Review: All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa from OUTSIDE the autism parenting world

Writer Tawna Fenske wrote this review at The Debutante Ball today and I love it. All of my fellow Debs reviews have struck me in the unique message each has taken from the book. Tawna has captured what I'm wishing for the book - people outside the autism and parenting community will read and love the book. Check out Tawna's site HERE.

Thanks! KIM

Can I confess something? I didn’t expect to like Deb Kim’s book about raising three daughters with autism. I don’t have kids. I don’t know many people with kids, and I don’t tend to like books about kids. I do not know anyone personally impacted by autism. All the cards were stacked against this book when it came my turn to read. Yet I devoured it – seriously, DEVOURED it – in one sitting. This book is heartfelt. It’s honest. It’s not preachy or overly clinical.

But most importantly – at least in my eyes – this book is funny. Laugh out loud, fall on the floor, pee your pants FUNNY.

I write romantic comedy, so it’s probably no surprise to hear I like to laugh. But the true art in writing any sort of humor is the ability to find the funny in situations that most people think shouldn't be funny at all.

Kim covers topics from vaccinations to abortion to poop mishaps to unemployment to all the ups and downs of having three – count ‘em, THREE – daughters with autism, and she does it with grace, wit, and delightful humor.

I loved this book. I learned from this book. I laughed and cried all the way through this book.So if you’re one of those readers like me who looks at the title and thinks, “I’m not sure I’d like that,” allow me to say you’re probably wrong. I certainly was. And I’ve never laughed so hard about it.

Have you ever fallen in love with a book you didn’t expect to enjoy? Please share. And please go buy Deb Kim’s All I Can Handle; I’m No Mother Teresa: A Life Raising Three Daughters With Autism. I promise you won’t regret it.

All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa by Kim Stagliano Launches Today!

Thanks so much for your support.

www.kimstagliano.com for more info and to well, buy the book! Amazon, B&N, local retailer - your choice!

Autism Communication Shutdown Day

Out of respect and love for people with autism who struggle to communicate, I am participating in the Communication Shutdown Day today. No Facebook, no Twitter, no blogging. To participate, get the CHAPP (charity app) HERE.

See you tomorrow.

Join Kim Stagliano for a book launch party at the National Autism Association Conference!

All treat, no tricks! The good folks at NAA have graciously allowed me to borrow an hour in their jam packed National Autism Association Conference schedule for a book launch party for All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa.

Please join me for pink punch (alcohol and virgin) and hors d'oeuvres on the Sea Breeze Terrace at The Tradewinds Resort on Friday night, 11/12 from 5:30 - 6:30pm. A bookseller will be on premise and I'll be happy to sign book(s) for you during the event.

The event is between NAA sessions, so you won't miss a beat in the schedule. Please RSVP (we don't want to run out of drinks!) at FaceBook (HERE) if you can, or leave a comment on this post if you're not on FB.

I have other events posted at FB and on my website at www.kimstagliano.com.

Many of you have already read the book and the response has been amazing. Heck, even my parents are still talking to me! Check out the reviews at Amazon - and thanks to those of you who have left them. They are really important to an author.

If you have ordered the book and would like a signed bookplate, send me your receipt at KimStagliano@gmail.com and I'll be happy to mail you one, or two, or three!

The Age of Autism by Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill on the Barnes & Noble "Thought Provoking" Table

Did you hear that girlish scream coming out of the Barnes & Noble in Milford, CT? That was me as I spied The Age of Autism by my colleagues Dan Olmsted and Mark Blaxill on the "Thought Provoking" table. I also made a really interesting new friend there - former top exec of a major autism org. A charming man with an adult son. It's interesting how the planets and stars line up sometimes.

Congrats, Dan and Mark. And if you haven't bought the book, please ask your local retailer, go online or click HERE.

President Obama: Will You Stop the Autism Epidemic?


I made this sign last night at the Fairfield County Democratic HQ. The President is visiting Bridgeport this weekend to support Jim Himes, who has been very attentive to autism. President Obama has been catastrophic for people affected by severe autism. His admin has pushed mercury laden vaccines on Americans, appointed only one POV to a major National council, ignored the growing numbers. That said, John McCain has done nothing for us either - despite his milking the community during his campaign.

I hope President Obama will see the light - which is actually a whole lot of darkness.

SHUT DOWN FOR AUTISM!

