February's recap and final FIGS

How did the month go so fast? I need to remind myself that this February EVERY year, because I have a feeling that every year its like this, and every year I'm somehow surprised. Its the start of the school year, its gearing up at work after the slower summer, its only 28 days long!

At work I had A LOT of meetings on the calendar. It seemed like every team, committee, and seminar organisers had picked February for their first event of the year (of course, because no one schedules anything from mid-December to end of Jan in Australia - HA). This meant there was very few business hours available to actual do deep work, like writing papers or grants. So then I had some early mornings doing work at 5am to actually get some key tasks done, which I didn't love. I was despairing about how I'd never have time to work on any of my big research goals this year, when I looked ahead to March and realised it looks - much more clear! There are some meetings, seminars and other events, but there are also big stretches of open time which I will jealously guard for deep work! Hooray!

Of course, the kids also started their school year this month. Its all started really well, but a lot of mental energy and effort is required to support kids through that new stage. Its also been a month with kids getting awards at two different events (during the school day), a "meet the teachers" event, and school photos. Which all took extra attendance and/or organisation. Plus, in our personal lives, O and I both had specialist appointments, I got a new phone as my old one became non-functional, I got my car fixed (yay!), which involved dropping it off and picking it up, driving a rental car in the meantime, talking to insurance etc. And as previously mentioned, I was also meeting a deadline related to my novel writing.

So... it was ALOT. There were definitely times in the month when it felt a bit too much. I felt frustrated that work deadlines and kid needs seemed to conflict, that early morning hours were taken up meeting grant deadlines instead of blissfully writing fiction. At one point, E said to me "Why are you always working?" Which is not remotely true, but it did strike me how nice it would be to do school pick up, and then NOT have to rush the kids home in order to get back online for a work meeting. But as Laura Vanderkam often notes, one single hectic, bad day (or frantic month) does not mean that your whole life has to be re-thought! Some months are just like February.

February was also full of FIGS (acts of Finding joy In Gratitude, thanks to Elisabeth for organizing this exercise). I didn't consistently record these, but I did notice the good things more often and stop to feel grateful, which was a needed mood booster. So here are a few highlights:

1. O had a great first training session at soccer! It took a while to find an activity that E really loves, and O had expressed some hesitation about trying a new activity, so we were not sure if he'd like it. But he tried his first training session this week, and he absolutely loved it! Hooray.

2. Al is organising everything soccer related for O. He is very excited to be the soccer Dad, and I am very grateful this is not something I need to know anything about, other than the times of the games for my schedule.

3. Still on O, he has settled into school so well. He got a (little weekly) award last week for "amazing number work", and seeing him take joy in learning his numbers and letters gives me joy too.

   

   O’s favourite TV show

4. That E and O are absolute besties at the moment, both at school and home. A teacher came up to Al the other day and said "the relationship between your kids is the cutest thing about this school." Awwww.

5. That our block is a long and skinny acre, with rainforest gardens and a creek out of sight of the house. This means that the kids can get the experience of playing unsupervised (the call the game "Wild Kids"), but are still on our property. I just call out "Cooo-eeee" every so often, and they call back, to check all is OK. The come back muddy and tired, and its just what I hoped their childhood would be like.

6. Beautiful flowers and lake views on my lunchtime work walk.

   

   
   

7. Swimming pools at both our parents houses, and sunny weather to go with them. I was lying in my parents pool last weekend, the kids were inside playing with Mum, Al was helping Dad with a home project, and I had a few moments to float on my back and watch a dragonfly dart back and forth over the water. So relaxing.

   
   

8. Rain! Much as I love the sunshine, it has been a hot, dry summer, and all the plants were looking a bit wilted. This week we got a heavy band of rain come through, and its nice to enjoy some cooler temps and see the earth get a good soaking.

9. Excellent battery life on my new phone (an iphone 16e - a recent model but without all the extra bells and whistles I don't need). I didn't realise how much mental energy was taken up monitoring the failing battery daily in my old phone, until I got my new phone and it wasn't an issue anymore. Long may it last.

10. My 5 year journal. I've been writing more consistently in it in 2026, and its already fun to look back at what I was doing at this time last year - I only started it in 2025. Imagine in another 3 years how extra fun it will be. I try to put quotes from the kids in there regularly, as they are particularly fun to look back on.

11. Kangaroos at my work campus. Always a joy to see.

    

    
    

Anyone else have a busy February? Any FIGs to share?