Gosh, I don’t even really know what to tell you about this month! Perhaps the most exciting thing to say is… IT’S THE MONTH MY SISTER MOVES TO NORTH CAROLINA! Yes! I never in a million years thought I’d get to type that sentence, but here we are. Kate’s husband starts a new job near Charlotte tomorrow, and the rest of the crew will be here, in their new home, before the end of the month. This will be the closest we’ve lived to immediate family since we moved South, and to say we are excited and grateful is an understatement.

Though that is by far the most exciting thing happening in October, it’s certainly not the only one. Between travels, visitors, events, and my return to work (for the biggest CWM week of the year, no less!), there’s a lot going on. I’m here for all of it :)

Exploring after Hurricane Florence

On my calendar this month:
— The NC State Fair (biscuits, goat showmanship, and giant slide, here we come!)
— The sixth annual pumpkins and soup party
— The third anniversary of Articles Club!!
— A trip to Asheville with my younger sister
— Our dear college friend’s wedding in New Hampshire – our first time flying as a family of four!

What I’m loving right now:
— I have made several batches of these power balls since Shep arrived – so delicious, especially with some of the chocolate chips subbed in for cinnamon chips!
— How big of a nerd are you if you watched the Jeopardy! All Star Games live draft? Asking for a friend :) But really, it was so fun — counting down until February!!
— This article was a great reminder of what matters most. I thought the part on beauty was particularly interesting.

What I read in September:
— Sacred Marriage: The first half of this book seemed a little more focused on troubled or difficult marriages, but I appreciated the reminder of the importance of sacrifice and service toward our spouses!
— The Book of Essie: Blew through this one in two days because I couldn’t put it down.

Revisiting my goals for September:
Start every day on my knees in a short prayer, offering my day to God (Did not do this perfectly, but the goal served its purpose and it was so good. I felt it on the days I did it and on the days I did not.)
Sort and price all clothes for my favorite consignment sale
Make an itinerary and reservations for our upcoming trip to Asheville
Bake apple cider scones for June’s teachers on the first day of fall (Sweet girl!)
Cull and edit all 2018 iPhone photos (Done!! The progress is slow but so gratifying!)
Experiment with listing a few things on Poshmark (Done! I even sold something, ha! You can shop the rest here, if you’d like!)
Do something to welcome our new neighbors (We introduced ourselves to them, so I’m counting that as a win :))

October goals:
— Prepare well for returning to work
— Frame new family photos for Shep and June’s rooms
— Host a pumpkin painting workshop, with proceeds going to Hurricane Florence relief (if you’re local and would like to come, register here!)
— Watch Won’t You Be My Neighbor? on Amazon
— Order supplies and finish Halloween costumes
— Take down June’s pelmet and replace with curtains, creating a reading corner
— Order our Christmas cards (using newborn photos!)
— Work on Shep’s baby book and update June’s
— Clean out our coat closet and donate anything we no longer need
— Organize June’s art supplies (they are a HOT MESS right now)

Question for you all: I know this might seem early, but I’m curious whether you’d like to see gift guides on the blog in November? If so, what categories/price points/recipients/etc. would be most helpful for you? Let me know what you think!

Affiliate links are used in this post!

UPDATE: Winners have been chosen! Congratulations to Madi, Rachel, Katie, Clara, Connie, Whitley, Elise, Katie, Virginia, and Ashley. All have been emailed :)

Friends, this is my Oprah moment! If you’re not going to host an amazing giveaway on your ten-year anniversary, when are you?! To celebrate each of you, I’m giving away ten prizes, keyed to ten of my favorite Em for Marvelous topics. Without further ado, here are the prizes, given in honor of our shared passion for…

Anagram Photo!

FINANCIAL FREEDOM | A year’s subscription to You Need a Budget. Though I’ve never used YNAB personally since I have my own crazy system, it comes highly recommended, I love their philosophy, and I know it will be an amazing catalyst for some lucky person.

FAITH | A complete Write the Word collection, including Write the Word for Kids (7 volumes!). Side note: right now if you buy three WTW journals, you get one free!

ADVENTURE | A $50 Airbnb gift card. Some of our most amazing experiences have been launched from the front doors of strangers’ homes – I can’t wait to see where this will take you!

KIDDOS | An Emily Ley baby book, in your choice of mint or blush. This is the memory keeper I use for both June and Shep, and unsurprisingly, it is perfect in its simplicity.

BEING GOOD TO OURSELVES | A jar of One Love Organics Skin Dew, my most beloved moisturizer.

FUN | A Scattergories set, one of my perennial favorites, with wishes for many happy game nights in your future.

MARRIAGE | A copy of The Meaning of Marriage, probably the best book on relationships I’ve read.

GOALS | A set of 2019 PowerSheets when they debut in October, in your choice of cover (!). Since I started using them, nothing has helped me make progress on my goals more.

