February 15th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning. Because Mother Nature is pms-ing again, I’ sitting here in my pajamas, listening to the snow plough making colossal potholes, drinking a mega mug, and writing this blog, instead of being on the road to Vermont. This is the second year in a row this has happened, and as you can probably guess, I’M NOT HAPPY. So I have to do this hear…

Happy Birthday Baby Girl! In just a few short hours (10:58) you will no longer be a teenager. I’m so sorry we couldn’t be with you on your birthday again, but at least this year you have Tori there to celebrate with you. We’ll see you as soon as we can. We love you, and hope you have a fun day!

We’re not getting any significant snow, and neither is Lys, but the path between the two of us is getting slammed. Now if the kids didn’t have school on Monday, like pretty much the rest of the country, then I may have attempted the trek. We could have got there whenever, gotten a hotel for the night, and taken our time for the ride home on Monday, but we couldn’t.

Our kids lost President’s Day to the last snowstorm – you remember the one - Juno – the snowpocalypse that only ended up dumping 3” of snow, but they closed the schools the day before because of the 24”-36” predicted snow. Yeah, that one. Sorry MA readers, I know you got hammered during Juno, so your school closings were justified, but ours really weren’t.

Not seeing my kids on their birthday, does not sit well with me. The first time my mother didn’t see me on my birthday was my 24^th, because I was leaving for my honeymoon; and the next time was for my 40^th when Paulie and I were in New Mexico for our “why the heck did we get married?” weekend. Only twice in 48 years. I have now missed two in 20 years for Lys, and I don’t like it. We still have a perfect record for PJ and Dani…

I got home from the B&C early yesterday, around 3:30. The snow started around 1:30 and things slowed down in the shop after that – which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. When I left we had three mixed flower basket arrangements, two - three red roses and mixed flowers in a vase arrangements, one - six red roses in a vase arrangement, one six red/six white rose in a vase being hugged by a teddy bear arrangement, and two red and white dozen carnation wrapped bouquets left – and that was it. So only nine last minute shoppers would be able to get something beautiful, everyone else would have to make do with grocery store flowers.

Can you believe it, my feet are still aching this morning? Yesterday my back was a little sore, and so were my legs, but my feet actually hurt. I think I stood more in the past three days then I have in the past month – over 18 hours of standing. Think about it, unless you’re a hairdresser or a cashier, you get to sit down for part of your work day, and hairdressers sometimes get breaks between clients where they can sit. Not so much in a flower shop. I truly love going in and working for B&C when they need a hand, but there is no way I would be able to do it all the time. I guess I’m just too old, too fat and too out of shape to handle it. Lol.

After things settle down a little, I’m going to pop back into the shop and snap some pictures. I’ve been talking about B&C and the folks who work there so much, I thought it would be appropriate for y’all to “meet” them. The only one who I won’t be able to get is Nick, because he’s headed back up to school.

As much as I love flowers, I don’t want them purchased for me. Other than my wedding ring, I don’t wear jewelry often, so that’s not a good gift. I love chocolate, but I’m trying to lose weight. I don’t wear perfume. So, as you can see, my hubby doesn’t have it easy for Valentine’s. This year, my Valentine’s gift from my hubby was a nice dinner. He made filet mignon wrapped in bacon, sautéed mushrooms and onions, baked potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and candied carrots. It was very yummy, and the perfect gift.

Okay, off to tackle the 99+ Twitter notifications, then I think I might take a nap. I’m whooped. I hope you have a fantastic day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

Angry tears…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 14th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! Short and sweet today because I only have half an hour to write and post (with links and pictures).

The staff at B&C are work horses! Holy Crow!! I literally stood from 9:00 am – 7:45 pm. My feet hurt. My back hurts. Cripes, even my hair hurts. I cannot even imagine how they do this 360 days out of the year.

