Friday, January 22, 2010

Friday Fill Ins #4


1. You have a chance to make things right.
2. I need a nap right now!
3. There is a cat sleeping on my lap!
4. Buy now and pay later.
5. It's time to make the donuts.
6. Its seems as though my life is up in the air but it's just giving me a chance to think about what I really want to do with my life.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to watching Ghost Whisperer and tomorrow my plans include catching up on my reading and Sunday, I want to watch the COLTS win the AFC Championship and head to the Superbowl, baby!!!!

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Blog Tour~ Knit, Purl, Die by Anne Canadeo

Counting on each other...
Meet the Black Sheep knitters -- five smart, funny women who love to knit, gossip, and solve crimes.
Gloria Sterling had it all -- money, looks, and a new sexy young husband. So when she's found floating face down in her own swimming pool, shock waves ripple through tiny Plum Harbor. At the Black Sheep Knitting Shop, Maggie Messina and her circle are devastated to lose their dear friend -- a woman as colorful as her fabulous yarn creations.
The police are quick to call it an accident, but sorting out Gloria's final hours leaves too many loose ends to satisfy her friends. The vivacious, fiftysomething cougar had her French manicured tips in more than a few pots, and the threads of some inside deals stashed in her chic knitting tote.
Who was the last person to see Gloria alive on that quiet summer night? Two empty wine glasses suggest she wasn't home alone knitting the entire evening.... The Black Sheep need to know the truth and set out to unravel -- stitch by stitch -- the weighty secrets that pulled poor Gloria under.
about the author~
Anne Canadeo lives and knits in Northport, New York. While My Pretty One Knits is her debut novel, and the first in the Black Sheep Knitting Club series.
Product Details
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Pocket; Original edition (December 29, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 141659812X
my review~ Knit, Purl, Die is the second book in the Black Sheep Knitting Club series, written by Anne Canadeo. I have not had the chance to read 'While My Pretty One Knits' yet, but it is on my TBR list! Knit, Purl, Die can easily be a stand alone book but I'm looking forward to reading 'While My Pretty One Knits' as well as the books to come! Knit, Purl, Die reads easily & quickly, Ms. Canadeo knits together a story that draws you in. The characters are very realistic and theres a few twists in the story to keep you reading!
I've never read a book that is centered around a hobby before, and while I don't knit (yet!) I found it great that Ms. Canadeo mentions the Warm Up America blanket (actually the club is making one!) and I crocheted a blanket myself! Theres also a couple of recipes and knitting pattern websites mentioned!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Tasty Tuesday! Tuna Cakes from Kraft Foods

I'm going to start blogging about some of the recipes that I find online and I'm calling it 'Tasty Tuesday!' They will just be recipes that I find that I will be making or have made for my picky eaters. Nothing fancy just everyday food! So today's recipe is: Tuna Cakes! I found this recipe on the Kraft website (I just love Kraft!).





Ingredients~

2 cans (6 oz. each) light tuna in water, drained, flaked (I use StarKist)
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 cup KRAFT Shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese
3/4 cup water
1 carrot, shredded
1/3 cup KRAFT Real Mayo Mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. CLAUSSEN Sweet Pickle Relish


1.) MIX all ingredients. Refrigerate 10 min.

2.) HEAT large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium heat. Use ice cream scoop to add 1/3-cup portions of tuna mixture, in batches, to skillet.

3.) FLATTEN into patties with back of spatula. Cook 6 min. or until golden brown on both sides, carefully turning patties over after 3 min.


Substitutions-
Substitute 1 cup KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese, 4 chopped green onions and 1 Tbsp. lemon juice for the Cheddar, carrots and relish.
For Easier Handling in the Skillet-
Mix all ingredients. Shape into patties as directed. Place in single layer on baking sheet. Refrigerate 1 hour before cooking as directed.

So for dinner tonight we are having:

Tuna Cakes, homemade mashed potatos, green beans and pineapple upside down cake!

