The Magic Kingdom

I am happy to report that we successfully flew down to Orlando, FL for an amazing vacation to Disney World in October. While we knew Penny would have a great time, I think Mike and I were surprised at how much fun we had. You couldn't have picked a more polar opposite experience than our last big family trip - to cold, windy, natural Iceland. Disney World is a completely artificial environment, it was hot, and it was corporate Americana on steroids. And they do a fabulous job of entertaining the whole family. Even though I had been there as a kid, it is very different now in terms of rides, technology, and also price gouging for every little detail. The trip we had was the trip I would have planned for myself as a kid. We stayed at Caribbean Beach Resort, which I would consider staying at again in the future and recomend. My biggest "travel hack" was having an A***** package delivered to our resort the day before we arrived, with sparkling waters, granola bars, applesauce packs, cracker packs, etc. It was so nice to arrive and just have our little care package of snacks there. 

 Penny had the stamina to go all day long (more than I did - I took midday naps back at the hotel), and she went on every ride she was tall enough for, without fear. She rode roller coasters and the Tower of Terror. She is the bravest 4-year-old I know. She is the age that she very much believes in magic, and we are happy that we could give her a magical experience before that wonder gets dashed out of her in the next few years. She enjoyed meeting and taking photos many characters, even though she was a little shy at times. Mike really maximized his Disney app usage to minimize our ride wait times, and even snuck in a few grown-up rides for himself. 

 Like after our Iceland trip, I felt a sense that "things will be okay" during and after the trip, since COVID really took our normal way of life for so long and it didn't feel safe to travel. It's still not 100% safe to travel, but it's at least managable at this point, and feels worth it to have these kinds of novel and fun experiences again. 

 We also recently renewed both of Penny's passports, so she is good to travel internationally for the next 5 years. And we hope to make good use of them, for at least a few trips. 

 Here's to enjoying travel again!

September Optimism

 

We enter the fall with more optimism and less stress than last year. Occasionally, we receive an email or text about a potential COVID exposure, but that's no longer a big deal. You usually just take a rapid test and move on with your day. It finally feels like the pandemic may be ending, with our whole family vaccinated and continuing to update with boosters when possible. I'm disappointed with the local and nationwide vaccine rates for young children, but have simply accepted that we will make the best choices we can for our family and to do our part to keep germs from spreading in the community. We can only do so much, and can't control if other people choose to make short-sighted choices. 

Since the summer, Penny has been at a school where she is no longer required to wear a mask all day. She is happier because of it, and I am happy with it too. Earlier in the pandemic I think it was necessary, and still now when we are indoors with people we don't know. But, especially for the youngest kids who are developing critical language and social skills, I think it has been long enough that the slightly higher risk is worth it to now unmask when they are around people they see regularly. And honestly, we all knew all the kids in the same class were all exposed to each other while eating and napping without masks anyway. Penny is currently loving school, making friends, and continuing to develop her physical skills. She did fantastic and surpassed expectations with her swimming abilities this summer, she can bike without training wheels, and even sew a button onto a piece of cloth at 4 years-old. She makes us laugh every day, comes up with creative projects, and astounds us with her memory of details from past events and discussions. We have a wonderful community of neighbors that help each other out and enjoy spending time together. 

This year we have only done some road trips along the East Coast, and we have a few more coming up in October. I am looking forward to attending our first wedding since pre-pandemic times, as well as celebrating the milestones of family and friends again. We have begun the joy that is renewing Penny's passports, and hope that maybe we can travel internationally again towards the second half of next year. 

It has been a long three years. It has been a hard year after a hard year after a hard year, but the light at the end of the tunnel is visible. I also like to think that even though it has been hard, we have weathered each difficulty as it has come, and done fairly well considering. I've kept my head down and done whatever I've needed to do, and I really do think that 2023 will be a very different year for us in a lot of ways. I am looking forward to all the changes on the way. 

