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LISTEN to Accept this Dandelion!

6/26/2015

Oh how I love books. I love love LOVE books! I love to read them, write them, and even listen to them. I used to have quite the audio book listening habit. When I was driving, obviously I couldn't read...and yet I COULD! I frequented the library and got audio books on CD to enjoy when I was unable to read. I had a long commute to work and I was IN radio, so I didn't want to listen to the radio. It was like working! Audio books were my escape.

I have to admit, my audio book listening has slowed down over the years. I do still occasionally enjoy one, but now, when I am in the car, my daughters get to pick. And for whatever reason, they NEVER want to listen to books that I enjoy! No, instead it's the Elmo CD we all have memorized or the latest...the Dora the Explorer Big Sister DVD. This is highly confusing because my youngest goes around signing "I'm going to be a big sister," though I assure her that is really NEVER going to be the case. :)

Anyway, back to the topic... because of my love of books in general and because of my background in radio, I have always wanted to record audio books myself. How cool would it be to sit in a studio, read a book out loud and get paid for it as if it was a job?! Someday, when my girls are in school, I hope to dabble in such a career when I am not writing. But for now, I only have an hour a day and no quiet studio.

Suffice it to say I was THRILLED the other day when I heard that "Accept this Dandelion" is now available in audio format!!! What?! Something I wrote?! People can read it already and now they can listen to it! It's too cool to be explained in my world.

So, has my excitement caught on? Are you asking yourself how you can get it to enjoy as well??? Keep reading and soon, you too will be listening away! :)

The "Accept this Dandelion" audiobook is available on Audible.com. You can search for it or just click HERE and it should come up for you. In case you haven't heard of Audible, let me tell you a little bit about it. It's for audio book lovers, a website where you can get all the audio books you can imagine. Now, when you go to the website, you can sign up for a FREE month's trial. You can use your already existing Amazon account or you can create a new account, either way works. You get a FREE book along with that 30 day trial. I would be MORE than honored if you would download "Accept this Dandelion" as your free trial book.

After your 30 days trial is up, you will be charged for your membership each month. If you're an avid audiobook listener, you might appreciate the options you have with Audible. If you just want to hear this one book, you can cancel the membership at any time, even during the free 30 day trial period so you NEVER get charged for ANYTHING and you still get a free audio book out of the deal.

I haven't had a chance to listen to the whole book yet myself, but I took a sneak listen and the reader's voice is very pleasant and appropriate. If you listen to all of it before me, please let me know what you think! In the meantime, I'm walking around with a smile on my face knowing people can LISTEN to my words as well as READ them. How cool is that!?

P.S. In case you're looking for bargains, my books Someone Always Loved You and Beyond the Bars are both on sale via kindle for .99 through July 4th. Happy Independence Day to you! Download them through the links on my website in the books section!

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Take a Break

6/22/2015

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My very first job was in the fast food industry. I remember working 8 hours shifts and the most magical words my supervisor could say was "take a break." That meant I got to go sit down, eat, and stare at the wall for 20 minutes. No one was asking for food, rushing around behind me, throwing money at me and wanting the right change (a lot harder than it should be when you're on the spot) and so on. Taking a break is a huge deal and it should be something we all get to do.
Sometimes, weekends are breaks. At least from the normal, every day life.

It was Father's Day Weekend so it only seemed right to go camping. But the campground we usually haunt was full. Can you believe it?! They didn't save room for us! It seemed like a disaster because we'd been promising our oldest a camping trip. We were all packed. What were we to do?

Thanks to modern technology we were able to find one lonely campground with spots still available so we grabbed one. It wasn't very far from our house, but there happened to be a festival complete with a carnival going on in a town nearby so though the campground didn't have a pool, we had plenty to do. Crisis averted!

And I got to watch my husband's dad side come out. He played outside in the 90 degree heat when he would probably rather be cool, watch TV, or do anything else inside. Our weekend had its ups and downs, as is true of any minute you spend with these two crazy girls, but overall, we had a great time. It was a new place to camp and gave us a chance to do some new things. We even saw the Inside Out movie, which was adorable. My oldest was thrilled with the playground and my youngest was happy there were flowers nearby to pick. To the campground, I'm sorry...you will soon have a LOT more dandelions than you already have because we picked ALL of the white fluffy ones and spread the seeds!!

