UPDATE: The winner is…Julie Andrade!
*~*~*

Here’s a little list of 10 things that make me sigh with happiness in December, listed in no particular order…

• ☕ Marshmallows in Hot Cocoa
• 🧝 Elves on the Shelf
• 🧥 Ugly Christmas Sweaters
• 🎁 Gift Giving
• 🍬 Delectable Sweets
• 🎵 Holiday Music
• 💡 Christmas Lights
• 👪 Family Time
• 🧙‍♂️ Christmas Gnomes
• 🎄 Christmas Decorations

You know what’s coming next! 😈

For a chance to win your choice of a download of any of my backlist of books, tell me five things that make you sigh during the holidays!

UPDATE: The winners are…Charlene Whitehouse and Jackie Wisherd!
*~*~*

A custom my family picked up when we lived in Germany was having the kids put out their shoes on the eve of St. Nicholas Day. If the kid is good, he gets something nice left in his shoe by Santa. If not, he gets a lump of coal. This gives the kid an attaboy/girl to keep up the good work or a warning if they need to correct their ways before Christmas Day.

My daughter is the keeper of the tradition now, and along with all those kids’ shoes lined up for Santa to leave gifts inside, she has me leave out a shoe, too—because I’m the biggest kid in the house. See? I did teach her right. LOL

For a chance to win something, I haven’t decided what just yet, tell me about any holiday traditions you follow in your family!

UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen! Hope you’re out of the hospital and feeling better!
*~*~*

Today, I’m up at O-dark-thirty to get this blog completed because I have to get a shower and get to the holiday craft show! My daughter and I have prepared for months but were still working up until yesterday because we didn’t feel like we had enough “stuff”—um, we do, but we always feel we could’ve done more. I’m leaving my space a wreck, paints and papers still on my desk and art table. Everything strewn around. I DON’T CARE. I have to shower and get dressed in the most obnoxious Christmas clothing. I’ll dig up a Christmas pin for my jean jacket… Should I bring Christmas fairy lights…? STOP!

I’ll leave you with the puzzle. Solve it. Then tell me how prepared you are for the season for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

I’ve been pulling cards on Sundays to try to make it part of my planning process. Every Sunday, I update my work and personal plans to ensure I record what I accomplished and didn’t, then I turn my sights on the coming week. It’s not that I “believe” in the tarot, but because it centers me and reminds me of aspects of my life I wouldn’t otherwise consider when I set my plans. So, onto this week’s card…

Pentacles again. Hmmm. Well, first, I’ll study the art on the card. We have Daedalus, again, holding the pentacles close to his chest, like he won’t share them. Remember, he’s the father of Icarus. He’s also a skilled craftsman. Here, he’s observing his nephew Thalos as young Thalos crafts a gold bracelet. See that side-eye he’s giving the kid? He’s jealous of his skill and worried that he’ll surpass him. The child is engrossed in what he’s doing, unaware of Daedalus’s concern.

What does that mean for me? I’m not sure. I’m not here worried about another person surpassing me in skill. I write and I edit for other authors. I wish everyone well.  Truly. I don’t obsess over stats or even check mine often. A sin, I know, when writing is my business. I’m okay letting go of the worry of whether or not I write a bestseller. So, what else could this mean for me? I turn to the book…

It says that the card represents my holding too tightly to my possessions or things that represent my personal value. What could that be? Yes, I’m acquisitive, meaning I collect things. They’re things that bring me pleasure whether they hold value or not. Am I getting a little overwhelmed by my things? Yes. Simply put, I need to figure out what I want to keep and what I should let go of. In the near term, could this mean that I need to price my items for the coming sale so low that I can offload my inventory? Hmmm. Or does it mean I need to do some future planning for a huge clearing out of my spaces? Selling, tossing, giving away things? I’ll keep that in mind. I can’t do much about it until after next Saturday because I’m too busy trying to create inventory for the sale. I’ll put “weaning the horde” on my December To Do list.

In the meantime, I’m creating “stuff.” Here’s another Christmas card I painted…

Can you think of things I should offer to readers here in the future to help myself empty my bins and shelves?

Open Contests

1. My New Favorite Thing… (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Tell me a story… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Tell me a story… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Chrissie Lege!
*~*~*

Are you feeling Christmassy yet? I know, I know. It’s only October, and where I live in Texas, the temps have fallen to a balmy mid-80s to low 90’s (F) most days. So, that’s our autumn weather. Even so, the stores are filled with Halloween and Fall décor of all kinds. They’re even showcasing some cold-weather gear, such as plush throws, knit hats, and gloves. And if that doesn’t start me thinking about the holidays, then the shelves full of Christmas stuff will!

Then again, maybe I’m more susceptible to thinking holiday thoughts because I wrote a Christmastime romance during the spring. It’s kind of an author woe that one must write holiday books months in advance, whether it’s a Valentine’s Day tale or any other holiday. Then we have to edit the book after our editor returns it. In addition, I followed that with a Thanksgiving-themed novel in my Sweetwater Springs series, then a Christmas novella in that same series. So, holiday themes all year for me.

