Free2Eat Blogparty and Giveaway

Yes, it is finally here.   The time to celebrate Matthea getting her feeding tube removed.  I'm calling it Free2Eat because, well....she is now "free to eat" whatever she'd like. (Ok, within the healthy and legal boundaries, of course!)
I have looked, but I have not written Matthea's full story anywhere on this site...or at least I can't find it. So, I promise to write it out on another post this week.
But, here is a few posts about her eating progress this past year.  If you want to read about them more to find out what the "feeding tube" is you can click here.
If you want see progress from the summer click here.

Ok, so to celebrate I'm giving away two of her favorite Asian treats.  Plus a finger painting that she will make this week.
The treats are Guai Guais, which are a puffed cereal type snack.  You can choose the coconut flavor or the hazelnut chocolate flavor (think nutella). The second treat is a rice cracker that has a sweet and salty taste to it.

Hazelnut Chocolate=Nutella

Coconut Flavored

Rules: There has to be some rules, right? They are simple.
1. Leave a comment telling us your favorite snack food. +1
2. Be a follower of this blog +2

That is 3 points total you can get. For each point I will put your name in a jar and let Matthea draw out a name.  Please leave your email address, so that I can contact you if you win.  This IS an international giveaway, so anyone can enter. 
Contest ends December 19th, 2pm in Taiwan
So that is December 19th, 12am Central Time in the USA and
December 19th, 7am in Germany.

Free2Eat is now Starting!

Homeschool Wrap Up

I had such huge hopes for this week and then Monday hit me with stomach issues. Tuesday they progressed into a fever. Wednesday the fever hit strong, and then left. Thursday I was in bed. Friday still had stomach issues, but could leave the apartment. Today, a bit better.

So, homeschool didn't happen. But,  I do want to report one thing. Matthea has started a class with Ms. Jones, a Special Ed teacher, twice a week for 45 minutes each time. We were able to get those in this week and I am so thankful.  In class they continue to work on Matthea's IEP.  I'm glad for this time because it gives Matthea a chance to be with another teacher. For me this time allows me to see if she can sit and listen, follow instructions, and communicate with another person.  It is going well and Matthea LOVES going to school. Here she is with her backpack ready to go out the door.

 

 

 

The temp just dropped to 65F and all the kids thought they needed winter coats.

 

 

 

  Since this week was a strange one for me, I will post the giveaway details on Monday.  So, be on the lookout for a fun and eventful blog party celebrating that feeding tube removal!

Thursday QBR

I missed yesterday's post for my WIP because I have been pretty much in bed or in the bathroom. Yeah, not a good week for me or my Hub, which I should call him my Hero. But, no horrific details on that...

Today's QBR, Quick Book Review, is on Twilight by Stephenie Meyers.  If you know me well enough you'd be shocked that this was on my 100 list for Fill in the Gap.  But, I put it down because I should read out of my genre, right? I enjoyed the book more than I thought I would. 
Isabella moves to a small town in Washington where she falls in love with the mysterious, Edward Cullen.  The mystery is that Edward is a vampire.  
If you want to read a longer review and more of my thoughts you can go here to check it out.

Tips and Contests

Image via Wikipedia

I'm trying something new. Instead of having tips and contest on Wednesday along with my wip, I'm going to have one day where I list the tips and contests that I've read that week. And that day will be Tuesdays.
Wednesday will be WiP only.
Thursday will be Book reviews
Friday will be Homeschool Wrap-up

Tips:
So, to get started. This weeks tips come from Sherrinda and from The Writer's Alley.
1. Sherrinda gave me permission to edit a few pages of the manuscript a day instead of a whole chapter during the holiday time.  She's not my cp, editor, or instructor. But, her blog post December Time Stealer really took the pressure off.  So, if you are like me and trying edit that manuscript from last month or are trying to finish up a novel or story. Feel free to relax and enjoy the Christmas holidays like you are suppose to. And as Sherrinda writes, "It's only for a season, and January will come before you know it and present you with time to rest and recharge. Your fingers will fly across the keyboard with all the renewed energy!"

2. The second tip came yesterday. It is from The Writer's Alley. It is a brainstorming tip which I found really interesting and I think helpful.  Using songs to come up with story lines.  Read here to get the whole article. 

Contests/Giveaways:

1. Marcia Hoehne is giving away Falling In by Frances O'Roark Dowell. I did a review on this book here. And the contest details can be found here. 

