Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Reading Into Things

So driving home from work today I see this sign
Now to most folks it wouldn't mean much.

To me?

It means Damian Orlando.

Don't know him? Sad Sad

He is the main character in a book titled (really? you haven't guessed yet? Nobody's Perfect) by Kallypso Masters.

Now, Ms Masters doesn't write for kids and teens. She writes for grown ups... realistic romances with dominant males and the women who uhmmm well better not say too much!

Her Rescue Me series is HOT. OH MY! Is it ever.

It starts with a short intro type story that sets up the books that follow. These are meant to read in order because the characters overlap. (Which on a personal note, I love.) It is called "Masters at Arms" and oh are they masterful.

The first full book of the series is Marc and Angelina's story and is entitled "Nobody's Angel". It is followed by Adam and Karla in "Nobody's Hero".

Damian and Savi are featured in "Nobody's Perfect" and I hear that there are at least three more books planned.

Yeah, you can bet I will be reading those when they are published!

CONTENT WARNING: These books feature BDSM and while I know that isn't for everyone, I will say these are very well written and actually have a story that you, the reader, can get lost in. It's not just sex and kink, it's romance and character development as well.





Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Wondering

Not sure I believe the phrase "it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all."


 'Cuz I gotta tell ya, pain is a bitch!



Monday, July 29, 2013

Author Love

So I follow author Amanda Bennett on facebook....I have read several of her books and am working my way through the Raine Series.

She put out a request this morning for bloggers....


I need a nice big group of bloggers to help with some promotional stuff for Unbreakable Hearts and The Raine Series combo pack! 

 
 Since I like her stuff and I am a nice blogger (I promise! I am!) I offered to help.

With all the books I have been reading lately.. it is a nice way to thank authors for writing such awesome books!


 She is getting ready to do a combo pack... and let me interrupt by saying I love a good combo pack.

Because invariably, I start one in a series and I know I am going to want to read them all. I like in a combo pack they are all right there together.

I love e-reading. I read most of my books these days on my Kindle app on my iPad. It is always with me so it's like carrying my library everywhere I go.

WOW!


I will warn you.... these are for a more mature audience. So they may not be for everyone.. certainly one should be over 18 before reading!

I can't wait to get started on the Unbreakable series....

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Key Lime Tarts


Nonie made individual key lime tarts for the party yesterday. 

Yum!



Saturday, July 27, 2013

My First Party

I had my first ever party today.


Yes, growing up I did have birthday parties but my Mama, z'l, planned those.

It was a vaguely French theme.... my sister and I were born in France....

I could not have done this without the help of my sister, Rhonda and my niece Bailee. 

Even though my sister in law could not be present, the bouquet I caught at her wedding made a nice centerpiece in the french while pitcher that sat in the middle of the table. 

The best punch maker ever!

My collection of Eiffel Towers and Arch de Triomphes had to make an appearance. 

I had to get a couple of the food laden tables. Actually had to open my Swedish butterfly table all the way out!

This picture doesn't include the individual key lime tarts that Nonie made. I shall get a picture of one of those before they get all eaten.... Hopefully

Of course I had to get some pictures of my gorgeous niece. I loved this dress!! It has a cut out in the back and I had to get a picture of that back.


But when I went to get it, she reached back and turned the light on. Just as I hit the button. It made for a gorgeous picture!

I just had to grab another one of the two of them. I hope they had a great time and that they both think it was worth the four hour drive up to spend the weekend and help me out! It made all the difference having them here!

Yes, one last picture of the food!

Can't forget to have a picture of the doggy. He had to go outside during the party because one of my guests is allergic to doggy's. Oh how glad I am that I am not allergic to my Harley.

We tried to make up for it with a lot of extra play time when he came back in. 

But now I can say I have had my first party. Will be doing it again but glad I get to do it later on! 

Whew!



Friday, July 26, 2013

Yesterday

So yesterday I forgot to post. 

Part of that was exhaustion brought on a very thorough house cleaning. 

And the rest was putting a third mower in a week. And then mowing the back yard. 

I was out getting some cleaning supplies and found an electric mower for even less than the mower I bought and returned in less than 15 hours. Score! 



The picture above is a pic I found online. It's not exact but it is close. Mine is yellow but I wasn't going back out to snap a photo. 

I even gave the gas I had just bought to the next door neighbor. A mitzvah! 

I did the back yard first to get my feet wet. It is so awesome having no pull cord! 

Awesome Day

So my sister and niece number 1 came up from Gulf Shores today. 

