10 Positive Things About Staying Home
Let’s face it, this COVID-19 stay at home thing is a total drag. The economy is horrible. Millions of people have lost their jobs. Those of us with children are stuck at home with them homeschooling against our will. People who live alone are feeling isolated. Thousands of people have died and millions are sick. We are not sure of when the end of this thing is. It is enough to cause depression in even people with supreme mental health.
There are some upsides to this situation. Here are some positive things I have found during our stay at home journey. I’m trying to focus on the positive. So even if it’s a small thing I’m going to celebrate it!
"It feels good to feel so good!"
- No one is getting sick!
With two small children it seems that someone is sick all the time. It became even worse for us when my two-year-old daughter started going to school two days a week in September. After a month of school she had two bad coughing attacks at school. I took her to an allergist and found out she has asthma. Her asthma makes getting sick worse. A normal cold for you or me is three times worse for her. Right before Christmas my five-year-old son caught bronchitis. Of course, then my daughter, husband, mother, and father in law caught it too. Merry Christmas everyone! I dressed my children in those cute matching PJs that are all the rage now. My daughter ended up not being able to wear hers. The coughing made her throw up in the middle of the night and I had to change her. If she gets any kind of cold, she coughs and throws up at night at least two or three nights. More times if it’s a bad cold. Of course when this whole thing started she had caught a cold and passed it on to the rest of us. I called the doctor but he told me to keep her home. At the time they couldn’t test for COVID-19. He told me to call back if she got worse, but she got better. And so do the rest of us. Since then no one has been sick. That has been amazing. I have finally gotten my daughter to sleep through the night by herself. With her getting sick so much she would wake up and often I would end up sleeping with her. Even in her full-size bed that little girl ends up kicking me. Also, the coughing would often keep her awake so there was no sleeping for me either. Everyone in my house has been healthy for so long it’s amazing. It feels good for everyone to feel so good. In avoiding contact with others we are avoiding germs! Therefore, for most of us we are not catching the common colds and stomach bugs that come with being out in the world. Enjoy the good health!
2. Library book due dates are extended
OK, so maybe not everyone has checked out library books before this thing started, but if you do you have had lots of time to read your books! I had just gotten one book that ended up taking me a long time to read, but guess what, extended due date! We are frequent library users so not being able to go is a bummer, but there are other ways to get free books. If you are a library cardholder your library probably ways you can check out digital books. We have been doing that instead. Also, it might not be the best selection, but around my neighborhood lots of those little libraries have popped up. Check out some of those. Take some books and leave some books for others. Here is a link so you can find little libraries near you. https://littlefreelibrary.org/ourmap/
Chances are there are probably more than what is on the map. When I searched my area there are a few that I know of that are not on the online map. So keep an eye out for them.
3. Lots of free trials
Bored at home? There are free trials out there everywhere to try out. Many educational things especially are free right now. Here are a few free things for kids:
This article list 10 free things online for toddlers:
https://www.insider.com/online-activities-for-toddlers
Here are some educational websites that are free though summer 2020
Here is a great article on consumer reports about extended free trails for grown-up folk:
4. Connecting with friends
One thing I’m loving right now is even though it’s through technology I am having more connections with friends. I have one friend that started a biweekly Zoom chat with a bunch of college friends. It has grown and I’ve been able to see and talk to old friends I haven’t spoken to in years. I also got together with a local group I’m in yesterday on Zoom and many of the people commented that it was nice to not have to fight traffic to meet. We discussed that in the future we can have a video chat component for people who want to join in-person meetings but have a hard time getting there. I have also started a workout group with friends. I had a part-time job as a fitness instructor and for now that job is gone. I miss teaching so I started a workout group with friends. I don’t get paid for it but it’s fun and I get to workout too! Normally when I talk on the phone I like to do something productive at the same time, like clean or fold laundry. When I do these Zoom chats I just sit and talk and enjoy the people I’m with. Normally life is so busy even when we are at social events we aren’t being mindful and just enjoying because our mind is already on the next thing to do. Which brings me to my next point...
"I feel like every day is Sunday at my house."
5. Life has slowed down
I feel like every day is Sunday at my house. Sunday is the day we usually don’t have much to do. There is no school and no work. We take it easy. Sleep in a little ( as much as you can with two small children.) We cook eggs. We spend time together as a family. My husband is working from home and we do have some school stuff that the kids participate in during the week but things are much more easy-going. I don’t have the getting ready battles in the mornings with my kids. Life is not so busy going here, there, and everywhere and I like it. Many of my friends with school-age kids tell me that they now realize that they had their children in too many activities. After this thing is over one of the things we can take away from it is we don’t have to be so busy.
6. Spending less money
I know right now spending less money is a necessity for many because of job loss and/or pay cuts. In my household I am totally out of my part-time job and my husband who is the breadwinner had to take a 30% pay cut. We are still fortunate that my husband has a job but we still had to adjust our spending. Staying at home helps because we are not spending as much anyways. We are not going out to eat as often, or going to play places or birthday parties. My husband is working from home. The kids and I stay close to home so we are also not driving much so we are not buying as much gas. This leads us to the next point...
7. Gas is cheap
Although this is not great for my family in the long run because my husband works in the oil business it does help our wallets right now. It seems with the oversupply that has occurred it will stay that way for a while. And if we can ever go anywhere ever again it helps with making...
8. Airline tickets are inexpensive
Cheap gas and people not traveling as much makes for good deals on airfare! I have a girls weekend planned in July where I am driving, but many of my friends have to fly. They all got really good deals on their flights. The only thing is there is no way of knowing if these trips will happen for sure but here’s hoping!
9. Less traffic
Living in Houston traffic can be a nightmare. We are not on the road as much nowadays but when we are, traffic is a breeze. And the tolls here in Houston are free for the time being. I do wish when life resumes to normal it will stay that way but I know it won’t,
but one can dream!
10. No need for dressing up or being on time
Who needs to wear real clothes when you’re at home anyways! There are some days that my five-year-old does not get out of his pajamas. Why should he? We aren’t going anywhere. We are saving some money since we don’t have to go to the dry cleaner. There is no need to commute and be somewhere on time. My husband just gets out of bed and then he’s at work. No more commute! For me and the kids I no longer have to wake them up and take them to school. I’m not teaching my fitness classes so the pressure of being somewhere on time is off. I don’t miss trying to get them ready and in the car in time.
There is no doubt this is a difficult time for everyone. We will get through this. In the meantime take it day by day and try to stay positive.
© 2020 Michelle Hovorka Oxner
