Tracy Dale's Blog
May 27, 2021
Writing in the 20’s
A burst pipe flooded my house. After MONTHS in a hotel, my family and I moved back home just before Covid shut everything down. Crazy times. Hard. Sad. Strange. Raising young children in this has felt nearly unbearable at times. Filling every single role for your kids is the extreme opposite of, It takes a village to raise a child. What’s perplexing too, is how differently each place is operating. Some of the people closest to me have lives that have hardly changed. Others have lost a devastatin...
April 18, 2018
Ash Rising – Available Now!
[image error]Available at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, etc…
Ashley Thomas knows your every emotion. She thinks it’s a curse. To others, it’s a weapon.
Meeting a stranger in the woods who’s unlike anyone she’s met before, sparks her curiosity, and her caution. Learning Druson is a new student at her school, she tries to stay under his radar as she finds out what she can about him, but his attention zeros in on her and it quickly becomes obvious he has a motive.
His secrets are kept close, unt...
October 28, 2017
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
It is time for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! I repeat, it is TIME for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies!
Honestly, these are some of the best treats of Fall, so filled with pumpkin, spices, chocolate, and goodness, that pretty much everyone in my family begs for them. (Except my husband, who doesn’t like cinnamon. I’ll never understand it.)
They’re fluffy, and soft, and they taste even better a day later. And a day later, I like to put them in the fridge, because I don’t know why I like these...
July 9, 2017
New Publisher – LIV, IN THE MOMENT
I’ve been hard at work on my latest literary project, but also, working on the transfer of my previously published titles to a new publisher: Flying Feather Publishing. With the change, I get new covers – thrilled with that! – and a solid team of support behind me.
A Life Once Lived was transferred and released October 2017. The cover is gorgeous. And my first-ever published title, Liv, In the Moment was released in November 2017. Both are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, etc…
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A...
New Publisher
I’ve been hard at work on my latest literary project, but also, working on the transfer of my previously published titles to a new publisher: Flying Feather Publishing. With the change, I get new covers – thrilled with that! – and a solid team of support behind me.
Everything in publishing is slow, in my experience, and this transfer has been no different. But I finally have my covers, and very soon, my books will be available again.
Until then, here’s a sneak peek at my new covers:
(Below wa...
March 14, 2017
Stenciling a Fireplace
I went to Texas recently and stayed with a friend of mine while we tore up the town. (And by tore up, I mean strolling flea markets in search of sweet vintage finds, touring the Fixer Upper Silos, and enjoying a concert at a pizza pub.) Her house is a new build, beautiful, but a work-in-progress to her unique style, which I tend to think of as Rockstar Cottage – bright, bold colors, but with charming details.
Her fireplace was a basic concrete (made to look like stone) fireplace/mantel combo:...
January 4, 2017
How to Tell if They’re Good Shoes
Wear good shoes.
Because good feet care = good gait = good alignment = good body.
Unless you dream of being a Jackassstar, and plan to jump from a tall tree into a runaway shopping cart that’s racing downhill with a boulder as the crash pad. In that case, feet? You’ll be groaning about an entirely aching body like an elderly post-surgery patient by the time you’re in your twenties. But, if you care aboutbeing agile beyond childhood, take care of your feet.
So, how can you tell what shoes are...
December 4, 2016
Board and Batten
Board and Batten in the bathroom!
Plotting this project was the most unexpected time consumer of the whole endeavor. There were many factors. I wanted picture height. A healthy amount of vertical strips, despite it being a small room. A seamless finish from the existing door moulding to the board and batten (henceforth, B&B). And a re-use of leftover materials in our garage, as much as possible.
WHAT I USED:
Hardboard Tempered Panel (more commonly – MDF) to cover the walls. Creates the smo...October 17, 2016
No Poo Method
What is it?
A homemade hair cleansing/conditioning solution to replace shampoo, using baking soda and apple cider vinegar.
Why did I try it?
Citric Acid is a commonly used preservative in shampoos, and it makes myhair fall out. Not ALL of myhair, but it causes itto shed all. day. long. And as it turns out, I’m learning more and more people have this same reaction. Unfortunately, most shampoos use citric acid, because it’s cheap. Trying to find a shampoo/conditioner without it is no small task...
September 12, 2016
In Progress
I’ve got a DIY tufted headboard on my mind, but first! There’s this bathroom…
In an incredibly vigorous nod to HGTV’sFixer Upper, I have shiplapped my living room and kitchen nook. A lot of work, but so much love for the end product. Iused 1/4″ plywood, cut into 6″ strips, using a nickel (yes, the $0.05 cent coin) as a spacer.
All this to say, I had some scrap plywood leftover. Which brings me to that bathroom. Through thedoor in the above pic, is my main floor bathroom,painted black. Very d...
