Parenting Through a Pandemic

Where I live, we entered into another lockdown which included a two week extension. Schools have been closed for weeks and businesses, including restaurants, have either temporarily or permanently closed or have become delivery/pickup only. There is no question that this is a hard time. We are all tired, exhausted, and very frustrated. We all want this to end.

This is a trying time for so many parents and families. We are faced with sacrifices we never knew would exist and there is so much added pressure trying to maintain work and home life. While we are feeling upset and stressed out, there are some things to be grateful for. These will never take away the many struggles we faced, but I wanted to show you that not everything was crap!

I have formed a special bond with my daughter.

My daughter's preschool was closed the beginning half of the pandemic, she was home with me full-time. At first, this was the hardest parenting lesson I experienced. How would I teach and entertain my daughter for a full day, while being house bound? I felt panicked and knew I was not cut out to be a stay-at-home mom. I have had to pull up my sleeves and get creative. We walked, A LOT! We spent a lot of time outdoors in our backyard. We made friends with our local garbage & recycling truck men. I would be lying if I told you we didn't watch more TV than planned. Sometimes we all need a break. Spending one on one time with my daughter allowed us to form a better relationship we otherwise wouldn't have. We created a routine that allowed us to dance, be silly, snuggle, and just hangout - just the two of us! We created memories.

Our family worked as a team.

During the majority of the pandemic I was pregnant with my second daughter. While I got bigger and further along in my pregnancy, I had to rely on my daughter and my husband for more patience and help. Although my husband was forced to work from home due to the pandemic closures, this was a blessing. Having him close by allowed me to lean on him a bit more for help. If he was at the office I wouldn't have had the same level of help. This was certainly an adjustment, but overtime we were able to develop a groove that worked. I was able to develop a routine with my daughter that allowed me the necessary rest I required while she got to do activities she wanted.

I learned to let go and pick battles.

Not everyday was a walk in the park. Some days we watched Frozen 1 & 2 in a day, while other days we spent more time outdoors. Excessive TV watching and tablet play, I was picking my battles. In normal circumstances I would have been more mindful. However, being house bound with limits to what you can do for fun, I learned to let go, a lot! Wrestling a toddler to wear shoes, playing with sticks and using them as wands, while making sure she wore her hat on sunny days, didn't always end up happening. I learned to pick my battles because not wearing shoes, playing with sticks, and not wearing a hat was not going destroy my day, it would have ruined my daughter's day. We learned to let go when it came to meal time and meal prep by ordering take out more often than before. Our house looks "lived in", with a side of chaos. We have learned to accept that things aren't perfect and it's ok to let go, sometimes. 

We have slowed down.

Scheduled playdates and activities were canceled. This free time was hard to get used to at first. Now, it has been nice. Not having something scheduled a couple times a week, has been a blessing. As a family, we have adapted to more quality time and planning more family activities around the house. Everything we do as a family has been thought out and slowed down. We have enjoyed taking a more "relaxed" approach and we no longer feel that we have to cram so many activities in our day.

Even though a lot of days have felt hard and super stressful, I have learned so much. I have practiced patience, gained strength, and learned to love in many ways I didn't know was possible. I felt so angry when I would see others not following the rules. It would make me so mad to see others traveling to visit loved ones while I was waiting until it was safe. All of these feelings were so raw, honest, and consuming. There is no doubt I felt pissed off!

It took me months before I accepted that this pandemic was out of my control. I'm still working on not allowing this pandemic to consume myself and my family, but I have thoroughly enjoyed the time spent with my girls and husband. This has been a blessing in disguise. Our kids are only kids for such a small amount of time. The time we have with them, are the times they will remember the most. Sometimes we have to experience the hardships and stress before we can truly appreciate and see the little moments that are meaningful. I find myself less mad and upset with this pandemic and more excited for all of the new things we can do as a family and the memories we will continue to make.