I have no idea how I got here. Not that I'm surprised I made it, but because I can't go back and think through every day of the past two weeks and see that somehow I landed right here, right now. Where did the time go? And I don't ask it in a nostalgic way, like a dad giving away his daughter at her wedding as he, too, hits one of life's mile stones and faces a big life change with his girl taking those first steps as a married woman.
It's not like that.
All the days have run together in a big way. I lost track of the days a long time ago, and every morning has been a repeat of the previous morning. And each day has been spent in the tiny home, many days not even leaving this beautiful small place.
It doesn't seem to have been hard on the boys. Thank goodness for technology. They have had the chance to FaceTime their mother every day, and many friends and family have called to say hi and to see how things were going. There have been a million little games to play, and I'm surprised the boys have gotten along almost the entire time. There have been no blowups, very little tears, no injuries, and nothing but sunshine radiating from their faces.
We have done the following:
- Balloon races from one balcony to the next
- Painted
- Made things of clay
- Thrown away things of clay
- Played a million rounds of Uno
- Learned the card game Dos
- Played and scattered pegs all over the tiny house from Battleship
- Many rounds of the Trolls version of Monopoly, Jr.
- Learned Chickapiglet--comes highly recommended if you have littles
- Qwirkle
- War
- All video games available on the Switch
- All games on my phone
- Bouncy balls
- Baked bread
- Baked cookies
- Browned butter
- Burned butter
- Waffles
- Eggs
- All snacks
- Stickers and stamps
- Markers
- Magnets
- Tin whistle lessons
- Dice games
- Mazes and puzzles
- And more and more.
As I said, the kids did not seem to have a hard time. The smallness of this place seemed to be unimportant to them. But let me tell you what, it was hard on me. There was more than just a day or two where I was just over it. This illness wasn't a severe case. And yet, we had to stay home in a big way. We couldn't go to public places. We managed to go for a few drives sometimes and walk around a bit, but I don't know Tooele well enough to know of any cool adventures that other people wouldn't know about so we could be alone. That situation was rough.
Additionally, my kids are so small. They largely depend on me to get things rolling and carry activities along. Every game we played, I had to do with them because it wouldn't get started without my push. And it wouldn't move forward without my constant reminding of when to take turns and how to play some games.
There were many steps along the way where I wanted to throw up my hands and lock the door and let the kids "Lord of the Flies" it. But we still had many more days left of this waiting game. If they were only with me one or two nights, I wouldn't have minded letting things fall apart a little bit. But there was no time for that, I guess.
Additionally, it was so hard for me to have grownup human contact. Yes, people could call, but there wasn't much to say. I didn't have news. I was still at home taking care of little ones, and there was nothing new from day to day to talk about. When my family FaceTime'd me, the conversations were short because they were in quarantine as well, despite the negative results. Conversation was more of a hole, and I just didn't see much of a way around it.
Also, privacy. There were several Marco Polo videos that I made for friends and family, and when I went back and listened to them, it was apparent that the house was like way loud and stuff. It just wasn't what it normally was, y'know? Because the kids weren't as active, bedtime took longer and went to longer times in the night. I had about an hour to myself after their bedtime, and I usually fell asleep on the couch during this time.
And come to think of it, I didn't hear from you much. A phone call would have been nice. Maybe things will be different next quarantine.
I'm grateful for the good people who checked up on us regularly, though. Including many people I haven't seen in a long time. It's nice to reconnect in small ways.
But, it's over. IT'S OVER! Provided we are symptom-free, the health department will be closing our case later today. And I will be returning to work on Sunday.
I don't recommend quarantine. Just don't do it, my reader. Wear a damn mask and wash your damn hands.
Hell damn.
Warmly,
D
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