Ball Season has taken over my life...

Okay, so I rushed straight from work to my son's game, which was delayed by rain, but not canceled. Fortunately my daughter's game which was to start an hour later was canceled due to the downpour. After the rain stopped there was a double rainbow. My daughter took a pic with my cell phone but it didn't turn out--due to the phone's lack of capabilities & not my daughter's (she's awesome!). The rainbow was beautiful and bright. It was a perfect arch & the outside one was a half one.

Perhaps the rainbow was a sign--we won our game tonight. It was the first game my son's team won. Very exciting. :)

The booksigning went great on Saturday. Stephanie Bond was fabulous as always. I got to sign books in between Rhonda Nelson & Stephanie. That was absolutely amazing!! I was a bit intimidated when I saw how many books they had for me to sign/sell, but there were only 4 left at the end of the signing so I was very pleased. :) Above is a photo of the Heart of Dixie chapter members who were at the luncheon--included are greats like Linda Howard, Kelley St. John, Beverly Barton, Linda Winstead Jones, Bonnie Gardner, Debra Webb, Paula Graves, & I'm probably forgetting several. That chapter is TALENT packed!!


Is it just me or does Matthew look fabulous in these jeans????

Headed to Huntsville!

On Saturday, I'll be participating in a Readers Luncheon for the Heart of Dixie RWA chapter in Huntsville. I'm really looking forward to it as I adore some of the authors who are going to be there. Kelley St. John, Stephanie Bond, the list goes on! Awesome, awesome authors. Here's the write up for it:

Heart of Dixie Readers Luncheon

Guest speaker: Stephanie Bond

Saturday, May 6, 2006
Doors Open at 10:45AM

Meet some of your favorite romance authors including:

Sabrah Agee*, Beverly Barton*, Beth Cornelison, Kay Cornelius*,
Anna DeStefano, Ria Dimitra, Bonnie Gardner*,
Susan Goggins, Paula Graves*, Rita Herron,
Ilena Holder, Linda Howard*, Linda Winstead Jones*,
Janice Lynn, Kate Lyon*, Deborah Matthews*,
Tanya Michaels, Dianna Love Snell, Jennifer St. Giles,
Kelley St. John*, Lyn Stone*,Debra Webb*,
Peggy Webb*, Gayle Wilson*.

Authors attending list is subject to change without notice.
* Heart of Dixie Author

The Holiday Inn
formerly The Select Hotel

401 Williams Avenue, Huntsville
256-533-1400

Admission: $25 (HOD members $20)

Enjoy good food and stimulating conversation with published authors and fellow readers.

The autograph session is free and open to the public. A portion of the proceeds from the book fair will support literacy programs in the Huntsville area.

www.heartofdixie.org for more info.

Jane Millionaire meets The Bachelor

Okay, I know it's hokey, but how funny that Jane Millionaire, winner of the American Title Contest, met The Bachelor Dr. Travis Stork. Yes, I know I'm weird, but I found humor in it. :)

Here's a picture of Travis & I. Taken by Divineimages.net. :) Did I mention that my camera battery died on me during the auction? No, well it did. Guess after all those Grand Canyon pictures I really should have charged it. :) Brilliant, I know. Anyway, they had a professional photographer at the event so viola! I still got a picture of me with Travis. Funny, though, my hubby didn't particularly like it... ;)

I still haven't heard an exact figure on how much was raised by the event, but I'm sure it was a fab amount thanks to Travis & all the wonderful others who volunteered for the event. :)

Leukemia/Lymphoma Auction

OMG! What fun!!! The bachelor/bachelorette auction was a blast to watch. The witty humor, the fun, the awesome people I met, all of it was a blast. Oh, Travis? Well, he was a hottie. His roommate, too. Lots of girls apparently thought so. The audience was like 80-90% female with quite a few of them having driven from several states away just to meet Travis!! & you might ask if The Bachelor ended up on the auction block? And if so, what's the going rate for lunch with Dr. Travis Stork? Last night it was $12,500+ FOR LUNCH. Okay, so I think Fleming's restaurant ended up donating dinner so it turned into a dinner date, but $12,500+? Wowzars. There were lots more fun auctions I'll tell ya about. I'm only online a sec, but had to share.

