A month ago, I was waiting to know if I would have this weekend off even though I had put in for the time at the beginning of the year. My kids’ dad and I were going to be switching our parenting schedule, but he already had plans for this weekend. It was going to work out great assuming I would get the time off because BrickWorld was supposed to be in town, and as you’ll see later, we are possibly a little obsessed with Lego sets!

But as you all are well aware, it certainly is not ‘a month ago’ anymore…

• I’m sitting on my couch, drinking coffee since we’re not supposed to go anywhere
• There’s no toilet paper in the stores – which is baffling for so many reasons
• BrickWorld has been rescheduled for November
• The Indy Mini has been cancelled
• My me-time vacation has also been cancelled, and I suspect I’ll have to wait a year… but that’s a whole different conversation
• All schools in Indiana are now closed through at least May 1
• Everyone in my field is now having flashbacks of Hazmat training and wondering how long they can go without donning their suits
• We are also praying we can keep things in check so that time off remains time off
• There’s no “let’s meet for lunch” because dining areas are closed
• Hairdressers and nail techs don’t know beyond the hour if they can keep working
• Grocery stores are hiring off of the street because they cannot keep up with demand
• A heartbreaking number are now completely unemployed
• The elderly in homes can have no visitors
• And, and this one makes me even more angry, parents who use their children as pawns to get their way daily are now using our today to hurt the other parent

None of us would have believed that any of these would be part of our current world, because, quite frankly, this is 2020. We are brilliant and advanced as a state, as a nation, and as a world… then we got caught off guard. Truth be told, it’s not our fault either. Not if it’s happened the way they say. We’re encountering something brand new. It’s the real-life version of when I attempt to play MineCraft with my children. All of a sudden, I don’t even know what to do with my hands… literally!

But on a serious note… life is so different for this moment, so stop being hateful! The hoarding, the bad-mouthing, the false news, the blaming, the me-first attitudes. YOU NEED TO FREAKING STOP!!!

For one thing, you have an opportunity to do things at home that you don’t normally have time to do, but yet the same people who post about wanting to stay home and have time off are now complaining about staying in. I’m used to people talking out of both sides of their mouth, which I can’t and won’t get into, but if for no other reason than to listen to my fellow Midwesterners complain about the weather throughout the year. But right now, you have a chance to behave like an adult and instead you’re acting like children.

For another thing, you’re teaching your children to be whiny brats. And shame on you. You should be using this time to teach your children about responsibility, citizenship, and consideration. Teach them to own their attitude, and teach them to challenge themselves to fix it when it needs fixing. My kids and I talked through the analogy of carrying sand. A healthy person may accidentally carry the virus to another healthy person, and both would end up okay in the end. But it’s who else may catch it on accident that matters; just like how some grains of sand will always fall through if my son tries to carry it to my daughter. My kids understood. I’m not trademarking the analogy, so please use it.

Wanna know what we did? Well, I’m telling you anyway… we made a list. Things we want to do while we’re home, and get this – there’s even outside things on the list!!! *gasp* See, we have a huge field behind us, so why in the world shouldn’t we enjoy it? When we go out on our scooters, we aren’t going to go knocking on doors, so why not go? There are so many options! Here’s our first week:

It’s up to each of you to determine what you’ll focus on right now. When my kids are here, it’s them. When they’re not… I get frustrated about the injustices I’m seeing. People important to me are hurting, and I wish I could do something about it. This isn’t the time to be jerks to each other.

Be kind.

Be thoughtful.

Be a decent parent.

Life is at least a little hard for everybody right now, which makes it the opportune time to pretend like you want to give a crap about people. And enjoy your special people because there are those of us out there who want to attempt to date and are literally not allowed. *insert face palm* It’s fine though… the storm troopers are invading the diner anyway, so I’ve got bigger issues to worry about!