Archive for the 'family' Category
Like Sands Through the Hourglass
Today is moving at record speeds. I can’t believe it’s already past noon and I’m just sitting down at my desk now. This doesn’t bode well for the rest of the week.
So I spent most of the weekend doing laundry–as predicted–and reorganizing the kid’s room. The latter was one of those projects that I almost wished I hadn’t started. Let’s just say it got worse before it got better. But on the upside, it’s done and his room is the picture of organization. Which pleases me if not him. 
I did manage to get some writing done. I’m to 19k on the WIP, admittedly some I pilfered from a story I started a few years back but it never really went anywhere. This week I’ll keep with working on that and get started on marketing for Blood and Bone. There are only 64 more days until October 11th, after all. Which leads me to my next point. Starting tomorrow, I’m giving away stuff every Tuesday. You know the drill by now. Leave a comment and I’ll draw a name.
Tomorrow’s prize is a Curse of Culcraig ebook. I announce the winner Friday. So check back tomorrow!
Mood: Good
Music: I Gave You All, Mumford and Sons (This is my absolute favorite CD right now. Every song is awesome.)
Posted by Dawn Brown @
4:45 pm |
Friday Five – March Break Realizaions
Happy Friday everyone! Today is a very busy Friday for me–actually, the whole week has been nuts, but I’ll get to that in a moment. First, I’m being featured over at Leanne Dyck’s blog for All Things Romantic Suspense. Also, I have yet to announce the winner for last week’s giveaway at Sara Balances’s blog. So the winner is…Melissa! Email me at dawn@dawnbrown.org and I’ll send The Curse of Culcraig out to you. And now for today’s Friday Five.
As I mentioned, it’s March Break this week and with the kid home, I’ve come to a few realizations.
1. When the kid is home all day and hubby is on nights, it is virtually impossible to keep the house clean for any longer than fifteen minutes. My bathroom is frightening. And why, oh why, is unloading the dishwasher so a complicated task that only I can do it?
2. It really doesn’t take much to blow my writing routine out of the water. Apparently just a time change and a week of playing board games every afternoon is all it takes.
3. The Game of Life is impossible to win unless you’re the doctor or the lawyer.
4. No matter how times I watch the movie Clue–three times so far this week, and usually while playing the board game–it’s still funny. Scarlet: “Why is the car stopped?” Plum: “Because it’s frightened.”
5. There is only 104 days left until summer vacation. Yikes!
Remember to check out the other Friday Fivers, Gina Ardito, Debora Dennis, Harper Bennett, Moira Keith, Bethanne Strasser and Silke Juppenlatz. Have a good weekend!
Posted by Dawn Brown @
3:52 pm |
Funeral for a Friend
Yesterday, I attended my first hamster funeral. The kid’s hamster died on Saturday night…or some time on Saturday. In the wee hours of Sunday morning, the kid woke up with a sore tummy. (He’d been at a pizza party earlier, so this bellyache was not entirely unexpected.) While I was comforting the kid, I happened to glance over the hamster cage and thought. ‘Molly, why is your leg sticking up like that?’ Once, I got the kid safely from the room, I returned to the cage and prodded poor Molly with a pencil. Yup, she was gone.
Later, when my son woke up, I broke the news. Needless to say, the kid was devastated. DH found a little box and made a little grave marker, and we buried her in our backyard.
So rest in peace, Molly. Oh…and welcome Hank.
Posted by Dawn Brown @
3:06 pm |
How Can It Be November Already?!
Am I the only one who feels like fall is racing past at record speed?
A week ago, I took a picture from office widow and the trees were still covered with colored leaves. Today, the trees outside my window are practically bare.
Last night was a fairly quiet Halloween. The kid, dressed as the grim reaper–complete with bleeding skeleton mask–went trick-or-treating with a friend and wanted his dad to take them. Yes, he’s reached the age where mom doing things with him just isn’t cool. (However, guess who he asked for when he was up through the night with a sore tummy after too much candy?) This left me home to hand out candy. Not that I minded overly much. It was freezing here last night, and I got to see all the little ones in their costumes. Very cute. We didn’t get many kids last night, though, so we have a ton of left over candy.