Monday, January 18, 2010

Blog Tour & Giveaway~A Black Tie Affair by Sherrill Bodine

SUITED FOR SEDUCTION
Fashion curator Athena Smith will do anything to get her perfectly manicured hands on the Clayworth family's celebrated couture collection for her exhibit. So when she's called in to make sure the gowns are the real deal, she's ecstatic...until a dress she's examining turns out to be loaded with toxins (talk about killer threads!) and Athena faints, only to wake up face-to-face with the One That Got Away, notorious Chicago bachelor Drew Clayworth.Drew still believes Athena betrayed him all those years ago, and he's sure he can't trust her. But when the priceless gowns go missing, she offers to help track them down. Reluctantly allied in the quest, Drew and Athena are soon stunned by the barely restrained passion still sizzling between them...and memories both bitter and sweet. Is their new partnership just a business arrangement? Or is this something more than...




Product Details
Mass Market Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Forever (January 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0446618594

about the author~
(from the authors website)
Author Bio
I’m sure growing up in my grandmother’s house, taking care of my developmentally disabled mother, forged who I am, but I don’t believe any one thing defines me. My philosophy of life is that we are all in this together—and we need to embrace one another with as much grace, humor and compassion as we can muster. I see life as big, bigger, biggest, and I want to take everyone along with me on the journey. I not only attend black-tie affairs and work on charity board projects, but I am also just as likely to be taking a grandchild to lunch and a movie. I’m happily married to John, with whom I eloped when I was an 18-year-old freshman in college. It was quite the scandal. We have four beautiful children and 11 grandchildren. I won my first writing award in the seventh grade in a statewide essay contest about a television broadcast of Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates. Instead of Silver Skates, they sent real skates, which I enjoyed immensely. I’m only sorry I don’t still have them so they could hang in my office. While moving 22 times across the country and rearing our children, I sold stories to Fate Magazine, Home Life Magazine and True Confessions. In 1988, I sold my first novel and a week later received a two-book contract from Fawcett. Sixteen novels later, I’ve seen The Other Amanda win the Wisconsin Romance Writers of America Write Touch Readers’ Award and Talk of the Town chosen by Cosmopolitan magazine as its “Red Hot Read” for February 2009.

Visit SherrillBodine.com
Follow @SherrillBodine on Twitter.

my review~
Who doesn't love a book about having a second chance at true love? Throw in a little mystery and what a ride! A Black Tie Affair is the telling of Athena & Drews second chance at love. This is the first book that I've read of Mrs. Bodine, but it will NOT be the last!

Go HERE for the giveaway~GIVEAWAY ENDS 01/28/10



Blog Tour~ Veracity by Laura Bynum

Harper Adams was six years old in 2012 when an act of viral terrorism wiped out one-half of the country's population. Out of the ashes rose a new government, the Confederation of the Willing, dedicated to maintaining order at any cost. The populace is controlled via government-sanctioned sex and drugs, a brutal police force known as the Blue Coats, and a device called the slate, a mandatory implant that monitors every word a person speaks. To utter a Red-Listed, forbidden word is to risk physical punishment or even death.
But there are those who resist. Guided by the fabled "Book of Noah," they are determined to shake the people from their apathy and ignorance, and are prepared to start a war in the name of freedom. The newest member of this resistance is Harper -- a woman driven by memories of a daughter lost, a daughter whose very name was erased by the Red List. And she possesses a power that could make her the underground warriors' ultimate weapon -- or the instrument of their destruction.

Product Details
Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: Pocket (January 5, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1439123349

about the author~
Laura Bynum was born in Springfield, Illinois in 1968. Childhood plans to be a writer of novels and screenplays and a director of films are currently underway. Laura completed her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Communications at the University of Illinois at Springfield and Eastern Illinois University respectively. She’s since done some filmmaking (Ugly Girl Productions) and marketing consulting. In 2006, Laura won the Rupert Hughes Literary Writing Award at the Maui Writer’s Conference. As a result, she was signed with the Writer’s House. Her Literary Agent is Dan Conaway and her Books to Film Agent is Sylvie Rabineau of Rabineau, Wachter, Sanford & Harris. Laura’s first novel, Veracity, is due out January of 2010. In the summer of 2008, while moving from Illinois to Virginia, Laura was diagnosed with breast cancer and has since been successfully treated.
Laura’s favorite books are both by Steinbeck- East of Eden and The Grapes of Wrath. Her favorite song is Solsbury Hill by Peter Gabriel. Her favorite movie is The Quiet Man. She lives with her husband and three daughters in a small Virginia town in the Shenandoah foothills and is currently writing her second novel and first full-length screenplay.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

In MY Mailbox 01/17/10

In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren.
If you haven't visited her blog, you should!

