Monday, July 31, 2017

Quote of the Week



Sometimes you will never know
 the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
--Dr. Suess

Monday, July 24, 2017

Saturday, July 22, 2017

My Fall Bucket List

Hi guys!

The weather here in Texas is HOT!
The high today was 103℉.  ðŸŒž

Harvesting has started. The maize (sorghum) is being harvested and it's playing havoc with my allergies. It looks like the corn fields are ready to be harvested.

I don't know about you, but I'm so ready for fall and cooler weather. And that gets me to thinking about the things I want to do in the fall.

So here's my Fall Bucket List...

Drink pumpkin spice coffee.
I love pumpkin spice coffee. It's a treat to go to a coffee shop and order one when they start serving it. This year, I really need to find a recipe so I can make it at home.

Wear sweaters.
I love sweaters and flannel shirts. I tend to buy the long or over-sized sweaters, and I have no problem buying them out of the men's section.

Sit around the fire pit.
We actually cook on our fire pit. On cool nights, its nice to be able to sit around it.

Open windows and not need the air conditioner.
Cool fall days is the first chance after summer to open windows and air out the house, or our fifties military housing that we are currently living in.

Make fall recipes.
Stews, chicken and dumplings, casseroles. I use the crock pot a lot for stews. It's nice to come home from the day job and open the door to the wonderful smell of a beef stew with a loaf of warm, buttered bread on the side. An easy dish for fall and winter.

Burn fall scented candles. 
I've actually have a couple of fall candles that I'm using up. I went a little crazy last fall and bought a bunch of fall scented candles. So throughout summer, I've had that teasing scent of fall in the house.

Cuddle up under soft blankets.
Normally the soft, cuddly blankets don't come out until fall. Yes, I said normally. Since I've started having cold flashes, the soft blankets are on the bed and in the living room. So I'm already cuddling up with them. The fur babies love them too.


Monday, July 17, 2017

Quote of the Week


Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.
--Confuscious


Friday, July 14, 2017

Random Thoughts: Updates

Today I thought I would give you some updates on some of the things that have been going on in my life. So here they are...


Swimming

I'm still taking some swimming lessons, though they will be coming to an end when I run out of sessions. I did take about a month off from swimming and my aquatics class so that the sockets from the wisdom teeth extraction could heal. I didn't have any stitches. I was probably a little too paranoid about anything getting into the sockets.

I'm still having trouble floating face down. I've made some small steps, but it is something I need to work on. I am definitely more comfortable in the water than I used to be. Using a kickboard and short fins, I do laps in the pool and really enjoy it. When I first started, I wasn't able to even do that.

Even after my lessons end, I will still be in the aquatics class and doing the laps.




The Office

Several months ago, I told you that we had to cover the ceiling with plastic because the powers that be decided the roof of the unit we're renting had to be replace. As a result, a lot of things had to be moved, and things were piled onto of stuff. I couldn't even see the top of my desk.


The plastic came down and some things were moved, but I could only see a small portion of my desk.  Sorting stuff was moved down on the priority list.

I can now use my office like I should. It is not perfect. I have sorted and tossed some stuff, but I have more that I need to go through as you can see from the piles. The room is smaller than what I had in the house we sold, but I'm making it work.

Yes, I have a Barbie collection. What you see is not all of them. There are more behind the ones you can see.

Stuffed animals are scattered around the shelves.

You can see the piles I still need to work on and reduce even more. I haven't put anything up on the walls. The main wall is the one you see below. The wall to the left has a closet and behind me is a wall of windows. The closet is full of boxes and more boxes are piled under the windows by the closet.



DH bought the desk unit for me a couple of years ago. He found one of the market listings he looks at. It is used, but the desk is large enough to spread notes out and have the laptop going too.

The desk chair likes to go down on its own. Any ideas how to fix it so that it will stay up? It's annoying to be typing and suddenly start sinking until the chair can't go down any more.



New Story and Writing Stuff

Forrest's story is coming along. I've set myself up a due date for the complete draft and I'm working to get it finished by that date.

The past year and a half life has thrown a lot at me that I was expecting or ready for. Selling the house and moving were life changing, but DH's new heart issues was the biggest curve ball and later this year the cardiologist may have place more stents.

I'm not ready to set any dates for publication other than general time frames. I have to see if I can keep the writing pace along with the day job.

I'm working on outlines too. The outline for Phoenix is almost finished.

I'm staying busy. My "To Do" lists are long and stuff does get carried over to the next day. Some of the things on the list are actually my goals for the month. Keeping them in front of me is the best way I could think of to get them done.



