And here we are at the end of week 3 in lockdown, doesn’t it feel like a lifetime? The days are passing very quickly but the weeks are dragging. The kids are bored, we’re bored, this is boring. Vital, we understand, but extremely boring. Even though I am on adoption leave and have been for 10 months, I remember those mornings when the alarm for work would go off and I’d pray for another hour or so. Now here we are. To be honest, I think I’m feeling a bit useless.
I watch the tv, read the news and scour social media and see so many people doing everything they can to keep the world turning and as many people safe and healthy as possible and here I am, not doing much. I see Mr ESLT leave the house daily to do his bit as a marine pilot (he got promoted this week by the way – congrats Mr ESLT) and here I am, not doing much. Then I remember I will be returning to work in a mere 7 weeks, therefore should use my time wisely and enjoy being with the kids, even if it is only at home.
Happy Easter
We hope you had a lovely Easter weekend, considering and if you celebrate it of course. We had a lovely weekend and it was great that Mr ESLT had the weekend off too. As I always plan everything in advance, I’d already bought easter eggs, gifts, games and crafts before lockdown commenced. We were also sent cupcakes, easter eggs and other yummy treats from the wider family, meaning the children still had a wonderful weekend and were thoroughly chuffed (and off their heads from all the sugar) with what the Easter bunny brought them.
Fingers crossed next Easter this will all be a distant memory and we can visit family, take part in Easter egg hunts and even visit the local pub (remember being able to do that?) for Easter Sunday lunch. Not being able to see family and friends, especially over bank holiday weekends is tough but it’s important to remember we are all in this together.
Stay Strong & Stay Safe
It seems that lockdown is not going to end anytime soon, it’s estimated to last at least another 3 weeks and that sucks. But we all have to keep doing what we’re doing to ensure that we save lives and protect the NHS. It seems that the number of deaths is set to keep rising until we hit the peak, then what? Who knows but if we look at other countries around the world, lockdowns are being lifted, slowly. The world will surely return to normal, although that will take a long time and possibly not until a vaccine is found. Therefore, we all need to stay strong even on the darkest days.
We’ve found that having the odd ‘no news’ days really helps. It’s not that we don’t realise what’s going on or that we need to block it out, it’s just sometimes a break from the constant facts and figures helps, especially when we are trying to stay upbeat for the kids. It’s important we remember not only our physical self care but also our mental self care in these situations too.
Entertaining The Kids
Talking of the kids, they are being little superstars. We have eased back completely on the school work for a couple of weeks as it the Easter holidays and all work and no play makes them and us miserable as sin. Therefore it’s all about family time and fun. It’s a shame we couldn’t visit Nanna and grandad in Cardiff, or the beach, or the soft play centre or anywhere but that’s not to say we’re not having a great time. The Easter weekend weather was great up here in the north of England. Therefore, the water table got it’s first outing this year. Needless to say, the kids and us got soaked. The sunshine is certainly making this situation feel a lot better, long may it last.
This week we are investing in a printer. Every time we have had a printer before, the ink has dried up through lack of use. However, having the kids in lockdown having a printer means we can print activities, colouring sheets etc for them. They seem to be a lot more compact and more reasonably priced then they used to be. If anyone has any recommendations please send them our way. It must be compatible with an iMac, oh and white.
What We’ve Been Watching
The nice weather and impending house move mean we haven’t been watching much this week. There has been no binge session, merely just an episode here and there. The kids, when given the option to watch TV simply fall into a Peppa Pig void. Having seen all of the episodes at least 4 million times now, we cannot abide to be in the same room as them while they watching it. So apart from the salty sausage, the adults of the house have been watching the following:
- The Mandalorian (Disney+)
- Start-Up, Series 2 (Amazon Prime)
- You, Series 2 (Netflix) – about half-way through now but just not feeling it like I did the first series.
- Geordie Shore, Series 20 (Sky) A guilty confession – I have blasted through all 20 series in the last 3 months or so (eeek!)
What are you watching? Please send recommendations, especially binge-worthy ones.
House Move
This is the biggie that has been consuming our life during lockdown for the past 3 weeks. The will we, won’t we move house saga. Well, it seems that we will finally move house on Friday. Needless to say, packing has been one humongous pain in the arse. Packing up a full house with two small children, a partner who is working a lot and the fact recycling centres are closed for the foreseeable future has made this an experience that I certainly never want to repeat in a hurry, if ever. We are nearly there, we think and we cannot wait to be in our forever family home and watching the girls run around the back garden.
Friday itself is going to be horrendous so I’ve started psyching myself up for it now. Obviously we cannot be in our current house while the movers are packing up and we also cannot be in the new house while they unpack. Having been through this process before, we know we are looking at around 6/7 hours. This means keeping the kids entertained for 6/7 hours without being allowed to do anything. We will us one hour by taking our allocated exercise allowance which will hopefully mean Mini ESLT enjoys a long nap. I am then planning an epic picnic full of treats and trying to think of some games we can play in the car. If you have any suggestions please send them our way.
How Are You Doing?
So how are you doing? Are you working through the lockdown? If so thank you. If not how is being at home for you? We’re always here if you need to chat or would like random photos of cats. Please do not hesitate to get in touch. If you are struggling there are groups available who can help, most local authorities across the country now have voluntary hubs set up who are able to do things for the local community – pick up shopping, medication etc. Many also offer a befriending service, so if you are feeling lonely and fancy a chat check out your local council’s website/social media channels for the number.
Also and if you feel comfortable enough, please don’t forget to check on your neighbours, especially if they are vulnerable/elderly. The article about the 84-year-old who had to eat out of the bin because she had her food delivery stolen had me close to tears. Just imagine having no other option than to eat trash. Poor lady. We as human beings cannot allow that to happen.
Stay safe everyone – it’s always darkest before the dawn!
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