Quarantine Musings

Hey, gang. Shelley here. So, what’s new with you?!? Been anywhere fun lately? Yeah, me neither. The world looks a little different than I thought it would over the past few months. My favorite video during quarantine is the woman who is talking to a version of herself in late December, questioning the year ahead. “What’s the big story of 2020? The Australian wildfires?” The 2020 version replies “yeah, not even close.” Man, what a true statement. Then I thought the banner story for 2020 may be the tragic death of Kobe Bryant and the others in the helicopter crash from February. Now we’re talking about murder hornets and Tiger King, plus I haven’t seen the inside of a retail store in MONTHS. And you know what? I’m okay with that.

If you know anything about us personally, we are a family who is on the go constantly. It is not uncommon for Mike and I to drive past each other in the neighborhood. One of us headed to soccer or the gym with one kid, the other is coming from soccer or martial arts with the other. We do our best to have dinner as a family at least 3x a week, often that’s at a restaurant on the way home from soccer. Add in a business, middle and elementary school activities… don’t be mistaken, we love every moment (well, almost). I love spending my weekend watching my kids and their friends tear it up on the soccer field, I love watching our son go through the 40 moves of his martial arts pattern, I love the people we have met along the way.

Then March hit, and it all came to a screeching halt. After we realized that this thing may have us home for longer than a few weeks, I pulled out the LIST. You know which one I’m talking about. The “if I ever have a free few weeks” list. Things like clean the blinds, steam clean that spot in the carpet, organize the junk drawer in the kitchen, clean out the hall closet… and we all started working on it. And here’s the best part. We got through the WHOLE ENTIRE LIST! Then we made another one! This one came at a cost, literally. This list was more about changing out and upgrading the little things around our home. We have plans to upgrade ceiling fans, install new doors, change the outlets. Slowly but surely, we are working our way down the list. We have had dinner as a family every single night. We often watch an old soccer game on TV, together.

Do I want it all back? Of course. I can’t wait to scream for my kiddos when they get back on the soccer pitch. Our son is 3 months away from a black belt in martial arts. I miss my friends, my family, my cheese dip at Mexican restaurants (don’t judge me, I said it). I hope you have similar experiences. Was it all laughing and holding hands? Goodness, no. It’s been a struggle-distance learning is hard, working from home full time with kids ain’t easy, and I’m getting a little tired of these same walls. But we’ve been together, done it all as a unit. For me? These past few months have been awesome, and I’m not quite ready to give them up, so take your time. I’ll be over here hanging up a new door in my bedroom, dreaming of queso.