Knit, Purl, Die by Anne Canadeo
Counting on each other...
Meet the Black Sheep knitters -- five smart, funny women who love to knit, gossip, and solve crimes.
Gloria Sterling had it all -- money, looks, and a new sexy young husband. So when she's found floating face down in her own swimming pool, shock waves ripple through tiny Plum Harbor. At the Black Sheep Knitting Shop, Maggie Messina and her circle are devastated to lose their dear friend -- a woman as colorful as her fabulous yarn creations.
The police are quick to call it an accident, but sorting out Gloria's final hours leaves too many loose ends to satisfy her friends. The vivacious, fiftysomething cougar had her French manicured tips in more than a few pots, and the threads of some inside deals stashed in her chic knitting tote.
Who was the last person to see Gloria alive on that quiet summer night? Two empty wine glasses suggest she wasn't home alone knitting the entire evening.... The Black Sheep need to know the truth and set out to unravel -- stitch by stitch -- the weighty secrets that pulled poor Gloria under.

Sleep No More by Susan Crandall
The night was always Abby Whitman's enemy. As a young girl she walked in her sleep, and one night, she started a fire that scarred her sister for life and left Abby with unbearable guilt . . . and a loneliness that echoes within her. Now Abby has begun blacking out again-with apparently fatal results. A car accident has killed the son of a prominent family. Even though the evidence seems to exonerate her, Abby is plagued by doubts-and soon by mysterious threats. Psychiatrist Dr. Jason Coble is intrigued by Abby and offers to help her explore the dark recesses of her mind. Through this terrifying journey, Jason's interest turns to passion, and he yearns to give her the love she craves. But first, Abby must trust him-and shed light on secrets that will rock this Southern town and reveal a danger that threatens them both.
Gentlemen Prefer Succubi by Jill Myles
Jackie Brighton woke up in a Dumpster this morning, and her day has only gotten weirder. Her familiar B-cups have somehow become double Ds, her sex drive is insatiable, and apparently she had her fi rst one-night stand ever...with a fallen angel. All she remembers is gorgeous Noah's oddly hypnotic blue eyes...and then a dark stranger whose bite transformed her into an immortal siren with a sexy Itch. With help from Noah, Jackie begins to adapt to her new lifestyle -- until she accidentally sends Noah into the deadly clutches of the vampire queen and lands herself in a fi erce battle for an ancient halo with the queen's wickedly hot righthand man. Who just happens to be the vampire who originally bit her. How's a girl supposed to save the world when the enemy's so hard to resist?
A Highlander's Destiny by Melissa Mayhue JESSE CORYELL, a descendant of the Fae, is a man in search of his destiny. He's tried to lose himself in his work, taking on the worst mankind has to offer, but what he really needs to find is his true love. When he sets out to help a mysterious woman find her sister, what he gets is much more than he bargained for: battling an undeniable attraction to his sexy new client while fighting an ancient evil to keep her safe.
DESTINY NOBLE, abandoned by everyone she's ever loved, will stop at nothing in her desperate quest to find her sister. Authorities have declared Leah a runaway, but Destiny knows better. Her dream visions have shown her the frightening truth. They've also shown her Jesse. But finding her Soulmate could result in the most painful loss of all, when she's forced to choose between loving Jesse and saving Leah.
Jesse and Destiny race against time to save an innocent girl from a powerful ancient evil. Is true love their best weapon...or will they be required to sacrifice their own destiny?

