I've been offline for three days now. Always good during press week! My back went out on Wed morning at 8:05. I know because I was reaching up to help Boogie count how many minutes until the bus comes.

Suddenly lightning struck in my right hip and I couldn't move-not up or down. I was just stuck there, bent over in pain. Boogie was so worried. He was jumping left and right, pulling at my arm, “I’ll help you mommy.”

“No, don’t touch mommy. I can’t move.” So he ran around behind me and started to push. “Stop, no, no. Really don’t touch mommy.”

My mom was in the other room and came running in asking what was wrong—where is the pain? “It’s low, in my right cheek. If I move at all it bites me so bad.”

Boogie jumped around in front of me and rubbed my hand and his own face. “I know how that hurts mom. It hurts when I bite my cheeks too.” I started laughing maniacally from the combination of humor and pain, which of course made it hurt even more.

I've never had back pain, so I was in denial until Big Man came home at 5 p.m. and I still hadn't moved. Just to clear things up, I am proud of my enormous resistance to pain. Boogie was born naturally at 10 pounds, 8 ounces and I took no pain meds. None.

Big Man tried to help me and when I broke down crying because I could not move, he took me to the emergency room. They took one look and stocked me full of oxycotton. I've been floating in a pink cotton candy fog since. I went to a chiropractor yesterday (Boogie calls it the pyro-cracker). I'm feeling good enough to walk around now, appreciating the little things like pulling up my own underwear and resting in a sitting position. And I'm off the drugs. Those drugs are so naughty! My next big goal—socks!

When I was pregnant my Big Man was there for everything. I mean it—he never even missed an appointment with the OB. Now I can honestly say that we have truly shared everything.

The first trip was a …well, it was a trip. I was so nervous. This was something I’d obviously always done alone. The whole gyno thing is personal. I said, “You know they’re going to examine me, right? Stirrups and all.” He said he was prepared, so we made our first appointment.

Big Man hates being late for anything and his first visit to the OB/GYN was no exception. As I am always late, he grabbed my purse and began herding me towards the door. I got nearly to the car and then turned and ran back into the bathroom.

Worried about his pregnant wife and nervous about the whole thing, he hurried in to check on me. He pushed the bathroom door open to find me sitting on the counter over my pregnant belly with both feet in the sink, suddsed-up with bubbles to my ankles. “What are you doing?”

“I’m washing my feet!”

No response.

I huffed, exasperated, “When you put your feet up in those furry stirrup things, your feet are right there and I don’t want him to think I have stinky feet.”

No response.

“I told you. You just don’t understand.”

Funny pencil poking note: My daughter said that the class bully boy (the cute one coincidentally) picked on her in class the other day. She's a 3rd grader, placed in a 4th grade class. So he's an older man as well. She said she was so mad at him that she wanted to stab his hand with her pencil. She smiled, "Don't worry mom, I'd never actually do it. But it felt really good to sharpen my pencil."

Hmm. Concerned or proud?

Yes, it’s been said that I can be a bit crazy at times, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I literally have a big, black, wild hair growing out of my middle finger on my right hand. It only appears once every few months—three or four times a year.

Things will look all normal and then all the sudden—Bam! Black hair. And It saves up before making an appearance because it never starts small and grows. It shoots out like a bean stalk. I’ll be in a meeting some beautifully-manicured mom and look down to see it swaying in the breeze. Quickly I hide my hand. Sit on it or anthing. Where does this come from? I don’t remember it being there a few years ago. Is it age? Motherhood? Hormones?

I was finally brave enough to ask my friend about it. Rather than gasp at my Sasquatch hand, she admitted her own mystery hair. Hers was a belly-button hair.

I know…Ewwww! Kidding. It's not like us moms have enough to worry about with trying to maintain our good looks. From a new body, to the sleep-deprived bags beneath our eyes. Now this! What is the idea?

First off, I’d like to thank all the wonderful support of Umpqua MOM Magazine’s cover MOMS, contributors, advertisers, and readers. Since MOM Magazine’s launch in September 2008, I have heard nothing except for how much you all love the magazine in the Umpqua Valley area.

The Umpqua Valley area is very special to me. I grew up in Myrtle Creek , Oregon and graduated from South Umpqua High in 1993. I have many fond memories of growing up in the area. One of my favorite memories was going to the Roseburg drive-in movie theater on Friday nights with friends. It only cost $5 for a carload to get in to watch two movies. I swear sometimes we fit up to 10 people in my sister’s little brown Ford Pinto. Oh, those were the days.

Make decadent chocolates for your special valentine, and for yourself. Create simple, elegant balls or prepare fun shapes in chocolate molds. You can find molds for shapes like hearts and kisses at the local craft store. I'm not patient enough to wait, so I roll the filling into balls, coat in chocolate and then pop in the freezer to harden quickly.

Coconut mounds 1 cup coconut 1/2 cup light syrup melted chocolate Mix coconut and syrup until coated. Form into balls, dip in melted chocolate and set until hardened.

Peanut butter balls 1 cup peanut butter 1 cup Ritz crackers, crumbled 1 cup powdered sugar melted chocolate Use a rolling pin to crumble crackers in the sleeve. Mix with peanut butter and sugar. Form into balls, dip in melted chocolate and set until hardened.

This is the closest combination I’ve found to resemble Reeses brand candies. The crackers give the filling a bit of unexpected crunch that is addicting. I recommend refrigerating the filling until firm, making it easy to form into balls and dip. Better make a double batch - they don't last long!

MOM Magazine, January/February 2009. After great reviews from readers, we're sharing these recipes online too!