Express Yourself - goals, resolutions, yikes.

Express Yourself Meme has been on a little hiatus with the holidays and such, but we're back in full swing. 
EYM is a weekly meme created by Dani and me... or is it I? We wanted to get to know our fellow bloggers better and meet some new ones along the way.





The question for this week... What's your 2013 resolutions? And if you don't make them, then tell us something you're looking forward to in the year ahead?

I've never made New Years resolutions. I DO think I need to make some sort of goals. This makes me nervous because it means I have to stick to it!!! Yikes. So I will write them here and keep myself accountable. I want to accomplish this all by May. I hope I can do it.

-Outline, outline, outline 
-Plot, plot, plot
-Start on my new WIP
-Finish said WIP
-Pass it over to my critique partners
-Edit and revise

Something not writing related...

-Get family game night/movie night back on track. We used to do this every Friday, but once summer was over, it's been hit or miss. I'm determined to get this rolling again!

Do you have any resolutions or goals that you'd like to accomplish this year?
January's Express Yourself Gadget...

Sign up using the linky so we can read your answers on your blog!

Express Yourself - Favorite Holiday Songs

The question Dani and I came up with for this week's Express Yourself Meme is....


What are a few of your favorite holiday songs?








I love music so this was hard for me to keep it under control. In no particular order, some of my fav holiday songs are:

Little Drummer Boy

We Three Kings

Silent Night

Jingle Bell Rock


What are some of your special songs you love to listen to during the holidays?

Express Yourself - Dream Winter Getaway

The Express Yourself question of the week that Dani and I came up with is....

What would your dream winter getaway be?

This one is easy. A tropical island.

Yep, you read that right.

I don't want to go where there's snow, though I have been skiing long ago and it was fun. And, sure, romance surrounding a cabin and fire with hot cocoa sounds divine
But....

...warm weather is where it's at for me.

Beaches. Swimming. Sunrises and sunsets over the ocean. Tropical drinks. The smell of sunscreen mixed with the salty air. Warm, tingling skin.

I'm in heaven already.


  
(Photos courtesy of my wonderful beta. Aren't her pics gorgeous? The 1st one is in the Cayman Islands and the 2nd is in Curacao. Thanks so much, Kimmy, for letting me display them!)


How about you? What's your dream winter getaway?

Express Yourself - Most Memorable Holiday Gift

Express Yourself is a weekly meme. Its goal is to help our fellow bloggers get to know each other better, and even help motivate one another. What makes you, you? What inspires you to write? How’s the outside world influencing you? Whether it be a quote, a list of favorite things, a question, a song, and so on, Dani and I will find something different to post about. It'll correlate with writing, blogging, or just life in general. Then, we hope, you’ll follow suit and post, too.

The question this week - What's your most memorable holiday gift? 

Update: For this meme, Dani and I didn't list our children. Or our husbands. Or even the gift of life. Those things, above all, are the best gifts ever. 
But for this question, we're wanting to know what present someone gave you that you remember most.

On Christmas morning, when I was a little girl, I walked downstairs to a doll house with a red bow on top of its roof. It wasn't just any doll house. It was custom made by my parents. My dad had built the wooden house with four rooms--two on top and two on bottom, and the floors had beige shag carpet. My mom had made curtains for the windows and pasted wallpaper on the walls. I remember the "dining room" had a tiny, sparkly chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and the wallpaper matched the paper from our own dining room--muted greens and blues. 
I don't know who was more excited, me or my parents. But it was perfect!

What's a holiday gift that you remember most, that was special to you and/or your loved ones?


The EYM Banner for December....

Express Yourself - Quirky Quirks

List 5 imperfections about yourself that might bug others, but it's what makes you, well, you. :D

1. I twirl my hair A LOT. It's a habit I've done since I was a little girl, and for some reason, it tends to drive some people crazy... which I don't know why since I'm not bothering them any. :/

2. When we have company over, I have little cleaning spurts, and sometimes I don't even realize it. Someone will be talking, and I'll grab Clorox wipes and clean the counter-tops that are already clean, and they'll ask me what I'm doing. Er... cleaning? 

