This Is Quarantine: Day 20

Oh no, it's cool.  Not to worry. I believe I mentioned it before, about a very good day being followed by a very...challenging...day? I feel challenged today.

Spending hours awake last night because e wasn't sleeping well was a challenge.

Getting the tv turned off this morning was a challenge.

Navigating Zoom this morning with e, explaining that she can't just talk when it's someone else's turn and that refusing to answer the teacher's question when it is her turn means that she'll probably miss her turn to speak was a challenge.

Patiently reiterating five times that when writing on lined paper, the holes go on the left was a challenge.

Clarifying that the idea behind a rough copy is not to then produce several final copies, each with some errors corrected, but that there should be one, single, perfect, final copy has been a challenge.

Playing with my toddler, helping my older child with schoolwork, helping my husband figure out if he should be going to work, changing my toddler's poopy underwear 5 minutes after she went to the bathroom, making sure the dog doesn't pee his fuzzy underpants, trying to get the kids to finish their smoothies before having the ten other things they would rather eat, all while TRYING TO DO MY TAXES has been a challenge.

I know I'm not the only one. Everyone is feeling challenged these days. And I know that I won't feel less challenged if I ease up on the homeschooling, or if I put off the taxes, or if we just play all day or watch TV all day or spend all day outside or heck, even drink all day.

Because those are the micro-challenges. Do you know what the biggest challenge is?

It's the worry. I think the worry is wearing us all down.

I'm worried about my husband getting exposed at work. I'm worried about my kids getting exposed from my husband. I'm worried about e not feeling well. I'm worried about my parents getting exposed by someone in their apartment building. I'm worried about my brother who has to travel by plane for work and then go home to his family. I'm worried about my in-laws in Toronto where it's always crowded. I'm worried about the next time I have to go the grocery store. I'm worried about how everyone is going to get through this financially, including our country. I'm worried about the girls taking on the stress their parents are feeling. I'm worried for all of the people still going to work. I'm worried about what the world will look like when this is all over.

Worry is different from panic. Panic is in the moment. Worry is the hours and the days and the weeks stretching out and around those moments, wrapping itself around everything you do, around your thoughts and emotions and almost becomes invisible sometimes. But it's weight is always there.

This is getting too deep.

I'm reminded of a flowchart I saw once that I think about often. It's very relevant today:

Also, look at this face:

He's not worried. He's still trying to figure out how he managed to win the lottery 3 weeks ago.

This Is Quarantine: Day 19

Dare I say...best day yet?!

The stars aligned today and, don't worry, it's not going to my head or anything, but I am absolutely marinating in the loveliness that was today.

What made it so great? Oh, I'm glad you asked. I'd be pleased to fill you in.

Both girls did a larger than average amount of independent play/work which, in the land of isolation and homeschooling, is a big deal. e spent a good deal of time building with Mega Bloks and tending to her babies and animals in her playroom, and E crushed her to-do list for the day. I made a running list of assignments that need to be completed this week (mostly assigned by her school with a few of my own details sprinkled in), and she almost finished the entire list! She was pretty much nose to the grind from about 9am to 4pm, just like a regular school day.

How did this happen?

Shhh...don't question it. Actually, I shouldn't even be mentioning it except for the fact that it's over now and I can't jinx it after the fact.

While the girls toiled, I slogged away at my taxes, which are still nowhere near completion. But it's a process, and at least I'm on the road. I also spoke with the girls' school about how to continue paying for private school after having most of our income wiped out, and I was so pleasantly surprised at how completely understanding and accommodating they were. It turns out I needn't have lost all that sleep over the past few days after all! Now let's cross our fingers that the bank is equally helpful. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA...

After dinner I suggested to E that she do a little running on the treadmill. She and her dad have a little challenge going, and she stands to make some cash if she wins. She has been given 2 weeks to meet her goal. She crushed it on Day 1. That's MY GIRL.

So, what's brewing for the rest of the week, you wonder? Let me check my calendar...

This Is Quarantine: Day 18

After deciding on Friday that I'm handling this quarantine super well, I've had the weekend to reassess, and I think this whole ordeal might be getting to me just a tad.

