Men Take Note.. again

Just in case you didn't get it the first time...



Best,
Kwana

Help When You Need It

What’s Jack up to? Jack is doing good. The silly little dog is having a day with the dear twins since is been officially called a snow day so the weekend begins early at my house. Enough with the snow please. I'm done.

And yes, this was a huge honking storm. Trees down and all that. My DH got stuck and his car couldn’t make it up the hill coming home last night. Thankfully he was in front of the town’s fire house and a bunch of young guys came out and pushed his car up the hill.
It’s so good to have help when you need it.
These pics were taken at night.


Then later when walking Jack late in the evening he saw a huge tree had fallen around the corner. Of course I had to go out and see. Down right on the power lines.


On our walk suddenly the big guns were out, this huge tractor. The driver was so funny. He pulled up beside us and said, “Did you call a cab?” Yep, Good to have help when you need it.

Speaking of help when you need it... Laura from Shore(house) Chic blog is doing a Help for Haiti auction over at her blog. Because they still need so much help and will for a long time to come. Laura has some wonderful handmade pieces to go to the highest bidder. Go here to check it out.

Best,
Kwana

It’s All About Me

Hey, sometimes it has to be all about me and sometimes it has to all about you too.

We do so much for so many other people that it’s easy to put yourself on the back burner and then one day wake up look in the mirror and wonder What the--? What happened? Where did time go? Why didn’t I work out (because I can't stand it) or get that facial or massage or take that walk or nap or whatever it was that would have given me the self care I needed to make this trek past the mirror a bit more palatable. Ugh! (aren't I brave to post this unflattering pic?)

I’ve been having quite a few of those "all about me moments" or "what about me moments"and putting my “frivolous” needs aside for the needs of others (now we know for beauty and sanity's sake they are not frivolous). Well, I did a big splurge recently and not without a lot of thought and consideration. I jumped in and got a Clarisonic. I had been wanting one for a long time since I’ve been having problems with creepy little lines (hello 40), odd dry patches and where did you come from pimples.

I saw the Clarisonic in person when I was at Nordstrom the other day while lusting over some handbags but I quickly put it down (along with the bag) saying no way. But then after reading countless testimonials, thinking it over for a week, I ordered one from QVC. Wheeeee!!!

Now after my first try with the cleaning system I could not be happier. Like with handbags I’m a freak for good skincare and I have not been happy with mine lately. After one Clarisonic cleaning I could feel the fresh tingle from the water as it swept across my skin. Just lovely. Ahh.

Of course I now want the baby Mia for my DD. I’m sure she and her teen skin will love it too. But she may have to wait a bit because it be pricy and I thought about mine a loooong time.

I will keep you updated on my Clarisonic progress.

Yay! The QVC set came with 2 extra brushes and 2 full sized cleansers one for the face and one for the body. Sweet!

You can go here to check out Brown Girl Gumbo's view on the Clarisonic Mia.

And here are a couple of videos for your enjoyment. Cheers to self care!










Best,
Kwana

Remembering Mama

I remember the book Mama by Terry McMillan very well and can't believe it was well over 20 years ago that I read and loved it. It was one of those books that really spoke to me in both its style and emotion. With all I'm going through as a writer right now I think I need to revisit it. Check out this interview with the amazing author.



Best,
Kwana

Work Space

What’s Jack up to? Well, you know Jack so no surprise, he’s up to his old tricks. He got sick and threw up the other day. Could it be because the Dear Twins are home and he’s getting into their secret stash of treats from school? He got into the DS’s bookbag and found a bunch of candy while we were out and I came home to candy wrappers all over the floor. I wasn’t happy with Jack or the DS for that one.

Thank you all so much for your support on my Keeping It Real post yesterday. I’m not sure where it will lead but I do appreciate it. Today I’d like to do an update on an old post Visualization where I talked about wanting to add a writing desk to my already tight bedroom. Well, while the Twins were in Paris last week and I had the DH home I decided to move a bit of furniture around. Too bad it was when the DH was trying to take a much longed for nap that I came up with this plan (shrug).


