Oh my, oh my - it’s off to work for me for the first time in more years than I care to admit to (okay, you twisted my arm…17!)

Yes, with the economy in the toilet and prices rises faster than a hot air balloon on steriods… it was time for me to bite the bullet and find a part-time job to help out. The last thing I want to do is increase my husbands stress level, and the rises prices are certainly putting most people I know on edge (especially heading into the winter and visions of the oil deliveries are giving me nightmares!)

So for all you working mothers trying to meet your writing deadlines, I’m gonna need some suggestions. First it is part-time, everyday but I leave after the kids and I’m home before the youngest gets off the bus (the high schoolers can fend for themselves for the hour until I get home!)

Early morning typing? Late night writing? Forget about dinner (Oh, wait, that’s nothing new )

Wish me luck!

I’m blogging over at The Passionate Critters today! Please come by and show me some love!

How about a little eye candy for the first day of fall? From an ancient warrior to the phantom to just your average joe - well, there really isn’t anything average about Gerard!

In “Nims Island” he showed the family side - while I was a little disappointed there wasn’t more of a romance shown on screen, I do understand it was meant for the younger set and not just us drooling moms in the audience who were secretly waiting for him to rip off his shirt.

What can I say…ahhhh…Happy Monday will have to do.

Drive by post for some Monday inspiration! My current WIP features a handyman, and while he doesn’t resemble old Johnny here, I couldn’t pass this pic up for my inspiration for the day…enjoy!

Smooches…Happy Monday.

Please take a moment today to remember the fallen heroes. Not just the brave men and women who gave their lives rushing into the fires of those collapsing buildings to save lives - but the everyday people who merely went to work that day and never came home.

Please take a moment to pray for them and their families, to remember and honor the country that still stands and let your heart be filled with pride as our flag still waves over the home of the free and the brave.

God Bless America!

How’s this for some inspiration for a Monday? Looks to me like they’re off to take care of some business…and it’s time for me get down to the business of getting my current manuscript in shape.

Happy Monday everyone!

Along with the excitement of school comes the inevitable cricket invasion. When we moved into our new house last year we hoped the large crickets we found hopping around our house every morning were a casuality of buying a house that had been unoccupied for three months while it was being sold.

Apparently that was wishful thinking on our part.

First, I’ve never seen crickets this big! When I think of these annoyingly loud creatures, I think outside, under a bush, little jimmy-cricket - and I mean little. NO. My crickets are pushing the two-inch mark!

Don’t get me wrong - it’s not like we’re infested with them (and my neighbors tell me, some years are worse than others…sheesh, like that matters? It just takes one to drive me batty!) My cat does love to play with them, usually breaking a back leg so it can’t hop away from him while he bats around the kitchen. When he’s done he usually steps on it, putting it out of it’s misery and leaving it for me to clean up.

All in all, I do prefer the chirping of the cricket over the roar of traffic we heard non-stop at our last house. Rural living does have that country-quiet going for it most of the time…

September rocks because (1.) the kids go back to school and (2.) it’s like an open invitation for me to run wild through the school supply aisle!

I’m a sucker for colored markers, highlighters, sharpies, etc. Then again, I love the paper/pad aisle and the clips! I could spend all day picking out post-it notes and binder clips. And those big striped paper clips - how fun are those?

But some reason, I can’t pass the date book aisle without stopping and touching every size, shape and style! I have a Palm…why I feel the pull of the datebooks, calendars and agendas is beyond me. I’m addicted to the flowery refill pages, the to-do lists, the mini-zippered pouches - damn all those accessories!

So before I go completely bonkers and work myself into a frenzy that only be cured by ANOTHER trip to the local Staples… I’ve got a contest for you! My daughter and I made some pretty book thongs, I’ve got brand new bookmarks for The Kandy Shoppe and I’ve got some fun fall-themed scrapbooking sticker sheets to give away. To win one of my prize packets all you have to do is comment here - What’s your favorite school supply and why.

That’s it. Have fun and the winning number post will be drawn randomly on October 1st.

(Want to increase your chance of winning? Head over to my CoffeeTimeRomance author forum and comment there too!)

Good luck!

The supplies have been bought, the alarms clocks are set…school starts tomorrow.

And it’s time for the CoffeeTimeRomance authors to celebrate. Click on the Alphabet Author image below and take a look at all the prizes and promotions. (You can get a jump on my contest by clicking the image on my sidebar!)

My publisher, Blade Publishing, has also joined the fun - there will be a new trivia contest posted EVERY day of September - so that’s 30 chances to win! Here’s the Blade contest for today:

Today’s book to win is The Twins of Tribeca by Rachel Pine
The contest question is:
Which actresses identical twin sister played the “T-1000 Sarah” in the movie Terminator 2?
You can post your answer here or email your answer to contests [at] bladepublishing [dot] org
The winner will be announced tomorrow night when the next question is posted.

Good Luck!
~Abby

You’ll need to be registered (don’t worry it’s free) to comment on the CoffeeTimeRomance forum. Don’t forget to tell them I (Debora Dennis) sent you…they’ve got a cool referral contest for us authors going all month too!

Good luck!