Blog Hop for a Day!

Today I will be over at my other blog CHICKS IN LIT. interviewing Author K.F. Ridley and her newest novel The Curse of Yama . 
Make sure you stop by and leave a comment for a chance to win this exiting juvenile book!

My Grapes of Wrath

I actually have a passion that I haven't talked about much, but that is definitely there.

 It's cooking!

But not just any type of cooking...I like to make things from scratch.

I am obsessed with food processing and what goes into turning one thing into something completely different.   I grind all my wheat, and make all the bread we consume. 

I make Greek Yogurt and all kinds of other wacky things that most people just buy at the store.

It all started in college when I saw a block of tofu.

I knew it came from soy, but how?

How did you turn a green soy bean into a perfectly white and square jelly block that tastes like nothing.

I ended up going to Culinary School and I loved learning the basics, but I knew that I was not cut out for the gastronomy industry. I like cooking at home for those who I love.

Luckily I married a guy who loves to garden and has transformed our back yard into a fruiting paradise.

For my hubby it's a hobby,

he starts his seed research and collecting in January,

gets it all ordered by February and starts the seedlings soon after.

For this I am grateful,

because it has allowed me to wander into my back yard and see what is ripe

and transform it into something else.

This last month we have been busy harvesting

 tomatoes, jalapenos, zucchini, eggplant,

blackberries and grapes!

Lots and lots of them!

  One bucket of white and three 5 gal. buckets of red!

I always fantasized about what I would do with these many grapes, and this last week I had my chance of fining out! It took us one hour to clean two buckets.  Then a whole day of processing them into Grape Jelly!

We blended,

Then added pectin and lots and lots of sugar!  Let me tell you right now, no one has enough sugar in their home to make this much jelly!

Then we cooked it, maybe a little too much, we were not sure for how long to cook it. 

But then we figured that we would chance it and call it done.  So we ladled them into the containers, we ran out of containers, so we had to run out and get more before pressure cooking it. 

Needless to say, it was midnight when we got done, and the last thing I want right now is

Grape Jelly!

Taking Time 4 Mommy ~Mandie Stevens~ Unveils Promotional Books Tours.

"If you find yourself lacking purpose, remember what is really important in life."


Mandie Stevens is one of those amazing women who do it all and still manage to look like this! 
She's a busy mom, a home schooler, a blogger/reviewer, an on-line community founder and now she's adding an author promotional tool to her to-do list.

My name is Mandie Stevens and I am co-owner and founder of the Time 4 Mommy Community. I am also owner of ereadingonthecheap.com and Promotional Book Tours. (A Work in Progress). All came out of complete selfishness.

The community sprang from my blog Taking Time for Mommy. which I’ve had in one form or another for the last five years. I started it because I left a career to stay home with my children and needed to stay in touch with the outside world. Now we have an entire community where moms can connect with each other with several groups including the writing and critiquing groups I’m involved with.


The book site and tour group came out of my love for reading and writing. I have a lot of marketing resources at my disposal and wanted to be able to help other authors like myself get their books noticed.

What is your goal or purpose in what you do in life?


My goal is to be the best mother and wife I can possibly be. If I wasn’t writing or blogging I can honestly say as long as I have them I’ll still be happy.


What are you working on right now?

My WIP is an urban Fantasy Novel called Grapple. I’m building Author Websites, scheduling Virtual Book Tours, and blogging.

How do you balance your home and family life and your work?

I home school my daughters (and yes before you ask they are socialized *wink* *wink*) We have a very strict schedule. Between school work and housework, I am on and off of the computer working. I have to remember what my priorities are and to make sure not to take too much on.
(Sounds like someone I know...)

What is your advice to people who feel their lives are lacking purpose?

If you find yourself lacking purpose, remember what is really important in life.

Thanks Mandie for bravely subjecting yourself to my questioning!  For those who want to connect with others, please make sure you stop by TIME 4 MOMMY and check out all the different communities they have there.  There literally is something for everyone, including giveaways.  If you are an author and are interested in having a blog tour, please contact Mandie at http://promotionalbooktours.com/ .