Oh well after much nudging, we moved his chest of drawers over and took the TV off the, could be antique, sewing table that was its stand (yes there is a real sewing machine in here). Then I made the sewing table my desk. Sure it’s itty bitty but works for now until I find another I like. And I quickly put up my little inspiration board. Next up a nice tall skinny shelf for the pile of books and papers to the left that you can't see.
But now to deal with this pesky problem of writer’s block that I’m having. More on that later…


Have a fantastic day!

Best,
Kwana

Keeping It Real

Hello Monday. I hope the weekend treated you well. Mine was fine. Back to the usual running with the Dear Twins and such. Weekends are so busy that Monday mornings seems like a breather. Although I will admit to wasting away much of Saturday on the bed in front of the TV nursing my eye which is a lot better. The DH was kind enough to put the kidlit miles on his car and do all the driving while I held down the home fort. Ahh domestic life.

But all this is not the focus on today’s post. Today I’d like to discuss something I’ve been grappling with a while. The idea of keeping it real and how real can real be on ye old blog. You see something has not been quite sitting right with me.

There are plenty of days when I write a perfectly fine blog post but I glaze over a subject when I’d like to go deeper, be a little sharper, maybe more snarky, not so darn happy and let more of my neurotic self come though. But then that neurotic self takes over and I get to fretting. I start to compare myself to those shiny happy pretty blogs and worry that if I get too real and show my true self or give my real opinions you all won’t come back or you’ll stop reading.


Silly I know. To get to 40 and still worry what others think. What a shame. What waste or time, energy and so precious words.


Besides when I look back on past posts where I am more real and let my feelings show you all have responded so beautifully and shown more of yourselves to me. For that I am grateful.
So what I guess what I’m saying here is it’s time for ye old blog to grow up a bit. Get more real and show more of who I really am. Lord knows when I look in the mirror I see plenty of changes, I might as well express them here too.


Every day is not sunny and every day it does not rain.

Much Love,
Kwana

I’d Like To Thank The Academy…

I’ve been surprised and honored to receive some very kind (though I’m not sure deserved) awards for ye ol’ blog here. On behalf of myself and the Jackster I’d like to give hearty thanks. Uh-oh here comes the ugly cry.

The first was the Over The Top award from Christine from over at The Happily Ever After.
The Over The Top Award is given to blogging friends whose blogs you consider over the top, in a complimentary way, of course. As in, they are "far more than usual or expected; extraordinary."
Now receiving this award tell me I need to go even further to be a little more Over The Top. Look out world I’m coming for ya! Thanks so much Christine. You can visit Christine here.
Before passing this award on I have to complete this little survey. Okay. I’m game.

Your cell phone? Blackberry Storm

Your hair? Hot Mess

Your mother? Wild

Your father? Passed away

Your favorite food? Too many to choose

Your dream last night? Deep

Your favorite drink? coffee

Your dream/goal? To be happy

What room are you in? Bedroom

Your hobby? Reading and Knitting and TV

Your fear? So many

Where do you want to be in 6 years? A multi published author

Where were you last night? home

Something that you aren't? Patient

Muffins? Sometimes

Wish list item? Marc Jacobs Lisa bag.

Where did you grow up? New York City

Last thing you did? Washed Dishes. So glamorous

What are you wearing? Sweater and flamer pj’s

Your TV? old. Really, it has a turn dial.

Your pets? Jack the wonder dog

Friends? sweet

Your life? Complicated

Your mood? Complicated

Missing someone? always

Vehicle? Ford Edge

Something you're not wearing? shoes

Your favorite store? bookstore

Your favorite color? Green sometimes other times,black.

When was the last time you laughed? Hmm… Must get on that.

Last time you cried? Hmmm… sure it won’t be long now.

Your best friend? Loyal

One place that you go to over and over? Bathroom. TMI?

Facebook? 1 x a day. Not a huge fan

Favorite place to eat? Johnny’s on City Island

Now I’m supposed to pass the award to 5 other Over The Top Bloggers. Okay Dokey!
Kate at Babbling about Books

Megan Frampton

Kristen’s Divalicious Blog

Amanda McCabe

Jax’s Artistic Journey

Now the fun doesn’t stop there I received yet another award. Man, you’d think I starred in Precious or at least Avatar and was painted blue with all the awards.

