I’ve been quiet for so long on this blog, it feels strange to say anything at all.
Hey. It’s me. I’m still alive over here, busily raising three boys and wearing any number of other hats: writer, friend, editor, wife, mother, cook, housekeeper. Should I keep going?
But you’re busy too, no doubt. Everyone I meet seems to have a couple of lives going.
I’ve been thinking about this space and how I want to fill it, or even, if I should fill it. I still don’t have any concrete answers, but I’m breaking the silence anyway. I’m not going to try to find my writing identity with this blog, instead, I’m just going to keep doing what I love to do: tell stories.
Yesterday, my Kindergartener (can you believe my baby is 5?) asked me a deep theological question on the way home from school: “Mom, why did God even make such a thing as barf?”
So, yeah. Marketing be damned. (I don’t even know if I’m allowed to say that word on this here, but there it is. If I disappear, you’ll know why.) You can expect the same high quality material you’ve come to expect from the Llama Momma. Because that’s the way I roll.
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogging. Show all posts
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Thursday, September 9, 2010
The Very Expensive Soup and an explanation
By request, the Expensive Soup Story is below. And by way of explanation, I haven’t given up blogging forever. I just need to be more focused on my writing, and am considering setting up a REAL website with a REAL author’s blog. More on that soon. Plus I’m working through some personal issues—nothing dramatic—just stuff I don’t feel comfortable blogging about.
So without further ado, the Story of The Expensive Soup:
It was a rainy, cool night in Door County, our last night of vacation, and we were looking for a restaurant for dinner. After a bit of googling, I found the perfect place. The Summer Kitchen, featuring a soup bar with five homemade soups made fresh every day. Perfect.
We walked in with our three starving, slightly melted down children, were greeted warmly, and seated on the back porch. The ambiance was lovely and the waitress brought water for all of us and invited us to check out the soup bar.
The kids weren’t too excited about the selections—cabbage, tortilla, and I can’t remember what else.
And then we opened the menu. The soup bar was $15.95. Each. A cup of soup? $10.95. Ridiculous.
But it was almost 7:00 at this point, pouring rain outside, and the boys were at their breaking point. Do we walk out? And go where?
No. We stayed and ate Very Expensive Soup and Weird Lasagna and Very Expensive Hot Dogs.
Crazy. But you know what? We were able to laugh about it, and that’s worth something. The Very Expensive Soup will go down in the history of our family as a night to remember.
So without further ado, the Story of The Expensive Soup:
It was a rainy, cool night in Door County, our last night of vacation, and we were looking for a restaurant for dinner. After a bit of googling, I found the perfect place. The Summer Kitchen, featuring a soup bar with five homemade soups made fresh every day. Perfect.
We walked in with our three starving, slightly melted down children, were greeted warmly, and seated on the back porch. The ambiance was lovely and the waitress brought water for all of us and invited us to check out the soup bar.
The kids weren’t too excited about the selections—cabbage, tortilla, and I can’t remember what else.
And then we opened the menu. The soup bar was $15.95. Each. A cup of soup? $10.95. Ridiculous.
But it was almost 7:00 at this point, pouring rain outside, and the boys were at their breaking point. Do we walk out? And go where?
No. We stayed and ate Very Expensive Soup and Weird Lasagna and Very Expensive Hot Dogs.
Crazy. But you know what? We were able to laugh about it, and that’s worth something. The Very Expensive Soup will go down in the history of our family as a night to remember.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
break
I keep writing posts in my mind, but not posting them.
And, honestly, I have no desire to post them. Not really.
Life is full and I'm sorting through some difficult things in real life. Things I can't blog about.
So, I'm officially taking a break. I'll be back. (I think!)
And, honestly, I have no desire to post them. Not really.
Life is full and I'm sorting through some difficult things in real life. Things I can't blog about.
So, I'm officially taking a break. I'll be back. (I think!)
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
will blog for dishwasher
Every day I get email from someone wanting me to review something on my blog. I usually don’t respond. I think the only reviews I’ve done are for books—and I usually ask to review those!
