Heartbreaking to have a ten month granddaughter in Australia

My two small DGDs live in Australia, we have been able to visit them every year since they were born, normally we would have flights booked by now and I would be getting excited about seeing them. My other 2 DGDs live in the UK and we only saw them twice last year, even a visit on Boxing Day had to be cancelled because of the change from 5 days to 1. But we MUST accept things for what they are, we are all in the same boat and there's nothing we can do except be sensible and try not to catch or spread the virus. You sound as though you are making yourself ill with worry and longing - not good. I' m sure your daughter will cope very well without you being there, mothers manage much worse situations, as others have said, she can put her studies on hold. Try to make the most of video calls and photos. We've got the vaccine so (hopefully) things will get better soon. Look forward to the future - you can't change the present.

Living in the U.S. I am thankful that I can see and cuddle with my grandkids. I like to forget the early days of the 'pandemic' when I, we all, were also afraid of the virus that turns out to be not as deadly as first thought. Because of that, this virus should no longer be on the WHO A list of horridly dangerous diseases like Ebola, but it still is. When a virus is on the A list, vaccinations may be fast tracked if developed. And that is what is happening.
Personally, I am no longer fearful of this virus. I will abide by wearing a mask in the stores, but will refuse to wear it if ever it would be mandated out of doors, for sure.
I get a sick feeling thinking back of when we had to keep our distance from our kids and especially grandkids, and later meeting with them, but only outdoors and with masks. So, I totally get what you yearn for; the close contact with your loved ones and being with the grandchildren. I hope it will be possible before too long for you. Best wishes to all of you who are feeling the emotional effects of this!

I though US was still in the middle of a DEADLY virus where’s the information that it’s not as dead.y as first thought come from Funoms
you related to Donald ? ???

FunOma The early days of the pandemic will be exceeded by the numbers infected with the disease in the next months (and dying). Here is a link to US statistics, up to January 1st
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html Do scroll down the page to the graph "New reported deaths by day"
"The pandemic reshaped the United States in 2020. Millions of people tested positive. The death toll surpassed the population of St. Louis or Cincinnati. And even as the new year approached, the country continued to set records for cases and deaths.

Another here with grandchildren in Perth, they’re safe, we’re doing our best to keep safe and we’ll all be able to hug in person later this year or next. Hang on in there.
I did my degree in Brisbane with one small child and another arrived in year three, only support was a wonderful husband.
My parents came for a short holiday and we returned to the UK five years later where the boys formed a wonderful bond with their grandparents so don’t worry.

Likewise! So so many people in the same boat.

I have a newborn grandson one month old, our first grandchild, whom I have never met. My daughter and family live abroad. I feel grateful for the daily photos and videos. We have gotten to see him roll over, hit his crib mobile, cry and nurse. I recorded myself singing so my daughter plays it to him so he can learn my voice. Have to make the best of it....

Oh, I hear you & do understand.
Im in Australia & my only daughter lives in London & is pregnant. So while I'm genuinely happy for her & her partner, the GM in me says I'll never really get to know that child. I am of the belief that, its in the early years 0-5 that those connections are made, its like when the brain is forming & laying down that familiarity.
Yes, you can Skype Zoom etc, but its never the same. is it?
I don't see it as a tragic, my daughter is happy in London & I'd rather have her happy over there than unhappy here.
Keep up the contact with your daughter, I know of many relationships that breakdown with no contact at all, & thats tragic.
Try & take heart that your daughter & grandkids are in a (relatively) safe place.
Im trying to put on brave face here, but I still live in hope that she will come back to Australia one day.
I do hope you can find some peace.

I hope the OP takes comfort that there are many of us on here in a similar situation. My DS lives in Sydney with his Australian wife and our two DGS. We were due to go in November for a month. All we can do is be grateful that they are safe and enjoy the Skype and WhatsApp calls, although I did have a few tears on Christmas Day when I saw them with their maternal grandparents. I think the ‘not knowing’ when we will next see our grandchildren is the hardest thing for us distant grandparents, but that time will come so let’s support each other in the meantime.

distance is irrelevant. I have a GD 2.5 hours away. I,ve seen her twice in a year...its killing me. I have a new GD due in 4 weeks and i bet i cant even see here when she arrives. its heartbreaking

nanny2507

distance is irrelevant. I have a GD 2.5 hours away. I,ve seen her twice in a year...its killing me. I have a new GD due in 4 weeks and i bet i cant even see here when she arrives. its heartbreaking

I’m sorry but that is simply not true that distance is irrelevant. When the pandemic is more under control and you are allowed to visit and hug family, how long will it take you to get there ? 2.5 hours .
Family in Australia means minimum 24 hours expensive air travel possibly once a year if lucky. I understand you miss your grandchildren but please don’t say distance is irrelevant.

