A whole two weeks in lockdown here in the UK. Who’d have thought that the world would have been brought to its knees by a virus, yet here we are. People are being affected in so many ways. Fear, financial difficulty, illness and the biggie – loss of a loved one. We have been asked to stay inside. Nothing too taxing. Yet there are still people who for want of better words – don’t give a shit. We’re sure everyone has seen the footage, both videos and photographs of people gathering in groups, sunbathing and even picnicking on beaches and in parks across the country.
Some people are simply disregarding the guidance being issued and as a result. Therefore the threat of the lockdown and subsequent social distancing being extended, a total lockdown and many more deaths is a real possibility. This makes us angry, which has been our overriding feeling this week.
Key Workers
We think the root of our anger is that key workers are risking their own lives every day through simply going to work. We are both key workers. Therefore, seeing selfish people flaunting the ‘rules’ endangering them further boils our blood. Mr ESLT (a marine pilot) has just finished a 10 day run of bringing ships into and taking them out of the Humber ports. A vital job to ensure the UK has food and fuel.
Luckily he loves his job, is always willing to do his bit (and go beyond) and would never complain about going to work, even during a worldwide pandemic. We are sure the majority of key workers feel exactly the same and will do everything in their power to ensure the world keeps turning, that people are safe and well and at least have the basics to get by on. Every person who has an active part in getting us through this is a superhero. From the top doctors in the country to the community volunteers picking up groceries and prescriptions for their neighbours.
It’s also hit home this week that I only have 8 weeks of adoption leave left. Luckily, even though I am a key worker (Senior Emergency Planning Officer), I am able to work from home. Although how anyone can work from home with small children is mindblowing. Fingers crossed we will be over the peak and my work will not be as time-sensitive as it would be right now. Therefore I should be able to keep all the plates spinning. Failing that I would need to send `Junior ESLT to school and find a new nursery for Mini ESLT has hers has already closed down. Neither of which I really want to do. However, if needs must, I’ll have to.
Missing Friends & Family
We’re missing our friends and family a lot now. FaceTime, Facebook Messager, WhatsApp and Zoom are being used on a daily basis. Especially for the kids just to keep a little bit of normality in their little lives. Seeing their grandparents and wider family even just for 5 minutes a day means a lot to everyone. Our children are particularly resilient and are getting through this like little troopers. That’s not to say they aren’t missing everyone like crazy.
We should have been visiting Mr ESLT’s mum and partner in Cardiff this week as it’s the Easter half term. It makes us sad for the girls that they are missing out on spending time with their grandparents and the memories they would have made. Fingers crossed we can visit soon and make up for lost time. It makes us thankful that we live in modern times with technology at our fingertips, so they still get to see them.
Entertaining The Kids
We’ve been lucky weather-wise this past week, especially over the weekend. We set up their water table, blew up a beach ball and put their bubble machine on. They have been in their element playing, running around (and screaming) in the garden for a couple of hours each day. We have tried to do Junior ESLT’s school work with her but having a hyper toddler in the house as well, it often proves difficult. But we’re doing our best and that’s all any of us can do during these times.
We’ve drawn and coloured rainbows for our windows, we’ve done Joe Wicks workouts, we’ve read books and had lots of cuddles, but and we’re sure everyone in the same boat, we are running out of ideas. They have naturally started watching more tv (especially now we have a Disney+ subscription). This is something that we do not want to encourage but sometimes, especially when Mr ESLT is at work and I am on my own and there are jobs around the house to do, it’s just easy.
So if you have any suggestions on how we can keep the munchkins entertained for longer than 5 minutes please send them our way.
What We’ve Been Watching
Our tv consumption level has also increased. Our nights now see us flaked out watching the box. But what have we been watching, apart from the news of course?
- Start-up on Amazon Prime
- Tiger King on Netflix
- Sex Education (series 2) on Netflix (finally)
- Ozark (series 3) on Netflix
What are you watching – please send recommendations!
House Move
The house move is progressing. We were actually allowed inside it last week. It was so good to be able to see it in real life and not just on paper (we have bought a new build). We spent a whole hour just wandering around it and checking everything is perfect – it is. The girls loved running through the house and planning where their beds and toys will go. Our solicitor now has everything they need to progress to completion. As we are part exchanging our current house with the new house builder, there isn’t a chain. This means (and we are keeping our fingers tightly crossed) we should be moving next Friday (17th April).
Again, we have double-checked whether we can move in the current climate and yes we can. As we are both key workers and it is a newly built, unoccupied property the risks are extremely low. Probably less so than going to the supermarket at the moment. Our movers will pack, move and unpack for us at the other end. We will then disinfect everything thoroughly and enjoy being in our forever home.
Future Travel Planning
It seems crazy to think about ever going on a plane again at the moment, doesn’t it? At the minute there really doesn’t seem to be a light (not even a faint one) at the end of the tunnel. We all understand why we are staying home (well apart from the rulebreaking dickheads we mentioned before), but that’s not to say we can’t be upset that we’ve had to cancel trips. The longer lockdown goes on for the more we/everyone will start daydreaming about our next holiday/trip/adventure.
We’ve had press trips for May and June cancelled (and rightly so) and our trip to Disneyland Paris in September is looking unlikely. Therefore we are planning a biggy for next year. At the moment we are considering two options – a road trip through Florida and a South East Asia beach break. To be honest, even if we cannot take either of them because of this god awful virus, we’re having fun planning them.
Have you had to cancel and trips? Are you starting to plan any for when we are able to travel again?
How Are You Doing?
To be honest, if we don’t watch the news too much (which we try not to do anyway when the girls are around) then we often forget that the world is at a standstill outside. We are trying to keep everything as normal as possible for the girls. They keep asking if the germs have gone yet. This shows that they have a basic understanding of what’s going on but we don’t want them to feel scared or frightened. Therefore we are trying to keep them in a routine. Even though in reality we would love to eat chocolate for breakfast and stay in our PJs all day.
How are you? How are you coping? We hope you are ok. Please remember there are people out there who can help if you are struggling. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us if you simply fancy a chat. However, if you need something more check out local Facebook groups or contact your local council. There is an army of volunteers just waiting to help people who need it. However, they need it.
Stay strong everyone, remember to wash your hands. We WILL meet again!
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