? 

So of course I said to Steve that his shop should close. 

That's the only way to ensure that people aren't infected when they open back up. Make sure every employee gets tested and needs to be negative before coming back. 

But here's the problem with that. 

The second they open those doors and allow customers' cars to come in, it doesn't matter anymore.

The technicians have to get INSIDE these vehicles to bring them into the shop to diagnose them and then to work on them to fix them. These customers go INSIDE the service office to talk to the writers and schedulers. It's not exactly something that can be done virtually. 

Sure they are masked (most of them), wearing gloves, etc. But you can't help but sit in the seat and touch the door handle here or there. 

UGH.

These poor guys. 

And it's no one's fault, you know?

If the employee needs to quarantine, they still get paid - so that's AMAZING, right? 

But, say the tech is flat rate and turns double the hours that's being paid to him while he's quarantined. Then you have to think about not making the weekly bonus for turning those hours. So now the tech is down like $2,000. 

Like, that sucks too! 

It feels like a lose-lose situation all the way around and it fucking blows.

And so Steve is currently negative - but it's just a fucking matter of time, isn't it? He's not being told to quarantine so he's going back to work tomorrow! Because if he's not being told to quarantine, it's not like he has 14 days of vacation to burn after NOT WORKING FOR SEVEN WEEKS a few months ago.

Oh my fucking god, people. 

My head is spinning! 

Will Schools Open Full Time?

School districts in our area are doing a hybrid approach to education.

Kids are in school either half the week or every day for half the day - at least that seems to be the norm around our parts. 

Our kids go to school two days a week and are homeschooled the other 3 days. 

And the other two days a different group of kids go. So there's half the regular amount of stupids in the building. 

Wednesdays are fully remote days for all students so that cleaning and sanitizing can take place before the next group rotates in.

There have been talks about schools opening up back full time in the fall.

I am all for it.

The transmission rate is very low in schools. The people who are getting it, aren't in the schools.

Kids are complying and wearing masks. 

All day except for lunch.

I have to give them credit - I haven't had to wear a mask ALL day at all since this all started. 

Teachers are also wearing masks.

I'm all for teachers to be next in line to get the vaccine. 

I'm so ready for the kids to be back in school and for them to experience it the way it's supposed to be.

Even though, I guess it won't be because they'd still have to wear masks and social distance. 

But they'd be in school. Every day.

With their friends.

Getting in-person instruction.

HOWEVER.

That being said, I'm grateful my kids are at the ages they are at. 

Homeschooling isn't nearly as difficult it could be, let's say if my kids were in middle or high school.

Little kids aren't going through weird hormonal, emotional, physical changes like a middle schooler or high schooler is going through. 

I recently caught up with an old friend/colleague and we got to talking about it. His kids are older and man. I don't envy that situation. 

Now, that also begs the question for me - if the kids go back full time, do I start going into the office?

Would I have to start paying for daycare again?

I don't even want to think about the logistics of my new job, which is further away (it's 45 minutes away from my house), plus it starts an hour earlier, yada, yada, yada. 

The newest update we received last week (February 12, I believe) was that many parents were starting to ask when schools would open full time again.

Their response made sense and it went something like this:

In order for schools to open full time, we still have to follow the guidelines of maintaining 6ft of distance and wearing masks.

Since there are so many kids in our district, there just isn't enough physical space to do that. We have to have a hybrid approach because we can fit that many students in the building at once and still maintain the 6 foot distance rule. I get it. 

I don't know what the world will be like come Fall though.

I'm eligible for the vaccine so as soon as I get the all clear to get the vaccine from my doc, I will do so. I'm reading that most eligible folks will be vaccinated by the end of Summer. 

Ugh. 

The unknown is killing me. 

Gaming?

My girls have never really gotten into gaming.

Neither Steve nor myself are really into it, so it's not like it's a huge surprise. 

My kids love all things screens and TVs and all that jazz, so I guess I figured they'd like video games as well.

They've played our Wii a handful of times and they appear to enjoy it. 

Ava is still too little and her coordination isn't quite there so she gets frustrated easily and quickly if she loses. 

Mila does pretty well considering she doesn't have much practice. She really loves it, but it's easy to love something when you win all the time (and ergo, Ava is pissed a lot).

So they came to me the other day and asked to play a video game I had never heard of. Steve mentioned that it was a game our nieces play. It's called "Among Us" - I looked into it a bit and it seemed innocent enough. Honestly, if my nieces are playing and my SIL is cool with it, I'd likely be cool with it too. I may do a little investigating to see if there's anything to be concerned about. 

