Counting blessings during Corona Times

I will not hide it, it was tough adapting to us both working from home with a tiny human depending on us and with the glooming perspective of Corona hitting our area, but we made it. Two weeks without leaving the house to go to work, two weeks with just one short trip to the grocery store and with only short walks around the house, two weeks without seeing in person our friends or colleagues, two weeks of sharing a desktop, two weeks of checking daily the news and informing ourselves about what are the symptoms, what to do, what freedom we still have left...

If you like us had to adapt during this time, give yourself a pat on your shoulder cause you are a hero, you made it safe and alive.

First of all I am thankful that my family and friends are all healthy and safe and alive. I've watched the news from China at the beginning of February and from Italy now and seeing all that tragedy and suffering, I can only say we are blessed. Yes it is hard to stay inside, yes it is challenging, but we are alive and that is all that matters right now.

I found out we are adaptable. It was rough I tell you, I felt for a short second that we will not make it, everything was bothering me, I wanted to be alone, I felt like my world was crumbling down just because I was forced to stay inside and share my space. Will my husband pick up his empty coffee cup from the desk when I want him to? Probably not. Will I kill him for it? Definitely not. I am a little (for now) OCD and I felt like all I do all day is pick up after him and his daughter and his dog :) That is not true, he helps a lot exactly when I need him to, I just have to find the time to notice that.

So that leads me to the following point, I am grateful we are both home because he prepares or at least he comes with the idea to have lunch every day. When you work from home it is hard to stick to a schedule and I do admit I often had lunch over the keyboard while working. Well because we are both home we both prepare food and we both sit and eat properly.

Because we are both home we share the times when Ilinca is fussy. She is a very good child, but as she can't quite communicate with us, she cries from time to time. Depending on what we are doing at that moment, she is picked up by any of us, that would have been just me if not for covid quarantine.

I didn't get to follow all the online classes I hoped and wanted for this time, but I enrolled in some and found the time to colour some free colouring sheets and take advantage of all the freebies offered to us during the quarantine time. My to do list is still long, but I have time :)

Since I had to rethink my strategy for the foreseeable future, I came up with new projects I hope to put into practice. I don't want to jinks it, but you will be the first ones to find out.

Because everyone is working from home, they have a new appreciation for people who were doing that already such as freelancers and start-ups as myself. Before covid I felt like some of my friends would treat me different because I was working from home, maybe thinking that all I do all day is sit in my pj looking at the window. Now they found out that it is tough to have a schedule, to get out of your pj top at least, to be creative while at home, to know all the gimmicks of home office, to master all the apps and online tools and so on. Even my colleagues felt this sort of appreciation or at least acknowledgement that working from home is still working and not leisuring.

We had a lot of time to spend with Luna. Because of the new member of our family, Luna was a bit neglected, yes she has food and water and walks as before, but dogs need more than the basic. So these two weeks we granted her every wish. She wanted hugs we were there to give them, she wanted out, we opened the door to the back garden, she wanted to play outside, we made time for that too. I think at the beginning she was confused with all of us being home all the time, but now she likes it and she is always near one of us.

Last but not least, I am grateful for the human connection. Beside spending all the time with my family, I was in contact with old, lost friends and colleagues, I asked and was asked if everything was fine, I felt the genuine interest in my well being. I am sure life will change after corona, I only hope it will change for the better.

What about you? What are you grateful for? and what will be the first thing you will do after the lockdown is over?

Raluca @mademoiselle.ralu

The illustration is from Maja Tomljanovic you can find her at @majatomljanovic on Instagram. I love all the artistic vibe this pandemic has brought to the surface, all the classes I've missed from Romania are now online (look for Fundatia Calea Victoriei), actors are making live transmissions on Facebook and Instagram (look for Marius Manole and Ilona Brezoianu) and got creative on YouTube as well (search for Discutabil), artists are making free colouring sheets for kids and adults alike (check out Madalina Andronic). 

Ilinca and Luna or small children and dogs

As I've been asked several times what will happen to Luna (our 4 years old, to this date, collie) once my daughter will come into the picture I've decided to write a post about it. The short answer is -  nothing will happen to Luna. The long answer in the following lines.

I have dogs since I was old enough to have an opinion that would count, that being around 18 years old, they were all collies and they were all females. First was Lady rescued from the street, she was pretty old when we got her and she lived with us for almost four years. Then was Dea, we got her from a breeder when she was two weeks old and she was with us for more than 12 years. And four years ago we got Luna. So at this point let me tell you I am more fond of dogs than children, even the ones that I produced.

So to put it in other words, Ilinca, my daughter, came into a house with an existing dog. Either she choose it or it was a coincidence, she has to adapt to it and if genetics indeed have a word to say, she will love dogs as much as I do or my husband does.

Normally I would never recommend parents to get their kids a dog or a cat up until the age of 10 years old OR when they are responsible enough for the new member of the family. Because, if you get a pet for your kid, but you are the one who is walking it, you are taking care that the dog has food and water, you know when to take it to the vet, you actually got yourself a pet. Granted, kids these days are not as free to walk the dog as we were, but at least you see your child involved in everything related to the dog or the cat, the pleasant, cuddling, playing with the dog and the not so pleasant such as picking up the poo or holding the dog while the vet is doing the yearly shots. Because, as it happens many times parents feel overwhelmed by having to take care of the family pet and the pet ends up crowding the shelters. 

But as our situation is different, I can only hope Ilinca will have the childhood I always wanted, with a dog as a best friend, with someone that will always unconditionally love her. And the beginning looks promising :)

As usual you can find me on Instagram @mademoiselle.ralu let's get the conversation going over there!

P.S. I came across this article and I am sure there are many others on the internet on the benefits of raising children with dogs or cats. The discussion around the topic of getting rid of the family pet when having a baby is too big for this blog. BUT just so you know I think that people who actually do that are crazy to say the least, they are people who never should have pets or kids for that matter.