Articles Club is tonight, and it’s a special one — our two year anniversary! This group is always a highlight of my month. Last year I shared a bunch of the articles we read in our first year, and I thought it would be fun to do so again!

I included tips for hosting your own club in that first post, too — the only difference is that now we eat dinner together instead of snacks! In January we got to talking about lasagna, and I insisted on making my favorite recipe to share its glory with the group. After we realized it’s even MORE fun to chat over a delicious meal, we never looked back! So far, we’ve done Mexican (several times!), Greek, Indian, and American cookout :)

Here are a few of the articles we’ve read in the last year…

Mindfulness
Stop Hustling and Get Your Life Back
The Luxury of Silence
Should Schools Teach Kids to Meditate?

Money
Can Money Buy You Happiness?
4 Women with 4 Very Different Incomes Open Up About the Lives They Can Afford
Want to Be Happy? Stop Being So Cheap!
How FOMO Can Ruin Your Finances

Poverty
The Pope on Panhandling
How Utah Keeps the American Dream Alive

Work
Is There Life After Work?
How to Close the Gender Gap
Career Tips from Entrepreneurs

Aging and Dying
Why I Hope to Die at 75
How to Become a “Superager”
Before I Go

Self-Improvement
New Year, New You? Forget It
The Cost of Holding On
What Do You Like About Yourself?

Minimalism
Welcome to AirSpace
The White Wall Controversy

Just two great reads :)
The Ghost Ship That Didn’t Carry Us
When Your Child is a Psychopath

Sound like fun? We’re always happy to welcome new gals, so if you’re into eating, chatting, and reading and live in the Triangle, we’d love to meet you! And don’t think you’d be the only one — after the similar post I wrote last year, three new ladies emailed and joined our group! Just send me an email :)

For the last three or so months, we’ve brought a meal to a family with a new baby every other week. And you know what? I feel incredibly lucky to say that! That means that we have people around us we care about. It also means we have a tangible way to live out our calling to love others as we’ve been loved.

In case others of you are in the same situation, I thought I’d share a few of the go-to meals we like to bring to families in transition (new parents, yes, but also friends who are ill, grieving, or struggling in some other way!). Or, if you’re just looking for new recipes to try for yourself, that’s great, too :) I always like to put together a complete meal, so I’ve included my tips for accompaniments below, too.

If you’re looking to go above and beyond, I have two recommendations: one, take care with your packaging. Put freshly-washed blueberries in a mason jar, wrap up your brownie slices in parchment paper, tie a bow around a bottle of lemonade. A friend did this for us when June was born and I thought she’d hung the moon. Second, consider including something in addition to the main meal, like a pan of cinnamon rolls or a bag of bagels for breakfast, or cut-up veggies and dip or cheese and crackers for a quick snack. Totally not required, but a fun way to love a little extra!

Finally, don’t be feeling bad if you wish you had more people to bring a meal to. This is still a new phenomenon for me. And to be fair, because I know how much it meant to have meals brought to us as new parents, I basically chase people down on the street to ask if I can make them food, so it’s not like we have a million best friends :)

Photo by Jenny Steffens Hobick

Lasagna | This is my absolute FAVORITE lasagna recipe (it is soooo good!), and I love making it for friends in the winter. If you’re looking for something similar and also yummy but a bit easier, try this one pot lasagna recipe. Pack with a green salad, vinaigrette, and garlic bread or a baguette.

Lemon Parmesan Penne with Grilled Chicken | This is one of my personal favorite recipes, so I love to make it for friends! It’s a lighter pasta dish that’s perfect for the warmer months, and it comes together easily (if I’m delivering it on a week day, I’ll often ask John to grill the chicken the night before). Pack with sparkling lemonade and brownies.

One Pan Orzo Italiano | We got this in the HelloFresh box we tried, and loved it so much we promptly made it for friends AND for ourselves the next week! One note: I found that a full box of orzo (not the 1 1/3 cups it calls for) was the right amount to absorb the four cups of liquid. Pack with sparkling lemonade and chocolate chip cookies.

Hot Chicken Salad | While I appreciated the friends who brought us healthier food after June was born, what I really craved was comfort food (maybe because she was born in the winter!). Our dear friends brought us this Paula Deen recipe, and it was soooo bad but soooo good :) Pack with crusty ciabatta rolls, green salad, and blueberries.

Black Bean Soup with Cumin and Jalapeno | This is an easy, economical recipe that’s great for vegetarians! It’s also easy to double, which makes putting dinner for my family and another family on the table on the same night more manageable. Pack with a baguette, a green or kale salad, and chocolate chip cookies.

Award-Winning Chili | For a cozy fall or winter meal, you can’t beat chili, and this is a good one. Pack with apple cider, guacamole, and Honeycrisp apples.

Easy Chicken Pot Pie | Alongside meatloaf, chicken pot pie is one of my absolute favorite comfort foods. This recipe takes a lot of shortcuts to make the prep easier, but it’s still yummy and satisfying. Pack with sparkling lemonade, fruit salad, and brownies.

Taco Soup | Cheap, easy to make, and delicious — that’s a winner for a sharable meal! This recipe is a top performer for my family, for guests, and for new parents alike. Pack with a green salad, cornbread, and cut-up strawberries.