My first house guests in almost three years. 

We had lunch at TGIFridays. 



Got pedicures. At least Bailee (Niece Number1) and I did. My sister doesn't "do" feet. 

Oh and niece numbering above is based on chronology and chronology only. I love them equally and massively. 

From there we headed to SAMs for food for tomorrow's party. My first party ever. 

Then we came home and dropped that food off before heading back out to go swimsuit shopping for Miss Bailee. 

They rested after we got home and I mowed the front yard. 

More on that in just a bit! 

Exhausted but with family in the very clean house with the very mowed yard!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Exhausted

Scrubbing kitchen floors on hands and knees is not a great thing when you have degenerative disk disease and lower lumbar arthritis. 

After that, I cleaned the guest bathroom. 

And then vacuumed the guest room, the living room and hallway. 

Will wait until family is here to move a chair in the living room to the guest room. 

Even I have my limits. 

I'd call myself Cinderella but then I'd just have to find glass slippers....


Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Ahhhh I have missed you



Kay is a master! I love my coffee drink. 

Coffee. 

Mostly coffee. 

That's my story and I am sticking to it. 

My old friend Bill is on his way. 

Great friends and favorite drinks! 

What a nice Tuesday. 

Monday, July 22, 2013

My Bucket List

One of the items on my bucket list is to spend a night in every state. 

Having marked two states off the list this year, I got to turn Kansa and Missouri green  

So i just made the necessary changes to my map. 


I think it should be glaringly obvious which state SHOULD be next. 

If for no other reason than to be done with the bottom portion of the continental US. 

Mississippi here I come! 

What do you think?



Sunday, July 21, 2013

Guests

In addition to having some friends over this coming Saturday, I will be having overnight guests for the first time in 3 years. 

So I have a list of chores to do around the house and I have to hope it will be good enough. 

My sister and niece will be here Friday- probably through Sunday. 

Moved the frame and bed into the guest room. I sat the frame up. Put the box springs and mattress on the frame. And then I put the European mattress topper on it and made he bed. 

Still have some work to do in there but at least it is a start. 

I've made a list of things I plan to do after work each day this week. Friday I will focus on the food for Saturday. Not going to stress too much about it. These people are friends and family and they know me. 

Will make sure I get a few pictures of Rhonda and Bailee's visit as well as the get together Saturday. That is the first time I have ever done anything like that: so people can deal with my learning curve. 





Saturday, July 20, 2013

Beyond Frustrated

If I could afford a thousand dollar lawn mower I guess I wouldn't have these problems. But I cannot. But just because I buy a lower end model... it should work at least ONCE out of the damn box.
But as you can see, the pull cord is hanging all the way out.

Because it will pull but it won't start and it won't rewind. It has gas and oil and I just bought it this afternoon. 

Because the old one.. that was just fixed..

Only worked once after I got the carbeurator or however the hell it is spelled, fixed.

Even paid extra to put a filter on it so that it wouldn't clog with dirt again.

HA!

 I am seriously, SERIOUSLY considering synthetic turf in.

Saw it on HGTV the other day and oh my goodness it looked awesome. And it didn't have to be mowed. 

Since I moved into this house when my beloved mother died, I have had nothing but problems with lawn mowers.

I am so sick and damn tired of it.

 I was looking forward to mowing the yard today.

 Now I just wanna set fire to it.

 Maybe I'll pull it all up and throw down a weed liner and put pavers and rocks down and get rid of all the  damn grass.

 Can we tell I am far and beyond frustrated?
 

Friday, July 19, 2013

Retrospective

So I spent some time today going through the pictures in my Dropbox folder today. 

Part of them are in folders and sorted. A few aren't. 

There is a picture of me and my Mom, z'l, in France.  

Me showing my (apparently lifelong) love of snow!



Pictures of me with the best brother and sister EVER.  Those were cool. 

Fast forward a few dozen years....

Me and my cousin Zach. Love him!



So many of the ones from after this time are filled with images I don't really want to face. 

So it's time to make and take new pictures! 

Photography is a great passion of mine and I need to make sure I reclaim that passion. 


Uh oh!

Someone came home from work Thursday and did a few things around the house and fell asleep without doing a Thursday post for NaBloPoMo.

 I hate that I missed a day but as punishment (ok I so shouldn't have said that!)

 I shall do two today.

 To make up for it.

 I even think I took a picture yesterday that was going to be my post. If I had been smart enough to get a picture of the doggy Wednesday when I came home from work I could have posted that.

