UPDATE: The winner is…Mary McCoy!
*~*~*

My daughter has been busy making some fun pens for me and to sell. I think I’ll give one of the above away as the prize today. They are so cute! And they write really well! See the contest below!

And yes, I usually do the Report Cards on Sundays, but I had a guest yesterday!

Report Card

Last week…

1. The big event was that I had my PET scan last Friday. I’ve read the radiologist’s report but my Google-MD degree needs my actual doctor’s interpreting skills, so I’ll let you know later what was said…
2. I continued work on one author’s edits. I didn’t finish because she’s slacking giving me pages. Well, two broken wrists are a great excuse. *wink*
3. I sent out the Call for Submissions for the next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology! It’s tentatively entitled Burn.
4. I uploaded Once Upon a Legend to sites other than Amazon since it’s no longer in KU.
5. The family and I watched Red One. Yes, it’s rather late for a Christmas movie, but we were looking for an action flick, and it fit the bill. I enjoyed it!
6. The local art guild I belong to held their election. I’m VP of Programs now. 🙂

This next week…

1. I meet with my oncologist this morning! I’ll hear his interpretation of my scan. Wish me luck! Then it’s straight to the chair to begin my first immunotherapy infusion. I hear it’s a lot easier on the body than chemotherapy, so I don’t mind one bit!
2. I have two authors’ edits to work on this week. One to complete.
3. This week, I’ll be diving back into finishing up Ignition! Okay, so I said this last week, but I mean it this time.

Open Contests + New Contest

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. Word Puzzle — Ideas for Next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Karenna Colcroft: Back to Boston (F*R*E*E Read!) — This one ends soon! Everyone, get your FREE read!
3. Memory Game: The OG — Montana Bounty Hunters (Contest) — This one ends soon! Get an Amazon gift card!
4. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Movie Night! — This one ends soon! Get an Amazon gift card!
5. Word Search: Favorite Romance Tropes (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Flashback: Saddled (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
7. Memory Game: Places I would like to go… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
8. 5 Things I’m Thankful For… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
9. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Dream Dinner Table — Win an Amazon gift card!
10. Gabbi Grey: Gay Historical Romances (Contest) — Win a FREE eBook or audiobook!

Today’s Contest: Comment below and enter to win one of the pretty readers’ pens!

UPDATE: The winner is…Nicola Sullivan!
*~*~*

I’m off to the city today for a PET Scan. I’m hungry and grumpy. I could only eat protein—no carbs or sugar for the last 24 hours. That sounds easy enough, but dang, I’m craving a burger with a bun with French fries and a soda! In fact, the minute I’m out of the clinic after the scan, that’s where I’m going to insist my daughter take me!

Last night, I attended my local art guild’s meeting. We voted on a new board. I’m VP of programs! My dd and I went in with a long agenda that we whipped through quickly, including ideas for future programs. It’s something to keep me looking forward, so many things to do. I love being part of that community. My mother was one of the founding members of that group and a true artist. I think she’d be pleased.

Anyway, today, I have lots on my mind—the scan, writing projects I need to begin, fun things to do with the art guild. Too many hopeful future-looking things for me to accept any news from my scan that isn’t also hopeful and future-looking.

I made a quick list of 5 Things I’m Thankful For…

👨‍👩‍👧 — My family, who love and take care of me

🏡 — A comfortable home

🗺️ — The many wonderful memories of the adventures I enjoyed while traveling abroad

🥘 — Good food!

⌛ — The time to enjoy all of the above—even if it’s only one year, although I’m hoping for more!

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me the five things you’re thankful for!

Report Card

Last week…

1. I got my white blood cell count booster shot! Woo-hoo. The rest of the week was a bit of blur since I spent most of it resting or outright sleeping. I’m so glad chemo is over so I can try to get back my strength!
2. I started work on one author’s edits! Yay, back in the saddle!
3. I decided on the theme, with readers’ help, for the next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology! It’ll be Burn!
4.  The family and I watched Carry-On on Netflix. If you love Die Hard like I do, you’ll love this little movie, too!
5. When I was up and about, I began slowly putting away things in my art studio. Doesn’t that sound pretentious? It’s just the place all my hoarded art supplies live. With Christmas gifts and all the sales, I have tons of supplies to find homes for. 🙂
6. Oh, one last thing! KDP (Amazon) kindly returned my ability to post pre-orders. They took pity on my excuse for canceling previous pre-orders—cancer! Now, I have to work up the nerve to begin listing a few!

