16 months 17 days

It's 1 am, and I have so much to do, but I'm tired, plus I need to leave the house in the morning.... If only decisions could be made to meet all the needs.

Anyway, we're out of quarantine! Yippee! It was day 5 of quarantine, so we went to take a test, and since it was negative, the quarantine has ended and we're allowed to leave the house again, and have people come to our house. And the next few days already look extremely busy!

Back to this morning, when the kids woke up late again, but a little earlier than the last few days, just after 8 am. We all got up, I made breakfast, and we fed them. Then I cleaned them up and dressed them. Even though I think it's time to go to one nap per day, after lunch, as we were leaving the house then we decided to put them down for a morning nap. So everyone went downstairs, while I went back to bed for a little while. At 10:30 Randy brought them all upstairs to lie down for their nap. And we got them all to sleep, the girl sleeping on me, while the boys slept in bed. It always takes her a while, though, so it was 11 am before she slept.

It was about 12:15 when I woke up because Emmy was crying, and crying, and Randy wasn't coming to get him. So I tried to gently move Tammy onto the bed, but she woke up, so we both went to see Emmy and got him out of bed. Sammy was also awake. Randy took them all downstairs, while I started cooking lunch - omelet with vegetables. It didn't take very long to make, and everyone came back up to eat. Still, it was 1 pm before we sat down for lunch. And they enjoyed eating it, and had some banana and yoghurt as dessert. They have all been eating really well!

Time was flying by, so we changed them, dressed them, got ourselves ready, put their coats and hats on, as well as gloves for the very first time in their lives, and left. It was only a few stops to the big exhibition center where the free mass testing was going on, as the goal was to test the whole population, so we were lucky to be able to do it for free this time. It's a huge area and I chose the location closer to the first subway stop. However, when we got off, there were signs everywhere that it was at the next subway stop, so we had a long walk to the other end of the exhibition block. I was missing my scarf and gloves, as it was cold!

But we got there; one of the two buildings was already closed, as so few people are showing up to be tested. We were given a better mask, hand sanitizer, and were waved forward, walking all the way to the other end of the building. At least it was warm inside!

We got to a table where we handed them the filled-out form we had brought from home. We didn't even have to show an ID. Then I had to sit down on a chair, blow my nose, take the mask off, and a lady in full safety gear, suit an all, put a long Q-tip into my nose, way up there, moving it around until my eyes started tearing up. It was so unpleasant! When we were tested before going to Mali, they did it in our mouth, and there was nothing to it. Then I sat down, and it was Randy's turn. Then we both had to wait about 15 minutes. The little ones were okay sitting in their strollers, looking around at everything, and I was having fun with Sammy. Then they called my name and informed me of the negative result, and shortly after they did the same with Randy. Quarantine was over! We left and took the subway at the stop right there to go back home.

It was nearly 3:30 pm when we got home, and time for their afternoon meal, so we took all their clothes off and fed them. I was wondering whether to put them down for an afternoon nap, but it was rather late, and they were pretty hyped up and wanting to move after 90 minutes in the stroller. I tried, but quickly realized it was not nap time.

So we all went downstairs at around 4, while Randy left to go to the grocery store, now that he is allowed to. And so it was me and the babies and play time, and we had lots of fun. I was really tired, though, and getting hard because of it after a while. Especially once they were getting cranky because they were tired. And then Emmy and Tammy climbed up the couch, being overjoyed about it, and I had to go over there so they would not fall down. I tried to keep them busy and distracted, so I got the little car out that Emmy enjoyed riding, while Tammy preferred pushing. And Tammy also enjoyed the rocking horse. And they went into the shelf again. And Sammy was happily crawling and playing. Time was passing, and Randy was still not back. I got the baby crayons out, as drawing is supposed to be so good for them, but I could still not get them to draw with them. They preferred eating them.

It was already after 5:30 pm, which is when I should have gone upstairts to make their food, and since Randy was still not there, I decided to go up with them anyway. So I carried Sammy, while the other two climbed up the stairs by themselves, as they always do. Then I put Sammy in the swing, while the other two were running around. I gave them some bread rind to chew on to help them with their hunger. I had just started making their dinner, when Randy returned. And then the little ones enjoyed unpacking the bags together with Randy and checking everything out he had in there. That kept them distracted until the food was ready. And they ate really well again, clearning up their plates. Then it was bathtub time and bed time. Since they were all tired, it didn't take long for them to fall asleep. But Sammy was crying until he got a bottle of milk, and then Emmy wanted one as well. The girl is fine without milk at bedtime.

It was after 7 pm when I was able to walk away. I got to work, cleaning the kitchen, their chairs, opening the packages that had arrived, putting stuff away, and so on. And I took bites of food in between, never actually sitting down to eat. Too much to do! Now it's nearly 2 am, and I have to decided whether to continue working or go to bed. The work doesn't get done by itself!

Today Tammy weighed 9.6 kilos (+0 in two weeks), Emmy 8.7 (-200 grams) and Sammy 7.2 (-100).