Y’all, we are SO. OVER. IT. I wish I had some thrilling pictures to share, but Oahu is back under stay-at-home orders and we are facing loneliness, isolation, and discouragement. The days are dragging and it feels like this season will never end. If I’m being honest, our attitudes are pretty crummy a lot of the time. Nothing is going the way we want it to go. But there are smiles and blessings scattered throughout our days and I know there’s some quality time in this pandemic-season if I look for it.
1. Quality (Chore) Time
We’ve been without a dishwasher for about six weeks. And with our big family being home all the time, there are tons and tons of dishes to wash. Don’t be fooled by these silly, smiling bubble-heads. Battles have been fought right where they’re standing. The new dishwasher should be here on Wednesday and we are all literally counting down the days. I keep thinking of the African women who have to haul their water in jugs across miles of deserts and jungles and I realize that these are “first-world-problems”, but sometimes we just whine anyway.
2. Quality (Couch) Time
Did I mention that here on Oahu we’re back under stay-at-home orders AGAIN??? Luckily church is still allowed or we’d be losing our minds. But everything else is closed – beaches, parks, hiking trails, restaurants (take-out only), salons. So we’re doing a lot of couch-laying and i-pad-playing. The fact that we have a beautiful house with a killer view is not lost on me. But it will be nice when we can actually enjoy our beautiful island again.
3. Quality (School) Time
One minor detail you might’ve seen over on The Strong Home on Facebook is that in a completely unexpected turn of events, we completely withdrew all four kids from Hawaii public schools because the distance-learning curriculum they offered us turned out to be developed and run by a polygamist cult leader! I wish I were kidding. This curriculum had cartoon bears who ran from the police and a cartoon pig named Sweetie Lips who blushed and told the bear she couldn’t talk about where she got her name. Again, I wish I were kidding. So homeschool it is. While we’re waiting for our curriculum to sail across the ocean, the kids are subject to mommy-homeschool. We’ve been having fun with it, but dang, it’s a lot of work. And since I’m still holding down a part-time job myself, it’s been quite a challenge. And it’s just not where we expected to be right now.
4. Quality (Shirtless) Time
On a happier note, we’re celebrating the little things over here, like the loss of the last baby-Irving’s two front teeth. This felt like a milestone to me. With six kids, the tooth fairy has worked overtime at our house over the years and she’s wearing out. She’s actually pawning her duties off on the older siblings now. Yesterday when Kylie informed me the tooth fairy had forgotten (AGAIN), I let Katie in on the trick that I’ve used MANY times. I handed her the money and told her to quietly go slip it under Kylie’s pillow and then come out and tell Kylie she better look again because it seems like she just missed it! Maybe the tooth fairy was just running a little late! Even though my kids know the truth about the tooth fairy, this little trick always brings a smile to their faces and has worked umpteen times over the years. I’m so glad I get this little toothless smile to look at all day. Also, Ben doesn’t wear a shirt anymore because IT. IS. HOT.
5. Quality (Sweat) Time
If you asked me what the most challenging part of living in Hawaii is, without missing a beat I would tell you the lack of air conditioning in our home. It is SO HOT. Ben calls the house the hot box and he’s not wrong. Our indoor thermometer usually reads 84 in the afternoon. As a girl who liked to set the thermostat around 70 in Texas, this has been the hardest adjustment for me by far. This little wrap around my neck is drenched in water and it cools me off on the hottest days when work still needs to be done and I can’t just lay in front of the fan.
Side note: check out those gray roots! Did I mention the salons are closed? I couldn’t go see Snip even if I wanted to! (If you haven’t read about the worst haircut ever, click here for a good laugh!)
6. Quality (Hammock) Time
This is my backyard. It’s beautiful. I like to come down the hill to my hammock and watch the clouds come over the mountains. I’m so thankful for this beautiful island and this place to call home. Even with this beautiful view, like most of the world, we are facing problems of all kinds – health problems, financial problems, friend problems, family problems, job-related problems, pandemic-related problems, and non-pandemic-related problems. Most days, I don’t look for the “quality” in the time. One thing I’ve learned though, is that even when circumstances don’t allow you to feel like God is near, the truth is that He is as near as ever.
Today I don’t have any answers for you except to share the encouragement that King Jesus is still on the throne and He is so very near to you. He sees us and He knows us and He remembers us. So if you find yourself facing circumstances that you don’t really want to face and you certainly never saw coming, know that you are not alone.
If I can pray for you, comment below, or shoot me an email at amber@thestronghome.com. I’ve found that one of the best ways to make it through is to bear the burdens of others. It seems a little backward that bearing others’ burdens would lighten your own, but I promise, it works! Please reach out to me and I promise I will listen and bear your burdens with you as I take them to the Father on your behalf. Hang in there, friends.
I loved your haircut story. I have straight hair and I got it cut just before TX shut down in March. So, 2 weeks ago I went to Supercuts, my usual place to get a haircut. I told the gal all one length and about the middle of my neck was where I wanted it to fall. She went a little crazy and cut it about 2 inches shorter than that. I like the curly look so, I pincurl my hair when I want it that way. It is actually OK and it will grow but it was kind of shocking when I curled it the first time and at the bottom, in the back I can’t even hardly get a twist around my finger. I think your last picture looks very nice. Thanks for sharing your experience, sorry for all the anxiety you suffered. It is so hard to find a great, affordable hairdresser. I think, 5 years ago( I’d have to look up the yr to be sure) in Oct. I visited Waikiki with my cousin and her husband. We stayed for 2 weeks in a condo in a high rise over near the zoo. The windows looked out on those lovely mountains. Always such a beautiful sight. We walked up to the farmer’s market by Diamond Head the 2 Sat. we were there and enjoyed the fresh fruits and veggies we bought. Most evenings we trekked down to the beach to capture the sunset. We also went to the zoo. I thank God for the precious sights and memories.
I feel your pain!!! And I’m glad you got to come to Hawaii when it was open and bustling and beautiful. We drove through Waikiki yesterday and it’s a desolate ghost-town. So sad! I sure hope we can rebound from all this craziness one day!