6 Ways to stay sane during the Corona Virus Lockdown

NYC just determined that schools were going to be closed at least until April 20th and possibly through the end of the year! If nothing else about the corona virus caused an uproar, this is the thing sending parents into a panic!  What do you mean, our kids will be home all day, everyday?  What do you mean, we have to keep them occupied 24/7 without going crazy ourselves? If you’re certain you’re going to turn certifiable trying to act like your child’s (un)certified teacher, read on for my top tips for staying calm during the corona virus self-quarantine

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  1. Stay positive

    Stay positive and at least for the 1st couple of weeks try and treat the period as a staycation.  With all this anxiety surrounding the daily news, it’s important to let yourself decompress anyways.  Find ways to take a breather from the stressful news for a bit, and you might realize: how much you still have to be thankful for, enjoy family time and that going back to the simple life is not so bad.  Who knows, you might find yourself enjoying getting to spend the whole day in PJs without a single place to struggle to be on time for.  I know I have!family pjs, matching pjs, mother daughter matching, mommy and me fashion

     

    Plus, it’s hitting spring break period for us here in NYC and though many of us have had to cancel travel plans, we were already planning to spend quality time with the family, right?  Try your best to focus on being grateful for this unusual bonding time.   It’s really not so bad having to make memories at home.  You still have internet after all haha. Generations before us had to stop life and go to war.  We can certainly Netflix and chill and escape through Instagram for a bit.  What I highly recommend though is to get offline and get those board games out!     Here are our favorite games to play with a 4-7 year old!

  2. Knockout that household to do list.

    For a lot of us, work will have slowed down which means we can devote more time towards tasks that were on our to do list at home – you know, the ones we normally neglect and don’t have time for?  Organize that medicine cabinet, clean out those drawers, edit your closet, disinfect that fridge and feel your stress level dissipate with each task crossed off the list.  Aim to tackle one household todo item off the list each day and  and that simple achievement will set such a satisfactory tone to the rest of your day.  Trust me, I couldn’t be happier right now about possibly facing armageddon with the most organized underwear drawer you have ever seen!

    3.  Make fun plans!                                                                                                                                          The best way to deal with the disappointment of having to cancel plans is by making new ones!  Sure you may be self-isolating and sure social distancing is necessary but you can still plan for fun.  This is important because half the fun of experiences is anticipating and planning for them!  So get your family involved in brainstorming ideas on everything from what dessert to bake, what game you’ll play next, and what movie you’ll watch.  Additionally, I’ve started theme days!  I customize my 7 year old’s activities, homeschooling, art, craft and cooking lessons according to the chosen theme.  Each day gives us something new to look forward to and makes the same categories of activities seem fresh and new.  This weekend, for “cookie day”, we crafted the cutest kawaii cookies out of clay with our Klutz kits. klutz crafts, kids' crafts, craft cookie, clay cookieThen we baked chocolate chip cookies from scratch and ate them while watching my daughter’s movie of choice.  what to do with kids, chocolate chip cookies, what to do with kids at home, corona virus home activitiesFor spa day, we used our Klutz nail art kit for crazy cute manis (I even did mine all cartoonish cuz heck who am I gonna see this week?)  klutz kids, kids nails, kids nail artI also trimmed J’s bangs, lounged in robes while listening to spa music, enjoyed an Orbeez foot spa, and had a self-care Sunday with our masks.  For spa day, we also practiced our drawing skills by googling spa illustration and each did our best rendition of the woman with a towel turban, with candle and flowers nearby.

