A HUGE THANK YOU!

Dear Friends,

I was searching for a photo to add to my 'thank you' post today and when I saw this one it made me smile.  When I think of cherries, two ideas immediately come to mind.  First, I think of their tart, yummy sweetness but second, I think of their pits.  Infertility is the pits.  See the connection?  Okay, so the connection might only be in my head and is full of cheesy goodness... but here it is:  I liked how these sweet cherries were hugging, holding on to each other, leaning together.  We all have our pits, matter of fact we are are united here because our pits, and I'm so thankful we've found a place to hold each other up as we journey through these tough parts of our lives.

February was awesome and at first, I was sad to see it coming to end.  I started this book club knowing nothing about them.  In fact, here is a confession... I've never actually been IN a book club.  Ever.  So thank you for hanging with me while I figure this whole thing out!  Now, as we gear up for March and I see plans (very quickly) being added to the calendar and lovely sisters like Pamela stepping up and joining us... I am SO excited.  I can't wait to meet more of you and hopefully add a little sunshine and maybe open up more friendships in our lives.  You've certainly done that to mine.

I'd like to say a special thank you to a few lovely Ladies in Waiting: Nancy, April, Sarah, and Dani.  We were so blessed to hear their perspectives through their beautiful writing.  Nancy was responsible for most of the recipes and many discussions; April posted much of our news on Facebook and Goodreads and also wrote discussion questions and a craft project; Sarah helped us understand 1960s economics and shared the passages she loved the most from The Help; and Dani talked to us about how place shapes us.  Of course, there would be no conversation if it weren't for all of my other beautiful ladies out there.  So, thank you, thank you, thank you... all of you.

And a few announcements:

• Monday is an official LiWBC holiday.  :o)  We won't be posting anything on Monday as we prepare for the rest of the month.  Check back on March 1st to:
• Get your Discussion Guide: A list of questions we'll be discussing throughout the month.  This would be great to print and keep in your book or journal.
• Add yourself to the Roll Call: This is new this month.  :o)  We'll be posting a Roll Call with a few questions, so you can add yourself to the list and tell us a little about yourself.  This will help us get to know each other a little better before we begin our March discussions.
• There will be a contest this month.  A silly one.  That's all I'm sayin'.  For now.
• We will have TWO special guests this month - Pamela Tsigdinos, author of Silent Sorority and another that I am keeping a secret.  Can't spoil ALL the surprises!

I'm off to eat the chocolate chip cookies the hubby and I just baked.  :o)  Have a lovely weekend and a marvelous Monday!  Meet us back here on March 1st.

Love,

Kim

March's Book Selection: Silent Sorority by Pamela M. Tsigdinos

And the winner is:

Grab your copy and start reading!   We're very excited to announce that Pamela, the author of Silent Sorority will be hosting discussions and participating along with us this month!

Book Details from Amazon.com:

From celebrity and news magazines to TV programs to Facebook pages and mommy blogs, family-building successes are routinely and glowingly shared and celebrated. But where are the voices of those who are unable to have children? In relating what happens when nature and science find their limits, Silent Sorority examines a seldom acknowledged outcome and raises provocative, often uncomfortable questions usually reserved for late night reflection or anonymous blogging. Outside of the physical reckoning there lies the challenge of moving forward in a society that doesn't know how to handle the awkwardness of infertility. With no Emily Post-like guidelines for supporting couples who can't conceive, most well-intentioned "fertile" people miss the mark. Silent Sorority offers an unflinching and insightful look at what it's like to be barren in an era of designer babies and helicopter parents. Silent Sorority received the 2010 Team RESOLVE Choice Award for Best Book.

Results from our votes (ranked):

1. Silent Sorority by Pamela M. Tsigdinos
2. Good Eggs by Phoebe Potts
3. So Close: Infertile and Addicted to Hope by Tertia Albertyn
4. The Empty Picture Frame by Jenna Currier Nadeau (tied with #5)
5. Hannah's Hope by Jennifer Saake (tied with #4)
6. Conquering Infertility by Dr. Alice Domar

February Contest Winner: shopkins_cv :o)

Drumroll, please!

Our February Contest Winner is:

shopkins_cv

Congratulations, shopkins!  Thank you so much for being such a resourceful contributor.  Shopkins_cv has won a free copy of March's book selection... it's already on it's way and should arrive on March 1st - just in time!

Thank you to EVERYONE who left comments, offered encouragement, and showed their support in our first month.  As a special thank you, all regularly contributing members in our first inaugural month will be receiving a special gift during the month of  March!  We can write all the posts and discussions we want, but if no one discusses and comments it wouldn't be any fun.  :o)

To learn more about our contest, click here or on the image above.

Stay tuned... another giveaway is in store!

Recipe: The Help - Minnie Miller's Mississippi Pecan Pie

When I think of southern foods, pie comes to mind, and pecan pie is as southern as sweet tea served in a mason jar! Interestingly enough, this recipe comes from Minnie Miller, the cook at the Mississippi Governor's Mansion for 15 years according to the cookbook, Come On In! Apparently, Minnie would have a fresh piece of her award-winning pecan pie ready for Governor William Winter on every day of his administration.

