Moving out again.

The girls are moving out again.  Lili and I got the keys today.  They have the same suite so they're both happy about that.  It was spotlessly clean.  We don't think anyone was in there through the summer.  A small load of stuff went today.  The girls and Eric are taking a load tomorrow night.

Last minute figuring out which text books are needed for the school year.

$238 for two books.  Wow.  

Lunch at Ping's on the way home.

Lili reminded me that today was dance registration day for Jia.  I had completely forgotten.  So we picked up Jia and headed over.  Jia is starting Hip Hop this year.  So that's fun.  She's also wanting electric guitar lessons.  The shopping has begun for the instrument.  

Lots going on for the next couple days. It's feeling like we're moving backwards.

Hope

Do you think he needs a hair cut?!  Haha.

There is hope this weekend that we're almost out of covid hell.  Covid is a bitch.

Eric and Luk are negative.  Kai still has a faint line.  

Camping is almost possible.  Close enough that I got some Birthday stuff organized for another moho Birthday for Kai.  

Eric and I ran a couple errands and snuck some time for lunch on our own.  While we were waiting for food I got a text.  Kai's speech therapist reached out, her retirement plan is on hold and she's taking Kai back! Yay.  I wasn't having any luck finding a spot for him.  So this was much needed good news for us.

Dog TV

Haha.  There are sirens, and cars and people and dogs going by.

National Dog Day

I'd argue every day is dog day around here.  

Isabel refused to look at me.

It's Fei's last day tomorrow at the Oak so Lili and I went there after some grocery shopping today.  

She's adorable.  Dinner was nice but the wasps got us out of there pretty quickly.  

Kai slept most of the day and tonight he sounds congested.  Luk is sick but he doesn't 'feel' anything.  We tried asking Kai about feelings like if his throat was sore or if it was hard to breath or swallow and he just shrugs.  

Oh No!

Kai isn't verbal or cognitive enough to tell us how he feels.  He fell asleep on his couch last night which was a first.  When he woke up he was disoriented and fumbled through his late snack and staggered up to bed.  This morning I came down and he was asleep again. This is so out of character for him that we're thinking he's obviously next with a bout of covid.  Oy.  

August

We took August off from camping.  I had a zillion staycation ideas.  We wanted to catch up at home.  Kayak locally.  Picnic dinners.  See friends we haven't seen in a long while.  Instead we're doing weeks of covid.  Arg.

Lili is sounding normal.  Eric is better but still tired and his cough is deep.  Luk is at the beginning but his couch went wet and deep overnight.  

I'm admittedly feeling super housebound. I don't want to ever be the one unwittingly passing on covid.  We're not aware of the heat since it's cool in the house.  No one here is even using the pool. We're a bunch of sad sacks for sure.  

Sickness updates.

Lili is feeling better and back to work.  Eric is feeling better but super tired and super weak.  He exhausts easily from the smallest of tasks. Lili and I left the house yesterday to go help my Mom.  Eric was lounging on the porch.  I thought his little feet and Izzy's ears showing looked cute.  Now tonight Luk reports a headache and runny nose.  The four of us who had it last round are all still symptom free.

The cat and Izzy food came.  My last shopping before the visa card was canceled.  I've already had two notices that payments can't go through.  

Mom needs a tent while her floor is re-redone. Lili and I set the old four man up on her patio.  It took a minute to figure out the fly.  We haven't used this one since the girls were 10ish.  

Sasha wasn't quite ready for bed.  

Fei helped me tonight. The Chihuahuas all got their nails cut and Sasha and Coco got hair cuts.  They're looking spiffy.  Just don't look too close, I'm not a great dog groomer.  If only they would just stand still ;)  Thanks goodness Finn has short fur, he's a big baby about getting his nails done, there's no chance we could hold him for a full groom.  

Eric officially has covid.

Eric tested positive today.  He had fever, chills and sweats last night.  Today he's coughing.  He is declaring it's not as bad as 'Man Sick'.  So a mild cold at this point.  We are having to insist he stay in the living room away from us. 

I'm still clear.  Lili is definitely better.  We went out today and got some simple meals for the next couple days.  We also did a dollarstore run for the rest of Kai's Birthday supplies.  I'm wanting to be better organized just in case more of us get covid.