Anyway.

We got them hooked up so they could play alongside their cousins!

I don't mind if they are playing video games like this. I can't recall the name, but it appeared that they had to make their way out of a room somehow.

Hand-eye coordination skillz people!

FaceTiming and playing with cousins! When they live across the country, we make do with what we can! 

My SIL and her family usually visit a couple times a year. 

Obviously with fucking COVID that stopped the entire world, so we haven't seen them since Christmas 2019. So sad. 

But, thank goodness for technology! Now that the girls are getting more into it, we will make sure they can play with their cousins more frequently. 

Steve's Taking His Temperature Every Day

It's no secret that Steve has not stopped working during the entire pandemic. 

Well, except for that one time he had back surgery.

Anyway.

He's considered "essential" since you know, he keeps trucks and other vehicles on the roads safely. 

People need their cars.

Organizations and businesses need their vehicles.

Hours were shortened during the "worst" of it (April/May) although we've seen worse numbers and they've been operating under normal work hours for months now.

Masks are required for anyone going into the shop.

We were super strict in the beginning.

Steve changed his clothes outside and then ran to the shower before he'd hug any of us.

But then as things went on, we relaxed. 

We kept up with mask-wearing of course, we're not stupid.

We wash our hands all the time.

I sanitize everything.

I rarely take the girls grocery shopping with me.

We only visit with our "quarantine circle" which includes my mom and sister and Steve's parents. 

And then today we got a call from Steve's work.

A guy he'd been working with (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) tested positive.

Ok.

I wouldn't be super concerned, except for the fact that I brought the girls to the shop to visit on Saturday. 

Because it was so dead there. 

FUCK FUCK FUCK.

Obviously now I regret it.

We weren't around him for more than 5-10 minutes...maybe. We were there in totality for about an hour. He came around our area a couple of times. 

We wore masks the entire time.

BUT.

I'm all freaked out and not sure what we should do.

Steve says there's nothing to do because the Health Department would call us if we need to be contacted for contact tracing. We haven't been contacted yet.

We are going to stay away from our elderly parents for 10 days just to be safe.

But do I have to contact school? I haven't been told one way or another. 

I don't want to panic. But hello! 3 out of the 4 of us have some form of asthma/allergies and really can't afford to have any sort of respiratory issues. And my SISTER? Who is MEDICALLY FRAGILE?

Nope, nope, nope.

What I Miss

A friend posted something recently on Facebook asking friends what they missed the most since everything with the Pandemic happened.

That got me thinking.

I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about the things we're missing out on. I'm not sure why. 

We have been distracted by a few major, life-changing events. 

Regardless it got me thinking.

And Steve said it to me just the other day when we were driving.

"I miss going out to dinner and a movie"

YEP. 

ME TOO, BUDDY. ME TOO.

We realized that as soon as my mom moved home (and ergo had a free babysitter), everything in the world (seriously) shut down.

So while the girls spend quite a bit of time with my mom, it's not like me and Steve have anywhere to go.

Here's a short list of things I'm missing, now that we're approaching the 1 year mark of when Life Stopped Being Normal. 

1. Going out to restaurants
2. Going to the movies
3. Going out shopping without fear or anxiety of touching things and/or catching things
4. Taking my kids out in a care-free kind of way without being a freak about hand sanitizer and masks
5. Being around my friends and all of our kids playing together (the last time was Halloween, right before numbers sky-rocketed and we hunkered down, even from our friends in our 'bubble')
6. TRAVELING - MISSING OUT ON OUR 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY TRIP. FOR FUCK'S SAKE. THIS BROKE MY HEART. However, I do realize this is "first world problems" so don't bash me for being super disappointed. It still sucks. We lost all our money on it. 
7. Kids being in school full time and having the "experience" for my Kindergartner. 

Those are just a FEW things of life "before" and we're just not really sure when life will be normal again. Or what that new normal will be like. 

All I know - as soon as we're able and eligible, we are getting our vaccines. 

Happy New Year from The Ruples!

Here we are, finally ending the year that would never end.

The year that felt like it stood still.

I can't even believe that we're almost to March.

Like, I haven't even processed last March yet.

We are still living in a completely modified manner.

Masks are completely normal.

I don't bring the kids shopping with me unless I have to.

We don't go place "just to go" anymore.