Minnie Miller's Mississippi Pecan Pie

Serves 8

Ingredients:

Pastry for a 9 inch pie shell, unbaked

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup light corn syrup

4 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 cup pecan halves (more if desired)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs all at once, then stir in syrup. Add vanilla and pecans and mix thoroughly. Pour filling into pie shell. Bake 5 minutes at 400 degrees, then reduce heat to 325 degrees, and continue baking until done, 45 minutes.

* If you dare fiddle with such a monument to Southern culinary culture, try flavoring the filling with a bit of cinnamon or 2 tablespoons of sour cream.

source: Come On In! Recipes from the Junior League of Jackson MS

NPR: 'The Help' Spawns A Lawsuit And A Question

Many thanks to Katy, who listened to this story on NPR and sent it our way!

In a nutshell:  Kathryn Stockett is being sued by her brother's family's nanny for borrowing her likeness and story without permission, for her book.  Read more on the article here:

• 'The Help' Spawns A Lawsuit And A Question: How Much Borrowing Is Fair? on NPR

Voting for March Book Selection Ends Tomorrow!

Voting for the March Book Selection ends Friday, February 25th at 11:59pm EST.  If you haven't voted yet, make your selections here.

We have lots of surprises in store... Happy Voting!

The February Contest Winner and March Book Selection will be announced on Saturday, February 26th!

The Help: Discuss with Us! (#6)

We all should be close to finished (or already finished) with The Help so this is just a fun question that you can draw from any part of the book to discuss...


Who was your favorite character? Why?

The Help: Videos for Black History Month

In honor of Black History Month and our February book selection, The Help, I thought you might enjoy some video history of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.  :o)

The Great March on Washington (1963) was a large political rally in support of civil and economic rights for African Americans that took place in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, August 28, 1963. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech advocating racial harmony at the Lincoln Memorial during the march. (Wikipedia)



Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against blacks and women, including racial segregation.  (Wikipedia)

February Contest Winner Announced Tomorrow!

Stay tuned!

Our February Contest Winner will be announced tomorrow.  It was a very close race to the top... but we do have a winner.  :o)  This month's winner will receive our March Book Selection compliments of The Ladies in Waiting Book Club.

We've got another fun contest and giveaway in the works for March... hope you will join us!

The Help: Rosa Parks - A Voice of the "Help"

For such a short month, February is jam-packed full of days devoted to love, freedom, and change: Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, Presidents Day, and African American History Month are just to name a few. I find it fitting that the initial kick off for our book club was in February and that we chose The Help as our first book, a story about change, leadership, freedom, love, friendship, and inadvertently, infertility.

While reading The Help, I often found myself marveling at the bravery portrayed by Aibilene, Minny, and the other black maids who were willing to come forth and tell their stories to Miss Skeeter. The Civil Rights Movement was met with such controversy and violence even though the activists were desperately trying to get their message out peacefully with sit-ins and non-violent demonstrations. These were frightening times for anyone who sought change: just thinking about the idea of changing Jackson, Mississippi would make Aibilene jump in fright when the phone would ring while sitting in the quiet of her own home, her sanctuary. These women were living a life so devoid of freedom and power and they found comfort and support with each other, the children and babies they raised, and with role models such as Rosa Parks.

I think we all know her story: Rosa Parks got on a crowded bus and was told to move so that white people could sit down instead. She refused and was arrested and from that point on, she became an icon of the Civil Rights Movement and forever a part of our history books. But there is a lot more to know about Rosa:

- Rosa was home schooled until age 11 before she attended school with other students. Soon, she had to quit school to care for her sick grandmother. She finally obtained that coveted high school diploma at age 20 through the encouragement of her DH of one year, Raymond Parks.

- Rosa was an activist early on as she and her DH raised money for the defense of the “Scottsboro Boys”, a group of black men who were falsely accused of raping two white women.

- In 1944, she took a job working at Maxwell Air Force Base where segregation was not allowed due to its being a federally owned area. Rosa was able to experience a life of equality for the first time – she stated, “You might just say Maxwell opened my eyes up.”

- During the summer of 1955, Rosa attended the Highlander Folk School, a center that was set up to educate the black community about the rights of workers and racial equality. During this time, she was working for and sponsored by a politically liberal couple named Clifford and Virginia Durr. It was Virginia who first hugged Rosa when she was released from jail after her infamous arrest.

- Rosa had already had a run in with James F. Blake, the same bus driver who had her arrested 13 years earlier, when he drove off leaving her behind to walk home in the rain after forcing her to get off the bus and reenter from the rear.

- Many people have misconceptions about the reason why Rosa didn’t want to get up from her bus seat. She was tired, but not in the literal sense as she wrote in her autobiography:

“I was not tired physically, or no more than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in. I knew someone had to take the first step and I made up my mind not to move. Our mistreatment was just not right, and I was tired of it.”

source: Rosa Parks Facts

I feel like this particular quote could be coming from Minny, Aibilene, or any of the other maids once they decided enough was enough and began to share their stories with Miss Skeeter in an effort to break free and speak the truth, and maybe/hopefully bring about that “change” Miss Skeeter asked Aibilene about at the very beginning of this beautiful story.

