Ebook of Stronger & signed bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Amanda Edmunds Ebook of Prayer for the Dead by Nicki Scalise Winner: Crissy Sutcliffe Ebook of Peregrine and signed bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Cathy Jackson Ebook of The Blueblood Legacies - Draw of the Bane by Amy Bol Winner: Vanessa Strickler Ebook of Stronger (substituted Breathless) & bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Amanda Edmunds Ebook of Rising Dawn by E.I Jennings Winner: April Kirkland Ebook of Illicit and bookmark from BeBe Lennox Winner: Ann Waters Ebook of Breathless & signed bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Kylie Gilmore Guest Host: Stephanie SummersEbook of Craving by Stephanie Summers Winner: Amanda Edmunds Autographed Copy of Craving by Stephanie Summers Winner: Deborah Bean Ebook of The Bluebood Legacies - Draw of the Bane by Amy Bol Winner: Brenda Thompson Ebook of Stronger & signed bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Steph Destiny Guest Host: Tiffany FlowersEbook of Missing Pieces by Tiffany Flowers Winner: Vanessa Strickler Bookmarks from Tiffany Flowers Winners: Deborah Bean, Carol Ray, Cassie Cass & Amanda Leigh Martin, Kristin Phillips Delcambre Ebook of Stronger & bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Vanessa Strickler Ebook of Prayer for the Dead by Nicki Scalise Winner: Deborah Bean Guest Host: Michelle RabeEbook of Stronger & bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Amy Smith Bostelman Ebook of Cast in Blood by Michelle Rabe Winner: Vanessa Strickler Bookmark from Becki Brannen (and choice of ebook) Winner: Jessica Bush Guest Host: Candice SimpsonIT Girls PR Prize Pack Winner: Angel Zudell IT Girls PR Prize Pack & Author Prize Pack Winner: Rebecca Johnson Dye IT Girls PR Prize Pack & Author Prize Pack Winner: Deborah Bean & Kim Culbertson IT Girls PR Prize Pack & Author Prize Pack Winner: Michelle Rabe Ebook of Stronger & Bookmark from Becki Brannen Winner: Brenda Thompson Most Invited Guests |
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Now for a little bit about me!
Goodness, what am I NOT working on right now? I have five books rattling around this brain of mine, but my current WIP is Stronger. This is the story of Hayley Cross, who has decided she’s not going down without a fight. Wes Thornton was the heartthrob in high school, and is now the trainer at the local gym. Can he help save Hayley, or is it already too late?
How does your work differ from others in its genre?
I don’t know that I fit perfectly within a single genre, really. Sure, my work is romance, but it’s got a hint of chick lit (I’d like to think I’m funny), and I try to incorporate my faith into my novels. The characters aren’t totally innocent, and often struggle with their faith, but I think that is a realistic portrayal of many Christians today.
Why do I write what I do?
I can’t imagine not writing, so that’s the first thing. As for the type of writing, I’d say I wanted to write books I would want to read, and I’m glad there are others out there who enjoy my books also. I don’t write anything too naughty, as I want my books to be something I can tell my dad I wrote and still be able to look him in the eye!
How does your writing process work?
Ooh, tough one! Start off strong, procrastinate, and then push it through by some super-tight self-imposed deadline. I write late at night, usually, when the house is quiet (or hubby is playing Call of Duty).
To finish up this post, I would like to pass the baton to three very talented authors…
Heather Huffman calls the beautiful Missouri Ozarks home. When not writing, this homesteading mother is busy raising three boys or tending the family’s myriad of animals, which includes alpacas, goats, chickens and ducks. Huffman’s optimistic and somewhat quirky view of life often finds its way into her novels. Heather is the author of Throwaway, Ties that Bind, Jailbird, Suddenly a Spy, Ring of Fire, Tumbleweed, Devil in Disguise, Roses in Ecuador, Fool’s Game, and Waiting for You. You can find out more about her family’s adventures as they strive to live off the land, as well as her writing and charitable work on http://www.heatherhuffman.net | Social Media: |
Candice Simpson is a mother to three bountiful boys, a guardian to her developmentally challenged brother, a wife, a personal assistant, an Autism/Fragile X advocate, a PR Manager, new business co-owner, and loves to write life stories! Candice has been writing since her elementary years and her teachers always encouraged her to express her creativity. She found great pleasure in writing during her Creative Writing classes in high school and often made her college professors laugh and cry through her papers. Candice greatly enjoys writing true stories, criminal happenings, and has even ventured-and published some romantic tales. ;-) Candice is presently working on a couple of projects in her very limited spare time. One of them is the story of her mother’s death - Murder by the Hands of a Stranger She Loved, and her personal story of a cat-fished love story gone right- Dreams May Fall. You can find Candice online in several social circles, and she greatly looks forward to getting to know you and your work as well! Social Media: |
I'm always torn when I'm in there. I love feeling the water massage my aching shoulder, my tired back, my weary legs. I also just want to go sit down and finally eat, sometimes at 9 p.m. or later.
