Family Time

We made it through yet another week of social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the news only seems to be getting worse. School has been cancelled for the remainder of the year, and the entire state of Georgia has been put on a "shelter in place" restriction which includes only leaving your house for essentials. Nothing has changed specifically at our home because we have been quarantining for three weeks, but the news makes everything scarier. Jay and I do not expect to return to any sense of normalcy until at least the end of May.

While both Jay and I have experienced days of depression, overall our family is handling this crazy time very well. We definitely miss our friends and extended family, but we are trying to be productive and creative with our time at home. We will never have this much time all together again, so everyday is full of making memories.

School assignments are sometimes altered to spice up the hours sitting in front of a screen for virtual learning. Daddy participated in PE yoga this week, and the big kids created egg drops to release off the roof for STEM. Tuttle and Maggie also recreated famous paintings and picked two of my favorites!

Jacob has picked up two new skills during quarantine. He can ride a big boy bike now (no training wheels were ever used thanks to the balance bike), and he can proudly write his own name!

We are spending every possible second outside. We never had time to just relax at home before the mandatory social distancing, and I just love it. The kids are running around playing make believe games in the yard, Rosie goes on multiple walks a day, the kids are riding bikes and scooters, and I even took a nap on a quilt in the front yard today!

We prioritized some Easter fun today with more cookie decorating and egg dying. Initially I was really sad that we would miss all our traditional Easter activities, but our time at home has allowed us to really take our time and soak up spring and the Easter season. We do not feel like we are rushing to go to the next party or event!

Since social media can paint everything with rose colored glasses, the kids do have their fair share of bickering. It is easy to show all the good shots and avoid recognizing that not every moment is happy! I just want to record the truth for future reading. :)

The three babies planned a camp out in the front yard for tonight, and they were all committed until the movie they were watching on the iPad ended around 9:30. Maggie and Jacob decided that inside was the better option, but Tuttle is still out in the wilderness!

Our lives are much different than they were a month ago, and we are taking all the precautions necessary to make sure we stay healthy. I hope when my family looks back on the Coronavirus crisis years from now that each person will remember the positive. In the end....