Some of this ... some of that!

For some reason getting a post published lately to this blog has been difficult.  My days have gotten busier I guess.

FAMILY 

Recently family time has increased.  Not seeing my adult kids and my grand baby really began to weigh heavy on me.

My son and his wife work from home now and having a 2 year old around make for difficult productivity.  So I have been spending 3 days from 9 until 2-ish, at their house playing with Esk.

Here she is 'cooking."  I love seeing her use her imagination.  She really does imitate what she sees.

And, of course, there is swing time in the yard.  They recently moved to a larger house and with that move came more space inside and out.  There is a lovely swing set in the yard.  Esk loves to swing.  She is big on saying "faster, faster, faster" until she is going as high as the swing allows.  And if she doesn't think she is high enough, she gets grumpy!  

She also loves to play hide-and-seek - her own version of the game, of course.  Her favorite spot to hide (her only spot to hide) is under the covers in the center of her parents' bed, then she tells me to go to her bedroom - which is down the hall.  Then I am instructed to come back and 'find' her.  She doesn't grasp the fact that I helped hide her.  😂😂😂😂 It is hysterical.

So as I walk down the hall from her bedroom to 'find' her, our game goes something like this:

Me:   Where is Esk?  I can't seem to find her.

Esk:  (no sound)

Me:   Is Esk in this bathroom?  I don't see her.

Esk:  (no sound)

Me:   Is Esk in this closet?  Nope, not there!! (as I get closer to her parents' bedroom.)

Esk:  (little giggle)

Me:   Is Esk in her parents' bedroom?  hmmm ... I don't know.

Esk:  (more giggle and a little shake of the blanket)

Me:   Maybe I should check under the bed!  Or maybe daddy's closet!  Or maybe mommy's bathroom!

Esk:  (small squeal and squished down to make her bump smaller)

Me:   Or maybe, just maybe ... she is under this COVER!!!  (Lifting the cover to reveal her.)

Esk:   (Big squeal and laughter.). Esk want more hide!!!  Help me grandma!  

And when I suggest that it is my turn to hide, she is most distraught - so the game is really Esk Hide and Grandma Go Seek! 

I'll play the game anyway she wants!!

  

We are keeping the social distancing bubble in place by associating only with those who have minimal contact with others. So far that has worked well for my son, daughter and daughter-in-law. 

AJA

Aja's personality is becoming more known over time.  She is friendly.  She purrs.  She loves her food! She talks all the time.  And when she is not happy, we are getting better at reading her body language. (A very important skill.  Ha!)

She loves her bed by the window!!
I think she has even put on a little weight.

She lets you pet her (within reason ... within "her reason" ... so knowing when to stop is important.)  She is exploring the condo more and more.  But holding her in your arms or on your lap is not high on her list ... yet.  She is learning to live with 2 humans in her "family," but not big on company of others - human or dogs (although she seems to like my daughter.)  

Yep!  She is on my bed - even without an invite!  

We have taken to calling her "our little diva."  Just like a "diva"we try to judge her 'boundaries' - giving her just enough but not too much of anything.  

That expression says "Yep!  I own this bed, too!! 😍

It has been hugely helpful to be in semi-regular contact with her first "mom."  I discovered just last week that Aja's birthday was in July 2016 - meaning she is just now turning 4.  Occasionally touching base with this lady has made Aja less of a mystery to us.  We are very lucky to have made contact!  Aja's previous mom has been our "user's manual" for this feline!!

DE-STRESSING

Low level stress with the pandemic, the combative political climate (an election year) and the heart- breaking images of the race issues has a been a constant. 

In some ways the rise of personal cells phones has made it clear just how ugly the underbelly of our country is right now.  And that is a good thing!  You can't change a problem if you don't think there is a problem.  Changing our leadership in November is the first step.  No ... let me correct that.  The first step is peaceful protest!  Which is our right!! And a LOT of it.  The second step is getting leaders in place that will correct all the wrongs of the last 4 years.  There is a lot of work to do.

But how to de-stress from all the terrible events of 2020!!  

I always seem to fall back on "making space in my environment."  Declutter!  Nothing else does that trick for me.  Not even knitting.  Spending so much time at home now - thinning the belongings has become a regular routine rather than a single seasonal binge event.  It started with downsizing my yarn stash which began to feel like a burden.  If you had told me 10 years ago that too much yarn would be burden, I would have thought you insane.  But as time has passed that thought weighs on me ... I couldn't possibly live long enough to knit it all.  And that mind set spreads into other areas of the condo.  Each day I put one bag together of stuff and carry it out of the condo to ... somewhere!  Ironically finding ways to donate stuff during this pandemic has been challenging now that Good Will is closed.  Thankfully I found a Church Thrift Shop not too far from my condo - and they are happy to receive new "inventory." And as I have discovered many times before, I seldom think about the things I get rid of ... once they are gone... so how important were they anyway??

PANDEMIC

This virus is going to be with us a long time.  Building habits now on what can be sustained is how I  think about this summer.

What I can sustain is:

1. Hands washing, hand sanitizer, social distancing and masks
2. Small groups only of folks who follow #1
3. Eating carry out - no eat in restaurants
4. Being content with home based pursuits  

Since I don't work outside the house - those 4 points are do-able.  What I can't maintain is keeping a 'sterile field' in my home like I did in March.  Sanitizing all the groceries that came into the house, wiping down frequently touched surfaces in my house every single night, using disposable gloves all the time - too much, too much too much!  

Certainly everything carries some risk - but building habits that you can consistently do for a year and half or more - is the goal for me.   Getting burned out by living in a sterile bubble and breaking that bubble for "one fun filled weekend" - like some have done - well, it just doesn't make sense.  As one reporter stated, it takes just one exposure at a bar - during one fun night - to undo all the things you did for months previously. 

Nope!  Not me.  Especially when people are still dying such miserable and lonely deaths at such high rates.

So that is my This and That for now!