After putting the kid to bed, I did what I like to do every Halloween. Eat candy and watch scary movies on T.V. But I must say, I was kind of disappointed with the selection. So T.V station people, who are undoubtedly reading this blog with baited breath, just waiting for my suggestions, here is a list of my top five horror movies that I feel you should consider airing on Halloween next year.
5. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? – Whatever happened to this movie? Why does it never get aired on T.V. anymore? I blame infomercials.
4. Psycho – I really shouldn’t have to say this, but…not the remake. Only the original. Embrace the black and white. It adds to the ambiance.
3. American Werewolf In London – I love this movie. The visits from his dead friend are the best.
2. The Changeling – This is probably my favorite horror movie. No matter how many times I see it, the hair on the back of my neck always stands on end when they hear the voice on the tape.
1. Halloween – Seems kind of obvious, doesn’t it? Oh, and again, not the remake. I have issues with remakes in general, and come on, the bad 70′s hair and clothes are part of the movie’s charm.
Okay, that’s my rant. I hope you enjoyed it.
Over at the Samhain Cafe they are celebrating Samhain’s birthday with lots of great prizes and excerpts. So in the spirit, I’m giving away a copy of Living Lies. Just leave a comment on how you spent Halloween, or what your favorite horror movies are, and you’re entered. I’ll draw a name and announce the winner on Wednesday.
Posted by Dawn Brown @
6:40 pm |
Did Ya Miss Me?
I can’t believe how much time has past since I last posted. Sorry, I’ve been buried around here. Hopefully, I’ve managed to get life under control again. Touch wood.
I hit a small snag with the WIP, but I’ve managed to fix it and move forward. One of the hazards of organic writing, unfortunately. With summer coming, I’m trying to get into the habit of writing at night. Last night I did rather well. Writing at night is tough for me. Usually, by the time the kid’s in bed, I’m zonked. But it’s amazing the difference a cup of coffee at 7pm can make. I’d love to be finished the first draft by the end of the summer, so I can start the sequel as the kid heads back to school in September.
I’ve also had to stop working in the attic. With such an unusually hot May, the temperature in the attic was creeping up to 85 degrees by 10 am. So I’ve taken over the family office on the main floor, and I get pretty snarky when catch anyone else in there. Since dh and the kid really only use the room as a catch all for stuff they don’t want to put away, I don’t feel the least bit guilty for chasing them out of there.
Mood: Good
Posted by Dawn Brown @
2:53 pm |
Remember Those Old Christmas Specials?
December 11, 2009 | family,life
So, earlier this week, after we’d finished dinner, one of those old Christmas specials that DH and I watched as children came on. I think it was Santa Clause is Coming to Town. Anyway, we called the kid down to watch it, but he really had no interest and went back upstairs to play. I was surprised. When I was a kid, I could hardly wait to watch all the Christmas specials that came on during the season. This sparked a conversation between DH and I over which specials were our favorites, and which one’s had been an absolute must for us to see every year. In the end, I came up with three that if I missed, well, Christmas just didn’t quite feel the same.
Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer. Watching this is as an adult, I can’t help but cringe at the blatant sexism, and Santa is kind of a jerk but what would Christmas be without Rudolph rescuing all those misfit toys.
A Charlie Brown Christmas. Maybe it’s because there was a Peanuts special for every holiday from Valentine’s Day to Arbor Day,(and here’s the link lest you think I exagerate) but this one always seemed to mark the beginning of the holiday for me.
The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. I still love this one. Oh, and I absolutely loathe the motion picture version, but I will spare you my rant. Dr. Suess’ classic story narrated by Boris Karloff, it just doesn’t get any better. Though, when I was young I always felt a little sorry for Max the dog.
So those are my top three. What Christmas specials did you have to see growing up?
Posted by Dawn Brown @
2:02 pm |
Movie Rant
Last night we went to the movies. Now before I go any further, I should explain that going to the movies is one of my least favorite things to do. If I’m going out, I prefer something with more social interaction, and I find theatres crowded and loud. So the only time I do go to the movies is if it’s something I really, really want to see, or if it’s something that DS wants to see. Last night it was the latter. We went and saw Night at the Museum 2. How was it? A lot of the same gags as the first one, but less story. Hank Azaria was quite funny, though.
