Sunday, September 29, 2013

Exploring Locally: Apple Orchards

One of my favorite fall activities has always involved eating.  My parents' house out in the country had some crab apple trees and that was one thing that I enjoyed.  I ate a few of them off the tree each year even when it was awfully tart.  My grandparents have multiple apple trees in their backyard also and they pick apples every year and freeze, bake, and can them (ready made pie filling!!).  Last year we found out that there is a local apple orchard not too far out of the suburbs around here.  Alyssa was 2 1/2 and we had a lot of fun picking apples, seeing the farm animals, and checking out the area in general.  Of course that meant that we HAD to go back this year!

We got to the orchard and unlike last year, we were there without any crowds.  Yay for weekdays!  It was seriously windy but it was a perfect temperature out to be hiking through an orchard.  My sister came for a visit so we got to drag her along as a kid helper too.  Alyssa loves tagging along with Auntie no matter where we are.  Even with the massive aphid problems this year, we were able to fill our bag to the brim in a relatively quick amount of time.  We missed out on the animals this year because we didn't see where they had moved to in the remodel until we were leaving.  As it was nearly past supper time already, it wasn't such a huge loss.

I'm looking forward to trying my hand at baking some yummy fall treats and possibly weaseling that canned pie filling recipe out of my grandmother for an ice cream topping!

Alyssa and Momma at the Orchard--Sept 2013
**No location, business, or individual has asked me to write these Exploring Locally posts.  I've taken all trips upon myself and at my own discretion.  I am merely sharing with you some fun ways that we pass our time and tour our own local area!**

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Stolen Chances Blog Tour

Let's start with the fact that I adore Elisabeth Naughton.  Aside from that, I wanted to let you know that Stolen Chances is available NOW!  And if you haven't read them yet, pick up a copy of EACH Eternal Guardian Series books....On to the main event of the day:

Stolen Chances

Find me at Amazon and Barnes and Noble!  Check out your other favorite e-book sellers too!
~*~*~*~
Nine years ago, Archaeologist Maren Hudson lost everything when a member of her team was killed during a routine dive. Now she’s been drawn back to Mexico and the career she walked away from in order to protect the most precious thing in the world: her daughter.

One desperate phone call brings salvage expert Thad Leighton back to Mexico. For his murdered brother, he’s ready to settle the score, but one look at Maren and everything changes. Years may have passed, but she’s still as mesmerizing as she once was, and a few days on site together have him questioning his priorities and why the hell he walked away from her so long ago.
Sparks between them reignite, but Thad knows Maren is holding something back. Thrust together in the middle of the sweltering Yucatan, Thad is more than willing to strip away her layers. But while the truth might offer the second chance he’s been searching for, forgiveness may be as elusive as the relic they’re both hunting. Because when Thad unearths Maren’s biggest secret and discovers who she’s really working for, suddenly it’s not just about a life that was stolen from both of them, it’s about staying alive and outwitting a madman who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
~*~*~*~ 


If you see it out in the wild, let us know!  Otherwise, you can grab your copy online at Amazon!


Get To Know Elisabeth!
~*~*~*~
I was never one of those people who knew they wanted to be an author at the age of six. I didn’t have imaginary friends. I didn’t write stories in my journal or entertain my relatives by firelight after Thanksgiving dinner. For the most part, I was just a normal, everyday kid. I liked to read, but I wasn’t exceptional at it. And when my teachers complimented me on my writing abilities, I brushed them off. I did, however, always have a penchant for the unique and absurd. And as my mother told me all throughout my childhood, I should have been an actress—I was a drama queen before my time.

Years ago, my husband bought me Scarlett: The Sequel to Gone With The Wind. If you ever saw the book, you know it’s a long one. I sat and read that thing from cover to cover, and dreamed of one day being a writer. But I didn’t actually try my hand at writing until years later when I quit my teaching job to stay home with my kids. And my husband? After that week of reading where I neglected him and everything else until I finished Scarlett, he vowed never to buy me another book again. Little did he know I’d one day end up sitting at a keyboard all day drafting my own stories.

My writing journey has not been easy. I didn’t just sit down one day, decide I was going to write a book and voila! sell my very first attempt. As most authors will probably agree, the path to publication is filled with hours of work, pulling all-nighters I thought I’d given up in college, sacrifices, rejections, but a love I discovered along the way I just can’t live without. Instead of a big, thick book to read by lamplight (I do read much smaller ones when I get the chance), I’ve traded in my reading obsession for a laptop. And I’ve never been happier.

I’m one of the lucky ones. I have a wonderful family and fabulous husband who put up with my writing—and obsessive personality—even when life is chaotic. More than once my kids have been late to swimming or baseball because I needed just five more minutes to finish a scene. Their support and encouragement mean the world to me. I also have amazing friends and a support network I couldn’t survive without. So to all of you out there who have encouraged me along the way, sent me emails and fan letters, phone calls and congratulations, I just want to say, thank you. You make this whole writing gig that much more enjoyable. I truly wouldn’t be here without you.
~*~*~*~

Visit Elisabeth and the Guardians!


Thanks to Enchantress of Books for including me in this tour!  I love Elisabeth's books and was thrilled to participate!
Enchantress of Books Blog Tours

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

With this ring...

Nearly six years, one deployment, and a nearly non-stop honeydo list for my DIY-er.  This is what my husband's ring has lasted through.



That is a Tungsten ring.  Those ones that they bang around and scratch with metal files to show how tough they are.  I have no idea when this happened precisely, but my husband is at annual training for the Army Guard....so yeah.  TaDa!

