I guess all my books have an origin story, but I think this one is probably one of the more interesting ones. 

It must have been 2008, but maybe 2007, and I was teaching 4th grade Texas history. It was about a week before November, because I already had my NaNoWriMo book planned (I don't even remember what it was!) I was teaching the kids about Jane Long, who was a woman alone on the Texas coast, waiting for her husband to return. They were stationed in a fort on Bolivar Point, near Galveston. She had to fend off both pirate attacks and Indian attacks, and it was just her and her slave, and I think a child but I don't remember now. 

While I'm teaching the kids, I have a very clear picture of Jane looking out and seeing a rider approaching, then falling from is horse. Right there, I knew I had to write that story, and I didn't want to wait. 

I'd never written an historical before, so I had a ton of research to do in one week! 

I wrote the book, won NaNo, but it needed work. Over Spring Break, my parents and baby brother and I went to San Felipe, Stephen F. Austin's original colony where my hero and heroine ended up, then down to Bolivar Point to see the fort. This was soon enough after Hurricane Rita that we couldn't get to the fort. In fact I recall it as a blur as we drove by it. 

I finished the book, submitted it to Brand New Carina Press. In May (not sure if it was the same year or not) I got my one and only CALL, from Angela James, wanting to buy the book. I'd never gotten a CALL before, only emails, and I wouldn't have cared if the school superintendent had walked in at that point. That was a highlight of my writing career.

The book came out in September of 2009. I remember because I had TWO books out that week--Don't Look Back, a romantic suspense from The Wild Rose Press, and Sunrise. I was over the moon, but I had bigger expectations from Sunrise, because it was with Carina. We were in California for my grandmother's 90th birthday, and so it was hard to do a lot of direct promo, but I tried. I remember wearing a shirt with the book cover on it on the plane ride home, lol. 

This remains my only historical so far, but I'm very proud of it, so if you haven't checked it out, please do!

Okay, so I MEANT to do my goals yesterday, but to be honest I was too busy! Then this morning, my internet was down, so here are my goals. Oh, and I DID get back to the gym, two days in a row. I wanted to go today, but I forgot my shoes. So I came home and cut out a quilt. I'm trying to figure out how I want to put it together. I should have probably figured that out before. I was just going to be random, but I don't think I can do that, lol!

Yesterday I made a few pet food placemats and an apron for a teacher, worked on Amazon ads. 

Today I got observed at school (probably why I forgot my shoes--my mind was elsewhere!) I hadn't seen my Monday classes since December!

This week:

1) Back to the gym, at least 3 more times. 
2) WRITE
3) Celebrate my release tomorrow!
4) Edit!
5) Read 3 NINC newsletters
6) Write more blogs
​7) Work on quilt and a secret project!

This week I AM GOING BACK TO THE GYM. It's been over a month. If I don't make it a point now, I'm just throwing money away.

This week:
1) Gym
2) revise chapters of book 1
3) Work on book 2
4) Order covers
5) Work on tax paperwork (halfway through the year right now)
6) Finish quilt

What's on your agenda?

Okay, this isn't a craft post per se, but since I spend a LOT of time on Pinterest and pin a lot of meals, I thought maybe it qualified a bit.I've been thinking mostly about how much easier it is to cook lately than it was when we first got married, even though we are much busier.

We bought an Instant Pot on Black Friday and have used it about ten times, I guess. The orange chicken I made the other night was WONDERFUL. Fred made mashed potatoes that were great. I have the ingredients to make mac and cheese but haven't tried it yet. I wouldn't say it's the miracle that it's proclaimed to be. You still have to do a lot of prep, though you can do most of it in the same pot, but when I made beef and broccoli the other night, I still used three pots. 

Then I have my crock pot. We agree that it overcooks the food, since we have to leave it on at least 8 hours, from the time he leaves until the time I get home. But I love to make Mississippi roast in it. And apple crisp. I may use it more when I'm home more. 

Probably my favorite kitchen tool is the delay start on my oven. I come home, fix up dinner, set it in the oven and put it on delay start, then go about my business. (I nap, okay? Mostly.) By the time Fred gets home, dinner is mostly done. 

Do you cook? How do you cook? How often do you cook? Where do you find recipes? Got any good ones to share?

So I'm kind of fascinated with bullet journals. Do you know what they are? They're lists, essentially, in a journal, but people add stuff like stars that they color in when they reach a goal, they keep track of books they read and movies they watch and if they eat home or out. 

Now, I love a good list. I'd be lost without my weekly list on the refrigerator with my menu and chores and other important events. I also have a 4-month calendar in the kitchen with big events, color coded by writing, school and home. AND I have a calendar on my computer where I keep track of writing goals and writing tasks and school stuff. So a part of me really wonders if a bullet journal would help me, if I could transition to it instead of all these other things, or if it would just overwhelm me and I'd never open it.

Plus, it looks like setting one up takes a lot of time, time I could use on other things.

Do you have one? How do you keep organized?

At least tomorrow is a teacher work-day. Not as much pressure. 

