Long Time No See...

Sorry for the silence! I know it's been like three weeks...

I did live through doing two jobs, and I'm glad to say that I didn't screw anything up too bad. There was one thing... $2. That neither me or our controller could figure out how to fix. After the two of us spending like an hour on it, we decided that it wasn't cost effective for us to continue and we left it to be fixed when she came back. Ha! (She had a few questions, but she got it taken care of. Ha!)

Oh and I had to go to the bank for work a few times. I plugged it into my gps, knowing the directions were wrong. The first time it took me on the highway, when I thought I just had to turn left at the end of the street. I followed and ended up a ridiculous amount of mileage away. And then on my way back, I decided to ignore the gps and go back roads. I made it, but the gps kept telling me the wrong thing - right up until I got to our building. Dumb! The next time, I still plugged in the address, but went the way I was pretty sure of. Everything is good... But I get to a light and the gps is telling me to turn right and my destination is like five miles away. I pull up to the light, look to my left, and the bank is right freaking there! Ha! 

We went to a bunch of basketball games for K5 over the past few weeks! Her team made it to the championships! The game that determined if they would be in the championship game was so stressful (actually, they are all stressful). The opposite team was super aggressive and rude and had like 20 fouls. But K5's team won by one point! They unfortunately lost the final game, but they played so well, there was no disappointment. I thought I'd hate middle school basketball (we never did it in this house, so I had no point of reference), but I actually loved it, despite being super stressed out! Ha! 

Other than that... there's a lot of family drama going on. No, I can't get into it here, but it's painful and ridiculous. (Text me and I'll fill you in. You know who you are.) It's been a long week and it's hard to sleep. That happens when you continually get stabbed like a serial killer is after you... That Man and I are maintaining. That's all we can do. 

I finished my ARC's for my next book. It comes out at the end of April! I'm so excited. I love this book so much! And even though it's not quite the six months, I should have print copies for my Hershey Library signing in October! That makes me very happy! 

I am trying to write. I did finish the 50/50 with a pretty decent word count. I'm about halfway through with the book (for the like third time... ugh), but it's going okay. I got a few hundred words tonight, which is the first I've been able to all week. So that's something. I guess. 

That's all I have!

Behave!

Feed Good Friday... on Saturday

And late Saturday, too! ha!

Let's just go to the list...

1. Living through the week! By Friday, I had made several mistakes... I missed a duplicate check, which caused me and my boss much time of searching, researching, and confusion. I finally figured out what happened, and am in the process of correcting it. And then... the one report I had to do is partially correct, but partially wrong. My boss can't figure out where I went wrong and honestly, I have no clue. I followed the instructions, but they are confusing as F. We'll address it again on Monday and hopefully between the two of us, figure it out. He laughed at my instruction list though. ha! (I will say I have the best boss I've ever had! He's super understanding and chill. If you make a mistake, you fix it and learn from it. But when he calls back and says "can you come and look over my shoulder" you know you did something wrong. Ha!)

2. Going out last night! We haven't seen our old "friend group" together in almost two years. Last night, friends were gigging at a local place. We went on a whim, and omg, we had a blast. None of us had been out, so we were all a bit anxious and worried, but that didn't last long. When I say we were all giddy about being together and seeing each other, I mean it. There were so many hugs and conversations. No one wanted to leave. We had so much fun. 

3. Sleeping in this morning. It was lovely. 

4. Not much going on today. We ran to the farm store. The grocery store. Took the kid to pick up her Jeep (she had to catch a ride home last night after having one too many. Good girl. And it was funny that our one friend didn't realize that she's 22 now and worried about how she was going to get into a 21 and over place). The snow squall was amazing and too short. I took a nap. 

5. I did write a whole bunch today. Well, not today. Just these last few hours. My writing pals are on retreat. I couldn't go this time because of having to buy a new stove and not wanting to sleep on a couch. (long story) But together they got me to an awesome word count and there was an epiphany and laughter. Much needed for me. Yeah, I would much rather be with them, but it is what it is. May is coming! 

6. Plans tomorrow. We're hoping we can squeeze in K5's last basketball game in addition to an already full day. We haven't been able to make a single one this season and that sucks! We're working on it, but we'll see. I am hopeful. 

7. I should only have about two more weeks to do the two jobs. I can do that!

8. It's freaking cold outside! And that wind! Oy! But we're in late February, so spring should be coming sooner than later. (I don't listen to rodents and I don't care what he said)

9. Texting with Mr. B. He's a hoot. And he has the funniest things to say! He sent me pictures of him and little B with a moustache. I sent him the picture of me with a photoshopped beard. He laughed a lot. And he always sends me memes he think will disturb me. He's really good at that. Ha! 

10. Making an excellent dinner. We had a Hello Fresh to use, but added some chicken and garlic and it was so good. Still digging the Hello Fresh after over a year, so there's that. Sometimes I'm frustrated with the lack of stuff that looks good or the constant potatoes, but usually we find something good. There are very few meals we've said we wouldn't get again. Plus, it's expanded our own horizons as far as spices, cook times, and stuff that goes together. 

And that is all...

Behave! 

Week End Wrap Up...on Tuesday?

Yeah, I know it's Tuesday... 

I got nothing to say about that, except... Happy Tuesday! :)

The book signing was a ton of fun! Our table was so busy that my table mate and I barely got to speak two words to each other! I sold quite a few books, which was spectacular. I got to talk to a bunch of super cool people. I had my awesome chicken salad sandwich for lunch. By the time I got home, I was exhausted and I took a little nap. Seriously, the day was so awesome. 

Sunday was "family dinner" for February birthdays. We gathered here with pulled pork, baked beans, mac salad, cole slaw, and a first try peanut butter pie. (it turned out amazing) We talked and laughed and had a really good time. 

Yesterday was back to the day job. Oy. But it's going okay. I'm just busier than normal. Like a lot busier. (ha! twice as busy since I'm doing two jobs) But I haven't totally screwed up anything yet, which is a bonus. The errant dollar had gone away yesterday, but it's back again. ha! That's good for a laugh. Everything else was spot on, so that's something. 

Last night we made dinner for the lady I'm covering for. It was supposed to be stuffed shells, but the store was out of shells. So we got manicotti and cut them in half to make them easier to fill. Even though the pasta was thicker than I like it, they turned out well. (We made enough for dinner for us tonight, too). 

So now I'm back to writing and surviving. I'm tired. I already have words on the page for tonight, but I might get a few more before I head to bed. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Feel Good Friday!

Yay, Friday! 

Here's the list:

1. It was a short week, but a rough one. Thursday was the start of me taking care of two departments. I felt like I was drowning. Still do. I am still behind from my days off, and things were being thrown at me that I had no idea what to do about, despite training. But I muddled through and by the end of today, I felt pretty confident. (And still confused)

2. Nothing too weird happened this work week, except I think the sales counter guy is messing with me. Yesterday when I counted the counter cash box, I came up with a buck extra. Despite the fact that there were no cash sales. Today, I had that same buck over, (and I had double-checked my box to make sure I was on point and again, there were no cash sales), but I was less a buck in quarters. The sales counter guy said... well, that's curious. Uh huh. My guess is that Monday it's the dimes that are off. We'll see. I'm not letting on that I know he's behind it. He's known for this with other people and I think he doesn't know that I know that and I think he forgets that I worked here before. Ha! 