Here's a picture of me with Charmaine Hunt (from The Apprentice) who was auctioned off last night, too. :) Okay, so maybe posting a picture of me next to a glamourous, kick-butt, gorgeous, & smart-to-boot woman is not such a great idea....but I had a blast and knew you guys would enjoy seeing pics. :)














I'll post the picture of Travis & I tomorrow. :)

Phoenix pictures & Leukemia/Lymphoma Auction

The World's Largest Kokopelli...with three lil Lynns. :)


















Looking down from my hotel room balcony in Phoenix. Man, that looks inviting--particularly as it was 56 degrees & cloudy here today. Ack! I want sunshine.



A Grand View of JANE MILLIONAIRE. :)


Tomorrow night is the Bachelor/Bachelorette auction to raise funds & awareness for the Tennessee Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I'm signing books there for donations, being auctioned off, & surprising my mom for her birthday (she's a Lymphoma survivor). It's going to be busy, busy, busy.

Be sure to check out past blogs on some of the GREAT books that have been donated, which includes 3 hardback titles from Patricia Azeltine.

Plus, take a look at the blurb at Romantic Times' website & leave a post on the message boards letting me know your thoughts on Travis, his roommate being auctioned off as a bachelor, or any of the other 'reality' television connections related to the auction. http://www.romantictimes.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=5 or http://www.romantictimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1339

I'll post pictures from the auction Friday or over the weekend. I hope to get some good ones! Wish me luck that I help raise lots of funds & give my Mom a fabulous night to remember.

Desert Rose Conference

Whew! I got home LATE last night...or early this morning, depending on how you want to look at it. :) The weekend was fabulous. It was so great to see some of my buds. Here's a photo with Anna Sugden (winner of the Molly & the Susannah!), Terry McLaughlin (who has a book coming out from Harlequin Super Romance in 2 weeks!!!), Tawny Weber (winner of the Blaze contest!) & myself.

& the booksigning was a fabulous success. I had a great time. Here's a picture taken as I sold the very last copy of JANE MILLIONAIRE. :) Very cool to have a sell out with my first booksigning at a writers conference.

Our trip to the Grand Canyon was totally unforgettable. We had a blast. Of course I found out that I don't do so well with really high places with big drop-offs--particularly with my kids leaning over the guard rails. Ack! Here's a few of our shots & I'll add more later.

In Phoenix!!

Wow! I've been on the run since Wednesday morning. Went by the radio station to drop off the baskets of donated books for the Tn Leukemia & Lymphoma auction. :) Can't wait for this.

Thursday--The Grand Canyon. I have LOTS to say on this, but I'm going to wait till I'm home & can download pictures. :)

Friday--got to see my fabulous pals Tawny Weber & Anna Sugden (both of which are Golden Heart finalists this year!) & meet several other fab authors. Lots of fun. Oh, & during conference dinner the Golden Quill awards were announced & OMG! JANE MILLIONAIRE is a finalist for Best First Book!!! How cool is that???

Saturday--Busy, busy, busy. I got to meet with my editor at Dorchester this morning to discuss Jessie's book & met with another editor who has 3 of my mss. Was a productive day. Went out with friends for dinner tonight & had a great time. Oh, & the book signing...I sold out! Almost before I sat down. Only had 3 left by the time I sat. Very, very cool & I just wanted to giggle each time someone I didn't know brought a copy of Jane up to me to be signed that they'd bought up before I arrived. How cool????? & just made me totally giddy.

Sunday...okay, so I need to get some sleep so I can tell you about Sunday.

Night all.

Off For Phoenix!!!

Just wanted to drop a quick note to say that I'll post from Phoenix if I get a chance. Tomorrow I'll be at the Grand Canyon with the family & on Friday the Desert Rose conference starts. I'm really looking forward to seeing several close friends who'll be there & my editor is coming, too! Very cool. On Saturday there's a booksigning & it'll be the first time I've signed books at a conference. Exciting and a little intimidating, too.

Y'all have fun while I'm storming the desert!!

& to keep you entertained here's a rather unusual look for my darling Matthew...

Grand Canyon here I come!!

I leave for the Grand Canyon tomorrow!! I'm so excited as I've never been there or even in Arizona. My hubby & 3 of the kids are going with me. Wish me luck on the plane ride there. The youngest two have never flown before so it's going to be interesting.

Plus theLeukemia & Lymphoma Auction is getting closer, too. It's going to be loads of fun. I'm surprising my mom with a ticket. I don't *think* she reads this, so I *think* I'm safe in telling ya that.

