Tuesday, December 27, 2011

My Story Printed in Jan 2012 Friend Magazine


I am so excited! I submitted a story to the Friend magazine about four years ago. They purchased the story and said they would probably publish it in 2007 or 2008. When they didn't, and after talking with Josh Perky, I decided they probably never would. Well, they finally did!

We were surprised when the doorbell rang this morning before 10:00 am. These are the "dead days" between Christmas and New Year's Day and not much happens at our house except a lot of relaxing and playing. We were not expecting visitors. The door was opened to the Fed-X man with a package. In the package were two complimentary copies of the Friend. My story is on page 8-9.

Here's a link to the online version of my story

One funny thing about this is that we got the regular delivery of our church magazines a week or more ago. We gave the Friend to the younger kids. My 9-year-old son read my story, but never noticed who the author was!

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Book Review: Faithful, Fit & Fabulous


I recently read Connie Sokol's new book, Faithful, Fit & Fabulous, get Back to Basics and Transform your Life in Just 8 Weeks! Unfortunately, I didn't have 8 weeks between getting the book and posting my review to complete the program, but I still really liked the book.

Sokol has an easy-to-read conversational writing style that I enjoyed. It was like chatting with a friend. As I read, I felt like she had been there, done that, and understood where I was coming from. She has six kids; I have seven. She gets it. Her program is broken into easy, doable steps and you start at the level where you are right now. The book is filled with inspirational quotes by LDS leaders and sometimes humorous, always memorable anecdotes. The program is high on encouragement and low on guilt.

The book has a section at the back of each chapter that has suggested goals and, work-book like, also has places throughout, where the reader can jot down notes. One of the best features of the book is Sokol's philosophy that effort and progress ought to be rewarded. How fun is that? I get to treat myself when I accomplish a goal!

I think busy moms everywhere will benefit by reading this book. Whatever level of fit, faithful and fabulous they are at right now, this book will gently, cheerfully inspire them to take steps towards feeling better, looking better and being better.

About the Author (from page 149 of the book): Connie E. Sokol is a mother of six, a national and local presenter, and a regular speaker at BYU Education Week. She is a former TV and radio host and columnist for Deseret News. Despite having her hands full, and with her left toe, she has recorded several talk CDs and authored Life is Too Short for One Hair Color and Life is Too Short for Sensible Shoes. Mrs. Sokol delights in time spent with her family and eating decadent treats.

Here's a link to purchase the book: Faithful, Fit & Fabulous

Here is Connie Sokol's website.