Tag Archives: nephew

Another Santa Barbara Birthday (or A Quick Trip To See Family)

Posted on April 6, 2023 | Comments Off on Another Santa Barbara Birthday (or A Quick Trip To See Family)

When I went to Santa Barbara for my niece’s birthday, I wasn’t sure if I’d be making it back up there for my nephew’s birthday a few weeks later. His birthday was going to be on a weekday and I knew my brother and his family were going to be out of town right before his birthday. So I thought his party might be on a weekday, which would mean I would have to miss it. But after I was in Santa Barbara in February, I found out the party would be the Sunday before his birthday so I would be able to go!

So this past Sunday, I made the drive up to Santa Barbara for the day as I have done so many times before. It’s not a horribly long drive, but with some traffic and road construction it was about 2 hours for me to get there. Fortunately, I knew ahead of time that I’d be driving up so I had a bunch of podcasts saved so I could be entertained on my drive.

I knew the party would be pretty low-key since my nephew was turning 3 and he doesn’t have a ton of friends yet. And I appreciated that it wouldn’t be a huge party full of people I didn’t know. It ended up being my family, my sister-in-law’s family, and 2 of my nephew’s friends from preschool. And they set up the bounce house I got my niece and nephew again for the party, so it was fun seeing all the kids having fun on it (and knowing that it was a good gift since not all of the gifts I’ve gotten them have been hits).

Since my nephew was busy playing with his friends, I spent most of my time at the party with my family and my sister-in-law’s parents. Even though I had seen them all a few weeks earlier at my niece’s party, there was plenty to catch up on. And I didn’t realize my sister-in-law’s mom hadn’t seen all the photos from my condo remodel, so I was showing her those and sharing what we did for the renovation and how it’s been since I moved in almost a year ago.

Everything about the party was casual and chill. They had a taco bar for lunch and I was eating outside with my parents (which was much quieter than being inside). And instead of a cake, they had cupcakes. My nephew loves garbage trucks so the cupcakes were decorated with little trucks.

And both my niece and nephew loved them, but I think my niece had a bit more fun making a mess out of the frosting and seeing how crazy she could get.

After cupcakes, the party was winding down. My parents had the dog with them, but he wasn’t able to be inside for the party so I was hanging out with my parents in the driveway so I could also spend a little time with Tucker. We mainly were just sitting in the front of the house for that, but it was still nice to see the dog since I don’t get to see him too often. And after my niece and nephew went down for their naps, my brother and sister-in-law hung out with us for a little bit before we all said goodbye.

I know I could have stayed a little longer if I wanted to and continued to hang out with my parents at their rental house, but I wanted to get home before it was too late. I know that going back on Sunday evenings can be crazy, and I wanted to avoid as much traffic as possible. Even though I didn’t leave that late, it still took me almost twice as long as normal to get home. But that’s ok since it was worth it to get to have some time with my family. I know that isn’t as easy for everyone to do as it is for me, so I like to take advantage of it whenever I can.

I’m not sure when my next trip to Santa Barbara will be, but I’m sure that there will be another day up there at some point soon. I usually plan them around when my parents are there, so I’ll just have to wait until they plan their next trip. And even with this trip up there being short, I’m glad it was still full of family time and it was on a day that I could make it.

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A Very Fast Trip To Santa Barbara (or Getting To Celebrate My Nephew’s Birthday A Little)

Posted on April 6, 2022 | Comments Off on A Very Fast Trip To Santa Barbara (or Getting To Celebrate My Nephew’s Birthday A Little)

This past weekend, my nephew Rory turned 2! I was excited his birthday fell on a day I had off so I could go to the little party my brother and sister-in-law were going to have for him. It was just going to be a party with family, so it wasn’t going to be a big gathering. But it was still a nice day I could spend with family.

And I was so excited to give Rory his gift. I had let my brother and sister-in-law know about the gift in advance, but I got him a balance bike! I wanted to make sure he wouldn’t get it from someone else and that they would have a helmet ready for him, so I couldn’t make it a total surprise. But at least it was going to be a surprise for Rory.

Since I couldn’t wrap the gift, I knew I had to get a really good bow for it. I found a bow that is supposed to be the type you put on a car if you give someone a car as a gift, but I figured a ridiculously big bow was the right choice. And when I put the bow on it, it was almost bigger than the bike!

