I have worked really really hard this past year to not to bring COVID home to my family, and yet it still found it’s way in. We got notice that some of the girl’s coaches had tested positive from Leighton’s gym, and I figured the risk was low because they use different equipment and have practice at different times. Also Leighton and his teammates wear their masks all the time and I have only allowed the kids to do activities that I have checked out their cleaning procedures and rules. However a few days later we got an email saying that Leighton’s coach and his fiancée had symptoms and so with that I pulled Coppelia from preschool and Caedmon from ballet and we started home quarantine. Leighton was feeling fine so I figured I’d test him a few days later and he’d be negative and all would be good. However the next day he woke up and started complaining of terrible body aches and not being able to get warm. I knew our fate then. Not surprisingly he tested positive (I had some home tests from my company to do, so I used those) and so we decided to move Leighton to the basement. I wiped and sterilized everything in the kids bedrooms and everyone started wearing masks 24/7.
Initially I was really upset and mad. I had worked so hard to prevent bringing it home and yet we still ended up with it. The hours that I have spent after each shift showering and scrubbing and changing clothes and doing all the things just to have it come in another way. I got over my frustration and bad attitude after a day or so and decided to just do what we could. No one else ever developed any symptoms and the kids were all champs with wearing masks all the time. Leighton initially enjoyed his time in the basement but he missed everyone after a bit. We facetimed him in for meals and games and homeschool and whenever we could got everyone outside and spread out so that they could play. The first weekend that he was in quarantine there was a big national mens gymnastics meet and so he really enjoyed watching that, I even let him watch the men warm up one morning while he did school which would normally never happen. He kept a good attitude through it all. We had some sweet friends drop off a big bag of crafts, activities and games for all ages and that was a huge hit and blessing for all.
2 days before Leighton was to leave quarantine I set up our kitchen counter with 5 tests for everyone else to see if we’d be cleared to leave quarantine. No one was a fan of the nasal swab, but I did tell all of them that I have seen them all put their fingers in their noses and the swab was much skinnier than their fingers. I don’t think that helped all that much. But before long I had all 5 of them standing in front of their tests with various timers all set and going. And thanks to many prayers and everyone wearing masks and Leighton doing a good job of staying in the basement everyone tested negative. So Saturday morning when Leighton’s official quarantine was done and he moved back upstairs and everyone put their masks away (except Coppelia who liked to wear hers) we had a big family dance party to “Quarantine Life”. We made it out OK, but I know for millions of familes across the US and even more around the world the story has had different endings. It’s been a rough year. Praying that the end is near for all.
Hiking Mommy 