Things I Am Strangely Attracted To:

1. The Dog Snuggie: And really, why wouldn't I be? I mean, I'm sitting here on the couch all warm and cozy in my own Snuggie (It's blue for your mental image making pleasure) and I look over at Roscoe and he's all: "I'm so cold and sad. Can I lay my shivering head on your lap and pilfer some warmth from you? I sure could use one of those Snuggies..."

2. The rubbery goop that is used to hold credit cards to the letter they come with. It's stretchy and looks like a massive booger. I mean, you can stretch and stretch that stuff and it hardly ever breaks! Serious stress reliever. After the stress therapy is over, you can stick it to your face and freak your family out by faux sneezing and then looking at them and asking: "Do I have anything on my face?"

3. Spanx: Now, I don't own a pair of these...yet...but I've heard songs of praise from many women for them. They're sort of like bionic pantyhose that hold both your thigh meat and your stomach fat in and create a smoother much more toned looking sillhouette. It sounds a bit like a sausage casing to me and I've heard it's a bit hard to breathe while wearing them BUT if I could control muffin top by wearing them, then I'm ok with reduced oxygen intake.

4. Playdoh: I love the smell and the texture. I like to smash it up against my nose and breathe deeply. It just smells so good. If I could make Playdoh scented air freshener then I would be in heaven. Playdoh heaven.

5. Completing a Duathlon: Yes, I just said that. I haven't even taken a run this winter...3 months give or take. I got this idea in my head that *I* would like to attempt to train for and complete a duathlon. That's running and biking for all you dears out there.

Crazy? Yes.

Masochistic? Perhaps.

Is it even possible? I'm not sure but I'll try.

I can honestly say that I adore biking. I love it so much...Running, on the other hand, has always been hard for me. I need to train a ton for an average performance. I will never be a happy runner but I can run. This body was built more for biking than running long distances. I have short legs, big thighs. I'm not a gazelle...I'm more like a bassett hound when it comes to running.

Que sera sera.

A Conversation That May Or May Not Have Happened At My House

You Have Not Yet Died From Dysentary

I'm still on the wagon.

I've not fallen off of it yet.

I mean, it's been a sometimes bumpy ride.

I MAY have barely hung on a few times by my nicely manicured nails...

BUT

I'm still here doin' it up Oregon Trail style, baby....that means I'm still on the wagon. *sigh*

I have lost a total of 7 pounds since I started using a calorie counting website and I have met some amazing women that have made this wagon ride less bumpy. They rock my socks. Some of them are bloggers too and I'll be listing their blogs on my sidebar under 'Good Stuff To Read'...please, go visit them or I will hunt you down and throw rotten tomatoes at you.

I'm kidding, really.

Sorta.

In other breaking news, I will be performing in the Boston show of Expressing Motherhood. My partner in crime's name is Kendra and we will be performing a piece about the age old argument of stay at home moms vs. work out of the home moms. We really do have some common ground that we can agree on and it isn't just about weight gain and stretch marks. So, if any of you are in the Boston area September 30 through October 2, 2010 I would love to see you there! Hopefully, I will be a more sleek version of the person I am now. Physically, that is because mentally you can't get much sleeker than I am now. Booya, I just said that.

Picking Dandelions

Picking Dandelions: A Search For Eden Among Life's Weeds....this book...was a gift to my soul. My undernourished, stagnant, Christian soul. I pray, I go to church every Sunday...I even take notes during the service with genuine interest but I've become dead in the water when it comes to what it truly means to be a Christian. This book grabbed me by the front of the shirt and shook me so hard that it hurt at times.

The author, Sarah Cunningham, is an old high school friend and so while I might be slightly biased because *squeal* I went to high school with a successful and talented author; I tried to keep myself in check. The book starts off with an account of Sarah's early memories of her childhood and how they related to her Christian walk. She is a pastor's daughter and was raised in the church so it was natural for her to have faith in God and in the world around her. As she grew older she realized both the world she lived in and her faith were somewhat tarnished.

A self-confessed "over thinker" she related humans to dandelions throughout the book and how we are constantly growing, changing, drifting aimlessly, and how we need to accept God's grace throughout all of this. She challenged herself to change in ways that helped her grow as a person through faith.

Picking Dandelions is a book that will speak directly to your heart. The book is faith based and is written in tones of warm humor and hilarious wit that will make it non-threatening to those with or without faith. Sarah's honesty throughout make you feel as if you just sat down to coffee with an old friend. The overall theme in this blog has been about imperfection and this fits right in with that idea.

Picking Dandelions reminds us that walking with Jesus is about constant change and reevaluation, ups and downs, and that God loves us enough to not want us to remain the same.

Any questions you have about the book and/or for Sarah can be left in the comment section.

Author Sarah Cunningham Actually Agreed to Let Me Do a Review of Her Book!

You read that right! Author Sarah Cunningham, who just happens to be an old highschool friend, has agreed to let me review her book, Picking Dandelions, and interview her...not that she is playing any favorites! Here is proof of her blog tour:

Sarah Cunningham's Blog Tour

See? Don't get your panties in a bunch; she loves us all equally.

Here is some more proof of said book. Isn't it lovely? The book, according to her blog, is a warm and witty spiritual memoir set in the midwest.

Today is the release date for Picking Dandelions I am very excited to be a part of Sarah's Blog Tour! You can read more about Sarah at http://www.sarahcunningham.org/. Sarah also has another book that was released a bit ago entitled, Dear Church. It's an excellent read that is sure to touch the heart of anyone who reads it.

Stay tuned for more from my twisted, little mind about Sarah Cunningham's, Picking Dandelions.