04 Apr The good during the hard
It’s Saturday morning at 9:00 am. I’m sitting here drinking my coffee and watching my 3 and 6 year old pretend to be “mom” and “dad” with their dolls. My older two kids are relaxed and the house is quiet. Not all moments are this peaceful, in fact they are most often the opposite, however the simplicity of this one in particular just hit me in the heart. We are currently in around week 3 of social distancing since the corona virus has spread to our country…I think it’s week 3, I have actually kind of lost count. Prior to this we were immersed in activities with our kids. The oldest 3 of our 4 played hockey and my husband coached them all. The kids loved it, my husband loved it and for the most part, it was all pretty positive…. except we were never home. Some people thrive on busyness but for me, I found myself wishing for more time where all 6 of us could be together. My kids are 10, 8, 6 and 3 and already that didn’t happen that much. It bothered me especially that my 3 year old seemed to see his siblings more through plexiglass at the rink then at home. That never settled well with me. I have tried to be a mom that kept things as simple as I could but its a hard balance to find when you get into extra curricular activities times 4.
We have definitely gone from one extreme to the next and that has come with its own intensity too. We have had some tough days in our house. There is a lot of sadness, fear and negativity in the world right now but I have been trying to focus on the positives that are happening within our four walls. We have never had time like this together. No, it’s not all quality time by any means, but the opportunity for quality time has never been more abundant. I keep thinking about what after all of this looks like. How can I make positive changes in our home as a lesson from all of this? I have and always will be a huge advocate for physical activity and team sports for my kids…but I don’t want to go back to the busy. I want our pace to slow down.
I have yet to figure out what that’s going to look like unless I just don’t put my kids in things anymore. I definitely don’t want to deny them of that though and I don’t think thats the answer, not at all. I just don’t really know what is yet, so for right now, I’m going to stick with just taking it one day at a time. I want to enjoy the moments that melt my heart that come in between the ones that send me to my closet for refuge. I know my kids miss their friends. I know they miss their teammates. I know they miss playdates but….my kids are at an age that I know all they really need, they have at home. That, will for sure be one of my greatest lessons from all of this.
This is a challenging time for everyone. That is for absolute sure, but I do feel that hard times are an opportunity for new perspectives to foster and opportunities to make life better can be hidden behind the tough stuff.
Side note- Since I started writing this, my kids have stopped playing peacefully and 2 of them have cried in the last 10 minutes. Life is a roller coaster but for right now the ride has slowed down.
We’ve got this.