Mommy Mojo: Guilty Pleasure Holiday Reading List – Escaping Holiday Chaos One Page at a Time
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
Come on, admit it: you’re curious. And if you have teenage daughters, or know someone who does, you’ve probably heard all about it. The love story of 17-yeard old Bella Swan (now there’s a romantic name) and dashing vampire Edward Cullen was a smash hit before the movie. Twilight is the first of four installments in their saga – New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn follow – and movie versions of the same are on the way. Rediscover what it feels like to have a teenage heart aflutter.
The Girl’s Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank
Melissa Bank’s collection of short stories is perfect summer fare: warm and funny, but also poignant and deep. More than one reviewer has described her main character, Jane Rosenal, as a female version of Holden Caulfield of The Catcher in the Rye. Both characters struggle with the fundamental paradox of big city life: how can you reconcile living so close to so many people, and yet feel so distant from them? If that sounds too deep, rest easy: Bank’s wicked sense of humor is evident throughout.
Carrie by Stephen King
The master of horror’s first novel, and some would argue best. If your teenage years weren’t exactly a montage of Sweet Valley High-type moments, you’ll identify with Carrie White. Carrie is shy, a target for vicious “Mean Girls” bullies, with a warped and dysfunctional family life. Carrie’s answer, of course, is telekinetic revenge on a massive and bloody scale. Hey, it’s Stephen King – what did you expect?
Violin by Anne Rice
“It’s like reading art,” said someone recommending Violin to me. It’s a love story – sort of – between Triana and ghost named Stefan, who has two amazing abilities. He’s a violin virtuoso and a time traveller…but both he and Triana seem more impressed with his violin skills. It true Anne Rice fashion, both Triana and Stefan are burdened with dark and difficult pasts, which are unveiled as they travel around the world and through time. If you want your reading to make you feel – play the Violin.
The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
You know the story: young Harry Potter and his friends navigate the complexities of a school for young wizards and try to defeat the most evil force in the universe…whose name you’re never supposed to speak. (Cough Voldemort Cough.) These tasks sometimes pale in comparison to the challenge of growing up together, and whom to ask to the Wizards’ Ball. All seven books are somehow light yet totally engrossing…start with The Philosopher’s Stone (the first) and you may find magically yourself deep into The Deathly Hallows (the final) next week.
Shopgirl: A Novella by Steve Martin
Yes, the author is that Steve Martin, the “wild and ca-razy guy of SNL fame.” But while this book isn’t exactly serious, it’s the furthest thing from wacky hijincks. Shopgirl is the story of Mirabelle, a Neiman Marcus employee and wannabe artist. Whenever she tries to paint, she can’t seem to shake the tedium of her boring job. Shopgirl is a quick, light read (just over 130 pages, thus the title “novella) and an excellent way to spend a lazy afternoon in a chaise.
Anything with Fabio on the cover by countless dozens
It doesn’t get any guiltier than this! How do you select just one of the literally hundreds of romance titles with the Italian icon on the cover? Select titles include In a Pirate’s Arms, Comanche Flame, Savage Splendour, and Awaken My Fire. Not just a handsome face (and six-pack) Fabio co-authored several himself, including Champion (where he’s a medieval knight seeking revenge) and Mysterious (where he’s a psychic murder detective by night, sweaty garage mechanic by day.)
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.” So beings the cheeky parody described as the ‘Classic Romance – now with bone-crunching zombie mayhem!’ And really, if you can’t learn more about zombies during the dog-days of summer, what chance do any of us have?
Flinx Transcendent by Alan Dean Foster
This is the 14th and final book in the hugely popular series. Finally, all the questions are answered about the hero, while he saves the universe in the process with his awesome mental powers and his miniature flying dragon. Twice as long as any previous book in the series, it means you can spend twice as much time by the pool.
The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson
Published in 1952, this noir thriller is described by journalist David Taylor as ‘satisfyingly pulpy.’ “It’s about a well-liked deputy sheriff who’s also a serial killer. Sex, gore, corruption—it’s got it all.” Hm, sounds a little like Dexter, the wildly popular HBO series. Just how gory is it? Well let me tell you. Stanley Kubrick is quoted on the cover as saying, “Probably the most chilling and believable first-person story of a criminally warped mind I have ever encountered.” Stanley Kubrick. I mean what more do you need?
Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon
“Oh I would never read a romance novel.” If you have ever uttered these words, the second book in the Outlander series might be right up your alley. Although there is some romance, the book is also packed with historical fiction. Oh and science fiction. Not to mention paranormal events and time travel. Bonus: the heroine gets to have many, many rolls in the hay with a handsome hard-bodied Highlander. Can’t really go wrong.
Hands-Free Baby Gear
You keep adding responsibilities – business, family, baby – but still only have two hands. Here’s a list of ‘handy’ devices to get one of them free!
Bright Starts Tropical Fun Around We Go! Activity Station
This activity station includes different toys and activities, and easily converts into a stand-alone table. The station grows with the baby, and accommodates weights of up to 25 pounds.
Pacifeeder
This hands-free baby bottle attaches to any car seat or stroller. The nipple is attached to a tube inside the bottle that lets the baby drink without anybody holding the bottle. The leak-free nipple stays full of liquid, and the flow adjusts automatically, based on the baby’s sucking strength.
Boppy Newborn Lounger
This support pillow is designed specifically for newborns. The recessed interior supports the babies’ bottoms and allows them to rest safely, so mom can have her hands to herself.
Stroll-Smart Stroller Adaptor
For moms that want to stay in shape, this jogging stroller adaptor can help keep the running strides natural. The adaptor clips onto the handlebars, and attaches to a belt worn by the runner, so moms can run without having to hold on to the stroller. It also includes an automatic release in case of a fall.
ERGO Baby Carrier
This baby carrier straps to the front or the back, keeping your baby safe, and allowing you the freedom to use your hands. The design holds the baby in a sitting position, and balances the weight on parents’ hips and shoulders.
Fisher Price Open-Top Take-Along Swing
This swing keeps your babies safe and entertained. The deep cradle seat supports weight up to 25 pounds, and has five different speed settings. The swing out toy bar keeps little ones entertained, so mom can take some time to relax. It also folds up for easy transportation.
Fisher Price Rainforest Jumparoo
This baby jumper lights up and plays music as your baby bounces, and includes toys to keep them entertained. The jumper supports weights up to 25 pounds, and includes a spinning seat so your baby can explore all the sides.
Back to School Favorites
Scribblenauts
This new Nintendo DS game will bolster your child’s creativity after school. The game will make any object your child can think of come to life, and then allow them use their imagination’s tools and characters to solve problems.
Galactic Glue
Make art period even better with Elmer’s Galactic Glue – a non-toxic, washable clear paste that features out of this world “space debris.”
Stretch Text book covers
Durable, washable and personalized, Stretch Text book covers add pizzazz to an otherwise dull math textbook. Find them online, or make your own: a little bit of fabric, and any knickknacks you like to sew or glue on. Add pockets to keep pencils, pens and even calculators all in one place.
Simone Legno Mechanical Pencils
Equip your kids with this five pack of mechanical pencils — the tips won’t go dull! Plus, the rocker bunny on the pencils look so cute, they won’t want to put it down.
Hey Uglydoll Journal
Ugly-but-charming monsters adorn the cover of these neat notebooks. Designed by David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, they feature a soft cover.
The Classic Metal Lunchbox
These will never go out of style. Found almost anywhere, get one with your child’s — or your — favorite cartoon. Send your loved one to school with a hip box, packed full of nutrients that won’t get squished — no matter how rough and tumble your kids are.
Dickies Backpacks
With enough fun patterns to get anyone excited, these sacks wear well and look cool and are affordable enough to get a couple — one to match each pair of shoes.
Busy Bags
This sack is full of tactile objects that kids can play with while learning. Proven to aid concentration and help a busy mind focus, these are great for any child.
Pencil toppers
More silly than educational, pencils toppers are a fun way to get creative and keep pencils in kids hands.
Eating On The Go
Diane Klaver
Let’s face it – you’re constantly on the go. Between business travel, conferences and client meetings, it’s difficult to make health-conscious food choices.
