Wednesday, November 30, 2016

National Stay Home Because You're Well Day

And there you have it! It's National Stay Home Because You're Well Day. Do something nice for yourself for a change.

Treat yourself to a leisurely breakfast out.


Relax in a long, hot bath.


Lose yourself in a good book.


Or, do what I'm doing.


Go to work because I need the money :(

How will you spend your day?

Monday, November 28, 2016

It's Done

Well . . . for the most part anyway. I constantly rearrange or add an ornament or two as the days go on. Now it's time to start the wrapping the gifts and filling in the empty spaces under the tree.

Friday, November 25, 2016

Happy Shopping!

The shopping season officially begins today with what has come to be known as Black Friday. The day merchants make up for slow sales during the entire year and hopefully turn a profit.


Luckily, we don't have to fight the crowds in the malls and shopping centers around town to complete our gift list.


We can opt to shop in the comfort of our jammies from our own homes. Not that I haven't seen shoppers . . . in their jammies . . . in the mall. Hey! That sounds like a great post for another day. Maybe I'll collect my own photos and share later :)

Me? I prefer to avoid the crowds. Give me my pj's, computer, coffee (for morning shopping), wine (afternoon and evening shopping), credit card (number, expiration date, and 3-digit code memorized. Sad, I know) and I'm set.


What's your preferred method of shopping?

Thursday, November 24, 2016

Happy Thanksgiving


I'm thankful for friends like you! Have a wonderful day filled with family, food, and fond memories.

Monday, November 21, 2016

And it begins!

I love to get the house decorated for Christmas as early as possible so I can enjoy every minute of the season but always after Thanksgiving. I never want to overlook the day set aside for giving thanks for our many blessings.

With work, family schedules, and the hustle and bustle of the all the tasks on my ever growing to do list, the time I have available for decorating after Thanksgiving and before the new work week begins again is limited.

Last year, my daughter suggested we purchase our trees the weekend before Thanksgiving, get it set up in the stand with plenty of water so it can rehydrate and regain its original shape after being bound and transported from who knows where up north.

What?! Before Thanksgiving?

She pointed out the trees, already on display, had been cut probably weeks prior to Thanksgiving. Why not give it a fighting chance to stay fresh and green as long as possible. After all, who likes a brown, brittle tree on Christmas Day? Good point.

So, another of our Christmas traditions began and here's our tree for 2016, drinking all the water it wants, staying fresh, and relaxing its scrunched up branches to be ready for the ornaments and lights next weekend.

Friday, November 18, 2016

Happy Birthday Mickey Mouse!

Happy birthday to one of my favorite mice . . . M-I-C-K-E-Y  M-O-U-S-E!

Admit it. You sang those letters, didn't you? Who wouldn't? Mickey has brought us all such joy over the years.

We have two grandsons born in August who turned one and four this year. We decided to celebrate the birthdays together. Mickey joined in the fun and helped us out. Look at those yummy cupcakes!


Now, it's Mickey's day. Happy birthday, Mickey Mouse! Let's celebrate!

Thursday, November 17, 2016

Thursday's Tasty Temptations

Continuing our tally of food references in my first book, In My Wildest Dreams, the family doesn't sit together for another meal until chapter 18.

Sub sandwiches and sweet tea.



In our room, Layne leaned against the door staring up at the ceiling. He blew out a long breath and hung his head.

I circled his waist with my arms. “I’m so sorry, Layne.”

“Me, too. Stony was good hearted. He never hurt anything in his long, long life. And now he’s gone . . . just gone.”

We changed and went downstairs to eat an early supper.

Lake and Woods had already started making sub sandwiches from the trays of fixings Olive had set out. They had changed into their camo clothing, ready for instructions from Layne on the upcoming mission everyone anticipated. I had a knot in the pit of my stomach knowing Layne was leaving on another hunt that meant we would be separated again.

“Layne, we think we got a solid lead and would like to go ahead now,” Lake said between bites.

Quieter than I had ever seen him, Layne had a most solemn countenance. Fully aware he was worried about my safety, I hated being a burden and wanted to help even if the best way to do so was to stay put here or go into hiding someplace unknown.

After some thought, Layne took a long drink of sweet tea and reached for a slice of ham. He sucked in a determined breath. “Lake, get two teams ready to roll out in an hour. Make sure my gear is included. Extra provisions. No way to tell how long this will take,” Layne said.

“I’ve already given the orders. The teams are suiting up now and the gear is packed for an extended mission,” Lake said with determination. A brotherly bond had obviously formed long ago between the two and they thought along the same lines. A sense of relief washed over me that Layne had someone to totally depend on. Layne and Lake looked out for each other and would come home safe. I had to keep telling myself this. I had to believe this.
Available from Amazon

Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day

Yay! I'm so glad there's a day set aside to get this done and before going to the grocery store to load up on food for the Thanksgiving meal. Let's get busy folks!


Monday, November 14, 2016

Sides

I posted a pumpkin pie recipe for dessert and turkey ideas for Thanksgiving so let's look at sides. Here are some traditional favorites and a couple of new dishes I'm looking at trying.







Hungry yet?

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Turkey Options

What's your favorite turkey recipe? Do you inject the bird with butter and spices before you bake? Do you fry? Roast? Smoke? So many options for the star of the Thanksgiving table.


Everyone looks for a beautiful, golden brown, picture perfect turkey to grace the table but how many times have we been less than thrilled with the taste?

I must say after some hit or miss holidays, we found a couple of favorites we continue to use. One year I mixed a brine and soaked my bird overnight before shoving him into the oven the next morning which made for one delicious turkey. The slices were so juicy and flavorful, I was given the task of preparing the Christmas main dish as well.

