Provincial plans for loosening restrictions

[Debbie]

In my mind it's EXTREMELY conflicting if Ford can have his family over but I can't. We're supposed to stay within our own family bubble yet it's now possible to have someone in to cook, clean or care for your children?!?! What's the chance that those paid workers aren't going to more than one house? And you can have a bbq so long as you stay outside and there's no more than 5 people, is that 5 people from my house or can i now invite others over?? That is not a very clear picture in my mind at all.

Exactly. There is no need to add keep it to a group of 5 if it is your own immediate family living with you [we are not social distancing within the household], and we are not supposed to be meeting with others outside our bubble.

 

[Pumpkin1172]

Just read NS Premier has extended the State of Emergency (was set to expire on the 18th) for two more weeks (May 31).

All provinces will end up keep extending their states of Emergencies. It give them the authority to make changes quickly...as to be able to place restrictions on again etc etc etc. Without that " state of emergency " the don't have the powers that they need to do things like they have been doing.
That's the way it was explained here...and why municipalities will also keep and extend them.

 

[Pumpkin1172]

We have made our own very small bubble here. We have met with dh family members only 3 times during all of this. We also have only had 4 cases in our city ( that they actually tested ) and had 2 other cases once they opened up testing. But with a total of 4 cases here, we have gotten of very good compared to other areas of the province.
Also, our dd and her little family came up here to visit just over the past weekend. They were missing us, just as much as we were missing them. They didn't go anywhere ( no grocery stores/shopping ) and isolated for 14 days, and drove up to see us from Calgary. They didn't want to bring the virus to us. So we got to cuddle and snuggle the grandbaby for a whole week!!!! It was wonderful They did some visiting with their friends here - outside in backyards with social distancing in place. It was a much needed visit. Now this grammie is planning another visit to see them or use some of my AM to have the dd fly here. We will see.

Since our numbers are steadily declining, before we have a spike of cases again and they restrict us more again, we want to get a few more visits in while we can. Trying to do it as responsibly as we can

 

[Jrb1979]

People in Ontario be prepared when nothing else opens for awhile. Numbers are going spike for sure. They start opening things and every one believes its over.

 

[pangyal]

In case anyone hadn’t heard, all City of Toronto summer camps have been officially cancelled.

No word yet on private camps.

 

[FigmentSpark]

In case anyone hadn’t heard, all City of Toronto summer camps have been officially cancelled.

No word yet on private camps.

So far, Planet Kids is still open. They're private, so maybe other privates are still planning to be open?

 

[pangyal]

So far, Planet Kids is still open. They're private, so maybe other privates are still planning to be open?

We have kiddo booked for both Harbourfront and Pedalheads this summer as well and they are both sending email updates weekly saying that they are in a holding pattern. Fingers crossed!

I’m curious- do other provinces have summer camps running?

(looking into Planet Kids right now, thank you!)

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

NS hasn't announced anything yet. I want to sign DD11 (will be 12) for our local Canada Games Centre camps. She needs socialization. I only need three weeks of camps due to our vacation we had already booked off.

 

[Kaadk]

My kids are lacking their socialization too. It's odd to think that my kids are actually asking to be able to go back to school. A few months ago it was a fight to get them to go after the series of rolling strikes resulted in them having almost a week off straight.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Yeah, my DS15 was just looking out the window wishing he could visit with his friends again. They have social media, but it's not the same.

 

[isabellea]

it took long enough on the School decision here. I was telling my husband that I think it was his plan for a while. He has been taking a lot of heat lately, amd all of a sudden Legault, Merci Legault. Back in the good graces again, plus with all the teachers and aides still on the payroll, at least (in their heads), they are getting them to have worked these past few weeks. My sister In law is an integration aide, and had been going non stop. I think that was the only call to make !

I don’t know about the pools on the Island. Are you on the Island? I am in lasalle, which is not a great spot right now. I’m glad we have a pool, we use it a lot, I just worry with the new rules, because my nephew (10), and cousins are always here swimming, anxious to see.

I really think they wanted to open the elementary schools in Greater Montreal but Dr Arruda and INSPQ (Public Health) gave the government strict conditions under which it could happen and they failed to fulfill them so they are not opening. In a way, it's good that the population realize they can change and back up from what they announced if they judge the situation is not safe or if things are not getting better fast enough. I also think they were surprised with the new community hotspots in Montreal-Nord. Elsewhere, cases are mostly in CHSLDs but if I understood correctly, in that borough the transmission is not linked to CHSLDs and that is worrisome. Hopefully with doubling their testing rate the last two weeks they will be able to contain those hotspots quickly by tracing potential asymptomatic carriers and quarantining them. I know what the test involves in term of lab work and I'm very impressed that they can now do more that 13K tests per day, most of them in Montreal. It's really impressive and big kudos to all the workers involved in the process, from those that take the samples (nurses) to the lab technicians and those that call the patients to tell them if it's negative or positive. It's a HUGE undertaking everyday and it makes me proud that our system has been able to do this increase in number of tests lately. From the beginning I say testing is key in having a clear picture of the situation and containing it. If you don't test enough your numbers are lower on paper but you work blind.