A zillion more orders were taken, some made right on the spot. Several were so incredibly beautiful, I just had to take a moment to stop and admire them. In the midst of all the joyous Valentine’s frenzy, unfortunately there was some sorrow as well. There will be no rest for the weary once Valentine’s Day is over, because several funeral arrangements will need to be made. Luckily the viewing is not today or having flowers for it would have been a challenge.

I recall this happening during my previous flower shop experience. Folks don’t just give roses for Valentine’s Day, they give ALL flowers, and with the sales volume rising exponentially this time of year, come February 15^th most shops are completely out of ALL flowers, and anxiously awaiting a delivery. This shop is no different. We have red roses still, and a smattering of other flowers, but that’s about it.

Monday’s delivery is going to be massive because it will basically be restocking the entire store – flowers, greens, fillers (baby’s breath, waxflowers, etc), vases, boxes, cello wrap, you name it. I guess it’s a good problem to have. I’m just glad I’ll have time to recuperate before my services will be needed again.

Okay, I have to go get ready. I was seriously debating wearing roller-skates to work today, but I think I’ll just go with sneakers. I hope you have a Happy Valentine’s Day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

This is the gift I give to you…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 13th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! I had a blast yesterday at B & C. I was there for four hours and I took a boatload of orders, made up several dozen single rose packets so all the panicked teen boys who come in on Saturday and just grab-pay-and-go. I helped one “doe in the headlights” customer and even came up with something prolific for him to write on his card. I boxed, I wrapped, I chatted, I laughed. Yeah, it was a good day.

One of the cool things was seeing several of my friends names while boxing up orders for today’s deliveries. All I have to say ladies, is your significant other has great taste. The flowers are GORGEOUS! You’ll love them. And I was good, I didn’t read a single card – except for the one I wrote.

Today is going to be a challenge because it will be an eleven hour day, but I’m still looking forward to it. When I showed Ron (the owner) and Carly (one of the designers) yesterday’s blog post, they were thrilled. Carly laughed at me because I called the experience exhilarating. I told her if she only did it a few days a year, she would see it from a different perspective.

Carly is a phenomenal floral designer. She made up this one bouquet yesterday which was absolutely stunning. It consisted of various exotic flowers, and such a vibrant array of colors, it simply took your breath away. I won’t even bother praising Ron, his stuff is consistently picture perfect. He pairs things you would never expect, and the results are remarkable. Okay, so maybe just a little praise, but don’t tell him, he doesn’t need an ego boost. JUST TEASING, he’s a sweetheart and I love working with him.

Ron’s son Nick came home from college so he could lend a hand. This was great news for me, because it meant I didn’t have to de-thorn a single rose. This year my hands won’t look like they’ve broken up a cat fight. Nick’s a rose cleaning beast. He flies through the zillions of roses in nothing flat, but then again, he was brought up in the business, so I guess it’s to be expected.

I’m not sure if there will be a blog post tomorrow morning or not. I have to be in the shop around 8:30, and I’m sure today is going to whip my butt. I am going to try, but I’m not making any promises.

Now Sunday, I know there won’t be a post. We – Paulie, Dani and her boyfriend Randy, and I are leaving for Vermont at 5:00 am. That will get us up to Lys by roughly 11:30 (depending on the road conditions). We are going to take her out to lunch, give her her birthday presents and her cake, sing Happy Birthday, eat cake, then turn around and come back home. I’m hoping to get back by 10:00 pm.

Crazy, I know, but not seeing my baby on her birthday last year truly bothered me, and as long as Mother Nature cooperates this year, I not going to let it happen again. The real bear of it is going to be the high of -11° with wind chills in numbers I don’t even want to think about. It’s times like these I really wish she had accepted the invitation from Austen Peay in Clarksville, TN. LOL. Then again, if she was down there, I wouldn’t be seeing her on her birthday. Oh well…

Okay, I need to go get ready for work. I hope you have a fantastic Friday the 13^th, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

I love you to the moon and back…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 12th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! Well, I’m better, still not 100%, but definitely better. Just in time too.

