SURPRISE!!! A SECOND SWAP AS WELL!

"WHAT," you ask, "another swap????" YES! I'm on a roll, aren't I? Truthfully, BOTH these swap ideas have been running rampant in my round head (say THAT 10 times in a row!) and I figured, "Why NOT! Two are better than one!" Sooooo ... drumroll, please ... let me introduce the SECOND swap I'll be hosting! It's VACATION IN A MATCHBOX! This is yet a second very easy swap and I am so eager to see the results! I will begin sign-ups June 1st and the cut off date will be June 20th. On the 25th, by 9 P.M., I will have assigned all partners. Here is how this one will work: Each person will take a bigger sized (as opposed to the tiny boxes) safety (aka kitchen) match box and decorate it to represent the city and/or state where you live! Inside the box, you'll include small items that your partner may have encountered on her 'visit' to your area! I think this can be REALLY creative and possibly a learning experience for those of us who aren't too rich (raising hand here) and aren't quite sure what things we'd see and visit in any given city or state. Have FUN with this one! REPRESENT your area! And though it isn't in ANY way required, feel free to include extras that DON'T fit in the confines of your matchbox. Your box should be mailed no later than July 25th so as to reach your partner by the 1st of August. I DOOOOO want a photo or photos of each swap box, inside and out! That way we can all get our drool buckets out as we view the lovely vacation boxes! I will not repeat the required info, so please see the post just prior to THIS one and that is what I will need from you. You DO need to email this SEPARATELY from the other swap's info. After all, I'm OLD and my brain is easily confused! LOL! Finally, there will be a twist in this swap. Once the swap is over and everyone has her vacation matchbox, I will show the photos of them all. By public vote from AUGUST 2 THROUGH AUGUST 5, I will have you view the photos and email me your favorite. The winner of the poll will receive a special prize! How's that? Okay - copy and paste my button - the second one - to YOUR blog and sign up! (Did you do it yet? Didja, didja?)    

FABULOUS PETITE PAPER FAIRY SWAP

I have been wanting to host a swap for a while. It's been a long time since I did, and I say it's about time! So, let me invite you lovely bloggers to take part in my FABULOUS PETITE PAPER FAIRY SWAP! It's EXACTLY as it sounds! Swappers will be assigned a partner for whom they create a sweet fairy from paper goods! Your fairy will be presented in some sort of setting or container. What do I mean? Well, if we were doing a cat swap, we may send our lil' feline asleep on a rag rug or curled up in a basket. Your fairy doesn't HAVE to be attached TO the container/setting, but she CAN be. Make her in whatever style you choose, but please keep her no bigger than 4 to 6 inches. I will take sign-ups from now until the 6th of June so DOOOOO hurry and sign up because I think we'll have a fun time with this. It's an easy-peasy swap; just right for hot summer afternoons. I will assign partners by 9 P.M. on June 7th, the day after sign-ups end. And you should mail your completed fairy no later than June 30th so that they will be in your partner's hand by the 7th of July. Before you send your fairy out, please remember to take a picture to send me so we can ALL oooooh and ahhhhhh over each darling papery sweety! If you are interested, please email me at kola54@sbcglobal.net with the following information:
Your name: (Duh, right?) 
Your email:
Your BLOG addy if you have one:
Your mailing address (VERY important because paper fairies get LOST without those!):
In addition, please let me know these two things:
Will you be willing to have an international partner?:
Are you allergic to either smoke, colognes, or animals? (Or smoky animal colognes - BWAHAHAHA!):
No really stringent 'rules' here.  I ask only that you try to be a good swapper and stick closely to the mailing date cited! As for sending your partner extras - they are SUPER but not required! I will leave THAT up to each swapper!
 I TRULY look forward to hosting this swap and would be thrilled to see some (or ALL) of you ON THE LIST!
Please, if you DO join, be certain to add my button (see side bar) about the swap to YOUR blog! I'll be looking for YOUR email!

   

RAY MAKES HIS VERY, VERY 'DIZZYING' DEBUT IN MOVIEMAKING!

