As we round out 6 months of mostly staying in and trying to keep our family safe and healthy, I felt that it was important to document a few things, update those who may care and reflect on the blessings during this albeit trying and overwhelming time. We are blessed to be healthy but admittedly it has been overwhelming at times. I’m sure everyone reading this could agree to one extent or another. Even grocery shopping isn’t normal anymore.
Our youngest, Ruby who is 4, has struggled with the reality of the “birus” as it meant her social scene was halted for months. She is our resident social butterfly who loves people and going places. She finally got to see her Lolli & Pop (bonus parents) a couple of weeks ago after not seeing them since February. Thank goodness for FaceTime to make those gaps of time more tolerable but nothing beats real time with your people. She has declared more than once that “when the birus is gone, all my people are gonna come to my house!” Amen, Sister!
Ruby was set to start a pre-k program at a local public elementary school back on August 4th, but the school district delayed opening so the program was delayed as well. Since we found out less than a week before the new program was to start, it was a little crazy trying to make it happen but Mama came in clutch and got Sister enrolled in a pre-K program at a local Christian school. While the curriculum hasn’t officially started, she has been working on handwriting and letter recognition, improving each week. She loves her new friends and her teachers and has adjusted pretty well to the routine there. We are so proud of her excitement to go each day and the progress that she’s making in a classroom setting.
She’s still super obsessed with her baby dolls, Baby John in particular and her caretaking skills are rather impressive. She’s very attentive to his (imaginary) needs and can change diapers like a boss, even on real babies!
Henry, who now prefers to be called Hank, is doing virtual school until at least mid-October. He has asthma and poor lung function so we’ve erred on the side of caution and kept his bubble relatively small. He’s been to the races with Mike and trips to Nana & Papa’s for swimming but is doing a bulk of life a little closer to home. While this certainly isn’t what we thought the 5th grade would look like for him, he is happy, thriving and working through challenges as best as he can. We are proud of his positive attitude and the growth we’ve seen in him.
While I’ve cherished the time having Henry home, I know that being with his friends at school, learning the old-fashioned way and socializing is important to his development too. Hoping the numbers in our city/county will stay low now that school is back and session so we can start getting him out more often, i.e. church, outings with friends, TKD classes, etc. He’s still (virtually) working towards his black belt in taekwondo; hoping to earn it during the next testing cycle in December.
Mike started working from home in March and it looks like he will continue on in to perpetuity (there’s an Old Gray Wolf reference for the P1s). He’s home unless he needs to do site visits or be in the main office outside of Austin. Thankfully those trips aren’t more than a few days out of the month so he’s home more than not. Lucy and Lily have found a comfy place in his work spot so they are happy to have him home too.
I recently started working a part time job from home and I’m really enjoying it. The hours are pretty flexible and I enjoy the work and learning new skills. Dutch especially loves having me home too, sleeps in the office while I work. I’m also still volunteering as a CASA Advocate so that keeps me busy.
So our family is like most families during this pandemic, trying to figure out how to juggle kids, school, work, life and stress without burning out. Some days fly right on by while others feel like we are stuck in a perpetual Groundhog Day. While I won’t miss wearing a mask or being afraid to sneeze in public, I sure hope the value of family and being home together stays in the forefront. Sure, we’ve put on a couple of extra comfort food pounds and maybe gotten on each other’s nerves more than normal, but I can’t say that I regret the time we’ve had or the memories we’ve made. Cleaning out closets, rearranging rooms, cooking new recipes, riding bikes as a family, finishing giant puzzles and even reading books, none of that would have happened had we not slowed down and made the best of it. I’m not narrow minded however, and I know this health crisis is still unsolved, people are still suffering and some are even dying an untimely death. It’s heartbreaking, devastating and down right terrifying the more I read or watch the news. Sometimes it’s best to live in our little bubble, cherishing our kids and each other as we’ve learned more than anything this year that life isn’t guaranteed and we can’t take it for granted.
No comments:
Post a Comment