Never before has this old adage rung more true. And never before have I had more opportunity to practice it. Again and again. Often not through choice.
Some of the things that have changed in our house since lockdown:
-We no longer have a dining room table. It is now alternatively a make-shift table-tennis table or a giant school desk.
- Zoom has become an everyday word (none of us had heard of it before lockdown)
- T-shirts, shorts and linen do not actually need to be ironed.
- On the same note, it's absolutely ok (encouraged, in fact) to walk around all day in your pyjamas/boxers
- Cleanliness may be next to Godliness. We will choose to express our Godliness in alternative ways for the duration of the lockdown.
- There is no limit on screen time. On the contrary, it is encouraged provided there is no fighting involved.
- The clutter drawer has taken on a life of it's own and has now expanded into the clutter counter. We may have to move out of the lounge in the near future at its current rate of expansion.
- Worldometer stats are discussed at least every three hours
- Mealtimes have disappeared. We basically just have one long extended meal. Let's call it breaklupper.
- Tea without homemade biscuits? Pah, so pre-lockdown.
- Alarm clocks have become obsolete.
- Houseparty has replaced play dates.
- It's perfectly acceptable to drink before midday (and sometimes encouraged).
- We have a list of household chores and everyone does them on a fairly regular basis. Really.
- We have piggy-in-the-middle championships, Uno championships and citrus-peel throwing competitions*.
- The boys have learnt how to make perfect martinis (shaken). No skill is ever wasted.
- We now have Netflix, Showmax, DSTV and Amazon Prime. We have family 'Downton Abbey' and 'The Office' binges. Every night.
- We have all become expert negotiators (it was that or fratricide/filicide)
- We spend about 20 out of 24 hours together, every day (Mal and I are at work for 3-4 hours). We have never been closer or stronger as a family, and I have never felt more content.
I am certain that I'll update the list as the lockdown progresses.
*Citrus-peel throwing is not an officially recognised sport, however, we are practicing it in the eventuality that it may one day become popular in which case we will dominate.
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