I do, however, volunteer for market research studies separate from the blog. I’ve done this for years—go taste test yogurt for an hour and get $50 kinds of deals. When the noisy boys were babies I did a diaper study that paid for our diapers for at least a month. That was cool. My favorite, though, was when a woman came to my house with her marketing people and watched me make soup, then asked me a bunch of questions about the soup making experience. I even made a poster about how the food made me feel. They gave me $300 for my time.
Last night I got a call from one of my research places with another cooking gig. I answered the questions honestly, and they said I didn’t qualify. Then they called back and said I did. For a special blogging review.
They wanted me to cook with their products and blog every day for three weeks about the experience. Every. Day. About. Food. And then spend three hours with a focus group talking about the experience. All for $200.
I asked her to call the company and clarify—every day? They want me to blog about their food every day for three weeks? Wouldn’t that get, um, boring? She put me on hold.
“Yup. Every day for three weeks. That’s the deal.”
I told her I’d do it once. ONE review on the blog. ONE focus group.
No deal.
Bummer. I do like the cooking stuff…but to turn my blog into some weird marketing machine defeats the purpose of blogging. (Maybe I’m a hypocrite since I’ve got ads in my sidebar, but I can live with that. The ads don’t dictate what I write and for pete’s sake somebody has to fund my Starbucks habit.)
Now. If someone wants to offer me a new dishwasher, we can talk. I’ll blog every day for a week for a new dishwasher.
(Yeah, those are some dishpan hands typing. Our dishwasher bit the dust a few weeks ago and we’ve yet to replace it. I’m just so irritated because it was a NICE dishwasher. A Kitchen Aid. The quiet kind. And it just up and died after only seven years. The repair people I’ve talked to tell me to just buy a new one. They don’t last as long as they used to, blah, blah, blah. But only seven years? Is it just me or is that crazy?)
Maybe we’ll just teach the noisy boys how to do dishes.
I do, however, volunteer for market research studies separate from the blog. I’ve done this for years—go taste test yogurt for an hour and get $50 kinds of deals. When the noisy boys were babies I did a diaper study that paid for our diapers for at least a month. That was cool. My favorite, though, was when a woman came to my house with her marketing people and watched me make soup, then asked me a bunch of questions about the soup making experience. I even made a poster about how the food made me feel. They gave me $300 for my time.
Last night I got a call from one of my research places with another cooking gig. I answered the questions honestly, and they said I didn’t qualify. Then they called back and said I did. For a special blogging review.
They wanted me to cook with their products and blog every day for three weeks about the experience. Every. Day. About. Food. And then spend three hours with a focus group talking about the experience. All for $200.
I asked her to call the company and clarify—every day? They want me to blog about their food every day for three weeks? Wouldn’t that get, um, boring? She put me on hold.
“Yup. Every day for three weeks. That’s the deal.”
I told her I’d do it once. ONE review on the blog. ONE focus group.
No deal.
Bummer. I do like the cooking stuff…but to turn my blog into some weird marketing machine defeats the purpose of blogging. (Maybe I’m a hypocrite since I’ve got ads in my sidebar, but I can live with that. The ads don’t dictate what I write and for pete’s sake somebody has to fund my Starbucks habit.)
Now. If someone wants to offer me a new dishwasher, we can talk. I’ll blog every day for a week for a new dishwasher.
(Yeah, those are some dishpan hands typing. Our dishwasher bit the dust a few weeks ago and we’ve yet to replace it. I’m just so irritated because it was a NICE dishwasher. A Kitchen Aid. The quiet kind. And it just up and died after only seven years. The repair people I’ve talked to tell me to just buy a new one. They don’t last as long as they used to, blah, blah, blah. But only seven years? Is it just me or is that crazy?)
Maybe we’ll just teach the noisy boys how to do dishes.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
balance
Anyone know where to find it?
Between three kids, a husband engaged in a job search, writing a novel, and trying to be a halfway decent friend to the people who hang with me in real life, (Hi Dianne! Hi Dana!) I can't seem to keep up with my blog.