But now the week is here and we have to go back to normal life. You know, me pulling my hair out trying to format a book to paperback and having no idea what I'm doing. That sort of thing. :) With any luck, the week will move along and have more moments like the one below than ones where they are fighting and pushing. I kid myself, I know, but a mom can hope!

This summer, no matter what you enjoy doing, I hope you are able to get away from it all for a day or two and enjoy a different side of life. The whole reason I write books is for an escape from the daily grind. If reading gives you a break, grab a book! Otherwise, camp, go to an amusement park, hit the trails, you deserve a break! Take one!

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The Four Me's

6/17/2015

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Last week we were on vacation in Colorado staying in a house with my parents and my sister and her family as well as ours. We had a great time exploring the sites like the Garden of the Gods, Santa's Workshop (a small amusement park both my girls loved) and so on. One of the highlights of the trip was swimming, which we all did daily if not more often.

During the vacation I stayed up way late (for me) and slept as late as my girls allowed instead of getting up at 5am. I also realized something. I need a full time nanny. Or four of me.

As a mom, I do pretty well with one of my girls at a time. But when they're both around, it's hard! They often want to do different things, go different directions...and there's only one of me! Who do I choose? It's never fair and it's downright hard! On vacation, things were much easier because there were other people around to fill in the gaps I leave. And if I had four of me, I could dedicate one to each girl, one to cook, clean, do laundry, and visit with my husband when he gets home. And I'd save one to write, read, and enjoy that side of life.

So what do I do? Hire a nanny? Ha! That's laughable. Even if I could afford it there's no way I'd allow someone else to take care of my girls instead of me. It's just not going to happen! I'm a bit over protective, can you tell? And it doesn't seem as if I can create four of me, unless we're talking about the fiction world. And so I trudge through and do the best I can. Someday, both girls will be in school and I'll have more time for Me#4 and even Me#3. Until then, I will do my best to split Me#1 with Me#2 and hope and pray that I'm enough for both of them!

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Guest Post by Gay N. Lewis

6/12/2015

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Guest Blog by Gay N. Lewis

Shoes—love them or hate them. Mine stay in the closet when I’m at home. But when I go out? I chose my footwear before I select body apparel. If an occasion comes up that requires a new outfit, I buy shoes first, and then match the clothing to the foot gear.

Heels higher than three inches are a challenge for me—love the high ones, but cute hubby is a shorty. Not that height daunts him— he played basketball against loftier dudes, but I hate to be the taller tower between us.

Sarah, my little angel in the Sarah Series, has a problem with heels. She adores them—red ones especially, but she can’t walk in six inch platform stilettos. Angels, you see, fly barefoot or wear slippers. Maybe if she wasn’t short as angels go, she wouldn’t want such soaring attire. Elevated, strappy sandals are on her mental speed dial, but she makes way too many goofs when she attempts to wear them. Did I tell you about the time she appeared as a man but forgot she was wearing red stilettos? Yep, The Superiors frowned a few times after that incident.

In Sarah and a Midnight Cruise to Catalina Island, Sarah tries those shoes again. Here’s an excerpt. She has asked for a size five in the shoe department. The clerk replies that they don’t stock many in that size.

Sarah frowned. Humans considered a size five small for a female’s foot? Well, she could easily remedy that. She blinked at her tootsies and they grew to a size nine. There that should do it. She really wanted to try those red heels.

The worker returned with a box. “You’re in luck, we have a size five.” She removed a shoe from the tissue paper and offered it to Sarah. Glancing at Sarah’s feet, she ogled with her mouth open and then rubbed her eyes. “Just a sec. My Contac’s are bothering me.” She blinked a few times. “Are these shoes for you?”

“Yes. I love the style and color.” Sarah nodded. “Let me try one on.”

Sarah tried to slide her foot into the shoe, but the heel only came to the arch area of her foot. “I guess it doesn’t fit. I may have underestimated my size.”

“Yes, ma’am, I think we need a shoe that’s just a bit larger.”

