Surviving Quarantine
In my last post, you learned that our family was fortunate enough to end up under the same roof for the Coronavirus quarantine. So, how are we doing?
Even though Dennis was already home in Colorado by the time the lock down started, had he still been in DC, he would have found a way home. He would have driven, lived off gas station food, and napped in his car.
We got lucky, though. He was here helping me recover from an illness that may, or may not have been, COVID. I’m leaning towards the latter since no one else around me seemed to get sick.
Work & School
While I continued to use our office to teach my Chinese ESL students (ESL = English as a Second Language) and work on projects for our taekwondo school, Dennis set up his own office in the spare bedroom. At the beginning of the shutdown, the boys were on spring break for two weeks and not in need of a workstation for school yet. Speaking of school, that’s another reason we have been extremely fortunate during this pandemic.
The boys already attend a hybrid school that’s a blend between in-building/instructor-led and working online from home. They were already accustomed to “distance learning” and had everything they needed to work from home. They work on their own schedule and at their own pace. The only difference with the shutdown was that they had to attend an occasional video-conference class.
They’re both in high school, so it’s not like we had to try to wrangle elementary school kids, keep them focused and help them with their work. Thank goodness because, to be honest, I’ve been unable to help them with their math since middle school!
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Major kudos to those of you who were suddenly thrown into schooling your kids at home. I sympathized with every Facebook post about your struggles. I don’t know that I could have done this when my kids were younger and attended a traditional school. One has ADHD and one has ADD (attention deficit without the hyperactivity). Plus, they’re smarter than I am! With the advanced curriculum they have access to these days, they’ve already surpassed the amount of knowledge I graduated with. Ben likes to say, “But it’s okay mom, you have street smarts.” I’m not sure he knows what “street smarts” means. Anyway, if Coronavirus hit about ten years ago and I was having to teach them at home, I can totally see myself saying, “F this, let’s go to the park” while I put a bottle of Chardonnay on ice for after.
Shout out to the teachers, as well! My sister teaches fifth grade and had to suddenly shift to online learning minus the video-conferencing. She and her students/parents were basically emailing assignments back and forth. Her husband still had to leave every day for his essential job, and she still had to home school her off-the-charts ADHD eight year old son, Cooper. Cooper was not taking his ADHD medicine since Kristy was trying to get him to gain some weight over spring break, and then during quarantine as well. Their situation was extra crazy and frustrating for her. And yes, attention deficit runs rampant in both our homes. Ben asked me once if it “runs in your and Aunt Kristy’s family?” Um, no. It just turns out that we have the same taste in men.
My sister definitely deserves a parenting gold medal, as do all the other parents and teachers who have survived these sudden circumstances. Here’s hoping that our kids can safely return to school in the fall!
Our New routine
In April, things REALLY started shutting down, and we quickly settled into a routine. Dennis and I would wake up around 4 am. I’d jump online to teach a few ESL classes on China time, and Dennis logged into begin his day which accommodated his co-workers on both Eastern time and New Delhi time. The boys were able to sleep in and begin school at their leisure, unless they needed to attend a video-conference class. Luckily, Santa gifted Jack with his own laptop for Christmas. Ben and I would switch back and forth between the workstation and family laptop.
Dennis insisted on doing all of the shopping. I had just been really sick, so Dr. Dennis declared me as “high risk” and I was not arguing with his diagnosis that prevented me from going anywhere!
In the evenings, we ate dinner as a family and went for family walks. We’d let Jack practice driving on mostly empty roads. When my Facebook friends expressed their frustration at dealing with schoolwork, energetic kids, and meltdowns with no escape, I stayed quiet and felt a little guilty about our little utopia.
Okay, but was it really all rainbows & unicorns?
For the most part, absolutely! But sure, there were little annoyances that come from having all four of us under the same roof 24×7.
The first few weeks were a little tough on the boys. Dennis wanted to soak up every moment with them that he could. He wanted hugs, family time, information. It was overwhelming for them. They spent a lot of time hiding in their rooms from this new onslaught of affection. We had our way of overwhelming him, too. Especially when I’d suddenly yell downstairs to the boys for something, or Georgie would start incessantly barking at an innocent delivery person. Georgie had already recently been diagnosed with diabetes and was already starting to lose his eyesight, so the constant help and attention he required was a lot to get used to.
Another annoyance was the kitchen. Since the lock down, the kitchen has had at least one human and a dog (because if someone’s in the kitchen, Georgie’s there, too) in it at all times. Most of the time, there were multiple. And our kitchen is not that big! We were constantly in each other’s way. One person cooking, the other reaching for a bowl. One person putting food away while another is trying to get some out. And poor Dennis is right there trying to soak up all the family time he can, asking, “What are you hungry for/making/looking for?” When I cooked anything, not only would Georgie be under my feet waiting for something to drop, but Dennis would be hovering behind me watching and asking questions about what I was doing. The good news is, he hasn’t had anyone to cook for and was happy to prepare big family meals almost nightly! Well, by looking at the scale, maybe it’s not quite “good news.”
You're the martha to my snoop
Then there’s the clash of our two “home management” styles. Dennis is now used to a small apartment where he’s only cleaning up after himself. Welcome to our home, where it’s two teenage boys and me; someone who doesn’t mind if the bed isn’t immediately made upon waking or if dirty dishes are left in the sink overnight. Unlike Dennis, I don’t rinse the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher and I don’t mind if Georgie sleeps on my pillow. But it only took a few weeks before I began pre-rinsing dishes and Georgie wasn’t constantly being shooed off Dennis’ pillow.
A Year's worth of planning down the drain
We were happy to stay safe at home, but were concerned about Jack’s upcoming taekwondo sparring tournaments. We’d already planned out his training and competitions for the entire year; this being his last year in the junior division. In March, tournaments were being postponed until later in the summer. In fact, the state tournament wasn’t cancelled until the week of the event. The kids found out during a training session, and all of them went home from practice and pigged out on food since they no longer had to make weight! Jack went straight for the bread in the pantry. Pretty soon, tournament dates went from being postponed to being canceled. Our calendar went from being completely full to completely empty. Which means our bank account will do the opposite! Cha-ching!
hermits are just misunderstood
Jack started training in the garage, and attended classes via video conference. Ben’s drum lessons were taught over Skype. A checkup with their pediatrician was held over video conference, too, which everyone actually preferred to going in even during the healthiest of times. Can that become a thing now, please?
The guys let their facial hair go. Dennis grew a beard. Jack tried to grow a beard, but it was mostly a mustache and neckbeard. And Ben, as hard as he tried, sprouted a few chin hairs. My gray roots were so long that Dennis insisted I just let them go. But they were just thrown into a mom bun every day, and I’d throw in a festive flower clip for my Chinese students.
Now, businesses are starting to slowly open up. We actually just went away for the weekend. Even though we’re in the “isn’t it too early??” camp, our trip was outdoorsy. Plus, we were extremely careful and avoided any kind of crowd. But it was still great for the soul! And it sounds like a good topic for my next post!
Until then, stay safe & healthy!
😍
Good post! Sounds like being a long-distance family kinda prepped you guys for all this craziness!
So great to be reading your blog again! I’ve missed your posts. Hope you’re fully recovered and feeling better!
Oh wow, that’s nice to hear! Thank you!! I couldn’t believe it had been so long since I last posted. And yes, I’ve fully recovered but still letting Dennis run all the errands 🙂
What a great blog, so fun and interesting into the life of an outstanding family….
Thank you! It makes me happy to hear that you’re reading and enjoying it 🙂