We miss them. One day we are planning our St. Patrick’s Day party and the next we are being told that we must shut our doors due to the threat of a new strain of a virus that our country knows very little about. At first it was okay because I think we were all ready for another break. With Spring Break right around the corner, we weren’t too upset about a few extra days to relax. But a few extra days turned into two weeks and now four. Today is day nine and we are told that we may not go back when we thought we would. We miss our kids. We miss them running off the bus to tell us what they did at school today, we miss them holding us tight as they express hurt from a friend, but most of all we miss the amazing sound of their laughter. They just have a way of making every day better.

Our hearts are broken because although we know our home school and county are doing their best to provide for our littles the truth is families will still go without as a result of the shutdown. Our hearts are broken because we know and understand that many of our children won’t have an outlet because well the reality is not every home is a safe place. School and ASP are an escape for most. Our hearts are broken because we know although there are free resources out there not every child will eat every day or get an after-school snack as they would with us. Our hearts are broken because the children we worked so hard to help get on track academically will more than like fall behind again because well, no one is reading to them at home, or checking the new online homeschooling material, or pushing them to go the extra mile.

We miss them. One day we are planning our St. Patrick’s Day party and the next we are being told that we must shut our doors due to the threat of a new strain of a virus that our country knows very little about. At first it was okay because I think we were all ready for another break. With Spring Break right around the corner, we weren’t too upset about a few extra days to relax. But a few extra days turned into two weeks and now four. Today is day nine and we are told that we may not go back when we thought we would. We miss our kids. We miss them running off the bus to tell us what they did at school today, we miss them holding us tight as they express hurt from a friend, but most of all we miss the amazing sound of their laughter. They just have a way of making every day better.

Our hearts are broken because although we know our home school and county are doing their best to provide for our littles the truth is families will still go without as a result of the shutdown. Our hearts are broken because we know and understand that many of our children won’t have an outlet because well the reality is not every home is a safe place. School and ASP are an escape for most. Our hearts are broken because we know although there are free resources out there not every child will eat every day or get an after-school snack as they would with us. Our hearts are broken because the children we worked so hard to help get on track academically will more than like fall behind again because well, no one is reading to them at home, or checking the new online homeschooling material, or pushing them to go the extra mile.

But as we consider the possibilities, who knows maybe this will bring families closer and encourage more quality time. Maybe parents will be more involved in their children’s education, because well, right now homeschooling is real and it’s all we’ve got. Maybe as a result the educational system will make a shift in the resources needed to meet the needs of every child, rich or poor. It’s easy to dwell on the negative because well we miss our kids, but what if the outcome is a good one. Our hope is that although this is a pandemic that we will not soon forget the end game will be a necessary change for our community and our schools. In the meantime, although we miss our kids, we have hope that we will be reunited very soon. First order of business will be homework and snacks out on the lawn so we can enjoy this beautiful weather.