I didn’t write much in the blog this summer. I had good intentions where I started writing but then never completed anything. Our summer was very full with traveling out of state (work and play), numerous cabin trips, my first go at yoga teaching sessions, a sick dog, and house repairs. I am not writing it as an excuse, as I chose not to do it. Throughout our full summer, I learned a few things that I wanted to share as we transition into fall.
It’s ok to say “no.”
We were definitely busy this summer but I had the options to do more (like blog writing) but I chose not to. I’ve learned my lessons since my post last spring about being too busy. If I fill my plate too much, then I get overwhelmed to the point of getting sick and don’t have the time to give 100% to what I am doing. Those things in combination feel worse than saying no.
Self care is always important, even in the summer months.
My best days of the summer were when I started it with a walk or a yoga class at the lake. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to do this consistently throughout the summer due to various reasons. Some of that was due to traveling and some of it was due to having to focus on building yoga sequences for the classes I taught. Whatever the reason, I missed taking that time for myself.
Making time for girlfriends is really important.
Especially this past month, I found myself hanging out with my girlfriends more. Those relationships are the ones that get forgotten when you have young kids but are actually some of the most important. There is just something about chatting with a girlfriend about all things life that is different than when guys are around (no offense guys). These relationships make me feel more “whole” as a person.
Weekends with no plans are some of the best.
We had very few weekends without any true plans this summer but the very few we had were some of the best. The weekend that Ryan was up in the boundary waters, I was alone with the girls and we had no plans. We took our time to get ready each day and went wherever our hearts took us. Usually that ended up being a new park, the ice cream shop, or running through the sprinkler in the yard. When you don’t have plans, it doesn’t matter that your kid takes 20 minutes to put their shoes on.
Consistently eating healthy continues to be difficult during the summer.
Hello bbq’s, breweries visits, happy hours and s’mores by the fire and good-bye healthy eating. Yes, I know I could choose NOT to partake in drinks, yummy appetizers and treats but I chose to eat and drink those things because willpower was lacking (I blame the beer 🙂 ). This means my weight has fluctuated a LOT this summer. Overall, I haven’t gained weight but I haven’t exactly lost any either like I had planned. I would eat healthy when I could but it still wasn’t enough to balance out the beer.
With these things I learned over the summer, I am going to work to build a new fall routine for myself. I feel like September is the second best time (besides new years) to start a new routine and reset. This will be a huge challenge considering I am traveling for work pretty much every week this month but I am up to the challenge. I need this.
What did you learn throughout the summer?
