When we were ordered to stay home, I was happy! Our lives have been moving so fast for so long. Not having to drive 100 miles a day and actually being home to cook, clean and projects, appealed to me so much. I needed a break from the never ending chaos.

Being a teenager and having to stay here is another story. I completely understand the need to be at the coffee shop, friends houses and just shopping! My daughters had one great outlet, their sister Maria’s house! So when they just need to get out, there are some things they do. One is take a ride around the farm in the side by side. The other is to escape to Maria’s for an afternoon/evening.

Being Kate, is actually more difficult. She loved school and was thriving there. She had friends, teachers and therapists she adored. To have everything stop was quite an adjustment. Her day starts with having coffee with me. Kate drinks a vitamin drink and I call it her coffee! She wakes up and we get dressed, potty training, coffee, breakfast and then the Wiggles. She is now able to go in her room alone and chooses to do that. Takes walks, take a ride with her sisters on the farm. She loves baking. She loves us!

Other families with a child or children with Special Needs aren’t doing so well. It is a never-ending fight of one thing or another. To have all the therapies and all the routine just stop abruptly, can be very traumatic to these children. I know some families depended heavily on the school. Now we have to wait until September for school. Months. These families can very well be in turmoil with no help in sight, for quite sometime. The school teachers, therapists and administrators are trying to help from afar and are greatly appreciated. I worry about the single parent that gets no break, no help and feels abandoned in this time.

So what have we learned through this Pandemic? I learned to slow down. To make fun times out of staying in. Pizza parties, movie nights, great conversations and family prayers. I learned how nice it is to see all my children on a day of fishing at the pond. Spontaneous dinners with our son Beau and Angel! I learned family is so important. My mom, brothers and sisters along with their spouses. We learned to let go of disagreements and just love, lots of love. In the end, it is love that gets us through this.

B.J. and I had just gotten back from our 25th wedding anniversary trip to St. Thomas and St. John Islands. We are grateful we had that before being thrown into this Pandemic. We have had to adjust to being home together so much. He officially knows that no matter how much he tells me how to cook, he is wrong. He also learned to cook on the grill and it is fantastic. He has had to take more on around the house. We love a date night once a week that is a movie or Columbo! We have been watching old Columbo movies and loving them! We have some drinks, appetizers and laughs.

God is the core of this home. We are all closer and now looking forward to getting on with a small garden. A new outdoor area, swimming and fire pit. We have a fenced in space for Kate that is becoming a play area also.

The biggest thing I learned is that Kate can be more by herself and the little lady loves to be in her room, playing. She is more independent. She may not have all the therapies right now, but she has all the love. She has a new found independence and she is growing and changing for the better.

Praying for all out there suffering through this. God Bless You!