3. To some, I get my left and right mixed up. But to me, it makes sense. When someone says, "It's on the left" I question which left because I tend to look at something like I'm actually in it, so it seems backwards to others. Confused? 

4. Certain words come out odd sounding.... coffee, car, are, ground, etc. Like my R's are borderline pirate without the long drug out version of the R. Does that make sense? Probably not. *sigh* I get made fun of for my weird sounding words. :D 

5. I'm late, no matter how much I plan ahead. I know it's rude and believe me, I TRY to be on time, but gosh darnit, I have to round up four boys and my hubby, so I think I have somewhat of a pass, right?

What are some of your quirks that drive people batty?

Express Yourself - Inspirational quotes

This week's Express Yourself.....

What are a few inspirational quotes you'd like to pass to others?

Here are some favorites of mine I'd like to share...

I have spread my dreams beneath your feet. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. 
- W.B Yeats

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa a lion wakes up. It know it must run faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve. It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up you'd better be running.
- Christopher McDougall

Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
-E.L. Doctorow

It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.
- William Faulkner

You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
- Wayne Grestky

You should never be ashamed of your struggle because you standing here is a sign of victory.
- Christopher Toler

Each of us requires a spur of insecurity to force us to do our best. 
- Harold W. Dodds

What are some quotes that inspire you and keep you motivated?

Express Yourself - Pic of work/writing area

It's Express Yourself time!

This week's subject... 
post a pic of your work area, writing, cubicle, craft, etc. Then explain what it is that you do.







Besides writing and raising four sons with my hubby, I also work in the family business. 
No, it's not the mob, and we don't go around "offing" people. O_o 
I work at a floral shop. :)

This is my work area. It might not look like it, but out of those who work here, I'm notoriously clean. I do not like to have a messy place to work at. The others will be standing on piles of stems, petals, and greenery while I try to get my mess into the trashcan.

Designing flower arrangements isn't all that's required of me. Other things I do on a daily basis at the flower shop:  
customer service, process flowers, counsel grieving families, shoulder to cry on for said family, advice giver, poet (when someone wants a creative message on their card), computer work, window display designer, detective (when someone doesn't give a correct address or doesn't know where a funeral is located, etc.) and a keeper of secrets. You'd be surprised at the things people confess, but I've been sworn to secrecy. :D

The next photo shows one of the places I write.

I use two laptops. One for research, emails, and blogging while the other I save for actual writing and beta stuff.

On the pink laptop, my youngest put a Toy Story sticker on it for me. He "sticker-fies" everything. :) I heart my sweet boy!
Oh, and my favorite coffee mug is on the table, too... Grumpy. 


Where do you work and/or write at? 

As always, happy writing!

Express Yourself Meme - Playlist Week

Express Yourself Meme - It's Playlist Week. Dani and I look forward to seeing your playlists... whether you're a writer and have one for your WIP/MS or if you're a non-writer, but would like to share songs that describe your life. Whatever the case, we want to listen and/or read about you!

So....what would your playlist sound like?

I have about a dozen songs on my playlist for my current MS, Wishful Thinking. I don't always listen to this when I'm writing. This is more of what would describe my book. A lot of times, I write at night when everyone is asleep. Other times, I write with chaos all around me. So I can listen to music or not when I write, but when I do listen, I usually choose this MS's playlist.

I’ll be sharing three songs from that list, and will talk more about my MS on Wednesday for IWSG, but for now I’ll say that it's a YA fantasy with romantic elements. Kara is my main girl and Jagger is my main guy. (And if you've been following my blog, you already KNOW that Maroon 5 songs will be on this playlist. :D )

***Woman by Maroon 5*** 

This song is two-fold. Not only does it describe Jagger's feelings for Kara, but also, it explains that she's something "different"... Jagger is the first to discover it.

