Happy New Year

A year ago when we were all wishing each other a Happy New Year, little did we know what was ahead.  It was a year to remember for the entire world.  It has been hard at times and there are still people who believe this virus doesn't even exist.  They believe it is a huge scam that the whole world is in on.  If you have ten people together, chances are all them won't agree on a certain topic let alone the entire world.  I for one believe it is real and our family and friends have done everything we can to be safe.  Even with that, some family members who are essential have gotten the virus so don't tell me it isn't real. 

Doing the best we can is a bit lonely at times.  My husband and I spent St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years eve and birthdays alone.  I am grateful to at least have a partner to spend time with.  Being truly alone would be harder.  It is no wonder some people push the envelope, but we are getting too close to the end to take a chance now.  

 

In an attempt to safely interact with our family but still see each other, my daughter Heather and her son Ewan asked to come out to our house today to snowshoe on our trail.  We could be outside, not get too close and be safe.  We had some snow last week, but not enough to snowshoe on.  They walked the trail a little bit but the trail is a little hard to walk on right now.  It is bumpy and a little slippery.  We decided to start a fire in the fire pit, and we sat outside.  It was a fairly mild day for January, and we were bundled up.  Ewan is our little outdoor guy so he busied himself finding "fat wood".  Fat wood is from the heartwood of certain pine trees, and it has a lot of pitch in the wood.  The wood smells awesome and it is a great fire starter.  He melted snow to make his famous pine needle tea.  I have not tried it, but he says it's delicious.  

 

As long as we had a fire going, we tried to think what we could do with it.  I had some hot dogs and beans in the house, so I asked Ewan if he wanted a little outdoor meal.  I brought out some hot Russian Tea to drink and keep warm with, since it takes a special palate to enjoy pine needle tea.

Then I found an old kettle, and we heated the beans and franks over the outdoor fire.  

It didn't take long for them to heat up.  I brought out an aluminum pie plate so it felt more like roughing it.  I think he liked them.

I can't believe how fast the day went.  Getting dark at 4:30 doesn't help the situation.  We had a lot of relaxing fun.  It was so nice to do something normal for a change.  Even Piper got to run around.  She nosed around in the snow.  We certainly had plenty of wildlife scents in the yard to keep her busy.

Before Ewan, Heather and Piper left for home, Ewan had something to show me. A while ago I had taught him to knit.  He made his dad a scarf for Christmas, but he wanted to show me what he was working on now.  He does a great job, and has really caught on.  He came in the house briefly and pulled his mask down so I could take his picture.  He is very concerned about both sets of grandparents, and he doesn't want us to get sick. At bedtime, his mom reads to him and he knits.  I think it is the sweetest thing and a routine he will always remember.  

It was a great day.  Even Papa came outside to join the fun.  

 

Hopefully we can get back to our normal life before too long.  My husband and I are too old to waste a whole year of fairly good health doing nothing.  We knew the time would come when we couldn't get out and about like we used to, but not this way.  We can only hope in 2021 we will be free of all the nonsense that happened in 2020.