Elizabeth Muller's Darkspell

"Being steadfast and toiling through writing has given character to my writing. I have improved the craft on so many levels as well as a person altogether. Brilliance alone can’t possibly shine through without the quiet power of overcoming trails."


Ultra talented and extremely gifted, author Elizabeth Muller, is visiting my spiritual realm today! It is an honor to have her here, and to showcase her debut novel: Darkpell.
From a young age, Elizabeth has enjoyed acting, singing, illustrating and writing. Talents that she continues to nurture and develop.  Stay a while and get to know Elizabeth, whose enthusiasm for life is downright intoxicating.

I started writing way back in childhood. But before I could write, I drew stories with bubble conversations for entertainment. I role-played. I used my imagination A LOT. In 4th grade, I wrote poems, in 6th, many short stories. When I was in high school, I was way into poetry. When I was 17, I started my first novel that I finished 8 years later--by hand. During that time, I wrote other novels, too.



You're an avid blogger, when did you start your blog and why?
I actually started blogging a few years back. I wanted to try it out because I've heard it was a good thing to get into so when I become published, I'll have following. It was awkward and small at first. It was hard! I had no idea what to blog about. I joined another blog (Mormon Mommy Writers) later on. Then one day, about 2 am, after much praying; I was hit with so many ideas of blog topics I've never run out since.

You also have an illustrator blog, tell us about that part of your craft and your interest in acting.
As far as my drawing, I developed it when I was growing up--drawing stories when it rained. I'd rather draw than play barbies. It was fun! I drew in school all the way up to now. I've never stopped. I have a portfolio of my drawings from high school on. I've developed using graphite pencils quite well. It's the other medium that has me a bit intimidated, though I know I'm good at those too, I just need to gain my confidence!


As far as acting, because of my love of role-playing and my passion with life, I've always wanted to act. I've done a few skits and things here and there and loved it. I hope to develop this area of my life as well!


As for my singing, I was in choir in elementary and high school. I've always been in the ward choir. When I was in YW, I dreamed to be in the Tabernacle Choir, and when I moved to Utah, I thought, I'm halfway there! But now that I'm a mom, I feel that my place is here with my kids, though I have a hidden yearning to be in the Tabernacle still. Some day, I guess! ;)

You have some illustrations that go with your book, right? I seem to have picked that up along my stalking. 

There are a few that I drew a few years back—I wasn’t really trying for anything formal, just fun as you can tell!


The other thing I’ve done is use my son as the model of my cover. I had to make him about 5 years older to fit the main character look! I’ve taken some photos of my daughter as Winter for my upcoming book trailer. I’m quite excited to get going on that!


Ooh...really?  Can we see a preview?

http://elizabethmueller-illustrator.blogspot.com/2011/02/pencil-portrait-collection.html

Okay, how did you come up with the story for Darkspell?

If you venture into Gail Carson Levine’s Writing Magic, on page 4, there is a writing prompt. It is the 5th one down if you want to see how Darkspell was born! As I jotted the prompt down, I let my muse take full control. Since I love romance, the first thing I thought was how would it be if the second person was a girl? And what if the first one fell in love with her? What if there was something special about her that lured him to her that she didn’t know? My mind deepened so wide, I didn’t think on the 2 dimensional level of these questions, but I felt them stirring as people bursting to be born on paper.


How long did it take you to write it?

It took me about 2 months from beginning to end, but add a few more months to that for editing.


What’s your genre?

Darkspell is Young adult Paranormal Romance, but I write in just about any genre that hits my muse, but I stick within YA for the most part.


About Darkspell:

Winter Sky believes she is everything ordinary . . . until she is kissed by Alex Stormhold.
As seer of Stormhold Coven, Alex is sworn to be Winter’s protector against the darkness that hunts her. Violently thrust into a magical realm she always thought impossible, she stumbles upon a disturbing secret of her own.
Will love prove thicker than magic?
Darkspell, coming fall 2011!