It feels like the whole house is a giant germ.  

Things Are Good Today

Both Eric and I got some sleep.  We woke up feeling good.  Zero symptoms of any kind for both of us.  Thank God!  

It was a bit scary for a bit here.

Lili is feeling much better.  She's allowed out of quarantine tomorrow.  

I got notifications today that our visa card was compromised.  Arg.  A charge for $1112.31 that isn't ours.  Unfortunately the bank canceled our card and a new one won't be here for 7 days.  I have thought of 20 places I use the card automatically. All have to be changed.  What a major job.  The bank won't give us the new visa number to get started.  I hate this stuff.  Like we aren't all busy enough already.  

It sure doesn't feel like a Friday here.  I feel like we're behind on everything.  Oh, and, inexplicably, most of Kai's clothing is missing.  Just vanished.  We've hunted everywhere we can think.  New summer clothes that weren't ever even worn. I'm questioning if he's been throwing them away.  He quite often confuses the garbage can with the laundry hamper.  So now we're on serious garbage can patrol.  Sigh.  

Send Help

Kidding.  Not kidding.  Eric has been struck down with covid.  He tested negative today but we know he has it.  He had a sore throat this afternoon and is already coughing tonight.  He has body aches, head ache and is super tired. Covid hits hard and fast.

I'm having issues too but whether they're sbs or chrones or covid is hard to tell. Eric is on the couch so I can stay near our bathroom.  I had body aches last night, today my throat is thick and froggy but not sore.  Headache this morning but it's gone now. My stomach is a bit off.  I'm skipping night snacks.  

I'm still functioning but haven't slept much in the last four nights and none at all last night so I'm pretty tired.

Eric is our cook and muscle.  Already tonight Jia, Luk and I working together couldn't get the garbage bag out of the can. It's stuck.  Arg.  

Lili thinks the worst is over for her.  The cough is awful and hurting her whole core. She can breath through her nose today. And she can still smell.  She sounds horrible.  

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Kissinger Lake

Our site was by the lake. So beautiful.

Tent set up was a breeze. We were told to keep all food and garbage in the car as there is a huge bear presence. Which definitely had Luk on the lookout.  He was on high alert and staring into the forest constantly. 

We had a swim and played Nertz with cool drinks.

We made beds when it cooled down a bit.

So cozy.

All the comforts ;)

We moved card games inside when the bugs came.

Up with breakfast. We survived sleeping in the tent.  I'll admit that I'm no longer a giant fan of sleeping on the ground.  The sleeping part was ok.  The getting up three times through the night was rough.

The family arrived just after lunch.

The goal was to swim around the lake, like the old days.  It did not go as planned.  Fei was in her kayak and ended up getting the boys and Eric back to shore.  Then coming back out for Jia.  Total gong show. I enjoyed my swim. We didn't see beavers so that was a bit disappointing.

Eric brought dinner out for us. We just had to heat it up.  We had sparkling lemonade in wine bottles so that was fancy for celebrating Fei's Gotcha.

Kai had a great day surprisingly. No fuss. He was adamant that he didn't want to stay and sleep in the tent though. Haha.  He ran to the car when it was time.

Luk and I debated just packing up after dinner but in the end we decided to stay. Eric encouraged us to follow through. I'm certain given a choice Luk would have preferred going home.

Which was a mistake. We went to bed early, it was cold and windy. Then a storm passed through. I spent the night looking for leaks and panicked about trees falling on us. Thunder freaks me out.  In the morning Luk said he thought a bear was walking around. I know he has no point of reference but a bear?! Torrential rain, wind, branches cracking and falling plus thunder.  Oy.

It was a soggy tent this morning to pack up.  It was nice and sunny at home so it dried nicely on the lawn.  

Luk did thank me for making the Kissinger Lake adventure happen for him. I asked if he would camp with me again.  He said maybe. I said should I try to book next week and he said that was way too soon. Sigh.  Eric and I sorted and packed up all the gear today. So sad. All my little campers are gone.

