Life Lately – and back to school during a pandemic

It’s hard to believe we’re five months into living through a pandemic, and it never even crossed my mind that I would one day have to parent/work/deal with life during a world crisis. Parenting books and classes did not prepare me for everything life has thrown at us this year. I think it’s safe to say that 2020 has not been too kind.

I returned to work in early July, and my husband went back to work two weeks ago. School began last week, and our son attended two half days (in-person) before doing virtual school for five weeks. I have no idea why our county is even considering the face to face schooling right now, but we don’t really have a choice in the matter. We’re fortunate to have my mom around and that she can help with schooling, and that my job is going to be flexible. I’ll be able to work from home a couple days a week. 

(We’ve had access to a friend’s private pool this summer. Pool time is almost a given for us most weeks!)

Our daughter turned 4 during the pandemic, and her personality is sassier than ever. I should go back and look at my posts about our son. I don’t recall him being THIS mouthy when he was her age. At the same time, I was pregnant with my daughter when my son was 4…so maybe I’m remembering things differently? By the way, for her school’s career day, she said she wanted to be a chicken nugget when she grows up. She settled for a Wonder Woman dress.

My son is about to turn 9 in a week. NINE. Where in the world did the years go? We have our own challenges with him, but I feel like things are on the upswing with him. Also, who followed the blog while I was pregnant with him? I wonder if he’ll let me call him McLittle – that was such a fun nickname.

Our cat is not doing well, and I know we’ll be saying goodbye to her soon. We may have a couple of weeks left with her, but I’m also not holding my breath. I feel like we have lost a lot already this year, and now we’re losing the one constant over the past 11.5 years. The family pet. 

I am in disbelief that the summer is almost over, school is beginning and we’re really at the end of August. How did we even get here? I honestly thought back in March that things would be back to normal by summer, and things are anything but normal. 

I’ve taken up making masks. I’ve made masks for myself, family members, friends, co-workers. It’s an outlet I didn’t realize I needed, but it’s fun and I’m a bit obsessed with making the perfect mask now! I’m even sharing on Instagram a mask of the day. 🙂 (If you’re looking to purchase a mask from a store, I did a whole roundup of masks recently.)

How do we even think about the holidays this year? Anyone? Do you think you’ll be getting together with family? I truly don’t know what the holidays are going to look like for us. My mom has been following the same “rules” as us, and we’ve been limiting our exposure to others as much as possible (for, you know, people who work in schools or on college campuses.) I’m able to stay in my office for the better part of the day, and my husband is wearing a mask anytime he’s around a person. I’m trying to be hopeful for the fall and winter, but who really knows? 

I think we’ve been getting through the days by being outdoors more. Our yard hasn’t seen this much activity since a massive snow day. My husband had his hammock up most of the spring and part of the summer, we’ve been trying to take care of the overgrown portions of the yard, the garden has been mostly maintained this year and we have been taking walks on a daily basis.

Back in March, I mentioned wanting to get an elliptical or a treadmill for the house, and an opportunity came open two weeks ago when a neighbor was selling their treadmill. We purchased it and I’ve used it several times a week since we got it. It has rained a lot, but I’ve committed to walking or running a couple miles each day, and this has helped tremendously. 

I’m still staying out of most stores (especially for longer periods of time) to limit my exposure to people and germs. This weekend I explored the beauty that is grocery pick-up using Target and Sam’s Club services, and it was amazing. I was finished with our meal plan and grocery shopping before 10:30 on Saturday morning. 

How are you handling things these days?