From Beach Towels to Backpacks: New Year's Resolutions

It's the time of year when I make all my "new year's" resolutions, because old habits die HARD, and even though I'm in my 40s, the start of a new school year has always felt like the real "start" of my year... much more so than gloomy January 1.  The sign of the changeover from summer to fall is most apparent in my laundry room - the hooks go from holding bright and cheery striped/flowered swim towels tossed there to dry, to holding the efficient and organized school backpacks.

The start of this particular school year is bittersweet for many reasons...the main one being that the summer was just too darn short.  We limped across the finish line at the end of the last school year coping with family stress on several fronts, and an unscheduled and sunshiny summer was the antidote to a hyper-stressful and gloomy spring.

But now it's time to go back.  So I'm taking stock of what's on tap for the fall - and the sports schedules & dance classes & school events can pretty quickly overwhelm me.  But I am resolving to ride my bike more, train for my favorite 10k race again, make efforts to not let the kids' schedules deplete our limited energy supply.  I'll look at this summer - which was a time of healing and renewal on many levels - and thank God for the time he gave our family to reflect and refresh.

But what I truly hope for as we go back to school is time to write.  The freedom to put my thoughts and feelings and experiences on the blog - and in my very full journal -  has been so good for me.  So as the kids go back to school I resolve to:

• Slow down. Literally. Take more deep breaths and not rush. 
• Write - at least 3 posts per week (drafts count; I don't have to publish EVERYTHING!)
• Take time for self-care (time at the gym, time on the bike, time with friends)
• Enjoy this time in my kids' lives.  My oldest 2 are high school freshmen, and I just love the middle and high school stage of life so far.  They are moody and irritable and all that normal stuff, but they are also funny and smart and trying lots of new things, and they like to be with us most of the time.

We're folding away the beach towels and hanging up the backpacks.  And I resolve to be ready!

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