Ray - my housemate - is branching out. He took his little camera outside this morning and made a video of the garden. Mind you, he didn't stand still and show you the VEGGIES - just the outsides of the plants. LOL! Nor did he skip over the plants which have yellowed somewhat during this extreme drought we're in DESPITE how much water and love he's bestowed upon them. But, considering the fact that he is EXTREMELY shy about talking on a recorder and has NEVER tried to make a video, I think he did okay. So I'm sharing his lil' endeavor. And later - if I can tolerate this 98 degree heat (don't hold your collective breath - hahahaha) I'll go out there and show you the multitude of squash, tomatoes, and chilis growing. It really IS amazing under these hot, dry circumstances that he has grown anything! Click on the link (it's waaaay down there) to see his garden tour, but don't EAT anything before you do because it's going to make you DIZZY!  





Note: He said we have '5 tomato plants with 50 tomato plants'. He MEANT 50 tomatoes. I have a freezer FULL of sugar snap peas which are now 'finished' growing and have been removed from the garden, and I already have 4 bags of hot peppers, 3 of bell peppers, some dried dill and cilantro, and a TON of ginger, the only thing I planted. Okay, so I'm NOT an outdoor kinda gal.   






http://youtu.be/sgg0RwVGZn0

IT'S NOT REALLY GOODBYE

Twenty-five years ago I was only 35 years old. Gosh. THIRTY-FIVE? I hadn't really thought about that until I watched Oprah's final show today. I have a confession. With the exception of the shows I missed during Hurricane Ike in September of 2008 (all of which I later saw in reruns) I have watched ALL of Oprah's shows. Yep. Every single ONE of them. Sometimes I've had to tape them and watch them later in the evening or the next day or, now and then, two WEEKS later. But I've watched her. And HEARD her. And learned from her. And - I readily confess - I've loved her like a dear friend. Oprah Winfrey may not be everyone's cup of tea, so to speak. But to me, she is EXACTLY what the words to her very first theme song called her ... EVERY WOMAN. I'm truly going to miss her show. Yet I won't miss OPRAH. How can I say that? Because she's taught me so many things about the world, about human nature, about myself. I will carry every bit of that with me. I'll wear little pieces of Oprah. I find myself using her catch phrases as well as the catch phrases of her guests. Maya Angelou's, "If someone TELLS you who they are, BELIEVE them." Author Wally Lamb's, "This is what I know for sure." Dr. Phil's, "How's that working for you?" I'm feeling so grateful right now for having been exposed to Oprah Winfrey, for being priviledged enough to witness her growth as a human being over 25 years while I grew with her - and partially because of her. Regardless of what any individual may think of her, she HAS made an impact in this world. She's made a huge impact on this old Comanche. Thank you, Oprah. Really - THANK YOU.

THE BRIDE'S HOUSE

Oh, how I LOVE Sandra Dallas! Like my other top-favorite authors, she grabs the reader in the very first paragraph, and holds on tightly until the last word on the final page. I started the 'love affair' when - years ago - I read THE PERSIAN PICKLE CLUB. Since then, I've read every book she's ever written, and can NEVER stand to finish one because it means I have to wait until she writes another one. I can count on two hands the writers who affect me that way. You who know me, will likely recall that my all-time FAVORITE author is Lucia St. Clair Robson. Over the past  24 years, I've been transported not ONLY to the history my own PEOPLE actually lived (and introduced to the character for whom my grandfather named me) but to times and places I now feel I've actually visited. Lucia is a writer of FINE historical fiction, and her research is impeccable. Happily for me, in the past 7 years, Loosh and I have become friends. Even her mom - aka TOL for the old lady - LOL - has become my friend. What a treasured gift to genuinely LIKE your favorite author as a PERSON! Besides Loosh and Sarah (see the post re: THE PEACH KEEPER) and Sandra Dallas, there's Jerry Spinelli who wrote the amazing STARGIRL, Carol Plum Ucci who wrote WHAT HAPPENED TO LANI GARVER, and Ann Rinaldi who is a historical ficton writer but for young adults. (Don't let the genre labels dissuade you from reading things! PLEASE! You'll miss out on some WONDERFUL books if you do!) There are others I love - others I truly like! But these few always top my list. Now, returning to THE BRIDE'S HOUSE, I will allow the synopsis do the rest of the talking. I hope some of YOU will be intrigued enough to pick up a copy of this or ANY of Sandra's books. You won't regret it. I promise!  