November 1 is my book's launch day. I'm supposed to be all over FB, Twitter, you name it promoting promoting promoting. But I won't be. I'll be silent - out of respect for and to learn how it feels for so many people with AUTISM. Join me? Make a small donation and shut down for the day. My book sales will survive. I will survive. And people with autism will have a world with a bit more understanding.

Happy Anniversary, Mark!

Mark and I were married 19 years ago today. This excerpt seemed appropriate in an inappropriate way.

"I flounced into the grill room and saw Mark sitting at the bar. I grabbed his arm and said, "Come outside with me right now!" The guys at the bar looked aghast. We stood in front of the clubhouse, and I announced to Mark, "I spend all of my time with the kids. You're always here. I'm thirty eight years old and I AM LONELY! I don't love you anymore and I want a divorce. I was not using my indoor voice."

Kim Stagliano's GF Bisquick vs. GF King Arthur Flour Pancake Mix Showdown

This weekend I decided to test two new gluten free pancake mixes. Bisquick, from General Mills, the Betty Crocker people who launched several GF mixes under the BC name last year, and King Arthur Flour's new mix, which is also part of an extensive brand line of GF products. I made both mixes using So Delicious coconut milk, organic free range eggs and vegetable oil. Read on!

OK, I mixed the batters and noticed that the Bisquick is much thicker and lighter in color. The KAF is a darker color and thinner.
On the griddle - the Bisquick pancake puffed up and bubbled fairly quickly. It remained pale in color even when the center was cooked. The KAF pancake took a bit longer to cook and browned to a classic golden diner color.
On the plate - you can see that the Bisquick pancake (bottom of dish) is yellow golden while the KAF is golden brown.
Ah, cutting the pancakes open. The Bisquick pancake on left has an amazing melt in your mouth consistency. It's thick, fluffy and completely delicious - you would never know this is a GF pancake. It's fantastic. No off taste, no grittiness. Just a perfect pancake. The KAF on the right is a drop dead ringer for your favorite restaurant's pancakes. It's thin and super springy inside. No funky taste and no grit at all either. The KAF pancake was to die for in terms of taste.
On the plate you can see the color and thickness difference. Remember to use real maple syrup and never that fake corn syrup crap, OK? I like Mrs. Butterworth as an ad icon, but really, a good pancake requires real maple syrup. Sorry Aunt Jemima and Vermont Maid too.
Now for the differences in grading. We have two scrumptious pancakes so far. The KAF offers 15 ounces per box. It costs $6.95 for the box. The box is larger than the Bisquick box, which is misleading as it contains less product. The packaging is attractive - but they could save a lot of trees by scaling back the box size - and have more product on the shelf.
The Bisquick has 16 ounces per box. The box is smaller than the KAF box, despite the fact that it has an extra ounce of product in it. It costs $3.99 for the box at my local store but can cost as much $5.98. That's a pretty big price difference from the KAF, especially for an extra ounce of product. Both boxes are small - by the way - a trick of all GF products so you don't faint at the price.
So what are you paying for? Here's where KAF moves ahead of Bisquick in my mind - the ingredients. Bisquick uses rice flour (that's why the product is so pale) and modified potato starch (ix-nay on the odified-may) and worse, aluminum baking powder. Damn. I made the biscuit recipe and let me tell you, they are just delicious too - which bums me out completely since I hate using anything with aluminum baking powder. People who are GF are likely to be health conscious - so I suggest to General Mills (who I'm sure is listening to a lady in CT) to use another baking powder.
King Arthur Flour uses whole grain brown rice - a healthier choice than the plain rice flour found in Bisquick and a non aluminum baking powder. Their potato starch does not say modified. Three wins for our friends in Vermont.

RESULTS: Both mixes make outstanding gluten free pancakes.

The Bisquick wins for mouth feel in my opinion, because I love a fat, fluffy melt in your mouth pancake. Bisquick also wins for price and more environmental packaging. And the mix makes kick ass biscuits which has been a wonderful addition to our dinner table.

The Bisquick loses for quality of ingredients.

The King Arthur Flour wins for making a perfect diner style thin springy pancake and for its ingredients.

KAF loses on price and packaging. You can not make biscuits with the mix. I tried. Big time fail. I ended up with baked pancakes.

Buy the mix that makes your favorite style pancake and that meets your budget. I'll buy both from time to time. I'm am completely OVER mixing my own flours and hoping I don't get a gelatinous beany kids-won't-eat-it result.

