Please don't squeeze my wedding dress

Ann made this dress and won first place in a contest sponsored by cheap wedding dress .com. How cheap can it really have been, is my question. Every time I go to the store, I have sticker shock over the price of--toilet paper. Yes, she made this dress using toilet paper, tape and glue, as well as her origami skills. I guess it would come in hand for the mothers whose tears and noses flow freely at the ceremony. "Here, Mom, use my hem." Bad news if it rained that day, however. She did win $1,000 for her efforts. That will probably just about pay for the toilet paper.

Ma'am, There's a Squirrel in Your...ummm

Embedded video from CNN Video

America's Got Talent Amazing Highlight

America's Got Talent. If you don't watch the show, this is one you shouldn't miss. I couldn't post it here because it was disabled, but you can click on the link and watch it on Youtube.

Winner of Montana Rose Announced!

I really have to have Mary Connealy here more often! Holy cow - she said she didn't want to send people to my blog because they'd never come back to hers, but she has a treasure trove of followers. I've offered Mary my spare bedroom, thinking that might get me more fans.

The winner of Montana Rose is...STOP HOLDING YOUR BREATH!

Phyl

Yee haw! Congrats, Phyl!
Please send your address to Mary at imconnealy@nntc.net so she can get that book right out to you, you lucky dog. The rest of you, don't forget to run out and pick up a copy - or order it here:


Everyone reading this, please send Mary an email at that address and tell her to come back here real soon, will ya? Tell her Cheryl makes great scones and tea, and if she insists, she can bring a baby calf for company. I just painted the room...really, it's nice.

Oh, yeah, and my Mother's Day novella for next April is titled Montana Rose. Maybe they'll make my name really small so a billion readers will think Mary wrote it and buy it. (Actually that title won't make it to the cover, but I can sure make a suggestion to the marketing team.)

Flower Garden Photos

We've had several cool days and before that rain, so the flowers are lovely and lasting a while.




This bottom photo is my oriental daylily. Each bloom only lasts a day, two at the most, but while they're open, they're extraordinary.

LOVE THINE ENEMY, Louise Gouge

Love Thine Enemy
LIH July 2009
ISBN 978-0-373-82815-9
www.Louisemgouge.com


The tropics of colonial Florida are far removed from America’s Revolution. Still, Rachel Folger’s loyalties remain with Boston’s patriots. Handsome plantation owner Frederick Moberly’s faithfulness to the Crown is as certain as his admiration for Rachel—but for the sake of harmony, he’ll keep his sympathies hidden. After all, the war is too far distant to truly touch them...isn’t it?

A betrayal of Rachel’s trust divides the pair, leaving Frederick to question the true meaning of faith in God and in country. Inspired by Rachel to see life, liberty, and love through His eyes, Frederick must harness his faith and courage to claim the woman he loves before war tears them apart.

Mary Connealy: Montana Rose

Left pregnant and widowed in the unforgiving west, Cassie is forced into an unwanted marriage to rancher Red Dawson.

No decent man could turn away from Cassie and leave her to the rough men in Divide, Montana. Red Dawson does what he must, joining his life to a spoiled, snooty woman. Now he's got to keep her from killing herself with her efforts to be helpful, and prevent her attempts to be a good wife from leaving his ranch in ruins. And while Red struggles with his overly obedient but badly incompetent wife, an obsessed man plots to make Cassie his own, something he can't do as long as Red lives.

Montana Rose was actually inspired by Janette Oke's beautiful classic novel Love Comes Softly. Of course, me being me, my novel has taken an alarming turn to romantic comedy, suspense and mayhem.

I think of it as Love Comes Hardly.

Buy Montana Rose here


Or find it starting TODAY in a bookstore near you. And if it's NOT there, I give you permission to throw a fit, right there in the store. I've found holding my breath until I turn blue to be a remarkably effective tool for getting them to stock my books. I highly recommend it too you.