We will be okay because DH was told last week that he will work from home full time until at least August 31st but it will be a lot more difficult for many families now that manufactures, businesses, construction and some stores are slowly re-opening. If there's no school and both parents have to work outside the home, I'm afraid many will have the grand-parents babysit which, imo, I find a lot more dangerous then if the kids had went to school with very strict social distanciation rules and a max 15 students per class (I even know a school where it was supposed to be 8 per class because the classrooms are not big enough to accommodate more with 2m between desks). Hopefully they will come up with a safe solution for those families. Especially if there's no summer camp this summer.

I am just west of you in Lachine. Before the confinement, I was in LaSalle most evenings of the week since my daughter (10yo) was practicing with her two cheerleading teams in there (the club is on Lafleur). My friend who works at INSPQ told me that cities will probably be allowed to open the community/city pools BUT with many restrictions (e.g. no access to change room, no classes or competitions, no shared chairs, max number of swimmer, etc.). Makes sense since the virus is very susceptible to chlorine. I don't know if families will be allowed to visit each other for swimming in residential pools though. Only time will tell!

 

[isabellea]

Yeah, my DS15 was just looking out the window wishing he could visit with his friends again. They have social media, but it's not the same.

Teenagers mental health is something that worries more and more paediatricians and even our public health authorities. Last week I was so sad when I read that a teenager committed suicide because she couldn't see the end of this confinement. That's an extreme but shows that they are also very affected by this situation. Hopefully they will soon be allowed to socialize a little in real life soon, even if it's by keeping their distance.

 

[ottawamom]

Teenagers mental health is something that worries more and more paediatricians and even our public health authorities. Last week I was so sad when I read that a teenager committed suicide because she couldn't see the end of this confinement. That's an extreme but shows that they are also very affected by this situation. Hopefully they will soon be allowed to socialize a little in real life soon, even if it's by keeping their distance.

Exactly. DS has been visiting with his girlfriend, limited short visits. They were apart for the first 6 weeks and seeing as neither one had come down with anything they must have been doing something right so we allowed them to see each other for short visits in the open air. Their mental health is just as important to me as their physical health.

It's a tough line to walk though. For us this seems to be working.

 

[hdrolfe]

The schools on the Quebec side from us seem to be having a lot of cases pop up now that they are open, it worries me. I believe Ford will announce tomorrow the future of the school year in Ontario and I am hoping he will say it's done until fall. I worry about my son, he's 10 and misses being able to play with his friends, but he also suffers from anxiety and when we went for a bike ride the other day he was very worried every time we came near anyone else, and I don't mean actually close to them but just passing the other way or going around walkers. He refuses to go again because he's worried. Hopefully we'll be able to visit other people soon and then can at least see the rest of the family. At least he can talk to his friends and play games with them online for now. Though I did have to take the xbox away for a bit so it's all on computer now. This is the time of year he'd normally be out riding with his friends, heading to the park to play games and just generally enjoying the outdoors. Hopefully there will be something we can do together soon.

 

[isabellea]

The schools on the Quebec side from us seem to be having a lot of cases pop up now that they are open, it worries me. I believe Ford will announce tomorrow the future of the school year in Ontario and I am hoping he will say it's done until fall. I worry about my son, he's 10 and misses being able to play with his friends, but he also suffers from anxiety and when we went for a bike ride the other day he was very worried every time we came near anyone else, and I don't mean actually close to them but just passing the other way or going around walkers. He refuses to go again because he's worried. Hopefully we'll be able to visit other people soon and then can at least see the rest of the family. At least he can talk to his friends and play games with them online for now. Though I did have to take the xbox away for a bit so it's all on computer now. This is the time of year he'd normally be out riding with his friends, heading to the park to play games and just generally enjoying the outdoors. Hopefully there will be something we can do together soon.

Anxiety SUCKS!!! My 10yo suffers from anxiety too. Luckily, she did super well with her psychologist before we had to stop because of Covid-19 (she had one last session planned that we had to cancel) and she's been doing very well on her own so far. I believe not watching tv news on Covid-19 at home helps. We let her watch the press conference from Premier Legault and Dr Arruda if she wants to but it's boring for her so she usually go play with her sister instead. We also answer her question truthfully but without giving more details than necessary. I let her lead the conversation. Luckily, it seems to be working so far. The worst was when our friends were sick with Covid-19. She was asking everyday if they were better and was worried for her friends (their 3 sons). Luckily for our friends, they recovered and they are now back to work. So yes she knows there's a chance we could get it since we live in a hotspot (Montreal) and that's why we need to take all the precautions not to but she also knows that getting the virus can have a good outcome too. Yes you can get super sick and some will die from it but most survive.

