I haven’t updated the blog in a few weeks because we have been on strict lockdown here in Portugal, similar to how things were in Germany in spring 2020. So we’ve been staying home, only venturing out to the grocery store a couple of times. A quick article about the Covid-29 situation here. Portugal was actually doing really well at containing the virus until Christmas came and people visited friends and family and travelled abroad. They have been trying to contain it again ever since and it will be at least a couple of more weeks of strict lockdown. I have started doubling up on masks when I go in the store.

The highlight of the past two weeks was Inauguration Day in the USA. This was the first time the girls were old enough to really watch and understand and it was such a momentous occasion with Kamala Harris being sworn in as Vice President and the removal of Trump. A huge sign of relief and celebration (full-well knowing that things haven’t magically improved but still wanting/needing a moment of hope and joy). We especially loved hearing Amanda Gorman read her poem. So powerful and inspiring! We spent a few days afterwards learning more about her.

The next highlight was hair dyeing! Olivia had asked if she could dye her hair red so I looked at what I could find at the grocery store and found some fun, washable dye. So one Saturday morning in lockdown, that was our activity. All the girls and Steffen got into the fun (I was the official hairdresser). It’s been about 10 days so everyone’s is fading, but you can still see it.

Other than that, it’s been more of the same. Occasionally, the girls get excited about cooking/baking so whip up something yummy and/or fancy. Olivia and Luisa still love the Legos and regularly got lost in their made-up world. One evening Luisa gave us a fashion show, styled by Charlotte and Olivia. And Luisa had a video conference for her school interview. Steffen and I were running pretty regularly, enjoying some beautiful scenery in our condo complex. We also tried to get the girls outside every so often to climb or scooter or jump rope a bit. And of course, enjoying some screen time thanks to Disney+, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Luisa and Olivia watched all four Toy Story movies and Hannah and Charlotte re-watched the whole Harry Potter series!! We’re hanging in there, knowing that while it’s hard to stay home, it’s the best thing we can do right now.

This is our 100th post! Thanks for following along on our ever-changing journey. If you have a moment, leave us a note and let us know if you are also trying to make staying at “home” work or if you get to be out and about in your part of the world!