Fond Memories

Lately in the mornings on my days off from work I've taken to sitting in my recliner, enjoying my first cup of decaf for the day and just taking in the silence around me. Usually hubby has the news on but I asked him one morning, don't you just like to sit in silence sometimes and enjoy the peacefulness? He turned the TV off and we sat quietly until conversation took over. A conversation that probably wouldn't have happened had the TV still been on. It was nice.

During these peaceful mornings I began to reminisce about the good ole days. I'm only 52 but it occurred to me that I have a lot of unique memories from my childhood. It's funny how certain things stay with you, the good and the bad, all through your life.

Today I thought I'd share a few of my memories with you.

I remember...
using the old water pump in my grandmother's kitchen sink
using the outhouse
collecting rain water for baths
milk delivered in glass milk bottles and grandma skimming off the cream on top
watching Lawrence Welk every Saturday night
my dad wearing Old Spice
the hood ornament on his car
catching fire flies with my cousins on a hill top
my cousins bringing me a May Day basket
rolling down a grassy hill
making mud pies in the old barn with my sister
swinging between two giant maple trees
ice skating on the little pond next to my grandmother's farm
picking berries
the cast iron stove grandma cooked on in the kitchen
the wood burning stove in the dining room
eating fresh veggies from the garden
jumping off a hay loft into a mountain of hay
looking up into the sky at night and actually seeing the stars
family picnics

Thank you for letting me share some of my memories with you:)

New Interview Posted

Jump over to Cheryl's Book Nook and check it out. If you leave a comment you're entered for a chance to win one of my books. She announces the winner on Monday.

http://cherylsbooknook.blogspot.com/

I've Been Tagged Twice!

By my friend Sarita and Jambrea! The rules below say you have to tag six friends so here goes! I posted an additional 6 things about myself...which isn't fair! LOL

The rules:

a. Link to the person who tagged you.
b. Post the rules on your blog.
c. Write six random things about yourself.
d. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
e. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment at their blog.
f. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

12 things about myself:

1) I used to be a stripper. Huh...got ya didn't I! LOL My first husband and I owned a commercial janitorial company when we were young and we also worked it. I stripped the old wax off the floors using a buffer.

2)I smoked for a whole week when I was thirteen. One day my sister and I was walking down the street, smoking, and our parents pulled up besides us in the car to ask us if we wanted a ride home. I dropped my cigarette real quick...and never smoked again.

3)I met Charlton Heston thirty years ago when he was on a book tour.

4)My hubby and I were on a plane on 911, on our way to Oklahoma. We never made it. Just as we were about to take off after changing planes in St. Louis they had us get off. Luckily we had relatives in Kansas who came to get us. It took us a week to get back to Florida.

5)I'd like to take a ride in a hot air balloon some day. I have a good friend who'll try anything at least once and I'd like to go with him.

6)I just asked my hubby if there's anything he can think of and he says I'm a pain in the ass. He thinks he's funny:)

7)I have brown hair, brown eyes and a voluptuous body. My sister has blond hair, blue eyes and is small. Still wondering where she came from:)

8)I'm a clean freak and a germaphobic! I wash my hands all the time or use that 99% germ free wash.

9)My favorite isle in the grocery store is where the cleaning supplies are kept.

10)My favorite holiday of the year is Thanksgiving.

11)I'm a people person yet I don't like crowds...figure that one out:)

12)I've NEVER tried any illegal drugs.

Now it's my turn to tag six friends! Hopefully they'll appreciate being tagged:)
I tag:

1. Sarita Leone
http://saritaleone.blogspot.com/
2. Paige Tyler
http://paigetylertheauthor.blogspot.com/
3. Sherill Quinn
http://www.sherrillquinn.blogspot.com/
4. Crystal Inman
http://chryscat.blogspot.com/
5. Ellen Ashe
http://ellenashe.blogspot.com/
6. Pamela S. Thibodeaux
http://www.pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com/

GONE FISHING

Saturday morning I got up early, put on my long-johns, dressed quietly, made my lunch, grabbed the dog, slipped quietly into the garage to hook the boat up to the truck, and proceeded to back out into a torrential downpour. There was snow mixed with the rain, and the wind was blowing 50 mph.

I pulled back into the garage, turned on the radio, and discovered that the weather would be bad throughout the day.