What is your advice to talented women out there?

Believe in yourself, in what the Lord has blessed you with and don’t let the cynicism of others drown you. There’s a whole lot of writers out here that believe in you!
(Amen to that!)


Any last parting words?
Please join me in my celebration for Darkspell’s fall release all July long! A pre-book launch party if you will. Click here for details.

You can also find Elizabeth on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads!  It's been an honor to have you on my blog Elizabeth.  You are a fireball!

Dead...again.

    Apparently, you can die more than once.  At least that's what happened to a woman in Russia.

  According to a report on Fox News  ,  a woman in Russia was pronounced dead and while her relatives were holding an open casket vigil, she woke up screaming, shocked by the fact that she was at her own funeral.  This shocked her so much that she ended up having a heart attack and dying...again!  This time for good. 

This story actually was not the first one of it's kind I've heard of.  There's this urban legend in Argentina that surrounds this Beattles-like rock band from the seventies called Sui Generis.  The lead singer Charlie Garcia, wrote a song about a girl who suffered from a rare illness that made her go into a death like coma. 
The story I heard said that she would come out of this coma after a few days, but one time she did not and eventually doctors pronounced her dead.  She was buried, but at her funeral her boyfriend (Charlie Garcia) heard her sream. 
No one believed him, but eventually he had the body exhumed.  When they opened the coffin they found her indeed dead, but...the lining of the coffin was ripped to shreds from the inside and fragments of the fabric found in ther hands. 
This is the song he wrote.  It's called "Rasguna Las Piedras" (Clawing the Rocks)

Meet Beth Thomas~Fighting Cancer one step at a time.

“Achieving anything worthwhile is always going to be 90% mental. If you can train your brain to believe you can do it, you will accomplish whatever you set your mind to achieving.”


   As some of you know I've been interviewing people who I think exemplify the quote "Steadiness and toil will serve you better than brilliance." By James E. Talmage.
Beth Thomas is one of these people who I admire greatly.  Beth and I actually go back a ways... she is an old former college friend of mine.  We found found each other though Facebook a few years ago and that's when I started noticing that she is very committed to a very important cause.

I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. My childhood was spent watching my three brothers play sports. Whether it was hockey (complete with our own backyard ice-rink), football, baseball, or basketball – I was always attending some kind of sporting event. I tried to get into dance at a young age, but having three very masculine brothers didn’t help in that cause and I was very bored with dancing (still am!). I always wanted to do what the boys were doing! Since I obviously couldn’t try out for the hockey team at the time (HA!), my energy was directed on being a good student and not causing too much trouble for my parents (they had their fill with my brothers…;) ). I didn’t have a lot of hobbies when I was younger. Unless you consider watching my brothers play sports a hobby?? ;)


Years later I graduated from the University of Utah promising myself I would never end up in a field that was business or financial related. Where did I end up? In a financial related field. “Expect the unexpected”, right? While I have worked in several financial related jobs since I was about 20 years old, I didn’t find my true passions in life until about 2006. It was at this time that my “Bucket List” wish to run a marathon collided with my parents both being diagnosed with Cancer. If you have ever had someone that you have cared deeply for diagnosed with Cancer, you know that it rocks you to the core. I felt helpless. I didn’t know how to direct my energy or how to help them. It was then that I started running miles upon miles on my treadmill. No particular goal in mind (having no clue how to train for a marathon), but to tearfully run out the stresses of life. I connected with running. It cleared my mind; it helped me to cope with the world that seemed to be collapsing around me. Running became an outlet and a necessity in my life. I never have been a fast runner, but I always could go for long periods of time.

How did you get involved with Fundraising?

