Lockdown Silver Linings

I usually like to try and find the positives in situations, but I will be honest, lockdown has been a tough one for me! It hasn’t been easy finding positives in our current situation, but they are there! It may not all be rainbows and positive vibes, but it isn’t all bad… is it?

Everything from those little moments together as a family to the environment, there has seemingly been some good to come out of lockdown.

I have been tagged by the lovely Josie at Me, Them and the Others, so here are my Lockdown Silver Linings.

More Time Together

Pre-lockdown we didn’t spend much time together as a family of 4. With Joshua at school during the day and his bedtime being not too long after we have dinner, we don’t have time for much during the week. Jamie may get to see Oliver for a few hours once he gets home, but not for too long. But during lockdown, with Jamie working from home we have obviously been seeing more of each other.

Before lockdown, I spent all day with Oliver but I didn’t get much time with Joshua, so I have been enjoying quality time with him too. We have had a few film days, played Xbox together, I’ve even had many more cuddles, kisses and been told “I love you” way more than usual. Joshua has really been showing affection more in lockdown – whether it’s the drastic change or spending more time together, I’m not sure, but whatever it is, it has been lovely.

We Are So Lucky

While so many others are struggling, we are lucky to have had no change to our income at all. We are in the exact same position now as we were before, which we are incredibly grateful for. While the change in lifestyle is huge, our income has stayed the same so we can still feel secure. Although, we did have a bit of a worry at the beginning of lockdown, thinking that Jamie’s job wasn’t as secure as we would like – but thankfully everything is okay.

We are also lucky that the kids have so much to do at home. We don’t have a usable garden at the moment, due to renovations, so we are thankful that we have a lot of indoors activities and toys. We have an array of games consoles, board games, puzzles, educational games, iPad, an entire cupboard of craft supplies, and Oliver also has a few playmats, toys, sensory toys and everything he could possibly need.

More Walking

Because we haven’t been allowed to drive unless it’s essential, we have been walking everywhere other than Oliver’s appointments etc. It has made us aware of how much we used to drive pre-lockdown, even when we really didn’t need to.

We are incredibly lucky to have so much on our doorstep and even places that we have never visited before – woodlands, nature walks, beach, nature reserves and parks. We have far more to explore nearby than we would have thought.

We have made the decision to continue walking instead of driving, if/when we can, and to carry on going for walks as a family.

Acts of Kindness

I have loved watching and getting involved in the #SpreadingKindness campaign with Amazon Wish Lists. I’ve read a lot of positive stories about people showing kindness to those who need help, the elderly and generally lending a helping hand. Even supermarkets and other companies have been rewarding keyworks for their hard work with small gestures of free food and discounts. It may not be much but it’s a symbol of appreciation for everything that they are risking to look after us.

Some things bring out the best in people and coronavirus has definitely helped that.

Stay Safe x