These last six months have been a struggle! There is no alone time for parents anymore. Kids haven’t been going to school, no play dates, no sleepovers. 24/7 of being at home.
We made it through then end of the last school year doing what we could to finish school and navigate life. We enjoyed summer break as best we could. We learned to enjoy just being at home, taking things slower, and being content to just hang out with each other.
We went back to school, and my anxiety peaked!
Before the school year started, my kids school sent out surveys asking parents what we wanted for our kids? In class, full time instruction, virtual, or a hybrid model. Originally, I chose sending my kids back to school. I felt that this was the best option for my kids. None of us really enjoyed the end of the last school year, they wanted to be with their friends, and have a teacher teach them!
Then our governor came out with guidelines and restrictions for schools. At the start of the year, we weren’t even allowed to open because our county hadn’t met the criteria.
So we have been doing virtual, distance learning for the last seven weeks. I gotta say, other than getting over the first few hurdles the first week, I have loved it! It is so much better than last year. The girls are enjoying it, and we have a nice routine down.
There has been a sense of calm in our house…
The schools are finally able to open now, and the anxiety had reappeared! Do I send my kids back? Do I keep them home? Who do you ask for advice? Our parents never had to make these decisions. No one has ever had to make the decision to send their kid to school or keep them home during a pandemic!
After emailing Reagan’s teacher, I have decided to keep them home. Sending them to school sounds more like sending them to prison. They aren’t allowed to walk around their classroom, eating lunch with plexiglass in between students, still sitting in front of a computer because their teacher isn’t allowed to walk around the class, so if there are questions or they need help, they still need to Zoom. No playing with friends that are in different classes, being “podded” together in groups, and those kids are the only ones that you can go near.
I worry about the long-term effects of all of this for my kids.
Are we raising a generation that will begin to hate school because of how long this is going on? Are we raising a generation of kids who will be emotionally and mentally stunted because they aren’t allowed to go near other people? Are we raising a generation of kids who are going to be socially awkward because they are no longer learning how to interact with other people? Are we teaching them that there “could be” something wrong with them, or that there “could be” something wrong with other people?
I don’t want to raise my kids this way. I don’t want this to become the new normal. I want them to have a fearless childhood. Yes, go play on that playground! Go make friends in the neighborhood! Go hug your teacher! Be a kid!!
This is the only time in their life where they can be free to do whatever, and instead we are stuck at home hoping to one day go back to “normal”. My heart hurts for us all.
I feel so… I don’t even have a word good enough to describe how is feel.. Guilty? Bad? Sad? All the above? My kids aren’t having a typical childhood at the moment, so I am making up for it by buying them whatever they ask for! To an extent, anyway. When we are grocery shopping and they want to try a new snack or dessert? Fine, lets get it! Walking through Target and they want to get a little toy or stuffed animal? Sure, why not?!
They are getting away with more at home too. I haven’t been giving them as many chores every week. They are staying up a little later. Eating dinner in the playroom. Whatever makes them happy.
I justify it because they aren’t doing normal kid things right now! They don’t get to go to school and play with their friends. There are no birthday parties that they are being invited to right now.
My kids’ main source of entertainment with their friends these days is emailing! That’s right, my kids have discovered that they can email their friends through their school email addresses!
I worry about the long-term affects of all this! Not just for kids, but for everyone! My mental health is chaotic. Some days I am doing great and I love everything about this “new life” we have going. I have a good routine, the house is clean and organized, I am working on different house projects each week, etc. Then there are days where I am struggling to not have an emotional breakdown.
I feel overwhelmed.
There is no longer any time for just me. I have no time to just focus on myself. I don’t even get to shower uninterrupted! How long can we all sustain this life?
How are you handling the situation we are in? Any tips or tricks that have worked for you and your family? Feel free to let me know!
