Why My Morning Routine Fell Apart This Summer (And the Cozy Reset Ritual That Saved Me)

~ a true tale of motherhood, mess, medicine, and mild mysticism ~

This summer, my morning routine fell apart.

It hasn’t mattered how early I wake up to sneak into my magical headquarters (the kitchen) to make some tea and read some tarot. The moment my feet hit my bedroom floor, the cat is howling like he pays rent, demanding his favorite window to be opened, the baby wakes up crying, my seven-year old screaming ‘Is it breakfast time? Can I have Lucky Charms? Do we have Lucky Charms? Can we have McDonalds?!’

This, coupled with the expected multiple night wakings for the baby has meant I’ve had very little sleep.

Running on little sleep has meant I usually end up scrambling to get everyone else’s needs met, and by the time I get that first sip of tea, it has become unintentionally icy.

The “Surprise!” Baby Effect

I’m a creature of habit, and love a good routine to organize my day, but my “Let’s just wing it” energy is at an all time high. That’s kind of what happens when a surprise baby joins the chat. A very loved baby, but a surprise baby nonetheless.

Gone are my mornings, the one with gentle card pulls, hot tea, a little yoga, maybe journaling if I was feeling ambitious.

Poof… just gone.

I found myself in survival mode, bouncing between diaper blowouts, snack demands, and the endless circus of trying to meet the wildly different needs of my two small humans.

And while I kept trying to hold onto a version of my “routine,” every attempt felt like setting intentions in a tornado.

What Actually Saved Me (Spoiler: It Wasn’t a Printable Planner)

I wish I could say developing some sort of discipline has been my saving grace. I haven’t been waking up earlier (every minute of sleep is very much needed and sacred), my daily planner has been sitting on my bookshelf, gathering dust for months.

The thing that has saved me is accepting the season I’m in.

As someone who very much enjoys planning down to the smallest of details, it almost felt unnatural, surrendering to this new way of living.

But slowly, I’m coming to realize, could anything be any more natural than letting things just be?

Take the wheel of the year, for example. It’s cyclical, shifting, guided by unseen rhythms. Some seasons are full of action. Others are full of waiting, stillness, softness. This summer? I’m deep in a season of surrender.

Danielle Barlow Arthttps://www.etsy.com/listing/701744690/a4-print-wheel-of-the-year-wiccan?ref=shop_home_feat_2&logging_key=12c89ee1125013d994de4c44f01256c840fb5ea8%3A701744690

So I stopped trying to “get back” to a morning routine that didn’t fit anymore.

Instead, I made something new. Something softer. Something cozy. Something for the new me that is emerging.

The Cozy Reset Ritual (aka The Bare Minimum That Feels Magical)

It’s simple. It’s flexible. And some mornings, it’s the only thing I manage — but that’s enough.

My Cozy Reset Ritual:

A hot(ish) drink
Tea, coffee, even warm lemon water. Something not ice cold I can sip in between pouring cereal for my big kid, and making a bottle for my baby.
A card pull — even if it’s just one
No pressure to journal. Just a check-in. A whisper from the cards. Also, having a deck in almost every room in the house means a card pull is always accessible.
Small sensory ritual
Lighting a candle, ringing a bell or just playing some baby music if that’s what is needed. Just a little sensory ritual to acknowledge I’m going from night-survival mode to day-mode.
One moment to breathe
Sometimes it’s literally five seconds while the baby gnaws on a teether and my oldest builds a fort in the living room. I breathe anyway.

That’s it.

No timers. No sunrise yoga. No elaborate rituals. Just me, accepting that this tiny pause counts.

Bonus Magic: Lexapro

While my new ritual helps me get grounded, there’s another tool that’s been just as magical.

Yes, there is magic in meditating. There is magic in a blissful 30 mins of uninterrupted yoga. There is magic in journaling.

But you know what else is magical?

✨ Lexapro ✨

Postnatal anxiety and depression is no joke.

Getting help has been a humbling, albeit necessary experience. I’m a more present parent and wife. It hasn’t been easy, but Lexapro has made sure I am enjoying all the things I love. Despite the sleep deprivation fog, I’m slowly feeling like myself again.

My mental health definitely needed a reset too, and I’m grateful I have access to mental health services to enable this.

A Final Thought from the Floor

I realize that my new cozy routine sounds pretty mundane.

But that is where we find true magic.

Sometimes the most magical thing we can do is make a cup of tea (in the hopes of actually drinking it), pull a single card to muse on, and trust that this messy, beautiful season is still sacred.

Because it is.

💛 P.S.

What does your cozy reset ritual look like these days?

Drop it in the comments — or just let me know what your morning tea of choice is. I’ll be over here sipping mine slowly (or thinking about just adding ice and calling it a day)

Wishing you all the cozy magic,
Amrita