Coronavirus: A Year Later

It's been one year since this got real.  When I think of the moment it felt like the reality of the coronavirus pandemic started for Eliot and me, March 12th always comes to mind.  That was the day when things began closing in quick succession.  Never in a million years would I have predicted how the next 12 months of our lives would go.  It seems like forever ago, yet just yesterday.  And in that time, so much has changed... 

First of all, I'd be remiss not to mention all of the lives lost.  In the United States we've lost over 530 thousand people.  The US has had over 29 million cases of coronavirus that have been reported.  Worldwide, there have been 118 million cases of coronavirus and 2.62 million deaths.  It's overwhelmingly devastating.  I have a few friends who have lost loved ones.  It breaks my heart to think of people saying goodbye to their loved ones over Zoom.  Thankfully, the number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths have been dropping in the United States recently.  I hope it continues to drop.

It's been a long year and the thing that has changed the most is that I now have a sense of hope.  As of today, we currently have three vaccines that have been approved for use in the United States.  We've only vaccinated about 12% of the US population so far; but for the first time in a long time, I feel hope.  I have hope that the end of this is on the horizon.  We just have to stay the course so we can cross the finish line.

Today, I thought that I'd do a little recap based off all of the things that I wrote about a year ago.  Back then, I watched the news in horror as things all started to close one after another.  Now, we're watching as things start on the path to reopening.  I'm sure most of you will be aware of all this- nothing I write about will be breaking news.  But years from now, we'll be able to look back at this time.  This post will be a reminder to myself of what happened and of how far we've come over the past year.

On March 11th, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic.  In the days leading up to that day, the news about it was slowly taking over the airwaves.  Eliot and I had already started the precautions of washing our hands, using hand sanitizer and social distancing.  I was calm about it, but on March 12th, something suddenly clicked and I entered into the fear, hysteria and confusion.  I went from calm as a cucumber to spiraling as news of closures appeared in my newsfeed.

The NBA was the first professional sports league to put their season on hold.  They later returned to play on July 30th with only 22 teams competing.  All of the players, coaches and staff were put into a "bubble" at the Walt Disney World Resort and the remainder of the 2020 season and the playoffs were all played at ESPN Wide World of Sports.  The season ended when Lakers won the NBA Finals on October 13th.

The San Jose Sharks went from plans of playing in an empty arena, to not playing at all for 10 months.  (The lowest seven teams in the league never returned to play until the 2020-2021 season.)  When the NHL returned to play on August 1st, 2020.  The NHL separated 24 teams into two bubbles- both in Canada.  The Eastern teams played in Toronto while the Western teams played in Edmonton.  Because the season was cut short, there was a wild card round in order to determine who the final 16 teams in the playoffs would be.  That round also determined the seed of the playoff teams.  On September 28th, the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup in Edmonton.

Maine had it's first case of COVID the same day this was unfolding.  Since then, we've had over 46,000 cases.  Most of them have been in Cumberland and York Counties- basically where Eliot and I live.  As of today, Maine has had 723 COVID deaths.

March 12, 2020 was also the day Disneyland announced it's upcoming March 14th closure.  I never would have expected it would still be closed a year later.  However, this past week, CA amusement parks have been given the green light to open with limited capacity and Disneyland plans to open sometime in April.

Disney's Mulan was delayed on it's release in theaters.  It was supposed to come out March 27th, but it ended up going directly to Disney+ on September 4th for a premium fee of $30.  December 1st, it became available for everyone to watch with no extra fee.

March 12th was also the day that Walt Disney World and Disneyland Paris announced their upcoming closures.  The Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom reopened on July 11th while Epcot and Hollywood Studios reopened July 15th.  Since then, Disney cast members and guests have adhered to strict face mask rules.  There are also new hand washing stations all over the each of the parks.  There still hasn't been a return of parades, fireworks, character meet and greets or shows, but Disney has announced that their working on those.  The magic is still there, it's just different right now.

Disney Cruise Line suspended itineraries set to depart beginning Saturday March 14th through the end of March 2020.  Sadly, the cruise line industry has been completely obliterated by the worldwide pandemic.  Disney continues to approach the suspensions every few months, but no one really knows when cruising will be back.

