Three more days in the life of our socially distant family. I feel like the days are starting to sound/seem the same. Let me know how your days are going in the comments.
Day 13: I set the alarm and actually got out of bed. I wanted to post a blog from the first part of the week, so that’s what I did. The health worries have me a little bit stressed out, so I spent a good portion of the morning testing my breathing and taking my temperature and trying not to freak out. It’s spring now and the allergies are also happening.
After breakfast, I jumped right into washing dishes, cleaning up from yesterday’s baking adventure so our daughter could finish the baking project today. I listened to more of the Office Ladies podcast. It’s fun and distracting. I went to work on the puzzle while the kids and Phil got ready to work out. I completed some steps on a writing project I’ve been wanting to spend time on, making good progress.
At 10, our church hosted another Zoom meeting to encourage each other. We tuned in for that, and it was encouraging. When we finished that, it was time for lunch. We all gathered our lunch. The mail arrived, which meant my stamps were delivered. I’ll be writing some more letters and cards soon. The kids and Phil watched an episode of America’s Test Kitchen. I worked on the puzzle. When Phil left for work, the kids watched YouTube. I put on another podcast episode and made progress on the puzzle. We’re going to head toward chore time next. Our daughter has to finish the baking project. I’m not yet sure what my son and I will do.
We all hung out in the kitchen. I made guacamole and homemade tortilla chips, which we ate all of during snack time later. Stress eating and stress cooking/baking go together. When our daughter finished the macarons, we all went outside for some fresh air. The anxiety is high today and I feel it in my chest, which also has me worrying about COVID-19. Sitting outside and reading was a nice respite. Then it was time for my daughter’s writing class. I worked on the puzzle while my son hovered nearby eating the chips and guacamole and some salsa for good measure.
After the writing class, the kids transitioned back to screen time. I watched the daily news briefing from the governor and health secretary in our state. I await the day when the number of new cases holds steady or goes down. We’re not there yet. I turned the news off after getting the basic info and kept working on the puzzle while finishing an Office Ladies podcast. I think I’m going to have to go outside again before dinner just to clear my head. I’ll see what the kids want to do when screen time is over.
They went outside for a bit but that broke down pretty quickly. So, my daughter and I decided to take a walk when Phil got home. We didn’t go far, but the sun was shining and the movement was good for us. I got an early start on dinner when we got back but delayed it for half an hour so we wouldn’t be eating at a ridiculously early time. (Even though we eat fairly early most of the time.) We made the vegetable list for the week since Phil won’t be working on Saturday, and I resumed dinner prep. We offered the kids the choice of evening viewing entertainment. They’re having a hard time deciding together on movies, so they each chose an episode of something–it was Supermarket Sweep and Mr. Bean again, but both are enjoyable.
After dinner, I wrote two more cards and took a total of six out to the mailbox for tomorrow’s mail service. It’s supposed to rain tomorrow and I have a hard time leaving the house too early, so I thought taking them out tonight would be best. On the way to the mailbox, our neighbor whom I haven’t seen out in a while came out to say “hi” and let me know that she had had surgery before all this COVID-19 stuff happened. It was nice to chat. (And yes, we stayed an appropriate distance apart.)
The kids played outside for a while. I tried to sit outside and read but it was just a tad too chilly, so I sat inside. The kids came in and wanted to play a game. I had less than 50 pages left in my book, but I want to engage with the kids when I can. They picked Apples to Apples but our son insisted that his stuffed animals play as well, as a team. It was … interesting. We had to modify the rules of play a bit, and the game didn’t end well. I asked our son to put the stuffed animals to bed and he could stay up a little later. Our daughter did some coloring. I finished my book. Our son played with his Hot Wheels.
Now, they’re in bed and I’m watching Miss Fisher and Crypt of Tears. Years ago, I binge-watched every episode of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. I’ve read a few of the books, too. The movie came out earlier this year and it’s available on Acorn TV, which I’m trying free for a month.
