AND now I write books!

I always thought of writting a children's book. Especially after I conquered child #1 and then, child #4.
I wondered about it and thought that this is pretty simple - life with my kids is like a reality show that never ends. And it's not even scripted! You can't make up the stuff that goes on here. The friends that have stayed with me and my family can testify to that. So why not give this a shot?

I never believed in being stuck on one thing or that you can only excel in one thing. But I love to write and I love to write creatively. I am working on a website for a television series that I co-wrote with a wonderful and long-time friend of mine, that is going to be big fun (update when the site is released). But this kids book thing is so clever and so chill, I had to do it.

The series is called "Arizona Paris" and is inspired by my daughter, Leotie (you know - the one who cried for a Prada bag on Rodeo Dr). She reminds me of a little Lucille Ball. Everything she does and says is magic. And she is always acurrate in her delivery. There is not a moment that goes by that does not include me shaking my head in amazement. She is the leader of the pack here when it comes to comic relief.

However, now that we are in the boonies of Arizona, the fun does not stop. She is bringing to life everything she has absorbed in Hollywood to our rural lifestyle. It is the most interesting thing ever to me because she defines country-chic. She brought Hollywood to Cochise county and mixed it with her love of horses and big imagination. Picture a 5 year old girl helping to shovel horse poop in patent leather shoes and fancy white gloves. This is my daughter and it is hilarious!

So I wrote the first story of an ongoing series. It is about our move from LA to Arizona in what would be from her perspective. I read it to the kids and they so got it. They laughed when they were supposed to and they enjoyed the story, so at least the target audience is locked down. And I am going to do the illustrations-yay!  When I read it to my husband he immediately wanted to be down and offered his artistic skills - which I would be honored to use. He is a fantastic artist.

So now another item on the list to cross off -

• Get the kids brand of shoes/apparel and accessories off the ground in 2011.
• Get the TV show picked up.
• Win the Kentucky Derby (3 years from now).
• Launch the women's wear line (dream #1).
• Have a successful writing career!
• Curate a museum exhibit. I am such a nerd and still on the Indiana Jones fantasy.

So now the next step is to send out queries and hopefully find an agent ;) Thank goodness I've got some great friends reading this and giving some valuable feedback.

This Diva is always on the grind to create what's hot and will let you all know how things progress!

tg

Diva's use large wok!

My son, Little Paw has been begging us to eat frog. He has also requested snail and monkey brain. In fact he has requested just about every kind of animal/insect you can think of that does NOT exist on your supermarket shopping list. But who could blame him? I mean how many frozen pizza rolls, french fries and cheeses sandwiches can he eat? And I have not done such a tremendi-oso job with dinner either - it's chicken or chicken! Well, I through in a steak every now and then.

So what's a Broke Diva to do? Chinese take-out? That costs us just under $50.00 to feed the brood. Pizza? We are not residing in NYC anymore so the watered down, doughy substitutes of the franchises are cheap, yes - but not desireable. And don't get me started on why we are not eating out every night at the nearest chic, L.A. restaurant. Where we live now, we spend  more money filling the tank than to get to the nearest place with food!  So when my inquisitive and daring little 6 year old started to actually cry over it - off we went to find "new, exciting and different foods!"

The husband got the address to Lee Lee's Oriental Market in Tucson and off we went on an adventure that turned into a history lesson of sorts as well. I found that the best way to feed the family and offer them something great to eat every night was to visit Asia. We walked into the largest supermarket in all of Arizona that catered to all of Asia - including the Middle East. We bought something from every region. We bought some spices, sauces, breads, jasmine rice, cat fish, weird fruit (that tasted as weird as they looked), whole octopus, large frog legs (yes, we did), lamb, goat (for curry), a variety of other stuff and did not skimp on the curry! We even invested in a REAL hand-hammered, gianormous wok. It's a bi-otch to "season" - but worth it. We had one from Target in storage - but this was serious cooking at only $16 bucks. All in all we spent just over $200 - that's 4 nights of Chinese take-out. And while in the store I schooled the kids on the Buddhas they were seeing all over the place and even took some of those free booklets - "Heart of a Buddha."

It has been about 3 weeks and we are STILL dipping into the spices and frozen dumplings. It was a great way to keep costs down - but to also introduce new foods to the kids. We love West Indian dishes and Asian dishes so this was a treat for the husband and I too cook the dishes we enjoy that the kids don't get a chance to eat. I mean where is the nearest West Indian restaurant in Arizona? As far as I am concerned - it's on Flatbush Ave, in Brooklyn! My girl, Candice would be proud.

And that octopus did take a minute to get tender - but was AWESOME! Little Paw was so ecstatic - he still is because we have not gone through our Asiatic food stash. This was luxury for the Broke Diva all the way out here in West Bubble... And I even started using our beautiful serving dishes at our vintage dinning table (found a great one on craigslist that can seat up to 8 people). The husband bought a very nice center piece with candles (we have NOT lit them yet). Leotie thought it was a very nice piece and good for " - kissing Daddy" - too much TV. The whole experience took us out of the living room and into the kitchen and saved us tons of money as a result.

I know that this is a  hood cliche that if you don't have money and you're hungry - go to the Chinese Food Spot. However this is slightly different because you are making the dishes yourself - but pretty much the same! I remember going to the Chinese Food Spot and bringing home my $3.00 chicken wings with fried rice and egg roll and eating from one of my mother's occasion dishes than out of the Styrofoam plate it came in. Always had to be fabulous in some way. When I got older I had it with white wine. Now I use my totally official wok from Taiwan and through down like my name was, Nadira Assam.

Anyway - a great idea to brush up on your culinary Diva-ness and stay sassy and classy with no dough!

tg