Be Strong: Stay Positive

Going on day 11 of being completely quarantined. The kids and myself have only left our house to go on a walk or play in our backyard, Rick has only left to go to the store twice to get essentials. There have been many times throughout the past few days that I, myself, have felt like breaking down and I know my kids have been feeling the stress as well. Unfortunately, there is so much that is out of our control besides doing our part and be committed to social distancing. One thing that I will be better at and do my best to promote, especially in my house, is positivity.

I have been thinking a lot over the past 11 days, especially since I have had extra time with no sports or extracurricular activities to part take in. Here are some positives that I have identified and would like to point out :

1. We, as a family, are spending some much needed quality, uninterrupted, time together.
2. My family has been eating a home cooked breakfast, lunch and dinner every day.
3. We are spending less money on non-essentials or outside activities, which will impact our savings in a positive way.
4. My children have been the most creative I have seen them in a long while; creating videos, playing new games and creating beautiful artwork for me to display all throughout the house.
5. Rick has been able to focus and practice baseball and basketball one on one with Ricky Bear. Normally, he has to teach and coach about 10 other boys so it is nice to see him play with just Ricky (and Grace too).
6. We are all able to have more time to learn sign language as a family.
7. While it has been an adjustment for Rick and I to both work from home, I am grateful that we both have jobs and that they are able to be done remotely.
8. I am also grateful to have this extra time with Rick, having him home more has been a blessing and I know the kids enjoy spending more time with him too.
9. My house has never been cleaner!
10. Getting a bunch of house projects done.
11. I am saving on laundry, since we are mostly wearing pajamas all day😬
12. We have a roof over our heads and my pantry and cabinets are stocked with all that we need to survive.
13. I have amazing friends who have continued to be there for each other through all of this – NONE OF US are in this alone.
14. Most importantly, my family is safe and healthy and staying free of illness.

Yes there are a lot of negatives that we can all dwell on, but right now I am choosing to focus on the positives. Hope you all can too!

Since March is still CP Awareness month and I am very dedicated to sharing as much as I can about the disability, I want try and tie back our current situation as best I can. Having CP has been described as feeling trapped in your body and not being able to do what you really want all of the time. Sounds a little familiar right? Difference is that we will overcome our current situation, unlike Olivia who will live her whole life with CP. Which is why we have to Be Strong and Stay Positive, always! Even with all that is going on in the world, Rick still thought of me and brought home my favorite flower, Orchids, during his last grocery outing 🥰

We can’t live in the past and wonder what could have been, what happened and who’s to blame. None of this will help or change Olivia’s disabilities, nor will it help end this Pandemic. However, we can do our best to work with Olivia and help her through therapy to overcome obstacles just as we can all do our best to work together to help stop the spread of this awful virus.

Even when I laid in the hospital bed not knowing whether the girls would make it or not, my family helped me stay positive. From that point on, I knew the only way to get through the tough times were to stay positive and focus on the future to keep moving forward. So that is what I am going to choose to do right now, even when it feels impossible and hard to think positive thoughts, that’s when I know I need them the most. I encourage everyone to think hard about all they are thankful for, and try to turn their negative energy into positive energy. Remember to stay strong for your family, and let’s make positivity be ‘contagious’!