3. Tomorrow is the awesome greenhouse signing I look forward to every year! I am mostly ready. I figured out my Square reader and have all of my stuff loaded in. I have my change. And I am hopeful for sales! But the bottom line is that I'm looking forward to seeing my friends and the experience. 

4. Ordering pizza for dinner! We had plans to cook, but after we got home and did some yard work and prep work for tomorrow, we decided we were too tired to cook. K4 came home with a massive migraine. That Man and I were both exhausted. So. It worked out. 

5. Plans with the family this weekend. Yay! 

That's all I have for now!

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up!

I know it's Monday, but technically it's my Sunday!

That Man and I took a long weekend at our favorite cabin along the creek. It's the perfect space for the two of us. It's quiet and has everything we need. We left Thursday (took a half day) and came back this morning. It was also That Man's birthday in there. We had awesome food, tons of sleep, and just general relaxation. It was much needed! 

After all of the rain we had, the ice broke up on the creek. It was crazy watching it flow down and crash together. The creek looked like chocolate milk and the water was rising. We'd been told that we might have to move our car if the creek flooded, but we didn't have to. 

Came home this morning and took care of a bunch of house stuff. Finally took Santa off of the front porch and cleaned up some plants. Took a nap. Now the dread of going back to work tomorrow has started. I only have two days until I have to do two jobs for 3-6 weeks. I also have almost 100 emails in my box to take care of. And some training left to do. So... 

And that's all I have!

Behave!

So Many Wrap Ups....

I know I've been absent! Sorry about that! Things have been a little nuts around here! 

The wedding was amazing! My niece was stunningly gorgeous and so was her sister (her sister. my niece.), and the bridesmaid, (Their dresses had pockets and they were beautiful)! The ceremony was short and sweet, and the reception was a ton of fun. We danced and laughed and probably embarrassed the bride a bit. Not that we intended to. At all. The food was good, the staff at the venue were amazing, and we had a great time (and they were tipped very well). We got to catch up with old friends and people I grew up with. There was phone stealing and a ton of selfies taken. Ha! Dancing and singing, and a DJ that didn't seem to know how to read the crowd, but I think we brought him around. Almost. Ha! It was a struggle. My great niece was a riot and did not sit down the entire time! 

Sunday was dinner at my brother and sister-in-law's. Spaghetti Dinners are our thing because everyone has a sauce and it's an easy and cheap meal to feed a crowd. (just don't let our uncle at the sauce. He talks about hot dogs going in...ewww) My brother's sauce is amazing and so were his meatballs. We had a great time hanging out. (I will never order spaghetti at a restaurant because I know at least four or six people who make a better sauce than any place and I'm related to all of them!)

Monday we went back to work. We were freaking tired. We headed to my sister and brother-in-law's for Taco Night afterwards and to stayed to do the airport trip in the morning. Our aunt and uncle were staying there before having to be at the airport at o'dark-thirty. It would have been tons easier if they would have stayed here, but there's no way our uncle can navigate our stairs. So we adapted. Got up at the buttcrack of dawn and got them to the airport on time and actually got to work on time. 

Taco Night was a lot of fun. There was a lot of talking and laughing. My bro and sister-in-law (and great niece) left early and I don't blame them. They had a ton of stuff over the past week and they needed the rest and a break from constant people! The rest of us stayed up way to late talking and with my aunt trying to tell me that she can teach me how to crochet. Ha! Like that will ever happen. We came home last night and just crashed. K3, K4, S, and J came for Taco Night, too. It was a lot of chaos and a ton of fun. 

The aunt and uncle made it home okay and now we plan for our next visit! We can't go too long between visits. 

We've got fun stuff coming up, too. And I have my favorite booksigning at the greenhouse! And I got my new cover! Coming in April!

It's gorgeous and I love it!

And that is all! 

Behave!

Family Dinner

It's Thursday! Yay!

Our aunt and uncle flew in today for the wedding. My brother picked them up at the airport and we all met for dinner. What a freaking blast! Our poor waitress and the poor food runner (it was the food runners first day and she did a fantastic job. The waitress came and hung out with us after she was done and we had a great conversation. She was interested in how we were all related). There was some grumbling because my uncle ended up paying the bill, which was not what we all had wanted or expected. I swear that will be that last thing they pay for while they are here! 

We had a blast! I think our aunt was kind of scared (she really wasn't) about how my sister, sister-in-law, and I interact with each other, but she'll be okay! ha! (She knows we're all nuts, but this was an in-your-face example of friendships that have been going on for close to 40 years. We really are all tuned into the same station, so there's that. Even our husbands shake their heads when we are together! ha!) It was the first face-to-face for us after a weeks worth of texting about various things, some of them stressful, so it makes sense. At least to us. Ha! It was a lot of fun and we wished we had more time, but a lot of us have to work tomorrow.

Other than that.... My books came. Yay! That Man had to take a Covid test today because of potential exposure and it was negative. Also yay. Tomorrow is Friday. Yay. We got most of our errands taken care of tonight. Also yay! We just have to make one stop, maybe two, tomorrow. Oh and my second mammogram was good! Huge Yay!

And that is all! I will likely not be back until after the wedding, but we'll see! I may swing in with a Feel Good post tomorrow. 

Behave!

Tuesday...

This week has seemed so long already and it's only Tuesday!

Let's see... 

I'm maintaining my words for the 50/50 challenge. That's something. 

I have to go back for another mammogram because there was too much "movement" on my first one. I already knew the tech was struggling to get good pictures yesterday. She took the one side four times because it was blurry. She said your heartbeat can do that, and that makes sense because my anxiety was super high. That's tomorrow. I can't tell you that I'm not nervous about it, but at the same time, I'm not. I mean, what can I do but make sure? So I will drop That Man off at the day job and then go and get that taken care of. (And figure out a way to not have my heart beat so fast.)

The day job has been and will continue to be brutal. I'm still so far behind and the training has ground to a halt since she is working from home again. Sigh. Whatever. I'll do better figuring everything out for myself. They did cancel our inventory day. Again. No idea when that will happen now. It's a big deal, so... I'm not going back home until/if I have no choice, so there's that. 

The wedding is coming up fast and we're excited! We're making plans for off wedding gatherings with our aunt and uncle for the short time they're here. There are many text messages and phones calls, and while we had some hiccups initially with plans and arrangements, it's all good now. This is my brother and sister-in-law's shiny time and we'll do whatever they need to make it special. I have to say, I love my siblings and siblings-in-laws. We always come together and make stuff work! 

Other than that, it's 2 1/2 weeks until my big book signing. I'm a little nervous because the books I ordered 3 weeks ago haven't arrived yet. But there is time, so... We'll see if it actually happens though. The book signing I mean. Covid numbers are crazy here and while some people are worried, it seems that most are not. I don't know what the venue will do yet. So...

Other than that... I got nothing...

Behave! 

 

Weekend Wrap Up...

Here we are at Sunday afternoon...

Man. I am tired. 

