Day 31: This feels like the turning of a page. Like I should start with Month 2, Day 1, but also there’s something about the tallying of the days that I don’t want to forget. How high will this number go? I don’t know.
I went to bed early last night which meant I was up before the alarm went off. It had rained hard overnight and is still raining as I write this almost six hours later. We’re in for a soggy day. I started reading the library book that arrived on my Kindle last night, Olive, Again, the follow-up to Olive Kitteridge, which was an amazing read. I finally got out of bed when I decided I needed coffee and breakfast. While the coffee brewed, I took my blood pressure. It’s still higher than I would like. I hope I have enough data soon to send to my doctor and go back on my medication, even if it’s a lower dose.
I also woke to a message on Facebook that our friends in Kenya want to video call with us, so that’s a fun surprise. I hope we find a way to make that happen.
I put together a blog from the last five days while I ate breakfast and the kids played video games. They’re working hard on a Lego Star Wars battle. As the 8 o’clock hour approached, I kept reminding them of the need to meet to talk about our day. It’s not a school day today, but I still wanted them to do some things on their checklist. They started playing with their dolls and animals and I worked on dishes from our Easter feast while listening to Andrew Peterson read more of On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness. I love this story so much, and it’s fun to hear the author read it.
When I finished with dishes, I put some laundry in. Phil wrangled the garbage to the curb in the pouring rain and we barely got it out in time for it to be picked up. They’re coming earlier and earlier these days. As is the mail. Speaking of which, I received a note on a coloring page from a friend today. It made me smile.
My son had an appointment with his counselor at 10 and I had some time before that so I researched the books my daughter needs for a book club later in the month, and we made a purchase from a local book store and got her signed up for the class.
Then my son and I settled in for his telehealth appointment. It’s such a blessing to be able to talk to someone about life and his behaviors, which aren’t destructive or damaging but some of which aren’t the healthiest they could be. We had a nice chat, and I was almost moved to tears because mental health care workers are bearing a burden as well. Can you imagine trying to take care of yourself mentally during a pandemic while needing to take care of others? I thanked her and asked her to take care of herself.
Phil left for work and the rest of us fought over lunch after my son’s appointment was over. Everyone wanted the delicious leftovers from Easter and there weren’t exactly enough to go around. We made it work. The kids watched a UK version of Wipeout with their lunch. It’s so hard to get motivated to do much of anything when it’s raining all day. I’m not even sure what I’m going to do for my workout.
The answer: burpees! Okay, so they were modified burpees but they were still burpees! I did some high-knee walking and wandering around my kitchen for a warm-up, then I did a bunch of sets of hands elevated burpees. Oh. Em. Gee. I’m going to be hurting tomorrow. The rain stopped for a bit so I could take a cool-down walk outside. The storms had knocked a lot of branches out of the trees.
Then I decided to sit outside and read for a bit while the rain was in a lull. The kids were folding clothes and watching YouTube but they’d been at it for a while so I asked them to stop. Daughter started doing Just Dance for her active time while son wandered around the house saying he was bored and hungry. (Can relate.)
He helped me make my bed after I washed the sheets, and we talked for a bit. Daughter finished Just Dance and got in the shower. Son wanted to take a bath and there was a misunderstanding about when he was going to do this. I almost lost him for the rest of the afternoon but we talked and he agreed to take a bath after his sister’s shower. Daughter did band practice. Son completed a lesson for band, which is an alternate option this week to the 15 minutes of practice because we haven’t done a single band assignment since moving to online school.
Now the kids are back to video games. Phil is home–with local asparagus for dinner! Dinner will be simple and uncomplicated tonight so I’ll probably read some more before setting to work on that. A second round of thunderstorms tried to move through but mostly missed us. The sun is shining now. I’m not sure what the weather will bring tomorrow but we return to more of a schedule tomorrow. I think I need it, too.
Also, I need to stop eating all the sugar in the house. I’m not usually a sugar fiend. I mean, I like it, but if I’m going to snack I usually choose something salty or savory rather than sweet. (Unless it’s ice cream.) But it’s wrecking my body. Headaches. Lethargy. It might be other stuff that’s causing it, but I know the sugar isn’t helping.
Dinner was simple and good. We watched the new episode of Some Good News, then we played Skip-Bo as a family. We discovered that our second-hand set of cards is missing some cards, so we altered the rules a bit. Our son won. It might be his favorite game because he can win. Phil went to bed and I asked the kids to do something quiet to calm us down before bed. I wanted to finish the book I was reading, and I did.
I settled in to watch the new Outlander episode then went to bed.
Day 32: It’s morning again. I slept pretty well. I woke up before my alarm and read for a bit. Then I listened to Pray As You Go. I made coffee and sat down to take my blood pressure, a daily task that is causing me stress. The kids are playing video games. If they don’t finish Lego Star Wars by the time this pandemic is over, I’ll be surprised.
