This week I finally felt it. I finally felt like I was back to my regular self. I do love the holiday season with all of the hustle and bustle, the immersion in family and the overindulgence in good food, great conversation, games with the kids and special outings. But that kind of intensity is hard to sustain, so while I relish the holidays, I also appreciate returning to my regular routine.

In commercials, getting back to ahhhh is depicted as a woman in a beautiful bathtub overflowing with bubbles, soft candles flickering all around and orchestral music playing in the background. The husband and kids are out of sight, the pets aren’t scratching at the door and the whole house is presumably hers. I don’t know how many of us actually take that kind of complete ahhhh moment (although most of us might want to), because seriously, who has the time?

For me getting back to ahhhh isn’t some super specific point in time. It’s a series of moments and a gradual realization that I’m back to me, back to my regular, comforting routine. That means coming home to music. I always have music playing, and lucky me, all of my CDs are sounding better than ever on my new BOSE WAVE MUSIC SYSTEM (yes, my living room is now my new dance floor). I’m also a voracious reader. So those nights when I’m not working, I’m snuggled up in my bed with my latest gem from the library. Toni Morrison, James Lee Burke and Neil Gaiman are some of my favorites. While I don’t own a NOOKyet, it’s on my list of must-haves. And yes, after overindulging during the holidays, my body thanks me when I get back to paying attention to food and exercise. I definitely have a love/hate relationship with the gym, but there's an ahhhh moment when I get back to it after a long absence. And movies, did I mention those yet? I’m a movie fanatic, which means I go to the movies every single week (assuming there’s something I want to see). Since the start of the year, I’ve done pretty well. I’ve seen The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Sherlock Holmes, Contraband and Mission Impossible.

So music, books, exercise and movies, they all signal a getting back to normal of sorts, but it’s really the little things. It’s sleeping in my own bed. It's Bailey and Olivia waking me up in the morning. It’s the routine of preparing for work and going to work. It’s grocery shopping for my house, as opposed to shopping for 13 (which is what we do during the holidays). It’s getting my nails done in preparation for a jewelry show on Q. It’s all of these things combined.

I love the holidays because all of my energy is focused out towards other people. Coming back from the holidays presents a chance to focus on my own little fiefdom. So while putting on a CD (Bill Withers, Van Morrison or Salif Keita), taking a hot bath, slipping into my cozy robe, sipping tea and reading a book might be perfect ahhhh moments, I’m happy to take my ahhhh in little doses. My house is clean, music is playing, the laundry is finished and folded, I have fresh sheets on the bed…and all is as it should be in the Boesing household.

What are your back to ahhhh moments? I would love to hear them…

—Rachel Boesing