Three Days in the Desert

I've never spent much time in the desert. I've always felt I was more of a trees and mountains person. On this trip, I expected rocks and tumbleweeds. But this. Oh, my this. What a sweet surprise to find so much life here. Birds, and flowers, and animal noises. I can now say, I'm a desert person too.

(And She's 27 Years Old)

"Mom? What does it mean if someone says, "Oh, Mylanta!" like you would say, "Oh, my gosh," except it's, "Oh, Mylanta?'

"Wow. I haven't heard that in years. Who said that?"

"Miss Humphrey said it when she opened her Teacher Appreciation gift."

"I love her so much."

"Me too but what's a 'Mylanta?'"

World in a World

"Mom, did you ever notice that a mirror is like a parallel universe? I mean, look at that guy. The two of us guys should totally hang out together."

Nepal

Photo

Nepal is at the top of my mind and my prayers.
Please click HERE for a list of vetted charities doing relief work following the Nepal earthquake.

Smacksy Sunday Links

A ridiculously thorough guide to de-cluttering your home. Spring cleaning, anyone?

Five things happy people have in their homes.

There's a mystical forest in Belgium, carpeted with bluebell flowers. Exquisite.

And a kitty hugging a teddy bear. I mean, come on.

Happy Sunday.

Smacksy Saturday Photo: The Relay

The little sportsman at the All City Track Meet. Medaled 2nd.

Winner, Winner, (Vegan) Dinner

Good Lucky Morning to You, Maureen French! Please send an email with your mailing address to me via the "Contact Me" button towards the top of the sidebar. Books get sent out today!

Thanks for playing, everyone!

And if you didn't win this time around, you can find the books at the following links or your local bookseller.

Listen to Your Mother

A Letter to My Mom

Moms Are Nuts

Get Ready for Mother's Day - A Giveaway!

I'm totally helping you get ready for Mother's Day. Today I am giving away three books. THREE. Enter to win this fantastic Mom-centric package: Listen to Your Mother, A Letter to My Mom, and Moms Are Nuts. What do these books all have in common besides Moms, and you know, me? They all include excellent storytelling that the mom in your life will adore.

Please leave a comment before 6:00am PST on Friday April 24, and the winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow.

Earth Day, Every Day

The earth is my favorite planet in the universe, so far. 

Here's what it's like if you're not familiar:

There are all of these fascinating mysteries about the place.

Trees happen there and waterfalls and spiders. (I like spiders.)

It's the place with animals and water and animals who can breathe under water.

There are canyons so deep you cannot see the bottom.

Daytime has its glow, nighttime has its secrets.

You can see the stars from there.

Deserts have an arid beauty and cacti that bloom into flowers.

There are redwood trees that smell even better than bread baking.

There are shells. There are animals that fly.

There are cold mountain tops that are forever draped in snow.

Everywhere you go, there is a sunrise.

The animals are lovely. Some of them are humans.

There are sandwiches there and coffee and strawberries.

There is every color you can think of.

It's all a big miracle, really.  

Try not to screw it up. 

Flower Day

"Mom? Are you sure this flower is good enough for Miss Humphrey for flower day? It's kind of droopy."

'I know, but smell it!"

"It smells great. It smells like I want to eat it. But it has a brown spot."

"Imperfect things have their own beauty."

"Is that one of those things you say that seems like it's about one thing but it's really about everything?"

"I got a Puig!"

On Saturday he took a handful of wadded up one dollar bills and a baggie full of change from his piggie bank to the store to buy baseball cards. Because it is 1965.

Smacksy Sunday Links

In defense of posting pretty pictures.

The moral bucket list.

And a frog sitting on a bench like a human.

Happy Sunday.

Smacksy Saturday Photo: Retro Smacksy

I do not believe that I was enjoying that pantsuit.

Forward Thinking

"Bob? Do you know how to braid?"

"No, Felix. Do you?"

"Yeah, I do. How about you Desmond?"

"No. I. Do. Not."

"You guys are going to have to learn because when you grow up, if you have a girl, you're going to need to braid her hair."

"Oh, yeah."

"You're right."

"I know."

Marine Adaptations: The Narwhal

"I am a mammal and don't talk about it."

Always The Helper

"Mom, what are those orange cracks on your face?"

"Orange cracks?"

"Yeah, it's smeary orange with cracks all over."

"I guess that might be the combination of my wrinkles and my new makeup."

"Oh... Come over here and I'll rub it off for you."

You Are My Bae

I could use the word boo in a sentence. (I haven't, but I could.) I knew it was a slang term for a boyfriend or girlfriend or loved one. I knew bae was similar. Tonight I consulted my friend Urban Dictionary and found out that boo is derived from the French word beau, meaning beautiful. I found out that bae is an acronym for before anyone else. (And that it means poop in Danish but that's not what this is about.) But maybe you know these things already.

Boo is sweet term, but bae is something else altogether. Before anyone else. That's serious talk. Who is your before anyone else? Would my bae be my son? My husband? It took a few moments, but I realized that my bae is my God.

In the God is everything or he is nothing discussion, my God is everything. He is before anyone else.

