Everything was up today—the temperature, the energy, the to-do lists. The sun was out early and it got hot quick. We all had to be reminded that it’s only mid-August. The air was still and it kept the birds quiet. We had the house completely open first thing, begging for a breeze to rush in.

It was the last day of summer break, but the first work day Trevor had been home in a week. The girls spent their day playing around the house and organizing themselves for school while Trevor and I worked our way through household and work lists.

It was one of those day of transition—you know you want to hold on to the last little bit of something, but what’s coming next is pulling you in, demanding your attention. We all had lunch together on the deck, and then I broke from work to give the girls their annual Back-to-School spa treatments. It wasn’t as elaborate as it’s been in years past, but I treated them to face masks and polished their nails.

We had an elementary school back-to-school night in the evening and had fun bumping into friends and cousins, meeting new teachers, and dropping off school supplies. We had tacos for dinner when we got home, and while the girls got ready for bed and the next morning, Trevor and I took a quick little walk together in the cooling evening air, just to get the mail. It was lovely, something we may implement nightly, just for a moment of calm at the end of the day.

When we got to the mailbox, I had a surprise package! It was a birthday gift from my sister, lovingly wrapped and topped with a vintage postcard she thrifted from Paris.