I have in my possession some really cool Girl with the Dragon Tattoo temporary tattoos. I’ll have a drawing for those. Comment that you want in the drawing for the tattoos.

Also I have a pristine hardbound copy of The Girl Who Played With Fire to giveaway in a drawing (assuming you haven’t already read it!) Comment that you want to be entered in the drawing for the book.

Now, Go!

For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo came out last year and made a big splash. It’s a gritty, noirish mystery that takes place in Sweden, of all places.

The Girl Who Played with Fire came out last month. It is the seemingly-long-awaited-but-was-really-only-a-few-months sequel to the first. This is the book I’m giving away.

The author wrote these 2 books and a third in the series and then died of a heart attack. So there are only the 3 ever.

There is a bookstore in a city about 2 hours away that I have always wanted to go to, but I never managed to be there when they were open. So, I decided to take a special trip just to go there. I was talking this over with Debbie (hi Debbie!) and decided if I was going to go all that way, I might as well check out some other bookstores that they have that we don’t have. I also invited Debbie to go and the idea of a Bookstore Crawl was born.

We pulled into the parking lot of the first bookstore at 10:09 this morning. 6 hours and 7 bookstores later, the trunk was full of books, and we were happy readers.

On the way home from the other city, we stopped at this convenience store that carries hundreds of varieties of soda pop. We selected a few for our ride home on Route 66.

It was an awesome day. Thanks, Debbie!

Yeah, the reason I haven’t posted any book finishes is because I haven’t finished any books lately. Seriously, I’ve tried and tried. I’ve got 4 books started.

I’m working on 1984 by George Orwell, but I’ve read it a couple of times before, and it’s really not floating my boat.

I started Wideacre by Phillippa Gregory, but so far it’s all about this young girl’s sexual awakening with a game keeper and it’s not really holding my attention.

This month’s book club book is The Ice Storm by Rick Moody, but that is just seriously disturbing, so I’m not loving that, either.

If I ever finish a book, I’ll let you know.

Have I mentioned how much I love teenagers? I know. It sounds really twisted, but it’s true!

Yes, sometimes they just have too much drama. Or they can’t stop talking when you need them to listen. Or they date the wrong guy over and over. Or they get arrested for drug dealing. (Kidding)

But today I am really feeling the love. For the last 3 summers, I have had teenagers watching my kids during the day so I can work. It has been the best thing ever for my kids and me. The babysitter comes to play with the kids every day. They love it. They get to stay at home and get uninterrupted attention. This summer’s babysitter was old enough to drive them to the movies and to get ice cream and such. She had energy and a sense of playfulness. Last summer’s babysitter is still a favorite and they still love for her to come play.

I’ve currently hired one to detail my car before I take a trip in it. He is doing it for a “tip”. The professional places will charge $100. He is starting college next week and wants a little money. Hey, I can deal with that.

I worked in Juvenile Justice for 5 years. I know how terrible teenagers can really be. But this group I’ve found at my church continues to meet and exceed my expectations. They do nice things because they want to. Because they are not just thinking about themselves. Because they know how to make a commitment and behave responsibly.

Teenagers get a bad rap, so I just wanted to say “Doggone it, I love ‘em.”

For about 2.5 weeks, we have been having trouble getting the little one to bed without a fight. Well, she goes to bed, but just about when I decide to go to sleep, she decides it’s time to whine about whatever she can find. It seriously doesn’t matter what is happening, she will find something that has to be dealt with immediately (in her opinion).

We’re all exhausted.

It has gotten to the point where I have to lock myself in my room at night and let her scream and cry outside the door until she gives up and goes to bed.

I read Parenting with Love and Logic, and got some ideas, but it’s suggestion for our particular problem is to hire a babysitter to stay the night and go sleep in a hotel. This is not a viable option based on the cost alone.

I just repeat myself over and over. “I would be happy to discuss that with you tomorrow. Right now it’s my bedtime.” She just screams louder and louder about whatever is her current complaint until I have to lock my door which she then uses to become hysterical. She has tried to kick down the door so violently that it knocked things off my son’s wall.

I am too tired to think anymore. Does anyone have any brilliant ideas?