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March 13: During the chaos of the last couple days of classes, it was hard to tell whether or not other students were excited or disappointed with the switch to online social distance learning. I was definitely on the side of being disappointed. Anytime there is a great deal of uncertainty, it seems that the unpredictable future brings a level of excitement for some. Not for me. I had enough of living through uncertainty when I was in the Army. I also know what it’s like to live in close quarters in an Army housing unit, so I knew what was coming.

The powers that be were not going to just cancel work and school for everyone and then keep all the exciting aspects of life open. This wasn’t going to be a free couple of weeks off from school and work to simply go have fun all day. I knew when the schools closed that everything else would soon follow. Unless you’re going to the grocery store, we are all essentially locked down at home. After a couple of days, the relaxation and free time turns into boredom. Another week in, and that boredom turns into figurative torture. We have all this free time — and nothing to do with it.

March 16: At first, I thought I had dodged a bullet. Yes, school was closed, but my job was not going to shut down. Also, my children’s daycare was going to remain open. Yes, taking my kids to daycare was a risk because maybe they could catch the virus there, but from what I’ve read, the danger of COVID-19 to children is minimal, so I was somewhat reassured. I told myself, everybody has to work and that it’s just a part of life. The first few days didn’t seem that bad; I would go to work and come home like everything was normal. The only thing missing in my life at this point was school. I heard the that restaurants and non-essential businesses were going to be closing soon, so my wife and I took our kids out to do some fun stuff while we could. In the last few days before the businesses closed, I was able to take my kids to Chuck E. Cheese, Urban Air in Ankeny and to the park as much as possible. In hindsight, this probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do. I suppose I have to admit that I wasn’t taking it as seriously as I should have been.

March 19: I got the call during spring break that my kids’ daycare was going to close. I’m not one of those parents who’s annoyed I’ll have to spend all day with my children. I just feel bad for them. My son already had his school canceled on him, and now he doesn’t even have daycare. My son is 8, and my daughter is 4. They are used to being able to go and play with kids their own age for most of the day. Now they will have to make do with each other — and me I suppose. Since I was going to have to miss work also to stay home with my kids, I set out to get stuff to keep us entertained.  

My son plays little league baseball, and it’s basically all he really cares about right now. He considers meeting the Chicago Cubs’ Ian Happ as one of the coolest things he has ever done. Needless to say, he is pretty devastated that the little league baseball season has been postponed. So, I got him a pitching target, a catapult pitching machine and a hitting net so he can practice in the backyard. My daughter should be fine with the trampoline and swing already in the backyard, but since it’s her first year in tee ball, I got her a batting tee to practice on too. I knew I had to think of something to do for myself also, so I got some lumber and building materials to finish a garage bar table I had been working on last year before winter. I thought this would be enough to keep us entertained for at least a few weeks.

March 23: I was wrong. Practicing baseball outside and jumping on the trampoline got boring for the kids after the first couple of days. Normally, I would take them on a daily bike ride to not only do something fun but also to just wear them out so when we get home, they would be a little tired and look to relax in their rooms. But I don’t want to take my daughter near the park when she can’t play on the playground. She doesn’t understand why we can’t do all the things she is normally used to doing. I do what I can to keep them entertained, but it’s getting harder every day. After they got bored of being outside on the trampoline, we moved inside to watch movies. Each kid has their favorite lineup of go-to movies and TV shows. For my son, it’s “The Sandlot,” “Rookie of the Year” and “Dragon Ball Z.” My daughter, like most 4-year-old girls, is obsessed with “Frozen.” She also likes the “Toy Story” franchise and “Paw Patrol.”

March 26: I think my kids are starting to mess with me now. When I need to get some schoolwork done and it would be beneficial for me to have them entertained in the living room with a movie and bag of popcorn, they’re not interested in the movies. When I want to go outside and work on the table, they want to stay inside and watch a movie. Coincidently, it seems the worst when I really need to get an assignment done. That’s when they have to argue with each other and complain the most about how bored they are. One funny thing to come out of my son’s boredom: He has taken to sending me memes that he finds on the internet. I suppose that’s what I get for buying him a tablet.

March 31: When my wife finally got the news that she was going to be working from home, I was selfishly relieved. I thought having my wife work from home would make things better. Simply having another adult around to talk to has to be better for my psyche at least, so I was looking forward to that. I was also looking forward to having some help with keeping the kids entertained.

April 3: It is not working out as well as I hoped. In my excitement to have her home, I lost track of the reality that she has to actually work. I was hoping the rules for her would be more relaxed and she would have some free time. That is not the case. The only difference for her is that she doesn’t have to physically drive into work. She still has to spend eight hours at the computer working. Now, I have to keep the kids from bugging their mom while she’s working.

After a couple of weeks in essential isolation, the kids are getting restless emotionally also. All four of their grandparents have conditions that make them high risk for COVID-19, so they haven’t been able to see them for a couple of weeks now. Thank god for facetime, it’s a lifesaver. The kids may not be able to be physically near their grandparents, but at least they can see them and talk to them.

April 6: I’ve gotten into a decent routine. Every other day I like to wake my kids up and take them on a walk to the local Highland Park Bakery and let them pick out a donut. On the days I don’t take them to the bakery, I take them to Dairy Zone to get an ice cream in the afternoon. Even though it’s not as fun as taking a walk, they like the fact that there’s ice cream at the end of the drive. Their only complaint is that my sports podcasts are boring. It’s amazing how something as simple as going on a walk and getting them a donut keeps them in a good mood the rest of the morning.

After the walk and donuts, I tell the kids they have to play in their rooms until lunch so I can get some schoolwork done. Then comes my favorite part of the day in the afternoon: working on my table. I’m not much of an arts and crafts person, but I’ve always wanted to build a bar table for my garage, and seeing as how I have all this free time, I might as well take advantage of it. I even let the kids help, which they think is cool. I think I will finally get this thing done soon, so at least there will be one good thing to come out of all this.