“Oh? Are you trying them on too?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You said we need a bigger size.”

The employee’s eyes grew to the size of nickels. “Sorry, no, I’m not sampling them, I was using the royal we.”

“Is Queen Elizabeth in here? Where is she? I’d like to say hello.” Sarah glanced about with the shoe dangling from her foot.

The sales lady sputtered. “When I said we, it was a figure of speech—a way to be polite. I’m not trying any on. I meant you.”

Sarah frowned. “Oh.” She removed the shoe and returned it to the woman. “So do you think you have my size?”

“Let’s measure to see what we need.” The lady gulped. “I mean let me measure to see what size you need.” She brought forth a gadget and placed Sarah’s foot on it. “I think a size nine will do it. I’ll be back in a jiffy.” She disappeared behind into the stock room.

When she returned, she shook her head. “I’m so sorry. We don’t have that particular shoe to fit you. We have others. How about this lower-heeled black one?”

Sarah shook her head. “No, thanks. What size do you have in the red stiletto?”

“We only have a five and a seven in stock. You tried the five.”

“Well, bring the seven then. I’m sure the size will fit me.”

The lady lifted her brows but said nothing. As she rounded the corner to the warehouse area, Sarah saw her shake her head and heard her mutter as she passed by a selling partner. “Her foot is a nine. Why does she think a seven will do?”

The woman returned and once more removed a shoe from the box and passed it to Sarah. “This is a seven.”

Sarah donned the shoe, and it glided on perfectly.

With a dropped jaw, the lady gaped at Sarah’s feet.

“See—I knew you’d have red stilettos to fit me.” Sarah slipped the shoe off, removed cash from her bag and gave it to the clerk. “I’ll buy them.”

As Sarah walked from the store with her purchase, she heard the clerk say to the other staff member. “Bonnie, can you cover for me? I think I’m losing it. Did you see that lady I waited on? Each time I brought her a shoe, her foot was a different size, and I’m not talking about a half size—that’s normal. How could her foot go from a five to a nine? And then back down to a seven? And to top that off, she thought the Queen of England might be in here.” She sighed so heartily that Sarah had no trouble hearing it even as the door closed behind her. “That customer takes the cake for weird shoppers. I need to lie down in the break room. That lady really scared me.”

Thank you Brook for hosting Sarah and me on your blog. We are happy to visit with you and your followers.

Gay’s links, Blurb and Bio

Blurb

Sarah and a Midnight Cruise to Catalina Island

She can fly but can she swim? Dyslexic and bumbling angel, Sarah, comes to earth to unite Carolyn with a mate. Poopty doopty! She must do it on a ship while Carolyn cruises to Catalina Island. Sarah fears falling into the ocean, and she’s horrified soggy wings will drown her. On this mission, Talen, an evil spirit is assigned to thwart Heaven’s Little Love Angel’s efforts. Tomas, the Warrior Angel, must protect Sarah. Can Tomas succeed without Sarah goofing up the war between the holy and unholy spirits? Will Talen succeed in spoiling Carolyn’s romance?

Bio

Gay N. Lewis has a background in video production and interior design. Her credits include Psalms from the Mountains, The Canadian Rockies and Many Churches, One Vision. As a pastor’s wife and Adult Bible Study Leader, she has written numerous church programs and newsletters. She lives in Fulshear, TX, a small town west of Houston.

http://prismbookgroup.com/angels

For more information, please go to http ://gaynlewis.com/

Read excerpts on www.prismbookgroup.com

Gay would love to have you see her video trailers and become a follower of her blog.

http://www.gaynlewis.blogspot.com

https://www.amazon.com/author/gaynlewis
www.facebook.com/GayNLewis and also on Twitter @GayNLewis2.

Sarah has her own Facebook page. Follow Sarah on Facebook@ Sarah Wingspand

Books

Sarah: A Mission of Love

Sarah: Laney's Angel

Sarah and the Widow's Mate

Sarah and the Internet Dating Service

Sarah and the Scary Ferris Wheel

Sarah and a Dad for Mandy

Sarah and a Midnight Cruise to Catalina Island

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What's a Vacation?