Day 14: Two weeks. Two weeks ago, I got up as usual and went to work as usual, not knowing that it would be goodbye, so long, see ya later to my students and co-workers. Two weeks. It has both flown and dragged. It has me thinking about refugees. How some of the people I met when I was volunteering with CWS experienced this kind of trauma and stress for DECADES. Twenty YEARS not days. Can you fathom what that will do to a person’s mind, soul, spirit, body? I cannot. This two weeks has already wreaked havoc on my brain. Sometimes I can’t concentrate or motivate myself to care about anything. I read something yesterday about how when you feel exhausted even though you’re doing less, that’s a trauma response because your body can’t fight or flee this disaster, so it’s shutting down. “Sleep mode,” the author called it. I feel it. Strongly.
I woke at 6 today. I slept pretty well. The movie was everything I loved about the Miss Fisher mysteries series. I listened to Pray As You Go for the day and noticed that they have a new prayer series called Pray As You Stay. I’ll be checking that out later today. I made breakfast and watched a video from my fitness program’s trainer. I’m starting a new cycle of workouts today, so I want to be sure I’m ready. The kids are breakfast-ing and YouTube-ing. We have some video meetings today, which will break up our day well.
I washed dishes and cleaned up the kitchen. The trash needed taking out, as well as some recycling. I listened to Office Ladies and when the dishes were done–I’m finding an odd satisfaction of having them all or mostly done by 9 a.m. every day–I folded 3 loads of laundry and started another load in the wash. The kids were on screens until after 9. They got dressed and prepared for some outside time. It’s already 50 degrees at 9 a.m. and it’s not as rainy as I thought it might be. Just before we were headed outside, a friend stopped by with a small craft/gift for the kids. She waved from the porch, where she left the bags, and we waved at the kids in the van. Social distancing doesn’t have to be anti-social; it just has to be different. The kids played outside and I started my first workout session of a new cycle, all focused on cardio. I ran 2-minute intervals at varying intensities and it was harder than I thought it was going to be. But I’m excited to be working on my breathing and cardiovascular system. Even though I run regularly, I can improve. I did take some body measurements this morning to see how things have progressed in the past three weeks. I’m pleased with what I’m seeing. (Also, our scale isn’t working, which might be a blessing in these days of snacking and dessert.)
The kids are playing video games. Our daughter left the game to take a shower. The FedEx truck showed up with a package from the grandparents, who were supposed to be visiting us this week. We all washed our hands after opening the package and its contents. We grabbed some lunch (it’s totally fend for yourselves around here during the day), then we logged in to our son’s class meeting on Zoom for a game of Scattergories. His teacher gave us an update on what the next few weeks are going to look like for online education, as well. After that meeting, I took a quick shower before setting the kids up for another Zoom meeting, this time with their band teacher. We had to leave that meeting early so our daughter could tune in to her final day of writing class. My son and I went outside for a bit. I read while he played basketball and used his RC car, a Christmas present that’s been living in Illinois for a few months.
We came back inside for screen time, and I listened to the latest state update. Our county is now under a stay-at-home order, which really isn’t all that different than what we’ve been doing anyway. Now, it’s just official and I hope people who aren’t taking the restrictions seriously will do so. I’m eager for life to return to some kind of normal, even if it doesn’t look like what it once was.
Now I’m listening to Office Ladies and working on the puzzle. Getting closer still.
I made dinner as soon as I knew Phil was on his way home. The kids grabbed their food while I talked to Phil as he showered. We ate and watched episodes of old game shows–Press Your Luck and Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader?–plus another episode Mr. Bean. “I need my comedy,” our son said. I get it.
After the shows, the kids went outside for a little while. It’s lighter later and it’s supposed to rain all weekend, so I’m grateful they could take more time outside. Then it was a bath and bedtime.
I counted the number of remaining puzzle pieces. My guess was around 100. There are 119. I listened to another Office Ladies podcast while trying to whittle that number down. By 9:40, it was time to give up and go to sleep. I probably could have gone to bed earlier.
