The Covid 19 Diaries | A visual diary of our quarantine on the North Shore of Oahu
On March 12 we boarded our plane to Los Angeles, the first leg of our long awaited trip to Europe. Coronavirus was already taking over Europe and we had already made some decisions as far as our itinerary goes. Originally we were supposed to spend most of our trip in Italy, but with the country going into lockdown, we saw our plans change very quickly.
We spent a year planning this trip. 6 amazing weeks traveling through Europe with our kids. We spent a year saving every single dollar for this trip. We weighted the risks and the pros, and decided to still go and adapt as needed.
By March 20 it had become obvious we had to go back home or risk staying in England for an indefinite period of time. We had a plan A and a plan B, and thankfully I have family in England that were willing to take us in in case we got stranded.
Hawaii announced the state was putting in effect stay at home orders and a mandatory 14 days quarantine to anyone entering the sate, as well as stopping most flights coming into the state. We knew we had to go home because at this point we didn’t know if the quarantine would be in a facility, in our own home, and we weren’t sure if the airports would close or not. So after many hours trying to reach the airline companies, we changed our flights to come back home on March 22.
We have no regrets about going. It was the trip of a lifetime, even if it was cut short and it was amid a pandemic. The kids were amazing on the long 11 hours flights and were such troopers and amazing little travelers while we were out and about exploring, hiking and dealing with extreme jet lag. That story will be told with its own set of images in a different blog post, but I really wanted to document our quarantine and our experience during the stay at home orders once we arrived home.
DAY 01 - March 23, 2020
We landed in Honolulu at 12:30pm on the day the stay at home orders went into effect. We arrived home and showered plus washed all our travel clothes and sanitized all the backpacks and luggages. Everybody was asleep by 4:30pm.
DAY 02 - March 24, 2020
Lukka and Maili were up at around 1:30am 💀 They watched movies and fed themselves while me and Gui took turns being asleep or awake.
We stayed home and unpacked more stuff. The trampoline was a much needed activity for the kids and then me, Lukka and Maili worked out in the afternoon. We were all asleep by 6pm
DAY 03 - March 25, 2020
I spent the day canceling the rest of our Europe trip and requesting refunds. This part sucked.
DAY 04 - March 26, 2020
I edited in the morning. The kids are playing really well together, which I’m thankful for.
They went outside and played on the trampoline while Gui marked the new deck area he will start building soon. Gui and me worked out together in the evening and it was an incredibly hard workout while being jet lagged.
DAY 05 - March 27, 2020
Found some sidewalk chalk and drew on the wall that will be demoed.
DAY 06 - March 28, 2020
Today was Theo’s 2nd birthday. We were supposed to be with them in Europe to celebrate and instead we are still oceans apart. Bittersweet day for sure.
DAY 07 - March 29, 2020
Gui and Sean started the demolition of the front porch. I cleaned the whole house because Lukka’s allergies were flaring up real bad.
After much consideration, we all decided Lukka and Maili could start playing with Jack and Olivia, our neighbors. The kids were so stoked they screamed when they ran to each other.
DAY 08 - March 30, 2020
The kids are having a blast playing together. The Moodys bought an inflatable water slide and they played all day on that thing while the dads finished the porch demo on our house.
DAY 09 - March 31, 2020
Maili helped me make Vovó Lana’s cake recipe that dad loves so much.
DAY 10 - April 01, 2020
Lukka started online school yesterday. He has a list of weekly assignments he needs to do and it’s already a hard format since he misses his teacher and his friends.
DAY 11 - April 02, 2020
Gui started building the frame of the new porch and we spent the day walking up and down a board to access the front door.
DAY 12 - April 03, 2020
Fridays will be for Webex meetings with his teacher and classmates. They are mostly doing math lessons when they meet.
DAY 13 - April 04, 2020
Rainy and gloomy day here in Hawaii, so I decided to dust off the sewing machine and sew animal dolls with the kids.
DAY 14 - April 05, 2020
14th straight day in the house, and the fulfillment of our quarantine orders so I decided to take the kids for a quick swim in the ocean to drown the yucky feelings. We drove for a while until we found a deserted beach in Mokuleia. 20 minutes after arriving, these 3 older ladies walked up and started swimming right next to my kids. We got so upset that we left.
DAY 15 - April 06, 2020
Baked cookies with the kids, decided we should do a green smoothie everyday to keep our bodies healthy, and caught up with my family in Brazil via Facetime.
DAY 16 - April 07, 2020
Gui started building skate ramps for Proper Rideshop to sell. The yard has turned into a full crazy construction site with the porch and deck still being built and the ramps on the other side.
DAY 17 - April 08, 2020
Lukka got to test the ramp dad built. After weeks of not being able to skate, he was so stoked.
