Binkies and Briefcases • Page 58 of 268 •

The Day I Became A New York Times Best Selling Author

March 27, 2015 By: Stephanie1 Comment

This week I got some amazing news! The book that I co-authored back in 2013 with 36 other women, I Just Want to Pee Alone, made the New York Times Best Sellers list in the Family category!

In case you are wondering what it feels like to become a New York Times Best Selling author, the answer is fantastic. In case you are wondering if life has changed in any perceptible way, I can tell you that so far I am still right here, deep in the throes of potty training, dish doing, and laundry folding.

This news comes at the perfect time for some of the other authors in the book because they are releasing its sequel I Still Just Want to Pee Alone this week. I did not submit an essay for the second book (unfortunately there was just too much life getting in the way for me to be able to make the deadline), but I’m thrilled for all of my friends and I wish them tons of success with the second edition!

These books do contain strong language and, much like motherhood, are not for the faint of heart. They also offer some of the most honest, insightful, and hilarious glimpses into the word of motherhood that you will ever find in one place. Plus they make great Mother’s Day gifts. Be sure to check them out!

Jumping Out of My Comfort Zone

March 25, 2015 By: Stephanie1 Comment

You know how some people have a Word of the Year that they like to use?

I’ve never done that before, but if I was going to start now I think I’d like to choose the word “stretch.”

I want to make this year the year that I challenge myself to live up to my potential. As a mom of young kids, I’ve spent the past 7 years buried under diapers and laundry and dishes. My kids are growing and getting a little bit more independent. I have a little bit more freedom now to focus on things I’ve wanted to do for a while.

One of the things I always wanted to do was learn how to sing. I don’t consider myself a very good singer. Like, at all. I’m also an introvert. I don’t love the idea of being “on” in front of other people.

But my husband is a musician and I partner with a full-time musician to help her write lyrics for her songs. It’s something I always wished I could do. I figured it would be a good idea to at least try to learn.

So a few months ago I started taking private singing lessons. The cool part for me was that I could do them over the computer in my own house after my kids went to bed. The cooler part was that I learned that I had a blog reader who was a voice teacher and she offered me some lessons.

Yes, I’ve been working with Rachel Morehouse taking virtual singing lessons.

Mostly just so that I can not sound like a dying cat while I’m doing this:

(Yeah, right. I wish I looked that cute and coordinated doing the dishes. In real life I can’t do the dishes without losing my kid.)

We do our lessons once a week in the evenings over a WebEx meeting.

I’m learning a lot more than I bargained for. Like music theory and chords and breathing exercises. Rachel is super knowledgeable and patient and kind. And this week she made me do a little bit of Pilates on camera for her so that I could engage my stomach muscles a little better. 😉

One of the reasons I never took lessons before is that I assumed they were going to be very expensive. Rachel’s lesson fees begin at $16 per half-hour lesson, plus the cost of music/materials. The only items needed to begin virtual voice lessons are a quiet space, a computer with a webcam and microphone, and a free download of the WebEx program Rachel uses for her video meetings. It doesn’t get much simpler than that!

Here’s a little bit more about Rachel from her professional biography:

Rachel Morehouse is the founder of and teacher at Rachel Marie Studio. Rachel grew up with music in her genes, being one of three children born into a family of traveling gospel singers. She began her early music education singing in church and around the piano at family reunions (“no joke, singing Christmas carols around the piano is an annual tradition…we were so Brady Bunch!”). As young as elementary school, Rachel’s love for teaching sprouted as she began teaching her friends how to have the confidence to sing in front of others in school talent shows. When she left for college, she decided to make music her career. Rachel earned a B.A. in Vocal Performance and Worship Music at Olivet Nazarene University in 2005. She studied voice under the tutelage of Dr. Neal Woodruff, who showed her how much more she was capable of, and introduced her to a love of Classical music. When she began RMS shortly after graduation, Rachel knew she wanted to teach others what she had learned (and continues to learn), but not in a classroom setting. She wanted to have personal relationships with her students where she could encourage them and help them grow their talent exponentially. In recent years, Rachel slowed down her performance appointments because she has two little ones running around, but you can find her at her newest engagement, singing to the toddlers at Lakeside Christian Church on Sunday mornings (“And boy, are they a fun audience!”). After 10 years and 3 states, Rachel is even more passionate about her call to help others achieve their musical dreams – from toddlers to seniors and everyone in between!

If you are interested in working with Rachel, you can visit her website or check out her Facebook page.

Because I received free lessons, this is considered a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Rachel Marie Studio. All opinions are my own.

Tea at The Front Porch Tea Room

March 24, 2015 By: Stephanie1 Comment

On Saturday the ladies from my church small group met at The Front Porch Tea Room, which happens to be ranked as the #1 tea room in the state of Pennsylvania and in the top 100 tea rooms in the country, and also happens to be right in our neck of the woods.

the front porch tea room york pa

It was freezing and snowy outside, but indoors the atmosphere was much more warm and cozy. I really liked this tea room because it is not as stuffy and concerned with being historically accurate inside as some of the other restaurants located in historical houses in our area are. The staff was friendly and fun. They offered us hats from their wall as soon as we came in (which we declined, but it was still a nice gesture) and The Front Porch immediately reminded me of a place my grandmother would have loved to meet her Red Hat Ladies.

hats at the front porch

It was more casual than I expected for a tea room, which also made me more comfortable because I’m just not a very fancy kind of girl. I did wear a dress and try to get in touch a little bit with my inner Downton Abbey, but I would have been just as comfortable in jeans. It was very much “come as you are and your aunties who you just met will feed you and make you feel loved.”

the front porch tea room dining

front porch sales display

chandy at the front porch

Although, to remind you that you were in fact at High Tea, there were fancy details like the chandeliers and ornate wallpaper (which Bonnie, the tea room’s owner, recently told the local paper that she found at Ollie’s Bargain Outlet) and of course our food was served on fine china.

tea time at the front porch

scones at the front porch tea room

Also, can we talk about these scones? Yum.

We were there for the gourmet breakfast, which included two types of scones with clotted cream, lemon curd, strawberry spread, two types of muffins, caramel french toast, a cheese and ham strata, fruit, orange juice, and as much tea as we could drink- all for less than twenty dollars.

Here are my friends Susan and Chrissy saying “cheers.”

And here are Lacey and I trying not to look cheesy. Try to pretend you don’t see all of my grey hairs. I named them all Nicholas. Except that one in front, that one is Eddie. (Kidding.) (Not really.)