Seduce By a Rogue by Amanda Scott
Flaxen-haired and beautiful, Lady Mairi Dunwythie is heiress apparent to the wealthy nobleman blocking Clan Maxwell's attempt to control much of southwest Scotland. Her first meeting with handsome robert Maxwell ignites an attraction that is immediate, intense, and almost irresisible-until she learns he is asking her father to submit to the Maxwell demands.
Rob is a warrior, a man of action. So when Mairi's father stands defiant, Rob daringly absucts her. As clan tensions mount, passion escalates between the lovers, tempting them beyond reason. Soon they must choose between loyalty and love...before the eruption of all-out clan war.
101 Glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle by Dawn Del Russo
Every girl dreams of living a glamourous jet-set lifestyle, weather in the lap of luxury or on a tight budget. Dawn Del Russo Author of 101 Glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle provides quick cheeky tips to living that swank life. Put together simply each one-liner is illustrated by Barbara Ann Scarrillo with charming, fashionable sketches sure to delight. Indulge in this fabulous quick read. Dawn Del Russo, high profile fashion stylist has been featured in print like US Weekly, Life and Style, InStyle, Glamour, Real Simple, and on Fox 5 NY for her style advice. Del Russo is also a contributing writer for multiple online publications. She has a keen sense of style and trends and is dedicated to helping women find their inner beauty, and confidence starting from the style on the outside. 101 Glam Girl Ways to and Ultra Chic Lifestyle is every women's secret guide to breezing through life glamourously.
Veracity by Laura Bynum
Harper Adams was six years old in 2012 when an act of viral terrorism wiped out one-half of the country's population. Out of the ashes rose a new government, the Confederation of the Willing, dedicated to maintaining order at any cost. The populace is controlled via government-sanctioned sex and drugs, a brutal police force known as the Blue Coats, and a device called the slate, a mandatory implant that monitors every word a person speaks. To utter a Red-Listed, forbidden word is to risk physical punishment or even death.
But there are those who resist. Guided by the fabled "Book of Noah," they are determined to shake the people from their apathy and ignorance, and are prepared to start a war in the name of freedom. The newest member of this resistance is Harper -- a woman driven by memories of a daughter lost, a daughter whose very name was erased by the Red List. And she possesses a power that could make her the underground warriors' ultimate weapon -- or the instrument of their destruction.


Saturday, January 16, 2010

101 glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle by Dawn Del Russo

Every girl dreams of living a glamourous jet-set lifestyle, weather in the lap of luxury or on a tight budget. Dawn Del Russo Author of 101 Glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle provides quick cheeky tips to living that swank life. Put together simply each one-liner is illustrated by Barbara Ann Scarrillo with charming, fashionable sketches sure to delight. Indulge in this fabulous quick read. Dawn Del Russo, high profile fashion stylist has been featured in print like US Weekly, Life and Style, InStyle, Glamour, People StyleWatch and on Fox 5 NY for her style advice. Del Russo is also a contributing writer for RunningwithHeels.com and ChicGalleria.com. She has a keen sense of style and trends and is dedicated to helping women find their inner beauty, and confidence starting from the style on the outside. 101 Glam Girl Ways to and Ultra Chic Lifestyle is every women's secret guide to breezing through life glamourously.

Author: Dawn Del Russo
ISBN: 978-144956336
Publisher: BookSurge Publishing


Bella Dawn Boutique
Bella Dawn Blog
Buy The Book!



my review~ Ok, I've said before how a book is a quick read, but this book is really a quick read. I read it within 10 minutes!
Here are a few of my favorite tips:
Tip #32~Drink Red Wine- Why not look chic while enjoying a glass of antioxidants
Tip#70~ Make Life A Special Occasion- Everday should be treated like a special occassion, so go ahead, treat yourself
Tip#86~Learn How To Listen- Theres a reason why you have Two ears and one mouth


Each tip had its own illustration by Barbara Ann Scarrillo and it's own page. And each tip was indeed worthy of its own page!

