We have talked before about when seasons shift and almost imperceptible changes, or growth on the part of our children means that we need to regroup every so often.
But sometimes things change in big, huge ways. Sometimes these things are anticipated- an addition to the family, moving house or a child starting school and other times there can be surprising changes.
In our house we are adjusting in the slightly smaller way to going from the school holidays back into routine- and in the bigger way of our middle joining our eldest at school full time, and also our littlest starting at preschool. I have gone from having 2 little ones around most of the week to having one, some of the week- and even though I had know it was coming the change is still taking a lot longer to process than I had thought!
So if you are also sending small people off on little adventures or dealing with other life changes- here are a few things to bear in mind.
Be gentle with yourself-
we always have very high expectations of ourselves, and even though a change might have been planned and hoped for – doesn’t mean it won’t take time to get used to. If you feel physically exhausted, rest and get some early nights. Writing things down can help relieve some of the mental load and chatting to friends is always a good plan.
Share experiences with others-
find others who are in your shoes or have been before and can sympathise and remember what it was like. The exciting things, the hard things, moments you want to celebrate can all be shared with loved ones, friends or new friends.
It’s okay to have mixed feelings-
or not know what your feelings even are. When we moved house I knew nobody at all- and while initially it was exciting the reality of being in a new place with a baby and toddler was quickly daunting. Taking time to reflect and process the changes that are happening is always really helpful.
Give it time-
what feels overwhelming or strange to begin with does start to ease. Making baby steps forward or taking moments to write down the good things can help you to process the change. Time makes the ‘new’ a bit less new and you will begin to adjust in your mind and body.
After a busy summer and not taking much time to journal it has been so refreshing to get into a new journal, to start a new ‘season refresh’ page and to take some time reflecting on the changes and the next few months ahead. If you’re also processing a change to your everyday, however big or small, I hope some of these things are helpful to you too.