Keeping it all the way honest here – quarantining with your partner is no walk in the park.
I never realized how little I used to see my husband pre-quarantine until he was home all day every day!
My days used to consist of waking up at home with just the baby, free to do whatever we wanted and not have to worry about making breakfast or lunches for my husband.
Lately, I wake up to having my husband home. Although I LOVE having him home- it’s been quite an interesting adjustment. My husband is still working full time (from home) as he’s an essential worker 😉. His day consists of conference calls, virtual meetings, managing relationships, sales strategy and all kinds of negotiations – at least from what I can make out from overhearing him work his charm.
What does this mean for me? I have to pick and choose where Aura & I can play. I can’t give her pots and pans to play with and I have to really try hard to keep her quiet or move to another room in the house when Bram is on the phone. This has been limiting me lately and I’ve started to feel the changes.
Aside from all that- I feel obligated to play Wife and make breakfast and lunches for my husband. When he was at work all day- I would cut a block of cheese for myself and call it lunch 😜. I guess it’s safe to say that my days have gotten a bit busier than the pre quarantine norm.
Being around each other 24/7 without a breather has had us bickering and arguing a bit more than before. Our patience runs a bit thinner with each other and we find it hard to be around one another 24/7. When you add a baby into that mix- it’ can become a recipe for disaster.
However- luckily we have been figuring out a system that works for us. We highlighted that having personal space and time is important for the both of us (sans baby). Our new system has helped us become happier individually as people and collectively as a family. Me Time is MORE important now than ever before!
We both agreed to give one another daily time apart to do whatever we wanted solo. Some days its 30 mins, some days it can be an an hour and a half – either way, this time is worth more than Gold! My husband uses his time to work out – I use my time to either take a cat nap or catch up on some TV. These moments apart truly recharge and refuel our souls. We have also figured out a routine with Aura that allows us to split up essential tasks. At the end of the day, it leaves us a solid 2-3 hours to spend time together once Aura is down for the night – and at this point we are a lot more patient, understanding & happy with one another!
So please don’t let social media fool you. Not every couple is building jigsaw puzzles, cooking meals together and cuddling and snuggling up afterwards. That is far from reality- at least our reality. My husband and I are not having a staycation over here but we are finding pockets of time together that we do enjoy. On top of that we are turning the corner and finding solutions TOGETHER for how to balance the workload for cooking/preparing meals – I have managed to land myself a Sous Chef!
How are you finding it quarantining with your partner? What challenges have you faced and how are you working together to overcome them?
