Here are the pics I mentioned yesterday! I took these in the afternoon…we did continue to get snow after that. I woke up about a half hour ago and it looked like the snow has stopped! I didn’t bother to open the door to take pics this AM, though!
The images above are stock photos…but…I did take pics with my camera today, just haven’t emailed them to myself yet!
Currently, we have 20″ of snow on the ground and it’s still snowing! It’s rare for us in Maryland to get that much snow…let alone, that much snow during the Christmas season! Our neighbors across the street turned on their Christmas lights and they look beautiful against the white snow! If I feel like it, I’ll post the pics tomorrow!
They’ve already closed most of the churches in the area tomorrow because of the high drifts outside! We received a phone call from our church, with an automated message from the pastor, stating that services will not be held tomorrow…
Hubby and I have lots of work to do tomorrow! Now we have to dig ourselves out! What a mess!
I did a little Christmas shopping today. I hate shopping, so I did not have a good time. It’s supposed to snow tonight and continue snowing this weekend! We don’t get much snow up here, so people have been talking about it a lot! When it snows, especially as much as they’re predicting, things shut down…businesses, stores, etc. And, it’s rare for it to snow, especially a predicted record-breaking snow, in December! If we get a sizeable amount of snow, it’ll usually occur in February or maybe January!
It’ll be interesting to see how the weekend pans out…getting so much snow around Christmastime in Maryland is a rare event, indeed!
Does it usually snow in your area during the Christmas season?
Come to Jenny’s blog and read my interview about Christmas!
Chesapeake Weddings is about to go to press! I have to read through the galley and it’s due back to Barbour Publishing by January 6th. And, if you’ve read any of my Heartsong Presents titles – John’s Quest, Milk Money or Bittersweet Memories, feel free to leave a review on the link above! Chesapeake Weddings is a re-release of all three of those titles!
On another note, on this blog post, I wrote about the new Coach purse I’d received for my birthday. Since I carry the same purse around for years, I usually use a Coach since they are a high-quality handbag. Well, Coach comes with a life-time warranty. If your Coach purse becomes damaged from natural wear and tear, you can send it to the Coach factory and they’ll fix it. This used to be free, but, in recent years, you have to send a check for $20.00 to cover postage.
Well, the reason why I wanted a new Coach purse is because my old one had a broken zipper. The zipper was worn, right where the teeth of the zipper are located. I didn’t think they’d be able to fix my zipper because Coach zippers are stitched right into the leather. I couldn’t imagine them taking the stiches out of the leather, removing the old zipper, and replacing it with a new zipper while allowing the purse to still look the same.
Well, awhile back, Coach sent me a letter, stating that they couldn’t fix my purse, BUT they were offering me any item in their catalog for 40% off. I was telling my coworker about it, and I mentioned that I’d rather have a free small item, like a wallet or a change purse instead of getting a new item at 40% off. After all, I’d just gotten a new Coach purse, and I don’t switch purses, thus I didn’t really need another item just to use the 40% off offer. My coworker suggested I call Coach and explain that I already got a new purse and I didn’t need another one, so, might they give me a small item for free instead?
So, almost a week ago, I called them, stating my dilemma – I was sure to let the Coach employee know that I’d recently gotten a new Coach purse and didn’t need another. The lady put me on hold for a LONG TIME. She then asked for the reference number on my letter. She said that they were going to refund the $20.00 I’d paid for the repair, and they would send me a gift card for $107.20! I was excited! My coworker gave me a high five!
I just used my gift card a couple of days ago! I was able to get 3 small Coach items:
This wristlet was $58.00, and it matches the purse I received last summer!
This Skinny Mini was $38.00!
This pack of paper was $10.00
$58.00
$38.00
$10.00
$106.00 = total
With tax, I ended up spending only five or six bucks of my own money. The shipping was free since the order is over $75.00. And…my refund check from Coach for $20.00 came in the mail today!
Isn’t that great?!
Check out the new Heartsong Presents Author Blog! Each week they’ll feature an author! It’s a great way to get acquainted with the ladies who pen those great romances!
Thirsty by Tracey Bateman
From the back cover:
There’s no place like home, they say.
“Hello, I’m Nina Parker…and I’m an alcoholic.”
