Last week my son had a homework question (he’s 8) asking why if September was the 9th month of the year did it have the prefix “Sep”….TBH I had no idea either so was interested to see why. So, drumroll – the name is from Roman calendars when the year commenced in March!
So without further ado, here are my SEVEN tips for September:
- Reap what you sow – early spring is a great time to sow all kinds of seeds. We have a beautiful bunch of bees who visit us daily so I’m planting more flowers for them, as well as some beans. I love eating food direct from our garden, thereby reducing food miles & any unnecessary packaging (I’m looking at you single use plastic)
- Make intentional family time every weekend – just a couple of hours away from home & screens leaves us all recharged. It could be getting on your bike, kicking a ball or just grabbing a picnic rug & having time to talk without the distractions of home.
- Spring cleaning – I don’t believe in getting rid of things for the sake of living as a minimalist, but I do think occasionally we realise there is stuff we hold on to which we never use. Let it go. Sell it, donate it, let it spark joy for someone else.
- Go to sleep with your curtains or blinds partially open – suddenly the mornings are light earlier waking to natural light makes waking so much easier, as it helps regulate your circadian rhythm. I’m not judging if you have one weekend morning where those curtains are firmly shut!
- Put a timer on your wireless modem & have it switch off during the night. EMFs are no one’s friend. You can sleep easy (pun intended) knowing you’re not being zapped in the night. Want to step it up a notch? Give your neighbours each a timer too so you’re not receiving their EMFs either. Win win.
- Podcasts – mornings can be stressful with multiple children, all with different needs & gripes on a daily basis – whether they can’t find their school tshirt, have a sore toe, or generally won’t listen, I find my kids respond well with a podcast on as a positive distraction (as do I) – I’m a self confessed nerd so am loving the ABC Listen app – Dr Karl’s science segments are great for kids to learn new interesting facts.
- Upskill – another one for the Mamas, but equally if you don’t have kids, you could pump your own daily routine. Choose one thing this month that you can teach your kids to do that is a new skill for them, but also means one less thing on your roulette table to juggle every day – it could be emptying the washing machine, dishwasher, partially packing their own lunchboxes or for younger kids, just getting dressed on their own! Building independence on our little people is such an important life skill, but it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing it yourself when you’re pressed for time. If you’re flying solo, see if you can change one step in your routine to make your mornings smoother – whether it’s laying out your clothes the night before or prepping your breakfast the night before (like overnight oats).
alicegruzman.com 