The MLB delayed spring training and the start of their season.  They finally started on July 23rd and had a shorter 60 game season instead of their usual 162 schedule.  The season ended on October 27th when the Dodgers won the World Series.

The Maine Mariners hockey season was put on hiatus.  It ended up being completely cancelled, as well as the 2020-2021 season.  Eliot just saw an announcement that the ECHL plans to return this fall and the Mariners first game will be on October 22nd. 

The NFL returned last fall, with COVID protocols in place to protect players, coaches and staff.  They were able to have the season go by without problems.  On February 7th, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl and Tom Brady got his 7th ring.  

In addition to all of the above, so many other things changed.  High school and college athletics were postponed or cancelled.  Universities sent students home after spring break and they didn't return until the fall.  So many students, of all ages, have been learning online.  Those at school wear masks all day and they are spaced 6' apart whenever able.  Conferences and conventions have moved to online or have been cancelled.  Broadway went dark and it remains dark with no idea when it will be back.

Since last year, many people have worked from home.  Eliot's been deemed essential and hasn't been able to work at home.  Thankfully, he's been safe.  Although, it took longer than it should have for his work to require them to wear masks when they aren't at their stations.  But thankfully, they've only had a few cases and *knock on wood* none of them have been in his area of the plant.

My travel agent friends have worked for little pay or for free for most of the year.  (They are all superheroes!)  I haven't had any clients reach out to me during the pandemic, and I haven't actively pursued anyone.  Thankfully, travel finally seems to be bouncing back as people learn to make adjustments to our current state of normal.  I'm hoping to start adverting on my social media pages again in the coming months.

Elissa never did get to go on spring break to South Carolina.  She wasn't even able to return to campus.  After I wrote this, UNE had students pack everything up and move off campus.  Elissa finished the school year remotely from her friend Heather's house down in MA.  Then, she had an online graduation.  And as I wrote about last summer, she stayed with us a few days before Sara came out to drive her back out west.  Even now, Sara's graduation from veterinary school in May is going to be over Zoom.

People have had to postpone vacations, bridal showers, weddings, baby showers and other big life events.  Many businesses are taking a really hard hit.  People have lost their jobs.  Companies have closed.  People are picking up and moving now that they can work remotely.  (Maine real estate has seen a huge boom.)  Things have turned upside down and some people are barely making it through each day.  This worldwide pandemic has affected everyone in different ways... but it has affected us all.

We haven't stopped living our lives, but I have been at home more than ever.  I've been extra cautious when I do go out.  Hand sanitizer has become our best friend.  Eliot and I have so many masks that we've bought.  We limit our trips out shopping, but when we do go out, we're usually gone for hours going to multiple places during one trip.

Happily Ever Hatter's sales have been slow and that's effected us a lot.  Thankfully, we've been able to make up for missing income through Eliot's Snowblade Creations shop.  As of the past few weeks, things seem to be picking up with mouse ear sales.  I don't want to get over excited, but I'm hoping news of Disneyland's eventual opening in April will lead to more sales.  Plus, more people are starting to slowly travel again.

Over the last year I've learned a lot of lessons.  I've learned that it's ok to have fear and uncertainty.  Everyone can feel anxious sometimes, and that's not a weakness.  It's ok to not be ok.  It's ok to reach out for help when you need it.  Everyone can feel lonely sometimes.  I've also learned a lot about patience.  I've learned that I can't control everything... which I always knew but still tried to most times.  I've become even better at going with the flow.  I've learned a lot about politics- more than I ever cared to.  I've learned that sometimes you need a break from the news and social media and it's ok to put people on a "time-out" from appearing in your newsfeed.  I've also learned that if you watch enough puppy and animal videos, the Facebook algorithms will mostly only show you cute puppy videos in order to keep you on their platform longer.

