Just days after graduating from Arizona State University, Thatcher sits down with Denise for a conversation about college, growing up, and stepping into whatever comes next.Together they reflect on finding your own path, what it means to become an adult, and how our families continue to shape us long after we leave home.This week's question: What chapter of your life is ending—and what are you hopeful comes next?

Just days after graduating from Arizona State University, Thatcher sits down with Denise for a conversation about college, growing up, and stepping into whatever comes next. Together they reflect on finding your own path, what it means to become an adult, and how our families continue to shape us long after we leave home. This week's question: What chapter of your life is ending—and what are you hopeful comes next?

What's Next

Life is lived in stories. Relationships are built through conversations.We're Denise and Tim. We met while working at Eddie Bauer in our twenties and have been writing our story together ever since.Over the years we've built careers, raised three sons, navigated military life, moved from Washington to Arizona, written books, cheered from countless sidelines, and learned that life's biggest lessons are usually found in ordinary conversations. Today, our family is growing in new directions, our two Labrador retrievers keep life interesting, and we're still convinced that summer, travel, sports, and a good story make almost everything better.You'll usually find us around the table with a cup of coffee, a good bourbon, or a glass of wine in hand. Denise tends to notice the meaning woven through everyday moments. Tim naturally looks for the practical lessons and the patterns beneath them. We don't always see the same story in the same way, and somewhere between those two perspectives, a deeper conversation begins.Each week, we start with one simple question and follow it wherever it leads. Sometimes we talk about marriage, family, work, belonging, military life, or the adventures that come with traveling together. Other times we find ourselves laughing, reflecting, or discovering something neither of us expected when we first sat down behind the microphones.We don't have all the answers.We're simply sharing the stories we're still living—and inviting you to bring your own to the conversation.Life rarely unfolds in chronological order. That's why we've organized <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.deniseleighwaters.com/ourroughdraftpodcast" target="_blank">our conversations by topic instead of episode number</a>—so you can start with whatever's on your mind today.We call it Our Rough Draft because none of us is finished. We're all still learning, growing, revising, and becoming.Every episode ends with The Question, because we believe the best conversations don't end when the podcast does. They begin around your own table.

Society & Culture

Relationships

Life is lived in stories. Relationships are built through conversations. We're Denise and Tim. We met while working at Eddie Bauer in our twenties and have been writing our story together ever since. Over the years we've built careers, raised three sons, navigated military life, moved from Washington to Arizona, written books, cheered from countless sidelines, and learned that life's biggest lessons are usually found in ordinary conversations. Today, our family is growing in new directions, our two Labrador retrievers keep life interesting, and we're still convinced that summer, travel, sports, and a good story make almost everything better. You'll usually find us around the table with a cup of coffee, a good bourbon, or a glass of wine in hand. Denise tends to notice the meaning woven through everyday moments. Tim naturally looks for the practical lessons and the patterns beneath them. We don't always see the same story in the same way, and somewhere between those two perspectives, a deeper conversation begins. Each week, we start with one simple question and follow it wherever it leads. Sometimes we talk about marriage, family, work, belonging, military life, or the adventures that come with traveling together. Other times we find ourselves laughing, reflecting, or discovering something neither of us expected when we first sat down behind the microphones. We don't have all the answers. We're simply sharing the stories we're still living—and inviting you to bring your own to the conversation. Life rarely unfolds in chronological order. That's why we've organized our conversations by topic instead of episode number—so you can start with whatever's on your mind today. We call it Our Rough Draft because none of us is finished. We're all still learning, growing, revising, and becoming. Every episode ends with The Question, because we believe the best conversations don't end when the podcast does. They begin around your own table.

Life is lived in stories. Relationships are built through conversations.We're Denise and Tim. We met while working at Eddie Bauer in our twenties and have been writing our story together ever since.Over the years we've built careers, raised three sons, navigated military life, moved from Washington to Arizona, written books, cheered from countless sidelines, and learned that life's biggest lessons are usually found in ordinary conversations. Today, our family is growing in new directions, our two Labrador retrievers keep life interesting, and we're still convinced that summer, travel, sports, and a good story make almost everything better.You'll usually find us around the table with a cup of coffee, a good bourbon, or a glass of wine in hand. Denise tends to notice the meaning woven through everyday moments. Tim naturally looks for the practical lessons and the patterns beneath them. We don't always see the same story in the same way, and somewhere between those two perspectives, a deeper conversation begins.Each week, we start with one simple question and follow it wherever it leads. Sometimes we talk about marriage, family, work, belonging, military life, or the adventures that come with traveling together. Other times we find ourselves laughing, reflecting, or discovering something neither of us expected when we first sat down behind the microphones.We don't have all the answers.We're simply sharing the stories we're still living—and inviting you to bring your own to the conversation.Life rarely unfolds in chronological order. That's why we've organized <a href="https://www.deniseleighwaters.com/ourroughdraftpodcast" rel="noopener noreferrer">our conversations by topic instead of episode number</a>—so you can start with whatever's on your mind today.We call it Our Rough Draft because none of us is finished. We're all still learning, growing, revising, and becoming.Every episode ends with The Question, because we believe the best conversations don't end when the podcast does. They begin around your own table.

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What's Next

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