 I can't believe I didn't get that picture. He got busted sleeping on my new bed while I was at work.

How do I know?

 Because when he came to greet me the knitted throw that Mrs. Mesa made me was caught on his dog collar. Right where the tags are.

It was flowing behind him like a superhero cape. If it had been red it just might have been.

 But I think he is doggy enough to be ok with a lavender superhero cape.

 Don't you?

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Lunching at Meritage

Nonie and I went to lunch at Meritage today.

We don't normally go out to lunch anymore since we went to four day work weeks and a half hour lunch. But the boss has been raving about the place all week so we had to try.

I ordered a half sandwich-- the Paola Uccello and spinach salad.

I discovered today I am not a great big fan of gorgonzola cheese. It's ok but I would have rather had feta.

 It was delicious. And the salad comes with dried berries and toasted almonds... but I prefer my spinach without those things so I had them leave them off. And I didn't use the vinaigrette either.

The Paola Uccello is grilled chicken, bacon, romaine lettuce with Caesar dressing  on a Ciabetta loaf. I, of course, took the bacon off!

It was yummy!
 


Tuesday, July 16, 2013

That Will Teach Me



Sometimes I say things. Funny things. Outrageous things. 

Then sometimes I post those funny things to Facebook. 

Big conversations ensue. Going in directions I intended. 

And then sometimes there are unforeseen consequences. 

Except consequences has a negative connotation. 

And this one isn't bad. 

It's funny. 

If you follow me on Facebook, you might remember a conversation last week about the need to never start a conversation with the phrase: "on duck dynasty they did...."

She got me good. 


Yes. You are looking at Duck Dynasty wine glasses. 8 oz mason jars with lids and rims. 

On wineglass stems. 


I even got a picture of Nonie holding them. 

Now I may or may not have told her that I was posting this on my blog. 

I just can't remember. 

But hey. Now I can have wine outside in the Georgia summer and not worry about bugs. 

Monday, July 15, 2013

Too Much In My Head

so we know that means it's not a good day, right?

I truly wish there was a way to just let it all go and focus on feeling instead of thinking.




Sunday, July 14, 2013

That Kind Of Night

Ever just needed an escape? 

Spent today lost in a book and this yummy glass. 

It wasn't the tropical island I wanted it to be but it tried hard. 

That was enough. 

For now. 

Saturday, July 13, 2013

A New Place To Sleep

So the bed is here and set up and all dressed. This is a temporary dressing until I decide how I want to redo the room.

I am currently in a gray and black kind of design... the picture on the wall behind the bed (that I didn't get in this picture from my iPhone) is a picture of a lavender field.. so the pale gray plays on the pale lavender.

It's a queen size and ohhhhhh sooooo comfortable-- gel top--- and I splurged on good pillows as well and the first night is done. They said about 3 days to get it to conform to me but last night was great. I woke up to no pain this am... at least none in my back.

I needed help with this mattress.. It is not like other mattresses where you can sit it up.. it's heavy. And I made the mistake of putting it upside down to begin with.

A request for help and the subsequent discussion with some friends ended up with an 8 am harangue and I am not in junior high school anymore... I just refuse to give in to that emotional blackmail.

Voices from the background no longer matter to me and I am just not going to let that control me any more.

I am free and I am going to revel in the fact that I am making my life into something that suits me. Just the way I want it.

And if the voices in the background don't like it? Well guess what? You don't have to. You don't have to have anything to do with me. Ever again. You don't have to know what I do, when I do it, who I choose to do it with.

It is my life and I am allowed to live it! My way!

PS I just heard something today: "If a psychopath isn't manipulating someone, they aren't having any fun." That struck me as hysterically funny.




Friday, July 12, 2013

We're Not Breaking Up Kate,


But I'm seeing someone new. 

Her name is Lilly. 


Ah yes, we all know of my love for all things Kate Spade. And I have, I think, at least two of her day planners. 

But there is a new girl in town and thanks to the interns I had in June and July, I got to meet her. Her name is Lilly Pulitzer. 

The intern with me the longest, Brit, had the next size down of the gorgeous LuLu (the design of the agenda). 

There were three to choose from and I liked this one the best. It has pockets in the front. (Yay!) 

There is a monthly calendar and there is a daily section as well. It starts August 1, 2013 and goes through December 31, 2014. 

I liked the bigger size so that I can do away with all the other planners and this one can do it all. Both work and personal planning. 

I can't wait for August 1!

But don't worry Kate. I still love you!  There just might be a Lilly planner in my favorite Kate Spade purse!