Woman - Maroon 5

If I'd be so inclined to climb up beside you Would you tell me that the time just isn't right  And if I ever find the key you hide so well  Will you tell me that I can spend the night  Leaving your smell on my coat  Leaving your taste on my shoulder  I still fail to understand  What it is about this woman  If I could bottle up the chills that you give me  I would keep them in a jar next to my bed  And if I should ever draw a picture of a woman  It is you that would come flowing from my pen  Leaving your clothes on the floor  Making me walk out the door  And I still fail to understand   What it is about this woman  Helplessly melting As I stand next to the sun  And as she burns me I am screaming out for more  Drink every drop of liquid In the heat that I've become  Pop me open, spill me out onto the floor  Leaving your smell on my coat  Leaving your taste on my shoulder  I still fail to understand, fail to understand What it is about this woman

***Sad by Maroon 5***   This describes Kara's feelings for Jagger. She pushes him away for all the wrong--and right--reasons.

***You Give Me Something by James Morrison***

This song fits Kara and Jagger's relationship perfectly.

 

You Give Me Something - James Morrison

You won’t stay with me in the morning

You only hold me when I sleep

I was meant to tread the water

Now I've gotten in too deep

For every piece of me that wants you

Another piece backs away 'Cause you give me something

That makes me scared, all right

This could be nothing

But I'm willing to give it a try

Please give me something

'Cause someday I might know my heart You only waited up for hours

Just to spend a little time alone with me

And I can say I've never bought you flowers

I can't work out what they mean

I never thought that I'd love someone

That was someone elses dream 'Cause you give me something

That makes me scared, all right

This could be nothing

But I'm willing to give it a try

Please give me something

'Cause someday I might call you from my heart But it might be a second too late

And the words that I could never say

Gonna come out anyway 'Cause you give me something

That makes me scared, all right

This could be nothing

But I'm willing to give it a try

Please give me something ‘Cause someday I might know my heart.

What are your songs for your WIP OR MS? Not a writer? How about a few songs that you can pertain to your life in general? We want to learn more about you! So share away.

Spooktoberfest Winner and Runner-ups!

You all made it so hard to choose a winner for Spooktoberfest! Now I know how Adam Levine feels on The Voice... trying to choose between all of those amazing people. That's how I felt after I read and reread over these entries.
Dani and I enjoyed hosting this blogfest. Some pieces made us laugh. Others had us scared out of our minds. And a few brought a chilling tear to our eyes.
That's great writing, folks. Thank you for participating and for sharing your talent with us. We're honored beyond belief.

My choice for Spooktoberfest Winner:

Crocked by Some Dark Romantic - Mina Lobo. 

You can read her amazing entry HERE.

Congrats, Mina! I will contact you soon about getting your prize to you!

My choice for Spooktoberfest Runner-ups:

*Carving by Writing Off the Edge - L.G. Keltner 

*Randomness by The Growing Writer by Von L. Cid. 

You can read their chilling entries HERE and HERE.


Winner and runner-ups, please feel free to put the above badges on your blog if you want to... or not. The choice is yours. :D

You can view Dani's selections HERE.

Again, thank you all for participating and sharing your stories with us. 
Dani and I hope you had fun! We sure did! 

Until next time... happy writing!

Halloween Hop!

Jeremy Bates is hosting the Halloween Bloghop. Name your favorite monster movie or book and your Halloween costume. Then hop around to other participating blogs to see their choices, too!

I'm not dressing up this year, but my lovely sons came up with a cool idea so maybe we'll do it next year. Their idea... the six of us would be The Avengers. They said my hubby and I would be Hawkeye and Black Widow (I wish I could look like that! LOL.) Then from oldest to youngest, our sons would be Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, and The Hulk. (Yeah, my 6 yr old would be the biggest superhero in this brood even though he's the youngest. :D )

Favorite monster movie: that's a tough one because I love horror movies. I have a list a mile long, but for this, I'll choose something with zombies... Dawn of the Dead, the remake.
Favorite monster book would be Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire.
Visit other bloggers in this blogfest HERE.

And make sure to stop by tomorrow to see the winners for Spooktoberfest!!!