This next week…

1. I have my PET scan scheduled for Friday. All fingers and toes are crossed that the images bear out what the blood work has been hinting at. If the tumors are small enough now, I hope I’m a candidate for some debulking surgeries.
2. I have two authors’ edits to work on this week. One to hopefully complete (depends on whether the author gets me the rest of her book!).
3. I still need to upload Once Upon a Legend to sites other than Amazon since it’s no longer exclusive there. I’m not sure why I’ve been dragging my feet. Oh yeah, fatigue.
4. This week, I’ll be diving back into finishing up Ignition!

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. Story Cubes — Tell me a story (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Hunkering down in the cold… — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Gabbi Grey: Why Representation Matters (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Word Puzzle — Ideas for Next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Karenna Colcroft: Back to Boston (F*R*E*E Read!) — Everyone, get your FREE read!
6. Memory Game: The OG — Montana Bounty Hunters (Contest) — Get an Amazon gift card!
7. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Movie Night! — Get an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Jennifer Beyer!
*~*~*

Since school shut down on Thursday due to the winter storm, we had an unexpected four-day weekend! Not that we minded one bit.

The kids have enjoyed the snowfall even if the snow wasn’t suitable for building a snowman or an igloo. They did enjoy sliding down our short hill and throwing icy snowballs at each other. My daughter made two big pots of soup which we’ve already managed to devour. She made two batches of our favorite focaccia bread.

Before the storm, we bought a copy of Wicked off of Prime Video. The girls loved it so much, they’ve rewatched it a couple of times already and have rewound all the musical numbers so they can memorize the songs. They’ve also had a karaoke night.

We have two more days to go. I’m wondering if I can interest them in another movie night. I wonder what might interest all of them.

So, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, how about you offer some suggestions I can make. Then I’ll make some popcorn, assembles some finger foods, and hunker down for another night they’ll carry fond memories of in the future. Enjoy the puzzle!

UPDATE: The winner is…Cara!
*~*~*

We never see this. Well, almost never. We can have years in between seeing a blanket of snow, so we savor it. Strange, I know. But the kids have dug through drawers to find gloves they never need and find boots that won’t soak up water in a second to go play in the snow. Mind you, the “kids” are 11, 16, and 20—plus my dear daughter, whose age I won’t mention.

Other than ensuring our many animals (goats, horse, geese, and chickens) are all safe and have food and shelter, they are in play mode. Mom (my dd) made two big pots of soup yesterday for us to nosh on whenever we get hungry—taco soup and tortilla soup. What is the difference? Oh, big difference the way she makes them. One has beans and beef the other is purely veg and spice. They had a karaoke night last night in the living room—always hilarious. We all nap when we want (me, more than the others).

So far, no power outages other than yesterday morning’s inexplicable loss. The temperature will warm up above freezing tonight, but not long enough to melt everything. So, tomorrow, we expect a lot of ice on the roads and patches of snow. We’ll be stuck inside another day, which I love, but which may be kind of confining to the kids since one day of snow is fun, two is boring, right?

Anyway, strange day. Terrible fires in LA, a president-elect sort of held accountable for his crimes, continued weirdness about which countries we’re going to annex/conquer because we can… I’m happy to turn off the news, enjoy the winter wonderland outside, and simply be happy I’m here to see another snow fall.

I hope you are all safe and cozy in your homes.

For fun, I’m including a memory game for you to play! Exercise that gray matter! It’ll help you keep sharp, promise. I’m using the images from my OG bounty hunter series set in Bear Lodge, MT—Montana Bounty Hunters.

Enjoy the game. For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me what you see when you look outside. Do you have snow on the ground? Is it raining, sunny? Do you have big plans for the weekend? Have fun!

Catching up here…

• I’m feeling a little better. Got some rest. I had a white cell count booster shot yesterday. Next, I have an appointment at the end of next week for a PET scan to see how much my cancer has reduced (crossing my fingers it’s a lot!). Then, I have a follow-on appointment the Monday after to get the results and begin my first immunotherapy infusion. Whew! Hopefully, there will be another appointment added to see a surgeon to get my girlie parts removed!
• Amazon very kindly reinstated my pre-order ability, but now I’m afraid to use it in case I don’t finish the next book in time. LOL. I have no confidence, but I guess I’ll go ahead and set one up for a far-away date to give myself some leeway, then change it to a sooner date when the book is done. I’m talking about Ignition, the last of the Delta Heat stories, which is almost all written at this point! Just a chapter or two to go, and I’m done. I’ll attack it next week and see how it goes. I’ll announce here when I set up the pre-order—after I regain my nerve.
• The kids start back to school today, although the severe cold is here, and we might get SNOW on Thursday. This means the kids may get a long weekend out of it! Yay! Although, BOO, we already had a pipe freeze in the pasture. Won’t be able to fix it until it thaws sometime next week.
• We did our grocery shopping after I had my shot yesterday. I was sooooo tired after traipsing around the grocery store. My dd would’ve dropped me at home if I’d asked, but I wanted to do something normal I haven’t done in months. I loved seeing all the FOOD. I know I added a bunch she wouldn’t have bought because…pretty. Who can resist prosciutto and cheese? Or asparagus. (I’m the only person in the house who eats it.)