What Independence? Day

I recently removed some old posts and photos from posts due to an overabundance of caution having to do with potentially copyrighted material. I heard about a friend of mine getting involved in a predatory lawsuit due to a very old photo she posted on a blog years and years ago. So, if you look at any of the old posts and it seems like something referenced might be missing, that's why. The pandemic continues onward with no end in sight. We are at the stage where everyone around the world seems to be trying to live with it. However, everyone is still getting it, seemingly in higher numbers than ever before because the general public is taking fewer precautions. Every household takes their turn here and there. Almost everyone I know who has travelled recently has gotten COVID. Luckily, because of vaccines and other precautions, it seems that nobody I know is getting seriuosly ill. It's still no picnic, but it's manageable. It is still very disruptive to families and schools, but we feel like we have no choice. We can't go back to fully locking down anymore. It's been a game-changer mentally for the youngest kids to now become elligible for vaccines. It's unfortunate many are going to "wait and see", because that further extends the pandemic for all of us. You know what can have proven effects on children's development? COVID. So sick of people not trusting basic science and medicine, and dabbling in conspiracies and fear. I still do not go many indoor public places, other than the grocery store though. We don't eat out at restaurants really, except on rare occasions. As someone who has been back working in-person since August of last year, it seems like a great privilege for those who can work remotely or hybrid. I relish the times now when I am able to temporarily work remotely. The kids are alright. Mostly. The biggest difference I've noticed in Early Childhood Education is that many children have come to school physically unprepared. Socially, some are a little behind, but that's not the biggest difference. The physical core strength, gross and fine motore skills, are lacking in most of the children who began attended preschool late and didn't attend other structured daycare. Some have closed the gap throughout the year, but others are still very behind, and are literally constantly hurting themselves when falling because they are often off-balance when sitting/walking/running/etc. And some don't seem to have the ability to brace themselves when they do fall, and literally fall on their faces. Normal 3 and 4 year-olds pre-pandemic usually had no difficulty pedaling tricycles; in this group, we started with no children who could. Over the year, a few have worked up to the ability, while many still struggle. Pre-pandemic, many kids could easily pull one or two friends in a wagon; this group has really had to work up to that, and many still can't. Most cannot physically dress themselves or remove their own clothing, among other personal independence skills. This is all anecdotal evidence, from a particular socioeconomic demographic in a particular city, but it is a noticeable difference to pre-pandemic times. So, we truck on. We make travel plans here and there with a grain of salt. Sometimes they happen, sometimes they need to be altered or canceled. Michael was lucky to be able to travel to the WMUCC ultimate frisbee tournament in Ireland this year, but of course COVID spread rapidly there and affected many teams. I'm glad they were able to hold the tournament, but it was not without its hardships for teams. The fall of Roe vs. Wade has had major consequences around the country. I fear for all American women now. Even though some states will seem to fare better than others, in terms of health outcomes, we all lose and we are all being treated as though our status as sentient beings is now in question. I fear for my daughter's future in this capacity, and I am grateful we have an additional citizenship elsewhere if we ever needed something to fall back on. There are numerous medical reasons a person might need an abortion, aside from the fact that they might just want to have control over their own body. In a country where a person cannot be forced to donate their organs AFTER THEY DIE, it sees ridiculous that a living person cannot make a decision that will affect their body and all their future life opportunities. I'm disgusted by people who claim to be "pro-life", but constantly try to take healthcare and paid parental leave from others, and make schooling and daycare unaffordable, and refuse to reduce gun violence by using proven solutions. It's so hypocritical. Not to mention the idea of forcing young victims of rape or incest to carry their abuser's child to term, with less accountability for the abusers themselves. It's absurd and absolutely disgusting. I am concerned for the future of our country when a right that has been guaranteed for 50 years has been suddenly stripped away. None of our rights are safe. The Jan. 6 hearings continue on, but they just seem to continue on. OK. Where's the consequence for the people who broke the law and were traitors to our country? It just seems bonkers that T**** could run again in the next presidential election cycle - how is even still elligible?! It's like the upside-down. I recently enjoyed the newest season of Umbrella Academy. And we saw Top Gun: Maverick in the theater. The first movie I saw since the pandemic began - during the day when it wouldn't be busy. And that's the big rundown of a million things. We are all still trying to get back to "normal", or finding whatever the new normal will be. While we have fun moments here and there, it still seems like everyday life is more work than it used to be, with less fun. I hope that will change within the next year, but after almost 2.5 years of the unending pandemic, I know better than to expect things to be better. It was hard to celebrate Independence Day this year. I watched fireworks, but there wasn't much to celebrate. It's really amazing that each year we don't think it can get worse, and then it somehow does. Moving back to Australia might have to be in the works at some point if things don't start to get better. Australia isn't perfect, but goodness, the quality of life is definitely better there than it is here right now.