Mary's going to be sending an autographed copy of Montana Rose to one lucky reader, so leave a comment to be entered in the drawing!

Author Slideshow

Here are my friends and fellow authors in my local RWA chapter.

And here's a link to Heartland Writers Group's blog.

Petticoats and Pistols Drawing

Starting today and lasting throughout the week, the Fillies are posting excerpts on Petticoats and Pistols. Readers can guess which excerpt belongs to which author. The one who gets the most correct will receive a shower of books. How much fun is that?

Check it out every day and guess to win!

Bluetooth Anniversary

Next Wednesday is our anniversary, and I already got my gift. It's a cool one! Kristin is always Jay's cohort in gift selection and shopping. I got a Motorola Bluetooth to go with my still new Motorola Razorphone--it's tiny! It weighs 14 grams - how cool is that?

I tried it out last night and it's great. You can't feel it. When it beeps, you flip down the teensy microphone to answer. When the mic is folded up, it's conserving the battery. Also got a car charger.

Jay's getting several shummer shirts. Do you think I need to go shopping again? Wait, I'll make him strawberry shortcake.

Robots in Disguise

We went to see Transformers, Revenge of the Fallen tonight. With this type of movie I always have to work overtime at suspending disbelief, but I got into it. The names of the Transformers were familiar because we've read the books so many times. The action never stopped. There's humor and excellent cinemetography; the special effects are awesome, and the sound--wowza.

Elijah was in seventh heaven, of course. He's been looking forward to this release. He just got the poster today, and tomorrow it's getting framed and going up over his headboard in his freshly painted room.

Great action flick, but I was a little disappointed in blatant sexual references and the over-the-top sexy way the young women are portrayed. There is some offensive language, as well. The movie would have been as good or better without those factors. There were, of course, a lot of children in the theater.

I have a feeling it's a major movie weekend, so hang on for more.

And so it begins

I'm currently working on chapters to sell Elisabeth's story - the oldest daughter from The Preacher's Wife. It's so much fun! She wants a man just like dear old dad and Gabe Taggart is NOTHING like Sam.

heh heh heh

I've had SO much good mail from The Preacher's Wife--thank you, thank you! (I'm kind of surprised that there are only a couple of reviews or comments on the amazon page.) So it's exciting to be writing a sequel. So many readers want the story to continue--and it will. At left is Sam and Josie's house in COlorado--the house where Elisabeth still lives with her family when this story starts.

JULY ONLINE CLASS: KEEPING UP YOUR SPIRITS AFTER REJECTION

DATE: July 1 - 31
INSTRUCTOR: CHERYL ST.JOHN
COST: $25.
REGISTRATION VIA PAYPAL: http://cheryl-stjohn-workshop.blogspot.com
REGISTRATION OPEN IMMEDIATELY

INSTUCTOR BIO:
Cheryl St.John has been writing for as long as she can remember. Her first form rejection came at the age of fourteen when she sent a short story to Redbook Magazine. After several years and many more submissions, she graduated to rejections actually signed by editors and agents. She can, in fact, brag that the best agents and editors in the business have rejected her, though she’s always hoped they wouldn’t remember her name if she met them face to face today. Those first submissions are embarrassing to look back on, but all part of the learning process.

After finding a local RWA chapter and honing her craft for a number of years, she finally got the call in 1993. RAIN SHADOW was a 1995 RITA finalist, and won an RT Achievement Award. A writer of both historical and contemporary romances, Cheryl has written for Harlequin Historicals, Intimate Moments, Duets, Special Edition, as a regular contributor to the popular Montana Mavericks series, and is most recently writing for the Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical line.

