Listen To Your Mother 2015

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A HUGE announcement was made yesterday! LTYM announced their 2015 season with 39 cities!

 

And the Twin Cities will be back again for our THIRD show! Watch for dates, sponsorship opportunities, and information on submissions soon! We cannot wait to read and share your words that continue to give Motherhood A Microphone!!

 

The talented and incredible women that we have met over the past two seasons leave me verklempt – and with friends for life as we continue to connect and inspire each other to write more and share more.

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And I couldn’t live without my partners in crime(and in production) Galit and Vikki. My sisters in this journey. May we one day bring LTYM to a beach in Costa Rica where we can enjoy margaritas and an outdoor venue and a motto of pura vida..and no worries of making anyone mac-n-cheese. Love these ladies.

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You must watch the 2015 LTYM announcement video – and watch for details about a show near you soon.

 

And in case you can’t wait to hear all of the new pieces read – well go back and watch 2014 and 2013. Grab some tissues.

 

Happy almost 2015!!!

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WIN Tickets! Listen To Your Mother Twin Cities Show #giveaway

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“We have a show!” We all exclaimed as our amazing cast left our first rehearsal. Putting the pieces and words together to express what motherhood is, is both scary and exhilarating.

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As we move closer to our second annual Listen To Your Mother Show in the Twin Cities – again I feel like we are surrounded by beauty. The words, the cast, the stories, and of course motherhood. No matter how hard motherhood is – there is always beauty through the tears.

 

We did not know what to expect last year – for our first show. Would people come? Would they love the words? Would they understand this important celebration?

 

Well the Twin Cities did what they do best – embrace this new show, these amazing stories, and they listened, cried and laughed with us. I was overwhelmed when the show was over at how many strangers came up to us with hugs and stories of their own.

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So we are humbled and happy to bring Listen To Your Mother back to the Twin Cities this year. With more stories of love, light and motherhood. The funny, the sad, the heartfelt and the unbelievable.

 

I hope you will join us again this year for our 2104 show.

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Listen To Your Mother Twin Cities is at 7pm on May 8th at the historic Riverview Theater.  You can buy tickets here. Find out more about our cast here. And find full show details here. One of the most important parts of any Listen To Your Mother Show is giving back to the community. So with every ticket you buy  – 10% of all ticket proceeds go directly to the Jeremiah Program. We would love to provide them with some amazing support this year.

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And this week we are giving away THREE pairs of tickets to our May 8th show – you can enter here and on Vikki and Galit’s blogs too for more chances to win! We would love for you to join us for an incredible evening.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

All photos courtesy of our amazing LTYM- Twin Cities photographer Glimpses Of Soul.

 

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Listen To Your Mother – Twin Cities 2014 – Call For Submissions

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Listen To Your Mother Twin Cities launched last year. We listened to stories from over a dozen women from the Twin Cities. Funny and heartfelt stories about their moms or about their own experiences as a mother.

(photo courtesy of Jen Liv Photography)

(photo courtesy of Jen Liv Photography)

We laughed and cried and nodded “Me too!” before a crowd of nearly 600 people at the Riverview Theatre in Minneapolis.

 

It was a magical way to celebrate motherhood and honor Mother’s Day.

 

And nearly eight months later their stories still resonate with me. And I can now call all of our readers my friends.  And I wish I could just listen to our amazing cast read again….but alas we cannot do that.

 

And since we have now announced that our 2nd annual Listen To Your Mother Show will happen in the Twin Cities on May 8,2014 – well, we need a new cast.

 

That’s where you come in. You don’t have to be a published author, experienced public speaker, have a blog, or even correct sentence structure all the time(shhhh…). You just need to have a story to share – about motherhood. Whether you are a mom, know a mom, have a mom, or hang out with moms – just share your story with us around the central theme of motherhood. Show us your funny or bring on the tears – we want to hear you.

 

And we are listening.

 

Click on the link for the details of how to submit your essay to Listen To Your Mother – Twin Cities. Submissions will be accepted until February 3rd.

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And if you don’t want to share your story with us(because everyone has at least one story to share), won’t you please join us at the Riverview on May 8th this year as we celebrate motherhood together. I promise that we’ll show you a good time.

 

Continuing following us at the Listen To Your Mother Twin Cities website for more information on auditions, cast, tickets and sponsorship information.

 

And we will see you in May!

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Listening To Your Mother – A Recap

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I think I’m depressed. You know that feeling of pouring your complete heart, soul, body and mind into something for many months…

 

..and then it happens. Which means it’s over.

 

And then you wonder what to do with yourself the next day. And the next. And the next.

 

When all you want to do is rewind to the week before that big thing and do it ALL AGAIN because it was such a beautiful labor of love and you just want it all back and for it never to end and you try to figure out how to bottle up all of the people who have now forever changed your life and put them in your pocket and carry them around next to your heart forever. But you realize that you cannot physically do that. So instead you just walk around in a daze for a week and ponder the meaning of life and maybe drive by their houses and start stalking them on Facebook because you just really really want to hug them again, but can’t because – WEIRD – to let them know you are stalking them.

I so love my partners in crime - Heather, Vikki and Galit.

So you just have to slap yourself across the face and wake the eff up and get on with your life and realize that you do have them close to you – because they shared their words with YOU and 500+ others and you will forever have those words to remember them by. Those words of motherhood – the babies, the pets, the children, the mothers, the jobs, the teens, the college students, the silly things and the sad.

