It has been one year of this crazy pandemic and one year since we started staying home a whole lot more than we ever have in our entire lives. I believe it was March 6 when the first case entered into Colorado and then everything started to shut down. Getting groceries required a full hazmat suit and when the mail came we treated it like it had anthrax in it. Remember that after 9-11? I feel like I have seen some really crazy things in my life.

How are you doing?

For us, life has gone on with adjustments. We have adjusted to wearing masks when we have to get out of our car and go into a store. We don’t wear masks when in the car driving or going through a drive through. We also do not wear masks when we go for a walk even though we do encounter people (who 9 times out of 10 are not wearing a mask either) but we all just move further away from each other. One thing I miss though is our road trips and the only thing holding me back with that is the thought of having to use public restrooms. We totally get take out food and we have stayed in hotels when we were making our move but using a public restroom is a hang up for me. I never liked it so it’s nothing new but now it’s even more disliked and I’d like to stay clear of it as much as possible. But my family would really like to go explore and get away for at least a weekend so I’m warming up to giving it a go and maybe not venturing too far away from the hotel so we can use the restroom there. Are you laughing with me right now??!!

One thing that has taken a lot of work though is for me getting use to everyone being home ALL. THE. TIME. I’m the type that really needs alone time to rest, think, and recharge. When I have people in my space needing things from me all the time I start to loose it. I get irritable and tired and just want no one talking or around me. Probably a big reason why we only have one kiddo. So after we decided to homeschool and then my husband has been home full time for a year now, it has taken patience from everyone for me to deal with it. I’m not use to it still but my ‘loosing it’ moments are getting further apart. I just have to voice to both of them that mom needs to be left alone. It was hard for them to understand at first but they know life is much easier if they give mom space when she requests it.

On the flip side, I have enjoyed everyone being home. Confusing I know! It’s been nice having our family together and not having to expose ourselves to too much especially when this all began. We get to go for walks whenever and have lunch together, things we were not able to do when my husband was going to work and my daughter going to school. So everyone home does have its lovely moments most of the time.

How are you?

I know that many have experienced this in different ways. Our past year was not too bad, in fact we had really good changes happen, but maybe your year has been a struggle and if so I’m so very sorry that it had to be that way. My prayer for you is that when you come out the other side of that struggle that you will know that the hardest paths lead to beautiful new beginnings.

Let’s continue to be hopeful that 2021 brings back the things we use to be able to do and see the people we want to see.