What I end up with is some annoying hybrid, neither long enough to truly work out the kinks in my muscles, nor short enough to satisfy my need to just go sit down. I'd take a bath and solve the internal debate, but I know for a fact I'd fall asleep, only to be woken up an hour later, starving, cold and pruny.
So where do you stand? Short and sweet or long and relaxing?
Mondays are for the birds... evil, hateful birds.
And then it went to heck. But I won't get into that. ;)
He cooked our (frozen) green beans (we had fresh, go figure!) while I pouted for a bit, and then when I got over my pity, party of one, I decided to do something with the chicken. If I'm staying home, I'm gonna do something pretty awesome with it.
Enter the weirdly spiced chicken. It was AMAZING. I can't tell you why it worked, only that it did. Oh, and pecans in your green beans is pretty tasty. I'm just sayin'.
I also managed to exercise, after talking with a friend. Like he said, you can't NOT train. It's not an option. No clue what I'm training for, now that Stronger is winding down, but okay, I can't feel much worse, right?
I did 1.3 miles on the elliptical (just under 6 minutes), followed awhile later by 10 push-ups, 30 sit-ups, 30 squats and a minute plank. Work out - done. Not as much as if I'd gone to the gym, but I didn't sit around in my pity party. Yay me.
So my evening of feeling unmotivated and pitiful ended in sweat and a happy tummy. Pretty good night, if I do say so myself.
Recipe
Ingredients:
1 lb Chicken, pre-cooked leftovers or rotisserie, seasoned with salt and pepper
Coconut milk - about a cup, cup and a half
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Red pepper
Salt
Cajun seasoning
Cilantro - either fresh or the stuff in the tube (I used tube)
Directions:
In a large skillet over medium heat, pour just enough coconut milk to cover bottom with about 1/2 inch of milk. Sprinkle a light layer of garlic, onion, pepper, salt and cajun seasoning. (Go lighter on the pepper and cajun seasoning until you taste it, especially if you're not into hot food!) I like mine spicy, so I did extra of both.
Add strips of chicken and cilantro. I added about a 1/2 tsp of cilantro paste.
Cook over medium heat until liquid is mostly evaporated. This will integrate the flavors into the chicken and leave it tender and moist. YUM!
Whole 30 - Week One Wrap-Up
Nope! Still at it. Okay, so today is day 5, and technically a full week hasn't passed, but as it's the end of the work-week, I'm calling this week dunzo. We've shopped midweek. We've made do. I've even been out to eat with my dad. And still - we've done it!
So how does one eat out at a Mexican restaurant full of chips, tortillas, and that yummy, ooey gooey melted cheese? You order the chicken fajitas: no cheese, no sour cream, no rice, no tortillas, por favor y muchas gracias, senorita!
It was good! I realized that without all of the things I'm not supposed to have, I was still pretty hungry. After all my veggie portion was pretty lacking compared to what I eat for dinner at home, but I drank a lot of water to make up the difference. I said no to the sopapilla triangle offered to me. When I tried the salsa, I "drank" it off of a chip and then set the chip down. If you know me and chips, you'd know that's one of my favorite parts about Mexican food! Hate the bagged stuff from the store; love the stuff in the restaurant!
I ate my guacamole, even though it was far from fresh, and I even ate the beans. Okay, so legumes aren't allowed, but Whole 30 allows you to make the best of your situation, and it was a better choice than the rice. I considered it more of my fat for my meal than a veggie, and given my new outlook on food, I actually enjoyed refried beans for once in my life!
Monday I did kickboxing & learned that I'm going to need WAY more fuel on KB days! Burning 1600+ calories when you taken in less than 1200 is no bueno for energy, and you DEFINITELY need energy for that class! Wednesday I skipped class and went to the gun range, where I shot my first gun. It was AWESOME!! My hand is still bruised and sore two days later, but I want to go back as soon as possible! More research for Stronger, which is coming along nicely. Looks like it might very well be another novella, or perhaps just a short novel at 40k, but it will tell the story it needs to tell. No extra words just for the sake of word count here, folks! (I hate that, don't you?!)
