SEATTLE Michelle was home when her phone buzzed with an automated text message from the school district: All K-12 schools will be closed for the next six weeks.

Michelle, a program manager working the heart of the nations novel coronavirus outbreak, had seen it coming. She had already started working from home to distance herself from her colleagues and was anticipating a notice soon since there were more reports of coronavirus cropping up around Seattle. (Michelle asked to be identified by only her first name, for fear of retribution from her employer.)

The school closures meant that her first-grader would be at home full time with her, her husband and her 4-year-old son. For the first time, she and her husband and many other families would have to take over many of the day-to-day responsibilities that were once outsourced to educators and child care providers.

Over the last two weeks in Seattle, institutions that had once given residents a sense of normalcy have shut down. Workplaces have encouraged employees to work from home as much as possible, if not made it compulsory . As it stands, schools will be closed through April 24. (California recently announced that its schools will be closed through the rest of the school year.)

Social gatherings of more than 50 people have been canceled, including the annual Womxns March . Last Sunday evening, Gov. Jay Inslee ordered a temporary closure of bars, restaurants and all places of entertainment.

Weve never had an event like this, Sarah Jane Glynn says of the coronavirus pandemic and its effects. The senior fellow at the Center for American Progress who focuses on economic policies that impact working families adds: Lots of parents are now expected to work remotely and at the same time, theyre home-schooling their children or providing child care during the day. Thats an impossible thing to expect people to do.

Michelle, and everyone else in Seattle, is already a week into what is about to become the national reality amid closures and social distancing.

Working From Home, With Tiny Colleagues

Every night, after the kids are in bed, Michelle and her husband, an attorney, get their phones and laptops and talk about the next day. With their 6-year-old now at home, they take turns keeping him entertained and trying to not let him turn into a YouTube zombie.

Sharing schedules between her and her husband was not a thing weve ever worried about, Michelle said until now. What times can they alternate child care? And if both of them have a meeting at the same time, how can they keep their son occupied?

Many private day cares around the city are still open, and Michelle has still been sending her 4-year-old to one to get a bit of reprieve at home. The day cares that remain open have implemented measures to reduce the number of germs that could be transmitted, including by having kids spend more time outside, reducing the number of kids at the center, removing toys and other potentially germ-ridden surfaces, and ensuring only one parent is in the facility at a time. Even if parents pull their kids from day care, most centers still have families pay for tuition, to hold their spot for when things go back to normal.

Michelle at first wondered if continuing to go to day care was the right choice. Weve had a few hard conversations as parents, says Michelle. Should we pull him before recommendations say so? Were not there at this point. While access to day care has provided some relief, Michelle is also waiting for the other shoe to drop for the guidelines on closures to extend to child care centers.