For the next three days I get to play florist. For obvious reasons, this time of year is crazy busy for florists, and our local florist, B & C, is no exception. Normally Ron, the owner, brings in a few extra drivers on Valentine’s Day itself to help with deliveries. That was what I was originally supposed to do last year, but it came up in conversation that a zillion years ago I briefly worked at a flower shoppe, I was asked to help in the shop itself.

Now I’m no floral designer, but I can clean roses with the best of them. I also kick some serious butt in the customer service arena. I love it. For a few days a year, and ONLY a few days a year, I’m out in the hustle and bustle of retail humanity. In small doses, it is exhilarating and invigorating.

You get a unique perspective into the human condition when you work retail. I’m allotted insights I cannot get from just being out in public or from events like my book signings. Last year’s group of customers gave me traits I was able to incorporate into some of my characters, which made them more authentic. Experiencing the wide-eyed looks of confusion (or in one case terror) first hand when the men enter the shop, and then the sheer gratitude when you simplify their life by suggesting something perfect, is priceless fodder.

Three to five days a year working retail is just about all I can take. Luckily, it’s all I need.

I killed it yesterday on Twitter – well, “killed it” by my standards that is. I got fifty eight new followers, and over a hundred retweets. Considering previous days were less than a dozen of each, even you could say it was a banner day. Between the new followers, and going back to make sure I followed people who followed me, I am now getting around five tweets a second. There is absolutely no way I will ever be able to see all the tweets flying by, and I have resolved myself to just let it go. I scan through and see what catches my eye, then act on it how I see fit.

I am not going to let Twitter overwhelm me anymore. I can’t let it, or I’ll end up scrapping the whole thing, which I can’t do because my Amazon ranking has been steadily climbing since I embarked on this campaign. (Shameless Plug: My books would make great Valentine’s gifts for your Sweetie.)

Okay, I need to shower, do my hair and make-up and unearth my “sensible” shoes, so I should go. I hope you have a wonderful day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

The morning fog caressed her skin as she stared out over the water…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 11th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

WWIII still going on in my stomach today, so this blog will be short, and will be dedicated to my friend Ron Shaw.

http://amzn.to/17fKxnS

Over the past several months Ron and I have built a strong, bizarre, hysterical relationship which I wouldn’t change for the world. I am a firm believer that God puts people in your path, at particular times in your life, for a reason.

Ron is an ex Atlanta police captain turned author after a near death experience he had a little over a year ago. He chronicles this experience in his first book Seven Fish Tree.

http://amzn.to/1AXlZMC

Since the release of his first book, Ron has exploded on the writing scene. Seven Fish Tree was quickly followed by The Yellow Bus Boys. He brings you back to 1964, when he and thirty-three other 6^th grade inner-city boys went on a ten day trip. You’ll laugh out loud. You’ll cry. Buckle up, ‘cause you’ll be in for a wild ride. Oh wait, school buses didn’t have seatbelts in 1964.

http://amzn.to/1zLcGh5

On the heels of The Yellow Bus Boys came Transmutation – The life of a twisted cop. Unlike his previous two novels, this one is gritty and raw. No smoke and mirrors, he laid it all out for you to see.

http://amzn.to/1E0qqUK

His latest release, Cramped Quarters (I came up with the title, thank you very much), is back to his original – for lack of a better word – style. Cramped Quarters is the story of Mary, the ghost Ron and his wife Donna inherited when they purchased an old trunk at a yard sale. It is formatted like a snippet from a journal – entries of Mary’s antics and Ron’s reactions to what it is like living with a ghost.

http://bit.ly/1EXZHfa

When Ron’s not writing, he’s a Twitter fiend, and probably one of the most active Indie Author supporters I have ever met. He hosts a Monday night talk show on ArtistsFirst Radio Network. Actually, I have been interviewed twice. If you’re interested in listening to the two of us cut up, her are the links – Show1 – Show2.

