The Spring that Never Was...

To be completely honest, Spring 2022 was a blur...  We managed to have a few lovely low-key days for Easter and Mother's Day, but beyond that, weekends were spent helping my sister-in-law find and secure an apartment, buy second-hand furniture, and set up utilities, etc.  

Then, when it appeared like she had everything necessary to move out, we all caught COVID.  My son Lewie tested positive after his school band concert. Within a week, Lewie, my mom, my sister-in-law, and I all tested positive for COVID and had to quarantine.  A week later, my husband, who thought he dodged the illness, tested positive, too.  Our symptoms were all quite different.  My mom, who was old enough to request Paxlovid (the drug from Pfizer that helps shorten the severity and duration of COVID) did the best, describing her symptoms as being not much different from the common cold.  My son did well, but on Day 5, he sprung a fever and ended up having a urinary tract infection.  Hubby had flu symptoms for a few days; my sister-in-law was congested for weeks, and I felt flu-like (including a loss of taste and smell) for about a week.  The one similarity among us was exhaustion and brain fog; to be honest, we all continue to feel fatigue quite regularly even though our illness was back in the end of May.

During Easter break, we took Lewie to Foxwoods Casino (in Connecticut) for his very first time.  We bought tickets to see our favorite comedian, Jim Gaffigan, and our tickets, which were front and center, did not disappoint.  We had dinner at a seafood restaurant and then laughed the night away at the show.  Lewie enjoyed his first stand-up comedian event, but he wasn't too impressed with Foxwoods--crowds are not his thing.

Walking around Foxwoods before the show.

The anticipation...

These were our seats!!

We stayed overnight and spent the next morning in Mystic and the afternoon at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum.  It was Hubby's and Lewie's first time at the museum, but I had been there once before with my mom--probably 20 years ago when I was in graduate school.  The museum has a great artifact collection; however, the best part is the wax figures that depict a story of tribal life.  The life-like figures help people understand how native Americans lived off the land in Connecticut and how they worked, celebrated, and protected themselves.  (Their life was not easy to say the least!!)  One part I found fascinating is that Native Americans owned dogs as pets just like us; however, the dogs, back then, looked more like wolves--no Labrador Retrievers or Chiwawas for them!

A quick visit to downtown Mystic.

I can't take my husband anywhere...

On Easter Sunday, we attended mass, and "the Easter Bunny" paid Lewie a visit with plastic eggs and an Easter Basket.  At thirteen, he still enjoyed searching for everything and allowed me to get some fun pictures.  (I think he realized that once he declares he is too old for the Easter Bunny, he'll be forfeiting most of his favorite chocolate candy in addition to Steam and Amazon gift cards!)  Since Aunty Michelle was still living with us, Lewie's Easter loot was hidden on my mom's side of the house.  It provided a welcome change with new hiding places.

Bruce gets a bunny treat, too!

On the Saturday before Mother's Day, I took my mom to see Riverdance at the Oakdale Theater.  Unbeknownst to me, this year, Riverdance was celebrating its 25th Anniversary production.  We had great front and center seats, and the show was BEAUTIFUL.  The stage showcased gorgeous digital views of nature and the Irish countryside in between the Irish step-dancing, which was so graceful and powerful to watch.  Some scenes would start with haunting instrumental or vocal sounds.  Others would include international musicians, who would play by themselves or right along with the orchestra or the dancers.  (I enjoyed the musicians that played the tin whistle, the fiddle, and the drums the most.) 

During the second act, we had a chance to explore other dances similar to Irish step-dancing--namely, Flamenco and tap dancing (New York).  The Flamenco and tap were weaved intricately in between the Irish step-dancing to help us understand the subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) differences between the three types of dance.  As someone that studied tap dancing for twenty+ years, I appreciated this part because it helped me see the nuances.  It also rekindled my love of dance--my tap shoes sit in my closet right now with about 16 years worth of dust!

These were our awesome seats at the Oakdale Theater.

On Mother's Day, we had our traditional dinner at the historic Hopkins Inn.  It was too chilly to eat outside, but we had a lovely table in the parlor overlooking Lake Waramaug.  The food was delicious as usual, and I was grateful that the four of us could laugh and think about happier days ahead.  The truth is that these last few years had been tough on all of us--the loss of my mother-in-law and Aunty Kiki in 2020; my mom's fall in 2021, which broke her wrist and a vertebrae in her back; and my sister-in-law's move into our home all while undergoing Chemo treatments for breast cancer.  This is not to complain, of course, but it was good to lift some of the heaviness and begin again.  

Mother's Day - Lewie and my mom

Lewie's band concert...before Covid.

Truth be told, this blog post about spring 2022 almost didn't happen...  Who wants to read about the spring in mid-July?  Now I realize there was a reason for this post.  Spring is about "new beginnings," and this one definitely fits the bill.  It was a good pre-cursor to what's starting out as a great summer.  Stay tuned...I have so much to share about our week-long trip to Utah in June and some of the interesting STEM projects Little Lewie has been working on this year...

