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I can't quite believe I'm sitting down to write another Friday Letter already. The last two weeks seem to have disappeared somewhere, and after spending so much of this summer telling you how wonderfully, unusually slowly it seemed to be passing, August has apparently decided to make up for lost time.
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All of a sudden, the school emails have started arriving.
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Return dates. Induction days. Half days. Reminders. Things that need to be organised. Dates that need to go onto the calendar.
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And for the first time in months, I've found myself properly looking at the calendar again.
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Our summer holidays started incredibly early this year. Both of my children finished school at the end of May, and we left for France almost immediately afterwards. We were home again before the end of June, which left this enormous stretch of July and August ahead of us.
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And it has been wonderful.
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I've written quite a lot this summer about slowing down, letting summer unfold and not constantly rushing towards whatever comes next. And, perhaps for the first time in a very long time, I feel as though I've actually managed to practise some of what I spend so much time writing about.
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There have been plenty of days without much of a plan.
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Late breakfasts. Teenagers coming and going. Pottering around the house and garden. Pilates classes. Days out. Little trips away. Evenings outside. Meals eaten later than usual. Bedtimes drifting. Mornings when nobody particularly needed to be anywhere.
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But here's the funny thing.
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I think I'm ready for a little routine again.
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Not because I'm tired of summer. I'm not. And certainly not because I'm wishing these last few days away.
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I think I've simply reached that point where a little more shape to the week sounds rather lovely.
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I'm ready to know what Tuesday looks like again.
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I'm ready for the calendar on the kitchen wall to mean something. For everybody to know roughly where they're supposed to be and when they're supposed to be there. For meals to happen at vaguely predictable times and for weekdays and weekends to feel slightly different from one another again.
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Our first week back is never particularly organised anyway. Both of my children are in secondary school, and they tend to return gradually with induction days and half days before everyone is properly back. So there will undoubtedly be a week or so of somebody needing collecting at 11.30 while somebody else isn't going in until lunchtime and me having absolutely no idea what day it is.
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But after almost three months of our lovely loose summer rhythm, I'm beginning to look forward to ordinary routine.
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And that's made me think about something.
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Perhaps slowing down and having structure aren't opposites.
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I think for a long time I associated slow living with having fewer plans, fewer commitments and lots of empty space. And, of course, sometimes that's exactly what we need.
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But structure can create space too.
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Knowing that certain things happen on certain days means I don't have to constantly think about them. Having a few little anchors in my day can make everything else feel calmer. A morning routine doesn't have to involve seventeen productive habits before 7am. It might simply be getting up, opening the curtains, making coffee and knowing roughly what comes next.
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Maybe what I'm craving isn't a packed schedule at all.
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And there is a difference.
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I don't want to leave this lovely slow summer behind and suddenly fill every square on the calendar.
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Actually, I think the opposite is true.
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I'd quite like to see if I can take some of what this summer has taught me into the busier months ahead.
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A little less rushing simply because everybody else seems to be rushing.
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More evenings outside while we still can.
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Coffee sitting down rather than carried around the house while doing six other things.
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And perhaps remembering occasionally that not every empty space on the calendar needs filling.
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So that's where I am this Friday.
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Not quite ready to say goodbye to summer.
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Not quite in our autumn routine.
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Just somewhere in between, looking at the calendar again and thinking that a little structure might actually feel rather nice.
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A little something for you
I wanted to include a little printable with today's letter, as I plan to do with every Friday Letter from now on.
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This isn't about overhauling your life, creating the perfect routine or filling another enormous to-do list.
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It's simply a little place to think about what might make the weeks ahead feel easier.
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What genuinely needs your attention?
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What would make your mornings run a little more smoothly?
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What might help your evenings feel calmer?
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And perhaps most importantly:
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What is one thing from this slower season that you would like to protect as life gets busier again?
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For now, I'm keeping this one just for my Friday Letter readers. Perhaps I'll add it to the printable library eventually, but for the moment, consider it a little thank-you from my kitchen table to yours.
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And speaking of printables, this Sunday I'll also be sharing our Free Printable of the Week, which is a completely different little end-of-summer reflection. It's a chance to look back over the season — the things you did, the moments you loved and the memories you'd like to keep.
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So between the two, perhaps we can gently look backwards and forwards without rushing in either direction.
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Before I go...
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I'd love to know where you are in all of this.
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Are you craving routine again?
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Perhaps your children have already returned to school. Perhaps you don't live according to a school calendar at all. Perhaps you're still firmly in summer holiday mode.
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And, of course, some of you are reading this from the other side of the world, where winter is beginning to loosen its grip and those first little signs of spring are appearing.
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Whatever your season looks like, hit reply and tell me.
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One of the greatest and most unexpected joys of writing these little letters has been the correspondence that comes back afterwards. I have loved hearing about your gardens, your families, your weather, your traditions, your ordinary days and the different seasons you're living through.
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It really does feel a little like having penpals scattered all over the world.
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So please keep writing. I read every single one.
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As for us, I'm going to enjoy these last few days of our wonderfully long summer holidays — while possibly making the occasional list and secretly enjoying putting things back onto the calendar.
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Apparently both things can be true.
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Have a gorgeous weekend, wherever you are and whatever you're doing.
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P.S. By the time my next Friday Letter arrives, we'll be into September and properly back in our school-year rhythm here. That feels almost impossible as I type it. Wasn't it only June about five minutes ago?
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Stay in touch – I’d genuinely love to hear from you — This little letter is very much a two-way conversation. If something here resonates, if you have a thought to share, or if there’s something you’d love to see in a future newsletter, blog post, or printable, I’d really love to hear from you.You can simply reply directly to this email, send a message via the contact form on the blog, email me at hello@ourlittlehouseinthecountry.com, or say hello over on Instagram — whatever feels easiest.
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Comments on the blog or Instagram are always welcome too. I read every single one.Thank you, as always, for being here and for taking the time to read along.
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A Slower Life, Right in the Middle of a Full One
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Slow living doesn't necessarily mean having a slow life. An autumn reflection on intentional living, seasonal rhythms, full family days and learning to notice the life that's already happening around us.
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Slow October: 31 Simple Ways to Cosy Up Your Days This October
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Welcome to Slow October — 31 gentle invitations to notice the season, find little moments of comfort and connection, and enjoy the heart of autumn. Download the free illustrated and large-text October calendars plus the October Journaling Reflections page.
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When the Days Feel Like Themselves Again
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There’s something lovely about summer days losing their edges. But as autumn returns, I’m rediscovering the quiet comfort of the week finding its shape again — Friday feeling like Friday, Sunday feeling like Sunday, and ordinary life settling back into its familiar rhythm.
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Not Everything Ripens at the Same Time
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On a soft, drizzly September morning, the apples, pears and blackberries offered a quiet reminder: not everything ripens at the same time. A seasonal reflection on change, readiness and learning to let life unfold in its own time.
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September can feel like the beginning of the end of the year — autumn arrives, Christmas appears on the horizon and suddenly we're looking towards January. But there are still four whole months left. Not four months to catch up, optimise or make the most of. Just four months of ordinary life still waiting to be lived.
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