Summer is over and here's what I have to show for it

The inevitable has finally come. Today is officially the last day of summer. It’s hard to believe we were in tank tops and bathing suits just a few weeks ago. Now, we done our jackets and sweatshirts for the chilly morning walks to school.

Summer seems to have left as quickly as it came. Before you know it, it’ll be too dark too ride our bikes after dinner...

“…yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift…that’s why they call it present”

While all this can leave you feeling like sand slipping through your fingers, it also is the perfect time to reflect on all the awesome things you and your family did in the past few months. With ANY change in season, there is an opportunity to look back and see how much you’ve learned, how much you and your family have grown, and to see how your lives have progressed.

For me, it’s seeing my 5 year old’s head pop out from underwater with a huge confident smile on her face after swimming across the pool for the first time. Recalling how not too long ago she refused to put her head under water, even in the bathtub.

It’s watching the gears turn in my 7 year old’s head figuring out how to balance and peddle, and the light bulb moment when she finally took off on her bicycle for the first time without training wheels. It’s the freedom and independence she now possesses wherever her path takes her on her newest and preferred mode of transportation.

It is watching the amazing power of grandchildren as they somehow convince their non-swimming grandmother to get in the pool to play with them. Growing up, no matter how much we tried, my sister and I could never convince our mom to get in the pool. Perhaps it’s because she was waiting to be asked by her granddaughter.

It is the reigniting of my creativity after collaborating and creating amazing art work late into the night with other like-minded humans at a photo retreat in the mountains. I don’t remember having this much fun creatively since pulling all nighters in Art School. See our final masterpieces on Photo Fantastico’s Instagram post here!

It was witnessing a man be brave enough to forgive and share space with someone he hadn’t done so with in years. Having an open heart and letting people in takes courage.

“…which moments from your incredible summer are you holding on to, hoping to never forget?”

It can be overwhelming to try to document and remember every single moment in your family’s life. After all, yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift…that’s why they call it present (Thank you Master Oogway and Kung Fu Panda). But I know that when I carve out time a few times a year to reflect on the past few months in my mind, to write in my journal, to print a few photos from the recent past, it helps bring closure to my past. And like a computer archiving and cleaning out older files, this process also provides clarity for me to move forward in my life, it creates space for me to take on new experiences.

“But how,” you ask, “do I prevent this from being a huge time suck of journaling about my life story or spiraling into the abyss of old phone pictures?” The key is to set boundaries.

What if you decided this week that you are going to journal about your summer for 15 minutes a night for the next 5 days before going to bed? Or perhaps look at all the photos on your phone between June 1st through August 30th and on your commute home from work, tag 5 favorites photos from each month? Try it? I think you’ll be amazed at how nice it feels to free up some hard drive space in your brain.

So tell me? Which moments from your incredible summer are you holding on to, hoping to never forget? There is probably more than one. Are there memorable moments from the summer BEFORE that you are already starting to forget? Tell me about it in the comments or shoot me an email. I’d love to hear from you!