I’m writing this post with the assumption you know who Ree, The Pioneer Woman is. If you don’t, this is something you must change. With photography, cooking, lifestyle, homeschooling, and home/garden sections updated daily on her site there’s sure to be something that piques your interest and keeps you reading like I do. I’m a better photographer because of the posts on her site.

Once The Pioneer Woman held a comment contest on her blog that would choose a few lucky readers who would be provided her home address and a chance to experience ranch life and some of Ree’s fabulous home cooking. I wasn’t one of the lucky ones chosen to visit the ranch, but I was provided a second chance to meet The Pioneer Woman this week when she visited a Dallas Borders to sign copies of her new cookbook. I love the format she chose to write this book in, although I’m sure all kinds of publishers balked at her proposal. Each recipe not only has step-by-step instructions, but photos accompanying each step! I think I starred almost every recipe in the book as a “must-make”, mostly because of her love of butter. I love butter as well. And cream. And meat. If you love those things too, you will love this coobook.

7:30 pm, Tuesday December 1st

I arrive at the strip mall where Borders is located. Every spot is taken and so I choose to park in a dark alley behind the mall and walk through the pouring rain to get there. The store is packed and I don’t see any copies of her book. I go pick up a magazine I need and head to the counter to ask if they have any cookbooks left. I get 3rd to last one in the store (no joke!). None in back, none on the shelves, no more copies to be found behind the counter. What would I have done if they were out? I was issued a wristband in the color gray, which just so happened to be the last color to be called. I knew it was going to be a long night.

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8:39 pm

I sneak around back to see Ree and her two kids signing away.

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Aren’t her daughters cute? I cannot imagine what this must be like for them, to watch your mother being giggled over by hundreds of people in cities across the United States.

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There were people everywhere. And lots of dSLRs.

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I’m not really sure why these people are waiting here since this isn’t where the blue line is located. All blue lines lead to Pioneer Woman at this particular Borders.

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9:16 pm

I went and got some frozen yogurt at I Heart Yogurt. I walked back over to Borders, but I didn’t’ see any point in getting in line yet so I wandered back over to check on Ree. Still smiling, accepting gifts, cooing over babies, and acting like signing books for

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9:35 pm

I decided to sit down and send out a few tweets and answer a few emails from my phone. Then I went through the cookbook and marked all of the recipes I want to make. This made me hungry so I decided to go get something to eat, and ended up at Pizza by Marco. I ate an 8″ bruschetta on whole wheat crust and it was beyond delicioso.

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11:07 pm

I still haven’t joined the line yet, as I don’t see any point in standing for that amount of time when I’m going to be near the end anyway. The lady in the gray sweater decided she wasn’t going to make up and asked her friend to take a photo of her with Ree in the background just to prove she was there. This was not good enough for me, I wanted a real-life encounter with the oh-so-fabulous Ree to add to my memory book (aka my blog).

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5 hours in and Ree is looking as chipper as ever. Taking her time with each person, signing each book with a personalization in big swoopy handwriting.

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1:01 AM

I’m in a line of never-ending bookcases. The aisles are lined with step-stools and chairs that have been collected by sore footed fans over the last 6 hours. I decide to start reading a book (I’m in a bookstore after all) and choose Ella Enchanted. I’m hooked from page 1 and spend little time socializing with the people around me. Time goes by much faster this way.

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2:32 AM

We round the corner and there she is!

Oh crap, Ella is at the ball, she’s dancing with the prince and the clock is going to strike midnight soon. Will she lose her glass slipper? Will her step-sisters prevent her from finding true love with Char? Will they slide down banisters together yet again?

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2:35 AM

I’ll never know the answers to these questions as it’s time to put the book away (I left it out of place on some science shelf, sorry Borders staff I was flustered about my impending meeting with my favorite blogger).

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2:37 AM

Pioneer Woman: Well hello, thank you for coming.

That Wife: Hi Ree. (Giggles like an idiot)

Pioneer Woman: I like your scarf.

That Wife: (Giggles like an idiot)

My new line friend who offered to take a picture with my camera: Over here!

That Wife: (Giggles like an idiot)

Pioneer Woman: I’m so glad you were able to take that photo from above, in Arizona they had me up on this platform and I cringed every time someone took my photo from an upward angle!

That Wife: Thanks for sticking around so long Ree.(Giggles like an idiot)

Not quite the impression I wanted to make, but she liked my scarf, and I got my signature and photo, and an adventure to blog about to boot.

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I didn’t know it until I got there, but they were giving out free t-shirts as well!

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Looks good with my intermediate belly bump, don’t you think?

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She only has a few appearances left, but here are a few tips for those in the cities she has left to visit. I make these suggestions based on my own experience at Borders:

1. Search online for a coupon to the bookstore you are going to visit and purchase a copy of her book from. The day after I bought mind someone tweeted about a 30% off coupon at Borders that I could have used.

2. Arrive early and get a good color wristband, not gray, the last color to be called.

3. Then go get something to eat. I recommend Pizza by Marco’s but I don’t think that’s an option for the other cities.

4. Snag a stool/chair and drag it along with you in line.

5. Grab a book off the shelves and make the time go faster by becoming engrossed in a totally different world. Ella Enchanted was a good choice for me.

6. Dream up what you want Ree to personalize your book with before you are at the end of the line. Otherwise you’ll feel put on the spot and will just blurt out your name because you can’t think of anything clever. I wish I would have been clever.

7. Don’t giggle like an idiot at everything Ree says. You’ll probably regret it later.

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