Wishing & Hoping & Dreaming!
We have been quarantining for 6 weeks now. That means that for 6 weeks, the kids have been out of physical school, and in home school. It means we only leave the house when we need essential things like food, toilet paper, and for a lot of people, wine (which I recently started to kinda sorta drink)!!! I hear so many people complaining about this, but I am not one of them.
Most people are always on the go. They are in that proverbial hamster wheel if you will. They wake up, get the kids up and ready, have them out the door, go to work, come home, get the homework done, travel from one sport practice, to the drive thru only to head to another sport practice, and then home. Everyone has showers, finishes up any homework, and then they go to bed to repeat the cycle in the morning. Weekends are spent at sporting events, catching up on laundry, cleaning, and for a lot of people they eat out because they are exhausted.
This pandemic has forced the whole world to stop and slow down! Are we still busy? Yes, just in a different way. Over the last 6 weeks, my children have been waking up to do their schoolwork. Afterwards, they can be found playing outside, riding bikes, baking, cooking, reading, and having lots of family time. We’ve had snuggle time, storybook time, show time (where the kids put on shows), art time, family game time and more. Two of the boys have even started guitar lessons online!
Have I wanted to pull my hair out some days? Yes! I look at it this way, these are days I will never get back with my kids. My oldest is graduating 8th grade soon, and in 4 years she will be doing her own thing. So I am soaking up all the time I have “left” with her and the rest of these kids. While I’m at it I am reflecting and realizing that there is so much to be thankful for during this time. I am so thankful that we are healthy and that all of our family members are as well. Additionally, I am thankful that my friends are doing well. It’s all about staying safe at this point.
The downside to this whole thing is that we miss our family. We were supposed to visit family in New Jersey during spring break, but that was canceled. I am not sure if we will get to visit this summer. You know what else was canceled? Our family Disney trip to celebrate my daughter’s 8th grade graduation (shhh, it’s actually because we love Disney and were using her graduation as an excuse). The good news is that Disney is Disney, and I don’t think that it will be going anywhere anytime soon.
Speaking of staying put, I cannot say that for a lot of other places. So many businesses have closed because of COVID-19, and many are suffering and could be on the verge of closing. If I can suggest anything, it’s to support your local mom and pop places. The big box shops may come out with some bruises, some may not, but for many of these mom and pop places, they have their whole life savings invested in their business. If they go down, that could put them on the street. I’ve heard the saying “anyone can be one paycheck away from hunger and homelessness”, so if you have the means to support these people, please do.
And speaking of mom and pop shops, our little business has been so incredibly busy. We are so humbled by the amount of people who are supporting our business during this time. Even with an unfinished website and shop, you are still supporting us through word of mouth. The family is working as hard as they can to pump out all of your orders. A large part of our orders right now are Face Masks! All I can say is that the elves have been sewing as fast as our machines and hands will allow. Every single time we get caught up, we get another large order in. We do not mind it one bit because we feel like we are helping to keep more people safe. So thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
It is my sincere wish that you all stay safe, healthy, and happy. It could be worse. While I wish I could visit my family and give them all hugs, I know that this too shall pass. Until then, I will dream about the day that we meet again.