For example:

1. Yesterday my husband came downstairs wearing jeans and a Donkey Kong t-shirt, and *I swear to god* I wondered Why is he all dressed up?

2. All it takes is the threat of being seen on your kids' Zoom conferences to make you realize Sure, I might be Quarantine Day ready, but that is something very, very different from Regular Day ready.

3. I gave making Instant Pot wine a thought today. I don't know if that's more embarrassing, or the fact that the reason I decided against it was because I'm not willing to make an extra trip to the grocery store for grape juice.

4. I am so completely obsessed with food and eating on your average day. Quarantine has taken this to a new level. This article really spoke to me. I would be happy to spend the entire day in the kitchen.

6. Day 18 is the first time I went ahead with the day drinking, and it turns out I dice a mean onion with a buzz. Behold:

7. Day drinking has so many more benefits than I had anticipated. Spontaneous dancing, a heightened ability to tune out whining and in-fighting, and a complete disinterest in your children's response to dinner are just a few.

8. And, once again, I am reminded that you can take basically anything in the world, wrap it in a tortilla and my kids will eat it. For example:

I am not even kidding.

But I digress. I think we were talking about how quarantine has been messing with my head. So, one double caesar, one gin and tonic and a glass of scotch aside...

9. After years of weeding out most complex carbs from our average diet, I am now completely unable to serve a meal without bread. 

10. At one point I'm sure that having my children walk around with zombie face paint while my husband declared them "COVID Zombies!" would have led me to disown the lot of them and bury my face in shame, I now roll my eyes good-naturedly and continue our walk through the neighbourhood, unphased.

Onwards and upwards, my fellow shut-ins!

This is Quarantine: Day 17

It's the Weekend!

After a week of some lovely highs and a few too many lows, we barely limped over the finish line on Friday.

So imagine my surprise and delight to be presented with breakfast and coffee on a tray by my perfectly perfect children this morning! And in an example of positive reinforcement in action, when they jokingly asked for jars of nutella for breakfast, their efforts were duly rewarded:

I kept the bar low for today. No grand plans, no lofty goals, and a very loose leash on screen time.

I did set some standards though. Not inclined to face another endless series of My Little Pony/Paw Patrol/Peppa Pig nonsense, I queued up The Incredibles.

As a result, e spent most of the rest of the day running laps around the house and the neighbourhood as your favourite superhero and mine, complete with tag lines:

Super Girl! "Into the night we SAVE THE DAY!"

Or sometimes,
Infra Red! "We're ON A ROLL!"

Or, during our reprise of last week's wildly successful family workout,
Workout Girl! "Workout girl is GOOD ENOUGH!"

I really get Workout Girl.

I also spent some time revising my meal plan. I tried to err on the conservative side, so that when I went to whip up the chickpea salad I had slated for dinner (much to my family's chagrin), I realized that we already have several leftover meals in the fridge. So, I pushed the salad to tomorrow (much to my family's delight), and decided to finish the curried lentil soup from earlier in the week (back to chagrin).

Understanding that this might not have been anyone's favourite meal, I decided to try to jazz it up a little. The original recipe had cubes of fried paneer to top the soup, which I just skipped. But today, I wondered if fried feta might be a thing...and it is! I found a really neat sounding recipe and threw it together while the reheating the soup on the stove. I added a box of breadsticks to the mix and voila! Leftovers, revived!

To be honest, the consensus declared the boxed breadsticks to be the star of the show. But not to worry, I'm no stranger to pulling off a big finish:

This is Quarantine: Day 16

I know this will come as a surprise, but before this pandemic hit, I was a quarantine novice. And I'll admit it. I didn't plan for this exactly perfectly. I've had a lot of time to think about things, and I've come up with a list of lessons I've learned for next time.