Vote: March Book Selection and Survey

Here is our February Survey and March Book Selection.  I added a short survey to the book selection process. Any information that would help us make this experience even better is appreciated.  :o)  Choose as many selections as interest you.

Survey closes at 11:59 PM EST on Friday, February 25th.  March's book selection will be announced Saturday morning!  Happy voting!

Book Store: Testing, Testing... Is This Thing On?

Hello Ladies,

The Ladies in Waiting Book Store is now open!  :o)  Look in the top menu for a page called "Store" and you'll be brought to the right spot.  :o)

It still needs some tweaking and I would LOVE it if you'd all take a look and let me know what you think.  Here are some things I'd like to know:

• I've personally read many but not all of the books chosen. If there is a book selection in the store that you found unhelpful or distasteful, please let me know so I can remove it.
• If you know of additional book selections that would fit and a good category for them, I accept any suggestions.
• Is there something in the "wrong" category?
• Put a book in your cart and attempt to check out (without actually buying anything, of course).  Does the process seem to work okay?  Test it out, play with it, try to break it!  I triple dog dare you. *tease*

It took me a lot of time to do because I wanted to look through and read reviews of every book chosen.  Any thoughts?  Does it work?  I've never done this before.  :o)

Sending love...

Kim

ICLW - International Comment Leaving Week

Hello everyone!

This is our first month on the IComLeavWe List and I'm so excited that we'll be getting new visitors to our site and book club.  It's just in time for beginning our new March selection!  Here is some information for visitors and members:

New to the Ladies in Waiting Book Club?

From our About Us page:

As the name suggests, The Ladies in Waiting Book Club, is a book club for women who are waiting... waiting... waiting... waiting.  Waiting for what, you might ask?

Our children.

And no, not 9 months of waiting, or should I say "expecting".  Our waits have been so much longer... years and decades longer.

Yes, our first commonality is infertility.  Infertility is an incredibly lonely and isolating experience but it shouldn't have to be.  The goal of "The Ladies in Waiting Book Club" is to provide a supportive community atmosphere.

Our second commonality is our love for reading.  We join together in the sisterhood of infertility, while enjoying much needed friendships and discovering great books.

How does it work?

• Books are suggested and voted on at the end of each month.  A final selection is chosen through an online survey.  We are currently finishing The Help by Kathryn Stockett, a mainstream best seller and for March will be reading an infertility related book.
• Pick up the book at your local library or through our book store (sold through Amazon) and read along with us.
• Participate in contests, discussions, and read all of the recipes, crafts, and articles to accompany you through your reading.
• Have fun and meet new friends!

How do I join?

• To receive daily updates from the Ladies in Waiting Book Club, there are many ways to sign up:
• Receive daily email updates (subscribe in upper left hand menu)
• "Like" us on Facebook
• Join us on Goodreads
• Follow us on Twitter
• Subscribe to our RSS feed
• Connect with us on Google Friends

Ladies in Waiting Book Club members?

Hi girls!  We have joined the International Comment Leaving Week (ICLW) list for the month of February.

The ICLW was started by Mel at The Stirrup Queens blog and is a comment exchange for infertility related blogs and bloggers.  Bloggers and websites that want to be on the list sign up until the 21st of each month.  The last week of the month you must agree to visit and leave 6 comments a day for a week for other bloggers.  This encourages new visitors, new comments, and new discoveries for everyone.  If you enjoy reading other infertility blogs, I recommend clicking on the ICLW button and looking through the list.  :o)

P.S. Voting for March book selections starts tomorrow morning!

March Book Suggestions Due Today!

Hi :o)

Just a reminder that any February book suggestions are due by the end of the day today.

Beginning Wednesday morning, a survey will be posted right onto the site that will allow you to make your choice. You may choose as many as you are interested in, but the one with the most votes wins.  Remember, March is an infertility related book month.  If we don't pick your first choice, I hope you will stick with us because there will be many more books to come!

The winner of the book selection will be announced Saturday, February 26th!

Recipe: The Help - Daddy's Bloody Marys

Bloody Mary garnished with celery, carrot, olives, and lemon

Daddy's Bloody Marys

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 can tomato juice

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 Tbs prepared horseradish

6 dashes Tabasco Sauce

3 Tbs Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

~ parsley flakes (optional)

1 1/2 cups vodka (1/2 fifth)

Directions:

Blend tomato juice, lemon juice, horseradish, Tabasco, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, and parsley, if desired. Refrigerate mixture up to one week. Mix in vodka just before serving.

Recipe taken from "Come On In" Recipes from the Jr. League of Jackson MS

To ALL February Contest Participants: A Special Gift

Everyone is accounted for!  Form is now closed.  

