Hi Reader,

We're doing one more trip before it all shifts — the last stretch of summer, one final getaway before the calendar takes back over.

I used to think I was supposed to dread this part. Every mom-blog and every group chat this time of year runs the same script: savor it, summer's almost over, brace yourself. And for a while I performed that feeling because it seemed like the right one to have.

But honestly? I'm excited. I like the trip we're about to take, and I also like what's coming after it — the rhythm, the routine, the shape fall gives our days. I don't think I have to mourn one to look forward to the other.

I know the tiredness will come. It always does — usually a month or so in, once the new pace has worn a groove. But right now, today, I'm not there. I'm ready.

Maybe that's worth saying out loud too: you don't have to perform reluctance about a season you're actually looking forward to. If you're excited for fall, you're allowed to just be excited — no eulogy for summer required.

Yours in being honestly ready,

P.S. — Part of why I'm ready is that I've actually got a plan for the new pace instead of just hoping it goes well. Rhythm & Flow is the tool I use to build that out on purpose. $9.