I did head back to work Thursday morning. We unloaded my gear in the snow and the day was crazy. I will be covering for a coworker in about two weeks for 3-6 weeks, so I need to make sure I'm proficient at her job. We've been cross-training for a long time now. Heck, I started cross-training before we went home two years ago, but it was with a different person (she retired), so different style. So anyways, we're supposed to be each others back up and we've been trying to get it done, but every time we get into the training, there's another outbreak and we're back home. And everyone else gets to stay home another week now, but I'm staying at the office. In fact, unless it's really bad, I will be staying at the office going forward. I can't do two jobs from home.

Anyway. 

We had the grands this weekend. It was awesome chaos! Mr. B got dropped off at work shortly before we ended our day. We made a quick trip to the grocery store for snacks and juice and then headed to pick up K5, ordering stromboli's on our way home. The kids were so freaking excited to see each other. It was so good. We got to spend a little bit of one on one time with each of them. K5 had a basketball game on Saturday, so we had just B for a little bit. And B was busy doing something, so it was just K5 and I for a bit. She had another basketball game today, so we packed up (like herding cats swimming in jello), got them lunch, and started the drop off trip. They were exhausted. We are exhausted, but it was really good. 

After drop off, we went shopping for clothes to wear to the wedding this coming weekend. That Man and I made a stop at where he'd seen pants he liked and then we met up with K4 so she could find something and so I could find a shirt. Very successful and quick. 

Now we're home and exhaustion doesn't even cover it. We straightened up the house before we left so we didn't walk into the chaos mess that was our weekend. Of course, the kids took most of that with them, but the rooms were clean, the dishes were done, and the worst of it was out of here. That was nice. Now it's laundry, which is normal. And I'm working on getting my words on the page. 

Tomorrow is back to the grind. And that is all...

Behave! 

Tuesday...

Well, here I am still at home. They extended our work from home through this week. I'm actually going back on Thursday due to a pile of work and other things that interfere with Monday, which is totally fine. 

We have the older grands this weekend, which should be a hoot. Only one will be surprised at this point because the beans got spilled. Ha! I still need to hit the store to make sure I have snacks and stuff. And clean my office (one of the reasons I'm taking my stuff back early. There would be no room to pull the bed out otherwise).

The snow was kind of a disappointment. It sucked to shovel and was just a mess. I've heard a little bit about the potential for snow tomorrow and possibly over the weekend, but we'll see. 

I was invited to a book event later on this year. My registration form is in the mail. It sounds like fun. We'll see. I have a signing coming up next month, and another in April, so this one kind of rounds the year out. 

I'm still waiting on my cover for Prophecy. It's due out in April, so it's maybe possible that I could have my print copies by the October signing. I hope! 

And that's all I have for now...

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

What a long week! 

Let's just hit the list, okay?

1. Getting an additional day to stay home. We're expecting snow Sunday into Monday, so we were told just to come back to the office on Tuesday instead. Nice. 

2. The shopping being done already. No going out and interacting with the "bread, eggs, & milk" crowd. I ran out at lunch today to get tomatoes and avocadoes and the store was absolutely insane. 

3. My brain seeming to be working when it comes to writing. I've hit decent numbers every day since our 50/50 started. I'm trying really hard not to push myself and burn out my cells. Ha!

4. Upcoming plans to have the older two grandchildren for the weekend! They haven't seen each other in a very long time. We're trying to surprise both of them, but we'll see. 

5. Snow in the forecast! Yay! Of course because I want it so much, we'll get nothing. 

6. Registering for our yearly Jeep event. Now all I have to do is pick a hotel and reserve it. But it's exciting!

7. Light weekend plans. We're doing some house stuff and not much else. And I like it that way. We might take the Santa stuff off of the porch, but we'll see...

8. Fun stuff coming up. We've got a wedding, family coming in from out of town, and then That Man and I have a little trip planned. 

That's about it! 

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

I know we're only halfway through Sunday, but the rest of my day will be spent napping and relaxing, with a little bit of laundry thrown in there for good measure!

My edits are done and sent back! Whooot! That's a huge relief! I am taking off the next two days. On Wednesday, my little writing group will start our 50 words a day for 50 days challenge. I need to be back up to speed with my current work in progress before then. 

Christmas is gone from this house. Well, mostly. The porch is still decorated, but it's too cold to do that now. And today it's freezing rain. As beautiful as the decorations were and how much I wanted to keep them up, it's good they're down. I like the extra space. 

Tomorrow is back to the day job. The best part of that is that I don't have to get dressed or go out in the cold. Ha! I'm due to go back to the office next Monday. The only way that will change is if we have more cases. So we'll see. 

This week should be quiet around here. Our original plans were cancelled temporarily. But we'll see what happens...

That's all I have for now. 

Behave! 

Post New Year Post...

Yeah, I'm lame. Sorry for not getting on here sooner. It's been a little crazy...

So let's back up a bit...

New Year's Eve was good. Just five people and three dogs. We talked and laughed. Ate some good food. Talked about how sad we are that Betty White passed away. 

New Year's Day was also good. We took a walk in the woods, in the rain, to check out this old truck That Man had seen through the trees. It was cool, but too far gone for restoration. But there's another one there that isn't in terrible shape, so we'll see... As we were walking we were making up our own "getting lost in the woods" stories. It was awesome. 

The kids came up for dinner. It was chaos, but fun. Got to hang with the grandboys and do our traditional LOTR watching. We got home early evening and continued the movie. Went to bed pretty early. Sunday was laundry and the usual Sunday stuff. 

Back to the day job on Monday. And then Tuesday we were told to go back home to work. We have several positive cases at work and within people we know. I stayed the day because That Man can't work from home and it made no sense to do multiple trips. Got set up when we got home and so far so good. Except my office heater died. 

Now I'm adjusting to working at home again. The dog is ecstatic. The cats just want to come into my office and eat my plants. I have another week after this one at this point, but we'll see if that changes or not.

I don't know if I'll do a "year in review" or not. Seriously not much happened this year. 

Behave! 

Post Christmas Update!

Sorry I fell off the face of the earth! 

It has been crazy around here! 

Let me sum up! Ha!

We did have K5 the following weekend and did get to see family! We had an amazing time watching Disney movies, eating, drinking coffee, and laughing about everything. K5 got to hang with her little cousin and we got to hang with a few of the siblings! It was really good! 

Then we had to shop, wrap, clean, shop, wrap... Oh and work the day job. But by the time Christmas Eve came around, we were ready to go! Hysterical Dirty Santa exchange. Awesome Christmas Story reading. Lot's of good food. Surprise presents. Lot's of talking. It was good. 

Christmas Morning rolled around far earlier than I expected. I knew That Man and I would get up early, but I did not expect K4 to get up at 6:30am. (She works a late shift, so usually doesn't get up until like 10am) It was good though. We took our time with the presents, made awesome coffee, and an awesome breakfast. Cracked open the champagne for mimosas and settled in to watch a movie and nap. K3 and A got here, partook of mimosas and also settled in to nap. Then I got a call from J. We talked for a long time and then hung up. Not more than five minutes later, she's calling me back to tell me they are coming over! 

They had Covid a few weeks ago. They were being cautious as they have been since the pandemic started. Understandable. But then realized they were actually good to go and so are we all here. So... for the first time in months, they came over. It was so good. I won't lie, I cried. I have missed them so much. Little Mr. B is a hoot and kept me on my toes! He has the funniest "crab dance"!