The plan for me was to drive up to Santa Barbara that morning, spend the late morning and afternoon with my family, and drive back to LA in the late afternoon or early evening. It’s pretty much what I do every time I go up there since I just go for the day and not spend the night. And that morning, I was preparing to get into my car and make the drive when plans changed quite a bit.

Unfortunately, some of my family was exposed to Covid and things weren’t going to be able to happen the way we had planned. Because I wasn’t with my family while they were likely most contagious, I wanted to try to stay as safe and healthy as possible. But I wanted to still give my nephew his bike and try to celebrate him a bit. So I talked to my family about it and we decided that I would drive up to give Rory his gift, but I would stay at the end of the driveway so we would be outside and I would be at a distance. It’s not what I wanted to do, but it was what needed to be done so I could see everyone that day and also not put myself at extra risk.

The drive up to Santa Barbara isn’t that bad, and I’m glad there wasn’t really any traffic so it was a very simple drive. And I was able to bring the bike to their front porch before walking back so I could keep a bit of distance from my family. But I was able to stay there for a little bit so I could see Rory getting his bike and I think he liked it!

He didn’t like the helmet he needs to wear while riding it, but he was checking out the bike and I think that he’ll get more excited about it the more he gets to play with it. And I know he loves seeing kids at the park on scooters and bikes, so now he can join in too!

I didn’t get to see Presley because she was napping while I was there, but I knew since I was only going to be there for a few minutes that could be a possibility. I wish the timing worked out better, but it is what it is. I was glad that Rory seemed to be warming up to me more. I know I don’t see him that often so he can be a bit shy. But this time he was much more smiley and happy while I was around. He did still seem a bit more excited to wave goodbye to me, but that might have been because they were going into the house to play with his other new toys and he was just more excited about that.

I wish I could have spent more time with my family and gotten to celebrate Rory’s birthday more, but I also know we are still dealing with a pandemic and there was no need for me to be exposed. And staying safe and healthy now makes sure that I can celebrate more birthdays in the future so missing one isn’t the worst thing. And fortunately, Rory is young enough that he probably won’t remember that I had to miss this birthday with him.

And I am grateful that it seems like my family is going to be ok. This is the first time my family has been this affected by the pandemic and I know that we are very lucky that we have gone so long without having to worry this much. And we are very fortunate that even with this situation we are not as affected as so many others. This might not be the way we all wanted to celebrate my nephew’s 2nd birthday, but at least we did get to celebrate together (at a distance) in a way.

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Celebrating My Niece’s Birthday (or Another Santa Barbara Day)

Posted on February 22, 2022 | Comments Off on Celebrating My Niece’s Birthday (or Another Santa Barbara Day)

During the pandemic, I’ve gone up to Santa Barbara for day trips quite a few times. It’s usually because of a celebration (like to meet my nephew and niece) or a holiday. And this past week, my niece turned one! So of course, I knew I’d be headed up there for the day again.

My niece’s actual birthday was on a Friday, and because I couldn’t take off work I couldn’t be there for the little family party they had (it was just immediate family so it was small). But I was able to take time off on Saturday so I could go up for the day then and still get to celebrate a bit!

And since I was going up for a birthday, I had to find a present! Getting gifts for babies can be tough, but I asked a few of my friends with little kids and a couple of them mentioned that at their kid’s preschool they had stacking dolls. It’s good for motor skills plus they can be fun. And I thought that sounded like a great idea. My niece’s room has a llama theme, and I found a set of stacking dolls that had different animals on them but the biggest one had a llama! So that seemed perfect!

Since my brother and sister-in-law had my niece’s party the day before, when I went up it was just a casual hangout. We went to the country club that they belong to so my nephew and niece could splash in the kiddie pool and we could hang out and have lunch. My sister-in-law’s parents were also there, so it was awesome to get to see them too.

My parents hadn’t seen the work done to the condo yet in person, but they had seen photos and been on FaceTime with me so talking about the renovation was a big topic. The last time I had seen most of this part of my family was at Thanksgiving which was right after we bought it and we hadn’t started to plan the renovation yet. Fortunately, I take a ton of photos so I had a lot on my phone I could show everyone.