We asked registered dietitian Mary Bamford, owner of Essence Nutrition and Counseling and member of Dietitians of Canada, to discuss planning meals around busy business situations.
The long business flight. “It’s very easy to get dehydrated on a flight,” says Bamford. Women should drink lots of fluids (nine cups per day) like water, tea, coffee or milk. Paired with fruits and vegetables, lean protein and whole grains should satisfy hunger without that nasty bloated feeling.
The business road trip. “If you’re going to be sitting for a long time, keep it light.” Lots of fruits and vegetables and a lean protein like milk, yogurt or an egg will give you energy without making you feel tired.
Arriving after a long flight/drive. Don’t rush to the nearest McDonalds, but choose a low-sugar granola or a meal replacement bar. Or, pack a wholesome trail mix of dried fruit, nuts and whole grains – similar to what you’d pack for your child’s lunch. This provides essential nutrients until you can resume a normal eating routine.
Back to back client meetings. Redefine fast food. “If you don’t have enough time to sit and enjoy a proper meal, it might as well be packed with nutrition.” Salmon or a chickpea salad (along with plenty of fluids) will keep you awake and attentive.
Attending a business conference. “Eat light – because you don’t want to feel gassy or full.” Light meals also promote good posture. Crisp vegetables like cucumber, carrots, parsley and carrots will not only sustain you but help keep your breath fresh.
Before a business presentation. Forget sugar highs, you need brain food. Food packed with protein like tuna, soy nuts and milk paired with some fresh vegetables will keep you alert.
Working late or overtime. “When you’re working late or overtime, take a snack at dinner time.” Crackers, low fat cheese, a latte or cappuccino will instantly give you the energy you need to finish that project. Just remember to eat a proper dinner when you get home.
Business lunch or dinner. “Pick things that make you look professional while you’re eating them.” Opt for grilled, baked or steamed seafood and vegetables rather than a sloppy salad.
Best and Worst Summers EVER
Maclean Kay
You often hear about something being the best or worst ever – but what about summers? Here’s MOMeo Magazine’s look at the best and worst summers of all time.
BEST
1776 – Did anything interesting or important happen this summer? Well, Captain James Cook departed for the South Pacific for the third and last time. Mozart’s spine-tingling Haffner Serenade was performed for the first time in Vienna. Anything else? On July 4, King George III of Britain apparently wrote “nothing of importance happened today” in his diary. Um, yeah: he was wrong.
1936 – Jesse Owens wins four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics, with you-know-who watching. Owens, a ridiculously talented African-American athlete, was denied the “honor” of being presented with his medals by the Fuhrer. Plus, Edward Ravenscroft patents the screw-on bottle cap with a pour lip, improving summer drinking for future generations. This is also a landmark year for women’s literature – Margaret Mitchell wins a Pulitzer Prize for Gone with the Wind.
1969 – Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix rock mud- and rain-soaked revellers at Woodstock! Neil Armstrong walks on the moon! It’s the summer of love! Oh, behave!
2009 – MOMeo’s first summer issue. Hey, a blatant plug isn’t shameless if it’s honest, right?
WORST
1812 – “THUGS terrorising the streets; the economy in freefall, a deeply unpopular war and a government in permanent crisis.” Yesterday’s USA Today? Nope – a story from the Daily Mail lamenting the UK’s worst year ever. Plus, Canada and the United States go to war for the first and only time, leading to Washington DC being burned to the ground – including the White House.
We’ve learned to get along better since then.
1914 – On June 28, in faraway Sarajevo, a young Bosnian named Gavrilo Princip murders the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and his wife. A month to the day later, Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, launching the First World War – which didn’t end well for anyone.
1990 – Vanilla Ice, Dr. Feelgood, day-glo videos, MC Hammer, Nelson, C+C Music Factory, Milli Vanilli, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rap. No doubt about it – the worst summer in music history.
2008 – Fortune called 2008 the worst year in history for America’s largest companies. From $645 billion in profits in 2007, profits dropped to just $98.9 billion – an 84.7 per cent decline! 11 of the top 25 largest corporate losses in list history took place in 2008. Nowhere to go but up, right?