I'm still writing, though. I'm working my way through the young adult novel I wrote in November, and joined a critique group to help with the editing process. I officially hate my novel now, but everyone else seems to think it has potential, so I'm sticking with it.
Like everyone else in the Midwest, I'm tired of winter and ready for spring. We're expecting another big snow this weekend, so a few more trips down the sled hill are definitely on the agenda.
And hot chocolate. That's on the agenda too.
Between three kids, a husband engaged in a job search, writing a novel, and trying to be a halfway decent friend to the people who hang with me in real life, (Hi Dianne! Hi Dana!) I can't seem to keep up with my blog.
I'm still writing, though. I'm working my way through the young adult novel I wrote in November, and joined a critique group to help with the editing process. I officially hate my novel now, but everyone else seems to think it has potential, so I'm sticking with it.
Like everyone else in the Midwest, I'm tired of winter and ready for spring. We're expecting another big snow this weekend, so a few more trips down the sled hill are definitely on the agenda.
And hot chocolate. That's on the agenda too.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
gimme a break
Life has gotten in the way of blogging--again--which is not necessarily a bad thing.
I'm going to take a break for awhile.
In the meantime, I hope you and your families have a wonderful Christmas!
I'm going to take a break for awhile.
In the meantime, I hope you and your families have a wonderful Christmas!
Monday, October 27, 2008
stating the obvious
I’ve been quiet lately on this blog, yet strangely unsure of how to break the silence.
It’s not that I don’t have things to say. I do. I just don’t know how to say them, or even if I should say them.
So I’ve been quiet.
Plus I had an article published recently on the MOPS website that’s been sending me a ton of traffic. And, you know, the best thing to do when your blog is getting lots of traffic is to not write anything. Otherwise, people might like your blog and come back and visit again, and before you know it, actual people are reading your blog. Yup. Much better to just stop writing anything at all.
It’s like the balloon thing all over again.
It’s not that I don’t have things to say. I do. I just don’t know how to say them, or even if I should say them.
So I’ve been quiet.
Plus I had an article published recently on the MOPS website that’s been sending me a ton of traffic. And, you know, the best thing to do when your blog is getting lots of traffic is to not write anything. Otherwise, people might like your blog and come back and visit again, and before you know it, actual people are reading your blog. Yup. Much better to just stop writing anything at all.
It’s like the balloon thing all over again.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
paint chips and georgie rooms
Things are sizzling around here. We promised the noisy boys a new bedroom before school starts, and it’s been quite a project.
Their old room has an adorable Curious George mural on one wall. They loved it, until about a year ago. Since then, poor George has been covered with basketball stickers and spiderman posters.
Because I can’t bring myself to paint over George, not just yet, we decided to move baby b. into the “georgie” room. Which meant that the twins would move into the guest room, and the guests would move into baby b’s room, which means…a lot of painting.
And while we’re at it we may as well paint our room.
Right.
The painter has been here every morning this week, and our entire upstairs looks like it threw up clothes and sheets and books and stuffed animals. We’ve basically been camping out in our own house.
Fun.
I realize I’ve been quiet on this blog lately. Between trips to the pool and painting and vacations, I haven’t had much computer time. Once school starts, I’ll be back to posting more regularly.
Only nineteen more days. (But who’s counting?)
Their old room has an adorable Curious George mural on one wall. They loved it, until about a year ago. Since then, poor George has been covered with basketball stickers and spiderman posters.
Because I can’t bring myself to paint over George, not just yet, we decided to move baby b. into the “georgie” room. Which meant that the twins would move into the guest room, and the guests would move into baby b’s room, which means…a lot of painting.
And while we’re at it we may as well paint our room.
Right.
The painter has been here every morning this week, and our entire upstairs looks like it threw up clothes and sheets and books and stuffed animals. We’ve basically been camping out in our own house.
Fun.
I realize I’ve been quiet on this blog lately. Between trips to the pool and painting and vacations, I haven’t had much computer time. Once school starts, I’ll be back to posting more regularly.