And of course, it was awesome to see my nephew and niece. They haven’t seen me a ton, so I’m still a bit of a stranger to them. But they have both warmed up a bit. My nephew was trying to give me half-eaten bits of hot dog, which is one of the best compliments a toddler could give you. My niece smiled at me a bunch and was giving me high fives.

The only downside to this day trip was that I didn’t really take any photos. I wasn’t focused on doing that, which is good. But I wish I had some. I did get some photos from the day before that my mom took, so that makes it a bit better.

Once it was nap time, I went back to the rental house my parents were staying in to go over some condo things. My parents were going to come to LA the next day, so we didn’t have to do a lot. But we planned out what we needed to accomplish and also went through some catalogs to get ideas for what things I want to look for in stores when I’m getting more things together for my move.

I didn’t stay too late since I knew I’d see my parents again the next morning. Normally when I drive back to LA, it’s already dark. But this time, I got a pretty nice view as I was headed home!

But I’ll be back in Santa Barbara soon because in a little over a month my nephew is turning 2 and I’m very excited about the gift I’m giving him!

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An Unexpected Family Visit (or Making Plans, Canceling Them, And Making Plans Again)

Posted on July 8, 2021 | Comments Off on An Unexpected Family Visit (or Making Plans, Canceling Them, And Making Plans Again)

Like I said yesterday, the end of my 3 day weekend ended up being a bit unexpected. But that’s actually not the full story. It was something I had planned for, then had to cancel, and then was able to do again.

A month or two ago, my parents mentioned to me that they would be coming down to Santa Barbara to be with my brother and his family and they wanted to see if I could come up to visit. And I thought at first that it would work out perfectly because I had Monday off of work. If I didn’t have that day off, it would have been difficult to go because I would have left after work and would be driving in rush hour traffic. So I said I’d see them on my day off and thought that was that. But it turned out, I misunderstood some information and my parents were not going to be in Santa Barbara until later that day and I didn’t want to have to drive home in traffic after the holiday weekend. So I had to tell them that I didn’t think I would make it. But I knew I’d be seeing them in September so I was ok.

Then on Monday morning, I called my dad after my workout to tell him something random and my parents mentioned they were already driving down and about halfway to Santa Barbara! I wasn’t expecting them to leave until later, so I mentioned to them that if they were going to have the afternoon free, I could come up and see everyone for a bit. I knew it wouldn’t be that long of a visit because I would still want to leave before the traffic got really bad, but seeing my family for a few hours would be better than not seeing them at all. So my parents confirmed with my brother and sister-in-law that they would be hanging around their house in the afternoon and I quickly went home to shower and change after my workout. I was able to start my drive only about an hour after I talked to my parents and fortunately the traffic wasn’t too bad. I made it to Santa Barbara in just over 2 hours instead of the 90 minutes it usually takes me.

I didn’t take any photos while I was there since we were more focused on just being together as a family for the few hours I was able to be there. It had been 3 months since I had seen my niece and nephew and they both grew so much! Rory wasn’t walking when I was there last time and now he’s walking all over the place and almost running! And Presley was a newborn when I was there and she spent almost the entire time asleep. Now she looks much more like a baby, has a ton of hair, and was awake and alert. It’s crazy to see how much they both grew when it seems like I was just there.

It was also nice to just get to relax and talk with my family. Even though we are connected all the time either via text or on the phone, it’s always better to be together in person. Just like with my niece and nephew, it had been 3 months since I had seen my parents in person. I had a few things for them that I was going to save until September, but I was able to bring them with me (my parents have stuff for me too, but since they were already driving when we figured out I’d see them, that stuff will have to wait a few more months). Nothing was urgent to get to them, but it’s always nice to be able to give them things I was holding onto.

I was only in Santa Barbara for a little over 2 hours before I headed home. Traffic was not horrible and I knew it was going to get worse, plus my niece and nephew were about to take naps. So it seemed like a natural time for me to say goodbye and start my drive home.

It’s crazy how it all worked out this week. Even though I would have been ok not seeing my family, it made my weekend that much better that I got to be with them. And I am just so grateful that it all worked out perfectly and I had the time to drive up and back without too much stress.

