It’s my first official Small Squares from our new home! This means we are actually settled enough for me to have the bandwidth to look over the last 30 days and make sense of it all!. I’m pretty impressed that I can do that. If you had told me in early August that I’d be able to sit on my new living room couch and make a post about the month of September in retrospect, I would not have believed you. August was so incredibly draining/overwhelming/tiring/hard/exciting. Everything was heightened. Fires. Heat wave. Moving. Death. Online school. Just too much. And then we settled into September and a lot of those same things were still present but we were better able to handle them. September has marked the beginning of being able to sleep better, of reaching for things and knowing they are there, of routine, of new patterns and experiences. September also brought us Sophie’s birthday which I think we celebrated well. Birthdays are always hard after a move but between us and our family in Fairfield, we made it really fun and special for her. Here then is a look back at September 2020.

I got my hair done in a salon for the first time ALL year by my favorite stylist. It was divine and I can’t wait to go back in about 6 weeks. This was my all over color appointment; November brings me a whole head of highlights and I can’t wait!

This kid officially started his Senior year (what?????) in person in early September. He and Sophie have been doing online school since August 10th but are now in a hybrid model where they go to school in person two days a week and online the other three days. It’s actually a great plan and for the most part they really like it.

These top three photos were taken at 3:30 PM; this rolled in during another horrible batch of fires. It truly felt apocalyptic. The photo below was taken from our back deck at 4:00 PM; it got dark and heavy and smelly and was really eerie. Firelight freaks me out. I used to think it was a beautiful filter but no more. I hate it.

That night I pulled out all of our go bags (a must to prepare yourself for both fire season AND California earthquake living) to update them and get them ready in case we needed to flee. I slept better that night knowing if we needed to get out the bags were ready and I had a plan.

The above images speak for themselves, right?

We celebrated this gorgeous girls’ 16th birthday! She spent four days with her aunt and uncle back in Fairfield and it was just what her soul needed, then home day of her birthday.

That same weekend we were able to have home church with both the Bennions and the Clawsons and it was SO nice. So nice.

Love this girl. Her 16th was a lot of fun.

Sam and I went to our FIRST movie in a theater since late February and I was so so so excited. It was one of the most normal feeling things we have done during this whole pandemic. We went to Studio Movie Grill and ate tummy food and had our minds bent and twisted by this film and it was GREAT. All of it.

Our house finally started to feel really pull together during September.

I started weaving on my loom again because 2020 and presidential election time.

Ruth and I ran away for a few days for a rest and recharge getaway. We were mostly in Carmel by the Sea, which is my favorite place in all of California. Post to follow on that trip. We got away from the horrible smokey air and high temps, laughed a ton, ate yummy food and in general got recharged for all that lies ahead. Because 2020.

Holly and Ruth came up Auburn to spend the day and it was so wonderful. Holly is now in a wheelchair due to a terminal disease called MSA. It’s the worst and she is the best so it has been hard watching this progression over the past 2 1/2 years. The three of us were just in it from the beginning and so we take each new step in stride together with as much grace and laughter as we can. Holly is amazing. Also, I was real proud of me and Ruth that we did not kill Holly while figuring out her wheelchair. There were a few dicey moments…

I did some work for a company called America and Beyond and their beaded bags. Holy moly, these bags are so pretty.

While walking through Anthropologie (my personal mecca) I discovered that my favorite Volcano scent is also offered in a diffuser oil! We love our diffusers so I promptly purchased and now my house smells like Volcano most of the time. It’s the little things.

I discovered Taylors in Loomis, a fabulous burger and shake place. Speaking of shakes, they have over 130 flavor combinations. No joke. And their garlic fries are pretty much perfect (I am super picky about garlic fries and these are AMAZING). So between Messy’s and Taylors Loomis is really delivering on all of my food fronts.

I really love our front porch. It brings me a lot of joy.

We now know how to REALLY tire out the dog: take her on the one mile walk down our brutally steep driveway to the end of our neighborhood street and back. This is what you are left with when you come back inside the house.

We went on a Sunday excursion to China Bar, down to the American River. It is so close to our area and really beautiful. The water was clear and COLD but that did not stop either of my boys from immersing themselves completely. This is a new favorite place for our family.

Sophie did some work for a local photographer; I love how he captured her! We have lots of great shots but these are the two that she approved. Check out his work; he is really talented.

That’s about it for September! Here’s hoping we all survive to October. For real. Because 2020.

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