Things You've Done to Embrace the Suck

[BlsdMama]

Weird -sorry for the odd post.  Editing & fixing.


So, in the notion that we can live our lives intentionally and purposefully during trying times, I'm inviting anyone to say, "Hey! This is something we've done in an unpleasant period, rather than just waiting it out..."

For example, we began enjoying our Sundays a little more, making them more special.  Without attending church, we attended online.  But to add to the enthusiasm, we began to do BIG meals based on different countries.  It has been SO much fun and even DS (21) came home from school a few times and DD (24) and her family joined us a few times.  We have France coming up a week from Sunday and we've done Japan, China, England, Germany, Mexico so far.  It's nothing BIG but it has been a break from the usual.

We've been writing Great Grandma more often.  She enjoys it and so do the kiddos.

Edited July 23, 2020 by BlsdMama

[Jean in Newcastle]

My life has been thirty plus years of this.  A lot of it is prayer.  "Lord, what do you want to teach me in this moment."  (As an aside, it's interesting to me how God can be working in different ways in different people's lives as they confront the same circumstances.)

I have reached out to different people - mostly by phone. 

My own stamina and pain issues (which continue whether there is a pandemic going on or not) makes my current COVID lifestyle exactly the same as my preCOVID lifestyle.  Except that I'm now an empty nester because I've graduated my last kid.

I am embracing the empty nest part by focusing more on the pets, house and my health (in no particular order). 

[gardenmom5]

I'm working on spanish.  duolingo, internetpolyglot (good for vocabulary building), working with a man from church via skype (from guatamala, so no american accents), started with a woman from church (venezuala) who really wants to improve her english - so we're trading.  after my regular scripture study - I do it over in spanish (with a translation page open and the english next to it.  and . . . spanishdict.com because sometimes the translation programs have meltdowns over a spanish word.

Have also done some youtube channels: why not spanish? and spanish playground.  I've also listened to some "joanna rants" (columbia.  language warning, she said teachers have asked her to clean up her language so they can use her channel in their classes), which is more cultural  (she complained Americans are very lame in how they celebrate christmas compared to south america.  and she's jewish.) and differences between SA countries, including nuances in vocab and accents.  

Edited July 23, 2020 by gardenmom5

[TheReader]

Projects. 

We let our 19 yr old create/involve us all in a Dungeons & Dragons campaign for the family; that gives him something to focus on and a weekly family activity. 

We have been working through various house projects -- built a picnic table. Painted the stairwell & hallway. Painted the TV room. We're getting ready to build patio furniture. Gardening stuff. 

Recipes. We've done various homemade stuff, also a Sunday thing. Raviolis. Brioche bread. Tortillas. Naan. Arepas. Peach pie from peaches in our yard. Cherry stuff from cherries we picked. Stuff like that. Branching out, everyone takes turns picking a thing, and we make it. We recreated the "Nasty Patty" from Sponge Bob....all kinds of stuff (in looks only, not taste). 

Themed nights/routine. So, TV that we watch together some evenings. Board games other evenings. Video games (guys)/Sewing days (me) other evenings. D&D campaign other evenings. But more of a routine, tonight is x; tomorrow is y; next up is z; etc. 

We have pulled out all the neglected outdoor toys and been using them. Cornhole boards that were in the garage, now on the patio, and we have picnic/corn hole nights. Scooters, skateboard, etc, and we take them to the (empty) school parking lot and ride around. DH just threw the tennis rackets in there, and we have invented "parking lot tennis" without a net, and it's hilariously awful and fun. Bike rides with the dogs in the evenings. 

Recently we've let the boys start back up their "friends" D&D group; it's 2 other family units, and we're able to maintain 6 ft distancing at all times and non-shared food/drinks. They do this every other (or sometimes every) week. The 2 other families are being equally as self-isolating, social distancing, etc. as we are, and it's a low risk thing (none of the kids are leaving the house but for this, basically) that we all agreed was in balance with the mental health gains from it. But I literally measured out 6 ft distance from each seat, and we can only manage it b/c the kids are from family groups. So, 4 kids come over, but only 2 families, so each group can sit together. 

Goofy movies. We tried to watch Sharknado. We showed the boys Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. We rewatched the Phineas & Ferb movie. DH got Disney+ so we could watch Hamilton, even though none of us are big fans. 

We have done/likely will do themed dinners as far as countries (we did that a while back) again, or other themes. We theme to movies a lot. 

We find outings we can do that don't involve people. So, we drove to a beach town, but instead of going to the crowded beach, we went to an area with a mostly empty fishing pier, found a little side road w/no one on it but along some water, parked there and pulled out a picnic (with a small card table we brought with us). Sat in our own chairs, at our own table, with food we picked up and watching the water. Away from everyone, but change of scenery. 