I received a Beautiful Blogger award from Tia at Stoic which is a super cool blog that you really need to check out. Beautiful? Wow. Look at me blushing.

Now of course all things come with a little catch and you have to pay in order to play so here are the rules behind the award:
1. Thank & link to the person that gave you the award
Thanks so much Tia. You really are the fairest of them all. Link here.

2. Pass this award onto 15 bloggers you’ve recently discovered & think are fantastic.
15? I agree with Tia. These folks are not playing around but ok. Check out these cool peeps. Some may be a bit older than the rest but you won’t be sorry. Click away:

Get It Girl Style

West Family Advetures

Laura at the Shorehouse

Architect Design

Chocolate Covered Daydreams

Gossamer Obsessions

Jumping Tandem

Lenorevermore

Literary Rambles

Louise Fury's Blog

Midwestern Malaise

North of 25A

Romance Reading Mom

That's Not My Age

Lifescapes

3. Contact said Blogs & let them know they've won
Uh, don’t they have Google alerts for that? Sigh ok.

4. State 7 things about yourself

Come on. You people must be bored with me by now. Sorry if I repeat myself:
1. I can’t walk in heels. My feet instantly hurt. I wish I could though.
2. I usually have at least one twin pissed at me. Ugh. Parenting sucks.
3. I really love shrimp. Wish I had some right now.
4. I adore a good bath. I’d like a nice hot bath at having a nice plate of shrimp.
5. Throw some pasta with those shrimp and I’d be extra happy
6. Put it all in Italy and make my day. I really want to go there one day.
7. Maybe on a book trip?

Whew. I made it. Thanks for reading and playing along. At least I hope you do. I really am honored to be thought of and so grateful to all of you who stop on my and hang with me every day.

Best,

Kwana

Sad Clown

What am I 12 0r 13? How do I get these things? I have been dealing with a cold for over a week maybe 2 and I woke two days ago with a really red eye. I thought (well hoped) it was my allergies. No doing there. It continued so I went to the eye Dr. to find out I have pink eye. Pink freakin' eye! That and the two big pimples between my eyebrows make me wonder if I'm 12 or something. Ugh.



So that's the reason for the Toulouse-Lautrec artwork today (still keeping with the Paris feel). I'm feeling like a bit of a sad clown out there for all the world to see even though I'd rather hide. Oh and the fact that I'm giving up sugar for Lent (again) does not help my Sad Clown mood or attitude. Speaking of attitude I sure like hers. Love the pants. This was painted over 100 years ago and still they look great. So stylish.




Happy Friday.




Best,
Kwana

Winter in Paris

What’s Jack up to? Oh that Jack is trying my last nerve. Yesterday after a workout with my new Shape Up sneakers I decided to reward myself with a nice bath before continuing with my chores and getting ready for the Dear Twins to come home. Well, I ran my bubble bath, closed the door just about all the way, and went about doing some things when I looked and saw Jack acting squirrely. Tossing and flipping like he was trying to dry himself. Well… sigh… that little stinker had jumped into my bath before I could. Can you believe it? I fixed him and a chased him down and gave him a bath for real. Don’t know what’s more work. One little dog or 16 year old twins.

Yeah, I know, it’s the Teen Twins (but Jack is close). They returned home last night tired and happy to see us (Jack the most). Paris was a love, love, love even in the winter (they had a bit of snow). I'm so happy they are back safe and sound. What a joy for us to send them on this trip and to have them return to us.

I will report more soon. Enjoy your day.

Painting of Paris in the Winter by Antoine Blanchard

Best,
Kwana

Thank Heaven

What's Jack up to? Well he was way too happy in the snow yesterday. Rolling around and having a ball. I just could not muster up the same enthusiasm. Sorry Jack I'm just over it now.