Dear Ladies in Waiting,

I've been doing some reflecting over the weekend about our book club conversations and discussions.  It has only been three weeks since we've started and yet it feels like we've all been in this group for a very long time.  The heartfelt discussions and encouragement coming from each of you to each other and myself have risen well above my expectations for our book club.  My moderators and contributors have brought tears to my eyes with their willingness to add more depth and assistance in making our little group this wonderful.  I'm so excited to see what more time will bring to our group.

In a small gesture of thanks, I would like to send each of you a small gift for being the founding members of our Ladies in Waiting Book Club.  The February Contest winner will receive next month's book selection for free in addition to a small gift.  Nothing fancy. just a small handmade gift... this is my way of thanking you for being a part of my life and this club.

To send you a gift, I need your full name, email, and mailing address.  This information, once submitted, will go only to me (Kim) and is safe - no worries!

I need this information from these members:
(Danielle, Nancy, and April: I have yours, but go ahead and submit again so I have it all in one place.  Thanks!)

• Courtney from Georgia - received
• Angie from Minnesota - received
• Katy from Texas - received
• Stephanie from Arizona - received
• Andrea from Florida - received
• Melissa from Pennsylvania - received
• Amber from Arizona - received
• Colleen from Illinois - received
• Donna from New York - received
• Rachel from Texas - received
• Sarah from New York - received
• Nancy from Florida - received
• April from Florida - received
• Danielle from Rhode Island - received

Thank you all again for being such a beautiful group of friends.

Love,
Kim

The Help: Discuss With Us! (#5)

Ok, it's the question that is the grossest topic ever... Minny's "Terrible Awful"!

What did you think about Minny's pie she made for Miss Hilly? Would you have gone as far as Minny did for revenge?

The Help: Picking Passages

The Help is about a lot of things: race, class, community, relationships, the value women place on friendship. It is, in many ways, also about infertility.

The first time I read The Help, I was about to begin my first cycle of IVF. My husband and I had only recently found out we would need to use IVF in order to conceive and we were pretty unsure of what lay ahead. I remember thinking that since we were dealing with male factor infertility, I would probably get pregnant the first time out, probably with boy/girl twins, and I would also probably have what would be sure to be a (probably) uncommon reaction to the meds and would instantly lose twenty pounds and wake up after my first round of shots and vaginal sonograms with totally clear, flawless skin.

Okay. Not so much that last one.

But I really did kind of believe all of the rest of it. And here I am, nearly a year later, post-miscarriage, two IVF cycles deep, reading The Help again with all of you. Nearly one year into this very difficult, taxing, consuming process, and I find myself no closer to having started my family. In many ways, the difficulties we’ve encountered this year have only served to make me feel further away from motherhood. This time around, I am reading The Help with different eyes and, as a result, there are many passages that have simply taken my breath away with their new relevance to my journey through infertility. Some of them include:

“…there aren’t any children living here. Just dust.”

“’When you gone have you some chilluns, start filling up all these beds?’ I try to smile, look friendly.”

“Those bedrooms should be stacked full of kids laughing and hollering and pooping up the place. But it’s none of my business what Miss Celia does with her day…”

“I feel that bitter seed growing inside a me…”

“That kind of love always makes me want to cry.”

“’I kept thinking ,’ she whispers, ‘if I was real still, if I brought somebody in to do the house and cooking, maybe I could hold on to this one.’ She cries down into her towel.”

Celia's struggle to have a baby and Aibileen's grief over the loss of her son break my heart into one million pieces time and again throughout this novel. Their voices, especially in the passages I've shared here, echo deep, deep inside of me. Are there passages in particular that have been speaking to you or voices within The Help that you find ring especially true? Share!

The Help: How Place Shapes Us

Since reading The Help this month, I can’t stop thinking about the ways in which the characters—their motivations, their actions—have been shaped by the time and place where they’ve grown up. It’s the 60s and segregation still abounds, and old and haunted expectations still govern people’s beliefs. But it’s not just the historical period that motivates these characters. It’s the place—Jackson, Mississippi—that guides so much of what they do. While people are marching on Washington, Hilly and others are still clinging to an ideal that keeps black people out of white bathrooms. Place and its traditions hold fast.

I got to thinking about the places where we all grew up, how each of us is shaped by the place we call “home.” There are the simple ways we are affected by place: how a certain smell might trigger a memory of Grandma’s kitchen (there’s a particular combination of perfume and cigarettes and sugar that does this for me) or how one of us might call a certain kind of baked comfort food a casserole, while another of us might call it a hot dish, and others of us something else entirely.

I spent the first 12 years of my life in England and when I moved to the United States, I felt as if learning a whole new vocabulary. What I once called a “car park,” I now had to call a “parking lot” or risk strange looks from friends. “Pushchairs” became “strollers;” “trolleys” became “shopping carts;” “courgettes and aubergines” became “zuchinni and eggplants;” and “pavement” became “sidewalk.”