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A Big Family Day! (or A Birthday Party and Meeting Presley)

Posted on April 6, 2021 | Comments Off on A Big Family Day! (or A Birthday Party and Meeting Presley)

This past weekend was my nephew Rory’s first birthday! It’s so crazy to think that it’s already been a year since he was born, but then again it was one of the craziest years of almost anyone’s life with the pandemic. But even with the pandemic, I knew that there would be a small party for Rory to celebrate his birthday. Plus, we had to celebrate my niece Presley being born!

The birthday party was just going to be family. My parents and my sister-in-law’s parents have all been vaccinated. The day of the party was going to be 1 day before I was considered fully vaccinated (which is pretty close to being there). And my brother was vaccinated at the end of last year. So even though we all still have to be careful and cautious, this was a pretty safe gathering since everyone except my sister-in-law and the babies would be vaccinated.

I got to Santa Barbara as Rory was opening his gifts. He got a lot of really adorable things. I got him a set of fabric tents and tunnels that can be used by themselves or combined to make a bunch of different things. He seemed curious about them, but I’m sure the gift will be a bigger hit with him when he’s a little older. I think his favorite gift was the kid cleaning kit that my sister-in-law found for him!

I hadn’t seen Rory in a while, so I had no clue if he’d remember me or not. And he takes some time to warm up to people, so I knew that he might not want me to be super near him. And my guess was correct. He wasn’t upset by me being there, but he didn’t want me to hold him or help him with toys. But that was ok because I had my new niece to hold!

Presley is about 6 weeks old and she’s very tiny! And she stayed asleep almost the entire time I was there, so she was calm and quiet. I think she looks a little like Rory did when he was born. She’s got the same long fingers as Rory, so I wonder if they will both be piano players one day. And I thought she was super cute and adorable. Hopefully, the next time I’m in Santa Barbara she will be a bit more awake and alert. And I can’t wait to see what her little personality will be like.

The birthday party was a very low-key day. After Rory was done opening presents, my brother cooked burgers on the grill and we all ate lunch outside. It was fun getting to hang out with my family and I hadn’t seen my sister-in-law’s parents in a while. I was supposed to see them this past November, but I missed that trip to see everyone since that’s when I got vertigo. I haven’t had a lot of social time with people lately, so any meals I get to have with someone is great. And having it be with family makes it that much better!

And of course, Rory had to have a birthday cake. I joked that he was going to act like their cat and push the cake over the edge of his highchair tray. And that’s exactly what he tried to do! I don’t know if he was trying to get more frosting or what, but it was really silly. And of course, we all took a ton of photos of him with frosting all over his face. The cake wasn’t Cookie Monster themed, but I joked that the photos looked like he ate Cookie Monster.

And of course, I had to get a photo of Rory with my brother and sister-in-law.

After he was done smashing his cake and eating some of it, Rory was having a bit of a sugar crash and it was time for him to take a nap. Since he was going to be sleeping and Presley was still asleep, that pretty much was the end of the party. So I went with my parents over to the rental house they were staying at so I could see Tucker since he was at the house during the party.

Tucker was as silly and goofy as always. He is finally recovered from his knee surgeries, so it was great to see him running and bouncing around without him being in pain. But he also looked a lot older this time because he now has a ton of white fur on his face. It’s like he became an old man overnight! But he still has so much energy and he was so happy to see me there.

I spent some time hanging out with my parents and the dog outside before I headed out. I actually had something else to do that afternoon in Santa Barbara (more about that tomorrow).

I only spent a few hours with my family that day, but it was one of the best days I’ve had in a while. I don’t know how much more often I would be seeing everyone if we didn’t have a pandemic, but this past year has made me appreciate any family time I get at all. And I appreciate having anything to celebrate right now as well. So having 2 things to celebrate with my family really made the day that much better!

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Having Fun With Photos (or My Brother And Nephew Are Twins!)

Posted on August 26, 2020 | Comments Off on Having Fun With Photos (or My Brother And Nephew Are Twins!)

Even if we weren’t in a pandemic, I’m sure that I would be getting a ton of photos of my nephew from my brother and sister-in-law. I probably would be going to Santa Barbara more often than I have been able to do now, but the photos would have still been a constant thing. And I love getting new photos of Rory. He’s already looking so big and I can’t believe how big he will be when I get to see him again (which will hopefully be in a month). And while the photos do make me sad that I’m not there more often to see him, it does make me happy to see fun little things that he has been doing, like going to the pool for the first time.