Sunday was coma day. We stayed in our jammies and napped and watched movies. We only ate leftovers and did nothing except for a load of laundry and take the dog out to pee. It was good. 

Today was back to the day job. That Man and I and maybe two other people were in the office. All of our vendors are closed, so I got zero emails all day. And it will be that way all week. Luckily we only have to work until Thursday afternoon. But it snowed! And that was awesome! 

New Year's Eve is coming. We're going super low key this year. It's just going to be five of us old people and three dogs. I don't think I can do New Year's Eve chaos anymore! Ha! Though we have had some epic times in the past! 

And that's about it! Except I got my next round of edits. I actually got them a week ago, but my editor doesn't expect them back anytime soon, so I am not starting them yet. But I will probably tomorrow after my online evening meeting We'll see. I did read through them and most of the changes are pretty easy - just a sentence or two. Others I will have to think about. 

That is all!

Year in Review coming soon! (Like it won't be boring! Ha!) 

Enjoy your celebrations!

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up!

Oy! We're back at Sunday! Back to the day job tomorrow after an exhausting weekend...

So, K5 didn't get to stay Saturday night. We had a bit of a miscommunication in our plans, but it was fine. We had a full day and we'll have her all of next weekend. We grabbed breakfast, went to the store for cookie supplies, decorated our tree and piano, got to see Santa in a firetruck thanks to our local fire station, made some truly ugly and awful cut out cookies. Seriously, they taste amazing, but the look like a crazed toddler decorated them (those are K5's words). They were a test batch though, so none of us took the decorating seriously. Ha! 

Hopefully next weekend K5 will get to see some of the family. She wanted to this weekend, but we just didn't have time. That was all she talked about though - how much she wanted to see everyone and how long it's been. We are going to K2's next Sunday to do birthday and Christmas with them, so she'll get to do that. 

Our tree is very pretty. At least I think so. It is full of lights and crammed with decorations. It's a bit crooked, but we'll get that fixed. Our packages are coming in, which is good, but we haven't moved forward at all. I looked for some of the things I need on the "mega warehouse" site, but couldn't find what I need at a reasonable price. K5 and I went out on Saturday to look and also had no luck. 

Since my edits have been done, I have been searching for a story I had written previously and think would fit in with the series I have going on. But I cannot find it. So... I have wasted enough time on that. I pulled two other stories to my desktop to consider, but they will sit there until I think about it some more. And I went back to sector two. I am reading it again since it's been a little bit since I've touched it. And then we'll start new writing again.

And that is all for now...

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday!

Whoot! Friday! 

Sorry it's been nine days! It's been... pretty much the same around here. Ha!

I did a "ladies night" book signing event at the greenhouse this week. It was fun. Not a lot of action as far as book selling went, but my cohorts did okay. I did have an awesome chicken salad sandwich, and I got to catch up with my besties, so there's that. Our next event is the February one! I am really looking forward to that!

Anyways... Let's do the Feel Good, shall we?

1. Not cooking tonight. We ordered in, which we haven't done in ages. 

2. Picking up K5 in the morning. She'll be with us until Sunday. We're decorating the tree this weekend!

3. Finding our tree in less than five minutes yesterday! Whoot!

4. The Christmas shopping being 99% done! Just a few things to get but other than that, we're done. Except for the wrapping... Ha! 

5. Eight more full days to work until the Christmas break! Yay!

That's all I have! 

Behave! 

December 1st...

And my edits are done and sent back! Woooo! 

Obviously I didn't finish on Tuesday like I'd hoped. I got about 60-70 pages from the end and all of the letters started looking like tiny dancing stick men. Ha! For real though! I finished, obviously, tonight! 

Now it's December! And what like a little over three weeks until Christmas? Which means I have a lot of stuff to do! And don't we all? 

Next I will see what I have in my stockpile that will fit with my "Challenging the Fates" series. I have a few ideas, which I was working on before I got my edits back. So I'll get back to that, and then I'll get back to Sector Two. I had a very good thread idea for Sector Two, which was solidified by my critique partners, so I'm thinking on that and will add/change the story as necessary to add it in. I think it'll make the story a lot darker than it is, but I'm really okay with that. 

The day job is fine. Still busy. Today I did a seminar, which was fine, but... ugh. I really didn't learn anything new, but I guess it did make me more aware of stuff. I get continuing education credits for it, so that's something. As we head into the holidays, folks are less serious and more inclined to joke around, which is freaking awesome. 

And that's all I have... 

Behave! 

Tomorrow Is the Last Day of November...

Wow... 

Another crappy year gone by so fast. I'm not going to be sorry to see 2021 go, just like I wasn't sorry to see 2020 go, but really? How many more crappy years are we going to have? 

We had a really nice Thanksgiving at my brother and sister-in-law's. We got there first and that was good. Lots of catching up and talking. (like...what else do we do? Ha!) The guys took care of the turkey and we sat at the table talking about weddings, stuff, and things. 

The food was amazing. I got to have good conversation with my nieces. Got to see my great nieces, and nephew. And my nephew and his new wife. And my "adopted" sister. Though I'm still not sure what's going on with my real sister. She hugged me tight for a long time, but then didn't talk to me much at all. In fact, she turned away when she sat next to me and rolled her eyes when I said we had to discuss LLC business and ignored me when I brought up a potential trip. I wish I knew why she's so mad at me. I think she believes things that aren't true. I guess it doesn't matter because she doesn't know me at all anymore and I'm just doing the best I can to get through my own life. I'm not going to get into any more of that at this point though. 

Sigh.

Other than that... My hard drive crapped out just as I started to finish my edits. Of-freaking-course! A good friend of ours fixed it, quickly, but it's still having issues. Ugh! I should have been done with my edits by Saturday, and here we are at Monday and I still have almost 200 pages to go. Oy! 

I hope to finish them tomorrow, but we'll see. Tuesday is usually a busy night for us. 

And now... It's freaking Christmas?? Oy! So much to do!

But one thing at a time... 

Behave!

Thanksgiving Eve!

Well, here we are on the eve of Thanksgiving!

How did the holidays sneak up so fast? Last I remember it was June! 

We are heading to my brothers for our Thanksgiving feast! I have made cheesecake and I will be making sweet potatoes in the morning! Though... I am still learning my new oven and the cheesecake might be a tiny bit overdone. It looks awesome though, so we shall see. Looking forward to the day! Though, unfortunately, we both have to work on Friday, which will mean an earlier leaving time for us. Plus, we're hoping to meet up with the kids for some dessert, but we'll see how that works out. Pretty much everyone has to work on Friday.  

We got out of the day job early today, which was good since K4 was having issues with her Jeep. Turned out to be a vacuum line(s) and seems to be fixed now. Though as we drove my Jeep home today (K4 had our other car), we noticed that "something" is going out in my Jeep - either the water pump or the alternator. Not sure yet. That's a weekend project. Oy! Always something.

My edits are going well. I'd told my editor that she'll get them back after the holiday and that will be the case, but I'm able to work on them more than I thought I would. I still don't think she's getting them back before this time next week though! ha!

And that is all... 