I have lots more awesome books that have been donated. Love is All Around by Lori Devoti, When Good Things Happen to Bad Boys by HelenKay Dimon, Celtic Fire by Joy Nash, Pirate's Price by Darlene Marshall, A Little Change of Face by Lauren Baratz-Logsted, Dark Desires by Eve Silver, Becoming Latina in 10 Easy Steps by Lara Rios, &...

Happy Easter!

I'm off for the weekend for a family outing to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Wish me luck. We're taking my nephew with us as well so we're traveling at full capacity...did I mention to wish me luck? ;)

I get back late Sunday night & will be heading to Phoenix on Wednesday! I'll try to post pictures of Gatlinburg & of more donated books before heading out.

Oh, and wish me luck on the Phoenix trip too. I'm meeting with my editor to discuss JANE MILLIONAIRE's sequel. Woo hoo!!!

Janice

Donated books & update

Bonnie Vanak donated some awesome books with HOT! HOT! HOT! covers! The Tiger & the Tomb & The Cobra & the Concubine. After reading the back covers on these I am going to have to buy copies of these for myself! Heck, I'm definitely going to be bidding on these baskets myself cause there are a bunch of these books I want to read!!!


We Meet Again...
The Marriage Scheme
Temporary Husband
All by Patricia Azeltine. If you're looking for a read a sweet, fun read, you should give these books a try! I love the add on the front of Temporary Husband. It is a classified that says:

Wanted: TEMPORARY HUSBAND Reasonable pay. Easy work. Inquire through newspaper. Sounds like a fun story!


Sylvia Day donated an autographed copy of Bad Boys Ahoy! Sexy? Sinful? Scandalous? Aye, Lass...Oh, those naughty rakes. With their wicked winks, sensual smiles, and bad boy habits, you just can't take them out in polite society. But who wants to go out when you can stay in...? :) I'm hooked!!

Another sweet read is A SUMMER SENTENCE by Carolynn Carey. The story sounds like a lot of fun. "Megan Marsh was just passing through McCray County, Tennessee on her way to a career in Chicago, but after a run-in with an overzealous deputy involving a bee, a slap, a speeding ticket, and a heap of misunderstanding, she finds herself suddenly immersed in small town life serving a summer sentence." A story set in Tennessee? I am SOOOO there. :)


I've gotten several emails about my patient, and today I have news. Her cancer hasn't spread beyond her breast & lymph nodes!!!!! I am so excited about this as it's such wonderful and unexpected good news. She's taken her first chemo treatment and has her second one next week. So far so good. Other than feeling really tired, she did AWESOME with her first round of chemo. Please continue to keep her and her daughters in your prayers and thoughts. She'll undergo 6 rounds of chemo, have a mastectomy, more chemo, then radiation. It's a LONG road ahead, but the PET scan coming back showing the cancer hadn't progressed further than the breast and lymph nodes is such great news!!

I'm off for a family trip to Gatlinburg this weekend and am not sure I'll have internet access, but I'll be back late Sunday night. Y'all be good if I don't get the chance to pop on before leaving tomorrow.

More awesome donated books!

Lucy Monroe donated two fabulous books. I've posted the cover of WILLING, but she also sent READY. These two books are part of a three book set. READY, WILLING, and her next release, AND ABLE. What cool, cool titles!!! & the back cover blurbs sound scrumptious and just a little bit wild and wicked!


And Joyce Henderson sent WALKS IN SHADOW, which has an uber sexy cover, and she sent WRITTEN IN THE WIND. Here's the blurb from her website. :)

The sole survivor of a raid turned deadly, White Fawn was forced to face her long-forgotten white heritage, and struggled to keep the memories of her Comanche People close to her heart. The biggest danger to her peace of mind was Matthew Conway, the former Texas Ranger who tormented her dreams with his hot gaze. The little spitfire Matt rescued soon had him thinking about love and marriage--ideas completely out of the question. But perhaps he only need to listen to his heart to hear what was...WRITTEN ON THE WIND

Tornadoes in Tennessee!

Wow! What a wild weekend. Friday night was spent in my basement with my kids, hubby, parents, brother and his girlfriend, and one of my kids' friends. Around us the wind whipped and hail fell and 12 people were killed in the state. One of them about 15 minutes from my house. Scary. Other than a few shingles blown off our garage roof, I don't think we sustained any significant damage. My parents' business had the roof literally blown off and set into the lot behind it though. Did I mention SCARY?