Within a few weeks of my parents being diagnosed with Cancer, I received a letter in the mail from Team in Training for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It felt as if that piece of mail was specifically meant for me (although it was not addressed to anyone). It was as if it was hand delivered by a higher power, as weird as that may sound. The letter was an invitation to attend an informational meeting to talk about what Team in Training was, and so it all began. I attended the meeting and joined the Team a month later. For those who don’t know, Team in Training is the World’s largest endurance training program. They train you to participate (and finish) endurance events, in exchange you fund raise for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It was a way for me to connect with my running as well as a way to do something about a disease that was affecting both of my parents. Since first joining in 2006, I have participated in (and finished) 4 events with Team in Training and 2 events with Huntsman Hometown Heroes (another endurance training program that raises money for Huntsman Cancer Foundation / Institute), as well as numerous events on my own. Fundraising all along the way, between the two teams I have managed to raise close to $18,000 for the fight against cancer, and I have no intention of stopping in that fight any time soon. While I don’t know that this is my “mission” to fulfill, I do feel that I was destined to be a part of this cause. I feel very passionate about the quest to find cures for cancers. I don’t want anyone else to have to experience what my parents have had to experience. Cancer is such a horrible disease and it will affect virtually everyone at some point in life. I can’t sit idly by, knowing that I can help in some small way. The funny thing is…through all of this, I have benefited the most. Through these two teams I have made numerous close friends who are in the same situation that I am in. They all have either fought cancer themselves, or are watching loved ones fight Cancer. We share a common bond that has been the best support system I could have ever hoped for. I am a happier and healthier person for being involved in this cause. I can’t imagine what my life would be like today if I hadn’t received that piece of mail at the exact right time. I know with every fiber of my being…..that was no accident.


How do you balance your home life and your training schedule?

I think the fact that I am a single adult helps me in the ability to balance my home / family life with my hobby and my work. . My life is organized around my training schedules and races. I go to bed early so that I can get up early to run before work. I make sure to get in a long run every weekend. I schedule races far in advance so that it forces me to train and to continue to be active. To train for marathons, you really have to make it a priority–otherwise you more than likely won’t finish the race. I am in a happier mental state when I am running regularly—so aside from everything else—it keeps me sane!! Pairing the good cause with the races also helps me to feel more connected. I feel as if I am running for those people who cannot run because they are battling cancers. I think about all the people whom I know with Cancer with every step I take. It keeps me going and propels me forward even when I want to quit sometimes…and it gets me out of bed when some days I really just want to sleep in!

What is your advice to people who feel their lives are lacking purpose?

The one thing I have noticed through participating in these events and being on these teams is that anyone can do what they set their minds out to doing. It may take time and hard work, but it can be done. Endurance runners come in all shapes and sizes. They run at all different speeds. But it is the “Steadiness and toil” that will get you across the finish line in fundraising, endurance events and in beating cancer! If you want something bad enough, work at it. Never for one second of your life ever waste time thinking that you “can’t” do something. Achieving anything worthwhile is always going to be 90% mental. If you can train your brain to believe you can do it, you will accomplish whatever you set your mind out to achieving. A negative attitude in life will get you nowhere.


If you find yourself lacking purpose, I recommend the following: appreciate the world around you (show gratitude), do things for others (service in the community), learn new things, set goals continuously, be part of something bigger than yourself, focus on the positive and surround yourself with positive people who believe in you and all your want to achieve!!

Beth, thank you so much for coming over to my blog today!  I admire what you do so much.  It's the simple things that we do each day that change our world!  I too feel very passionate about fulfilling a purpose in this life and people like you inspire me greatly.  Love you Babe!

(Oh boy!)

Ghost Encounters and Vampirish Experiences.

Join us today all day and swap ghost stories and weird vampirish experiences (Chupa Cabras count). 
We have a few of our own to share, some are true...some are not...you can come, read ours and find out which is which.  There will also be many giveaways, so your chances of leaving this chat with something are high. 
Join authors Deanna Jewel, Teric Darken, Elizabeth Muller, Robin Renee Ray, Krisi Keley and myself TODAY in the LATTE LOUNGE