They’re making their own breakfast right now, which is good but now I have to wait because too much activity in the kitchen first thing in the morning is hard for me to handle. Maybe I’ll wander in and get coffee. I took my blood pressure twice and it’s high. I’m not sure if I’m going to wait the full two weeks to send my doctor the numbers. When my blood pressure starts to rise, I panic and want to go back on the meds. It hasn’t even been a week since my telehealth appointment with her. Ugh. I hate medical issues and everything feels more complicated now than it needs to be. If I go back on the meds, it will be at a lower dose, which means a new prescription, and I definitely don’t want to go to the pharmacy. Phil has been running all of our errands to limit our exposure. I think maybe I can have it delivered, though, too.
My breakfast is in progress. The kids are doing well making their own. They’ll be back to the video game with the knowledge that our educational schedule begins again at 8 this morning. I had been in the habit of writing cards and letters to friends and putting them in the mail before the mail came. The mail has been coming by 9 a.m. most days.
We looked at the educational requirements for the day and both kids set to work on their assignments. I washed dishes and listened to Office Ladies. Helped the kids with a few of their questions. Folded laundry. I started another book for judging. Daughter went outside to get the mail. My coffee arrived. This is the second best kind of mail. Books is the first. I ran out of coffee after this morning’s pot, so I’m glad the timing worked out. I’m spending more money on coffee right now, but I’m supporting my favorite local coffee shop, so I’m going to feel good about it.
Son had his class meeting. Daughter had a scavenger hunt. Both of these things nearly brought me to tears. During my son’s meeting, his school counselor was there talking to the kids about their feelings and ways to stay positive. Meanwhile, my daughter raced around the house to find the objects. I’m just so moved by how educators keep showing up for their kids. I get it. And I’m just grateful because I know they’re dealing with emotions and feelings of their own. I took a call from the chiropractor’s office, cancelling both my next adjustment and next massage. They’re only open for pain management. I’m feeling okay, so I’m going to hold off until May before going back in.
I read while the kids finished their meetings. Now, we’re lunching and watching Nick games on TV. Second round of meetings at noon. I love listening to my son participate in his school lessons. That is an unexpected benefit of having school at home–being able to be more involved in his learning, even if it’s just in the observation phase. I kept reading. Daughter went back to academics, but the TV was still on so I’m not sure how effective this method is.
Toward one o’clock, I wanted to get my workout in and my son hadn’t eaten lunch yet, so we talked through his options. I made him a grilled cheese and he gathered some other lunch items. Then I got myself ready to work out. It’s a beautiful sunny day outside, perfectly spring. Cool but not cold. Today it was some weight and cardio intervals. It’s the first time I was able to do two different sets. The first set, I walked and ran for the cardio option but for the second set, I needed to choose a different cardio option. I decided to trying jumping rope, and I am here to tell you that I JUMPED THAT ROPE LIKE A PRO. My legs are going to be jelly tomorrow, but I did three 2-minute sets of jumping rope and for the third set, I went all-out and jumped more than 200 times in a row. Yes. That is correct.
This is a big deal because I forget what my body can do and I don’t often challenge it beyond what I know I can do.
After my workout, I got ready to take a shower. My son wanted to know if we could make a trail mix sometime so I found him a recipe and helped him gather the ingredients. He made his own trail mix, and I think he’s pretty proud of himself.
Not sure what the rest of the afternoon holds. I want us to get outside but the kids are glued to the TV.
I ended up clearing some photos off of my phone, then I started working on dinner around 4 o’clock while listening to Andrew Peterson read from the book. Phil brought home some overripe bananas to freeze for smoothies, and lettuce which made a nice side to our pasta dish. We watched some random stuff on YouTube–faux sports is what it is–and really we’re just missing everything sports related right now.
We kind of just hung out in the living room. Our daughter worked on some cards/letters to send. Son played his new Star Wars game on the tablet. I read. Phil had an old F1 race playing on the TV. We watched a short TikTok video some of the teachers from the kids’ school put together. Then it was bedtime for the kiddos.
Phil and I shared a beer and watched Brooklyn-99 followed by a couple of episodes of The Office.
Day 33: Another good night of sleep. It does make a difference. I woke up thinking about my students and all the things I still want to say to them. I noticed that our stimulus money came in today, as did an unemployment payment. This is rainy day money for us right now, I feel like. Our biggest bills come toward the end/beginning of the month, so tucking it away for the days when we come up short feels like the plan.
I took my blood pressure first thing so I could message my doctor about the readings. She wanted them after two weeks, but it’s been trending upwards so I don’t want to wait another week. I feel better having sent that message because it’s action. I don’t like the feeling of things happening to me that I can’t do anything about. (Isn’t that how we feel about this whole time?)
