{"id":7175,"date":"2020-04-04T16:38:07","date_gmt":"2020-04-04T16:38:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.donnacooperoboyle.com\/blog\/?p=7175"},"modified":"2020-05-06T16:19:42","modified_gmt":"2020-05-06T20:19:42","slug":"tips-for-families-during-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.donnacooperoboyle.com\/blog\/2020\/04\/04\/tips-for-families-during-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Catholic Families during the Pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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My 4 year old grandson on FaceTime the other day said, \u201cGrandma, we can’t get together because of coronavirus.\u201d That gave me a jolt. Wow. Not only did he say the “c” word, but he knew that this is what what’s going on. His Mom was even a bit surprised. It turned out that his Dad had explained it to him when they were washing their hands. That simple teaching helped my grandson to understand why they were washing their hands extra now, why the nursery school is closed, why he couldn’t see his friends or his Grandma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I recently chatted on the airwaves about families and how they are coping in this pandemic. The radio host wanted me to give some tips and also to chat about my book Reclaiming Sundays<\/em>.<\/strong> I decided to put together a list in a blog post too, to hopefully benefit families. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Reclaiming Sundays!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Anxiety…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This time of uncertainty during the pandemic can cause much anxiety. Explaining things to children in the best way that they can understand can certainly help to alleviate anxiety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A SCHEDULE is so important<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Families always<\/strong> need a schedule <\/strong>to feel grounded – to feel stability\u2014to have a rhythm to their day\u2014With any change in the family, I believe that it is even more important to have some sort of schedule in place. Schedules help so we don\u2019t feel loss of control or to be OUT OF CONTROL. This is for children and adults alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Write your hopeful schedule on a dry erase board, or your tablet, or a piece of paper as a reminder. Hang it up and refer to it often. You don\u2019t have to be regimented in keeping it, but you can certainly try to stick to it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

No doubt with little ones (and older ones!!) schedules need to bend a bit – people need to be flexible. We should do our best to work together, especially during this trying time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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SCHEDULE TIMES FOR: <\/h2>\n\n\n\n