Lockdown with a one year old

[CathyandHeathcliff]

We live in a small house with no outside space. I’m quite worried how things will be for my one year old. Will we be allowed to go out somewhere like the woods or to a quiet field for example? So he can burn off some steam? I’m confused by it all. We live in a fairly rural area anyway.

Basically no.

Not really because even in the woods you could encounter other people and pass on/contract the virus. It will be very tough for people with young kids, especially those who dont have any outdoor space.

I think it depends on whether people are actually compulsory 'quarantined' or if people just self isolate.

If your just staying home as told not to mingle with people, then I imagine its ok to go for a walk in somewhere like the woods where you will always have 3metres from other people. I wouldn't go to a playground due to germs touched on apparatus.

We are also fairly rural. I plan to spend time in our garden and head for a walk in woods we back onto as there's no chance of mingling with others there and I think 0 exercise for potentially weeks or months will be far worse to health.

Who will police it? I wonder if small cul-de-sacs will self isolate in communities? So no one allowed in or our but people still play out or socialise as a group of say ten homes.

I think yes, you need to stay 1-2m away from people, that's perfectly possible in the woods.

Honestly? I think if you are somewhere really rural and you could swerve anyone you came across (e.g on a totally empty beach) then I would do that. If it is for example a playing field near where you live where there are likely to be people then no

Same here. We will be going out into the woods around our house. If we see people we'll just keep our distance.

I have a one year old and live rurally and we will definitely be going for walks. I believe shops and things would be open anyway.

I wonder this. Could I get my kids up at 5am and take them to the local park? We have a park literally accross the road from us. About 30 steps from our front door.
Could we take the kids early or late? Or go for a walk at 5am etc?

There's a difference between lockdown and quarantine isn't there? People in Italy are still out and about. I cannot imagine it'll be possible to effectively quarantine London or the UK more generally as they did in Wuhan.

I am in Italy and we have been going out a little bit this week but keeping our distance from everyone. It is so weird seeing everyone at the park standing so far away from each other. All our shops and restaurants are closing today (except food shops) and I think we might just stay in. I wish we had a garden!

In Italy, even though they are on lock down shops and restaurants are still open. If we go into lock down I will still walk the dogs in the wood, as that is an open space, no one around and as long as you keep a 2meters distance. That is what Italians are doing from what I understand anyway.

An empty field or woods will be fine. When ds had chicken pox at 3 I took him to empty beaches (it was winter) so he could run around knowing we wouldn't see anyone else.

@bestsquirrelinthewholehole They are closed from today.

This is the current traffic of Italy in 'lockdown' if you zoom in there are even traffic jams. I'm not convinced it is as dramatic as some in the UK are imagining. Of course you will be able to go for a walk OP, unless you end up at the centre of a really massive outbreak, which somewhere rural is less likely.

That said I already have cabin fever at the thought of trying to work from home with the schools shut. I honestly cannot see how that will work for most people, no one is going to get anything done and the divorce rate is going to rocket I predict.

@Teateaandmoretea It certainly feels dramatic when you have been off work and school for weeks and nobody is socialising!

You could still go out. Realistically, there won't be anyone patrolling the rural areas and woodlands to check for people.

Unless there are express instructions not to, I will definitely be taking DD out for walks in the countryside. We will just not go near anyone we see while out.

I'm as concerned about what the virus could do to our mental health as much as our physical health! It will be much better for people to get out and have fresh air and exercise if there are open spaces easily accessible than to be couped up at home.

I won't take DD to playgrounds though because of the risk of the virus being transmitted on surfaces that are touched.

@Seventyone72seventy3 yeah I saw that after I replied

I've got three children under five and we have a very small house. We do have a garden but out house is terraced so we are obviously still really close to the neighbours even if we're in the garden. I'm very worried about a lock-down situation. I'm also worried about baby milk, my four month old is formula fed and I had to go to three supermarkets for milk for her on Tuesday.

It depends whether you are doing social distancing or in quarantine. If you’re in quarantine then certainly not. However if we’re advised to avoid social gatherings etc then a walk in the woods will be fine.