Category: The Blog

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iStitch Mystery SAL

I’m going to be starting a new cross stitch project shortly, and because it’s something new for me, I thought I’d share my progress here every week or so.

SAL = Stitch A Long.  In this case, it’s a mystery SAL – we’ve only been given a glimpse of what the finished project will look like.  There are 8 pieces, and we don’t get the NEXT piece until we finish the current one and send a picture to the designer.  Currently, there are 125 people signed up to participate, and we’ll all be stitching at the same time.  Pretty cool, huh?

What’s even more cool: each project will look very different, depending on fabric and choice of colors. I was thinking about my project tonight, and it both amused and irritated me.  It’s so reflective of my writing journey and personal struggles.

First, I want to do something different, that no one else will do.  Even though we’re all doing the same pattern.

I went through all my stash, reviewing my linen and silks, looking for unusual elements that interested me.  I found a large piece of Mermaid Blue 35 ct. linen I bought from HDF last year.  I love the subtle mottling, but it’s soooo dark.  If you’ve never worked on dark linen before, it can be really hard to find the threads.  Accidentally get off by one thread, and it can look really terrible.

But the designer’s piece is stitched in a nice blue silk, so I kept coming back to the Mermaid Blue linen — sort of an “opposite” idea with blue as the main background.  I have a mystery spool of soft light blue silk that would look gorgeous against the darker linen. It’d definitely be a challenge, and Lord knows I loooove a good challenge.  Sigh.

The first part of the pattern doesn’t come out until Sat. so I decided to do a little test stitching on that dark linen first to make sure I wouldn’t end up pulling my hair out.  I have a little freebie from Ink Circles that I ought to be able to finish in a day or two, and I’m using the mystery spool to make sure it stands out well on the dark linen.  So far, it looks nice like I hoped, but it is difficult to skip around too much — I just can’t see the threads.  These old eyes just aren’t what they used to be. 

I’ll wait until I get the first part of the pattern on Sat. and decide.  If there are lots of skips that I’m going to have to count very carefully, I’ll probably go back to my second choice, some nice Cream 40ct. linen with Paua Abalone silk from HDF.

I’m tentatively planning on posting about my stitching progress on Wednesday, similar to Nicole’s WiP Weds.

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RBW Week 6

Romance Biggest Winner

So far for this challenge, I’ve lost a total of 10.4 pounds, which puts my average loss at 2 pounds per week.  A little higher than my WW average (since Jan) of 1.3 pounds per week.  Pneumonia in July is all I can say.  I don’t expect these numbers going forward!

I am, however, at 41% of my goal I set for the whole six months.  Awesome!  Every pound going forward will be a challenge, so I’m glad I have a headstart.  (My goal is to lose just slightly over 1 lb/week.)

Food wise, I’m still pretty boring.  e.g. I haven’t tried any new recipes since last week.  I’m eating nonfat Greek yogurt daily to get as many probiotics as possible to counteract the heavy-duty antibiotics I’ve been on, and they’re doing their job.  With fresh peaches/nectarines in season…and a little Kashi Go Lean Almond Crunch (only 1/2 c. because it’s expensive in points, 1 c = 5 pts) sprinkled on top, YUM!  And a great source of protein too.

My oldest has been informally doing WW with me (as her doctor recommended), and one of the easiest things she does to keep her weight going down is to take her lunch to school everyday.  Even with all the new healthy guidelines they keep pushing down our throats, if she eats the school lunch, she’s guaranteed to slowly start gaining again.  Since school starts next week, I invested in some nicer cold lunch boxes for all three monsters so they can all take their lunch if they want.  (Middle is VERY picky about her sandwich and believes it “tastes bad” if it’s even the slightest bit warmer than ice cold.  She typically will only take PBJ as a result.  I hope these new “PackIt” bags work!)

