The Note

About a month ago I was contacted by the publishers of a book I did a review for and asked if I would be interested in reviewing a new gift book called The Note by Mike O'Mary as part of The Note Project. I'm a sucker for gift books and the premise of this book is one that pretty much hits home for me.

The book is the story of a note that the author received from his sister, well into adulthood and how that made him feel. It also highlights the power of someone showing appreciation towards a person for something that made a difference to you.

Pretty much everyone who knows me knows in real life knows I'm always sending cards... sometimes for no reason. I value all that my friends and family do for me and I want to make sure they know that. The really interesting thing about this book is that it outlines all of the reasons or excuses that a person would have to not write a simple note, and outlines why you should ignore those and write the note anyways.

The best part? Is that for all of you who maybe are technically challenged in writing a heartfelt appreciation note are in luck. The author gives you steps and a basic format to follow.

You officially have no more excuses, people.

And I want to talk about The Note Project a little bit too. The whole point is to inspire one million people to write notes of appreciation. To a teacher that made a difference to you, to a family member you have a special memory of, to a friend who means a lot to you, to anyone for anything. I personally love this idea because as it is highlighted in the book, you might think a person knows that you appreciate them... but what if they don't? What if they never really know why they were so special to you? It takes literally two minutes to write a heartfelt note and put it in the mail. I am going to be doing a guest post on The Note Project blog in June about a note I received from someone and what that meant to me. I'm sure this person didn't think of how I would feel when I read it or what a difference it would make on my own life.

Now.. I have a challenge for you, an opportunity for you, and a deal to sweeten it all. :)

1. The challenge:  I challenge you to write ONE note to a person who made a difference in your life for any reason.

2. The opportunity: Mike O'Mary, the author of The Note has graciously offered one of my blog followers a chance to win a Note Project Starter Kit. The kit includes a copy of The Note, a DVD video based on the book, and a set of three thank you cards to get your appreciation notes out.

*All you have you to do is leave a comment on this post saying you are interested in the giveaway and I will draw a name on Monday during my weightloss check in vlog.

3. The deal: I am going to offer you all 10% on your total order in my Etsy shop with the coupon code "SARASBLOG". Go to http://scrapinsara.etsy.com/ , pick out some new cards to write notes on, and use the coupon code.

We can't possibly make this any easier on you. Do it. And, as a reminder? Do you have friends who are mom's? Send them a Mother's Day card. Mother's Day isn't just for your mom. Every mom should be appreciated.

I'm going to leave with a quote that is featured in the book that I spent some time thinking about:

At times, our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us. - Albert Schweitzer

The Jello Incident.

Last night's post was pretty heavy and so tonight I want to shake it up and tell you about The Jello Incident. I hesitate in telling this story because if my mom ever reads it, my brother and I may get into trouble. But it's worth it because it was hilarious and we are idiots. But this year my Grandma made my kids the Jello Easter eggs and the story all came back to me.

It all started one Easter... several years ago. I mean, it was a long time ago.. maybe even 15 years ago. Holy cow. I'm old.

Anyways.

One Easter our Grandma made us these Jello molded eggs. Like these:

You see the big ones to the left? Well.. for whatever reason, Travis and I each took one and went upstairs with them. The upstairs to my mom's house used to be an attic but people renovated it and there were three rooms: mine, my brothers and the neutral territory room in the middle we called the play room. Well, the stairs to go upstairs has a weird ledge on one side but the ceiling is HIGH. I mean.. really high. So high that in order to paint it you have to have scaffolding set up on the stairs. So.. you get how high this is.

Anyways. So we each have this blob of an egg and we decided that it would be a good idea to throw them around like balls. Now, I'm like... 14 or so and Travis was around 12. Again, we were idiots. Travis threw an egg too high for me to catch and the sucker flew up and hit the wall... really high up.

And it got stuck.

I'll be honest- we panicked. Not only did we hear our mom scream "Knock it the fuck off up there" but we knew if she came upstairs and saw the egg stuck on the wall.. she'd be pissed. So we decided we had to get it down and never speak of it.

Logically, we found a yardstick and with careful maneuvering we knocked the egg down onto the stairs. Which was gross. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to clean Jello off of carpeted stairs without using a vacuum.

