You may think that the longest day of 2020 was the summer solstice on June 20. And for you, that may be true. But for my family, and I think many other Jewish people with young kids, I can confidently say that the longest day of 2020 was yesterday, December 25. It was the perfect storm, really. First you've got the continued, unending, constant and omnipresent pandemic, which means we couldn't enjoy our annual tradition of going to my sister's house for a delicious breakfast and spending time with family. Next, add in an all day event of high winds, thick fog and torrential downpours. Then of course, it's Christmas, so even if we wanted to risk our lives to go into a store, nothing was open. And finally, since Chanukah began over two weeks ago, all the legos have already been built, puzzles put together, coloring books completed and shiny new bath bombs used.
Now, even though yesterday was a long day, it doesn't even begin to compare to the actual longest days of January through March 2015, when we got over a foot of snow weekly for 5 weeks straight, and my kids were 3 months old and 18 months old. But I truly can't think back to that time without developing a slight twitch, so I'll just leave it at that. They're 6 and 7 now, which is a far cry from an infant and a toddler, and on a normal rainy day where we can't go anywhere I would have no guilt about letting them watch TV all day. But since over 50% of their schooling this year involves screens, I was hoping to have some screen breaks during this time off from school.
The day started off fine- Santa doesn't want them to feel left out, so being the nice man he is, he filled their (chanukah) stockings with a few little trinkets- a chipotle gift card for her ("A $25 credit card to my favorite place in the world just for me!") and a new rugby ball and Jersey for him. I made cinnamon buns for breakfast, got in a quick workout (which I knew would prevent me from trying to run away later in the day), and then started a project I'd been putting off for months- redecorating my dining room walls. All while the fire was roaring, my husband was reading a book, and the kids were watching a show upstairs. Sounds great, right? But then, of course, the first "I'm bored!" came from the top of the stairs. At 10:30am. With 9 hours until bedtime.
After that it was all a blur, but there were lots of screens, lots of eating and lots of whining- and I'm not talking about the kids. I'm not sure if it's due to their close ages or what, but my kids don't really fight. But last night, after this longest day ever, I actually heard my daughter tell her brother "I need to not look at you right now" when he walked in her room to say goodnight. I felt bad for him, but I also got it. I needed to not look at anyone right then, either. Luckily, today is a new day. Nothing is open and we still can't get together with anyone, but the sun is shining. One out of three ain't too bad.
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