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August - Reflecting and Restoring Routine

August is always marked by the memory of a school bus stop - the golden 7 am sun shining in my still-tired eyes, hands clutching the straps of my backpack, butterflies in my stomach for the first day of school, and the screeching of the bus breaks when it stopped at my driveway. Even though I haven't ridden a school bus in eight years, this is still the nostalgia that finds it's way into my heart, or mind - or wherever it is we feel nostalgia - as I'm making my morning coffee around the time I'd be walking to the bust stop. The fresh, dewy morning smell of August brings me back to that little girl place of heart.


My daughters are closer in years to riding a school bus than I am now. They are one and two and filled with wild curiosity. Nostalgia fills my August that they now inhabit and reign – but I’m not complaining. I know that these long days are sacred, and part of me will want them back when my girls are getting on the bus for school one day in just a few more Augusts.


When I think of summer this year, I will always have the picture of them walking hand in hand – Winnie girl with her tiny legs that are pure muscle, and Maggie Jo with wild curly hair and a chunky little one-year-old waddle – down our gravel road driveway. The sunflowers and weeds tower high above them, and even above me; it was a wild summer of rain and storms, which is rare for Colorado. I’ll picture them with nothing on but diapers and sparkly cowgirl boots or crocs, completely consumed with awe and drive. My husband would be off to work early in the morning and us girls would squish together on the doorstep waving goodbye. We would yell and blow kisses and Winnie would copy every little phrase I said: “drive safe!” “dive safe!” “see you later!” “see you laler!” “I love you!” “I yuv yew!” We’d linger on the porch for a little while, soaking up the cool morning air. We would play outside until it got too hot; they would splash and run and explore. I would watch, and play too, with my melting iced latte and pajamas still on. I was almost always tired but would still to see the world through their curious eyes. When I think of this summer, I will think of them crouching over an ant hill, observing closely this small wonder, amazed every time. We came back inside with dirty feet and messy hair and rosy cheeks every day– they are still small enough to plop into our big kitchen sink together for a bath.




During their nap time I would read or take a nap or work out. My routine was never solid, always bouncing around to what felt right. My husband and I would stay up late (I should clarify – late for us…meaning between 10:30-11:30 at night), either hanging out with family and neighbors, or watching a show or movie together...or let's be real, watching funny videos on our phones, sending them to each other from opposite sides of the couch. This left me sleeping in until the last minute, with babies crying through the monitors, and unwillingly rolling out of bed with the summer light already coming in through the blinds.


Routine was thrown around like a beach ball - play was the first priority. Flexibility and spontaneity were the glue that held us together. That worked for summer, it had to in order for us to make room for fun and rest. It had to work with all the trips and events and parties that summer brings; the things that throw off routine just slightly. I wasn't getting enough sleep and was drinking a sinful amount of coffee to make it through the day, but the days were full and enjoyable.


Now here we are: Summer coming to a close, and with it, the sunshiny routines (or chaotic lack thereof).


As a kid, August is the end. It's the end of summer vacations, day trips to the zoo or pool, the end of sleeping in, the end of all fun as you know it. But August is weird as an adult. Am I the only one that feels this way?


It's one of those weird in-betweens. It's like February, it's like a connecting flight, it's like waiting for my food at a restaurant. It doesn’t feel like summer or fall. It's the weird in-between where the ice cream truck is retired but weather is still in the nineties. I don't really want to go to the pool, but I don't really want a pumpkin spice cold brew yet either.


August is a good time to regroup. It's a time where I can reflect on the summer and how fun and precious it was in the season of life I'm in right now. I can journal through the days and memories, I can be grateful for all that season was. It's also a time where I look to the upcoming fall. What daily, weekly, and monthly routines do I want to establish as the days get shorter? How can I prioritize my mental, physical, and spiritual health? This is a time where it is easy for me to become antsy or lazy, not taking intentional time to establish rhythms in my life. Change is coming - from the color of the trees, to the length of days, to the weather, to the daily activities - am I prepared for that?


It's fun living in anticipation in what's to come - I am day dreaming about the day that Pumpkin Spice is back on all menus. But how can I prepare for when summer is fully over?

August is weird as an adult. I feel it's the equivalent of Christmas Eve for kids - we wait, we squeal in excitement, we put out the cookies (or in this case - pumpkins on our front porch). Right now, we sit here in this in-between, in this transition, in this special time to reflect on what's been, and plan for what's to come.


I've never been a routine person, but as I had babies and as I have gotten older, I've noticed it's not only a necessity in their little lives to keep them thriving, but I see how important it is for me too. It's really hard to thrive without routine - at least a little bit of it. This is coming from someone who is the worst planner on the planet and opposite of a Type-A. But I can still be a free spirit and have rhythms in my life. Routines are how we can be conscious with our rest and work, our mornings and evenings, our precious time as a whole. So as August comes to a close and Fall is right around the corner, how will your rhythms look different than they did in the summer?

1 Comment


kimnkids3
Aug 24, 2023

So beautiful Gracey!!! Absolutely transported me out of the four walls of my ice-cold office and into the warm summer filled with puddle jumping babies in PJ’s 💖

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