2021

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2021. Still here. Still in the Covid-19 global pandemic.

#2021bestnine

In late January, 2021 slapped us in the face with a big dose of pandemic reality when Amanda came down with Covid-19. Unfortunately, her husband, kids and my parents also fell ill, leaving them dizzy and feeling out of sorts. It escalated when my Mom passed out at breakfast and my Dad had to call 911. She was taken to the hospital where a rapid test confirmed she had Covid.  My Dad was also confirmed Covid positive by a local clinic (a process that was a nightmare in itself). He was also dizzy in the previous days and is believed to have suffered a mini-stroke.  That left myself and my two sisters scrambling and brainstorming how to care for them — especially how to monitor Dad while Mom was in the hospital. Jessica is/was a nurse and she had already had Covid the previous fall — but she was out of town and hesitant to travel or risk possible reinfection with a different strain. Amanda was still sick — which is obviously not ideal for a caregiver. I was healthy and able, but stepping into my parents’ home would mean risking my health, exposing my family and compromising the only person in the family well enough to run errands and get supplies. The best plan we could come up with was that Amanda, who had not yet recovered, would move in with Dad and they would be sick together. Mom joined them when she was discharged from the hospital, Jessica was a virtual consult and I was the runner. I dropped off supplies and groceries and whatever else they needed from the outside world. Ideal? No. But neither is a pandemic. I even went into a store (instead of pickup/ordering) when my father requested six loaves of a specific bread so he could feed the birds. THAT is love.

Thankfully, everyone recovered — though both of my parents are still being monitored for post Covid artifacts found on some medical imaging. The silver lining — for them at least — was that since Amanda, Zubin, Kosmy and Aza had also been sick, they could all hang out together. I was very jealous as it had been over 10 months since I had even hugged my parents. I felt like I was being punished for not contracting Covid while they enjoyed a mini-reunion party. Strange times. Strange feelings.

My pandemic feel-good purchasing habit was purchasing select patterns of Polish pottery online. I only buy these small plates and I love how they mix together. We use them daily and they make me happy whenever I look at them — the kids like how each plate has a name too. For my birthday in March, I added a few more and finished up my collection (ran out of room in the cabinet and I still want to remain married). I also hugged my parents for the first time in a year on my birthday. It was outside and we were masked but it was still a hug.

Vaccines began rolling out and my parents received theirs as soon as they were eligible. By March, those aged 40+ were eligible (woo! finally a perk!) and Mark and I scrambled to get appointments as soon as possible. We were fully vaccinated by May and began dabbling in a reintroduction to other humans — including holding our nephew Knox for the first time!

The girls finished up their school year and my Mom starting taking them one day a week again (she had not watched them for over a year — since shut downs started in March of 2020) so I could work while not simultaneously parenting. The relief was amazing. And I’m sure the snuggles were too.

This year I made Knox’s blanket and posted about the rainbow striped granny afghan (AKA Pandemic Afghan #2). I crocheted a couple hats and an infinity scarf to send south to Jessica, Cora and Roz in Atlanta. I’ve been studying mindfulness, habits and joy this past year and that lead me to pick up a few small embroidery projects. They are quick, easy and portable and serve no purpose other than joy. I’ve finished a handful of them and have another one in progress. I also picked up a 30 year old project — a small hand sewn cathedral window quilt I started when I was about 12(?). This project has layers of meaning to me and I hope to finish it this year and write about its evolution and completion.

The most impactful thing I made in 2021 was a little crochet Baby Yoda. Emmy would comment here and there when she saw an image of Yoda about how cute he was and started asking for one. Christmas was a ways off so on a bit of a whim, I made this for her in the summer. And our worlds were never the same again.

It makes her so happy. No child has ever enjoyed anything that came off my needle and hooks more than her. Yoda travels with us, camps with us, sleeps in her bed, eats with us, sneaks into her backpack… And slowly — as word got out, more Yodas joined us. They are well cared for here — each one meticulously brought down from her bedroom every morning and tucked back into bed at night.

Along with her signature smiley face, Yoda has also been creeping up in Emmy‘s artwork.

