The Three-Martini Playdate

The Three-Martini Playdate

Author: Christie Mellor

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Published: 2012-05-11

Total Pages: 143

ISBN-13: 1452116547

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“Lays out a plan for parents to enjoy themselves and not be slaves to their children while still offering their kids a warm, nurturing environment.” —Publishers Weekly Parents were here first! How did the kids suddenly take control? Sure the world has changed from the days when children were supposed to be seen and not heard but things have gotten a little out of hand. What about some quality time for the grownups? Author Christie Mellor’s hilarious, personal, refreshing, and actually quite useful advice delightfully rights the balance between parent and child. In dozens of short, wickedly funny chapters, she skewers today’s parental absurdities and reminds us how to make child-rearing a kick. With recipes, helpful hints, and illustrations, this high-spirited book is the only book parents will really need—and enjoy. Includes chapters on: Screaming: Is It Necessary? Bedtime: Is Five-Thirty Too Early? Child Labor: Not Just for the Third World! “Children’s Music”: Why? . . . and much, much more “Harried mothers who have given over their lives to their adorable little angels, beware: This book is the equivalent of a cocktail in the face . . . The book details the glories of saying no to your children, explains when you’ve gone too far in childproofing your home, laments our over-reliance on camcorders (‘a disease’) and suggests that the Tooth Fairy is getting robbed. Best of all, there’s a recipe for teaching your tot how to mix a simple martini just the way you like it—with lots of alcohol.” —Chicago Sun-Times


The Three-Martini Family Vacation

The Three-Martini Family Vacation

Author: Christie Mellor

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Published: 2012-05-11

Total Pages: 162

ISBN-13: 1452116482

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The author of The Three-Martini Playdate “delivers another clever, tongue-in-cheek self-help . . . Laughs and lessons for the beleaguered mom and dad” (Publishers Weekly). Chill the glasses! Christie Mellor is back with more irreverent and useful advice about life with children. Wickedly funny essays offer helpful advice on harnessing the energy of toddlers-gone-wild: on vacation, out to dinner, even just when grandmother stops by for a visit. Parents will relearn the art of traveling, socializing, and eating out like adults . . . sometimes with well-behaved children in tow. In dozens of short, kicky chapters like Cocktail Parties: Actually for Grown-ups! and The Theme Park Vacation: A Last Resort, Christie Mellor gently reminds parents that family vacations can truly be fun. Praise for The Three-Martini Playdate “Harried mothers who have given over their lives to their adorable little angels, beware: This book is the equivalent of a cocktail in the face . . . The book details the glories of saying no to your children, explains when you’ve gone too far in childproofing your home, laments our over-reliance on camcorders (‘a disease’) and suggests that the Tooth Fairy is getting robbed. Best of all, there’s a recipe for teaching your tot how to mix a simple martini just the way you like it—with lots of alcohol.” —Chicago Sun-Times


Fun Without Dick and Jane

Fun Without Dick and Jane

Author: Christie Mellor

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Published: 2012-05-23

Total Pages: 180

ISBN-13: 1452105979

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Christie Mellor describes the new-found freedoms to be had when your adult children move out.


When Did I Get Like This?

When Did I Get Like This?

Author: Amy Wilson

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2010-03-19

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 0061988014

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“Amy Wilson’s hilarious, tender memoir…had me laughing out loud with recognition. She captures the small moments of motherhood in a way that is both funny and thought-provoking.” —Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project From the creator and star of the one-woman off-Broadway show Mother Load, comes When Did I Get Like This?, a screamingly funny take on being a modern woman, wife, and mother told with “a level of hilarity that even non-moms can appreciate” (Time Out). Amy Wilson’s poignant and provocative, utterly outrageous look at “the Screamer, the Worrier, the Dinosaur-Chicken-Nugget-Buyer, and Other Mothers I Swore I’d Never Be” has already earned an appreciative response from Three-Martini Playdate author Christie Mellor, who calls it, “As entertaining as it is reassuring.”


M.O.M. (Mom Operating Manual)

M.O.M. (Mom Operating Manual)

Author: Doreen Cronin

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2011-09-13

Total Pages: 58

ISBN-13: 141696150X

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In Mom: An Owner's Manual, you'll find everything you ever wanted to know about how to raise a perfect Mom.


My First Dictionary

My First Dictionary

Author: Ross Horsley

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2011-02-01

Total Pages: 170

ISBN-13: 0062065688

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Hello, boys and girls, and welcome to the wonderful world of words! You've learned the basics—from apple to zebra—but what about all those mysterious new terms you've heard the grown-ups whispering when you were supposed to be tucked up snugly in bed? What makes Mommy so bitter? Where does Daddy conceal the door to his secret S&M dungeon? And why is everyone laughing about Grandma's latest delusion? My First Dictionary answers these questions, and includes many other useful definitions, such as: A burden is a source of worry or stress. Old people are usually burdens. Father is nostalgic. He is remembering the happier times before you were born. A puppy is a young dog. Connie gets a puppy every time she agrees not to tell. Daddy calls them hush puppies. A zigzag is a jagged line. We can tell that Mother has been drinking when she drives in a zigzag pattern. Carry a copy of My First Dictionary in your schoolbag and you'll never be at a loss for words again!


