Can you feel it in the air? Can you smell the leaves changing before they actually do? Sometimes, my memories of season’s past are so vivid I can smell them, like ghosts of season’s change is lying in wait, ready to welcome me back with an embrace.

As we shift into a new season, not just in Mother Nature, but with school schedules and preparing for the holiday season, it can feel overwhelming. These shifts happen annually and we expect them, so why aren’t we always ready?

Let’s practice slowing down and accepting the change as it comes. Let’s prepare for fall’s shift in rhythm.

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Prepare for School Schedules

Get it all written down. As soon as you get it. I’m old fashioned and like written schedules. I think there’s something to be said for using your hands and remembering. But I also have my digital calendar and a widget on my phone so I see what each day brings and how to prepare.

My children have three different schedules for school, so keeping on top of things, writing down changes as soon as they happen, and looking at it every day really helps with keeping organized. In addition, not looking too far ahead really helps to keep things seem much less overwhelming. Why worry about next week today? Sure, there may be one really hectic day or week coming up, but right now the schedule is calm and consistent. Not looking too far ahead allows me to embrace the moment I’m in and take all changes in stride.

Lock Down Holiday Expectations

This may seem unusual to some, but we are a blended family. We have to consider coparents as well as our own schedules and extended families. What I’ve learned over the past two years of navigating coparenting and blended families is this: expect less. And while many people may expect more of you, it’s simply not possible.

When these expectations are written out and planned beforehand, there’s no guesswork involved anymore. You know exactly where you’ll be, where your kids will be, and where your energy needs to go. This year, we will be kid-free on Thanksgiving. Instead of wallowing that they won’t be here on Thanksgiving Day, we have instead planned a Thanksgiving dinner for a different day. We have shifted our rhythm.

Meal Plan Changes

This is probably my favorite part of the seasonal transition. Once the weather cools, it’s easier to bake more breads, add crockpot meal rotations–which are definitely great with busy schedules, and spend a little more time in the kitchen than the summer months. Meal prepping becomes easier, and larger meals (like crockpot meals) offer great leftovers, which I love packing for in-office days at work.

One of my fail-safe breads for eating solo or adding to any soup or pasta meal is my Rosemary Loaf. Even after all these years of making it (almost a decade!) I am still not sick of the salty crust, the soft interior, and the perfectly blended rosemary flavor.

Don’t Overwhelm Yourself

With the start of school comes the start of field trip fundraisers, school dances, sports, and many extracurricular activities. While this may be great for some people, you’ve likely stumbled on my page because you enjoy a slower pace of life. For the past several years, I’ve registered my daughter for activities. I wanted her to try out different things, make some friends, and figure out what she really likes. Turns out, what she really likes is none of those things. She’s the epitome of a homebody.

This year, I’m not going to register her for extracurriculars. All it would do is fill up our schedule for something she wouldn’t enjoy. Not to mention the cost of them. Instead, I invested in a family craft journal, so we can spend some time outdoors together and create something. This year, I’m shifting our rhythm.

Sometimes, I think that it’s so normalized for families to separate and do different activities all day, barely seeing each other, that we don’t see how very wrong that lifestyle is. To each his own, always, but I know for myself, seeing my family every day is something I prioritize. Connecting at mealtimes. Having conversations during the day. Creating things together. All those slow moments of togetherness help with the overwhelm we are conditioned into thinking is normal.

Follow the Season

Fall is the time when everything slows down. It’s last preparation for winter, it’s less sunlight during the day, it’s colder mornings and evenings and pulling out the sweaters you’ve missed for the past four months. Write down one or two big goals you have for the start of the fall season. Maybe you want to make sure you finish up a home project before the first snowfall. Maybe you have had this task on your to-do list for months that you’d love to check off so you can relax. Do them. The slow season is approaching, and being ready to settle into a new rhythm with your family will happen gracefully if your mind is at ease.

Choosing your shift in rhythm for the upcoming season is very important. How do you want your days to look? Those things you can’t control–like the job you may have right now or the public school schedule–let them go. Work with the moments you can control and how you want them to look. We prioritize:

• Slow evenings
• Family dinner at the table
• “Settle down” time with games/books

There are obviously changes in our schedules and not every night is perfect, but those moments we can control and the shift that comes with the new season is something we embrace wholeheartedly. How do you change your rhythm for the fall season?