A lot of the photos are just of Rory being cute and smiley. And of course, those make me smile and make my day. And the other day, my brother and sister-in-law sent our family text group some new photos of Rory. And there was one photo that made me stop to stare at it because it looked so familiar. I realized that it looked almost identical to a photo of my brother when he was a baby.

I called my mom and told her to look at the photos that we just got and that I knew there was a photo of my brother that matched. I couldn’t describe the photo too much, I just knew it looked like the one we were sent of Rory. I thought the photo of my brother had him in a gray or blue outfit, but I wasn’t too sure. Fortunately, my mom knew exactly what photo I was talking about. And because she is so organized with her digital photos, it was only a few minutes before she could find the exact photo I was talking about. She sent it to me so I could make a little side-by-side comparison to text to the family text group.

To me, they look like twins! Their faces, their smiles, and how they hold their hands are so similar! It probably helps that they are posed the same way too, but I have said since the first time I saw Rory how much he looks like my brother. But now, I see it more than ever!

And everyone in my family agrees with me that they look like twins. I think they all liked that I put the photos together (I’m known in my family for making collages and other photo things). There isn’t a lot that makes everyone smile, but photos of Rory always does that. And I think the side-by-side photos made everyone smile too!

And now, my brother and sister-in-law are expecting another baby! They are having a girl this time and she will be here next spring! I wonder if she will be another twin for my brother or if she’ll be a twin for my sister-in-law. I guess we’ll see when she’s born next year. I am excited to be an aunt again and to have another member of the family! Hopefully, by the time she arrives, things will be a bit safer to be around others so going to meet her won’t be as intense of a situation and I can be there more often. But if not, at least I know I will be getting a ton of photos!

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Another Santa Barbara Day (or A Little Bit Of Social Interaction)

Posted on June 30, 2020 | Comments Off on Another Santa Barbara Day (or A Little Bit Of Social Interaction)

I’ve been in isolation for about 3 1/2 months now. I haven’t left my house much. My biggest adventures in the world have been going to urgent care and seeing my family for a day. I rarely leave my house for errands and have been relying on delivery services (and yes, I do tip generously for the deliveries). Isolation has been tough on me. It’s very lonely. I’m used to being alone, but not lonely. And the lack of social interaction and physical touch is very hard to deal with. But fortunately, last week I got to change that up a bit.

My parents were down in Santa Barbara visiting my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew. And since they were there for a few days, they asked if I wanted to come up to see them all. And of course, I said yes! Besides feeling lonely and wanting to be around people, I wanted to see my family!

And I will give this disclosure like I did when I saw my family again. I only went because I had been isolating myself for a length of time without going out for errands. My family is all in medicine and I followed all of their guidance and rules. I didn’t do this without thinking it through or ignoring the fact that we are in a global pandemic. I didn’t know how close I could be to my family or if I was going to be required to wear my mask the entire time. I was prepared for whatever they said.

When I got there, I wasn’t wearing my mask while hanging out with my family because we were able to sit far enough apart. Plus, none of us have really been going out in public at all so we’ve all been pretty isolated for a long time. And it was so good to get to see my family and talk to them in person! I’m grateful for phone calls, texts, and video chats; but there is no replacement for in-person interaction.

And Rory had gotten so big since I had seen him! And his little personality was really coming out. He was very clear in what he liked and what he didn’t like. He had this really adorable look of frustration from time to time. I hated that he was frustrated, but I loved that you could tell that he had so much he wanted to say and express to us. I have a feeling that he will be very chatty as soon as he can talk.

And I got to hold him again too! Because I have been isolated for so long, I was able to hold him without wearing a mask. He’s pretty wiggly and was looking at everything around the house, so it hard trying to get a photo with him looking into the camera. This was the best that I could do.

We spent a lot of time at my brother and sister-in-law’s house, but we also went out for a walk. One of the main streets in Santa Barbara has been turned into a pedestrian-only area, so there was a lot of room to walk around without being too close to anyone else. I hadn’t really been out like that in months, and it was so nice to get to do that. I still was wearing my mask, even without people being that close to us. I have to be careful and cautious and it was an easy thing to do to stay safe.