Only nineteen more days. (But who’s counting?)
Monday, June 23, 2008
I can stop anytime
I’m away from home, and knew that internet access would be scarce this week, but assumed I could pop into a café here and there and make a quick post. And I could, hypothetically speaking, but the café in the next town over with the free wifi closed at 6 o’clock.
I asked the girl at the ice cream shop next door if she knew where I could find wifi and she said, I am not making this up, “What’s wifi?”
Alrightythen.
I guess I won’t be around much this week.
Which is a good thing, right? We all need to take a technology break every now and then, right? (She says huddled over her laptop while sitting on the sidewalk outside of a fancy inn that she isn't staying at...)
I’m sure the twitching will stop any day now.
I asked the girl at the ice cream shop next door if she knew where I could find wifi and she said, I am not making this up, “What’s wifi?”
Alrightythen.
I guess I won’t be around much this week.
Which is a good thing, right? We all need to take a technology break every now and then, right? (She says huddled over her laptop while sitting on the sidewalk outside of a fancy inn that she isn't staying at...)
I’m sure the twitching will stop any day now.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
don't do it!
I was just checking my sitemeter to see what brings people to my blog these days, and was disturbed to find the following google search: cooking llama when is it done. And in Colorado Springs no less!
Do people really eat llamas? Please say it isn't so.
Do people really eat llamas? Please say it isn't so.
Monday, May 19, 2008
blog traffic
People all over the world are looking for help with their llamas. When I named this blog Llama Momma, I had no idea what I was doing. Seriously. I started the blog on a fluke, and found I really enjoyed blogging. So here we are.
Unfortunately, my friends over at google think this is a blog for cute, spitting animals.
The number one google search of late? Llama crafts.
Honestly, every day I have several people looking for llama crafts. And now it will happen even more because I’m saying it over and over again. Llama crafts, llama crafts, llama crafts. If anyone knows of any, pass them on in the comments or by email and I’ll post it as a public service announcement. Someone has to help these people with their crafts! And if the Llama Momma isn’t willing to step up, I ask you, who will?
People are also looking for information on the following:
my llama having a baby
sleep habits of llamas
emotional llama
llama + missions
laundry launching llama
That last one has me wondering.
Every once in awhile, someone finds this post after googling making formula on a plane, or should I take my baby on the plane? And I wish I had some way to get in touch with them. No, I think. Don’t do it unless you absolutely have to.
And my favorite? Just a few weeks ago someone asked: how do I make dinner with all of these kids my husband drives a truck. (Actually, that’s not a direct quote, but I don’t use profanity on my blog.)
And to you, overwhelmed mom, you simply do the best you can. Plan ahead and keep meals simple. Get the kids involved in the cooking if they’re old enough to help. And always keep a couple of frozen pizzas on hand. Go ahead. There is no judgement here.
Unfortunately, my friends over at google think this is a blog for cute, spitting animals.
The number one google search of late? Llama crafts.
Honestly, every day I have several people looking for llama crafts. And now it will happen even more because I’m saying it over and over again. Llama crafts, llama crafts, llama crafts. If anyone knows of any, pass them on in the comments or by email and I’ll post it as a public service announcement. Someone has to help these people with their crafts! And if the Llama Momma isn’t willing to step up, I ask you, who will?
People are also looking for information on the following:
my llama having a baby
sleep habits of llamas
emotional llama
llama + missions
laundry launching llama
That last one has me wondering.
Every once in awhile, someone finds this post after googling making formula on a plane, or should I take my baby on the plane? And I wish I had some way to get in touch with them. No, I think. Don’t do it unless you absolutely have to.
And my favorite? Just a few weeks ago someone asked: how do I make dinner with all of these kids my husband drives a truck. (Actually, that’s not a direct quote, but I don’t use profanity on my blog.)
And to you, overwhelmed mom, you simply do the best you can. Plan ahead and keep meals simple. Get the kids involved in the cooking if they’re old enough to help. And always keep a couple of frozen pizzas on hand. Go ahead. There is no judgement here.
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