tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1539708537886336532024-03-13T13:42:19.668-04:00MY BLOG HAS MOVED!YOU WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY REDIRECTED TO MY NEW SITE!MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-91978923254562078242013-11-20T12:08:00.002-05:002013-11-20T12:11:17.386-05:00We're Moving!...Well, this site is, anyway...<br />
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EXCITING NEWS!</h4>
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I am so proud of how much my blog has grown over the past year, and I am happy to announce that I will be taking it to the next level. I have decided to start the process of migrating to a new domain. I know it will indeed be <i>a process</i>, but I am confident that I can keep the transition smooth while taking you along with me for the ride.<br />
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Stay tuned!<br />
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P.S. You can track the progress at: <a href="http://adventuresofmamakujo.com/">http://adventuresofmamakujo.com/</a><br />
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P.P.S. If you have any advice for this mama attempting a pretty huge DIY, I would LOVE to hear from you. :)<br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-59092078494389649602013-11-15T12:00:00.000-05:002013-11-15T14:30:43.346-05:00Movember Mama<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi Everyone!<br />
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Unless you've been living under a rock, I'm sure you're well aware that what is otherwise the dreariest, greyest month of the year, November, is also fondly known as "Movember". It's the time of the year where all of the usually clean-shaven, baby-faced men we all know and love suddenly start to sprout every imaginable shape and variety of "manly" facial hair (and those who love them keep just THAT much more distance when embracing them), all in the name of philanthropy.<br />
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What kind of philanthropy requires suddenly sprouting 'staches, you ask? The kind that raises awareness and funds for men's health issues (including prostate and other cancers). They're "changing the face of men's health". (Get it?!)<br />
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As a lady who (thankfully) cannot grow hair on my face, I have decided to contribute my part as a "Mo Sista"by supporting those who can. Even little miss is helping out!<br />
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My hubby is participating in Movember for the first time this year. Inspired by other <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23movemberdads&src=typd" target="_blank">#MovemberDads</a> on Twitter, he joined up with the <a href="http://ca.movember.com/team/974933" target="_blank">Canadian Dads Movember Team</a>. (You can read all about his inspiration and decision to dive face-first into Movember here: <a href="http://thefunnyaccountant.com/2013/11/07/movember-the-funny-accountant/" target="_blank">Mitch's Movember blog post</a> .) Check out <a href="http://ca.movember.com/mospace/8932781/" target="_blank">Mitch's Mo Space!</a> to keep up with his valiant efforts (and donate if you're so inclined).<br />
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I also actually just purchased 2 of the cutest mustache-print head-scarves (1 for me and 1 for munchkin) from <a href="https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/167408938/mustache-patterned-bowties-mens?ref=shop_home_active" target="_blank">MoTies on Etsy</a>. All proceeds from the sales of this shop will be going to the Movember campaign of one of Mitch's MoBro teammates, Mike Reynolds (<a href="https://twitter.com/PuzzlingPostDad" target="_blank">@puzzlingpostdad </a>).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HwGN39S6pZM/UoZxI6yArcI/AAAAAAAAArE/I6qQDIjkQ44/s1600/il_570xN.381190324_rxjh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HwGN39S6pZM/UoZxI6yArcI/AAAAAAAAArE/I6qQDIjkQ44/s320/il_570xN.381190324_rxjh.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for them to arrive in the mail to snap some fun mommy-daughter selfies to share!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They are also selling these awesome MoTies in their Etsy store.</td></tr>
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Still not convinced you're ready to donate to the cause (really? even with those cute headbands?!)? Did you know you could get back up to 29% of your donations as a federal tax credit? Yup! <a href="http://thefunnyaccountant.com/2013/11/05/tax-tip-tuesdays-movember-donations-phurry-philanthropy/" target="_blank">The Funny Accountant</a> explains how.<br />
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Now go Mo!<br />
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P.S. Did you know that as of 2011, Canadians are the largest contributors to Movember?<br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-85736686827095640642013-11-14T00:00:00.000-05:002013-11-14T10:55:54.037-05:00Book Review: Perfect<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Perfect<br />
Author: Rachel Joyce<br />
Publication: Nov. 5, 2013, Doubleday Canada</td></tr>
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PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In 1972, two seconds were added to time. It was in order to balance clock time with the movement of the earth. Byron Hemming knows this because James Lowe has told him, and James is the cleverest boy at school. But how can time change? The steady movement of hands around a clock is as certain as their golden futures.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Then Byron's mother, late for the school run, makes a devastating mistake. Byron's perfect world is shattered. Were those two extra seconds to blame? Can what follows ever be set right?</span></div>
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MY REVIEW:</h4>
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<b>Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.</b><br />
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Rachel Joyce's writing is absolutely beautiful- art with words.<br />
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Byron's story is sad: his anxiety, his mother's loss of control, his lack of a guiding hand, his need for order and answers. While the plot is slow-moving and not all that gripping, it is Joyce's writing that kept me reading. It was my desire-- as a mother and as a human being-- to scoop Byron into my arms, hold him close and tell him that it will all be alright, that not everything has to be perfect and understood and predictable. I wanted him to know that it's okay to be flawed and afraid.<br />
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I enjoyed this book, but I definitely felt a wave of relief wash over me when it was all over. It is emotional and uncomfortable. It makes you hold your breath just a little, without ever being aware of it.<br />
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If you're looking for great writing, some thought, and a book with emotional pulls- this one is for you. If you're looking for a light, uplifting read, come back to this one when you're ready.<br />
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-82185489044708789392013-11-10T23:11:00.000-05:002013-11-10T23:11:17.826-05:00Good Morning Sunshine!My munchkin is turning 2 in just over a month (WHAT?!), and I realized this weekend that she is quite possibly the most inspirational human being I know.<br />
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She's a BIG talker-- a real chatterbox-- (hard to believe with such quiet, reserved parents), and she tends to say a lot of laugh-out-loud and/or cute things. She also tends to shock us on a daily basis with what comes out of her mouth. I am actually sitting here, shaking my head and smiling just thinking about it. It's more than pride-- it's amazement.<br />
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Before you stop reading, I'm not <i>that</i> mother-- the one who will sit and tell you that she has the world's most perfect child. I will be the first to step up and admit that we undoubtedly started with the whole "twos" thing early. We're on a daily rotation of smiles, whining, tantrums, mommy-clinging, laughs, hyperactivity, fits and cuddles. It's quite draining, actually.<br />
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The thing is, this Saturday morning, she said something that took my breath away. I woke up to her morning noises, went into her room, said "good morning", and opened her blinds to let in some light. Standing in her crib, she looked out the window, smiled and said, "<i><b>good morning sunshine</b>!" </i>What made me stop in my tracks was the fact that it was a particularly grey November Montreal morning. There was no sunshine to be seen. From her not-quite-two-year-old perspective, that was completely insignificant.<br />
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Then, I realized it was not the first time she started her day like this. No, actually it's the first thing she says nearly every single morning. Every morning for her is a "good morning sunshine" kind of morning.<br />
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As I smiled and scooped her up for a big morning hug and kiss, I realized just how amazing that is. What if we all started every morning with a "good morning sunshine", not yet knowing just what our day might have in store for us? What if every day-- no matter how grey, or cold, or sleepy-- actually started out full of possibility and positivity? ...Out of the mouths of babes...<br />
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I can only hope that my adult brain can step aside for a moment and allow me to greet every new day through the eyes of a toddler.<br />
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Happy Monday, everyone!<br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-22568777768311256742013-11-07T12:48:00.000-05:002013-11-27T09:31:51.233-05:00Super Yummy Kale & Apple Salad <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I made this amazing salad weeks ago. I came across this photo in my Photostream this morning and realized I never shared my concoction with the world! Shame on me!</div>
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So here's a super-quick recipe post for a super-quick and delicious salad!</div>
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<b><u>SALAD:</u></b><br />
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<li>1 head of kale- remove stems and chop</li>
<li>1 dices apple (I love Honeycrisp)</li>
<li>A handful of dried cranberries</li>
<li>A handful of chopped pecans</li>
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<b><u>DRESSING:</u></b><br />
(Sorry I don't have exact measurements- I kind of just threw it together to taste!)<br />
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<li>Avocado oil (you can replace with olive)</li>
<li>Apple cider vinegar</li>
<li>Dijon mustard</li>
<li>Honey</li>
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~ Just whisk it up and toss into salad!<br />
