Building routines in our new home

I know, I know, it's not much of a blog if there is no new content. Truth is, we've been so busy these last few months with travel, that I haven't carved out regular time to record our adventures. Instead of being upset at the absence of blog entries, as I likely would have been in the past, I am moving on with the intention of doing what I can going forward. That kind of attitude is enough for me these days. It makes me a happier, calmer, more easy-going person. (Have your met the new Nancy?!)

So life in Scotland.... if you're wondering what it is like, imagine your own life and then just imagine that you are doing all the same stuff, but in a different place. Am I making life here sounds dreamy and wonderful? Probably not, I realize, but the honest-to-goodness truth that I am beginning to understand is that life is life wherever one goes. There are dirty dishes and clothes to be washed, groceries to be purchased, meals to be cooked, budgets to be followed. To some this may sound dreary and mundane, but to me, it really isn't at all. These little tasks become the glue that holds our days together, and I am learning how to create routines out of them that serve our family well.

Chris and I have been married nearly seven years, and Luke has been on this planet for five-and-a-half of those years and Maggie for nearly four, so why is it now (now that we have moved across the world) that I am learning to create household routines that serve us, and appreciate the simplicity of daily habits? On reflection, I think it has to do with removing myself from what I had been doing in order to break old (bad) habits. Some might think that such a move would create upheaval and stress that would undermine creating structured routines; I have found the opposite to be true. In a new place, I have begun to establish fresh habits without the effort of determination simply because the new place triggers the habit automatically. (Shout out to Gretchen Rubin and her book Better Than Before, which highlights this principle so well.)

To me, one of the most exciting thing about returning back to Scotland from our lengthy visit to the States, has been to focus on building these routines. There is certainly time and space for FUN, and we do have lots of that (to be chronicled in future posts), but when the routines are the foundation of our days, I find my head is clear, my house is clean, and most importantly, my family is happy.

As a teaser, enjoy this photo of us "punting" on the River Cam in Cambridge during a recent visit with our lovely friends Hugh and Nicky and their lovely wee ones (and yes, I do plan to write about our trip in a future post).