We went out to some not-too-far-away churches that are on a tour route, you can go into and see them. Encountered 1-2 other couples at each one, but everyone was masked and stayed distant. Anything like that just to have a change of scenery. 

We are actively working, hard, to maintain positive mental health for everyone. Some of our kids are at risk in that area, so it's of at least equal concern to us as the virus (if not more, honestly). 

[Guest]

Dd and I taking a paralegal course together. My signing up for Masterclass and watching/learning a bunch of things. Ds did Driver’s Ed online. Nice to have that out of the way. Breaking out the sewing machine and making masks was very therapeutic. Dh got some projects around our house done while we were locked down. In some ways, I feel like I really went back to my frugal roots out of necessity; i.e., cutting everyone’s hair, having dd help me color my own hair, using food more wisely, and definitely the “entertainment,” “parties” and “auto” categories on my budget have gone way down! 

[mom2scouts]

I have a list of things I'm trying to do daily or at least regularly. These include working on Spanish with duolingo, reading a chapter in the Bible, doing the daily virtual puzzles on jigsawexplorer, doing some summer homeschool with DD 4 days a week, and reading for fun daily. I'm trying to add daily exercise even if it's just a walk around the neighborhood or 5 minutes of something, plus I'm trying to spend a little time each week decluttering, organizing old photos, prepping for the homeschool year and doing some small home projects (or getting dh to do them. LOL). On nice weekends we're taking our canoe to a nearby lake in the mornings and I'm doing my reading on the deck to get some outside time.

[MEmama]

I am fully embracing taking a daily nap. 🙂 

[TheReader]

14 minutes ago, MEmama said:

I am fully embracing taking a daily nap. 🙂 

Oh, yes! this too. DH and I have both said, "man, this is going to suck when this has to go away!" He's working from home "for the foreseeable future" and I only work out of the house 2 days/week, starting back in late August, but giving up naptime is not going to be fun. 

[mommyoffive]

I thought about doing Christmas in July this year.  Has anyone done this?  What have you done?

[historically accurate]

During the lockdown-lockdown phase of this, I searched out and shared a "Thank you" post on my FB daily. It could be someone donating masks or the company whose employees stayed for weeks to make plastic or a nurse who collected and delivered letters to her patients or a child who raised money through a lemonade stand. I still do it about every week or so. Helps me to focus on the good in people since it seems so much out there right now is fighting or complaining. 

We found pickleball paddles on clearance at Walmart and have gone a few times as a family since it reopened at the park. We purchased a couple of board/card games and play something daily now. We bought a few things for outdoor socially distanced fun with the neighbor kids like croquet and butterfly nets.

We reinstated daily family read alouds (my kids are teens and those had fallen off the radar) and began daily meditation or yoga practice.

We got Disney + for Hamilton and have enjoyed the Marvel and Narnia series as a family. DH and I watch travel shows before going to sleep; sometimes a kid or two joins us and we'll all watch the travel show or HGTV with them all snuggly in the bed together.

Youngest has become a quarantine baker, so she often helps me meal plan and provides us with yummy desserts. 

Middle DD, who is having a hard time with COVID restrictions, has a birthday this weekend. I ordered with my Walmart grocery order this week, a slew of streamers, 75 balloons, a sparkly tiara, and noisemakers. We're going to surprise her with a huge amount of fuss. It was a birthday party year (we do them every other year), so she was pretty bummed, so I'm hoping this will go over well.

[lovinmyboys]

Well, all 4 of my kids are playing baseball so we have had at least one game every day since mid-June, so we are kinda back to normal.

My best purchases have been a sprinkler for our trampoline, spike ball, and the board game draft-a-saurus.

The pools are closed here and we don’t have one, so the kids have been playing spikeball outside in the morning, jumping on the trampoline in the sprinkler in the afternoons, going to baseball in the evenings, then we play draftasaurus before bed. 
 

I also like the afternoon nap.

[historically accurate]

Maybe I need to do some theme meals. We always did the book theme when we did mother-daughter book club at the library, and it was our snack night. Kids got a kick out of it. Hmmm. I'll have to think on it; countries, books, movies, party themes like luau. I think I'm going to do something this next week.

 

Oh, the other thing we've done since the library is back open is their craft for kids. Mine are teens, but a little lump of clay is fun for all ages. Weirdly, they really liked growing the bean plant in the see through box. I guess those things are timeless. The library just started doing a virtual escape room on Fridays as well. We did it last week together.

Edited July 23, 2020 by beckyjo

[math teacher]

I've bought more things instead of putting it off because I really don't need it. Kitchen prep tools, decorating items, and gardening supplies/plants.