Ron and I have LITERALLY spent hours on the phone – the man can talk – two months in a row I exceeded my allotted talk minutes on my wireless plan. It’s all good though. We have helped each other with our writing, computer issues, marketing issues. He has introduced me to several people I now consider my friends, and I have hooked him up with several talented authors to interview on his radio show. Ron and I are also two of the ten authors in the Spirited Tales anthology, published by AAPublishing, I told you about, which is going to be published soon. Yes, God definitely put Ron in my path, and I’m thankful.

I hope you have a fabulous day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

It was like I stepped into a 70s sitcom…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 10th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

First, Happy 22^nd Birthday to my son’s girlfriend Alex and to my Uncle Phil. Hope you have a wonderful day.

Well, I survived another party at my house. We had twenty-nine people total, and other than a logistical parking nightmare, all went well. Thanks to my generous neighbors, Umang & Kunal, we managed – they housed all the overflow cars. Without them, we would have had a real issue.

At one point, my nephew and his girlfriend pulled in the driveway, and I kicked them out, telling them to go home and come with their mom. Normally parking at our house isn’t an issue, folks just park all over the lawn, but with the recent snowfall, that became out of the question. Now some of you would be horrified by this, but it’s not like my lawn is sod. Heck, if it weren’t for the crabgrass, there’d be very little green at all.

The Chinese food was a big hit, and clean-up was a breeze, because there were virtually no leftovers. I had a rip roaring time with my great niece, Isabelle. She kept calling me a monster and running away screaming, then she’d attack me with Dani’s bouquet of balloons. (In all fairness, I am “the tickle monster”.)

Four out of the eight people in our family whose birthdays fall between February 2^nd & February 15^th we in attendance, and we sang to all of them. From Left to Right are Aunt Mary (my father’s sister) 2/2, Dani Rose 2/4, Uncle Phil (my mother’s BiL) 2/10, & “Uncle” Lenny (Bec’s hubby) 2/2. The folks who were missing were Charlotte (cousin) 2/7, Alex (PJ’s gf) 2/10, Lys 2/15 & Christopher (nephew) 2/15. Up to a few years ago there was another birthday in that laundry list as well. Happy 92^nd birthday in Heaven Gram (2/13). We really know how to clump them together, don’t we?

Yesterday I was not good company to be around. I contacted Kobo to find out where I stood with the formatting issues with my books, only to find out they still have not been able to figure it out, and the made A Second Chance and Taking Chances LIVE on their site. I pitched a royal fit because the books were not ready to go live and some sweet person in Australia purchased one already.

I did a shout out on Facebook and Twitter yesterday in hopes of finding the person and asking them to contact me. When/If they contact me, I want to get their address so I can mail them a signed hard copy of the book. It makes me physically ill to think they purchased something which was sub-par, with my name on it.

I’m NOT a happy camper. So basically, instead of getting a $2 royalty payment from Kobo for selling my book, it is going to cost me roughly $20 to make this right (the cost of the book itself plus the cost of postage to Australia). I am MORE than willing to do this for my reader, it just fries my cookies that Kobo screwed up so badly. I have NO idea what is going on over there, and until they can assure me they have fixed the issue, I have put all my books on the “de-list” list. Argh!

Annie, my publisher, said something to me last night which made me wonder. She has zero, and I mean ZERO, problems loading books onto Kobo. Annie is working off of an older computer. I have Windows8 plus whatever they recently did with the last round of upgrades. I’m wondering if this is a compatibility issue and Kobo’s system can’t handle the newest software. If so, then I may have inadvertently unearthed a whole can of worms. I just hope they get it fixed and soon.

I have another dilemma. I’ve told you that, for reasons unknown, I have been waking up at 3:38 every morning for over two weeks now. On Friday night, I took a little blue pill – NO, NOT THAT LITTLE BLUE PILL – and it knocked me out until seven Saturday morning. For the first time in forever, I got a solid eight hours of sleep. However, when I woke up, I couldn’t move. I guess I slept the entire eight hours in one position, and when I woke, my back was in such spasms I couldn’t even take a full breath.

