Hey Bonni!

http://tiny.cc/palmtree

Go there instead. :)

You have three days. What are you getting her?

Any idea what to get your mom for Mother's Day this year? If you're still scrambling, let me give you a quick idea--a copy of Worlds Collide or Violette Between, with the promise that, in a day or two, she'll receive a beautiful bookplate with a personalized inscription from the author!

I absolutely love them and am so happy to be able to finally offer this for those of you who live nowhere near me but still want a signed book. :) All you have to do is send me an email at alison at alisonstrobel dot com and tell me:

1. What book the bookplate will go into (I have two styles, coordinated to the books' covers)
2. Who to sign the book to
3. Any special message (Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, etc.)
4. Where to send it

And the best part--they're free! So pick up a copy of Worlds Collide or Violette Between today and drop me a line. I'd love to wish your mom a Happy Mother's Day. :)

For my fellow Californians

Breaking my hiatus with this quick Public Service Announcement for my Cali homies:

Props 1A-1F are scams. Vote NO on May 19th!

Don't tell me you didn't see it coming

Here's the thing: 4 books, 2 kids, 1 husband, approximately 6 weeks until we move. The numbers don't lie. I'm in over my head. Something's gotta give, and it's gonna be the blog.

So, barring some really huge announcement that I don't currently know, chances are I won't be blogging for a while. If you're on Facebook, you can look for me there--I can handle composing the occasional status update--and if you get my newsletter then you'll be sure to get the latest news on my upcoming release, Reinventing Rachel. (And if you're not a subscriber, please sign up! The form's over on the right-hand side, or you can see it smack-dab in the middle of my website's homepage.)

In the meantime...

--> don't forget to sign up at DownsizeDC.org to help shrink the federal government back to its intended size. SUCH a fantastic organization, really really love them.

--> don't forget to check out the auction being held for Baby Ike and his family. It's looking pretty certain that the little guy is going to need reconstructive surgery on his esophagus, and when you've got crappy COBRA insurance (and have to fly from Texas to be there, and then have to stay for a month in the PICU, and the parents have to, like, eat and sleep somewhere), it gets PRICEY. There is some excellent stuff being auctioned (including the chance to name two characters in Reinventing Rachel!), and all the money raised goes to the family.

See ya later, alligators...

Just a friendly reminder...

If you're not a newsletter subscriber, you're missing out on the chance to name one of the characters in my David C. Cook novel, Reinventing Rachel. Sign up quick and enter! And if you *are* a subscriber, and you haven't entered the contest, then what are you waiting for? Either way, you have until Wednesday to get your entry in!

Two Abbyisms

We were leaving my parents' house and Abby was looking for the moon. She's a moon fanatic, always has been, and whenever we're out at night she insists on locating it. We couldn't find it tonight, and she looks to Dan and says, "Maybe it went on a treasure hunt."

Being the kick-butt dad that he is, Dan has taken over the more unpleasant aspects of the bedtime routine and brings Abby upstairs to my office to get me once she's ready for her story. She came in tonight and pointed to the little picture on her pajamas and said, "It says, 'I'm not tired'--but that's craziness. I am tired!"

Don't let me in the kitchen, part 2

Today's cooking casualty was my plastic colander, which I (tried) to use to steam some veggies. I melted it.

And the part that really sucks is that, as I was setting it on top of the pot of water, I thought to myself, "Haha! Wouldn't it be just the thing if it totally melted the colander?" Heh. I'm going to listen to that little voice next time.

And for those who have asked what I was attempting to cook in the pot from the last post--I had poured n some Soy Vey teriyaki sauce with some Asain chicken dumplings from Trader Joe's. I don't like the sauce they came with, and I thought, "Hey, this will make them super yummy!" Which, with the second batch, it did. However, with the first batch, I left the heat too high and the skillet on the stove for too long. When I came back, the sauce had turned to tar and the dumplings were little undercooked islands anchored firmly to the bottom of the pan. Live and learn.