2. Casey is giving away Christmas Bodyguard by Margaret Daley on her blogsite. You can check out the details here.

3. Watch for details for my giveaway next week to celebrate the miracle of Matthea getting rid of her feeding tube!  I'll post details this weekend!  

4 QBR (Quick Book Reviews)

The first two are from Fill in the Gap. You can read about them by clicking on the title.
1. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
2. The New Kid at School by Kate McMullan

3. The Nina, the Pinta, and the Vanishing Treasure by Jill Santopolo

This was a good mystery for upper elementary students.  The Christopher Columbus exhibit has gone missing from the town museum.  Alex Flint wants to be a super sleuth and this is his chance to crack a case. Alex and his sidekick, Gina, collect clues together to find the missing artifacts.  Will they catch the thief and recover the stolen exhibit in time?







4. Falling In by Frances O'Roark Dowell
Isabella Bean is not the popular kid at school. In fact, she is not liked at all.  But, she hears a buzz. It's not an ordinary buzz.  She finds herself falling into a janitor's closet and into another world. The world where fairy tales and witches live.  When she if found, the children there all believe that she is THE witch.  She has to convince them that she isn't and help them locate the real one.
I liked the story quite a bit. I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, but this one got me (which surprised me) I sort of liked the narrative excerpts, where the author talks to the reader. Changed it up a bit, which was interesting.
If you are more interested, check out Marcia's blog site for another book review and giveaway.

Another Win!

Yes, I got my 30 Picture Book Ideas in 30 days! In some ways it was harder than I had thought it might be.  I mean, it's 30 ideas....you have all day to come up with one. Or like I did, come up with five, then not think about it for a few days until you remember that you are behind, then think up a few more ideas.
But it gets hard about half way through. A wall seems to come in between you and the ideas. But, I got over the wall...thankfully.

Here's a few things I learned on the way of this journey.
1. I began to find PB ideas everywhere. Eg. An email from a friend about her son's Thanksgiving play triggered an idea. It's not complete, but it's an idea to play around with.
2. My youngest drives me NUTS with her questions about words and phrases.  But, I've decided to not let it do that, but to instead twist it into a story if possible. Win, win for us both. =)
3. And the last, I now have 30 ideas to play with in the year of 2011. Will they get published? Who knows, but at least I have ideas and not a blank screen to look at, right?

Did you do PiBoIdMo? If so how did it go for you?

Coming Out of Nanoland Unharmed

Doesn't this look like a dangerous place? I mean there is a monkey hanging off a tree into a river!  Or you could look at it as...an adventure with LOTS of twists and turns that take you places you didn't know existed.
Yep, Nanoland is pretty much an awesome place. OK, I can say that now because I passed through it and survived. But here are some things that I did learn from it.

1. I CAN sit and write 1000s words a day (and sometimes more). Seriously, didn't think I could do that.
2. A story board is necessary for me, but I did have some pantser moments when I just dreamed and wrote whatever.
3. I write best after the kids are asleep at night. Mornings just didn't work out for me at all.
4. I'm still a procrastinator. I started off really well the first 1.5 weeks, then I got bored. Seriously bored. Didn't feel like writing anymore on the story. But, just like a good procrastinator, I sprinted the last five days and lost LOTS of sleep...but finished in time. Will I ever learn?
5. I found out I have an inner editor that wanted to just go back and tweak here and change/fix a scene there. But, I was able to keep that little girl locked away by telling myself, "Just write! It may feel like you are vomiting words on the page, but just write them. You have got to finish....clean up the mess later. WRITE!" I think I should have posted that on the computer screen....maybe next year. 
6. I could NOT have done this without the support of the HUB. He was really great and understanding through the whole thing. And my kiddos, too! Plus all the people who where cheering me on! Thanks!

I've enjoyed reading other blogs about Nanoland.  Here are some of my favorite posts. They are great if you are thinking about doing it next year.
1. KarenG writes about why Nano is good for writers to do. Click here to read about it.
2. On The Writer's Alley, Sherrinda wrote how to get your word count in during the holidays. Click here.
3. And Sherrinda wrote what she learned on her own blog here.

Well, that was the last of my Nano News of this year.  I promise NOT to mention it again (that is for the HUB's sake).  But, I will mention my WIP, which is written thanks to Nano.  But, now it shall rest for a week or so, then I'll take a peek at the first two chapters. Those have a deadline with my instructor at the end of December. (So, if anyone out there has NOTHING better to do right before Christmas give me a shout and I'll email those two chapters for you to read through and give your suggestions.)

Good-bye Nanoland, hello family!