To ask how your DCs have been coping in quarantine?

[greasyhairdontcare]

Just curious honestly. Think my DD1 quite likes it, she's been watching TV in her pyjamas all day (aside from school, of course).

DD2 on the other hand is getting impatient and keeps telling me misses her friends. I feel bad for her - I haven't got her a phone yet and she spent the majority of her time outside before this. Might order her some good books online, anyone know of anything good? She's 11.

DS has been a nightmare TBH, always following me around and talking at me. I do feel a bit sorry for him too though, this hasn't been easy on the kids.

14 DS hasn't noticed and is spreading his school work across the full week so geting it all done hapily, Is intouch with friends and having a great tiem.
11 DS bored and drived me nuts talking all day, we have to wear him out.

My 3yo misses her friends and isn't getting anywhere near the activity she should be as we live in a flat with no direct outside space.
My 1yo is okay but getting really bored with being at home constantly and having the same toys day in day out. He's acting like an under-exercised dog. I'm hoping we can start travelling a bit further afield for outings soon, would be brilliant to be able to have a day trip to a national park occasionally.

@CroissantsAtDawn

"although hating the 4-6 hours daily schoolwork..."

I have kids the same age. Are yours really expected to do that much? Even when we were all raring to go in week 1 we never did more than 3 hours. Now it's an hour at best!

7yo DD- hates having to do school work with me, misses friends, loves her new freedom.
8yo DD- misses friends, but found school rather stressful, and likes learning at her own pace.

Both really missing Swimming and Beavers/Cubs

They both seem a lot more chilled out and healthier in a way though. They are lucky though, we've got a big garden, a mother who was looking for a job, so able to spend time with them, DH still working so no financial worries. Old enough to understand, young enough that it should hopefully have no long term academic affects that they've slacked off a bit.

Ds4 is struggling, the first month he was fine, we'd just told him it was school holidays. He's gone from happy and confident to clingy and emotional. To keep him happy you need to focus 100 percent on him which is hard. All i can do is hope I'm doing enough

Ds 12 is very happy.

Has to go to school doesn’t like that or the forced walks or the school work he has to do at home but the rest of the time he slobs about in his shorts gaming and eating and watching the odd film with me

My son is hyper. He is 22 months. He is used to nursery 4 days a week and being on his feet all day. We just cant tire him out. He gets bored in the our flat and in the garden. We take him to the park for about 2 hours a day and make him walk there. But one trip out just isn't enough. He literally needs to be walked like a dog several times a day!

He's never really needed that much sleep. When he was a baby he could go the whole day on a 15 min cat nap. He won't sleep and his bed time is getting later and later. Yesterday he went to sleep at 9.15 pm and got up at 5am. Really hoping the lift the exercise limit.

My daughter is fine with not going out but now school has started online she really wants to be back in class. She's Y10 and fears they are falling behind and not getting the hands on work done. She missed a trip to Prague with the school.
My 16 year old son is coping ok but is used to being really busy with college (a little bit of online stuff only), going to the gym twice a day, a job two days a week and seeing mates. He now cycles, runs and has got hold of a barbell and weights and has been furloughed but he's really keen for things to get back to normal. He missed a trip to turkey with his girlfriend too.

Mine are loving it but they are small and have each other. We have a nice garden and trampoline sand pit and bit of old rocks and stuff that they much about in.
They do about an hour of school work each morning. It's enough for them as they are small and I'm happy with the amount.

DS (14) is fine, he’s struggling to do school work and keep on task when I’m out at work which makes for very long weekends of catch up.
DD (11) on the other hand is struggling, she’s so angry now, maybe it’s her age and hormones and she would have been like this anyway, who knows but she’s hell to live with!

Mine loves it and does not miss school at all. He does his work, but there is relaxation time too which he enjoys.

DC1 is 9 and really struggling. Is very sociable and very sporty and misses her friends, school and all her classes. She gets on with the home learning well enough but very snappy and irritable and mood swings. DC2 is 5 and a real homebody and loving it. Both have struggled with getting used to us being around but unable to play with them because we are WFH. I have a lot of mum guilt about it too

DS2 (7) is missing friends, but won't talk about it. Does snuggle up to me complaining of being sad occasionally.
It was lovely watching him (appropriately spaced) running races with his class mate during the VE day celebrations.

DS1 (9) has ASD and is a natural at social distancing. My concern is him adjusting back to a normal busier life, especially if school routines are too different.

They are very lucky to have each other close in age and similar interests. DS2 for the social interaction and DS1 so he doesn't get too reclusive.

They need walking daily or all hell breaks loose the next day. Their stamina is improving. They still grumble about it, but walk it off after the first km or two.

My 9 and 6 year old are totally fine. I, on the other hand am going out of my mind.

Honestly they are absolutely fine. I'd even go so far as to say enjoying it as they are getting far more time just doing what they want (Xbox!).

I often see posts on here about how hard and confusing it must be for the children during this time and look at ours and think they are seriously not bothered one bit.

DD(6)is sick of homeschooling but enjoying being at home, mostly. She's been a right whinge the last few days and we've had some big meltdowns, but otherwise she seems okay. She likes that DH is WFH and is available from 5:30pm instead of normal when he doesn't get in until 7pm. She does miss school and her friends, although she'd never admit it! But she really, really misses DM (usually see her twice a week and we go and stay during half term etc).

