Day 2- March 15, 2020

Day 2- March 15, 2020

We started off the day with snuggles while reading the kids' version of How We Got To Now by Stephen Johnson.  It explains innovations from history, and how they changed the world.  We were wrapped up in my grey velvet comforter, stuffed in between squishy pillows, and if not for the constant dinging of the group chat on my phone (two people in my town were just diagnosed, and three others are at the local hospital, for a total of five people hospitalized a few blocks from our house), it would have seemed like a typical Sunday.

I came downstairs, and began making pancakes.  Jeff was working with the plantings again, and E. was watching Zumbo's Just Desserts on Netflix.  He had already fed the girls cereal and soymilk (I noted the cartons were getting lighter), so I decided to go for the leftover pancake batter.  In an attempt to add "fresh" fruit, I took a handful of frozen blueberries from the freezer, and rinsed them in hot water until they were at a temperature that would allow the batter around them to cook, instead of oozing purple out the sides.  I mixed them into the batter, and set to pancake making 101.

Jeff came in and we talked about how there are now confirmed cases in our town, and that towns around us are calling for full quarantines and curfews.  It seems like every hour, there's another group shutting down.  The local parents board is full of fury as people lament that teens and college kids are treating this like a homecoming reunion, that stores are still packed, and people are commuting left and right.  People are using social media to beg the government to step in because people can't be trusted to control themselves.

We calmly discussed that there may not be a quick ending to this, that the quarantine could last, and we could find ourselves in a situation where stores shut down, and the government is delivering rice and beans to the masses.  It's a far-fetched, dystopian idea- until it's not.  While neither of us wants to be alarmists, this is the new norm, cautiously realizing that there are dangerous possibilities ahead, but also hopeful that cooler heads will prevail, and if we can curtail this, everything will go back to a reasonable normal in a few weeks.

But if months go by, people haven't socially distanced enough, and hospitals are overrun, suddenly all this might not feel so crazy.  I hope I read these words in a few weeks, and nod my head thinking "thank God we avoided this".  I'd rather take an abundance of caution right now.

R. touring the Van Gogh Museum

So we have decided to somewhat ration our food.  No, we're not limiting totally, but if we are full, we can put aside leftovers.  If we can stretch something, we will (I froze the remaining broth from the Progresso soup I made yesterday, just in case we need it in a few weeks).  We're eating the food that will spoil first, making conscious decisions to be mindful of what our bodies need vs. what they want from habit (I don't really need a 3 pm snack if I eat lunch a little later, he is going back to intermittent fasting).  The goal is for the kids to not even realize we are doing this.  We want them to be safe and healthy, and blissfully unaware of the chaos in the world right now.



I joined a group on Facebook called "Distance Learning Ideas" yesterday evening, and have been posting online resources for kids, and adults, including links to virtual field trips, Facebook Live events that are coming up (I'm hoping to catch one on Oceanography and Marine Mammals tomorrow), and videos.  R. took a virtual tour of the both the Musee D'Orsey and the Van Gogh Musuem (I jumped in on both).  She was fascinated by being able to "walk" through the halls, and read the plaques as pop-up windows.

Recreating an epic Star Wars battle

The rest of the day was a whirlwind of cleaning out the garage, going through old bins of toys, decorations, and deciding what to keep and what to give away.  I found blow up light sabers leftover from R.'s birthday party last year, and the girls spent the better part of an hour pummeling each other with them, and running around the yard and the playhouse out back.  There were soccer drills, this time involving cones and dribbling.  We created another loaf of bread from scratch (thank-you breadmaker), and watched some quality television post-dinner (Zach and Cody, The Suite Life On Deck).

Checking in with friends via messenger on Facebook and group texts was also consistent, as by late in the day, our town declared a Proclamation of Local Emergency, shutting down parks, school playgrounds, and urging people to stay on their own properties.  I almost feel better now, that people are starting to take this seriously.  I have anxiety, and it's been through the roof these last several weeks as I had to go to work despite not wanting to for fear of this virus spreading.  Being able to be home with my family is giving me some semblance of calm, and I'm hoping we are all okay!