Weekend Recap

How is everyone holding up?

I thought we finally had things figured out as last week got off to a great start.  And then Thursday and Friday happened.  Ha.  One child gave the cat a hair cut and the other threw a broom at me.  They both trashed their rooms and broke a curtain rod.  I won't tell you who did what, but I lost it.  And then I started thinking about how I knew I'd be a terrible stay at home mom and moments like these only prove it.  I miss going to work, I miss routine, I miss leaving the house!  I was feeling pretty low.  Except this current situation is not even close to what being a stay at home mom would look like and everyone is struggling in some way... So I know I need to cut myself some slack.

Thankfully, the weekend came and we decorated cookies, played games, took walks, and ordered lunch.  The baker who makes the boys' birthday cakes offers contactless delivery of baked goodies.  So far I've ordered cupcakes, brownies, cookies, and a cookie decorating kit.  Obviously the quarantine diet is going really well.  But I've also realized we need little things to look forward to and I love treats.

I just completed my graduate class.  I submitted my two final assignments early for feedback from my professor.  I was really nervous and asked both A and a colleague to review my work before I submitted.  Then I changed my mind and decided they already had enough work to do so I needed to suck it up and accept whatever feedback came my way.  Well, my professor told me I nailed it.  I'm proud of myself and I'm halfway through the program!  One less thing to worry about! Woohoo!

I started reading Harry Potter with the boys last night.  I've never read the series and after W was born, I knew I wanted to read it with him some day.  These aren't the types of books the boys would typically choose and S is definitely young for it, but we're going to give it a try anyway.  We've been reading a ton since the stay at home order and I love it!

Oh!  I gave the boys haircuts.  I watched one whole YouTube video and decided I could do it.  And guess what!  They turned out really well!

I think that sums up life lately.  Really, we just take each day as it comes and hope for the best. :)

Weekend Recap / Easter

I’m a bit late in posting an update/recap/whatever you want to call it, but as I mentioned previously, not much is happening and every day feels pretty much the same.

I spent the majority of Easter just feeling sad and trying to repeatedly give myself a pep talk about how our situation could be so much worse.  We still had Easter baskets, an egg hunt, and an amazing dinner.  By the way, A and I can apparently cook a really great grown up meal – who knew?!?  We had ham, roasted potatoes, mac and cheese, green beans, deviled eggs, and cupcakes.  Yum!  But I couldn’t help feeling disappointed that we weren’t able to attend church or celebrate with our extended families like we’ve done in years past.

We’re just taking things day by day.  Admittedly, some days are really challenging and just plain hard.  These are they days in which A and I have work meetings and the boys don’t cooperate.  The boys come into the bedroom where I work about 8057 time or they're fed up with the current situation, which results in yelling and throwing things.  There are meltdowns and arguments and A and I end up completely exhausted.  But luckily, the challenging days are usually followed by better days.  Days that include chalk drawings, dance parties, long walks, scavenger hunts, science experiments, and reading books.

I get overwhelmed easily.  I’ve noticed it ever since my brother passed away.  Things that would typically bother me just feel heavier and bother me so much more and I feel a tremendous sense of dread.  So you can imagine that working full time with kids home full time, home school, graduate class, and weekly preschool board meetings are weighing on me.  In a totally ironic twist, I talked to my doctor about this and he prescribed a medication to only be taken when I needed it most.  You know, like now.  Except I didn’t fill said prescription before we went on lock down and now I’m too afraid to visit the pharmacy for a non essential medication.  Ha.  Go figure.

Last night, after my board meeting, we put the boys to bed quickly and hopped on a virtual trivia tournament.  Yes, I now realize I sound like an uber nerd.  You should know that I hardly knew any of the answers.  But it was the first time in a long time that I felt a little more “normal”.  We had so much fun and I’m so glad our friends invited us.  We ended up in third place and our friends came in second out of 25ish teams.  Again, can’t take any credit, but I love trivia contests with A.

Other positive takeaways from the past couple weeks: We’re still trying to get walks in when possible and I feel SO much better when I get a little fresh air and exercise.  It has snowed a few times, though. ☹  We joined our neighbors in donating funds to our mail carrier, UPS delivery man, Fed Ex delivery man, and sanitation workers.  Tomorrow we’re presenting them all with the money collected and also making thank you signs for our yards.  I love that our neighbors organized this!  S and I have started doing kids YouTube dance videos.  If I needed confirmation that I’m the world’s worst dancer, this was it!  But S told me I’m his favorite person to dance with so there.

Stay well!

Weekend Recap

I don't really have much of a weekend recap because every day feels more or less the same.  I think everyone is in the same boat.

We've been going for walks everyday - thankful we live in a pretty big neighborhood and have been able to discover new routes and places.

We visited my mom as well as Nani and Papa from the driveway.  S even made a sign to hold up.  I think it was so good for the boys to see their grandparents.  They had a really really challenging Monday.  The entire day felt like one giant meltdown, but since then, things have gone well.  There are scuffles and arguments, but I'm grateful the boys have each other during this time.

My mom came over yesterday for a "social distance" walk - she stayed outside and walked 6 feet behind us, but it was great to catch up while getting some fresh air.  We ended up walking for over an hour.  On the downside, Charlie still smells like a swamp after our walk - so gross!

We've done quite well with meal planning and I'm proud of us.  W has surprised me with some of the things he's liked - mostaccioli, chicken tacos, and greek chicken with rice.  I've made it a point to let him know that I'm trying new recipes and if he doesn't like what I make, we'll find something else for him.  I think this has taken the pressure off in a way and he's discovered that he really does like different foods.  A major win!

Work is challenging because I don't have the office conveniences and the boys do interrupt often.  I'm just doing the best I can.