“Today has been a day dropped out of June into April.” –L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Windy Poplars
Every single season has colorful differences that cause me to stop where I am, and soak it in. For each stage of life, there are varied reasons to love one season over another.
But grateful for the change of pace and of purpose, I’m happy to be staring at another June.
Many of our deadlines and much of our travel both together and separately, happens in the first few months of the year–front loading it with busy. When summer finally arrives, we all sigh the sigh of those who have needed a breather for quite some time.
Does your summer feel that way? It’s still full, but different. Before we jump into the deep end of summer, let’s remember what we learned in the Spring. Thanks to Emily Freeman for the practice and exercise in remembering.
One Thing That is Rescuing My Productivity Online.
A once- annoying computer glitch has actually been a bit of a gift. At some point in early Spring, my laptop stopped receiving my text messages. A break in connectivity or something, but eventually I realized how much I was actually getting done without that little notification. Amazing how this one small thing, which wasn’t intentional– is keeping me focused.
Taking notes is easier than we think. I use Evernote, the notes app on my phone, and a bullet journal. It may seem excessive but each system has a purpose. However, one of my favorite spring game-changers was to really start utilizing the ‘save post’ feature on Instagram. For a long time I took screen shots of everything I wanted to remember, but that only goes so far when I want to go back and find further details. To take it one step further, I recently started building ‘collections’ within my saved posts on Instagram, like this.
Of course, the goal of all this note-taking is to streamline and also to continue to be a life-long learner. If I take notes along the way, it’s 100 times easier to quickly grab a book list when I happen to run in the used book store or remember that quick salad dressing recipe I wanted to try. This simple thing I learned in the spring has been so helpful.
Spring Highlights.
Unexpectedly, we visited the Masters this year! It was green and breezy and absolutely everything I hoped it would be. The Pimento cheese sandwiches and Arnold Palmers are exactly what Augusta should taste like in the spring. If you’ve never been I hope you get the chance one day– it was certainly a treat for us.
Sidenote: I wish more places would require we leave our cell phones in the car. But then, I guess we could be adults and just make that decision on our own, right?
Our children discovered The Muppets. No, really. We’ve been over here watching all the Muppet movies and singing their songs. It’s been fun for them and possibly even more fun for us because, Life’s a Happy Song.
We took a long awaited family vacation, just the four of us. We had an amazing time with non-stop togetherness and play for a week.
My Favorite Podcast Episodes of the Spring.
#60 of The Lazy Genius Podcast The Lazy Genius Cleaning Routine (Kendra Adachi is the ninja of so many smart solutions from salad making to TV watching.)
I enjoy her podcast and make sure to listen to the particular episodes that speak to my season, this — the cleaning one was super helpful. One of my favorite parts of this particular episode is that it isn’t just about systems and tools, but reframing your mindset about cleaning.)
#62-65 also of The Lazy Genius: Summer Strategy. Kendra covers the summer mindset, routine, time, and food. It’s packed with fun and helpful tips, no matter what your summer looks like.
What I Read.
This was definitely a season of starting many books and only finishing a few. But again, hooray for summer!
The Women in the Castle. Jessica Shattuck (Overall a story of resilience, but still sad.)
The Warden and The Wolf King This final book in The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson was satisfying and full of resolution for the first books in the series. I wholeheartedly enjoyed it.
The Secret Keeper. Kate Morton is one of my favorite authors for one main reason; she writes luxuriously, never in a hurry to tell the story. This particular book was 588 pages long and honestly, it took me about 150 pages to really be invested in the characters. But I am so glad I read it in its entirety. The Lake House was always my favorite of Morton’s but I’m just not sure now. Did you know she has a new novel coming out in October?
Re-Reads: The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. The Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, (we listened to this one read by Cherry Jones and it was such a delight.) Lucy and I are almost finished reading The Green Ember and it’s been enjoyable too.
Lately in the Blue House Kitchen.
The Best Brussels Sprouts, ever.
Coconut Cashew Bars. Kind of like a homemade Larabar, but I add Cinnamon.
Onward to Summer.
(Of course, you know I’m always happy to hear from you. If you would like, share what you learned this spring either in the comments, or by email.)
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