The Dear Twins will be home tonight! I've missed them a lot but it's been a good miss and gone by so fast. Quickly we'll all be back to the grind.
In honor of the twins coming home I leave you with this trailer and clip from Gigi with Leslie Caron one of my all time favorite movies that pays homage to gay Paris!







Best,
Kwana

While Paris Sleeps

Today is the twins last full day in Paris. They return home tomorrow night. Yay and sniff. Feeling the need to get as much work done and rest as possible today. That just doesn't mix.

I was looking for a Parisian movie while thinking of the twins, maybe I should not have come across this one. Yikes! A poor girl out of luck and money, but it does look good. I'll have to get it from my library and check the full out.

Have you seen it?

I hope your day is going well.

Best,

Kwana

Happy President's Day

What's Jack up to? Jack is doing well. Missing the Dear Twins but happy to have all the attention of the house to himself. It's all about Jack right now... but really when is it not?

I hope you had a nice Valentine's day. Mine was lovely spent with the DH and seeing him sing in the male choir for Men's day. Here's a pic of my pretty roses that he gave me. What a sweetheart.

In honor of the Dear Twins I'm keeping up with the French theme this week with this pic of our President and First lady on their past visit to France for President's day today.




So far I hear the twins are having a wonderful time, visiting Versailles yesterday one of the most beautiful places on earth in my opinion. They even got to go into more private rooms like the opera house which is not for pubic view and sit. Lucky kids. I'm so glad they are having this experience. Their teachers blog for the parents every night and send us pics to tell about the trip. It looks like a blast. Yesterday there was even a sweet Valentine message video from Versailles.








Happy Presidents day to you. Enjoy!




Best,
Kwana

Sweet Sounds

So I did hear from the Dear Twins. They both called separately yesterday evening Paris time after arriving at the homes of their host families and having dinner. Ahh... dinner in Paris how nice.

I was out since it was afternoon in NY so the DS left a message saying his family was nice and the meal delicious. So like him to think of the meal.

The DD reported the same and told of visiting the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe. She seemed happy and tired from so far away. Even spoke a bit of french. Aww!!

The DH and I are amazed that our babies are so far away and having this experience. Believe me it's a long way from his Georgia and my Harlem roots.

I'm wishing you all a Happy Valentine's Weekend. I hope it's filled with love.

With All Our Love,

Kwana & Jack

P.S. The winner of the Cara Elliot giveaway is Lenore of Lenorevermore! Congrats. If you have not been to Lenore's blog get over there quick. Believe me you won't be disappointed with all the fab going on

Go Here.

Paris Has My Heart

What's Jack up to? He's wondering where the Dear Twins have gotten to right about now. Spent lots of time on top of the couch and watching the window yesterday. I'm sure right now he's like what the heck is up and where are they? Sorry Jack.

Bonjour! The Dear Twins got off to Paris yesterday evening and I'm trying hard not to worry too much while waiting for scattered calls. I'm hoping all goes well when they meet their generous host families and they find their ways around ok.

Hey, maybe they'll be like these kids here, rocking it along the Seine.

You'll be glad to hear I fought hard and won the battle of the tears when the bus was pulling away from the school (I didn't want to embarrass them too much).

But I did get in an extra hug or two. I just had to.

Best,

Kwana

photo from Art.com

Smart Snow Dog

So what about all that snow the east coast got socked with huh? Just what we didn’t need and the dear twins are supposed to head for Paris today with their French group. I sure hope all goes off on time and well. Please send good bloggy vibes their way.

Yesterday the family headed out to brave the snow and do some shoveling and cleaning of the cars.




Jack wasn’t all that thrilled with the idea and had to seriously consider stepping off the porch.






Once he did he got into the swing of things for a bit, that is until the DH opened the car door for a moment and like a shot Jack was gone.




Into the sanctuary of the warm car. Leaving us outside to clean up on our own. Smart dog.

Best,
Kwana

P.S. There is still time to enter the Cara Elliot Sin with a Scoundrel giveaway from yesterday's post below.

Sinning with a Scoundrel and a Giveaway!

So are you snowed in? Raise your hands if you are?