Finally, I've learned the value of kindness.  I've always believed that if you can be anything, you should at least be kind.  Kindness doesn't cost you anything.  If there's one thing that's become painfully apparent this past year, it's that the world needs more kindness in it.  Last year, I ended my post with a quote as we moved into the unknown of the pandemic.  Today, one year later when we're (hopefully) approaching the end to this, it still rings true.  We all need to continue to "have courage and be kind."  °o°

2020 Year In Review

2020.  That alone can invoke lots of thoughts and feelings in all of us... many of those not so wonderful.  It's been a year unlike any other we've experienced.  2020, the year of COVID-19 and quarantine.  2020, the year we stayed at home.  2020, the year the world stood still.  2020, the year Earth was closed.  2020, the year we fought over toilet paper.  2020, a complete dumpster fire of a year for most of us.

For Eliot and me, 2020 wasn't much different than a normal year overall.  Eliot still had to work, and since I work from home, not much in our day-to-day lives changed.  But at the same time, everything changed.  We wore face masks.  We washed our hands... a lot.  We practiced social distancing.  We learned how to Zoom.  We cried.  We were scared.  We watched too much news.  We were uncertain.  But we made it through. 

Now that we're at the end of 2020, we have a lot of hope for the new year and for new beginnings.  Things won't change overnight once the calendar flips to 2021, but things look hopeful.  Vaccinations are starting to be distributed, and we're hoping that an end of this coronavirus nightmare is on the horizon.

Still, I like to practice gratitude.  If there's one thing that I'm thankful for this year, it's that it put a lot of things in perspective for everyone.  For me, it clarified a few things and allowed me to put things where they needed to be.  And for that, I'm very grateful.

While we didn't do too much this year compared to last year, there were still some highlights that I'm also very grateful for.  Here's an overview of Eliot's and my 2020.

2020 Year In Review:

January- Eliot and I started the New Year in Reno, Nevada with his family while on a ski trip.  We returned home for a few days before we headed down to Florida for our Walt Disney World trip with my cousin Kaitlin and her family.  We enjoyed Sea World and a few days at Disney.  I got really sick at the end of our trip... so much so that I ended up in the emergency room on our last day in Florida.  After a few extra days at our hotel, we returned home where I continued to recover over the next few weeks.

February- After spending weeks sleeping and relaxing on the couch while recovering, Eliot and I went to our first Maine Mariners hockey game.  That was the fish time I felt like myself since we returned from our WDW trip.  We spent a relaxing Valentine's Day at home eating frozen pizza for dinner.  We went to a few UNE hockey games with Elissa.  I worked on some new mouse ear designs.  We went to get the new Cinderella key.  Eliot and I went to Boston to see the Dallas Stars play the Bruins.  Then, we turned around less than 48 hours after the hockey game and drove down to Burlington to go to the Disney Store for the Leap Year Day Tigger key.

March- In early March, we all started to become more aware of the coronavirus.  Both of Eliot's parents in California were suddenly working from home, but we carried on as usual.  I went home to help my family while my mother had another surgery.  Eliot and I launched our hair clips for Happily Ever Hatter.  Eliot and I went to another Maine Mariners hockey game.  Suddenly, you couldn't find toilet paper on the store shelves.  I had my first (and what would be my only) spring sewing class.  The COVID-19 memes started.  We had reminders on how to properly wash our hands correctly.  We went to the Burlington Mall one last time to get the Frozen 2 dolls.  I went home another time to help my parents and when I returned back home, I prepared to stay home in my own unofficial quarantine.  Before the knew it, everything was shut down and things got real very fast.  We all actually thought we'd only be in lockdown for 2-3 weeks.  I spent too much time watching the news and despair set in.  In order to find some humor, I started my Quarantine Memes blog segment.  Maine officially entered quarantine.  By the end of March, I was trying to keep my spirits up so I celebrated Quarantine-O-Ween.

April- Soon 2-3 weeks turned into 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 weeks... and it was clear that things were not changing anytime soon.  Eliot and I adjusted to our "new normal" which was him still going to work every day as usual and me never leaving the house.  Like many, I struggled to find the positive, but I always kept trying.  Eliot and watched Onward on Disney+.  We celebrated Nana's birthday from afar.  We kept rolling with the punches as they came.  We celebrated Easter.  I spend hours working on my Things to Do While Under Quarantine blog series.  We celebrated Mom's birthday from afar.  Eliot and I celebrated Very Merry Quarantime.  In 30 days of April, I wrote 23 blog posts in an attempt to keep myself busy and my mind off of things.

