a case for stagnant summers
a soft launch into doing absolutely nothing
I was having my Monday morning coffee (latte with 2% milk with a touch of lavender and honey) in case you’re nosy like me, and I ended up telling a friend something I didn’t even realize I needed to hear:
“What a beautiful life to not want to leave.”
It wasn’t planned. We were just talking about summer travel and the calendar starting to fill up. The low-key dread that comes when your weekends start looking like a game of Tetris.
And all I could think was… I’m sure not I want to go…
So today’s post is my manifesto: a love letter to the slow season and the quiet routines.
This is a case for Stagnant Girl Summer. And I’m all in.
In this column you’ll find:
🧘♀️ Why I’m romanticizing a slow, “boring” summer
✈️ The quiet anxiety that creeps in when the calendar fills up
🧴 A moisturizer so good, my husband steals it
🌸 Little rituals that make everyday life feel like a movie
⬆️ This week’s highs:
We spent a few days at the beach last week and while it was very cold and I barely got a tan (brown skin problems), I did appreciate the calmness that comes with being by the water.
⬇️ This week’s lows:
My little got stitches earlier this week and I’m still reeling from it. I don’t plan to share details, but she is doing okay and I’m so grateful that it wasn’t worse.
💧Belif Aquabomb is that girl of moisturizers. Gel-texture, hydration-for-days, never greasy, never annoying. Like a friend who always remembers your birthday and never flakes. If your skin’s been in its dry & sensitive era, this is the peace treaty. Plus my husband always steals mine.
🍑 The scent of Sol De Janeiro Body Oil? Unclockable. The glow? Illegal. Smells like summer, feels like main character energy, and yes, it makes your legs look glazed. I’m on my third bottle
Can you do me a favor? If you like this, will you hit the heart ❤️ at the bottom of your email? I pinky promise it helps me and will only take you a second!
I’m not stuck, I’m simmering.
I was having my morning coffee and chatting with a friend—one of those catch-up convos that start light and then somehow spiral into a mini therapy session. I told her I’ve been feeling some anxiety around summer travel creeping up.
After months of back-to-back travel in November, December, and January. Looking at you: Mexico City, Puerto Rico, Portugal, and Turkey— we intentionally slowed down. February through April was all about resetting.
We’d been really intentional about keeping spring clear. Like, wide open. Nothing on the calendar except vibes and errands. It was genuinely magical to wake up on a Saturday, look at the calendar, and see… nothing. No plans. No obligations. The world was our oyster, but also? The couch was enough.
The best way I can explain the feeling is this: imagine a day packed with meetings that suddenly, miraculously, all get canceled. That quiet thrill of unexpected freedom, where your energy — not your calendar — gets to decide how the day goes. That’s what spring felt like. And it was everything.
Now it’s April and the calendar is starting to look… ambitious again. Trips, weddings, group chats asking “what dates work for everyone?” And suddenly, the peace I had is being traded for plans.
Cue the existential wheeze.
I’ve shared this before, but I deal with a specific kind of situational anxiety and have for years. Not always, not everywhere… but enough to make me tread lightly. It’s one that tends to flare up around travel. I’ve made so much progress in the last 18 months, but I still get nervous about losing the rhythm I’ve worked so hard to create and I worry that a packed schedule could pull me back into a mental space I’ve worked really hard to leave behind.
Anyway, as I was spiraling (gently) to my friend this morning, I said something I wanted to share here too:
What a beautiful life to not want to leave.
Like… that hit me. I’ve built a life where I’m not constantly dreaming of my next vacation. I wake up on a Monday, make my eggs, sip my coffee, and I don’t feel the urge to escape it all. Sure, I’m tired… who isn’t?
But I’m not trying to run away from my responsibilities. I like this life. I chose this life.
And yes, I still love the beach. Yes, I will still book the trip. But how special is it to love your day-to-day? To romanticize your regular Tuesday, not just your summer Fridays?
I’m not living for the next vacation anymore. I’m actually enjoying my life as it’s happening.
Which brings me to this idea I’ve been thinking about:
A Case for Stagnant Girl Summer
Not boring in a sad way. Boring in a romanticized, dreamy, peaceful way. The kind of boring that feels like a deep exhale.
Here’s what Stagnant Girl Summer could look like:
This summer, what if we didn’t try to pack it all in? What if we didn’t treat rest as a reward, but as a way of life? What if we romanticized the boring stuff on purpose?
Here’s what that could look like:
Making iced coffee in a glass that makes you feel hot and European
Reading a book outside and pretending you’re in a Nancy Meyers film
Lighting a candle at 2pm just because you’re in your cozycore era
Saying “no thanks” to plans you’d normally say yes to out of guilt
Listening to French Pop while you cook dinner
Watching a movie you’ve seen 20 times, because that’s self care
Going for walks without podcasts because silence is underrated
Leaving your phone in another room while you read a chapter of something just for fun
Buying flowers from the grocery store and arranging them like you’re a florist in a French movie
Watching a nostalgic rom-com on a Thursday night with popcorn and no guilt
Doing a skincare routine slowly, like you’re the main character in a commercial
Sitting on your front steps or balcony like it’s your own tiny summer retreat
Friendly reminder that a paid subscription costs less than a latte once a month. If this weekly column brings you joy, I appreciate you supporting my work.
So if you don’t want to get on a plane this summer, don’t.
If you’re more excited about upgrading your everyday than booking a ticket, you’re not broken. You’re building something. Something sustainable. Something sacred.
You’re not missing out. You’re just tuning in. You’re craving routine instead of adventure, you’re not missing out.
“Boring” isn’t bad. Boring can be beautiful.
You might just be exactly where you’re supposed to be.
📰 In case you missed it…
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“I’m not stuck, I’m simmering.” - new mantra for when I’m feeling stuck in life, which is all the time lately!
Love the mail a letter with the stamp!
I really love protecting my quiet time and may is looking crazy, sighhh