Lucky me! The mail gods and ARC gods have been smiling and in a recent book shipment I received a copy of To Sin With A Scoundrel by Cara Elliot, the first book in the Circle of Sin series. Now once again I was duped buy the old author name change switcharoo. I was like, “where have I heard that name before.” You all know me. Between the Teen Twins and Jack I can’t remember two days ago and surely not when a friend goes and writes under a pseudonym. Foul!

Cara got me with this on twitter too. I was like, “who is this Cara all over the place.” Turns out it’s my friend and bestselling author, Andrea. Duh! I really gotta get it together. Maybe ginkgo biloba, but I do vaguely remember hearing about a study saying that that doesn’t even work. Sigh. Oh well, back to today’s joy…

I got To Sin With A Scoundrel, read it, totally enjoyed it and then saw the lovely Cara/Andrea at Lady Jane’s Salon recently and she ever so kindly agreed to do a short interview with me (even though I’m a ninny that can’t remember her very famous pseudonym).

Now onto the interview:

Hello Cara thanks so much for taking some time out of your busy schedule to pop over her for a bit at Kwana Writes!

Thanks for inviting me, Kwana. You’re such a wonderful voice for the romance genre—it’s an honor to be here!

First off can you tell us a little about your background? Have you always wanted to be a romance writer or is this something that you happened on later? Do you have some fab story of “overnight success”?

Actually, I wrote my first book when I was five years old. It was a Western, complete with meticulously colored pictures of horses and cowboys. (I’ve since moved on to Regency England . . . I must have a thing for Men in Boots!) So I guess that storytelling has always been a passion of mine. However, I also loved art and ended up majoring in graphic design, which took me on a different career path for a number of years, So to make a long story short, I remained an avid reader, but didn’t return to writing until later in life. One day, about ten years ago, I decided to plunk my derriere in a chair and try my hand at writing again. And that was it—I was hooked, though I hadn’t the first clue on what I was going to do with the finished manuscript.

Getting published was a serendipitous quirk of fate. A friend introduced me to an agent and I pitched him a contemporary thriller I had written. (It’s still in a desk drawer for good reason.) He nodded politely throughout the interview and said he would take a look at it. Then, as we got up, I mentioned as an afterthought,” Oh, I also have a Regency romance, but that probably doesn’t interest you.” Well, at that his eyes lit up, and he said,” Oh, the people at the Signet Regency line are good friends. Let me show it to them.” Three days later I got the call that they had bought my book!

What’s your writing process like? Are you a plotter or a pantser? What’s a typical writing day like for you?

Oh, total set-of-the-panser! I can’t tell you how many times I finish a chapter and sit back saying, “Whoa, I didn’t know they were going to do that!”
I’m also a slow writer. On my writing days, I get up early and pretty much keep at it for 10 or12 hours (Okay, okay, with bathroom and chocolate breaks. Chocolate is an essential item on a writer’s desk. One never knows when The Muse might need a little bribe!) If I end up with 8 or 10 pages, that’s a very good day. The good news is, they are pretty clean pages. I’m not someone who writes three or four drafts.

Now I know your schedule is extremely busy since you are currently teaching a class at Yale (yes folks, that Yale) called “Reading the Historical Romance Novel” along with New York Times bestselling author Lauren Willing. Can you tell me a little on how this came about?

Mix two romance writers with several glasses of chardonnay . . .
Lauren and I are both Yale grads, and one evening at Lady Jane’s Salon in NYC we started talking about how romance should be treated as a serious genre of literature, and how we would structure a class. Laughing, we both said, “Oh, wouldn’t it be fun to teach a seminar at Yale on the subject.” But the laughter quickly died away as a simultaneous spark lit in our eyes . . and so we decided to submit a proposal. After months of drafting a detailed syllabus, complete with critical readings, and being interviewed by a committee of students and professors in New Haven, our idea was accepted! We started teaching in January, and are really enjoying the experience.

It’s actually great to see that we are part of a growing movement to focus attention on the fact that great authors are writing great stories in the romance genre. Now, we readers have always known that, but it’s heartening to see the rest of the literary world, as well as the academic community, start to sit up and take notice!