May- Spring slowly started to arrive and Eliot and I launched our desk accessories over on Snowblade Creations. I celebrated my 7 year Blogiversary, Cinco de Mayo, my friend Katie's birthday.  I did everything I could to keep myself busy.  We finally did something that felt somewhat normal when we met up with Mom, Dad, Jeremy and Nana in a parking lot to celebrate Mother's Day.  I celebrated the Princess of Corona as well as my half birthday.  I found happiness in handmade good from small shops.

June- By June, tensions were rising.  Everyone was tired of quarantine and feeling like they were trapped.... which in turn shed new light to the fact that for years, many people of color have been trapped and that inequalities and racial injustices are everywhere in our society.  I took a moment to pause and learn.  I celebrated Dad's birthday from afar.  We tried to celebrate Eliot's birthday the best we could.  I spent more time at my parents' house helping out.

July- In July, I was pretty bummed that we couldn't go home for 4th of July so I went for a walk down memory lane.  Eliot and I had our own very scaled back 4th of July celebrations.  I watched Hamilton for the first time and loved it.  Eliot and I made a trip to IKEA.  Walt Disney World opened back up.  I shared my affinity for headbands.  Eliot and I spent some time with his sisters Sara and Elissa before Elissa moved back to California.  We celebrated Christmas in July.  

August- Eliot and I escaped reality in the form of swimming in a friend's pool.  My Mom had her final and most complicated surgery mid-August and I went home a few times to help Dad out.  Thankfully, Mom's surgery went well and she was home a few days later.  Orders for Happily Ever Hatter started to pick up.  We went swimming some more.  We watched Hallmark movies.  We had a block party with the four houses in our neighborhood.  And Eliot and I spent most of the month of August watching so many hockey playoff games once it returned on August 1st.

September- I was determined to have a good month, so of course we lost our water for a few days at the beginning of the month.  We went to visit my parents over Labor Day.  We had fun going into Bar Harbor for ice cream and lunch.  Eliot and I met up with my friend Katie for dinner.  We watched more playoff hockey and cheered former Shark captain Joe Pavelski and the Dallas Stars when they made it to the Stanley Cup Final!  Football season started.  Eliot and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary and the 5 year anniversary of buying our house.  We also made sure to enjoy the simple things like the leaves changing in our backyard.

October- By October, I was going a little stir crazy.  Eliot and I took a quick day trip down to go shopping in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.  We decorated the house for Halloween.  I got some more headbands.  I started my fall sewing class.  We had another neighborhood block party to celebrate Halloween.

November- On November 3rd, Eliot and I voted.  We had a picnic on Old Orchard Beach on an unnaturally warm 70 degree day.  We celebrated my birthday pandemic style.  Disney's movie Tangled turned 10.  We had Thanksgiving at my parents' house, picked out a Christmas tree and walked around Bar Harbor.  I finished my fall sewing class and was thankful that we made it through the entire class with no cancellations. 

December- December was a blur like it usually is.  Eliot and I busted our butts to get all of our holiday orders out in time.  We had a few snowstorms.  We closed our Etsy shops and took a much needed holiday break.  I had too much fun working on our 2020 Christmas card photo.  We spent Christmas at my parents' house and Eliot and I started a new Christmas morning tradition for my family.  Then, we returned home and I spent a quiet week preparing to welcome the new year... which brings us to today!

As rough as 2020 has been, Eliot and I still had plenty of wonderful moments.  This year has made us all stronger.  It hasn't been pretty at times, but looking back, we did it.  We survived 2020.  Here's hoping that 2021 will be kinder to us, and that we will all be able to get back to our new normal, whatever that looks like.  °o°

Home for the Holidays

There's no place like home for the holidays.  This year, it was extra special to have all of us home at my parents' house.  After 2020 and all of the uncertainty, being home for a few days with no cares in the world was like heaven.  My family had a wonderful holiday, and for the first time in 3 years, we all were healthy for it.  It was a blessing.

