tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:21:27 +0000Operation BonnetAmazon reviewSpringhttp://2.bp.blogspot.com/_weA54Ubf8U4/Sj_c6vneNuI/AAAAAAAAACI/4oCWQWThTNA/s320/IMG_1913.JPGGiveawayhttp://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)Blogger59125KimberlyStuarthttp://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-3614956669426758419Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:31:00 +00002011-11-22T06:56:22.534-06:00Hi, friends.I've been out of the blogging loop and devoting any extra writing time to my new novel. :) Can't talk about it yet, but I'll keep you posted.Thanksgiving is Thursday. In honor of a day devoted to gratitude, I thought I'd help you check in with Clara.Remember Clara? I just reread that first post and cried again, not any less hard than the day I wrote the words. (For the record, I did http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/Orrk1bWrs6E/giving-thanks-anew.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)3http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/11/giving-thanks-anew.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-3604109783861375106Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-10-04T08:00:08.219-05:00My children are growing like crazy. I realize this is not a scientific discovery to shake our world as we know it but it’s still a big deal to me. For one thing, their legs all seem super long. It’s getting a bit scrunchy in a twin bed to read stories at night, which is nothing but fantastic as this forces them to let me hug them and say stuff to embarrass them like, “Your feet are enormous!” andhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/2BsV_J5NYUA/one-of-these-days.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)4http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/10/one-of-these-days.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-6012594681885363322Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-09-27T08:00:13.283-05:00 True confession: I watch Project Runway. I don’t watch a whole lot of TV, mostly because I’m very tired and irritable at night and I’ve found the best antidote to that condition is reading a good book and then falling asleep with it on my neck. But I do DVR Project Runway and I’m not sure if that makes me trashy or cool. If there’s one thing Project Runway has taught me it’s that the line is http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/j8FQvcZwo2Y/while-ill-never-make-it-in-fashion-biz.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)3http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/09/while-ill-never-make-it-in-fashion-biz.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-2448137133818980633Tue, 20 Sep 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-09-20T08:00:11.428-05:00Thea prayed with me before bed tonight and then informed me that God was “this big.” She made a big circle with her little arms. I agreed. “At least that big, yes.” “And Goliath was this big.” She made the circle incrementally smaller. “Right. He was much smaller than God. But he made fun of God, didn’t he?” She nodded gravely. “He was very naughty.” Pause. “God and Jesus wear cween (clean) http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/CasEry4kfNM/should-i-be-worried.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)5http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/09/should-i-be-worried.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-3190450764299380945Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-09-13T08:00:07.453-05:00Today’s post is meant to encourage those of you who are in the depths of despair. Anne of Green Gables used this phrase and rather freely, though I’m not sure any of her despair really warranted such theatrics. Which is exactly why I love Anne of Green Gables and am still hoping my hair will turn red and that I can live in Nova Scotia with my bosom friend, Diana Barry. Raspberry cordial, anyone?http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/aW4vkt6bb3Q/perspective.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)1http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/09/perspective.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-10369743937025368Tue, 06 Sep 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-09-06T08:00:01.469-05:00Can someone please clarify for me when I became a ma’am? I am now fully a ma’am. As in, “Ma’am, is this your child we found running naked through the lobby?” Or “Ma’am, none of these clothes have been in fashion for the last decade. We cannot accept anything you own (or are presently wearing) at our consignment shop.” I feel like there was a limbo period for this. Wasn’t there a time when I http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/ELS-ZA8OfeM/act-my-age.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)7http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/09/act-my-age.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-2488968754945135620Tue, 30 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +00002011-08-30T07:00:08.686-05:00I have a very noticeable and alarming problem with remembering my life. I’m very serious about this. I cannot remember really important things, like where Marc and I went on our first date or the way my children sounded before they could say their “r’s.” I can’t remember the names of friends with whom I shared a gazillion hours on choir trips in college, even when I see photos in my albums and wehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/-siSHrBUWFY/remember-alamo.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)7http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/08/remember-alamo.