1. I spent far too much time googling recipes and making meal plans. 

2.  I spent far too little time googling fun, educational activities and making lesson plans. 

3. I didn't buy any rice. 

4. I don't think I bought enough coffee beans.  😱

5. I treated this whole thing more like an exciting opportunity for decluttering, rather than a true emergency stock-up.**  So rather than buy a whole lot of new food, I took stock of all of the existing (mostly partly used) bags of dried beans and (steadfastly ignored) tins of oddities like sardines and kippers and decided this was the perfect time to use them up!

**DO NOT tell my husband this. He gets real twitchy around the "D" word.

6. I didn't sit the family down and have a meaningful conversation about what everyone expected this time to look like. I'm pretty sure E thought she would just be running the show from here on in and giving e the title of Assistant to the Regional Manager, because nepotism. 

7. I should have pulled the trigger on that steamer/sanitizer I've had my eye on. 

8. I really should have gotten around to booking those hair appointments. 

9. This would have been a great time to build a treehouse. Paint the house. Take on some kind of massive home project. If I had just thought of that with enough time to gather supplies, then surely...oh nevermind. You and I both know when we're setting ourselves up for abject failure.

10. I wish I had spent more time thinking about places to live after J's residency. Like Guyana. Or Botswana.  Turkmenistan sounds lovely.

This counts as a treehouse, right?

This Is Quarantine: Day 15

2 weeks ago today we started this journey.

Wow.

I'm definitely a homebody, and that has become even more apparent to me throughout this adventure. Two weeks in and I can't say I'm stir crazy. There's nowhere that I'm dying to go, and I still don't feel any particular need to leave the house.

I do sympathize with people who like to go out and do things regularly, and people who have lots of bodies stacked on top of one another in little tiny spaces. Even though we're all in the same boat, we are also very much on our own personal journeys, and we're all dealing with challenges.

My biggest challenge has definitely been trying to convince everyone to just do what I tell them to do. You know, listen the first time I say something, believe that I've put way more thought into this than you have, stop fricking resisting and just go with the flow. My flow. Let me run this show!

We're not there yet, but I think I'm wearing them down.

Despite this struggle, we've had some great moments. Like when they do decide to listen and things go as smoothly as I had hoped. But even sometimes when things don't go to plan and turn out better than expected. Who knew?

One of my favourite things to come out of this is E's budding photography hobby. I may be biased, but I really think she has that je ne sais quoi that can't necessarily be taught. She has the eye. She sees perspectives and angles that I think the average person doesn't. There are many, many things to learn about the subject, but she seems to have that little spark that, with the discipline to really learn the craft, could lead to great things.

These are a few shots she took yesterday:

As I was looking at them, I was reminded that she has been interested in taking pictures for a long time. And she has always had a unique viewpoint. Here are some shots she took on a trip to visit her Grandma and Papa in Toronto in 2014, when she was 5 years old:

You see what I mean, right?

Ask The Expert, Revisited

This was a fun thing I started a long time ago with E, and I have no idea why we didn't continue, as she certainly never ran out of clever ideas. Reading through the blog for old times' sake the other day, I came across the ones we did and read them to the girls.

This gave E a very clever idea. I present to you:

Ask The Expert, e Edition 
Episode 1

1. What is your favourite colour?
A: PURPLE! PURPLE!

2. What is your favourite plant?
A: Spiky ones!

3. What does Daddy do when he wakes up?
A: Falls asleep! And then I say "Snooze or Lose Dad!"

4. What does Daddy do when he gets in the shower?
A: Falls everywhere!

5. What does Daddy like to eat for breakfast?
A: Squid that squiggles around. And LIVE ones!

6. What would you do if you had wings?
A: Fly.

7. What do you want to be for Hallowe'en next year?
A: Dinosaur.

8. What colour do you want your eyes to be?
A: Blaaaaaaaack!

9. If you could be any animal, what would you be?
A: A TIGER! Roooaoaaaaarrr!!!

10. What does it mean if your poop turns green?
A: STOP! Stop pooping and stop peeing.

11. What would happen if the dog turned into a dragon?
A: Then he would be fierce and I would jump into your arms?

12. What should Daddy wear if he wants to be fancy?
A: Makeup!

This Is Quarantine: Day 14

We spent some time looking through a cool map book this morning. I asked E some questions and we showed e a few things, and then I let E pick a place she would like to learn more about. She picked Mexico. I think it's because of the tacos, and that's a solid choice in my books.