Phil and our daughter are working out first thing. Son is playing his game. I had breakfast and I’m going to get ready for the day. We have a full day of school and video calls ahead of us, as well as the usual stuff of life. We met at 8. My son had finished his academic work pretty quickly yesterday, so he wasn’t sure he wanted to start that right away. We explored the page for specials and he checked off a few things on library BINGO. Then he folded his laundry. I washed dishes and listened to Office Ladies. Then my son was ready to start on his academic work, so I helped him get set up.
I worked on my snacks for today: I hard-boiled two eggs and made some hummus. I forgot I had the ingredients for homemade hummus and that’s a good and filling afternoon snack for me. I read a little bit and helped my son more with his school work. I’m in the tech support role mostly right now. He finished before his class meeting, so he played his game a little. Our daughter had been working on academics for most of the morning and then she decided to do some sewing.
My son’s class meeting started at 10 and I got ready to go for a run. I wanted to get it in this morning so I can spend some time writing this afternoon. I left not long after his meeting started. It’s a cool sunny day. I layered up and decided to run for another 30 minutes, with no distance in mind. I didn’t think I would go too far or too fast because of all the jumping rope yesterday. I went to the park and there were quite a few people. I always wear my Buff so I can put it over my mouth and nose if necessary. Only one other person in the park was wearing a mask and I had to adjust my route a couple of times to avoid people. When the 30 minutes was up, I had gone 2.35 miles. That’s my farthest distance yet in my post-surgery training. And I didn’t feel winded or exhausted. So, next time, I’m going for distance. 2.5 miles, no matter how long it takes.
I saw a bluebird in a field. It’s the kind of bird I don’t see too often when out and about. And I noticed a helicopter hovering over the river/country club. Strange days.
My son greeted me as soon as I was home and asked me to help him make mac and cheese for lunch. I did, and I prepared a salad for myself. The kids and Phil are watching ESPN’s Horse Challenge. It’s pretty interesting what we can come up with for entertainment when our usual outlets aren’t available.
I took a shower while our son had his math meeting. At 1 we had a Skype date with our friends in Kenya. It was an encouraging and uplifting conversation, and I’m always interested to hear what life is like in other parts of the world, especially parts I’ve been to. We chatted for more than an hour about all things pandemic, Kenya, and food. Our assignment for them before they come home again is to find a Moroccan restaurant. I’m pretty sure we have one in the city.
We tuned in to the state news conference and then our friend David called and we talked to him for a while. Now, I’m settled in at the table trying to write while Phil and our daughter vacuum the living room. I’m not actually sure what my son is doing. There was some discord and our son was escorted to his room. The other two did a thorough vacuuming of the living room, moving furniture to get under the couches.
I had a productive stretch of writing time, and I went in to talk to our son because he’d been acting in a way that signaled to me he needed some attention. We talked a little bit, and I went back to writing. Phil started on dinner. Our son came out to the living room to move around some. Even though it was nice outside today, I couldn’t get him to go outside. He wants to play in the back parking lot but that business is still open, so he can’t. He eventually took a shower as we had asked.
As Phil worked on dinner, the three of us chilled in the living room. My goal was to finish another book for judging, and I was getting close. We had dinner and watched the rest of the quarterfinals of the Horse tournament on ESPN. Professional basketball players battling each other in a game of HORSE from their homes all across the country is a fun way to engage sports fans. After dinner, Phil went for a walk to break in his new shoes. My son asked for snuggles on the couch. I’m wondering if this is what he needed earlier but couldn’t ask for it.
Bedtime, finally. Phil and I watched the third of four comedy specials from James Acaster on Netflix. Laughter is good medicine.
Day 34: I was up at 5 a.m. to use the bathroom and I heard my son pop out of bed and tell his sister it was time to get up. I think he thought it was 6 a.m., so I poked my head in their room and said, “No. It’s only 5. Go back to sleep.” And they did. No one got out of bed till almost 7 a.m. today. My alarm went off at 6:15 and I picked up my phone to scroll socials. It’s not a healthy habit first thing in the morning. Sometimes I think I’ll have missed something. I listened to Pray As You Go.
Yesterday, my doctor got back to me and said I could go back on the BP meds at a lower dose. I cut some of the pills I have in half until one of us can go to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription. I’m both curious about the outside world and not at all interested in leaving the house until it’s “safe.” Honestly, this is a normal battle for me when my social anxiety is flaring. In some ways, being told to stay home and not go anywhere is good for my anxiety. If the rest of the world wasn’t on fire, I might not have any anxiety at all! (Attempt at humor; probably failed.)
Breakfast and coffee, as usual. I paid a couple of bills and managed our money a bit. The day and its workload will be on us soon.
