'Twas the Night Before Leap Day

Twas the night before Leap Day and all through the house

Animals were still stirring but hopefully no mouse.

Two of three children were nestled all snug in their beds

While the third watched The River and people scared out of their heads.

Husband on the computer; dog on my lap,

Reviewing this week's schedule makes me want a nap.

Read Across America: a favorite shirt, stuffed animal, hat,

a book, wear green, and book swap. Thank you, Cat in the Hat.

When what to my wondering eyes should appear,

An extra day on the calender, must be leap year.

24 hours or 1440 minutes, take your pick,

but those 86,400 seconds will go by quick.

What to do with an extra day? Maybe play a game?

Watch a movie or something on TV (too lame?)

But what a great holiday! Nothing to buy!

No decorations or cards or white bearded guy.

No candy to give or cake to bake.

No parties to go to or gifts to take.

It doesn't matter your religion, race or region

And it's not even tied to any season.

So take it easy and relax or live it up and have a ball

Because February 29^th is just an extra day - for all!

I think I'll just enjoy this day that four years brings,

And not worry how to fill it with many little things.

So I whisper to the kids as I turned out their light,

“Happy Leap Day to all, and to all a Good Night!”

5th grade spelling words

So, this week's spelling words in 5th grade were all about "able" or "ible." When we did the mandatory homework practice last night, my son had all but one correct. He asked, "How am I supposed to know when it's able or ible?"

First, I told him there's no way to know other than to practice and memorize them, and when you get older you just know because it will "look wrong" if it's wrong.

Then, I decided maybe there was a grammar rule I wasn't aware of that might help. There is!

I found a rule online that says if you remove the "able" what you're left with is a complete word, but if you remove the "ible" what you're left with isn't a word.

Of course, there are exceptions, like with any grammar rule for English. But, it's something to keep in mind - especially for a 5th grade spelling test.

Book Review: The Expats by Chris Pavone

I just finished "The Expats" by Chris Pavone, and it was the best spy thriller I've read in a while.

I don't usually read the reviews or forward at the front of a book, but since I had never heard of Pavone, this time I did. I regretted it. In his intro letter, the editor of Crown Publishing Group compares Pavone to John Le Carre. Ugh. Honestly, I've picked up "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" not less than three times in recent years and tried to read it, and each time I set it aside before finishing the first chapter. But, I decided to give "The Expats" a try.

The premise of the story is that there's a woman, Kate, who is married with two kids. She lives in D.C., and she's a spy. Or, she was. And she was good, but then she did something (you have to read to find out what) and she's no longer in the field.

Then her husband decides they're going to pack up and move to Luxembourg, so she quits her job. Her husband is a super geek who's really smart at computer stuff, but not smart enough to realize his wife was a spy.

Then in Luxembourg Kate settles in to the stay-at-home mom routine, which is portrayed as mind-numbingly dull for someone in a foreign country who knows no one and whose husband works all the time. But Kate wants to be "normal." I'm not sure if SAHMs reading this would be insulted at the portrail of their lives, or if they'd embrace the Kate character because her fictional backstory is something they dream of.

The action happens in Luxembourg as Kate learns her husband has secrets of her own, but an unreasonable period goes by while Kate, who feels so guilty for keeping the fact that she was a spy secret from her husband, refuses to check into her husband's business.

First, why I liked the book:
It was easy to read. Since I never got through a Le Carre book, I can't compare how the characters or plot is developed, but the writing was much easier to read and easy to follow.

The characters are interesting. I liked that the number of characters was kept to the bare minimum, and they were each developed well.

Pavone uses foreshadowing and cliffhangers to make you want to keep reading. That's good; it keeps the action moving and you want to find out what happens. The part of the book that some people may find annoying is that there are two timelines that run through the novel. There's the main story that starts from when Kate is quitting her job and they're leaving D.C. Then there's present-day storyline that you know will take you to the end because it's marked "today" with the time of day.

The other thing I liked was that the book had a clear ending and most of the loose ends in the plot were resolved.

There are a few things I didn't like about the book. One was that there was an ongoing sense of danger, but it felt imagined. Even once the "bad guys" are revealed, when it seemed to me that there was no physical danger, Kate is still worried about physical danger. It felt contrived.

And, as with any spy book, you imagine that things don't really operate like they do in the book. I think this is especially true for the reason Kate left the field.

Overall, "The Expats" is a fun, quick-to-read spy book with French phrases and facts about Luxembourg thrown in.

I'm a WriMo

This year I'm once again participating in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).


I love it because it's the one time of year that, not only do I get to write for fun but I actually get to write for fun every night!

The goal is to write a novel in November. The rules are that you have to start from scratch with the words (outlining and character development are allowed) and you have to reach 50,000 words by Nov. 30 (whether your novel is complete or not).

I "won" NaNo the past two years by reaching the goal. Those first two novels are ... well, Hemingway said it best, "The first draft of anything is shit." That does sum it up. And, although my intentions were good last year, I never took the time to edit my novel to make it anything better than a first draft.

