I like the concept of this website, an especially good way to track books you want to read. Goodreads allows me to publish my reviews to my blog so let's try this out:
My review
rating: 3 of 5 stars
The cover describes it as Steel Magnolias set in Manhattan which seemed about right to me. There's some swearing which I never appreciate and I felt that the characters were introduced so randomly and haphazardly that I had a hard time remembering which story went with which character for a while. Towards the end I predicted what was going to happen but still found it very moving. For me the last few chapters redeemed the book.
View all my reviews.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Good Reads
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Brotherly Love
Since I'm not actually a boy myself, I've often wondered about the relationship between brothers. They play, they fight, they playfight, they work together, they lock each other out of their rooms. Last weekend when we were running a 1.5 mile "fun" run I swear my boys were the only kids ever who could fight and run at the same time. W would careen into A who would get all mad and try to kick W (resulting in loss of shoe) and on and on it would go. I'm trying to push a stroller, run, and create peace between the boys all at the same time, not an easy task. I was ready to run for the hills, forget about the finish line! But then this morning I witnessed just the cutest, most heart-melting incident. I should preface it by saying that whenever A has a bad dream he crawls into W's bed. Most of the time they're best buddies. And A is "sooooooooo bored" while W is in school. So back to this morning. W and I were waiting for the bus when we hear, "Mommy, W, wait!" A is running across the lawn in his rainboots and raincoat. He wanted to wait for the bus with us. So we waited a minute or two and as the bus pulled up, A just threw his little 4-year-old arms around W, giving him the biggest hug and then saying, "Have a great day at school, W." It was just so sweet. It gives me hope that they may make it to adulthood without killing each other after all. Hopefully with few scars, too!
Monday, September 8, 2008
Star Wars
We are big Star Wars fans around here. Especially Lego Star Wars. The boys are 
convinced that they are getting the Lego Death Star for Christmas. It comes with every single Star Wars character they could ever imagine plus about 4000 pieces of Lego. Knowing how these things go,
mom and dad will spend cou
ntless hours scrutinizing teeny tiny pictures in the wordless constr
uction manual to build the Death Star. Then the Death Star will be played with for exactly 2 hours after which it will be completely dismantled and its pieces reassigned (or reimagined) as vehicles, ships, robots, etc. Not to mention the future foot pain that comes from stepping on all the little pieces that will be scattered all over my house. Oh, and did I mention that it only costs $400! Yikes! Anyway, here are a few of our favorite Star Wars characters brought to life by WAAM! May the Force be With You.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
A Bee Story
Poor Princess! Yesterday was a traumatic day for her. She went out with Daddy to the garden where he was picking tomatoes and she was picking sunflower seeds. Unfortunately a bumblebee was also interested in the sunflowers. It stung poor M on her little fingers, twice on two fingers, twice on another finger on her other hand. Her immediate reaction was to put her hurt fingers in her mouth but when she did that the bee went with it! So now M's screaming with a bee on her tongue stinging inside her mouth and around her lips and Daddy's yelling for help and it was all very awful. We brought her inside and administered Benedryl, Motrin and lots of Band-Aids and kisses and hugs. Poor little thing. And the saddest part was that she had to miss her very first day of preschool the next morning because she was feverish and tired. Hopefully that will be our last encounter with bees.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Vacation...all I ever wanted?
