Finally some good news – Covid-19…

March 18th – None of us slept that well. I think the stress of the situation was catching up to all of us. Including the kids. Maybe, even especially the kids. They had a lot of questions for us about what was going on. What it all meant for us. And if we were ever going home again.

We were open and honest with them. We told them what we knew or didn’t know, as we found out and what we thought it meant. I don’t know if this was the right thing to do or not, but I think they felt like they had some control just by knowing. It seemed to sooth their anxiety anyway. We continued to explain that nothing was for sure and that things would keep changing. This was new for all of us. Not just them, but us as well. The whole world in fact.

The one thing we were all grateful for, was that we were together and safe. We started hearing stories at that point about people who were separated from their loved ones. People who had lost a loved one and were now grieving in isolation, alone. People stuck on cruise ships or hotels. People stuck in countries with martial law. Death rates were being published regularly now. It was all a little surreal. Borders were closing. The world was shutting down. But at least we had each other, in a safe country, with a stable government and with similar medical care as Canada’s.

The kids and the dads went out on a tall ship sail for the day. I decided to stay near wifi. And since M needed to go pick up the charger in Matauri Bay, she was happy to stay on land with me for day.

I didn’t want to miss any calls or emails from Isabelle. I wanted to be able to respond to any questions quickly and/or make any necessary decisions. As luck would have it, the call came in just before lunch. We had flights! The first available flight was April 1st. Book it! We have a date to go home. What a relief. I don’t think I have ever let out a bigger sigh of relief.

I quickly sent a text to the Kiwi to let the hubby know that we had flights. April 1st we were going home. Fingers crossed they were still within cellular range. I knew the hubby was anxious to hear any news.

They sent me this reply.

I felt like I could get on with the day and trip now. Things in NZ were still really good. There was only 20 cases, everything still open and no panic buying like the rest of the world. Yet. I think kiwis knew that it would come to NZ but for now they were happy to carry on with normal life. And I took my cues from them. I resumed vacation mode. Poolside drinks were never needed more after all that stress. We knew things could still change, but for now, there was nothing more we could do but take it one day at a time and hope our flight doesn’t get cancelled. Fingers crossed!