Monday, May 3, 2021

Ups & Downs

Monday, it was back to school for Sam. I know she was looking forward to it, well except for the whole getting up at 6:30 am part 😉 Ryan and I got out for a walk before lunchtime, and the wind was whipping like crazy. Seriously, April, you can tone the wind down now! 💨💨 (2.4 miles walked)

Then later in the evening while we were sitting on the couch after dinner, we got a call and email that said the entire district was going remote starting Tuesday through the next Thursday. Ugh. The email was not worded very clearly and all I could think was, how the heck does the whole district get shut down?! Turns out, there must have been one (or several) Covid exposures among the bus drivers, so without enough drivers, there could not be school. Brunswick was experiencing the same. Sigh. So much for going back to the classroom!

I was scheduled to be in the office on Tuesday, so I headed out, leaving Sam and Ryan to work and school for the day. Sounds like there was a bit of confusion on the school front, especially given the sudden switch to remote but she did a good job getting her work done nonetheless. The plan was for Mom and Dad to come over and the three of them were going to walk to DQ and then go back to their house so Sam could assist in the gardening efforts.

As I hadn't run before work, and had a 5:00 pm board meeting, I left work early so I could sneak in a run. I expected to come home to a quiet house, but instead walked in to find Ryan on a work call and Sam bawling her eyes out over math work that she just could not complete. Aie. Poor kiddo 😓 Got her calmed down and the math work completed, and then finally out the door for a walk in the sunshine and a bit of sugar 😊

Then I finally got myself out the door for a run. Beautiful afternoon and I enjoyed a nice run down to the river and back. Morning running is definitely less stressful though 😉😆 (6.0 miles)



Wednesday morning, I was scheduled for Covid vaccination shot #2 so I knew I needed to get my run in before that. Sunrise is getting earlier and earlier as we gain more light, so I only managed to catch the tail end of sunrise when I headed out at 5:30, but there was still some lovely light. Stopped on the way back to say hi to the three alpacas, who were all sitting near the fence. They seemed thoroughly unimpressed with that I had to say 😂 (6.0 miles)





Then it was time to get Sam ready for the day of remote learning, get a little work done and get myself over to the Brunswick Rec Center for my shot at 9:00 am! Once again, very impressed with the whole operation and it was super easy. And yes, I may have crazy hair and have bags under my eyes, but I am smiling big under my mask as I wait my 15 minutes after my shot! On my way to being fully vaccinated! Woohoo! 🎉


Spent the rest of the day working and trying to move my arm as much as possible. Slept horribly and kept waking up realizing how crappy I was feeling, and the rest of the day Thursday was spent feeling just sort of tired more than anything, which could have been because I didn't sleep or because of the shot. Who knows? In any event, I had already decided Thursday would be a rest day in case I didn't feel great from the shot, plus it rained on and off all day so it was a perfectly fine day for a zero!

Got a call late on Thursday that the district had found enough bus drivers to allow for the kids to head back to school on Monday. Hurray and phew all together! We are lucky that remote work has not been an issue for Sam, but I know that she is much better off in school for sure! 🚌🎒 

Woke up on Friday feeling fine, without even really any arm soreness. I didn't hustle out for a run as it was raining, but once Sam started in on her school work, I was like oh well, what was there to do but just don the raincoat and big brimmed hat and head out? Luckily it was fairly warm and not windy. Definitely soggy though 😂 Ran roads and kept the effort mellow. Three Northern Flickers seen in the grass at the fairgrounds and some nice shadbush blooming roadside. (8.0 miles)


I didn't rush to get out on Saturday morning, which seems to be a theme these days, but honestly we typically we are just hanging out on weekend mornings and Sam is always happy to just chill in her room for a bit on her own, so there isn't quite the guilt about being gone as there was when she was younger and there was more need to "entertain" her all the time. So I had the chance for a bit of quiet time to relax on the couch and drink coffee and then I finally got myself organized to get out the door around 8:30. It was bright and very blustery as I headed out into the Cathance. Very wet out in the woods and the bog bridges were quite slick, but the river was roaring nicely. Found one small wild oat just beginning to bloom and the trailing arbutus are still putting on a nice show, but otherwise, it was mostly greenery to be found, with the forest floor beginning to brighten with the leaves of the false lily of the valley and starflowers coming up through the leaf litter. (8.0 miles)






No more ice in the snowhole!

Kristen messaged later in the morning to see if Sam wanted to have a gelato date with Anne, so I suggested they come over here for a walk on the powerlines first. Still blustery, but a nice walk in the woods with friends! And of the course the gelato was delish! 😋🍨 (2.4 miles walked)



💗

I had been going back and forth in my head all weekend as to whether or not I should do a long run on Sunday or just keep the week a bit more mellow. I was feeling fine in terms of the aftermath of shot #2, but ended up deciding to play it safe anyway. Or maybe I was just being lazy?! 😁 Either way, Sunday morning was quite lovely, with less wind and bright sunshine. Went out on the powerlines for some nice easy miles. The blueberry bells are beginning to flower in the sunny spots and there were some nice patches of wood anemone. (8.0 miles)




Later in the afternoon, we headed over to Crystal Spring Farm with Mom and Dad for a walk. A really nice afternoon and a good walk in the woods! Had fun walking through the Labyrinth and enjoyed seeing the first of the season goldthread and hobblebush blooming! A nice way to wrap up the weekend 😀 (2.1 miles walked)












No comments: