GETTING OUTSIDE TO MAXIMIZE LOVE | We have truly hit our max of activity time now that it’s summer. And somehow, the best answer always ends up being to just go outside when we all start to get a bit stressed out.
When the house feels too much to handle, everyone is cranky including me, and I just can’t handle one more thing; we head out the door, and almost every time, something shifts. The kids breathe differently, I finally start to breathe, and whatever was spiraling five minutes ago suddenly feels a little more manageable.
Lately we’ve been spending that outside time planting flowers in our planters, and honestly? It’s become one of my favorite parts of the week. It started because I wanted to do it and just kind of dragged the kids along, but it’s turned into this genuinely sweet thing we do together to Maximize Love, Manage Stress.
My youngest is in heaven just touching the dirt. Like, that’s his whole agenda and he is thriving. My three-year-old gets SO into having an important job; she’s in charge of scooping the soil, picking which flower goes where, and doing the official watering at the end. There’s no fighting, no negotiating, no one asking me to put something on the TV. Just sunshine and dirt and my kids being genuinely happy.
The best part is that it’s not just good for them. Getting my hands in the soil and watching something grow is genuinely calming for me too. It’s one of those rare moments where I’m not just surviving the afternoon, I’m actually present for it.
You don’t need a big yard or a green thumb to make this work. A couple of planters, some potting soil, and a few flowers from the grocery store is totally enough. Let them get messy. Let them pick the colors. Let it be slow.
Outside really does make everything feel better. And on the hard days, that’s everything.
By: Ashley Nassar Weeks