Synopsis

From the New York Times bestselling author of Whiter Than Snow and Prayers for Sale comes a novel about the secrets and passions of three generations of women who have all lived in the same Victorian home called the Bride’s House.
It’s 1880, and for unassuming seventeen-year-old Nealie Bent, the Bride’s House is a fairy tale come to life. It seems as if it is being built precisely for her and Will Spaulding, the man she is convinced she will marry. But life doesn’t go according to plan, and Nealie finds herself in the Bride’s House pregnant—-and married to another.
For Pearl, growing up in the Bride’s House is akin to being raised in a mausoleum. Her father has fashioned the house into a shrine to the woman he loved, resisting all forms of change. When the enterprising young Frank Curry comes along and asks for Pearl’s hand in marriage, her father sabotages the union. But he underestimates the lengths to which the women in the Bride’s House will go for love.
Susan is the latest in the line of strong and willful women in the Bride’s House. She’s proud of the women who came before her, but the Bride’s House hides secrets that will force her to question what she wants and who she loves.
Sandra Dallas has once again written a novel rich in storytelling and history, peopled by living, breathing characters that will grab hold of you and not let you go.

BLOGGER IS LOSING ITS MIND ... OH! AND, BY THE WAY, I'M HOME! LOL!

Helloooooo! I've missed all of you so much! And though I've actually been home for a couple of days, until NOW Blogger was TOTALLY not allowing me to sign in, post an entry to MY blog, or comment on YOUR blogs (except anonymously.) And NOW it won't allow me to comment on your blogs at all. GRRRRR! But I AM reading them! I PROMISE. I'll keep trying, okay? These past days - in fact, all of April and May - have been BEYOND stressful. I always thought when I DID get to see my beautiful, wonderful best friend again, it would be all fun and laughter. I had no idea her sweet hubby would be so very ill. I know the NEXT trip will be the one I truly don't want to face. But enough of my droopy stuff! While I was away, I DID do a bit of crocheting. I made this little sheep girl (I named her Sidni in honor of Sid, my best friend's hubby/my play-brother.) She will live on my little unused bed. (I sleep in my wicker rocker - lying down hurts.) Now I'm waiting to see who my swap partner for the bug swap will be so I can get busy on that! I want to apologize HERE for any birthdays I've missed these past 2 months. I'll do my best to make up for it at some point! My brain is working at half capacity now. (Uhhhh ... I HEARD that comment about how it's ALWAYS working at half capacity! LOL!) Anyway, I'll keep reading blogs and attempting to comment, and I'll post as often as I can. Also will email those of you I regularly email ASAP. Later I have another WONDERFUL book to blog! Don't forget - if you are interested in owning THE PEACH KEEPER, go read my post about it a little way back and let me know you want it so I can put your name in the drawing. HUGS TO EVERYONE! 

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

Well, it seems as though this old homebody has been AWAY from home an awful LOT lately. I was away MOST of April, and now I'll be leaving tomorrow for a MINIMUM of THREE days, and a maximum of 8. But I wanted to say that while I MAY be able to check blogs once or twice from my best friend's computer, I doubt I'll get a chance to comment much, and surely not to email. I'll be bugging you poor lil' things again soon, though, so don't write me off! And with THAT, I say:

                                          So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night!

                                                I hate to go and leave this pretty sight!

                  Good night! Good night! Good NIGHT!!!!!! 

MAGIC!

