Silver Bells and Silver Linings: Year in Review 2020

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to our beloved family and friends! Here in our little corner of the Pacific Northwest, we are doing well this Christmas season, quietly humming "All I want for Christmas is a Covid vaccine". This year has been one of quiet and contemplation more so than other years, of re-assessing what our priorities are and should be, and in finding joy in novel ways. 

In March, the week Covid was declared a global pandemic, Shaun started a new job. He had been planning to do so for months, and was looking forward to it since he would be working for a non-profit where he had volunteered for years. Covid made the adjustment back to work even harder - not only did Shaun have to learn new skills, a new team, and the typical learning curve that comes with a new job, he also had to pioneer the way for migrating his non-profit's work online. Shaun is the Program Manager for Pongo Poetry Project, where volunteers write poetry with youth in detention centers, schools, and psychiatric centers. The guided poetry techniques Pongo uses are powerful tools for helping youth process and heal from trauma. 

Shaun and Adam with Pongo's newly published collection of youth poetry, which Shaun edited!

Besides transitioning into a new job, we had a lot of other transitions to adjust to earlier this year. Adam transitioned to daycare full-time, which thankfully has stayed open this year. I took a salary cut (along the rest of my company) for a few months at the beginning of the pandemic. A business trip I had scheduled for March was cancelled. In April, I began adjusting to work from home for the long-term. That meant setting up a proper home office. I scheduled an appointment to go into my work's office and retrieve my monitor, chair, and personal items, not knowing when I would ever return to the office. 

Many of the events we were looking forward to this year were cancelled. Playgrounds closed. In August, there were wildfires and smoke made it unsafe to go outside - so Shaun got creative and took Adam on a ferry ride, where he could run around inside. All the toddler gyms, museums, and other indoor spaces were closed so there was really not much else we could do.

But despite the challenges, there were still bright spots, and indeed even "silver linings" this year: 

In April and May, we celebrated Easter and then Adam's birthday alone. That was really hard for me. There were no Easter Egg hunts to take Adam to, or in-person church services. But we were able to invite out-of-town guests to partake in Zoom calls - people who wouldn't normally be able to participate were able to join in and make these days special. 

Adam on his second birthday.

We got to visit family in California in September. We had to take a risk in traveling, but we are so glad we did. We saw family and even my friend Kim and her family. We spent an afternoon at the beach, went to the zoo and rode the train, and enjoyed celebrating the births of my cousins' babies. And Adam loved playing at Grantie Joy's and Gruncle Rick's amazing playroom! 

Enjoying the beach in Goleta, CA.

We were also able to visit Shaun's Dad Tony and Debbie in their new house in Colorado, and one of the highlights of our trip was the beautiful James Ranch, where we had a memorable farm-to-table lunch. 

Adam at James Ranch, where we watched the cows go into the milking station.

Working from home has a lot of advantages, and it's one of my favorite "silver linings" this year. I'm able to pick Adam up in the afternoons, which I wasn't able to do due to my commute when I worked in downtown Seattle. I would hop on my e-bike to pick Adam up from daycare, then we'd go to a park for a picnic. Also, my company, Getty Images, has gotten creative about how to create culture in a remote work setting. One of the things I've loved is that they initiated language exchange groups. I've been part of a Spanish speaking group for a few months now. And with the extra time not commuting, I've also been gardening and reading a lot more than in other years. And during my lunch break, I take long walks through different parts of the neighborhood, often listening to an e-book along the way. 

Adam "working" on my e-bike.

We were also able to refinance our house at a historically low rate. I think this is one example of how we've been able to take advantage of a bad situation. Covid has been devastating is so many ways, but at least we're able to pay less in mortgage interest as a result of the low mortgage rates this year. 

Shaun also continued forging his online presence as a literary fan boy, writing 8 literary reviews all published on the arts and culture magazine, PopMatters. Two of these were interviews with published novelists!

One of the harder parts of Covid has been how isolating it is. I miss getting together with friends, having parties, getting to meet new people. This year has been one where meeting new people is almost taboo. So I had to think creatively. I decided to search online for online moms groups, and found one in my neighborhood! I joined an online MOPS group (Mothers of Preschoolers), which normally meets during the weekdays, but is now meeting online at night. So in normal times, I wouldn't have been able to join, but this year, due to Covid, I actually can! We recently did a "Paint and Sip" night, which I never thought I'd be doing via Zoom! 

My hope in sharing these little anecdotes is that others reading this who may feel discouraged, isolated, frustrated, for whatever reasons, will take heart that good can come out of bad situations. The God I know is so powerful, that he is able to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine! We hope you've been able to find some "silver linings" this year as well. Here's to a 2021 full of peace and joy for you and your loved ones. 

Stay connected with us! Subscribe to this blog here (we only post a couple times per year), or follow Kaitlin on Instagram and Shaun on Instagram. :-)