Thank you to General Mills and King Arthur Flour alike for meeting a huge market need.

CODE If You Are Blogging Kim Stagliano's Book Launch

Hi - many of you have kindly offered to blog my book and/or run a contest or write about the book for your Yahoo group, website or local organization. I put the code for all of the verbiage and the cover art below into a link HERE. Blogger keeps turning it into HTML on me so I popped it into a post at AofA - easy for you to copy and paste into your HTML mode at your site or blog. I can't thank you enough. Feel free to tweak it and make it your own and use the parts you need or want.

Launch day is 11/1 (All Saint's Day ha ha!), so anytime during the first week on November would be really helpful. Email me at KimStagliano@gmail.com if you have any questions.

How one woman raises three daughters with autism, loses one at Disney World, stays married, has sex, bakes gluten-free, goes broke, and keeps her sense of humor. "Dr. Spock? Check. Penelope Ann Leach (remember her?)? Check. What to Expect When You’re Expecting? Check. I had a seven hundred dollar Bellini crib for God’s sake!"

...and so begins Kim Stagliano’s electrifying and hilarious memoir of her family’s journey raising three daughters with autism. In these stories, Stagliano has joined the ranks of David Sedaris and Augusten Burroughs with her amazing ability to lay everything on the table—from family, friends, and enemies to basement floods to birthdays to (possible) heroin addictions—eviscerating and celebrating the absurd. From her love of Howard Stern to her increasing activism in the autism community and exhaustive search for treatments that will help her daughters, she covers it all. Always outspoken, often touching, and sometimes heartbreaking, Kim Stagliano is a powerful new voice in comedic writing—her “Kimoir” (as she calls it) will be a must-read within the autism community and the literary world at large. 24 color photographs

BIO: Hi, I'm Kim Stagliano, wife, Mom, writer, tired. My husband and I have three gorgeous girls - who have autism. Kind of impossible, considering autism affects boys 4:1 over girls. Mark and I have learned that impossible is often inescapable though. My book is humorous look at a life that has been anything but ordinary or easy - and yet is full of laughter, joy and love. I promise, you won't need a Prozac to read it. :)

I'm available for Skype bookclub appearances and would love to learn about your story. Email me at kimstagliano@gmail.com. I'll be happy to send you a free signed bookplate to pop into your copy if you'll email me your receipt. Check out my website at Kim Stagliano for more info. Thanks!

I encourage you to support your local independent bookseller.

Amazon: Amazon

Barnes and Noble: Barnes and Noble

Borders: Border's

Brazil Celebrates Kim Stagliano's All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa

I'm going to hell, aren't I?

Kim Stagliano on CafeMom's The Stir: Halloween and Autism

Thanks to Julie Ryan Evans for asking me some questions about what's Halloween like when you have a child on the spectrum. Please pop over to her blog The Stir at CafeMom to leave your own suggestions and thoughts, won't you? The photo is a costume I made for Bella in Kindergarten. She was Leo the Late Bloomer whose first words are, "I made it!" Here's to hope friends, and lots of candy for Mom and Dad on Halloween! Thanks. KIM

By Julie Ryan Evans

Halloween can be frightening and hard to explain to any child. Talk of ghosts and witches, scary masks, and grave stones in the neighbor's yard can prompt plenty of nightmares.

For children with autism, however, it can be particularly challenging to celebrate the holiday with all the new rules (yes, you can actually knock on someone's door and ask for candy) and nuances it brings.

Kim Stagliano, author of the new book All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa, is the mother of three girls who have autism. I talked with her about her experiences with them and Halloween over the years and what other people can do to make the holiday a little less frightening and more enjoyable for children with autism and their families.

What challenges do children with autism face when it comes to Halloween?

Oh, where to begin? Well, Halloween is inherently abstract, and that can be difficult for some kids on the spectrum. It's hard to separate the illusion of costumes from reality. The concept of not going into a house after ringing the doorbell was tough too -- 364 days a year you go to a door, ring the bell, and walk in, and here you have this one night where everyone is out and yet you can't walk into the house? It confused my oldest daughter especially.

Any anecdotes or examples from your own family?

Read the full post and comment with your Halloween stories at The Stir at CafeMom.

When Life Was a Piece of Cake

Here's today's book excerpt as I countdown to launch day on 11/1. You can pre-order the book now (Choose your retailer here) or order on 11/1, which would be helpful as I sit glued to my Amazon rank for the day. You know I will. I know I will. Let's not pretend otherwise, shall we?

