For the Love of September
Celebrating one year of this newsletter!
You can view previous monthly links and recs here.
We are on the cusp of an anniversary as we wrap up September. On October 2, 2023, this newsletter (originally called Mindful Mom in the Mud) published its first essay about a flour sensory bin gone awry. This has been an adventure and I am so grateful to everyone who has shown up here each week. I can’t wait to see what this year brings. In honor of this date, here is a trip down memory lane with the most popular posts from the last year by month.
October
Flour Fiasco: I am not a calm mom
November
The Perpetual Pivoting of Parenthood
December
When Does Parenting Advice Feel Good?
January
Tired Parents Can’t Meditate on a Mountaintop
February
March
April
Now Trending: Parenting Identities
May
June
July
What Makes Summer Good Enough?
August
Mom’s Back-to-School To Do List
September
Now Trending: Oodles of Parenting Advice
And some rambling reflections
I recorded additional thoughts on the year in a mini-podcast episode for paid subscribers. Reflections include a mistake I made that necessitated a need for some self-compassion, my favorite piece(s), and some other lessons learned.
We are growing something great here and paid subscriptions help the newsletter grow. If interested in becoming a paid subscriber, you can do so by hitting the button below. And because it’s time to celebrate, paid subscriptions are currently 20% off.
Stuff to Read
Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic and What We Can Do About It* by Jennifer Brehney Wallace, was a great read to start the school year. This book has a lot to offer especially for those approaching the teenage years.
“In Never Enough, award-winning reporter Jennifer Breheny Wallace investigates the deep roots of toxic achievement culture, and finds out what we must do to fight back. Drawing on interviews with families, educators, and an original survey of nearly 6,000 parents, she exposes how the pressure to perform is not a matter of parental choice but baked in to our larger society and spurred by increasing income inequality and dwindling opportunities. As a result, children are increasingly absorbing the message that they have no value outside of their accomplishments, a message that is reinforced by the media and greater culture at large.
Through deep research and interviews with today's leading child psychologists, Wallace shows what kids need from the adults in the room is not more pressure, but to feel like they matter, and have intrinsic self-worth not contingent upon external achievements.”
Other things to read
For laughter, read this from the fabulous
on the magic of daycare.As always I love thinking about reading in all forms (mine, my kids, and so on) This post on family reading habits from
and other contributors is lovely.And oh, how looks can be deceiving from
.This a great piece on parental stress from 3 of my favorite psychologist writers
, , and .
Stuff to Listen to
This a fun listen, I love the behind-the-scenes insights.
Carla Naumburg’s books are a delight and she has a new book out for kids that overlaps with her parenting books. This interview on Psychologists Off the Clock with
is wonderful and the bonus is that you can listen to it with your kids.
This Month on A Wonderful Mess
I Have Just One Question includes contributions from
, , , , and
And One More Thing
Substack so kindly generated summer recaps—for a glimpse into my summer Substack reading habits, here you go:
Happy Anniversary, Kathryn! Do you know according to my Substack summer round up thing, you were one of my top 3 Substacks? (Of course you are!) Thank you for including me in your round-up! XO!
Happy anniversary! So, SO glad I found your wonderful newsletter. And thank you for the shout out! ❤️