Quarantine's Silver Lining
Scroll all the way through for some links to free educational sites, kid friendly activities, & more!Let’s be real folks, this pandemic is scary & the thought of being on lockdown for weeks on end with our family members is pretty scary too. The virus statistics are still uncertain, but I can tell you one thing for sure...two statistics sure to skyrocket after quarantine will be pregnancy & divorce Personally, I don’t want to fall into either category, so how do we survive? Well, let’s start by focusing on the silver lining...
Look, I have no doubt that being held up for weeks with my husband & kids will be awful at times. Clearly the strain of working from home with a socially deprived toddler, & needy 1yr old trading off meltdowns & demanding to be purged of their boredom will be tough. The house will be a mess, the snacks will run low, the bickering will never cease, & apparently there may be endless amounts of laundry, since we may run out of toilet paper 🤷🏻♀️ But here’s the thing that’s putting a smile on my face & exciting my heart...
How many times do we say, “I wish we had more uninterrupted time together”? I know I find myself saying it all the time. We’re always so busy running around from work to school to gymnastics to soccer, grocery stores, to & from events or gatherings, & suddenly you stop & notice your baby is 5 years old, & the man by your side has sprouted countless grays. What in the world?! Where is time going?! We don’t even know, because we’re so danggum busy, & even though we’re having fun, sometimes slowing down is exactly what our lives & families need the most.
Obviously I wish it wasn’t this heartbreaking situation causing the slow down, but it’s the only silver lining we have right now. And seriously, people dying around the world leaving behind so many mourning loved ones, really puts things into perspective. We don’t know how many earthly days we have with our people, so let’s not take this gift of quality time for granted. Not gonna lie, I spent the last week freaking out about school closing & being isolated with my family. However, even though at times it will be physically & mentally exhausting, I realize it is a gift. One I don’t want to take for granted.
Set zones & consequences!
Divide your house up into designated spaces. This can be done, even in the smallest house, just make sure the boundaries are clear. We’ll have a “work zone” in our dining room, & it will be completely off limits to children. If they enter they know they’ll immediately be sent to the their rooms, aka the “timeout zone.” We’ll also have a “craft zone” at the kitchen table that I’ll set up with play dough, coloring, work books, & such. A play zone which is already established as the playroom, & lastly a “screen zone” which will be the living room. All iPad, tv, music, & such will be held in this space. Designate a space for whatever your people will do in a day. Then set clear consequences for them bringing any chaos of one zone into another. Most importantly, follow through on the consequence the 1st time or the whole thing will fall apart, & you’ll end up on your closet floor behind a locked door in tears with your months supply of wine & chocolate. Zoning will keep markers out of your living room, iPads out of playrooms where they’re sure to break, & wrestling kids out of your conference call in the “work zone.”
Number two is simple but crucial...Headphones!
Ensures your kid is the only one who has to listen to ABC on the iPad, & not the whole house. Noise canceling ones that will block out your husbands annoying tv show while you read a book or listen to a podcast. And then for your husband when he gets back to work, & needs to block out your yelling which stretches to ALL zones when you lose it on your children to clean up said zones.
Acknowledge that screens are your friend!
In fact, your best friend over the next few weeks. I get it, regularly I’m one myself. The idealistic parenting type that limits screen time to an hour or so a day & try’s to make it educational. But this is no time for pride or principles people. This is survival, so it’s time to dispel any notions you have about your kids watching tv or rotting their brains. It’s a couple weeks people, they’ll be fine, but you won’t be if you try to play the martyr. So cut yourself some slack & keeping them thangs charged all the way up at all times!
Make routine activities fun!
We do themed dinners once a month, but may do a few over the next couple weeks to give us something to do & fight the boredom. Pick a theme, decorate a space for it, make a meal that fits it, put on music to set the mood, even dress up & use accents the whole night! Camp out in the backyard, do schoolwork in a fortress you built together out of blankets, anything to make boring things fun. Get creative or you’ll lose your mind.
FaceTime friends & kiddo friends.
My girlfriends & I will do “Wine Wednesday.” Pour a glass of scout & cellar & face time your bestie to vent about your day & your family so she can talk you down from killing them. One hour later you’ll be able to go back out to them feeling a lot less stressed. Your kids will love to FaceTime with their little besties too, so do it for them as well!
Get outside!!!
If for nothing else, then just because vitamin D will help you stay healthy from Coronavirus! But seriously, the sun & fresh air will rejuvenate you, & it’s the perfect space for your kids to wild out before coming back in your house full of breakables. A little exercise will do you good too! Not just physically, but for your mental health & mood too. So go for a jog, bike ride, or even just a long walk. Hopefully it will become a habit over the next couple weeks, & you’ll keep at it once quarantine has lifted.
Soak it in.
Watch the baby sleep, read books to the toddler, chase the kid in the sprinklers, watch a movie with the teenager, have a long phone call with the college kid, make a scrapbook of the grandkids, spend the afternoon sipping wine (get S&C here) & reconnecting with your hubby. Whatever you do, be present & appreciative for the extra time you have in the midst of this troubling chaos.
Alas, there's no perfect plan for surviving quarantine, but it sure is preferable over the guilt of passing the virus to someone not equipped to face it. The coming weeks will be full of breakdowns, arguments, & undoubtedly, lots of messes. They will also be full of sweet memories, like baking treats together, camping in the backyard, & getting to know each other even better if you let it though. That’s all I got for my fellow moms right now as I virtually salute you & head into the quarantine battle “socially distant” but with you nonetheless. We got this ladies! Stay healthy, stay strong, & stay sane. Godspeed!
Things needed for quarantine survival:
Free subscriptions being offered by ABC Mouse, Backpack Sciences, Circle Time Fun, & Century21kids
101 Awesome Bible Puzzles for Kids
My Circus Tent Cardboard Playhouse
Scout & Cellar!!!! Lots of it! You know you’re gonna gorge snack food & the gym is closed, so let’s at least make your wine half the calories & carbs. & hangover free