Allie in the South of Spain

45 days. It's been 45 days that we have been quarantined in our small apartment and I am happy to announce that yesterday Vera and Laura were finally able to go outside. With the latest relaxation of our lock down kids are able to go outside one hour a day, with one parent up to one kilometer away from their home. It's not much, but I will take it. If all goes well, adults will be added to this measure next week. It was wonderful to see them be able to run and stretch their legs, to shout hello to birds as loud as they wanted and to discover that it really is spring in the south of Spain. Vera and Laura have been amazing this past month and a half. Before it would have been impossible to imagine two four-year-olds staying inside for longer than a few rainy days. And they did it for 44 days, with no complaint, accepting the situation and trusting that we were doing what was best even if they could not understand it at times. Many people out there complaining and protesting...

This update is coming a few days late so really we are about four and a half weeks into our quarantine and still no end in sight. This past week has been hard since it's starting to really sink in how long we have been inside and not knowing when this is going to end. I've been reflecting on how fortunate we are (still healthy, Jose still working, the girls are still behaving better than I would have ever expected) but also how a lot of things seem to have worked out before this crisis to put us in a better position right now. For example, as many of you know I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer this past fall after having surgery to have my thyroid removed. I had to have a follow up radioactive iodine treatment when we got back from our visit to the US which required me to stay in the hospital isolated for a few days and then to self isolate at home for about a week. (Really I have been in quarantine more than not in 2020). I was able to get all of this done in February a...

Week three of quarantine in Spain recently ended. Not much has changed for us.  We try to wake up at about the same time each day, have breakfast and get dressed.  We are still doing lots of "projects" as the girls have come to call our arts and crafts time each day. The latest addition to our arsenal of activities has been beads. We've made just about everyone we know a bracelet. I really think our routine is making things easier all around.  Jose is still teaching his classes online and we are making good use of technology as we've been using Zoom for some family chats as well as having some classes with the girls' teachers. I am really thankful for the technology that is allowing us to stay connected with everyone. I'm used to using it for my family but we've been forced to do the same with Jose's family and our friends as well. Jose and I have continued our Marvel Universe movie marathon. We have only 10 left of the twenty or so ...