As the summer starts to wind down (where did it go?), I’m here to share my August 2026 things with you.
I hope my list of August 2026 things gives you a tip, product recommendation, or maybe a recipe you want to try. You’ll at least get a peek into my crazy life, which might make you feel better about yourself.
August 2026 Things
Food & beverage
I’m not one to fix something when it’s not broken, so I’m going to start off my August 2026 things with the food we’ve been enjoying (and not enjoying) over the month. I have more to share this month in the food & beverage category than I usually do, so get excited, foodies!
Old Standby – Honey mustard chicken
It’s still a bit of a struggle around here to get my kids to eat chicken without a fight. I really can’t explain why my kids resist eating chicken so much (unless we are talking about chicken nuggets, of course), but they do. Chicken is an essential weeknight protein source, though, so my crusade to get them to willingly eat chicken continues. The best chicken recipe I have to help me is hands down honey mustard chicken. They eat it without complaint, so I make it without complaint. If you have chicken-reluctant kids, give this recipe a try!
Favorite New Recipe – Cottage cheese pasta
If you read my last post here on Sara in Season, you’ll know that we are big into cottage cheese around here. I’m always trying new cottage cheese recipes because I know they’ll usually get eaten. The latest recipes we have tried that use cottage cheese were both cottage cheese pasta recipes that were true winners. One relies on a tomato-based sauce and the other relies on a pesto-based sauce. Both were delicious, so pick your poison!
Biggest Food Fail – Creamy garlic corn chicken
You guys, I really love the blog Half Baked Harvest. Her recipes are elevated, but totally doable. Unfortunately, my kids aren’t as impressed. It seems like many of the food fails that I share in these monthly roundup posts come from Half Baked Harvest. I know she has no idea who I am, but I really don’t want her to get offended by this. She’s got a fan in me, and I’ll keep trying with my kids. The latest recipe of hers that I tried and loved, but my kids refused to eat was creamy garlic corn chicken with cheesy polenta. If you don’t have young kids or your kids have better palates than mine do, I’m sure you’ll love it. If you have young kids who are brutes like mine, skip it.
Beverage – Porch beers
After a solid two months, my new back porch is finished! Hooray! It’s so great. I want to spend as much time as possible out there. So far, my favorite time spent out there is when my husband and I take a beer out by the fire pit after the kids go to bed. It doesn’t matter what beer it is, it just tastes better on the new porch.
Dessert – S’mores
My kids were so excited about the new porch for one reason: s’mores. They are absolutely loving making them around the fire pit whenever I let them. Mom doesn’t love the mess, but she’s dealing with it.
Books
I have positive book news to share this month! After my July 2026 things didn’t include a single book, I was worried about what my August 2026 things had in store. Luckily, I’m full of book things to report.
Best Physical Book – Just for the Summer
If you’re in a reading slump, find an Abby Jimenez book. Reading one will surely get you back on track! This month, I turned to a recent one, Just for the Summer, and it straightened me right out. The concept of this one is cute – a man and a woman who both suffer from the same curse (everyone they date goes on to find their soul mate immediately after) meet to break the curse for one another. You know how it ends. It’s your classic, fun rom com, but it has a depth to it that makes it feel real.
Not My Favorite Book – The Nightingale
I don’t get the Kristin Hannah hype, guys. The premise of The Nightingale has my name written all over it. It’s a historical fiction novel about how women contributed to WWII, but I just couldn’t connect to it. Like many of Kristin Hannah’s books, it features sisters who don’t get along, and I just don’t understand why this has to be the focal point of the book. Maybe this is just my trauma talking, but I would have enjoyed the story much more without the whole feuding sisters thing.
Best Audiobook – Strangers
Belle Burden’s memoir, Strangers, has had a lot of hype this year. I totally understand why. It’s a powerful story of the end of a marriage that is heartbreaking and beautiful all at the same time. You can’t help but connect with Belle while you read.
Audiobook I Finally Finished – Mark Twain
Y’all, I don’t know why I decided to listen to Ron Chernow’s biography of Mark Twain. It took me three separate Libby sessions to finish this 45-hour behemoth, but I finally did it! Do I recommend you spend three months listening to it? No, no I do not. Unless of course you’re totally obsessed with Mark Twain.
TV
Just one TV thing to report this month. If I can get caught up on blog stuff this month, I hope to have more to report next month.
Sweet Magnolias
I started watching Sweet Magnolias when I was on maternity leave with my second baby. She’s four now, so I’ve been invested for a while. My ride with Sweet Magnolias has been a bit of a roller coaster. I’ve really liked some seasons and really disliked others. This month, I finished watching Season 5 of Sweet Magnolias and I’m happy to report that it was a season I liked. Season 4 was my low point, so I’m glad to see that they righted the ship. It remains to be seen if they will get a chance to improve upon it even more – a Season 6 has not yet been announced.
Clothing
This month has been characterized by heat and rain, so my clothes weren’t really anything to write home about. Basically, I want to warn you that I’m reaching a bit with my clothing-related August 2026 things.