Monday, July 10, 2017

Quote of the Week


As my father used to tell me, 
the only true sign of success in life
 is being able to do for a living that which makes you happy.
--Al Yankovic

Friday, July 7, 2017

Random Thoughts: Changes and Other Things

Change is inevitable. Sometimes it happens even when we don't want it to happen. And sometimes it happens because we need it to happen.

Personal Changes
The last two months, DH was going back and forth with his cardiologist. One of the tests revealed his heart was functioning below normal levels. It was functioning on such a low level that his cardiologist told him no exercise of any kind and definitely no lifting or other such activities until they could figure out what was going on with DH's heart. The cardiologist was worried that DH could have a heart attack at any time. Long story short...DH went into the cath lab and ended up with two more stents to open up arteries/veins that had collapsed. We then had to go back for another test. The good news is that his heart is once again functioning at a normal rate for his heart.

As a result, diet, exercise, the push to lose more weight, as well as making more us time has changed. Neither of us knows what the future holds, but we do know that we don't have the time that we thought we had together, so we have to make the most of what we do have.


Blog Changes
I've made some changes to the blog. Hopefully they are changes for the better and will make it easier for you to navigate the site.
I've thought about changing the color, but I'm having trouble picking. Black seems to be my 'go to' color, but some may think it's too macabre, but then Halloween is one of my favorite holidays.

Writing Changes
Since Surviving Ivy came out, I've been working on outlines. I have three complete which are for the Durant Brothers series. It will be a three book series and it takes place two years after Surviving Ivy. I've just started writing the first book and this morning finished the first chapter. I've updated the Current Projects section with a place holder cover and a tidbit of information. Sometime in August, I will have a cover reveal and more information about the book.

I'm almost finished with the outline for Phoenix which is book 2 in the Brimstone Heat series. My goal is to finish the outline this weekend.

I need to start a new ideas book. I've thought about taking my Happy Planner (classic) and turn it into an ideas book but I also have a lot of composition books (non-spiral) that I need to use.  Almost all of them have pretty designs on the covers. (I have a slight office/school supply addiction.) I use a disc-bound notebook for my current projects and other material and love being able to easily move things around. Decisions. Decisions.

My office is still a disaster area. I've decided that some how I need to purge the stuff I have again. I did this when we sold the house and manage to cut the stuff I had in my office in half. Now, as I look at everything I still have, I realize I need to do another purge.


Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Backlist Blitz: Joy's Forever


Joy's Forever
Bryant Station Curves series
Book 7


Joy Anderson is different from the other shifters in Bryant Station. She and her cave bear have died and been reborn more times than she can count.  In each life, she has longed for her mate and a family, but lies and her insecurities have kept her running from her mate.

There is only one woman Theo Willis wants and that woman is Joy Anderson. She is his mate, but she has been running from him for centuries and he doesn’t know why. 


They need each other, but will that need be enough to bring them together? Will they be able to discover who is behind the lies that has kept them apart?







Available at:


Excerpt:

Joy stared at Theo. Hunger and need swept through her. Over the years she had gotten really good at avoiding him because she couldn’t handle the thought of him not wanting her the way she wanted him, but since he had taken up residence in Bryant Station, she hadn’t been so lucky. Every time she turned around, Theo was there. She told herself to just ignore him because he had made a family with someone else, but her body refused to listen. Her heartbeat sped up until she thought it would pound its way out of her chest. Her body warmed and it wasn’t because she was blushing with embarrassment. She wanted him. There was no way around that fact or the fact he was her mate and the only man sent her desire into overtime with just a look.

“How are you doing, Joy?” asked Theo.

Joy bit her bottom lip as his deep voice swept over her leaving a burning desire in its wake. She hated the fact every shifter in the room, including her brother, could smell the desire and need radiating from her. Joy plastered a smile on her face. “I’m fine.” She felt her cheeks grow warm.  “I’ll be right back with a cup of coffee for you, and then I’ll take your orders.” She turned without waiting for either man to say anything and retreated to the counter.

Theo watched Joy walk away. Yup, she was still trying to avoid him, even though she wanted him as much as he wanted her.


Tuesday, July 4, 2017

Wishing You a Happy 4th of July.

Photo by nirots at freedigitalphotos.net.


I hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July.
Happy Independence Day!!!



Monday, July 3, 2017

Quote of the Week


All our dreams can come true, 
if we have the courage to pursue them.
--Walt Disney