[AmandaVT]

After our short-lived but delicious bundt cake period, we've been repainting the upstairs and prepping the house to sell. I also took 3 classes toward my masters in July. One more assignment to hand in and I'm done until Sept!

[kbutton]

You are all ambitious! We've been busy, but not nearly as outward focused or as virtuous as some of you. 

We've done the projects thing--building projects, yard work, massive sorting of homeschool materials, etc. Right now I have piles all over the house from sorting, so I need to finish a lot of what's been started (many related items were tucked into disparate corners of the house due to a move and how those items were organized--by necessity--in our much smaller previous house). 

I am working on a variety of cross-stitch projects.

We're walking a lot more.

We were rather tired from our extracurriculars, so it's been nice to have them simplified.

[Donna]

We took in two international university students unable to return to their home country due to the pandemic and have been trying to give them nice experiences doing safe things like going to the beach (very quiet beach and easy to socially distance), crabbing, fishing, going out on the boat to see dolphins, etc... I've been able to take care of my garden and yard much better than usual and have been reading obsessively.

DD has been doing a weekly collaboration she calls COVIDuets. She invites musician friends (and dancers) to send her tunes/music to learn then she puts the videos together and posts on her Instagram and Facebook fan page. She normally sticks to Irish music but has been branching out into different genres such as jazz, Swedish polskas, and genre-bending by mixing genres (house music and Irish music or classic rock and Irish music). She's having fun working with others she normally wouldn't have time to work with, learning new music, composing, and being creative. She also taught herself to play piano--at least well enough to chord along to songs she wants to learn and sing. We are learning to use Final Cut Pro so she can do more of the editing.

[Ausmumof3]

When the kids sports shut down I rotated through different sports for a few weeks.  We’ve been doing a weekly family movie night with popcorn.  On Sunday’s I was able to do Sunday roast because of not having to get everyone ready for church on time.  But we are mostly back to normal.  Now I’m trying to figure out crazy schedules again while keeping in mind that everything could change extremely quickly.

[Tap]

So, I see lots of wonderful, fabulous women here who fully deserve to be applauded for making lemonade out of lemons (meant sincerely, not snark)!!!!!

I'm not that classy. Haha So this one is for all of us low brow gals.....

The  best I can come up with is that I embrace that it is ok for my dinner to sometimes be ramen and beer. LOL🤣🤣🤣 Some days, I just don't have enough stamina left (after making dinner for everyone else) to make my own dinner. I don't eat night shades (ie potatoes, tomatoes, peppers ect) which makes it easier to cook my own meal instead of trying to convert everyone else.  So, I go low ....as low effort as I can get.....a pot of hot water and a bottle opener. 😎

[TheReader]

3 minutes ago, Tap said:

So, I see lots of wonderful, fabulous women here who fully deserve to be applauded for making lemonade out of lemons (meant sincerely, not snark)!!!!!

I'm not that classy. Haha So this one is for all of us low brow gals.....

The  best I can come up with is that I embrace that it is ok for my dinner to sometimes be ramen and beer. LOL🤣🤣🤣 Some days, I just don't have enough stamina left (after making dinner for everyone else) to make my own dinner. I don't eat night shades (ie potatoes, tomatoes, peppers ect) which makes it easier to cook my own meal instead of trying to convert everyone else.  So, I go low ....as low effort as I can get.....a pot of hot water and a bottle opener. 😎

Not to worry, I am fully in that category too. We've had "cereal nights" pretty regularly. And "popcorn counts as a veggie, yes??" after DS15 got his braces off (in fact, we had *popcorn nachos* for dinner that night...). And, I stay home, drink a glass of wine or hot tea, and play on the computer while DH and the guys bike ride with the dogs.  

Embracing "it's okay if 'are you kidding me?' becomes 'eh, good enough' right now" is a really, really, really good thing to learn and to do right now. 

[EmilyGF]

We've been hiking twice each weekend. We do a long hike one day that requires a 30+ minute drive and a short hike the other day. Dd4 can now hike her age! We have explored places we've never been before. Last weekend we bushwhacked a severely-neglected trail in a county park that was amazing.

DS8 makes pancakes every Friday night. We all look forward to it.

Now that we don't drive to church, I make a special breakfast or lunch on Sunday. Last week I made dutch babies which is the most extremely special breakfast in our family. 🙂 There's a story behind that, of course.

And, we started school. That way we can visit zoos, museums, and beaches in the off season if things clear up. And if they don't, well, at least we'll have felt productive. (DD13 was working pretty hard on her irregular German verbs tonight!)

