Welcome Spring!

Welcome Spring! Midwesterners are a tough bunch; now that we’ve made our way through another winter, it’s time to welcome the warmer weather back into our homes, lives, and routines. This is always a wonderful time of the year, and it’s an especially beautiful season in Chicagoland.

This spring and summer stand to look a bit different with the pandemic keeping everyone tethered to their nests. It’s unclear when the Chicagoland area and the state of Illinois will safely and fully reopen. Life has certainly changed in 2020. While this has been difficult, stressful, worrisome and sad, there are still plenty of ways to embrace this spring; after all, we’ve earned it.

Having a joyful springtime may look a little bit different this year but consider these tips to make it your own.

Consider a specialty garden

Governor J.B. Pritzker just gave the thumbs up to reopen greenhouses and gardening stores. Illinoisans can now purchase plants, pots, soil and fertilizer either by stopping in and shopping (with their masks on and adhering to social distancing regulations), or by placing an order with their local supplier and doing a curbside pickup. Your Visiting Angels Caregiver can help you run this errand to secure your gardening supplies.

This way, you can start working on your outdoor oasis and organic food supply source. Why not consider a specialty garden this year? Think about what you love to eat and plant your garden accordingly. Create a caprese garden by planting Roma tomatoes and plenty of fresh basil. This way you can have a summer rich with your favorite salads and pesto recipes.

Create a salsa garden with bell, jalapeno and chili peppers, cilantro, garlic, green onions, better boy tomatoes and onions. You may also consider cultivating a sauce garden with Roma tomatoes, basil, onions, oregano, garlic, and parsley.

Think about foods you love, and consider what goes into those recipes, then make theme gardens that feature those ingredients. This is a good time to channel our worries about the pandemic into healthy habits like preparing and growing the healthy foods we love. It feels productive and planting foods that you know you’ll eat stands to reduce your need to shop in the months ahead. It’s a productive way to honor the spring and to stay healthy and safe.

Write to the kids

Start writing letters to the young people in your life - kids, grandkids, nieces, nephews, neighbors. People have always written letters during difficult times - wars, economic downturns, plagues. It chronicles the history of these events and it bridges people and generations. It’s something your younger family members can save and hold in their hands. It’s a document that they can someday share with their kids and grandkids to show what this time was like.

Young people are scared. They haven’t been through a time like this. You’ve seen more than they have. Your assurance is helpful. Find a great spot outside or near an open window, where you can catch a good spring breeze, and write to the kids. You’re likely to find that you have an audience.

Connect

When you sign off on those letters, let your recipients know that you’re embracing various modes of correspondence, and consider upping your tech game. Talk to your Visiting Angels Caregiver about the Social Care Program, which will help you to connect via social media and to comfortable and fluent online.

This will be a big help when it comes to shopping and staying in touch. It can also give you the chance to learn how to use Facetime and Skype, which will enable you to place video calls to your family members, which is fun and fulfilling. While engaging in a classic mode of communication, like letter-writing is wonderful, so is communicating in real time. Stick to the classics, but don’t hesitate to modernize yourself.

Take it outside

Take your favorite hobbies outdoors. Whether you love to paint, craft, knit, build, walk or chat, find a way to do it outside; schedule some time each day that the weather invites it. Find your spot, with your caregiver’s help. Set up your chair in the shade and get creative outdoors.

Make the effort to embrace the spring. It’s harder this year. It takes work to find ways to make our home base feel fulfilling and fun. But we can do it. We’ve earned this weather. Let’s make the most of it.