We went to Sun Valley (a bunch), Palm Desert, Maui and probably other places I am forgetting. We are doing much more, for the first time in nearly two years. We are not out of the woods yet – Covid is still real and you are still not vaccinated. But mom and dad are vaccinated, and we are getting back to the life we love, even though we are not there yet.

Funny story. We had plans to go to Maui in April of this year (2021). It was going to be the first trip we had done since January of 2020 due to the covid outbreak. Being blunt, as I normally am, your mother and I see this whole thing a bit differently. If you can imagine this – she is overboard cautious and I am likely underboard (is that a word?) concerned. She is quite scared of this thing while I don’t see it as a serious threat, more like a cold/flu that you should try to protect against and be aware of, but not something to change the world for. We will see how this opinion ages in time :).

Anyway – we had Maui planned and both really wanted to go, as did both of you. Your mom was reticent if we were not vaccinated, which I can understand but would not have stopped me. We continued to converse about it for weeks. Finally she came to the conclusion that if we were not vaccinated that we could not travel. I of course would respect her wishes, but also realllllly want to go.

The Saturday morning following this decision I woke up and decided I needed to solve for it. I left early (after brining you guys your hot chocolate that you get every Saturday morning – you also get donuts every Sunday), and went to the pharmacies. We were not yet eligible to get the vaccine as it was reserved only for those that were 65+ or had illnesses that warranted it. But you could go to the various places and get on wait lists, and if someone didn’t show they would give you a ring and you could come get the dose so it didn’t go to waste (it was time sensitive).

I went to 8 pharmacies. All 8 put me on a list with very little expectations around calling. But, around 3:30 that day, I got a call from Fred Meyer up on Federal Way. They had two doses that were going to go un-used, but they needed to be used by 4pm. I told your mom, we, almost literally, threw you both in the car, and headed up. We got our first dose and were guaranteed our second while there. It gave your mom the solace she needed to get on a plane and fly to Maui (btw, for the last two years nearly it has been required to wear masks on planes, and many other places, which is why you are wearing them in the pictures).

As you can see in the pictures below, we had a blast in Maui. In August, after we and Tita were fully vaccinated, we also went to Palm Desert for her 90th birthday. Sun Valley and McCall have also been places we have been going as my company is still work from home and will be likely forever – so we go vacation and I can just work from wherever we are.

Buggy, you are becoming quite the skier. Spent a lot of time with you over the winter and even after your 7th birthday as it was a long season, and you are improving each day. Normally you and I just go up. We can ski green runs together, and I am always amazed at your progress.

You are a beautiful girl. Still as sweet as ever. You are also starting to develop your personality. You are beginning to come into your own. I love that, but also makes me sad as I know I will lose some of the attachment as that occurs. It’s perfectly normal and healthy – but it still saddens me a bit.

I also worry about how working from home will impact all of us and the expectations that are set. Prior to covid I would be in the office after I dropped you at school (8am) and home by 6:30pm. This new work from home setup is far more preferable for seeing you and Ethan, but I worry that since I can see you more and in between meetings, that when I leave it will seem like I work more than I did, which is obviously not the case. This is a new thought I have had recently so just wanted to capture it here – I hope this does not come to fruition.

I cannot tell you how much you mean to me. You are the light that fills my day. When I cannot sleep, travel or have anxiety/restlessness – you are the factor that calms me. I just think of you. While you never know how things are going to work out, and I know that we will have our issues in the future just based on how life evolves, I hope we always stay close. You are my rock. I don’t know how else to say it. You will never know the impact and happiness that you brought to my life. I hope you just keep being you, because you are amazing.

I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad