Our Approach to Social Distancing

As we've slugged through this first week of being home together full-time, I must say that it has been difficult for all of us.  Although we all love our summer break and our various vacations throughout the year, this has been different.  We all miss our routine and the consistency in our lives that comes with it.  Our "home school" is not as effective and as meaningful as what my children would be getting at school.  My kids miss the after-school activities that they would have been participating in and the time with their friends that they would have been getting at school.  In addition, I have been more stressed and anxious about this ever-spreading virus and the possibility of getting quarantined not only in our state, but in our home.  Every day, either Ron or I run to the grocery store to stock up on more items just in case our governor orders the "Shelter in Place" mandate.  In addition, I have learned over the years, that I am most happy as a mom when my house is neat and organized and when I am accomplishing items on my to-do list which has not happened at all this week.  So, I am getting more cranky and so are the children.  Sigh.  I keep on telling myself that this will all end one day and that it could always be so much worse.  However, I must say that the silver lining on the cloud this week has been the stunning and unbelievable weather that we have been blessed with.  We have had sunny weather in the high 50s and low 60s all week long which has helped to make P.E. time so much more pleasant and enjoyable and it has just helped to ease the pain of this transition in our lives.  And since I am still not entirely on board with this "social distancing" concept that is being encouraged everywhere we go, I invited my sister-in-law and two nephews to join us at the beach on Wednesday and my friend, Heather, and her three kids to join us at the river on Thursday.  It has been so nice to get outside to enjoy the fresh air and the sunshine and to watch our kids....well, just be kids when the world feels like it is falling apart.  Here are some photos I snapped of our outdoor adventures the past two days...

Since Ron came home from work half way through the day on Wednesday after learning that his high school campus had been closed indefinitely, I was able to leave Emmett home with him during his afternoon nap both days.  We met Natalee, Trenton, and Riley at Owen Beach on the Puget Sound to spend a wonderful afternoon on the beach on Wednesday.

All five cousins playing in the sand.

The cool, silhouette picture of all five cousins while going on a walk on the paved path after playing on the beach and in the forest.

A cousin, group photo with the sun in everyone's eyes.

Mama and her kiddos.

The group striking a funny pose.

On Thursday, we met Heather and her three kids at the Carbon River in Orting.  After walking down the path, we found our favorite beach completely empty and enjoyed it to ourselves all afternoon long.  All six children played happily in the sand and in the water working on their various projects.  The two little girls built an elaborate sand castle.

Lia and Sienna decided to join in and help the boys build their bridge out onto the river.

Logan and Conner standing on top of their bridge that looked very impressive by the time we left.

Lia and Sienna working on building up their "sand deposit."

A group picture of all six kids on their awesome bridge before we left to go home.

And on a totally different note, I had to include these two pictures that I took during my morning shopping adventure to Costco Thursday morning.  After Ron and I had gone grocery shopping five times in the past week, I decided that I should go to Costco one more time to stock up on some essentials like toilet paper, diapers, wipes, and water that we already had a decent amount of in case the "Shelter in Place" mandate is ordered in the next few days in our state.  After hearing what a crazy place Costco has been like the past few weeks, I decided that it would be best to get there before the store opened yesterday morning in case the amount of toilet paper for sale was limited.  I pulled up to the store at 9:30 (30 minutes before their opening time) to see the longest line in my life.  The line snaked and wrapped around the store in a Disneyland-like fashion.  By the time I parked and got in line, it was 9:35.  Much to my relief, Costco opened their doors at that same time 25 minutes early.  Within 12 minutes, I was at the front of the store which I couldn't believe considering how long the line was at 9:30.  Just by luck, I learned that Costco had received a massive shipment of toilet paper the night before.  Although they had not had any toilet paper the day before, they had piles and piles of it for sale yesterday located on large pallets at the end of every aisle.  It was amazing to see how organized, efficient, and well-run this store was as they only let a few people in at a time into the store and there were employees to disinfect our shopping carts at the front of our store and employees to guide us through the toilet paper section to prevent mass hysteria from occurring.  Here is a picture of the long line in front of me leading up to the entrance of the store.

The miles and miles of toilet paper placed along the endcaps of every aisle along the "main drag" of the store.  I never thought I would see something like this in my life.