Choose Your Own Adventure- May Recap

 Good Morning Everyone, 

Today is the last of the Choose Your Own Adventure linkup! I'm a little bummed as this has been a fun set of challenges but with summertime now in full swing around here it will probably be for the best as it gets busier! 

So here is how I did on last month's goals!

 
May's Goal: Read
  1) Get caught up with my GoodRead's Challenge. I am 6 books behind as of today!---I am currently 3 books behind now. I didn't get completely caught up but I did try. Honestly I have been busy and a little distracted when it comes to sitting down and reading! However I do have a nice list of books for the Show Us Your Books Linkup next week!
2) Listen to at least 1 new audiobook. (This counts as reading too right?)---I did it! It wasn't a long book by any means but it was a set of short stories with one of the stories being by an author that I follow regularly. Fun to listen to and great for when I was trying to get my daily steps in!

So yes these were pretty small goals to set for myself but honestly I felt pretty good at what I managed to get accomplished! 

Can't wait to see how you all did! Have a Happy Thursday Everyone!

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28 Posts in 28 Days

Good Afternoon Everyone,

I know this is rather confusing as  I never post on a Sunday! 

I do have a reason however as I am embarking on a new challenge for myself....28 posts in 28 days for the month of February. 

Now I realize this might reveal a little of my crazy but it kind of irritates me that I look over at my monthly blog list and see that I have only completed X amount of days in a month. I hate that it never has a blog post for each day....I am not sure why it bothers me but it does. However as any blogger will tell you it can be a very daunting task to attempt to blog EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. That is a lot of content to come up with and it takes a lot of time to get the words out some days. 

But for some crazy reason I really want to make a post every day this month. It is the shortest month of the year though. 

Anyhow I will be here with a post every single day and have actually sat down and planned most of the posts for the month out already! I think it is going to be a lot of fun and I really can't wait to see the month of February filled with posts! 

Happy Sunday Everyone!

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NaNoWriMo: Day 1

Good Morning Everyone!

I hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween last night and got lots and lots of treats! 

It is strange that October is already over and now it is November...this year has gone so quickly and now with only two months left....it is very strange that 2015 is right around the corner! 

Last month I did #Blogtober and having only missed three days out of 31 I felt pretty awesome! It was great to have so many published posts on the blog, I got to find A LOT more blogs to follow and it is super awesome that some of you even chose to follow along with me.

Now today begins a new challenge. 

Today marks Day 1 of NaNoWriMo. 

For those that might not know that is National Novel Writing Month. You have the next thirty days to write 50,000 words, the length of most novels. (For those that must know that is about 1667 words per day)  It is an intense exercise in writing and it takes some serious dedication and determination to make your word count. 

This will be my third time competing. The first time I completed the challenge I was elated. Nothing came of the story except some really good ideas....which I had hoped to implement into my next story in my second NaNoWriMo challenge. However I found out at that time that I was expecting Kyra so writing took a back burner to my general excitement at being a new mom. Last year I didn't even attempt it because I had a five month old and being a new mom was a major change in my life. It took a while before I got into any kind of rhythm that let me have a little time to blog let alone work on actual writing. 

However this year I am ready again. Kyra is able to sit and play on her own for at least fifteen minutes at a time and I plan to make use of those fifteen minutes and nap times for my writing. 

That means that a few chores will go undone during the day and I will have to make up for them later but...this is worth it. 

If you are new to the challenge I want you to chant this to yourself the entire month: 

IT IS WORTH IT. 

I know it seems crazy. It seems like a massive amount of words for one month, but you can do this. You can write an entire novel in a month. It will be messy, it won't make complete sense, there will be plot holes and contradictions, but it will be written. That is the thing you must remember. Writers write...it's not perfect all the time....but if you are a writer...you write. 

So cheers to you all that are taking on the challenge and know I am going to be right there along with you; Fueled with WAY too many cups of coffee, staying up all hours of the night working in the dark, and fretting over characters that I love. 

Ready? Let's do this.

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Writing Challenge: Days of the Week

Good Morning Everyone!

Today is my weekly writing challenge and this one seems like a fun one! 

 

Monday was always a bit to loud, to brash, and overly eager to get wherever it is that he was going. He had the tendency to be rude without meaning to, never thinking before he spoke. His tone was always slightly off putting as if you could never be sure if he was trying to offend you or not. Back handed compliments seemed to pour out of his mouth even as he smirked at you with what you wanted to believe was a sweet grin. You always knew he was going to show up to the party...even if no one invited him.