Jeremy, Eliot and I all drove up Thursday (Christmas Eve) night.  Eliot and I arrived at the house about 30 minutes behind Jeremy.  We then spent the rest of the evening talking for a bit before calling it an early night.  After all, we wanted to make sure that we were in bed so Santa would come!

Christmas morning was a whirlwind.  The three of us "kids" got up as planned at 8 am and waited at the top of the stairs.  After Mom, Dad and Nana got all set in the living room, we ran down the stairs like we always have.  We arrived to chairs and a sofa full of open presents.  Santa left me a ton of the Disney books that I'd asked for.  There were so many things on my side of the couch that I couldn't even take it all in.  Eliot had a bunch of gifts on his side too.

We looked through our new stuff before everyone opened their stockings.  After that, we opened a few of our wrapped presents from Mom and Dad.  Eliot got a bunch of new power tools he'd asked for.  I got the Disney Christmas decor and the Hanukkah decor that I'd asked for.  I also got some resin molds to experiment with!  Santa also gave me a few items from the Disney Ink and Paint collection.

At some point, we decided to take a break for breakfast, but before we did that, Eliot and I had Mom and Dad open our family present.  Mom read the poem that I'd included while Daddy attempted to slowly open the package.  He still beat Mom; he's worse than a kid.  Then, we all paraded into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.  Eliot and I made the waffle mix and then he made the waffles.  Jeremy tended to Mom and Nana and served them their food.  Dad made the eggs and ham.  Then, I bounced between everyone helping wherever I was needed.

After we ate our traditional Christmas breakfast, we turned the Disney Christmas Day special on.  We missed part of it, but we saw most of it.  (Thankfully, Eliot and I set our DVR to record it!)  Then, we continued to open the rest of our gifts from Mom and Dad.

Next, we exchanged gifts with each other.  Nana loved her new Fairy Godmother Funko Pop.  (Eliot and I are planning to get her the Cinderella one too.)  I always call her my Fairy Godmother so it was really special to her.  Jeremy loved his new Inside Out Wishables.  (He had seen them while he was at our house making shelves and he mentioned that he'd like to have a set.)  Dad liked his gifts too; we got him a tire pump because he loved the one Eliot and I have.  We also got him a giant Sven and Olaf inflatable to add to his Christmas decoration collection.

Eliot and I got my Mom a Disney Cruise Line Christmas mug and a DCL Christmas Countdown Calendar.  We know how much it meant to her that we went on our cruise last year before she struggled with health problems this year.  She broke into tears when she opened her gifts.  I also gave her a small stuffed Christmas Tree that I made in my sewing class.  (That was the secret sewing project that I spent a good portion of this past class working on.)  She really loved that as well.

Jeremy got Eliot and I the Mickey and Minnie blow molds that Lowes had from their Christmas decor collection this year.  We weren't going to get them, but after having Dad's set in our living room for so long, we decided we wanted a set of our own!  He also got us Bruni, Sorcerer Mickey and Stitch plushes from Target.  Jeremy picked up a few of the Disney Princess Happy Planner items that I'd wanted.  (Jeremy also has 2 more gifts on order for Eliot that we picked out a few days before Christmas and he has no idea what they are!)  Jeremy also got our three donkeys their own Harry Potter wizard robes.  Finally, Nana spoiled each of us with a gift card and money.

Christmas afternoon, we all relaxed, talked and took turns taking naps.  Later in the day, Mom made macaroni and cheese, ham and beans.  We ate while we watched Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.  Then, we decided to watch a movie.  Jeremy set up his Disney+ account for us to use.  Eliot and I suggested Godmothered (if we wanted something funny) or Soul (if we wanted more deep).  Mom picked Godmothered and we started the movie.  Just like when Eliot and I watched it a few weeks ago, everyone was in stitches from laughing so hard.  It was a good choice since everyone really enjoyed it.  Afterwards, we all wished each other a Merry Christmas one last time and we all headed to bed since we were exhausted.

The next day, Eliot and I slept in.  He finally got up in time to head to the Ellsworth post office to drop a few packages off.  I knew he'd also want to check Home Depot and Walmart.  What I didn't expect was for him to be gone for over 3 hours!  He had a great time checking out the deals and looking at things.  Apparently, he got a bunch of stuff.

