When I first heard schools would be closed for two weeks, over a year ago, I wasn’t thrilled. I looked over at my three kids who were sprawled out on the sofa, surrounded by snacks, drinks, and were eyeball deep in their cell phones and snapped a picture.
I then sent that picture to my sister with the caption: "I can’t live like this for two weeks.” She agreed with me and said she didn’t know how she was going to not be annoyed 100% of the time while her kids were home thinking this was one giant snack-eating party.
It’s kind of blurry, but somewhere in between learning they’d be home for the rest of the school year and when summer hit, we got into a groove. The days got nicer, and I started making our lunches on the grill, or we’d duck out and go through the drive-thru.
My kids liked that they were able to sleep in a bit, and I didn’t hate the fact I no longer had to drive them to school and back. Or to lacrosse practice… or to their friends' houses… you get what I’m saying.
Life slowed way down, we got a few ducks, and when the school year started up again in September, we had the option of choosing virtual learning or in-school learning. All of my kids wanted to stay home and continue doing what they had been last spring.
I was all for it
They were doing well, and the part of me that was dreading them being here all the time was gone. I loved having them home all day, and for me, it felt like the safer option to keep them away from school because last fall was when the COVID-19 cases really started climbing in our area.
As the months ticked by, my kids started to miss their old life and their friends. Around Christmas, they expressed how they really wanted to get back in school even though it would only be for two days a week. So, they went back in March (one of my kids was even able to go back full-time), and suddenly it seemed like we were pulled into our old lives again.
The alarm shoots off early in the morning once again
I have to make sure I pay attention to the clock while working and go get them from school.
While things aren’t 100% back to the way they were before, they are getting there. All of our appointments have resumed, my daughter was able to take driving classes, and they have seen a few friends outside of school.
I’m not going to lie — I’m exhausted and I wonder how I did this for so many years before the pandemic put our lives at a standstill.
More than that, I miss my kids when they are gone
The house is too quiet, eating lunch alone isn’t as fun as I remember, and I find myself talking to myself all the time now.
It’s funny that just over a year ago, I was crippled with worry, anxiety, and wondering how I was going to keep my kids on task during this mess. I wanted so much to maintain some normalcy for them — and for me.
And now that things are going back to normal, I’m happy of course, but I’m surprised at how much I miss the life we lived this past year.
