Anyways, to enter – check out the details at their FaceBook fan page or on their website.

(in the prize dept)

(and hell, in other depts too – we are talking romance after all!)

The Smart Bitches and the Dear Author girlz are at it again with a sweet little contest to help spread the word about the awesomeness of contemporary romance in general and author Julie James’ latest release in particular.

I’ve said it before, I wasn’t much of a fan of the contemporary – but I agreed with so many of SB Sarah’s favs that when she oozed happiness and rainbows for a book that was outside my novel comfort zone – I figured why not.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all that.

So reach out – be brave – try something new!

Save the ta-tas, yes, but save a contemporary too.

And I am in no way comparing the two causes, or making light of a serious issue – but so many campaigns have their ribbon – pink, red, yellow – what would the Save the Contemporary support ribbon look like? Flesh colored?

I kid!

Maybe if we found a couple hundred yards of man-titty fabric…

Go check it out…but if you win I am not liable for any injuries!

I loved Pandora, I loved how it introduced me to new artists based on stuff I already liked (hello Frou Frou and Jem (no, not with the Holograms). I loved the cute little widget I can add to my website and share what I’m listening to (I always find it interesting to see what kind of music people like). I loved that I could build different “radio stations” based on my mood or what I was doing.

But all was not perfect  in the Pandora world…my biggest beef is the limit they place on how much you can listen for free…well then, that’s not really “free” anymore.

Then along came Last.fm…oh sweetness and light, I am saved! This site is really neat – totally free, listen as long as I like, and a big list of free mp3s available to download to boot. They also allow you to select artists you like and build playlists based upon your taste, and they include videos (cool, huh?)!

Sorry Pandora, I just found something a little better.

I hope we can still be friends.

This was how I discovered that:

A – I totally missed an awesome series of book giveaways for the 12 days of Christmas at Book Binge

and B – they are featuring Karen Marie Moning in their author spotlight this month.

I love Karen’s books. The Highlander time travel series and the Fever series, she writes fun heroines, sexy sexy heroes and great dialogue. So yay for Karen!

Right now they are hosting a tournament of KMM heroes, so go and place your vote. Oh, and you can vote for more than one (kinda like having your cake and eating it too…but if I think about that too long in reference to KMM’s heroes I’ll need a cold shower).

Or maybe we know a song is really bad: the lyrics are beyond awful, the singer had enough electronic assistance and back-up singers to start a dozen bands, the tune is obviously trying too hard to be catchy and you MUST resist…but somehow you…can’t…(imagine that last part in the voice of Cpt. Kirk).

Case in point: I just bought a song from itunes from a singer I really can’t stand…really. Lady GaGa is more Lady GagGag to me, and when that new Bad Romance song of hers comes on the radio I shriek like I’ve been bitten by a hyena and clutch at the stereo dial, praying I can get the damn song off before my head explodes from the awfulness. Yet, somehow, I find myself really liking another of her songs. Everytime Paparazzi comes on the radio, I find it still playing in my head hours later – and I like it. So I caved, and for just under $3, bought a series of 4 remixes of the song.  There, I admitted it.

Which made me think of other songs I liked, but if anyone caught me singing it (or rocking out to it in the car, yikes), I wouldn’t deny it, but would feel I had to justify it somehow…or at least acknowledge that I should be embarrassed by my poor taste in music.

So here we go – my list of Top 10 Songs I Should Probably Be Ashamed To Admit I Like

10. As discussed above, Paparazzi by Lady GaGa

9. I am a mom to a 6 year old, which means I have accepted that Hannah Montana is going to be a part of my life. But I admit I really like some of her songs, especially Hoedown Throwdown

Somehow it goes against my principles to like songs from an American Idol winner, but sometimes they are just so darn catchy!  So that reason alone, covers the following 3:

8. That Jordin Sparks song…One Step At a Time

7. Before He Cheats Double Whammy: an American Idol winner AND a country song!

6. Battlefield again by Jordin Sparks – I was kind of irritated by this song when I first heard it, (steal from Pat Benatar much?) but the more I hear it (and it’s rather hard to escape it) the more it grows on me…like a fungus.

5.  1,2,3,4 by Plain White Tees  – Lil’ G really likes this song, and in a year or two, probably could have written the lyrics for it…but I have to say, I like it too.