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Please let me know if you try this one for yourself or if you've found any modification you think would make this even more yummy! Looking forward to reading all of your comments! :)<br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-35826527518116420332013-11-06T00:01:00.001-05:002013-11-06T00:15:36.552-05:00Book Review & Event Invitation: So Much it Hurts<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NttjnMmphTk/Unm93D0wgzI/AAAAAAAAAoA/S94Rvu9IMO8/s1600/17862192.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NttjnMmphTk/Unm93D0wgzI/AAAAAAAAAoA/S94Rvu9IMO8/s400/17862192.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So Much it Hurts<br />
Author: <a href="http://www.moniquepolak.com/" target="_blank">Monique Polak</a><br />
Publication: 2013, Orca Book Publishers</td></tr>
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PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal; line-height: 19px;">Iris is an aspiring actress, so when Mick, a well-known visiting Aussie director, takes an interest in her, she's flattered. He's fourteen years older, attractive, smart, charming and sexy--in other words, nothing like her hapless ex-boyfriend, Tommy. But when Iris and Mick start a secret relationship, she soon witnesses Mick's darker side, and his temper frightens her. Before long, she becomes the target of his rage, but she makes endless excuses for him. Isolated and often in pain, Iris struggles to continue going to school, where she is preparing for her role as Ophelia. When her family and friends begin to realize that something is terribly wrong, Iris defends her man, but she also takes the first tentative steps toward self-preservation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">MY REVIEW:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b>Note: </b> <b>I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Monique Polak manages to take a difficult (and too often taboo) subject and makes it accessible and straightforward for young readers who might not otherwise consider themselves "readers". Teenagers who might not normally pick up a book and read for the fun of it might find themselves surprised with just how engaged they become with Iris and her descent into a dark, abusive relationship with an older man. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">The book is not perfect, but it is honest and that is what makes it so well done for the audience it was written for. "Young-adult" categorization aside, Iris, her state of mind and her struggles will resonate with female readers of all ages who have (like most of us, sadly) found themselves in a relationship that just "wasn't good" for them-- physically abusive or not. Yes, at times Iris borders on being so maddeningly naive that you just want to shake her, but the way she rationalizes with herself and makes excuses for Mick always manage to bring the reader back on her side with the bare, relatable truth behind her words.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">"I wish Mick didn't have such an explosive temper. That's the right word for it: <i>explosive</i>. And it's hard to know what'll set him off. I know it comes with being passionate and creative. Mick gets upset because he cares so much-- too much, maybe. I could never be with someone who wasn't passionate and creative or who didn't care too much.... I know I'd be bored to death with anyone but Mick."</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Iris and her need to and process of defending Mick and his actions to justify them to herself are just too familiar-- simply expressed or not. They're honest, real and raw. I know I've had similar conversations with myself in my own head at times while trying to rationalize someone else's behaviour that I logically and rationally know were "bad for me"-- the reasons we stay. I also know that I have heard too many friends have the same conversations out loud with me (and themselves). Polak has given a voice to Iris that, while still childish and frustrating at times, speaks to real and honest human experiences that are all to often dismissed through victim blaming, shaming or even acceptable as socially expected.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">If you are in the Montreal area, you are invited to join Monique Polak and Orca Book Publishers at the launch of <i>So Much It Hurts</i>, tomorrow evening, Thursday, November 7th (details above). All ages are welcome and a portion of book sales will be donated to La rue des femmes, a Montreal centre for homeless women, many of whom have been affected by domestic violence. I hope to see you all there!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">"...Because I lost myself, but now I am beginning to find myself again..."</span></div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-50663510313549608552013-10-31T11:38:00.001-04:002013-12-13T13:01:14.382-05:00Adventures with a Toddler: Our Halloween Costume Saga<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy Halloween everyone!<br />
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So this one was really an adventure- trying to find a Halloween costume for my not-quite-two-year-old.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eaROrxgTDms/UnJ0Wi5aCdI/AAAAAAAAAnA/6iVqXoFxXeY/s1600/IMG_3660.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eaROrxgTDms/UnJ0Wi5aCdI/AAAAAAAAAnA/6iVqXoFxXeY/s400/IMG_3660.jpg" width="367" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As you can see, things started off pretty well with the elephant costume Mama wanted to attempt to use for the second year in a row.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y0_kcwPljqs/UnJ35QHOYGI/AAAAAAAAAno/D6URXs7Cn-k/s1600/IMG_3661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y0_kcwPljqs/UnJ35QHOYGI/AAAAAAAAAno/D6URXs7Cn-k/s400/IMG_3661.jpg" width="328" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It was looking like we had an early win!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fHZYOebGjE4/UnJ0W4hieOI/AAAAAAAAAnU/3yIMs1ocmes/s1600/IMG_3664.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fHZYOebGjE4/UnJ0W4hieOI/AAAAAAAAAnU/3yIMs1ocmes/s400/IMG_3664.jpg" width="348" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and then this happened...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hF0KIO9ma8c/UnJ0WlQWJNI/AAAAAAAAAnM/Ydd-BqETvMs/s1600/IMG_3665.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hF0KIO9ma8c/UnJ0WlQWJNI/AAAAAAAAAnM/Ydd-BqETvMs/s400/IMG_3665.jpg" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and this...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eq0MJ72Fr6c/UnJ0XJ4K9LI/AAAAAAAAAnc/PpX6gKbwef0/s1600/IMG_3668.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Eq0MJ72Fr6c/UnJ0XJ4K9LI/AAAAAAAAAnc/PpX6gKbwef0/s640/IMG_3668.jpg" width="252" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So we tried something a little different. <br />
Neither Mama nor munchkin were impressed.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d6rhxRvipH4/UnJ0Xs5NVEI/AAAAAAAAAng/ZCiwNppu2GQ/s1600/IMG_3676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d6rhxRvipH4/UnJ0Xs5NVEI/AAAAAAAAAng/ZCiwNppu2GQ/s640/IMG_3676.jpg" width="536" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the end we went with what just felt "right" for all of us! A happy little Habs fan! </td></tr>
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Trick or treat! </div>
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Have a safe and fun Halloween!</div>
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Love,</div>
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The Kujos</div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-26117573135095480962013-10-29T00:00:00.000-04:002013-10-29T09:31:22.831-04:00Keeping Busy Keeps Me at My Best<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://izquotes.com/" target="_blank"><img height="187" src="http://izquotes.com/quotes-pictures/quote-if-you-want-something-done-ask-a-busy-person-to-do-it-the-more-things-you-do-the-more-you-can-do-lucille-ball-10974.jpg" width="400" /></a><span id="goog_1190896374"></span><span id="goog_1190896375"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a></div>
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Ahhh the wisdom and insight of the amazingly fabulous Lucille Ball. While this quote doesn't necessarily represent my life mantra, it certainly defines one of my life's truths. I have always found that I am at my social and personal best and most productive when I am busiest. Any time I have ever found myself in a slump, on the couch, wanting to cry and hide in my pjs all day long, chances are I was low on a list of things to do and responsibilities to be met.</div>
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While these days I cannot look to the pressures of school work, legal research or paper writing any more, recently I have found a way to make the busy life work with mommy life. A few days ago, a friend asked me how I have the time to work a full-time job, keep house, cook, be a wife, mother, blog, read books, captain and play on a sports team (or 2), study my lines and attend rehersals for a play, make it to weekly pilates sessions, get a toddler to her own activities, keep in touch with friends and family spanning the entire North American continent without crashing or imploding. Well, when you put it like that... I HAVE NO IDEA! Seriously! Am I insane?! (My actual response was something along the lines of... I'd rather not think about it because I might break down!)</div>
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It seems to me that I'm just one of those crazy people who functions best under constant movement and activity. I just seem to work best when I'm needed (or something like that). [And maybe, just maybe it has a little something to do with my <a href="https://twitter.com/HahaAccountant" target="_blank">amazing and supportive husband</a> who recognizes the need to keep me swimming in the deep end.]</div>
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When I returned to work after my maternity leave last fall, I found the prospect of balancing a full-time career and being a wife and mother an impossibly daunting task. How the heck is it even possible? Should it even be a goal? What do I do when one or the other begins to suffer because of the attention required for the other? Let me tell you, I still haven't found the secret formula. I am not sure I ever will (or if there even is one). I can tell you that I've discovered that the less I think about it and stress about it, the easier it seems to be. </div>
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Obviously I know the risks of burn out, but I've got some good people in my corner to rein me back in when I swim too far from the shore. </div>
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It makes me wonder though, is there anyone else out there who feels the same way? Am I just crazy? When do you find you're at your best? How do you manage the balancing act? How many licks does it take to get to the centre of a Tootsie Roll Pop? I would love to hear your answers and comments below!<br />
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Happy Multi-Tasking!</div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-70915262083216880102013-10-28T00:00:00.000-04:002013-10-29T09:30:42.641-04:00Book Review, Author Interview and Giveaway: My Handy Little Health Journal<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ohbvk6Co4iA/Um1gDr8KMZI/AAAAAAAAAlw/bly2brVIo2k/s1600/9781770411708_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ohbvk6Co4iA/Um1gDr8KMZI/AAAAAAAAAlw/bly2brVIo2k/s1600/9781770411708_0.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.myhandylittle.com/" target="_blank">My Handy Little Health Journal</a><br />
