OK LADIES! Get crackin' on the latest book, "Easy on the Eyes" by, of course, Jane Porter. It's terrific! I'm half way through and loving it! Get your copy today.

Oh! And I'm happy to report that our ladies who said they "just can't read" are now READERS! Kathy, Karen and Donna have finished Odd Mom Out and Mrs. Perfect. We are soooo proud of them! Great job girls!

NEXT MEETING TUESDAY, AUGUST 11TH

Adventure on the High Seas...

Trying to act like Taylor Young in Mrs. Perfect, I planned an evening out on my boat for this month's bookclub meeting. Well....



What a night! We gathered this month on what I like to call my party boat. It is basically just for getting together and floating around the lake with family and friends. We were enjoying our speedy ride around the lake and decided to stop and sit in the middle of the lake to start our book dicussion and enjoy some tasty treats and wine. When one of our member's daughter decided to join us we told her we'd pick her up at the dock. Our boat decided otherwise. I couldn't get it started. A nieghbor drove up on his boat and offered to help. We asked him to go pick up Shannon from our dock. We could wait for rescue later. Then Evan came to our rescue in a row boat with a freshly filled gas tank. He rowed out and hooked up the new tank, but this must not have been the problem, because the boat still wouldn't start. Just as Evan was going to start to tow us in with the row boat, another neighbor sped up on his pontoon and we decided to pretend we were crying so he would give us a tow. We laughed when he said he thought we sounded like his first two wives and knew something was amiss. Anyway, we decided to let Evan off the hook and took Walter up on his help. That, and we were trying to get him to notice Shirley. Ok, we were trying to set them up. Stay tuned for what happens with that story! We are thankful to everyone who tried to rescue us. Even Steve and Justin who hopped in a canoe and started heading out to us...until they saw we were having too much fun. Thanks ladies for all of your patience. Looking forward to some more fun next month! Happy Reading. "EASY ON THE EYES" COMES OUT JULY 22ND AND IS THE 3RD IN OUR SERIES BY JANE PORTER! GET READING!

(Pictures: Top to bottom-- Donna and our "favor" of the month thanks to Kathy; Stephanie and Sharen; Shirley showing off our latest reads from Jane Porter; Karen and some wine; me driving the boat "WooHoo!"; some of the goodies before the big waves knocked a bunch over; Kathy and Teri; My son, Evan (18) to the rescue, Helping get Shannon onto the boat from Jeff's boat

Pics of some of our meetings...

Odd Mom Out Meeting

We started our latest book discussion with the first in a series, entitled Odd Mom Out by Jane Porter. Denise wanted to bring the "favors" for the party...and she wanted to be creative about it. After days of searching, she came up with bandanas twisted and embellished with pink (toy) motorcycles (see picture for a giggle!) Some of our gals are late starters, but I am happy to report that we are creating reading monsters and we are so proud of our new-found readers! Here's some details on Odd Mom Out. In my own words (as I've lent out the book!): Marta is a single mom to 1o year old Eva. She moves to a ritzy neighborhood near Seattle and has to put up with the elite snobs and her own daughter wanting her mother to conform to their ways. Marta is a strong woman who doesn't need to change to be like others. She loves her motorcycle and casual attire. Her daughter does not! We are taken through a journey of a mother/daughter relationship and a lesson in self-esteem. We, as a group agreed that Marta is strong, but yet stubborn at the same time. She also seems to come off as thinking she is better than the Stepfordy women of her town. Interesting!

June Meeting Had an Hawaiian Theme.

At our second offical meeting we met at a coffee shop near Denise's house. We were discussing the book "Flirting With Forty" by Jane Porter. The main character in the book, Jackie Laurens, went to Hawaii and fell in love. Here's a synopsis: He got the second home and the Porsche. She got the kids and a broken heart. Now Jackie, post-divorce and heading toward the big four-oh, is on vacation in sunny Hawaii and staring down her upcoming birthday, alone. But not for long. She's soon falling for Kai, her gorgeous, much younger surf instructor, and the wild passionate fling they have becomes the biggest surprise of Jackie's life. Back home in Seattle, Jackie has to struggle with single parenthood...and memories of Kai. He hasn't forgotten her. Yet thousands of miles of ocean-not to mention an age difference that feels even wider--separate them. And, of course, her friends disapprove. When a choice must be made, can she, will she risk everything for her chance at happiness?

Our First Meeting

Our first meeting was a success! We talked about books that we will be reading and I even had the opportunity to hand out some goodie bags from my favorite author, Jane Porter. We are beginning our journey with books by Jane Porter. The first will be Flirting With Forty. The second book will begin a trilogy we will post more on later. We have a couple of members who said they aren't readers and find it hard to find the time to read. They even came up with the excuse that they start to read and then fall asleep. Heard that one before! Stay tuned as we turn these gals into readers! By the way, this pic made it into the Livingston Home publication in May with an article about our group and to Jane's website!

(Pictured: L to R = Karen, Stephanie, Sharen, Denise, Kathy and Teri)