My oldest G-Son is into playing Fortnite. He just started getting into it lately. We were alright with it; however, he does not want to do anything else. NOTHING! He wants to spend all day in his room with his head in the game.

He uses a projector for a TV, so he keeps the room pretty dark. So, here we are a 12-year old in his dark room ALL DAY. Now this may be the ideal situation for a 12-year old however, it is not for me.

We make Collin get out of bed and downstairs by 10am. Yes, you heard me I know 10 is late, but we are still De-Schooling. We are still trying to look at “school” in a different light, trying to get our heads in a different space. So yes, we are allowing Collin to sleep in.

Collin has been playing online with a friend of his and they have been staying up late…really late. We have been trying to allow him to make some of his own choices in his life while we are de-schooling. Yes, he does push the limits from time to time. Forcing NANA to lay down the law thus…downstairs by 10am!

So, one day it was 11:00 and no Collin…up the stairs I go. Knocking on his door, and here comes Mr. 22-year-old, Mr. Attitude to the door, “YES??” with a pre-teen look of “WTF you are doing here?”

Now I am all about living the “grandma” life and loving up on my G-Sons, you know…being the Nana that always understands. However, you WILL Respect (with a capital R) me!!!

So, I take a deep breath and slowly say, “It is after 10 and you are still not downstairs.” I smile with my “boy your attitude better change fast” smile. He starts to tell me how it is all my fault he cannot see his friends; he cannot do anything because of me and COVID-19 (Yep…me and COVID are to blame.) He has nothing else that he can do except play his game, and now I will not let him do that either! You know…with his 22-year-old attitude.

Oh Boy, here I go, blood pressures getting high as I am being challenged by my 12-year-old g-son. I had to take a few deep breaths before I said something that would hurt me more than him. I looked up at my first grandson and seen the tears in his eyes. Well…take a guess as to what happens here…you got it…guard comes down, and in comes pain to my soul. You know the one, seeing someone you love in pain. That is one of the toughest things any parent/g-parent could ever experience.

As I soften, I realize it is time for our heart to heart about what is happening in the world right now. This is not anyone’s fault (at least no one we know) not yours…not mine. We are not the only one that is experiencing this! We need to stay safe for the time being. And believe me, this will not affect us forever, WE WILL GET PAST THIS.

I know Collin has a lot of mixed feeling, confusion and uncertainty about everything that is going on right now. I’m mean it’s not like he went to his friend’s house all the time…never spent the night or even did a play date at a friend’s house for that matter. He was just frustrated and bored.

Just like most people facing these uncertain times, Collin did not know where or how to direct his frustration. I was his outlet, his sounding board, and that is fine, I can handle that task.

We are all searching for answers. We are trying to navigate day by day. Trying to figure out how our lives will fit into this new norm. But we will figure it out together, just like we always do! Just don’t forget to have that chat with your kids because they feel the pressure and the changes just as much as we do!