When the World Paused - Day 94 - Then, Now, and Maybe Tomorrow

"...This doesn't seem like it's going to be a terribly temporary situation. We as a nation, culture, and race seem to be going through something that will change the way we relate to each other, the way we interact with each other, and the way we teach our kids forever. " - J Humenay

 Remember when I wrote about our first day of COVID-19 life?

Well, here was are, neck deep into day 94, and boy, have things ever changed.

 The statistics as they stand today are mind-numbing to grasp. As of the moment I'm writing this, the 2.23 million people in the United States have been confirmed positive (a 27,000+ increase over yesterday), 699 thousand have recovered, and 120 thousand are dead (a number that went up by over 690 people overnight) due to 'Covid', 'Rona', or the Corona virus. (Yeah - we've been in this so long that the virus has earned nicknames.) The United States currently leads the world in positive cases and deaths. At least, so the statistics say. There are over 8 million cases world wide.

  

Things are starting to reopen here, and seeing people wearing masks in stores or on the street is no longer an odd sight. In fact, I get compliments on our masks often. There are lots of mask making businesses popping up and doing very well. But most large summer time events are still closed. 

Only this week have we started venturing into outdoor playdates - and even those are rare. No hugging. avoid touching. Sanitize hands. It's a wild new form of normality. 

Other things that have changed- 

We avoid going into stores. I order groceries and have them delivered directly to the trunk of my car. I do Curbside pick up whenever I can. I used to loath the idea of someone shopping for me, picking out my groceries, etc, but it's probably made me buy less anyway.

The Impossible Girl really wants to go inside places. We haven't ventured into an eatery yet though. We still grab drive through if we're going to eat out. 

People are doing drive through graduation ceremonies, and struggling with what the next school year will need to look like to keep everyone safe. I keep hearing fellow parents say, "My kid is so behind!" but I have a feeling the goal post has moved. "Behind" may just be the 'new normal' for most of the kids who don't learn well online.

Work is... interesting.

Without the blessing of Child Care at the YMCA, I have been doing what I can for my clients long distance, and been trying to figure out things face to face in the meantime. 

Friends have been chipping in here and there - but babysitting isn't cheap - nor do I want her to have exposure to a bunch of different babysitters, so I've been able to keep that to a minimum, but finding consistency in a price range that makes adding face to face work back in make sense is proving challenging. 

Our routines have loosened up a bit as summer is fully upon us now.

Today is a good example.

I set a 'goal' for the day - One thing I would like to do or accomplish. 

They are usually super simple and I just add to the list as the day goes on to see what else I can tackle. 

This morning, the plan was simple - 

Take out the trash. (I forgot last week...)

Plant seeds.

We got up late this morning and snuggled up eating breakfast and watching SCOOB - the new movie about Scooby Doo that would have come out in theaters - if they were open.

Then we zipped off to get a school lunch (always a treat for her and they really help stretch the grocery budget). 

We came home, ate lunch by having a 'car picnic' (eating lunch in the trunk with the hatch popped) and I got out our pots and ran some water, ready for filling with soil and planting! 

Well... The Impossible Girl had other play plans for the pots, so I let her have her play and worked in the front yard. 

I dug up some of the marble chips in the front yard, and made a strip of dirt. I planted the wild flowers and bee friendly flowers we'd been sent in the mail (one by her school teacher pen pal and the other by the Washington Department of Agriculture).  I also put half of the free Dahlia tubers into the ground beside the wild flowers (The Impossible Girl helped with those), so we'll see what happens there. 

We were hot and tired and dirty after that so we went inside and cleaned up.

Mission accomplished. Anything else was bonus at this point.

 I took her over to a friend's driveway to play. They knew not to touch or hug each other and played really well all together. Even though they hadn't seen each other in months, it was good to see them pick up immediately, and it was a hard goodbye though for The Impossible Girl. She's been struggling with those lately...

We've finding lots of  spur-of-the-moment adventures - like a weekday trip to Point No Point ,where we found what we think is an eagle feather and raced up and down the beach several times.

And our local(ish) Drive-In Movie theater reopened, so we stopped in to see a socially distant Trolls 2 on Sunday night. She lasted through the whole movie and about 10 minutes into the next one before we called it a night. But it was a nice break from routine - especially with the social distancing guidelines. Cars had to be parked 10 feet apart (usually they cram as many cars into the field as possible) and everything was paid for in advance through the internet - tickets, concessions, etc. Masks were worn to and from the concession stand/bathrooms. It was pretty relaxed, but we missed running the fields and we missed the pre-movie playground (playgrounds are still closed).

(I have no idea why they put a trailer for Tenent before a kids movie...)

 We have explored different hikes. This was Lake Gazzam on Bainbridge Island. It was a lovely little walk after we manage to out drive some rain clouds.

 

It's getting late and tomorrow is another day with small goals - 

Work.

Do more laundry.

Get outside (preferably while doing a chore - like weed whacking or mowing...

This time has truly helped me understand some of the struggles (and triumphs) of domestic life flying solo parenthood. 

And I 'think' I'm doing a pretty good job. History will be the judge.