Tuesday was a bit of a mess. It seemed to everyone else that bad luck seemed to follow her wherever she went. Anything that could go wrong happened to Tuesday. She was the epitome of Murphy's Law. However she was a hard worker. Everything managed to get accomplished when Tuesday was around despite the constant state of worry she was in and the inevitable disaster that seemed to follow her. She always managed to persevere and pull the party together at the last minute. That was her real gift actually, the fact that she never failed to pull through whatever tragedy befell her. 

Wednesday was the joker. He was the most likely to bail early on the work day and head out for an early drink. However no one seemed to mind when he slacked off a bit. Usually after meeting Monday and Tuesday people were a bit relieved to see the ridiculous carefree way that Wednesday presented himself. He had a way about him that made people feel better. He would just show up all grins and jokes and everyone would breathe a little easier. It felt like everything was going to be okay when Wednesday showed up. 

Thursday was just high strung. Always looking as though she was on edge and about to blow a fuse. Where Wednesday might bail for a friendly drink, Thursday nursed her drink all through the party as though it was the only thing holding her together. She was always well dressed and ready for any challenge that might come her way, but you could see that she was one stiff wind away from falling apart like a house of cards.

Friday was the center of attention. The Belle of the Ball every time she walked into the room. Everyone was always so happy to see Friday and she greeted everyone with the most dazzling of smiles. She was always the center of attention, even if she was a bit loud and reckless. She was the youngest but somehow that made her even more endearing to the others. She was the tiny taste of wild freedom that the others tended to deny themselves. Even Wednesday had nothing on Friday. There was something about that girl that couldn't be tamed and they loved that about her. All things seemed possible with Friday around. She was like a shot of tequila...once you got going there was no telling where you would end up! 

Saturday was Friday's older brother. He was regarded as just as enjoyable as Friday but with the undertone of business. Saturday was usually making plans and rushing off to do something with someone. He always had his schedule out and was on his phone confirming dates and times. He would still greet everyone with a smile and make you feel welcome but somehow you always felt that you should have some great plan for your life when you were talking to Saturday.

Sunday was the oldest and the most gentle. She rarely spoke at the parties, preferring to sit quietly in a chair and observe with a quiet reverence. However the others all looked up to her. She didn't have to say anything to command attention or respect. She was never loud like Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. She was never nervous or high strung as Tuesday and Thursday and while she did have an undertone of something greater, you never felt less than the way you did while talking to Saturday. She gave the best hugs, warm and inviting. Her being in the room tended to calm down all the others. She brought peace to each of them, reminding them of who they were and why they were important.

So there is my submission for this week! If you would like to join in just leave your submission or a link to it below! 

Have a great day everyone!

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Tuesday Write It! Challenge

Good Morning Everyone, 

Today I am doing the second Write It Challenge that I had set for myself this month. I didn't make this one a linkup since last week was a bit of a bust, however if you feel inspired feel free to leave your submission in the comments! 

Today's Challenge was the 6 word memoir.

Basically describe your life, yourself, whatever, in six words. No more, no less. 

I had seen this done in magazines and I always loved just how much story someone could reveal with only six words to work with. It was inspired by the most famous six word story written by Ernest Hemingway who was challenged to write the shortest sad story which you can Google because it always makes me sad and I'm not about being sad this early in the morning! 

I have three submissions today! 

On my husband/marriage: 
Love gripped tight, Love held on. 

On Kyra: 
Delightful chaos wrapped in a smile. 

On Life: 
Live Bravely, Love Fiercely, Kindness Always


Okay so that is it for me today! Hope you all are having a good day and we will see you back here tomorrow for Confession Wednesday!

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Write It! Challenge Linkup

Good Morning Everyone! 

So last week I proposed a writing challenge and invited you all to join in! Please linkup below with your submissions!! 

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Here was the challenge: Select a book at random in the room.  Find a novel or short story, copy down the last sentence and use this line as the first line of your new story.

And here is my submission! 

Sometimes in life, all you need is a little help, and a lot of courage, and oh yes butter.  

It had taken all those things for Jade to leave her job. The steady one with the great pay, wonderful benefits, and soul crushing monotony that made her dread the alarm every morning. She had known that there had to be more out there for her. Surely there was more to life than just spreadsheets and lunch meetings. However it was during these long years working for “the man” that she discovered her true passion…and that passion was chocolate.

