September always feels a little like January to me. It’s a fresh start tucked between beach bags, new backpacks, and a calendar that suddenly has somewhere to be every single day.
Summer is beautiful. It’s spontaneous, messy, sun soaked and full of those little moments you wish you could bottle up forever. Little feet running through the yard, sand pouring out of the car & endless ice pops!! Bedtimes that slowly become more of a suggestion than an actual time. Beach bags permanently packed by the door and bathing suits hanging from every possible surface… everyyy possible surface!
And then… September walks in.
Suddenly we’re labeling water bottles, checking school calendars and trying to remember which kid needs to be where and on what day.
And somehow, after months of craving those carefree summer days, part of me is thinking… how I’ve missed routine.
I think September can put parents in a funny little funk. It’s this weird in between.
We spend all summer trying to soak it in. We want to make memories. Take the trips. Go to the beach. Say yes to ice cream. Let them stay up late. Make summer feel magical.
Then school starts and we’re supposed to immediately transform into organized, lunch packing, schedule following humans again?
It’s a transition for our kids, but it’s a transition for us too.
And if you’re feeling a little off right now, maybe relieved, emotional, motivated, exhausted or somehow all of that…you’re probably exactly where so many other parents are.
As much as I love the freedom of summer, there is something comforting about getting our rhythm back.
Maybe even finishing a cup of coffee while it’s still hot! (Still rarely happens but I try)
- Predictable mornings
- Earlier nights
- A little more structure
September gives us permission to reset. Just a gentle reset.
Maybe you finally clean out the beach bag that’s been living in your car since June.
Maybe you start going for morning walks again.
Maybe you sit in silence for ten glorious minutes after school drop off.
Maybe you start something you’ve been putting off because summer was simply too full.
Or maybe your big September accomplishment is getting everyone out the door with shoes on .. that’s a big win in our home somedays.
Here’s the bittersweet part.
Because even while I’m craving routine, I’m looking at those last warm days thinking, is it really over?
I’m not ready to pack away the swimsuits.
I’m not ready for sunsets to come earlier.
I’m not ready to stop finding sand absolutely everywhere… although, maybe I am a little ready for that one.
There’s something magical about those long summer evenings when nobody is watching the clock too closely. When dinner happens outside. When the kids are still running around as the sun starts going down and you’re thinking, this is what they will remember.
So September becomes this beautiful little bridge.
One foot still planted in summer while the other foot is stepping into fall.
Beach towels next to backpacks.
Flip-flops next to sneakers.
A pumpkin coffee in your hand while it’s somehow still 80 degrees outside. Honestly? I kind of love it.
If you’re struggling with the transition, give yourself a little grace. You don’t need the perfect morning routine by week one. Your house doesn’t suddenly need to be spotless because the kids are back in school. (My husband will laugh & give me a look reading that part)
You don’t need a color coded calendar or matching lunch containers.
And you definitely don’t have to feel guilty for enjoying a little quiet after a summer spent pouring so much of yourself into everyone else.
You can miss your kids & enjoy having a little space too.
You can be sad summer is ending and excited for the fall!
You can treasure those slow beach mornings and be thrilled that bedtime has returned to a somewhat reasonable hour.
Two things can be true.
A Fresh Chapter
Maybe that’s what I love most about September.
It reminds me that we don’t have to wait until January 1st to begin again. There are little fresh starts scattered throughout our lives.
- A Monday morning
- A new school year
- The first cool evening
- A cleaned out closet
- A quiet cup of coffee
Most importantly… A decision to start taking care of yourself again.
So if you’ve been feeling stuck in that weird September transition funk, don’t pressure yourself to snap out of it. Ease into it.
- Open the windows when that first cool breeze finally rolls in
- Take the last minute beach day
- Buy the mums (guilty – love flowers too much)
- Drink the pumpkin coffee
- Sit in the car for five extra minutes after drop off if you need to
Let summer linger a little bit while you find your new rhythm. We’re not leaving the magic behind. We’re just turning the page.
And after all, that’s what Mama Chapter is about. Embracing every messy, beautiful chapter of motherhood while remembering that somewhere between the backpacks, sports schedules, laundry piles and snack requests… there is still a chapter for us too.
Mama Chapter 
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