Scotland Prequel: COVID

 Okay.....I promise to get to all that was the amazing Scotland 2021 trip, but it just wouldn't have the same feel unless I set you up with a prequel.  Stress anyone??

So without getting into any conversations here, COVID has made everything a lot more complicated and involved, travelling being a big one.  Now the silver lining is that there are far fewer tourists out and about willing to jump through all the hoops.  Knowing this I prepped myself for a bunch more logistics leading up to this trip but LORDY I had  no idea what we were going to have to go through.

Bob and I are vaccinated......lets get that out of the way.  At this stage in the world the only way to be able to travel without the need to quarantine for 10 days upon arrival is to have a 2 shot vaccination record and a pre-departure negative COVID test.  Cool, that we can do.  In addition to that, the United Kingdom also requires an additional test taken on day 2 of your trip just to confirm your negative status.  That test has to be booked before you leave and has to be sent to the address you are staying at in Scotland.  Okay......but you shouldn't book that test until you are sure that you are negative and will even be arriving in Scotland at all.  Oy.

After months of prepping for this trip we had 4 failure points that quite honestly were completely out of our control.  I didn't expect all the stress that knowledge was going to bring.  Bob and I ended up purchasing very good (and expensive) travelers insurance for all of the what ifs taking copious COVID tests might bring.  So we waited and worried (well I worried) for a good 3 weeks. What if we pop a random positive and have to postpone the whole thing? What if we are negative and get there and pop a positive?  What happens if we have a negative trip and then pop a positive before coming home?  What if, What if?  And darn it, I really, really, REALLY want to go!!!!!  So I sweated all of the small things while counting down the days to our October 1 pre departure test.

Then came September 22nd, when we picked up Evie from school with a headache.......24 hours later.

Evie Longmire you are POSITIVE for COVID

(insert bad word here)

So we had to test all of us.

Lily Longmire you are POSITIVE for COVID

(INSERT BAD WORD HERE)

Both Bob and I were NEGATIVE, but completely quarantined with 2 positive COVID cases for the 2 weeks before out trip to Scotland.  YEP.....not even kidding oh and we were back doing remote learning, yay........(sense the tone).

Now, thankfully neither of the girls had any major symptoms so I can tease a bit, but I could not believe it. We tried to distract ourselves (and disinfect ourselves) by going to the pool everyday and we even paddleboarded on the lake!

The week leading up to our trip was unreal.  I desperately tried to cast all my cares on Christ, but I was so blown away by our luck.  No covid for 1.5 years and the girls pop positives 2 weeks before our Scotland trip.  Oy.

I am grateful for immunity AND the Pfizer vaccine, because in the past 3 weeks Bob and I have been tested 5 times each, have lived in close contact with 2 positive cases, and never once popped a positive.  It felt DIVINE!

The Friday we took our pre departure test I don't think I slept a wink all night waiting for that go/no go text.

When our results came through and they were negative and I was able to actually believe we were going, I was giddy.  

We had done it.....now lets go to Scotland!