Week 5 of lockdown and cabin fever is setting in. The home has become the centre of my world. With my daily stretch of the legs out of doors a welcome escape from the four walls. Last week saw the extension of lockdown for another three weeks. I saw it coming, but that doesn’t mean I had accepted my, our, the nation’s fate. I was still hoping to move freely outside of my home, visit places, look at stuff, talk to people in person. I am just missing normal.

After all this week I am in Rome, I mean at home, on a staycation decorating. End of day one of the holiday I have finally decided it is my turn to clean the rollers and brushes. Never again: I am wet, cold, and bored. The shower feels like it’s burning my face, hands and toes. But fair is fair, I didn’t do any cleaning of the brushes or rollers from the bedroom we decorated over Easter. Thank goodness we are on the home stretch now, only glossing to go before we can put the room back together, I can’t wait. Staycation DIY success here we come.

The glossing is done in a day or would have been if we didn’t have a dalmatian, I mean Labrador. We start well, fussing Lady, glossing the many skirting boards and six doors, that by afternoon we are finished – or so we think. It is time to get Lady out for a walk and our much deserved one outing of the day. Just as I go to open the door, I step backwards, and Lady’s back leg brushes up against the door frame. I can’t help but laugh at our new dalmatian! In the meantime, my partner is sighing at the gloss work that will now be tomorrow’s job. A wash, groom and sunbathe on the bed later and we have our Labrador back. Well at least Lady is embracing holiday mode, dressing up, pampering, and sunbathing.

In holiday mode we lie in, big mistake when we had gone to bed early exhausted from a day of DIY. The extra sleep results in us feeling more lethargic: It’s so backwards I know. But easily remedied by returning back to our bed and rising routine, including exercise, planning food, a relax app – things that I can’t do without.

One day back in routine and I feel so much more relaxed and energised to enjoy my staycation. But planning food to stick to the Slimming World plan doesn’t mean we can’t extend Easter and enjoy some delicious treats. We start the week with a lamb roast, the meat from which we enjoy into the week in a range of sandwiches and delicious variations.  The Easter bunny is definitely running late as they add chocolate eggs, cream eggs and chocolate into our baskets at the supermarket. These treats also create a delicious millionaires shortcake. As we were in Rome from home this week, we also enjoyed a fair amount of pasta including some large conchiglie shells made in Italy.

While at the shops this week, we are also shopping for a friend’s birthday. But what to buy someone for a lockdown birthday?  Chocolate? But it has just been Easter. Alcohol? Not very thoughtful. Flowers? The selection in the shop is deplorable as a non-essential item and I don’t have time to get an online delivery due to current delays. Then I see it: Frozen 2. I forgot it has been released and all my problems are once more solved by Disney. That and a bag of self-raising flour as my friend is wanting to bake a cake. Luckily, she lives within walking distance so we can drop a gift at her door. The gift is well received with smiles and a social media post of cake eating and movie watching. It looks like my friend is joining in our holiday feeling.

The holiday feeling has stayed into the week. It’s Thursday and I am feeling really relaxed. And the realisation has just hit me, we haven’t watched one Covid-19 update via the news, the government’s daily briefing or any social media. It really has felt like a break. I feel more present in the moment and able to take in my surroundings. On my walk today I feel like I am seeing some things for the first time, things look different, the skyline changed by spring in full bloom. A Cherry blossom tree, my favourite of all, is showering summer snow everywhere.

This staycation isn’t so bad, on our way home we even see an old neighbour, something we couldn’t have done in Rome. It feels like old times, even if we are separated by a car and two meters. However, the conversation is flowing about old times, current times, future times. It makes our staycation feel more normal.

However, technology has meant we can achieve so much from home. This week we have visited the bank to move the mortgage. We even go to Rome, just not as planned, we see the sights and although we can’t actually touch or taste or smell anything, we can see the splendour of Rome.