I'm making good progress on the quilt. I'll post a picture later this week. The entire top is pieced. Today I sandwich it and start quilting. 

This week:

1) Get back into the swing. We have a faculty meeting AND parent conferences this week, so ugh.
2) TRY TRY TRY to get back to the gym. I haven't been in over a month. This is terrible (and since I'm cheap, a waste of money!)
3) Write write write. I didn't make my goal of 10000 words, but I did write 1000 words a day, which is fine. 
4) Continue to search for covers for this series.
5) Start editing the first book.
6) Read one NINC newsletter
7) Type in changes to a book I edited
8) work on quilt/sewing projects
​9) Cook 3 days at least

That is PLENTY for back to school, yes? PLEN. TY.

Actual footage of me this morning!

So. (Or should I say, SEW?) When my 5th graders needed a song for our completion ceremony last year, my friend Cindi suggested the song from Zootopia, "Try Everything." I have since decided that's the story of my life.

​Last year this time I was addicted to cross stitch, and I still love it, but my right thumb is giving me some problems so it's kind of painful. But I love me some Pinterest, and a few months ago started a Quilting board. Now, I have long been a fan of quilting stores because I love fabric, but I never really thought about quilting. 

But then I started thinking that it's kind of like a puzzle, and that interested me. And I saw posts about free-motion quilting on the machine, and that interested me. So I decided to teach myself. 

I didn't take a picture of the first quilt I made, which I didn't piece. I just slapped two pieces of flannel together with some batting inside and quilted it for my friend's baby. 

​But then I wanted to do something for Christmas and heaven knows I have a TON of Christmas fabric, so I made this:

(The alpaca background is just my blanket, lol!) So that was fun. And I did an art project with my kids with paint, but I wanted to try it with fabric, so I made this:

Then I wanted something I could use year-round, one I pieced, so I found this super-simple one, where you just quilt on either side of the seams.

Now, unfortunately, despite the HUGE amount of fabric I have on-hand, nothing is really good for quilting because most of it has designs on it, and I don't know how to quilt without obscuring them. So yesterday I went to JoAnn's to get some more. This one will be pieced, but first I have to sew these strips together. I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew. I'll be pinning them today, but check back later to see if I overextended myself. (The fabric is blue, not purple. Trust me, it matches.)

When I started to make this post, I had a hard time remembering the events earlier in the year, but then when I scrolled through my pictures, I had so many things to add! I had to narrow it down to ten.

These are my personal favorite events of 2017.



10 Two family weddings—beautiful, romantic and fun!
9  Reconnecting with my high school friends for an Adam Ant concert
8  Joining the gym, though I’ve dropped off attendance since August. Time to get back!
7   Finishing the first book in my new series!
6  My friend Cindi’s retirement party. Sad she retired, but we sent her off in style, even with former students!
5  The NINC conference in St. Petersburg with my bestie Trish Milburn. We learned so much!
4  Finishing the seventh book in my series, but the first book all year
3 The night it snowed! So magical
2  My baby brother’s wedding to a great guy in beautiful downtown San Antonio
1  Our anniversary trip to Glen Rose and Fossil Rim Wildlife Center. I pet rhinos!

​

I've actually stopped watching a lot more shows this year. I don't know if it's because we don't have a DVR anymore. We were talking about why. Fred thinks that it's because there's so much good TV, and most of it is streaming, so there's always a chance to watch it. I think it's because I don't have a DVR to keep track of where I left off. We have Hulu and Playstation Vue, but I don't always remember which app we watch which show. 

I'm behind on Lucifer, maybe I'll catch up. Same with The Gifted because I like the cast. Also Timeless, even though that's canceled. I'm going to catch up on Poldark, but PBS charges, so I'm going to do a free trial or something.
We stopped watching Designated Survivor, Scandal, Black-ish, Modern Family, never got into SEALs or The Brave or Valor. 

I enjoyed Midnight Texas, The Middle, Superstore. Fresh Off the Boat. I'm caught up on The Walking Dead but they took the heart out of it for me. Fred still watches Fear the Walking Dead but I want all those people dead. 

But there were some shows I kept up with and loved.
10 Handmaid’s Tale
9 SHIELD (last season, not this. Yet.)
8 Life in Pieces
7 Lethal Weapon
6 Speechless
5 The Real O’Neills (sadly, canceled)
4 Outlander
3 Game of Thrones
2 Gotham
1 Stranger Things

What shows did you love this year?
​

So, tonight's the big party, tomorrow a day of quiet. then Fred goes back to work on Tuesday. It's still going to be a busy week, and a COLD one. 

This week:

1) PARTY tonight!
2) Celebrate our 31st anniversary
3) Finish one book (TODAY, PLEASE! Three more scenes!)
4) Start another!
5) Type in changes to one of my edited books
6) work on edits for another
7) Set up preorder for Sunrise Over Texas, which just reverted to me
8) GET BACK TO THE GYM. I think I went ONCE in December. I should be able to get there 5 days this week. We'll see. 
9) Sew some things for the teachers that I told them I'd make in the fall.

​Whew! Okay, that's PLENTY.