I guess we will be looking at new bands when he gets home and figuring out where in the budget timeline that goes.  Still, I'm rather impressed with that damage (and so was the jeweler when I asked if it could be repaired at all--Tungsten isn't repairable).

Friday, September 13, 2013

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Chicken

I thought I had this recipe posted previously...and if I do, well, I forgot to label it under recipes so....here we go!  This is seriously good stuff people!  Of course it isn't the true Asian dish that we love, but here is the easy Americanized version we eat far too often:


Sweet and Sour Chicken:
1 bag boneless/skinless Chicken Breast

Sauce:
1C. Ketchup
1/2C. White Vinegar
2tsp. Worchestershire
1C. Sugar
1/2tsp. Garlic Powder
1/4C. Water


  • Cube/dice chicken (whatever size you really want but we do bitesize or a little larger)
  • optional: coat in fry'n magic and fry for crispier chicken
  • Brown chicken
  • Mix sauce ingredients together
  • Pour over chicken in 9x13 pan
  • Bake @ 350-375F for 30 minutes
  • Optional: serve over rice

We have grilled up extra chicken and used that later in the week to make this.  We have done 8x8 pans using fewer chicken breasts (but did the same amount of sauce and poured that over the rice).  Play with it to suit your family.  It is sweeter than sour but delicious!  I use Ready Rice from Uncle Ben just to make it one less thing to juggle at supper time with the kids.

My husband, the man who likes only things with a crunch to them, even likes this one.  Our daughter used to think it was 'ketchup chicken' and will clear a plate of it in minutes usually.  As for myself, it is a personal favorite!  Chris froze the leftovers (we made a second pan to test this) one time and it worked SO WELL!  Took the vacuum sealed pouch out of the freezer, thawed/heated in the microwave and had a GREAT lunch a few weeks later.  Speaking of....I think I'll go dig through the freezer and see if I have any more lunch pouches left in there!

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Proof of Teeth!

I finally got a picture where he was willing to smile even with the phone or camera in front of his face.  Usually he just goes blank face or wide mouth but not smiling when he sees technology within grabbing (and chewing) distance!
Adorable, right?

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

My New Column Badge ---->

You may have noticed a new badge on my side column.  The Promotional Spotlight Tour for Elisabeth Naughton's book Stolen Chances has begun!  Though my stop isn't until the 22nd (come back and see me!), you are absolutely welcome and encouraged to check in with Elisabeth and get to know some of her other books by swinging through Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, and your choice of book stores!


I love her Eternal Guardian's series and am (impatiently) waiting for the next book in the series!  I've just got my hands on Stolen Fury (the first in the Stolen series) and am very excited to meet more characters to enjoy!


Sunday, September 8, 2013

The Value of Photos


Our Venture Photography Mosaic!

I adore these photos!  I think they are so fun and they are perfect for the family room atmosphere.  It was an investment because they weren't cheap but I put a lot of value on family photos.  Capturing not only an image, but a feeling or a personality through a camera is not a simple challenge.  They may hire anyone who can point and click at the basic studios and many of those photos turn out nicely, but they are so similar to every photo we've taken before.

Venture Photography is a studio-based photography experience but with the personalization of having an on-site photographer.  Their studio is large enough to hold horses...really, they've done it!  You bring ANYTHING with (almost) that shows off what your family does and who you are.  You don't have a 15-30 minute slot where you fit in a bunch of standard poses.  You have an hour and you play, you dress up, you do whatever kinds of things you'd do at home.  Your kids get relaxed and glow for the camera.  That dreaded 'say cheese' isn't heard within the building unless *mom* slips up...oops!

I have no doubt in my mind that we will save up to do this again.  Our goal is to be able to do this every 5 years.  Wether that happens or not will of course depend upon what life throws at us, but it would be absolutely wonderful.

They aren't very spread out in the U.S. but they are great if you're nearby!  They began in the U.K. so they are an international set-up and neat to check out.  (US, UK, and Hong Kong locations)

**No location, business, or individual has asked me to write this post.  I simply wished to share a product and business that I've personally utilized.  I received nothing in exchange for my post.**

Thursday, September 5, 2013

...and then there were three.

It's that time of year again for this guard family.  Annual Training!  I am going two and a half weeks with a teething baby and a toddler milking the last half of age three for all it is worth in tantrums and stubbornness!  No backup.  My "battle buddy" is off keeping his skills honed for any future deployments.  So....
Day One:  Last coin lost at 5pm. I "ruined her birthday!" I was pretty sure I had a few months to plan that event but apparently I simply forgot what day of the year she was born AND forgot to plan a party.  Crap.  I look forward to the teen years when the storming to the room is accompanied by at least a half hour of sulking.  For now I get a 2 minute shouting from the door and then returning to sulking in my presence paired with the random fit over the same thing.


Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Happy Release Day to Theresa Romain! (link to giveaway)

I love romance novels.  I LOVE historical romance novels.

I have a new favorite cover out there just today!

ITTTT


Plus, there are giveaways for it going on right now!  Tonight is a Twitter party for the release of It Takes Two to Tangle ( #TwoToTangle ) and there are prizes for both pre-registering (here) and while the party goes on.  <3  So excited to read this book...and stare at the cover in person.

*Giveaways are closed but still...how gorgeous is this cover???  9/4/13*

Simple Birthday Card

We all know grandparents (and those of other relationships) that have handmade scribble cards from us at the age of three.  I hopefully have improved upon my card-making skills past the scribble stage with this birthday card for my grandma.


A simple card with a little depth by making a single heart stand out with an extra punch-out shape plus some foam tape to push it away from the paper.