So, on May 5^th I said my husband had potentially contracted coronavirus, I thought I should probably start this blog post by sharing the news his test results came back as negative. I was relieved but even more so I was amused… he spent 10 days off work for displaying hayfever symptoms. Now, whilst many will say “there’s nothing amusing about taking precautions”, what was actually funny about this particular instance is I have been trying to tell him for the past three years he had hayfever. Every April/May without fail he would develop a cough and the symptoms of a cold and would tell me how rubbish he felt, adamant it was a bug that just happened to last for weeks. Then every year, as a victim of hayfever myself, I would tell him he was wrong. Anyway, he’s finally accepted I was right and scuttled back to work leaving me with the troublesome two.

This week I caught the bug, the DIY bug. I got a tin of paint and began to paint a feature wall in my lounge (and apparently my dog, who now has a very flattering purple patch above his left eye). I got feedback for my last assignment mid-week too, I did pretty well and consequently decided to give myself a bit more credit and submit my presentation. I then begun to write the latest essay. The irony, this week comes in that schools MAY return the first week of June, the week my assignment is due. So, on goes the battle... trying to write a compelling introduction whilst the kids throw stuff at each other and scream “MUM” every five seconds! Is it still writer’s block when you have no idea what to write but can attribute it to a specific distraction? I feel like Johnny Depp in the beginning of the film ‘Secret Window’. Just without the disassociated identity disorder and murders.

We’ve had a pretty interesting week in terms of home learning this week, we’ve made posters, had Zoom calls with their teachers and learnt about noun phrases. I have had chats with both children’s teachers over the phone and have found myself really agonising over the potential school returns. The announcement by the Prime Minister has left me with more questions than answers. I know I am not alone in this. For somebody who is quite interested in politics to not be able to firmly sit on either side of this debate is unusual and unsettling. I am typically that annoying individual that says the controversial statements and then digs my heels in whilst others try to change my mind. But this time I just do not know! I know that when my daughter’s reception teachers asked me would I be sending her back, my reply was “provisionally yes” pending further information. I also know I emailed my setting and said if they needed, I was happy to return. However, I also know I am not entirely comfortable sending my anxiety prone daughter back to a ‘different school’ to the one she knows when it is in fact her older brother craving that return but not being able. I do wonder whether the government and unions will come to a compromise?