It’s Monday, March 16th at 7:30 AM. In 4 hours, this article could be dated… that’s how fast things in Ohio are moving. Our very proactive Governor is trying to slow the spread of COVID-19 as rapidly as he can. Bans are being placed on a lot of the luxuries we are used to in our lives. Schools are canceled. Sports are canceled. Small businesses are being forced to shut their doors. People are losing their jobs. People are getting sick. People could die.
I’m not being doom and gloom about it, I’m being as realistic as I possibly can be.
In other parts of our country, bans are also being placed. People are being forced / asked to stay home. If you turn to social media, be prepared to be bombarded with opinions. I can’t avoid it, it’s my job to be on social media. If I’m being completely honest, at this time, it’s hard for me to stop the world from spinning. It’s just where I stand at this current moment of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The world is rapidly changing around us and our children need to understand what is happening.
Last night, our Governor closed all restaurants and bars. My husband’s livelihood could be affected, our livelihood could be affected. My parents are also small business owners, there are so many uncertainties right now.
It was an emotional night, and I tried my hardest to keep it together, but I didn’t do a great job. I snapped at Luke for rolling his eyes at me. He’s 7, sometimes he can have an attitude. He is also the most intuitive child I have ever encountered, and he feels what I feel. I ended up sending him to his room.
About 15 minutes later, I walked up to his room and crawled in bed with him.
“Mom, I know you are stressed out about Coronavirus.” That was the first sentence out of his mouth. I paused to listen.
“I know you don’t want us to get sick and you’re scared, but we will be okay. I was thinking, since we don’t have school this week, maybe you can hang out with us more?”
It’s hard to put into words the emotions I felt listen to my 7 year old reason with me, and he was so right.
I explained to him that mommy’s job is going to require her to be on her phone a lot in the coming days, but that doesn’t mean she won’t still be here to spend time with the kids. I then asked if he’d like to help me create a schedule for our new routine which includes some homeschooling. He was excited about that.
On Wednesday, we are releasing our brand new She’s Becoming Domestic Podcast episode on how to talk with your kids about COVID-19. We recorded it over the weekend, but the information is so valuable. We will also be talking about our own stress levels, and how to cope.
Stay safe out there friends. Check in with friends and family. Remember, we are all in this together.
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