So many nights after staring herself sick over paperwork she had turned to the one thing she found comfort in…her oven. Something about the measuring of the ingredients, the smell that hung in the air like a perfume that no designer could perfect, the joy of seeing the parts of many things joining together in harmony to create one final creation. It filled her with a sense of fulfillment that work could never give her.

So she had quit. Of course it was not really as simple as that. She had had to move out of her apartment and back home. Back home to a small town with one small hope and just a enough money to open her bakery, Moonlight and Mocha.

The bakery was her pride and joy, and also her home. Even though her parents had very kindly offered to let her stay with them Jade had too much pride for that so when she had bought the bakery space  she had made sure it came with a tiny apartment above it. It wasn’t much but it did mean that she smelled like vanilla and sugar ninety percent of the time.

The bell above the door rang, signaling the arrival of a customer, rocking Jade out of her memories and into the present. She looked up with a smile but the words “How can I help you?” died on her lips when she saw who had walked through the door.

“Ugh, seriously Walker, THIS place? It’s so tiny….honestly I don’t see why we couldn’t go to the cake designer that Mother recommended…” The tiny blonde trilled as she glanced around the shop not even noticing Jade standing there.

However it wasn’t this little Hugh Hefner blonde bunny that caught Jade’s attention, but the man standing next to her. Walker Harrison. Jade felt her mouth turn downward into a frown for a moment as she watched her tormentor standing there with his dark hair falling over his eyes as he grinned at her. Suddenly she was in high school again and standing in the hallway as they all laughed at her while he, the ringleader, just grinned.

“Good Morning.” He said as he approached the corner where she stood. Jade swallowed hard.

“Morning..” she said softly, braced for the onslaught.

“I heard there was a new bakery in town and…” He began, but the petite blond cut him off.

“Do you do Engagement Cakes?” She demanded more than inquired. Jade turned her attention to her and shook her head slightly confused.

“Engagement cakes?”  The blonde rolled her eyes and looked back to Walker.

“SERIOUSLY?!” she demanded. “Why can’t we just go to the other cake lady? I mean for God’s sake she doesn’t even know what an Engagement Cake is!”  With that last shriek she plunged her perfectly manicured hand into her purse and grabbed her cell phone. She stormed out and Jade could hear her yelling into the phone apparently to her mother about Jade’s joke of a shop.

“Don’t mind her, she just….yeah. Sorry about that.” Walker said as he flashed her another grin. “I’m Walker by the way…” He said as he extended his hand toward her.

Jade stared at him. What? Why was he introducing himself? Where were the taunts and cruel jokes about her weight, her nerdy glasses, her stack of books? Then she remembered…this wasn’t high school…and while her weight wasn’t stellar it wasn’t baby fat anymore. She had traded the nerdy glasses for contacts and her stack of books was neatly piled on her nightstand and not falling out of her locker. He had no idea who she was anymore and that gave her something…power. Jade steadied herself and put on her most winning smile. She took his hand.

“Hello Walker. I’m Jade. Jade Rollins.”

Walker’s smile faded and his jaw dropped. Jade felt her smile widen.

“Long time no see….”

I hope you all enjoyed! Please link up below, I cannot wait to see what you all created! 

An InLinkz Link-up

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New Month, New Challenge

Good Morning Everyone!

Apologies for no blog post yesterday but I spent most of the day attempting to wrangle puppies, full grown dogs, and of course my one year old. It was a full day to say the least. 


Anyhow today is July 1st! New month means a new challenge for the month! This month I plan on focusing on my writing a lot more so there will be a challenge to make sure that I write! Every week I will post the writing challenge for the week and then post my submission for the challenge. I invite ANYONE and EVERYONE to join in the fun! 

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This Week's Challenge: Select a book at random in the room.  Find a novel or short story, copy down the last sentence and use this line as the first line of your new story.


Now I don't expect anyone to write this THIS MINUTE so I will give you the challenge for the week and then host the linkup next Tuesday for your submissions.  I will post my own submission in next Tuesday's post here on my blog! 

I hope that this will be a fun exercise in writing and will get me to work on something other than my other novel to give my brain a break! 

Hope Everyone is having a great Tuesday! Don't forget that tomorrow is Confession Day!! 

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