We spend a lot more time at home.

And with me losing my job and Steve's surgery, we spent a LOT of time together.

Time that I can now look back on and be grateful for (except when Steve was in pain - that was bad). 

There are a lot of things to be grateful for and a lot of things to look forward to as well.

What I want to do in the year 2021 is slow the fuck down.

Enjoy the little things more.

It's hard when you're literally in the moment and everything is just hard and it sucks.

But my girls are growing up fast and if I don't pay attention, I'll be packing up the trucks to take them away to college and I just can't like...let that happen without really trying my best to be present.

Having my new job will allow me to be more present while still providing for my family.

The flexibility alone will allow me to be a better (more sane), parent.

And halfway through the year 2020 is when I started to take care of ME.

And I plan to continue this for as long as I'm able to.

A healthier, happier me is beneficial for all. 

I hope everyone is able to enjoy some downtime. Enjoy their families and look forward to a better year. 

That's all we can hope for, right?

Christmas 2020

We had a wonderful few days with family over the holidays.

Now that my mom is home and living with my sister, we have a little juggling to do.

We used to spend every holiday with Steve's parents because we're all local. 

With COVID and everything going on, my sister in law and her family are not traveling and ergo did not visit this year.

We decided to spend Christmas Eve with Steve's parents and have the girls enjoy their first Christmas of the season. We spent a lovely afternoon there, had lunch and opened presents. 

Super low-key this year

We measure the girls against this door every year. 

Ava being a goof

We spent a good part of the afternoon explaining to Grandpa what streaming TV is. 

Another Ruple tradition - hand prints on the tree skirt. 

We got home in the late afternoon and spent the rest of the evening as just the four of us. Did some last-minute gift wrapping and enjoyed each others' company. 

I made more Christmas treats.

My first time making Christmas Crack. It was delicious and I'll be making it each year! 

And of course, chocolate chip, for Steve

Christmas morning was magical. 

The girls came running into our room around 7:45am and there was a lot of giggling and "Santa came!"

They gave us a few minutes to get up and get some coffee going because...duh.

And then they went for it.

Santa brought stocking stuffers and a few gifts this year. 

Dad got new whiskey glasses! 

LAVA LAMPS! Remember those!?

LOL. Mila got a teeny, tiny drone. 

We stayed home and relaxed for the morning so the girls could play with all their new toys. We packed ourselves up around noon to head to my mom's house for Christmas #3!

New Wellie Wisher dolls! (From American Girl)

The hand-sewn stockings my mom made. Love them. 

My heart is so full. 

The aftermath. Holy shit so much stuff! It was so fun - the first Christmas with my side of the family in 9 years. I'm so grateful my girls get to experience this. 

I've been making prime rib for Christmas for...maybe 3-4 years now? I forget. 

So I was very excited to make it this year for my mom and sister!

Got us a 5.75lb prime rib.

Don't get me started on the "Rotisserie" story. It doesn't matter now because I have one. And let me just say that I have NEVER made a bad meal in this thing. Roasted chickens were a weekly thing when I first got it. But even if I only made prime rib with this thing once a year it'd be totally worth it. 

I literally "set it and forget it"

1.6 hours later...Perfection.

Jennifer made a Christmas tree salad! 

💖

I failed to get a photo of the whole family, because well, that's just me. Nothing formal around here!

We truly had such a wonderful time. We helped mom clean up dinner, packed up our stuff and headed home. Steve had to work the following day, the dogs had to go out and we had to get ourselves settled. 

Now I just have to put away all the Christmas decorations....ughhh....

This is the first time in several years that I'm working the week between Christmas and New Year's. The last two years the company I worked for at the time closed the week between. Prior to that, the company I worked for also closed the week between - all of those closures were a "surprise" and were definitely not a tradition - I think we were just lucky to enjoy it for the last few years.

Being the new girl and the "lowest person on the totem pole" I opted not to take any time off during the holiday season. 1) I work from home all the time now, so it's less stressful to actually work. 2) It's generally pretty quiet so I don't think I'll be too busy. 3) I want to save my PTO for what might be coming up in the next couple of months. I haven't gone public with it yet...and I'm not sure I will. If I'm being true to myself, I will. So time will tell. 

Anyway. 

Time to get back to the grind. Get back to real life. 

For 3 days. 

Then I have 4 days off again for New Years. 

But THEN, it's time to get back to real life. 

Bring it on, 2021!