My New Substack

Well, hello old friends!!! It’s been a while, right?!? I’m really not sure who is still here; but, regardless, I wanted my loyalest Sam & Scout community to be the first to hear about my latest writing endeavor… But first, never one to get right to the point, here’s a little background:

Almost exactly ten years ago – the day before my 30th birthday – I launched this blog. Those of you that have been here since the beginning, will remember that this was my second blog after my first – E, Myself, and I – was accidentally deleted, and I lost five years of regular writing & a well-established platform/brand. In that post, I introduced Sam & Scout and promised more internet musings about my “attempts to juggle motherhood and teaching – two roles I feel very-much called to” in the form of classroom resources and ideas, reflections on the joys and challenges of being a working mom, plus my favorite things “in-between.” For several years, I did that regularly, and I’m really proud of this space… I still receive emails almost weekly from people who stumble here from the emergency room after their little one breaks their femur, desperate teachers looking for ideas, and pregnant moms that failed their 28-week glucose test. I hope that this blog will live on for many, many years — even if I’m not actively updating it anymore!

While much has stayed the same since then (I’m still a mom and a teacher, and I’m still passionate about both), SO much has changed too. For starters, I have two kiddos now (Nora was born a year after that first post) and they are – by all accounts – big kids now. Nora is about to turn nine, and Sam will be thirteen this summer. When Sam & Scout started, I was a young mom and a young teacher. Now, I have a decade of both under my belt; and, while each new season brings its own challenges and unexpected lessons to learn, I feel differently in many ways about who I am, what I can/should share about my kids, and what I want to put out in the world. I still feel like I am a writer at my core and believe that I have words to share; but, life is busier now too. It is much easier to snap a photo and post a comment on Instagram between carpool drop-offs than it is to sit down and compose content for a blog – especially since blogs aren’t nearly as well-read/popular as they were in 2009 when I started writing on the internet.

SO… What’s next? Well, like I said above, Sam & Scout isn’t going anywhere. My archives will live here for… ever? But, next month (just in time for my 40th birthday), I’m launching something brand new – a monthly Substack newsletter! This will be where I plan to focus my writing/sharing energy moving forward…

If you’re a past or present blog-reader, you probably already know what Substack is; but, just in case you don’t (hi Mom!), it’s a relatively new online platform that allows content-creators & writers to send newsletters directly to their readers with no website or middle-man. I have been reading Substack’s from some of my favorite influencers — Joanna Goddard (of Cup of Jo), Grace Atwood (of The Stripe), Sara Hildreth (of Fiction Matters), and Elizabeth Holmes (of So Many Thoughts), just to name a few — for a while now and REALLY enjoy the format. It comes right to my email, so I don’t have to go looking, or I can use the Substack app to read everything in one spot. It’s a really clean, streamlined platform, and I love interacting with the internet-people I enjoy in this way! **And, don’t worry, while there is a paid newsletter option for most of these bigger names, I just get their free content, and my Substack will be completely FREE.**

With that, allow me to introduce you to The Monthly -Ing!

The next best thing to meeting at a local spot for coffee & gab, I hope to meet you in your inbox each month (or so) with a little update on all the things I’ve been… TeachING, ReadING, WatchING, BuyING, PlannING, ThinkING about, etc. etc. A brain-dump of sorts with a good mix of deep and decidedly not-deep stuff I’d share with a friend over drinks!

In light of this upcoming milestone birthday, I’ve been thinking a lot about things that bring me joy and give me purpose. While I already have most of those things held close (my family, my friends, my job, etc.), I realized that I really do miss writing and – maybe even more than that – I really love sharing things with a wider community. I’m the friend who will *always* tell you about the latest book I’m reading, the new jeans I just bought, and the most recent thing I’m learning about parenting (middle school is no joke) – whether you ask or not. Haha! I’m really excited to launch this new little passion-project as a good writing outlet for me and a place where you will – hopefully – find some great recommendation, perspective, and encouragement each month. (Plus, it will all come in just ONE email every 30-ish days — I promise not to go crazy and overwhelm you with mail.)

I would LOVE if you’d join me in this adventure by subscribing HERE (or signing up in the form below):

The first edition of the newsletter won’t go out until April 1st (since the 31st is Easter / I gave up social media for Lent), but your early subscription will help me get an idea of who is still around here and wants to continue hearing from their chatty friend, E. (Also, I’m working on a fun “All-Time Favorite ThINGs” newsletter to go out in early March as a sneak peek of what to expect moving forward.)