Keeping Busy During Coronavirus 2020

We took the kids for a bike ride today. It was nice to get out of the house and enjoy some fresh air. The kids and I have been home over three weeks now, and they are starting to show signs of boredom. It's hard to answer their questions about this virus outbreak. A five-year-old and a seven-year-old don't understand why they can't leave the house, go to school, or have playdates with friends. 

Ollie's behavior has been excellent up until recently. I can tell she's starting to become frustrated. Usually, the kids and I are very social and active. We visit with friends and have play dates all of the time. She's even admitted she misses school because she's so bored.  

I can't say this to them, but boy, do I wish I could experience their boredom. Keeping them occupied and from losing their cool is a full-time gig, on top of my full-time gig as a writer! We are just now finally getting some decent weather. Hopefully, the warmer weather can help cure some of our stress and loneliness. There is always more to do outside. 

Homeschooling During the Coronavirus Outbreak:

Homeschool life. 

I am becoming overwhelmed with homeschooling my two kids, and I have a teaching degree. I can only imagine how stressful this is for other families. Both of our kids now have online lessons that they must complete every day on a computer. Doing schoolwork at home is something they are not used to, so it's been a challenging routine to establish.  

Our superintendent indicated that he doesn't seem to think we will be returning to school this school year. As a kid, I would have loved an extra-long summer break. As a parent...not so much.

I think we are taking a few weeks off from writing for the blog for a few weeks while everyone gets their bearings and tries to stay healthy. I hope you all stay safe out there and stay home if you can! We will talk again soon. 

-Abby, guest blogger

Family Quarantined During COVID-19 Outbreak

My kids and I haven't left the house in 16 days. We plan to say home as long as it takes. Through this global pandemic, I feel fortunate that my kids are getting along. I see many parents posting daily updates about struggling being stuck home with their children. 

It's not easy. 

I have two early elementary-aged kids, and I work from home as a writer. Having my kids home with me for the last two weeks has dramatically reduced my productivity. My husband works in the power industry and is an essential employee, so we see him off to work every day. 

We are spending far too much time on screens, but we are also doing a lot of beautiful things as a family. My 5-year-old son helped me cook an entire meal, even sauteeing the chicken by himself, while I supervised. 

My daughter, who is in first grade, started reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by herself. We've painted, held Lego challenges, played far too many board games, and snuggled up to many family movies. 

I can't help but imagine how my children will reflect on this time when they are older. 

Quarantine and Rural Living

We live in northwest Ilinois, and our weather is still not the best, which is limiting our time outside. Last night, we spent an hour in our basement in the middle of the night while a tornado ripped through town a mile east of us. Nothing spices up a global pandemic quarantine like a natural disaster. 

My mother lives 15 minutes away from us, but we've had to stay apart from Grandma. She is vulnerable to more severe cases of COVID-19, and my husband has several employees who have possibly been exposed to the virus. 

We are doing our best to be positive during this uncertain time. All of our stores are out of toilet paper and cleaning supplies, but most other grocery supplies have started to stabilize. We are managing better than could be expected despite a prolonged shelter-in-place order in our state. 

School and COVID-19

Our kids have been out of school for two weeks. The first week home, the school supplied paper packets for home learning. This past week was their scheduled spring break. Our school district announced a switch to e-learning this week. As an educator whose not currently teaching, I am curious about what this will look like for a 1st grader and kindergartener. We've been reading, practicing our sight words, and trying to keep our bodies moving. 

COVID-19 and Doctors Appointments

Ollie's pediatric neurologist is in Chicago. The CDC thinks Chicago will be the next hotbed for COVID-19 after seeing what's happening to New York City. We have a scheduled neuro appointment coming up, and we've started talking about precautions to take or postponing the appointment altogether. 

We are not sure if we can postpone this appointment for her. We have discussed being prepared should Ollie need to see her neurologist for her epilepsy in the heart of downtown Chicago's medical district. The two best options we have are traveling to Chicago and using precautionary measures to try and reduce our exposure as much as possible or try and coordinate her testing locally. 

I hope that I can coordinate with our local primary care physician, and our neurologist, who is in Chicago. I want to have her EEG and bloodwork done locally and hold a virtual appointment with our neurologist, perhaps with our primary care physician involved. We don't have a pediatric neurologist locally, which is why we have to travel almost two hours to Chicago. 

This global pandemic is certainly raising many logistical concerns for routine medical care, especially for our vulnerable and rural populations. 

How are you staying busy? 

-Abby, Guest Blogger

CoVid-19 and Epilepsy

According to the CDC, people with neurological conditions, including seizure disorders and epilepsy, may be at higher risk for developing more severe symptoms from the novel coronavirus that has become a global pandemic in the last several weeks. 

The CDC recommends that people practice several precautions to mitigate the spread of CoVid-19 and keep ourselves safe:

• Frequent hand washing
• Covering nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing
• Social distancing or voluntary self-quarantine. 

We don't know if this virus is going to get worse or not, but immunologists think that it could unless we take these sorts of precautions. 

Memes and Facebook banter are going around about the hoarding behavior Americans are displaying in overstocking on needed supplies and stealing supplies from hospitals etc. 

Schools all over the United States are closing down to help prevent the spread of the virus. Parents are finding themselves short on daycare or out of work, and people are scared. We are all going to have to endure being uncomfortable as we wait and see what this virus is going to do. 

If your school hasn't closed yet, you may be next. For many of us, homeschool or e-learning is a reality. The community and business leaders are coming together to come up with innovative solutions to help offset the negative consequences of school closures, such as free meals and internet access. 

Several companies are offering free internet services to students and low-income families: 

• Verizon is offering new customers its Internet Essentials bundle free for two months due to the coronavirus outbreak. 
• Spectrum Broadband is offering free internet for 60 days to new customers with K-12 students or college students. 
• AT&T and Verizon are waiving fees for their customers during the outbreak. 
• AT&T is also waiving data overage fees. 

School districts and families are scrambling to gather resources for e-learning and homeschooling, as many districts have indicated they don't know when classes will resume. 

Many Educational Companies are offering free services during this CoVid-19 outbreak: 

• Storylineonline.net is offering free literacy programs where actors read to children. 
• Fluency and Fitness is offering parents free access to their library of educational fitness videos. 
• Neuropsychology and Education for Children and Adolescents shared a daily schedule that is great to help families get through the next few weeks. 
• This google doc is floating around detailing more educational companies offering free programs for parents and schools during the coronavirus outbreak. 

It's going to be tough, and we would rather overreact than underreact. Some of our epileptic friends and family may be a higher risk for more severe cases of CoVid-19. Let's play our part to keep them safe and stay home if we can. 

-Abby, Guest Blogger