September 2026 - The VP
Monthly Recap
It’s amazing how quickly you can go from “brand new” to “routine”. As I write this, I’m 6 weeks into my new job at Capital Group, but it feels like this has been the plan/routine for a while. Elle has also been out of the crib and in her toddler bed for the entire month of September. Her move to the toddler bed has been pretty good, although it has coincided with more night wake-ups, which we think are nightmares. All of this seemed like a lot before September, but now it feels like our new normal.
We started September watching the US Open and enjoying slightly cooler days and nights. Watching the US Open and seeing our old home sparked a sense of longing to live in the city again. This will not be the last time I say this, but we are going to manifest buying a small second apartment there to visit throughout the year. Most nights, while I cooked and after Elle went to sleep, we’d put on the night matches and even had Jake over for the spectacular men’s final. Speaking of cooking, a big change this month was Sundays, when I started to cook bigger meals like a roasted chicken and lasagna.
Jenn and I had a few dates, like a Martini lunch at R&D Kitchen and a day back in Newport Beach at the Pacific Wine and Food Classic, which we first attended in 2017. It was a great day by the ocean, sipping on wine and trying food from restaurants across Orange County. It might not have lived up to the highs of the 2017 iteration, but we had a great time, and it was a nice afternoon for the two of us. Our last date of the month celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary. We started by going to see Jenn’s favorite Sondheim (depending on the day), Into the Woods, at South Coast Rep. The performance was incredible, maybe even better than when we saw it on Broadway in 2022. After we had an early dinner at one of our favorite Orange County restaurants, Vaca, where we split some tapas and paella.
The big news this month came while Jenn was in Las Vegas staying at the Aria for a conference. Towards the end of the trip, she heard the incredible news that she was being promoted to Vice President. She had been interim in that role for most of 2026, and after a lengthy interview process, was awarded the role. This was a big deal, and one that she had worked very, very hard for. We tried to stay patient throughout the process and let her work and experience speak for themselves; in the end, they did, and I couldn’t be more proud of her. I got a great picture of her signing the offer letter with a glass of wine and Elle looking on with a giant grin on her face.
Elle had a great month, too. Her vocabulary continues to expand exponentially, and her ability to communicate her needs in sentences keeps improving. I got to watch her for the first time at ballet this month, and I’d say every five minutes she’d run to the window to a) make sure I was watching and b) wave at me. Jenn has been trying to do more arts and crafts with Elle on the weekends; my favorite one was some pumpkin sculptures that she and Elle painted. Another benefit of September is our nightly walks. The time hasn’t changed yet but the sunsets have been unreal over the hills that surround our house, and its’s been fun watching Elle “run fast” to try and keep up with Mama each night. Life’s pretty great.
TV We Watched
We continue to consume less TV than in previous years. We wrapped up Silo Season 3. I found 90% of the season to be boring, visually too dark, and monotonous. And then came the finale, and I was completely won back over. We watched most of Ted Lasso season 4 and Colin from Accounts season 3. Both were improvements on their previous seasons. We wrapped up the fourth season of Bridgerton, which will likely be our last. And I watched a few more episodes of the first season of Lanterns on HBO.
Books I Read (Or Listened To)
Looking at this list, I don’t feel like I spent that much more time reading in September, but I guess I did. I started with the month's longest book, Purity. This is the second book I’ve read by Jonathan Franzen, and I understand why he’s a polarizing author. On one hand, I love his writing and find him to be a great storyteller with phenomenal dialogue. But his books also have a bit of an ‘ick to them, like Purity, that you have to sort of get over or past. The best book of the month was People Love Dead Jews by Dara Horn. What a fascinating, well-researched, and passionate book about how not only modern society but history has truly hated the Jewish people. She never argues that they are the only race of people who were persecuted, but instead argues specifically on behalf of the Jewish people.
My least favorite book, and the one I should have given up on, was A Prayer for Owen Meany. This book has sat in my Audible library for a long time, and I finally clicked download and gave it a go. I could not get into this book, no matter how I tried. The narration was bad, the story felt cheesy, and there was this lingering 1990s Chicken Soup for the Soul that I couldn’t look past. My most anticipated book of the month (and maybe year) was Exit Party. I loved the last two novels by Emily St. John Mandel (Sea of Tranquility and Station Eleven), and this, in concept, was phenomenal, but in execution I found it enjoyable but overly confusing.
Hollywood, Ending by John Green was a nice break from the very bleak reading that I started (and ended) the month with. It’s his first full foray into adult fiction, and I loved it. It's a great love story about two actors on the set of a movie biopic of Andy Warhol. The last book I know of as one of the buzzier books of 2026 is The Things We Never Say, and I found it perfectly adequate. I almost think it wanted to be deeper and more personal in its look at one man’s struggle, but I found it just fine.
Movies We Watched
I watched a staggering amount of movies in September. Much of it was while Jenn was working or traveling for work, but we still managed at least one weekend movie night. It was Jenn's pick: The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix. It was a fun murder mystery that was a cross between the Knives Out series and the Ted Danson TV show A Man on the Inside. I won’t go through all the movies, but as a family we watched Moana (the animated version) with Elle, and she loved it. I don’t think it surpassed Frozen, but it was a hit. I really enjoyed the small and intimate movie Miss You, Love You. The acting was exquisite, and the story, while sad, did a great job of showing two people dealing with different stages and types of grief.
The most surprising movie of the month had to be How to Make a Killing. It's a sort of dumb premise, but it's saved by a great script and Glen Powell chewing up the scenery. Super fun. They don’t make movies like this much anymore.
Games I’ve Been Playing
The real highlight this month was my final voyage in the Caribbean for now. I finished Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced for the second time. I loved it up until the last hour or two, when everything about it ran out of steam. I had fewer things left to do that I enjoyed, and I had to push through a rather convoluted story. Oh well, still one of the best in the series. Most mornings in September, I woke up, brewed some coffee, and enjoyed a quick game of Madden NFL 27 (offense only), and then went about my day.
2026 Goal Tracking
Goal #1: Read 50 Books: I’ve read 40 books and am on track to hit my goal of 50 this year!!!
Goal #2: 12 Monthly Recaps: 9 for 12!
