I was looking over the ebooks available for free online through the library, and “Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated” by Alison Arngrim caught my eye. Being a person who cried over every episode of “Little House on the Prarie” I was very curious to get a behind the scenes take on Nellie Oelson.

Turns out I love her. She is hysterical and in fact, now does stand up comedy. While she had some disturbing things happen to her at the hands (and another body part) of her brother, also a child star who was really messed up. Really.

Alison does a great job of giving you a very realistic look at almost all of the characters on the show and you can kind of see who you would have liked and who, not so much. She did such a good job, that it almost satisfied my lifelong fantasy of being on one of the show as some nice and wonderful friend of Pa, who saves the day and he gives a big hug to. (Yeah, he was pretty hot back in the day and Bonanza was one of my favorite shows too.) I also would have liked a part where I kicked Nellie’s butt. I also want to be in an episode or two of the original “Rockford Files” knowing full well that it would be impossible, but I still do. But, back to “Confessions”.

This woman’s writing style is so entertaining. She writes with wit and class as she covers her seven years of work, and I mean work, on Little House. I say class because while Alison was, and is good friends with Melissa Gilbert, she didn’t recall her time spent on set with warm and fuzzies for Melissa Sue Anderson. This really got to me so I HAD to read her book. That was time pretty much wasted. Anderson is a stilted writer and you kind of get the impression that it is a reflection she can’t escape, like one in a mirror. Lots of name dropping, humble praise of her awards, blah, blah, blah. Totally boring and I actually had to BUY that book because the library didn’t have it for free – see where my curiosity gets me? This begs the question, “Will I read Melissa Gilbert’s book too?” It’s next on my list.

You will love “Confessions” though, and it is worth it even if you have to pay for it – it was so fun to read that I really couldn’t wait to get back to it. While Alison lets you see her take on the real people who played the wonderful characters on “Little House” in full color, she looks back with a loving touch and we can see that we too are real characters, just like the people who played those roles. Yeah, no body is perfect and a laugh here and there goes a long way.

In short, I liked this book a lot and recommend it as a “good read”. And I am not saying this because I am afraid that Nellie will make my life miserable if she would ever read this review. I could take her.

I bought this book by Bethany Frankel, don’t ask me why, called “Naturally Thin”. I thought it might have some tips on how to be thin from an insider. Her tips are the stupidest thing I have ever heard. Basically, you order food in restaurants or make it yourself, and take a bite or two and then don’t eat the rest. That goes for main course and desserts. Duh. If I wanted to know the obvious, I would have asked a 3-year-old. Gee, guess what? If you don’t eat anything – or very little of anything – you get thin.

Not to mention what a waste of money and delicious food this method of staying skinny is, it is so dumb that I was mad at myself for spending the money on the book. I could have ordered a nice steak to take one or two bites from and then thrown it away. Problem(s) solved.

Don’t waste your money on a book that tells you to not eat the food you are served and not to feel bad about throwing it away. Sorry, Bethany. This is waste and just wrong. And if I want a dessert or a calorie-laden appetizer, I can share it with someone or a couple of people – no big discovery here. That is not advice for a whole lifetime of eating to be thinner or to be more healthy that I want to pay money for. What was I thinking when I ordered a book from someone who starred on Real Housewives of New York City? This real housewife from New York State says save your money and don’t order things you know that you aren’t going to eat.

Well, I ordered the 17 Day Diet after I saw it on the TV show “The Doctors” and on “Dr. Phil”. I thought I would give it a try and if worse came to worse, I could sell the book and DVD on Amazon.com after it didn’t work for me.

Guess what? It actually works.

I am on day 13 and have lost 7 pounds. I have never lost that much weight in so short a time and not been absolutely MISERABLE!

You can eat on this diet. You can even eat fruit on this diet. And Greek yogurt! The eating plan changes up every 17 days so that your body doesn’t get accustomed to your pattern and keeps losing fat within each 17 day cycle. There are 4 cycles all together and the last one includes the plan to not gain any weight back – a life plan, if you will.

My daughter already wants to borrow the book after I am done.  The book is easy to read and the plan is explained well. It’s pretty simple and simply amazing. A full closet of clothes from 2009 awaits me! How exciting. Of course, they are all of out style now but, hey I live in a small town. They will look new to everyone else.

Now, honestly, I have not started the 17 minute exercise routine that I am supposed to be doing and I have still lost the 7 pounds. I may even decide to follow directions and do this in the next 17 day cycle.

I just got a Nook from Barnes and Noble. I was debating for a while about it and then I just acted on impulse and got one. I really do like it. I have a ton of books on it and have read more books in the last few months than I have in years.

It’s very easy to set up and download your purchases and in fact, so easy, that I ended up spending a lot of money but I have my books in my library forever on my nook. I was pleasantly surprised that it can connect to the Internet too and you can use the built in beta Web browser but it’s kind of awkward. This really is a reader.

I will have to say that while I have learned to turn the page with a slight swipe of the finger, it took a while. I was used to my iTouch that was super easy to turn pages on. Not so with the Nook. It’s a pain and I would tell them to talk to the Apple people and get some tips on how to make the touch screen more responsive but they probably wouldn’t be too receptive to that.