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up!

Oy it's Sunday evening again! Tomorrow starts another work week, though it's a short one. I do have to work Friday. I'm out of vacation time, so... Whatever. 

So this weekend was leaves, car stuff, camper winterizing, laundry, cleaning. We killed ourselves with the leaves. My arms hurt, my ribs hurt, and I must have stepped in nine millions piles of dog poop. (my shoes are still on the porch) Yeah, we don't often pick up the landmines because we don't have any little kids running through our yard anymore. 

I was getting ready to get back to the writing when my editor emailed me. I need to go through my manuscript again. I said I was worried that I'd butchered it. Apparently when I changed names and did sweeping word changes, it screwed stuff up. And while I did do a final read through, I wasn't thorough enough. So now that's on my "to do" list again. I did get through the comments tonight, now I just need to read line by line. 

The new stove is awesome! We went out Saturday and bought a tray that might work for the air fryer until the actual basket comes in. We haven't checked it out yet though. We went to "The Restaurant Store". It was the first time we've ever been and we missed probably half of the store, but oh my gosh... For me this place is like Harbor Freight for That Man. Ha! 

That is all... Dinner is ready.

Behave!

Feel Good Friday!

Happy Friday! 

Over a week isn't that bad though, right? 

I did get my edits done. Woo! I only hope I didn't butcher the story too much. I made un-asked for changes when I did my read through. I love my editor though. She's amazing and insightful and comes up with stuff I hadn't thought of yet. And, yeah... it was the first round of edits, so there will be more to come. 

At the same time, I had to do my art sheet which was pretty cool because I was already into the story and knew what I knew. Except I realized that I'd never given the heroine a physical description. That's not a bad thing though. I mean, she looks like what you think she looks like, which has always been my goal. 

This book is going to be the first in a series. I don't have a series name yet, but I have ideas for the next books. It's a tragic awesome world and I can't wait to delve into it again. 

In other news...

Of course... a week before Thanksgiving, our oven dies... 

We tried to find a replacement part, but they are half the price of a new stove and backordered until the unforeseeable future. Of course, our stove is over 22 years old and the brand has been discontinued, so there's that. It was an awesome stove though. We did realize that this is the very first stove we've purchased in 35 years of marriage. We've done every other appliance, but this beauty is our first stove. Ha! 

We struggled and price compared and model compared... We didn't want to have to spend the money, but we had no choice. It's really hard to make cheesecake without an oven. ha!

This new stove... It's freaking awesome. It is an air fryer, dehydrator, and apparently you can connect it to wifi, though that didn't work for me. K4 is going to check it out then. I tried and I'm not dumb when it comes to this stuff. Also, everyone I know who has a wifi appliance can't connect, so there's that. I really want it to work though. How cool would it be to decide to make sweet rolls or bacon and preheat the oven from my bed? 

Other than that... We're less than a week from Thanksgiving. We're looking forward to seeing the siblings on Thursday! And now I can actually make the cheesecake! Woo! 

That is all for now! 

Behave!

Mid-week...

So it's Wednesday. 

Look it took me three times to spell that right, so that will give you a clue as to how my week is going so far. Ha!

The day job is busy. I took on some extra projects today only to get slammed with my regular stuff. Like major slammed. This is typical of how it goes for me, and it's fine, but oy! Tomorrow we have an employee appreciation lunch. We got to pick our lunch and it's being delivered to us in our offices since we're not supposed to gather together. It's fine and good and my favorite diet soda was purposefully purchased for the day. Nice. And I'll still eat lunch with That Man in his office like we do every day. 

I am editing. And losing my mind. I have eliminated extra pulls, looks, it, just, and things. Ha! Okay, so I did pull, look, and am working on it. The rest will come. It's a slow process and I have to remind myself that some are okay. My editor is in no hurry for this since the book doesn't come out until April, but it's seriously going to need a few more cleaner passes to make sure it makes sense. Reading it through is hard when the track changes is still on. I do like the fact that I got my art sheet for the cover at the same time. I'll be able to fill that out quickly and efficiently since I'm back in the story. 

We got our giant doors installed between our living and dining rooms. They are super big and pretty damned cool. They definitely cut the draft when it's cold. Work still needs to be done, but we're getting there. Next is getting the furnace ready for the super cold. We need parts, which we are having trouble locating, but it will be okay. We're also working on our front steps to make sure they don't crack more during the winter, though we can't find the stuff we bought to do this. Ha!

That is all... Back to removing (it) from my manuscript!

Behave!

Holy Over a Month! Yikes!

Gosh! Sorry about that! That was a crazy long time!

So what happened in the month + since I posted last? 

Well...

I came back home to work for two weeks due to a Covid outbreak at the day job. Everyone is still super paranoid. All of us keep our office doors shut and rarely just "chat" anymore. It's relaxing a little bit now though.

We went to the beach. It was an amazing time. Every day was the "best" day, though we did have one that outshone the rest. Our niece is now engaged. That was pretty awesome. We had beach fires, watched the full moon rise over the ocean and a thunderstorm. The rain never reached us, but the lightning over the water was cool as heck. We had amazing food, amazing sleep, amazing beach days, and lots and lots of laughs and great conversation. No fish were caught, well, no fish that you could keep. That's sad, but no one was catching fish at all. 

That Man and I booked a beach trip in April, which I think is going to be a thing going forward. Wooo!

I got my edits for my April release. Oh and here's a ridiculous story for you... I knew I needed a new charging cable for my laptop thanks to one particular cat's penchant for chewing on electronics. Of course, the day my edits came, I started up the laptop only to discover that I no longer could charge. Ordered a new cable, which came on Thursday. Great! Started edits. Stupidly left the cord tucked into a dining room chair Friday night, and lo and behold when I went to start edits on Saturday, my cord was chewed again and did not work at all. Crap! I ordered two new cords, which came today and I will be ever vigilant with making sure the cord is no where that the ahole chewer can get to it. 

Other than that we have a lot of stuff coming up! Dinner at my brother's for Thanksgiving, holiday stuff, my oldest niece's wedding in January which should be an awesome blast. We're looking forward to that. I've already started to get my holiday spirit, which is odd, considering. And we've made the decision to downsize Christmas gift giving this year. Not that we ever went crazy and into debt. My porch is decorated for Thanksgiving already. Those pilgrims are out there greeting people and they are still solidly together. 

That's all I have for now... Hopefully it won't be a month until my next post!

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

I know it's a little earlier in the day than my normal end of weekend post, but hey, whatever! Ha!

I've been by myself for the last few hours. That Man went to help a friend who lost his driveway in the massive rains. Yeah, like it washed away. He does have a creek that runs under it, but still. The kid was off with friends for the weekend. It was just me, and I got a lot done. I finally finished a critique for a friend and I found my story again. I cut about 150 pages, but I am back on track. That feels good (even if I feel sick about the pages cut). More than I can even tell you. 

I also finished the laundry. Whoopie! ha! 

Other than that, I made the stupid decision to clean out our little shed. It's on our back porch and it's supposed to be for the stuff you use frequently, but don't want out. Ha! It's been a catchall for everything for a very long time. In fact, I haven't even opened it for a few years. Yeah. I know. So, anyway. I decided it was far past time. We have probably a million feet of extension cord. And far more screws and bolts than anyone could ever use. Ha! I also found two camp chairs. Nice, except they were in there so long they are dry rotted. 

