Chapter 1. Our story begins with a bang. I never would have thought to write a novel before, but in 2011 I got a dream job that allowed me to escape the day job. While freelancing it dawned on me that the time was right to do it. To be honest, I don't think I can work in the "real world" anymore, but if I'm happy I can write about it. So here I am. I'm married to Paul, a successful graphic designer. We met in a New Years class a few years ago and we've been together ever since. We have a little boy and a little girl. They are my world. We don't let them go to daycare, because when they come home from school they want to crawl up in bed and fall asleep with me. I love my job, and I couldn't imagine not having it. But I also love being a stay-at-home mom. I also love my family and the simple joys of living in the same town and neighborhood for 30 years. In June 2012 I received a phone call from a friend that changed my life. "You know this website?" she asked. "Well, my nephew is an actor, and he posted his resume online and we're casting his movie in November. We have a couple of lead parts and he would like you to play the lead," she explained. So I called my husband and excitedly told him about my new job. "I'm going to be a movie star," I gleefully shouted. We discussed the financial aspects of the job and the role I would play. He made me promise not to accept the part if it conflicted with the responsibilities of my job. It was a couple of weeks before that I met a producer and one of the movie's costume designers. They were showing me the script and as I read it I realized that I could play a character that was just like myself. "We don't really want the same character. You're like me and he's like Paul," they told me. "It's very hard to create an entirely new character." I didn't agree with them at all. I didn't want a different person to play me. So I told them that I would do the part. A few days later we had a phone call at 4am. The director called and asked me to meet him for breakfast. We went to a new Mexican restaurant and he told me that he needed to change my character. She wasn't married to Paul, she wasn't his ex, she didn't have kids, she was just a young mother and not a grandmother. I kept telling him that I thought it was my job to play her and it was his job to write her. "No, she has to be stronger. She has to be a fighter. She has to be stronger than that guy," he argued. So he spent the entire day with me. I went home and looked it up on IMDB. She was only a character in the film. I played her, and he played her husband. I think he felt a lot of pressure as this was his first film, and he wanted everything to be perfect. So he made changes to my character. I thought this was a great movie and a great role for me. After all, it was me in a different movie. In real life, there is not much of a difference. Chapter 2. My son has started school and my daughter has joined soccer practice. My work days are from 9 to 6, Monday through Friday. I have no real responsibilities at home except that I have to keep track of the girls' after school activities. On the weekends I'm my own boss. I decide what to do when, where, when and how. I spend all my time with the girls, and sometimes I get to watch my husband play football. I keep working, because I love it. As much as I love my job, I don't think I'm cut out to be a full-time stay-at-home mom. I can't keep track of the kids every second of the day, I can't make dinner every night. If I get a decent sale, I can take the girls to the zoo or to a park. It doesn't bother me much when the girls go out with their friends. I do everything in my power to make sure they are happy and safe. We are doing just fine in that regard. They are both well-rounded and independent