July is when we find out which products actually earn their place. Here’s everything we’re reaching for when the heat is real and we’re determined to be outside anyway — plus a few things making the indoor hours better too. July in St. Louis is not subtle. The heat index hits triple digits before noon, … Read more
Almost every morning — or evening, or somewhere in between — there’s a version of the same conversation. Maybe I skip the walk today and just have coffee. Maybe I work on the project tomorrow instead. Maybe we stay home tonight because it’s been a long week. Maybe the dishes can wait. Tomorrow will be … Read more
This month we built a retaining wall. We were both really busy with work. There were dinners with friends, a cardinals game, walks with the dogs, rounds of mini golf, a movie with Tom and Sam, coffee outside before the day started, and a brunch we almost talked ourselves out of. There were nights I … Read more
Looking back, June felt like a month of surviving the day without putting life completely on hold. Work was busy. We built a retaining wall and the garden bed behind it. There were days I came home from work, ate dinner, and went straight to bed. But somewhere in the middle of all that, we … Read more
What surprised me most is that we’re both working on the same module, but almost opposite problems. Tom used to run until he was wiped out. He’d push hard enough that the next couple of days became recovery days. Lately he’s been learning to back off a little, add strength training, and leave enough in … Read more
Becca and I were friends in high school in Michigan. We both got married not long after, still in Michigan, just in different places, and we kept in touch through those years. Losing Touch With an Old Friend Then life changed. I got divorced, met Tom not long after, and moved to Abilene, Texas. While … Read more
Here’s what I’m reading right now — four books worth picking up in June 2026, even though they don’t have much in common except that they’ve all been sitting nearby lately, and I’ve found myself thinking about each one long after I put it down. Some months the books on my nightstand all seem to … Read more
Six weeks ago, Tom and I started working through the Framework. Most days, we sit down and answer three prompts. Ten or fifteen minutes. Sometimes less. At this point, it’s simply part of the week. We usually do it together. Compare notes. Talk about whatever comes up. Sometimes the conversation lasts a few minutes. Sometimes … Read more
I’m building a retaining wall this summer, and I already know I won’t stop until it’s finished. Almost a hundred pavers. Six at a time on a dolly from the garage to the backyard, then one at a time through the gate to the patio. Enough trips that I stopped counting. Some of that happened … Read more
Five weeks in. We’ve been working through a simple idea: decide what matters, put it on the calendar, and protect it. Simple doesn’t mean easy. Because eventually life pushes back. And that’s when you find out whether your calendar is a plan or a priority. The Difference Between Planning and Protecting Most of us are … Read more