Authors: Mary Anne Alton & Tania Craan<br />
Publication: 2013 ECW Press<br />
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<u>FROM THE PUBLISHER:</u></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">A structured tool for busy women, <i>My Handy Little Health Journal </i>by Tania Craan and Mary Anne Alton guides women in their process to track their health and wellness information, all in one place.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The average woman visits a healthcare professional six to ten times a year, but her responsibilities extend far beyong that with regular regimens for nutrition, exercise, hygiene, and stress management. With space to record healthcare providers, appointments, medications, tests, expenses, and procedures, this journal is as useful before a routine appointment as it is in an emergency. Plus, the journal highlights helpful tips about medication, smart recipes, fitness, and travel- and even includes brainteasers for the waiting room.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>My Healthy Little Health Journal</i> is the result of extensive consultation with women in the medical, communications, and marketing fields and inspires women to change their healthcare habits with a broad approach to wellness.</span></div>
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<u>MY REVIEW AND AUTHOR INTERVIEW:</u></h4>
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I was sent a copy of <i>My Handy Little Health Journal (MHLHJ</i>) from ECW Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.<br />
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This journal is so well thought out, so adorable, and very smart. It's the perfect size to slip into your computer case, diaper bag, or purse, so you can take it with you wherever you go. It's the perfect way to keep track of everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) related to your health and wellness while keeping organized. </div>
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I was so impressed by this journal that I wanted to know more. The lovely creators, Tania Craan and Mary Anne Alton, obliged by answering some questions that I thought would be fun to share with all of you!</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">MamaKujo (MK): <i>I would love to know more about each of you. What can you tell me about your respective backgrounds that might give a little more insight into the creation of </i>MHLHJ<i>?</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Tania Craan (TC): I have been an art director and book designer for over 30 years. I started my graphic design career working as a designer at Penguin Books Canada and then went on to become the art director at McClelland & Stewart. For the past 20 years, I have run my own graphic design studio while managing to keep up with a hectic family life- being a wife, mother of two teenage girls, daughter of aging parents and official daily dog-walker of Koko, our dog.</span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mary Anne Alton (MA): I'm a mom to two teenage boys, a wife, daughter, sister, sister-in-law, aunt and best friend to Abby, our dog. I'm also a documentary filmmaker who has written, directed and produced award- winning documentaries for over 20 years. My docs have aired in Canada, the U.S. and around the world. Many of my docs have been about health, specifically women's health. I've worked the past 20 years as a freelancer, but prior to that, I worked for CBC television and radio.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I was an early local food advocate, having grown up on a farm where we ate what we grew. I love to cook, bake and eat good meals with my family and friends. I've always respected traditional medicine but have approached my own health from a holistic perspective. I'm also an active member of my church, organizing a cooking series and an author's series to feed the body, mind and soul. </span></blockquote>
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MK: <i>How did the two of you meet and how and when did you decide to collaborate on this project?</i> </blockquote>
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TC: Mary Anne and I have been friends for over ten years. We have shared a great deal together. We're both freelancers in very demanding creative fields. We met through our husbands who are good friends working in the advertising world. One day, over coffee, we decided we needed to do something to protect our most important asset- our health. We felt that id we could develop a tool to help us take control of our health other women might to want to use it too.</blockquote>
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MA: Tania and I decided after that cup of coffee that we'd try to put something together even if just for ourselves. I'm a writer and researcher and Tania is a graphic designer who works on a lot of books. With our complimentary skills, we started mapping out the book in coffee shops, meeting once a month, then weekly, eventually working out of our homes to start researching, writing, and designing the layout. It's been a labour of love!</blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">MK:</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">What inspired you to write and prepare this journal? What's the story behind the story that actually got you to sit down and start putting it all together?</i></blockquote>
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TC: The idea of creating a health journal was always in the back of my mind. I have always been responsible for keeping track of my health history (as well as my family's), but it was always scattered all over the house. Telephone numbers were in one place, tests and documents in another, and bits of paper in folders and drawers. Every time I had to fill out a medical form, I spent too much time looking for information. It was never at my fingertips.</blockquote>
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I also noticed I could not always remember when I was due for a check up or a follow-up test. I'm a relatively healthy person, but I have 6-10 medical-related appointments per year (family doctor, specialists, dentist, tests and more tests, etc.). It was becoming too hard to keep track of everything. </blockquote>
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Being a book designer, it only made sense to have all of my information all in one place. Why not in an attractive book form? The options on the market were pretty ordinary journal books. I wanted something more inviting and fun to use.</blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">MA: I've talked with too many women over the years who didn't stay on top of their health and wellness and ended up having to deal with a life-threatening condition. I've always been interested in my own health and wellness, but I've found it harder to manage with all the demands of work, family and my own routine medical appointments. I had started a file folder which had bits of paper in it, but it wasn't very organized. What if I ever got sick and needed to know important information about past medications, treatments, appointments? I wouldn't be able to tell my health care team what they would need to know to help me.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">While in the process of writing this journal, I found myself in the emergency room one day with my son. He had had a minor bike accident. The nurse asked me when he'd had his last tetanus shot. I couldn't tell her. It made me realize I didn't know when I'd had my last tetanus shot either- or any of my vaccinations for that matter.</span> </blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It was confirmation that we were on the right track, and that this project could be really helpful to other women. One place to have all of their health and wellness information, easily accessible whenever it might be needed.</span></blockquote>
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MK: <i>What kind of research went into the preparation of the journal?</i></blockquote>
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MA: We made our way through books, periodicals, online sources, and consulted with medical professionals. We also asked our friends and potential users what they might like to see in the book and what they thought of the information we were gathering. I also took a 13-week mindful meditation course which really gave me some great insight into the mind-body connection and how it affects our overall health and well-being. </blockquote>
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TC: Mary Anne and I spent over eight months developing, researching and designing the first draft of the health journal. We felt it was important to get the right feel and tone-- we did not want it to be a chore for women to use it. It had to be guilt-free and filled with inspiration and humour. </blockquote>
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MK: <i>What is the most important message you have for working moms?</i></blockquote>
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MA: Take care of yourself... because if you don't, you won't be able to care for those you love.</blockquote>
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TC: There are always health issues we want to improve-- eat better, exercise more, reduce stress-- but we don't always know how to begin. I believe the key is just taking that first step. Just start. Take small, achievable steps, and before you know it a new habit will have taken root.</blockquote>
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<u><br /></u><u>GIVEAWAY:</u></h4>
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I am also thrilled to be giving away a copy of <i>My Little Handy Healthy Journal </i>to one of my lucky readers!<br />
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<span style="color: red;">Contest ends November 8th.</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">Open to Canadian residents only. </span><br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-21660985542456945332013-10-23T17:30:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:48:58.524-04:00Book Review: This House is Haunted<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7VDAWljIFB0/Umbh_SxPWII/AAAAAAAAAk0/Yi1KbfnGHrA/s1600/cover35501-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7VDAWljIFB0/Umbh_SxPWII/AAAAAAAAAk0/Yi1KbfnGHrA/s320/cover35501-medium.png" width="207" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17621098-this-house-is-haunted" target="_blank">This House is Haunted</a><br />
Author: <a href="https://twitter.com/john_boyne" target="_blank">John Boyne</a><br />
Publication: October 8, 2013 by <a href="https://twitter.com/otherpress" target="_blank">Other Press</a><br />
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<h4>
PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">Written in Dickensian prose, </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">This House Is Haunted</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> is a striking homage to the classic nineteenth-century ghost story. Set in Norfolk in 1867, Eliza Caine responds to an ad for a governess position at Gaudlin Hall. When she arrives at the hall, shaken by an unsettling disturbance that occurred during her travels, she is greeted by the two children now in her care, Isabella and Eustace. There is no adult present to represent her mysterious employer, and the children offer no explanation. Later that night in her room, another terrifying experience further reinforces the sense that something is very wrong.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">From the moment Eliza rises the following morning, her every step seems dogged by a malign presence that lives within Gaudlin’s walls. Eliza realizes that if she and the children are to survive its violent attentions, she must first uncover the hall’s long-buried secrets and confront the demons of its past. Clever, captivating, and witty, </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">This House Is Haunted</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"> is pure entertainment with a catch.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
<h4>
MY REVIEW:</h4>
<div>
<span style="font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20.984375px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.</span></span><br />
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I fell in love with this book in the first 2 chapters. I loved the writing style- harkening back to Dickens and the classic gothic ghost story. I loved that we got to meet Dickens, that Boyne took the reader to a time and place where he was real, alive, and influential.<br />
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Then Eliza's journey as governess at Gaudlin Hall began and my affections began to wane. I have always loved a good scary story. I was really hoping (especially after the disappointment of reading <i><a href="http://adventuresofmamakujo.blogspot.ca/2013/10/book-review-bellman-black.html" target="_blank">Bellman & Black</a></i>) to find a good creepy ghost tale to set the mood for the Halloween season. This one was definitely a ghost story- haunted old house, dreary English setting, angry spectres, unexplained deaths of young women, creepy children in starched and formal clothing.<br />
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Some other readers and reviewers have suggested that the author intended his story to be a tongue-in-cheek love letter to the greats of the genre. I am not so convinced. If that were the case, then I would have expected the motifs to be more over-the-top, making me chuckle a little here and there. Instead, I felt more like I was reading a ghost story in which the writer is telling me 'this is scary' and 'you should be spooked now'.<br />
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I can see how this story might work really well as a film- things that happen might be more scary if I were watching them happen rather than being told about them. Maybe it's because whenever the "scary" ghost stuff happened, it was always sudden and abrupt violence rather than the slow, spine-tingling torment that has you holding your breath which might be more effective with the written word.<br />
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I will admit that there was a point where I decided to give up on this book. I was bored. Then guilt took over and I decided to give it one more chance to hook me. It redeemed itself. I finished the second half of the book in a single sitting. At no point was I shocked or scared, but I was definitely curious enough that I lost myself in the story and needed to know how it would end.<br />
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-10542256009671278442013-10-23T10:59:00.001-04:002013-10-23T10:59:57.620-04:00Wordless Wednesday: My First Estate Sale Treasure! {linky}Hubby and I discovered the magic of an estate sale this weekend. We brought home a few really amazing pieces, but this tea trolley is my biggest prize.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YcVC4kGr0z4/UmfjUCsJa9I/AAAAAAAAAlE/UBQrksgCP5g/s1600/IMG_3622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YcVC4kGr0z4/UmfjUCsJa9I/AAAAAAAAAlE/UBQrksgCP5g/s400/IMG_3622.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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It only cost us $25 and it needs a little bit of love, but it is an absolutely PERFECT addition to our new home!<br />
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<span style="font-family: Bentham; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 21px;"><i>Leave your WW Post down below! Would love to check out all of the fun photos of the day! :)</i></span><br />
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<link href="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/styles/default.css" media="all" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"></link><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/loc_en.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/opt_defaults.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/misterlinky.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/autolink.php?mode=standard&owner=mamakujo&postid=23Oct2013" type="text/javascript"></script>MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-67272017166699611312013-10-22T09:00:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:49:26.768-04:00Book Review: Teatime for the Firefly<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QLck_ZBQgYY/Ul1vf5Qao3I/AAAAAAAAAj8/RAk2J3YjUD8/s1600/cover29059-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QLck_ZBQgYY/Ul1vf5Qao3I/AAAAAAAAAj8/RAk2J3YjUD8/s320/cover29059-medium.png" width="210" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teatime for the Firefly<br />
Author: <a href="https://twitter.com/writershona" target="_blank">Shona Patel</a><br />
Publication: <a href="https://twitter.com/HarlequinBooks" target="_blank">Harlequin</a> MIRA, September 24, 2013</td></tr>
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<h4>
PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
<div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My name is Layla and I was born under an unlucky star. For a young girl growing up in India, this is bad news. But everything began to change for me one spring day in 1943, when three unconnected incidents, like tiny droplets on a lily leaf, tipped and rolled into one. It was that tiny shift in the cosmos, I believe, that tipped us together-me and Manik Deb.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Layla Roy has defied the fates. Despite being born under an inauspicious horoscope, she is raised to be educated and independent minded by her eccentric Anglophile grandfather, Dadamoshai. And, by cleverly manipulating the hand fortune has dealt her, she has even found love with Manik Deb-a man betrothed to another. All were minor miracles in India that spring of 1943, when young women's lives were predetermined-if not by the stars, then by centuries of family tradition and social order.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Layla's life as a newly married woman takes her away from home and into the jungles of Assam, where the world's finest tea thrives on plantations run by native labor and British efficiency. Fascinated by this curious culture of whiskey-soaked expat adventurers who seem fazed by neither earthquakes nor man-eating leopards, she struggles to find her place among the prickly English wives with whom she is expected to socialize, and the peculiar servants she now finds under her charge.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">But navigating the hazards of tea-garden society will hardly be her biggest challenge. For even Layla's remote home is not safe from the incendiary change sweeping India on the heels of the Second World War. Their colonial world is at a tipping point as tectonic political shifts rock the tea industry, and Layla and Manik find themselves caught in a perilous racial divide that threatens their very lives.</span></div>
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<h4>
MY REVIEW:</h4>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Bentham; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20.984375px;">Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. </span><br />
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Yet another review I am feeling conflicted about writing... So I will keep this one short and sweet.<br />
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I wish I had all the time in the world to REALLY sit down and enjoy taking the journey through reading this novel. It is beautifully written, transporting the reader to another time and place: the tea-gardens of Imperial India. Layla is a heroine I could truly feel and empathize with. I was rooting for her despite her "luck". She is smart, intuitive, kind, and wise beyond her years and social status.<br />
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My love affair with this book was quickly overshadowed, however, by my frustration at its sudden slow pace at about 1/4 of the way through. Having to read it within a reasonable amount of time for preparing a review (as opposed to over the course of a month's leisure), and as a busy working mom I just could not give this lovely novel the time and nurturing that it truly needed.<br />
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Despite all that, I do recommend taking the time to read this book if its premise interests you. It is a charming and whimsical treat if you have the time to give it the attention it deserves. Hopefully one day I will have the opportunity to revisit this story and really enjoy it at its own pace.<br />
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-67790894383197568392013-10-21T09:30:00.000-04:002013-12-13T13:02:49.914-05:00Morning Giggles for Another Manic MondayThis morning was a bit of a rush in the Kujo household. Mondays generally are- waking up to an alarm for the first time in a few days, getting everything ready for daycare for the week, general sluggishness. I was up and out with the dog by the time Hubby was waking Miss R. I came back inside with just enough time for bye-bye hugs and kisses all around.<br />
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I sat down at my desk in my office, and I get a notification that I have a new email from <a href="http://thefunnyaccountant.com/" target="_blank">Hubby</a>:</div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 13px;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">After telling her several minutes earlier that Mommy went to work, munchkin and I had the following chat:</span></i></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "Where did Mommy go?"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Daddy: "You know where Mommy went, you tell Daddy where Mommy went."</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "A Mommy home."</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Daddy: "No, Mommy's not home, do you you remember where Daddy told you Mommy went this morning?"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "A Mommy home?!"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Daddy: "No Rosie.....Mommy went somewhere this morning, do you remember where?"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "Danna!!!"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Daddy: "???"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "Jordana!!!"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Daddy: "Rosie, who is Jordana?"</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">R: "A Mommy Jordana!!!"</span></i></div>
