It’s already August. Which means September is around the corner and everyone’s brain has already jumped there. But we still have four weeks of summer, and I’m not ready to hand them over yet.
I don’t get summers off. I’m at work, and I’m also somehow playing camp counselor from my desk. There’s relief in not having the school-year machine running — but there’s a specific kind of mom guilt that shows up in July and August that nobody talks about. If you feel that too, you’re not alone.
Here’s what I love about summer, though: the time to prepare meals is actually there.
Chicken, steak, or salmon on the grill and everybody’s happy. Protein is never a problem in the summer. Overnight oats every morning, because that’s my go-to and I’m not changing it. And the real gift is those extra fifteen or twenty minutes at night — nobody has to be in bed at exactly nine o’clock, so I’m not cooking against a clock.
That doesn’t mean summer hasn’t been busy. Track meets in Boston. Maryland. Full weekends on the road.
But those meets are exactly what made me appreciate planning. I brought the dry ingredients for my overnight oats. I brought almond milk to the hotel. I found protein bowls at a local Wegmans — I love that place, I wish we had one in New York. Cut-up fruit, nuts, protein shakes. And when dinner rolled around, ladies, you know it — I just did my best.
You control what you can control, and you do your best with what you can’t. That’s the whole thing.
And I’ll say this over and over again
You told yourself you’d wait until school was over.
School is over.
Then you said you’d wait until this crazy summer settles down. And when summer ends, what happens? You’ll say you’ll wait until the school year is over.
Life will always be crazy. That’s not a season — that’s just life. So you have two options: be healthy and live a crazy life, or be unhealthy and frustrated inside that same crazy life.
Don’t be.
The part I’ll be honest about
Being surrounded by people who aren’t paying attention to what they’re eating is still a challenge, even after six years of habits. Barbecues. Parties. Someone always refilling your glass.
I let in more wine this summer than I do during the school year. And I’m okay with that.
I’m never upset about a decision I made, because I always ask myself the same question first — how am I going to feel about this tomorrow? If the answer is fine, I have the wine. If it’s not great, I don’t. A decision you’d make again isn’t a mistake. It’s a choice.
About the kids
My kids run track. They train year-round. I’m obsessed with them eating well — it’s the Italian in me — and summer is when I have the space to actually introduce them to new foods instead of just getting something on the table.
Now — September
I’m hearing the same thing over and over right now: “Grace, I’m nervous about September.”
Meals for the family. Prep for themselves. Lunches for the kids, the husband, everyone. And the math is simple: September gives you more structure and less time. The structure is good. The time squeeze is the problem.
Here’s the trap — waiting until Labor Day to figure it out. That’s the week your calendar detonates. Worst possible week to build a system from scratch.
So build it in August
August is the rehearsal. September is the performance.
Sit down this week and answer three questions: What five dinners will I rotate? What are the kids eating for lunch? What am I eating for lunch?
My fall rotation, every year:
- Meatballs — big batch, reheats all week
- Teriyaki chicken breast — cook once, use it three ways
- Roasted drumsticks — easiest hands-off dinner there is
- Homemade chicken sandwiches — my answer to takeout
- Grill pan steak — summer habits don’t have to end in September
Cook two proteins on Sunday and half the week is done. And when you build the plate: 100 grams of cooked protein, 100 grams of vegetables, 100 grams of a starch. That’s it. No decisions required.
This — right here — is exactly why I built my ebooks. Not as products. As the thing I actually pull off the shelf every August when I rebuild the rotation. Summer on the Grill for these last four weeks. FIT Kitchen and Just Lunch Bowls for September. They’re what I use.
They’re on sale this month, because now is when you want them in your hands. Not in September, when you’re already underwater.
Four weeks left. Enjoy them — and quietly get ready.
— Grace 