Any ideas for interesting healthy kid lunches?  Because the whole sandwich thing gets old pretty fast…

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Good News Monday

As of this morning, I’ve lost 49.8 pounds this year!  Darn it, was really hoping to hit the big 5-0 but I’ll take it!

There are two new website headers up for your enjoyment.  They’re set to change randomly as you cycle through pages.  Thank you Dawn at BookGraphics for these latest additions!  She’s also working on a “blue lady” one that should be pretty cool/interesting.

I’m having FUN with the Zombie Category Romance.  Sometimes it’s nice to just have fun and relax.  Not that I didn’t work to plot and develop this story, because I did.  It’s just one of those fun brain teaser sort of stories that made me grin when I think about it.

I have a lot to finish by the end of August, which is already making me a little twitchy.  Several blog visits, the Carina Press stuff for Golden’s release at the end of the month, Romance Trading Cards to get printed, Victor’s print release to prep for next month….  Somehow it’ll all get done.  I hope.

Any good news to share?

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My Greatest Weakness

…A Challenge.

Man, do I love a good challenge.

If someone tells me, “You can’t do that!”  then I immediately want to prove them wrong.  Or if someone says, “Hey, that’d be really cool – I wish someone would do that.”  I immediately want to be the first to pull it off.

Which is how I found myself writing my first “zombie romance” years ago.  (See “Broken Angel:  A Zombie Love Story” in the Bump in the Night anthology.)

When you follow interesting people online, say Angela James on Twitter, you can hear some incredible ideas that simply make your head explode.  Challenge!

The other day she was talking about zombies, and how much fun it would be to combine them with a Category Romance.  She might as well have hooked me up to our overloaded power grid (we’ve set record temps well over 100 degrees three days in a row). 

Soooo many zombies began eating my brains it’s not even funny.

I love zombies.  I’ve been wanting to write a Presents for years.  (I’ve got a notebook started but haven’t been able to get the right unique approach yet.)

Yesterday, I not only plotted my first zombie category romance (ZCR), but I also wrote the synopsis for it.  It’s hilarious.  It’s wonderful.  I think I have a way to write a zombie that isn’t disgusting for a romance — and I explained why my heroine is and must remain a virgin.  My hero is a perfect alphahole, but for a reason.  However, my heroine is no doormat.

In fact, she tricks him into signing a contract with a clause (that she added) without even reading it.  How? 

Death by Chocolate Cake.

Mmmmm.  Does it every time.

I think while I’m working on revisions for Vicki and Tecun this month, I will be writing ZCR for fun.  I don’t want to jinx myself, but this could be one of those stories I write in a few weeks simply because it’s that. much. fun!

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RBW Week 5

I’m inching closer to 50 lbs lost this year with another -1.2 today.  More and more people are noticing and commenting, which makes me grin from ear to ear.  I’m feeling really good (well, in spite of pneumonia!), but I can’t wait to get to my next goal (not my final goal weight which is still a ways to go).

Right after I had our first monster (who will be 13 in Jan), I did WW at work and lost to the lowest I can remember in many years.  Right after that, we made a major move to another state, I started working from home full time, and we had two more monsters.  I tried all sorts of fad/craze diets and would lose 40-45 pounds, but I couldn’t get past that milestone before I realized I couldn’t live that way forever.

I never made it back to that low weight.

I’ve already passed that 40-45 lb milestone on WW and I know I can live this way.  Although I admit to getting a little anxious when I lose another daily point (lost another one today! ack!).  I rarely eat ALL my points anyway, at least on a daily basis.  About 1-2 times per week I eat the full points and go over a little into my weeklies, typically Friday or Saturday.  But in general, I eat less than I’m allowed (although I always try to get my healthy guidelines in–and I do splurge occasionally), so I don’t know why it freaks me out a little. 

I guess I’m worried that when I do finally get to goal that I won’t have anything left to eat.  Irrational I know.

