What's Up Wednesday: April 2021

Welcome to the April 2021 version of What's Up Wednesday, also known as "The One Where It's Groundhog Day." As always, I'm linking up with Shay at Mix and Match Mama and Sheaffer at Sheaffer Told Me To to talk about what we've been up to lately.

April 2021 feels A LOT like April 2020 in our province. We're back in a strict lockdown and our province's daily Covid numbers are really high. The main differences between this April and last April are that online learning is a full school day (for all of last spring it was only an hour an a half per day), the library is open for curbside pickup (thank goodness!!!), and more and more people we know are getting vaccinated. Plus MLB is happening. Yay for being able to watch the Blue Jays! But we can't see our friends, do anything (church, dance, etc) in person, or buy non-essential items in stores -- like office supplies or clothing.

I went back and re-read my April 2020 WUW post (you can find it here), and honestly, a lot of my answers are the same. It really does feel like Groundhog Day.

image from here

What we're eating this week... I talked in my January WUW post about the man in our church who bakes pies. Well, now that we're in lock down and online learning again, he brought us another pie. It was a cherry pie and Sam and I devoured it. It was delicious!!! We also made a charcuterie board for supper one night, at Sam's request, and we are loving all the fancy cheeses. So cheese and pie -- that's what we're eating around here.

What I'm reminiscing about... I'm reminiscing about last year at this time when I had a lot more hope that Covid would be a short-term thing. I also had a lot more emotional capacity for "keeping things fun" and "trying to keep spirits up." Now our province is talking about "things might be more normal by summer" and I feel like it's so false. I don't trust that we'll ever get back to normal. This is depressing but I'm so discouraged right now and all the things I would "normally" do to help improve my mood, I'm not allowed to do -- get together with friends, get a massage, etc.

Some of the things we did during our first lockdown last spring.

What I'm loving... I'm loving that more and more people I know are able to get vaccines. Honestly, this is the thing which brings me hope. As Canada has more access to vaccines, and more people get them, the closer we are to ending this third wave and getting our lives back.

What we've been up to... We've been up to working from home, online learning, and trying to keep our spirits up. We participated in a readathon this past Saturday so that was fun. We had our Spring Break from school earlier in April so we read a lot of books and went for lots of walks in woods. Mostly, we've just been waiting for Covid cases to go down so we can get together with friends...

 

What I'm dreading... Our schools are currently closed to in person learning which means I don't have a job. I'm really dreading that they might be closed until the end of the school year which means I won't have work for the next four months. Also, this is Sam's last year in elementary school so I really want him to be able to go back in person so he can say good-bye in a good way. Right now there is no reopening date for schools. Our provincial lock down is until "at least May 20" and our last day of school is June 28 so it's possible we could go back in person for a month.

Update: At 5pm yesterday I got a call to come work at a school for the next week. I was not expecting to have any work while the schools are shut so this is a HUGE relief.

 

What I'm working on... I'm working on keeping a good attitude. Since I'm not working, I'm trying to find things to occupy my time. I've read a lot of books lately. Also, I've had really bad allergies for the past month (runny nose and itchy eyes) so I've been napping a lot too. I really need more things to do...

 

What I'm excited about... In our province, they lowered the age of one type of vaccine so I was able to get my first shot last Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's been so great to see so many of my friends get their vaccines. Dave is still too young (by seventeen days -- boo) to get a first vaccine yet so we're waiting for him to qualify as well.

What I'm watching/reading... We've been watching some baseball games but other than that, we haven't really been watching much of anything. I've been reading a lot of books lately -- I'm averaging one a day. (I really don't have much else to do these days.) The last book I read was Untamed by Glennon Doyle and I really liked it. I've also been reading Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline. I'm about halfway through and I keep comparing it to Ready Player One and it's coming up short, thus far.

What I'm listening to... My family, all day long. We're all home together again and that's all I hear. Plus the construction happening next door. I really want something new to listen to :)

What I'm wearing... My glasses. Thanks to allergies, and since I haven't been going anywhere, I haven't been wearing my contacts much. I can't remember the last time I wore my glasses so consistently.

I could probably use a hair cut but hair salons are closed now too. 

What I'm doing this weekend... It's my birthday on Sunday so we'll be celebrating that as best we can. Dave and this kids are going to make my favourite foods. Hopefully the weather stays nice (read: not rainy) and we can go for some long walks. If not, I'll be watching a lot of baseball.

What I'm looking forward to next month... I'm really hoping our current lock down ends next month. I'm hopeful the kids will be able to go back to school. I'm hopeful the construction next door will be able to move towards the inside and not be so invasive. I'm hoping our weather warms up some more and I can plant all all my annuals. There's a lot of hope. It's such a tricky thing because honestly, I feel pretty hope-less this month, but despite the odds, I still have hope things will get better.

What else is new... I really think I've covered it all. There's really not much going on...