Express Yourself Meme - 5 movies/books that terrify you

It's time for the Express Yourself Weekly Meme. (Co-hosted by Dani and me.)
Click on the picture below or in the tab bar for deets on our meme.

Week #2 (Oct 8-12) - List 5 movies/books that makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck.

I’ll admit, I watched the below movies mostly through my fingers, and yes. I even read parts of the book I list below through my fingers as well.

See, I have this theory. If I put my hand in front of my face and peek at the movie/book through my fingers, then it won't be as bad as watching/reading it head on.

Does it help? Not really, but hello? These movies/books are so scary, I can’t help it, but I like horror movies all the same. Yeah, I'm weird.

5. The Fourth Kind (movie 2009) … To quote Abbey Tyler, who the movie is centered around: “An encounter in the first kind, that's when you see a UFO. The second kind is when you see evidence of it: crop circles, radiation. The third kind is when you make contact. But the fourth kind, there's nothing more frightening than the fourth. You see, that one is when they abduct you.” 

This film is based on case studies, and they have actual footage tossed in this movie that makes my skin crawl. I mean, did aliens really take these people or is it all a big hoax? I don’t know, but it had me clutching my blanket for dear life.

4. Wrong Turn (movie 2003) – Six people find themselves being hunted by these gross cannibalistic men who live in the mountains. They are disfigured through generations of in-breeding. Seriously. Dis-turb-ing.

3. Seed (book by Ania Ahlborn 2012) – I received this as an ARC. This book is so creepy good, but I can’t even finish it yet. Yes, it’s that scary. I’m thinking it’s about a demonic presence, but I’m not entirely sure since I still have a ways to go. I’ll try not to give away too much, but there’s one part where someone is wrestling around under a sheet, but then there’s nothing there. **shivers** The way the author describes it is amazing. Now, that’s great writing!

2. Paranormal Activity movies 1, 2, 3 (and 4 is coming out soon) – so these are about families living their lives, la-de-da-life-is-great, then bam! A demonic presence haunts them in their homes. All the movies intersect with one another in some way, so it’s really cool in that aspect, but downright terrifying!

1. Jeepers Creepers (movie 2001). Teens drive home from college and encounter a creepy creature that drives an even creepier truck. *honk-honk-honkkkkk* This creature takes from people what it's lacking. It's super scary! And this thing is nasty! 

So, there's my list! What movies/books creep you out?

Want to join in on the fun? Post your list on your blog, then come back and sign up in the weekly meme linky with the link to your post so we can hop around and see your list of movies/books that scare you.

Express Yourself Weekly Meme

I’ve been wanting to do a meme for a while now, to discipline myself into blogging more, to stay connected with blogging buddies, and meet some new ones along the way. I asked Dani from Entertaining Interests if she’d like to join me in hosting, and she was all for it!

Express Yourself is a weekly meme beginning TODAY (Monday - October 1, 2012.) Its goal is to help our fellow bloggers get to know one another better, to help motivate one another, laugh (or cry) together, in other words – stalk.

What makes you tick? What inspires you to write? How’s the outside world influencing you? Whether it be a quote, a list of favorite things/people, a question, a song, etc., each Monday, we’ll find something different to post about. It will correlate with writing, blogging, and life in general. Then, we hope, you’ll follow suit and post, too.

At the beginning of every month, Dani and I will post a Gadget with a list of that month’s weekly Monday posts so you’ll be informed in advanced. 

We know most of you are busy when Monday rolls around or maybe you don’t post on Mondays at all. Don’t fret, we understand. That’s why you have the rest of the week to post. Just comment in one of our posts so we know to check out your awesome blog.

The Express Yourself Gadget for October is...

Again, you don't have to post on Monday. Anytime during the week is great. Whatever works for you.
And yep, we have two Express Yourself banners for you to choose from (above) because we loved both and couldn’t decide which one to use, so we leave it up to you.

Linky code

AND NOW FOR THE FIRST EXPRESS YOURSELF POST!!!

Pick a name in one of your WIP's... what was your process of acquiring it?

