Hey everyone! Kate and Courtney here. We just want to start out by saying that we’re sending well wishes your way and hope that you’re all staying happy, healthy, and home if you can.

This whole Covid19 situation has been extremely heavy and confusing for a lot of us, and we’d like to first and foremost acknowledge the incredible courage and sacrifices being made by everyone who is on the front lines of this pandemic chaos - we can’t thank you all enough for constantly working to make sure we’re all cared for, fed, and safe.

Most of you have probably already been working from home for a few days or weeks at this point. While we all find our “new normal,” we thought we’d come up with a list of some fun things to do in our free time.

While you may not have much extra time during the workweek, here are few substitutes for the boozy brunches and bar hopping escapades we usually enjoy on the weekends.

15 Things To Do While Social Distancing:

1. Try a new recipe.

Kate: This Kale Pesto Pasta with Buttery Walnuts from Half Baked Harvest is seriously AMAZE. I would truly eat this every day of my life and planning to make it a ton while hanging at home these next few weeks.
Courtney: I’ve been making these granola bars almost every week, then obviously throwing some chocolate sugar cookies into the mix.

2. Read a book.

Kate: I mentioned in my recent Goal Setting post how much i’m loving “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, but also planning to dive into “Where The Crawdads Sing” soon. I think I may be late to the party on that one but I’ve heard so many good things!
Courtney: I’m reading “Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng and “Loving What Is” by Byron Katie (I always read a nonfiction and fiction book at the same time...no idea why). More of my fave books here.

3. Do an online workout video.

Kate: I started Tone It Up’s “Toned Body, Toned Mind” Program in their app today and love it so far. I like that it’s a yoga program but also focuses on mindfulness and meditation, which I’m definitely gonna need more of over the next few weeks. The app usually requires a subscription, but they are awesome and made all the content FREE for the next 30 days!
Courtney: I love Popsugar’s Youtube Channel. They have a ton of free workouts, from yoga and barre to dance and HITT.

4. Set or revise personal and professional goals.

Kate: On a personal level, I’m making it my goal to organize and print a bunch of recent photos these next few weeks (you can read more about why I started printing my photos here!) And on a professional level, I’m excited to take this time to get all of my systems super organized - first up is taking control of my inbox, my GMail folders, my browser bookmark folders, and all that good stuff. In case you missed it, I shared all my Goal Setting and Planning Essentials in a post a couple weeks ago!
Courtney: My goal over these next few weeks is to perfect my granola bar recipe and make at least one more batch of royal icing cookies. Still working on those long-term goals, haha.

5. Start a new show on Netflix, Hulu, HBO, etc.

Kate: I’m a couple seasons behind but I’m loving catching up on Homeland, and also just finished Four Weddings and A Funeral on Hulu. The fashion in that show was ahhhmazing. Really excited to start the Hi-Fidelity reboot too!
Courtney: My fiancé and I are currently watching The Outsider and just finished McMillions. The Outsider is heavy, but definitely binge-worthy, and McMillions was fascinating.

6. Deep clean your house/apartment, or rearrange a room

Kate: I’m in the midst of organizing our filing cabinet which has a ton of unnecessary random stuff floating around.
Courtney: We just moved and haven’t accumulated a ton of new clutter, so I’ve been focusing on deep-cleaning the apartment.

7. Start a creative project.

Kate: In addition to printing recent pics and adding them to photo books, I’m planning to start a new series of paintings to create prints out of. Stay tuned!
Courtney: I’ve been practicing my royal icing decorating, so I made some ice cream cone cookies last weekend, and am also starting to scrapbook the Asia trip we took last fall.

8. Call or Facetime friends & family.

Kate: I love this because I always forget what a gamechanger it is to talk to someone via video until I do it. Now more than ever I think it makes a big difference to help combat restlessness and loneliness!
Courtney: This is something I need to do more of! I text my family all day every day, but there’s nothing like hearing someone’s voice or seeing someone’s face.

9. Play a game.

Kate: Me and my husband Brett are having fun seeing who can find the coolest dream house in the French countryside to add to our family vision board of stuff we hope to do someday!
Courtney: I asked for an N64 for my 27th Birthday (am I actually a seven-year-old?), so my fiancé and I have been playing Mario Kart and Mario Party — and I’d be lying if I said we haven’t turned it into a two-person drinking game.

10. Try a new hairstyle, nail color, beauty or makeup routine.

Kate: I’m experimenting with a new skincare routine that i’ll be posting about soon on the blog! I’m particularly excited about this Summer Fridays Jetlag face mask - so far I’ve loved wearing this to bed!
Courtney: I’ve been trying to learn how to paint my own nails and not have it look like a 4-year-old did it.

11. Learn a new skill with free trials from sites like Udemy and Skillshare.

Kate: I’m hoping to brush up on my Adobe skills and get better at Photoshop. I’m also excited to try Adobe’s new mobile video editing app called Rush - I learned a bit about it at Alt Summit and am excited to make some fun videos with it soon!
Courtney: I’ve been watching a bunch of buttercream technique videos on YouTube. Hoping to try my own cake soon!

12. Set up a DIY spa.

Kate: I love burning palo santo (always sustainably sourced) to meditate or just calm myself when I’m feeling anxious, and my friend DCeramics makes the prettiest palo santo & incense holder - she has a gift box option that includes palo santo wood! I also love this little jar of palo santo for refills.
Courtney: My idea of an at-home spa is a bath bomb and a great candle (and also wine).

13. Write.

Kate: As a songwriter, I usually get together with my favorite co-writers in person. Everyone is pretty much writing over Skype right now, and I’m also excited to write a bit on my own with just me and my guitar.
Courtney: I’m a journaler, so I’ve been trying to make more time to add entries and open up about how I’m feeling during this crazy time.

14. Listen to a podcast or audiobook.

Kate: I’ve been really loving A Beautiful Mess’s new podcast, and I’m also practicing my French listening skills with the Slate Transfert podcast (more on all my fave language learning resources here!)
Courtney: I’ve always been a big fan of the Rise Podcast, but have a bunch of other go-tos here!

15. Start a new habit or practice.

Kate: I mentioned that I’m trying a new at-home Yoga program for my daily workout, and I’m excited to learn more about the practice. I’ve always felt like I was too impatient for it but I’m hoping to get better (I am currently pretty bad at it lol) and discover more about why so many people love it!
Courtney: I recently started writing down three things I’m grateful for every day, and it really helps kick off my morning positively. I want to use some of this new free time to try meditating — I tried it before and was horrible at it!

Most of all, we feel like the most important thing we can all do during this time is try to do our small part, stay home when we’re able to, and keep as calm as we can.

It’s definitely an emotional rollercoaster for everyone right now, so if you’re struggling just know we’re with you and thinking of you. Here’s a quote we shared on our IG last week that’s helping us the tiniest bit during these crazy times:

Stay safe out there! xo