September 2024 goals

A sucker for the fresh start of fall just like everyone else, I’ve been over here enjoying the rhythm of a new season as September has gotten underway. That’s the beautiful thing about seasons, isn’t it? They’re a chance to pause, reflect, collect ourselves, and move into something new – and they always seem to come at just the right time. For me, this year, that’s meant reacquainting myself with quiet workdays, incorporating Serious Working Out back into my weeks (aiming for two 30-minute strength training sessions, three rucks, and one intense Peloton ride per week), digging out the meals that work for practice nights, and cleaning out a few closets that have gotten overgrown. And a few more things, as you’ll see below…

Psst — want to come hang with me in person? I’m speaking at a Thrive Motherhood event on parenting in the digital age at the end of this month. I am already terrified, but would love to have the chance to meet you!

On my calendar:
— Our anniversary trip to Asheville! Happy 12 years to us :)
— Our annual camping trip with the Rays! We are headed to a lakeside campsite in Virginia and they are bringing their boat!
— The first day of fall! We’ll bake apple cider scones for our family and the kids’ teachers, a tradition we started eight years ago.

What I’m loving right now:
— Please go watch this short video from the beloved Tim Mackie about generosity, scarcity, and abundance. I’m a person who thinks quite a lot about generosity, but in less than three minutes Tim opened up a whole new way of thinking about God’s purposes for it – and how it affects our relationships with others – that I had never considered.
— One of you sent me this piece from The Atlantic (gift link!) about what adults lost when kids stopped playing in the street, and it delighted me twice over: once that a reader thought to send it to me, and again because the ideas presented are so necessary and important.
— Farmer’s market flowers. I splurged on the most beautiful bouquet when we visited last weekend (above!), and it’s been filling me with joy all week.

As a reminder, you can find allll the things I’ve loved over the last few years neatly organized right here!

What you’re loving right now:

This is where I highlight a few items here that have been popular in the last month with fellow readers, based on my analytics. Here’s hoping this will help you find something you’ll love!

— My beloved pop-of-brightness rain jacket (50% off right now!)
— The gauzy shirt I wear weekly (perfect for hot weather but great as a layer as it gets cooler, too)
— My raffia ballet flats, also absurdly on sale
— The white noise machine we used while on-the-go when our kids were tiny, and that we still use overnight when camping
— More bracelet kits! $9!!

Last month on The Connected Family:
— Why we love our Montessori preschool | And how anyone can incorporate Montessori principles at home.
— Everything you might want to know about our family’s first summer of sleepaway camp | Including my biggest fear
— Our back-to-school dinner tradition | Belonging with a side of “special drink”
— A day in the life of The Connected Family | The summer, workday edition with an 8-, 6-, and 3-year-old
— How to have more time together as a family | If you’ve ever wondered how we have time to do TTT, this one’s for you

What I read in August:
— The Reason for God | I wanted to read this in honor of Tim Keller, and it didn’t disappoint. Just like C.S. Lewis, it’s clear, compelling, and winsome (and, indeed, he quotes Lewis extensively!). I did wonder what different emphases he’d make if he wrote it in 2024 – it was written in 2009, and it feels like the landscape of belief and unbelief has already changed so much since then!
— The Mysterious Benedict Society | “Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?” So reads a peculiar newspaper ad, kicking off an epic secret mission undertaken by four extraordinary children. This was the one fat book June took to summer camp with her — she eagerly passed it on to me once she arrived back home, and I give it a glowing review, too.
— The Boys in the Boat | Maybe my favorite read so far this year. It’s the true story of the rag tag rowing crew that wins gold in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and though it’s non-fiction, it has the pace, sweep, drama, and characters to match any author’s imagination. I loved how Brown wove the rowers’ back stories, the current-day build to the Olympics, and the looming evil of early-stage Nazi Germany into one tight narrative. Highly, highly recommend. (I can’t wait to watch the movie, too, which is somehow supposed to be even better than the book.)

My reading list for 2024! I’m 13 / 24 so far.

Revisiting my August goals:
Finalize plans for our anniversary trip to Asheville
Complete 40 hours of deep work (I recorded 15, though I think I actually did more. With the kids home pretty much every day, it was a disjointed month of work – but one I’m very grateful for.)
Go through the kids’ clothes in advance of my two favorite consignment sales (I did go through the clothing but did not yet sort and tag!)
Book our Acadia accommodations for next summer
Reset June’s job chart for the new school year and make one for Shep
Tackle the upstairs closet (I swapped in June’s closet instead!)
Print photos for our new mantel frames
Frame June’s camp photo
Submit everyone’s passport applications (Progress! We had the kids’ photos taken and completed the applications. I’ve been monitoring our post office appointments but haven’t found one that works yet.)

As a reminder, many of these are drawn from my 2024 goals!

September goals:
— Film Sheptember
— Write my Thrive Motherhood presentation
— Read chapters 13 and 14 of Outlive
— Finish the 2015-2019 photo album (In groan-inducing news, I just looked back at last year’s September goals post and this exact item was on it – egads. So ready to move this across the finish line!)
— Print photos for our new mantel frames
— Sort and tag for the consignment sale
— Tackle the upstairs closet
— Complete our passport appointment
— Complete 40 hours of deep work

In the spirit of photo album solidarity, is there a lingering item on your goal or task list that you’re going to commit to crossing off in September? I’d love to hear!

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