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Ahhhh life with a toddler. </div>
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I got a good smile and giggle out of this one, so I thought I'd share.</div>
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Anyone else out there have a Munckin Monday Morning today? Would love to hear yours! Feel free to share in a comment below!</div>
MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-66493211040857922162013-10-18T16:00:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:52:42.052-04:00Book Review: Bellman & Black<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17571907-bellman-black?from_search=true" target="_blank">Bellman & Black</a><br />
Author: Diane Setterfield<br />
Publication: Atria Books, November 5, 2013</td></tr>
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PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
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<b>ONE MOMENT IN TIME CAN HAUNT YOU FOREVER. </b><br />
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Caught up in a moment of boyhood competition, William Bellman recklessly aims his slingshot at a rook resting on a branch, killing the bird instantly. It is a small but cruel act, and is soon forgotten. By the time he is grown, with a wife and children of his own, William seems to have put the whole incident behind him. It was as if he never killed the thing at all. But rooks don’t forget . . .<br />
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Years later, when a stranger mysteriously enters William’s life, his fortunes begin to turn—and the terrible and unforeseen consequences of his past indiscretion take root. In a desperate bid to save the only precious thing he has left, he enters into a rather strange bargain, with an even stranger partner. Together, they found a decidedly macabre business.<br />
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And Bellman & Black is born.</div>
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<h4>
MY REVIEW:</h4>
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<span style="font-family: Bentham; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 20.984375px;">Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. </span><br />
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Let me start by saying that I was so excited when I received an email asking me to read this book for review. Setterfield's <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40440.The_Thirteenth_Tale?from_search=true" target="_blank">The Thirteenth Tale</a></i> is one of those books I've been hanging on to forever, meaning to read, but for whatever reason never getting around to. I heard only wonderful things about it and have had it recommended to me over and over again by various people. The prospect of reading her very latest, in advance of publication got me very excited.<br />
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I was even more excited about the dark and mysterious synopsis that reminded me of something we might see from <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1232.The_Shadow_of_the_Wind?from_search=true" target="_blank">Carlos Ruiz Zafon</a>, especially with Halloween coming up. Sadly, I was disappointed.<br />
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It started off hopeful... a tale of boys being boys... a little bit of a Poe vibe...<br />
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Then it just got weird-descriptions of birds that just felt out of place. And boring- loooooong periods of nothing at all happening other than a lot of sudden deaths and a hard-working main character who was completely unsympathetic.<br />
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There was a point about 1/3 of the way where I was ready to give up on this one. I wasn't even curious. In the end, guilt of abandoning a book that miiiiiiight potentially redeem itself won over. Fear of missing out? I pushed through and finished it, but it just wasn't worth it.<br />
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Above all- this is NOT a ghost story. Not by any definition I understand, anyway.<br />
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I'm not really sure what the author was trying to get across. If anything, I ended up confused, furrowing my brow, shaking my head and not looking forward to writing this review. I finished reading this 2 or 3 weeks ago now, and I've been putting off writing anything about it because I just don't know how to put into words what I read or experienced.<br />
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I suppose the best I can do is say that I just hope that one day I will get around to picking up <i>The Thirteenth Tale, </i>and I will be able to tell you how wonderful and glorious it is. As for <i>Bellman & Black</i>, the best I can say is, "meh" and shrug my shoulders.</div>
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As always, feel free to leave comments or questions down below- I would love to hear from you if you had a different experience with this one, have a recommendation, want more info, or just want to say "hi"!<br />
<br /></div>
MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-25568624109868912542013-10-16T15:00:00.000-04:002013-10-16T15:20:12.836-04:00Wordless Wednesday: Books Are Our Friends {linky}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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That moment when your child cuddles up with your favourite storytime books and "reads" the words out loud for the first time...
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Leave your WW Post down below! Would love to check out all of the fun photos of the day! :)
<link href="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/styles/default.css" media="all" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"></link><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/loc_en.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/opt_defaults.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/misterlinky.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/autolink.php?mode=standard&owner=mamakujo&postid=16Oct2013" type="text/javascript"></script><br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-21478539308235591452013-10-15T15:00:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:53:39.316-04:00Book Review: The Rosie Project<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-23FBnpxc5dQ/Ul1s3FIeagI/AAAAAAAAAjw/O4jH1YqN83U/s1600/17302192.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-23FBnpxc5dQ/Ul1s3FIeagI/AAAAAAAAAjw/O4jH1YqN83U/s320/17302192.jpg" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rosie Project<br />
Author: <a href="https://twitter.com/GraemeSimsion" target="_blank">Graeme Simsion</a><br />
Publication: <a href="https://twitter.com/HarperCollinsCa" target="_blank">HarperCollins Canada</a>, May 2013 </td></tr>
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<h4>
PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">A first-date dud, socially awkward and overly fond of quick-dry clothes, genetics professor Don Tillman has given up on love, until a chance encounter gives him an idea.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">He will design a questionnaire-a sixteen-page, scientifically researched questionnaire-to uncover the perfect partner. She will most definitely not be a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker or a late-arriver. Rosie is all these things. She is also fiery and intelligent, strangely beguiling, and looking for her biological father a search that a DNA expert might just be able to help her with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">The Rosie Project is a romantic comedy like no other. It is arrestingly endearing and entirely unconventional, and it will make you want to drink cocktails.</span></div>
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<h4>
MY REVIEW:</h4>
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Drop whatever else you're reading right now, and read this book! </div>
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It's as simple as that. I will not make any attempt to be witty or clever in this review because it will be an insult to the smart, insightful, and deliciously giggle-worthy writing found in Graeme Simsion's novel.</div>
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I really did not know what to expect when I FINALLY got my hands on this book. (I say "finally" because I've been itching to read this one since I first heard about it back in May.) All I knew was that the buzz was great, the description sounded fun, and the title was screaming my name (my daughter's nickname is Rosie). What I got was absolutely better than what I could have imagined, and I am glad that I jumped right in without knowing more than I did.</div>
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We are introduced to Professor Don Tillman when he is asked to step in for a friend at a presentation about Aspergers to a room full of kids diagnosed with the condition and their loved ones. What becomes clear as the book progresses, if not immediately, is that Don has much more in common with his beloved "Aspies" than he recognizes when he presents his cold, clinical, academic assessment. While Don never puts a name to his own "condition", he recognizes that he is "not wired" like most people. This makes for an honest, clever, chuckle-infused, and sometimes bittersweet read.</div>
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I want to go on and on and on about how fabulous this book was, but I need to restrain myself. I believe that part of what made this book so enjoyable for me (as with so many great reads) was all of the little surprises along the way. So go out and scoop up your copy now, get in touch with me in the comments below, via <a href="https://twitter.com/MamaKujo" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7828799-jordana" target="_blank">Goodreads</a>- however- and let's gush!</div>
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Added bonuses:</div>
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- Professor Don Tillman has his own <a href="https://twitter.com/ProfDonTillman" target="_blank">Twitter handle</a>. I mean, COME ON- amazing!</div>
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- The book has just been optioned for film by Sony Pictures!</div>
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- It's the October 2013 <a href="http://thesavvyreader.ca/" target="_blank">Savvy Reader</a> Book Club pick, so there are lots of people out there reading and <a href="https://twitter.com/SavvyReader" target="_blank">excited to chat</a> everything Rosie!</div>
MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-28920560087411577382013-10-09T09:59:00.001-04:002013-10-09T11:11:02.264-04:00Wordless Wednesday: We Love Fall {linky}<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L4rxdHRPATA/UlVgd5RIOQI/AAAAAAAAAjM/y3Y53msWjF4/s1600/IMG_3396.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L4rxdHRPATA/UlVgd5RIOQI/AAAAAAAAAjM/y3Y53msWjF4/s400/IMG_3396.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That face AND juicy apples fresh from the tree? Who could ask for more?!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ok- maybe some homemade apple pie, too!</td></tr>