Hymn for the Hurting

 

As a parent and educator, the recent shooting in Uvalde, Texas is horrifying and upsetting - mainly, because it was almost certainly preventable and unnecessary (as other countries have shown through their action in the wake of gun violence). What can I say that hasn't already been said? Nothing. Poet, Amanda Gorman, has such a way with words, she says it better than I ever could...

Credit...

From the New York Times:

By Amanda Gorman

Ms. Gorman is a poet and the author of “The Hill We Climb,” “Call Us What We Carry” and “Change Sings.”

"Hymn for the Hurting"

Everything hurts,
Our hearts shadowed and strange,
Minds made muddied and mute.
We carry tragedy, terrifying and true.
And yet none of it is new;
We knew it as home,
As horror,
As heritage.
Even our children
Cannot be children,
Cannot be.

Everything hurts.
It’s a hard time to be alive,
And even harder to stay that way.
We’re burdened to live out these days,
While at the same time, blessed to outlive them.

This alarm is how we know
We must be altered —
That we must differ or die,
That we must triumph or try.
Thus while hate cannot be terminated,
It can be transformed
Into a love that lets us live.

May we not just grieve, but give:
May we not just ache, but act;
May our signed right to bear arms
Never blind our sight from shared harm;
May we choose our children over chaos.
May another innocent never be lost.

Maybe everything hurts,
Our hearts shadowed & strange.
But only when everything hurts
May everything change.

Feeling Lucky?

 

COVID has finally come to the neighborhood (again). We went to a children's birthday party this past weekend, and two days later the birthday boy had a positive COVID test. Since we have an unvaccinated child under five, she has to stay home from preschool until she gets a negative PCR test five days from exposure. The results from the test probably won't be back until Friday, so she is likely home all week. She has so-far rapid tested negative. Mike is away on his first short business trip since the pandemic, so I have to stay home from work through Wednesday. I am lucky to have a job where I have saved up leave, so it's not a hardship. But, it is tiring to still deal with this, when all children who are vaccinated can often return to school sooner after an exposure or even after getting a positive COVID test. We acknowledged this was a risk when we decided to take Pen to a party, and we have been relatively lucky for a long time, so it just seems like it's our turn again. 

All that being said, my right eye stopped twitching after three days away from work, so I guess that's a bonus. I have also had more time to cook nicer meals and get chores done, instead of getting takeout and piling everything onto the backlog list. Since I can't currently work from home, there's no pressure to get anything work-related done. I'm sure I'll be behind in a few things when I get back, but nothing big. 

It's nice that the older Penny gets, the longer her ability to sustain her independent play. If she is really into a scenario with her dolls or sensory play (like play doh or kinetic sand), she can happily play for an hour and a half. At the beginning of the pandemic, she had just turned two, and she could last maybe 10-20 minutes, tops. At this point, she's probably as used to going to school as having "stay home days", so it's no big loss or treat. She misses her school friends a little bit, but she is mostly content to be in our space and in our yard, cycling through different activities. She is quite independent these days, and can certainly dress herself and get ready in the morning and feed the cats.