Well, we've been back from our very long vacation to Canada for a few days now and of course I haven't unpacked a single suitcase yet. My bedroom looks like either a tornado tore through it or the dressers exploded (or perhaps both). Apparently it rained and rained and rained while we were gone and although my darling husband assured me that the weeds in the garden were "not too bad", one look at the jungle of my former garden and that was it, my job for the week. It took two days just to unravel all the tomato vines from the crab grass that was their new home and stake them up. And I discovered about 8 eggplants hiding away. Oh, and did you know that if you let radishes grow they become 4 feet high with very pretty pink flowers? I especially loved the approximately 20 3-foot long zucchini and the UFO sized yellow scallopini squash. Sigh. Oh garden, I'll never leave you again. Or at least next time I'll only plant pumpkins which can pretty much take care of themselves. So now I'm paying for my vacation which was a lot of fun and exhausting all at the same time. I'll have to blog about it later, once I find my camera in the tornado-wreckage!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
The Prouty
I wanted to include my husband's a
ccount of his 100 mile bike ride to raise money for cancer research. Sounds like fun (NOT!) I had a great time. I rode the whole 100 miles! I got to the starting point at the Richmond School in Hanover around 6:45 AM.They had a ton of breakfast foods, donuts, energy bars, juice, etc. Allechante donated boxes of bakery items. You can guess where I spent most of my morning:mmmmmm, the chocolate croissants were still warm. So after loading up on carbohydrates, I got on my bike and got started on the road a little after 7AM. The prouty is not a race, you can start when you want and take your time if you like. When I get on a bike, I enjoy the feeling of whizzing fast, legs pumping,heart pounding, wind in my face, so I did not feel much like taking my time. I rode most of the course with the pedal to the metal. The first ten miles followed up route 10 from Hanover to Lyme, with Chieftan hill as the only bump in the road. In Lyme center, we took a left over the Connecticut River into Thetford. The next ten miles followed the river along Rt 5 up to Fairlee. That was a nice flat ride with farms all the way. I was surprised at all the bikes stopped along the route with flat tires. There was probably an average of someone stopped with a flat tire or other problem every 3 or 4 miles. We then crossed back over the Connecticut into Orford, NH and onto the 25A. The next ten miles were my favorite of the whole ride and consisted of a 1000 ft. climb up Mt. Cube. It was a very steady climb for several miles. I love climbing mountains on my single speed Country Road Bob bike. I had several people comment on it while riding: one "professional riding" team passed me and one the guys on the team held back to chat with me for a while.He wanted to know what I thought of the bike because he was thinking of getting one. Another gentleman who
I passed along the hill, sped up to catch me to chat for a while. He was impressed that the bike could climb so well without any higher gears. Mile 30 through 50 included a big drop and another hill climb but not quite as big as Mt Cube. We went through Wentworth, NH and onto route 25 into Warren. We passed by Mt Mousilake. This part of the ride was the most scenic. From Warren,we continued through Glencliff and back to Haverill, NH in the Connecticut river valley. This was near the halfway point and was the place where I stopped first to get off my bike, refuel and reload my Camelbak. I ride with a camelbakthat carries 2L of water. By the time that I stopped, I had been riding >2.5hours and had emptied my camelbak, I was also very hungry at this point. All along the route, at about every 10 miles, Prouty volunteers provided SAGs(Stop and Go) rest stops for bikers to take a break, enjoy nutritious food andrelax. Many of the SAG volunteers give their rest areas themes and dress in costumes - so it's very entertaining! All of the volunteers were very friendly and it was fun to stop and chat with other riders and feel the comraderie. Al lof the SAG stops have food and drinks, such as watermelon, bananas, granolabars, energy bars, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chocolate bars, water,gatorade, etc - most of which are generously donated by local vendors. I ended up stopping only twice on my ride, mostly to reload my camelbak since I went through 6L of water on the ride. After riding for several hours straight,it can be difficult to get back on the bike and start again. Its better just to keep on going. After the SAG in Haverhill, I got back on and continued along route 10 up the Connecticut river north to Woodsville. It was here that we crossed back over the Connecticut into Wells River, VT and turned south to start our journey back home along route 5. I remember passing a sign that showed mileage to St.Johnsbury was 20 miles. I knew we had come a long way. The ride along route 5 south was the longest part of the trip it seemed. By this time, most of the riders had spread out and there were stretches of miles where I was the only rider on the road it seemed. Somewhere near mile 70 a group of two riders passed me. They were taking turns drafting off each other. I decided to join their posse. If you have never drafted before, this consists of riding very close and maybe just a bit to the side ofthe rider in front of you. It is amazing how much more efficient and faster you can travel