By Cheryl Bac
E-mail Cheryl Bac
About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons incl...
(More)About this blog: I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, home cook, marathon runner, and PhD. I recently moved to the Silicon Valley after completing my PhD in Social Psychology and becoming a mother one month apart. Before that, I ran seven marathons including Chicago and Boston. Exercise is an integral part of my life. I hope to one day go back to long distance running and tackle the New York City Marathon. Right now I run after my one year old son. Although I am a stay-at-home mom, we are rarely "at home." My mom also stayed at home with my brother and me. She warned me that, although rewarding, it can be isolating. So, with her help, I learned the importance of getting out into the community and meeting other mothers. On the rare occasion when I am at home and have a hand or two free, I squeeze in time to scrapbook. As a new mom, many challenges are thrown my way. I hope my opinions, triumphs, and struggles help experienced parents reminisce, new parents cope, and parents-to-be get an honest glimpse of what the first years of motherhood can entail.
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This month we started going back to the playgrounds again. While they were closed, we enjoyed the open grass, ponds and walking paths at our local parks. And while it was great to get exercise and fresh air, we definitely missed the playgrounds that our kids have enjoyed running, climbing, and playing on for years.
Our kids didn’t mind the rain, wind or cold over the weekend. Being back at the playgrounds after such a long break brought so much joy. It was definitely worth putting up with a bit of cooler fall weather.
I honestly didn’t know what to expect when we went back to the playgrounds this month. Would they be crowded? Would we have to wait? Would we only get 30 minutes to play because others would be waiting after us? Would our kids feel comfortable or would it be awkward to try to maintain 6 feet distance from others?
I would love to hear your experiences with the playgrounds opening up. So far ours have been generally positive, but we’ve only gone a handful of times.
Most people have been very respectful by keeping a distance, wearing masks and saying “hello.” But, not surprisingly, there are people who choose to ignore the 30 minute time limit when others are waiting, families without masks, and kids who make it challenging to keep 6 feet distance.
But overall, we are so excited to have the opportunity to play at the playgrounds again. And we are keeping our fingers crossed that everyone in our community can follow the rules so the playgrounds can be safe and fun for everyone as long as possible.
