Happy Quarantine: Hunker down and take this social distancing advice from the ID8 team.

Another week of social distancing has gone by and you’re probably struggling to think of more creative ways to keep you and your family amused within the four walls of your home. To help you on your quarantine journey, the ID8 team is going to share a list of quarantine-friendly tricks and activities that we've been practicing to maintain our sanity while in isolation.

Look good, feel good!

Just because you’re not making your way out into the public, doesn’t mean you should throw out your daily self-care routine. Here’s a few ways our team is staying active and taking care of ourselves.

• Exercise. Utilize your local gyms who have worked hard to bring their services online (Check out one of our favorites, Prairie Soul Yoga!) or download an exercise app (Rachelle recommends FitOn). For those of you who get consumed in your work, our owner Angie, sets a timer every hour to remind her to take a quick break and complete a short workout routine (i.e. squats, pushups, or sit ups, etc.)
• Go to bed and get a good night’s rest. Taylor pushed up her bedtime and found going to bed earlier makes the days go faster. Caution, there is such a thing as too much sleep too, but we won’t go into that!
• Rachelle has enjoyed throwing on a fresh face of make-up even without plans to leave the house. She feels keeping up with her daily routine has helped her productivity.

Connect with friends and family virtually

We’re lucky that today’s technology allows us to be distant, and still connected! Take advantage of apps like FaceTime, Zoom, or Facebook Messenger to plan conversations or quick chats with family and friends. Our crew has even brought our team meetings online, which helps us continue to connect and touch base even when we aren’t in the same location.

Get outside!

Each member of our team has been making an attempt to get outside whether it’s going for a short walk around the block, driving around town, or playing with your puppy in the backyard. We’ve found fresh air has been helpful keeping us motivated and making us feel less confined to our homes.

Baking

Now this recommendation is one that the ID8 team had mixed feelings on. But if you love baking, go ahead and do it! Kelly is the queen of macarons and has taken these “quaren-times” to make her amazing cookies. Jamie has also designated some of her time at home baking new recipes from scratch. Rachelle, has experimented with healthier ingredient baking. If you're like a few members on our team and don't enjoy time in the kitchen, go ahead and support your local food service. Order pizza and get it delivered to your doorstep, or order carry out from your favorite local restaurant! Many local eateries are even offering great deals and free delivery during the pandemic.

Tackle spring cleaning and organization.

“I can’t wait to clean the gutters!” said, no one ever! Although it’s not the most fun item on our list, a majority of our team has been using this extra time to tackle home chores and projects. Paint a bedroom, organize a closet, or give your home a deep clean. You’ll feel great once you have that one chore you’ve been avoiding for months completed and off your list.

Support your community.

One positive thing is that we aren't in this alone. We have the support of a great community, state, and country. Support your small businesses by ordering from their online stores and like we mentioned earlier, continue supporting local restaurants by ordering carry out. Did you know there is a Facebook group called In and Around Brookings? It's a place to support the local restaurants and learn about special promotions and view menus. If you're like most of the ID8 team and can't function without your morning coffee, instead of brewing at home take a quick stroll to your local coffee shop drive thru. There are many other ways you can support your community. Kelly is helping color Easter egg color pages to hang around her community for people to look for while they're out walking.

Get creative!

Creativity unlocks a different way of thinking, so take the time to make something. Color a sidewalk chalk masterpiece on your driveway to provide encouragement to others passing by, purchase a necklace making kit from Mama Peacock Handmade and create jewelry with your kids, write a letter to someone you haven't spoken with in a long time. Jamie has taken this time to begin a calligraphy quote series. She also joined a Facebook group called “Quarantined Calligraphers” to share her calligraphy work with other creatives. Rachelle is using her passion for interior design to design a tiny home. We're a team of designers, so we could go on all day with creative suggestions!

Do something you love!

Finally, do something you are passionate about that you don’t always make the time for under “normal” circumstances. Taylor has been challenging herself with tough puzzles. Jamie has been cranking the tunes and dancing in her kitchen (check our Dua Lipa station on Pandora!). Kelly has been helping video record her sister read stories for her school library Facebook group. Angie has started a 90 day challenge to keep her mind focused and off the pandemic. We won’t even judge if your passion lies in Netflix. If so, Ozark season three was released last Friday ; ) .

These are just a few activities we've been doing during our time home, but we could continue this list forever! What activities have you been enjoying?

Stay safe and sane, everyone! And remember, we’re all in this together!