I've been checking out more covers and blurbs on books & I have to share Kassy Tayler's with you. Obsessing Orlando. It's a romance for teens & has an adorable cover as you can hopefully see. It's about a girl and her obsession with Orlando--okay, who can't relate to that??? My teenage obsession was Jon Bon Jovi and we won't EVEN go into who my adult obsession is...bet you won't ever guess. ;)

Another cover that really caught my eye is Norah Wilson's Lauren's Eyes. What a beautiful cover. This book won the New Voice contest sponsored by RT Bookclub and Dorchester publishing. If you haven't checked it out, you should.

Zoe Archer donated a copy of Lady X's Cowboy & who doesn't love a cowboy? On the back of the book it says "East End Meets Wild West". Okay, I'm hooked. The cover on this one is Sexy!!

And Shanna Swendson's ENCHANTED, INC. has an adorable cartoon cover and a really captivating plot about a Texas gal who goes to New York, goes to work for a magic company, discovers her boss is a REAL ogre, falls in love with the head of R & D, and has to save the world and get her man, too. No problem, right?? I've not read this one yet, but am definitely going to have to pick me up a copy.
Be sure to check out the full list of books donated for the auction and be sure to support these ladies--not only because they are fabulous romance authors, but because they also have big hearts.

TN Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Auction

Those of you who know me know that during the American Title contest (the first day of voting actually), my mom told me that she had T-cell lymphoma. Needless to say that day forever changed my life in many ways. My family has been very blessed in that my mom is currently cancer free despite having had a reoccurence of her cancer during 2005.

The Tennessee Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is holding a fun auction to raise money for their cause--and it just so happens to be a cause I believe in a great deal. The auction is actually a bachelor and bachelorette auction--and you thought we romance writers made those things up & they didn't occur in real life--and guess who is emceeing the event? The "Bacherlor" himself, Dr. Travis Stork. & guess who one of the bachelorettes being auctioned off is? Charmaine Hunt from The Apprentice. Very cool, huh?

Although I have a very unholy obsession with Matthew, I am happily married so I'm not part of the bachelorette auction, but I am being auctioned off as a "Lunch with an Author" in hopes of raising more funds for the event. I've also donated a character name in a future release to be auctioned. & not to leave my friends out, I've put together a couple of baskets to be auctioned off as well. Baskets full of AUTOGRAPHED books donated by the authors themselves. WOW! The romance industry is a big hearted one--no pun intended. :) I'll be honest, after recieving the books I've had to order two of them to read myself because the back cover copy HOOKED me!!!

So, in honor of their generosity I'm going to post a list of books donated (the books are still coming in & I'll update the list as they do) & am going to be posting a few blurbs over the next couple of weeks in hopes of HOOKING you, too. All the books on this list have been donated by the author--the list doesn't include books I'm putting in.

When Good Things Happen to Bad Boys by HelenKay Dimon

Lauren’s Eyes by Norah Wilson

Conquest by Lara Rios

Becoming Latina in 10 Easy Steps by Lara Rios

A Family for Raffi by Lara Rios

A Summer Sentence by Carolynn Carey (hardback)

Falling Star Wish by Betty Hanawa

Written on the Wind by Joyce Henderson

Walks in Shadow by Joyce Henderson

Good Girls Don’t by Kelley St. John

The Tiger & the Tomb by Bonnie Vanak

The Cobra & the Concubine by Bonnie Vanak

A Little Change of Face by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

Lady X’s Cowboy by Zoe Archer

Loving Mercy by Teresa Bodwell

Loving Miranda by Teresa Bodwell

We Meet Again…by Patricia K. Azeltine (hardback)

The Marriage Scheme by Patricia K. Azeltine (hardback)

Temporary Husband by Patricia K. Azeltine (hardback)

A Knight’s Honor by Connie Mason

A Taste of Paradise by Connie Mason

Celtic Fire by Joy Nash (2 copies)

Ready by Lucy Monroe

Willing by Lucy Monroe

Hex and the City…Enchanted, Inc. by Shanna Swendson

Obsessing Orlando by Kassy Tayler

Chase the Wind by Cindy Holby

Pirate’s Price by Darlene Marshall

Bad Boys Ahoy by Sylvia Day

Here Comes The Bride by Laura Drewry

Dark Desires by Eve Silver

Teresa Bodwell's cover for LOVING MERCY makes me think of Matthew in a Stetson commercial...can't imagine why...yum! at those abs!

