Big family a big bonus in quarantine
As of this writing, the Dittos are about one and a half weeks into our forced family together time (aka quarantine-for-a-cause, aka the possible cause of death listed in my future obituary).
Like everyone else in the state right now, we have been hanging out at home, stewing in our own little petri dish of family germs. Being together all the time has led me to one conclusion: while having a big family may not be optimal for many things (such as taking inexpensive vacations; getting to events on time; and maintaining a sane grocery budget), when it comes to being quarantined, having a big family is AWESOME.
For one thing, there is never a shortage of playmates. I cannot emphasize enough how much of a blessing this is. An abundance of playmates means I never have to be the one to ricochet around on a trampoline; muddle my way through a game of chess; remember the password to the Xbox; or fix a flat tire on a bike. “I gave you siblings for just this purpose,” I say to any kid who asks me to do something I don’t want to do. “Go find one.”
Another great advantage to having a big family while sheltering in place is the fact that I have a six-person work force at my disposal all day long. My house has never been cleaner, my ironing basket never emptier, and my mudroom never as organized as it is now. Despite the fact that my kids are bouncing around all day like six deranged pinballs, at least now there’s nowhere for them to run when it comes to clean up time.
“I have to go or I’ll miss the bus!” my daughter used to yell as she ran out the door without unloading the dishwasher. “I have so much homework tonight, there’s no way I can get my laundry folded!” my son would moan. No longer. The only appointments they have now are with mom and her list of jobs.
And you’d better believe there is a list. I am a list-maker. Lists might be my love language. On their second day home from school, my kids woke up to a schedule posted on the refrigerator.
8:00-Wake up
8:30-Breakfast
9:00-Family exercise time
9:30-Chores
10:30-Academic time
…and it kind of goes downhill from there, with many hours mixed into the afternoon for ambiguous things like “quiet time” and “free time,” which pretty much just means reading, Legos and movies.
“Schedule subject to change based on mom’s mood and other unreliable factors,” I included in small print at the bottom of the page. I’ve learned that, with conditions changing at break-neck speed, today’s “academic time” might of necessity turn into tomorrow’s “everyone watch a movie so there will be at least two hours of the day where someone isn’t saying the words ‘mom’ or ‘he hit me’.”
One way that having a big family is a bit rough during quarantine is in the food department. These kids eat all the time. Or they would, if I didn’t institute some draconian rules, namely: there will only be three meals a day, with one snack before lunch, and one snack before dinner. There will be no mindless grazing. No grabbing a gallon of milk and pouring four cupfuls for yourself while you mindlessly read the newspaper. No using 12 eggs and 5 sticks of butter because you decided that now is the time you’d like to master the art of French cooking.
But even with such measures in place, we are eating a lot, because it’s kind of all we want to do when we’re stuck at home and the world seems uncertain and scary. If there was a zombie apocalypse and the undead started climbing onto my roof and slamming themselves through my windows, my initial instinct would probably be to head to the kitchen and start making chocolate chip cookies. I take comfort in food, for better or for worse, and apparently so do my kids.
“We’re all in this together,” according to the High School Musical soundtrack that has been playing loudly almost non-stop in my house since this quarantine started. Yes, we are. And thank goodness for that.