Coronavirus Lockdown: A mum's view on how to cope

Well the first week of quarantine with 4 kids has definitely been the most surreal moment of my life.

I’m sure like many working mums I am just not used to spending so much time with my kids, let alone non stop cooking, food rationing, home schooling and entertaining.

I have been drinking a lot of alcohol too, I don’t think I’m alone here either. I went for a walk with my five year old and he commented that there were a lot of beer bottles in someone’s recycling box. I told him not to judge people in apocalyptic conditions and maybe to not look at ours on bin night...

We’ve been visiting my parents on our walk every day, luckily I can still get to see them albeit behind glass. I put my phone on loud speaker and we chat and they can see the kids playing in the front garden. My mum is slowly getting the hang of not making embarrassing comments about passers by but the school caretaker now knows her nickname for him. I have never wanted the ground to open up and swallow me so much. Also it gave me a serious belly laugh.

We have a very busy schedule of FaceTime and Houseparty, it’s actually amazing how you can feel like you’re in the room with your buddies drinking and having a laugh. Definitely such a great way to feel connected to the people that you’re so used to seeing.

Our lovely friends sent us a gift yesterday with a note that brought a tear to my eye and someone had put buckets of free flowers out at the end of the road. I see a lot of people saying how human kindness is really keeping the world going right now and that is an amazing thing.

We’ve also decided as a family that we are going to have themed days every now and then, maybe once a week. We started with festival day where we dressed up in all our festival gear and themed all the activities around it, had a picnic, also a lounge rave. I went for our walk that day wearing a flower crown and a cloak. I’m well into the crazy dressing. Hoping it might make one or two people smile as we pass them (from a safe distance of course).

Monumental changes for all of us have meant that I have a seriously emotional five year old, just lucky that the two year old is oblivious! The teenagers have become home teachers for an hour each day and I feel like a 50’s housewife. Also my hands are falling off.

I was very excited about fruit and veg delivery, I’m exercising with Joe Wicks for the first time since I had kids, I have been brushing my teeth in the shower every day as it makes me feel like I’m at a festival. I’ve painted the boys and the husbands nails and we have decided to dress up every Friday or Saturday night just because. Also we have turned the conservatory into a classroom by day and a grown ups party pod by night complete with disco lights and a record player.

Staying sane is a must right now so adapting our house and the things we do to make it feel more like our lives were on the outside definitely helps! I saw a meme which made me smile saying ‘wow, last week was the longest year of my life’ how true!

This new normal is mind bending and is taking some getting used to, but it’s definitely not forever.

Find out more about our guest weekly blogger, Sara Witham owner of Evil Empire Marketing by visiting her website https://www.evilempire.co.uk.