It has been the most lovely September. For the first time in a handful of years, we’ve had actual fall weather this month! No hellish 100+ days. I’m so grateful. I don’t care if loving autumn makes me “basic” — I unashamedly I adore the weather, the seasonal foods, the temperatures, the traditions — all of it.

In exciting job news: Jake has officially accepted a position with EverBlue Partners — a company that focuses on SAP implementation for retail clients. His first day will be on September 22nd. He’s very excited — he loves the company and its culture, and it truly is an answer to so many prayers.

I’ve still been doing a lot of writing, taking advantage of the time we have until Jake begins his new job. The picture above is the September issue of HERLIFE Magazine, taken at my favorite local coffee shop House of Coffees (where I drafted most of my work!). I contributed five articles to this one, including a community spotlight. You can read it here — I loved interviewing these people, and it was an honor to tell their stories.

Michael and Beatrice continue to be the lights of our lives. They’re hilarious, spunky, kind hearted, silly, intelligent, and curious — and we love them so much.

Michael has had some pretty fun quotes recently:

One morning, after Bea had been awake and screaming since 4 am, Michael popped up in our bedroom and said in a serious voice: “I’m afraid it’s morning time.”

Jake: “Finish your water and we will get you more orange juice.”

Michael: “It’s a deal!” 

Michael: “Mom, can you get me a French horn from the instrument store?”

Michael: “I have a surprise for you! When we’re done eating our oatmeal, we’re going to go to the park! You, me, and Bea”

Michael’s new obsession is VeggieTales. He goes around singing Silly Songs at the top of his lungs. Current favorite is “God is Bigger than the Boogyman”.

Beatrice is continuing to grow in leaps and bounds. She is talking a lot more, and loves running in circles with her brother around the kitchen island . She adores PeekABoo (“BEEBOOO!”) and reading any Sandra Boynton book, though “Moo Baa LaLaLa” is a favorite, just like her brother at her age. She’s fully eschewed all naps and has continued to fight all attempts at night weaning (though day weaning was successful about a month ago).

She’s also a picky eater — but not about the food/drink themselves. She will happily eat sushi/dried seaweed with me, spicy foods, and more. However, she refuses to eat or drink unless it’s on her own terms. Preferably, she will take from anyone else’s plate/cup other than hers. Trying to feed her anything from her own plate? Good luck. We’ve currently resorted to interesting plating techniques (such as snacks served in a muffin tin) and identical cups between Michael and Bea. Michael is a very patient big brother and generously shares his plates and snacks.

We’ve been doing “school” approximately 2-3 days a week, focusing on numbers, recitation, and motor skill development. I picked up a board game from my childhood at the thrift store: Hi Ho Cherry-O. It’s a perfect beginner counting game, and it’s become Michael’s new favorite. He asks to play it at least twice a day, if not more. I’m hoping to start doing 3-4 days a week once Jake has settled into his job.

We’re still floating in a bit of an interim time as we wait for Jake’s start date. In preparation for Jake returning to work, my main focus has been on writing, and Jake has been so supportive while I work. One morning, the kids joined me before a writing session at the coffee shop — they loved the “Party in a Cup” (whipped cream and sprinkles).

Jake then took them to the local kid science museum while I finished up a few articles that afternoon. They had an absolute blast. He’s such an amazing father. I’m so grateful for him, and for how supportive he’s been of my writing work during this interim time.

My writing focus has been articles and columns for local publications, speculative fiction short stories, and an adult fantasy novel. I’ve got multiple stories finished or in the pipeline for upcoming issues, a handful of short stories out on submission, and I recently hit 16k words in my novel (approximately 90k to go!).

Recently, I’ve found a lot of solace and satisfaction in the act of creation — specifically slow making, projects that take months or years before they’re seen by others, like quilts. Like novels. Especially this year, with the rise of AI generated plagiarized slop and stomach-turning acts of political violence everywhere you look, I’ve needed to take a step back both from content consuming and quick content creating. I’ve needed to touch grass, quite literally.

I know it’s been an ongoing theme here throughout the years: the holy and intensely human act of subcreation is something I will never tire of discussing. The proper relationship of humans with technology, specifically social media, is yet another ongoing theme.

I don’t know if I have anything new to say about either topic. But I do encourage everyone to pray, to focus on our local communities and churches, to speak out against evil when you see it, and to continue looking for the glimmers of light that pierce through darkness.

As a very visible reminder to look for the glimmers, I recently got some star-shaped window clings. Now, in the mornings and evenings, our house dances with rainbows and light. The kids giggle and roll across the prismatic colors. And I take a deep breath, and thank God for the glimmers He so generously gives that pierce through the darkness.