When I looked up I realized we had a bigger problem. The Jello egg stained the wall. Folks- that wall had a huge, I'm talking baseball sized reddish colored stain of Jello on it. We were going to die unless we could clean it.

Again, we put our genius brains together and devised a plan. We would take the Christmas shaped Avon soaps we got from Grandma at Christmas (which were never used but the boxes were still on our dressers), somehow attach it to the yard stick. We ended up using a ton of masking tape. Then we figured... the soap has to be wet in order to properly clean, so we got a soaking wet washcloth and secured that on top of the soap, which was taped to the yard stick. The whole thing seemed completely flawless.

I sent Travis back on the ledge (because he's taller than me) and made him scrub.

Unfortunately...

we failed to take into consideration that the soap itself was red and hey... the box clearly states the soap is supposed to turn the bath water colors.

Fucking FAIL.

We were now working with a stain the size of a honeydew melon on the wall.

Fortunately, our parents never came upstairs often so our mess went undiscovered for years. It was always this joke Travis and I shared because we knew if our mom knew what we did she'd be pissed.

Fast forward to a year or two ago and Mom moves her bedroom upstairs. I happened to get there right after all the heavy lifting was done and my mom says something to me about the stain, and did I know how it got there?

I told her it had been there since we moved in. I completely lied to my mom, but most importantly, she bought it.  I immediately had to call Travis and tell him and he of course laughed hysterically. And agreed that continuing to lie was probably our best option.

So this year when my Grandma brought Jello eggs for the kids I made DAMN SURE they ate them in the dining room under close supervision.

Sorry about the wall, mom.

All Time Low concert. With a not so super review.

You may remember that last Thursday I was going to the All Time Low concert with my sister in law. Oh yes, it's all coming back to you know. So here are some pictures and my honest review.

First, our drive down was pretty easy. We stopped for gas in Pine City and saw this sign. We both felt that this is what your poop would look like after eating one.

OK. So we get to the venue early and the first two things we notice are: A) we are way older than everyone around us and B) we are not emo enough. We waited in line in the cold for about two hours and once we got inside I was so numb. I wore capris and a short sleeve shirt because hello- I almost melted the last time I was at First Avenue. Anyways.

The first band to play was the Summer Set. Now, I liked their music for the most part so I was kind of excited to see them. The sad part is that they kind of suck live. I didn't get into the music at all and felt like maybe they didn't want to be there. I look over and realize I'm standing right next to a ten year old boy who is like, losing his shit, over this band. I felt kind of sad for him? Because this band was sucking. And for how young the crowd was, I was super disappointed in all of the bands for being so vulgar. Normally I don't care but the fact that this crowd was comprised of mostly under 17 year old kids and their chaperones, I felt like it wasn't really ok.

Second band to play was Hey Monday. I have their sign song EP and kind of like it, but they are the newest band to me in that night's line up. They also weren't that great. So much so that I was even debating on just leaving the show. This band hails from Florida and so clearly want to be the next Paramore. I've seen Paramore in concert before and this singer (and band) have nothing on Paramore. They need to find their own niche because what they have going isn't working for me.

 The third band to play was Yellowcard. Now, I am not a big Yellowcard fan but I do like a lot of their music. Kate (my sister in law) is a pretty big fan so she was excited to see them. Honestly though? They aren't very good live. I have seen better cover bands than this and I was pretty damn disappointed. I have a big thing that if they don't sound like they do on their record... I lose respect and interest. Which sucks because I liked their new single.

 Soon after Yellowcard started Kate wanted to go sit down. Keep in mind, by this point she had been awake for 37 hours since she didn't get much sleep two nights before, had to work overnight, got to my house at 6 am, tried fixing a hair dye job gone horribly wrong until we left around 11am. So the poor girl was a bit delirious. Obviously the few bar stools they have in there were taken so we had to settle for the filthy stairwell leading up to the balcony area. It was gross, but sitting down was nice. AND we realized we could still see everything really well.

 And the most important thing? Drinking enough water so you aren't delirious and dehydrated on the very long car ride home.

 But Yellowcard was so shitty that I spent a good portion of that set admiring my favorite concert shoes. I really love these shoes.

 OK. So then All Time Low came on and I was fully prepared for a shit set because everything else sucked and so it would only be a fitting way to cap off an extremely long day. But no.

All Time Low are AMAZING live.

