Are you squeezed in the Middle Ages?

Phil Callaway has written the perfect book for our current times. Family Squeeze - Tales of Hope and Hilarity for a Sandwiched Generation offers a humorous look at family life as many of us now know it. And it gives us a perfect theme for this week's entries!

From the back cover:

You've been warned about middle-age spread. But no one told you about the Squeeze.

You're in the "Middle Ages" - sandwiched between the "greatest generation" and the "gimme" generations, busily juggling both with no relief in sight. Children are driving, and parents are not. Money is tight and so are your favorite jeans. And things that never ached before are beginning to give you trouble! For every baby boomer who wonders if it's possible to navigate the Middle Ages with grace and style, Phil Callaway offers plenty of hope and a little hilarity too. Because there's nothing like a smile to make wrinkles less noticeable.

The author of Who Put My Life on Fast Forward? and Laughing Matters offers this lighthearted look at the challenges of the middle years - and promises that while we can't slow down the aging process, we can ease the worries it brings by focusing on what really matters most.

About the Author:

Described as "Dave Barry with a message," author, speaker, and television host Phil Callaway has written twenty books, many of them bestsellers. He is a popular speaker at conferences, camps, and marriage retreats - coaxing laughter and tears from audiences worldwide. Of his personal accomplishments, he rates the following highest: shutting off the TV to listen to his children's questions (twice), taking out the garbage without being told (once), and convincing his high-school sweetheart Ramona to marry him (once.)

You'll start laughing the moment you read some of the chapter titles:

• Shotgun Memories
• The Teenagers are Coming
• Baloney Detectors
• Eight Simple Rules for Dating My Son
• I Proposed in a Chain Letter
• How's Your Stuffometer?
• My Shark Hunter
• Bumper Cars and Harpoons
• and more!

I was recently having an e-mail discussion with one of my friends about the next generation. The opening of Phil's Chapter 14 rang true to our conversation:

Have you ever wondered if there's hope for the next generation? I certainly have. They've got more earrings than brain cells. They're confused. They don't know which way to point their hats or how high to pull their pants. They have problems with their eyesight. They can't find a thing o eat in a fridge full of food nor a thing to wear in a closet full of clothes. They're glued to their cell phones - when they're not chatting online in brief, meaningless sentences.

Family Squeeze is a great book - you'll want to get a copy to promote laughter on your most stressful days!!

Now, for the contest.

We want FUNNY. We want FAMILY. Submit your most humorous family story - it can be real, or imagined - as long as you let us know which one! Limit your entries to 2000 words or less, and submit to me at tracyruckman[at]gmail[dot]com by Friday, midnight.

With each entry, you'll be entered to win a HUGE box of books at the end of July. Right now, the book count is at 18, and it will continue to grow. These are new books, some hardcover, some softcover, fiction, and non-fiction. Most are trade paperbacks (the larger ones) or hardbacks. There are three mass market (smaller) paperbacks. Current authors, many bestsellers, include Goyer, Moser, Baaert, Liparulo, Daley, Raney, Dooley, Arterburn, Sweet, Hake, and MORE!