Tuesday 14th April 2020
As we entered week four of the UK lockdown, it seemed that warp-girl was asking more and more about when we could go out again and when we could visit Granny and Grampy. It had been 26 days since Boris Johnson had called the lockdown – telling us to stay at home – and although she had adapted pretty well to the sudden change, I think she was starting to miss the visits to the park and other family members. When I had spoken to Dad on the phone a few days ago, we’d mentioned video calling, but we hadn’t done it yet, so (prompted by warp-girls puppy dog impression) I decided today was the day. I did a little bit of research and found several possible programs that we could use; FaceTime, Google Duo, Skype, Zoom, I could go on; and finally settled on Skype as it seemed the best one to set up a stand alone account using the laptop (I am really not a fan of ‘apps’ that want to link to all manner of social media accounts and tell all and sundry what you had for tea). It didn’t take too long to set up and then rang Dad, who also set up an account, and we stayed on the phone while we attempted to get the video call up and running. This proved to be a bit of a chore… But once we both figured out how the ‘find’ each other and then ‘invite’ each other and then start a call… ‘Got it! …no, wait, not a voice call! A video call…sorry, I hung up…there we go…oh, why can’t I see you…’ …we FINALLY cracked it! warp-girl loved it. She was able to tell Granny and Grampy about all the doggy tea parties and Big Bear birthdays we’d had and show them all the school work she’d been doing. Next it was warp-boy’s turn. He was very excited which was mainly expressed through dinosaur roars and poking the laptop screen. Then Granny and Grampy were were able to tell them all about the adventures that they and Eddy the Teddy had been having (Eddy the Teddy is the bear that warp-girl and warp-boy bought Granny and Grampy for their Anniversary…parents of small children who watch Peppa Pig will understand this…). It wasn’t quite the same as visiting them of course, but it was really nice to actually see them and chat ‘face to face’ as opposed to over the phone (even if it was challenging trying to keep everyone in shot. The Skype call definitely helped us all miss each other a little less and we will definitely be video calling again soon.