This is a great book that came at a perfect time for me, since I just turned the dreaded 40 and have been in the hospital off and on since October. There hasn't been a time that I can remember that I've felt less glam. But this book that took me 10 minutes to read really opened my eyes back up to the simplest ways to glam up. And it reminded me to glam up to stay home too! Thank you Dawn Del Russo for giving me a book that was a quick & easy reminder to be GLAM! And that glam can be quick & easy too!


Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Waiting On Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday was started by
Jill overat Breaking The Spine.

Shift
by Rachel Vincent

TROUBLE IS IN THE AIR...

Being the first female werecat enforcer isn’t easy. Scars accumulate, but I’m stronger in so many ways.As for my personal life? It’s complicated. Choices worthmaking always are. Ever since my brother’s death and myfather’s impeachment, it’s all I can do to prevent more bloodfrom spilling. Now our Pride is under attack by a flight ofvicious thunderbirds. And making peace with our newenemies may be the only way to get the best of our old foe.With the body count rising and treachery everywhere,my instincts tell me to look before I leap. But sometimesa leap of faith is the only real option.…


Product Details
Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Mira; Original edition (March 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0778327604
ISBN-13: 978-0778327608

Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Plus Size Crochet-fashions that fit & flatter by margaret hubert

At last, a book of crochet patterns devoted entirely to the plus-size woman!
Plus-size gals are a group that seems to be neglected in the plethora of crochet books on the market. The author, Margaret Hubert, has often been approached at trade shows and through her classes by women in this size category, begging her to design patterns that would fit them. A plus-size crocheter cannot simply take a smaller pattern and increase the number of stitches or rows to get a garment that fits and flatters. There are lots of proportion considerations when designing patterns for larger sizes.
Plus Size Crochet has 20 crocheted garments and accessories for plus-size women. The projects are stylish and flattering for various large figure types. There are also hints and tips to help the crocheter accommodate her special needs.
Only crochet book for plus-size women
Similar to the books in our popular ôHookedö series: easy to use with lay-flat wire-o binding, stitch detail photos, project specs at a glance
Includes crochet basics section with step-by-step photos
Product Details
Spiral-bound: 128 pages
Publisher: Creative Publishing international (November 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1589233395
ISBN-13: 978-1589233393
my review~
I LOVE THIS BOOK! The author, Margaret Hubert put together some great patterns! While I have crocheted off & on for about 30 years, I do not read patterns very well. These are super easy (to me) patterns to read. I am having a really hard deciding which to make first, but I think (and as always I can change my mind!!) I will make the Five Yarn Jacket first (please see the photo below!!) for next fall/winter. In the back of the book, there is a section of crochet stitches, directions on how to line a crocheted bag (woohoo! I needed this) and the commonly used pattern abbriviations. I love this book and look forward to using these patterns.


Teaser Tuesday


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme
is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.
Anyone can play along!Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!(make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away!You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can addthe book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teaser:
"Have you ever considered suing your brain for non-support?" I took a deep breath, praying for patience and the restraint not to kill him.
I just started reading 'Mia the Meek' by Eileen Boggess. That line cracked me up!

Monday, January 04, 2010

my weekend...


We had the grandbabies over to spend the night on Saturday, for the first time since I was in the hospital back in October/November. Here is a picture of Brittni, Kaylee & Taylor, Sunday morning. Britt & Kaylee were finished with their french toast but Taylor savored hers.
Needless to say, I did not have a lot of time to read, crochet or anything else...lol! I had forgotten just how active (and LOUD) 2 little girls could be!

Sunday, January 03, 2010

In MY Mailbox (01/03/10)


In My Mailbox was started by The Story Siren.
If you haven't visited her blog, you should!



Mia the Meek
by Eileen Boggess
Mia Fullerton has entered her freshman year at St. Hilary’s with a goal: to lose her nickname “Mia the Meek,” and soar into a confident high school career. Unfortunately, her transformation is made harder by her English-teacher mom, bratty little brother, already popular nemesis, and new neighbor. Although she’s prepared herself for the battle by reading Excruciatingly Shy: How to Defeat Public Fear and Become Popular, her freshman year remains a series of uphill battles






Mia the Melodramatic
by Eileen Boggess
Summer has finally arrived, but Mia Fullerton doesn’t have much to celebrate. Her best friend, Lisa, is spending the summer at a Mensa camp, and her boyfriend, Tim, will be at his grandparents’ house in Maine. So, stuck with a choice of spending the next two months hanging out with her younger brother, Chris—who has declared a prank war on her—or taking a job on the stage crew at a local children’s theater group, Mia chooses the lesser of two evils and begins working at Little Tyke’s.



