Living in the time of COVID-19 has its burdens. We trashed our plans to go to New Orleans for a long weekend in March. We’ve put on hold plans to visit family in Virginia, indefinitely.  We call in our orders for groceries and meals and have them delivered curbside, rather than spending time roaming around stores. And yet, we’ve adjusted. Our family is even prospering because we’re doing so many things together rather than running around to drop off kids for all sorts of activities. We haven’t had huge blowups from being cooped up together. Instead, we’ve had tons of “projects” we’ve all pitched in to do, like building a fire pit, getting the pool ready for swimming, lawn cleanup, building a goat pen, painting rooms…

Today, my dd is hitting the Sherwin Williams store (in a mask) to pick up more paint for two more projects, and the kids helped with the grocery list so they’d have ingredients for cookie recipes they looked up on Pinterest that they want to try. There’s been lots of cooking/learning going on. Here’s a pic of the 16-year-old making his first meatloaf…

The kids did make a trip to the dentist, en masse, because it was easier for the dentist’s office to schedule them back to back since we’ve been isolating together. The 6-year-old had some help losing her first tooth!

We plan movie nights with popcorn made in our theater-style popcorn maker because the kids love to watch it overfill the kettle then add their own flavorings, just like at the theater. We swim every day it’s warm enough to do so. They have their “animal” chores: feeding, walking, and washing dogs, goats, and horses. We gather on the back porch in the evenings under the dim solar lights to watch the fireflies and catch little frogs and lizards (yes, we release them!).

And the house stays cleaner. Imagine that. 🙂

I’ve been deep in editing and writing—all my usual tasks. However, I’ve added art projects to keep my time filled. So far, I haven’t convinced any of the other inhabitants of the house to join me. I’ve painted, made some jewelry… Tonight, I’ll start work on a set of potholders. My dd wants a set in red-white-and-blue for July 4th. I’m agreeable because I love making things people actually use.

And I’m rambling. But this is my outlet. Sharing what’s happening here and hoping to hear what you’re doing because then I feel connected to the outside world.

Outside politics, which have weighed heavily on me and my family, what are you doing this summer to keep busy and inspired?