Now onto To Sin With A Scoundrel which as I said I thoroughly enjoyed. Lady Ciara Sheffield is not your typical Regency heroine. She’s been married and has a child and is an intellectual. What made you decide on this type of heroine and the Circle of Sin as an idea for a series?

I’ve always liked creating unconventional heroines . . . maybe because I’ve always been a little quirky myself. So I tend to write stories with characters who dare to be different and who challenge the rules of their Society. It allows me to explore an emotional complexity, which I feel allows me to add depth and texture.

The Circle of Sin is a group of brilliant, beautiful female scholars who meet each week to share their knowledge and their friendship. They are all scientists—now, don’t ask me why! I was absolutely hopeless in math or science in school. (But hey, that’s part of the fun of fiction, and I did do my homework studying up on the basics so as not to make a fool of myself.) That said, I really enjoyed playing with the “chemistry” of pairing each of the three brainy heroines with heroes who were, on the surface, their opposites. Lady Ciara Sheffield, who stars in the first book of the new trilogy, is wary of men, however she has no choice but to accept help from a rakish rogue in order to save herself from scandal . . . and they both learn some unexpected lessons on love.

What was your inspiration for the dashing and sexy Lord Hadley?

Oh, I have a real soft spot for Lucas, who is one of my favorite heroes. He’s a charming rake who cheerfully admits to having no interest in anything but sybaritic pleasure. But at heart, he’s far more sensitive than he cares to admit, and as his best friend Jack says, he simply needs a challenge to bring out his better nature. As for inspiration, well, don’t we all dream of turning our scoundrels into noble heroes!

I can’t wait for the next book To Surrender A Rogue and Alessandra and Jack’s story. The sparks fly with these two from page one. Tell us a bit about them.

Oh yes, things get a little hot between Alessandra and Jack in To Sin With A Scoundrel. Having been burned in the past, she’s mistrustful of the handsome devil who tries to ride to her rescue—especially when Jack ends up tying her young daughter to a tree. (Note: he has an excellent reason for doing it, but still, what mother would not be a tad upset at such heavy-handed measures!)
So in To Surrender To A Rogue, when they find themselves working at the same archeological excavation of Roman ruins in Bath, they are none too happy about it. But when fellow member of the expedition threatens to dig up a dark secret from Alessandra’s past, she finds herself in desperate need of a hero . . . I hope you enjoy their story! (Oh, and then there’s free-spirited Kate, the botany expert, whose story will be told in To Tempt A Rake.)

Thanks so much for being here today. I can’t wait to see you at the next Lady Jane’s.

Thanks for having me, Kwana! See you at the Salon in March.

Folks you can check out Cara’s website here

And if you are in New York on Monday March 1st don’t miss Lady Jane’s Salon where Cara will be reading from To Sin With A Scoundrel. Check out the site here.

Oh and one lucky commenter will win a signed ARC (advanced reader copy) of To Sin With A Scoundrel from Cara. So please leave your comments. The only rule is you must be a follower of ye old blog kwanawrites. Oh and please leave your email so I can get back to ya and enter by midnight Thursday. Thanks.

Best,
Kwana

Little House

This sweet little house that is on a neighbor's front yard is just coming out from under the snow and it looks like we're in for a bunch more come tonight. Sigh.

I hope the forecast is wrong since I'm as busy as all get out getting the dear twins ready for a school trip to Paris later in the week. Yep, that Paris. I'm trying to keep myself sane and not worry too much since they have never been out of the country or on vacation without me so yes, I wish I were going too to keep an eye out and hey, It's Paris. Why wouldn't I want to go?

What are you up to? Is it snow are sun in your forecast?

Best,

Kwana

Super Romance

What’s Jack up to? Jack is full and content though a bit sad after a lovely weekend visit from Nana where he was spoiled silly. He really does love her like crazy and she is just nuts for him. It’s too cute.

How was your weekend? Did you watch the Superbowl on Sunday? I watched quite a bit, that is until the last installment of Emma came on PBS at 9 then I was off. Though I know the story it was much more exciting than the Superbowl for me.
Did you watch? If you didn’t you can watch it online here.