But it wasn’t only language that confused me when I moved from one place to another, it was the cultural expectations too. In England, I attended a school that was held in an old Victorian house. Bedrooms had been converted into classrooms; the ballroom, into a large dining hall with wooden tables. We didn’t have a playground, only a large field across the street that was too muddy for playing in when it rained. If you know anything about North Yorkshire, England, there are four seasons: Rain from the East, Rain from the West, Rain from the North, and Rain from the South. Needless to say, we rarely spent recess playing in the field. Instead, the teachers had us walk on the pavement around the field, prim and proper, discussing our weekends with friends or giggling about the boys ahead of us.

When I moved to the United States at the age of 12 and stepped outside for my first American recess, I was shocked. Why were my classmates running around? What were these strange games they were playing? And didn’t they know they shouldn’t shout so loudly? Where were the conversations and the quiet walks? Where was the order in any of this? I thought every one of the kids was crazy, childish, out of control. I had such a longing for England again.

The Help is filled with characters watching their world change. They haven’t moved to a new place, but their place is moving and changing around them. I can imagine how some were so resistant to change. When the way you grew up and the way you view the world is suddenly questioned, when people start changing things up, when what you expected doesn’t happen anymore…well, it’s difficult. The adjustment is quicker and easier for others. And some people, of course, never change.

I eventually changed in the United States. I’ve held onto memories and traditions from England, but I’ve incorporated them into an American life. And I like having moved even more in my life—starting on the West coast, settling down for a bit in the Midwest, and ending up here, finally, on the East coast, where I’m still learning new traditions, new words for things, new ways of being.

And so I’m wondering now: What smells or sounds or sights draw you back to your childhood? How did the place where you grew up shape the woman you are today? Has moving to a new state or region or town changed the person you once were?

Crafty Ladies: Oilcloth Word Art

Click on the advertisements above to view at full size.

When I lived in Sarasota, Florida, I went to the farmer's market every Saturday morning.  Along the path of the market, I found a little gift shop selling all kinds of tablecloths and kitchen linens.  Linens from Provence, Rome, Munich, and all over the world - different colors, fabrics, shapes of all kinds.  Of all the beautiful materials, my eyes came to focus on this gorgeous, retro, shiny, colorful fabric.  It was bold and "laminated" and so fun!  After purchasing a gardener's apron made from this stuff (thanks, honey!) and getting home, I did some research on the fabric and found out that it was oilcloth.  Oilcloth is very old concept in fabric dating back to the late 1800s.  It is a laminated fabric that is easy to clean and sturdy.  Oilcloth had its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, as you can see from the advertisements above.  Even today, you can buy oilcloth to sew and craft with and it still only comes in patterns reminiscent of the 50s and 60s.  So fun!

Retro oilcloth swatches - courtesy of Oilcloth Addict

Oilcloth can be difficult to find in stores but there are plenty of opportunities to find it online.  My favorite shop is owned by Kelly and is called Oilcloth Addict (on Etsy).  If you are crafty and enjoy blogs, you can also visit her Oilcloth Addict blog.  To make this project, I used a "charm pack" (a set of 40 swatches) that I had purchased from her shop.

Oilcloth Word Art

Materials:

• Wood or chipboard letters - choose any size to spell whatever word you'd like.  If I were to do this project again (which I will!) I would buy the more expensive solid wood letters.  It is a lot easier to cut around wood letters than cardboard.

Chipboard letters - Hobby Lobby 50¢ each

• enough oilcloth fabric to cover your letters (you could also use scrapbook paper!)

• spray adhesive (preferably permanent)
• X-acto knife
• spray paint (optional)

Directions:

This is so easy, it doesn't really need a tutorial... but who doesn't like to see pictures anyway, right?  :o)

• Choose a word you'd like to create.  If the backs of your letters may be seem where you are placing them, I recommend spray painting the back of them.  
• When your letters are chosen and/or dry, spray the front of them one at a time with spray adhesive.
• Place letter onto oilcloth.  Allow to dry for at least 10 minutes.

• After drying, use your X-acto knife to cut the fabric away from the edges of your lettering.  Repeat for each letter.  :o)

Done.  Choose a word that inspires you!  I think I will somehow attach these to a ribbon and hang it somewhere.  I'll update you later.  :o)

Recipe: The Help - Mint Juleps

Serves 8

Ingredients:

2 cups of water

2 cups of sugar

1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh mint leaves

32 fluid ounces Kentucky Bourbon

8 sprigs fresh mint leaves for garnish

Directions:

Combine water, sugar, and chopped mint leaves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat until the sugar is completely dissolved. Allow syrup to cool, approximately 1 hour. Pour syrup through a strainer to remove mint leaves.

Fill 8 cups or frozen goblets with crushed ice and pour 4 oz. of bourbon and 1/4 cup mint syrup in each. (Proportions can be adjusted depending on each person's sweet tooth). Top each cup with a mint sprig and a straw. Trim straws to just barely protrude from the top of the cups. Serve juleps on a silver platter.

Tips:

- To easily chop mint sprigs, roll them together and then chop.

- If using silver goblets, place them in the freezer for at least half an hour before serving. Handle frozen goblets with a clean towel, holding them by their edges, so as not to mar the lovely frozen surface.

