The Catch Up, Vol 3 ✿
My monthly note, March (plus my first public poem!)
Welcome back to “The Catch Up”! I thought it would be fun once a month to do a post with all-the-things we would talk about over Marco Polo or coffee if we were IRL! Books I’d beg you to read, tech tips I’ve learned, show's I’ve watched, new obsessions, and something to love about the current season.
Can you believe spring is officially here, and it’s a NEW MONTH?! April is one of my favorites (hello Easter, hello birthday, hello spring!), but before we jump in, let’s take a little “Catch-Up” from March. I love compiling these, and I hope you enjoy skimming through them just as much!
This month started and ended with Saturday nights spent with our closest people, and I don’t know what could be better than that—patio hangs, pickleball, spontaneous “collab” dinners, kids running around, baseball on the TV. These are the golden days, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.
Actually, I wrote a little poem this past weekend, and I thought this would be a fun and safe place to share my poetry publicly for the first time.
The scene was a last-minute Saturday night collab dinner. No makeup, athletic wear, shoes ready to walk. Dads and kids gathered around the baseball game. Moms heating up queso, making plates, knowing—on the second try—where the silverware drawer is at your friend’s house. The kind of people you don’t get ready for, you just show up for. Show up as your full self— your messy shelves, your dirty self, your I’ve-been-playing-and-running-around-all-day-and-just-got-the-invite-and-looked-like-this self. The kids are around, a whole gaggle of them. There’s the littles, the middles, the bigs— bookended by the toddler and the teens, and somehow it all works. This is the family you created for yourself. These friends—chosen family— in the town where none of you grew up. We are building roots together. Drink in hand, sunglasses on your face, sun going down. You make about five loops around the neighborhood, because when one person needs to get the rest of her steps in, everybody needs to get the rest of their steps in. Before it’s time to gather the crew, shuffle them into showers, and get them to bed for church tomorrow, you round out the evening on the white swing, watching the kids laugh and play, sharing the deep, the dark, the good, the true, the beautifully messy parts of this life— raising kids together.
The rest of the month was full of family time—park dates, a zoo trip, cousin time, yard work, movie nights, and lots of family dinners at friends’ houses. We’ve mostly stayed close to home in 2025, but we’ve spent so much time with people we love, and nothing beats that. Of course, there are hard moments—disappointments, crying in the shower, and voice-texting friends for support—but we are in this life as a team. We have our family, and we have our chosen family, and for that, I am deeply grateful.
Now onto my favorite things from this month — grab a homemade latte or your greens, and lets get down to this months catch-up!
✿Books I Read and Loved this Month
March was an interesting reading month. I had some great reads in January and February (listen here 🎧!), but this month was so-so. I’m learning:
💡 It’s okay to stop reading a book if you’re not connecting with it.
💡 Not every book is a 5-star read, and that’s okay too.
Here's my March list 👇🏼👇🏼
✿Obsessed with ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
None!
✿L-O-V-E-D⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey - small town Southern charm book that I still think about the characters! I love KWH writing style, it’s simple yet emotional.
📚Book of Lost Names by Kristin Carmel - WW2 book like I’ve never read, based on story of “foragers” camped out in a small library
📚 The People we Keep by Allison Larkin - coming of age type story of a young girl who leaves home, and creates “family” in the places she visits.
✿Liked⭐️⭐️⭐️
📚The Lies I tell by Julie Clark- a quick mystery-thriller. It was quick, then slow, then a great ending! A good pallet cleanser.
✿Learned something / from someone 🤍
🎧Maybe you Should talk to someone by Lori Gottlieb - a memoir of sorts, about a therapist, her therapist, and her clients. It was fascinating, just about twice as long as it needed to be.
🎧 Swipe Up for More by Stephanie McNeal - I started listening this late at night when I couldn’t sleep. I’m sure I snoozed through 20% of the book at least, but it was entertaining and enlightening. All about influencers!
✿Didn’t finish 😜
📚The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus by Emma Knight - I want to like every Read with Jenna book, but some just aren’t for me. Maybe in another season I would enjoy it more.
📚Surprised by Joy by C.S. Lewis - I read a good portion of this book, but gave up when it was time to turn it back into Libby. Maybe I’ll check out again and finish one day.
✿Shows I Watched and Loved this Month
This month, I started a few shows but didn’t actually finish any of them—which, honestly, is progress for me! Normally, I just binge-watch until the end.
📺 The White Lotus (HBO) – So different from my usual picks, which intrigued me, but I haven’t finished it yet.
📺 Running Point (Netflix) – I love Kate Hudson! Started this during my solo staycation. Some language and crude humor, but funny overall.
📺 The Residence (Netflix) – Just started it, and I still don’t know how to categorize it. Drama? Mystery? Jury’s still out.
📺 Farmer Wants a Wife (FOX) – THIS is my type of show. Season 3 is tamer and more family-friendly than most dating shows. 10/10 recommend!
✿Seasonal family rhythm list
If you read my Family Binder post, you saw my Google Doc system for monthly to-dos. It’s a decide once approach (thank you, Lazy Genius!), and it helps so much with my mental load. Here’s a peek at my April list:
✅ Easter basket goodies: Swimsuits, fun activity coupons, small candy
✅ Mother’s Day: Gifts, cards, plans
✅ Find babysitters for end of school/start of summer
✅ End-of-year teacher gifts
✅ Sort & organize Google Photos
✅ Order monthly Chatbook
The Family Binder.
If you read my wrap-up post, you might have seen some new things in there you’ve never tried before. Now is a great time to set up some systems/rhythms for your year that will make looking back more effective.
✿Tech Tip
My close friends will tell you that ChatGPT is basically my whole personality now. 😂 I use it for everything.
Some ways I’ve used it lately:
💡 Writing emails
💡 Meal planning with fridge leftovers
💡 Playroom storage ideas
💡 Kindness ideas for my kids
💡 Homeschool project brainstorming
I loved Jess Connally’s podcast episode about ChatGPT—give it a listen!
✿Phone note to start
Each month, I’ll share a note idea for you to create in your phone!
This month: Start a 2025 habit/goal note and pin it at the top of your 2025 folder! It’s a great way to stay on track.
One Habit at a Time: How Monthly Habits Create Lifelong Rhythms
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit." – Aristotle
✿I’m Obsessed with…
I didn’t officially do a no-spend month, but I did a big audit of our monthly subscriptions—and wow, I was shocked. There were things I didn’t even know we were paying for (and some we were paying for twice).
Pro tip: Check your Amazon and iPhone subscriptions!
📌 Amazon: Log into your account → "Memberships & Subscriptions" → View active/canceled subscriptions.
📌 iPhone: Go to Settings → Tap your name → Subscriptions → Manage active/inactive ones.
✿Things to love about the spring season!!!
Every season has something to love! Here are my favorite things about spring:
🌿 Perfect not-hot-but-not-cold weather
🚗 Spontaneous car rides with the windows down
🏡 Working outside & making things beautiful again
🚶♀️ After-dinner walks (with daylight!)
🎉 Fun, spontaneous weekends with family & friends
🌞 Just being outside!
I loved reading this, friend! It made me smile :)
This is so happy, love your roundup!