ABOUT THE CLASS:
Many wrongly assume that an author with over thirty books under her belt no longer deals with rejection. Wrong. Her record, only a couple of years ago, was eight rejections in one twelve month period. Cheryl believes her sales are a percentage of the number of submissions. Rejections are frustrating, sometimes hurtful, occasionally learning tools, but always an accomplishment in themselves. How many aspiring writers do you know who have never submitted anything? Or have submitted the same manuscript so many times, there’s nowhere left to send it? Or who gave up after one or two rejections? If Cheryl had given up any one of the times she thought about it, she’d never have published that first book or all that followed. What she said to herself each time, was, “What if it’s the next one, but I give up?”

She understands your yearning to have someone tell you if you can do this—tell you so you can stop beating your head against a wall if it’s hopeless. There’s no prophetic genie that can do that, however. There’s only that drive on the inside of you, that hopeful spirit of tenacity that pushes you through the tough times. It has to come from inside, and you have to know that you know that if you quit today, you’ll never be the person you know you can be.

FORMAT:
The class will be conducted via subscription to a private yahoogroup. Two lessons per week, followed by questions and answers. Entire archived class will be available for one week after the ending date.

We’re always advised not to take rejection personally, but how do we do that when writing is so intensely personal? Cheryl will be sharing tips on how to react and what to do about those rejections. She’s looking forward to answering your questions about staying motivated.

Drawing Winners

I promised more drawings and said I'd keep drawing names from all your comments, so here goes.



This evening I drew two names - the readers I drew will each get one of the cups and saucers pictured here and an autographed copy of The Preacher's Wife. If you already have The Preacher's Wife, I have copies of Her Montana Man or other books from my backlist, and I'll try to find one you need.

And the winners are....

LINDA - desertrose5173

and

ELLEN - LdyLopes2002

email me at SaintJohn@aol.com to claim your prize and let me know which book you want.
If your prize is unclaimed, I'll draw again.

I'll be holding another drawing from my Petticoats and Pistols blog on July 9th, and it will be for a book, a DVD set and a cowboy boots charm.

Keep leaving comments - each one goes in the fishbowl.

Garden Photos

I went out to take pics of my gardens this morning, and it's so incredibly hot and humid that my glasses and my camera lens fogged up!

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE


My trumpet vine took four attempts at a start and then three years to get it this size. Last year was the first year it bloomed and this year it's gearing up to be beautiful. I think it might need pruned, because it's growing straight up off the top of the gate arbor, but I didn't have the heart. It grows on the arbor that Jay built as a gateway into our sideyard.


So far the daisies are just beginning to open. They didn't come back as full and wild as previous years. The winter must have tsken a toll on them. I'll split them in the fall and spread them out, though, and they'll come back fine.


This clematis grows on the arbor that Jay made in the back yard. It has taken a good four years to get tall and full. I see people who have them blooming over their mailboxes in early spring, but ours doesn't bloom until June. The white one is already finished, but this one is in its heyday. The morning glories should take over when this one begins to wane. They're still climbing the other trellis on the opposite side.

In this pic you can see my thistle feeder bag. The finches love it. In the early morning and in the evening, our backyard is filled with robins, goldfinches and purple finches, mourning doves, sparrows and starlings. Last night there were narrow-bodied black birds with smallish red heads - I haven't identified those yet. We live between a lake and forested area and a creek, so that helps us attract birds.




Above spiderwort and buttercups - the color combination takes my breath away.

These tiger lilies are in the side yard, which often resembles a wild jungle. But we like it that way. In the spring, when we walk through the gate and down the side, the scent of lilacs is heavenly.

It's not butterfly season yet, but soon I'll be posting butterflies. I grow a garden beneath my front windows to attract them.

If you want ideas to reuse things and spice up your yard, check out Fast and Fabulous Ways to Decorate Your Garden over at Better Homes and Gardens website.

Want to live longer?

After all those conflicting nutritional studies, here is the truth at last!

1. The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
3. The Chinese drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
4. The Italians drink a lot of red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.
5. The Germans drink a lot of beers and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

CONCLUSION
Eat and drink what you like.
Speaking English is apparently what kills you.