I cannot find a rhythm, you guys.
Part of this is because the little kids don't really start virtual school until next week (last week was a joke, and this week, they have substitute teachers and many broken links). Part of it is that Minnie STILL does not have a consistent morning wake time, so I can't **really** bank on early AM work or workout time. Part of it is that Ben's schedule is up in the air. He always is WFH on Mondays and Wednesdays, and he always works from the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but Fridays he is mostly gone but sometimes home, and there's no rhyme or reason. When we have things like ortho appointments (turns out Dorothy's mouth is metaphorically big but literally quite tiny because she is getting a palate expander), he usually is the one to take sick time because Minnie can't wear a mask or go inside anywhere, meaning he is unexpectedly there to drive a kid to school, but not always and it's just A LOT FOR ME because I am someone who thrives on routine. And also! The kids' winter swim club has started up, but the schedule is a total shit show because there's a lifeguard shortage. I mean, you guys, the schedule looked intimidating from the get-go because the club doesn't have a dedicated pool, so the kids rotate around the indoor pools in town, but then one of the pools has no lifeguards and other one is having water filter problems and it is all very on-the-fly and head-explodey. Like, I am not someone who can just be like oh okay 4:45pm email that turns my night on its ear. No problem. And! Dorothy is doing dance team, (adorbs) and taking 3 additional dance classes starting next week AND Harry starts playing tennis 4 nights a week PLUS debate and speech season is beginning AND Jack is trying out for his fall play and OH YEAH Cooper and Jack are doing winter dive team, but the fall schedule isn't final yet and OH MY GOD.
And if you are reading this and thinking what the hell lady I thought you were so COVID-conscious you are having your unvaccinated kids do school at home, let me tell you: Harry and Jack are vaccinated, so we are OK with them doing school and low-risk activities. They wear 3M N95 masks with back up KN-95's in their bags. Neither of them is playing an especially dangerous sport, etc. Dorothy and Cooper are staying home, and we have vetted their activities carefully. The dance studio, for example, has completely redone its ventilation and everyone wears masks all the time. Both swim and dive are very safe, spaced out, and require masks on the pool deck. We decided those activities would be a better use of their interaction budgets. We will see how it goes **grimace emoji**
Library story walk: our favorite
I feel your pain. I only have one kiddo with 2 activities, and the constant shifting of schedule/location/etc. drives me batty.
ReplyDeleteI think the WFH/Office shuffle was the hardest part for us during the pandemic, and honestly it just worked better to assume that I wasn't available. That meant we could get into a routine and stay there. Maybe that could be an option? Ben can take his sick day to do the extra, but you have the same routine.
ReplyDeleteAlso? Not that you asked for input but your kids have A LOT of activities. It was overwhelming for me to read, and I don't have to coordinate or execute it all! Is there an option to pull back somewhere? I've found that with more cushion, I feel much more able to adjust when needed.
I have been thinking about your crazy schedule for a while. And I totally get wanting to let your kids, especially the younger two since they aren't going to school, have activities. But I think you have to make some realistic "rules.". Explain to the kids and the coaches that you will have to miss some swim practices, as the schedule is not constant. If it fits into everything else before everyone heads to school/work, and it doesn't change for the worse, go. But if it changes or it causes chaos, skipping a predict won't be the end of the world. Swimming in a primarily individual sport, so their absence won't affect others. And you could look up dry land activities of they want to do something at home to help their swimming. Everything else goes into a calendar and hopefully fits. Maybe have the kids tank their activities in case there are conflicts? So if a #2 activity and a #1 activity (not necessarily same child) conflict, #1 wins. And maybe give D and C a tie breaker off their activities conflict with H or J (same ranking)?
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