So here we go again

Don't expect much from this blog for a while.

Baby number four is expected in Feb 2013 and he or she is making his or her presence known.

I am so sick. More sick than with baby three and THAT is saying something.

Kid Two came into my room this morning (as I was lying in bed, trying not to move) and he said, "Are you going to get out of bed today, or is someone else going to have to come and give us lunch?"

Funny, I was wondering the same thing.

The winner is What Alice Forgot

So the winner of the 2012 Books and Beaches Best Discovered Book of the Year is What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty. It's good. Funny. Well written. Witty. Touching. Memorable.

Bet you didn't even know there was a BAB BDB of the year award. But there is. Guernsey's on it. These is my Words is on it . . . and now What Alice Forgot.

Find a copy. You will like it. All of you will like it.

Laura, yes on book club read. I think your mom will like it, too. Jenny, this is another good book worth reading for one of the very last paragraphs . . .

You'll all know when you find THE paragraph. It's at the end. It's about marriage, and what having a good marriage is. You'll know it when you find it because you will think, "YES! That is true."

Great recommendation, Mel. I can see why your book club discussed it for two hours. Wish I would have been there.

French Kids Eat Everything by Le Billon

I've long been a fan of the book French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. Guilino offers a common sense approach (the French way) it turns out, to eating and enjoying food. Not a diet, but a healthful way to eat that's full of flavor. Love it.

So I was intrigued by French Kids Eat Everything, in which Le Billon, a native Canadian writes, "How our family moved to France, cured picky eating, banned snacking, and discovered 10 simple rules for raising happy, healthy eaters" . . . her journey, literal and figurative, into French foodways and raising kids.

I think I will buy a copy and keep it on my shelf next to Mireille's book. Although I don't agree with everything in the book (French women don't nurse their babies for long, turns out), I think there are some good, basic tips and tricks about how to get kids---families, really---to eat better. Again, not a diet, but an attitude of enjoying healthful food and teaching kids to enjoy healthful food as well.

And since I've read it, I've been more aware of what/how often my kids snack and what/how much I'm giving them at meals. Good reminders. And Le Billon is a good writer, witty, and not preachy. Real. She writes conversationally, peppered with current research and cultural commentary. Just very well done.