Fun Nancy Gideon post and a contest!
My aunt just sent me this and despite a migraine it made me smile– so I want to share it before our post today in hopes it makes YOU smile as well.
"And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood
puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?
It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without
packages, boxes or bags.
And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch
thought of something he hadn't before.
What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store? What if
Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?"
~Dr. Seuss
Merry Christmas
Welcome Nancy Gideon — And TRISH –the winner of Nancy's last contest has never come forward. Shout out to TRISH! Nancy is now on twitter too folks so give her some TWEET love @NancyGideon.
And find her on facebook too!
Contest at the end of this super fun post! Enjoy!
CONFESSIONS OF A CHRISTMASAHOLIC…
I LOVE Christmas! It's the one time of year I can redecorate the entire house, creating something magical, and not have it linger long enough for me to actually have to dust any of it. On December 1st I start playing Christmas music and it goes non-stop until everything comes down on New Years Day. I could probably house an exchange student in the storage space devoted to my red and green tubs filled with various collections of things Christmas: music boxes, Santas, nutcrackers, and trees. When I had a quad-level house, I had a big tree (or two) on every level, but now that I'm in an apartment, I have to settle for a big one in front of the fireplace, one in my office and a floater that shows up in the main bathroom or in my bedroom. Decorating is done while sniffling through the ending of White Christmas and Yippee KiYiAying with John McClain in Die Hard (1 or 2). It's an elaborate process that should take a day, but usually stretches out for a week.
Maintaining Christmas traditions always makes the holiday special. From the time I was little, then with my two boys, and now with my grandson, our family always goes downtown to the park to see the lights, walk through the candy cane arches, peek into the crèche, and shiver with excitement on Christmas Eve. Every year from my sons' first Christmas on, I'd buy them an ornament to commemorate something that was special to them at that time of their life: baseball, rollerblades, frogs, golf, film, flying, so they'd have a head start on their own family tree some day. My youngest is sharing his airplane tree with his wife and own son now.
My favorite collection has to be my nutcrackers. I've gotten one every year for over thirty years including an exquisite hand-carved soldier that was one of the last made in East Germany before the fall of the Berlin wall, delicate music boxes with moving parts, a glittery Radio City Music Hall drum major, and my personal role model, Maxine. My grandson keeps a wary eye on the big guy standing guard in the hallway…just in case.
Of course holidays are all about the food. Eggnog, pumpkin spice Keurig coffee, cranberry breads, cashews, gift baskets filled with chocolate and cookies, and a never ending stream of leftover party goodies brought into the office the next morning and dutifully disposed of. It's a dirty job but…
As much as I complain about Michigan winters, they are truly a wonder to behold. My complex is surrounded by a State game area so it's very wooded and filled with numerous creatures that are happy to climb four flights to dine off my balcony. But baby it's cold outside!
Next December, I'll be celebrating the release of the fifth book in my BY MOONLIGHT dark paranormal shape shifter series with Pocket. This one, tentatively titled UNLEASED BY MOONLIGHT, will feature a new hero and heroine that you'll get glimpses of in BOUND BY MOONLIGHT in August. Hopefully I'll be able to tease you with a new cover soon on my website at http://nancygideon.com. Until then, here's a hint of things to come with BOUND BY MOONLIGHT, now available for preorder on Amazon.
They swore they'd be together forever.
Detective Charlotte Caissie is suddenly sharing drawer space and making media news with her shape-shifter lover Max Savoie. Knowing the reformed mobster is determined to be accepted by her peers, how can she ask him to return to his criminal roots to help her solve a complex case?
But those they trust the most . . .
Going undercover to find the vicious serial killer who kidnapped a colleague's daughter, Cee Cee is caught between the partner whose integrity she relies on and her fiercely possessive lover. In calling on Max to use his preternatural talents to aide a hated enemy, she crosses a line that strains their relationship to its limits.
Will do anything to tear them apart.
With his secret spreading beyond those he can trust, Max is forced to make dangerous alliances to protect his family and his clan. The only certainty he has is his love for his human mate, until the loyalties that define them threaten to divide them forever.
To help you fill your stocking, I'm giving away your choice of one of the three books in my BY MOONLIGHT series, either MASKED BY MOONLIGHT, CHASED BY MOONLIGHT or CAPTURED BY MOONLIGHT along with a very special BY MOONLIGHT charm bracelet custom-made by ReMaryd Originals. Comment below for a chance to win by sharing your own holiday traditions.