Overall, I really do like the Nook a lot and I really like being able to carry around a whole library with me. I get bored easy and I can switch genres of books whenever it moves me to do so. I haven’t used its ability to store music and files but my friend has and tells me it works fine. I use my iTouch for that and keep the Nook for my books. I really do like this thing but now I see that they have a new color Nook so I am a bit peeved as I like to have the latest thing. With electronics, you just can never win. There’s always something new.

Just finished reading “Emptying the Nest” by Brad E. Sachs this weekend. It’s what prompted me to look around at my clutter from the kids over the years. As my nest is just about empty, I realized that while it’s empty of the kids, it’s full of the remnants of their childhood. As I desperately cling to the Care Bear from 2nd grade, I have begun reading more – this was my latest read.

It was interesting to me because I don’t have any trouble emptying my nest and reading it made me think that I did something right. Then I had a glass of wine to celebrate and read more.

My favorite parts of the book are things that I have harped on for some years so it’s nice to see another person harping on them as well. But seriously, parenting and family issues have changed so much and so fast that most folks have a hard time knowing what the “right thing to do” is anymore. This book provides some very practical information and suggestions on helping your young adults grow toward and look forward to the time that they can be successful on their own.

My fav? Being responsible. Boy, that’s huge in my book. I love the list on page 127 that goes through who is responsible for what. And guess what? Parents are NOT responsible for everything.

Watching on the sidelines, I think many parents believe they are. Not so. Kids need to be responsible for things too or they never learn to find solutions, accept problems, and shoulder consequences for their actions. Sometimes it is better to NOT make it all better. I think parent’s now days have a really hard time with that. I would actually got grief from my family members when I let my kids work out some of their own problems, so not only does a parent feel guilt internally, but they might get it externally too.

Another favorite passage that really is the same point as the one I mention above is on page 235 where the author talks about making helpless young adults when we help too much as parents. We need to provide support and encourage, but sometimes doing less is more. (That helped me decide about just swiffering the kitchen floor instead of getting down on my knees and really cleaning it.)

And this book really gives some great pointers about communication and in my view, family life is all about communication. (And to talk you need to take time – that is my feeling.) And as we all know, sometimes you can’t hit young adults or teens head on and there are some nice practical suggestions to start a dialog.

There really is a lot more in “Emptying the Nest” than I have shared here about getting your kids ready and able to be successful in the big wide world but I picked out what jumped out at me. I am giving my copy to the next person who asks me how we ended up with such nice kids – who aren’t home anymore.

Did you know that Buy.com is a great place to buy the latest and greatest textbooks? Yep.

Now I love Buy.com even more. Not only do they have great prices on electronic items, which are my favs, but they have toys, jewelry, sporting goods, home decor and now….textbooks. That’s not all either. Head for Buy.com and take a look on the right sidebar to see all of the items they carry and be sure to compare their pricing with the other online stores. They often have the best and most competitive pricing around. Fun times shopping at buy.com.

[rating: 4]

I love this woman! Who wouldn’t like a clever, witty, and pragmatic woman who is loved and respected by her children and makes the best of everything, including some really tough family and financial situations? One of Evelyn Ryan’s children, Terry, wrote this national bestseller about her that was eventually made into a movie.

It’s hard for kids today to understand the advertising slogans of the past. They were much richer and sometimes actually provoked thought – not at all like the simplistic slogans of our time. Evelyn worked magic with words, giving away her deep sense of humor, intelligence and creativity. And she did it in between the care, feeding and raising of 10 children with a limited funds and an alcoholic husband. Talk about inspiring!

One of the things that made me laugh was how she would enter multiple entries with variations of her name as there were limits on how many entries a person could make. In fact, she messed me up with all the spellings of her names on contest entries, that I had to double check how to spell her name correctly here.

If you wax nostalgic, like a chuckle and want to read about a mom with the courage to raise a family up right without much help from anyone but herself, you’ll love this read. It’s worth it just to read her entries and to gauge how much advertising has changed in the past few decades. I certainly recommend this one.

  [rating: 5]

This is a fabulous exercise program that is actually “doable”. I have and still am a “T-Tapper” and I recommend this to anyone who wants to feel better, look better and do the right thing for your body. I have virtually eliminated my morning aches and pains by doing Teresa’s 15 minute Basic Plus workout. It is almost too good to be true, but in 15 minutes you can make a difference. She also has an eating plan that gives you permission to eat regular foods some days and “God-made” foods on the others to help your body be able to process foods more efficiently. No counting calories, weighing foods, and you don’t have to totally deprive yourself for weeks on end. I can DO this!

There are tons of success stories in her book, which also includes a DVD explaining the basics of her program and the book explains each and every of her exercises in great detail. I have to admit, they are kind of hard to follow in the book as there is a lot remember but I purchased the DVD set which made it very easy. I took the workout and put it on my iPod so that I can do it when I travel. The beauty of this type of program is you don’t need anything and it is done in about a 4 ft. square space. It is painless and you feel better without feeling like you are dying first. I think a person at any age could do her very unique workout as it doesn’t strain, pull or make you hurt anywhere.

