Life Interrupted

It is now day (who the hell knows?) of quarantine and your friends with kids are not okay. (Seriously…text us to set up a virtual happy hour or something.)

Unless you are living in some blessed part of the globe where Coronavirus hasn’t reared it’s ugly head then you are unfortunately experiencing the all too real effects of LOCKDOWN. That’s right. Anything deemed non-essential has been closed until further notice.

Jobs are closed (so no leaving out for your workday and getting a break from your kids). Restaurants are closed (so you can’t brunch with your girlfriends while also getting a break from your kids). Schools are closed (so your kids won’t be leaving out to get an education while also giving you a break from them). Life has been completely interrupted and we’ve all been forced to readjust.

I would like to say that I did start the quarantine off strong and quite optimistic that I would “better myself“ during this time off from work. I got up early the whole first week of quarantine. I worked out and even had a nutritious breakfast waiting for my husband and son when they woke up. But that was 3 weeks and God knows how many bottles of wine ago. Flash forward to present day and my son and I just had animal crackers for breakfast and I am unashamed. We are in survival mode.

But, although some days my household slips into complete and utter chaos, I am still attempting to maintain some shred of order and normalcy. So this my “MakeShift Maintain Some Sort of Sanity Quarantine Schedule.“

8am (or whatever time is the hour before your children wake up): MANDATORY ME-TIME! I don’t care if you read, pray, workout, meditate, drink your coffee while it’s still hot for a change, ANYTHING! Start off your day by taking time out for yourself or the whole day will pass without even giving yourself a second thought. I’ve been making it a point to start my day with working out. It’s been giving me tons more energy and I feel good knowing that I’m working towards my fitness goals. Here are the quick workout videos I’ve been using to start off my fitness journey. They’re both around 10 minutes each but they’re extremely effective! And they don’t require much equipment, just a cute yoga mat and some weights of your choice and you’re all set!

9am (or whenever the tiny dictator wakes up): Feed him. Change his diaper. Get him into his daytime PJs. (Let me know if you’d like a post about some of my quick, go to breakfast ideas).

10am-12pm: Educational Play-Time! I’ve been getting compliments recently on how well my son speaks for his age and taking this time out with him each day is why! We don’t have a set routine for this time of the day but some of my go to activities are reading, practicing number/ letter identification using our diy chalkboard and playing on ABCmouse.com! (ABC Mouse has done wonders with helping my son identify his animals and colors so far and they offer a 1 month free trial!)

If you’re a Mama that would prefer to avoid the screen time I’ve found that flash cards and workbooks have been quite effective as well. We typically end this time of the day with a crazy dance party and running around playing hide and seek. (Insert long walk around the neighborhood here if your cabin fever is getting the best of you).

12:30-1:30: Lunch-Time! My son is obsessed with French fries right now so they’re usually incorporated into his meal in some way. That’s typically thrown in with something quick like chicken nuggets. Most of the time I’ll add in some type of fruit for some razzle dazzle and to keep my mom guilt at bay. And we’re working on my son getting the hang of feeding himself as well so letting him choose his favorite colored plate and utensils is a must (Let me know if you’d like a post on my quick, go to lunch-time ideas).

1:30-2:30(or 3 if I’m really lucky): The blessed hour. Nap-time! This is my time to drink my second or third cup of coffee and to reset for the second half of the day. My type A personality also forces me to clean feverishly the mess from the morning although it is inevitably in vain, because my son wakes up and destroys the house in less than ten seconds.

2:30-6pm: Survival time. This is the hardest part of the day. My son has a bunch of energy from his nap and I need to find some way to keep him entertained until dinner time. This is usually when I let my son get some screen time. YouTube Kids is a life saver and surprisingly educational. My crazy child is also already into video games (yes at 2), so I let him play those. This is broken up with intermittent snack times and dancing because we all know that toddlers have short attention spans.

From 6pm-8pm everything is calming down. Dinner is being made and hubby is getting home from work. We eat as a family and watch tv. It’s my favorite part of the day.

My little love bug goes to bed around 9:30 (on a good day) and then it’s WINE DOWN time. Ugh! Jesus turned water into wine for a reason. It’s liquid gold. Especially after a long day of trying to keep it all together. My husband and I use this time to catch up with one another and then inevitably we make our way to bed around 12am. And then I wake up and do it all over again 🙃. Pray for me.

Well, that is how we’re maintaining in the Witherspoon household as of late. I hope this post gives you some sort of blue print for maintaining a schedule of your own and I’d love to hear any of your tips and tricks on how you are making it work during this crazy time.

We’ve Got This Mamas!