Normalcy During COVID
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The struggle to find normalcy during this past year is real! COVID has interrupted life in so many ways and although it may be easy to focus on the negatives. . . there are some incredible blessings that have also been realized. One thing that we all can count on is that a pandemic makes us all realize how adaptive and resilient we all can be when forced to. The ladies here at The Boudoir Studio give you a small glimpse into their own lives on how they have created some sense of normalcy within their lives during this crazy year!
Here is what they have to say:
Andrea:
Normalcy during Covid. . . had you asked me to write this back in say March or April it would have overwhelmed me. It would have made me feel guilt, sadness, confusion, and anxiety. I had my third baby in mid-February of 2020. So as the world began being flooded with media coverage of this virus that we knew little about, I was in the full swing of postpartum. . . I was spending the majority of the day nursing a newborn (who hadn’t met any of her family), glued to my phone and trying to figure out what was best for my family. So there is no way I could have written anything positive at that time. Fast forward 10 months, a lot of tough conversations and decisions later, and I can approach this with a little more glass-half-full mindset. . . So what is our new normal??
My kids have completely stopped asking to go to the museum or to see the “neigh neighs” at the mall, they don’t bombard me with a million questions and tears when I apologize to them and tell them, “I am sorry baby we can’t because of the bad germs.” Does all that make me sad? Yes, they’re so little (4,3, and 10 months) but it's what life is now. So we have two choices: wallow in what we're missing, or figure out what our new normal is and make it great.
Covid made my decision to homeschool my oldest for UPK a super easy decision. At this point, we all really like it and are planning on sticking with it for Kindergarten! With starting school we were forced to rearrange our day. We have now created the most beautiful morning routine since we're not running off to this place or that place or to meet up with this one or that one. Pre-Covid, we were on the go 3-4 days out of the week. Truthfully, that was because I just didn’t know how to be home with two toddlers by myself all day. I felt this constant need that if I got them out and broke up our day it would make my day easier. While it took some adjusting, creating this routine at home has improved all of our days. I actually feel my days are much better when spent at home than when we were always out and about. My husband has taken on the role of the music teacher and spends time each week teaching the kids piano and letting them strum on his guitars. We have family workout time! I started cooking more. Recipes no longer intimidate me if they have more than 3 spices listed, haha!
What it comes down to is the route of our new normal is togetherness. It's not constantly flying out the door, or not knowing how to just be home. It's been more parenting together. It's been watching my oldest two have no one else to play with except each other, and watching the bond they have to grow. It's been a time of reevaluation of priorities, self-discovery, it's allowed time for my husband and I to work on our relationship. It was me having the time to drive to the grocery store just to park next to my grandparents and keep them company while my mom was in doing their grocery shopping. That one is big. I would have never made that extra time before, I would have taken time for granted, “there was always tomorrow.” But there isn’t always tomorrow. So again, this is life today, this is our world today. Will things go back to “normal?” I have hope that it will to some degree. I also have no intentions of letting my life completely go back to “normal.” There's a lot I really love about our new normal, I want to hold on to it.
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Jill:
I remember last December quite clearly. This time, last year, I was 4 days overdue with my son, Jack. We had already decided to hibernate after his arrival and there were only whispers of a virus going around. My husband works a typical 9-5 job, our 4-year-old daughter was attending her little preschool program part-time and I worked from home. Like every other mother out there, we used to fill our time with playgrounds, playdates, and trips to all the museums around downtown Rochester. In March, all of that changed. The adjustments of having all of us stay home while learning how to be a new family of 4 had their challenges. I remember being so naive in the beginning, believing that this was going to be just a 2-week lockdown and be done. Here we are, just about 1 year later! However, there are some great lessons that I’ve experienced because of our pandemic:
Appreciation- My husband is fortunate enough to not only keep his job but also work from home. It's an incredible blessing that his paternity leave lined up with the start of working from home. Not only has Josh been able to see the day-in/day-out work that comes along with home-life, but I have also been able to see what his work life is like too. Our days are now integrated to allow him to have the ideal space and atmosphere to work, but also to help out with lunch and dinner. I would love to keep this routine indefinitely!
Boundaries- At this point, I think we all can agree that sometimes you just need to get away from all the people that you have been quarantining with. Whether it's hiding out in the bathroom or looking for that non-existent Christmas decoration in the basement. . . it’s true. . . sometimes we just need a little space, and that’s okay! My daughter plays with legos in her bedroom, my husband works on projects in the basement and I like to do all sorts of arts and crafts! I think it’s important for everyone to find their own “fun thing” that brings them joy.
Time- I know it's cliche to say that we should appreciate the time we get to spend together. But it is true. There may not ever be another year where we were forced to slow down and stay home. Josh has been able to be part of every milestone with Jack’s first year of life. I’ve had an extra year of having my daughter home with me before she starts going to school. And you know what. . . all that extra time has been pretty great! No more busy weekends, juggling weddings, holiday parties, or school functions. We were forced to get to know everyone in our household a little better and we were able to get to know ourselves better too.
I'm not sure if it helped us that we shifted from life with one kid to life with two kids during the onset of a pandemic. It hasn’t been easy, however, there have many lessons well learned and blessings that have come along the way.
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Nicki:
When we quarantined back in the spring, not a whole lot changed for our family. I already homeschooled our kids so that just continued on. We did previously go places often - stores, the YMCA, the Museum of Play, I had even just started back at the gym, so all that stopped. But we were already pretty used to spending lots of time together at home so it wasn’t a big transition. However, not having to “squeeze” in trips places, not having to schedule and plan life around all the comings and goings, felt very different. We didn’t rush things, we sat at the table longer during meals, played games together, and just enjoyed being together. It was really nice. Life was planned entirely around our family’s daily routine with no interruptions.
When the summer came, we ventured out more, discovering new things to do - picnics at parks were our favorite. Now we’re back in the school year and mostly at home again. It’s not the same as it was in the spring, but I think overall we’ve slowed down a bit and none of us are complaining about that. Life goes by so fast and it sucks that a horrible virus has changed our world so much, but slowing down our busy lives has been a good thing. I hope to keep savoring our daily lives more, no matter what happens with COVID.
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