6/10/2015

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So, what is a vacation, exactly? I guess I kind of remember what they were like. You take time off work, go somewhere different, relax and have a good time. Yeah, that's what they are!

I remember preparing for vacations. I would work ahead at my job to make sure whoever was covering me wouldn't have to do TOO much of my work. I would pack a few items, knowing I could get whatever I REALLY needed on the go if I forgot anything. I would look forward to the time away. I would pack a book!

And then there's today...

Now, I have two kids. Vacations are a thing of yesterday. I still take time off work (if you can call writing, something I love as much as I do, work). I still go somewhere different. I often have a good time. But relax? Not exactly.

Honestly, I DO look forward to vacations, but they are not what they used to be. They are work. HARD work! Taking care of two kids at home is a huge challenge. Taking care of two kids on the road is next to impossible. If we forget something important (like the coveted Elmos that the little one sleeps with or the cup the oldest one insists on using daily, we are SUNK, Vacation OVER.)

When it comes to my girls, schedules are at the height of their happiness. They're much easier to deal with if they get to bed on time, eat at their normal times, rest in the afternoon and so on and so forth. So fitting in the fun vacation stuff around that is a the ultimate challenge.

Oh and then there's the actual traveling. Car rides with "I want to get out. I need to move." (At least we avoid the 'are we there yet' game. Our game is different!) This is largely why we have no gone father than my parent's house, which is only two hours away, in the last three years. It's just plain hard and often, not worth it.

So when someone recently said to me " I hope you have a relaxing vacation," I laughed. Hysterically. The only time I truly relax is when I'm asleep and even then, one eye is open and one ear is on. I pass out from necessity when I can no longer hold both eyes open.

To those with kids, you know what I mean. To those without, babysit for your friends with kids. They will be eternally grateful for an hour in which they might actually relax. Not to say that I don't enjoy time with my girls. As I've told many before, when I finally DO get away, all I want to do is get back to them and see what they're doing. Someday, when they're both in school, I will NOT regret the hours and hours and hours I spend with them everyday. I'll never say, 'gosh I wish I'd been with them more!' Cause they get all I have and all that I am on a daily basis.

That being said, I am leaving work behind for this week and doing my best to keep the characters that haunt me to write about them at bay. They can wait. In the meantime, the little one who needs her Elmo's cannot and so, I must now get back to my...well, vacation?

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Fiona's Knight of Dreams

6/8/2015

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Fiona's Knight of Dreams

Blurb-

The good ladies of 1947 Timber are ready to find a wife for their new single minister. Charles has ideas of his own when he meets Fiona, the lovely accident-prone and outspoken part-time librarian. Fiona, on the other hand, is holding out for a knight on a white charger to carry her away from her humdrum small town life. Fiona and Charles are thrown together as they begin to solve an old mystery which has turned up in a library book. Will Fiona's white knight ever show up to sweep her away? Will Charles ever run out of invitations for cream cakes and lemon slice? Fiona might just discover the sound of hoof-beats when she least expects it.

Excerpt-

No sooner had Charles Redpath entered her thoughts than he entered the library.

"Finished your books already? You must be a fast reader."

"Well, I discovered I'd already read the Perry Mason and the book on Revelation was a little too much on the dry side."

"Funny, I thought Revelation was the one preachers used to scare the congregations. I never thought of it as dry. But then any book of sermons might take a little work to get through. I mean if you have to listen to one on Sunday mornings, why would you.." she broke off and put her hand to her mouth to stop any more words escaping. “I’m sorry, I didn't mean…"

"Oh I know what you meant." She looked up expecting to see an expression of censure or hurt or disapproval, but instead Fiona could swear his eyes were twinkling, very nice brown eyes with a definite twinkle. Now why did she think that?

"Sunday sermons are an occasional requisite for spiritual guidance," he said, “but a little can go a long way. On the other hand, mine sometimes have a certain soporific value."

"Not if you're preaching them on Revelation," she retorted.

"Good. Your smile is back." He held out the book of sermons, "Actually I wanted to show you something in this one."

She looked at the book suspiciously. Was she wrong in her evaluation? Was he going to start giving her a private lesson in the scripture?

