back to school: embracing growth and fresh starts
Just like that, summer is over and the kids are back to school this morning.
There were lots of nerves in our house this morning. New teachers, friends split between classes, last year in elementary school: change is hard. Over the last few days, I have found myself having lots of conversations about how doing hard things is what helps us grow. While I got a couple of eye rolls, I did manage to get some attentive listeners.
Growing Through the Hard Things
This little family of mine has been through a period of tremendous growth, which made it easy to point back and give my girls examples of some of the hard things we have each done. We could talk about how it might have been difficult at the time, but how we can look at it now and find something we learned from those moments.
As parents, my husband and I have been working hard to understand and learn how to parent a child with different needs. It has been a complete overhaul these last few months of everything we thought we knew. The more we learn about our child, the more peace and joy we are starting to find in our home. As a family, we are figuring out more about ourselves individually and how we work together. And while it has not all been sunshine and lollipops, we are all working on having more fun together.
A Summer to Remember
This summer was no exception to our growth. I think it might have been one of my favourite summers yet. Definitely my favourite in the last 11+ years as parent.
There were trips and concerts and time spent at the cottage. We celebrated big life milestones, including my Mom's 70th birthday in PEI and my sister-in-law and her now husband's perfect backyard wedding. Because of these events, we were surrounded by family. Our girls got to bask in all the love from their grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. We're so grateful for our close extended family that we jump at every chance to bring everyone together.
September's Promise
Now, as the days start to get shorter and the nights grow a little colder, it's clear that autumn has arrived and summer is in the rearview mirror.
September always feels like a fresh start for me too. It's an opportunity for me to reflect on what I have accomplished to date and the things I am most proud of so far. Right now, I am working on setting goals for the last quarter of the year and identifying the most important things I want to achieve before the end of 2025. I am also re-establishing routines and adopting healthy habits that will carry me into 2026.
To do this, I'm coming back to my values—harmony, compassion, connection, curiosity, and joy—and letting them be my guide as I close out this year. I am making sure that my decisions bring me more in alignment with those values.
If this year has taught me anything, it's that the most beautiful moments come from the times when we're brave enough to keep growing.
