Around here, the changing colors are at their loveliest, and I have my eye out for beautiful things to share with you. Because sharing and celebrating beauty is one way we see God working in our broken world. We catch glimpses of His beauty when we recognize it in others and in the good gifts He gives us every day. 

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For Home

Here’s what I’ll be making on repeat these cooler months, which means from now until, oh, about May. I get compliments on this hearty veggie and beef soup every time I serve it. It’s somehow got a little extra zing that sets it apart from most hamburger soups. Easy to double, and bonus!, dairy-free and gluten-free, so it nicely serves a crowd. Takes nearly no effort to get this going in my Dutch oven in the morning and set it to simmering all day long. Serve with a toasty rosemary loaf from Trader Joe’s, and you’re good to go!

I cannot even explain how much I love this homemade disinfectant spray, made with rubbing alcohol from my dollar store and essential oils I keep on hand. I discovered this simple recipe last year during quarantine, and it immediately became my fave. Now I find excuses to use it around the house just because I love the way it smells. It seems almost just a bonus that it also gets rid of germs in the process.

Books & Book News

I’ve discovered a quiet joy in rereading Anne of the Island, a favorite classic from years gone by. When I started reading it a week ago, I was thinking it would serve as a kind of bridge between books — the one I’d just finished and one I’d read next. But now I’m finding myself so enjoying my Anne moments that I may very well continue on to the next one (or two) in the series while I’m at it. As Caroline Parry wrote in her biography of Lucy Maud, “Montgomery’s keen sense of both beauty and justice, embodied in Anne and all her other heroines, has encouraged young people around the world.” As well as the not-so-young anymore.

I’m also reading Lysa Terkeurst’s latest devotional, Seeing Beautiful Again: 50 Devotions to Find Redemption in Every Part of Your Story. I absolutely love this book, so much so that I’m stocking up so I can gift copies to friends. Stay tuned, readers, because I’m planning a write-up soon.

In case you missed it, my recent book rec on the Terri Blackstock series, If I Run.

A friend sent me this photo of his wife finishing up Her Memory of Music (on vacation in Mexico, no less). HMOM makes a perfect choice for October, with its fall setting and suspenseful themes. Just a reminder that my October book bundle special is on offer for a few more days. I am now donating all income from all my book sales to International Justice Mission and World Vision to help vulnerable girls and women around the world. You can read more about that here.

Soul Care

“How to Cope When You’re Missing Your Big Kid So Hard It Hurts” is a heartful article for moms with someone away at college (that would be me). But it’s also good soul care regardless of season and whatever it is you’re missing right now.

“Therapy & Theology: How Do I Get Through This?” podcast series from Proverbs 31 Ministries is meant to “meet you in the middle of your hurt and give you biblical answers on how to move through it.” Envisioned by ministry leader Lysa Terkeurst as she processed her own season of devastating brokenness, she explores meaningful, biblical solutions with her personal, licensed professional Christian counselor Jim Cress, as well as Proverbs 31 Ministries director of theology Joel Muddamalle. I’ve found this to be an incredibly helpful resource as I process some of my own hurts. Topics include: What Forgiveness Is and Isn’t According to the Bible, Relational Realities with a Narcissist, Why Do I Have Trust Issues, and Setting Healthy Boundaries. Also available in video format on YouTube.

Just for Fun

And finally, had to share this fun discovery with you, these too-cute earrings from Black Cat Earrings. This rainy-day writer saw these raindrop + blossom earrings and had to have them! What makes them even more fun for me is that Emily, creator of said earrings, lives and works in Langley on Whidbey Island — which, yes, astute readers will recognize, is the same Langley in which Her Memory of Music is set. At Black Cat Earrings, no two pairs are alike because Emily handcrafts each using random small-batch beads and charms she finds in local thrift stores as well as fair-trade bead suppliers. She’s all about reducing, reusing, and recycling as much as possible. Altogether a beautiful thing!

That’s it for me for now. What good reads and beautiful things have you got going this month?

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