Adjusting our plans: ‘pause mode’

Today we are celebrating our 11 month anniversary of selling our home and embarking on a world adventure!

We have visited 30 countries and had planned to visit many more. We did not have an end date to our trip and we had the next years loosely planned out. But then covid19 happened.

As expected, and as with most of the world’s population, it brought significant changes for us!

We have done a lot of painting, including Easter Eggs

We arrived in Penang, Malaysia in early March for a 10 day stay. From here, we had planned to fly to Taiwan for 5 days and then off to Japan for 3 months! However, when borders started to shut down (mid March) we started debating our options and decided to stay in Penang. We moved into a larger apartment and negotiated a month long stay. Unfortunately, the same day we were to fly out, March 18th, Malaysia implemented the MCO (movement control order). This was a strict lockdown that was very limiting, including not being able to go outside to walk or run or take the kids to the park or anywhere at all. All non essential establishments closing down and even the building facilities (Swimming pool and gym) were closed. Fast forward 1 month and here we are: the MCO has been extended through April 28th, we extended our rent again through the end of May, the kids have not been outside of the building for 3 weeks, still no pool or gym, our daily exercise is limited to walking and running in the hallways of the building.

Overall, we believe we made the right decision in staying here. Malaysia seems to have the covid19 cases under control. With a population of 31.5 million, we have now had 6 consecutive days with <100 new cases/day and only 5,482 cases overall (through April 22nd). Besides this, the cost of living is low and we have found everything we want/need in the local grocery stores. Our apartment is one of the most spacious places we have stayed in the last 11 months, we have a fully equipped kitchen (we have learned to appreciate having some of the basics like an oven, pots, pans, and a normal sized refrigerator), we have big balcony with amazing views and sunrises.

The kids are doing great and are in good spirits. We have kept them busy and have continued to enjoy family time together. As most families abruptly changed their habits and logistics, we have been home schooling and spending 24/7 together for the last 11 months. Obviously, it is very different then exploring different places and being on the go, but the core of being together has not changed much for us during this period.

Langhan noodles made from scratch were delicious

Here are a couple of things we have implemented during the 5 week lockdown:

Structured schedule: although we have been homeschooling for a while, we now have a more defined school/daily schedule for each kid. (See Josefine’s schedule below). This helps the day go by quicker and the kids to stay focussed.
Chore list: each of us has defined chores, which includes: setting the table, doing the dishes, sweeping the floor, helping with laundry, etc
Fun evening schedule: We have defined fun evening plans, such as movie night, Monopoly night, boys vs girls cook offs and Yahtzee night.
Art, Science & elective experiments/projects: we have been working on many projects that can easily be looked up online and implemented with basic materials. Kids loved painting and drawing with Mo Willems and Art for Kids Hub, Josefine has been enjoying experimenting with making recycled paper, Kaio has worked on Rube Goldberg machines and we are all learning a new language through Duolingo. One of our dear friends also launched a fun website with weekly suggestions!
Cooking: Lot’s of cooking. Jason has made a sourdough starter and we have had fun using it for many dishes like pizzas, bread, brioche, cookies and focaccia. Jason also started experimenting with a rice fermented alcoholic drink (he misses home brewing!!). The kids have also joined in with picking recipes and helping us cook. It’s been fun exploring local ingredients and dishes. We have made Langhman noodles from scratch, Chicken Kung Pau, ravioli, sauerkraut and many others.
Staying active: we are trying to stay active with Zumba/dance sessions, online workout classes and walking the hallways of the building (which luckily have very wide and long hallways and low occupancy). We also started with daily burpees and plank as a family. We are almost at a 60 day streak! (Even Madeline has joined us and is doing 10 burpees/day)
Daily inspiration quote: each of us is responsible for writing down a quote on a white board. This has been interesting to see what the kids come up with and we take the opportunity to talk about it with examples and experiences. Our quote for yesterday was:
“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment,
until it becomes a memory”
(Dr. Seuss)