My goal was to show Luk an outdoor activity he can do with success. Hopefully with some time he'll remember that part. Unfortunately in the moment the whole excercise really just amplified the deficits.

And....how do I have five kids afraid of bugs?!!! Seriously.  

Covid hits our house again.

Ugh!  Lili this time.  She is feeling just horrible. She's in her room.  She won't do well in isolation.  

Update, Jia got up and said her throat hurt so she is in isolation too.

Cruise News

Immense joy...Carnival has dropped covid  testing for vaccinated guests!!  Yay!!  Saves big bucks and big hassles.  

A lot can change before December of course but things look good for today.

Staycation.

We did a decadent thing today.  Breakfast at the Genoa Bay Cabana.

The green roof is the Cabana.  The ladies down there were fabulous.  So fun.

We got a preteen out of the house but he wasn't all gaga for the view. Jia was a flat out NO.

Home to see if the boys fit the old car.  They don't really.

Luk didn't care for the ride.  Said it was too fast.  Eric turned it down and that was too slow.  

We weren't sure if Kai could manage.

He shockingly did better than expected.  He also said it was too fast.

He did four and a half rounds, one full loop was on on the pavement. Haha.

Safe to say the Nelson's have outgrown the car.  Another little kid past time by the wayside.  

The Child

Eric did errands today. He found Grogu on clearance.  He came home with him behind his back and said "I love you very much, I got you a Child".  Hahaha.  How cracked would I look taking Grogu to see the Wiggles? Also can I rename Grogu?

These two haven't spent much time together this summer.  They spent the day screaming in excitement.  I had to close the front door.

Lili took herself to Victoria. A bit of shopping, some axe and knife throwing, a library visit and dinner out. She is freakishly good at axe throwing.  

Dinner at il terrazzo.  She enjoyed.  When I grow up I want to be comfortable going to a restaurant by myself.  

The girls filled out their 30 page rental agreements this morning.  Now they're trying to figure out the logistics of moving, getting keys and notifying employers of what their last day is.  Didn't summer fly by?!

Work Procrastination.

In the eternal quest for the perfect camping set up we took the boys to look at a hard walled pop up trailer.  Something we thought maybe I could manage on my own.  It's close but has damage and the rv lot won't let Eric play with it until we put a deposit on it. 

The wall by Kai's head is wowed out. No e of the staff know how to take it down or put it up.  Eric knows.  He watched a YouTube video.  

 So, Eric took to the internet and found one similar in Shawnigan.

It's pretty cool. In excellent condition. We are admittedly intrigued.  Eric was allowed to play with this one.  We could tow it with the van but would always have to be mindful to pack light.  I don't think I'm quite up to managing this one on my own. So, sadly we have walked away.  Anyone looking?  It fits in a garage.  Takes minutes to set up. Super light. Great price. Eric was so intrigued that he looked into trading his van in on a Hemi Jeep.  Haha.  I squashed that, told him if he upgraded the tow vehicle I could find a much bigger trailer.  There is no perfect solution.  At this point perhaps I really should suck it up and try learning to drive the moho.

This is Jia's next cosplay and hyper focus.

Here is where she's at so far.  Wig is ordered. I'm just thrilled Eric and I haven't had to be involved this time.

It's been a busy week.  Mom got herself concussed with a broken nose so she and Poppy got to convalece on our couch for a couple nights. She'll be ok.  She was super lucky and didn't get black eyes. 

I'm at my desk today, getting lots done.  I called to book Kai's cardiology tests and he's in Victoria General.  I'm insanely excited not to have to go to Children's.  

It's already time to sort the girls and University.  I just printed out 60 pages of their room rental agreements!  The cheque for four months is in the mail.  $8820.  That's just not a fun payment. Tuition isn't due until they start classes.

I'm totally unrelated news, Ticketmaster notified me that the Wiggles are coming to Vancouver.  I got instantly excited then realized we have no little kids left.  I did take a moment to picture going by myself.  I mean I do know all the words.  Sigh.  We just keep trying to budge our preteens out of the house.  Right now they are pretty much only interested in food/restaurants. I have asked Eric for just one more little one. He is a firm no.  Apparently getting a kid just to go see the Wiggles isn't quite enough motivation.