I went back into the house, quietly undressed, and slipped back into bed. There I cuddled up to my wife's back (now with a different anticipation) and whispered, "The weather out there is terrible." My loving wife of twenty years replied, "Can you believe my stupid husband is out fishing in that?"

I still don't know if she was joking.

TRIVIA

Who wrote, "Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive"?

Readers, you have until Saturday April 29th! First one to guess the answer correctly wins a download of one of my books, your choice.

"THE SENATOR'S DAUGHTER"
"CUPID'S ARROW"
"IT'S ALL IN THE JEANS"
"ALL THE RIGHT MOVES"
"SOMEONE TO LOVE ME"
"AGAINST THE ODDS"

DIANA COYLE WINS FOR BEING FIRST IN GUESSING SIR WALTER SCOTT.

We're Harvesting!

Okay, my daughter would say I'm officially a dork now. But we're harvesting! This is our first vine ripe tomato off the three little plants hubby planted against the side of the house. They're loaded and this year he's managed to keep the bugs and critters away by placing mouse traps all over, plus moth balls on the ground around the plants. Also, he wrapped the stems of the plants down at the bottom with aluminum foil to keep the worms away.

Next year I told him he should plant tomatoes and sweet onions.

Spring Membership Drive

Want to win 19 eBooks? Hell yeah!
The Romance Room is doing a Spring Membership Drive!
All new members who join between Wednesday, April 16 to Thursday, May 1st will go into a pot and 5 lucky people will win a bundle of eBooks!

Winners will receive the following:
Winner #1: All 19 downloads
Winner #2: Choice of 15 downloads
Winner #3: Choice of 11 downloads
Winner #4: Choice of 8 downloads
Winner #5: Choice of 4 downloads

List of titles donated:
Tricked Truths by Beth Kery
Roan of Ellan Vannin by Gloria Wiederhold
Heart of the Winter Wolf by Dani Harper
Lawless by Emma Wildes
Choice of title by Catherine Stang
The Long Way Home by Jena Galifany
His Secret Desire by Tracey Devlyn
Rose Petals Vol.2 Anthology by Beth Caudill
The Dark Isle OR Lake of Sorrows by Sarah McNeal
Choice of title by Jean Hart Stewart
All the Right Moves & Against the Odds by Debbie Wallace
Choice of title by Linda Mooney
Afraid to Dream by Tianna Xander
Ingenue's Choice by Gracie McKeever
Crystal Clear by Ericka Scott
Going Topless by Renee Knowles
The Black Rose by Skyler Grey
Choice of title by Bonnie Clarke

Now isn't that a wicked deal!
* * *
A little about The Romance Room:
We are a Yahoo! group of both authors and readers who promote books, share excerpts, reviews, chat about life and love and everything in between. Every Monday is quiz day, Friday through Sunday is promo time, and every day during the week we get to read spicy and sweet excerpts from our author's books! Join The Romance Room today, you'll be glad you did!

http://www.groups. yahoo.com/ group/theromance room *

CHANGES

At work I'm forever hearing that change is good. Sometimes it is, but most of the time I think that expression is used just to keep things on a positive level. A reminder that it will be good if you give it a chance and some time. That's not unfair, is it? So we all eagerly await for the positive results we're told are coming...in time:)

Change in our personal lives is the same way. Not always looked forward to eagerly, I think we try to convince ourselves that change, especially when we can't control it, is for the best. For one thing, we can't control everything that shapes our lives and well being because it's beyond our scope of control.

In July my Mom will have been gone a year. It doesn't seem possible. Most of the family has accepted her passing and keep her in our memories, but we have adjusted and continue on. My Dad has not. Just last night he broke down and said, "I can't let her go, Deb, I just can't." You see, my Dad lived for my Mom. As long as I can remember he placed her on a pedestal and during her last year of life he never left her side. He was truly devoted to Mom and making her happy.

The house has stayed the same. Other than cleaning out her closet nothing has been given away or moved. Dad spends his days sitting in the TV room, looking out the window at the beautiful landscaping in the back yard, barely eating or seeing to his own needs. He refuses to go anywhere, declines our invites to dinner. He's surrounded by pictures of him and Mom and the rest of the family, drowning in depression and a loss he can't live with.

Then three days ago I got a call from him, he needs my help. He's decided to move to North Carolina to live with my sister and her husband. The last thing I expected. He wants to sell everything that the rest of the family doesn't want and needs my help with pricing and later, the estate sale.