For Nina, it’s not the weighty admission but the first steps toward recovery that prove most difficult. She must face her ex-husband, Hunt, with little hope of making amends, and try to rebuild a relationship with her angry teenage daughter, Meagan. Hardest of all, she is forced to return to Abbey Hills, Missouri, the hometown she abruptly abandoned nearly two decades earlier–and her unexpected arrival in the sleepy Ozark town catches the attention of someone–or something–igniting a two-hundred-fifty-year-old desire that rages like a wildfire.
Unaware of the darkness stalking her, Nina is confronted with a series of events that threaten to unhinge her sobriety. Her daughter wants to spend time with the parents Nina left behind. A terrifying event that has haunted Nina for almost twenty years begins to surface. And an alluring neighbor initiates an unusual friendship with Nina, but is Markus truly a kindred spirit or a man guarding dangerous secrets?
As everything she loves hangs in the balance, will Nina’s feeble grasp on her demons be broken, leaving her powerless against the thirst? The battle between redemption and obsession unfold to its startling, unforgettable end.
==
I purchased this novel because it was about two subjects that garner my interest: alcoholism and vampires. I’ve blogged about vampires a few times because of the Twilight series, and I’ve also included the subject of alcoholism in my own novels.
I thought Bateman did an excellent job of describing the difficult road to sobriety for an alcoholic. Nina has struggled with this addiction off and on for most of her adult life, and the addiction is in her blood – her father has suffered from alcoholism, too.
Thirsty also talks about familial disharmony: Nina’s relationship with her daughter is strained because of Nina’s abuse of alcohol. Nina’s relationships with her parents are strained because of her troubled childhood. When she returns home, she’s been gone for several years, and this is the first she’s seen of her parents in a long while. Plus, she’s recently divorced, although she still loves her husband.
Although two of the characters are vampires, I thought the story could have easily been re-written by portraying the two bloodsuckers as satanists or occultists or something?
Overall I thought the book was a good, suspenseful, intriguing read and it was a page turner.
If you want some cheap options to stuff your Christmas stocking, then you should consider purchasing some Heartsong Presents titles. They’re only $2.97 each and you can order them directly from the publisher. I’ve ordered directly from Barbour myself, and I always received the books a few days after I ordered them.
You can find titles here – select the Books tab to get a full selection, and you can also order by calling (800) 847 8270. You can order up to twelve Heartsongs and still pay the same amount in postage. My titles are John’s Quest, Milk Money, and Bittersweet Memories. But, you can find a whole slew of available titles, both contemporary and historical, for a reasonable price. If you order soon, you should receive your novels before Christmas, in plenty of time to stuff your stockings!
I removed Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer from The Christmas Box and placed it into the DVD player tonight for my four-year-old son to enjoy. He watched Rudolph for awhile and then came upstairs whining and upset. He was afraid of the Abominable Snowman! How could he be afraid of The Abominable? He watched the movie over and over last year, we almost had to force him to put it away once Christmas was over. Now, how is he going to watch it this year and be scared? Did the scariness kick into his brain sometime between three and four?
On another note, if you’ve read any of my three stories: John’s Quest, Milk Money, or Bittersweet Memories and you enjoyed them, I’d appreciate it if you’d post a review for it on the Christianbook.com link for Chesapeake Weddings. Chesapeake Weddings is a re-released volume of all three stories, so, even if you’ve only read one of the three, you can still post your review for that story on this link under the Customer Reviews heading.
Hope the holiday season is going well for all of you!
I opened my closet last weekend and pulled out my Christmas box! What’s in it? Christmas CDs and DVDs to enjoy for the holidays! Here are the selections in my Christmas box!
1. 
A Charlie Brown Christmas CD and DVD – this thing has been on TV for as long as I can remember! What a heartwarming story that’s still a hit today!
Original Christmas Classics DVD set which includes:
2. Frosty The Snowman DVD
3. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town DVD
4. Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer DVD
I can remember seeing all three of these shows on TV every year since I was a kid!
5. 
The Polar Express DVD – this selection is what I consider “new”. My hubby and I went to see this in the theater and this was before we had a child.
6. 
The Vanessa Williams Christmas Collection CD – I mostly listen to this while traveling in the car!
7. 
Jackson 5 Christmas Album – My four-year-old son LOVES listening to this! He especially enjoys Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer!
8. 
The Nutcracker CD – my husband doesn’t care for this, but I love the music! If I play it in the car, it’s usually when I’m alone!
Do you have a Christmas box or Christmas music and DVDs that you enjoy every year? If you do, what are your selections? I’d love to know!