DAY 18 - April 09, 2020
The quarantine crew. So thankful the kids have each other to play with through this crazy time. Also, stairs are being built! So I basically spent my day making sure the kids didn’t fall through the holes.
DAY 19 - April 10, 2020
Baking date with tia Jô, tia Una and Theo today <3 Tia Jô walked them through a chocolate cake recipe.
DAY 20 - April 11, 2020
20 days of quarantine. Man! I am amazed at how well the kids are doing and how well they’re playing with each other most of the time. We have good days and bad days, but the good days are definitely more frequent.
DAY 21 - April 12, 2020
Easter morning quarantined at home. Aunty Mele put out some eggs for them by the gate and they were so happy to look for them. We watched the Easter service online and had dinner with the Moodys at night.
DAY 22 - April 13, 2020
Gui has been keeping busy outside building the deck and building ramps. So thankful he has something to do. I cannot imagine him not being able to work. He would go absolutely crazy.
DAY 23 - April 14, 2020
Maili has also been having Webex meetings with her teacher every Tuesday. She is not interested though. It’s so hard to keep her interested and engaged. I decided I won’t force anything since this format of learning is not the norm and we were supposed to be missing school anyway if we were still traveling.
DAY 24 - April 15, 2020
Virtual art lesson with tia Jô today. They loved it.
DAY 25 - April 16, 2020
Apparently flour is a hot commodity these days. It’s sold out everywhere online and on island. Me and Carly went to Down to Earth and Whole Foods on a grocery run but there was no flour. Then one of the guys at Down to Earth Pearlridge called us to say some had arrived so we went straight back there to buy whatever we could. Sanitizing groceries is a pain in the butt.
DAY 26 - April 17, 2020
Lukka tested some more ramps for dad.
DAY 27 - April 18, 2020
I decided to play guitar everyday if I can. We’ve also been watching The Voice as a family and that has made Lukka want to pick up the guitar again as well.
DAY 28 - April 19, 2020
The porch and the deck are done! It still needs to be stained but we got to hang our hammocks and enjoy this amazing space that Gui built.
DAY 29 - April 20, 2020
I ordered trampoline sprinklers on amazon and they arrived today. We installed them on top the top of the net but the hose exploded and we had to take it down and put it on the bottom to try and salvage it.
DAY 30 - April 21, 2020
More ramp testing for dad. This time Lukka tested a grind box and the kicker that can connect to it.
DAY 31 - April 22, 2020
Small things that I want to remember, like having hot dogs for lunch while sitting on the new deck.
DAY 32 - April 23, 2020
Quiet, lazy afternoons with these two watching movies.
DAY 33 - April 24, 2020
Maili had to wear a mask this week for a trip to the ER, so I sewed us some. It was her first time wearing one and it was a battle to keep it on. She was having severe pain on her left arm and chest and woke up with a fever the next day, but thankfully they ruled out coronavirus and any heart problems, and she’s hopefully on the mend. Hats off to the Kapiolani Medical Center staff for being so patient with her, hearing what she had to say and even giving her a huge box of shopkins as a reward for being so brave with all the tests they had to run on her
DAY 34 - April 25, 2020
A few weeks ago I bought an assault bike. It was a big investment and one we went back and forth a lot on. But I’m so happy we decided to go for it. It’s been used everyday since I brought it home and it’s helped us stay motivated to work out everyday.
DAY 35 - April 26, 2020
Out of focus shot but a little moment I want to remember: Maili sitting on the swing to counter balance it for Lukka while he swung high to touch his toes on the tarp that dad is using as a makeshift shop cover.
DAY 36 - April 27, 2020
We went to the Billabong House for the day to celebrate Jack’s birthday. It was the kids’ first time leaving the house since this quarantine started.
DAY 37 - April 28, 2020
The ramp production continues and these little assistants were all over the place.
DAY 38 - April 29, 2020
Got some sourdough starter from Carly a few days ago and have been learning how to keep it alive and use it for bread, which hasn’t worked yet, and waffles. That has worked amazingly well and everyone loves it!
DAY 39 - April 30, 2020
Gui got this finger board ramp from Proper Rideshop and the kids got to build (most of it) by themselves. We lost a lot of nails that fell through the gaps on the deck.
DAY 40 - May 01, 2020
Lukka got to go to Isaac’s house to deliver a ramp Gui built for the Berlin’s.
DAY 41 - May 02, 2020
After 6 failed attempts and lots of wasted flour (which is still hard to find) I finally nailed a sourdough loaf!
DAY 42 - May 03, 2020
Heber, Karen and Caleb spent the day with us today! We took them for a beach dip in Mokuleia and barbecued with Gui’s new barbecue. Felt amazing to dive and hold my breath until I literally got dizzy. I’ve missed the ocean so much.
DAY 43 - May 04, 2020
Found Maili napping on the couch. This is the first nap she’s taken in a long time.
