Kids Fighting the Corona Blues

As parents are facing the devastation of their lives being turned upside down, sometimes parents lose sight that their children’s lives have been also turned upside down. Men and women all over are battling a loss of jobs, essentials working overtime with fear for their own health, domestic violence, fear, depression, and so many more overwhelming feelings and circumstances thanks to Covid-19. What about our children? Are they also feeling the Corona blues?

Children typically do better when their lives have consistency. Their world as they knew it has been turned every which way by canceled schools, online learning, canceled sports, vacation plans being put on hold, going to church, or other community activities. Everything has halted and they are now home surrounded by ONLY their family members. Why wouldn’t a calmer life and being home be a positive thing for them? Well, can be positive but any time you have drastic changes, it can cause fear and anxiety in children. Consistently staying home is not their normal type of consistency so it is scary!

My children have all dealt with the changes so differently. My 17-year-old has enjoyed going to bed a little later and sleeping in some in the mornings. At the same time, he is missing his independence of getting to hang out with friends and continue being the sociable guy he normally is. My 13-year-old is happy to be at home. The new way of life is perfect for him. He has always been a homebody but he also has very real fears of catching this nasty virus. So, he is perfectly content being home 24/7.

My (just turned) seven-year-old daughter has the most mixed emotions about it. She is a social butterfly, so, this is hard for her. She doesn’t understand what is going on fully. She just knows that it isn’t normal and that she doesn’t want anyone she loves to get sick. She wants to see her friends. Sometimes talking to them on FaceTime or Zoom calls is enough for her and other times she just wants to run and play like normal. She had to celebrate her birthday in quarantine which was hard for her. She wanted a birthday party with her friends. In her head, she had it all planned out for months now.  

My daughter loves being active. I have heard her talk more during the last two weeks simply because she is bored! Anyone else dealing with the same thing? 

We have a 10-month-old foster baby, too. This limits me on how active I can be with my daughter. Sometimes, her big brothers take her outside to play. When the baby isn’t napping, we go outside for walks, play basketball, or swing. If she had it her way, she would be outside all day long. I was hearing, “Can we PLEASE go outside now?” a hundred times a day. I was trying to think of some genius ideas for her birthday gift. Then, I found the PERFECT thing for her. I reached out to Hammacher and they agreed that it was the perfect idea for children to fight some of those Corona blues. 

Hammacher sent us their Doorway Jungle Gym. Oh. My. Goodness. It has been absolutely PERFECT!!! The funny thing is, my daughter is not the only one who loves it! All three of my older kids like it. Our foster baby loves to sit with one of the boys and swing. So, technically, all four kids love it.

I want to share with you because I am telling you, it will make a world of difference if you are in a similar predicament as I am. My daughter can stay active and have an outdoor like a toy… inside! Yes, we still go outside. (She is getting to be a superstar basketball player… for a 7-year-old). Inside, she plays on the different attachments (and has even learned how to switch out the attachments all by herself!). 

The Indoor Playground attaches to the door frame (no drilling or putting holes in the walls/door frames). The contraption grips the door frame in such a secure way that even a 17-year-old can do pull-ups on the bar! Yay for my boys getting some good exercise, too! 

The attachments available are a rope to climb, a swing, rings, a trapeze, and a ladder. My daughter’s door does not have another doorway lined up across from her door which limits the swing just a little. She still is able to go pretty high. I could only imagine if she had a door frame that didn’t have a wall so close. She would be touching the ceiling! 

I have never felt that the device that attaches to the door frame would ever slip. It is on there was securely… even when my big boys swing! My son has even started hanging upside down to do “sit-ups” and flips off it when he is done. 

Image Source: FreePik

We have truly found The Doorway Jungle Gym to be a way to fight the Corona blues. With a 100% honesty, I can say that this is one of my very favorite products that I have ever reviewed! Thanks, Hammacher for letting us try out such an incredible product! Enjoy a few pics of all the Doorway Jungle Gym fun!