This year, my genre is teen mystery/girl detective. Imagine Trixie Belden (or if you never heard of her Nancy Drew but slightly younger).

To prepare for NaNo I've been reading girl detective mysteries - that alone would be fun. But then I developed my outline and characters in October and found that actually creating characters and a plot was a lot of fun.

I'm now halfway through my novel at 25,000 words (which is right on target), and I find the only thing holding me back is having the time to write. The plot is strong, my characters are being developed more as I write, and I'm getting much better at writing dialogue.

For anyone interested, I'll share the summary of my novel (which for a girl detective mystery would be the text either on the back cover or on an introductory page before the table of contents).

A page ripped from an old diary found in a book in her grandmother's attic reveals a forgotten family mystery. Now Mira and her best friend, Livie, must find the diary for clues to locate the missing ring. But who is the old man they keep seeing, and why is he following them? Can a neighbor's scattered memories of a little girl provide the missing clue? They'll have to work quickly because time is running out -- the ring might be in her Nana's house, which is about to be sold. ...

Entertaining Kids in the Car

Taking a family road trip can be a challenging experience. Even an hour drive with little ones requires entertainment. For the past four years, we've driven from Pennsylvania to Florida with three kids, so I have some experience!

First, time your drive. We've found leaving at dinner time lets us avoid heavy traffic around the major cities along the way - Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington.

This also allows us to begin the drive when the kids are fed and tired and more likely to be willing to sit awhile.

Second, plan a schedule. Sure, you're sitting in the car, but it's still many hours that should be scheduled.

We let the kids play DS for about an hour, or until the first rest stop. Then we have them watch a movie on the video player and let them have a snack or drink. The movie runs 1.5 to 2 hours, and soon after that we stop for another rest stop. At that rest stop it's usually about their bedtime, so we have them brush their teeth (good hygiene can't stop on the road!) and when we're back in the van it's quiet time.

I have found it's better to play some music quietly at this point to help them sleep. There are also several reminders that they won't miss anything by sleeping, and we' won't actually be at our destination until lunch the next day. Being as exact as you can about arrival time helps avoid the "are we there yet?" refrain.

Third, depending on how little your kids are and how well they sleep in the car you may want to take pillows, blankets and stuffed animals. I know they take up space you may need, but sometimes if a little one can snuffgle in their car seat with their favorite animal and feel the warmth of a blanket and rest their head on their own pillow it can help them sleep. My kids needed that when they were little.

When they were little we'd also take along pj's and change them in the car at this point so they could be comfortable sleeping. Now that they're older they're fine sleeping in their clothes.

Fourth, when you stop for gas or a bathroom if the kids wake up, quietly ask if they have to go. Sometimes they will, sometimes they won't. But don't be loud and make it optional. If they can stay half asleep during early morning stops, it's better.

Fifth, expect bathroom breaks and plan for plenty in your schedule. They're kids. They have little bladders. If you're traveling in summer, give them drinks when they ask (or make them drink every few hours they're awake even if they don't ask). You don't want to risk dehydrated kids the day after you arrive if you've made them stop drinking.

Sixth, stop for a good breakfast earlier than you'd normally eat breakfast (if you eat late). It will refresh the kids (and you, after driving all night). Plus it will signal to them the difference between the days.

Seventh, at this point I give out car toys. For the first couple trips I did it at every stop we'd make, but I've scaled back. This year it was Mighty Beans. I got packs of 6 on sale at Target, and they were an easy little goodie to hand out that didn't take up much space.

Eighth, books on tape are great. My kids could could them for our library's summer reading program, so I had a few ready to go. They made the drive a little more educational. And speaking of educational...

Ninth, let the kids get maps. When we stop at a welcome center in any state, I let them get a map or guidebook with a map. Then I show them where we are and how much farther we have to drive. Kids love maps.

And finally, tenth, have fun. Be ready for boredom and have the kids play I Spy or some other game you can do in the car. Put in a CD of silly kid songs they like. If they start picking on each other just have them change seats. Face it, adults don't like sitting still and driving 10+ hours, why should kids? The real point is to minimize the fighting and complainting, because you'll never completely eliminate it.

Remember, it's a car trip. Roll with it.

Free Book from Borders

If you have children age 12 and younger, don't miss the Borders summer reading program.

My little readers, who've already finished at least 25 books each, had no problem reading the 10 books required.

On Sunday we visited our local Borders Express at the mall to turn in their tickets, which I had printed online.

The girl working at Borders was very helpful, showing us where the books were that the kids could choose from. Then at checkout, all I had to do was hand the books and completed forms to the woman at the register. She scanned each book and each coupon, and they ring up as 100% discount with coupon.

Their choices were "Hoot" by Carl Hiaasen, "The River" by Gary Paulsen and "Flat Stanley" by Jeff Brown.

The books retail for $6.99, $5.99 and $4.99, for a savings of $17.97 for three free books.

The program is simple and worthwhile. Just have your kids read 10 books, fill in the online form, and take the completed form to your local Borders.

Proof the Basics

Here's evidence that you always need to proofread your marketing material. Especially make sure your company name, address, phone number and email are correct.