Cuddle Duds

It's November 3rd. It's Cuddle Dud Time in Minnesota!

Cuddle Duds are the MOST comfortable "long johns" available to us Northern Ladies. They feel soft and, well, cuddly against your skin. They don't bulk up when you try to pull your pants over them and they don't add an extra pound, as I tend to feel that traditional long underwear do. Soft, silky, Cuddle Duds. I'm wearing mine now!

I truly think Cuddle Duds should hire me to write ads for them. I could come up with new ads allllll winter long for them! I should know! I'm their biggest fan! Hee hee.

Now, some insider tips for wearing Cuddle Duds;
1. A gal can tuck her turtleneck INTO her Cuddle Duds to feel super warm.
2. A gal can pull her socks OVER her Cuddle Duds to keep them in place as she pulls up her jeans, even insulated jeans when the subzero weather hits us. (Warning: Though the Cuddle Duds promise to not add extra pounds the insulated jeans are guaranteed to add a minimum of five up to around ten. You can choose warmth or you can choose slim. Your pick.)
3. A gal can never have too many Cuddle Duds.
4. Cuddle Duds make great gifts for mothers, grandmothers, sisters, daughters, aunts, and basically any female who lives in or visits Minnesota and it's neighboring states.
5. Cuddle Duds can substitute for pajamas. They don't climb up your legs like flannel pj's.

Now go out and get thee some Cuddle Duds! Unless your winters are more fortunate than mine and you live in a state that is warmer.

Book Clubbin'

I've always wanted to belong to a book club. A real life, gathering of people who sip coffee or tea and discuss the latest book selection, preferably wearing full J Crew attire with ultra white teeth and head tossing laughter. So I can't afford full J Crew attire, I can blend! So I drink too much coffee and my teeth aren't ultra white... The point IS, that it just seems like so much durned fun! Heck, I'll even sip chocolate soy milk in the kitchen and promote it!

And THEN, la la la laaaaaaaaaaa ~ I found myself a crew of real life FUN women who want to form a book club! I was SUPER pumped and searching the clearance selection at J Crew Online. (No, not really!) I had all great intentions of purchasing my copy of The Great Gatsby, our first pick!

And THEN, summer took over, and with it a busy workload, three kids at home fighting as I work and/or asking repetitively, "Can I have a friend come over? Can I have a friend come over? Can I have a friend come over?" As well as, "Can we go to the mall? Can we go to a movie? Can we go to the park? Can we go on a bike ride? Can we go buy , Can I have a pony?" (again, not really...) And also, "I'M BORED!" There were business meetings, camping trips, birthday parties, a small vacation to The Wisconsin Dells, and once in a while, sleep.

SO ~ I still have not purchased my copy of The Great Gatsby. What's wrong with me? Two girls are done with it, one is halfway through, one couldn't get past page seven. And then there's the book club dreamer, ME, who hasn't even made an attempt! But ohhhhhh, that will change. I shall go out and buyeth my copy and I shall retire to my bedroom at a respectable hour and read that which is a classic. Soon!

Horror Flicks & Thrill Rides

When I was a kid I loved scary movies and thrill rides. Bring on Freddy Krueger and Jason in the hockey mask! I loved them! The bigger the roller coaster the better! Now that I'm an adult I avoid horror like the plague and the kiddie coaster would be enough to set my stomach off. Occasionally I can watch the end of a scary flick and then be okay with watching the whole thing...weird, I know. I found this out by subscribing to HBO and watching Shutter and The Ruins. I ended up liking both of them, but that doesn't mean I'm going to go watch Saw or even The Orphan! No thanks! I'll go see The Time Traveler's Wife and romantic comedies.

My lack of desire to sit on a ride as it clicks higher and higher into the air before a drop has disappointed my children, I do have to say. They cannot understand how I would not LOVE it as they do....or that I used to love it and then fell out of love. They think it's because I'm scared of something happening to me now that I'm a mother. That's really not it! If that was it, how good of a mother would I be allowing my children to endanger their lives? No....as the years have aged me I have grown very fearful of heights and my stomach just won't stay put when given too much of a jostle. It's a feeling that I'd rather avoid, like scary movies.

My friend did a study in college and found that there's something in our inner ear that isn't fully connected when we are young and as we grow it makes the connection between what we are seeing and how our bodies cope with it. That's not put the right way, but I was told about it years ago and I just don't fully remember how it went. However, it does make sense to me. I wish I had that free feeling of flying through the air and loving it! This has nothing to do with horror movies. I chalk that up to overexposure on my part!