Pregnant Pause:

Pregnant Pause:

Author: Carrie Friedman

Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corp.

Published: 2012-03-01

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 0806535784

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Pre-partum Depression Rule #1: Never Wear an Empire-Waisted Dress to a Baby Shower If you've been asked the question "When are you going to have a baby?" so many times that you feel as though your uterus is starring in a new reality TV show, this hilarious, insightful book is for you. Carrie Friedman shares her daily struggles with what she calls her "pre-partum depression"—from baby lust to panic, and everything in between. Fending off the "dreaded question" from everyone, including her yoga teacher, and navigating the minefield of toddler birthday parties, as well as creating her own faux baby registry under an assumed name, Carrie Friedman captures the process of deciding to have a baby with humor and smarts. If you're looking for refuge from prying questions, pet substitution, and the call of your biological clock, this book is a hilarious diversion." --Adrianne Frost, I Hate Other People's Kids "An absolute delight!" --Jamie Cat Callan, French Women Don't Sleep Alone


You Look Fine, Really

You Look Fine, Really

Author: Christie Mellor

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2010-04-06

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 0061988030

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Christie Mellor, the bestselling author of The Three-Martini Playdate and Raised by Wolves, says You Look Fine, Really—and offers a droll, get-real guide to embracing and enjoying the adventure of mid-life. Complete with grooming shortcuts, tips on being your own personal trainer, and perfect party recipes, You Look Fine, Really provides witty and wise advice on how to add a sense of play and celebration to the everyday.


Of Thee I Zing

Of Thee I Zing

Author: Laura Ingraham

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2011-07-12

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 1451642067

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While Laura Ingraham was walking through a Northern Virginia shopping mall one Saturday afternoon, it all became clear to her. Everywhere she turned, she saw signs of the impending disaster: zombie teens texting each other across a café table; a man having his eyebrows threaded at a kiosk; a fiftyish woman shoe-horned into a tube top and skinny jeans; and a storefront ad featuring a Victoria’s Secret model spilling out of her push-up bra and into the faces of young passersby. Ingraham wondered to herself, “Is this it? Is this what our forefathers fought for? What my parents struggled for? I wonder if Victoria’s Secret is still having that two-for-one sale?” A menacing force surrounds us. We see it, we feel it, we know it. The country we love is in grave peril. While politicians and “experts” prattle on about the debt crisis at home, and terrorism abroad, a more insidious homegrown threat is emerging. It endangers our future and undermines our present. The uncomfortable truth is: We have become our own worst enemy. The culture we have created is now turning on us. We’re on the verge of drowning in our ignorance, arrogance, gluttony . . . can you believe there are only three shots of vanilla in a Caramel Macchiato?!? Now in an act of patriotic intervention the most-listened-to woman in talk radio casts her satirical eye upon all that ails American society. In this sharp-witted, comic romp, Laura Ingraham takes you on a guided tour through ten levels of our cultural hell. You know we’re in trouble when . . . • Airplane seats shrink—just as the passengers expand. • Celebrity baby names go from the peculiar (Apple, Stetson, and Daisy Boo) to the pathetic (Bamboo, Blanket, and Bronx). • People meticulously tend their virtual crops on Farmville, while their children eat takeout. • “Breaking News” usually means it happened yesterday. • The weddings last longer than the marriages. • Facebook has become a verb and reading has become an ancient art form. Of Thee I Zing is cultural commentary too funny to ignore, igniting a national conversation long past due. America, your cultural recovery begins here.


Confessions of the Other Mother

Confessions of the Other Mother

Author: Harlyn Aizley

Publisher: Beacon Press

Published: 2006-05-01

Total Pages: 198

ISBN-13: 9780807079638

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One of the few books to explore lesbian parenting, these “hilarious, heart-wrenching, painfully honest tales of mommyhood” celebrate the ups and downs of being an LGBTQIA+ parent in the 21st century (Joey Solloway, creator of Transparent). After author Harlyn Aizley gave birth to her daughter, she watched in unanticipated horror as her partner scooped up the baby and said, “I'm your new mommy!” While they both had worked to find the perfect sperm donor, Aizley had spent nine months carrying the baby and hours in labor, so how could her partner claim to be their child's mommy? Many diapers later, Aizley began to appreciate the complexity of her partner’s new role as the other mother. Together, they searched for stories about families like their own, in which a woman has chosen to forgo her own birth experience so that she might support her partner in hers. They found very few. Now, in Confessions of the Other Mother, Aizley has put together an exciting collection of personal stories by women like her partner who are creating new parenting roles, redefining motherhood, and reshaping our view of two-parent families. Contributors include Hillary Goodridge, who was one of the lead plaintiffs in the case for same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, stand-up comedian Judy Gold, and psychologist and author Suzanne M. Johnson. This candid peek into a previously unexamined side of lesbian parenting is full of stories that are sometimes humorous, sometimes moving, but at all times celebratory. Each parenting tale sheds light on the many facets of motherhood, offering gay and straight readers alike a deeper understanding of what it means to love and parent in the twenty-first century.