As we step into a new year, it’s natural to reflect on what we’re carrying with us—and what might be ready to be released. In this episode, Autumn Akins gently explores the idea that not everything that feels nostalgic is meant to stay.

Through thoughtful reflection, Autumn invites listeners to consider how growth, motherhood, and intentional living can shift the way we view traditions, routines, and familiar choices. This conversation offers encouragement to evaluate what still aligns with your values today and to create space for what supports peace, clarity, and purpose in your current season.

Rather than focusing on drastic change, this episode emphasizes discernment—learning to recognize when something no longer fits and giving yourself permission to choose differently, without guilt.

What You’ll Hear:

• Why nostalgia can feel comforting, even when it no longer fits your life.
  
  
• How seasons of growth naturally reshape priorities and values.
  
  
• The importance of discernment when evaluating traditions and routines.
  
  
• Reflective questions to help you move into the new year with intention.
  
  
• Encouragement to honor who you are becoming, not just who you’ve been.

Key Takeaways:

• Growth Brings Change: Outgrowing something is often a sign of healthy growth.
• Alignment Matters: Familiarity doesn’t always mean it belongs in your current season.
• Discernment Creates Peace: Thoughtful evaluation helps protect your energy and values.
• You’re Allowed to Evolve: Making space for change is part of intentional living.

Reflection Prompt:

What am I holding onto simply because it’s familiar—and what might feel lighter if I allowed it to evolve?

Resources:

https://autumnakins.com/reclaim

Connect with Me:

Let’s continue the conversation! Follow me on Instagram at @whatautumndoes for more tips, encouragement, and personal reflections on motherhood.

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Next week, we’re diving into creating intentional routines that simplify life and bring more peace to your home. Don’t miss it!

The holidays are meant to be joyful, but for many moms, they feel heavy, pressured, and overwhelming. In this episode, host Autumn Akins gently invites you to release the unrealistic expectations that often come with the season and embrace a slower, simpler approach to Christmas and beyond.

Autumn speaks candidly about the invisible pressure placed on moms to make the holidays magical, memorable, and Pinterest-worthy—while still managing homes, schedules, emotions, and everything in between. She reminds listeners that our kids don’t need more traditions, more activities, or more perfection. They need our peace, our presence, and our ability to actually enjoy the season with them.

This episode offers permission to let go of traditions that feel heavy, simplify routines without guilt, and create rhythms that protect your energy. With practical systems around meal planning, gift giving, and calendar boundaries, Autumn shows how simplicity doesn’t take away from the magic—it actually makes room for it. The heart of this conversation is clear: the most meaningful memories are often found in quiet moments, not crowded calendars.

What You’ll Hear:

• The pressure moms feel to create a “magical” holiday season and why it often leads to burnout.
• How social media fuels unrealistic expectations during the holidays.
• Why kids need calm and presence more than elaborate traditions.
• Questions to ask yourself before committing to holiday traditions this season.
• Why it’s okay to pause or skip traditions that don’t fit your current season of life.
• Simple, low-effort ways Autumn creates meaningful moments at home with her family.
• Holiday systems that protect peace, including meal planning, gift boundaries, and daily rhythms.
• A powerful calendar filter: asking whether something adds peace or pressure.
• Permission to choose rest, simplicity, and presence over perfection.

Key Takeaways:

• Peace Over Perfection: Your kids don’t need curated memories—they need a calm, present mom.
• Traditions Are Optional: If a tradition brings stress instead of joy, you’re allowed to let it go.
• Simple Is Still Special: Small, repeatable moments often become the most meaningful memories.
• Boundaries Create Freedom: Guarding your calendar and energy is an act of wisdom, not selfishness.
• This Season Matters Too: You don’t have to do it all for the holidays to be meaningful.

Resources:

https://autumnakins.com/reclaim

Connect with Me:

Let’s continue the conversation! Follow me on Instagram at @whatautumndoes for more tips, encouragement, and personal reflections on motherhood.

Subscribe & Review:

Enjoyed this episode? Please subscribe and leave a review. Your feedback helps other moms discover The Motherhood Process and join our growing community.

Join Me Next Week:

Next week, we’re diving into creating intentional routines that simplify life and bring more peace to your home. Don’t miss it!

Are you constantly saying yes only to look back on your week feeling tired, overwhelmed, and resentful? In this episode, host Autumn Akins walks through a powerful, real-time lesson she is learning: the importance of saying no more often.

Autumn dives into the common reasons why moms feel compelled to overcommit—from guilt and the fear of missing out to a simple craving for connection. She shares her own pattern of "one small yes" snowballing into an overstuffed week and offers a clear reminder: "Everything that you say yes to is a no to something else, usually your energy or your rest or your peace".

This episode is a gentle but firm guide to breaking the cycle of living in "reaction mode" and starting to live intentionally. Autumn provides five practical steps for strengthening your "no muscle," including setting weekly limits, pausing before you respond, and remembering that you are the one who carries the consequence of every overcommitment. The ultimate takeaway? You don't need a packed calendar to be a good, present mom—sometimes, the holiest thing you can do for your family is simply protect your peace.

What You’ll Hear:

• Why "yes" often feels like a default for moms, driven by guilt, loneliness, or not wanting kids to miss out.
• The difference between being a "good mom" and a "tired, stretched thin mom".
• Autumn’s personal confession about how she over-fills her own week with things like quick grocery runs that turn into multi-store errands.
• The reminder that saying yes to one thing means saying no to your peace, rest, or energy.
• Why the "invisible race" to do the most is a myth with no prize for the winner.
• Book recommendations that have shaped Autumn's perspective on slowing down: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry and Essentialism.
• Signs that your "yes muscle" is overdeveloped, such as resenting plans or feeling tired before the day begins.
• How saying no more often surprisingly makes your life feel fuller, not emptier, because it creates space for presence and calm.

Key Takeaways:

• Less but Better: This motto from Essentialism applies beautifully to motherhood, resulting in better energy and connection with those who matter most.
• Protection is Power: Sometimes, the most important thing you can do for your family is simply protect your peace.
• Your Value is Not Your Productivity: Stop living as if your value is tied to what you can produce.
• The Holiday Challenge: Say no to one thing that drains you each week leading up to Christmas and watch the space it creates.

Resources:

The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Come

Essentialism by Greg McKeown

https://autumnakins.com/reclaim

Connect with Me:

Let’s continue the conversation! Follow me on Instagram at @whatautumndoes for more tips, encouragement, and personal reflections on motherhood.

Subscribe & Review:

Enjoyed this episode? Please subscribe and leave a review. Your feedback helps other moms discover The Motherhood Process and join our growing community.

Join Me Next Week:

Next week, we’re diving into creating intentional routines that simplify life and bring more peace to your home. Don’t miss it!