I listed a few things I wanted her to research about Mexico, and she got to work. e decided to "study" alongside her, which consisted mostly of scribbling.

I left them to their own devices, and after a few minutes I asked how the studying was going.

E: I'm not studying right now because I'm helping e study.

M: What is e studying?

e: I'm studying rainbows because it's too hard to study Africa things.

Both girls had their first Zoom sessions today with their respective classes, and if you're wondering what Zoom is, it's one company (along with every TP manufacturer on the planet) who has got to be pretty stoked about this pandemic. It went as well as can be expected for a bunch of people trying to use a new technology for the first time, but it sure was a nice change to see people outside our own family and let someone else provide the entertainment *ahem, education* for a minute.

And just in case you are getting a little sick of all of my glass half full nonsense, I present the last words spoken to me tonight by one of my children, who shall remain nameless:

"We get along with each other fine. We don't get along with YOU."

😬

This Is Quarantine: Day 13

In the spirit of not complaining, today there were cookies! Made entirely by children:

And, in a heartwarming reboot of a classic, E made e a Bananasaurus for a snack:

I also spent a soul-recharging 3 hours talking to my Ride-or Die and drinking whiskey. That was a highlight.

I mean, when I put it that way, pretty good day, right?

Tip...

For the love of all that is holy, make those little monsters CLEAN UP THEIR S@#T before they go to bed! I can't tell you how many times I get so focused on getting them to bed that I forget that they were up to who knows what while I was getting dinner ready and I haven't set foot in whatever area they were in the midst of destroying when I interrupted them for feeding time. But then I come downstairs to finally relax and am met with scenes of destruction and chaos the likes of which a peaceful country like ours has never seen. MAKE THEM CLEAN UP.

Speaking of cleaning, never move into a house with more than two bathrooms. Oh sure, it seems like a selling point when you're walking through a pristine, not-actually-lived-in gem on the market, but someone has to clean every single one of them. And don't fool yourself into thinking you'll just make everyone use one or two of them...it will never work and besides, when you don't use a toilet for a while it just ends up getting some weird dusty ring around the water line so you have to clean it anyway. And yes, maybe there was one time during the vast majority of my life with only one bathroom where there may have been an emergency situation involving a grown woman and a potty...but enough time has gone by to dull the edges of shame and I maintain: Fewer. Bathrooms.


Observations...

Does anyone else feel like we're all trapped in some elaborate reverse escape room??

A super productive happy day will almost always be followed by a super lousy day of variable productivity. Just to keep you from getting cocky.


Experts helping experts...

Are there any child development experts out there?
Does anyone know approximately at what age I can expect my children to grasp the concept that if you have to do something you don't like, whining and complaining and slow playing and finding countless distractions and excuses will only prolong the agony, and suck away all the time for the fun stuff? Asking for myself.

This Is Quarantine: Day 12

First Period: Care of Magical Creatures

The girls started the day spending a little quality time with Thriller (E's ball python) and Johnny (E's class gecko that is spending March Break and now possibly eternity with us). They played with them, gave them water and fed Johnny a mealworm before coming down pretty enthusiastically for next period.

Group Lesson for the day: Laundry!

Mondays are generally my day to fold laundry. I spend the weekend washing and drying like a madwoman, and on Monday morning I haul two enourmously overfilled baskets up to the living room and spend an hour or so folding while I watch cooking shows. Although it has only been three weeks since I last did this, it feels like a lifetime ago.

Today I decided that E needed a refresher in folding, that e could benefit from an introduction to the world of laundry, and that I really needed to get some laundry folded.

e's job was to sort the clothes into piles: Mama, Dada, E, e and towels. E's job was to perfect the Marie Kondo-approved folding technique. And I'm kind of a hardass about it because stuff fits into my drawers properly now and dangit THIS IS A QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUE. e lasted about 10 minutes. E begged for a break and/or snack every 7 minutes or so, and I felt like things were going so painfully slowly. But we got through it, and in the end it took about the same amount of time that it normally takes me. The difference is I spent half the time listening to gems like:

"I feel like I'm being used."

and,

"Why does e get to go and play?"

and,

"I just threw up in my mouth."