If you're interested in Whole 30, I encourage everyone to try it. You can do ANYTHING for 30 days, right? Nothing is so difficult, or important to you food-wise that you can't give it up for 30 days. And just think, if it's not healthy, you might not even want to go back to it at the end! If you start while I'm still going, I'd love to be accountability partners. Everyone can use a person giving them the "YOU CAN DO IT!" speech once in awhile.
Tata for now!
Enter Whole 30. I shopped Saturday at Fresh Market (whoa, those prices! But - some were actually on par with Publix and Kroger - good to know!) and followed up at Kroger for some odds and ends we forgot. Sunday was prep day - I boiled eggs for salads, roasted veggies, cooked nitrate-free, organic, nearly fat-less turkey bacon that didn't remotely look like bacon, and made a beef curry.
So food today - breakfast was fruit (berries, yay!), carrots, olives and that turkey bacon. I was expecting dry, gross, tasteless stuff, but it was moist, yummy, and better than the real pork bacon. Don't tell anyone, but I'm a convert, at least bacon-wise.
Lunch today is going to be a salad with a homemade lemon balsamic vinaigrette. It is SO good. I tweaked a few recipes to make my own, and I'm pleased as punch at the result. (Recipe will be below) I'm also putting in some of those eggs, cucumbers, and the greens are baby bok choy leaves, organic green leafy lettuce and baby spinach.
Dinner tonight is that beef curry, and I'm going to make steamed broccoli to go with it. I can't tell you how excited I am for it! I tried it last night and it was AMAZING! (Again, recipe to follow!)
So this clean eating, tougher-than-Paleo Whole 30 thing is so far so good!
Recipes:
(makes approx 6 servings for a decent size salad)
Ingredients: 1/2 cup Balsamic vinegar 1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1/4 + 1/8 Lemon juice (fresh or bottled) (you can eyeball 1/2 of your 1/4 cup) 1 clove Garlic, minced (fresh or jar/squeeze) 1 tsp Fresh cracked pepper 1-2 tsp Salt (to taste) | Directions: Whisk together all ingredients until emulsified (thoroughly mixed). Check taste and adjust as desired. If separating into portion cups, immediately do so. Otherwise, cover tightly. Shake well before using. |
(makes approx 3-4 servings)
Ingredients: 2 tsp Coconut oil 1 lb Ground sirloin (or strips, if desired) 1/2 medium onion 1-2 tbsp hot madras curry powder 2 tsp salt (to taste) Fresh cracked pepper (to taste) 1 tsp garlic powder 1-2 cups coconut milk | Directions: Heat skillet over medium heat and add coconut oil. Add beef. I used ground sirloin, but any lean meat will do. Add onion and cook until brown. Add spices (curry powder, salt, pepper and garlic) and coconut milk. I used a fair amount of milk and allowed it to cook off, as I am not using rice. You can also use less milk for a stronger curry flavor, or not allow it to cook off by covering your dish while you simmer for approx. 5-10 minutes to incorporate flavors. By keeping more of the milk, you will have a sauce for use with rice. |
Night One- Friday, February 21
Winner: Laurie Mahoney
Winner: Kylie Gilmore
Winner: Candice Simpson
Winner: Tina Brimlow
Winner: Stella Melissa Johnson-Schwaab
Winner: Tina Brimlow
Winner: Laurie Mahoney
Winner: Carrie Fox
Winner: Holly Cooper
Winner: Helen Simpson
Winner: Brenda Thompson
Winner: Deborah Favorito
Night Two - Saturday, February 22
Winner: Tina Brimlow
Winner: Patricia Moran Arnold
Winner: Megan Jones
Winner: Megan Jones
Winner: Carrie Fox
Winner: Lee Ryder
Winner: Tina Brimlow
Winner: Kathy Viernes-Lacy
Winner April Kirkland
Winner: Lee Ryder
Winner: Amy Erstad
WInner: Kristin Marie
Winner: Brenda Thompson
Night Three - Sunday, February 23
Winner: Stella Michelle Johnson-Schwaab
Winner: Deb Liu
Winner: Amy Bowens
Winner: Michelle Dodd
Winner: Lee'Anne Hardin
Winner: Megan Jones
Winner: Carrie Fox
Winner: April Kirkland
Winner: Amy Erstad
Winner: Joyce Bennett Shaw
WInner: Sandra McElroy
Winner:
So...yeah. Three minutes in, I was ready to say, "Nope, I was wrong! I'm a quitter!" But I didn't. I ran two and a half of the three laps. "Fast" walked the rest of the third. Considering that's the farthest I've gone, not including my elliptical, since high school, I'm pretty darn proud of myself!