You might ask, how does a girl from Texas write about snow and cold weather? Well, in between being born here and having returned here as an empty nester, I’ve lived in Colorado, northern Virginia, and Maryland. Believe me, this Texan has seen her share of the white stuff, howling winds, and the kind of cold that takes your breath. I’ve also done Christmas in Hawaii, but that’s a story best told when I have a Tropical Heat novella coming out.

For me, snow does have a magical quality about it while it’s coming down, especially if I can watch it from the safety of a warm house. And there’s something almost ethereal about a moonlit night making the snow appear to glow and sparkle. It definitely adds to the ambiance and holiday spirit in a Christmas book.

Writing holiday books also makes me think of gifting and in that spirit, I have a holiday short story that also contains sample chapters of other works I’ve written – for FREE. Check out HOME FOR CHRISTMAS when you have a minute. And while I’m feeling generous, I’ll give a $5 Amazon gift card to one lucky commenter.

In my latest release, Fake Fiancé for Christmas, Lia and Ryan have both the snow aspect of the holidays, as they live in Denver, and a southern Christmas when they travel to the Atlanta area to celebrate the holiday with her family.

Fake Fiancé For Christmas

Faced with a broken engagement due to her guarded heart and her family expecting to meet her fiancé during the first Christmas without her Gran, Lia Taylor decides to take her friends’ advice. She’ll take a fake fiancé home for Christmas.

Ryan Barton grew up in foster homes, unaware he had a family until he met his grandmother at sixteen. Lia’s offer of a noisy family Christmas with a big elaborate meal sounds like heaven, even the part about pretending to be her fiancé.

As Lia and Ryan get to know each other and practice casual touching, hugs, and kisses, their feelings grow. They decide to try for a real relationship with the promise that when either of them withdraws due to old fears, the other will pull them back.

But what will save them when they both withdraw in fear? Are their recent feelings strong enough to save their new relationship or will they hide within the safety of their guarded hearts?

Links:
Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B3BJQHGP/
GooglePlay: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=WxmHEAAAQBAJ
Others retailers: https://books2read.com/u/bQjJ16

About the Author

“Sizzling romance with heart and humor”

Carol is an award-winning author of Sweetwater Springs, a series of contemporary, small-town romances with serious sizzle and a generous dose of southern charm. Her personal second-chance-at-love story resulted in marriage to her high school sweetheart.

Carol has also written several standalone books not connected to any series. Her Tropical Heat novella characters find love and passion on islands and beaches. Writing as Annie Rayburn, she produces Crainesian mashup romances that are sci-fi, paranormal, erotic, contemporary, and alternate history.

Find Carol on the web:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCarolBurnside
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolburnside/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/carol_burnside
Website: https://www.carolburnside.com
Newsletter: https://eepurl.com/smDmf

A special shoutout to Delilah Devlin for hosting me on her blog today. Thanks so much! I appreciate it.

UPDATE The winner is…Joy Boutwell!
*~*~*

I used to be a last-minute shopper. You know, the one who hit the mall the night before Christmas to buy all the gifts. No kidding. It was horrendously stressful, but I hate shopping (unless it’s at a flea market!), so I procrastinated over Christmas.

These days, with online shopping, it’s soooooo nice. And I can stretch out the expense over several months instead of having all the bills hit at Christmas. I start early. Typically, in August. I list everyone I want to purchase a gift for then methodically start knocking it out. This year, I have six people in the house and my aunt to buy gifts for. I really, really try to consider Christmas cards for others, but again, I’m a horrible procrastinator. This year, I’m going to do better. I have a list. It’s getting “codified” in my planner. It will be done.

So, my question for you is whether you’re a procrastinator or do you squirrel away gifts over the year to give at Christmas time? A second question! Do you have any ideas for what I can do for my readers through my website or my Facebook pages? I was thinking about giving away free stories (downloads), mailing hand-painted bookmarks, and maybe doing one mailable gift for one lucky winner. Any ideas would be appreciated! I want to send some small handmade items to a couple of folks who’ve been part of my Team Delilah, too. I’ll put it in the plan!

So, for a chance to win your choice of one of my downloadable books, comment below!

UPDATE: The winner is…Carol Cox!
*~*~*

Okay, so I wanted to do a “‘Twas the Night After Christmas” post and write a short poem about shredded wrapping paper and round bellies, but I’m too lazy for that.

I haven’t just been in a food coma; I’ve been in sensory overload. Too many lovely gifts, too many wonderful, eatable treats—the biggest box of Russell Stover’s chocolate I’ve ever seen (and which is now nearly empty). I’m not stepping on the scale until January 1st when I begin my 50th New Year’s Resolution diet.

The chocolates were pretty awesome, as were the rest of the gifts, but, for me, the best part of Christmas was watching the kids unwrap their presents, one at a time, waiting to see what the other kids got, and being supportive and excited for each other, saying how cool everything was. I’m used to them tearing into the wrappings like the Tasmanian devil, but this time, they were there for each other. And yeah, it took forever to unwrap gifts, but it was worth it. Even at O-dark-thirty in the morning when I could’ve been sleeping in. 🙂

So, I’d love to hear something about your favorite Christmas memories—from this Christman/winter holiday or one in the past. Share for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!