Hello, Reader.

Today is the first Wednesday in October, and that means it is Random Acts of Poetry Day!

Since I’ve always enjoyed poetry (both writing and reading it), that’s one of October’s obscure and quirky holidays I can really get behind! And in honor of the occasion, I’m making poems and poets the theme of this week's link list.

Roses are red. Violets are blue. I love poetry. How about you?

Free resources for you this week:

• ​Poems and Poets Trivia Test - can you match these poets' names to lines from their poems?
• ​Just Open a Book Poem - this is a poem I wrote myself about the joys of reading
• ​Teaching Poetry to Children - my favorite methods of instilling a love for poetry in my kids
• ​50 Hymns to Gladden Your Heart - hymns are a wonderful source of inspiring poetry!
• ​A Personal Anthology - a few original and collected poems (inspiration for writing your own?)

What I'm reading this week:

My husband, daughter, and I just finished listening to Theo of Golden on Audible while driving back and forth to out-of-town volleyball tournaments this week. We thoroughly enjoyed it. My husband texted a message to our family group chat saying as much when we were just three hours in, noting that we'd been shedding tears all the way to College Station over the touching storyline. To which my mother quipped, "I'll have to remember the name of that book, in case I ever want to cry for three hours." But the tale was delightful and inspiring. Theo's lavish generosity and kind thoughtfulness impacted so many lives in the small town he moved to in his retirement.

On the podcast this week:

I didn't publish a new episode this week, so here's a link to another from the archives:

Loving Life at Home: Episode 73 ​HOW TO GET KIDS TO STOP FIGHTING​ Are sibling squabbles driving you crazy? Do you crave a respite from all your kids’ bickering? Then listen in today as I answer another reader’s question: “How can I get my kids to stop fighting?” Listen Now

Progress on last week's goals:

I finished exactly half of the items on last week's to-do list: I ✅ completed clerk training, ✅ attended Grandparents' Lunch with my grandson, ✅ uploaded audiobook version of Glad Tidings to Amazon, ✅ attended yet another volleyball tournament, and ✅ took my youngest thrifting while we were in Dallas.

I did NOT ❌ finish stitching my leaf garland, ❌ finish the rough draft of my Christmas letter, ❌ clean out gift cabinet, ❌ organize gift bags or ❌ inventory Christmas gifts.... so I'm bumping all those activities to this week.

Personal goals for this week:

• finish leaf garland
• outline 2026 Christmas letter
• clean out gift cabinet
• organize gift bags
• inventory already-purchased Christmas gifts
• record a new podcast
• post another Timberdoodle review
• admire pumpkins & mums at the Dallas Arboretum
• attend a wedding reception for my nephew & his bride
• attend a baby shower for my daughter

If you enjoy this newsletter and would like to support my work, there are five ways for you to do that:

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5. Buy & review one of my books 📚

Thanks so much for all your help! I'll be back next week with more links, reviews, and resources. If you have any special requests, hit reply and let me know. 😊