& Betty Hanawa's The Still Sexy Ladies Guide to Dating Immortals FALLING STAR WISH is a riot! "You're 30 something, sexy, smart, but you can't find a good man to save your life. What does any enterprising woman do then? Something bold, something daring! She decides it's time to date an Immortal. "

& Connie Mason's A TASTE OF PARADISE. When lovely Sophia Carlisle stowed away on a ship bound for Jamaica, she hardly expected to find Christian Radcliff at the helm. She and the captain had a turbulent history, which involved the breaking of her heart and the death by duel of his best friend...No man could arouse her sense as the swashbuckling captain did, and she had no use for prudence or propriety when in his kiss she could find...A TASTE OF PARADISE."

& Kelley St. John's GOOD GIRLS DON'T has "The Good Girl Pledge" listed on the back cover that is to live by. :)

Stay tuned for more great blurbs on these awesome books!!! donated to raise money for an AWESOME cause!!!

Virtual Book Bag Contest Winners

Your Virtual Book Bag

Contest winners…

Thanks to everyone who entered our first contest! And here are the winners…

• Nicole at Sylvia Day’s blog — Stupid Cupid by Rayka Mennen and others
• Emma Stuck at www.joliemathis.blogspot.com –Loving Miranda by Teresa Bodwell
• Zara Heflin at Janice Lynn’s blog –Love is All Around by Lori Devoti
• Jennifer Yates at Michele Ann Young’s Blog –Here Comes the Bride by Laura Drewry
• Ronda at Lara’s Scratchpad –Jane Millionaire by Janice Lynn
• Loretta at Teresa’s Journal –Pirate’s Price by Darlene Marshall
• Holly Mercer at Lucy Monroe’s blog –The Sea King by Jolie Mathis
• Zara Heflin at Your Virtual Book Bag - main blog –Bad Boys Ahoy by Sylvia Day and Pistols at Dawn by Michele Ann Young
• Emma Stuck at Lori Devoti’s Online Ramblings –Becoming Latina by Lara Rios
• Maureen Emmons at Rayka Mennen’s website –Tempt Me by Lucy Monroe

Thanks, everyone, for entering!!

Bamabelle, you win!

Bamabelle, can you please email me at janice@janicelynn.net as your name was drawn as the winner of an autographed copy of Lori Devoti's Love is all Around. Your profile isn't set up to let me email you directly.

Thanks!!!

Ball Season is here!

Okay, so you can tell that ball season has officially taken over my life because an entire week has passed without my blogging---bad Janice! My kids lead very active social lives and I encourage that because I think it's important for kids to have interests outside of television (which many of you know I don't watch except for DVDs) and video games (which I'm too uncoordinated to be any good at).

Many of you have emailed asking for updates on my patient with breast cancer. She was to go for a PET scan this week, an appointment with her oncologist and with the surgeon. I haven't heard anything yet, but as long as she doesn't mind I'll keep you posted here.

I'm also involved in an auction for the Leukemia and Lymphomia Society that I'll be posting more information on soon. I've had quite a few awesome authors to donate autographed books & I've donated a "Lunch with an Author" & a name in a future book & there are LOTS of other exciting things going to be auctioned off. More details will be coming soon.

The contest for Virtual Book Bag is officially over, winners have been drawn and announcements will be made soon. I'll post a list of all the winners just as soon as I have it. :)

It's all in your Point of View

Like many other romance authors I woke up Friday morning with a smidge (just a smidge because I really had no expectation of finaling) of hope that I might get a Rita call. I was also hopeful for several of my pals who'd entered the Golden Heart. For those of you who aren't aware, the Rita is the most prestigious award for published romance writers. The Golden Heart is the most prestigious award for unpublished authors. Both are sponsored by Romance Writers of America. I joined RWA in 2003 and entered the Golden Heart for the first time and amazingly finaled.

Anyway, despite knowing that the biggies were most likely to final in my category (& they deservingly so did), I couldn't quite not dream I'd get a call. I didn't, but by the time I realized I wasn't getting a call, I no longer cared. Why? Because it's all in your point of view. Or in this case, my point of view.

So what changed from the time I arrived at work to the time I realized all the calls had gone out? Let me tell you, because it really does make you (me) reassess your (my) life and priorities.