"We were living in Doylestown in the heart of beautiful Bucks County, and our life was comfortable and secure. I was now thirty-four years old with two pretty girls and a handsome husband who looked dapper as he left for work each morning. My girls had playdates, and I shopped in specialty stores that did not have the word "consignment" in their name."

The Road Less Traveled (For a Reason)

From my book, All I Can Handle I'm No Mother Teresa which debuts 11/1. I'm running a launch day count down with excerpts.

Pretty flowers," she said as I maneuvered the basket of flowers in the overhead bin... Were you in a wedding?" I nodded, "I got married on Saturday." The meddling matron looked horrified. Seat 7B was vacant. Where was my new husband? "Oh, honey,' she must have thought to herself. 'You two don't stand a chance..."

Countdown to my Book Launch

We're one month away from the debut of my book. Here's a secret, please don't tell anyone: I'm scared sh*tless about the reception I'll get. Every author expresses pre-launch jitters. But when you write fiction or someone else's story, at least you have a firewall to shelter you. With my book it's me, myself, I and my family standing on the front lines.

What. Was. I. Thinking?

I'm sure the clammy underarms, jitter-filled stomach and bug-eyed stare will subside (well, the eyes won't, I'm always looking like Marty Feldman's long lost niece) in time.

I'm going to run a super-brief excerpt throughout the countdown to launch day. In part for you, my bloggy buddies and hopefully folks who will buy the book. (Purchase info here.) In part for me, because death by a thousand excerpts is sure to make me feel better, right? Here goes:

"When I agreed to Marry Mark, little did I know that I'd shifted my life from Plan A to Plan X (as in X-Files) without having the slightest clue of how different my life would be compared to what I then considered normal."

Gearing Up For Blog City

I'm getting close to my launch date of 11/1. Scared you-know-whatless! I'll be blogging promotions and asking for your help too. In the meantime, I'm revving on the redline (listen to the song in this muscle car video) and still dreaming of my very own Camaro. So buy 100 books each, OK? I promise I'll give you a ride before I pull out all of the seats.

Love, KIM

Only Heart Could Cover Led Zeppelin Like This.

I've been looking for this YouTube for a long time. It's a gorgeous rendition. Girl power.

Peace World.

They're Baaaacccckkkkkk!

Remeber my post last Fall, "Williams-Sonoma, Are you Kidding With the $100 Cake?" Last Fall I made my own version of the ghost cake, mini sized - adorable, tiny, fun and about 90% less expensive. (See below.) I love W-S, but some of the prices? Oy vey!

My Fall catalogs are starting to arrive each day. I love looking at catalogs and buy most of our clothes, books, and even some of our food online. I haven't ordered on paper in years, or even by phone. But I still love to look at catalogs. Especially at bedtime. Not always so bright, since my favorites are laden with treats.

My favorite is Vermont Country Store which has so many retro and useful items. Although like most catalogs, the items are often extremely expensive. But who doesn't want to fork over some cash for a bottle of "Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific" shampoo?

So... Yesterday the Marie Antoinette of catalogs, Williams Sonoma arrived, laden with gorgeous Fall treats. Including three items near and dear to my heart. CAKES. Fondant covered, decorated cakes. Joy!

This darling pumpkin is 5.5 inches in diameter and 5'5 inches tall. In my world, that's an oversized cupcake. Go ahead, measure 5.5 inches (think of your last boyfriend, perhaps, it ain't much.) The cake costs $99 plus $16.50 to ship it! The copy says it feeds 8-10 people. Ha!! It wouldn' feed 8-10 toddlers.

Come on... We've all watched enough episodes of Ace of Cakes and Cake Boss (my favorite, the paisan from Jersey with his loud famiglia) to understand how labor intensive cake creation can be. Ace of Cakes starts at $1000 a cake. Cake Boss cakes run $12+ per slice. Worth every penny.

These three cakes Williams Sonoma are pretty simple. Extremely simple, actually. Look at the ghost - one piece of draped fondant with three cut outs on the face costs $89? The witches hat is $99. Teeth stains included with all that black fondant.

So, can anyone lend me $282.00?

Come Dance At The Debutante Ball Writer's Blog!

This week lauched the 2011 season for The Debutante Ball, a group ball for Debut authors. Please stop by and add us to your favorites. I am the Wednesday Debutante and look forward to seeing you there!

The Debutante Ball