Writer's Workshop - Next

This last year has thrown me into a tailspin.  I'm used to having the house to myself most of my day free to clean as I'd like, write or read as I'd like, be as loud as I like, sleep when I like.  But over the last year, I haven't had even an hour during the week by myself.  Both boys have been learning from home - which means me sitting behind Pete, making sure he's actually paying attention, fighting to make sure he's getting work done.  (Tedd, thankfully, had taken to online learning without me needing to follow behind him.)  Rich has also been working from home 3 to 4 days a week.  And having three people that need their own space to take care of their own classes/meetings in a two bedroom apartment has meant that there's no place for me to just be me.  

This August, both boys will be going back to in person schooling.  For Pete, it will be nothing but positive.  Being in the classroom will keep him focused, get him the social aspect of things that he needs to grow.  For Tedd, it will be mostly a good thing.  He was able to use the virtual year to focus on his schoolwork without worrying about how his social anxiety getting in the way.  I think the breather that he got will let him balance himself better.  So life will be be a bit more "normal" (though I believe they'll both be doing a lot more online school work than they had before.)

But that doesn't mean that my life will be going back to normal.  Rich will still be working from home four days out of the week.  He won't be able to bring Tedd to school as he'd been doing for the years before that.  I'll be driving both kids in at different times.  I won't have to pick Tedd up, but I will have to pick up Pete.  And I'll have to be a bit more careful about what I do around the house while Rich is here - I don't want to interrupt any meeting he's got to have.  But it doesn't mean it will be a bad thing.  I'll be able to enjoy lunch with him almost daily.  We'll be able to take brief breaks together.  I'll be able to be held if my depression decides to take over.  

So what's next will be... different.  But good.  I'll get used to it, and find ways to make things happen that I want to happen - including writing in my blog daily like I'm trying to get back into doing, as well as trying to get all my reorganizing done.  I'm starting to learn that making whatever comes next positive all comes down to me.