No, for real. At one point she threw up in her mouth. I ignored it and she seemed to move on from it. Like I said, I'm a bit of a hardass.

E's Lesson for the day: Photography

I found a few articles about the basics of composition as well as the technical aspects of taking photos with an iPhone. I asked E to read through them and make notes, which she did with no complaining! This was mostly due to the fact that photography was a subject she requested.

When she was finished reading through the articles, it was time to put her learning to practice. I selflessly agreed to serve as her model, and was delighted when my sacrifice required me to lie down.  Once she had come up with an image she was happy with, I had her explain what techniques she had used from the reading she had done. Which she did brilliantly!

This is the resulting photo, which I think might be award-winning quality:

And another beauty:

Something about using the pattern of the floor, sightlines, light and negative space. You'll have to ask her. I just work here.

Mama's Lesson for the day: To go where the day leads!

While E studied photography, I wandered into the kitchen (surprise, surprise) to marinate some chicken for dinner. Whilst there, one thing led to another and I am happy to declare my spices: Organized! Once every couple of years I overhaul my spices, and then slowly allow the situation to devolve over time. I cannot recall the last time I did this, so you can just imagine. But after much pouring and spilling and spluttering and rooting around and shuffling and A LOT of wiping up, I'm back in business, spice-wise.

For me, it's good to have a plan. I feel less stress when the kiddos ask "What are we doing today? Do we have a plan for today? What's for breakfast/lunch/dinner?..." I also feel less overwhelmed when they ask to do one million different things that we would never have time to complete, both simultaneously and immediately.

But it's also good to have a flexible plan. One that has enough to keep us busy if needed, but enough "negative space" (oooh, the teacher becomes the...nevermind) to allow things to remain fluid. I think I did a good job of working the plan today.

This afternoon we baked an exquisite Apple Walnut Zucchini Cake, played several rounds of Untie the Prisoner (like I said, I just work here), and ended the evening with a chaotic FaceTime session with our BC family for cousin R's birthday.

Lots of giggles today and a minimum amount of discord. Another one for the Win column!


Quotable quotes from e:

"Hey, Teacher! We have a dead kid over here!"

"Oh no. Another dead child!"

(in response to J telling her not to talk with her mouth full) *arms outstretched in disbelief*  "Why. Do. I. Have. To. Say. This. To You. Every. Time!!!"

This Is Quarantine: Day 11

Now that I have 10 full days of this nonsense under my belt, I am pleased to announce that I am officially a Quarantine Expert. That's right, you can stop listening to anyone else. I'm your one-stop-shop for all of the answers.

I have Tips!

1. The next time you're ordering groceries, pick up some balloons!
I pick up my groceries from the Real Canadian Superstore, and they have all the things. But as long as you shop at a big-ish store, perhaps with a flower department, they should have some. And kids will play with those bad boys For. Hours. 

You're welcome!

2. Instead of arguing and pleading with your kids to like oatmeal because it's nutritious and cheap, make Amish Baked Oatmeal instead, and watch them (and your husband) gobble it up faster than you can say "I should have made a double batch". And while you're at it, make a double batch.

My pleasure!

3. Speaking of kids, I have discovered that the secret to getting them to do the stuff you want them to do, is to catch them a)when they're not paying attention, and b) before they've had the chance to formulate their own plans. In order to achieve this, I've been letting my kiddos get up and watch TV in the morning. This is clearly a win-win, as it means that I don't have to get up. But beyond that, it also means that they sit, transfixed, brains securely in the off position, in a sort of holding pattern until I show up (but first, coffee), and SLAM-BANG! TV off, plan for the day ON! Sure, maybe they'll catch on, but so far, it's been foolproof.

Hey, anytime!


I have Observations!