DS(22mo) doesn't really give a shit. He's driving me crazy but he always does because he's extremely clingy, even more so now that he has to compete with his sister during the day! He's used to it being just the two of us for most of the day, which is how he likes it... but he's okay apart from that. Not getting enough exercise despite a daily walk and time in the garden, so he's trying to drop his nap but doing a bad job of it. He also misses DM, and shouts "Nan!" all the time.

It's easier for us all when the weather is good.

Going a bit against the grain here. My Y7 12-year-old is loving learning at home and says she doesn’t want to go back to school. Our relationship is blooming and I’ve realised how unhappy trying to keep up with the cook kids at her secondary school makes her. She’s disabled and wears (thick) glasses so she’s a ripe target for bullying by the Mean Girls. Due to her disabilities, everything takes her longer so distance learning is really suiting her as she’s less time pressured and she can stretch her learning to fit the time available. She’s had more recognition from her teachers over the past six weeks than she ever had for the six months she was in school. I think some of her teachers have had a (pleasant) surprise that she’s capable of so much more than they ever considered. And she seems to have discovered her passions (art and history).

The four-year-old is loving the endless games of Bird / Dog / Bug / Ocean / Cat Bingo we play every day. She is just chuffed to have the opportunity to be a playmate for the big sister she idolises.

I’m a totally lone parent and we live in a small flat without a garden so lockdown has not been without its challenges but it has been a force for the positive for us as it has made us focus on our relationships rather than the endless busyness of our life before.

And I’m just thankful that our local supermarket has replenished its stocks of red wine!

I'm becoming a little worried about DS(10). It's a struggle to get him motivated to do anything other than playstation and school work (which he only does reluctantly). If I ask him to do something else he will play with his teddies but he has so many other options that he just doesn't touch. He got a bit lippy today so is on a ban - it's going to be tough for both of us.

It is just the two of us as well so it's quite a juggling act when neither of us have an ally.

My 15yo would really benefit from seeing friends and I think is beginning to find lockdown tougher, but is enjoying having the time to do his hobby and just generally chill. He should have been starting his GCSEs on Monday, still feels odd that he won’t be.

Younger two are 10 and 7 and genuinely enjoying home learning, have no desire to return to school and don’t seem to be missing their various clubs at all. They are missing friends but that’s it. They are quite happy being at home and I think they like the fact that the pace of life has slowed so much.

Children are fed up, bored to tears of being inside. Eldest is missing her grandparents and cousin but not her friends as she's in touch with them anyway. Aside school work and enforced walk she just watches tv or is on her devices. Youngest just wants,to go back to normal although neither of them want to go to school.
My youngest also talks at me,the worst was for 4 hours. I love her to bits but 4 hours of non stop talking is just a bit too much.

DD has just turned 2 and is really happy. She's used to going to lots of activities, toddler groups and swimming/music classes so she's usually more active. But I've been taking her on 3 hour walks to different parts of London instead, and she's enjoying exploring the outdoors, doing really simple things like looking at twigs and splashing in puddles. We don't have a garden but we're lucky to have lots of different open spaces within walking distance - we'd both be bored doing the same walk every day. She's been happy to play freely, read or do more structured craft/cooking activities with me at home. I think she misses the social interaction with other toddlers, but she's still at the parallel play stage, so not as much as if she was older.

The 3 year old is fine, but spends way to much time on his ipad. he is recognising letters now, which isn’t great. he should be playing outside, climbing and running
The 7 year old suffers. too much online, not enough real life. he misses his friends and direct interactions with his teachers

DS6 is really struggling, he loves school and is a real people person so is not doing too well with being isolated from all that.
DD4 is missing school, and her friends. She's also very fed up of only having her brother to play with. They are so different and don't have much in common at all apart from their love of fighting with one another.
DS1 is okay I guess but with no outdoor space he is rattling around, bored and causing trouble.
Trying to homeschool 2 kids on totally different levels, who are both young enough to need full attention and constant help and look after a very rambunctious toddler is not going well at all and we have all but given up.

My nearly 3 year old is starting to struggle. He is a sociable kid and sees several different family members weekly usually. Its hard explaining to him why he cant see them or go to nursery. He keeps asking, which he wasnt in the beginning.

He had to go to my das the other day as I had a medical appt and couldnt drive myself to it. He really cried when we told him it was time to go home (we stayed on the drive) and he didnt want to get out of the car when we arrived back home.

I hate it and feel awful for him.

We only moved from the UK to NZ 6 months ago so we have a bit of a double whammy.
I hate NZ (long thread in relationships) and have just been diagnosed with severe depression while DH is being an absolute twat and wants to separate. Make that a triple whammy for the poor kids.

DD (10) is ok, she's the calmer child and has been doing work by herself and playing Roblox with her friends from here and home in the evenings.

DS (7) has lost his shit and refuses to do anything. For my mental health I have 'joined bubbles' with his friend's family (allowed here with family at stage 3 and as I don't have family I have made up my own rule) and we try and have a big outside play every couple of days. This is the only time I am not battling with him or simply giving up and letting him watch Power Rangers.

If I was at home I wouldn't be like this, I would be on top of it.

Other than home schooling I'm doing quite a lot of baking with them, board games and family movies.

All being well we should be back to school in about a week and DH can get on with divorcing me!