Once we got back to the house, we had family dinner and then I had to head back home because I had something I had to do early the next morning. But I had gotten to spend a while with everyone and it was exactly what I needed. I needed to feel connected to people again to get ready to go back to being lonely.

I know that I am lucky that I got to do this. Not everyone is close enough to family to go to see them for the day. Not everyone can isolate the way that I’ve been able to so that they can be safe around others. And I am so grateful that I got to do this again. I don’t know when I’ll be back to see family again, so I am just grateful for the opportunities that I have had to see them. And when I can go again, I know that I’ll feel so happy that I can go.

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Meeting Rory (or This Made Isolation Worth It)

Posted on April 22, 2020 | Comments Off on Meeting Rory (or This Made Isolation Worth It)

Before I get into this post too much, I want to explain something because I know some people might question why I did this. I understand that we are currently experiencing a global pandemic and that it is important to stay home unless absolutely necessary. And for the past 4 weeks, I have not left my house (not even for essential errands) except one time. Most people are still going out once a week or so. I have not. So the chances of me having COVID-19 is extremely low. I also did this under the guidance of my brother (who is an ER doctor), my dad (who is a retired OB/GYN), and my mom (who is a retired pediatric nurse). I did everything they said would be necessary plus some. And now, I am in 2 weeks (minimum) of strict quarantine of not leaving my house for any reason. I am not going to see anyone that I could pass this onto if I happened to be exposed by my family (who also have not been leaving their homes for any reason). Please understand that I did things beyond what the current guidance to stay safe and healthy and that I do not recommend people just go visit family unless you have been in quarantine before seeing them.

When my nephew Rory was born, I wasn’t sure when I would get to meet him. I was sad that I wasn’t there when he was born, but I knew I would get to meet him one day soon. I wasn’t going to ask my brother or sister-in-law when I could come to meet him, because I didn’t want them to feel pressured to let anyone see him if they weren’t ready. But when they asked me if I wanted to come to meet him, I immediately said yes! Because I had been avoiding all people for so long, they felt safe that I wasn’t a carrier. There were still going to be rules to be at their house, but I didn’t care. I wanted to meet my nephew! Plus, my parents were going to be there (they also followed the same guidelines I had and would have the same restrictions) and I wanted to see them too. My parents were supposed to come to see me next month and that trip has been canceled. And they had a few things for me, like some weights for my workouts, and I wanted to pick those up.

So this past Friday, I drove up to Santa Barbara to spend a few hours with my family. I made sure I wore clothes that I hadn’t worn outside recently and I had a mask with me since that was required to be around my nephew. Fortunately, a friend of mine made me a mask so I had a cute one to wear! The drive was very easy with very few cars on the road so I was able to get there a bit earlier than I expected.

And being so lonely and isolated at home was completely worth it when I walked into their house and got to meet Rory. He is so tiny and so adorable. And I instantly fell in love with him. Which also meant I took a million photos.

He was only 2 weeks old when I was there, but he was already starting to have a little personality. He’s a very happy and content baby and only cried once or twice when I was there. He is very snuggly and likes to be crunched up in your arms. He especially likes having his feet and legs crunched up and close to his body. He’s seriously so adorable and I felt so lucky that I was able to meet him so much sooner than I expected.

Just like I wasn’t going to push for going to visit my brother and sister-in-law, I wasn’t going to push to hold Rory. I really wanted to, but I know that these times are not normal circumstances and I knew they were being careful and cautious. But they said as long as my hands were clean (I washed my hands and used hand sanitizer) and wore a mask, I could hold him. And it was one of the best moments ever!

I know you can’t see my smile under my mask, but trust me when I say I was smiling! Of course, we were all joking about how you couldn’t tell what anyone’s emotion was under the masks, but we knew they were necessary. I only wish I had one that had something to be tighter around my nose because the fabric mask made it a bit tough to see Rory if I was holding him super close to me. But I found a way to prop my arm up higher on the couch so I could stare at him while holding him. And he pretty much just slept in my arms and seemed very content.