4. Here I Go Again by Whitesnake Crazy women who go to court for beating their husbands doing  naughty things to the hood of a car aside, there’s something about this song that just makes you want to belt it out at the top of your lungs.

3. Fallout Boy – I Don’t Care Really? Fallout Boy? I know, but I love to run to this song.

2. Taylor Swift – Love Story I suppose I shouldn’t be embarrassed, based on the number of awards this girl has won even Jesus buys her music, which kind of makes me wish I didn’t like it (the whole not wanting to like what everybody else likes).

1. Nickelback….So Far Away Ok, this one I am truly ashamed of…of all the bands out there, Nickelback is one of the biggest jokes – poser rock to the extreme, Google Dolls squared. But this one song, I like it… alot.

I am sure there are more…oh so many more…but those are the ones I could think of right away.

So embrace your bad taste and be proud: what songs do you love when you rather wish you didn’t?

Aside from the fact that we’d have no money left for college (or next month’s electric bill), some stuff she asks for is very spur of the moment, Gimme! Gimme! – and that’s the kind of stuff I know she can simply do without. For the most part, though, I make sure she gets what she really wants – and will go out of my way (like ordering Charlie and Lola dolls from the UK, or digging up vintage Littlest Pet Shops on E-bay) to find and buy something if she sticks with a particular request for awhile.

Here are the two items she asked for from Santa this year:

She saw this at a friend's house and calls it a "Dog Dress Up Set." Thanks Christine for helping me locate this!

Front and center you can see the dolphin I managed to find on e-bay...apparently Sea World put out a series of LPS toys in the '90s.

Overall, I think I earn my gold Mama star in the gift department. Our Santa policy is that you can only ask for one or two things from the big man in red, because he has a lot of kids to take care of, and there just isn’t room for too many toys per kid in his sack. This way, she keeps her list with Santa (whether writing a letter to him or sitting on his lap) short and sweet – and I know the things she asks for from him are what she REALLY wants, more than anything, and that’s what I will work extra hard to make sure she finds on Christmas morning.

So I kinda brought the difficult toy hunt upon myself, because it seems Miss A has decided that if a toy can be found in a store, than that doesn’t go on the Santa list. For example, she originally planned to ask Santa for one of those FurReal cats…but then she saw it in a certain store that starts with a W and told me, “I’m not going to ask Santa for that. If it’s here in the store, you can get it for me!”

That kid is sharp.

I have to admit, I like our Santa policy – sure it can make me have to frantically hunt for things not commonly sold in stores – but it also lets my husband and I enjoy the lion’s share of credit for presents.

And yes, I admit to enjoying basking in the glow of juvenile gift gratification.

Then at a 7Nations concert (pretty much the only band I enjoy seeing live) the lead singer and bass player signed my CD.

ETA: I just wanted to add, that if you are looking for some new Christmas music – something a little different but still a bit traditional…you should check out 7Nations holiday CD:

My favorites: "The Rebel Jesus" and their version of 2000 Miles and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

Several years ago, I had met the fiddle player and got a pic (I cornered him while he was grabbing a drink at IrishFest).

Here I am with Dan, the Fiddle Man of 7Nations, at IrishFest (clearly, this picture was taken BEFORE I had kids).

And to top it off, just after my birthday, I got to meet my favorite blogger (aside from the Bitches, whom I hope to meet one day as well) PW!

I know I have mentioned my love and admiration for The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond here before. I was first introduced to her a little over a year ago by another homeschooling mom, and ever since then, I’ve been hooked. I visit her site every week, sometimes every day, (ok, ok I admit it,  sometimes more than once in a day).

I can’t decide what I love best about her site…sure there is the homeschooling section, but sadly, that doesn’t get updated as much as I’d like – she has some great contributors, like Mrs G and Oh My Stinkin’ Heck, who write wonderful articles and post cool tips and ideas. Like the one about notebook pages and free write stories I posted about awhile back.

Then there is the cooking section – full of recipes, most of which I just drool over, knowing I will never find the time to make any of it. I have actually tried making a few things from her site,  like the apple tart and zucchini cake. I hope to try making her rosemary rolls at some point, and if I am successful with that, I’ll try something else.