My first non-scheduled patient for the day. A young woman with two children. Last year her husband died unexpectantly. This young woman has been struggling with raising her two children since, particularly the oldest who has developed manipulative behaviours. About a month ago I diagnosed this young woman--a year older than me--with breast cancer. Last summer when she had her physical I hadn't been able to feel any abnormalities and in February there was a 3 cm mass. Over the past month, she has been to the surgeon and to the oncologist several times. Pretty much my role in the treatment of her cancer was done at the point I made the referral to the specialists. However, this young woman has NO ONE in her life except her two children and an 80 something year old dad. When I say no one, there is truly no one else. She came in to the clinic because she'd seen the oncologist the day before and he'd told her that the cancer was very agressive, now encompassed about half her breast (approximately tripling in size over the past month) and had spread into her lymph nodes. Already she'd been told by the surgeon that she would have to have chemo to shrink the tumor prior to his being able to do the mastectomy. Now the oncologist was telling her that if the cancer had spread beyond the lymph nodes and breast, with as agressive as it is, there wasn't much they could do and she wouldn't live more than a few months at most. She came in to see me because she needed to talk and she didn't have anyone else to turn to. I cried with her and felt ashamed over my anxiety over a contest final. Too often we place too much importance on things that, when it comes down to it, fall far down on the list of what's truly important.

I don't usually post depressing things on my blog--for lots of reasons, but because of how radically this affected me this weekend, I needed to share. It is so easy for us to get caught up in day to day stuff that we often forget what all we have to be thankful for. Things like our health--like simply being able to walk across the room without pain or to be able to dress yourself, the ability to remember yesterday, last week, last month, last year, your childhood, the ability to look at your spouse, your children, your parents and know who they are and that you love them, the ability to inhale deeply and ease your need for oxygen. We forget our blessings in our family, our friends, our pets, our joys in simple things such as arts, crafts, sports, hobbies. I don't mean for my post to depress --I want it to make you smile in appreciation of life's many blessings, for you to become giddy with life's true richness, for you to quit worrying about this and that and enjoy each moment of the day, of every day. It's difficult to appreciate things until they're gone and I want you to take a deep breath, think of what it is that's stressing you the most, and ask yourself "Does it really matter? If I found out I was dying? my significant other was dying? my child? my parent? Does that stressor really matter? Will I even remember whatever that stressor is six weeks from now? Six months from now? Six years from now?"

Sometimes the answer is yes, but most of the time the things that stress us aren't really all that important. This post is a reminder to enjoy your life, change the things you have control over, and accept those you don't, but above all, treasure each and every day for the gift it truly is.

100th post & 2006 "Getting to Know Your Friends"

Wow! When I got ready to post the Friendship thing that one of my pals from highschool sent to me I noticed that this would be my 100th post. :)

What time did you get up this morning? 7:15 am (not typical time though--Wednesdays are my day off work--well, the paying job at any rate. :)

Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds

What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Chronicles of Narnia

What is your favorite TV show? I don't watch any television, only the occasional DVD movie

What do you usually have for breakfast? Cereal

What is your middle name? Marie

What are your favorite foods? Pasta, chocolate

What is your favorite chip flavor? Pringles

What is your favorite CD at the moment? Keith Urban or Johnny Cash, mostly I'm an 80s music kind of girl though.

What kind of car do you drive? Chrysler Town & Country van--yes I'm a soccer mom & proud of it! :)

Favorite sandwich? Ham & cheese pita from Raphael's

What characteristic do you despise? Self-pity

Favorite item or outfit? Don't really have a favorite outfit, but my favorite item/accessory is my laptop & it usually goes where I go.

If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?
New Zealand or Ireland

Which do you prefer Lake, Ocean, or River? Ocean

What color is your bathroom? forest green & burgandy

Favorite brand of clothing? anything that fits

Where would you retire to? anywhere close to my family

Favorite sport to watch? Whatever my kids are currently playing

Furthest place you are sending this? Okay, I'm changing this for my blog and I'd love for you guys to post where you're from! :)

Goal you have for yourself? Be on the NY Times Bestseller list by 40--we won't discuss how much time I have left to achieve that goal.

Who do you least expect to send this back to you? I'm pleading the 5th for fear of bodily harm.

