Quick note: Tomorrow (Saturday) we’ll be in Dallas at 11am at the West Elm on 5307 East Mockingbird Lane for cookies, cocoa, and a book signing. We’d love to see you there!
We’re back with a long book, life, and tour update. It’s sooner than we planned (our last update was only a week ago), but so much has happened that we wanted to share the highlights, photos, and a few heartfelt thank-yous. First—and this still feels surreal—our book has become an instant New York Times bestseller. We received a sneak-peek image of the list and the official notice will appear in print on 11/25. We called our parents, there were happy tears (and a little eye-irritation that we’ll pretend wasn’t crying), and we celebrated the fact that this all happened because of you, our readers.
We’re still learning how bestseller lists are compiled, but one thing is crystal clear: we have the best readers. Whether you bought a book, came to a signing, or left an encouraging comment when we were just starting, your support made this possible. We are truly grateful.
Speaking of signings, we want to catch you up on our recent stops before the memories blur into a cookie-and-cocoa-fueled haze. After returning from Boston to Richmond last Thursday, we had our hometown event—“R for the Holidays.” We were honored to be on the Nov/Dec cover of R.Home magazine, and seeing the oversized cover displayed at the event was completely surreal. We both made rather ridiculous faces when we saw it.
Years ago we wrote a DIY column for R.Home, and we’ve attended every R.Home for the Holidays event as guests until now. It felt strange and wonderful to be speakers. The cover included a tiny representation of Burger (a sparkly chihuahua ornament) and a close-up of Clara reaching, which Sherry loved to style for the shoot. She had so much fun decorating the built-ins behind us for the cover that they still look mostly festive—she’ll probably add even more holiday touches when we get home.
At the Richmond event we auctioned several DIY projects from the book—desks, chairs, a bookshelf, a mirror, a rug—and raised $500 for The School of Richmond’s Ballet, which provides dance lessons to children who otherwise couldn’t afford them. It was a great way to give back to our community and see our projects put to good use. Before the auction Sherry double-checked that the drawers were bug-free—#keepingitreal.
The evening started with a talk by Adam Roberts, who turned his blog into a beautiful cookbook. He was brilliant, inspiring, and hilarious. We followed with a chat about seven DIY lessons we’ve learned—many the hard way—and the crowd was wonderfully responsive. We hope to share a video of that conversation when it’s posted.
After the talks we did a signing, which continues to be our favorite part of these events. We loved meeting readers, taking photos, and enjoying conversations like “Did Katie Bower have her baby yet?” Our time in Richmond included familiar faces and new friends, including Hallie, who won our “trip to Richmond” giveaway and brought her mom for a whirlwind weekend.
People brought delightful and unexpected gifts: a woman who looks a lot like Meryl Streep (complete with a personalized license-plate reference), a onesie that Sherry signed with a baby-sized hammer doodle, a Justin Timberlake bobblehead used as an inside-office joke, and sugar cookies shaped like Burger. The generosity and creativity of our readers never ceases to amaze us.
After Richmond we headed to Chicago. We squeezed in some blog work and crashed a familiar local home for a House Crashing post, which we’ll share soon. Before our West Elm event we took the obligatory tourist photo at Millennium Park’s “bean” (Sherry loves shiny things). While we were sightseeing, a fan named Christina had already started camping out early that morning to be first in line—she drove overnight from St. Louis. Talk about dedication!
The Chicago stop was fantastic despite a sudden thunderstorm. Folks stayed warm with cocoa and cookies, and the event featured many memorable moments: a bride who sent a selfie from her hairdresser while getting ready, homemade gifts like a sparkly Burger portrait and a hand-cut horse puzzle made by a high-school shop teacher, and a beautiful handbound book compiling Clara’s photography projects from Week 1 through Month 29.
One couple even used our book in a proposal at the bean and then brought the story to our signing—how incredible is that? We also enjoyed group photos, creative photo requests, and the tradition of an “End of the Line” picture to honor those who waited patiently.
After Chicago we flew back to Richmond, where I wrote postcards to Granny from each stop—she receives one every couple of days and we’ve sent eight so far. Sunday was meant to be a rest day, but it mostly became catch-up time: laundry, groceries, and quality moments with Clara and Burger while my parents watched the house. Monday we left early for our international stop in Toronto.
We admired the CN Tower from below (we’re both a little height-averse), chatted with moose-themed souvenirs in the gift shop, and stayed in a great hotel with a double-sided glass shower that we’ll feature in an upcoming hotel-crash post. That evening we signed at the Toronto West Elm, where fans brought thoughtful gifts like maple donuts and a watercolor for Clara. We even had our first FaceTime guest join us during the event, which was a fun surprise.
We also did a last-minute live segment on Global TV’s The Morning Show with only about 20 hours’ notice. The props we shipped didn’t arrive on time, so we improvised with items borrowed from the West Elm signing and groceries picked up the day before. It was a scramble, but the live segment went well and gave us a new experience to cross off the list.
Now that this whirlwind week is winding down, we want to say thank you again. Without you there would be no book, no signings, and no place on that surreal bestseller list. Your support means everything, and we are humbled and grateful every single day.
We’ll be wrapping up the week of tour stops in Dallas, then heading to Minneapolis and Houston in the coming weeks. We’re having an absolute blast meeting readers and trying to keep the blog running while on the road—thanks for bearing with us and for all the kind words. We’ll share more photos and stories from Dallas, Minneapolis, and Houston soon.
P.S. Some people have asked how to get signed copies if they can’t attend a signing. A local bookstore in Richmond called Fountain Books is shipping signed copies on request—contact them directly for details.