1. Following up on my comments yesterday about people greeting each other more on the street, I am dismayed to learn that social distancing has stripped me of my ability to say anything beyond "Hello!" or "Good morning!" in public. I get so nervous about distance, that I end up smiling awkwardly after an initial greeting, having no idea what to say next. Or if I should say anything at all. Will I freak them out if I say anything else? If I say something else, will they freak me out by starting an actual conversation? Do they have COVID? Do they think I have COVID? And all the while, just standing there smiling, like an idiot.

2. I read a post the other day about how people are clearing the shelves of pasta, except for lasagna. The theory was that even when people are stuck at home with nothing else to do, they still don't want to bother making lasagna.

I disagree.

I believe that many people have found themselves in the same position that I found myself when this whole thing went down. I took stock of my pantry and realized Hey, I have lasagna noodles. Great - I'll make lasagna! Then I went about the business of buying ricotta and ground beef and mozzarella...all the lasagna things...except for the noodles of course because I already had those.

My theory: A huge percentage of the population had the same experience as I did and we all spent some time this weekend making lasagna in a sort of unwitting show of solidarity. Am I right? I'd love to see the numbers on this.

3. 3lbs is the minimum threshold quantity of butter that I require in my fridge to feel prepared for any kind of global emergency situation.


I have Step-by-Step Itineraries!

1. Wake up at your own leisure, thanks to aforementioned TV regimen.

2. Pour yourself a cup of coffee. You deserve it.

3. Offer children delicious breakfast that requires approximately 30 minutes in the oven (Amish
Baked Oatmeal, anyone?) and then SLAM-BANG! TV off, 30 minute cleaning-related chore given to each child.

4. Send fed children to complete their morning routines. Clean yourself up too. You're a mess.

5. Get outside! Draw cheerful pictures and fun prompts (Twirl! Hop!) on the sidewalk, walk the dog, run up and down the street screaming, you name it! Just stay away from people so you don't end up looking like an idiot.

6. If it's grocery day, go pick them up. If you're lucky enough to have a grammapapa close by, pick up a few things for them and meet up in the parking lot to check-in, catch up and receive treats.

7. Make something delicious. Lasagna! Or cookies! Or really anything that takes more time than you would usually spend in the kitchen. If that's your thing. Or, you know, bust open that package of pizza pockets and spend your time savouring every bite instead of just inhaling them. Remember, it's your quarantine. You do you!

8. Workout as a family. It will be super annoying and not very productive, but man it will feel good to tell people you did it.

9. Watch a movie with dinner. In fact, do that every day from now on, even when quarantine is over. It's way less stressful.

10. Start a blog! It's a good distraction from hours of panic-inducing news updates and Facebook posts.


I have Cheesy Deep Thoughts!

This afternoon I made a lasagna (as I believe I've mentioned), and once it went in the oven we all went downstairs for a family workout. It was awesome! (hahahahahaha...ahem.) When I was done, I hopped in the shower and decided it made more sense to put pyjamas on rather than get dressed again. I also decided it was a great time to pour a glass of wine and chill out a bit before dinner.

And as I was slipping on those delightfully comfy pj pants it occurred to me:

I think I'm living my best life right now.

I have time to sit. I have time to play. I have time to cook. I have time to plan. I have time to stop what I'm doing and read e a story because she wants me to. I have time to pause on my way to the kitchen to play "keep up the balloon" with E because she asked me to. I can just sit with J while he tries to figure out things at work because I know he likes the company. And I even have time to do all of those little things that fill up my own bucket, like showering whenever I feel like showering, searching for new recipes, making something from scratch, and watching hilarious videos online.

There are a bunch of posts going around about how the Earth is healing right now as industries shut down and cars are off the roads and such.

I think we might be healing too.

_____

So you see, you really don't need to read anything else while this whole thing transpires. I've got everything you need right here! Plus pictures!

This Is Quarantine: Day 10

Well, THAT was a gorgeous day.

The perfect day to give this whole geocaching thing a try.

And how did we do? Well, we found one of three. But to be honest, I was just happy to be wandering around in the woods. And the one we found was the third one, so we ended on a high note!

