Oh boy, buckle up, we’ve got some catching up to do. It’s been 2 weeks and we’ve been busy (sort of). Two Mondays ago, it was Martin Luther King Day, and since the boys were going to be home from school, Grandma Debbie had them overnight on Sunday. Nate and I went out to dinner and relaxed while the boys enjoyed endless fruit snacks, staying up late, and all the best grandma time. On Monday, they went to the ice castle, which I was super jealous of because it looks so cool! The weather has been COLD, but Monday was a pretty nice day, so the perfect day to be outside.
Augustus was Star of the Week at school that week, so to celebrate, we went out to dinner (his choice) for burgers, fries and malts. He was very excited to sit in the teacher’s chair and bring special show and tell all week.
On Tuesday, Xander’s school was closed for “professional development day” so he and I went out to lunch and hung out- I still had to work, but we found a good balance of playing together and him playing on his own. I don’t know how parents made it through a whole school year with kids at home, but a day here or there isn’t bad. Tuesday was swim lessons and the boys continue to do so well int he water!
On Wednesday, Xander was at school, Augustus went to Grandma Debbie’s. Everything was normal. And then mid day, she texted to tell me he wasn’t feeling well and he had a temperature. He was pretty miserable when he got home and all evening. Early bedtime for him and I was prepared for a sick day on Thursday, but he woke up feeling great and life was normal on Thursday. I thought we dodged a bullet.
Thursday night, Xander came home and said he felt like he did after his covid shot. Nate was exhausted. Augustus seemed fine and I was a little run down, but fine. All 3 men went to bed at 7pm, but I wasn’t worried. I took a covid test and it was negative, so I assumed we all had colds.
Friday- Nate slept until 11am (about 15 hours total), Xander woke up miserable, I woke up feeling a little yucky, Augustus felt great. He went to school, the rest of us spent the day on the couch. Mid afternoon, I decided to take another covid test, and there it was- the thing I’ve been dreading for 2 years, a positive result. Ugh! Covid had arrived.
Saturday was a day of rest- ipads, popsicles, quiet playing. Nate was exhausted. Xander felt like he had a cold. I felt run down. Augustus was feeling fine!
I recently had a conversation about how important it is to let kids be bored and not always feel like I need to program them like I’m running a camp. Our boys play really well together and are creative, and it’s very fun to watch them come up with ideas. However, with a full week at home looming, the only way I could feel sane was to take control and make a plan. So Saturday was my quarantine prep day. Amazon, instacart and Target carts were filled and ready to arrive to our home. I created a daily schedule and 3 categories of activities- independent, mom set up but independent, and mom-led. I still felt mostly fine, so I knew I would be balancing work and life with kids at home.
On Sunday, we played, rested, and had taco night on the couch while watching Encanto (you know I can’t resist a theme!).
Monday began our week at home. Both boys were feeling fine. Nate was still exhausted, but overall, ok. I felt like I had a cold, but overall, ok. I had 5 meetings on Monday, so the boys were mostly independent. Nate was home for some of the day. I had ordered a bunch of stuff on Amazon to keep the boys busy. “Scrubbies” are little animals you can color and then wash off. The boys loved them. They painted. They played. But by the end of the day, I realized my “choose you own adventure” style of activity chart wasn’t going to cut it. They alternated between wanting to do everything shown or nothing. So I came up with a new plan for the rest of the week.
Tuesday I introduced “plan for the day”. We started the day with a scavenger hunt- the prizes were big, but they also kept the boys busy for several hours. Water beads (a risky activity to do inside, but they were great!), crafting, the floor is lava- I was able to work, the boys were entertained, and life was good. Nate is alone in his office, so he was back to work, feeling mostly better.
Wednesday was another scavenger hunt (this time the prize was bath crayons), craft projects (sand art and painting ceramics). We baked banana bread. We took a mid-day bath to try out the bath crayons. We got a surprise from Grandma Renee- new books and the game Operation. It was very fun to get mail and they loved the game!
Thursday started with 7:30am crafting- not my first choice to begin so early, but they were very excited and I didn’t want to take away their enthusiasm. Xander got to zoom with his class and show off some of his crafts he’d made, as well as play a game with his class. He was very excited to see everyone, but later, he was a little sad because he really missed school. Thursday was the day covid caught up to me and I was exhausted all day. The boys and Nate were all back to normal, so Nate took them sledding and then to ice cream (by that time, they were past the 5 day CDC quarantine period, so even though school quarantine was still going, ice cream seemed like an ok outing).
Friday was the day that I was ready to release the children back into the wild and wish them the best of luck in all their endeavors. As an introvert, that much nonstop together time was tough for me. I also was DONE with the full time parent/full time work schedule. We started the day with another scavenger hunt (more legos and hot wheels to buy me some independent play time). We played balloon tennis, baked cupcakes, and did more art projects.
Saturday was the end of quarantine and I was relieved! We made it. I don’t think I would win “employee of the week” but I’d worked, Nate worked, the boys were happy, our house was a mess, but life was good. We started the day with family clean up (one of my favorite activities) and then the boys headed to Grandma Debbie’s for a night away. Upon arriving at her house, I took the turn into her parking lot sharp, opened the van door, and let 2 boys and 2 suitcases tumble out while I peeled away like I was driving a getaway car. Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but I was grateful for a break. Grandma had new outfits for the boys and they were in the pool before I even made it home.
Nate and I were supposed to have an event for my work, but it got postponed. Instead, we went out on a double date with friends (who were also supposed to be at the event and still had a babysitter). We ate a great meal and laughed and laughed and laughed. We had such a fun night!
Today the boys spent the day with Grandma and had a very full day of activity! They went to the play area at the mall, took a trip to the Dollar Tree and spent the day running around nonstop. A perfect way to end the weekend before heading back to school tomorrow.
After almost 2 weeks of no baking, I am back to the kitchen working on Valentine’s Day macs. I am looking forward to a normal week- back on schedule!
