A new post?

Yes, something new! I finally remembered to post my November column from MV Parent about my love of People magazine.

Then, to reward you for visiting, a very special 24-hour early SNEAK PREVIEW of my December MV Parent column. Gasp! You'll see it here first - 12 whole hours before it is uploaded to www.mvparentonline.com.

I also wanted to use this post to pass along two important things about my parents. First of all, my mom thinks you should all know that my People subscription is completely funded by her and my dad - they renew it each June for my birthday. This is unquestionably the best gift I get every year and I silently thank them each Friday when it arrives in the mail and I am treated to a sneak peek at the latest "news."

In fact, one year, my dad forgot to renew the subscription. I was completely bereft. Had they decided I was too mature and intelligent to read such fluff? I was too embarassed to even ask my dad about it so I tried to learn not to anticipate Friday's mail and did my best to move on. One random fall day he realized his mistake, called People right away and it's been smooth sailing from then on.

One more thing about my mom - when you read the part in the advice column in the post below, take note of the comment about her fake cookie exchange. How do these things happen? One minute she's innocently baking some Christmas cookies, the next she's emailing the neighborhood to see who can come over Sunday morning and pose with a cup of tea for some reporters. I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. And that's why I love her so much.