Mia the Magnificent
by Eileen Boggess

I can not find a summary or cover art for this book.







A Black Tie Affair
by Sherrill Bodine
Fashion curator Athena Smith will do anything to get her perfectly manicured hands on the Clayworth family's celebrated couture collection for her exhibit. So when she's called in to make sure the gowns are the real deal, she's ecstatic...until a dress she's examining turns out to be loaded with toxins (talk about killer threads!) and Athena faints, only to wake up face-to-face with the One That Got Away, notorious Chicago bachelor Drew Clayworth.Drew still believes Athena betrayed him all those years ago, and he's sure he can't trust her. But when the priceless gowns go missing, she offers to help track them down. Reluctantly allied in the quest, Drew and Athena are soon stunned by the barely restrained passion still sizzling between them...and memories both bitter and sweet. Is their new partnership just a business arrangement? Or is this something more than...


Saturday, January 02, 2010

2010 Romance Reading Challenge


Challenge Guidelines:

1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate.--Non-Bloggers: Include your information in the comment section.

2. There are four levels:

-- Curious – Read 3 Romance Fiction novels.

-- Fascinated – Read 6 Romance Fiction novels.

-- Addicted – Read 12 Romance Fiction novels.

-- Obsessed – Read 20 Romance Fiction novels.

3. Any book format counts.

4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.

5. Challenge begins January 1st thru December, 2010.

If you would like to join the 2010 Romance Reading Challenge, go HERE!
1.) A Black Tie Affair by Sherrill Bodine
2.) Seduced By A Rogue
3.) Gentlemen Prefer Succubi
4.) A Highlander's Destiny
5.) Ecstasy Unveiled
6.) Countess of Scandal
7.) Jordan
8.) Born In Night
9.) Born In Fire
10.) Born In Ice
11.) The Last Song
12.) To Sin With A Scoundrel
13.) Montana Legacy

2010 YA Reading Challenge

Want to join the 2010 YA Reading Challenge?
Go HERE!
J. Kaye is hosting the 2010 Young Adult Reading Challenge.
Here's what she has to say~

1. Anyone can join. You don't need a blog to participate. --Non-Bloggers: Post your list of books in the comment section of the wrap-up post. To learn how to sign up without having a blog, click here.

2. There are four levels:-
-The Mini YA Reading Challenge – Read 12 Young Adult novels.

--Just My Size YA Reading Challenge – Read 25 Young Adult novels.

--Stepping It Up YA Reading Challenge – Read 50 Young Adult novels.
--Super Size Me YA Reading Challenge – Read 75 Young Adult novels.
3. Audio, eBooks, paper all count.
4. No need to list your books in advance. You may select books as you go. Even if you list them now, you can change the list if needed.
1.) Wake by Lisa McMann
2.) Fade by Lisa McMann
3.) Gone by Lisa McMann

Christmas with Paula Deen

Christmas with Paula Deen
by Paula Deen

"I've gone through all my books and put together this collection of my most treasured recipes and memories for the holiday season to share with you...You'll find a few new dishes, a sprinkling of new holiday stories, and some family pictures you might not have seen before." There's no holiday Paula Deen loves better than Christmas, when she opens her home to family and friends, and traditions old and new make the days merry and bright. Filled with Paula's trademark Southern charm and happy reminiscences of Yuletide seasons past, Christmas with Paula Deen is a collection of beloved holiday recipes and stories interspersed with cherished family photographs. Included are Paula's most requested homemade gifts of food; a collection of cookies sure to become your family's favorites; easy dishes for a Christmas breakfast or brunch that will let you enjoy the food and your guests; impressive fare for Christmas dinner and holiday entertaining and, of course, spectacular cakes, puddings, pies, and other sweet things.