And that’s all that’s happening here. I’ve set myself some small goals for today and hope I can get that bare minimum done. My desk is buried in stuff! Be sure to check out the list of contests that are still open below! I’d love to hear how you’re doing. Is anyone else getting this freezing weather?

Open Contests

1. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Susan Smith McKinney Steward – From A Family of Firsts (Contest) — This ends tomorrow! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Looking Back: 2024 Releases (Contest–2 Winners!) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Gabbi Grey: The Date I Had to Hit (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win a FREE ebook or audiobook!
4. December Into January (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Themes for the Next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology (A Poll & a Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Story Cubes — Tell me a story (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
7. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Hunkering down in the cold… — Win an Amazon gift card!
8. Gabbi Grey: Why Representation Matters (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Michelle Willms!
*~*~*

December

Work-related:

1. I didn’t write in December, but that was the plan until after my chemotherapy sessions ended.
2. I completed 2 editing projects for other authors in December.
3. I did post daily Advent Calendar giveaways for readers from the 1st to the 24th of December. And all the gifts have been mailed! Hope you enjoyed the posts!
4. After getting that hopeful news on Monday, I redid my work plan for the New Year. There will be books!

Health-related:

1. I underwent two rounds of chemo, the last being on the 30th of December where I got some hopeful news from my oncologist about my progress, which I already posted about here, yesterday! It gave me a huge, happy boost, which I so needed. What a way to begin the New Year.
2. Last night, I restarted my Weight Watcher’s subscription and downloaded a chair yoga regimen I’ll begin in January to further improve my health in the new year. Once I’m past the nausea, muscle and joint aches, and fatigue from my latest treatment, I’ll begin working out to lose some more weight and regain some muscle tone.

Happiness-related: 

1. My family has been astonishingly good to me over the months of my treatment, cleaning up after me, fetching things when I was too tired to fetch them for myself, etc., and they made the holiday so joyful. I’m lucky to have them. We watched Christmas movies, played games, and ate some wonderful food.
2. I painted only once this month. Here are the two small things I managed to paint:

January

 

For work-related, I plan:

1. To complete Ignition before the end of the month and publish it. I haven’t been able to persuade Amazon to give me back my pre-order ability, despite the fact I sent them proof I had good reasons for cancelling Ignition in the first place last year. I’m not giving up on that, but when I’m done writing the book, I’ll let you know when it’s ready for purchase.
2. To conduct a poll to see what themes might interest readers for a new Boys Behaving Badly Anthology this year! I’ll post the poll tomorrow to get your votes! After that, I’ll make my decision about the theme and post a Call for Submissions for authors. I can’t wait to get started!
3. To plot stories for the new year for my current series, Montana Bounty Hunters: Yellowstone, MT and We are Dead Horse.
4. To complete 2, maybe 3 editing projects in January. I have them on the books but haven’t received them from the authors yet, so we’ll see. But I’m ready to start!
5. To look at books I already have out that I might bundle together or publish in print.
6. To begin work on the next We Are Dead Horse book, Built Like Mack. The plan is to release it in March.

For health-related, I plan:

1. To undergo more scans to ascertain how far the cancer has been beat back, and to see a cancer surgeon in Little Rock to see if I am a candidate for removal of my girlie parts. Crossing fingers here!
2. To begin again watching what I eat to drop a few more pounds. I’ve rejoined WW.
3. To add physical activities to my daily routine so that I can regain some muscle tone. It may take until the middle of the month after I’ve recovered from this last chemo treatment, but I intend to take the stairs as often as I can manage and begin some daily chair yoga exercises.

For happiness-related, I plan: 

1. To better organize my office so I can start off with a clean slate for the new year!
2. To clean up my art room, which has become a disaster! I’ve been tossing supplies on table tops and need to actually store them properly, so I have more workspace. I have plans to do an online oil pastels class and perhaps make some more collage fodder. I think the #100daychallenge starts toward the end of the month, and I will be there, painting every day when it begins!
3. To spend time with the family—more movies, meals, and flea market adventures!

Contest

Comment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in January…

Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!