I stepped on a fishing thing and punctured my foot. I ran my arm along a rusty saw and gashed my arm. (Yes, I will be getting a tetanus shot) The whole process was pretty much a disaster with stuff falling over and falling on me. But it is done now and I am super happy with the results. Now the charcoal, cooler, and porch blower can be stored away again. 

And our nephew came for dinner. That was nice. We rarely get a chance to hang with him.

My foot does hurt though. I'll be soaking it in a bit and keeping an eye on it. The fish thing wasn't rusty though, so there's that. 

And that's all! 

Behave!

Another Mid Week

 It is mid-week again!

Nothing is new here. We've been doing Jeep work, yard work. Blah, blah, blah.

Work is work. The writing is going. 

It's Fall now! Whoot! That's the best thing that's happened this week! Ha!

We went to our great niece's fourth birthday party last weekend. We didn't know anyone besides That Man's family. It was still nice. Our great niece is the cutest thing and so is her newborn baby brother. We had good conversations with the family. Our niece was stressed, but we had a good time with her and our nephew-in-law. We left right after presents were opened. We were like the old people there though, so Ha! Also, a deer tried to kill us after we left. 

That is all I have!

Behave!

Mid-Week Check In

Here we are at Wednesday. Already. 

So far, this week has been crazy! The day job is busy and there's a lot of random, crazy stuff going on there. 

I figured out what I need to do with my story, so that was a HUGE relief. I've been struggling with it for a little while now. I was supposed to brainstorm with K3 the weekend before last, but he had plans he'd forgotten about so it never happened. I have been trying to figure it out on my own, and today, with the help of my writing pals, I got it mapped out. Yay!

The Jeep is done. It did take a few bucks, but it needed to be done. Now all of that bull crap is finished. Except I need new bump stops, which is no big deal except for off roading, so that will need to be taken care of before we start going to Jeep events. Now That Man is working on K4's Jeep. Her heater core went out and he made things work over the summer, but now that heat is going to be needed, well... It's been a huge pain in his butt, but he's almost done. 

In the meantime, I made some spicy ketchup and actually canned it! I am pretty proud of myself for the whole thing. I had never canned before and I kind of winged the whole thing, from the sauce making to the actual canning process. It turned out pretty darned good and my jars actually sealed! 

That's all I have!

Behave!

Feel Good Friday & Weekend Wrap Up

Yeah, it's a two-fer around the old blog today.

Sorry! It's been a busy week!

So here's the list:

1. Getting to see my family last weekend! It was so good to hang out and catch up! We haven't seen them since Easter, which was way too long. We had a great time sitting around the fire!

2. My great niece is the cutest child! My niece (and future nephew-in-law) is/are doing a fantastic job raising her! I'm proud as only an aunt can be! My niece was my mini me for a long time. People used to think she was my child and I loved that. We always went back and forth with the kids being at one house or another and it was awesome. 

3. Having K5 last weekend. She's so funny! We had a blast with her! She got to see my brother and sister-in-law for the first time in a very long time and that was great. Hopefully we can keep that connection going. 

4. That Man's car passing inspection even though it cost us a pretty penny.

5. The camper passing inspection. No where near as much cash outlay, but since we had it in for a fuel line problem last week, it was still more. Fingers crossed that the Jeep passes with no issues. I hate that we have three vehicles all due at the same time! 

6. The body work getting done on the Jeep. That Man hates it, but he does a fantastic job. I, personally, despise the smell of body filler. It makes me sick, but the job needs done. He's almost finished. As we speak, he's out there sanding. It won't pass inspection unless it's done. So...

7. Not cooking dinner tonight. We haven't eaten yet, but the subs are in the fridge. 

8. Work people who are awesome and make me laugh. Also, writing people who are awesome. 

9.  The cooler temperatures. I am in heaven to be able to wear my sweatshirt all day. We had to drop off a sweatshirt for K4 since she drove her Jeep with the top down today and was freezing. But that's the way it goes sometimes. Ha!

10. Weekend plans. They weren't what I thought they'd be, but they are good. We haven't been home the past few weekends and even though I need to wash sheets and vacuum this house within an inch of its life, I'm looking forward to the relaxation of being home!

That's all I have! 

Hopefully it won't be another week until I get back here, but you never know!

Behave!

Adventures!

I know it's been over a week! I'm sorry! 

Last week was a blur of overtime, car stuff, and random stuff. 

But we went on an adventure over the weekend! We had so much fun and can't wait to do it again. 

On Friday we left to meet up with a friend who has a boat. We got up super early Saturday morning and headed out 80 miles into the ocean. We caught fish, saw dolphin, whale spouts, and just chilled on the boat. I took a sweet nap and we had a great lunch. We were out for like thirteen hours with only a tiny bit of sunburn that didn't last. 

Got back to their house, cleaned the fishing rods, the fish, made dinner, showered, and hung out. 

It was a blast! We'll definitely be doing that again! Left early Sunday because we had houseguests. Our nephew was driving through from his previous assignment to his next assignment and needed a place to stay. Well, no one was home here, so K4 left him a key and they had the run of the house until K4 got home Sunday morning. We pulled in early afternoon, unloaded, and began making a feast for dinner since That Man's family was coming. 

It was fun, but we were so exhausted and sore from our Saturday adventure. I didn't really get to sit down until everyone left, which was close to ten pm. 

So yeah, we're still exhausted. And, of course, today was a super busy day at the day job. 

That's all I have!

Behave!

Week End Wrap Up...

So today's book signing was a bummer. Yeah, it was good for a lot of reasons, but the store was dead and the only books I sold were to my friends who were signing with me. Which was awesome, but...

I had our granddaughter with me, who was a riot and a blast. We had a good time looking for books and talking about stuff. She had fun meeting my writing friends and talking with them. She tried to help me use my store credit, but both of us fell short and I ended up with as much as I started with. (We get new store credit with every signing) Ha! She is so funny though. She tried to convince this older gentleman who said he doesn't read into buying a book anyway. He didn't, but she tried. Ha!

The Friday birthday gig was a lot of fun. The birthday girl didn't know I was coming and was surprised and happy to see me. We had a blast! The winery is super cool and they took awesome care of our rowdy group. 

Currently, I am still in the lead on the words written tracking spreadsheet, which is surprising. But we've all been super busy this weekend. So... 

Yesterday was a super good day. I got all of my house stuff done, wrote, dealt with an awesome natural gas guy who had to come and inspect our stuff. (He was funny and we laughed a lot) That Man got his car ready for inspection and we took care of a bunch of other house stuff. We picked up the kid, made dinner, and introduced her to Back to the Future, which she loved. 

It's been raining all day, which is good. And I am wearing a sweatshirt, which is also good.  

That's all I have!

Behave!

Lots of Stuff...

So this Sunday I have a book signing at my favorite independent book store! I'm really looking forward to it. It's been a year since my last signing! This is a big event around here. There are different authors all weekend, and even a slumber party Saturday night. I can't stay for that this year. I was there for a while last year, but didn't stay over. It was fun and I heard a good time was had by all. 

