Our Summer Morning Routine-Gentle, Seasonal, Intentional Living…
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You wouldn’t believe it, but I couldn’t wait for summer to be over years ago because I loved fall so much. I still love the fall season the best, but I’ve learned to live in sync with summer in a new purposeful way; now, I enjoy the heat and humidity because we need it to grow our food. Knowing the purpose of something we don’t like changes how we view it.
As I write this post, we are in the middle of a growth and production season. However, everything outside is pushing hard against dry soil and trying to grow. We are in the middle of a drought, so the growth isn’t as seamless as usual. It requires more of my attention to facilitate growth. Without rain, heat by itself is deadly.
In the spring, I worked on our new daily rhythm. With growing children and different needs, I find myself changing our routine as needed. I have a 1-year-old that has different needs every few months as she’s learning. My 6-year-old is learning to read this summer, so I have scheduled times to sit with her in the late morning. Although we don’t do formal lessons in the summer, we still have a weekly teatime, read books, and sometimes refresh math skills.
I also have a crew of 4 teenagers that are busy but fun and need to chat with me some evenings.
Being a mom and managing a household full-time is like keeping many plates spinning simultaneously. We have a constant flow to keep up with; then, new plates are added to our list. Clean clothing, meals, training children, errands, appointments, relationships, home businesses… all require us to nurture them daily.
I believe, as women, we are equipped for this kind of work. We are gifted at nurturing. But sometimes, when life gets overwhelming, we need to stop and reevaluate our goals. Sometimes we need fresh motivation.
Motivation is a big inspiration for most of us. Sometimes fresh motivation is all we need to push ourselves to a better home life.
In my Rhythms of Home course, we start with writing out our vision for our home. This is a crucial first step; it’s very difficult to work towards something if you don’t clearly see where you want to be someday.
Years ago, My dream was to manage a home with a natural flow that included healthy meals, books, work, rest, community outreach, and a place to nurture the spiritual lives of others.
Facts about our household:
- We are a small homestead. We have eight dairy goats that are milked every morning. We raise chickens/turkeys for meat and eggs and have a 10,000 Square foot garden.
- I (Jennifer) own a cottage business from my home. This requires me to work a few days/week in the evenings.
- We follow a seasonal schedule for formal school. We take the summer off most paperwork (tests and narrations) and use the time to grow food and learn through what we do outside, including goat births, animal husbandry, permaculture farming techniques, and customer service.
- We serve at our church which is close to Chicago but about an hour drive for us. I’m a Sunday School teacher using Charlotte Mason’s methods in our little Sunday School classroom. Pure joy!
Below are some random pictures from June: (We had a litter of Great Pyrenees puppies!!!!😍😍😍)
- My daughter picking raspberries for breakfast in her nightgown. This side of our property is a fruit forest. This year we finally have an abundant harvest.
- I’m an herbalist and grow as much as possible in the summer to make tinctures, salves, and other useful products. I love to watch something grow from seed. It’s always a miracle, and I hope to never get over it.
- My youngest daughter was sick the first few weeks of June, so I spent many days holding her on the couch.
Our Current Routine (Monday-Friday, Summer Schedule)
I wake up earlier than the rest of the household. Usually around 5 AM, I am up and make coffee. I believe morning rituals are very settling to a soul. I’m currently reading a Puritan Prayers book called: The Valley of Vision along with other Bible reading.
After my morning devotions, I work on responding to emails and writing. Sometimes I find it difficult to write as the day drags on; my mind is most sharp in the early hours.
Around the 6:30-7 hour, I start hearing my children slowly wake up. I encourage them to take their time waking up. They make a list of what they need to accomplish for that day.
Different seasons of our life call for different routines. This season is very busy with summer production in full swing.
Around 7 we go outside to finish chores together. Our outside chores are: Weeding the garden, milking the goats, feeding the chickens/turkeys, harvesting whatever is ready, fermenting animal feed for the next day, and filling water for animals. Water chores are a large part of the morning for my boys.
Around 8, I come back inside and get breakfast going- I usually stick to breakfasts that include eggs/oatmeal/yogurt/organic berries. I don’t buy cereal or hardly any processed food.
8:30- Breakfast and morning time in the dining room. Morning prayers.
After breakfast, we all complete our morning chores in the house. That is explained more in the Rhythms of Home™ course.
Mid-morning, we go outside again or do something recreational. I try to limit my errands to one day per week during our school schedule. During the summer, I try to schedule most of our doctor/dentist/eye exams to be completed before fall. Summer Bundle
My home is decorated and purposely planned with books and beauty in every room. We watch very little television and aim to live as producers rather than consumers.
Lunch is simple here. Since we mostly eat out of our garden, freezers, and pantry meals are usually fruit/cheese/bread/salads/or something I’ve made with goat milk.
After lunch, we all clean up our designated area for chores and then have quiet time. The whole house gets quiet for a while. I rest with my littlest one. Some children fall asleep, some read, and some play but they must be quiet.
That is a typical morning for us during the weekday.
The weekend is different. Saturday is a day of outside work and getting ready for the Sabbath.
Your home is a place of possibilities. The culture of home is something lost in our world today, but I write to inspire you to reach for more. Envision more. A home is a place of education, health, spiritual growth, friendship, and rest. As we look forward to a new school season in the fall, let us remember the importance of the culture in our home and embrace the beauty waiting for us.
With love,
Jenny
