Oh, Harriet the Spy is a classic. Thanks!

She loved the Smile and Sisters books, too-I think she read them repeatedly and would touch nothing else for awhile! I think there's another one by the same author, "Drama."

Oh my gosh, thank you! That's a gold mine of reading material for her. I'll hand her this list and see if she's read any of them, but I don't think she has. As a person with very specific tastes herself, she will be delighted with all the choices!

Yay! This is exactly the post I've been looking for. So many great suggestions. This year, I challenged myself, as well as the ten year old girl I nanny for, to read a book a week. We're already bookworms, so this will be a fun challenge. Anyone else tried this? And, on that note, have any suggestions for books a 10…

Oddly specific question here, but does anyone have experience coordinating a trip where a group of people are involved? My sister is getting married, so we are planning a trip to Vegas to celebrate her bachelorette party/aunt's 50th birthday all in one. I have two friends going, my mom, two aunts, bride-to-be, and my…

Yes, breaking the sugar addiction always seems like it will be easier in theory, and then it hits you and feels like nothing will be happy ever again...

Ooh, I will have to investigate this shahshuka. And I agree about the veggie eating. I'm not vegetarian, but I'm totally on board with the benefits of spending less on groceries and getting healthier meals during the week with no meat!

I will check it out, thanks for the suggestion!

I definitely think peanut M&Ms count as good chocolate... ;)

Probably too late, but does anyone have any tips for clean eating/ ways to get your diet under control? Now that it's 7 pm on Christmas Eve, it's time to kiss all the junk goodbye for a while. (I'm currently knuckle deep in a Lindt chocolate bear, amongst other stocking goodies.) My sister's wedding is coming up in…

Cosigned. I can't change the station fast enough when that song comes on the radio.

UGH. What is that "God Made Girls" shit? Raylynn has got to be the worst name I've heard in awhile, and I know someone else who just named their baby the same.

A few weeks ago my mom decided we all need to get together and discuss, then write down, our wishes if something happens and we cannot advocate for ourselves. I think stories like this prompted her wanting to ensure some sort of legal protection against these nightmares, but I have to wonder how much good it would do…

Oh my god, I know. I already get choked up thinking about how excited I am to finally be doing this! My seven year old, Free Willy obsessed self is going to be so damn happy.

That's very reasonable! Especially since giant boats tend to charge almost half as much anyway. The Zodiac boats have come up a few times so we will definitely look into those!

Haha my boyfriend is suggesting the same thing about the kayaks, I'm mostly just concerned I'll be terrified getting that close to one. Were you at all apprehensive about how you'd feel being that close to them in such a tiny vessel? Either way, it really does sound like the MOST amazing experience, so perhaps the…

Victoria looks so beautiful! Originally it was just considered because of a tour company we found, but then all the photos just looked stunning and thought a 2 or 3 day jaunt in the area would be delightful. And OHMYGOD baby orca?!

Thanks! I will definitely check it out. And respect for the whales and the area was a big priority for us, which is partially why we don't want a gigantic boat with a million people on it trying to get photos and video.

I will definitely look into that! We only considered Victoria because of the potential whale watching, so if avoiding a 15 hour ferry ride/extra $200 on airfare is possible that's a good thing! The smaller, local feel is exactly what I'm hoping for, too.

This looks great! Thanks! I'm definitely hoping that the whale viewing won't be relegated to just the boat trip since it sounds like they're easily seen from the edge of the water, too :)