[Celebrating their 8th birthday last year]

As May 10, of yet another year, comes into focus, I can feel the excitement and curiosity surrounding me as I busily put the perfect finishing birthday touches on each and every detail, preparing for the big day -- this year, my sextuplets turn NINE years old!! It's so very hard to believe!

Recently, I wrote about the joy that our family pets add to our lives, how they teach my kids responsibility and love us all unconditionally. Today, I'm sad to report, we have experienced a first in our family: the death of one of our pets. Our favorite fish friend, Fabio, who we all loved as much as you can love a fish, passed away, from natural causes ... (?)

I had written my blog post this week immediately after the tragedy that occurred in Boston. A few days later, I am glued to my TV, watching as a standoff surrounding the second suspect is being televised live. All I can think about is how long and harrowing this week has been for Boston and our entire country. My heart goes out to everyone involved, and I'm praying for the safety of our law enforcement and innocent bystanders.

My thoughts are in Boston. I know I'm far from alone in this. As a runner myself, the tragedy on Monday hit way too close to home. I, like everyone else, am left with many questions and also many things to be angry about following this latest senseless tragedy.

The making of the cover of my new book, Love Is in the Mix, was quite an experience! I always get really nervous about photo shoots because I know that it takes a lot of energy and preparation. It's also always a long day for everyone involved in the planning and organization -- and there is that hope that we can manage to pull off ONE magical picture, and if we are lucky, a bunch more that capture the day exactly right -- so we have more than just the "cover shot" image. For this shoot I had a vision of what I wanted for the cover of my long dreamed of cookbook, but I knew carrying it out would take a lot MORE effort than what I saw in my mind's eye.

I'm not embarrassed to admit that I've seen more than a few episodes of Celebrity Wife Swap and have enjoyed the show, immensely. Usually they're with "celebrities" you've hardly heard of like some pro wrestlers and Antonio Sabato Jr., but ABC just announced the two stars that will kick off a new season of the reality show, and not only have you heard of these women, you also have strong opinions about them, making the potential for the show all the more entertaining. On February 26, Kate Gosselin will switch lives with Kendra Wilkinson. I know.

Bam! That's the sound of the door that was slammed firmly shut behind Kate Gosselin as CouponCabin fired her today from her job as a blogger for the site. She started the job 11 months ago, and we had such high hopes for her in this role. Then today, with no warning, the gig was up.

On the site where her blog normally appears is a letter from Scott Kluth, founder and CEO of the company. In it he informs readers of the decision to "discontinue Ms. Gosselin's feature blog."  He say her contributions have garnered both positive attention and criticism but her run is over. As for why she got the axe, he gets a little cagey.

It's pretty hard to deny that with every passing year, she gets better and more youthful looking, and that's why I couldn't wait to hear all about Kate Gosselin's secret to looking younger. Yep -- she's finally spilled the beans on exactly how she manages to look like a million bucks despite trying to keep up with eight kids, and her method to reversing the aging process actually sounds pretty simple.

Kate says, "I am probably one of the rare few who de-age."

"De-aging," huh? That's absolutely genius, and it's a wonder that more moms haven't thought of that by now!

After recently seeing a photo of a seemingly angry Kate Gosselin holding her daughter's shoulders, I didn't want to judge even though the caption claimed she was berating her child. I've been in that exact pose before, firmly talking to my little one after she ran into the street. I've also had moments -- moments I'm not proud of -- where I've lost my cool and yelled a little too loud over something minor. I'm human. I apologize. I learn from it. Birthing six babies at once does make Kate seem superhuman, but she's a mom who makes mistakes just like the rest of us.

There are, however, some claims that Kate repeatedly used a wooden spoon to hit her then-2-year-olds when they got into the candy, didn't use the potty, or climbed out the crib. When we as parents find ourselves in moments like this -- repeating a pattern that we don't want to repeat -- shouldn't that be a sign that we, not our kids, need a time-out?