This List Goes to Eleven: A Look Back at 2012

            2012 is winding down and I felt like I didn’t do as much writing as I would have liked. Then I tried to compile a list of my favorite blog posts of the year, I couldn’t whittle it down to only ten. So I guess I did more writing than I realized. Without further ado, here is my top ten eleven of 2013.

It takes a lot of effort to get this sparkly.

January 24, 2012 The Box

            In 2012 I got back on stage for the first time in years. It was exhilarating and terrifying. I didn’t have much luck trying to write down how I felt about it until I let my makeup box do the talking.

February 1, 2012 A Confession

            The second of my children experienced the Sacrement of Reconciliation in our church. Participating in it was an eye-opening moment for me.

February 23, 2012 Another Dinner Conversation

            My husband and I always tell my children they can tell or ask us anything. Sometimes they take me up on it.

April 4, 2012 The Second Inning

            Helping my son deal with the disappointment of not making the team.

April 19, 2012 Sleeping with the Fishes: A Tale of GuppyLove

            In which my son learns about the life cycle of fish and shows me what real devotion is.

April 27, 2012 City of Champions

            One of my favorite installment of my storyline about Karen.

June 1, 2012 A Wicked Good Time

            I had the opportunity to see Kristen Chenoweth in concert and wrote about it. Kristen read it! And tweeted about it!

June 17, 2012 Do It Yourself

            A Father’s Day post about teaching my kids to do things for themselves.

August 9, 2012 Mountain Music

            A bit of nostalgia.

October 11, 2012 Death Takes a Nap

            One of my favorite pieces of fiction this year. 

October 18, 2012 Broken But Getting Better

            A post about healing after the loss of a pet.

100 Word Song: O Holy Night

  

            While going over my posts of the last year, I realized it’s been far too long since we took a glimpse into Karen’s world. So this week, I’m linking up late (sorry Leroy!) with 100 Word Song over at My Blog Can Beat Up Your Blog. This week’s musical inspiration was a song I’d never heard before by a band I’ve never heard of, “Carry Me Home” by Hey Rosetta! Give it a listen if you haven’t already heard it. You can download it for free from their website.

O Holy Night

            Edmond sat on the edge of the bed in the cheap motel room. He should have been grateful the manager had taken pity on him, but he felt empty. Across the country, Karen was standing on the kneeler at St. Coleman’s, singing along with the choir. Peggy would have dressed Karen in green velvet and put her raven hair in ringlets. Christmas Eve had always been his favorite night of the year—a night of magic and possibilities. This year, it smelled of stale smoke and regret. The gin bottle slipped from his hands as tears rolled down his face. 

Merry Christmas 2012

Cheers! Hope you have a wonderful and relaxing Christmas and New Years!

Monday

                    Since my children got off the bus Friday afternoon I have tried to shield my boys  from the news of Newtown. Like every parent I know, I was particularly anxious to see their faces that day. When they got home we drank hot cocoa with peppermint marshmallows and sang silly songs while we worked together in the kitchen. Saturday night we watched Mr. Popper's Penguins together. I thought I might use the opportunity to wrap some Christmas presents while the movie played, but I found myself unwilling to disentangle myself from their snuggles.

                   Now it's Monday and I suspect there will be discussion at school. We've already gotten a “robo-call” from the Superintendent about security measures. As much as I'd like to continue to shield this news from them, I'd like to be in control of how they get it.

                   I suspect that somehow Owen has gotten wind of the story. He asked me why they don't have police in school. I assured him that our city has police officers at the high school and I often see police cars patrolling near his school. I also told him they always have a detail officer assigned to events such as his band and chorus concerts. One of the benefits of living in an urban area is the presence of law enforcement.

                   It's a little after seven and the boys are still in bed. That's unusual for them. Normally, they're up at the crack of dawn to try to get some play time in before school. But it's dark and rainy and I'm sure their beds seem even more cozy than usual. Soon I'll have to wake them or we'll be late. I wonder what we'll talk about at breakfast this morning. Will you be talking to your children about Newtown this morning?

Precipice Interview

      Something really exciting happened this fall. My writing was published for the first time. Precipice is a wonderful anthology of memoirs and short fiction from the editors at Write On Edge.

     As a part of her series of interviews of Precipice writers, the fabulous blogger/writer AmyBeth Inverness interviewed yours truly! You can check it out here.
     You can buy Precipice in paperback or Kindle versions at Amazon. It is also available in nearly every other electronic format from Smashwords. Precipice would be a great holiday gift for the reader in your life!

Adventures in Pink

                   I went to Target's toy department on a strange and difficult mission. I strode past the action figures and the Matchbox cars. I ignored the Pokemon cards and the latest version of Battleship. I didn't even slow down at the Legos. After ten years of buying toys for male children, I found myself amid the Pepto-Bismol pink display of Barbie dolls.

                   Every year, my husband's employer sponsors a giving tree and we always take a tag or two. I'm the one who does most of the gift shopping and Dan thought it might be fun for me to pick out a toy for a girl for a change. Dan was right. It was a nice change to pick out a gift for a girl. I just wish she hadn't requested Barbie with her perfect shiny blond hair and impossibly small waist and perky boobs. And then I saw this...

This Barbie doesn't fit in a binder!

 

                   Here was a choice I could live with! Barbie running for office. Barbie with a career and a business suit. She doesn't wait for Ken to bring home the bacon; she goes out and gets it herself! This was a Barbie I could give with a clear conscience. There was only one problem... the gift tag specified a Princess Barbie. I fought off the twinge in my neck when I thought of little girls growing up to expect Prince Charming to save the day.

                   But I thought about the little girl who would open this present—perhaps the only present she'll get this year. She just wants a Barbie doll, because little girls want Barbie dolls. Just like my little boys want Nerf guns, no matter how much I hate them. Picking out this present isn't about my politics—it isn't about me at all. It's simply about making a little girl smile on Christmas. So I picked up that sparkly pink Barbie and an even pinker car to go with it—I just hope she doesn't let Ken drive.