This morning, I woke up to a Whole Foods delivery on the front porch.
I had been scrolling through my cart yesterday, selecting a few vegetarian options for my husband, because we are running low on things we typically eat for protein, like tofu and fake turkey slices. I've done this several times recently, possibly more than I should, but always got the same message when I went to my cart- no delivery times available. But this time was different- it said there was delivery available tomorrow between 7-9AM, and with trembling fingers, I took it.
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| Another "Mom" picture- from vacation when E. was writing on the porch |
The day was relatively lazy, as it was still pretty cold out and none of us wanted to spend time outside. Instead, I updated my "day 6 of being a mom" post for Facebook (one of those challenges that you only take when you're stuck in a quarantine). I went through a lot of photos from vacations and sports and they made me happy, thinking about all that we have to look forward to when the lockdown ends. I have always loved pictures, because you usually take them when you are happy, of things you want to remember. Vacations, special occasions, get togethers with friends. Photos transport me through space and time to moments that make me happy, and right now, I need that.
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| One of the photos from my "10 Days of Being a Mom" posts- 1st day of soccer |
The girls and I also spent a lot of time conversing with friends via phone and videochat after the school day ended. Commiserating with friends is bitter sweet. On the plus side, there's almost a normalcy to it, talking about our children, jobs, and what we are doing in our daily lives. On the negative, and I've seen several articles about this, there's a disconnect, and it can make people more depressed and anxious to see people on a screen instead of in person. I'm going to stick with doing it, though, because for me, it makes me feel better.
When I was younger, I loved talking on the phone- the tan one in my room, with the wire that connected it to the wall. There were hours spent chatting with my friends from school, catching up on who liked who, what our homework was, and when we could next hang out. It was a fine day when I got my own phone line (even if I had to share it with my sister), so that we didn't have to vie with our parents. It was right in time for me to hit high school, and I can still remember the summer I started dating my now-husband, we would talk until the early hours of the morning. There was a train that ran through our town- a freight train, so it wasn't frequent- but it would go by sometime around midnight, and I'd hear it down the hill from my house, and a minute later, hear it through the phone as it passed by near where my boyfriend lived. He jokes that one of the reasons he fell in love with me was because we could talk for hours like no time had passed.
Now, the phone is a bit of a lifeline. It's a little different- I can walk around my house with it now, untethered by that curly cord, and there's the video option. Today, I had several "virtual" talks with friends. Instead of laughing about boys (though our husbands did come up), we spent time going over unemployment and stimulus checks, and making sure we were getting food delivery. We expressed our fears about when schools reopen (to send or not to send our children?), the unknown involving our jobs for the new school year, and how we are keeping our kids busy. One of my friends is potty training her daughter, who is refusing to use her potty for pooping, and we dissolved into giggle fits about the insubordination of this little three-year-old who is adamant that she will only poop in a diaper.
I also got to see a friend- briefly- in person (from many feet away, through the front door of my house). She has a son who is four, and I found two Lightning McQueen sleeping bags when I was cleaning out the guest room closet, so I offered them to her last week. She then texted a few days later to say her mom had accidentally signed up for a recurring egg delivery service, and would we like a few dozen? I added a bottle of unopened red wine and a White Claw that were left over from a holiday party (neither my husband nor I drink) to the bag o'supplies, and we made the exchange on the front porch- me leaving the sleeping bags and alcohol, and watching from the window, waving, while she replaced them with the eggs. It was a fine trade, both of us sure we got the better deal, and
it was good to see her, if only for a minute or two, "in person".
In the evening, R. planted garbanzo beans with Daddy while Ella worked on her writing (she's composing books about animals at this point). At the end of the night, after the kids were in bed, Jeff gathered me into a big hug (we do this a lot- it's extremely calming), and of course, our kids have radar and ran into the room, saying "I need to be in this moment!" It's something they do pretty much every time they see Jeff and I hug, and have been doing since they were little. It's a warm, family moment, and reminds me every time about what is most important in the world.
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