I drafted this post late in September, a few days before Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina. Under what I was looking forward to I had listed our annual fall mountains trip, which was scheduled for Lake Lure. “These trips have been some of the sweetest times together each year for our family,” I wrote. As best we can tell, the town of Chimney Rock, where we planned to stay, is almost completely washed away. The Flower Bridge, which we planned to visit, is washed away. The Lake Lure Dam has so far held, but only just so. Hundreds of roads are closed. We will not be traveling to WNC in a few weeks, and we are devastated by the loss of life, property, and beautiful landmarks in our beloved mountains. This week has been a flurry of Spirit-empowered prayer, text messages between friends, Venmos sent to friends of friends, notes compared, networks activated, giving opportunities shared, diapers and water and socks and trash bags loaded in trucks headed west. John and I have also donated to Samaritan’s Purse, whose headquarters is smack dab in the middle of the disaster, and the Red Cross. We will continue to pray and give, to gather and send. And we will continue to earnestly tend to the small details of our lives, loving our people by what we say and what we do. May all my NC neighbors have that opportunity again soon. On my calendar:— Seeing the Lazy Genius at Quail Ridge! A quorum of Articles Club will be in attendance for her book launch and we are excited.— The NC State Fair! I promised the big kids we could ride on the giant swings this year :)— Lara and Ari’s vow renewal! Grateful to get to celebrate their love with friends

Transferring to your collegeAlways installing the car seatsServing as your human alarm clockFolding tiny pairs of underwear just soReading an essay he wants to share with you as you both lie in bed and not minding when you fall asleep halfway throughGoing to small group, pressing into friendshipDriving the old car The middle-of-the-night parent, the patient parent, the fun parent Hearing “my wife” across the room, a thrill stillResearching the candidatesFalling asleep with the light onandGrumbling about how you stay up too late to read Making every hard decision less scaryNever ever giving you a reason to doubtAlways reaching for you, always beside you An unending conversation with my best friendWho we were and who we areThe most fun we’ve ever hadSo simple, so grand. In honor of our 12th anniversary, inspired by Jen

Those who’ve been with me awhile likely remember one of our favorite family traditions: bringing apple cider scones to the kids’ teachers on the first day of fall (or thereabouts). It’s a tradition that dates from June’s first year of life, when I made and packaged pairs of buttery, cinnamon-flecked treats for her daycare teachers. As the kids and I tallied up our list of teachers to bake for this week, I realized that I’ll likely be tripling my recipe this year: there are three kids in the mix now, of course, and June loves to deliver this treat to each of her past elementary school teachers in addition to her current one. I’m not mad about it. Our teachers deserve to be celebrated, and so does the first day of fall :) Over the years, many of you have joined me in this tradition. I’ve always pointed those who wanted in on the fun to Jenny Steffen Hobick’s website, where I first found the recipe many years ago. Since it no longer seems to be active on her site, I thought I’d share it here for those who are curious. Whether you make it for your teachers or yourself, enjoy! And happy (early) fall. Apple Cider Scones 1 cup of apple cider 2 cups plus 1/4 cup all-purpose flour1/4 cup sugar1 tablespoon baking powder1/2 teaspoon sea salt12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter2 eggs, lightly beaten1/4 cup cold heavy cream1/4 cup of apple cider reduction1 teaspoon of vanilla1 teaspoon of cinnamon1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg 1/4 cup of apple cider reduction2 tablespoons of butter1 cup confectioners’ sugar Reduce the apple cider in advance so it can cool. Pour the cider in a saucepan and simmer on medium until it reduces by half, to an almost maple-syrup consistency. It should take about

Today’s post is just the tiniest hack, but one that’s made a big difference over the years in making the most of my clothing budget. Here it is: at several points in the year, I’ll review my purchases and consider whether they were money well spent — or not. To back up a bit: like everyone, I don’t want to waste money on clothing. I want to feel great about what I buy, whether it’s a steal-of-a-deal thrift find or a highly-anticipated splurge. I don’t want new purchases to sit in the closet, gathering dust, either because of the material, the style, how they fit, or how they sit on my body. I want to love what’s in my closet and feel good about any money I’ve spent! But, also like everyone else, I don’t always get it right. Sometimes I think I’ll wear something, but it never ends up being what I reach for — maybe the style feels impractical, the material isn’t comfortable, or I just don’t have the right place to wear it. Occasionally, I’ll get suckered in by a sale price. Occasionally, I’ll make a bet on a final sale piece that doesn’t pay off. For me, pausing every so often to review my purchases helps me make better decisions in the future. My process is simple: around the turn of fall (late enough in the year that earlier purchases have had a chance to settle!), I’ll open up our budget doc and click to the clothing budget tab. There, I can see every purchase I’ve made this year, laid out plainly in front of me. (If you don’t keep as detailed a budget as ours, this might be a little trickier — but you could still do a similar audit in your closet! Physically pull