I brought him dinner last night and we sat and talked for hours. He realizes he needs a change and can't go on like he has been. Over the months he's received several invites to move in with people, even my ex-husband offered him a place to live, but Dad decided moving in with Lois was the best choice for everyone involved. My Dad is a smoker, he'll never give that up, and my sister and her husband smoke. No one else in the family does.

My sister is very happy and already building on an addition to her house so Dad can have his own place to be alone when the need arises. They're going to add lots of windows so Dad can sit and look out at the garden he'll create. That's the only hobby he has, he loves working outside.

I don't know how I feel about his decision. I know he needs to be around people, something to keep his mind busy. But not being able to visit with him whenever I want will be tough. The next few weeks will be spent cleaning out the house, selling stuff, seeing memories and familiar things go with strangers. It's going to be very hard on Dad and we all plan to be there to help him through it. To help us through it.

Since Lois and her husband are making a trip to Florida the the end of May to attend a wedding, Dad will go back with them, taking with him a little U-Haul filled with only what he needs.

A few memories to see him through the changes.

WIFE FROM HELL

A police officer pulls over a speeding car. The officer says," I clocked you at 80 miles per hour, sir."

The driver says,"Gee, officer I had it on cruise control at 60, perhaps your radar gun needs calibrating."

Not looking up from her knitting the wife says:
"Now don't be silly dear, you know that this car doesn't have cruise control."

As the officer writes out the ticket, the driver looks over at his wife and growls,
"Can't you please keep your mouth shut for once?"

The wife smiles demurely and says,
"You should be thankful your radar detector went off when it did."

As the officer makes out the second ticket for the illegal radar detector unit, the man glowers at his wife and says through clenched teeth,
"Damit, woman, can't you keep your mouth shut?"

The officer frowns and says,"And I notice that you're not wearing your seat belt, sir. That's an automatic $75 fine."

The driver says,"Yeah, well, you see officer, I had it on, but took it off when you pulled me over so that I could get my license out of my back pocket."

The wife says,
"Now, dear, you know very well that you didn't have your seat belt on.
You never wear your seat belt when you're driving."

And as the police officer is writing out the third ticket the driver turns to his wife and barks,
"WHY DON'T YOU PLEASE SHUT UP??"

The officer looks over at the woman and asks,
"Does your husband always talk to you this way, Ma'am?"

I love this part....





"Only when he's been drinking."

Book of the Day

Hey everyone, "THE SENATOR'S DAUGHTER" is book of the day (Friday 4/11) over at Author Island! I'm offering an autographed copy so head on over if you want a chance to win. It's on the home page. http://www.authorisland.com/

Debbie

A Little Trivia

What is the most widely sung song in the English speaking world?
The first one who guesses correctly will get to choose ONE download of their choice:

ALL THE RIGHT MOVES
AGAINST THE ODDS
SOMEONE TO LOVE ME

How do you like your heroes?

Do you like them tough as nails with manly jobs or polished and professional like a Ken doll? Seems like most of the romances I read the heroes are muscular, battle scarred types with jobs like detectives, mercenaries, fire fighters or in some kind of service like a navy seal. I can't recall a time when the hero was a sophisticated doctor or accountant. What's up with that? Could it be the men in our fantasies are the kind who thrill while frighten us, and only have professions where they get down and dirty?

The heroes in my fantasies and the books I write are the tough alpha hero with the muscles and the moves to back it up. Not that a doctor can't be muscular and tough, but let's face it, the prospect of him cutting off his finger while doing surgery just isn't exciting. I want a hero who fights for what he wants and always comes out on top, while at the same time revealing a tenderness for the woman he wants.

He doesn't necessarily have to be handsome, either. Give me a hero whose sex appeal stems from the whole package, not just his face!

April Fool on ME!

I was hit all day yesterday, and by one co-worker! LOL If I didn't love him and think of him as the wayward son I never had I would have let him have it. The one that really got me? He emptied out the hole punch and put all the little white dots in my fan. Don't ask me how. Later, during one of my hot flashes, I turned on the fan. You can guess the rest. I thought it was snowing! Hundreds of white circles went flying through the air, in my hair, all over my desk and the floor around me. What a mess! But I laughed anyway.

Did anyone play any April Fool jokes on you?