Nick took Emily on their adventure this weekend-solo, just the two of them, exactly what they both needed. While they were gone Evelyn and I held down the fort. We went for walks. We played Legos. We napped. We ate Chinese takeout. I got a solo ass kicking at the Y. Lower body day, two days in a row, the kind that makes you walk funny and feel absolutely victorious about it \u2014 while Evelyn played with friends at ChildWatch. Ladies on the wellness journey know what I’m talking about. There is a feeling that lives specifically in a good hard workout that nothing else can replicate. It’s yours. You earned it. It hits different when you showed up for yourself to get it. We all survived the weekend and honestly? It was a complete one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I also came close, very close, to going to see Florence again. Had I just confirmed with Breanna over margaritas that she was serious about babysitting, I could have made it work. But somewhere between the ice cream stand closing at exactly the right moment and You’ve Got the Love<\/em> playing in the coffee shop the morning before the show, I made peace with not going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And here’s what I realized: the peace I found with staying home wasn’t just about waiting for better timing. It was about the possibility of going to bed when Evelyn did because it was just us and I didn’t have to be up for anyone else. I could let the dogs out, feed the cats, put her down, and get in bed myself with no other responsibilities. No timeline. No performance. No one else to show up for. That kind of freedom is its own gift and it has taken me a long time to be okay with wanting it. I love my family. But when there is a moment I don’t have to do anything, I’m learning to take it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the time comes to see Florence again it won’t be through a series of last minute logistics and half confirmed plans. It will line up. It will be calm and beautiful and exactly how it’s intended. Evelyn will be there. It will be the better version of the story. I’m holding that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now. Some updates I want to share because transparency is kind of my whole thing and I’m not about to start being cagey now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Saturday hit 3,763 visitors. Seven months ago I was writing into what felt like a very small, very quiet room and now nearly four thousand people are showing up on a Saturday. I see every single one of you and I am grateful in a way I don’t quite have words for yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Something exciting might be happening around here and I want to tell you about it before you start wondering why I’m checking my email seventeen times a day. I applied to Mediavine, an ad management company, and I’m waiting to hear back. The approval process is based on traffic analytics from Google Analytics, and they need to see consistent numbers before they’ll invest in a site. I’ll know by the end of May.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here’s the thing I need to say out loud: you showing up is what makes this possible. Every single visit, every Friday you come back, every time you share a post with someone who might need it. That’s what gets measured. That’s what gets seen. And if I get approved it will be because nearly four thousand of you showed up on a Saturday in April and proved that this little corner of the internet is worth investing in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have been going back and forth on this for a while because the last thing I want is for this space to feel like every other corner of the internet that’s trying to sell you something every three seconds. That is not what this is and it is not what I want it to become.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here’s what Mediavine would actually mean for you: the ads are curated and relevant, not the ones that follow you around the internet like that pair of shoes you looked at once in 2019. They’re designed to blend into the reading experience and not pop up in your face, not interrupt your scroll, not make you want to throw your phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here’s what it would mean for me: it means I can keep showing up for free. It means the content stays yours without a paywall. It means this little corner of the internet can keep growing into something that makes a difference to you and to my family, without asking you to pay for it. I’m not going to make a Reel about passive income and tell you to buy my course first. I’m just going to tell you the truth, which is that I’m genuinely excited about the possibility and your showing up is what makes it real.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I’m holding my breath until the end of May. That’s the honest version.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also updated the website to include a subscribe option for the weekly blog post. Another small but mighty tool to stay connected with all of you who keep showing up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n