There’s a strange little pocket of time every year that doesn’t quite belong to anything.

Christmas is over. New Year’s hasn’t started yet. Pajamas are still acceptable at noon. The calendar says it’s a “normal” week, but no one’s really convinced.

I call it the in-between week (the days tucked between Christmas and New Year’s) and I’ve come to believe it’s one of the most gentle gifts of the whole season.

It’s Still Cozy (Even Without the Big Day)

The tree is still up. The lights are still glowing. There are probably still cookies in a tin somewhere, slightly stale but deeply comforting. The house smells like cinnamon and coffee and whatever leftovers you keep reheating because cooking feels like too much.

There’s no rush to perform coziness anymore. No hosting. No wrapping. No trying to make magic happen on a deadline.

It just… exists.

We linger in the soft glow of what already was. We sit on the couch a little longer. We reread books we got for Christmas instead of starting something new. We live in fleece and fuzzy socks and let the days blur together a bit.

And honestly? It’s lovely.

A Time to Slow All the Way Down

The in-between week feels like permission.

Permission to rest after all the buildup.
Permission to stop producing.
Permission to let the to-do list stay unfinished.

This is the week where the world collectively exhales.

Meals are simple as routines loosen. There’s a quiet understanding that nothing urgent should be asked of anyone right now, not even ourselves.

For families especially, this slowing down feels necessary. Kids play with their new things without interruption as conversations stretch longer around the dinner table. We notice one another again, without the pressure of an event looming on the calendar.

A Gentle Space for Looking Ahead

What makes this week especially meaningful is that it looks both directions at once.

Behind us is Christmas: memory, gratitude, reflection, Christ.
Ahead of us is a new year: hope, intention, possibility (and still Christ).

This week prompts us not to rush toward resolutions or reinvention, even though I absolutely adore New Year’s resolutions! Instead, it invites quiet wondering.

What worked this year?
What didn’t?
What do we want more of, not just to do, but to be?

Ask yourself this:

What do you want to learn this year?
What felt hard?
What do you hope for your family?

Holding Family Close Before the World Speeds Up Again

Soon enough, the decorations will come down. Schedules will tighten. The world will remember how to hurry. But for now, we’re still here in the soft middle. The in-between week belongs to us introverts, proving that quiet rest is productive in its own way.

So if you’re moving slower this week, you’re doing it right.
If you’re unsure what day it is, welcome.
If you’re holding both gratitude for what’s been and hope for what’s coming, this week is for you. This is your permission to stay cozy a little longer. The new year can wait.