In addition to hunting for treasure, we brought along our painted shells and left them here and there for people to find. e particularly enjoyed that part.

One lovely thing I've noticed while out for walks these days, is a decided uptick in eye contact, smiles and friendly greetings. I normally try to say hello to most people I pass by, and I'd say I get about a 50% response rate. But these days, I'm rocking a solid 90-95%, and that's the kind of bright spot we need in our days right now.

What else went down today?

This morning J and I went old school on the girls and kicked them outside to play while we enjoyed the freedom to brush our teeth and generally act like boring adults without the constant harassment of stir crazy children slowing us down and stressing us out.

How did that go, you wonder? Oh, it went great, thanks for asking.

Except for the part where e essentially screamed the whole time while E alternated between pleading with her and reprimanding her at varying levels of intensity, proving once and for all that you can lead your children outside, but you cannot prevent them from finding a way to torture you, as well as your neighbours and forest creatures alike.

Eventually I'd had enough and, sticking with the old school theme, tossed open that window and hollered at them to get their butts inside, put the small terrorist down for an early nap and fed the large one into submission.

Tonight I wanted to do something a little special to end off the day so the girls made little skillet brownies from their Christmas stockings.

That's right. I fed them large chocolate desserts right before bed. That was me. So the fact that the poor sucker listening to WW3 upstairs instead of the sweet silence of slumber should garner no sympathy. I will never learn.

But it sure was a BEAUTIFUL day!

This Is Quarantine: Day 9

TGIF! Oh wait...

At least J is home for the next couple of days. I really feel for those of us who can't stay home. As difficult as it might be to be cooped up inside indefinitely, it's hands-down easier than going out right now. I get nervous passing someone on the sidewalk while walking my dog. Imagine having to go out and continue to do your job everyday, fearing - let alone, knowing - that you'll come into contact with a sick person. And getting up the next day and doing it again. J's clinic is screening people when they come in, taking temperatures and asking questions. But it's certainly not risk-free.

I spoke to the bank today. There are still call centres full of people showing up to work every day to help people figure their lives out.

I'm going to pick up groceries this weekend. There are still stores full of employees that will pick out your food for you and bring it out, so you don't have to go in.

People are still collecting garbage and recycling.

The lights are on, the water is running, the internet is fast, and life on the inside is very, very comfortable.

I am trying to make a point to say THANK YOU to everyone I interact with who is still out there working, making my life easier.

And in that spirit, I absolutely promise to not spend one minute complaining this weekend. For the weekend I'll have my family with me, safe at home, and it will be good.

Speaking of not complaining, Day 9 had a few bright spots that broke through the rainy grayness:

We made puffy paint and painted shells. (Thank you Mothercould!)

We were planning to try out geocaching for the first time and bring along our shells to hide, but the weather wasn't great, so we decided save it for the weekend when J could enjoy it too.

For dinner, E made the best homemade pizza crust I've ever tasted. (Thank you Bobby Flay!)

It's funny that with all the time in the world this week, we still managed to run out of time for things. E mentioned it too, that although we should be bored, we can't seem to get through our to-do list!

But don't worry, sometimes we're still bored.

So even if TGIF doesn't mean much these days, it still means one thing:

Last day of school for the week!!!

This Is Quarantine: Day 8

Who thought that giving a newly-night trained no-diaper wearer a brand new sleeping bag was a good idea??

This guy.

The same guy who will probably pull it out of the dryer tonight and cross her fingers that lightning won't strike twice.

Because COME ON...camping out in your bedroom with your sister?! SO COOL. There's something about a tent and a sleeping bag anywhere that makes things special. Just ask the two kiddos that haven't stopped asking me today if they can sleep at the campsite again tonight.

Social distancing

Just pretty pretty pretty please make it to the potty tonight? Please?!

__

After yesterday's series of exercises in frustration, I decided to keep it pretty chill today. I had visions of spending all of our waking hours in our pj's camped out in front of the TV. No expectations.

Of course, it never works that way, does it?

