We ran away from our problems.

Except, of course, the problems came with us in our lungs. That’s right, we have the coronavids.

Specifically, only one kid so far has tested positive. The rest of us are negative. Taylor and I were able to still go out in masks since we are vaccinated, but we couldn’t very well leave the unvaxxed kids alone! After a couple weeks indoors, we’ve been bored, cooped up, but otherwise doing quite well. At this point, the neighbor kids are used to seeing our sad and pathetic faces plastered to the window, longing for company. Incredible neighbors & family have brought us meals, toys, craft supplies, and conversation over the phone. Bless you amazing people.

Cabin fever really does a number on a family. After a solid week indoors, we desperately needed fresh air. By noon, we had packed brown bag lunches and loaded into the car, headed for the middle of nowhere. Somewhere we could stretch legs without killing people with our poisoned breath. Spreading Covid was also a concern.

On the hunt for nowheredom, we accidentally discovered a state park.

Unfortunately, the government already owns it, so we don’t benefit from the finder’s fee. But wow, look at that view!

We parked in the free 15 minute parking zone and ate in the car. Once tummies were filled, we took turns sanitizing and taking a brief peek through the telescope at the lake. Arrow thought for sure that she’d found aged pioneer trails switchbacking down the mountain side.

I’m excited to visit this state park again. Taylor noticed some yurts parked below, which would make a fun getaway with the littles. Perhaps a trip for next summer, when we’re less diseased, but no less cooped up. 🙂

After the park, we found a great and spacious field, perfect for stretching those little legs.

The babies climbed “volcanoes” and ran as fast and far as their tiny bodies could carry them. Taylor and I joined them for a bit, until I eventually snuck off to spend quality time with a forgotten library book stashed away in my backpack.

One of my favorite parts was taking a walk along the edge of the field, and having it disrupted by tiny shrieks of “HUMANS! HUMANS ALERT!” You see, I had taught the kids that we were playing a game of “Aliens”. As the aliens, we fear humans, and must run away from them if we see them. A pair was walking their dogs and were 30 feet away when the children spotted them. Shrieks turned into hushed getaway instructions as we bolted back towards our spaceship (the car). The dogwalking pair gave us a couple odd looks, but kept their distance. We are certainly going to keep playing Aliens after our quarantine is officially over.

We spent hours outdoors today and it.was.magical. We saw no one and kept the germs to ourselves. Once we returned home, we curled up for books, baths, and bedtime “sleepy milk”. (Sleepy milk is just warmed milk sweetened with honey and cinnamon. I’ve been tempted to lace it with children’s melatonin, but haven’t caved yet.) We sipped our milk as Taylor read aloud a Laura Ingalls Wilder book. It’s been a little while since we’ve had a gentle evening like tonight. Our escape outdoors really healed the cabin fever!

Note for the concerned souls out there: Our area is okay to be outside as long as we’re safe about it. All but one of us tested negative for Covid before heading outside. The park was empty. The negative case family members spent less than a minute peeking through the telescope and we sanitized the telescope afterwards. Masks were worn. The person with the positive case wasn’t allowed to touch anything or anyone outside of family. Though Covid has treated us gently, we are taking it seriously. ❤