Sat/Sun 25-26 April

Days 41 and 42 and the end of the sixth week in lockdown.

Here's an overview of our weekend in 'bullet journal' format ...

• Friday night Sabbath: 

Connecting with friends, and an opportunity to share communion together remotely (with the added bonus of a first outing for Tim's newly turned chalice).

• Friday night pizza & movie: 

Since not actually sharing a Sabbath meal with friends in person, we have been following our online Sabbath ritual with pizza and a movie. In this case sourdough pizza base for the family, with cauliflower base for me. Bearing in mind that 'everything is spiritual,' this seems like a perfect Sabbath's eve alternative.

• Saturday pancake brunch:

Ordinarily, Saturday brunch feels very well deserved because it follows a long run of some sort. In this case, we did a home workout and enjoyed a good sweat so, although nowhere near as satisfying as running, we felt we earned our pancakes!

Confession: I texted the kids to let them know we were sitting down to pancakes. While I loath this sort of communication within the home, I felt this at least gave them the option to join us if they were actually awake ... and if not, we would enjoy uninterrupted couple-time.

Manu claimed she didn't see the text, but she arrived within 60 seconds of this photo being taken. Kids have a sixth sense when it comes to food (and the possibility of uninterrupted couple-time!).

'Quick' trip the shops:

Of course, it is never a quick thing to go to the store these days. Tim was looking for wholemeal flour, among other things, and it has become impossible to find. He queued for ages just to get into Lidl, only to discover another long queue inside the store. Aside from the question of safety, it has simply become easier to stay home and make do with what we've got.

• Garden love:

I have missed being able to go to the garden centre for seasonal plants or cut flowers. Tim happened to find these pots in Lidl, so he and Keziah planted them and did a bit of garden tidying.

• New skills:

 Not really sure that Tim on a skateboard qualifies as a skill ... but some of us learned new skills this weekend. Manu made tomato soup for the first time, and I got started on a fabric art project I have been meaning to play around with for a while. And yes, Tim did test his balancing abilities on Manu's skateboard!

• Doggy cuddles:

Really, this requires no explanation. Canine cuddles are always good, and in lockdown even better.

• Online Sunday service:

We have loved connecting with our church family in Exeter, England, and enjoy the way Zoom gives us the opportunity to see many people's faces. The informality of the Zoom service is really lovely and everyone is being real about the challenges of being confined at home. While it feels strange that after almost 7 years here we are still more easily connecting elsewhere, this feels like the time to simply receive the gift of connection, however it comes.

• Hayfever and other irritations:

Quite frankly, it feels wrong that at such a time we still face the irritations and challenges of ordinary life. Surely there is enough going on, without being plagued by blocked drains, or slow Internet, or hayfever. And still these relatively small and yet truly annoying setbacks continue to be part of our reality. And this weekend saw us (I say 'us' in the very broadest and most generous of terms) unblocking bathroom drains and resetting a laboriously slow Internet.

While 'we' were busy, I sniffed, sneezed and rubbed my horribly itchy eyes. The photo is of the beautiful almond blossom - it is the olive pollen I am allergic to.

• Couples yoga stretch:

Too much weights, jumping and compound movements, without enough stretching, makes for unhappy muscles. During the week, I work out early in the morning and Tim in the afternoons, so weekends are a good time for a catch-up stretch.

Also a great way to reset and breathe ...!

• Lockdown let-ups:

And finally, today - after 42 days confined to our own home and garden - Manu was allowed out for a walk. Kids up to the age of 13 are now permitted to walk within a 1km radius of their homes, for up to an hour.

Word on the street is that many family groups were out, in a sudden and alarming swing back from the severe lockdown strategy in play here in Spain. One friend took her kids out and ended up going home when she saw how many people were crowding the street. I can't imagine the easing of restrictions will continue unless everyone plays it safe, and the numbers continue to move in the right direction.

Let's see.