I think my favorite section of her site is the Photography  – she offers awesome free PhotoShop actions and between her and her incredible contributors (like Miz Booshay), all sorts of helpful tutorials and tips. Of course, I am still lusting after a DSLR instead of owning one, but I make do with my point and shoot. It’s a fun and a creative outlet.

Then there are her contests. Her awesome incredible contests. At least once a week (usually) she will run a contest giving away pots and pans, mixers, knives, cameras, printers, gift cards…all sorts of great stuff!!! And it’s never stressful to enter her contests, usually you just have to answer a random question that floats through her brain (like: “What’s your favorite kind of pizza?”) I am crossing my fingers and hoping that my luck is holding out to win one of her camera prize packages. Oh, I am hoping! (Me and the 30,000+ people who comment on her site everyday).

So, when PW announced she was coming to Chicagoland as part of her cookbook tour, you know I had to be there. Miss A and I went to the Barnes and Noble to hang out and wait for her, and Holy Cow (little bit of Chicago for you) does this woman draw a crowd!

The store was packed, literally, from floor to ceiling. I hung out in the back (in the kid's section) with Miss A, so that's why all my shots are from behind. Pretty cool, though, cuz it's more from her perspective.

She came along with her husband (whom she refers to as Marlboro Man on her blog) and her 2 boy “punks.” Her 2 daughters stayed at home on the ranch for this leg of her book tour. Miss A liked meeting some other homeschooled kids, and loved hearing how they each had their own horse!

Miss A brought with some markers and paper for the boys to sign.

They were pretty busy running all over the place, but stopped for a moment to hang out with her.

I gave Miss A my old camera which hasn’t been working very well and told her to have some fun.

So she did.

She took pictures of other people in line with us.

And she took pics of PW herself.

Ree was as sweet and funny and open in person as she is on her website. She was a good sport about Aishtyn basically shoving a camera up her nose (I know how PW hates “bad” pictures of herself, so I won’t post Miss A’s shots here).

Despite the loooong line, she chatted with me and Aishtyn and took the time to personalize my books. One for me, and one as a birthday gift to my mother-in-law. Hopefully she will get inspired and make something extra yummy for us to try when we visit (is that devious of me?).

If you have never been to Ree’s website, go now! You don’t know what you’re missing. She is currently running a Chirstmas contest – prizes every day from now until Christmas!

I really don’t need to say anything more.

This gem, along with 9 other Twilighterrific products, is from a post my darling husband sent to me. The man loves to tease me since I read all the Twilight books this past October (and made him watch the first movie with me when I NetFlixed it, and then went out and watched the second movie with a friend). I enjoyed the series, but I am by no means a fan, and certainly not one who would hope to see anything from THIS LIST under the tree Christmas morning.

Aside from the creepy shower curtain, my favorites included:

Dude, if a guy actually made it far enough with a girl who would slip these on in the first place…he just might be weird enough to go ahead and slip them off.

With his fake vampire teeth.

Because you know he’s wearing them.

It’s how he got her into bed to begin with.

And of course, once he got those undies off, he’ll need one of these – because DEAR GOD PLEASE DON’T REPRODUCE!

And my husband’s personal favorite, more for the poster’s comment about attacking it with a lead pipe in the middle of the night than anything else…

All’s I gotta say is that there is no way that thing is going into a bedroom like that…there needs to be waaaaaaay more stuffed animals.

One of Miss A's craft projects from last Thanksgiving.

One of the wonderful things about homeschooling is that it gives me an excuse to make all the fun little crafty things I used to love creating when I was a kid. From cotton ball Santa Beards to handprint turkeys, I really enjoy making holiday craft projects with Miss A (and Lil’ G is starting to want to get in on the action too, now).

If you enjoy all the messy fun of glitter and glue, construction paper and crayons, popsicle sticks and googly eyes – and you don’t mind your holiday decorations consisting of freakishly odd shaped turkeys and pumpkins, then you’ll appreciate the following resource: a really neat little craft website, Crafty Crow posted a wonderful collection of Thanksgiving craft ideas all in one spot; go see what kind of Turkey Crafts you think you would enjoy, and have some gobbley-good fun (yes, I just typed that).