  3. Figure out a new routine. Whether this means consulting your family and creating a new hourly schedule or whether it means simply starting new morning, afternoon and evening routines to replace school/daycare/and normal extra-curriculars- set some sort of flexible structure in place. This will help normalize each day and keep kids on track with their learning goals and virtual classrooms.                                           
  4. Prepare enough indoor silent activities to keep the kids occupied while you work, meal prep or need some alone time.  Cuz Lord knows us parents will need a time out too!  Every morning when J wakes up (which is always earlier than I’d like to be woken up), she now knows she will have her journal and chapter book waiting for her at the dining table.  She understands she is to write in her journal about the past day and silently read before waking mommy up. When finished, she can play quietly until she is hungry for breakfast.  This buys me about an hour each morning to sleep in!  Am I genius or what? lol  See below for additional silent activities that young ones will love and not need assistance with!                               
  5. Have an arsenal of simple outdoor activities throughout each day that allows them to play individually or with a sibling.  Since playgrounds are to be avoided, it’s time to think ahead and stock up on outdoor play options.  Think bubbles and sidewalk chalk, relay races and ball games.  Here are some great options to have readily available for fun outdoor (or indoor) play!
  6. Have them help you with the chores.   Ever since J turned 6 she has been helping fold laundry -gotta love this kid.  But even when she was younger she helped do all my laundry sorting.  I’m all for child labor as you can tell.  No, but really, I have found that she loves getting to help mommy with all sorts of adult chores.  Vacuuming, cleaning (unbreakable) dishes and silverware, helping to set the table, or washing plastic toys are all activities that help mom while teaching kids life skills.  And we all need to pitch in when we are all home!corona virus parentingPrompt clean-up is a rule around our house too.  Before bringing out a new set of toys or activities, the first set of stuff must be put away.  This will help you control the inevitable kid messes and help you stress less.

Lots of luck to you all in keeping a new sense of order and calmness!  It’s likely to be a long, unpredictable road ahead of us! Let me know in the comments what your favorite tip was. And/or feel free to add yours in too in the comments below! I’d love to hear how you’re planning to best cope with the kids running amok at home!

God bless us all!

 

More Corona Virus Related Posts From Fellow Mom Friends

The stay at home survival guide by The New York Stylist

For a list of 5 things you can do at home while quarantined (all brainstormed by a couple of my favorite twin 9 year olds along with links for their favorite learning apps, see Twindollicious!)

For a curated corona virus shopping list with everything you need to stock up on, click through to The Very Best Baby Stuff’ !

Whether it’s virtual museum tours, music, events, films, Broadway or Netflix, the Average Socialite has listed the best ways to entertain yourself during this quarantine!

100 quarantine-friendly meal ideas from the Mom Uptown!

 

 

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Comments
  1. Hope says:

    Love your tips!!!!! Gotta get creative!

    1. Yes, this is sparking a lot of creativity for us during this challenging time. Thanks for your comment and stay safe, momma!

    2. I loved your tips for self-care in the recent Joie LIVE!

    1. I just included your link! Thanks for sharing, Ashley!

Doll-Themed Galentine’s Par-TEA (Part 1)

THEME

doll birthday, doll themed birthday, doll themed partyWhen you’re the daughter of an event planner, you learn early on that you can dream big when it comes to your birthday!  My daughter has enjoyed planning her birthday party details starting at the tender age of 4.  And as far as I can remember, she has always wanted to be a part of all the detailed planning and setting up!  This year, she determined she wanted a doll themed party, similar to last year’s L.O.L surprise doll party but inclusive of American Girl / Our Generation Dolls and Barbie too.

VISION

american girl doll party, american girl dolls, american girl doll birthday party, barbie party, best 7th birthday partyShe knew she wanted: everyone to bring their dolls, have a fashion show, have a fancy tea party where everyone dressed up, include a pinata, cake and cupcakes and get to have her hair done with a super long black braid.  (it was just the world’s longest wish list from a not-even 7 year old!)   Thank you Style by Vee for the amazing hair extension with heart-shaped beads to go with the galentine’s theme!!  I could never have made her hair dreams come true without your help!!  Check out those glittery, heart-shaped edges that she created with her new “party edges” product!  So cute.

styles by vee, hair extensions for kids, hair extension, long black braid, kids hair, kid's hairstyleFrom there, I let her choose everything from the party colors, to tableware set, and final invitation approval.  And I learned that she is a very decisive, discerning little client!

balloon garland, 7th birthday party, doll themed party, galentines party for girls, minifashionista, life sized doll boxThanks to my photographer, Andrea Kay Images, we have the most picture – perfect photos to help us break it all down!

doll themed party, american girl party, american girl doll party, barbie party, 7th birthday party ideasDOLL

What’s cuter than a bunch of little dressed up girls walking around with their dollies?  AHH I had heart eyes the entire party!

american girl doll party, doll party, doll themed party, doll themed birthday, american girl craft, our generation doll partyIt was so adorable how everyone arrived with their favorite 18″ doll!  With their dolls, they played pretend at the dolly tea party setup, cruised around in a motorized BMW, crafted a new dolly hat, and walked the runway.

american girl party, barbie party, doll themed party, doll craft, american girl doll craftAll guests left with a new dolly dress of their choice and a backpack made to specifically fit their dolls in.

barbie birthday, american girl doll party, doll themed party, doll partyThanks to American Girl Brand, Juliet had a new dolly to accompany her to the party!  Thank you for gifting this to us, American Girl! We love all the AG doll books too.