Lightened Up Chicken Enchiladas | A friend brought this to us when June was born, and in addition to being yummy on the first night, it was great for leftovers! Pack with sparkling lemonade, tortilla chips, and Rice Krispees treats.

Any go-to sharable recipes you’d like to tell the group about? Or favorite meals to make when friends come over to your house for dinner? (I find so many good recipes that way!)

P.S. All about meal trains and how to make the introduction of a new sibling more joyful.

I’m as ready as I’ve ever been for a new season, and my goals reflect that! In light of my imperfect home thoughts from last month, I’m focusing on making what I have more beautiful, and taking care of it well as we gather in for the colder months. When I’m not cleaning or organizing this month, I hope you’ll find me having fun with my two favorite people — and on that note, keep an eye out for a fall fun list coming to the blog soon!

What I read in September:
— You and Me Forever (I always try to read a marriage book to coincide with our anniversary, and this was a good, if unusual, one! If you’re familiar with Francis Chan, you know it’s going to be challenging and convicting, but I welcome the sharpening :))
— For the Love (Re-reading this with my neighborhood book club!)
— Nyxia (My friend’s debut novel! It was REALLY good. If you like dystopian YA, I would highly recommend it!)
— Books I’m reading throughout the year: The Power of a Praying Wife and The Lifegiving Home

Revisiting my goals for September:
Write the Word every day (I did this more days than not, and LOVED it! Such a great practice.)
Eat a fruit or veggie at every meal (Embarrassing or not, I loved this goal! I didn’t keep a great record, but it was something I thought about at every meal, and it was a great reminder!)
Make a donation to Harvey relief through our charitable giving account. (We chose to donate to UMCOR.)
Bake apple cider scones for June’s teachers on the first day of fall (Yes! Pictured above.)
Put Financial Peace University plans into motion at our church (Baby steps, but yes!)
Celebrate my parents well on our Asheville trip, as it’s sandwiched in between their 60th birthdays! (Yes! We got them Hamilton tickets (!!!), which will count for their birthday, Mother’s/Father’s Day, and Christmas gifts for the next five years, haha!)
Celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary!!! (Yes! We went to the NC Zoo on Friday, then went out to dinner at The Durham that night without June, and it was SO GREAT to have a leisurely, long dinner together, something we hadn’t done in way too long.)

October goals:
— Start my work-from-home days with Bill Hybel’s prayer journaling practice (Trying this again!)
— Have a magic eraser party all over our house (I am new to the magic eraser magic and after cleaning off just a tiny portion of our baseboards, I’m hooked! Plus, June thinks it’s realllly fun to help (she works next to me with a normal sponge! :))
— Re-color code book shelf (I tore a page out of a magazine as inspiration, and am excited to give our colorful shelf a facelift!)
— Spruce up our bedroom dresser (I was majorly inspired by the styling in Alaina’s home tour, and am hoping to style this surface a bit and add more framed photos.)
— Organize our pantry
— Host the fifth annual pumpkins and soup party in our backyard
— Come up with something fun for June’s Halloween costume!

Any Halloween costume suggestions?? Bonus points for a concept John and I can get in on, too. Here’s what we did last year :)

First, friends, thank you for all of your kind words and stories about Jack. We are doing better than we were last week, and they mean more than you know.

Not to jump immediately to another difficult part of my life (ha), but as many of you know, my transition to college was rough, to say the least. Because of this, I will always have a soft spot for college freshmen, especially in that vulnerable first semester. It’s been awhile since I’ve known someone starting college, but when one of our sweet babysitters and family friends headed off to school in August, I knew I wanted to do something for her!

Having not been a student for awhile, I put a query out on Instagram for ideas, and y’all delivered! Yesterday, I sent off a huge box to Barbara (we got a little carried away in Target!), and I wanted to share what we included as well as the rest of your suggestions…

Here’s some of what we included:
— A white pumpkin (my Mom always used to send me seasonal decor for my dorm room!)
— Healthyish snacks like Annie’s mac and cheese, Justin’s nut butter snack packs, almonds, a P3 protein box, granola bars, and a honeycrisp apple (I wrapped it in bubble wrap!!)
— Encouragement postcards for sending to friends or pinning to a bulletin board
— Sweet treats like a “perfect size” cake mix, gum, mini Belgian waffles, and gummy bears
— Hot chocolate mix and chamomile tea bags
— A sheet mask, a great Essie nail polish, and lip balm
— A pretty notebook and a Write the Word volume (I chose renewal, since college is a new beginning!)
— Fuzzy socks for padding around the dorm hallways :)
— An issue of a favorite magazine
— Two of June’s crayon masterpieces!!
— A note from us

Other great suggestions:
— Craft supplies
— A Target or Starbucks gift card
— Anything from the Dollar Spot
— Cute office supplies, like pens, post-it notes, or paper clips (apparently these highlighters are popular these days!)
— Seasonal pajamas
— Homemade baked goods
— A list of favorite podcasts for walking around campus
— A door stop
— Anything that’s good to share – helpful for making friends! :)
— A travel mug or water bottle
— Candy
— A wax warmer, since candles aren’t allowed
— Travel size hand sanitizer or lotion

Even though our box was indecently expensive to mail, picturing her opening it makes me so happy :)

What would you include, friends? Anything you remember receiving at school with particular fondness?

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