3 of my adult children live in Oz. 2 in Perth and 1 in Sydney. I have an almost 4 GD and a 7 month old baby GS in Perth. I was over their for a family wedding from November, arriving home at the end of January. My trip over for Gs’s birth had to be cancelled, so we have only met via the internet. Luckily everyone is very good at keeping in contact. I saw the baby playing, having his bath and bedtime bottle this morning. My GD often comes on for a chat over her breakfast, or for me to read her a bedtime story.
I hope to stay alive and well enough to visit them at least once more, but heaven knows when. In the meantime I make the most of the wonderful technology which enables us to ‘visit’ frequently, remembering how difficult it was to keep in touch 22 years ago when DD was the first to emigrate.
Yes, it’s tough not to be able to give them a hug, but many people have it far worse.

my granddaughter , thankfully, is not in australia\ but it feels like it sometimes, up to march we looked after her quite a lot but now, nothing of course, i realise i am not the only one but its the feeling that you are growing away from them or they are growing away from you, my grandaughter is 14 now so growing up. we can never get back these times without them. i do think your situation is worse being so so far away and it is so frustrating,

We have a 2 year old granddaughter in Melbourne. Thank goodness we managed to get out there Feb/March last year and also saw her Christmas 2019 when the family came over here. We would definitely have visited this year but obviously Covid put paid to that. Have to make do with FaceTime and videos our daughter sends to us of her. Not the same as giving her a big hug though. ?

lucca my comment was only relating to the pain of missing them. I am not talking about how long or how much it costs.

I too have GC in Canada and France. When the steel shutters slam down and you are barred from international travel, that’s when the despair sets in. The knowledge that you are absolutely unable to visit or the family come to you is truly devastating . If your GC are in the same country as you then thank your lucky stars.

It's tough not seeing family, especially grandchildren. There's a new one that I've only seen on Zoom.

However, it's well worth the sacrifice now, to keep everyone safe.

I intend to do my very best to avoid catching (and spreading) Covid, to survive, to be around in the future.

What could be more important?

"The CDC's overall IFR estimate implies that COVID-19, while not nearly as lethal as many people initially feared, is about six times as deadly as the seasonal flu. But as with the flu, the risk is highest for the elderly, and the difference in the case of COVID-19 is huge. The estimated IFR for people in their 70s is 11 times the rate for 50-to-69-year-olds, 270 times the rate for 20-to-49-year-olds, and 1,800 times the rate for people younger than 20. In the latter two groups, the estimated IFR is lower than the overall IFR for the seasonal flu."

"The CDC's latest death counts indicate that the crude case fatality rate is around 28 percent for patients 85 or older and 18 percent for 75-to-84-year-olds. That rate falls to about 8 percent for 65-to-74-year-olds, 2 percent for 50-to-64-year-olds, 0.6 percent for patients in their 40s, 0.2 percent for patients in their 30s, 0.06 percent for patients in their late teens and early 20s, 0.02 percent for 5-to-17-year-olds, and 0.04 percent for children 4 and younger."

reason.com/2020/09/29/the-latest-cdc-estimates-of-covid-19s-infection-fatality-rate-vary-dramatically-with-age/

It does vary from country to country. In the Netherlands fewer people have died of Covid thus far, than died during the flu of 2018.

Elegran, testing positive does not mean you actually have Covid. The PCR test only shows you have a segment of DNA from an earlier Covid virus, or other Corona virus. The inventor of the PCR test specifically said it is not to diagnose illness with, yet that is what they are doing.

Of interest too.

"There is absolutely no need for vaccines to extinguish the pandemic. I’ve never heard such nonsense talked about vaccines. You do not vaccinate people who aren’t at risk from a disease. You also don’t set about planning to vaccinate millions of fit and healthy people with a vaccine that hasn’t been extensively tested on human subjects." ~ Former Pfizer VP
Interessant artikel door dezelfde man:
""I believe I have provided more than adequate evidence that a significant proportion (30%) of the population went into 2020 armed with T-cells capable of defending them against SAR-CoV-2, even though they had never seen the virus. This is because they’d been previously infected by one of more common cold-producing coronaviruses. SAGE was naively wrong to assume “everyone was susceptible”.

lockdownsceptics.org/what-sage-got-wrong/

nanny2507

lucca my comment was only relating to the pain of missing them. I am not talking about how long or how much it costs.

Yes I know, but the pain will be relatively short lived won’t it, compared to the permanence of family who live on the other side of the world.

FunOma

"The CDC's overall IFR estimate implies that COVID-19, while not nearly as lethal as many people initially feared, is about six times as deadly as the seasonal flu. But as with the flu, the risk is highest for the elderly, and the difference in the case of COVID-19 is huge. The estimated IFR for people in their 70s is 11 times the rate for 50-to-69-year-olds, 270 times the rate for 20-to-49-year-olds, and 1,800 times the rate for people younger than 20. In the latter two groups, the estimated IFR is lower than the overall IFR for the seasonal flu."

"The CDC's latest death counts indicate that the crude case fatality rate is around 28 percent for patients 85 or older and 18 percent for 75-to-84-year-olds. That rate falls to about 8 percent for 65-to-74-year-olds, 2 percent for 50-to-64-year-olds, 0.6 percent for patients in their 40s, 0.2 percent for patients in their 30s, 0.06 percent for patients in their late teens and early 20s, 0.02 percent for 5-to-17-year-olds, and 0.04 percent for children 4 and younger."

reason.com/2020/09/29/the-latest-cdc-estimates-of-covid-19s-infection-fatality-rate-vary-dramatically-with-age/

It does vary from country to country. In the Netherlands fewer people have died of Covid thus far, than died during the flu of 2018.

Sorry but why is this on a thread about grandchildren living in Australia??

Very interesting FunOma Thanks for sharing. I'm going to pass that on to family & friends.

I’m sure it must be hard having family so far away but isn’t there every chance you will be able to go and see them later this year?

Now we have two vaccines up and running, and more in the pipeline, things should look very different by the summer and overseas travel should once again be possible.

Something positive to concentrate on!

Lucca It is because FO chooses to ignore the facts about the progress and effects of CoVid in the US (and the rest of the world), and the value of vaccination in the control of infectious illness. It seems that Yogagirl is of the same view.