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Getting DOLL-ed UP!

blinger, hair bling, hair accessories for girlsThanks to Blinger who sent us these amazing hair blingers (did you know they can also be applied to fashion?  How fun!!  Sparkly hairdos and nail art were all the rage at this party.  Pink Princess Nails, one of our beloved sponsors, came over to apply all the gems AND create nail art for the lucky little girls.

pink princess nails, meri meri party, nail art for kids, doll party american girl doll party, nyc nail partyThese glam girls loved getting doll-ed up!  Pink Princess Nails has an adorable pink kiddie nail spa in the Bronx but also sends their mobile beauty team abroad for events like ours!  What a treat it was for all the girls to get glam right before accessorizing and getting ready for the big runway show! (see below)

RUNWAY & PHOTO BACKDROP

The girls all took turns walking the runway with their dolls (after accessorizing themselves at the dress-up station).

kids' fashion show, fashion birthday party, doll themed birthday party, doll themed party, american girl doll party ,american girl doll birthday, ag doll partyWe parents couldn’t help smile ear to ear as each one took their turn sante’-ing down the catwalk.  The beautiful backdrop shown here was a collaboration between Marijo Creations who spent hours perfecting the stunning balloon garland and Paper Flowers Garden who customized the life-sized doll box.  Don’t you love how everything was SO perfectly coordinated with the pink ruffle curtains I found and hung from a photographer’s backdrop stand? And didn’t the hearts work perfectly with our Galentine’s theme?? I LOVED all the 3D details so much!

Each girl popped out from behind the curtain, into the doll box, posed like a doll, then sashayed out for their grand runway walk.  It was ADORABLE!  These dolls were each supermodels in their own right!  And this whole backdrop served as a fun photo opp for all the guests – including us moms! haha

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OK so at this 5-7 year old age, you can’t expect the kids to just dine and sit at their table all party-long like we adults might want to at a birthday party.  7th birthday party, afternoon tea for girls, tea party for girls, little kids' tea party, doll party, dolly and me party, ag doll party, american girl doll partyNo, you need to let them wander around and get to pick and choose from various activity stations!  Remember – short attention spans!  Luckily, we had lots of space to allow 20 of these party-goers let their sillies out at all sorts of doll-themed pretend play stations.

doll themed party, barbie birthday party barbie party ideas, american girl doll party, american girl doll birthday, birthday party ideas for girlsPlus I planned a couple party games to mix it up! The L.O.L relay race challenged the girls to balance a doll on their spoon while tagging their teammates.

lol doll birthday party, doll themed party, doll themed party ideas, barbie birthday party, 7th birthday party ideas, afternoon tea for girlsFinal winner won a matching doll-girl outfit set!

doll themed party, heart pinata, afternoon tea for girls, tea party for girls, doll birthday partyAnd the heart-shaped pinata was so much fun for girls this age.  Inside, they found everything you’d want from a doll-themed, galentines.  Think Valentine’s chocolates and candy to L.O.L doll accessories and stickers to fancy rings, to Valentine’s pencils and erasers. PRO TIP. Set aside some treats and winnings for the inevitable kid or two who gets upset that they didn’t get “enough stuff.”  We all want to make sure the little ones (who often get pushed aside during pinata pulls) are happy with their winnings too!

So tell me, what was YOUR favorite part of this doll themed party??

Stay tuned for part 2 of this 7th birthday party recap which will feature all the details to the tablescape, with lots of shoppable links, tips and tricks!

THANK YOU

to the sponsors who made the party so special and beautiful.  Your partnership was MUCH appreciated!

 

 

© 2024 Stylishly Stella