After school snack spread featuring pumpkin muffins*, The Week Junior, and National Geo Kids magazines We are over a week into a new school year and it's going okay. One kiddo initially had a hard time with the transition but is doing really well now (I'm so thankful!). We are far from being in a solid school-year routine but we are on our way and that feels good. This month we keep straddling summer and the school year. It's still soo hot and our options for weekend family fun feel really limited, especially if you don't want to spend all... Read more →

**Registration for Everyday Habits, Routines, and Rituals has closed for 2024. It will run again in 2025. Sign up to be notified of my next workshop.** I'm delighted to announce my next workshop: Everyday Habits, Routines, and Rituals. I'd love for you to join me! This workshop brings together my years-long passion for and study of habits, routines, and rituals in a cheerful and relatable way. During this engaging and encouraging workshop, you'll learn how to bring more intention to your days by creating and keeping practices you care about, and that fit your season of life and your personality.... Read more →

I know so many people are just hitting their summer stride, but we are already wrapping things up over here. The kids start school next Tuesday! I've been kind of dreading this week, even since before summer started. I knew that our vacation to San Diego would be over, that we would not have any camps or childcare this week, and that it would be scorching hot. All true! This week I'm straddling being a summer mom and a back-to-school-work-mode mom, and I'm feeling very ready to shift into school routine and work days. To make the most of our... Read more →

A "welcome home from camp" chocolate pie which has become tradition Hi, friends! I'm sipping a cold, cold black cherry sparkling water because at this time of year I'm constantly just a little bit warm, even when I'm inside in the a/c. And happy Fourth of July to my fellow Americans! We're flying the stars and stripes today, and also thinking a lot about what we hope for the future of our country and our upcoming election in particular. An early morning hike with a view that paid off We're in the depths of summer weather here with temps above... Read more →

We're starting our fourth week of the kids' summer break and we've hit 110º on the thermometer a few times. I've been thinking, "Summer: we are doing it!" I'm noticing that I am bumping up against having less time at home alone to work, recharge, and attend to home admin. But I'm also noticing the good things this summer, and there are many. So here are 10 everyday summer joys: 10. The public pool and the splash pad. I am instantly 100% happier in the summer when I'm in the pool or at the splash pad. What do you know,... Read more →

A few of my kitchen "decide onces" I've had a few conversations with a dear friend recently where we recall things we did in high school that are so similar to how we are today (being super organized for example, or loving home decor). We laugh and say, "We've always been the same people!" One example of this is that it can be hard for me to make decisions, especially about relatively inconsequential things, and apparently I've been that way since childhood. A story my mom tells goes like this: one day my mom asked me to pick out a... Read more →

Happy June, friends! Before I wrote this post I peeked back at last year's post and see so much repetition: camping, kicking off cold treats on Wednesdays, enjoying the summer so far, and even last year's June goal of catching up on kid art work which will make an appearance in this month's list. And yet we're all a year older and have lived a lot of life since last year's June post was written. I love the familiar grooves of each season, and find a deep joy in seeing what stays the same while also noticing how the kids... Read more →

Hi, friends! I'm sipping a mid-morning iced coffee and marveling that it's the last full day of school for my kids. By the time you read this our summer will have begun! It's getting really warm (in the 90ºs and next week we'll break into the 100ºs) but I'm still enjoying a short mid-day walk and staying positive in the heat. A few notes from May... May goals review + Have a summer summit with Chris. We've had good conversations about summer, have put some additional activities on the calendar, and are feeling as ready as we can be. We've... Read more →

Recently, Chris and I kicked off a day date in our favorite way: with a coffee + budgeting session. It was a particularly fun one because we were incorporating Chris's new salary as a full professor and projecting out a few years to include some possible big goals. After diving into our budget I wanted to share a few places where we are trying to manage spending, and a few budgeting wins lately. If you'd like to see more about our budget, last year I wrote an overview post about how we manage our finances and a post about our... Read more →

I'm ready to shift into a summer mindset. And good thing because summer weather is knocking at our door and the kids are done with school next Thursday! In my previous post I shared how we're designing our summer with activities for the kids, daily routines, and family fun. Today I'd like to share how we're designing our summer in terms of my mindset, summer eating + drinking, and everyday joys. If you'd like more ideas, I wrote about designing my summer last year as well. Summer mindset: be where you are During the summer we don't have as many... Read more →