Then we climbed into the ring to exercise some more. Considering I couldn't feel my lower legs, I had to PICK UP MY LEGS and put them over the ropes. Yeah. It was THAT pathetic! But I did it. And the jumping jacks. And the crunches. And the arm twirlie things. And squats! OMG I can do squats! With my bad knees and everything!!! And I only though I was going to pass out maybe twice. YAY!
We exercised some more. I thought I'd die a few times. And then, just when I thought class was over and we weren't going to actually do any boxing, we did. Okay, cool. I can do this. Took some time getting the form down, but I didn't think I was slow just because I'm SO out of shape. Just a complete newbie who has no clue what she's doing. But we all start somewhere, right?
Learned a few things - Left hand is #1. Whoopsies! Borrowed gloves at the gym STINK like you wouldn't believe. Taking a break when others are trading off with their partners because you're teamed up with the trainer and she's taking it easy on you can actually get boring after you've used your inhaler for the thirtieth time. So you work on form a bit more.
After kickboxing, we did more exercising. I'm guessing that bit of hell was cool down?! They did sprints while I did jumping jacks. But hey, I can do jumping jacks! And jumping squats! Then we were supposed to do pushups. Umm, there is no amount of upper body strength that is going to get me off of the floor at this point!! So she let me do mountain climbers instead. I can do those! Wahoo!! (Note to self: Get a tight tank to wear underneath baggy shirt, so it won't come up when I do these...)
Then everyone climbed in the ring. I knew if I tried to go up those stairs, I'd fall off, so I stayed down with another girl. (Who, by the way, is 17 and can't plank for some reason.) So we danced. Like sweaty, badly-dancing morons. It was awesome!)
All in all, I survived!
Then for the ride home...
My shins cramped. I mean, what the WHAT?! Some ligament or something hitched up in there and I couldn't push my right foot down, which meant no braking. Get outta tha wayyyyyyyyy!!! Holy crow that was a nightmare trying to get home! I picked up dinner, got home, drank an entire bottle of coconut water for the potassium, hopped in the shower, ate my supper, talked to my mom until something in my neck cramped, and then went to bed. Oh, and I took some potassium and drank a bunch of water.
After my heartrate got back to normal about 5 hours after leaving class, I slept like a baby.
Woke up - no pain! Wahoo!!! Very tired muscles, though. Definitely couldn't do this every day!
Best part, dropped two solid pounds. Hate my friend who made me do this just a *little* less. But don't tell him. It's our little secret!
Umm, what?! I didn't get to go to Greece when I was writing Peregrine! So why do I have to experience THIS?! This isn't nearly as much fun as a vacation in lovely Santorini! (Seriously, check out Peregrine - available Friday, Feb 21st. Release party on my page Fri, Sat & Sun)
So Tuesday found me at Rush MMA talking to Bubby, the owner. Bubby, while very, very nice, agreed with Eric. That makes Bubby a very mean man.
Wednesday afternoon found me at Rush MMA again, talking to both Eric & Bubby, and watching Eric torture one girl in a personal training session and then a whole group of men and women. Even one of the guys looked ready to kill him.
And yet, I still followed Bubby to his office and filled out the forms, gave him my debit card info, and told him I'd be there... tonight.
Again, no one said I was smart. What I didn't count on was having mean friends. And yes, Eric, I'm looking at you! Not that I can complain to him, Oh, nooo...this is a guy who did the GoRuck Selection - 48 straight hours of kill-me-now torture.
If no one sees or hears from me tonight or tomorrow... talk to Eric & Bubby. Somewhere, you'll find my lifeless body, albeit in slightly better shape than it was this morning.
AuthorBecki Brannen is a thirty-something writer born and raised in the heart of Georgia. Her debut novel, Breathless, is the result of NaNoWriMo 2011, having been written in just twenty-nine days. Becki primarily writes "chick lit with a Christian twist," marrying one of her favorite genres with her Christian faith. Her life verses are Jeremiah 29:11 and Isaiah 41:10. Becki and her husband have twin daughters and a poodle, Sophie.
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