Almost 4 years ago, Lockdown started (23 March 2020)

[SparrowSally]

Can't believe it's almost 4 years ago. I feel so uncomfortable looking back at that time, we really had no idea what was to come.

We started WFH on the 13th. Was a bit odd at first but saved me thousands in commuting costs over the next few months.

DC were both at nursery 3 days a week till September when older started school. We couldn't do their music class they used to enjoy one day a week but otherwise things were pretty normal. People here were a still going to the beach and the parks. We were back on our usual camping holiday with friends by July. It wasn't really that long.

School wraparound being shorter than the time commuting meant I was out of house had meant I was going to.have to quit. Covid and WFH saved my career.

I remember it so well, but it still doesn't feel real that it all actually happened!

I remember our little town being grid locked as people were queuing for McDonald's on the 23rd

I remember it well as we locked down between my girls birthdays. Dd2 on the 20th March and Dd1 on the 25th. Things were closing around us. We went to the farm on dd2’s birthday and they announced they were closing that night. We went to Claire’s the next day to spend some of her birthday money and that shop then announced the next day it was closing.

Poor Dd1 had an early doors lockdown birthday where we were all scared, upset over schools closing, wondering how we’d cope stuck in the house next door to our awful neighbours. We had to cancel her birthday party, couldn’t go out for a meal to celebrate or get her a takeaway and she couldn’t see any of her friends or relatives.

I wasn’t sure of the exact date, but didn’t Boris make his ‘stay at home’ announcement on the Tuesday night? So I remember my first ever WFH day being the Wednesday?

I'm reading a book ATM set just before lockdown, it's weird reading it and knowing it was real.

Also interesting how many people I'm reading it with are talking about shielding and being classed as vulnerable as far back as January. Was it really a thing then? In don't remember worrying about it that far back.

I remember the Thurs before lockdown watching a film at Church, sharing bowls of snacks and a teacher friend confidently saying they'd never close the schools.

Sometimes I miss it... Felt like having all the time in the world with nowhere to go and nowhere to be. Now it is all a rat race again, with days flicking by.

The Friday before lockdown, we were at a funeral and then a packed pub afterwards 😐 for the Wake.

I was 6 months pregnant with my 3rd.

What are you reading @BlueFairyBugsBooks

I read The Last One at the Party by Beth any Clift which was an imagined pandemic but it was weird just seeing some of the parallels. Her ending was a lot worse though

Was terrible for me. Live alone. Think.of it as dark days. Saw no one face to face as had to work from.home. couldn't see my.boyfriend either as we lived in.different countries in UK. Apart over 4 months. The fear re going places was awful. It's messed with my head

It's called Maybe It's About Time by Neil Boss. It's really good. All proceeds go to Gingerbread (the single parent charity). I think it's only £1.99 on Kindle as well. It's not about the pandemic a such, but is set at the time of.

It was a bizarre time that I wish we never had to experience. Let's hope it never happens again.

I remember talking to the other mums in my DC's school playground, we were feeling worried but all agreed how unlikely it was they would resort to closing the schools....How wrong we were!
Hanging up the school uniforms in the wardrobes with no idea when they would next be worn felt so strange. Then Nicola Sturgeon said she 'hoped' schools would reopen in the September. It seemed an impossibly long time away, but then that turned out to be true too.

We isolated early as we were all poorly with what we now realise was Covid so we were already in lockdown at this point and couldn’t taste or smell anything. I found it such a hard period, very isolating especially with three small children and a husband trying to work remotely in a bedroom upstairs on constant calls so we had to try and be quiet.

It was my DDs birthday a few days ago.

I think this was the first year where the date didn't play on my mind. Her birthday was the last "normal" day. She never got her party.

I didn't see me parents for six months after that.

Then we had to go into isolation as DH made it home from France (last ferry!)

2 of my kids were off for spring break and didn’t go back for the rest do the school year. One had a whole grade at home, the other went back in January.

I’d just settled the littlest into nursery and started work, lost my job 2 weeks later. So that was all of us at home incl the OH who worked from home for a year, which was bloody awful

Me and hairdresser were just talking about lock down today. Absolute crazy thinking back how scared we all were. I'd forgotten about being in a "bubble", only going out for an hour walk.

The bloody mask wearing, the queues at the supermarkets, wondering when (if ever) it would get back to normal again. So glad those days are over 😷

Hospitality and leisure and all non essential shops were closed on Friday 20th March. The full national ‘stay at home’ lock down was announced on 23rd. It was the worst time of my life. I will never ever get over it.

Furlough followed by redundancy. So much uncertainty 😔

Definitely full announcement on the 23rd as it's my birthday... I mean I have a reputation for my birthday being disasters but that was one to remember

It seems forever ago to me.
I was told to WFH before the full lockdown as I am asthmatic and remember being really worried about adult DCs who lived in other cities
I'm sad that we moved from the community spirit I saw here in that first lockdown to the incredible divisiveness we have now. There seems to be a real trend that started with Covid, then moved to anti-vaxx, and now to trusting no-one and believing conspiracy theories

And what an utterly tedious waste of time it was. At least there's now some recognition that it should never have happened.

It was horrendous

I’ve mostly blocked it out.

I remember dd and l writing a diary thinking we would be the next Anne Frank and people reading about our experience.