Welp, it looks like I took the “break” part of summer break too seriously so let’s catch up! The last few weeks of summer have been really busy for us. We worked through some house projects, like finishing and furnishing our screened-in porch, went swimming a whole bunch (although sadly we never made it to the beach), and that newborn I had a minute turned ONE! He’s still a ray of sunshine who says “HI!” to everyone he meets. Instead of the “mumma theme” Daniel offered up, we celebrated with a nautical/sailor birthday party because the guy loves water. And now we are arms-wide-open, ready to hug-tackle fall. We took a family trip to nearby Lookout Farm (we all put on our fall outfits only to realize it was about 85 in the blazing sun). Now I’m staying put, baking pumpkin-this and pumpkin-that, with a massive pot roast in the oven. How have you been?

READ

Lyme Disease Is Baffling, Even to Experts

Why Some People Become Lifelong Readers

LISTEN

The Last Days of August

In December 2017, famed adult film star August Ames died by suicide in a park in the Conejo Valley. Her death came just a day after she’d been the victim of a social media pile-on by fellow porn professionals—punishment for her tweeting out something deemed homophobic. A month later, August’s husband and pornography producer Kevin Moore connected with journalist Jon Ronson to tell the story of how cyberbullying via Twitter killed his wife. Neither of them could predict the rumors and secrets that Ronson would soon hear, revelations that hinted at a very different story—something mysterious and unexpected and terrible.

WATCH

Unbelievable (Netflix)
This limited series is eye-opening, sad, and at many points, infuriating. It’s also relevant to the world we’re living in. Based on a newspaper reporting of a series of rapes (warning: spoilers), Unbelievable tells the story of a young woman who is accused of lying about a rape and the two female detectives who investigate a string of eerily similar attacks.

FIND

You’ll have to squint, but in that photo above, I’m wearing my favorite red lipstick: (affiliate link). About two years ago I was wandering around ULTA in search of a classic red for my honeymoon, something with a cool, blue-ish undertone. I found this creamy, long-wearing dream of a lipstick with the help of a kind employee there. It’s perfect—a good balance of punchy coral and true red. It’s bold and bright but not intimidating. I’ll wear it out in the day or to a wedding (my mom and I both wore it at my cousin’s wedding a few weekends back).