P.S.  Our dog Bruce made the news!  I sent a video of him slithering like a snake to our WFSB Channel 3 News, and they showed his video on their "Trending Now" morning news segment.  Here is the link: https://www.wfsb.com/video/2022/05/18/trending-now-bear-drags-trash-slithering-dog-backyard-rollercoaster/

Four Birthday Parties and Easter

On March 13, 2020, our town, our schools, and our jobs all moved to the internet as we went into "lockdown." Now, one year later to a tee, the lockdown is lifting, and all of us are starting to live "life" again.  I don't dare say life is returning back to normal because I don't think it ever can... Instead, we are living a "new normal," a "normal" full of cautious optimism.

During these last few months, my mom has been vaccinated, and Hubby and I received our second dose of the Pfizer vaccine this week.  We're on our way...hoping that Little Lewie may be next in line to receive his does--he's 12 going on 13. 

Knowing my mom was the first to be vaccinated was uplifting.  Now we could say "yes" to social engagements without the fear of bringing anything home to her.  Sure, we would still use caution for our own safety, but we felt a little "freer" to leave our bubble.  In March, Lewie was invited to four birthday parties, and after careful consideration, we said yes to each.  The first was a friend's "Movie Birthday Party." Since there was limited seating for social distancing, there was room just for Lewie and the kids--no parents, which probably made the party more fun.  He had a blast acting like a typical pre-adolescent boy with his friends as they provided commentary and laughed throughout the entire movie.  (The interesting part about this birthday party is that it was for one of his friends he met online this year through another friend.  The kids at this party all "knew" Lewie from playing online games with him, but few of them knew what he looked like in real life.)

The next birthday party was his cousin's at an indoor adventure ropes course called IT.  In December 2019, I bought my sister-in-law and her family a gift certificate to enjoy IT, which oddly enough, is right inside a Jordan's Furniture store.  (You can shop for a new mattress and practice rope climbing all in the same place.)  The gift certificate was a Christmas present for them, but when the pandemic hit in March 2020, they still hadn't used it.  Now, a year later, they were finally planning a trip to IT, and we were invited to join them!  The building with the ropes course is HUGE, so I wasn't worried about social distancing.  The course itself glows in the dark and has two zip lines--one of them goes over a large fountain that shoots water up at you.  I think I was so mesmerized by the colorful light show and zip lines that I let my emotional side, not my rational one, take over.  "Sure," I heard myself saying when I was asked if I wanted to join Lewie on the course.  Hubby agreed, too.  

Our cousin, Elijah, celebrating his 9th birthday underneath the ropes course!

Before long, we were 20 maybe 30 feet up in the air trying to balance ourselves on tight ropes, wobbly swinging loops, shifty ladders, and all sorts of other gymnast type contraptions.  My heart pounded, and I found myself using every ounce of arm and leg strength to keep myself from shaking and losing my balance.  ("Do not embarrass yourself," my inner voice kept repeating over and over again; although after 20 minutes of this balancing act, every ounce of me wanted to yell, "Help. Help. Someone get me down from here!")

Somehow, I did manage to complete the course (both zip lines included), and hubby did, too; although, our bodies sure felt achy for the next few days.  Cousins Elijah, Brooklynn, and Lily all gave up (ages 8 - 11), but Lewie and his cousin Sarah stuck it through.  In fact, Lewie not only stuck it through, but he kept on going, repeating the cycle of zip lines.  I was shocked!  How was it that my kid--the kid that complains about walking and exercising being too hard--able to complete a ropes course?!  

"How did you do it?" I finally asked.

"Simple," he answered,  "I just took my time."  

And with that, I learned never to doubt the will power of my son again.  I had completely misjudged his abilities--bad Mommy!!

The next two birthday parties were equally interesting and entertaining.  One was at a friend's house where they played outside games with nerf guns and made tie dye t-shirts; another was at a place called SMASH Avenue, where you guessed it, the entertainment came from taking sledgehammers and smashing stuff--bottles, electronics, furniture...  Again, we dropped Lewie off at both parties, but I was able to snag a few pictures of the SMASH birthday.  Lewie came home from that one saying, "I learned that I'm not really that aggressive."   Evidently he did smash some things, but then he spent most of the time poking objects with a wrench--LOL.

The birthday boy letting off some steam.  "Take that Google Meet!!"

Lewie's in the background holding a wrench!

After the four-weekend birthday spree, it was time for Easter.  I spent a full week making sure the house was nice and tidy for the arrival of the Easter Bunny.  (The house gets amazingly dirty and "lived in" when we're all still working and schooling from home.) This year, in addition to hiding Lewie's plastic eggs and basket, the Easter Bunny also hid four "Buddy Biscuits" in the living room for Bruce to find.   It soon became a race between Lewie and Bruce.  Who would find their treats the quickest?  (Spoiler alert--Bruce won.  His sniffer gave him an unfair advantage.  If Lewie could sniff out chocolate the way Bruce could sniff out his treats, then they might have been on a more equal playing field.)