My currrent WIP is titled Wishful Thinking. I'm not ready to go in to detail about the plot, but it has dual POV's... Kara & Jagger.
If you visit my blog, you already know my all time favorite band is Maroon 5, so it would make total sense that my characters would involve them somehow, right?
Kara - my female MC is named after Kara’s Flowers, Maroon 5’s original name.
Jagger - my male MC is named for M5’s song, Moves Like Jagger.

We hope you'll join in on the meme so we can learn more about you through this process! 

As always, Happy Writing!!!

K is for Killer Whale

Since G was dedicated to great white shark, I thought it'd be appropriate to make K for killer whales.

                                                           

Also referred to as Orca, the Killer Whale, is considered one of the worlds most powerful predators. The name "Killer Whale" isn't derived from killing humans. Instead, it stems from the orca killing other whales.

                                                                      

These mammals are carnivores and hunt in deadly pods that use effective hunting techniques parallel to wolf packs. They use sound to communicate within their pod.  In my opinion, it would seem, the orcas living in the wild in the pods is key to their survival, not just physically, but mentally, too.

                                                     

Unlike great white sharks, killer whales are extremely protective of their young. In fact, other female adolescent whales assist the mother in taking care of her young. Mothers give birth every 3 to 10 years after a 17-month pregnancy. Holy cow! That's a LONG time to be preggers.

                                                                 

Killer whales breathe through a single blowhole on top of their head and hold their breath under water. The average orca eats 500 pounds of food a day and have up to 45 teeth, shaped for ripping bigger prey while they usually swallow smaller prey whole. Talk about a belly ache!

                                                               

Technically, killer whales are considered dolphins. They can grow up to 30 feet in length and weigh six to eight tons. Their size can be compared to a bus. In the wild, the average life span ranges 50 to 60 years for males and up to 90 years for females.

                                                                        



You can check out other blogs participating in the A to Z Challenge here.

J is for Johnny Depp

I first saw Johnny Depp in A Nightmare on Elm Street, and thought, he's cute. But when I watched him every week on the TV show 21 Jump Street, I was hooked. This dude can act. He's played so many diverse roles, which makes him versatile, but I think my favorite roles are those that let his quirky side shine through.

John Christopher Depp II was born on June 9, 1963 in Kentucky.

.
As a teenager, he played guitar in a band called The Kids and opened for Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, Pretenders, and Ramones.

          Three of his biggest fears: clowns, ghosts, and spiders.

         In 1999, Johnny modeled for H&M in an ad campaign.

                                                   
Johnny has a beautiful soul. He donated the money he earned for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus to Matilda, the daughter of his late co-star, Heath Ledger.

He also has a patch of water on his private island in the Bahamas that he named "Heath's Place" in honor of his friend.

                                               

Some of his memorable roles to me:

Edward Scissorhands
What's Eating Gilbert Grape
Benny & Joon
Sleepy Hollow
Blow
Alice in Wonderland
Corpse Bride
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

and as Captain Jack Sparrow in all the Pirates of the Caribbean 

Are you a fan of Johnny Depp? Do you have a favorite movie of his?

You can check out other blogs in the A to Z Blogging Challenge by clicking here.

I is for Iris

                                      Iris can pertain to a handful of things.

IRIS - EYE

It rests behind the cornea and is the muscular diaphragm that controls the size of the pupil. It forms the colored portion of the eye. Tiny muscles in the iris allow it to dilate and contract the pupil size. This action regulates the amount of light that enters the eye.

Image credit: ygraph.com

IRIS - FLOWER

         It's the state flower of Tennessee. Meanings of this flower include faith, hope, and wisdom.

Its name derives from the Greek word for "rainbow."

                      IRIS - GREEK GODDESS

Greek Goddess Iris, the messenger of the gods and the personification of the rainbow, acted as the link between heaven and earth.

image credit: goddessgift.net

IRIS - SONG BY GOO GOO DOLLS

Lyrics for IRIS

And I'd give up forever to touch you
'Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now

And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
'Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight

And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything feels like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive

And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

                                   Check out other awesome blogs at A to Z challenge.