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Leave your WW Post down below! Would love to check out all of the fun photos of the day! :)<br />
<link href="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/styles/default.css" media="all" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"></link><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/loc_en.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/opt_defaults.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/misterlinky.js"></script><script src="http://www.blenza.com/linkies/autolink.php?mode=standard&owner=mamakujo&postid=09Oct2013a" type="text/javascript"></script>MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-7433907935398042372013-10-07T16:00:00.000-04:002013-10-07T15:54:22.298-04:00I am ThankfulHappy Monday everyone! Welcome to the new week.<br />
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Today's post is a short post of gratitude.<br />
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A few days ago I had a medical emergency that had me in the hospital emergency room for nearly 20 hours. [Yes, I am okay. Thank goodness it was a passing thing that has resolved itself.] It's sad to admit, but sometimes it takes something scary and unpredictable to give me the kick in the head I deserve and realize just how blessed I am to be surrounded by the love and support I have in my life.<br />
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Parents who are far away but always available for their grown-up little girl to cry to when she's scared...<br />
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In-laws who drop everything to take care of my precious family...<br />
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Siblings ready to help in whatever way they can (without complaint)...<br />
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My husband who is my rock and my anchor in any chaotic storm...<br />
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Friends who "just know" and are always there to let me know they love me in unexpected ways and at just the right moment...<br />
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My daughter who needs no words...<br />
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I am so grateful.<br />
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Thank you.<br />
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Thanksgiving is a week away (for us Canucks, anyway). I would love to hear about those (often forgotten) people or things that you are grateful for. Spread the love in the comments below.MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-21547584891377912522013-10-02T09:00:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:54:12.190-04:00Book Review: The Mourning Hours<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Et3yTuO8s_A/UkwnswfaV2I/AAAAAAAAAiQ/0Zqn_GsXOBU/s1600/cover28318-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Et3yTuO8s_A/UkwnswfaV2I/AAAAAAAAAiQ/0Zqn_GsXOBU/s320/cover28318-medium.png" width="208" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mourning Hours<br />
Author: <a href="https://twitter.com/HerPlotThickens" target="_blank">Paula Treick DeBoard</a><br />
Published: June 25, 2013 by Harlequin MIRA</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Kirsten Hammarstrom hasn't been home to her tiny corner of rural Wisconsin in years-not since the mysterious disappearance of a local teenage girl rocked the town and shattered her family. Kirsten was just nine years old when Stacy Lemke went missing, and the last person to see her alive was her boyfriend, Johnny-the high school wrestling star and Kirsten's older brother. No one knows what to believe-not even those closest to Johnny-but the event unhinges the quiet farming community and pins Kirsten's family beneath the crushing weight of suspicion. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Now, years later, a new tragedy forces Kirsten and her siblings to return home, where they must confront the devastating event that shifted the trajectory of their lives. Tautly written and beautifully evocative, The Mourning Hours is a gripping portrayal of a family straining against extraordinary pressure, and a powerful tale of loyalty, betrayal and forgiveness.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 20.984375px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. (Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/HarlequinBooks" target="_blank">Harlequin</a>!)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The story of Kristen and her family kept me wanting more. I gobbled this book down in almost record time if for no other reason than I just couldn't see where the author was headed. -- Is she dead? Is she alive? Does it matter? Was it him? Was it her?-- It's a pretty big feat lately for a book to keep me guessing. DeBoard took advantage of my natural (over)curiosity and RAN with it. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">There was nothing shocking or really "deep" about the treatment of the material, but it definitely made for a good read. I keep wanting to call it a good, light read, but there isn't much about this book that qualifies it as "light". Regardless, the author's</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> writing is clean, clear and makes it easy to keep turning the pages.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">DeBoard did an excellent job of painting the picture of the pain and suffering of the Hammarstrom family. Interesting, considering it is not their daughter who has gone missing. What's even more interesting is that she chose to tell the story from the perspective of nine-year old Kristen- a character who should really just be an observer of the action. Instead, DeBoard manages to tell the story from the perspective of those on the periphery of the action and, in doing so, does an excellent job of showing the reader how our actions are never just our own. </span></span></div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-90368090113904800302013-10-01T12:30:00.000-04:002013-10-01T12:19:20.742-04:00HAPPY OCTOBER!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I can't say exactly why, but October has always been my favourite month of the year.<br />
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Nature's paintbrush...<br />
Cooler air...<br />
Picnics in the leaves...<br />
Sweaters and boots...<br />
Scarves...<br />
Pumpkin EVERYTHING!...<br />
Apple picking...<br />
Halloween...<br />
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What do you love about October?<br />
<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-10008826470691024432013-09-26T15:00:00.000-04:002013-10-23T14:12:17.609-04:00The First Time Leaving BabyToday I am a sad Mommy in need of some pep talking. Tomorrow I leave to spend my first (and second) night away from my baby girl. Yes, I know I have gone longer than most in taking this leap (she's 21 months), but maybe that's why it feels so scary.<br />
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I have a fun-filled, busy weekend in the Big Apple to celebrate my BFF's upcoming nuptials, and I am SO excited! It's all just a little bitter-sweet: getting some needed mommy time, time with old friends and family, but I know I will be missing my girl. </div>
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Goodness knows she'll probably be having too much fun with Daddy to even notice I'm missing!</div>
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Help a Mama out, dear readers... Pep talk? Advice? Words of encouragement? Please leave 'em in the comments below!</div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-44327790978811663652013-09-24T17:00:00.000-04:002013-10-27T22:54:49.400-04:00AYFKM?!: J. Crew Baby<a href="https://twitter.com/jcrew/status/380802357014966274" target="_blank">J. Crew's announcement</a> that it will be adding a line of <a href="http://www.jcrew.com/baby.jsp" target="_blank">baby clothes</a> to its collection has inspired a new type of post I will affectionately be categorizing as "Are You Freaking Kidding Me?!". [A close-second was "Kujo's Kall-Outs".]<br />
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Let's just take a quick look at a screenshot of the J.Crew Baby Landing Page...</div>
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Above you can see the "above-the-fold" view of the page (with my annotations in red); a.k.a. what they deem to be the most important content for anyone navigating to the page; a.k.a. what will keep you clicking and eventually get you buying. </div>
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Italian Cashmere?! For reals? </div>
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Yes, I would LOVE to dress my little girl up in this adorable polka-dotted (MamaKujo LOVES polka-dots), cozy looking sweater, but not for ONE-HUNDRED-AND-SIXTY-EIGHT FREAKING DOLLARS! $168! I cringe at the thought of a Mommy-sized sweater for $168. Are you freaking kidding me?!</div>
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Babies get dirty. They spit up, drool, vomit, poop in their pants, roll or crawl around on the floor. They also grow out of clothing sizes in the blink of an eye. I'd sooner toss $168 into the diaper genie! </div>
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And $24 for a bib?! Are you freaking kidding me?!</div>
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You do know that a bib's entire purpose for existing is to GET DIRTY, don't you?! Babies wear bibs to catch the spit up, drool, food, vomit, etc. that is constantly leaking from their faces so that their $168 dollar Italian Cashmere sweaters won't get ruined. Why would I spend $24 for a <i>shmatah</i>?!</div>
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There are also sandals for $120, blankets for $228, wool stuffed toys for $88, and on and on, and I need to stop before I vomit! </div>
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Does anyone over there at J. Crew Baby even have kids?! Don't even answer that because I won't believe you if you tell me you do. Or I'll just know that you're a shmuck.</div>
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I love J. Crew's style- some of my favourite pieces in my wardrobe are J. Crew staples. I also love baby clothes (who doesn't?!). This is just one of those cases where 1+1 does not equal 2 for this mama.</div>
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<i>Leave a comment down below- I would love to hear your reactions to this. What do you think? Am I over-reacting?!</i></div>
