Hey friends! How are you all holdin' up out there? What a crazy time it has become. I'm not going to lie I had a totally different idea of how twenty-twenty was supposed to go – I call for a re-do! I always knew that 2020 was going to embark change given the very nature of the year and all, I just never knew what that change would look like. And so, here we are, taking on a somewhat new lifestyle rather abruptly. Who would've thought this was how we would begin the new decade? Initially, I felt frustrated and overwhelmed with not only the abrupt change in our life but also the way people began to conduct themselves and the simple fact that I still can't get my hands on a sack of flour or much-needed baby wipes. It's amazing what people will do when they are manic. As bummed and frustrated as I felt over our current situation, I decided to set all the bullshit aside and embrace this temporary phase in our lives and I mean, if I'm being honest, I live for being cozy at home and away from people. However, I think it's important to acknowledge the fact that not everyone enjoys being tucked away from the outside world and for some, this is a scary time. Let's try to keep in mind our family and friends who may be struggling right now and give them a call or send a heartfelt message letting them know you're thinking about them. My biggest advice through this all is to not feed into the chaos and remain calm and kind, always. With that being said, I wanted to share some things we are doing to stay productive and healthy at home while practicing social distancing.
Routine (sorta) I've seen a lot of posts discussing this topic and for us, we land somewhere in the middle of it all. With one kid normally in school, the other sleep training and everything in between, we are used to relying on a routine to keep us sane and functioning. Starting our days now, we are mostly waking up at our normal times (sometimes sleeping in an extra thirty minutes). It's so tempting to just lay around, but for us, it's important to start our day in a somewhat normal fashion in efforts to set the tone for the rest of the day. This means wash our faces, have breakfast and get dressed (or at least change into a new set of comfies). Each day is different for us so I like to make a to-do list in the morning with what we want to accomplish for the day and then we work around that – it's worth mentioning this isn't some long list of chores, it's a practical daily task list that leaves time for us to do things like bake, play a board game or take a nap.
Eating Healthy For those of you who have been keeping up with us, you know that our family went plant-based for an extended period of time and since then, we are still mostly plant-based. I am not worried about running out of food so our eating habits haven't really changed much, although I am trying to be smart about what we make to eat and using things we already have at home. Walking into the stores I can't help but acknowledge the fact that the processed foods are near gone but both our whole foods and produce sections are still thriving, which leaves me to wonder if we are really prioritizing our health or perhaps watched too many episodes of The Walking Dead. While we did buy a few snacks we definitely aren't loading up on them, believe it or not, there is a direct correlation between the foods we eat and the way we feel and during this season of social distancing, we want to make sure we're consuming things that help our mind and body stay well. p.s Don't forget to drink water.
Exercise To me, getting an adequate amount of exercise is just as important for our overall health as eating well and social distancing. We are grateful to have at-home equipment to help keep us active but we also know you don't need it to get a workout in. Youtube has an unlimited amount of at-home workouts you can follow along with (GoNoodle is an awesome channel for younger kids, but like I said the resources are endless). Downloading a fitness app is also a good way to get motivated and it makes it easy to set a reminder to get moving and track your goals. I've been using the Tone It Up app for years and I love it; it's full of fun and efficient workouts as well as recipes and other forms of daily inspiration. I promise I'm not being paid to talk about it, I just really love and swear by the TIU app + community.
Pamper Now that we have extra time to spare, I'm taking advantage of it and treating myself with some self-pampering. What that means for me is, upgrading my skin routine, taking more time to exfoliate in the shower, washing my hair more than twice a week and really just giving back to myself where I wasn't before. I feel totally rejuvenated, it's amazing. Look good feel good as my both my grandmothers would say and we all know they're right about everything.
Sunshine & Fresh Air As long as the weather permits, we try to step outside for at least 15 minutes a day and try to do so without any distractions, like our phones. It's nice to leave everything inside for a few moments and take in some fresh air. We like to go on a stroll through our neighborhood or sit on our back patio and have lunch. Something fun our neighborhood did recently was place shamrocks on the windows and doors and we were able to have a social distancing scavenger hunt. I think I may suggest rainbows for next time
* This Also may be a great way to have a neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt
Keeping A Clean Area We try to keep our areas clean as much as possible, with kids this can be challenging given they all seem to be like little Taz's running around, even the ones who can't run. 😉 When things seem to get a little too chaotic we like to take 10 minutes here and there to tidy up. I usually throw on some nature sounds or some lo-fi music and we take care of what we need whenever it's needed.
Quiet Time/ Meditate This is an essential part of our daily lives quarantine or not. When we feel the energy is getting a little out of hand or like I may lose my shit (bc we all know this happens to moms) I usually call for quiet time. This can be 15-30 minutes out of the day of just pure quiet other than maybe some ocean sounds playing in the background. During this time we may stretch, close our eyes, read a book, color it really doesn't matter as long as it's quiet. When the kids have a hard time calming down on their own one of my magic tricks is getting them to take a quiet shower/bath. I will usually throw on some relaxing sounds and diffuse oils, I swear they come out of it totally different children. Alan and I have adopted the Wim Hof breathing method to stay calm and center ourselves. I like to do this before I workout or at the end of the day. It's literally just breathing everyone can make time for this during the day. If you want to learn more about his technique you should check out his youtube channel or watch the second episode of The Goop Lab on Netflix, which I recommend because its another series you'll want to binge.
That's all for now and as always, thanks for reading!
If you guys are interested in hearing more about how we are spending our days during this season of social distancing let me know what you would like to see in the comments below or on Instagram and I'll work on getting you guys some daily quarantine inspiration.
Post a Comment