Recipe taken from Allrecipes

New Book Store - HELP!

Hi friends!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am putting together a book store to add to our site.  

The purpose of this is twofold:

#1.  Having our own "book store" is kind of fun.  :o)
#2.  The bookstore could potentially bring in a few extra dollars per month which would allow us to buy items for giveaways and donate to charities (Resolve, Walk of Hope, Fertility Socks, etc.).

When any of us or anyone passing through our site, clicks through to our book store and purchases anything from Amazon, we will get a small commission on each purchase.  For example, if someone clicks on a book in our book store and ends up buying something completely different, we will still get a commission because it was our site that brought them business, regardless of whether they purchase that particular book or not.  Hopefully that makes sense.

Infertility takes its toll on our checkbooks every month... I definitely know this.  To make our book club more fun and exciting, I would like to keep doing contests and giveaways.  Currently, I am purchasing the giveaways (it is my pleasure to do so), but it would be great if we could give away these items for "free" with just the proceeds from our store.  And, should anything be left over, have more giveaways to help each other or contribute the remainder to causes that are important to us.

I am putting the store together now and choosing a select bunch of items to start out with.  Surprisingly, I am having a hard time getting it all organized... usually my strength.  When building the store, you have to name your categories and choose books to go in each one.

Right now, these are the categories:

• Book Club Selections (the books we are reading each month)
• Fertility
• Women's Health
• Inspirational

As I am adding books to each section, I'm having a hard time deciding which they should go in... I feel like the categories are too "broad".

If you walked into an IF bookstore, if such a thing existed, what would you expect to see?  What kinds of categories?  What books would you like to see?  All you bibliophiles out there who use the Dewey decimal system on your home bookshelves, I need your help!

I need categories and any/all book suggestions.  Book suggestions should relate to IF or help in that area (inspiration, spirituality, exercise, health, etc.).

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!  Comment below.

Kim

March Book Suggestions - Due February 22nd!

Holy moly!  Is it that time already?!  Yes, it is.  :o)

We are beginning our book selection process a little earlier this month in order to give our members time to find their copy at the bookstore or local library.  We're still in the middle of our current book, but it's not too early to be thinking ahead.  :o)

This month's selection will be infertility related, so please keep your suggestions related to that topic.  :o)

Please write your suggestions in the comments below.  Suggestions will be accepted until Tuesday, February 22nd.

Recipe: The Help - Good Luck Soup

For the past three centuries, black-eyed peas, also known as cowpeas, have been a mainstay in Southern diets. Following a long time tradition, many Southerners believe that those who eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day will have good luck throughout the coming year.

We think we can all use some extra luck on our IF journey so why wait for New Year's to roll around again to eat your black-eyed peas! Make a pot of this yummy and nutritious soup; you'll find it's perfect for a cold winter day which many of our readers are still enduring. And it's for good luck!

Simmer until creamy!

Good Luck Soup

1 lb dried black-eyed peas (do not soak)

2 quarts chicken stock

1 ham hock

1/3 lb smoked ham in 1" cubes

2 medium yellow onions, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 dried chili peppers or 1/2 tsp ground red pepper

1 pkg frozen cut okra (10 oz), thawed

1 1/2 tsp salt

In a large saucepan, combine peas, stock, ham hock, ham, onions, bell pepper, celery, garlic, and chili peppers. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Stir in okra and salt, and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent scorching. Remove cover and cook, stirring, until creamy thick, 10 minutes. Remove ham hock and chili peppers. Serve hot.

* recipe taken from "Come On In", Recipes from the Jr. League of Jackson, MS

The Help: Discuss With Us! (#4)

Possible Spoiler Alert!

In the 1960's, young girls went off to college in search of the infamous MRS degree (that is to find a husband). If they failed that task and managed to graduate like our heroine, Skeeter, these young women were then expected by their families and society to secure a "temporary" job that would enable them to meet eligible young men for marriage. Upon successfully getting engaged, these young ladies would be encouraged to quit their jobs to focus all their energies on getting married, and subsequently being married and raising a family.

Did it bother you that Skeeter is willing to overlook so many of Stuart’s faults so that she can get married, and that it’s not until he literally gets up and walks away that the engagement falls apart?

In addition to the author's suggested question, I am including one of my own. Have you or anyone you know ever felt pressure to find a husband?

The Help: Movies, Television & Book Suggestions

Have you been enjoying The Help?  I know many of you have excitedly shared book suggestions and television selections (such as "Mad Men") that are similar in time, story, issues, etc. to our book.  This post is for any further suggestions you may have for literature, television, or movies.

The Help: The Voices in My Head...

Hi girls!

This is just a quick post.  I read so many of you chatting about Mad Men and how you use the referencing from their voices to narrate and connect to the characters in our book selection.  I do the same thing!  We all pull from the schema in our minds to bring life to a character.

As I was searching for information on our book, I came across a sample recording of The Help audio book.  I listened to a short part of it and now as I read, Aibileen's voice is clear in my head.  Just wanted to share!