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-6931993421775056813Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-08-23T08:00:14.315-05:00After a summer hiatus, I am revving back into our real lives. For those of you who follow this blog, and by that I mean Mom, thanks for your patience. I love you and will get you a really awesome Christmas present. Isn’t summer lovely? I did not miss the schedules, the running, the grabbing of almost-nutritious snacks as we rush out the door. And I most certainly did not miss making lunches. I http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/XtujoVJkokc/back-at-it.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)14http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/08/back-at-it.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-6609370469447472144Mon, 06 Jun 2011 12:33:00 +00002011-06-06T07:33:00.535-05:00....BeachB! BeachB is the proud owner of a Nook! I used a random number generator (random.org) and have a marital witness to vouch for my process. (This is the man who, as a boy of six, made his mother stop the car so he could confront a nursing home about their frayed American flag. No cheating in this house, not with flag etiquette and not with random number generating.)Thank you, all who http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/JaK5ThGa_kg/and-winner-is.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)2http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/06/and-winner-is.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-4194807429031104443Thu, 02 Jun 2011 14:46:00 +00002011-06-02T10:00:52.055-05:00Well, we didn't reach two hundred (ahem), but we did get a healthy number of reviews on Amazon. And Operation Bonnet is selling well! Woo hoo and thanks be to God (not in that order)!I've decided to forgo the garden gnome, though this one is fetching:Look at that bunny go!So no racing bunny and competitive gnome, but I AM drawing for a Nook. You know, a Nook?(Cute pink carrying case and daffodil http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/LzM5siGt94s/amazon-amazing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)1http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/06/amazon-amazing.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-4284580715304196703Mon, 16 May 2011 13:30:00 +00002011-05-16T08:30:02.515-05:00GiveawayOperation BonnetSpring is in the air, thanks be to God! Every year, I worry I might not make it. At least without crying on the kitchen floor and asking my children to fend for themselves because I have to get outside, even if there is a blizzard warning.But then spring arrives, I see daffodils peeking out of our garden, and I realize the worst has passed. And I didn't even have to resort to burning all our http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/t2IAsHKpRE0/kindle-lovin.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)4http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/03/kindle-lovin.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-418046960082033726Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:15:00 +00002011-03-16T09:15:00.321-05:00Is it weird that I've been thinking a lot about British people? It must be the accent. I mean, seriously. I dare any woman within earshot to deny the power of a British accent. I'm not one to swoon (though I saw Michael Buble in concert a few years back and I came VERY CLOSE to swooning), but what is up with the accent effect?Take Colin Firth, for example. You know him, right? The original Mr. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/4t01Ug7CfMY/quite-right.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)12http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/03/quite-right.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-1586950904853668267Tue, 08 Mar 2011 13:22:00 +00002011-03-08T07:22:00.528-06:00Remember Chuckles?Well, he has a cousin. Don't be impressed with the cute, imploring look. Here's a side view that betrays his RAT origins:Seriously, people. I am NOT running a wildlife refuge here. A possum! (I believe the correct term is "opossum," but does anyone actually say that? Maybe British people?) It comes and goes at will, during the day, from its cozy home under our deck. First, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/GCX2Idrjfyo/mutual-of-omaha.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)21http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/02/mutual-of-omaha.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-1213018691377378520Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-02-11T07:00:06.718-06:00Holy catfish, do we get excited about a new book! When I say "we" in reference to my nuclear family, I mean Marc and I. The kids are completely over the entire publishing business and would prefer that we watch a movie. Mitch said to me today, "Mom, that Operation Bonnet book has been out FOREVER." Well, one week. But close enough.The grand book launch was so much fun, I'm still sleeping it off. http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/LYvJRzpriSI/wowza.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)12http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/02/wowza.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-375921323736110235Tue, 01 Feb 2011 21:12:00 +00002011-02-01T15:32:30.171-06:00Operation Bonnet releases today. I'm very excited, pretty tired, but mostly grateful. Who gets to have this job?! I make up pretend people and then write about them and you all read them and say kind things to me.I am typically a chatty person. Ahem. But today I'm nearly speechless. Not totally speechless, for who, then, would boss around all these people in my house? But from my spot in my http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/-K7_pRLMZBs/release-day.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)8http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/02/release-day.