Things that have kept me going during lockdown

As the UK comes closer to an exit from lockdown I think it's safe to say that most of us are breathing a sigh of relief. I feel bad for saying this as I know some people are extremely lonely but, I literally can't remember the last time I had time alone indoors. I have two jobs - I work a few hours per week in a primary school and I am also self employed as a virtual assistant. As a nation we've pretty much had restrictions placed open us for almost a year now. From March to September 2020 our children have been home-schooled. Just when people saw some form of new normality we were plunged back into a lockdown from December 2020 and in the next two weeks the schools will re-open fully. Myself and my husband have continued to work in the school during lockdown - there are still around 100 children of key workers attending. My husband caught Covid three weeks ago, the lateral flow test confirmed it, he felt very achy and tired and then lost his sense of taste and smell. Luckily it was a very mild case and after the 10 days self isolation we both went back to work.

So, our lives for the past year have consisted of pretty much a mile radius from our home, going to work and going to the supermarket. We did manage an escape to Kent to see my Dad is August and a day out in London in October but there hasn't been much to look forward to. Going for walks was something we always used to do and surprisingly we have done less walks than we usually would.

My saviour has come in the form of Netflix, DIY and online shopping.

Like many of you, I've watched the Tiger King, revisited The Royale Family for a bit of nostalgia and my favourite so far - Schitt's Creek, ew David! Binge watching episodes has kept a smile on my face and given me something to look forward to in the evenings. I literally watched the last episode this week. I love everything about it the characters, the storyline and the fashion and of course Moira's classic vocabulary.

I have also spent time sorting and decorating. I must have got rid of five sacks of clothes and books and donated them to charity. We've repainted and added new shelves and prints. I have upcycled old things and replaced broken things and painted the staircase. I budget a little bit each month for things we need and I feel great looking at what we've achieved.

Online shopping has been a godsend. We still go to the supermarket for food. But I love the fact that I can pick up lovely cards on sites like Etsy. I have become an eBay queen and all of our clothes through lockdown that I have bought have been second hand bargains. I love Zara but find it too pricey so I trawl eBay for ages adding things to my watch list and seeing whether anybody else bids on them. I got some leather boots for a fiver! Waiting for parcels to arrive is pretty exciting, it's always nice to get some happy mail.

I am extremely lucky to have been able to continue working a few hours a week at the school for a change of scenery. The teachers and staff all work so hard. I have also continued to get regular work from a few of my clients which works out to around 18 hours per week. I have lost the events work which I did last year which made up a huge chunk of my salary but, somehow, we have managed to get by.

June 21st, 2021 is the golden date that the UK have been given for the Covid restrictions to be lifted. I can't wait to go to museums and markets and just have freedom again. I turned 40 in December and my daughter has just turned 13 it would be great to have a day out somewhere to celebrate!

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