The Help: 1960s Television Commercials - Fun!

I thought we'd post something fun and complimentary today.  Most of you should be in the meat of the book right now, and I thought you could all use a little smile.  :o)

Check out this short video compilation of some 1960s toy commercials.  Who is Mr. Machine?  Umm, am I the only one who didn't know that the original Mr. Potato Head was actually a real (scary) potato?  It's Slinky, it's Slinky!  And Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots - there's an uppercut!

Too fun... clearly, I need to get out of the house more often.

Or, did you know a better marriage is just a good cup of coffee away?  This one will either make you laugh or get very annoyed.

And... one more!  My mom taught me this song when I was a kid.  :o)

Happy Tuesday!

The Help: Discuss with Us! (#3)

I hope you all are enjoying this book as much as I am!!! It is getting hard to put it down. It is really making me think about the way things were not that long ago.

Here is our discussion for today:

What do you think motivated Hilly? On the one hand she is terribly cruel to Aibileen and her own help, as well as to Skeeter once she realizes that she can’t control her. Yet she’s a wonderful mother. Do you think that one can be a good mother but, at the same time, a deeply flawed person?

The questions above were provided by a book club discussion guide, and I am adding one of my own. Do you think that Hilly was a "wonderful mother"? I am curious to see what others who would like to be mothers think of Hilly's actions regarding her children.

The Help: A Thought to Ponder About Change

Hi girls,

The most recent chapters I've been reading in The Help have gotten me thinking about how much ideas and lifestyles change over time.  When I think of decades and years gone by, they seem like SO long ago.  This story takes place less than fifty years ago.  Fifty years ago sounds like a lot to me, but in reality it is so very short.  This story "happened" when my mom was a child, when my grandmother was a grown mother.  Was it really such a short time ago that people held the idea that certain colors of skin were better than others; that it was illegal to marry outside of your race, or urinate in the same toilet, or drink the same water?  We now have a black president and to make a biracial marriage illegal would cause an outrage... but fifty years ago - completely normal.

This just gets me thinking of what our issues are today... what kinds of debates and wars are being waged that fifty years from now, people will wonder "what in the world were they thinking"?  Homosexuality, legal marijuana, pharmaceuticals, big oil, global warming...  Will the world look so different fifty years from now as it does to look fifty years back?  Probably... what do you think?

Just a thought.  :o)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all of our Ladies in Waiting!  

The Help - Patsy Cline {Walking After Midnight} & {Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray} 1957

Patsy Cline

In Chapter 11, Miss Skeeter is on her way to Hilly's house for a bridge game.  Her ride in the car is described as this: "Patsy Cline's voice drifts out of WJDX radio.  As I drive down the County Road, they're playing 'Walking After Midnight.'  When I pull into Hilly's driveway, they're on 'Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray.'  Her plane crashed this morning and everyone from New York to Mississippi to Seattle is in mourning, singing her songs."

I don't know much of anything about Patsy Cline and I was definitely not aware that she died in a plane crash.  My curious nature brought me to Wikipedia in which I found some very interesting information about her death.  Here is the story, brought to you by Wikipedia:

Patsy Cline died in a plane crash in March of 1963, near Camden, Tennessee. The plane flew into severe weather, and according to Cline's wristwatch, crashed at 6:20 p.m. in a forest outside of Camden, Tennessee, 90 miles from the destination. Everyone died instantly from their injuries.  Throughout the night, reports of the missing plane flooded the radio airwaves.

As stated in the Nassour biography, Patsy Cline, friends Dottie West and June Carter Cash both recalled Cline telling them that she felt a sense of impending doom and didn't expect to live much longer in the months leading up to her death. Cline also told Loretta Lynn of this, along with Carter and West, as early as September 1962.  Cline, though known for her extreme generosity, even began giving away personal items to friends, writing out her own last will on Delta Air Lines stationery and asking close friends to care for her children if anything should happen to her. She reportedly told Jordanaire back up singer Ray Walker as she exited the Grand Ole Opry a week before her death: "Honey, I've had two bad ones (accidents). The third one will either be a charm or it'll kill me."

On March 3, 1963, Cline, though ill with the flu, gave a performance at a benefit show at the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, Kansas City, Kansas, for the family of a disc jockey, Cactus Jack Call, who had recently died in an automobile accident. Also performing on the show were George Jones, George Riddle and The Jones Boys, Billy Walker, Dottie West, Cowboy Copas, Hawkshaw Hawkins, Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper, and George McCormick and the Clinch Mountain Clan. The three shows, at 2:00, 5:15 and 8:00 p.m. were standing-room only. For the 2 p.m. show, she wore a sky-blue tulle-laden dress, for the 5:15 show a red shocker and for the closing show at 8 p.m. Cline wore a white chiffon gown and closed the show with her performance to a thunderous ovation. Her last song was the last one she recorded during her last sessions the previous month, "I'll Sail My Ship Alone".