They are super funny, super inappropriate and are just really talented. Of all of the bands I have ever seen.. I would say that their crowd interaction has been the best I have ever seen. Hands down. I think they told they audience nobody leaves without being fingered, then people threw bras up and they wore them on their heads or microphone stands, they were just really lively and most importantly- sounded fantastic live.

I had a really great time just watching their show, but one of the highlights was an acoustic version of Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" and then they morphed that into their song "Therapy" which is kind of an iconic song for me.


So overall, the show was really shitty until All Time Low came on. They did a really great job and made me not completely regret the money I spent on the ticket and gas to get there. :)

TOMORROW I have two giveaway winners to announce. :) Come back lovahs.

The Peach Keeper + GIVEAWAY

I'm going to be honest- peaches kind of freak me out. Peaches have that weird fuzzy fur on it, and in my experience you should just stay away from things covered in fuzzy fur. It's just a life lesson that has served me well.

But with that said- this is a good read. I really liked it. I have seen on a few other blogs or on Good Reads that people are pretty mixed about it, but I don't care. I think it is a good book and you should read it. It's only 288 pages so psh- that's a day of reading for me peeps.

The Peach Keeper- Sarah Addison Allen

It’s the dubious distinction of thirty-year-old Willa Jackson to hail from a fine old Southern family of means that met with financial ruin generations ago. The Blue Ridge Madam—built by Willa’s great-great-grandfather during Walls of Water’s heyday, and once the town’s grandest home—has stood for years as a lonely monument to misfortune and scandal. And Willa herself has long strived to build a life beyond the brooding Jackson family shadow. No easy task in a town shaped by years of tradition and the well-marked boundaries of the haves and have-nots. But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.


For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town. Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living. Resonant with insight into the deep and lasting power of friendship, love, and tradition, The Peach Keeper is a portrait of the unshakable bonds that—in good times and bad, from one generation to the next—endure forever.

Ok so that's a rather lengthy description of the book that gives you a good idea of what it's about. Now, I feel like the title makes it sound like fluffy BFF's forever with matching bracelets type of story. And honestly? I didn't feel like it was. I mean, I kind of don't like stories like that? Where the girls end the story holding hands on a porch swing. Call me cynical but BLECH.

Anyways. The story goes quickly, I really liked the characters. Usually, there's a character I can't stand and I feel like slapping them? But I can say I actually liked them all in different ways. I was rooting for Willa and Colin and then Paxton and Sebastian. The mystery behind the bones at the Blue Ridge Madam is really interesting especially if you take in the context of what time period it would have happened it- the very beginning of The Depression. And then the sub plots of the relationships between the two couples kept me reading.

In all, I was satisfied and I would recommend this book as a good summer read.

And if you really, really want it.... COMMENT on this post to be entered to win your very own copy of The Peach Keeper. You must be a follower through GFC, though. Obviously. ;) Good luck!! Drawing will be held on Wednesday, April 27.

Promise Not to Tell

Ok kidlets and lambwhores- I have a good book for you, yes I do. When I saw this come up as a book tour option I jumped on it right away because I have heard a lot of good things about it and about the author, Jennifer McMahon.

Promise Not To Tell by Jennifer McMahon

Forty-one-year-old school nurse Kate Cypher has returned home to rural Vermont to care for her mother who’s afflicted with Alzheimer’s. On the night she arrives, a young girl is murdered—a horrific crime that eerily mirrors another from Kate’s childhood. Three decades earlier, her dirt-poor friend Del—shunned and derided by classmates as “Potato Girl”—was brutally slain. Del’s killer was never found, while the victim has since achieved immortality in local legends and ghost stories. Now, as this new murder investigation draws Kate irresistibly in, her past and present collide in terrifying, unexpected ways. Because nothing is quite what it seems . . . and the grim specters of her youth are far from forgotten.


Now. Right off the bat I will tell you this is a murder mystery that you have no idea how or where it will end up. Clocking in at 250 pages total Jennifer does a fantastic job at getting a story to you with so much depth, so many things to think about, the suspense of a good mystery and overall enjoyment of a book done in so few pages.