Sorry kids ~ Mom will stand at the bottom of the rides and take pictures of your exuberant, smiling faces! Sorry kids ~ Mom will be known as the STRICT mom among your friens. (I've been told this by a tearful thirteen year old...) R rated movies aren't allowed yet. I allow PG-13, so I can't be all that bad, can I? My response to being told how awful I am because of my rules.... "I'm sorry you feel that way. I'm your parent and it's my job." Thank you Love and Logic, for supplying my appropriate words!

In the blink of an eye...

Thirteen years ago I gave birth to my first daughter. Sweet and tiny, she was the first to make me a mother. Then, I blinked. Today I am the mother of a teenager! I cannot believe how quickly time flies! I have loved each and every age, every year, and (almost) every moment. My new teenager keeps reminding me how close she is to driving, to college, to leaving our nest. She's excited about life and that's fantastic - I am excited for her! I'm also that mama bird who wants to put her wings around my girl and shelter her, protect her from the big bad world.

In two more years my second daughter will become a teenager as well. My home will be filled with the joyful laughter of two teenage girls who get along splendidly, as did my sister and I. But I need not wait for the teen years to hit dear daughter number two. They ALREADY get along that blissfully! They also enjoy the love and gentle affection of their younger brother who will turn eight next month. Yes, my house is the shelter for all of the peaceful affection passed along between my children.

This message is brought to you by summer vacation and 13 years of parenting.

Rejection #1

I received my very first literary agent rejection yesterday from The Knight Agency. I did receive some very positive feedback and some excellent suggestions on what it lacked, so I'm actually quite pumped about it! I'm going to take some time now to comb over the manuscript once again and really incorporate a lot more into it. I think it will really improve things!!! And then... time to query another agent! I've been doing some research and know EXACTLY where I'm sending it next!

June is National Birthday Month. Just kidding...but it is a BIG month in my family! First comes my sister, then my husband, my daughter, my niece, my anniversary, my close friend's anniversary, my dad & step-mom's anniversary...surely I missed someone or something in there! That must mean it's a DURNED good month! Full of love and...birth! I mean life! Hee hee!

Summer's Here!

Summer weather was slow to join our summer vacation this year. It finally arrived! Today was the PERFECT summer day. Heat that drove people to the lakes to enjoy God's great creation...sunshine...blue skies...no rain. My family enjoyed swimming in the lake at Grandma's house while I worked! Still, when I drove to town to do some errands I got my kicks just being in the moment and wishing that every day in Minnesota could be like today.

Yesterday morning was beautiful as well. Open skies and sunshine promised a day to enjoy outside. Because my husband has been very sick I decided it was THE time to wash all of our bedding. So the washing began and before long I had three large comforters and some towels floating on our clothesline. Just after I hung the last towel my kids called out from the trampoline, "Mom! It's raining!" Which, of course I had noticed but was trying to ignore. I told myself that a few sprinkles wouldn't matter at all, which I verbalized to them.

I went inside and continued to clean, still ignoring what was happening outside. My three children were squealing and screaming in delight as the rain POURED down on them. They love to play in the rain. My bedding does too. It stayed on the line all night long and into this afternoon. It had a double rinse directly from nature, because I like to do things as naturally as possible. (uh-huh...) and smells of sunshine and outdoors. I can't wait to crawl under them tonight!

Loving Frank

Nancy Horan's first novel, "Loving Frank" reveals a scandalous affair between architect Frank Lloyd Wright and the main character, Mamah (pronounced MAY-muh) Borthwick Cheney. Never before had I heard of anything involving Frank Lloyd Wright other than his amazing architecture. Horan did a brilliant job of bringing the story Frank and Mamah to readers.

Throughout the book I struggled with Mamah. I didn't like the choices she made, and I didn't like how she dealt with the consequences. In abandoning her young children to run off to Europe with Frank she made a choice that affected the lives and well being of her family. That's just something I can't connect with. For me, my children will always come first. I just can't imagine ANYTHING ever changing that.

Nancy Horan brought the 1900's vividly to life. She gave Frank and Mamah voices and personalities that kept me reading, even though I was shaking my head the whole time. I was startled by the unexpected ending, which left me thinking about Mamah's story long after I had finished. I would definitely pick up another Nancy Horan book. For some interesting history with creativity thrown in, I'd recommend reading "Loving Frank."