Last night Peter and I had a deep conversation about COVID-19 and it’s impact on our lives. It’s weird to think of life 3 weeks ago, when going out to eat was more of a right than a luxury. Now finding any restaurant taking to-go orders is cause for celebration. It was easy to workout in the gym downstairs, now I’m doing jump-squats in our little living room undoubtedly annoying the neighbors below.

At first the thought of working from home was fun. I would slide on some sweats after rolling out of bed and maybe brush my hair before putting in my 8 hours from the couch. Once it became mandatory to stay home, I had my first instance of fear. Wait, so like I won’t be able to leave this little apartment? Then when I walked outside and saw my favorite restaurants locked up with little pieces of white paper noting their closure, my fear deepened. Finally when I lost my job, I was sent into a downward spiral. I have never felt such sadness and fear all at once.

Now, a couple weeks later I am completely full of hope. It’s strange but I have no fear of the future.

Of course I’m not running around touching every flagpole and licking the sidewalks, but I am also not stopping my daily walks outside or avoiding the grocery store when we run out of strawberries. I know I am no expert theorist, but I really think this is all happening for a reason. I feel like society lost touch with what it means to LOVE others, spend quality meaningful time with family, to be present. I think that’s the beauty of this (or at least it comforts me to think this way).

Of course it took a little time to reach this mindset, I didn’t hear about COVID-19 and immediately feel peace, but I have made the conscious effort to live purposefully over the past week and I know there are some things that have brought me peace and joy!

1. Eating 3 meals a day

I NEVER used to do this. A typical day meant maybe a granola bar at 10 AM while working at my desk, then a light lunch and a big dinner. As dangerous it may be to have all my snacks just a couple feet away, it’s been really fun to eat real meals throughout the day.

2. Rearranging our space

We live in a one-bedroom apartment that is perfect for our lifestyle, but just isn’t ideal for 2 people working from home full-time. Peter spent the first week at the desk in our living room while I sat at the kitchen table, which quickly became stale once I realized I was eating dinner at the same place I just spent 8 hours working.

We decided to shift all our furniture and convert our open and airy living room into something more sectioned off. Honestly, we probably wouldn’t do this if we weren’t working from home, but it creates a nice divide for work & play!

3. Treating myself

It makes me happy to know that if I’m having a slow day or need a pick-me-up, I have a something ready to treat myself. This is usually Watermelon Celsius water, Teddy Grahams or M&M’s.

See my post on Quarantine Food’s I’m loving

4. Keeping the weekends feeling like weekends

This is important. One of my biggest worries with this whole thing was that weekends would blur with weekdays and life would start to pass us by. So far, we have been really good at combating that! Our weekends are a blur of classic movies we’ve never seen, naps on the couch (something I’ve never been good at before this!!), and long-walks throughout our little city. We make sure we are doing things that make us happy and relaxed!

One of the best things we’ve done so far is playing soccer!! We live across the street from a couple fields and decided to go kick the ball around one weekend. An hour later we were fully invested in our game - for every shot I missed/he saved, I had to do 5 pushups & for every shot I made, he did 5 push-ups! Let’s say it got intense haha

5. Finding fun new things to cook

I have far too many cookbooks that sit stagnant in the cabinet waiting for a special event to be used. I spent time this past weekend going through recipes and noting meals that seemed yummy & do-able. We went shopping, I held myself to the grocery list and we are now going mayheim in the kitchen.

It’s actually been pretty fun to cook together! I’ve noticed that cutting the commute out of my schedule means that I have more time to cook before I hit that post-work hanger phase and eat all the Doritos in sight.

6. Taking things slow

I have actually really started to enjoy mornings ever since working from home! My alarm rings at 8 AM, I lay in bed for about 30 minutes, turn on music or the tv (usually Flip or Flop) and let myself ease into the day. I’ve started showering in the morning, and wearing outfits that bring me joy! Honestly I don’t think the whole “you have to dress like you’re going to work” thing is always the best. I find that the more comfortable I am, the more I can dive into my work without worrying about my jeans being too uncomfy to sit criss-cross-apple-sauce.

I have also found that creating a special “work from home” playlist has helped me keep with the swing of work things! I always listened to music at work before, so I am continuing that now, plugging in my headphones and zoning in.

7. Getting outside!

We are so lucky to have experienced the beginning of spring here in DC! As I am writing this, it’s 70 and sunny, the sun is warming my back as I sit on the patio and listen to 90’s throwbacks. I am the type of person who gets really pent-up when I have to work inside when the sun is shining (I blame it on being from Antarctica lol) so having the option to work from my deck is ahmazing.

Peter and I have also been going on lots of walks. Whenever one of us is stressed out from work or this whole pandemic thing, we always grab our shoes and head out on a walk. It truly doesn’t matter where the heck we go, but just going is so nice!

8. Using this time to be creative again

It has been so fun to have more time for my blog, photos and videos! I really feel a new sense of creativity and inspiration that I am really excited about! I never used to have the energy to focus on my passion projects after working 40 hours a week, but now that I have more down time I am feeling so energized and rejuvenated.

Check out my recent IGTV Series: Doing DC

9. Making an effort to date one another

Now that we are seeing each other 24/7, with little contact from others, we are learning the importance of giving each other space and also being intentional with our time together. There’s a time for me to bake cookies while he plays FIFA and a time for me to blog while he runs, but there is also a time for us to make popcorn and watch movies on the patio together without our phones. It’s the new normal that brings us so much joy!

10. Catching up with friends

Think about how unifying this situation is! Even though I am not in the same city as most of my friends, we are all experiencing this together and have something to say about it. The week I lost my job was the week that I connected with SO many friends that I had lost touch with over the months. It was so comforting to know I’m not alone in the struggle of all this!

What have you done to keep positive during quarantinE? I would love to know your tips & tricks!

Cheers!

xoxo - Katie

10 things I’m doing to stay sane during quarantine