So...come and see me if you're so inclined!

My next singing is next year in New Jersey at a winery. That's all that is currently scheduled. At least for now. We'll see how the schedule stacks up and what happens. 

Other than that... it's Thursday. I completely lost track of what day it is thanks to our Hello Fresh box being late. Plus, we were supposed to pick up the camper last night, but changed our minds due to the weather. That would have sucked bringing it home in that mess. It was a simple fix, but they didn't have time to do the inspection, so we'll have to go back. Which is fine since it's not out until next month anyway. 

Anyway. Tomorrow is Friday. I have a surprise birthday gig to show up at. A former coworker. (No, she doesn't read this) It'll be good to see everyone. It's been since the beginning of summer. It's nice that we're all still friends. I think it has to do with the absolute hell we went through together for six years though. We kept each other sane and laughing and that counts for everything. 

The words are flowing again, which is very good. I went from being the lowest numbers on our tracking spreadsheet, to leading the way. Of course, I'll get knocked off probably tonight, but it's still a good feeling. 

That is all! 

Behave!

Tuesday!

You know I used to do Tall Tale Tuesday. That stopped being a thing because, I think, my whole life turned into a Tall Tale. lol

Anyway. 

Here we are at Tuesday. 

I have written more words this week (in just two days) than I have in a few weeks! That's awesome. I also finished a crit of an amazing scifi book for a friend. And my laundry is caught up. 

I also discovered that The Shadow Guide is available in paperback now! I wish I had known that when I ordered my books for the signing this weekend, but I might have a few copies available if you show up!

I'm looking forward to the signing. Chances are my granddaughter will be hanging with me. When she came camping with us, we were talking about it and she was super excited to be at a bookstore, with cats, and books. So far, it looks like it's a go, so that's a good thing. 

So... you should stop by. This coming Sunday from 11-1! 

Other than that. This week is super slow and super busy. If that makes sense. 

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up

Well, it's late Sunday night and work is tomorrow. Boo! 

It was a good, but busy, weekend.

K4 got her soft top put on the Jeep. It looks cool and she's happy with it. It needs a little more time in the sun to make it fit right, but it looks great!

We dropped the camper off for inspection. A little early, but there's a raw gas smell that needs addressed. (The lightbulbs are good) We couldn't find the cause, so hopefully our mechanic can. We have a trip coming up that we think we're going to take the camper to, so we need to make sure it's good. After that, That Man's car needs to go in, and then my Jeep. Holy expensive month, Batman. 

I will be at my favorite local bookstore next Sunday for a book signing. It's going to be awesome. My time frame for signing includes two of my besties, and my granddaughter is going to be there. I will have limited print copies of Prelude of Lies, and a sneak peak copy of The Shadow Guide (which is not for sale), but I'll let you look at it. Ha! 

Other than that... We did all of the things this weekend. The house got cleaned, the laundry is done, the grass is mowed, the gardens are weeded. I took a nap today, which was awesome. And I slept in both days. I also wrote and critiqued, which is also awesome. 

That is all for now! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

We made it to Friday! Yay! It was a long week and it was even a short week for me! 

I'm going to put this up here and not on the list because I realized I never posted about it. Last week our kitty girl went to kitty heaven. She was around 20, maybe older, maybe a bit younger. We got her when she was nine or ten. Her previous owners weren't sure how old she was. She came to us a few months after we lost our kitty boy and our dog. It was a debate on whether or not we were ready for another pet, but we finally agreed. She came to us on a cold day in December and hid under our bed for most of the day. By evening, she was laying on top of the bed and allowed us to pet her. Her decline happened quickly and by last Tuesday, we knew it was time. She'd taken up residence on the couch and didn't move, not even when we ran the vacuum. When we came home Tuesday night, we knew it was time. She was a great kitty and we loved her very much. Despite the fact that we still have three cats, her presence is definitely missed. I look for her all of the time and I miss her little "murf" noise. She never meowed, just murfed. 

And that's all I have to say about that...

So let's get to the list...

1. Cursed Fate came out (again). I know I posted about it a while ago, but I completely boned on release day. I managed other social media, but not here. It was a crazy day/week around here and I was running around like a lunatic. But Wooo! Print copies will be available in six months, so that's cool. 

2. Fresh tomatoes from our garden on BLT's for dinner. So good. We've had exactly six tomatoes so far, but there are tons of green ones on. I'm excited. We also have hot peppers and banana peppers coming in. And basil, oregano, and rosemary. Looks like there's some spaghetti sauce making in my future. 

3. The heat wave being over! My gosh it was hot! I ran outside at work and burned my hand on the mechanism to open the front door. We drove home through some crazy storms, but it was worth it for the temperature to drop twenty degrees. 

4. The possibility of our nephew coming to hang out for a few days. He'll be between orders for the military and heading from south to north for his next gig. We haven't seen him in person since he was like eleven. He's a smart kid and fun to talk to. It'll be fun to have him and his girlfriend in house for a little while.

5. This weekend without a lot of plans. I mean, we do have plans, but they are more the clean the house, work on the camper for inspection (change light bulbs), weed whack, write, and do the grocery shopping. Easy plans, though the cleaning the house part sucks. I do hope to sleep in a little, too. 

6. Speaking of writing. I'm managing. It's slow and some nights its a struggle, but I'm in a challenge with my writing pals, and I have to keep adding numbers. The story is going well though, which is something. 

That's all I have for now.

Behave!

Eight Days...

And it's been a crazy eight days! 

This past weekend was the grands camping weekend. Things were snafu'ed and didn't quite work out like we'd planned, but in the end it worked out okay? 

The aunt and uncle arrived this weekend. Their trip took them way longer than they thought it would. I was texting to request updates and it would take at least a day to get an unsatisfactory response (meaning, it told me nothing about their eta or plans). They didn't arrive until days after they said they would. Despite knowing they march to their own drum and do what they want, it was frustrating. 

We were supposed to have a family thing up at camp but that fell through. The Uncle was supposed to update folks and he didn't. I was supposed to update and I tried, but that didn't work either thanks to my stupid phone and attempts that fell through. Nothing went the way it was supposed to. But the people who said they'd be there didn't check in either, so there's that. I can't run the world... I have enough on my plate and ultimately, I am not and cannot be in charge of everything. I'm not sure, but I may have been blamed for not updating, which my uncle said was bullsh*t because it was his job at that point. I still feel bad though. I did try. 

I mean, our uncle is seventy-seven. Our mom wasn't quite seventy-five when she died. He's our only close living relative on our mom's side. (He's mom's younger brother). He's an amazing guy with a lot of awesomely cool stories to tell. He just can't get up and go like he used to. He cracks us up and teaches us things. I cannot imagine not having him in my life. I will always go out of my way to see him and make sure he's okay. 

We got exactly one grandkid this weekend and she didn't get there until Sunday. We thought we would get her Saturday despite originally making plans to get her Friday. We waited all day Saturday for the word and it never came. Until very early Sunday morning. It was beyond anyone's control and that's okay. 

We moved schedules to keep her overnight Sunday, which meant I took off work today and That Man went in for a half day and then came back to help me break camp. K5's weekend was super rough until she got to us, so our goal was to spoil her as much as we could and give her mom a break. I think at least that part of the weekend worked.