when someone in front of you is breaking the wind. This is why birds fly in a V formation. It really does make a big difference. Anyhow, they were going slightly faster on avg. than I had been. Once I started to draft off of them, my pace picked up and I started riding even faster. When you are drafting, you really have to pay attention, especially when you are behind. The rider in front uses hand signals to indicate problems ahead, these signals get passed rider to rider, front to back of the peleton. We picked up a fourth rider in our peleton for a while, but I think we were a bit too fast for him and he dropped. I had to really press to keep up, but it made the last thirty miles just fly by. We passed through Newbury, VT and then through Bradford and on to Fairlee. At Fairlee we crossed back over the Connecticut and into Orford, NH. Then continued south from Orford into Lyme. Here I took my second rest. At this point, I had finished 90 miles, I was starting to feel a little wobbly. I had been on the bike now for about 4 hours and 45 minutes. They had stacks of PB&J sandwiches waiting and I loaded up. I probably ate about 3 whole sandwiches, a couple of energy bars and a liter of gatorade. During my training runs I had often riden to Lyme and back from Hanover, so finally I felt like I was almost home. The last ten miles were the most difficult. At this point I was struggling to keep up with my little peleton. I did the first ten miles from Hanover to Lyme in 31 minutes. I did the last ten miles from Lyme to Hanover in 28 minutes. The difference? riding in a peleoton and being "pulled" along by some experienced riders. We were passing the returning fifty mile riders like they were standing still. Finally we made it back to the Richmond school and I thanked my peleton for their support. People cheered as we crossed the finish line and I parked my bike. I made it back right around 12:30. My total ride time for the 100 miles was five hours, eleven minute, eleven seconds with and average speed of 19.5mph. They had a bunch of food and tables and tents set up. I wasn't that hungry at this point. I only had a slic
e a pizza and a burrito, but I did catch up with my fellow EHS team members and coworkers: Michael Blayney, Jason Angel, and Michael Cimis. They had done the fifty mile route and had started about the same time. However, they had three flats along the way and had stopped at every SAG so we got back about the same time. This was the first time I had ridden more than 35 miles at one time. All in all, I had a great time! It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I was a little sore after the ride but by Sunday morning, I didn't have any soreness at all. It felt good to ride with a purpose and to support Cancer research. I really look forward to riding again next year. Next year though, I'm going to take my time, stop at every SAG, enjoy the company of fellow riders more and bring along a camera.
ccount of his 100 mile bike ride to raise money for cancer research. Sounds like fun (NOT!) I had a great time. I rode the whole 100 miles! I got to the starting point at the Richmond School in Hanover around 6:45 AM.They had a ton of breakfast foods, donuts, energy bars, juice, etc. Allechante donated boxes of bakery items. You can guess where I spent most of my morning:mmmmmm, the chocolate croissants were still warm. So after loading up on carbohydrates, I got on my bike and got started on the road a little after 7AM. The prouty is not a race, you can start when you want and take your time if you like. When I get on a bike, I enjoy the feeling of whizzing fast, legs pumping,heart pounding, wind in my face, so I did not feel much like taking my time. I rode most of the course with the pedal to the metal. The first ten miles followed up route 10 from Hanover to Lyme, with Chieftan hill as the only bump in the road. In Lyme center, we took a left over the Connecticut River into Thetford. The next ten miles followed the river along Rt 5 up to Fairlee. That was a nice flat ride with farms all the way. I was surprised at all the bikes stopped along the route with flat tires. There was probably an average of someone stopped with a flat tire or other problem every 3 or 4 miles. We then crossed back over the Connecticut into Orford, NH and onto the 25A. The next ten miles were my favorite of the whole ride and consisted of a 1000 ft. climb up Mt. Cube. It was a very steady climb for several miles. I love climbing mountains on my single speed Country Road Bob bike. I had several people comment on it while riding: one "professional riding" team passed me and one the guys on the team held back to chat with me for a while.He wanted to know what I thought of the bike because he was thinking of getting one. Another gentleman who
