OC Children's Book Festival

I met up with my mom and Angry Toddler today at the Orange County Children's Book Festival. My parents watch Angry Toddler on Sunday, and she was looking for something to do. I suggested the Book Festival since it was something different and local.

I didn't realize how many people would be attending the event. It was crazy. My mom told me that she circled around for about thirty minutes before she found a parking spot. I eventually met up with her and Angry Toddler.

We checked out some trains. Angry Toddler is used to playing with his Thomas Trains, but I don't think he's seen mechanical trains. He was pretty impressed with them, and how big they were. We then started to look around. I found my friend, Debbie and her husband from Dippin' Dots. I introduced my mom to them and we had some dots, of course. My mom had never had Dippin' Dots, she was intrigued.

We then walked around some more. We headed towards the bounce house, Angry Toddler bounced. We listened to the girls who do the voices for The Wonder Pets read and sing. Angry Toddler got a tattoo. What a tattoo? He got an airbrushed tattoo of a skull with a snake. That's how we roll.

We walked some more. We checked out some fabulous books and of course their authors. Angry Toddler got a skateboard book. He's still talking about it.

And then it was time to leave. We spent about two hours there, and then I carried Angry Toddler to the car. Geez, the kid is getting heavy. It's not fun to carry a 45-pound kid a mile to the car.

My mom said that he took a two hour nap when they got home.

Some Recent Purchases

I've been doing some shopping this week. Cause you know that I'm a shopper.

On Friday, I went to the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale with my mom. We go to all of Nordstrom's sales. I love shopping for shoes there. A girl can't have too many pairs of shoes, right?

These are the shoes that I got:

Fergie's Guno in Black. I'm going to take these to BlogHer, so watch out for me walking around in these fabulous shoes. They make me very tall. I'm not usually a heels type of person. My mom made me walk all around the shoe department before we purchased them.


and these, Ed Hardy tie dye low rise shoes. I love my Ed Hardy slip-ons. They are a staple of my daily wardrobe. This will be my third pair of Ed Hardy shoes. I'm not too keen on their flashy clothing, but I do like their accessories.


I also got some black cargo pants and a Lucky jeans top. Nordstrom is my favorite department store. I can always find something there to buy.

Today, I went to Border's Books to get some new reading material. My reading well has been very dry lately. I go to the bookstore about once a week and never seen to find anything to buy. That's probably why I've spent some much time on the Internet. I also subscribe to like 20 magazines.

I got the following books. These should keep me busy for at least a week. Seriously, not joking. I read fast.

The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan
Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs
The Girls from Ames by Jeffrey Zaslow

Oh, and I got some new running socks too, plus a Nike tank top. I wore the tank top for my race today. Stay tuned for my race report!

Amazon.com Releases Kindle 2

I've posted before about how I read alot. I have books sitting on every surface of the desk of my office. Yep, I've read them all. I probably need to start donating these books or giving them away.

I've been watching Amazon's Kindle for awhile now. The Kindle is a wireless reading device. You pay for books and then download them onto the Kindle. They had a great deal on them last Fall and I hesitated to take advantage of it. I heard that they were coming up with a new improved version of the Kindle.

Yesterday, I got an e-mail from Amazon. They were releasing the new, Kindle 2.

Here are a few highlights from Amazon.com about The Kindle 2:

Slim: Just over 1/3 of an inch, as thin as most magazines

Lightweight: At 10.2 ounces, lighter than a typical paperback

Wireless: 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle, anytime, anywhere; no monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots

Books in Under 60 Seconds: Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required

Improved Display: Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for clear text and even crisper images

Longer Battery Life: 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging

More Storage: Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books

Faster Page Turns: 20% faster page turns

Read-to-Me: With the new Text-to-Speech feature, Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud to you

Large Selection: Over 230,000 books plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines, and blogs available

Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise Say Hello to The New Kindle

I sat on the computer for an hour yesterday and watched videos on how this device works. It's pretty cool. Angry Husband and I had a discussion about this last night. Cause he's the gadget guy in our household. I might have to get one of these when we get our tax return.

Looking for a New Book

I'm an avid reader, especially while I'm working. If there is some down time at work, I like to park the good ole' van at a local park, and just sit and read. The only downside is, people always want to ask me stupid questions.

I usually have a stockpile of books to read. I get coupons from Border's Rewards, and buy several at a time. I also pick them up at Costco and Target. Well, I just finished my last one. I probably don't have a stockpile because I'm trying to stay away from places like Target and Costco. Don't get me wrong. I love my stores, but I'm trying to be a little more frugal.

The book that I just finished was One Fifth Avenue by Candace Bushnell. Bushnell also wrote Sex in the City. I bought the hardcover version of it (EXPENSIVE), but the soft cover version comes out on March 31. It was a decent book. Definately my style.



I'm looking for some ideas of other books to read. Have you read anything good lately? I refuse to read any True Crime books, and/or Twilight (haven't jumped on that bandwagon).

I know that there are people out there who actually read books still, right? I read my share of blogs daily. But I also read at least one book a week.

Oh and by the way, I'm trying to organize my life better this year. I'm giving away this book, One Fifth Avenue. Be sure and post if you want to receive my copy, and I will select someone at the end of the week. I swear it's in almost perfect condition. Well, I might have spilled some salsa on it, I do eat Mexican food for lunch alot.

Rhett Butler's People

I am a huge, huge fan of Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I've read the book over ten times. I first read the book in sixth grade. I think that's when my love of reading truly started.

But lately, I've been reading alot of chick lit type books. I try and stay away from the crime dramas, due to my job. I really get sick of crime, sometimes....

But, I was sooo giddy when I saw that there was a new authorized sequel to GWTW coming out. Rhett's Butler's People came out on Tuesday. The book begins twelve years before the Gone with the Wind timeframe.

I reserved the book online Friday night, and picked it up last night. I rarely read hardback books, so this was a moment for me. I decided to take my lunch at Panera Bread, and hide in a booth.

As I was hiding in my booth, I couldn't help but listen to a conversation going on next to me. I admit it, I'm a truly nosey person by nature. Well it appeared that these people were on a blind date. They were in the early 50's. The woman would say, "Oh I love red wine", and then the man would say, "Oh I don't drink nor do I eat red meat". It was hysterical. I felt bad for this woman. She was all done up, make-up, hair, and all. The guy was a total geek. She had this look on her face like she wanted to run away.

I think I got to page two in the book. I will save it for a later day. I'm going to try and relax more this week. It's the week of my 32nd Birthday and I want to enjoy it a little.

School of Fortune by Amanda Brown and Janice Weber

I'm a big time fan of reading. Reading is probably most passionate hobby. I've been a big time reader since elementary school. I can get lost in my books, tuning the world out. I usually read about one book a week. It all depends on how my week is going, how fast I read. I'm almost finished with my latest read, School of Fortune by Amanda Brown and Janice Weber.

This book is about a fictional character named, Pippa Walker. What a great name!! She is a bride to be and right before he wedding is going to start, her fiance, advises her that he's gay. This creates much drama. She ends up stopping the wedding, in which her mother disowns her.. She is left to seek out a life on her own while trying to get a diploma to get her inheritance. It is quite funny.

I highly recommend this book!!