I’m announcing the winners to three contests today but you’re all winners.
You know why?
Because, long ago, you learned how to go on the potty. If you’ve seen this video you know I don’t like talking about bodily movements or anything close to them in public. But because Benjamin’s bowel movements, or lack thereof, are the reason I am up – right now – at 6:00 a.m., I feel obligated to share.
I am tired but happy, curled up in a little blanket on the big chair in the living room. Benjamin is coloring. I’m happy because he just ate a magnificent breakfast, breakfast fit for a big kid – three eggs and an entire bowl of oatmeal. He woke up at 5:45 saying, “Mommy, I’m hungry.” Hungry and awake because last night he couldn’t go on the potty and then decided not to go at all. The tummy ache or cramped up poopy feeling made him pass on his dinner. Like the bad mommy that I am, I completely forgot to force a bowl of yogurt on him before bed. Now here we are – awake before the sun is even up. [click to continue…]
Another excerpt from my eBook, Ms. Single Mama Uncensored… you’ll notice this post, although originally published on my blog, is completely re-written and expanded in the book.
I’m not sure which scared me more – the Biker or his Harley.
“C’mon, do you think I’d ever let anything happen to you? And you’re gonna love it!” He was very persuasive for a guy wearing a leather vest and a bandana.
He’d been asking me to take a ride for months and I’d been refusing, until now. Maybe it was because everything – him, this place and these feelings – they were all so frightening, so different from the life I’d left behind. When I left my husband, I moved everything I owned into a storage shed. Our cute little apartment in the city neighborhood I had loved so much was now bare, with the exception of the TV, the mattress and the kitchen supplies.
When I met the Biker, I was taking Benjamin for a walk down the gravel road leading to my mother’s house. Instead of strolling past boutiques and coffee shops, I was now dodging bugs and cursing the silent forest surrounding us. Eventually, I would learn to love the country and recognize the beauty in that noisy silence, but, at the time, I was still trying to wrap my head around it all. Rocks from the gravel were sticking to my shoes. I was scraping my soles on the stroller wheel, when I heard voices— male voices. Then, the dogs came.
Leaping out of the brush, they were running straight for the stroller and Benjamin. I drew a quick breath and managed a yelp or two while jumping in front of the stroller, bracing myself for whatever these dogs were about to do. [click to continue…]
And do me a favor… if you live in New York City (and don’t hate me) please spread the word about this event for single women. Sherri at Single Edition is putting it on and wanted me to make mention. Live the Life You Love will be held in the Saks Fifth Avenue shoe department in New York City on September 15th, October 6th and November 3rd. Sounds cool:
This three part, women’s only, lifestyle series will consist of cocktails, connections and conversations with a panel of trusted, leading experts. Each seminar offers insight, innovative tips and creative ideas to help you succeed at work, home and in your community.
I wish I could be there but alas, I will be hiding in my sweet little Ohio city for fear of you crazy New Yorkers trampling my tourist butt.
Win a Copy of Ms. Single Mama Uncensored!
Do me another favor, tweet this post with this [RT to win. What is scarier? Bedford PA or talking about morning thunder in front of @mssinglemama? http://tinyurl.com/mpkl6d] and you’ll automatically be entered to win a copy of Ms. Single Mama Uncensored, or you can just leave a comment.
Lots of prizes in the cue… I will announce the winners to all of these contests next Friday.
Before I started writing this blog the whispers in my head, the words of strength from outside of myself were hard to come by. I only knew one or two fellow single moms and living at my mother’s for one year did a number on my social life. I was alone, utterly alone and it was uncomfortable.
I tried to find inspiration in other single mom books and while they were insightful on many levels, all fell short for me. I craved real, honest advice about dating and love. I didn’t know it then but I would soon fill that void myself and also become a voice for single mothers everywhere by shouting from the my little mountaintop: we are beautiful, we are strong and we are sexy as hell. And while this shit ain’t easy we don’t need a man to rescue us, we need to rescue ourselves.
I am not sure where those words came from. They started, I believe, as whispers in my own head or more like echoes. And then you all showed up. Your words and your thoughts inspired me to keep writing, to keep sharing my stories and your words, in turn, became the whispers in my head. [click to continue…]
UPDATE & DISCLAIMER: All words ever written about Mia’s Other Woman on this blog are mine and mine alone, unless otherwise noted. Because we have been best friends our entire lives, I don’t even have Mia proof my posts – she trusts me. Whenever I write about her Other Woman, again because Mia is like a sister to me, I tend to get a bit fired up. Equating her to a woman on Jerry Springer was perhaps out of line. For that I apologize but I meant what I said and have zero tolerance for people who cheat or sleep with married men. Even though it takes two, both parties are equally as guilty as each other.
I have dated enough men who have been cheated on to know that the effects of that kind of broken heart don’t heal so easily. It’s a horrible, horrible thing. But again, my apologies to the Other Woman for going below the belt and most of all to Mia for meddling in her business. I won’t be mentioning the Other Woman on this blog again out of respect for their privacy. And I also want to say that I believe her ex is a good father. He did make a tragic mistake but he loves their daughter immensely. To my readers who may be confused, I am writing this because the Other Woman is reading this blog. We know this because the post that follows upset her and she told her boyfriend (Mia’s ex) who called Mia immediately.
You thought the book was all I had up my sleeve?
Nah. I’m much crazier than that? Why launch just one project when you can have two? These earrings have been in the works for a few months now. I am also working on a silver set of the new leaf necklace and earrings, which are coming in a few weeks. In the meantime, check out the new earrings in my Ms. Single Mama Shop.
Mia is doing well by the way. Her ex-boyfriend is still with the Other Woman. Yuck. I can’t even imagine being with a man who left his girlfriend and little daughter for me. I mean, really? Have you no self-respect Ms. Other Woman? I imagine her as some chick who could easily take a seat on Jerry Springer and blend right in with the scenery. I digress, sorry, still clearly fired up about all of it but so incredibly happy Mia is not with him anymore.
He doesn’t deserve her.
Not very many men do because Mia is a true spirit, a rare soul and someone who has the strength to grow and heal faster than I ever thought possible. We were talking the other night about the new single mom sympathy stares she’s receiving and the comments like, “Oh, don’t worry honey, you’ll find another one.”