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-88295991055630951122013-09-12T12:27:00.001-04:002013-10-27T22:55:10.805-04:00Pride, Prejudice and Propaganda: The Quebec Charter of "Values"<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This week, I am a very sad Mama. Sad, angry, disgusted, fearful, and embittered. Oh yeah, and there's the thread of complete disbelief running through it all.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been wanting to write this post since Tuesday's "reveal", but I knew I needed some time to stop and think and get my thoughts together. I'm not entirely sure that I have managed to do that yet, but I do know that I can't keep this frustration locked up anymore. My husband beat me to it yesterday (see his blog post <a href="http://thefunnyaccountant.com/2013/09/11/tax-tip-tuesdays-the-kkk-kids-kippot-and-khumaraka-hijab/" target="_blank">here</a>)- and, well, now I feel obliged...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As an overview: The PQ government is proposing a "Charter of Values" under which they will enforce a ban on religious "symbols" among public employees.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">They even provided a helpful infographic to ensure that we could make no mistake about what (and WHO) would and would not be deemed acceptable. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here's the thing, public employees include those employed by:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-crown corporations and government ministries and offices</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-public and private subsidized daycares</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-schoolboards and public schools</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-CEGEPs and universities</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-municipalities, including services such as public transportation</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">-hospitals</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The most infuriating thing is that the ban will not apply to elected officials ostensibly because they have been chosen by the voters despite any religious garb they might don. Basically: the law will not apply to those who are creating it, pushing it and passing it. They are the immune elite.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">CEGEPS, universities, hospitals and municipalities will be able to opt for a 5-year renewable exception if they so choose. Talk about a loophole.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here's the kicker- notice which groups are not included in the above mentioned exceptions? Schoolboards, public schools and daycare workers. Why? Well, we don't want our children being exposed to the religious radicalism of wearing a hijab or a turban or a kippah, do we? No, they might turn to someone else's god and get converted. Does this smack of Putin's Russia and "gay propaganda" to anyone else out there?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">When we began our search for the perfect home daycare setting for our daughter, we knew all we wanted was a place where she would be safe, well-cared for, and a place where she could learn and play and grow in a sanitary environment. When we found our dayhome, the fact that the woman who ran it was Persian and wore a hijab made no difference. Actually- that's not true. It did make a difference. We saw it as an added value. Our daughter would be exposed to different faces and languages and cultures at the earliest stage possible. After all, one cannot function in the world today without some basic understanding of diversity. Unless you live in Quebec, that is...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What kills me, as a mother, is that the love and care my daughter received in the 12 months she spent in that home daycare was more than either my husband or I could have ever imagined possible from a childcare provider. After spending long days chasing after, entertaining, and taking care of numerous children who were not her own, Farah dedicated her evenings preparing fresh meals for the following day, along with hand-made juice because she would not buy store-bought sugar drinks. Every morning we were greeted with hugs and kisses and smiles (happily reciprocated by my daughter). And when the time came to move to a school-like environment and leave the dayhome, the goodbyes were more heart-wrenching than a made-for-tv Hallmark movie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now Farah and her family are at risk of losing their daycare. Despite the love and care she provides, despite her impressive qualifications as an educator and community worker, despite her (sometime too) strict adherence to protocol and rules, Farah could lose her job. She will be faced with having to choose between her babies (as she calls them) and her religion and tradition.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">According to the PQ's proposal, a woman wearing a hijab is less qualified to take care of my child than some daycare workers I have seen wearing daisy dukes and ripped t-shirts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Also, apparently, come December, when my daughter- I KNOW- will be exposed to Christmas trees and Christmas themes at school, that's less of a threat to her keeping her Jewish identity than if her teacher wears a scarf to cover her hair. Right. Because it's easier to have THAT conversation with a kid about why some of her friends get to have pretty trees with presents under them in their homes and a big fat happy guy who comes for milk and cookies at their house but she doesn't. Good luck to us!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">None of this is to say anything of the ridiculous hypocrisy and inconsistencies surrounding what will and will not be deemed acceptable under the PQ's ideal secular state. The GIANT crucifix on the top of Mount Royal is secular. So is the cross hanging in the National Assembly. A small cross on a chain around your neck is okay, but a large one is not. Get out your measuring tapes, ladies and gentlemen! A headscarf worn wrapped as a hijab is illegal, but what about a wig (sheitl) traditionally worn by religious Jewish women? Is a wig okay?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Meanwhile, there are public city council meetings in this province which still open with group prayers, our streets and cities are named for the Saints, we have a mandated public holiday for Saint John the Baptist every June, and almost everything is closed early or doesn't open at all on Sundays.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The real laugh-out-loud kicker- when Bernard Drainville, the minister presenting the plan, was asked about whether public officials and courtroom witnesses would still be expected to swear oaths on THE BIBLE in this staunchly secular state, his response was, "Oh my God, we'll get back to you." That's right- GOD!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And if this all wasn't enough to make me want to tear out my hair already- the marketing budget for this piece of hate-filled xenophobia is $1.9 million!!! My money is paying for this inhumane, disgusting waste of time. Because this province doesn't have anything more pressing to invest in...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As I said at the beginning of my tirade- I am sad and afraid.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I am sad and afraid because despite the odds, I have fought to make Montreal my HOME- a home for my family.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I was born in Montreal, my mother and father were born here, my mother's father moved here at 6-months old, and the rest of my grandparents made this city their home after being displaced from Eastern Europe following WWII. When my parents divorced, I moved to Florida with my mother to be near her family. [Aside: This was after my father moved to Toronto to pursue more lucrative business opportunities because, despite being perfectly bilingual, he was told in a job interview that he would not be hired for the position because he didn't have "the right last name".] I spent summers at camp outside of Montreal, and when I graduated from high school, I accepted my entry to McGill University because I wanted to know this city more. I love Montreal- its culture, its beauty, its personality. After returning to Florida for law school and a short stint in Toronto, I, with my husband, decided to return to Montreal and put down roots here. This was despite protests from both sides of my family (aside from the personal distance) that Quebec was no place to live and work and raise a family anymore.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Since returning to Montreal, I have faced many obstacles because I am not a Francophone or because I don't speak "functional" French. I have given up the practice of law for many reasons, but partially because I knew when I still had the opportunity, that I would not be able to sit and write a bar exam in French or practice with French cases and legal documents. I have struggled finding work that I "qualify" for. That's right- even as a lawyer who graduated cum laude, no one wanted to hire me because I am not bilingual. It's no wonder there is such a "brain drain" from this province to Ontario and elsewhere.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I have since found steady, fulfilling employment (despite close to 3 years of struggling), and I am grateful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I am sad and afraid because I am a Jew.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Nearly all of my father's family perished at the hands of the Nazis. My mother's family were scattered around the globe because of the persecution they faced. My grandfather awoke in the night screaming from nightmares of the horrors he experienced until the day he died. My grandmother was the subject of unspeakable "scientific" and "medical" experiments during her time in a concentration camp.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Those experiences came from the hate, lack of understanding, and unwillingness to accept "the other" of another xenophobic, elitist, regime focused on "values" and the "ideal society". I swear, I can hear the distant march of brownshirts sometimes when I lay in bed at night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I am sad and afraid because I was an American teenager on 9/11.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I found it all too ironic that this plan was revealed on Tuesday, September 10th, so that the bulk of media reaction would occur on September 11th. The attacks of September 11, 2001 were the result of the refusal to accept one another, to live together with understanding and appreciation of diversity, to learn about each other. Following that horrifying day, the subsequent failures in Iraq and Afghanistan, how have we not learned our lessons?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I am sad and afraid because I am a mother, and I don't know how to protect my child from a world that is so much scarier than I ever really understood. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So Monsieur Drainville, Madame Marois- do not speak for ME or MY values.</span><br />
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MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-6461299341612353202013-08-30T15:37:00.004-04:002013-10-23T14:10:44.619-04:00TGIF: My Silly Mommy Moment of the Week<h2>
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You know your brain is fried when...</span></h2>
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Hello out there!<br />
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Today's post will be a quick one because I JUST HAD to share it with all of you.<br />
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This week was particularly hectic at work. Yesterday was the craziest day of all. Exhaustion, late work day, transit commute home (my car was in for repairs). I was TOAST by the time I got home at nearly 7pm.<br />