There were bee stings. That Man, S, and both dogs got stung by a nest of ground bees. That Man got stung six times, S got three, and our dog got one (right under her tail near her sensitive spot), my sisters dog got way more than anyone else (uncountable since he's the one who found the nest) and that poor baby was a freaking mess. He had to have Benadryl and lots of love. So far, everyone is okey dokey. S had some residual effects, but I think she's okay now. 

It was a good weekend, for the most part, but I am freaking exhausted. Mentally and physically. So much both. 

Behave! 

First of August...

Cursed Fate releases on Wednesday! If you're fast enough you can get Into the Fire free again at some point this week. I don't know exactly what the date is. There was a screw up with the schedule. 

Well, here we are... Beginning of August. 

This summer has gone by really fast. Or is that just me? 

I am looking forward to fall coming though! I'm tired of the heat and ready for sweatshirt weather. I'll miss my flip flops, but I'll wear them until my feet get too cold. 

Our weekend consisted of getting the kid's vehicle ready for inspection. Again. The framework has been done and That Man and K4 worked on the other stuff all weekend. We dropped it off this morning, so now it's finger crossing time. She's ready to have her vehicle back and we're ready to have ours back. 

We have some fun stuff coming up. Looking forward to those things. I have a lot of lists though.

That's all I have.

Behave! 

Almost the End of July...

How crazy is that? End of July!

So the book I featured on the blog over the weekend is celebrating its release day today. Check it out if you're so inclined. It's a great book, especially if you like cozy mystery. 

What's been up around here? 

Not much. Not really. 

Yard work. I got poison sumac from weed whacking. We're going on two weeks now and it's still super itchy. I typically don't get poison ivy, but sumac and oak, yeah, I get that. I have a big spot on my leg and some smaller spots on my forearm. It itches like crazy and I hate it. 

We have plans to take the oldest grands camping soon. Looking forward to that. We've been talking about it for ages. The grands are super stoked and excited. We will have waffles and camp donuts. 

A friend of That Man's from high school stopped by tonight. He's one of those guys that it doesn't matter how long it's been since you've seen him, everything is all good. Our oldest two grew up with his kids. We did scouts together and many school dances and functions. It was good to see him and we laughed our butts off even though he still refuses to sell us his old station wagon. Ha!

I'm getting my butt back to writing again. It's been way, way too long. I'm happy with my progress so far this week. 

And that is all! 

Behave! 

Guest Blogger - Gabby Allen - Much Ado About Nauticaling

I am please to have Gabby Allen on the blog today!

Hello Victoria Smith Blog readers! So excited to be here with you today!

I’m Gabby Allan and Victoria has been nice enough to let me hang with you for just a little while. I’m super excited to introduce my new series to you! It’s a rom Cozy—rom com and cozy mystery snuggled up on a beach drinking a Mai Tai! If you’re into that kind of thing, I think you’ll love this book and my characters Whitney Dagner and her cat Whiskers!

Thanks for giving me a look and have a great day!

Whitney Dagner is your tour guide to a Pacific paradise that’s to die for—only to find it’s a place people are also willing to kill for—in Gabby Allan’s Much Ado About Nauticaling, first in the Whit and Whiskers Mystery series. 
After far too many years in the Los Angeles corporate world, Whitney Dagner has come home to Santa Catalina Island off the California coast to help her brother Nick run Nautically Yours, the family tourism business. Between gift shop shifts selling all manner of T-shirts and tchotchkes and keeping her feline Whiskers in fine fettle, she pilots the Sea Bounder, a glass bottom boat showing tourists the underwater sights of aquatic plants, marine life—and a murder victim? 
The self-proclaimed “Master of the Island,” Jules Tisdale was a wealthy man with business interests throughout Catalina who was about to be honored as Person of the Year before someone strangled him with his own tie and tossed his body into the water. That someone appears to be Nick, who had a raw deal from Jules and no alibi the night of his murder. To clear her brother’s name, Whit will have to investigate Jules’ shady associates and not exactly grief-stricken family members—with the unwelcome help of Felix Ramirez, police diver and Whit’s ex-boyfriend who’s looking to rekindle their relationship.

https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/9781496731067/much-ado-about-nauticaling/

If you’d like a door hanger and/or a signed book plate for your book, drop me a line at gabbyallanwrites@gmail.com

You can find me lots of places but here are a few to start!

 

Newsletter sign up  http://eepurl.com/bjDYYX

Website www.gabbyallan.com

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/GabbyAllanAuthor

Facebook Group Merry Sleuths https://bit.ly/2UWZida

Amazon Author Page https://amzn.to/3inb08R

Instagram @gabbyallanspeaks

Goodreads https://bit.ly/3ioqHg3

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/gabby-allan

Thanks for having me!

(From Victoria - I have read this book and it's a blast! I highly recommend it!)

Behave!

  

It's Been A While...

It's been almost 3 weeks since I posted! Sorry about that! 

We went from That Man being away on his fishing trip to loading up the car and taking a half cross country trek. Many hours driving through horrible rain and butthead drivers to see my aunt and uncle. We hadn't seen them for over two years so when the timing came up, we went for it. 

We had a blast hanging out with them. Basically, we just visited and laughed. My aunt has been taking care of my uncle post surgery - it was last year, but he's still recovering and adjusting medications - so we pampered her a little and took care of some house stuff she hasn't had a chance to get to, made dinner and lunch, and took care of the dogs. Killed some poisonous spiders, and fought ticks. The uncle is looking good though. Still a little wobbly at times, but his mind is sharp again, and he looks well. All good stuff. 

Down the street from their house is a little market - you can get ice, beer, booze, smokes, and a wide range of probably expired food stuffs. Ha! Inside that building is a bar/restaurant. I've been to their house three or four times now and never knew that! We went there to listen to a blue grass band one night and had a blast. There weren't very many people, but the band, the appetizers, and the small crowd were awesome. The guy bought an old Victorian house and incorporated it into the space. The second floor is a bedroom, bathroom, and sitting room and they are all period appropriate. It was cool, but you can't get closer than looking at it from the first floor. We essentially listened to the band from the back porch of the house. That was a highlight for sure. 

Got to see a cousin I haven't seen in forever. We had that awkward silence at first - you know the one where you're not sure you have anything in common even though you're related and you remember hanging out as kids. And then you realize you all fell from the same tree. It was fun and we talked for a long time. It was good. 

We braved more rain on the way home. Coming home is definitely harder than going out. We're still recovering. I think we're just getting too old to stay up that long and sleep in the car. Ha!

Back to work on Monday. Exhausted and trying to get into our new routine. This is the first we've both been in the office all week since I went back. We've had to alter our Hello Fresh deliveries and our old routine. But we'll figure it out. K4 has a different schedule now, too, so that adds an additional adjustment. We'll get there. 

I haven't written much lately, but that will come back, too. I have a lot of research and ideas to put into the book, which is a good thing. Being where we were gave me a lot of terrain and locations to add, so that is also very good. 

Now we're scheduled for home things for the next few weeks. Weeds need pulled. Sheds need cleaned out. Cars need prepped for inspection. Blah. Blah. Blah. It is what it is. 

That is all! 

Behave!