So much of weight loss is a mind game.  I mean, in theory, all I have to do is eat less and move more.  In time, the weight will come off.  In reality, though, there are all sorts of stressors and mind games I play with myself.  Losing a point is only one of them.  Worrying about how far I still have to go is another.  That stress I start to put on myself — worrying about how long, when, how will I do this — can lead to overeating and general laziness (because I get depressed).

It’s the same with writing a book, though.  I always get to a point when I start to doubt whether I can actually pull off another book, even though I’ve written more than 10 now.  I have to concentrate on the journey, one day at a time, and keep my mind in the game.  FOCUS. 

I can do this.  I can.  And I will.

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Good News Monday

  • I’m on another 7 days of antibiotics to kick the end of pneumonia.  I am feeling better – just want to make sure I don’t have a relapse.
  • Found out last night that Littlest Monster was starting to get pneumonia after being sick all week with the virus that did me in.  Luckily we knew exactly what to watch for and got her in immediately before she could get as sick as I did.  She’s on antibiotics and will hopefully be much better in a few days.
  • The majority of my school shopping for the monsters is done!  I’m broke now, sigh, but we even got the clothes shopping mostly done.  I need a few more small things over the next few months as it cools down but they’re in good shape.  Two more weeks!!!
  • That Man starts a new full time job today.  It’s been a tough 9 months on the job front for him so it’s a relief to get him back full time.  He’s also keeping his part-time job at Sears with more reduced hours (love their employee discount).
  • I made good progress on Vicki revisions last week and I’m down to the last change — a new chapter with just Elias and Jesse.
  • Seeing another modest but decent loss on the scale so far — hoping for good news for tomorrow’s Romance Biggest Winner weigh in!

What’s your good news today?

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July Review and August Goals

My July goals….  Not so great.  🙁

  • First pass revision for The Bloodgate Warrior, with initial read thru and notes this holiday weekend.  Not even started.
  • Keep moving on Phantom with about 500 words a day. I’d like to finish the first draft this month but the list is long. I’ll be happy with August.  Decent progress until I got sick.
  • Make initial edit pass for Vicki with Editor Tera’s notes.  Good progress – all changes made except new chapter.  Slowly working through it but I need another day or two.
  • Write at least 3 more scheduled guest blog posts.  Done.
  • Write a short story that’s percolating, tentatively “Ritual Ink”. Guessing about 3K.  No further progress yet.  Need to check my deadline!
  • Keep planning promo for Golden and print Victor in September.  Good progress, continuing.
  • Walk 15 miles.  Not done – sick.
  • Start Tony Horton’s Power 90 strength portion only, shooting for 3x a week —> 12 workouts. If I survive, I’ll add the cardio portion in August!  Not done – sick.
  • Participate in Romance Biggest Winner.  Continuing!
  • Keep losing weight – but I’m not going to say a number because it’s totally out of my control. That’s like saying, “Get an agent this year.” I can query x agents every month…but I can’t make one say yes. I’ll work my plan and exercise — I’ll get to goal eventually. I’m averaging about 1 pound a week right now, so if I lose 4-5 pounds, I’ll be happy.  Great progress – lost 7.6 pounds (sure that being sick contributed!)
  • Not originally listed:  update my website!  Thanks to Dawn at Book Graphics, I have a new header, which enabled me to switch to a nice new template.
  • I also got all the school shopping done!  Wheeeee!

 August Goals:

  • Finish Vicki’s edits in the next few days and send to my editor.  Due by August 15th.
  • Finish first pass of revisions on The Bloodgate Warrior.
  • Write the first draft of Ritual Ink (short story).
  • Pick up Phantom again and get back to work, 500 words a day.
  • Release of Golden, August 29th.  Means lots of blog posts, etc. to write this month!
  • GET BETTER.  I went back to the doctor today and I’m on another round of antibiotics to make sure I get all the crackle out of my lungs.  Bad news:  now Littlest Monster has the beginnings of pneumonia on the right side.  Luckily we knew exactly what to watch for and got her on antibiotics immediately.
  • Since I’ve been sick, I’m going to slowly work back into exercising.  I’m not going to set a mileage goal, but simply stay “return to activity.”
  • If I can lose 3 more pounds this month, I’ll hit the big 5-0!
  • Get the kids back to school.