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Hubby had to run out to do a quick errand, so this mama was alone for end of supper, bath and bedtime.<br />
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I have to say that considering just how out of it I was feeling, everything was going pretty smoothly. Bath and playtime lead to story time without a fuss. Babygirl went "night night" with a big hug and kiss.<br />
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Hubby came home disappointed that he missed saying goodnight. I told him munchkin had just gone down, so he could still pop in to give munchkin a kiss.<br />
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It turns out...<br />
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I forgot to switch off her lamp.<br />
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Oops!<br />
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Just thought I'd share the laughs (even at my own expense).<br />
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I would love to hear all of your Silly Mommy (or Daddy) Moments- share a comment about "that one time" below!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy Labour Day Weekend Everyone!</td></tr>
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153970853788633653.post-29563554651443121392013-08-27T21:45:00.002-04:002013-10-27T22:56:08.131-04:00Book Review: The Returned<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mhTx0lpbsCY/Uh1IregOA3I/AAAAAAAAAaY/pQS47gGr5Ns/s1600/cover27627-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mhTx0lpbsCY/Uh1IregOA3I/AAAAAAAAAaY/pQS47gGr5Ns/s320/cover27627-medium.png" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Returned<br />
Author: <a href="http://jasonmottauthor.com/" target="_blank">Jason Mott</a><br />
Published: August 27, 2013 by <a href="https://twitter.com/HarlequinBooks" target="_blank">Harlequin MIRA</a><br />
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<h4>
PUBLISHER'S SYNOPSIS:</h4>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>"Jacob was time out of sync, time more perfect than it had been. He was life the way it was supposed to be all those years ago. That's what all the Returned were." </i></span></span><br />
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<div style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 1.5em;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Harold and Lucille Hargrave's lives have been both joyful and sorrowful in the decades since their only son, Jacob, died tragically at his eighth birthday party in 1966. In their old age they've settled comfortably into life without him, their wounds tempered through the grace of time.... Until one day Jacob mysteriously appears on their doorstep-flesh and blood, their sweet, precocious child, still eight years old. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 1.5em;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">All over the world people's loved ones are returning from beyond. No one knows how or why this is happening, whether it's a miracle or a sign of the end. Not even Harold and Lucille can agree on whether the boy is real or a wondrous imitation, but one thing they know for sure: he's their son. As chaos erupts around the globe, the newly reunited Hargrave family finds itself at the center of a community on the brink of collapse, forced to navigate a mysterious new reality and a conflict that threatens to unravel the very meaning of what it is to be human. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 1.5em;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">With spare, elegant prose and searing emotional depth, award-winning poet Jason Mott explores timeless questions of faith and morality, love and responsibility. A spellbinding and stunning debut, The Returned is an unforgettable story that marks the arrival of an important new voice in contemporary fiction. </span></div>
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<h4>
MY REVIEW:</h4>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt; font-size: 15.555556297302246px; line-height: 20.98958396911621px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Unkempt; font-size: 15.555556297302246px; line-height: 20.98958396911621px;">Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt; font-size: 15.555556297302246px; line-height: 20.98958396911621px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;">Before I say anything, <span style="font-size: large;">SPOILER ALERT! BIG BIG BIG SPOILERS AHEAD!</span> Now-- that said-- I WANT you to go out and get your hands on this book! Read it! Read it now! Read it now and then come back and read the rest of my review, and please please please start a conversation about it with me!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;">So- again- if you have not yet read this novel, <span style="font-size: large;">STOP READING THIS REVIEW NOW!</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;">~~~~~~~~~</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Unkempt;"><span style="line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">I have been sitting with this review for a few days now. I have not been able to stop thinking about this book. I have so many questions. Mr. Mott- if you are out there somewhere reading this review, please, please, please- I would LOVE the opportunity to pick your brain. :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">When I received my email notification that I had been approved for <i>The Returned</i>, I did a little dance. Okay, a BIG dance. I first heard about this book a few months ago from my husband. He was busy reading articles on <a href="http://tv.com/" target="_blank">tv.com</a> (or some similar website), as he is apt to do, and he came across something about an-as-yet-unpublished novel that had ALREADY been optioned as a new network television show. It was about- he said- the dead returning to the world. Coming back to life. Imagine the possibilities... the interruptions to families and loved ones who had built lives since their losses... The implications... We were tossing ideas back and forth. Genius, we said. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">I knew that I HAD to get my hands on this novel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">Then I got my approval! Thank you, thank you, thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/HarlequinBooks" target="_blank">Harlequin team</a>! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">It turns out, the book was not exactly what I was expecting nor what I had in mind. But that's okay. As I said, I have not been able to stop thinking about this book. Asking questions. In my opinion, that's what makes a GREAT novel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">However, it just isn't sitting right. Not the way that I think the author intended. I feel like my experience with the book is incomplete. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">More than insight and reaction, I want to share my questions. Too many questions that I can't seem to answer, and not the ones you might expect...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">What is the purpose of Lucille's death? What did it accomplish? Jacob gets to say goodbye, but then Harold is ultimately left alone. Completely. No house, no wife, no one. Ill. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">What is the significance of Harold's apparent and unexplained illness? (This is one I just can't think about anymore. I've hit a wall in my own brain.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 20.984375px;">When do the Returned disappear? Does this matter? If not, why not?</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Why did some return and not others? (Other than for plot purposes...)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What makes something "the way it was supposed to be"? In the end, this concept works for the preacher and for Bellamy in their experiences, but I can't understand it for the Hargraves or someone like Fred.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What about the rest of the world? Arcadia "blew up" and all seems calm, but what about the camps everywhere else? What about the space and Malthusian-type problems? What about the bureau? Will no one be accountable?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mr. Mott- why did you decide to take the story in the direction that you did (the social reaction, militaristic plot) rather than taking the opportunity to dive deeper into investigating the human impact? Just thinking about the storyline about the old Jewish couple hiding 7 returned Nazi soldiers in their home- I am at a loss! That was a moment in my reading that made me stop and say - hmm, he's really got something here! Why not use that real humanity toward your purpose? It's so rich in potential in millions of possible stories. In your author's note, you say you wanted to give your readers an opportunity to read and think and relate, but I worry that readers will lose some of that opportunity because of the path the story takes. Just as the Hargraves never really have the opportunity or the time to become a family again and truly experience what they are living through, I think that readers will lose the chance to reflect on the "what ifs".</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">What about the <i>welcome home</i>? No one at all seemed beyond themselves with the thrill and the joy of seeing their loved ones returned. As a mother, a romantic, an optimist, I HAVE to believe that there would be at least one story on the face of the planet where someone's heart would be absolutely BURSTING at the prospect. Lucille seems joyful, but reacts as if it is all just expected- "just as it should be". Others are rejecting their returned- some even treating them as something horrifying, inhuman, unwanted. What about the swelling hearts, the holding of children until bodies give out, the raw emotion? Maybe this is exactly what Mr. Mott wanted out of me....</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I will say that I recently discovered that Mott has written and released 3 short-story prequels which are available to <a href="http://ebooks.harlequin.com/80DA2D0E-4758-454C-B92F-01B62B0207A5/10/141/en/ContentDetails.htm?ID={2ED18523-BEE6-4A15-8ED8-C83E07EC2212}" target="_blank">download for free here</a>. I look forward to reading these and seeing how he develops the concept and fleshes it out. I didn't want to read them before writing this review, though. I wanted to keep my reactions and reflections separate, just in case.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I am also very excited for the potential of the <i><a href="http://abc.go.com/shows/resurrection" target="_blank">Resurrection</a></i> TV series (despite its gimmicky name).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So you see how I can feel like something is just MISSING? But I suppose it's the same way with the rules of life and death. Nothing is ever settled. You don't get the answers you need. You can only grow and learn and live. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">You can also look to others to share in the experience- learn from one another. So I look to all of you out there to share with me!</span><br />
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<br />MamaKujohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02650925025680361721noreply@blogger.com0