200502 apple trees, covid and spaces we live in, children

may 2

  several weeks ago, indre discovered numerous seeds in her apples that had a root. she wanted to plant them and see if they would grow. and they did! we have three tiny apple trees. i replanted them into bigger and separate pots. i hope they will survive the transplant! i took the opportunity to clean and rearrange the nature table, which is where the trees live for now.

  today, i have done three important things that have been on my to-do list for a week. they only took 30 or 40 minutes, but there were small obstacles which put me off. putting out the rain gauge involved diving into the hall closet and sorting out the stuff in the little shelves in there, so that i could find it. fortuitously, i found garden gloves, and bubble maker juice and wands! the transplanting involved going out and digging soil out of the compost for the pots. (i won't go to the plant store or even the dollar store for such a purchase because it isn't needful enough.) of course, once you've jumped those little hurdles, the rest of the job is easy.

  if you live in a condo or apartment, how do you get outside? gloves and mask to go out and again to return? i think there must be green spaces near many buildings, but many neighbours will want to use the same space! the stress of such an outing is heavy, like going for groceries. maybe it gets easier with practice. i did find my last grocery run less stressful, as i have become used to the protocols. from our bungalow we can walk through the streets or the hydro field unhampered by the proximity of others, who are sharing the open spaces but keeping a polite and friendly distance. but the bustle of main street foot travel - i haven't tried that in months.

  in a high-rise suite, there is likely limited private space, no basement rooms or gardens, only as many spaces as there are bedrooms or den. how are people coping? do they take turns in a private room? with headphones a person can have some "privacy" in a common room to play a game or watch a movie. do people hog the bathroom for a little alone time? a luxury bath with some baking soda or salts, a candle and a glass of wine is a great way to de-stress and be alone. a child will benefit from a "luxury bath" too: just add bubble bath (shampoo or a little dish soap will do) and their favorite music. toys are great of course for some ages. follow the bath with a special towel or robe and face, hand or foot cream to add a touch of grownup. baths can happen any time of day when a break is needed. 

  you can improve together time as well, with shared movies and games; sometimes you can leave out the win\lose. children love a back rub or foot rub and may even return the favour, perhaps with their own spin on it! scavenger hunts around the house or i spy out the window work. a child of 7 or 8 will find a sewing box or toolbox interesting to go through and perhaps tidy up! (take out the sharp things.) i have put together a "treasure box" for a younger child with safe and interesting items from kitchen, dresser and work space: coins and a piggy bank, paper clips, a tape measure, a funnel. a costume jewelry assortment is fun. it can be hard to slow down the usual pace of life to get creative with kids, but it gets easier. especially when there's nowhere to be. 

   our family is very fortunate to have a house and garden. even though there are six of us, we have several private spaces that we can use for some alone time. we also have a  family/frontroom shared living space, with a BIG table which could easily sit 8 or more for dinner. but what is amazing is that we share the table not just for meals but for family time. all six of us can each pursue his or her own interest. someone reads the paper, someone else is on his computer, another has a book nearby while overseeing the children's crafts or painting. the table is "the plainest-toughest-easiest-to-clean-while-being-the-biggest-it-can-be" table that ikea sells. we love it. 

  our front room is already, not a "sitting room", it is a room for living, with the kids' books and crafts storage, and toys as well as the nature table, the tv, which is wall mounted for minimal intrusion but available when wanted and the big table of course. it is a very practical and family-friendly room. it reminds me of a home i visited more than 30 years ago of a family who home-schooled two children in a little apartment. their "living room" was the children's playroom and schoolroom. i so admired the modest practicality of it. 

  i am used to sharing spaces. when i was a child and visited friends' homes, i was surprised that they were seldom allowed in the living room. it was fancy and for guests and sundays. in our home we were seven, parents, four boys and a girl. our fancy living room was just "the front room" and while it was for sundays and guests and was nicely furnished, it was also an everyday family space for quiet play, and probably for some noisy play as well. my mother had some lovely china and ornaments but i am afraid many pieces were broken by exuberant play, and then mended by our ever-resourceful father. because of our number we also ate dinner in the dining room every day, not just on sundays, although we had a sit-in kitchen for smaller meals. ironically, we most often met as a family in the kitchen, everyone wandering in when tea was made, to sit or stand around talking and laughing. 

  in the early years, we shared two bedrooms between four and then five children. i remember still the bedroom i shared with my next older brother and the baby! i guess that by the time i needed my own room my oldest brother was 14 or 15 and a bedroom space was made for him in the basement. i like to think that sharing the house with so many helped us to develop social skills and a sense of community. as we grew up, friends often joined us in our kitchen "socials". my parents weren't out of place among us, why, i don't know! certainly, they were open and accepting, and enjoyed our company, as we and our friends enjoyed theirs.


please tell about your pandemic living experiences. as the week turn into months, we can use fresh ideas!