Around the same time, Mom and Dad ran a few errands.  Jeremy and I hung out downstairs in case Nana needed us.  We watched CNN for a little bit before we got sucked into a Harry Potter movie marathon.  Eventually, Mom, Dad and Eliot all got home and Nana got out of bed.  Then, we chilled out watching Harry Potter most of the afternoon.  Jeremy and I wanted China Hill for dinner, so Mom and Dad got that.  Then, we enjoyed that while we finished Harry Potter 4.  After that, we watched the news (Mom wanted to see the weather) and then we decided it was time for another movie.

Mom suggested Frozen since she, Dad and Nana hadn't ever seen it, so we opened Disney+ back up and dove into that.  Throughout the movie, Eliot and I sat in the background giggling on the couch while we quoted different parts.  Everyone enjoyed the movie and I was glad that Mom and Dad finally saw the movie that I've been obsessed with for the past 7 years.  Afterwards, Nana and Jeremy went to bed but we stayed up a bit longer to talk with Mom and Dad.  Then, Eliot and I went to bed too.

The next morning, I wasn't feeling great and I was having some stomach issues.  (I think the Chinese food and peanut butter pie for dessert did me in.)  We had planned to make Mickey waffles for breakfast again, but by the time I got downstairs, Mom, Dad and Jeremy were all eating eggs.  Eliot made his way downstairs a few minutes later and we started the process of packing all of our Christmas stuff up.  

Jeremy left for his drive home around 12:30 while Eliot and I stayed a while longer.  I set up Nana's new tablet while Eliot set Dad's phone up with the Fitbit my Mom got him.  I eventually went to take a quick shower before we finished the packing.  Most of our stuff fit in the car, but the blow molds, Eliot's Olaf inflatable and the Mickey mailbox (also from this year's Lowes collection) had to stay at Mom and Dad's house for now.

Before leaving, we had two more things we had to do.  First, Eliot and I needed to take our 2020 Christmas Card photo since there was room now that all of the presents had been packed.  (A few days ago, I teased a sneak peek of the making of our 2020 Christmas photo.)  Second, we needed to take photos of Dad's inflatable display!  

Eliot helped me set up the table for the photo.  Mom got the wine and Dad got an extension cord for the menorah.  Then, Mom held Eliot's phone up as a flashlight and Dad took our photo a bunch of times until we got it just right.  It was ridiculously silly, but it was totally worth it!  It's the perfect 2020 Christmas Card photo- featuring our TP tree, gifts of wipes and hand sanitizers, face masks, a menorah that won't even light for all 8 nights (because 2020), "Covii the Christmas Germ" as our TP tree topper, a 2319 Christmas stocking and wine.  (Not pictured, the giant plush tiger we forgot to add!)

After taking the photo and packing all of our photo props back up, Eliot, Dad and I went outside to check out the inflatables.  Daddy wanted to make sure they were all still upright and Eliot and I wanted to see them and take pictures.  We crossed the road to take photos while Dad fixed a few of them.  All 21 of them were really cute and they literally covered the entire front section of Mom and Dad's land right by the road.

We headed back inside and Eliot and I double checked that we had everything.  Then, we said goodbye to Nana.  Mom and Dad walked out to the car with us and we said goodbye.  Then, they walked up the driveway so Mom could see the inflatables.  Eliot and I pulled out of the driveway saying goodbye and honking as we left.

On the ride home, Eliot and I made a few quick stops to break it up.  First, we stopped at Dairy Queen in Ellsworth for food.  (Neither of us had eaten anything all day and we were hungry!)  Then, we stopped at Lowes in Brewer.  There wasn't any Christmas stuff left, but Eliot did find a few small tools he wanted.  Then, we stopped in Newport to go to Walmart so I could look at the Disney Princess Happy Planner stuff.  They still had a large selection and I found what I was looking for- and more!  We also got a few holiday items that were on sale.  

We talked from Newport to Augusta before I started to get tired.  I ended up dozing off after Gardiner and I woke up when Eliot was slowing down on an exit.  After asking Eliot where we were, he said we were in Topsham and that he wanted a soda.  So we went through the McDonald's drive through and got his soda and chicken nuggets for me.  That woke me back up and we talked the rest of the ride home.  We finally arrived in our driveway around 9:30 pm.