CELEBRATIONS | A copy of How to Celebrate Everything, by far the best book I’ve read on creating traditions and cultivating a rich family life in the most doable, joyful, real-person way.

GENEROSITY | I will give $500 to the charity of your choice, in your honor, provided it is an accredited 501c3 public charity. We are blessed to be a blessing.

Very special thanks to Cultivate What Matters, One Love Organics, and Emily Ley for helping me throw this giveaway!

TO ENTER:

Since I’m just over here doing this for fun, I don’t have any hoops for you to jump through, but I am going to make you work a bit, ha! To spice things up, I’d love for you to leave a comment answering four questions as your entry:

1. The best book you’ve read recently:
2. The Hogwarts house you’d be sorted into:
3. The coolest place you’ve traveled in the United States:
4. A low- or no-cost item on your bucket list*:

*Examples from mine include hosting a chocolate chip cookie taste-off, taking June to play BINGO, setting up an ice cream sundae bar for our family just because, and hiking a Western NC bald :)

As a bonus, tell me which prize you’d most like to win! I will randomly choose and email ten winners next Thursday, October 4. Can’t wait to read your answers, and good luck!!

UPDATE: Winners have been chosen! Congratulations to Madi, Rachel, Katie, Clara, Connie, Whitley, Elise, Katie, Virginia, and Ashley. All have been emailed :)

Friends, ten years ago to the day I wrote my first ever blog post. You can still view it here, just like every other post I’ve written since — posts about weddings, mostly, at first. A heck of a lot of inspiration boards. Little bits of lovely before Pinterest came along. Funny DIYs :)

And then, here and there, a more personal post. Longer ones. A few poems, so close to my heart. A new name and site design.

A turning point. Another one. Another one.

A passion project begun. Scary posts to write and sad ones and the most joyful. So many adventures, so many anniversaries, so many goals.

Posts on this blog have changed my life. Some of you have been kind enough to write that they’ve changed yours, too.

Sneak peek of our newborn session with Graham! :)

Even aside from catapulting blog posts, a lot changes in a decade. You’ve graciously watched me become a college graduate, a North Carolinian, an editor, a first-time-apartment dweller, a fiancee, a wife, a homeowner, a person-who’s-been-to-Europe, a mama, and a mama again. And all along the way, writing this blog has not only been a place to capture those changes, but a cause of them.

Because before I was any of those things, I was a writer. Writing is the way I’ve processed, held myself accountable, and grown since I was young. Writing is a way of becoming, for me. “In the end, people don’t view their life as merely the average of all of its moments — which, after all, is mostly nothing much plus some sleep,” wrote Atul Gawande in Being Mortal. “For human beings, life is meaningful because it is a story.” Yes.

I have shared many times about the importance of the narratives we create and believe about ourselves. Writing here invites me to make meaning out of my days, to decide what I believe about the things I do and the things that happen to me, the person I was and the person I am becoming. That person matters. She shapes generations. (You, of course, do as well.)

So yes, writing this blog matters deeply to me. This is my story I’m telling, but it’s not just me. It’s mostly my parents. It’s a whole lot my high school English teacher. It’s a heaping portion of John. It’s every wise, kind, talented, thoughtful person I’ve ever come in contact with. And it’s all God.

I hope that you have found something here over the last ten years that has made your life better, and allowed you to be better for other people. I know that I am better for writing here, and for being accountable to you all. If nothing else, blogging has kept the shine in my glittering eyes, seeing magic everywhere I least expect it, and that is a marvelous way to go through life.

Finally, friends, thank you for reading. I began addressing my posts to “friends” in the beginning because it just seemed like that’s what people did. Now when I write “friends,” I picture real people who have encouraged, inspired, and challenged me, even if we’ve never met in person. You all bless me greatly. To ten more years together!

P.S. The history of this blog, and one of my favorite quotes about blogging ever.

P.P.S. I have a MASSIVE anniversary thank you giveaway to share tomorrow – you will not want to miss it!!!

I wore jeans for the first time in months yesterday, which must mean fall is on the way! (Truthfully, I jumped the gun a bit with the jeans, but that’s North Carolina in September for you.) I haven’t posted a fall fun list for a few years (my last one was in 2015, pre-kiddos!), so I thought it would be fun to share! Here’s the version we now have hanging on our fridge, ready to be checked off…

Bluegrass / State Fair (buy your tickets online before the 11th for a discount!) / Pumpkin chocolate chip muffins / Apple cider scones / Cozy Fall playlist

What are YOU looking forward to this fall?

P.S. Halloween prep is underway! June and John Shep are slated for coordinating costumes, and John and I potentially have roles to play, as well. They will be semi-DIY as in years past… any guesses as to what we are planning? :)