My yard decorations.

 After the ice storm we got a snow storm, and I decided to step out and take a few photos.  The snow was coming down heavy and the camera focused on the snow more than my decorations. I will take a few without the snowy effects so you can actually see the decorations!  We got 12 inches from this storm and as I sit here writing this, we are cleaning up after another storm that hit us last night and we now have an added 14 inches to the 12 inches we already have.  My decorations are buried right now so before I can take any more pictures I will need to dig them out from under the 26 inches of snow they are under! My grandson is excited to build a snowman, and he was a little concerned that there would not be enough snow to get the job done, well I think the snow gods have taken care of business!  I have my tree up and decorated and I have the house ready for the season, I'll put up pictures of my tree when I post the others.  

The ice storm of 12/13/2008

As I write this, there are still 14,000 people with no electricity and the storm was 9 days ago.  When the storm finally ended, there was devastation all over the state and over 400,000 people had no electricity. The holidays are here and the tempers are high as those still without power are angry and tired of waiting to get their lives back on track.  We were fortunate, because we never lost our power, and we have not had to deal with the struggles that others have had to endure. I took some pictures in my neighborhood the morning after, I did not venture out far because the roads all around us were closed and impassable.  We were able to go to town for gas and groceries, but going to work was an adventure and required almost 2 hours to get there because of the detours caused by closed roads.  The people of New England are a hardy bunch, and we deal with whatever the storm gods throw at us, but there are times when you just wonder what the hell you ever did to deserve this? Those still without power should have it back before Christmas, and in the extreme cases some will have to wait until after the New Year.  The timing could not have been worse but the silver lining?  It could have been worse.

I've made my decision...

  I have accepted the first publishers offer to publish my book.  I have thought long and hard about this and the decision was not an easy one.  This is my first book and after much thought, I figured I would get my feet wet with this book and see what this is all about.  I have another book in the works and I will submit it to other publishers with the hope it will find a home with a well known publisher.  I have discovered that it is very difficult to get the attention of the better publishers.  I want to get my book out there for people to enjoy, and I am not looking to be the next Stephen King so this is a good avenue for me for now.  Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to be as known and as loved as Stephen King, but I do live in the real world and I am content to leave a piece of me here when I am gone.  I am content knowing that my husband and my children are proud of me and they support me no matter what my endeavors, in this I am the luckiest person on the planet, they are my heart and soul.  I look forward to sharing my adventures in getting this book out there for everyone to enjoy.  Stay tuned

  

Time to decorate!

  Well, Thanksgiving is over and the leftovers have been sealed tightly in the tupperware containers for later.  Just like a lot of you, the time has come to prepare for Santa's arrival!  I have a 9 ft Christmas tree and it will take me several days to get it all decorated and ready to go, the lights alone are a nightmare!  I will put up my decorations throughout my house for the next few weeks so I won't be rushed to get it all done at once.  All of my days off from now until Christmas will be spent getting everything up and ready.  My daughter will be here for Christmas with my grandsons Isaac and Noah and they love the lights and all the decorations so there is a reward for all of my efforts!  We had lots of snow by this time last year so my Christmas inflatables were not able to be inflated because the snow was too deep, I am hoping that won't be the case this year; but this IS New England so anything is possible.  I will take some pictures of my holiday decorations and post them for you all to see and enjoy.

Let the season begin!

 

 Well, the turkey is hardly digested and the Christmas shopping has begun with earnest!  Shoppers were up long before dawn gobbling down turkey leftovers before heading out for the black friday bargains.  I was nestled all snug in my dispatchers chair while visions of shoppers floated on air. The shoppers are driving like fools what a sight, I think a police office might slow down their crazed flight.  So I sent my best units, oh my what a sight!  The crazy bargain hunters were nonplussed by their might.  So with pen and ticket pads held tight in their hands the officers did the best that they can. On with the tickets and the warnings too, with so little time left what's a shopper to do?  Keeping your nose clean would be my best advice, cause your Christmas shopping should not include a big heist.  So here's to all of you shoppers in flight, be kind to others as you find the big deals and don't forget those who go without meals.    