So here are my choices – get sleep, wake up in agonizing pain, and take a few hours to be even able to function, OR walk around in a sleepy dopey fog from lack of sleep every day. Experts say you really can’t “catch-up” on sleep, so taking the pill once a week won’t solve anything. Maybe my hubby was right, and I should just play 338 in the Pick 3, and then I’ll stop waking up at that time every day. For a buck, it may just be worth a try.

Okay, I have to boogie. I hope you have a great day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

Use the following: Big, Orange, Platypus (you can blame Dani for this one)

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 6th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

I’m a bad person. Well, maybe not bad, but definitely a bit ditzy at times. Since the girls were little, we’ve always held their “family party” on the Sunday between their birthdays – Dani Rose is the 4^th & AlyssaLynn’s is the 15^th of February. So, this Sunday is the day, but with Lys off at college, I guess it didn’t occur to me that some people would question if I was doing a family party just for Dani.

My SiL, MiL, mom and three of my friends just said “what do you need me to bring Sunday?”, and I’m such a scatterbrain, I didn’t realize everyone who is usually invited didn’t know we were having the party. Then my mom told me she mentioned it to her sister, and then I get a text from my other aunt asking “Did I miss something?” I felt so bad that I didn’t extend an official invitation. Then I had to wrack my brain to remember who I said something to, and who I had just assumed would know. See, I’m a bad person.

I am going to take the easy way out this year as far as food goes. I’m ordering several half-pans of Chinese food. I’ve done this a few times in the past, and the food was always a big hit, plus, the Chinese restaurant by us gives me a really good deal – lots of food, not too expensive. I’ll be able to feed 45 people for under $100. It’s a beautiful thing.

I spent four hours this morning on Twitter related stuff. I created an Excel spreadsheet for Tweets, Follows and Retweets. I wrote a couple of dozen Tweets for each books so I can have them at the ready, and then I tweeted, retweeted and thanked. I took a small break to be able to make the kids lunch, and when I got back, there were over 2K tweets in my queue. I’m trying, I really am, but I’m still finding Twitter exhausting. However, even though it is making my head spin and my eyes cross, my books have been climbing in the rankings since I started this Twitter marketing blitz, so I guess it will be worth it in the end.

I finally sent Corporate Blues off to the Indie Next Generation Book Awards. I have been signed up since September, but never managed to get around to mailing them the three copies they requested. Then, two days ago, I get an email saying there was only ten days left to get the books to them. SHOOT! By the grace of God, I still had three copies left in my inventory – and ONLY three copies.

Needless to say, I need to order more books, but I think I’ll wait a little bit. I won’t have another book signing until April, so there’s no sense in ordering them now and storing them in the basement until I need them. I haven’t completed my spreadsheets yet for my taxes, but if memory serves (which is sketchy at best lately, but I try), then I’ve sold – or raffled or donated – 250 copies of Corporate Blues since it was published in March 2014.

Combined with A Second Chance and Taking Chances, I went through close to 1,000 copies of books in 2014. That’s just hard copies and does not include sales on Kindle. Now folks like Nora Roberts and James Patterson probably do that in a day, but considering the competition out there, I’m not complaining. Would I like the numbers higher? Well, DUH, of course, but I’m thinking, for being relatively new to this profession, it’s not too shabby.

Well, I’ve got places to go, and things to do, so TTFN. I hope you have a Fabulous day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

If I could return to any time in my life, knowing what I know now…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 5th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Oh JOY, more white stuff falling from the sky. This is getting old, FAST. If I was staying in, this wouldn’t be an issue; but because of RV’s commitments today, I will be crisscrossing Central Jersey for most of the day. I detest driving in bad weather.

So Dani won her request to have the Christmas tree up until her birthday, but tomorrow, it’s coming down. I’m sick of looking at the thing.

Her birthday was good. She’s so excited about the Nikon D3200 camera Paulie and I got her. The gift was a bit extravagant, but a girl only turns 16 once, and it was the only thing she really wanted. We’ll be eating a lot of pasta over the next few weeks. LOL

Although she LOVED her gift from PJ and Alex, she wasn’t a happy camper this morning. The mid-way piercing is rather painful, and the poor kid didn’t get much sleep last night. Unfortunately, there isn’t a dang thing we can do to help her. She’s just going to have to wait it out.

