We knew it was time to leave the city. However, I didn’t really think about the major changes that lied ahead of me.  Life was about to change DRAMATICALLY.

My old normal would disappear and I would have to succumb to a new normal, as Tracy Beckerman writes about her new memoir, Lost in Suburbia. In a nutshell, she got pregnant, lost herself and got her cool …and she lived to talk about it!  Funnily, enough, that’s part of her book’s tag line.

I found it very comforting to read about another female feeling aimless after having children. Her identity was thrown up to the gods, too. Right when Tracy quit her job to stay home  and figure that part of my life out, she got pregnant with child #2: “All I really needed to do to get pregnant was throw my underwear in a drawer with my husband’s.” Reading this book took me back to the painful days of joining a playgroup, getting stopped by a cop  at 39 weeks pregnant (Tracy wasn’t pregnant, but she was wearing a very funny ducky robe when she was stopped), battling the unexpected weight gain, purchasing the unsexy minivan and discovering the need for something in life to take care of other than the kids.  Tracy is a dynamo and she took her identity crisis head on – seeing a therapist, getting a dog and realizing that her ties with her young kids was fleeting and not wanting to miss anything. But this is a “what about me?” book and it’s refreshing.

The fact that Tracy started writing about her everyday life and made a success of it is one thing. The fact that she writes as honestly and realistically as she does is another.  What a memory for details (although I suspect she took very good notes). She’s no liar and she tells a good story. She just wanted to find herself again, after being buried under dishes and laundry for so many years and hoped to find a more balanced existence. This book is a testament to her journey and the path that she took to get there and I salute her.

If you’re looking for an honest look at motherhood and want to be reminded that you are not in this alone, pick up a copy of this book. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll nod your head and you’ll remember that these trials and tribulations are all of ours.

Disclosure: I am working on the Lost in Suburbia Book Tour, but all opinions expressed are truly my own.

Join the first Culture Mom Media Twitter Party to talk about taking the cool back with Tracy Beckerman, author of the new book LOST IN SUBURBIA, A Memoir  this Tuesday night, April 2nd, from 9-10pm EST!

“When you’re a mom, you get a ‘Get Out of Fat Jail Free’ card for as long as you have young kids. Whenever you feel fat, you can tell someone you still haven’t lost ‘the baby weight,’ and they will nod in understanding. It’s like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Fat Pants. We all wear Fat Pants, otherwise known as Mom Jeans, after the baby is born because they are all we can get over our Post-Baby Bellies.” – Tracy Beckerman, Lost in Suburbia: A Momoir

In her “momoir” titled Lost in Suburbia A Momior, How I got Pregnant, Lost Myself and Got My Cool Back in the New Jersey Suburbs, Tracy Beckerman takes her readers on a humorous ride as she recounts settling into her new role as a stay-at-home mom in the suburbs, grappling with self-identity issues, and rediscovering her passions in life. Can you relate? Did you leave work to stay home with the kids? Then, did you feel like you lost a part of who you are or have an identity crisis? And, how did you deal with it? How did you get your groove back? Or, are you still trying?

With heartfelt candidness and an irreverent sense of humor, Lost in Suburbia: A Momoir, tells the tales of one woman striving to reinvent her life after motherhood. From losing all interest in her once stylish wardrobe, making reluctant friends with the minivan-obsessed, scrunchie-wearing, suburban moms, and partying just a bit too hard her first weekend away from the kids, Tracy divulges her relatable, funny and heartwarming missteps in parenting and daily life.

Sound too relatable to be true? Come compare notes with Tracy herself. Also joining us are Lost in Suburbia team members Dress for Success and sponsor SpaFinder.

We’ll be giving away copies of Lost in Suburbia every ten minutes, and the grand prize is a $150 SpaFinder Wellness Gift Card that can be used at over 20,000 spas, yoga, Pilates or fitness studios and more around the world.  Get ready to feel good!

RSVP here.