"Hmmm...What's in there?"

The holiday ended with a yummy ham dinner, which my mom, hubby, Lewie, and I enjoyed.  We didn't get to go out to dinner like years prior, and of course, we didn't have Aunty Kiki around to come over and search for plastic eggs--first my eggs as a kid and then Lewie's eggs. We missed her funny antics, but we made a promise not to become overly emotional.  No matter how many years go by, I'll never celebrate Easter without thinking of Aunty Kiki.  For years, I didn't want her finding my eggs full of chocolate.  Now, I would gladly ship them to heaven if I could...

Yes, life Post-Covid and Post-2020 looks different and feels different.  It's full of hope and optimism but also sadness and caution.  We'll get there.  We'll all get there.  Thankfully, life hasn't run out of birthdays or holidays to celebrate.

A Peaceful Easter

Easter was different this year to say the least, which, of course, is all part of "the new norm."  Usually we go to Easter Mass at our church, followed by dinner with family at the Mattabesett Canoe Club, which overlooks the scenic Connecticut River.  Yes, this year, there would be no elaborate baskets from the Easter Bunny, no wearing our "Sunday best" to Easter Mass, and no "all you can eat" buffet where we stuff ourselves with breakfast, dinner, and dessert all in one sitting.

Instead, everything this year would be...quiet and simple.

First, I made a last minute decision that the Easter Bunny would make an appearance.  In Lewie's mind, the Easter Bunny is a tradition, even if he's at the age where he doesn't truly "believe" a magical bunny visits the house.  In years past, I would make trips to the mall, local gift shops, and even a gourmet candy store to buy unique items for Lewie's basket.  Granted, Lewie never seemed to care that his chocolate bunny, chocolate nonpareils, and marshmallow eggs were organic and gluten free, but I sure enjoyed making the baskets look like they came from a fancy catalog.  The books, toys, or little tokens would also be carefully picked out to follow the theme for the season...such as Lewie's interest in trains one year or in Iron Man the next.

This year, the Easter Bunny would go rouge.  Actually, I (I mean he) had no choice.  The mall and the little shops were closed, and even if they weren't, I wouldn't feel safe going to multiple places, which causes greater risk of exposure.  Candy and the two gift cards all came from our local grocery store.  The basket, however, did come from a local farm market, which included a chocolate covered caramel apple, a cotton candy cone, and yummy chocolate covered pretzels.   With the basket already made, all I had to do was slip in the two gift cards with some Kit Kats, a few Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and some Cadbury Mini-Eggs.  Voila!  It was the easiest basket ever, and yet, my kid was just as happy as any Easter!  Eggs, of course, were hidden around the living room, too.

After spending a morning of looking for eggs and an Easter basket (and filling up on chocolate candy), we tuned into Facebook to watch our priest and deacon conduct Easter Mass at our church.  There were no people, of course, but the choral director was there to play music, and the alter was decked out with beautiful Easter Lilies (just as if we had been there in person).  There we sat, in our pj's at the kitchen table, watching mass like it was a show on Netflix.  Unfortunately, the sound was a bit muffled, and so it didn't always keep our full-attention; we closed the mass early when the image froze.

The rest of the day was leisurely.  Lew, Little Lewie, and I took a walk by a nearby farm, we ate dinner next door at my mom's side of the house (she made chicken parm), and I took pictures of Lewie outside by our vinca and daffodils, which were in full bloom.

At six o'clock, our family agreed to do a Zoom video chat, but the time kept on getting pushed back.  By eight o'clock, finally, most of our family from Delaware, Oregon, and CT "zoomed in" to speak with one another.  It was funny!  With everyone talking all at once, it was hard to pick a conversation and run with it.  At times, my mom and I would say something, and we didn't even think anyone could hear us on the other end.  My youngest cousin (who is still three years older than me) and his seven year-old daughter kept on entertaining us with their antics.  In one minute on the full screen, we'd see the two of them battling with lightsabers; the next minute, they'd be wearing scary masks.  (We concluded his apartment was a toy-lover's dream.)  Then, my oldest cousin, made us laugh until we cried with his silly comments and off-color humor.  It was truly like having all seventeen of them in our living room, only better.

Yes, Easter this year was not the "same;" we didn't follow our typical tradition.  However, I would argue that holidays do not need to be the "same" to be wonderful.  I loved our Easter this year.  We had a chance to enjoy the beautiful 60 degree sunshine (and some yummy chocolate eggs) while seeing our church and our family on a computer screen.  In some ways, our family felt more connected because even our family from Oregon and Delaware were able to join (which is never the case for Easter).

Yes, I can't wait until I can physically be with everyone and give them a big gigantic hug, but until then, I will count my blessings and pray for those who are either suffering from this terrible pandemic or out there saving lives and taking care of all of us.