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-3052067604665767043Wed, 26 Jan 2011 14:38:00 +00002011-01-26T08:38:00.385-06:00We have three winners! Allison O., Jenna V., and Brenda S. have each one a petite copy of Act Two! Congrats, girls. May this small win bring a bit of comfort in this bleak midwinter. Listen, people, I love this kind of thing. So stay tuned. I'm going to be giving away stuff pretty darn often around here. Get ready!I hope the sun shines wherever you are today. (Can you believe how long humans can http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/2S8vm3vxRts/step-right-up.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)1http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/01/step-right-up.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-7599534528603445397Wed, 19 Jan 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-01-19T07:00:18.855-06:00This is how I imagine winter to be at the beginning of the season:(Photo by ulife.vpul.upenn.edu)Think hot cider, a walk through woods, a new pair of mittens, Marc remarking on how very luminous I appear against the falling snow. Turns out, I'm not luminous. I'm pale. And getting a little cranky. I feel the doldrums of January call for giveaways. So let the merriment begin! Deal of the moment: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/z6jqExqtADY/free-stuff-part-one.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)3http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/01/free-stuff-part-one.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-740397663618318871Wed, 05 Jan 2011 13:00:00 +00002011-01-05T12:33:26.694-06:00One thing they don't tell you when you sign up to write books is that you should be ready to get your Paris Hilton on. You know Paris, right?The Queen of Self Promotion? I don't tote around my own Chihuahua, though I do carry a 20-pound toddler with a runny nose. And I don't own hotels. Not even one. However, I am expected to self promote when it comes to book selling. Operation Bonnet comes out http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/dKHzTa29ng8/say-prayer.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)10http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2011/01/say-prayer.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-6906620853722864493Sat, 25 Dec 2010 13:00:00 +00002010-12-25T07:00:08.373-06:00Merry Christmas, dear ones!I hope this day is full of great joy, sweet peace, and coveted rest.Here are sweet words written by someone much more poetic than I:O ye beneath life's crushing load,Whose forms are bending low,Who toil along the climbing wayWith painful steps and slow;Look now, for glad and golden hoursCome swiftly on the wing;Oh rest beside the weary roadAnd hear the angels sing.My http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/m3ORL6_EM2g/midnight-clear.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)2http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2010/12/midnight-clear.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-6706746331132293716Mon, 20 Dec 2010 17:30:00 +00002010-12-20T11:30:01.188-06:00I'm well aware I'm not Oprah, though I'd appreciate it if people started referring to me only by my first name. Madonna, Cher, Oprah, Kimberly. No, you know, that doesn't work, does it? I need a name that's a bit more unique. Like....Gaga only more wholesome. Gigi?GooGoo?GeeGee?GollyGolly?Think about that, will you, and get back to me in 2011? In the meantime, I, like Oprah, have some favorite http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/S5fxUMxTf5Q/these-are-few-of-my-favorite-things.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)12http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2010/12/these-are-few-of-my-favorite-things.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-3674059740259178099Fri, 26 Nov 2010 16:01:00 +00002010-11-26T10:36:53.259-06:00Did you eat your weight in turkey? Are you still feeling grateful? Or just bloated?I feel full, and not just because of the gorgonzola smashed potatoes. Or the cornbread stuffing. Or the pecan pie. Ahem. I'm full of gratitude to God for many reasons this year, one of which is that Operation Bonnet was just picked up by Wal-Mart! Some sweet person of influence found my book, read it, loved it and http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/hYSylaecWMk/happy-thanksgiving.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)7http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2010/11/happy-thanksgiving.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-2401409224193569775Fri, 29 Oct 2010 14:23:00 +00002010-10-29T09:23:42.427-05:00Happy Most Uncomfortable Holiday! I try every year to get excited about Halloween and I just can't muster up the enthusiasm. For one thing, what and who looks good in orange and black? Don't say that you do because I assure you, you don't. Your friends just don't feel like they can be honest with you like I can.Then there's the candy. My children would prefer to hook themselves up to a http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/NtUT7Y3mBNk/playing-dress-up.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)2http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2010/10/playing-dress-up.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8755890658108279870.post-8857364423239967188Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:00:00 +00002010-10-12T10:00:01.552-05:00I've had a rocky start to the school year. I realize I am not actually IN school, but two of my children are and I think that counts. Plus, I'm the one making sack lunches, so I deserve the love and pity.Mostly pity. For example, the first day of school, Mitch looked like this:This is also what he looked like the second day of school because he wore the exact same clothes. AND HIS MOTHER DIDN'T http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/KimberlyStuart/~3/Zx0INiygZCE/slow-start.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Kimberly Stuart)8http://kimberlystuart.blogspot.com/2010/10/slow-start.html