I can't tell you how long it's been since I picked up a book and read it straight through. Last night, that happened for the first time in AGES. I am still floating from the awesomeness! (Okay, fine! So it's NOT a word. LOL!) The book? THE PEACH KEEPER. The author? Sarah Addison Allen. I have read her previous three books, and EACH was a read-straight-through experience. Have YOU read them? THE GIRL WHO CHASED THE MOON. GARDEN SPELLS. THE SUGAR QUEEN. Sarah is a young writer. She lives in Asheville, NC where my beloved Comanche grandparents once lived. And - SHE! CAN! SERIOUSLY! WRITE!!!!! This book, like her others, left me feeling as though I had a spell cast over me the instant I picked it up. And, strangely enough, ALL her books have threads of magic woven through them. There's always some sort of 'mystery'-but-not-REALLY-a-mystery' in her novels. There's romance but NOT mushy-gushy boy-meets-girl-but-who-cares kinda romance. And she KNOWS how to grab a reader within seconds. THAT is the mark of a gifted writer. I ADORE Sarah's writing! And THE PEACH KEEPER is an absolutely stunning read! For the just under two hours it took me to read those 273 pages, I was in a different world - SARAH'S world - and I never wanted to leave. Below is the Publisher's Weekly synopsis and the cover picture. I HOPE some of you will go out & buy THE PEACH KEEPER! But beware: If you DO, I assure you, you will HAVE to buy her other books. As for MY copy, I am going to do a giveaway in honor of the magic of reading and the power of books! All you have to do is leave a comment telling me you're interested, and making certain I know how to contact you. If you are a blogger, too, and you KNOW I have your email addy, that's
 cool. I will draw a name on May 31st and notify the winner June 1st. Then I will MAIL it via UPS on the day (prior to June 25th) when I mail my bug swap to my partner. I know it's over a month, but I go to UPS only once a month and I've already BEEN this month. I hope you read this book, either by winning my drawing OR by buying the book. It's 100% magic, I PROMISE YOU!   

Synopsis


The New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Chased the Moon welcomes you to her newest locale: Walls of Water, North Carolina, where the secrets are thicker than the fog from the town’s famous waterfalls, and the stuff of superstition is just as real as you want it to be.

It’s the dubious distinction of thirty-year-old Willa Jackson to hail from a fine old Southern family of means that met with financial ruin generations ago. The Blue Ridge Madam—built by Willa’s great-great-grandfather during Walls of Water’s heyday, and once the town’s grandest home—has stood for years as a lonely monument to misfortune and scandal. And Willa herself has long strived to build a life beyond the brooding Jackson family shadow. No easy task in a town shaped by years of tradition and the well-marked boundaries of the haves and have-nots.

But Willa has lately learned that an old classmate—socialite do-gooder Paxton Osgood—of the very prominent Osgood family, has restored the Blue Ridge Madam to her former glory, with plans to open a top-flight inn. Maybe, at last, the troubled past can be laid to rest while something new and wonderful rises from its ashes. But what rises instead is a skeleton, found buried beneath the property’s lone peach tree, and certain to drag up dire consequences along with it.

For the bones—those of charismatic traveling salesman Tucker Devlin, who worked his dark charms on Walls of Water seventy-five years ago—are not all that lay hidden out of sight and mind. Long-kept secrets surrounding the troubling remains have also come to light, seemingly heralded by a spate of sudden strange occurrences throughout the town.

Now, thrust together in an unlikely friendship, united by a full-blooded mystery, Willa and Paxton must confront the dangerous passions and tragic betrayals that once bound their families—and uncover truths of the long-dead that have transcended time and defied the grave to touch the hearts and souls of the living.

Resonant with insight into the deep and lasting power of friendship, love, and tradition, The Peach Keeper is a portrait of the unshakable bonds that—in good times and bad, from one generation to the next—endure forever.

Publishers Weekly

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

Just popping in to tell all of you lovely sweeties who are mommies to have THE BEST MOTHER'S DAY EVER!!! You all DESERVE to be petted, pampered, and loved to pieces! A million hugs to you!