Bra
I was having a conversation with my mother the other day about bras. Yes, these are the things that a 70-something mother and an almost 40 daughter discuss. Mom was looking for a recommendation for a new bra, and I immediately answered with my favorite Warner’s No Side Effects bra. It is lightly lined, has no pesky underwire, and keeps everything lifted and separated. I go for the version with lift because the shape of my breasts is weird, but if you have normal boobs, go with the regular version.
Short sleeve cardigan
So, I haven’t worn the next clothing item I was excited about in August yet because it was just too hot. But with September (and cooler weather) on the horizon, I wanted to share it with you. I bought this Free Assembly short sleeve cardigan this month, and I think it will be the perfect transition piece for late summer/early Fall. It’s 100% cotton, so cute, and on major sale. Run!
Jack Rodgers sandals
I bought a pair of gold original Jack Rodgers sandals a decade ago for some wedding-related outfits. They are the perfect summer (or year-round if you live in Florida) shoe when you aren’t really sure what shoe to wear. I don’t wear them super often, but I’ve actually worn them twice this month. Even after 10 years of sporadic wear, they still look brand new. These are spendy, but they will last!
Products
I have a weird range of products in my sort of miscellaneous August 2026 things category. Buckle up – it’s going to be a wild ride!
Rakuten
I had apparently been living under a rock because until very recently, I had never heard of Rakuten. If you dwell under that same rock, let me explain. Rakuten is a shopping platform that routes you to partner stores for online shopping. It receives a commission, and then shares part of that commission with you. Many stores give you 1% cash back on your purchase, but other stores give you much higher percentages. If you have an Amex credit card or a Bilt credit card, you can opt for credit card points instead of cash back. Now, Rakuten isn’t going to make anyone rich, but I’ve had fun playing the cash back game for purchases I was already going to make.
Interested in earning cash back or extra credit card points? You can use my Rakuten referral link for $50 cash back after you spend $50 through the Rakuten portal. Easy money!
Polywood
Once we got our new porch finished, we needed to furnish it so we could use it. We did a ton of research and decided to outfit the whole thing with Polywood outdoor furniture. It looks great, it’s high quality, and it’s indestructible (very important when kids and dogs are involved). It’s an investment, but I highly recommend it if you’re in the market for patio furniture.
Poop scoop
I told you this section was going to be a wild ride. Yes, I’m talking about a poop scoop. Why? Because this poop scoop has let me hand over the poop scooping duties to my 6-year-old. He’s much more on board with using this poop shovel to clear the yard than with picking it up with a bag. It’s the little things, y’all.
Experiences
August felt like it went by in the blink of an eye and also lasted forever. Those of you who experienced no camp week know exactly what I’m talking about. Anyway, here are a few notable experiences worth talking about as part of my August 2026 things.
1st grade
My oldest started 1st grade this month! In our district, that means his first year of full day school. We were dealing with lots of nerves, but 1st grade got off to a good start. Here’s hoping that continues!
Get-togethers
We were blessed to be able to spend quite a bit of time hanging out with families we love this month. There were pool trips, dinners out, casual hangs at home, ice cream sundae parties, and more! It’s awesome when your friends’ kids and your kids get along and when you get along with your kids’ friends’ parents!
No camp week
There is a huge money-making opportunity to any enterprising individual out there: day camp the week before school. Currently, no full-day camps operate that week and it is a struggle. Most of the people I know barely made it through that week trying to work and entertain a kid or several simultaneously. Thankfully, our local library saved the day a few times. They had a calendar packed with activities that week. Everything from bingo to art to yard games was happening at the library. Even though it only occupied an hour or so of the day, it was sometimes enough to get us through. Thank you, library!
Kid stuff
If you don’t have kids, feel free to skip my kid-related August 2026 things. But if you do, read on for some gems!
Fruit by the Foot
My kids’ newest obsession is bringing back all the 1990s nostalgia. They have recently discovered Fruit by the Foot and it’s taking me right back to 1995. Now, if only they learn to put the paper in the trash can instead of dropping it on the floor….
Pickleball paddles
This summer has been defined by pickleball. My kids want to hit a pickleball back and forth all the time. If we are home and it’s not raining, we are playing pickleball in the driveway. Pickleball paddles can be expensive, though, so if you’re playing with kids, I highly recommend finding some that are not quite professional grade. We got our set from Five Below and it has worked well for us.
Captain Underpants books
My son is what some may call a reluctant reader. He can read and does a good job when he’s forced to read, but he won’t ever choose to read. That means I have to work hard to find books that he’s actually interested in enough to focus when he’s reading. It also means that he’s reading books that wouldn’t be my first choice for him. He reads a lot of sports books and a lot of graphic novels. His favorite series lately is the Captain Underpants series. I sort of hate them, but my son is excited to read them, so I don’t fight it.
Blog posts
To round out this August 2026 things post, I’d love to share the most popular blog posts on Sara in Season this month. If you missed any, I’m leaving links below for easy clicking!
What were your favorite August 2026 things? Share down below or over on Instagram @sarainseason!