I also loved getting to hang out with my family. I haven’t seen anyone in so long with the exception of a few moments, and I was seriously needing this type of human connection. Virtual hangouts are not as good as in-person ones and this made me feel so much better than I had been feeling earlier in the week. I felt content and like life was almost normal. I really needed this time to get myself back in alignment and feeling like I will be ok.

I would have loved to have spent a ton of time with my family, but I was only there for a few hours before I had to head home. I had things I had to get done in LA so I couldn’t stay too late. Also, my brother and sister-in-law have a cat and I’m very allergic to cats. I took allergy medication for almost a week before I was there, but after only an hour I was starting to feel symptoms of an allergy attack. When my throat started to feel funny and my voice was getting very raspy, I knew I had to leave. And when I got home, I showered immediately to get any cat dander off of me, but I still had several marks on my body where I think some fur got under my clothes. I don’t know what I’ll do for future visits, but I’ll figure something out. But even if my allergies were worse, it was still worth it. There’s no question in my mind.

I’m now doing 2 weeks of strict staying at home. No going out for groceries or supplies (thank goodness for delivery options). And if I have to do these strict quarantine rules before I go see Rory again, I’ll do it. Hopefully, there will be some new guidelines soon that we can use to help make sure we are keeping everyone safe. I’m not sure when I’ll be going back to Santa Barbara again and so many things can change from week to week. So I’m not doing any planning on what I’ll need to do for next time. But I do know that whatever I have to do, it’s completely worth it.

 

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I’m Officially An Aunt (or Welcome Rory!)

Posted on April 8, 2020 | Comments Off on I’m Officially An Aunt (or Welcome Rory!)

I’m so excited that my nephew is here! He was born last week and now he is home with my brother and sister-in-law. I know that the original plan didn’t quite happen, but I’m still so excited.

Originally, I was going to go up to Santa Barbara when my sister-in-law went into labor. My parents already had plans to spend the month of April there (my sister-in-law’s parents live in Santa Barbara so they didn’t have to travel). When we were at the baby shower about a month ago, we all assumed that’s what we’d be doing. I remember saying goodbye to everyone and saying how I’d see them in a month. I was so honored that my sister-in-law wanted me to be there when my nephew was born and I couldn’t wait to meet him.

Of course, with everything going on, there was no way for us to be there. Even if we were in Santa Barbara, we wouldn’t have been allowed at the hospital. But none of us traveled because it’s really not the smart thing to do right now. We had an idea of what day he was going to be born, so we were all keeping our phones near us to find out the news as soon as possible.

And when he was here, I got photos immediately from my brother. And I am thrilled to introduce you all to Rory James Levin.

I knew his first name would be Rory (and obviously knew his last name would be Levin). The gift I made for the baby shower were bookplates that said “The Library Of Rory Levin”. But I didn’t know his middle name until he was born. I think it’s a super cute name and he looks like a Rory to me.

I’m glad that my sister-in-law’s parents are near them so they can help my brother and sister-in-law out with things. I know that they are working on keeping their house as clean and safe as possible so nobody else is able to come over. But as soon as things are normal again, I know my family and I will be traveling there to meet him. For now, we just have to see him through technology.

I am sad I wasn’t there when he was born and I don’t know how long it will take before I get to meet him, but I also know it’s for the best for everyone’s health. And if everyone just went to see one person, people are going to keep getting sick. So staying home, even if it means missing out on something my family has been looking forward to, is what I have to do. And I’m sure my parents feel the same way since they were so excited to get to spend several weeks with Rory. But they will be there as soon as they can and I’ll probably time out my trip to be at the same time so I can see my parents as well.

I have several friends who are pregnant and close to their due dates and I know that there are so many unknowns or weird things with trying to give birth right now. Everyone is handling it the best that they can and I hope that my friends have a similar experience to what my sister-in-law had. Even if my family couldn’t be there to support my sister-in-law, I’m glad my brother was there and that they do have some family nearby that can help them if they need it. Plus, everyone has gotten more familiar with different delivery grocery options lately so I know they know how they can safely get groceries without having to leave their house.

For now, I’m just going to enjoy knowing that I’m officially an aunt and I can get so excited for when I get to meet Rory in person (hopefully) soon! And I now have lots of time to find really cute presents to get him so I can bring lots of things when that happens!

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