This week, my husband and I are slipping away for a few quiet days to a mountain lake. It's spring break, and with adult children, this means quality couple time.

There’s something about the mountains that slows everything down. The air feels different. The noise fades. Even time seems to stretch out just enough to let you breathe again.

Anticipating the quiet has brought back a memory I haven’t thought about in a while.

When we were younger, hubby and I went on a youth hiking trip up Mount LeConte in the Smoky Mountains. And for whatever reason, I was absolutely determined to stay with him the entire way up. (Okay, we all know what the reason was!)

We got teased for it—people passing us, calling it out—but I didn’t care. I just wanted to be right there with him, step for step, all the way to the top.

Looking back, I think that’s one of the first times I realized how much those quiet, shared moments matter. Not the big, dramatic ones—but the steady, side-by-side kind of connection.

That memory is a big part of why I chose the Smoky Mountains as the setting for Discovering Her Heart.

I wanted Kristen and Brett to have that same kind of space—away from the noise, away from expectations—where they could really see each other clearly and figure out what their hearts were trying to say.

Because sometimes, it’s not about escaping your life. It’s about finding a place quiet enough to hear it.

So now I’m curious…

Are you a beach person or a mountains person?

A Sugar Creek Moment

Posters go up around town—spring festivals, Easter parades, and so many things to look forward to. Windows get washed. Porches swept. The lake begins to stir. Sugar Creek is waking up with new life all around.

I think that’s part of why I love this time of year so much—everything feels like it’s beginning again.

Until next week,

💛 River

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