Blink and You’ll Miss it!
July was a whirlwind of a month! Every year I seem to forget just how busy July and August truly are. When they come, it’s easy to get caught up in the craziness and miss them. This season has been a particularly crazy one, with weddings every weekend, traveling to Montana for a friend’s wedding (which I was honored to do the flowers for), and going back and forth between Bellingham and Poulsbo to care for the field. On top of all of that, I got COVID which forced me to actually take some time to rest. My body was clearly telling me to slow down, so I listened. Going into August, I’m focusing more on taking care of myself through this busy time, because the more I take care of myself, the more successful I will be and the more joy I will find.
The first part of taking better care of myself is making time to enjoy the Summer while it’s here! It’s the best time of year in Washington and the season is flying by, as usual, and I want to be sure to take moments to enjoy it while it’s still here. I love my work so much but this time of year it’s easy for it to feel like my whole life. It’s important to make time for things not related to work, even if you love what you do! Work-life balance, people!
This month I will be making more time to do the things that I love like go swimming or paddleboarding, spend beautiful summer evenings with friends or walking my dog, read a book in the sunshine, and just enjoying the abundance of life that there is this time of year. Of course, my time is more limited to do these things this time of year, but my goal is to make more of an effort to do them with the time that I have. Something I try to remind myself of is the ebb and flow of the year as a whole, and that it all balances itself out. This time of year might feel a bit mad at times but it’s what I wait for all Winter and Spring. I know I will have plenty of rest come November and will be itching for Summer by March (if not earlier). It happens every year!
I also have started being more conscious of how I’m taking care of my body during this busy season. Farming and floral work is extremely taxing on the body. I’m on my feet all day every day, sometimes on my hands and knees weeding for hours on end. It’s go-go-go 6 days out of the week, almost every week. It becomes easy to stop prioritizing the important things like eating well and getting enough sleep. Each season I set a few goals for myself, and I remembered when I was setting goals for this season that I included a list of personal goals. After feeling so burnt out by the end of last season, I wanted to go into this season with a healthier approach. So, I went back and read through those and low and behold, the goals included things like getting 8 hours of sleep, fueling my body properly, moving my body and keeping it strong and healthy so I don’t hurt myself. It was a great way to reset for this next month. Sometimes we need that reminder, and we need to take a step back and slow down to gain perspective. So, thank you, past self!
I truly love what I do and am completely enamored with the art of flowers. Even though it’s crazy at times, anything worth doing is going to be hard, but it’s always worth it! I’ve learned that when you’re passionate about what you do, the challenges seem to not feel so heavy. You are more motivated and more inspired to find solutions and learn, but in order to tackle the challenges that come my way, I have to be healthy! I talk about it all the time, but this work is a constant learning process. Whether it’s learning about best farming practices, better design techniques, or how to balance the busy season with self-care. It certainly keeps me on my toes and keeps me interested!
With this new mindset, I’ve been taking more time when I’m out at the field to slow down and appreciate the flowers. Which are finally all blooming! Each week It’s so exciting to show up to the field and see more blooms than the week before. Right now, the calendula, snapdragons, scabiosa, strawflower, amaranth, marigold, and bachelor buttons are exploding. The Dahlias, zinnias, sunflowers and cosmos are also finally starting to bloom consistently and with longer and longer stems. Unfortunately, the nigella and celosia are growing very slowly still. This is my first year growing both so I’m reminding myself that it’s a learning moment (we love those) and time to do some research on best practices when growing these flowers. Next year, they’ll be even better, and the year after that even better :)
One last tidbit for this month, I’m super excited to share that I’ve decided to add a few Dahlia CSA subscriptions for Whatcom County. Extend your season and enjoy all of the gorgeous Dahlias I was gifted from Willow & Mabel Garden Co. This subscriptions starts on September 2 goes until October 15, with delivery to your doorstep every Tuesday. Grab a spot and sign up by August 15!
This month’s post is short and sweet and hopefully serves as a reminder to take care of yourself too, no matter how busy you are! Next month it’s peak dahlia time, plus a fun wedding in Walla Walla! Until then!
Chase