As you know, I have been focusing on Twitter for marketing this past week, and quite frankly, it still is making my head spin. I’ve been doing 3 – 4 posts per book (depending on spacing) a day, manually thanking each new follower, and manually thanking each person who retweets one of my tweets. I have also been retweeting, favoriting, and commenting on other tweets. They come in so fast and furious though, I doubt I’m seeing 10% of the tweets that come in. I sneezed, got up to get a tissue, blew my nose, tossed the tissue, and when I came back, there were 218 new tweets – in what 45 seconds. Good grief!

I got a reply from Kobo yesterday. Their advice was to delete my books. REALLY? Needless to say, I pitched a fit. I don’t mind putting in the hours, but then for those hours to be for naught, fries my cookies. Basically, I told them to “figure it out”. You would think if the IT team was worth a grain of salt, this wouldn’t be such an issue. They’ve been “working on it” for over a week now. WTHeck?

My publisher, Annie Acorn, was so sweet. She told me I could send the books to her, and she would see if she could get them to work on Kobo. She isn’t even the publisher on these books, and she wasn’t asking for anything in return for getting them up on the site for me. Bless her heart! I told her we’ll wait and see what the Kobo Team comes up with, but it’s looking more and more like I may have to take her up on her offer.

With all the money grubbing scoundrels out there in the publishing world, I have been blessed with a real gem. I am so grateful our paths crossed, and I am so looking forward to a long future with Annie. She is truly priceless, always ready to share her vast knowledge, makes an excellent sounding board – not just on books, but on life as well, and is just an all-around good soul. Yes, I have been truly blessed.

Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you this last week. Annie has asked me to be a guest Quill for the Pen & Ink blog on her site. As soon as I know more, I’ll let you know and provide you with a link. In the meantime, if you’d like, here’s the link to previous Pen & Inks. If you have any desire to write, you should check it out. The advice and tips are wonderful.

Okay, I have to get an early start today, so I best be going. I hope you have a warm & safe day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

Enough already…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

February 4th, 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Wasn't she a cutie?

Good Morning! First things first, I want to wish my beautiful, amazing, crazy, fun-loving, witty, sarcastic, goofy baby girl a Happy 16^th Birthday. I love you to the moon and back Bananabeans, and I am so proud of the young woman you have become.

Thank you for letting me indulge in a proud Mama moment. It blows my mind that my youngest child is now 16 years old. In a few short days, she is also going to be the only teenager in the house, because her sister will be twenty on the 15^th.

UGH! I’m going to have two children in their twenties – when did I stop being in my twenties?? How the heck did that happen? Other than aches and pains, but they are due to a back injury, I don’t “feel” different, and I’m pretty sure I don’t act much different either. Aren’t I supposed to? Isn’t something supposed to have happened? In fourteen months, I am going to be fifty years old. I would think, at half a century old, my brain would function differently than it did thirty years ago. It’s like I got old, but someone forgot to tell me. Am I making any sense? I’m not, so I’ll just move on.

PJ an Alex are coming over tonight to celebrate Dani Rose’s birthday with her. Alex’s birthday is in six days, and since her an PJ were going to be away, I asked if it would be alright to celebrate her birthday along with Dani’s tonight. She agreed. Dani chose the dessert – red velvet cupcakes, and Alex chose the dinner – chicken crescent roll bake. It looks easy enough to make, but I have to run to the store to get the ingredients.

After dinner, PJ and Alex are taking Dani to get her ears pierced. She’s getting her 3^rd hole, and her mid-way done. When they’re finished, they are coming back here for dessert and presents. It should be a nice evening, and I’m really looking forward to it.

Okay, I have a lot to do, shopping, cooking wrapping, so I should boogie. I hope you have a wonderful day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

It was the best birthday ever…

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.