Turkey success #2 happened with my sister and brother in law cooked the turkey in an oil-less fryer with identical results...juicy tender turkey from heaven. The prep in this case was an injection of butter and spices prior to cooking.

My favorite? The one I didn't have to cook:) Guess who gets my vote for turkey duty again this year?

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Thanksgiving Planning

It's that time again! Time to plan the Thanksgiving meal. Why not start with dessert?

A traditional pumpkin pie just can't be beat. Here's a simple, yummy recipe.


1 (9 inch) unbaked deep dish pie crust

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

2 eggs

1 (15 0z) can pumpkin

1 (12 0z can) evaporated milk

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
  2. Combine sugar, salt, and pumpkin pie spice in small bowl. Beat eggs lightly in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into pie shell.
  3. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees F.; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. (Do not freeze as this will cause the crust to separate from the filling.)

Monday, November 7, 2016

Plotting Levels

We've all heard the question asked dozens of times. Are you a pantser or a plotter? Do you sit down and start writing until you have a completed book or do you first spend countless hours jotting scenes and ideas on hundreds of sticky notes and arranging them on the wall in your office before you begin writing?



I always answer, "both".

I started writing Rescued when two separate scenes bouncing around in my head merged and snowballed into a book. And although I didn't create a story board, there were times when I had to stop, look at my progress, and plan my next move.

I often jot down notes at the bottom of my document to work into the story later. Sometimes I end up with as much as a page or two of individual points to be used when the time is right. I consider that to be a level of plotting. Maybe the question should be expanded to, "Are you a pantser, a light weight plotter, or a heavy duty plotter?"

Now, I can answer. I'm a light weight plotter.

Sunday, November 6, 2016

Champs!

The 2016 Four Year Old Flag Football Champions! Yay Wolverines!!


I am amazed at these four year olds! They learned basic football skills in a few weeks and won their division. Looking forward to next year to see how many of them play together again.

Great job guys and girl!!

Saturday, November 5, 2016

Just Write


This is how I feel so many times.



This is what I need to remember. Just write. The rest will fall into place.

Friday, November 4, 2016

Kitty Cuteness

These two stole my heart one year ago this month.

Evy and Ivy.

I don't know who was happier.

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Thursday's Tasty Temptations

I've been a slacker keeping Thursday's Tasty Temptations rolling along at a consistent pace. Now, I'm back again and as a reminder, or to introduce you to the idea of these posts, my daughter remarked after reading my books that they always made her hungry. A reference to the number of times food is mentioned which made me wonder just how many times my scenes centered around food and family conversation.

I decided to look at my first book, In My Wildest Dreams, and get a count of food references. My last post, a few months back, covered chapter fourteen. Here's an excerpt from chapter fifteen:

“Good morning, you two,” Layne’s daddy said in a boisterous tone as we entered the kitchen. “Son, you’d better grab some plates before Woods here polishes off all the food.”

Unbelievable. Woods was better, much better than I remembered. No evidence of the near-death experience I witnessed last night remained. His only response to the comment was to help himself to another stack of Olive’s pancakes with a satisfied grin. He did stop eating long enough to stand and address me as I came into the room.

“Good morning, Ms. Lynzi. I want to thank you for all your help last night. Those two would as soon killed me as to look at me, I think, and they left me in no condition to transport out of there on my own. If you hadn’t been in the barn I-I don’t know what would have happened to me.”

“I’m just glad we got you out when we did, Woods,” I answered, amazed at the rapid recovery.

“We both are,” Layne added. “What can you tell us about why they chose last night to confront you?”

We took seats at the table and listened as Woods told his side of the story. “They’re unhappy I’ve not handed Ms. Lynzi over to them yet. They want to use her to bargain with you about ownership and control of the land.”

“It’ll be a cold day in hell before they get their hands on Lynzi again, and the land belongs to the folks here, not to any one man.” Layne leaned over and kissed the top of my head. “Lake, any word from the teams running down the latest leads this morning?”

“Yeah, they checked in, nothing new to report though I’m sorry to say.”

They consumed pancakes as fast as Olive could turn them out. It always astounded me how much these guys could eat at one sitting so it was no time at all before the table was clean.

“Olive, you’re spoiling me here. When I go home, I’m going to have to do all this myself again and I’m not going to remember how,” I said to her as she gathered the last of the plates from the table and scurried off to the kitchen with them.

“Now don’t you go thinking about going back so soon, sweetheart. We still have lots to do here.” Layne leaned in and nuzzled his face in that spot on my neck that sent me into melt down mode as his warm breath bathed my skin. His hands slipped around my waist.

“Mmm, Layne,” I breathed. My eyes closed and my head tilted, giving him full access to my neck. My hand snaked up around his neck and tugged him even closer.

“Oh, geez. Don’t you two have a room?” Lake snorted.

“Don’t you have work to do?” Layne addressed Lake with a none-too-pleased expression and a hint of irritation in his words.

“Of course I do. Let me get my instructions from my boss. Oh, wait, that would be you. Well, what do you say, boss?” Lake was begging for a brotherly tussle if you asked me.

After a long pause, Layne shook his head and continued. “Well, Lake, I need the training room set up for kickboxing and the range for cross bow,” Layne said as we finished our coffee. “Lynzi’s gonna start some light training today.”

More coffee. No surprise there! In addition, breakfast consisted of pancakes. Stacks and stacks of pancakes! How do you like yours?

Now, this is a stack!

Whipped cream?

Hot fudge and banana?

Fruit?

Funny face?

Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Fall Yard Project II

Work on the flower beds resumed this weekend and here are some before and after pictures to show the fruits of my labor.

Remember the before pic?



This is the same bed from a different angle.



There's still work to do but it's sure come a long way.