Update on my book and other news

  My book has been accepted by a publisher!  Now, even though I am thrilled that this publisher wants to publish my book, I have a lot of questions I need answered before I jump into this.  I am currently checking up on this publisher and so far I am not impressed.  I have submitted my book to another publisher, Avon books, who specialize in romance novels.  I'm hoping they will find my work worthy and be interested in publishing it.  I of course will not be giving up on having my book published.  I have already started a second book and who knows?  Perhaps this next one will be found worthy enough to publish.  I have not given up on my first book so I will keep everyone updated on my progress.  I have to say I was VERY happy to hear the words, we want your book!  I am still level headed enough to know that before I jump into ANYTHING it is a wise thing to make sure you know exactly what you are getting into!

  

                           Other News!                           

                     

  So I now have a face book page!  I guess I have joined the rest of the world networking with friends!  Having a BLOG I guess is not the same according to my daughter.  So for those of you who are interested, you can now find me on face book as well as here on my BLOG.  I have to say that it keeps me busy!  

 

  So Thanksgiving will be here soon so I hope everyone is ready to eat!  I will be working the midnight shift so Andre and I will be having turkey on my day off which is the Sunday after.  I am on this midnight shift until Dec. 6th so once I get through Thanksgiving I won't have to deal with midnights much longer.  I will be making a traditional feast for us, so we won't be missing out on the food, just the day.  I will start my Christmas decorating soon after so be sure to check back for pictures of my holiday decorations!  

  

Odds and ends with an update.

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post so I thought I would check in with everyone and let you know that everything is going great here. I have been very busy at work preparing for some training that I am in charge of. I have been prepping class materials and making lots of copies for the police officers who will be attending.

I let everyone know in my last post that I have finished writing my 1st book. Here's an update on my progress. I applied for a copyright for my book and even though I am still waiting for the copyright I have submitted my work to a publisher. I got word today that the publisher has received my manuscript of The Quest and they are reading and reviewing it. I should hear back from them in about 2 weeks. I have all of my fingers and toes crossed that they will find my book worthy and publish it. I hope everyone will keep the happy thoughts for me as well and I will let you know how it all works out. On another note of book news, I have already started my second book! I figure why stop now! I'm calling it The Warrior Princess. I'm well into it already and I am enjoying it immensely! I won't be quitting my job any time soon, but writing books does give me a creative outlet!

Thanksgiving will be here before we know it and of course I will be working! Andre and I will be having some turkey on the Sunday after and I will be making his favorite, banana pudding. We miss our children the most around the holidays, but that's how it is when they all live so far away. Sabrina and her family will be here for Christmas so we are looking forward to that a lot. I have pretty much finished my Christmas shopping, all I have left to do is pick up some gift cards. My work schedule is so crazy I always try to get everything done in advance so I won't be a lunatic trying to get it done later.

Well, that's all I have for now, I hope all is well with all of you, I will be back soon, hopefully with good news about my book and of course life in general.

Finally its done!!

  Today I finished writing my book!  For those of you who know me, you know that this has been a very long love affair for me and my characters.  I have decided to called my book the Quest, it seemed fitting for the story.  My daughter Sabrina is not fond  of the names of some of my characters but I hope that when she has a chance to read it in its entirety she will be proud of what her mother has accomplished.  I have already applied for a copyright for my book and soon I will be submitting my work to a publisher!  I have to say that it is very exciting for me and hopefully soon I can say that I am a published author!  I have a male co-work that has been reading my book all along and he has told me that he is enjoying it immensely!  I am encourage by that because it is more than just a romance novel.  My youngest daughter is itching to read it and I hope to give her that chance soon.  I can't wait to hear from Lorrie after she gives it a read!  I will of course keep everyone apprised of my progress with getting published. 

SNOW!!!