Lately, I have been planning a few vacations in the next many months. It's nice to slowly build the list of things to look forward to again, even if COVID will still affect some plans. Everything feels like a little gamble.

February and March Happenings

In February, we were lucky enough to be able to travel up to Vermont and spend time with family. Penny learned to ski, had some quality time with her cousins, eat fresh creemees, and we enjoyed time in the hot tub. She was so ready, in fact, that she put on her swimsuit under her ski clothes - just so she could throw them off when we returned to the house and go straight in. I celebrated a birthday at Lawson's Fine Liquids (I actually got to go out to a brewery and spend a brief time with adults! What a luxury!). Michael and I also got a little bit of time on the slopes together for the first time since before Penny was born.

At the beginning of March, we celebrated Penny's fourth birthday. Because of the pandemic, we tried to have smaller separate celebrations, but they were bigger than last year. Her main outdoor birthday party actually grew to about 40 people, and was super fun and exhausting. We stuffed our faces, the kids moonbounced, some of the grown-ups played knockout. It was a good time, and almost felt like the before times for, the most part. We then had a smaller party for Penny's school friends the next day, and a small birthday takeout dinner with family. 

Penny's little buddies, the cheeky sharks, also visited for the week and got up to some antics while she was a sleep. They started coming last year during the pandemic, as a way to extend her birthday and make it special when we couldn't see many people. She currently believes that they are magic and live in the pipes in the walls.

So, we keep on trucking - waiting for a vaccine for children under five. We try to live our lives, but they are still altered. We make plans with a grain of salt. Supposedly, there have been promising findings recently, but they have said stuff like that before. So, I will believe it when we actually have an appointment for Pen. Things are looking better than they were a year and two years ago, in terms of COVID. 

As for the potential for WWIII, not sure yet.

I just go into each day trying to be positive and hopeful. Sometimes, it's a big try. Sometimes, it's not. 

February Languishing

 

Penny and I returned to work/school in-person. I won't discuss the specifics about my work right now, but I will simply say there have been changes in the last month and it is very awkward. After two weeks at school, Penny is home again with cold symptoms, awaiting PCR test results needed to return to school. Fingers are crossed that it's not COVID, so we can go about our plans for the next few weeks. 

One unexpected show we enjoyed was Formula 1: Drive to Survive. Despite the fact that we don't typically like racing sports, we really enjoyed feeling like we were getting to know the characters, who hail from all over the world (even though they are mostly white men). I still think the gratuitous money and waste is ridiculous - like the fact that the people on podium just spray champagne everywhere at the end of every race. But it was very enjoyable, and I'm looking forward to season 4. 

Welcome to 2022

 

After working in-person from August through December of 2021, my work has gone virtual for the month of January and Penny's school is closed. I'm disappointed that almost two years since this pandemic began, we still haven't sorted things out yet, as a society. The COVID numbers continue to climb higher and higher than they have ever been, locally and nationally. With this wave, there is less severe illness and death - it's more that every profession is just short-staffed with the amount of people affected. Thanks for that at least, vaccines and science.

The first week that the local county would have had students return to school, there was a big snowstorm that kept all the kids home for a week. Ironically, we had to cancel a small ski trip plan because of a lack of snow in the mountains, but Penny got lots of play-time in the snow with the neighbors. With four families who live a stone's throw from our house, we formed an unofficial bubble and all took turns entertaining and feeding the kids as they shuffled from house to yard to house all day. All the parents could still work remotely and call into meetings. It was pretty wonderful, and Penny was so lucky to have other kids to regularly play with, since she will otherwise have a lot of time to play solo in the next month. We could have never predicted when we bought this house last year, that we would be surrounded by the most amazing neighbors. 

We are also lucky that this time around, my mom is retired and Penny is a little more independent, so my mom can watch Penny some days while Michael and I are working from home. We will truck on and do what we have to this month, since we have no choice. We are lucky to have some degree of flexibility and understanding at our workplaces, but sometimes it just seems like this pandemic will be endless without vaccines available for kids under five.