Book Illustration Giveaway!

Once a month between now and when my book, Uphill Both Ways: Hiking toward Happiness on the Colorado Trail, comes out in March, I’ll give away an 8x8 inch matted art print of one of the book’s illustrations. This month is Alpine Springbeauty. To enter, just subscribe to my newsletter by midnight, October 31. 

Catastrophic Happiness Giveaway

Well, friends, I've been dawdling long enough since I got back this summer. It's time I jump-start this blog—both the writing and reading of (not to mention commenting on)—and what better way to do that than a giveaway?

I hope you all adore Catherine Newman as much as I do. I came across Catherine's (I feel like I can refer to her on a first-name basis since she once commented on my blog) first book, Waiting for Birdy, almost by accident when I was on maternity leave with the twins. Her funny, neurotically optimistic take on life with baby and big kid helped get me through that first summer with two newborns and a disaffected four-year-old. I know "neurotically optimistic" sounds like an oxymoron, but that's how the book stuck me—she was equal measures terrified that something terrible would happen to her children and certain everything would turn out all right.

I've been a follower of her blog and her various other writings ever since. I love that she's funny without descending into snark or that grating, self-deprecating tone that lots of writing about parenting succumbed to during the mommy blog heyday a few years ago (you know, that "I am the suckiest mom ever" or "being a mom is the suckiest thing ever," vibe). I love that her writing is touching without being saccharine (I don't think she's ever used "treasure" as a verb). I love that she's not afraid to admit that she genuinely likes her kids. And I love that she can write a moving, meaningful, humorous essay about pretty much anything—or, practically, nothing (e.g., doorknobs).

Speaking of childhood's messy years, this is only a slightly staged picture of one child's bed; I just moved the items he actually sleeps with a little closer together so they'd fit in the frame.

So of course as soon as her new book, Catastrophic Happiness: Finding Joy in Childhood's Messy Years, came out, I rushed out and bought me a copy. And then my smart and funny and talented co-editor in the Literary Reflections Department of Literary Mama, Libby Maxey, actually got to interview Catherine, and had Catherine sign a copy of the book for me. So now I have two copies—and I want to give one away (the one that's not signed, of course) to one of you.

To enter, go check out Catherine's blog and Libby's profile and then come back and leave a comment. I'll choose a winner at random from the comments on this blog (sorry, Facebook comments don't count) on October 15.

And the winner is Lone Star Ma! Drop me a message with your mailing address and I'll get it out to you in the mail!

The Silence Treatment and Giveaway

Things are starting to get a bit crazy in my life, as they always do, with the approach of May and all that it entails––baseball times three, birthdays times three, a camping trip, a Boston trip, workshop stories to write––so my opportunities for library time (where I do my blogging and my writing) are shrinking. Last week, I didn't make to the library at all. But like the calm before the storm, I had one very long weekend alone the week before last. C took the boys down to Rhode Island for part of their spring break, leaving me home alone in a very quiet house. 

It felt strange on the days I worked––my work-space was temporarily shifted to a tiny conference room in a little-used part of the building and C and I had switched cars, and his has no radio, so I went from total silence all day to silent drive to silent house. The first night I watched a movie; the next two I went out with friends.

But once the weekend came, and I could just be home alone in all that silence, I was thrilled. 

I'm afraid I squandered my silent time a bit. I was supposed to write two stories, but instead I spent a lot of time reading The Condition by Jennifer Haigh, which one of my mentors gave me as a present last summer. I enjoyed it very much. I did write several pages of a story that sort of fizzled out and which I'm going to set aside for a while, awaiting inspiration to go on, and I wrote half a book review, and I did some writing exercises. Otherwise I just basked in the oncoming spring and the peace.

I read a book called Listening Below the Noise: The Transformative Power of Silence in which the author begins a practice of total silence one day a week, and how it changes her life. I'd like to give away a copy to one blog reader. For a chance to win, leave a comment here by midnight EDT Tuesday May 7, answering the following questions:

How are able to find silent space in your life and how does it make you feel?