Since these two have already had covid, they came down for a little visit from the snow to the sun.

Oh! We had missed them, and there was just something so beautiful about having the kitchen filled up with us all in the evenings, to have good discussions, Claire to fill us in on all her funny antics, and for things to feel more whole.

One night we had a little virtual double-date with our Florida kids:

Lucy was at YW and Claire was at volleyball so we had those four all to ourselves and I felt so much love filling up our family room.

Max and Dave got haircuts, Abby and I went on a little date to the mall, we went to lunch and sat on the sun drenched porch of one of my favorite places.

We brought game-night back…haven’t done that in a while and you can see how Lucy feels about that one:

Played some pickleball:

We rode bikes one evening in the slanty golden sun to go to dinner.

We missed our missing three, but boy, it did my mama’s heart good to have these four all in one place.

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21 Comments

  1. Shawni you have such a beautiful family! Even though we’re not Mormon I’m encouraging my son to look at BYU for CompSci based on your mentions of it here. Also, somewhat randomly, how long are your kitchen islands?

    1. BYU has a great CompSci program! My oldest son graduated from it and now works for Adobe. Second son will graduate next year from the same program :). Best of luck to your son!

    2. Yay Ali! I hope you like BYU! Max is really loving the computer science program!

      Our middle island is just over 11 feet long, and our outer island is 13 feet long.

  2. An Australian reader here – it’s so weird to read ‘they’ve had covid, so they travelled to us’.

    I do not know one person who has had covid in Australia, in my social circles. So I don’t even know what happens to those who’ve ‘recovered’ from Covid. For a long while, each of our states closed their borders, when there was ANY community transmission (so, basically, it’s OK to have covid in a quarantine hotel after arriving from overseas, as that was ‘under control’ but if a worker from any of those hotels got Covid and/or gave it to someone in the community, the state borders closed!!)

    One world, such different covid lives…

    1. NZ reader here… Again don’t know anyone that has had Covid!
      So is it OK to trave in America if you have already had covid?
      We are just out of a week lock down after a handful of community cases and literally the whole city was locked down…

      1. I’m not Shawni, but here in the US travel is allowed. Each individual state has different regulations and mandates about masks and social gatherings, so when you travel you have to abide by the state you visits rules. Some states are more rigid than others. It’s pretty controversial and everyone argues about it a lot. I think she pointed out that they’ve had it already because that means they aren’t at risk of bringing it from Utah to Arizona or vise versa. My husband and I had covid and like to joke that we’re out and about enjoying our antibodies. 😂 (we live in an “open state”but respect businesses who ask for masks and always wear one.) States in the US are continuing to open back up too with wider availability of the vaccine. Several southern states have done so recently and I saw an article today that Connecticut was too. Hope that clarifies and made sense.

    2. Yes the restrictions seem to be so different from place to place as far as covid goes. I think the vaccine is making it so much safer to be out and about, Courtney C. explained it well (thanks Courtney!). My sister who lives in London has been under pretty strict lockdown and things are just so different here! (Although still careful and thought out.) I am so grateful that it seems there is a “light at the end of this tunnel” we’ve been in for so long. Makes me so extra grateful for human contact and the ability to gather, so easy to take those things for granted under “normal” circumstances. Human connection is so vital and beautiful! And so is public safety, and I’m grateful for everyone who has worked so hard to find the right balance to keep people safe. I hope the numbers will continue to improve in NZ and Australia as well. Sending love on over!

  3. Would you share where the purple wall with the flowers is located? I’d love to see it on my next AZ visit 🙂

  4. These are lovely pictures! I agree with the other commentators who say it’s strange to see this from abroad. In the UK we have been in a strict lockdown for all of 2021 so far, so the idea of visiting family or going to a mall feels very dangerous and irresponsible. But of course that is not to say that you are necessarily being irresponsible- just that the norms and legal restrictions where you live seem so different to someone like me!

  5. It is not like that here now…Most states have lifted mask mandates. I live in NY which is probably one of the strictest states COVID-19 wise. Malls are open, people are traveling. Shawni’s son and daughter are extremely unlikely to be reinfected with COVID-19 so their travels to visit aren’t unusual or concerning. 2020 was a different story with lockdowns, etc.

    1. New Zealand is still locking down – for 3 cases an entire city was shut down for 3 days and then 10 days shut down again when that group grew to 15 cases in both February and March! HARD lockdown. Long may our borders be closed…

  6. Max and Abbie seem to be doing so awesome with young married life!! Good for them as that’s is hard to navigate sometimes! I think Abbey should do a guest post all about it!!

    Covid restrictions here in Alberta have opened a little but not much. School us on but no sports for any kids.
    Malls open 25% capacity
    Masks are mandatory
    You can go to a restaurant but only with your household .
    No visiting anyone that doesn’t live with you permanently. So your kids couldn’t come stay. It’s all so sad.

  7. Shawni, had not realised that Max and Abby had had COVID – here in Australia it seems to be such a scary prospect that to hear you mention it with no other information seems so very strange! Could you tell us a little about it? Can you have a ‘mild’ case? Does everyone need hospitalisation? I know NO ONE who has had it, and only know one person who knows someone who had it, and that person was in ICU for 2 months. I’m so happy to see that it’s not a death sentence, which is what we hear from the media about how things are going in the US.

    1. So interesting Sarah! Almost everyone I know who has had Covid has had mild cases. So many people I know have had it, and only one was hospitalized, and now they are fine. This is not to say that it isn’t dangerous, I know that there are residual effects that can be lasting and scary, and my heart breaks for all the families of those who have passed away. It is awful and heartbreaking. But those are only stories I hear through the news, nothing like that has hit anyone I know. Max and Abby actually got it from Abby’s grandparents and I think Max was the most affected. He was sick for a week or so, and it did take him down for a little bit, but he’s back to business and doing great. Abby’s grandparents had really quite mild cases. Dave’s Dad went to give blood and discovered he has the antibodies as well, so he’s had it but never even knew it. Now so many people are vaccinated here, it feels like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel!

  8. Sarah I’ve known so many who have had COVID and one out of many has been hospitalized. For most people it does not even require hospitalization. My 75 year old in laws had it with very little issues. Not to say that it isn’t serious because for many it obviously has been but the vast majority heal without major complications.

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