"So Merry Christmas, y'all, and best dishes and best wishes from me and my family to yours."

my review~

I love Paula Deen and when I had the chance to get this book (published in 2007) I grabbed it!
This book has great stories laced throughout the book (you get to read how Michael proposed!), along with some of my favorite recipes(Praline French Toast Casserole). The thing I like most about Paula Deen's recipes, they are easy to follow!

Friday, January 01, 2010

getting back to the way I wanted it...

When I first started blogging, I wanted to just blog about the things that interested me and if no one ever read it, well that was ok with me. I was going to blog about all the things that I enjoy in life-ie: my guilty pleasures. Somewhere along the blogging road, it turned into a book review & giveaway blog. Don't get me wrong, I love reading! It is one of my favorite past times. But it got to the point that I wasn't enjoying it as much as I should. It became mostly about the giveaways. Well, after being in & out of the hospital, and not blogging for 3 months, I've decided that 2010 is going to be about the way I want to blog, about the things that I want to blog about. I am still going to review the books that I read and host giveaways. But it isn't going to be just books that I review & books that I giveaway. So look for posts concerning the movies that I see, my favorite tv shows, if I find some fantastic product at the store. Whatever I find interesting might just end up in a post!

100+ Reading Challenge

100+ Reading Challenge (2010)
(Ends December 31, 2010)

1. A Black Tie Affair by Sherrill Bodine
2. Veracity
3. 101 Glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle
4. Seduced by a Rogue
5.Gentlemen Prefer Succubi
6. A Highlander's Destiny
7. Ecstasy Unveiled
8. Knit, Purl, Die
9. Sleep No More
10. Countess of Scandal
11. Wake
12. Storm of Visions
13. Dare to Surrender
14. Spider's Bite
15. Shift
16. Jordan
17. Shadow Blade
18. Born in Night
19. Born in Fire
20.Born in Ice
21. The Last Song
22. Fire Gazer
23. To Sin With A Scoundrel

24.The Bride Collector
25.Quick & Easy Tips to Lose Weight
26.Silent Scream
27.Montana Legacy
28.Pride & Prjudice & Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.

Friday Fill In 2010!


Friday Fill In 2010


1. Last night I was asleep by 10:30!2. I'm hoping I will blog better, and not be hospitalized this year.
3. The funniest thing is watching the kids play.
4. It's 2010...Brittni graduates in May! I feel OLD! LOL!
5. He said I'm staying up; she said Good Night!
6. Jesus gave us salvation and it's up to us to ACCEPT it.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm cooking a big pot roast with potatos & carrots, tomorrow my plans include blogging and then tomorrow night the grandkids are spending the night and Sunday I will need to recuperate!!


Happy 2010!!!

Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts

Love blooms in the second novelin Nora Roberts's celebrated Bride Quartet series.



As little girls MacKensie, Emma, Laurel, and Parker spent hours acting out their perfect make believe "I do" moments. Years later their fantasies become reality when start their own wedding planning company to make every woman's dream day come true. With perfect flowers, delicious desserts, and joyful moments copatured on film, Nora Roberts's Bride Quartet shares each woman's emotionally magical journey to romance.



In Bed of Roses, florist Emma Grant is finding career success with her friends at Vows wedding planning company, and her love life appears to be thriving. Though men swarm around here, she still hasn't found Mr. Right. And the last place she's looking is right under her nose.



But that's just where Jack Cooke is. He's so close to the women of Vows that he's practically family, but the architect has begun to admit to himself that his feelings for Emma have developed into much more than friendship. When Emma returns his passion-kiss for blistering kiss-they must trust in their history...and in their hearts.



my review~



Bed of Roses is a quick & easy read that I really enjoyed. Emma & Jack's story is one that I know I will visit again and again along! The second book in Nora's Bride Quartet, Bed of Roses has everything you want in a romance although I will admit that I enjoyed reading 'Vision In White' a little bit more, but I think because I enjoyed MacKensie & Carter's story so much! Or maybe it is because I knew it was the first of 4 books.

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