Thanks!

Okay, folks.  I'd like to take a moment to say, Thank you.  Really, really, truly, THANK YOU.  I looked at my blog stats this morning, and they said this:

Note:  This is all-time stats, not just from today.

 For someone like me--a busy mom who's unsure anyone is listening--for someone who isn't sure what she says is worth reading, who posts sporadically and nonsensically, who sometimes thinks no one would notice if the words stopped--this is incredible.  People read what I write.  People from other countries, even.

This is a Big Deal for me.  An author is nothing without her audience.  To know that people out there find my posts worth their five or ten minutes of time, time that I know could be spent in more entertaining ways, is astounding.

May I ask a favor?  If you read this, please let me know you did, even if you just say, "Hi," or, "I read this."  I would love that.  In return, I'll give you this incredibly cute and random picture of my kids drinking from a public splash park.

That's right; instead of stopping them, I took a picture.

 And this one of me, that I snapped right now.

I'm supposed to look contemplative and brooding.  I think I just look like I have intestinal discomfort.  Oh well.