[katilac]

10 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

But to add to the enthusiasm, we began to do BIG meals based on different countries.  It has been SO much fun and even DS (21) came home from school a few times and DD (24) and her family joined us a few times.  We have France coming up a week from Sunday and we've done Japan, China, England, Germany, Mexico so far.  

SOTW memories! Along those lines, it might be fun to add a movie or documentary about the country/region. 

9 hours ago, MEmama said:

I am fully embracing taking a daily nap. 🙂 

Quarantining is hard, yo. 

1 hour ago, CuriousMomof3 said:

Do you have a Dutch baby recipe to share?

When a Dutch mommy and a Dutch daddy love each other very, very much . . . 

[Spy Car]

I'm good. Enjoying family. Gardening. Growing a serious covid beard.

After a lifetime with a baby face I'm finally looking my age (and maybe more so).

Positively patriarchal. LOL.

Bill

 

[YaelAldrich]

Well I have been making masks, buying groceries for people who couldn't leave the house and playing board and card games with the family (we never do that). But now with my leg broken I'm the recipient of groceries and meals every day. G-d wants me to learn how to receive with grace. But in watching all the pandemic schoolers, I'm decided two weeks ago to put together a Jewish homeschooling conference in August. I haven't done it in four years and honestly thought I might not ever make another, but G-d put on my heart. He obviously wants it to succeed! Over 30 speakers volunteered and a bunch of people will write essays too. I have gotten over 100 requests for information  So this seems to be needed very badly. I'll take prayers for its success please.

[Spy Car]

1 hour ago, YaelAldrich said:

Well I have been making masks, buying groceries for people who couldn't leave the house and playing board and card games with the family (we never do that). But now with my leg broken I'm the recipient of groceries and meals every day. G-d wants me to learn how to receive with grace. But in watching all the pandemic schoolers, I'm decided two weeks ago to put together a Jewish homeschooling conference in August. I haven't done it in four years and honestly thought I might not ever make another, but G-d put on my heart. He obviously wants it to succeed! Over 30 speakers volunteered and a bunch of people will write essays too. I have gotten over 100 requests for information  So this seems to be needed very badly. I'll take prayers for its success please.

I hope you recover quickly and that your conference is a big success (B”H).

Bill

[Liz CA]

We have been enjoying the harvest of our earlier work in the garden. I like good food so I am taking the most eclectic lunches to work right now and enjoying every bite.

Oh, and I gave in to the urge of buying a kitchen item - we will see if I needed it or not. A larger, "real" mortar and pestle so I can crush all that basil and cilantro...

[JennyD]

I do not plan to set my alarm clock again until there is a vaccine.

 

[historically accurate]

2 hours ago, JennyD said:

I do not plan to set my alarm clock again until there is a vaccine.

 

Mines in my nightstand drawer; it's very bright so I hate it when I wake up in the middle of the night and it blinds me. So I shoved it in a drawer. The few times I've had to get up, DH has already been up.

[Hannah]

We work from home now and not having a commute and being able to sleep longer hours has been good.

We cook every day.  As we go grocery shopping once a week only rather than stopping on the way home from work or picking up takeaways.  I've learned to meal plan a whole lot better and  i think we will continue this.

As everyone is home at the same time, we eat together for dinner.  

We started a Sunday afternoon Zoom with my parents, siblings, nephews and nieces in the UK, South Africa and Taiwan.  10 parties dial in every week.  That's been very special.

 

[SKL]

Personally, I have used "I need to keep my lungs healthy" as an excuse to do a lot of walking outdoors and singing in my car.  🙂

I started taking an interest in the popular K-Pop group, BTS, which is big with my kids' age group.  I am now a BTS "stan," and I find it a very nice distraction to check out what they are doing.  It has probably been helpful in connecting with my kids, although one of them has apparently moved on to other KPop bands.  😛

A lot of forced time at home "together" has had good and bad impacts.  I used to have my kids in a lot of "away from home" activities, and part of the reason was to reduce the amount of at-home interaction with the other adults who live here.  Kuz we don't see eye to eye on a lot of things, and I don't enjoy conflict.  As my kids have grown, they've been able to escape rather than work out certain interpersonal issues.  So this year, we've been working on those things.  It has gone reasonably well - not all peaches and cream for sure, but nobody's been murdered or kicked out yet.  😛   More time at home has also made it easier for me to push the kids into learning / doing domestic things such as cooking and cleaning after themselves, which our previous busy schedule interfered with.  That said ... I am thrilled to have my girls getting back into structured activities with their peer group.  Hopefully there is more appreciation for them.

[scbusf]

We have a local movie theater called Cinema Cafe - watch a move and eat dinner.

So at home, about every other week, we have been watching a movie and having pizza delivered. We NEVER eat in the living room, so the kids think it's the greatest thing in the world!!!