This June, I wrote a Summer List. But first, I read Leslie Trovato’s newlsetter, Small Affairs. I consider Leslie a church mother—her warmth emanates off the screen on Instagram, a not-very-warm place. After seeing just a couple of her posts, it took no convincing to subscribe to her Substack.

To give you an idea of how she writes, her most recent Instagram stories involved a trip to Belfast with her teenage kids where she stayed at a woman’s house who invited them after a book exchange. How precious is that? One day, I want to be like her.

When she explained what Summer Lists are and how they work, I knew immediately I would make one. I think this will be an annual tradition with their own category or tag here on the blog. I can’t wait to see how they change over the years as I do.

Without further ado, here is the inaugural Summer List à la Sarah:

So far, I’ve seen a movie in the theater, read Where the Crawdads Sing, and taken an afternoon nap (this one’s big for me — I have trouble sleeping when the sun’s out). It’s mid-July and I’m giving myself until Labor Day. We’ll see how many I check off until then. If there are any left, maybe I’ll make Fall Lists a thing.

Wherever you are, I hope your summer is beautiful. Simply beautiful.

P.s. Summer reading in fiction and non.