Seasonal Whiplash: A Story in Three Acts

I blinked and it's almost Thanksgiving. Seriously – one minute we were doing back-to-school shopping, and now we're staring down the holidays. Fall just...evaporated. Also, hi! Remember me? I know it's been a couple months since you've heard from me – newsletters apparently don't write themselves when you're neck-deep in sports schedules and airport security lines. Who knew?

The kids have been crushing it at school! Elizabeth started getting homework this year and – I kid you not – she's "that" child in the class who asks for homework over the weekend. The apple doesn't fall far...And her 9th birthday was also a September highlight – turns out the whole “I want a pony for my birthday” thing doesn’t skip a generation, so her dad went all out with a horse theme for her. 

Zach's been juggling golf and lacrosse like a teeny little professional athlete (okay, maybe he’s not so little anymore, but he’s been warned he’ll always be my baby). It's also been a really profound parenting experience to watch his learning style develop at school as he gets older and works more independently.

FOR FAMILIES LIVING HALF THEIR LIFE IN THE CAR: Autio (Kevin Costner’s travel storytelling app) is a game changer. It tells short, hyper-local stories about wherever you’re driving. It weirdly turns errands into adventures. Kids are obsessed.

A couple weeks ago, I attended the Four Seasons Celebrations Summit in Mexico, and it felt like stepping into a parallel universe - one where my past life as a luxury event planner and my current life building an event-tech platform finally met each other at the bar. It was a weirdly full-circle moment - the girl who once obsessed over linens now obsesses over user flows - the planner turned platform founder. 

And on that front, we're laser-focused on the consumer side of Partytrick right now, and it feels really good to be back to our roots – helping YOU throw better parties. With hosting season pounding down the door, I best see all of you signing up.

SHAMELESS ASK MOMENT: No really, please sign up for partytrick.com. Seriously! You've been an important part of this journey for years, and the most helpful thing you can do now to support a small business is to actually USE it. Help me help you throw better parties. That's it. That's the ask!

In September, Chris and I flew to California for my college friend Sally's wedding – one of those weekends where you remember why some friendships are worth crossing the country for – even when your to do list puts up a big fight.

Since then? I've basically lived everywhere except Denver. High school football games with C and his kiddos in New York (loving the Friday Night Lights of it all), bouncing between coasts for work and fun, and somehow only being home for maybe two days. The bi-coastal thing isn’t new for me, but this fall has tested my ability to remember which closet actually contains the outfit I could have sworn I packed.

FOR THE “WHY DON’T I EVER HAVE ANYTHING TO WEAR?” PEOPLE: Stylebook is a weirdly helpful app – it lets you photograph your clothes and build an on-your-phone wardrobe so you actually know what you own…and where it might be.

"“How did it get so late so soon?" 

– Dr. Seuss