Outside:  we're finally turning the page on all this triple digit weather and I couldn't be happier. While summer does bring about a feeling of freedom that you don't experience at any other time, I also find the season stifling. I'm ready for fall. My favorite. I've already started sorting through my sweaters and trying to decide what else - if anything - I need for the upcoming season.

Inside:  I'm filling all the spaces with books and words and love and memories.

Hoping:   that people will continue to read my novella and find even an ounce of comfort in it, be intrigued by it, or simply enjoy it. As Ksenia Anske said, "Are you willing to strip in public? Are you willing to show all that you are and were and will be? Because your books are your guts on paper, nothing more." I know what she means.

Wanting:   more time. To do it all. To read and write and play with my son and relax with my husband. I'm busier than I can ever remember being and it is beginning to weigh on me. I don't fall asleep as quickly as I used to and I wake with a swarm of thoughts in my head that won't leave me alone until I climb out of bed in the darkness.

Eating:   so little. With the business and stress comes a decreased appetite. It always happens.

Listening:   to Elizabeth Gilbert's new podcast, Magic Lessons, which continues to fill up my tank with each and every episode. It's well worth a listen.

Remembering:   the sense of calm that washed over me as I got off the plane in Nashville last week. Surrounded by greenery and music and newness... I felt more alive than I had in months.

Writing:   Fixing Tanner, the sequel to Finding Lily. This one has been moving slower, taking its time. But I'm feeling okay about that as I can already feel myself growing and learning as a writer. Finding Lily was my baby, but this one... this book has my heart.