The dog still needs a walk. The 2 year old will at some point get bored and want to play. I will soon feel gross and want to wash up and get dressed. I will then feel like everyone else should get dressed too. At some point people will want to eat and I will remember things that need to be done and so maybe it wasn't a total write-off of a day after all. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

We checked out a cool YouTube series that children's author extraordinaire Mo Willems is doing about doodling.

E did another set of word problems, showcasing her brilliance as well as her fiercely persistent inattention to detail.

e and I took Gryff for a brisk run around the neighbourhood and took turns in the lead, yelling "Stay! Behind! Me!" (at e's insistence).

Oh and we watched Frozen I and II. We saved Frozen II to watch over dinner because we knew dad would want to see it. He's a sucker for Olaf.

So there was still plenty of couch and screen time after all. In case you were worried.

This Is Quarantine: Day 7 *addendum

7 days already.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but time has flown.

I haven't been at work for a week.

The girls have been home for a week.

I haven't worn makeup for a week.

I haven't met up with a friend, hosted a playdate, eaten a restaurant, gone through a drive-thru, watched martial arts, or been inside a grocery store for a week.

I have slept less, I have been glued to my phone and my computer more, I have rushed less, I have reached out more.

I have written a ton more.

I haven't gotten as much done around the house as I had envisioned.

I have planned out and prepared meals better than I had hoped.

I am both proud of my homeschooling efforts and excited about the things we haven't tackled yet.

I am still craving that child-free time at the end of the day, but no more this week than any other.

I have mostly managed to stay calm.

I have pleaded with my family to speak to me One. At. A. Time.

And yet, here I sit, contemplating how a week could possibly have gone by already.

But then again, things have been moving quickly.

This time last week, on Wednesday morning, Jeff first suggested that I stop working and keep the girls home. It seemed so overly cautious. I laughed it off.

Thursday I stopped working and the girls stayed home. I felt ridiculous telling my clinic and the girls' camps that we wouldn't be in. Everything was still so normal.

On Friday the message to stay home started circulating. I felt relieved that it wasn't just us hiding out while everyone else continued on as if nothing was wrong.

In 48 hours, things went from totally fine to totally different.

And since then, every day has seen more restrictions, more things shutting down, more evidence that this isn't just going to blow over.

And there is so much information. We are positively consumed by information and warnings and advice and instructions and threats and so many questions and not enough answers, but oh my god enough opinions to sink the Titanic.

You have to be careful. You have to be so careful to make sure to listen to that tiny little voice inside of you that is most certainly being drowned out in the noise right now. Several times a day I have to stop and really strain to hear it:

Just do your best, do what feels right, and it will be okay.

There will be people telling you that you're worrying too much (panicking, freaking out...so many unhelpful words). There will be people telling you you're not worrying enough (in denial, naive, ignorant). They will tell you that you should make better use of your time, that you should spend more time teaching and less time with screens, more time hugging and less time teaching, more time preparing and less time reading the news, more time staying up to date on the latest developments and less time scrolling FB, more time getting fresh air and less time inside, more time checking on others and less time interacting with others...

My wholly unsolicited advice? Try to spend more time listening to that tiny voice and less time listening to all the other loud, judgemental, scary and confusing voices. 

Also?

Allow others to listen to their own tiny voices.

Try to be supportive, with words of encouragement and validation. 

Try to know when to stay quiet, to offer support by allowing others to go inward for advice. 

There are more than 7 billion ways to navigate this, and not one of us is holding the manual.

Just do your best, do what feels right, and it will be okay.

And please stay home.

💛

This Is Quarantine: Day 7

Oh boy, today was a doozy.

There were some really great moments:

Art class

Checking out Mama Owl in Gibbons Park (can you see her??)

Baby owl

"Camping out"

There were also 2 children sent to their rooms by mom at different times, and 1 mom who sent herself to her room. There were arguments, coercion and threats, there were tears and backtalk and sullenness. It was just a day all around.

But there were hugs. There were second chances. There were apologies. And at the end of the day, we are still in this together, and thank goodness for that.