I passed along the hill, sped up to catch me to chat for a while. He was impressed that the bike could climb so well without any higher gears. Mile 30 through 50 included a big drop and another hill climb but not quite as big as Mt Cube. We went through Wentworth, NH and onto route 25 into Warren. We passed by Mt Mousilake. This part of the ride was the most scenic. From Warren,we continued through Glencliff and back to Haverill, NH in the Connecticut river valley. This was near the halfway point and was the place where I stopped first to get off my bike, refuel and reload my Camelbak. I ride with a camelbakthat carries 2L of water. By the time that I stopped, I had been riding >2.5hours and had emptied my camelbak, I was also very hungry at this point. All along the route, at about every 10 miles, Prouty volunteers provided SAGs(Stop and Go) rest stops for bikers to take a break, enjoy nutritious food andrelax. Many of the SAG volunteers give their rest areas themes and dress in costumes - so it's very entertaining! All of the volunteers were very friendly and it was fun to stop and chat with other riders and feel the comraderie. Al lof the SAG stops have food and drinks, such as watermelon, bananas, granolabars, energy bars, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chocolate bars, water,gatorade, etc - most of which are generously donated by local vendors. I ended up stopping only twice on my ride, mostly to reload my camelbak since I went through 6L of water on the ride. After riding for several hours straight,it can be difficult to get back on the bike and start again. Its better just to keep on going. After the SAG in Haverhill, I got back on and continued along route 10 up the Connecticut river north to Woodsville. It was here that we crossed back over the Connecticut into Wells River, VT and turned south to start our journey back home along route 5. I remember passing a sign that showed mileage to St.Johnsbury was 20 miles. I knew we had come a long way. The ride along route 5 south was the longest part of the trip it seemed. By this time, most of the riders had spread out and there were stretches of miles where I was the only rider on the road it seemed. Somewhere near mile 70 a group of two riders passed me. They were taking turns drafting off each other. I decided to join their posse. If you have never drafted before, this consists of riding very close and maybe just a bit to the side ofthe rider in front of you. It is amazing how much more efficient and faster you can travel when someone in front of you is breaking the wind. This is why birds fly in a V formation. It really does make a big difference. Anyhow, they were going slightly faster on avg. than I had been. Once I started to draft off of them, my pace picked up and I started riding even faster. When you are drafting, you really have to pay attention, especially when you are behind. The rider in front uses hand signals to indicate problems ahead, these signals get passed rider to rider, front to back of the peleton. We picked up a fourth rider in our peleton for a while, but I think we were a bit too fast for him and he dropped. I had to really press to keep up, but it made the last thirty miles just fly by. We passed through Newbury, VT and then through Bradford and on to Fairlee. At Fairlee we crossed back over the Connecticut and into Orford, NH. Then continued south from Orford into Lyme. Here I took my second rest. At this point, I had finished 90 miles, I was starting to feel a little wobbly. I had been on the bike now for about 4 hours and 45 minutes. They had stacks of PB&J sandwiches waiting and I loaded up. I probably ate about 3 whole sandwiches, a couple of energy bars and a liter of gatorade. During my training runs I had often riden to Lyme and back from Hanover, so finally I felt like I was almost home. The last ten miles were the most difficult. At this point I was struggling to keep up with my little peleton. I did the first ten miles from Hanover to Lyme in 31 minutes. I did the last ten miles from Lyme to Hanover in 28 minutes. The difference? riding in a peleoton and being "pulled" along by some experienced riders. We were passing the returning fifty mile riders like they were standing still. Finally we made it back to the Richmond school and I thanked my peleton for their support. People cheered as we crossed the finish line and I parked my bike. I made it back right around 12:30. My total ride time for the 100 miles was five hours, eleven minute, eleven seconds with and average speed of 19.5mph. They had a bunch of food and tables and tents set up. I wasn't that hungry at this point. I only had a slic
e a pizza and a burrito, but I did catch up with my fellow EHS team members and coworkers: Michael Blayney, Jason Angel, and Michael Cimis. They had done the fifty mile route and had started about the same time. However, they had three flats along the way and had stopped at every SAG so we got back about the same time. This was the first time I had ridden more than 35 miles at one time. All in all, I had a great time! It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I was a little sore after the ride but by Sunday morning, I didn't have any soreness at all. It felt good to ride with a purpose and to support Cancer research. I really look forward to riding again next year. Next year though, I'm going to take my time, stop at every SAG, enjoy the company of fellow riders more and bring along a camera.Sunday, July 13, 2008
Oh, Canada!
I can't believe how fast time is flying while we're here on vacation. We seem to be just zooming from place to place, visiting cousins and aunts and uncles and doing all that family stuff. So far our trip has included a waterpark, a zoo, the Calgary stampede, meeting the new additions to the family, getting spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa and at least 16 trips to Walmart. It's amazing how easy it is to just run down the street for a pair of socks or a forgotten toothbrush. Good thing I'm not zooming too fast through the Canadian money! Of course Grandma keeps 
telling the kids, "Don't you wish you lived closer so Grandma could spoil you all the time?" Poor kids! It's especially fun seeing M with her cousin, S. They're only a month apart and they're like little twins together, virtually inseperable. That is definitely something we will miss back in VT.
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