He shook the book and two envelopes fluttered out to the counter. "I found these in the book and I wonder if we should try to return them to the owner."

They were plain envelopes, each bulky enough to contain a letter or note. One had the capital letter D on the front. The other said J in a slightly different hand.

"I can look to see who checked the book out last," said Fiona,” but it was likely a long time ago. I mean, how many people would.." There she went again, putting her foot in her mouth. "I'll check the records," She clamped her mouth firmly shut before she could shoot herself in the foot again. She giggled a little. What was this fetish she was developing about feet?

She checked the pouch card for the book and looked up the member number in the card index. "Last time this book went out was nearly three years ago. It was checked out by Rev. Hamilton."

"But my predecessor was Jonas Micklethwaite."

"Yes, but he was only here for a couple of years. I think he got tired of small town life, or his wife did, and they moved to a larger place. Before him it was Rev. Hamilton. He was here for -well forever, just about. He christened me and my brother too. Then his wife got sick and he had to look after her until-well, until she died. He was pretty much ready to retire then, he was quite old, and so he went over to Greenway to live with his daughter."

"I wonder if these letters are important to him."

"Well, let's check," said Fiona, starting to slide her nail under a flap.

"We can't do that! They're someone's private letters!” Fiona gave a quick look at Charles’ face and concluded the outrage of his words wasn’t echoed in the curiosity in his expression.

"And you call yourself a detective?"

"I don't call myself a detective. You asked me why I didn't become one. Anyhow, we can mail them to him in Greenway."

"Look this one isn't even sealed," said Fiona, picking up the other letter. "So they're not really private." She flipped it open and out popped a sheet of paper.

She pushed it between them sideways on the counter so they could both read.

Bio-

Sharon McGregor is a prairie girl who has been working her way west to escape the cold. She now lives on beautiful Vancouver Island. She hasn't escaped her roots, though, as her romances are set in small town North America. When not writing or reading, she operates a shave ice concession with her daughter and follows her grandchildren's athletic endeavours. She has a constant battle with her cat Zoey for control of her computer keyboard. Sharon loves to write romance, mystery and humor, if possible all three at the same time.

Media-

Web page-             www.sharonmcgregor.com

Blog-                       www.sharonmcgregor.com/blog

Twitter-                   @sharonmcgr

Facebook-               https://goo.gl/hUSNUp

Amazon author-            http://goo.gl/0toXu0

Google-                        https://goo.gl/AzvJqZ

Goodreads-            https://goo.gl/NxzAx8

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Summer Hearts Book Tour

6/8/2015

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Hello!

Today we are going to focus on the next book in the compilation.

Check it out!

Drowning Sandy:

The water is calling...

and Sandy can no longer resist the urge to unleash her mermaid form. But a simple swim in Lake Ontario ends when she discovers the truth of her own banishment. When long time crush, Alardo, seems to shift in a direction she never dreamed possible, Sandy must make a choice — mermaid or human? Once she chooses, she can never go back.

Now about the crazy lady behind this book!

Sarah Daley

Sarah lives in Arizona with her best friend and husband, Chris, their adorable monster child, and neurotic dog.
At the age of six, she became a reading machine. Devouring everything she could possibly get her hands on. In high school she almost failed English three times because of her detest for writing book reports. Today, Sarah writes whatever stories haunt her dreams, and struggles to focus on one idea at a time. When she isn’t enjoying time with her family, or writing, you will find her nose stuck in a book, or out walking and enjoying the sunshine.
Drowning Sandy is her debut novella!

Links to find out what is coming next:

Facebook page Twitter Blog Blog Subscription Pintrest Goodreads Google+ Amazon

BONUS INFO

(Please insert your choice of bonus info here. An excerpt or the character interview has been provided)

Book Buy Links:

Amazon: http://amzn.com/B00XFTTN4M

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/summer-hearts-debby-lee/1121911952?ean=2940152209563

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/summer-hearts-a-compilation-of-six-clean-romances

Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/265145965/Summer-Hearts-A-Compilation-of-Six-Clean-Romances

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25521685-summer-hearts

Don't forget to get your name into our GIVEAWAY!!!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Tour Schedule:

(You can check out posts that have been made during this tour here:

https://www.facebook.com/events/983064358393942/ )

Don't forget! Each author in this tour will be featured once during the tour, and on her special day there will be all kinds of fun facts to check out about her and her book!