 

All of the words of motherhood that connect us.

 

I still cannot believe we did it – made Listen To Your Mother – Twin Cities happen. But it did. And it was more than we could have ever hoped – from the submissions, the auditions, the talented cast, the sponsors, the cause, the theater, the community, the audience, our families, and just everything. It was honestly near perfect. Which really scared the absolute shit out of me.

Our cast received a standing ovation and hoots and hollers and hundreds of hugs after the show. Their stories and words touched hundreds of hearts – from kids to moms to dads to loves and strangers.

 

Everyone listened.

 

Even my kids. My kids were there. I told them they didn’t have to come – it would be boring for them – listening to moms read for 90 minutes – just stay home and watch Good Luck Charlie.

But they came. I didn’t see them after the show. They rushed home to get to bed from a very late evening for them. When I got home at nearly 1am, I went into their rooms and kissed their foreheads and tucked them back in as I listened to their steady breathing. The next morning they could not stop talking about the show. The listened and they remembered every reader, every story, every name and every subject. They had favorites and questions and could not stop talking about how much they loved the show. For the next three days they kept referencing the program to try to learn more about our cast and they spent time on their individual blogs to see their kids and learn more about their stories.

 

And they told me that we did a good job.

 

And could not wait to see it again next year.

 

Next year. Which means I cannot sit around being depressed and doing nothing for much longer. Because next year is going to be epic.

Our LTYM - Twin Cities Cast and Crew - Photo Credit - Jennifer Liv Photography

Now go listen to your mother.

 

Thank you Twin Cities for being so damn adorable.

 

**Linking up with The Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday – I love my dress from Poppy Togs and Clogs -  one of our LTYM Twin Cities sponsors.

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What I Could Be Doing

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It’s nearly 7am and I’m sitting on the edge of one couch while Astrid fitfully sleeps next to me. Thank god. I hold my coffee like it’s my only tie to the outside world as I delicately balance it in my cold hands as not to spill on her and to also find a place for it to rest on the small side table between the tissue box, the Motrin, my phone and the television remotes as I search around in the dark. Did I also mention that Eloise joined us on this couch a few hours ago because she is now throwing up? Details.

Astrid has been sick since Wednesday night. I haven’t left the house since -well until yesterday when we had to get to CVS for more tissues and Motrin and maybe a dark chocolate bar for me. Okay, and Starbucks is right next store to CVS so I grabbed some lifesaving supplies(read Grande Non-Fat Latte No Foam) and the cute young single people in there without kids noticeably kept their distance from the kid in my arms.

 

You know, because of the dried yellow and green snot below, on, and above her nose from the 2000 times we wiped it and then it’s like 400 below zero so it just kind of dries there and if you know kids – when you approach them with a wet washcloth they scream like it’s death so you just leave the snot because you are typically at home.

 

Until you are not.

 

And then you are one of those people holding a snotty-nosed kid. You know, the mom in her yoga pants and no make-up. I’ve also decided that no matter how awesome 44 is – 44 is still slightly scary without make-up and lack of sleep. Just ask my barista at the corner of Grand and Lex.

 

I remember being 28 and not wanting(nor admittedly really liking) kids and staying at least 100 yards away from any snotty-nosed kid because ewww. So, I tried to give these cute young people that all knowing looking and kind of pointed at Astrid in my arms and said “Right, gross huh?” but somehow they didn’t believe I was still in their club. I wanted to be their people.

 

I’m not sure what gave it away. This new club I belonged to? The non-fat? The no-foam? The sick kid in my arms that only I could think was still so beautiful at that moment? How I pulled out a medical card instead of my credit card and 2 tampons fell to the floor while doing that?

 

So I just took my coffee to go and put it into one of my 10 minivan cupholders and drove away for an afternoon of Doc McStuffins episodes, bleaching down furniture, but most importantly snotty-nosed kisses from my favorite three year old. Oh, and maybe some purse organization.

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If you have a kid who is NOT sick this week – here’s some fun things to do in the Twin Cities! I co-compiled an article with Galit Breen for Scary Mommy’s travel guide about all of the awesome things to do with kids here. It kind of makes you want to move here, doesn’t it.

 

Happy Weekend.

 

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Hallmark Recordable Storybook & Disney On Ice Giveaway #twincities

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You may have read my post last May where I documented the Five Stages Of Planning A Disney Vacation. You may have also noticed that we are not currently, have not been, nor are currently planning on vacationing at Disney because The Mouse did not make it into our budget this year.

 

So can I just say that thank goodness Disney travels around the country so we can get some Disney Magic close to home.

 

Hallmark is sponsoring the Disney On Ice tour that is currently visiting cities across the nation, including our city! Yay! So maybe it’s not a week at the Magic Kingdom but it is a fun few hours for my girls to get their princess fix, amiright? Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic will come to Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul for eight performances Dec. 6-9…and you can get in on the magic too….

 

Join the celebration as 65 of Disney’s unforgettable characters from 18 beloved stories come to life in Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic!  You’ll be captivated by the one and only Mickey Mouse, the irresistible Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio and all the Disney Princesses.  Be thrilled by exciting moments from The Lion King; Mulan; and Disney/Pixar’s Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, and Toy Story films; in a skating spectacular filled with magical Disney moments you’ll remember forever as Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic!

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