Monday, March 23, 2020

Number of COVID CASES in Illinois: 1285    Nocases in Tazewell yet.      Number of Deaths in IL: 12

National Count: 33,404 – over 400 deaths.

Back to homeschooling today! We started reading “Little House in the Big Wood” on audiobook since we are also in isolation. The kids are enjoying it. There was also regular school work with reading and math. We also got to use our new math game – POP for addition and subtraction. Amazon has been helpful in delivering educational materials to keep the kids interested in topics and giving us new things to look forward to .

Once Chad got home, I took off to Sam’s Club in Peoria to pickup our “curbside order.” They put everything in my car and off I went. When I got home we wiped everything down with Lysol Clorox wipes which is  a safety precaution put out by the CDC. It amazed me all of the people out and about last night. You wouldn’t even know anything was going on . Except for the empty parking lots at the mall, long lines for drive-thrus since the dining rooms are closed. Many people are taking this seriously, but not enough. I have a feeling we are going to be doing this for quite a while.

At the end of a long day we all sat down to watch the first part of The Great Muppet Caper on Disney+.

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Number of COVID CASES in Illinois: 1865                Number of Deaths in IL: 19

Today we started off by filling up our “Snack baskets” to help ration the snacks. Apparently the kids have left their “school stomachs” at school and now are ravenously eating through all the snacks because they have been “starving.”  They can have unlimited fruit and veggies from the fridge and as much water as they want.

We also had a fun day of baking and cooking along with school work. I made homemade Amish Sweet Bread. Unfortunately I killed off the yeast so it didn’t rise to where I would have liked it to be, but it was still delicious (and the smell in the kitchen was amazing)! I also made ham fried rice in bulk for leftovers – YUMMY! It was a pretty typical day around here – typical is a word I wouldn’t use to describe this two weeks ago but this is becoming the new norm fast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

USA confirmed cases: 59, 434  Deaths – 786         Global confirmed cases – 430, 607 deaths – 19, 479

Congress is trying to pass a $2 trillion dollar coronavirus relief package to help out the states, small businesses, and families across the USA. Hopefully this will pass and they can get relief checks to families that need it quickly. So many people are out of work — over 3 million applied for unemployment this week. So much of the country is seeing this virus spread across their states.

The kids got to Facetime with 2 of their friends who live just a few houses from us. They don’t really know how to hold a conversation with each other this way yet, but are happy to see each other. Annabelle and Lucy talked about books they have read and activities they have done. Bentley and Jack also shared what they have been doing lately. It was cute to see and we are so thankful for the technology that allows us to do this.

As we get used to our new normal of homeschooling for the time being we have things that we are loving like “Lunch Doodles with Mo.” I also have used quiet time as the time I listen to the governor speak every day. The TV is on but for purposeful things. It should be used to get our mind off this – but most of the time it just amps up my anxiety. Trying to release everything to God and breathe. Just when my anxiety from the SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) should be getting better, it is getting worse. Trying to release this to God tonight and rest on the promise in Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.” This too shall pass…. God has this! These are the things I have to repeat in my mind daily as we watch the numbers climb. At least the sun came out and it was a little warmer. It’s the little things that make these days go much smoother.

 

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Number of COVID CASES in Illinois:2538                 Number of Deaths in IL: 26

Today Illinois added over 700 cases of COVID-19 bringing the total to 2538 confirmed cases and 26 deaths in Illinois. The US now leads the world with 82, 404 confirmed cases.

Today I am beginning my day by praying over my friends across the country who have symptoms of COVID-19 but can’t get tested. It’s so frustrating because they want to know if they have it or not, but tests are reserved for those that are in respiratory failure, being admitted, or those in healthcare that have to come into contact with patients. Or the occasional celebrity who needs a test….not sure what to think about that?! Robin and Megan Bielefeldt in MN, Meg Sanchez in Bloomington, Jaime McGrath in NC, just to name a few. Beth is home after recovering from the hospital and doing well. Her interviews were on the Iowa news tonight so we could see how she doing.

Today it’s a gloomy and rainy day but we brightened up our day by cutting out paper hearts and making a window display to show our support to all of the workers that still have to go out and do essential work during the pandemic. This is something that is popping up all over the country. There is even a Facebook group called Heart Hunters. It originated when kids needed to take walks outside so they have hearts to look for like a scavenger hunt. How cool is that?! We also continued e-learning and other fun things with homeschool.

Facetime and Zoom calls are the way we socialize nowadays. Lori has been snapping screenshots as we talk because they make her smile and bring her joy, so I snapped a few today as well.

 

And another thing in today’s big news is… “Lucy lost another tooth!” She got to share it with grandparents via text message/photo. Hopefully the tooth fairy can still get here on time?

Friday, March 27, 2020

Number of COVID CASES in Illinois: 3026                Number of Deaths in IL: 34

More schoolwork today, but we took the afternoon to get out the Easter decorations and to watch “Peter Cottontail” for a special movie time.

Today was also “errand day!” Chad picked up prescriptions at the pharmacy on the way home and I picked up groceries at Kroger through their pickup service. While I was waiting, I had to snap this picture of the Monical’s pickup drive up service. This was only half of the line up at dinnertime. Since no one goes in the restaurants except the staff this is the “new normal on a Friday night at dinner.”

Tonight we ate Arby’s which was a nice change and I didn’t have to cook. I did back some cookies today from Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Table cookbook! It is a new FAVORITE recipe. So yummy! After dinner we got PJ’s on and watched Phantom of the Opera (the musical). The kids loved it!

Tomorrow we will keep our eyes to the skies. Because the COVID-19 isn’t scary enough we have a high alert for tornadoes and hail tomorrow afternoon/evening. Great…..? I just keep repeating Philippians 4:6 over and over…. God has got this!