And I am God's bae right back. We all are. I love the saying that "God carries pictures of us in his wallet and can't wait to show them off." In our brokenness and beauty, we are loved and chosen.

God dwells in us and we are all connected, of that I am certain. My husband is Jewish, I was raised Catholic, together we have become faithful Episcopalians. (Obviously.) Our Minister, Ed Bacon, talks about how "we all live in one interlocking interdependent system, that what affects one affects the whole and that there really are no separate parts or people in life. We are all one field, one Whole, one System... Yes the rocks and the butterflies and the fungus that provides communication between all plants, and the quaking aspens called Pando in southern Utah which is actually one organism not a collection of separate parts..." and you and me, all have within us, God.

Great minister of the mystery, Albert Einstein, is quoted, "A human being is a part of the whole, 

called by us Universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest -a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole nature in its beauty."

If God is my bae, so are you. We are one big We and I adore us. You are my bae.

I Can't Even With These Two

"Shh, Mom. Don't say anything. We're watching a squirrel."

Smacksy Sunday Links

50 reasons why you are absolutely beautiful.

Mary Oliver reading Wild Geese.

And sleepy kittens.

Happy Sunday.

Smacksy Saturday Photo: Spelling Homework

"We're doing words with 'oo,' Mom. You know, like poo? Get it?"

That Kid

"Mom? Did you see that kid that just walked by with his mom?"

"I did."

"The boy wearing the tutu?"

"Yes."

"Do you think he's a girl on the bottom and a boy on the top?"

"No, but he or she might be a girl on the inside but a boy on the outside. Or he might just like tutus."

"That's cool."

Listen to Your Mother Book Giveaway!

It's another book giveaway! That's how much I love you folks. Listen to Your Mother has a beautiful mix of happy, meaningful, melancholy, funny, powerful, and moving stories. You're going to love it. Try and win a copy!

For more about the Listen to Your Mother book click here.

To enter the giveaway click here.

Good luck, nice people.

A Letter to My Mom Book Giveaway!

Hi Favorites. If you read yesterday's post, you know how psyched I am to be included in two fantastic new motherhood anthologies. Today I'm doing an A Letter to My Mom book giveaway!

Click here for more about the book.

Click here to enter the giveaway.

Now give yourself a hug for being awesome.

You Guys, YOU GUYS! Two Books Released Today and I'm in Them!

I am thrilled to announce that I have essays published in two different anthologies being released today.

The first is Listen to Your Mother: What She Said Then, What We're Saying Now. Listen to Your Mother is a live spoken word project, founded by the wonderful Ann Imig, that brings together stories representing a wide scope of motherhood. These readings take place all across the country every May, just in time for Mother's Day. (Read more about the ongoing LTYM shows here.) I was honored to direct a Listen to Your Mother reading in Los Angeles in 2011 and have been blessed to be a part of the LTYM family since then.

The Listen to Your Mother book, published by Putnam -  a division of Random House, is a collection of stories that are an extension of those read in the live shows. The book was lovingly curated by Ann Imig. Sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, the essays in Listen to Your Mother are a beautiful expression of what motherhood means.

The second book is A Letter to My Mom, published by Crown - another division of Random House. Edited by former Oprah producer and O Network executive, Lisa Erspamer, this book is a collection of letters to moms from their adult children. Children like Sarah Ferguson Duchess of York, Josh Groban, will.i.am, Melissa Rivers, Suze Orman, and you know, me. The letters are written by a mix of celebrities and civilians complete with photos of the mothers and the writers through the years. I kept this book a secret from my mom until I surprised her with a pre-publication edition last week. Yes, there were tears.

The books share motherhood as a common theme but are different from each other in tone and style. My essays are both previously unpublished pieces that I am very proud of. I hope you will buy copies for yourself and for a mom you know. Both books can be purchased at your local bookseller or on Amazon at the following links:

Listen to Your Mother: What She Said Then, What We're Saying Now

A Letter to My Mom

(Mother's Day shopping. Done. Bam.)

Egg Hunt

We are not too old for this. I hope we never will be. I don't even mind the get-up-before-dawn of it all. Much. Of course, last night, there was a last minute run to Rite Aid to get more innards for all of those plastic eggs. I even like that part. 

Smacksy Sunday Links

Easter Smacksy, 1965

Dare small things.

Stunning views of earth from space.

And a miniature horse playing in the snow with a yoga ball.

Happy Easter Sunday.

Smacksy Saturday Photo: Retro Bob

Egg Hunt, 2011

Good Friday

"What's the plan for today, Mom?"

"At noon we're taking Teddy in to get a shampoo and a haircut. After that we can go to lunch and then the movies. This morning we need to clean up a little around here and then go pick up some stuff for Passover and Easter."

"Oh my God, Mom. Tell me we are not going to Costco. Once we go in, we never come out."

At the Bagel Shop

"You know Mom, when I make a fruit salad it's better than this one because I cut the melon into smaller pieces."

"Yeah?"

"Mom, I can't believe you didn't just call me grampa right then."

Feels Like Spring

New Welcome Mat + Pot of Flowers = Suddenly Springtime