If you want an example of bullying gone wrong this is for you. If you want a story about the resilience of children this book is for you. If you want a story about how past choices can lead to a future of regrets and "what ifs" this book is for you. This is probably one of the most interesting books I have read in awhile as far as characters.
Del Griswold, aka Potato Girl, is messed up. Had she lived in the real world she'd probably end up becoming a serial killer prostitute in truck stops. But it isn't towards the end when the pieces of the mystery come together that you realize why she was the way she was and it's sad but you know that in real life, it's probably all too familiar. Kate is like a lot of us, too intimidated to stand up for what is right because usually that means you'll be the recipient of the bad behavior, she's a victim of the mob mentality, but it comes at the cost of the life of her best friend.

Although the material in the book is pretty mature considering you have the murders of young women which are fairly gruesome and the other adult topics throughout.. this is one of those books that I would encourage teenagers to read. I would be really interested in what they thought about it in perspective of their own lives at school. What I really enjoyed about this book was that I could relate to both Del and Kate. I have been in both positions and neither one was a good place to be. It is such a great example of the innocence of children taken away by adults, and how their spirit is damaged by peers, often with a tragic ending.

It's just a really good book and I really encourage you to read it. The book copyright is 2007 so it should be available at your local libraries, but most certainly at any book store. You can see other reviews of this book here or check out the author's website here.

The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus

If you are looking for a quick read, this is your book. I finished this baby in just around six hours and you too, can be a rock star.

The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus by Sonja Sones

Celebrated YA novelist Sonya Sones makes a HUGE splash with her first adult novel, The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus, spinning a funny, fierce, and piercingly honest coming-of-middle-age story about falling apart and putting yourself back together. Nora Ephron’s I Feel Bad About My Neck meets Elizabeth Berg—boldly original and endlessly enthralling—in Sones’s unique creation of seamless narrative written in free verse. The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus is a luminous, brilliantly told story of life, marriage, and parenthood that you will not soon forget.

Now, had I not read that description, I would not have known Sonya Sones is a YA novelist. I would have to say, for this being my first book by her, she made the jump from YA easily.

What's also interesting is that this book is not like a regular novel, it's not written in chapter form. It's a series of poems. Yes, poems. No, it's not boring or annoying. It makes it a fast read, so for those of you who are slow readers or don't like reading the same book for awhile, please check this book out.

Basically the book is about Holly, her husband, and her daughter who is about to go off to college. Holly is a writer, her husband an artist, and her daughter is a good kid with lots to look forward to in her future. Holly is also experiencing the very beginnings of menopause, writer's block, facing empty-next syndrome, worried about having to live with her husband without the daughter as a constant topic and/or companion and oh yeah- her mother (who lives far away) is having lots of health issues. It's funny, it's honest, it reads like it's a real life diary of someone you know. Maybe it's you.

"The good news is that he'll probably
be able to alleviate her pain
and maybe even reverse her symptoms

if he gives her
enough steroids
to kill an elephant.

The bad news is that taking
such megadoses of steroids might cause
my mother to experience "roid rage"."

And that's exactly how it's written. It's fast, it's to the point, but it paints a picture that most novelists take pages to describe. More people would be readers, I'm sure, if writers didn't kill us with details that don't matter.

"You are old
if before you head off
on your morning run

you find yourself
tucking your husband's
cell phone number into your pocket

so that the paramedics
will know
who to call."

I think a lot of us can relate to that! And this one? Made me think of my Weightloss Monday groupies:

To the one-pound bag of oreos I just bought:

It's so sad
to think

that just moments
from now

you
will be gone

and I'll
be a cow.

You get the picture. The book is funny and I feel like a lot of women especially can and will relate. AND, if you have already been through your kids leaving home then you will enjoy this, because it showcases what it's like for mothers during the senior year of high school when the day of doom is looming. It's a great read to bring on a plane, to the beach, to the park, wherever because you'll probably finish it in just a few hours. Promise.

In the meantime, see what other people said about this book HERE, check out Sonya's website HERE, or her Facebook page HERE.

Another concert in the books.

Well last night was the My Chemical Romance concert in Minneapolis and it was really good. Like... so good I still feel hung over even though I don't drink. It seriously kicked my ass and I'm feeling my age today.. let's put it that way.

But you want a review and pictures don't you lambwhores?? Well ok. I suppose.