When is your birthday? September 9

Favorite flowers? Daffodils & roses

Are you a morning person or a night person? Night if I can sleep in the day before & after. :)

What did you want to be when you were little? A romance novelist & a fashion designer

How are you today? Great

What is a date on your calendar you are looking forward to? April 19th--I'm flying to Phoenix for a booksigning, will see my editor & several of my writing pals, & then am going to the Grand Canyon for the first time. :)

What is your occupation? Nurse Practitioner & Romance Novelist

What are you listening to right now? My pounding heart cause I just got finished exercising--yes, I am still at it. I refuse to get on the scales so I can't say if my weight is still going up, up, up or not, though. :)

What do you do in your spare time? Spare time? What's that???!?

Favorite day of the year? every day I'm alive and well

What do you do to vent anger? Yell or cry or write

What did you do last night? Watched the DVD Walk the Line

What are you afraid of? Not realizing my dreams & looking back on my life and not having gone for the things that are important to me--so I consciously put forth effort to prevent these.

Favorite car/SUV? Mustang

Favorite dog-breed? Jack Russell (I have to say this or I might hurt Trouble's feelings) but just a good ole loyal mutt has been the best dog I've ever had. :)

How many years at your current job? 8 as Nurse Practitioner, 4 as romance novelist (although my first book just came out in Dec 2005)

Favorite day of the week? Saturday

Favorite smell? my husband, my daughter's hair when I come it out after she's got out of the bath

Favorite Type of Music? All kinds as long as it's done in good taste

Okay, thought y'all might enjoy that. :) Smooches!

Be sure to enter you answers to the Virtual Book Bag contest before March 31st as there will be a winner from every participating blog. You can win a copy of Lori Devoti's Love is All Around by entering the answers on my blog & a copy of Jane Millionaire at Lara Rios blog. All the details are on my March 19th post. :)

The Haunted Van

Okay, so I have to tell you about last Friday morning. It started out as any typical weekday. Me rushing around trying to get the kids up and ready for school--think cattle prodder and kids in S-L-O-W motion despite said cattle prodder. As I have kids in the elementary school and the Jr High & so does my sister, we car pool & she does the elementary route and I do the Jr High route. So on Friday I rush out with my boys & my sister's oldest & we hop in the van & nothing happens. The engine doesnt' even turn over. I panic, but get my neighbor--THANK YOU CHIP! You're a real hero!!--to bring the boys to school while I call my dad. Chip gets back to my house to jump my van off a couple of minutes before my dad arrives. After several failed attempts they get my van started. It dies and has to be jumped again. I follow my dad for a bit and then pull in to where I normally exercise in the mornings (yes, I am still the poster child for why not to exercise and my weight is now up 5 pounds after over 3 consecutive weeks of working out & dieting--go figure!) . I pull in because my dashboard lights are flickering like crazy. Spooky crazy. While telling my dad I think something's not right, the van dies & has to be jumped off again. It seems to be okay so I take off toward work again. I'd not gone but a few hundred yards when my lights started flickering again. This time my guages were going wild too. Like the little orange thingie was flipping from E to F at mach one and speaking of mach one, my spedometer was going from zero to 120 and back at the same rate. All the guages were jumping around. I pull over--cause even I know this isn't right & whip out my phone to call hubby & that's when I got scared. My windshield wipers came on. Front and back. I mean, what do you do? It's not like you can turn them off since they are already OFF. & I look a fool cause it sure wasn't raining, but again, what could I do? Despite the fact they were scraping back and forth with a spine-chilling screech over my DRY windows, the wipers were OFF I tell you. I tell my hubby my van is HAUNTED & I don't feel safe to drive to work--I mean what if other things start miraculous coming on, like say the brakes or the cruise control & I can't turn them off either? So I meet him at the repair shop & then take his truck to work while he rides his motorcycle back to his work. Yeah, he *hated* having to ride his bike to work, let me tell ya. The guy at the garage--THANKS WYATT!--said I had an internal short in my battery. :) Okay, I'll admit, I didn't know this could cause my windshield wipers to come on all by themselves. The freaky part is that he said people usually notice their radio flickering first--my radio stayed perfect the entire time. Even when the van wouldn't start the radio would come on. ((Insert Twilight Zone music here for full effect. ;) )

If you haven't entered the Virtual Book Bag contest, be sure to check out March 19ths post and enter!!!

And doesn't this picture of Matthew just make you want to slide your hands inside that coat and get warm? :)