Anyway, on to my rant. What is wrong with people these days? When did poor manners and inconsideration become the norm? I’m referring most specifically to the woman and her young child sitting behind me who constantly kicked and bumped into the back of my seat. Said child was really probably too young to be at the movie, and that was probably why she was standing up, walking around behind my seat and talking for the duration. Also when the woman would answer her daughter’s questions, she spoke as if she were sitting in her own living room and everyone wanted to hear what she had to say.
Which brings me to my next rant. What is it with people bringing infants to the movies? I can pretty much guarantee that they are not enjoying themselves as is proven by their crying from beginning to end. And why would they, really? Movies are loud. All that noise probably hurts their little infant ears.
If your child is too young to really enjoy the whole big screen experience, wait for movie to come out on DVD or take them to the drive-in, then they can make all the noise they want. Less agravation for everyone.
Mood: Annoyed
Posted by Dawn Brown @
11:00 am |
Counting Down
Well, the days are going by quickly and the end of month is only twenty-one days away. This may seem like a lot, but with the end of the school year fast approacing it really isn’t. Especially when I have sooo much I want to get done before then. Last week, I was not terribly productive. I managed to get a some work done on the WIP, (which I’ll tell you more about tomorrow) but not much else. Kitchen, grumble.
So this week, I am determined to get through at least five chapters for Blood and Bone. I so want to have this pretty much finished by the time DS is finished so that all I’m working on over the summer is WIP. Keep your finger crossed for me. Also, I hope to keep plugging away with 1,000 words a day on the WIP. I’ll be sure to let you know how it goes.
The kitchen is coming along, but as dh and I are doing it ourselves (okay, dh is doing most of it) it’s taking a while. The chaos is starting to get to me a little, and even I’m starting to get sick of take-out for dinner. On the up side, we’re finished painting the walls, and the back splash went up behind the stove. WooHoo!! Next it’s the chair rail, then sanding and painting the trim.
Posted by Dawn Brown @
12:27 pm |
Happy Tuesday!
Actually, it was the Victoria Day long weekend here so I keep thinking today is Monday.
Okay, we found wheels for the table, put them on and it looks awesome. Glad I did not smash it into firewood as I considered for awhile there.
Not a whole lot is new here. An old friend came to stay this weekend and we had a great time laughing and catching up. That was fun. Sunday and Monday, HellHound was a little upset by the fireworks so he sat beside my bed panting in my face into the wee hours of the morning both nights. Frustrating, but I tried to be patient.
Writing is going well. I’m right on target with the WIP. Blood and Bone is not moving as fast as I’d hoped, but it is moving and I’m pleased about that. On the advice of some crit partners, I’ve had to rework a lot of scenes in the middle. The good news the pacing and tension is great. The bad news, it’s a lot of work, but it will be worth it I think.
That’s it for now.
Music: Everybody Knows – Leonard Cohen
Mood: Focused.
Posted by Dawn Brown @
4:12 pm |
Unwinding After the Weekend
First, thanks to everybody who participated in the contests both here and on my editor’s blog. I really appreciated everyone taking the time to comment and all your kind words. And congrats to both winners. Also, my editor’s contest, where she interviews an author and gives away a book, continues until May 10th. So check in daily, you could win.
Well, it’s Monday and I’m wiped. I had very busy weekend. Friday and Saturday morning, I wrote like crazy and got a lot of stuff done. I still feel a little like I’m playing catch-up from the bookkeeping, but at least now I see a dent in all the things I wanted to get done, and I’m feeling more organized. So to celebrate, I went book shopping Saturday afternoon. I picked up to new paperbacks (a J.R. Ward and a Carla Neggers) and a Killers CD.
Then Saturday night, we had my mom over dinner. Sunday we hosted a barbeque and I babysat my two-year-old neice. I had forgotten how much work goes into watching a toddler. So by nine o’clock last night I was ready for bed. Even today, I’m still dragging my butt a bit.
Still, it was a great weekend. Hope everyone else had a great weekend too!!
Mood: Good
Music: Losing Touch – The Killers
Posted by Dawn Brown @
3:32 pm |