June 6th:

Featuring Dreaming in California by Debbie Lee

http://jbiggarblog.wordpress.com

http://www.pennyestelle.blogspot.com

http://rebeccalamoreaux-anauthorinprogress.blogspot.com/

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

robynechols.blogspot.com

June 7th:

Featuring A Summer of Stars by Lisa Watson

http://www.rustysreading.com

www.facebook.com/elainesabookaholic

www.lynneatthelibrarybookreviews.com

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

http://bloggingfortheloveofauthors.blogspot.co.uk/

robynechols.blogspot.com

June 8th:
Featuring Drowning Sandy by Sarah Daley

http://www.taraquan.com/

Authorbrookewilliams.com/blog

http://zerinablossom.blogspot.com/

http://officialiheartbooks.blogspot.com/

http://www.katiescleanbookcollection.blogspot.com

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

robynechols.blogspot.com

June 9th:
Featuring Summer Holiday by Carol Malone

http://carolmalone.net/

www.lynnspangler.blogspot.com

http://melsshelves.blogspot.com/

semishort.blogspot.com

www.awritergrace.com

http://author.bethbarany.com

robynechols.blogspot.com

June 10th:
Featuring Shark Boss by Kathy Bosman

http://anniedouglasslima.blogspot.com

http://aprilvineauthor.blogspot.com/?zx=fd645ef8defa051b

http://www.flirtyandfeistyromance.blogspot.com

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

robynechols.blogspot.com

June 11th:
Featuring The Best Place to Meet a Man by Robyn Echols

http://christyscozycorners.com/

http://lynnromanceenthusiast.blogspot.com

robynechols.blogspot.com

http://www.katiescleanbookcollection.blogspot.com

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

June 12th:
Featuring the entire compilation

https://www.facebook.com/GoBabyBookPage?ref=bookmark&_rdr

http://www.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com

http://www.camichcketts.com

http://zeemonodee.blogspot.com/

semishort.blogspot.com

http://carolmalone.net/

http://iblog4books.blogspot.com

http://author.bethbarany.com/

http://disheveledbookblog.com/

http://www.lisaswinton.blogspot.com

robynechols.blogspot.com

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Recognition

6/2/2015

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I've been recognized for a few things over the years. I was actually in TV news for s whooping five months. During that time I attended a work Christmas party for my full time job in radio at an Italian restaurant. I went to the bathroom and as I entered a stall the two ladies at the sink began whispering loudly to one another. "That's the girl from the news!" One said. "She's so short!" The other exclaimed. I pretended I didn't hear them though I thought about thanking them. Ha. That was the only time I was recognized for my hard work in the traffic reporting world. At least to my knowledge.

As for my job in radio, recognition was harder there since no one saw me but we did public events all the time and people would come out and see us. "You look nothing like I thought you would." That was the most common comment. "I thought you'd be older" was another I got. Of course everyone thought I should be taller. I'm sorry. I'm vertically challenged! ;)

Getting recognized for writing books is even harder still. No one knows what I look like OR what I sound like! And that's great with me. I never liked that part of my last jobs anyway.

But the other day, and frequent at other times, I was recognized for something else entirely. "You look familiar," the women I ran into downtown said. "Do you live in such and such neighborhood on such and such street?" I do so I said yes. She nodded with recognition. "Ah. I see you outside playing with your girls all the time." Do we have a busy street? Somewhat. People often use it to get in and out of the neighborhood. But the more times I get stopped for this aspect of my life the happier it makes me. Yes I was on tv. Yes I was in radio. Yes I write books. But more important than any of that combined...yes I play with my girls. Constantly!! Some people say they feel like they've seen my daughters grow up from their drives past our house and their driveway observations. But me? I've seen it up close and personal and in the lucky one.

Recognize me for whatever you want but when you recognize me as a mom, know that's what makes me most proud.

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