So here is my sis in law Kate and me before everything started. With my old camera I could work it like no other, but this new one?? Yeah. It's all tricky and has fancy do hickeys and it took me 7 tries to figure out to turn the fucking flash on so it would work in say... a dark nightclub. *Genius*

 And then we had an extra ticket we couldn't get rid of. I seriously called every person I knew that might be able to go locally, then I plastered it on my Facebook for two days. Thankfully, a friend from high school *just happened* to see it on FB and said she would gladly take a free concert ticket. (For all of you who decided maybe you didn't want to go... you missed out. And Renee got to have the fun time you could have had).

OK. So the first band to play were the Architects. Now, I only know them in passing. I don't own anything from them and basically knew like two songs. They are a mix of rock-alternative-punk. Loud and fast, basically. They were ok.... but I don't know if I'd say I was a fan per say. Admittedly, all of their songs are about drugs or law enforcement (as they told the crowd) and it may have been the sound, but I couldn't understand a damn thing they sang.

 The second band was Neon Trees. Now, I wasn't impressed with their song "Animal" when it was on the radio. But then I got the cd and really loved the entire thing, even "Animal", which is weird. I have a better appreciation for the song once I heard the rest of the album. Anyways. They were EXCELLENT live and I really would like to see them do a full set.

 They even played my fav song of theirs "In the Next Room" which is SOOO good. I think I called my friend Matt and hopefully he heard it. :) But the lead singer is such a great performer. He was ALL over that stage and he worked hard for the money. The other thing I totally love is that he had a bit of a Tim Armstrong (singer of Rancid... a band every teenager should listen to at least once) thing going on. I have a thing for boys with mohawks and/or bald. Which coincidentally.. when my hubby shaved his head I wasn't impressed. So who knows. But punky boys... mmmm...

ANYWAYS. (*fanning myself*)

After Neon Trees came My Chemical Romance, who I've never seen live before so I was ubber excited. Kate has a bit of a crush on Gerard Way (the singer) and so she was super excited to see him, but more importantly.. this was her first REAL concert. Now, I was appalled that at age 25 she had never been to a real show outside of a college performance and as a die hard concert fan I couldn't let this continue. It's practically a social injustice. So I had to pop her concert cherry and that we did.

 And it was a great show. They basically played every favorite song of mine and then some. The crowd interaction was great, the crowd was amazing, and overall it was a fantastic concert. I pretty much lost my shit when they played "Mama" because omg... I love that song.

 We were probably some of the oldest people there, though. And to me it's weird because I don't feel old at all but yeah. When you are surrounded by teenagers with adult chaperone's.. you kind of stick out. But there was plenty of awesome people watching. First up there was a lady easily late 40's wearing a mini skirt that was um... pretty damn sheer for the bottom 1/3. *Please baby jeebus don't let that be me.* Then I noticed that a huge number of kids had the SAME My Chemical Romance shirt on. Seriously kids?? Did you all run to Hot Topic right after school and pick it up for the show? Did you? You badasses, you. And here's a hint- if you look like everybody else? You would be a conformist.

The other thing that should be noted was holy-fucking-god was it hot in there. I'm talking unbearable. Now, I like warm weather and I don't really sweat much. But yeah. I was fucking DRIPPING with sweat. Half way through Neon Trees I started feeling kind of woozy from the heat, and I had sweat dripping down my back. But the time we got to half way through MCR's set, my bra literally had a puddle in it, I had sweat dripping down my stomach into my pants, and the inside of my legs (clad in skinny jeans and knee high boots) were so wet I was worried it would look like I pissed myself.

Seriously- if it's that warm the beginning of April in there god fucking help me for the All Time Low show on April 21 and Death Cab for Cutie towards the end of May. Seriously. I might die. I'm also going to wear very little clothing to prevent heat stroke, self esteem be damned.

So yes. It was a great show, I'm glad that Kate got her first concert on, I'm glad Renee was able to grab the extra ticket and put it to good use, and I'm fucking tired. I barely made it home last night I was THAT tired. I am not a rock star. I don't know why I think I am but seriously. My days of driving 2.5 hours one way to a concert and back in the same night are numbered.

But Kate got some video, so if she gets it up on YouTube I'll let you guys get a little listen to it. :)

Don't forget.. I have my GIVEAWAY happening.. so sign up. Or be a loser.

AND.. if you have a question for Dear Sara.. hit me up bitches. sarastrand9438 (at) hotmail (dot) com. You can ask me a personal question or ask me for advice/opinions. I'm open.