Recalibrating. Mondays are for this, and more so all of the time. I think recalibrating is going to become my Monday “thing.”

I like a good, slow, unplanned Monday. I like it even more when it follows a packed out weekend, and when it just so happens that there is nary an item on the calendar. These days are rare, but I will take them. Having no agenda allows me to be the mom I hope to be to our kiddos–not shuffling them around from place to place, no tedious errands, no whining in the car and back seat pull-up changes and a lack of adequate snacks making the whole crew (myself included) cranky.

Just pajamas. Pajamas and slow breakfast and windows open to a cool and welcome breeze. Playtime at everyone’s leisure. Impromptu ballet lessons in the living room (you should see my moves when I’m this round with baby, trust me). Imaginations running wild and bags packed for vacations to Disney World and camping trips and adventures up the mountain. We take things slow, and everyone is happier.

Truth be told, I have to fight the instinct within me to get out and do something. To be productive in some way. To be out in the world. Arguably, this slower kind of day lends itself to a different type of productivity altogether–happiness instead of rushing, laughter instead of squabbles. We all get to be in our own skin, and I love that.

Not all of today was without stress or challenges, but our recalibrating pace on this perfectly sunny and temperate Monday was telling as I look to fall and cooler temps and life with a new baby in tow. I pushed Eloise in the stroller and Henry rode his bike as we took an impromptu walk to the coffee shop this afternoon. We had no timeframe, really, and no plans. Just a simple, “should we go left to the park or right to get lattes?” and lattes won the vote. Disclaimer: Lattes in kiddo terms are just warmed up almond milk with a little honey, sans caffeine around here. We read a story cozied up in the booth together, shared a cookie, sipped our drinks and made our way back home.

babes and lattes.

I can do this kind of Monday thing.

So much of life in these past months has felt like it was about getting through to the next big thing…the next event, the next obligation, the next deadline, the next planned out task. Not so today. Today felt like it was about settling into the reality that baby is now the next big thing. THE big thing. The thing I think my heart has been trying to get to through so much else. I love, love, loved celebrating Eloise this weekend, but her birthday has been the milestone in my mind for the longest time. The date by which I’ve measured time to the kids for as long as they’ve known there was a baby in my belly. “Baby will come after Eloise’s birthday!”

Somehow, “after Eloise’s birthday” has arrived. We’re not quite ready for baby yet, but we’re getting close. And baby’s not quite ready for us yet, but I’ll know when that changes and we’re on our way to becoming five officially. It’s soon. It’s not a distant reality at all anymore. All the more reason to have these recalibrating Mondays for as long as we can, allowing the natural rhythms of our days play out and leaving space for whatever is to come.

We need recalibrating every once in a while. I could probably stand to do it again tomorrow. The laughter emanating from these walls today and the simple delights of things like “lattes” and strolling and hitting baseballs in the backyard were exactly what our crew needed to face the week with rested bodies and more open hearts.

a content crew.

aiming for a peaceful night tonight so tomorrow is a bright day, too,

mm