Grounding

Life is slow paced right now and I’m loving it. I’ve been itching to write because I want to, not because I feel like I should. Figuring out where writing fits in my summer rhythm has been tricky because while I’m enjoying a slow life, I’m also embracing a full life.

My early mornings have been reclaimed by the chickens. My youngest now sleeps until about 5:30, so I can usually hop out of bed early enough to dash outside, do the chicken and rabbit chores, and get back just in time for her to wake up. I used to do the chicken chores every day before she was born, but it became too tricky for me to juggle a third baby in the mornings. It’s nice to have a little outside time before the day starts and to feel productive.

Which brings me to Olga, my angora rabbit. I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned her here! She’s my much neglected bunny who I’m working to clean up, little by little. She’s been with us for almost three years and she’s the sweetest little thing. And she looks big, but she’s tiny under all of that fur! Olga has been a trooper during all of this heat.

I’ve been spending a lot of time in our vegetable and flower gardens. I love weeding so there’s always something to do in those spare moments outside. We’ve harvested quite a lot of radishes but are still waiting for the rest of the vegetables to be ready. That’s one of the downsides to living in such a cold climate – we have to wait quite a while for those gardens to blossom!

And, as always, taking care of three babies and a house is a busy job! I have no problem getting my 10,000 steps in now that I don’t have a desk job and have embraced this new role in my life. I’m moving around all day long until I ache, and I climb onto my yoga mat after I get all of the kids into bed and do a Yoga with Adriene video (I’m working my way through the Dedicate series). And then comes my favorite part of the day: reading! Yes, I feel like my reading mojo is coming back which is such a relief! I continue to wish that I could figure out how to live a life of balance and get back into knitting or sewing, but I can’t. Especially when I take surprise trips to the library and walk out with fat stacks of books with the plan to read them all before they’re due back in two weeks!

So I’m staying grounded with the important things: children, home, animals, gardens. I’m adding a few grace notes by reading some incredible books, which I hope to share soon. We’re surviving the heat but I’m definitely looking forward to fall, which is my favorite season. And I’m looking forward to finding a new rhythm then too!

How is summer treating you? Are you getting to experience a slower pace? Are you letting your focus take you a bit off course and into something adventurous or interesting? I’m trying to see this as an actual summer vacation, which I haven’t had since I was in school, and embrace it as a truly freeing time of the year. It’s okay to do things without a purpose and just for fun. It’s okay to explore a new interest or to even take time away from the things you’re supposed to be doing. I hope you are too!