Day 15: I was restless between 4:30 a.m., when Phil got up to go in to paint the produce stand, and 6:30 a.m., when my body decided I could finally get out of bed. I have coffee left over from yesterday’s afternoon pot, so warmed-up coffee first thing before I have to make any is good. Sometimes.
I finished the puzzle after breakfast. I’ve never been so relieved to have the table back as a functional piece of household furniture. Although it won’t be long, I’m sure, until we use it for a board game or break open another puzzle. We have plenty to choose from. I celebrated my puzzle win by washing the dishes and folding another basket of laundry. Around 9 a.m., our son played video games while daughter and I did her second Girls on the Run at-home lesson. It included some minute-to-win-in type of games, which were fun. We didn’t do everything in the lesson, but we did talk about stress relief and things we can try to deal with stress. Timely.
I did my workout after that. Another cardio interval day, and it was pouring rain, so I stayed in. I tried shadow boxing which is oddly satisfying. It’s low-impact, so I don’t feel like I worked as hard as I do other times, but maybe that’s okay? I’m still trying to figure out intensity levels and what’s appropriate for my body.
After that, it was lunch time. Both kids wanted smoothies with their lunch, so I grudgingly made them and sent them on their way with other lunch items they had scrounged from the fridge. I made my lunch and listened to another Office Ladies episode while working through my meal plan for the next month. Getting the new meal plan for the month has been exciting in the past, but it’s kind of depressing right now because Phil and I agreed that we need to try to run our groceries down to almost nothing before we head out to the store again. So, I’ve modified some of the recipes to fit what we have in the house, and he can get some things from his work on Monday or Tuesday. I think it’ll be okay. It WILL be okay.
Phil got home from work not long after that. I had popped out in the rain to get the mail. The paperwork from my doctor’s office was there, so I made copies and put my paperwork with it in an envelope ready to mail on Monday. I don’t think I’ll get the approval in time to keep my appointment the following Monday, but we’ll see. My unemployment paperwork also came in the mail. I can definitely collect some unemployment, so that’s a relief. It won’t be the same as working, of course, but to have some income in the coming weeks will be helpful.
We decided as a family we all needed some nap/down time. At 12:45 p.m. I declared that I would not be speaking to anyone for an hour. I grabbed my Kindle, started a new book and went to bed. I napped for I don’t know how long. Maybe 30 minutes, which is a good nap for me. I almost never nap. The house was still quiet, so I read some more, checked in with some friends and family via text, and scrolled the socials.
Decided it was time for an afternoon snack–a smoothie for me–and some early dinner prep in the form of microwave thawing of meat. Phil and at least one of the kids, maybe both, are going to work out in a few minutes.
I cleared out some emails while listening to Office Ladies. I’m a notorious email hoarder and my Gmail account constantly reminds me that I’m running out of storage space. I have no illusions that I’ll ever be zeroed out, but it is good to get rid of clutter, even digitally. I went for a walk before dinner because I thought it had stopped raining. It was misting, but it still felt good to get out and breathe fresh air.
Made dinner. We ate it. The kids chose the old Jumanji from our DVD collection to watch. Hey, that’s a weird movie. Both of them were freaked out by it, but now I’m curious about the new Jumanji movies. I did cross-stitch for most of it. As much progress as I make during one sitting of a movie or show, there’s still a ways to go.
We played a game called On the Dot which is billed as a brain teaser game. You definitely need some spatial skills.You have to re-create a pattern of dots. I was terrible at it our first round but I got better. Our son was frustrated because it was his game and he didn’t do very well. But I think he’ll enjoy it more if he practices. It’s the kind of game you can play on your own, too.
It started to thunderstorm as the kids were going to bed. We had some difficulties getting to sleep, but eventually they calmed down, as did the storm. Phil and I watched Brooklyn-99 and then I went to bed to read and sleep.
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