Strange Summer Taste Sensations
Karen Rowe
Karen Rowe
Would you eat Raw Horseflesh or Pit Viper ice cream?
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ghastly ice cream flavours! You can always count on Japan and other Asian cuisines for a taste of the weird and wonderful. But these days, they’re not the only ones. North Americans and Europeans alike are slurping their fair share. Here are two scoops’ worth of weird and wonderful flavours to beat the heat…and the mundane…this summer:
1. Garlic Ice Cream. Your Twilight-crazed teenage girls may be interested in this vampire-friendly ice cream that you can really sink your teeth into. Rather than warding off vampires, though, you may ward off a few ice cream lovers instead. Some say it’s bloody awful; others—like residents in the town of Gilroy, California—say they make the best garlic ice cream for their Annual Garlic Festival.
2. Red Wine Ice Cream. For those moms who feel that drinking wine is medically necessary, now it can be done subversively while your kids are enjoying their own peculiar flavour.
3. Cold Sweat Ice Cream. Don’t worry. This ice cream is not made with the remnants of your gym workout. Rather, there are three kinds of peppers and two kinds of hot sauce. It’s so spicy that just touching it makes your fingers feel hot. It’s not a top seller in the North Carolina ice cream parlour off I-55. One of the ice cream shop’s regular customers likened its taste to “fire – with a side of fire.” That sure brings a new meaning to the words ‘Hot Fudge.’
4. Haggis and Hot Fudge. Morelli’s ice cream parlour began selling ice creams with flavors inspired by traditional British foods in September 2008. This means you’ll be able to have a scoop of Yorkshire pudding-flavored, or haggis ice cream. How about a pork pie parfait or a Lancashire hotpot? Even the traditional English breakfast – sausage and mash – is available.
5. Curry and coconut custard. Vosges Haut Chocolat, an American company known for their exotic blends…and their bacon chocolate bars…has some unique ice cream flavours, like curry and coconut custard, dark chocolate and pandan (a dark green leaf popular in Asian cooking) and wattleseed & roasted macadamia nut custard. But taking a taste on the wild side is going to cost you…US$45.00 a pint to be precise.
6. Spaghetti ice cream. No, not really, but tomato ice cream is a common flavour in Asia, where it is considered a fruit, and treated no different than a strawberry or a mango. You say tomayto, I say blech.
7.Mushroom-pumpkin ice cream. Inspired by the Kennett Square Mushroom Festival in Pennsylvania, mushrooms were also coupled with pecans to mixed reviews. And don’t worry, no ‘special’ mushrooms were used in the making of this ice cream.
8.Wasabi ginger. Cold Stone Creamery sells a surprising combination of this horseradish paste more commonly used to add a kick to sushi. Coupling it with ginger makes it tangy and…dare it be said?…delicious.
9.Chunky Bacon and Barbecue. Not together. No. no. That would be weird. But you can’t have a Top 10 list of weird ice cream flavours and not include bacon. Udder Delight owner Chip Hearn in Delaware, USA worked hard to get the ice cream just right. All jokes aside, it’s not easy to fuse ingredients together. They could separate or freeze and often having a feature flavour takes a lot of trial and error, and many wasted ingredients.
10. Goat cheese and Caramelized Onion Ice Cream. Served with a strawberry-rhubarb compote, this is actually a really tasty combo. Similarly, Churchfield Farm in the UK has unveiled a Stilton Cheese Ice Cream. They say it goes great with holiday mincemeat pies, but we’ll just have to take their word for it.
Honourable mention –
Viagra Ice Cream. Before you go scrambling to find out where you can buy this new marvel, know that it’s made from orange and pineapple in a blue ice cream, with Pop Rocks added at the end. Yet another flavour hailing from Udder Delight, Hearn says “When it goes into your mouth, you get all the Pop Rocks popping,” who makes no medical claims for the concoction.
If these don’t frighten your taste buds, there are hundreds of other combinations including Sauerkraut Sherbert, Squash Ice Cream and Mustard Ice Cream, to name a few. Some of these flavours may be hard to swallow, but at the very least, they’ll be sure to keep your summer sizzling.
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