  Okay, so I was watching the news this morning and low and behold he is telling us that we will have SNOW by morning!  I got up yesterday and the temperature was a chilly 22 degrees, lots of frost on my pumpkins!!  So this morning the weatherman tells us that we have some rain moving in that is going to change over to snow for some of us and although they are not predicting more than a dusting, it's still SNOW!  I happen to live in the area he refers to as the some of us!   I guess its true what they say here in New England; if you don't like the weather just wait a minute and it will change!  I suppose I should be used to this by now, I have lived in New Hampshire for 31 years.  Looks like it will be a cold Halloween for the wee ones here, I won't get to see their costumes if they are all bundled up!  I guess I will have to take a few photos if we do get the snow they promised, I just hope this is not a prelude to a tough winter!   

  

Our visit to Ohio

                The food was awesome and so was the Mariachi band!

                                 We really are enjoying it!   Really!

                                          Doting bigs sisters!

                           There is no greater love than that of a sibling!

                     Maddy spends a moment with her new baby sister!

                                   Maddy giving Sophia an Eskimo kiss!

  Our last day was spent with the Granddaughters at home just enjoying watching them play.  Grampa played a little red light-green light and he even played catch with Maddy.  I spent my time holding Sophia and admiring my newest little one.  The girls enjoyed showing us how well they ride their bikes and draw on the sidewalk with chalk.  It was a great day with the girls and as you can see from the photo's Sophia has 3 sisters who love her very much and they will no doubt spent a lot of time playing with her and helping mommy.  We ended the evening with a Mexican dinner complete with a Mariachi band.  The food was awesome, and I  will make a return trip the next time we are visiting my son.  The food was awesome and we really enjoyed it.  I have posted a lot of photos and little posts of our trip, we had so many things we did I could not put it in one post.  I will of course keep everyone posted of life's events as they happen so stay tuned!

Our visit to Ohio

                               Isaac checks out the pretend BBQ set

                             Noah and Haley get in on the act too!

                              Haley, Madison and Isaac have a noodle war!

                                      How cute am I??

                                       Noah loves the tunnel!

                                      Hey Grandma look at me!!

                  Isaac is expending lots of energy!!  Wish I had some!

                                  Push me higher Auntie Sibi!  Higher!

                                       Push me too Auntie Sibi!!

  While we waited for Nick to cook up the steaks on the grill the kids played in the yard.  They had a blast on the swing set, Auntie Sibi pushed the girls on the swings while Grandma and Auntie Jen took video and pictures.  I had a blast watching them all run around together playing.  I look forward to the next time we are all together and I can enjoy watching them play and be together. 

Our visit to Ohio

                      Jennifer, Sabrina, Nicholas, and Haley

                                                Jennifer and Madison

Jennifer and Sophia

                               Jennifer testing the Mr Potato Head parts!

  When we got back from the orchard we took a few fun shots of the kids.  Jennifer is also Madison's God Mother so we took a picture for Maddy to have.  I managed to get my children together for a photo and they are the same silly siblings as always.  Nothing changes for us but our age, and even then....thats just a number.  Having my children together with their own children was an experience I will cherish always.

Our visit to Ohio

    The kids loved to play in the bounce hut                            
   Emma is in the air!  Emma enjoyed bouncing the most I think!
   Isaac and Madison seemed a little skeptical of this pumpkin display...
  Madison and Emma search for the perfect apple...

         Isaac found a nice one!  

  Noah enjoyed a fresh apple after his dance!
 Noah warmed up with some dancing before picking apples... this is called the peek-a-boo!

     Madison gets lift from daddy to reach a nice big apple!
                Look Grandma!   I found one!!

                                      How cute!  

                                   A trip to the orchard

  Our first day in Ohio we took all the Grandchildren and their parents to the local orchard for some apple picking.  We had a great day filled with laughs and special moments.  We started the day with breakfast at the Great Wolf Lodge and it was awesome as usual.  The orchard offered lots of things for the kids to do and as you can see by the photos we had a great time.  The children loved picking the apples and in no time we had a huge bag full to bring home to Grandma Ybarra!  Sophia stayed in the shade with her mother while everyone else picked apples or watched the kids doing the various things set up for them to do.  We tasted some homemade apple butter and enjoyed some kettle corn that was popped right there on the premises, it was very tasty!  We finished the day with some backyard fun and a BBQ at my son's house.