For your son, have you offered him to wear a mask? I know it's mostly to protect others but psychologically, it can help some to feel safer. It worked for my friend's daughter who also suffers from anxiety and who refused to go biking or walk for a while. Now that the whole family wear masks outside, she feels more secure. I'm really worried that the confinement (that was 100% needed) will have lasting psychological consequences on some. It's very sad when kids that loved playing outside now refuse to go because they are afraid. Is Ontario offering free consultation (online or by phone) with psychologists to help people with anxiety and/or other mental illnesses that could have arisen since in confinement?

As for the cases in schools, from what I could read in the news, there's currently one confirmed case and two probable cases in a total of 3 schools in Outaouais. One boy tested positive after a family member developed symptoms. He was taken out of the school as soon as they learned of the situation and the teacher was also asked to self-isolate. I hope they also tested the other kids in the class/school to be sure there was no transmission but I couldn't find that info. Two other schools had one student with some symptoms but the test results are pending. They are not confirmed, just probable for now and they're also in quarantine until they have the test result.

When re-opening, Dr Arruda (Public Health) was very honest so parents could make their decision whether to send their kids or not to school (back-to-school is voluntary, not mandatory, outside Greater Montreal). They didn't expect zero case but were confident they could trace all the potential contacts if there was a known case declared.

Finally, the virus is not going away anytime soon unfortunately (I wish it would!!!). In the fall, we will have the same situation since a vaccine is very improbable. Do we send kids to school or not? I know my friend who is a principal at a high school was told to prepare an online fall semester but would that be viable for elementary level too? How will the students with difficulties be supported? And what is the quality of the online education? Parents do their best but I find it's impossible to have three jobs (regular job, teacher and parent) without going crazy! I know I cannot! Teachers also do their best but it's difficult reaching everybody from home and teaching when you don't have all your tools and a human contact with your students. I told my kids they better start prepare a really nice letter to their teacher to thank them for all the hard work they have been doing for them since we are home.

 

[uandmfan]

I hope Ontario closes schools until fall. I just think we will know so much more about the virus by then that we will be able to make much better decisions about what to do and how to retun the kids to school. If we can go back but it's voluntary I have no idea what we will do.

The province needs to find something for parents who need to physically return to work though. People need childcare.

 

[isabellea]

I wonder if teenagers will be allowed to babysit if no summer camps? I told DH we could hire our neighbour (If allowed) when it’s nice outside so she can bring the kids on long bike rides and supervise them outside while he works but he would take care of lunch and rainy days so it’s only an outdoor job with social distanciation.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Several universities have already said they'd be doing online courses in the fall. I don't know if that means they'll be allowed to live on campus (in case anything changes) or its set in stone that there will be no in-person classes.

My son is bummed. He is itching to get out of the house and become more independent. Life in a dorm seemed like a good first step for that. Now, he may be stuck at home for at least the rest of the year. I get it, he's becoming a man, at least in age. But I wish he'd appreciate these final months in our home a little more than he does. What can you do?

 

[hdrolfe]

@isabellea I have been trying to get my son to go to a psychologist for almost a year now, he refuses (and it's impossible to make him do things he doesn't want to do). I do have good coverage through work, and I believe Ontario is offering something for people who need it during this time as well. Plus I have a good EAP through work that I think was improved for now as well. We did use a work book that was recommended and it helped while he was in school, at least for a bit. He does understand that we are not likely to get sick or if we do it should be mild, he has a mask, I wear one when I go to the store but find it very hard to wear when I'm walking or biking. He doesn't watch the news, I read it online but try not to watch it on TV when he's around. We do talk about what is opening or what we can do or not do, but I don't like to get his hopes up for what may be opening next until things are announced as official.

I would just like more time to learn more about how the virus works, and how schools intend to keep the children safe, and by extension their families. I am aware that in the fall the virus will still be there and it will still be a threat, but hopefully schools will have the time to sort out how they are going to handle things to ensure everyone is kept safe. I am blessed to be able to work from home, and will continue to do so as long as possible.

Any way. I am happy to see more things are able to open starting tomorrow here, including dog groomers (which I will need in a few weeks for my puppy). I look forward to whatever they say tomorrow about schools, and will go from there. I hope we can soon see family, or perhaps another family so he can go play with a friend. But we'll see!

 

[isabellea]

McGill said they are looking at having most classes online in the fall and some on-campus (labs for examples). Courses in a big auditorium are a big no imo but maybe a hybrid system could be possible. There's also the problem of international students potentially not being allowed to come study in Canada. So many unknowns!