Or at least take the: Bachelors of Highbury Quiz. I scored with Mr. Knightley. My Mr. Knightly!

Best,

Kwana

P.S.

Congrats Saints! I wonder will Kim get her ring now?

Game On

So I hear there's some big game happening this weekend. A Superbowl or something? Now I'll admit, I have never been a football fan. I'm sorry, there I've said it. And since The J-E-T-S didn't make it I really don't have any stake in the game. Now the DH will surely be watching and cheering,loudly. And I think he'll be going for The Saints. Who Dat!
Should I have my fingers crossed for a win so Kim can get a ring? So sad. Give the girl a ring Reggie win or not!

If anything I'll only be watching for the commercials if at all. In a preview I came across this too funny one that finaled in a Doritos contest. Now I know it may promote bad behavior in kids but it cracked me up. You can vote on it here.



Now as per the DH's request I've got some Chili to make.


Best,
Kwana

Everything's Better With Bacon

What's Jack up to? Jack's doing good, hanging, doing his usual Jack thing full of vim and vigor that is until about 9:00 when his sleepy kicks in. Then all bets are off and nobody better mess with him when he's trying to get his sleep on. Zzzzzzzz.....



So, I'm sure many of you have heard the saying, "everything taste better with bacon." Well, one of my knitting buddies, T went and proved it yesterday when she brought this for the group to sample. that's right bacon flavored chocolate. To it's credit she didn't tell us the secret ingredient and the bacon wasn't overpowering so we were all guessing for quite a while. I got very close when I said something smoked. It combined sweet and salty perfectly. Have you ever?

Sadly, I have. You should have seen the faces when I fessed up to having potato chips with my chocolate ice cream. Yum.



Tell me what odd treats do you like to have on the sly?



If you'd like to try the bacon flavored chocolate you can get it from Vosges here.



Best,
Kwana

A Dog's Life-Wordless Wednesday

Let's all take a lesson from Jack today shall we and schedule a little chill time today. It does a mind and body good.
Happy Wednesday! For more Wordless Wednesday posts go to 5 Minutes for Mom.



Best,
Kwana

Surrender

Surrender : transitive verb 1 a : to yield to the power, control, or possession of another upon compulsion or demand b : to give up completely or agree to forgo especially in favor of another

2 a : to give (oneself) up into the power of another especially as a prisoner b : to give (oneself) over to something (as an influence)

Some days you just want to throw your hands up and not in a joyful way, but in a way of frustration, in an act of defeat. The day can be going along smoothly and all it takes is one thing, a rock in the road to trip you up and take you off course, causing you to take your eyes off the horizon and your ultimate joy and you want to surrender. To give up, to say fine I’m done, have at it world, take all I’ve got.

But then you realize that there are some things you can’t do that with. Some instances where you can’t surrender or your stubborn mother’s heart just won’t let you. Because when it comes to your children is there really ever any surrender? Not as long as there is hope, love, fight and breath.

So you grit your teeth and hang in for the fight. Throwing up your hands and clinching them into fists at the rest of the world if you have to because the only act of Surrender when it comes to your children, in your heart and mind, is the Surrendering to the will of God. Nothing less will do.

Best,
Kwana

3rd Times a Charm?

So... I just couldn't leave well enough alone. Thanks so much for all your comment on my post with the pic of me in my new glasses here. After that post and halfway through your kind comments on how nice I looked, I promptly got my butt in gear and made my way to yet another eyeglass store in the handy chain that has the fab 30 day no questions asked guarantee. Sigh.

When I went into the new store I told the employees my story about just feeling blah about my new glasses and asked their opinion. They agreed the glasses were a tad too big for my face and that I should be happy with them so I spent a good hour there mulling over frames until I found these that are very close to my pair that broke and I loved. And one hour after that I had my 3rd pair of new glasses.

Let's hope 3rd times the charm. I sure think so! Lesson here? It really doesn't matter what anyone else thinks about how you look. It's how you feel about how you look that counts.

Or maybe what Frieda Kahlo thinks. She looks happy to me.

Best,

Kwana