And now a confession: A few weeks ago, I fell off the wagon and only T-Tapped once that week and the next. My old aches came right back to remind me of what I was missing. I started right back up again and in a few days, I was less achy again. It is amazing that something so small can make such big changes.

This is not an instant program – you won’t lose 10 pounds overnight – but T-Tapping will make you feel and look better over the long haul and for only 15 minutes a few days a week, you can stay at your best.

I would love to meet and workout with Teresa Tapp someday. In both her book and on her DVDs, she seems very lovable, personable and has a great uplifting way about her that makes you feel like you can do it. I tell everyone I know about T-Tapp but they look at me like I am crazy as word is just getting out about this program. I give T-Tapping very high grades and I expect to see and hear more about it as people discover this “can do” way to look and feel better.

[rating: 4]
Want a look at what little things CAN make a big differnce? Like to know what things happen when a trend, fad or “it” things start to catch on and why that is so? Get a copy of “The Tipping Point” by Malcolm Gladwell. I am interested in what makes people, or groups of them, tick and this book has some great insights into what actually happens. Most interesting is how it shows some new marketing strategists are looking at these ideas and using them, and my guess is this could have some great implications for the Internet, blogging, and advertising. Hmm.

One item of interest to me that is discussed in this book is the concept of “stickiness.” It is one of the three agents of change. If something is sticky, it has an impact. If it’s sticky, it can be contagious and spread. What a concept for anyone interested in advertising or public relations.

I loved the idea of some people being “connectors.” I have taken advantage of other’s connectedness to pass information around, so I could really relate through my own practical experiences.

This is a very interesting read with practical implications that open up a lot of possibilities for someone with an idea, a new product or a new concept and an understanding of how to reach a tipping point.

Buy my copy for $10 – email me.

By Dr. John Chirban [rating:4.5]

Do your kids groan at the mention of sex? When mine were younger, they had stronger stomachs (or didn’t have much of a clue yet) and I could broach the subject without ruining meals, their day, their life or whatever. Despite their gagging, it is something I bring up from time to time because they’re bombarded with sex and sexuality from everywhere else. I just want equal time for my opinion, guidance, information, perspective and yes, my experience.

I learned about sex from what the moms in my whole suburban development called “the book.” This well-used pass-around had photos of chickens, eggs, sperm, a couple of babies, and some brief text about what organs went where in the process – the usual. Moms swore by “the book” and it brought all the girls and boys on Forest Stream Drive from “where do babies come from” to estimating how many times our parents did IT based on the number of brothers and sisters we had. I read “the book” 3 times to make sure I understood IT correctly. I was a slow learner and was, and still am, hampered by a vivid 3-D imagination. I remember my deep gratitude for the selfless sacrifice(s) my parents endured creating me and my siblings.

When a younger kid in the neighborhood began asking questions, we’d tell our parents, bringing on arguments over the proper timing for the delivery of “the book”. (Our English teachers recruited us en mass for the debate team in high school.) The moms would always hold out until the very last minute, causing the older kids to have to take on the parent’s discomfort in dealing with IT. After the offending child finally turned “the book’s” pages, we’d all get together, share our revulsion, make our estimations, identify the grossest page of the book and then go play ball, Barbies or climb trees.

Thankfully, parents now days have a few more resources like “What’s Love Got To Do With IT” by Dr. John Chirban. It’s a new “talking to your kids about sex” book that covers what to expect and what to share at every age level. (Confession – I read it to see if I had done anything that even closely resembled good advice.)

Well, praise the Lord and pass the scrambled eggs: The man advocates using humor, the importance of involvement with your children, stresses RELATIONSHIPS and when talking about IT with kids, he even dares to mention the role of spirituality. Thank you, Dr. Chirban.

What I liked most of all is his belief that parents and children need to be connected, and to do this, parents need to be involved with their kids. To be involved you need to be present. As far as I am concerned, this goes beyond any one topic – it is a universal truth. Dr. Chirban also gives specific things to expect at all the developmental stages and he recommends activities. In addition, there is a list of things not to do (as some of us only had “the book” and can use a bit more direction).

I do have one criticism though. Dr. Chriban gets to the “vast disconnect between sex and love in our culture” toward the end of the book. This is HUGE to me. Well, perhaps it really is an opening to another future book that would go into even more of what parents can do to connect sex and love for our kids when everyone on TV, radio, magazines and in the movies is getting a piece – without much of a love connection.

P.S. And I got some heartening news. On page 161, I see that men find women’s buttocks TONS more erotic than hair, eyes, thighs, hips, and waists. I have that #1 item well covered, so it looks smart not to have wasted money on a Thigh Master and I bet I can shave off some time in the makeup department. Va va voom!

P.S.S. On a more serious note, parents rejoice! According to a study reported in this book, you exert significant influence on your child. We need to be reassured this is true when all we seem to get is a lot of huffing and puffing from them.

(On second thought, as long as the huffing and puffing is at me, I am okay with that.)

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Buy my copy here.