I haven’t been to the computer to write all day. We kept busy with a lot of stuff. My son and I worked on the dishes first thing after our meeting. He dried some of them. We had a little talk about his school work, some of which has corrections. I wanted him to know that it’s not a bad thing to need to elaborate or make a correction. Fortunately, his teacher addressed this during their morning meeting. He got to work on his school work while Phil and our daughter worked out. There was some crankiness on my end this morning feeling like so many things were being asked of me all at the same time.
I spent a lot of the day reading for my judging job. Phil did some work around the house. Our daughter had a meeting at 11, so after my son’s class meeting, it was lunch time. We made mac and cheese, the crowd favorite. It wasn’t long before Phil had to leave for work. Since lunch was staggered, by the time my son had his next small group meeting, my daughter was ready for lunch.
I took my blood pressure around noon just to see how the half pills are working. It’s gone down from a couple of days ago but is still in the borderline range. I asked Phil to pick up my new meds on his way home from work.
The day is kind of a blur as I look back on it. I started some laundry. I printed some pages for my next week of nutrition and training and scanned a photo for my daughter. I worked on the shopping list for this weekend and planned some meals for the week ahead. The kids had a band meeting, which I said could count for practice today. I washed some more dishes, and I made dinner. We had lasagna with some fresh noodles Phil brought home from market last week. (So, they aren’t fresh, but they are homemade, not store bought and I haven’t made a lasagna in a long time.) We watched LegoMasters: The Finale. What a fun series that has been. It has not sparked a ton of creativity in our house, but I haven’t suggested it, either. Maybe we could have a LegoMasters competition of our own.
The kids decided to go outside after dinner and ride bikes in the back parking lot. It’s chilly but they needed the fresh air. I need it, too, but today is a rest day in my program. Stretching and water consumption are the orders of the day for me. Now they’re playing Lego Star Wars on the Wii. They haven’t spent much time with each other today.
I did some leisure reading while they played outside, and Phil opened his quarantine splurge–a new radio that also plays cassettes. He saw it on the Tiny Desk Concert featuring The Lumineers. He spent his Christmas money, so don’t worry, we’re not recklessly spending our stimulus money. (Sorry. I saw some things online today about how people are spending their government money. I get a little worked up about people judging other people’s money decisions.)
We’re on the downhill slide of another day, another week. Tomorrow is Friday already again. The days both drag and fly right now.
Day 35: It’s almost 6 o’clock and I’m just now logging words for the day. I don’t know if this is progress or not, that I don’t feel the need to hourly or regularly record all of our doings. It’s becoming more of a reflection on the day than a rundown. We’ve had dinner and are watching ESPN’s HORSE tournament semi-finals. Who would ever believe this is what’s “on” for sports right now? It is oddly satisfying to watch professional basketball players participate in a game that is played on home courts everywhere.
We got a late start on school this morning. This whole week has been a little tough to stay on task. Our son has a presentation to create and he’s a little bit intimidated by the amount of work it requires. I’m not sure it requires as much as he thinks, so we’re just trying to take it a piece at a time. I folded some laundry while they got started on a few assignments. As I was starting dishes, the kids asked for help. While our son was on his morning meeting, I helped my daughter with areas of composite polygons. Again, if you had told me that I would be using those combinations of words, I would have not believed you. We mostly figured it out.
My son won his class’s Boggle game via Zoom. We gathered our lunch materials and talked to my mom on the phone for a bit. The kids researched some online gifts they would like to receive during this time. I read some from the next book I’m judging. My son had another class to check in to, and it got a little wild. The kids got a little unmotivated to do more school work after that. We received our Target package and the mail, which also included two books I’ve been looking forward to reading.
I suited up to do my workout. It’s chilly today but it’s snowing in our hometown, so things could always be worse.
I had a really great workout. I felt strong during my intervals and then I did a cardio finisher of more jumping rope. I might have a new second favorite activity. I made a smoothie and changed my clothes. The kids played video games. I made cole slaw to go with dinner and then I decided to try to finish the novel I’ve been reading Olive, Again. The kids went outside to play for a bit, then tired of that and started a load of laundry before watching YouTube. I talked to our friend David a little bit, then finished the book.
Phil got home from work and I put away all the vegetables and processed the strawberries to go with dinner. I finished cooking dinner. Which brings us back to the HORSE competition. We watched it to the end. Then Phil decided to play with his new toy while making his sandwich for tomorrow. So, while the kids and Phil listened to ’90s era cassettes in the kitchen, I showered.
The radio with cassette player was Phil’s impulse quarantine purchase. Mine was a Bob Ross coloring book. I’m not big on shopping, but there are some things that I can’t resist when I’m in need of some comfort. I’ve been coloring more lately, and I wanted a new book.
Putting the kids to bed was kind of an ordeal. They were a little too hyped. So, once they were settled, I scooped some ice cream and went to the couch. I watched two episodes of The West Wing while eating ice cream and doing my nails. They’ve been bare for a week or more and I like having them polished.
Sleep, blessed sleep.