Overall, our 2020 Christmas was a nice quiet weekend to unwind, relax and be grateful for everything... especially after the year we've all had.  The best gift of all was having all of us together and healthy, but we were still so appreciative of all of our gifts!  (We were certainly spoiled!)  Christmas might have looked a little bit different with the social distancing and face masks, but it was worth it to be home for the holidays.  °o°

Fun Find: Magical Quarantine Memes (Part 22)

Happy Friday!  Well, we've survived another week living through the COVID-19 pandemic.  It's hard to believe that it's been over 5 months... 22 weeks... 150 days since the world basically stopped.  To be totally honest, it's been wearing on me a lot this past month.  I'm still having a hard time seeing people act as if life is "normal" when it's anything but normal.  I've decided that after 22 posts, it's time for me to stop my weekly Magical Quarantine Memes.  I've enjoyed posting them... but I need to spend time on some other projects.  Plus, I'm running out of material anyways!  When I started this series, I never imagined that I'd still be posting these 22 weeks later...

However, I still wanted to go out with a bang.  I've rounded up a few of the videos that made me laugh during the bad moments these past few months.  I hope they make you laugh as much as they made me.  If you'd like to see more of my Magical Quarantine Memes series, you can find the rest of my weekly posts here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20 and Part 21.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy these funny videos.

I imagine that this is what a Princess Zoom call would be like: 

The Holderness Family videos have kept me laughing each day they post them.

Seriously, if you like to laugh, you need to follow them!

These videos of Disney characters in quarantine made me laugh so much.

Here's Part 2 of Disney characters in quarantine.

And one more time with Part 3 of Disney characters in quarantine.

I hope these videos made you smile.  I also hope you enjoyed my Magical Quarantine Memes series!  I have a few more memes saved, but I'm going to wait a bit before I post them.  I'm sure as the coming weeks and months pass, I'll come across more of them online.  In the meantime, take care and enjoy your weekend!!!  °o°

Fun Find: Magical Quarantine Memes (Part 21)

Yippee!  TGIF!!!  It's finally Friday.  This has been quite a week and I'm glad it's almost over.  I'm feeling so drained emotionally lately.  But, these silly memes keep my humor going.  This is the last normal Magical Quarantine Memes post that I have for now.  If you're in need of more, you can find the rest of my weekly meme posts here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19 and Part 20.  For now, here's my last round of Magical Quarantine Memes: 

It's that time of year when we trade a swimming pool for back to school.

Not gonna lie... I'm ready to get my Halloween decorations and pumpkins out.  Bring on pumpkin spice everything!!!

My current status after spending most of this summer quarantined at home... 

Yep, most relatable meme for 2020... Apocalypse Bingo!

I'm so glad that I finally got a haircut... let's not discuss my need for a pedicure.

All the movies did not prepare me for this.  Definitely the most boring apocalypse ever.

I don't know what I'd wear to go out... I've lived in pajamas and yoga pants for so long.

Don't like Disney?  Then there's a 0% chance of transmission from me.

Poor pirates... they'll be digging up a lot of buried treasure.

I've got to stay away from the fridge and all the midnight snacky snacks.

This is what we'll all look like after all these quarantine and midnight snacky snacks.

It's a before quarantine snacky snacks and after quarantine snacky snacks time lapse.

I miss people and I'm ready to be able to get together with people again.

I'll be singing this someday... when things finally feel like they're normal again.

Of course, I had to end my magical memes post with another song.  I think this is my favorite of all of the memes I've seen so far.  And, it's still very pertinent five months months later... continue to clean and quarantine like Gaston!

I hope you enjoyed these magical memes.  I've got one more planned post and Part 22 will be coming next Friday!  (Be sure to come back and check it out... it's going to be a really good one!)  Take care of yourselves and enjoy your weekend!!!  °o°

Please Note: I did not make any of these memes and I don't claim ownership of the photos or the jokes.  Most of them I've seen uncredited on Facebook from other people who have shared them.  I just wanted to put them all in one spot so we might try to find some humor in a dark time when we could use a smile.