• Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Blessings,  Fun in Chicago,  I've Got Mad Skillz,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Proud Moments,  Shameless Promotion,  Something That Could Change Your Life

    Listen To Your Mother Chicago: Countdown To Showtime!

    May 6, 2012

    For the last nine days, Tracey and I have posted countdown pictures on Facebook. I think these pictures both excited and terrified our cast. Today is the big day. More than six months in the making, the very first LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER CHICAGO is finally making its debut, at 7:00 p.m. tonight to be specific. Where am I, mentally? So calm I can’t even express it. If you know me well, you know that “calm” is not a word I EVER use when I’m this heavily involved in a project. (Okay, or, uh, EVER. At all.) I know that I will be nervous as showtime approaches because I am…

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    Programming Note: #BBRadio

    April 18, 2012

    As one of the partners of Social RevUp, one of the things I do is tweet along with our weekly radio show, “Brands and Bloggers Radio”. The show goes out over the internet every Wednesday evening at 9 p.m. Central time and is hosted by Beth Rosen. Each week, Beth interviews three bloggers about things like how they got started blogging, what kinds of social media platforms they enjoy, and different aspects of working with brands. We have bloggers of all different levels on the show, and they blog about all kinds of different things, so it’s always very interesting. Plus, Beth is really, really, really good at what she…

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  • Chicken in the Car,  I've Got Mad Skillz,  Proud Moments,  Shameless Promotion

    The Little Author That Could

    January 24, 2012

    “How’s the book going?” It’s a question I get all the time from friends and family. While I appreciate their interest very, very much, I nearly always give the short answer: “Great! Thanks for asking!” The long answer is–frankly–really, really long, and I can’t just say half of it and expect the person I’m answering to fill in the blanks, so the short answer has to suffice under normal circumstances. Here is the long answer, though, in case you’re wondering: My book, considering it was published just last spring and I’m doing the bulk of the marketing for it myself, is doing pretty well for where I’m at on my…

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  • Proud Moments,  Shameless Promotion,  Something That Could Change Your Life

    Listen To Me: I Have An Announcement! (Then, Listen To Your Mother!)

    November 15, 2011

    I am beyond excited to FINALLY be able to talk about this online, after six days of knowing about it. Six days that seem like six years, that is! I, along with my friend Tracey of Just Another Mommy Blog, will be bringing the “Listen To Your Mother” show to Chicago in 2012! What IS the “Listen To Your Mother” show, you ask? It’s a showcase of local writers who read, for a live audience, one “performance” only, their words about motherhood. The first show, in Madison, Wisconsin on Mother’s Day in 2010 was conceived (get it?) and produced by Ann Imig, who is now the National Director. This year,…

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  • Blessings,  Chicken in the Car,  Fun in Chicago,  Proud Moments,  Shameless Promotion

    Chicken in the Car and the Car Won’t Go: Now Available in STORES!

    October 30, 2011

    Blurred reality. I was just informed that Barnes & Noble is placing an order for my book, Chicken in the Car and the Car Won’t Go: Nearly 200 Ways To Enjoy Chicagoland With Tweens and Teens and should have it on the shelves by the December holidays. This was one of my main goals for the book: to get it into a major bookseller’s stores. CHECK! So there you go. Though the order they are placing is not big enough to get copies into every store (Yet. Let’s stay positive, shall we?), you CAN go into your local B&N, no matter where it is, and special order a copy for…

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  • Shameless Promotion,  Spreading the Bloggie Love

    Social RevUp: Join Us!

    September 13, 2011

    Back in July, I attended the 2011 Brands and Bloggers Summit here in Chicago. It was a fantastic day of learning, and I enjoyed being in the same hotel ballroom as so many of my midwestern blogger friends. Well, I’m going to get all up close and personal with next year’s Brands and Bloggers Summit (July 21, 2012 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Chicago!), because of a new venture: I have partnered with Chicagonista’s MJ Tam and Healthier, Happier You Reviews‘ Dwana D. to launch Social RevUp! We’ll be producing custom-made events for the purpose of connecting bloggers with brands (and vice versa). The 2012 Brands and Bloggers Summit…

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    Would You Mind Helping Me With A Bit of Housekeeping?

    August 29, 2011

    I’m going to assume that if you decided to keep reading beyond my title, you have agreed to help me. Thank you, and don’t worry: blog housekeeping isn’t very difficult. It’s not like I’m asking you to dust my collectibles or deep-clean the carpets in my actual house. Number One: Favorite Posts List It has occurred to me that new readers of Suburban Scrawl as well as first-time visitors might appreciate a special page within the blog (and accessible via the menu bar at the top) called “Favorite Posts”, and I’d like your help in creating it. Obviously the idea is to come up with a list of posts that…

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  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Blessings,  Chicken in the Car,  Favorite Things,  Food,  Friends,  Fun in Chicago,  I've Got Mad Skillz,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Proud Moments,  Shameless Promotion,  Something That Could Change Your Life,  Spreading the Bloggie Love

    My Official Book Launch: An Epic Celebration of All Things Chicago

    May 26, 2011

    I don’t even know where to start when it comes to summarizing my book launch event that occurred in the city on Tuesday night. I would love to tell you about everything, but I don’t want this post to be a novel and so I have to skip the fine points on: ~ all of the ideas I tossed around in my head starting about two months ago as this event was conceptualized ~ the great conversations (and epiphanies) I had with the ladies of my “Event Advisory Board” (I made up that name but it’s perfect), made up of friends who have experience with the ins and outs of…

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    I Think My Older Book Might Be Jealous Of My Younger Book.

    April 7, 2011

    Most of you know I have been swamped with a truckload of tasks having to do with the impending publication of my new book*, which explains my recent posting slowdown (as well as my rapid heart rate, shaky hands, and increased scatterbrained-ness. And yes, I just made up that word). Most of you even know that this is not the first book I’ve published: it’s my second. My first book was published in the fall of 2007. While I promoted that book pretty heavily, because of its theme (pet loss) and tiny niche, it wasn’t easy to market. After a while, I had to let it simmer out there and…

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    Book Update: Where I’m At!

    February 12, 2011

    It’s been more than one month since I announced that my book will finally be published this year, so I thought I’d give you a quick update on where I’m at in the process. First, the cover. I don’t think I have mentioned it here on the blog, but my cover artist is someone I am extremely close to: he’s my son!! D, who is a graphic design major, created the front cover of the book. This is special to me for many reasons, as you can imagine. Besides the obvious, I love that my son designed this cover and my sister designed the cover of my first book: we’re…

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