DAY 44 - May 05, 2020
Gui made a new ramp with bricks and he’s stoked.
DAY 45 - May 06, 2020
We decided to head to the beach for an afternoon swim after an incredibly hot and frustrating day. Felt amazing to get in the cold water. We even saw a turtle swim by.
DAY 46 - May 07, 2020
Lukka and Maili made necklaces with fishing weights we found at the beach yesterday.
DAY 47 - May 08, 2020
The kids wanted me to go in the wet trampoline with them and when I saw the rainbows I had to grab my camera and water housing and try to capture them.
DAY 48 - May 09, 2020
We tried making a rainbow out of tissue paper hearts but the execution failed miserably. These are the only ones that stuck to the glass.
DAY 49 - May 10, 2020
Spent the day at the Billabong house again and got to learn how to make laulau with auntie Tiare.
DAY 50 - May 11, 2020
Gui got to surf at Pipeline. The spring swells are going off.
DAY 51 - May 12, 2020
We’ve been watching a Harry Potter movie each night and the kids are finally into it! I got them a surprise lego from the 3rd movie and they were so stoked about a little quarantine gift.
DAY 52 - May 13, 2020
Decided to attempt a Mexican sweet bread called conchas, but with sourdough. It turned out amazingly delicious.
DAY 53 - May 14, 2020
Lukka finally picked up the guitar again and spent a few hours playing today.
DAY 54 - May 15, 2020
Ordered a pool online after not finding one forever. It came on the same day as the water beads that I ordered for the kids, so that meant 4 hours of sensorial entertainment.
DAY 55 - May 16, 2020
Lukka finally agreed to go surfing because Sean was taking Jack too. While the boys paddled out, me and Maili went for a little dive.
DAY 56 - May 17, 2020
Maili’s last day as a 6 year old. We took the kids to the Kahuku track so they could ride their dirt bikes after weeks of them being closed. Uncle Josh, Zion and Zeke were also there and Maili got to try Zeke’s gas dirt bike. A year ago she learned how to ride a bike without training wheels so we would giver her an electric dirt bike. It was cool to see the progression a year later of her riding an actual gas dirt bike and nailing it.
DAY 57 - May 18, 2020
Maili’s 7th birthday was in the middle of the quarantine. We decided to invite a handful of our closest friends that we had had contact with through this pandemic so she could have some fun with friends and celebrate her birthday. I made burger buns and burger patties and Gui grilled them, the kids played in the pool, hit the piñata pretty hard and ate too much cake and candy. The highlight was the plank that Tio Serginho invented and the kids went nuts jumping from it into the pool.
DAY 58 - May 19, 2020
Gui built me a raised planter box and I’m growing green onion, garlic, basil and cilantro. I also transplanted mint, cilantro and basil and they are doing so well!
DAY 59 - May 20, 2020
Lukka driving Jack and Olivia around on Maili’s dirt bike like they belong in Bali while Gui builds the Moody’s barbecue area.
DAY 60 - May 21, 2020
Lukka has been belly flopping in the pool all day long with Jack.
DAY 61 - May 22, 2020
Lukka started complaining about ear ache. He couldn’t sleep at night because he was in so much pain. I figured it has to be swimmer’s ear, so we deflated the pool for a few days while he gets better.
DAY 62 - May 23, 2020
DAY 63 - May 24, 2020
Lukka asked me to cut his hair to get it off his back. I was so scared to mess it up but it turned out ok.
DAY 64 - May 25, 2020
Memorial Day. Gui did “Murph” for the first time and this was my third year doing this workout in honor of those who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom. At night we watched the movie “Lone Survivor” that tells the story of Michael Murphy and how him and his men died in combat.
DAY 65 - May 26, 2020
We took the kids out for the first time today. We all wore masks and went grocery shopping at Costco. It felt like we were in a weird movie.
DAY 66 - May 27, 2020
Maili has been getting the mail everyday with her little basket.
DAY 67 - May 28, 2020
We went to Home Depot with the kids to return the sander Gui had rented and also to buy some more plants. I finally found some Monstera babies for the deck and when we got home we caught Lukka listening to music on my phone looking like a teenager.
DAY 68 - May 29, 2020
Lukka went in uncle Sean’s sauna for the first time and lasted 18 minuted in there!
DAY 69 - May 30, 2020
Gui got an order for a ramp from Parker and we were all so excited. Lukka helped him test the ramp and push it around to test the weight.
DAY 70 - May 31, 2020
DAY 71 - June 01, 2020
It’s been incredibly hot and Lukka’s ear is finally better so we decided to go for a beach swim to cool off.
Day 72 - June 02, 2020
Megan, Parker, Finn and Baby Kaleb came to get the ramp today. Lukka and Parker skated on their ramps in the garage for quite some time before they had had to leave.
