If you weren’t aware, we’re in the middle of a pandemic.
Full sarcasm alert there because there’s no possible way on earth you couldn’t be aware of it. Every news station is on a 24hr Covid-19 run, your social media feeds are full of kidless people exclaiming how bored they are to be stuck at home telling you how many new hobbies you should be picking up, and it’s likely your parent friends are documenting and sharing their #momgoals lives on a minute-by-minute basis.
Parenting in a Pandemic
Not only are you just trying to survive this, but you’re also trying to make sure your family does. You’re parenting in a pandemic. It’s enough to make anyone want to hide under the covers until this whole thing blows over, however long that may be.
Maybe you’re starting to feel “less than” because you can’t keep up, maybe you’re burning through internet usage while Netflix the Nanny saves your ass and your sanity on a daily basis. Maybe your kids haven’t consumed a vegetable in a week or two.
Hey, mama. Give yourself a damn break, will ya?
Yesterday I did approximately 10 things that I said I would “never do” as a parent, and at least half them happened at once.
- The kids had KD (mac + cheese for my non-CDN friends)… for the third time this week.
- They did not consume a single vegetable.
- They ate lunch in front of the TV.
- I left it on for an hour.
- I sat behind them, fully on my phone, scrolling through IG.
- We didn’t make it outside at all because I was too tired to go through the process of getting all their snow gear on just to come inside after 15 minutes. (It takes anywhere from 15 min to an hour to get them geared up.)
- I gave Hunter a full cup of juice. No water. Just juice.
- I let then sleep for an extra 30min just so I could have some peace and quiet even though I knew it would totally mess up their bedtime.
- I canceled video calls that were meant to brighten my day.
- I put Baby Shark on the 1-hour loop and let my kids run and dance like little hellions until even they were sick of it.
- I scheduled nothing.
- I created nothing.
And guess what? I didn’t feel guilty about any of it, even for one second. Normally, I would. But not today. The twins? They were sooooo happy.
Pandemic Parent Kels realized this:
- They got to eat a fave food while watching a fave show.
- It was mostly songs and today they busted a pretty full version of ABCs that sounded pretty close to what they were bingeing yesterday.
- They didn’t have to put on their snow pants and mittens.
- Hunter chugged a huge cup of juice and I reminded myself that their doctor once told me that juice always wins vs. dehydration
- They got to listen and dance with mommy to their favourite song.
- They didn’t have to “do” anything according to anyone else’s schedule.
- They got to nap a bit longer which they obviously needed.
- Instead of video calls, I had a bath and watched a movie, uninterrupted.
So if you’re feeling guilty, stressed, less than, or any of that nonsense because you haven’t used all your *cough* extra time to turn your kid into the next Mensa scholar, or musical prodigy, or whatever, please stop. Remember: you are not regular parenting right now, you are parenting in a pandemic.
Fire up the KD, blast some Moana, give them hugs + high fives (because you’re probably one of the only people that is allowed to right now), and give the schedule —and yourself— a break.
They. Will. Be. Fine.
And so will you.
