The bookkeeper who reads the books.
I'm Lauren — founder of Ledger & Grain Co. I have a B.A. in Accounting from Saint Leo University, five-plus years across full-cycle accounting, GAAP reporting, multi-state sales tax, and the kind of revenue reconstruction work that comes from inheriting bad books. CPA credit completion underway in South Carolina.
I built Ledger & Grain to live in the gap between bookkeepers and CPAs — the place where expensive mistakes quietly happen, and where someone with both the technical chops and the discipline to slow down and look is what actually solves the problem.
No pressure. No commitment. Just clarity on where things stand.
"Because it balances isn't enough."
Clean books should explain the business — not just match the bank.How I approach your books.
Most bookkeeping stops at "it matches the bank." That's not enough — and it's usually where problems start. Misclassified equity. Sales tax collected but never remitted. Clearing accounts that haven't balanced in two years. The kind of issues that surface during a CPA review, an audit, or a buyer's diligence — when fixing them is most expensive.
I focus on making your books make sense. Clean structure, accurate categorization, financials that actually reflect what's happening in your business. Workpapers and documentation that hold up to scrutiny when someone credentialed needs to review them.
Whether I'm cleaning up months or years of messy data, or maintaining your books going forward, the goal is the same: clarity, consistency, and numbers you can trust.
What makes this different.
Real Accounting Background
B.A. in Accounting and five-plus years across full-cycle close, GAAP reporting, audit support, and multi-state tax work. Not just a software certification.
Reconstruction & Sales Tax Specialty
Multi-year revenue reconstruction, clearing account remediation, and multi-state sales tax exposure analysis. Where most bookkeepers stop, I start.
Documentation That Holds Up
Three-layer workbook architecture, source-to-output tie-outs, and workpapers that survive review by a CPA, auditor, or buyer's diligence team.
How I work with your systems.
Every business runs on different platforms — and your books need to reflect how your business actually operates, not how the software thinks it should.
I work across QuickBooks Online, Bill.com, and the major e-commerce and payment platforms (Shopify, Stripe, Square, PayPal, Amazon). The goal is the same regardless of stack: accurate, consistent books that are easy to maintain and actually reflect what's happening in your business.
When something doesn't fit the standard playbook — multi-platform reconciliation, point-of-sale tax overcollection, e-commerce COGS done right, contractor sub payments, real estate book reconstruction — that's usually where I do my best work.
Working alongside your CPA.
I work hand-in-hand with your CPA to make sure your books are accurate, organized, and ready for tax preparation — without last-minute scrambling.
If you already have a CPA, I coordinate directly with them so everything ties out cleanly and supports their work. When something requires credentialed judgment — tax positions, audit response, formal opinions — I flag it to your CPA or tax attorney rather than overstepping. That's the line I hold, and it's part of what makes the work defensible.
If you don't have a CPA, I can connect you with a trusted one when the time comes.
About the name.
Ledger & Grain comes from two trades. Ledger is the accounting — what I do now. Grain is the woodworking and furniture refinishing I did full-time before accounting took over.
Both crafts run on the same principle: you can't fake the foundation. If the grain underneath is rotten, no amount of finish on top will hold. Books work the same way. Clean structure, honest reconstruction, and the patience to do it right are what make everything else possible.
That's the work, and that's the name.
Who I work best with.
Business owners who want their numbers to make sense — not just be "done." Usually that means businesses that are growing, have outgrown DIY bookkeeping, or know something is wrong with their books and want it found and fixed before it gets more expensive.
The sweet spots are multi-platform e-commerce (Shopify, Stripe, Amazon, Square), construction and contractors (job costing, sub payments, multi-state sales tax), real estate investors and flippers (especially when the books need reconstruction from raw statements), and service-based small businesses like agencies, gyms, and professionals.
If your books are a mess, your industry is messy by nature, or you just need someone who'll read the numbers instead of just record them — that's who I'm built for.
Let's take a look at where things actually stand.
The Books Diagnostic is where every engagement starts. A structured review of your current books, exposure points, and what to do next. $250, credited toward your engagement if we move forward within 30 days.
Book a Books Diagnostic — $250