What are your goals this next month?

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Back to School Shopping

I both look forward and loathe this time of year. 

The monsters are back to school in two weeks.  I needed to pick up three sets of different school supplies, plus restock clothes, tennis shoes, and underwear.  I can’t shop at one clothing store any more, because Princess is in adult sizes (she’s taller than I am and wears my size or larger shoes).

First, we hit Sears and used That Man’s employee discount to save a fortune on tennis shoes and clothes for the two youngest monsters.  Then we hit Kohls where I used $12 store credit + 15% coupon + existing sales to save MORE than I spent for Princess.  She picked out some super cute shirts that I’m so envious of — I can’t wait until I can wear cute clothes again.

Then, the worst stop:  Wal-Mart.  I can’t believe how many supplies the kids need, everything from 4 sets of crayons to wet wipes to Expo markers to Ziplock bags.  It’s crazy.  I have at least 4 bags of supplies to sort through and bag for each kid. 

I must admit that I always buy myself some supplies, like Sharpies and paper folders for story ideas.  They never last long – because the monsters always raid my hidden stash.  But I can’t resist the cheap folders and cool notebooks and brand-new pens.

Even better than the scent of fresh school supplies is knowing that very soon we won’t be running kids here and there to camps, Vacation Bible School, trips to grandma’s (tomorrow we’re taking Princess and her cousin over to the lake for the week)…but we’ll be getting them up early and taking them to the bus, forgetting which kid has spelling tests on which day, and freaking out because I forgot to help Middle study or Littlest can’t find her library books or…

P.S. I bought a dry-erase calendar to hopefully help keep track of all the library and PE days, events, clubs, etc. 

Let the school days begin!

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RBW Week 3

Romance Biggest Winner

The scale absolutely shocked me this morning, bringing me into a new lower decade!  I don’t typically lose 4+ pounds in a week — on the contrary, I’m lucky to lose 1.  But I guess being sick does have some benefits, as long as I don’t end up gaining this back! 

4 more pounds will bring me to my lowest weight in 6-10 years — a weight I only achieved after surviving on the Rice Diet for 4-5 months (absolutely no salt, grains + fruit for nearly every meal, very little protein except beans) or the Atkins Diet a couple of years earlier (no carbs, high fat and high protein).  Gee, I wonder why my metabolism is so screwed up.

This time around, I’m much more balanced and healthy! (Thank you Weight Watchers)

After being sick last week, I am eating more normally but have not increased my activity yet.  I’m still coughing and have some pain/bubbling in my chest when I lay down.  Until that’s gone, I’m not going to be working out beyond climbing the stairs to work each day.

My total lost for this challenge:  1.8%

Total weight lost since Jan 5, 2011:  47 lbs

The new recipe I tried this week was Weight Watchers’ Dijon Pork.  I mixed together a couple of tablespoons of dijon mustard, sugar, apple cider vinegar, and red pepper flakes (light for the kids) for a marinade.  Since I was almost out of dijon, I added a little water to the bottle and shook out the last of the mustard, so it was a little thinner than normal.  I smeared the pork chops with the mixture and let them sit in the fridge for an hour or so, then cooked them in my iron skillet.  After searing on one side for about 4 mins, I turned them over and added just a little water to the pan so all that cooked-on goodness bubbled up and flavored the pork.

The monsters don’t like mustard or spice but they ate this no problem.  I had one leftover pork chop that I diced up and added to some zucchini and tomatoes sauteed in a little olive oil (with more red pepper flakes!) yesterday for lunch.  Yummo!