As we look down the long, dark road of social distancing with children used to the routine of school, daycare, or just simply going to the playground, many of us have found solace in color-coded daily schedules promising perfectly organized hours of academic time, outside play, and children obediently doing chores for an hour.
These schedules are soothing. “Follow me,” they say, “and all will be well. Your children will frolic outdoors, they will make their beds, and they will put their pajamas in the laundry. They will not clamor for Paw Patrol. They will follow this schedule so well that you will enjoy the pleasure of their company and allow them to stay up an entire hour past bedtime.”
“Yes,” you think. “Yes, we can do this. What a magical time this will be.”
So, you decide to try it. You frantically purchase an outdoor playhouse that your husband constructs one evening while wearing a headlamp, as you anticipate sipping your coffee in the morning while your toddler plays on it for hours on end and your baby gleefully chortles.
But then maybe, just maybe, your child does not fully understand that they are to remain socially distanced, so instead, he asks, “Where we gonna go?” every five minutes. He is not okay with two hours of outdoor time and no snacks. You sipped no coffee, your child climbed up, climbed back down, and said, “But I don’t want to STAY HOME,” while the baby both spit-up and pooped simultaneously. Your child does not nap or do quiet time. The list goes on.
Here at Jacksonville Mom, we are here for you on Day 2 (or 3 or 4 — time has lost all meaning) and beyond of COVID-19 self-isolation and social distancing. We’re here when that color-coded schedule mocks you, or you wonder if you’ve failed. You have not. We are not meant to be isolated to our homes, away from our community and surrounded by LEGOs and laundry and hoarded toilet paper.
When other daily schedules let you down, instead turn to our own COVID-19 schedule:
What scheduled activities are you doing with your kiddos right now?