Dottie West, wary of Cline flying, asked her to ride back in the car with her and her husband, Bill. Cline, anxious to get home to her children, refused West's offer, saying, "Don't worry about me, Hoss. When it's my time to go, it's my time." Poor weather delayed their departure by a day, and on March 5, she called her mother from the airport and then boarded a Piper Comanche bound for Nashville. The pilot was her manager Randy Hughes, with passengers Cowboy Copas and Hawkshaw Hawkins, who had taken Billy Walker's seat. After stopping to refuel in Dyersburg, Tennessee, the plane took off at 6:07 p.m. CT. According to revelations by the airfield manager in the Nassour biography, he suggested that they stay the night after advising of high winds and inclement weather on the flight path, but Hughes responded, "I've already come this far. We'll be there before you know it."

Roger Miller told Patsy Cline author, Nassour, that he and a friend went searching for survivors in the early hours of the morning: "As fast as I could, I ran through the woods screaming their names—through the brush and the trees, and I came up over this little rise, oh, my God, there they were. It was ghastly. The plane had crashed nose down." Not long after the bodies were removed, scavengers came to take what they could of the stars' personal belongings and pieces of the plane. Many of these items were later donated to The Country Music Hall of Fame, including Patsy's beloved Confederate Flag cigarette lighter which played "Dixie," her wrist watch, belt with 'Patsy Cline' studded across it and one of three pairs of her gold lame slippers which were featured on the revised version of her Showcase With The Jordanaires album. However, the white chiffon dress that Cline had worn for her last performance and the money bag carrying the star's payment for their last concert were never found.

As per her wishes, Cline was brought home to her dream house for the last time before her memorial service, which thousands attended. Hours later, news surfaced that singer Jack Anglin of country duo Johnnie & Jack fame had died on the way to her service, and the Opry mounted a tribute show to honor the victims.

She was buried in her hometown of Winchester, Virginia, at Shenandoah Memorial Park. Her grave is marked with a simple bronze plaque, which reads: Virginia H (Patsy) Cline "Death Cannot Kill What Never Dies: Love." A bell tower in her memory at the cemetery, erected with the help of Loretta Lynn and Dottie West, plays hymns daily at 6:00 p.m., the hour of her death. A memorial marks the place where the plane crashed in the still-remote forest outside of Camden, Tennessee.

Patsy Cline Memorial at the crash site in Camden, Tennessee.

Walking After Midnight - Patsy Cline (1957)

Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray - Patsy Cline (1957)

February Contest: 2 More Weeks!

There is still plenty of time to register for our contest!  Register in the original contest post and add your voice to our discussions.  :o)

The Help: Kathryn Stockett's Interview with Katie Couric

This is an interview that Kathryn Stockett did with Katie Couric.  It is pretty long but worth it.  :o)  I watched it for a few minutes, kept my browser window open, and watched the rest in spurts.  Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!

Watch CBS News Videos Online

The Help: 1960s Economics and other Musings

Hey y’all (Note: as I am from Brooklyn, my y’all probably sounds a lot more like “yawl”)!

When I first read The Help this past spring, my interest in the post-Antebellum South reached almost fetishist heights. I was so enamored that my husband and I actually planned a vacation to South Carolina in August. For all who are wondering, South Carolina is GORGEOUS; South Carolina in August, however, is really, really, really HOT.

The triple degree days did not deter us, you should be happy to hear, and we toured plantations (enormous) and explored rivers (beautiful) and estuaries (filled with dolphins!) and visited gardens (lovely) and the ruins of slave quarters (fascinating) but mostly we were completely overwhelmed by how very different the South felt to us. We walked through Charleston exclaiming things like: “Everyone is so polite!” and “Why are all of these children in button down shirts and khakis? It’s 106 frigging degrees!”

As a lifetime New Yorker, the week my husband and I spent exploring South Carolina didn’t answer any of the questions I had about the world Katherine Stockett describes. If anything, it did the exact opposite. As I wander through Stockett’s Jackson with all of you for a second time, I find myself more curious than ever about what life was like both in Mississippi and in other parts of the world during 1962 and 1963; this is what I’ll be exploring in future posts.

To get us started, let’s take a look at some information regarding the cost of living in the United States in the early 1960s versus the current cost of living.

Early 1960s		2010-2011
$12,500.00	New Home	$291,400.00
$5,560.00	Average Income	$43,000.00
$110.00	Average Monthly Rent	$950.00
$1,520.00	Tuition to Harvard University	$35,568.00
$3,125.00	New Car	$28,4000
.32¢	Eggs per Dozen	$1.74 (regular) $2.91 (cage free)
.28¢	Gas per Gallon	$3.00
$400	Color Television Set	42” Plasma $600 - $1,000.00 65” Plasma $2,700 - $5,000
.05¢	Candy Bar	$1.00
.50¢	Movie Ticket	$7.95

Any thoughts on these figures or suggestions for future Back in the Day posts? I am really excited to learn more about the world during this very tumultuous and important time in our country’s history. If nothing else, I am excited to have an excuse to obsessively watch footage of Jackie Kennedy’s White House Tour!

See y’all soon - happy weekend reading!