As the state of Victoria grapples with a second outbreak of COVID-19, Melburnians are currently commencing another six weeks of lockdown.
With the strict stage three restrictions kicking into place from Wednesday evening, locals have spent the last 48-hours making the most of their final days of normality.
For The Project host Carrie Bickmore that means relishing the simple things in life, like taking her youngest daughter Adelaide out for one final swing at a park before it shuts.
“Enjoying her last swing for a while,” Carrie penned next to a poignant snap of her one-year-old daughter at the park just hours before it closed down.
“Looks like she loved it! ❤️,” Carrie’s co-host Lisa Wilkinson commented under the sweet snap.
“When covid was in full swing in Brisbane (pardon the pun) we bought my grandson a swing set to keep him busy. Loves it. Best money spent,” one fan suggested.
Earlier in the year during the first nation-wide lockdown, the mother-of-three revealed that the new way of life had taught her to slow down.
“Lockdown taught me how to say no. Actually, that’s not strictly true. It gave me the best excuse to say no, and now I’m desperately trying to hang on to my newfound superpower,” the 39-year-old explained in her column for Stellar magazine.
“Like many people, lockdown cramped my style at first. But weirdly, as time went on, I felt lighter. The forced isolation created space in our days and gave my family the chance to reconnect. To finish conversations as well as projects,” she added.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, fellow Melbourne resident and author Zoe Foster Blake took her daughter Rudy Blake, two, out for a special meal before they became house-bound.
“Thought we should get some p-cakes in before our poor mates in hops have to shut down again,” Zoe explained on her Instagram Stories alongside an adorable shot of Rudy eating some delicious pancakes.
The beauty entrepreneur also uploaded a photo of her daughter, whom she shares with comedian Hamish Blake, enjoying one final swing session at the park.
Zoe and Carrie’s good friend and radio presenter Fifi Box made sure she squeezed in a final trip to the movies with her seven-year-old daughter Trixie.
As of 11:59pm on Wednesday evening, residents in metropolitan Melbourne are no longer allowed to leave the house unless exercising, going to work or grocery shopping.
The strict new lockdown will last for six weeks and was announced by Victoria State Premier Daniel Andrews after the state’s COVID cases sky-rocketed following a hotel quarantine bungle.
On Wednesday, Victoria recorded 134 new cases of coronavirus, with the total number of cases now at 2,942.