Iris continues to hone her skills as a self-proclaimed paper artist, crafting adorable three-dimensional animals and paper dolls for herself and Emmy. During all our time at home, she started learning more culinary skills and really enjoys baking. Recently, she has shown some interest in learning the piano and taps out a few songs on the old 1983 organ. She’s also quite the writer and illustrator and we enjoying reading her little books and school journals…

We purchased a pop-up camper at the end of 2020. Due to the pandemic shutdowns and people desperate to get out and do something, demand was high and stock was low. So we considered ourselves lucky to be able to pick it up just a few months later in February of 2021.

Mark grew up with a pop-up camper so it was his idea and it truly was a silver lining of the pandemic — I’m not sure we would have done it otherwise. We took it out four times to some local campgrounds and even popped it up in our driveway a few times. While our adventures were pretty mild, the girls loved it and it was nice to get out — Iris even learned to ride a two wheel bike on our first trip.

Unfortunately, we found ourselves in the hospital with Emmy this year with two multi-night admissions, one being in intensive care. After the ICU admission in October, she was officially diagnosed with asthma and underwent additional allergy/immune testing. We’ve received updated care plans and hope to avoid future emergency visits.

Hospital life is no joke. The whole concept of a Children’s hospital is difficult. The ICU is harder and the ICU during a pandemic is even harder. The staff is amazing, though overworked and stress levels were high all around.

While we were away, Iris was busy living her best life. It’s hard on everyone but she took it in stride.

Despite the unexpected hospital stays, we had a decent stretch of months. We joined the YMCA, furthered our water skills, visited the zoo, competed in the fishing derby, rode some rides, camped with friends, put real clothes on to attend a wedding, hung out with family… I even went into stores a few times without a mask! And the girls were ecstatic when we actually dined inside a restaurant (Frisch’s of course) for the first time in over a year. Woo! Life was looking up!

Mark and I made it out to the rescheduled Alanis Morissette concert — which he described as “a huge bachelorette party he shouldn’t have been invited to.” It was originally supposed to be in July of 2020 but was postponed to September of 2021. Of course, we didn’t think we’d still be dealing with a pandemic by the rescheduled date but we were and we masked up once it started getting crowded. My bunco group also cautiously resumed and we even managed to go on our girls’ getaway weekend.

Chase was recognized by the fire department for his bravery — he called 911 when Valerie passed out on a stationary bike. It wasn’t the first time she collapsed — she had a major incident last year while running which has lead to lots of ongoing testing and medical treatment — and we are all thankful Chase acted so quickly. Because of this, we all got up to speed on our CPR training this summer.

Sorry cicadas — it was your year too but the world had other things to focus on and you didn’t get the fanfare you deserved…

Ahead of starting 2nd grade, Iris started her first soccer season and the whole family came out to cheer her on.

By Fall, with new variants on the rise, kids heading back to school and people heading back indoors, we masked back up. Iris was vaccinated in the fall once kids over 5 years old were made eligible but the pandemic surged on.

We celebrated the holidays cautiously. Thanksgiving was stressful and by Christmas, we were skipping all big parties and travel.

Christmas brought Coco into our lives. She is Mark’s parents new puppy and is a refreshing source of cheerful life and fluffy bounciness.

And now here we are — rolling into another year, ready to hunker down for some more winter snuggles and time at home, hoping for the best and enjoying what we have while we have it. <3

2021 was a mixed bag — the lows were pretty dang low and the highs provided hope. 2022 is already coming out of the gate rough. I pray it quickly becomes a great year for everyone and that whatever lessons we pull from the pandemic propel us to places of greater growth, peace and happiness.

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2 thoughts on “2021

  1. Amanda

    2021-what a year. So happy I got through it with you and our wonderful family and friends. We were very fortunate when so many were not. Beautiful recap as always! I’m putting out positive vibes for an amazing 2022! Bring it?

    Reply
  2. Anita Minor

    Great blog once again Jamie. And I definitely love all the pictures. It is a beautiful diary for Iris and Emmy. I’m looking forward to 2022 and hoping that we’ll have a lot more family fun times together. 🥰

    Reply

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