My favorite from childhood was Sleeping Beauty. I hadn’t seen it, or most of the older animated movies, in awhile, but I know that one was my fave. I couldn’t have told you why, hadn’t stopped to analyze it as a child. It just was.

My daughter (who just turned 3), has three princess movies that we watch on a running loop. She is obsessed. I don’t mind, but it means I’ve been seeing these same favorites on a running loop. Snow White, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty. And after watching each of them a good twenty times a piece in the last few months, I’m now 100% sure of why Sleeping Beauty was my favorite as a kid.

Let’s review…

Snow White: So we’ve got a sweet teen princess (the actress who lent her voice to dear Snow was 15…though they don’t specify in the movie how old she is). And our little sweet heroine meets this random prince who just happens to be walking by. You know, cause I run into princes daily. (What, you don’t? Someone’s not shopping at the right Kroger.) They meet while…singing. Naturally. This is a Disney movie after all. Snow sees him and bolts. Nice first impression there, dear.

Sidenote: You know the rest of the women in the audience are thinking… You’re living as a servant because your wicked stepmother the Queen hates you. And yet, you see a handsome, eligible guy that could lift you from poverty and kick the queen’s ass…and you RUN AWAY?

Yet, he’s enamored with her. It’s only logical that the whole “Playing hard to get” routine sucks him in. Men are simple. There’s this hot make out scene. Oh wait, no. They share a kiss…through a bird. (Insert shudder here.) The guy is in her presence for 92 seconds. (I timed it.) And suddenly it’s wuv, twu wuv. Then he’s in the movie the rest of the way through in order for the viewer to make a strong connection with the prince and root him on until the end. Oh, crap. Sorry. No, we never hear from him again until the last 3 minutes of the movie.

Snow goes through all these awful things like attempted murder and woodland abandonment and potential poisoning, and she deals with it on her own. I mean, there are the seven dwarves, and they’re good guys. They stand by her, give her shelter, a place to stay, and befriend her after a long, hard life in the castle. And when she’s poisoned by the queen (because she didn’t listen to the dwarves’ advice and not let anyone in…definition of TSTL) they build her a nice glass coffin. Not just anyone can work with glass, y’all. It’s a skill.

But I digress. After all this, once Snow White wakes up from her unfortunate coma, you would think she’d give props to the seven guys who stayed by her side through it all, yeah?

No. Charming sweeps in on his trusty steed, kisses her dead, lifeless lips, and scoops her up and takes her away on his horse.

I’m sorry, sir. And you’ve been WHERE this whole time? Thought so.

Lesson of this movie? Short guys lose. Bird foreplay wins.

Cinderella: Ah, now here’s a strong heroine, right? Her father dies when she’s young and she’s basically an orphan but for her stepmother and two ugly stepsisters. (Frankly, I think she’d have been better off an orphan. With relatives like these, who needs enemies?) She puts up with their haranguing and emotional abuse for a good ten or so years, give or take. All the while managing to keep her sweet, sensitive disposition and lovely personality. It’s a story of resilience and…stuff.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we? Now, I can’t fault Cinderella herself. She’s sweet and kind, but she also gets a few jabs in there as well. Case in point: When the invitation to the ball arrives, she says, “Maybe I should interrupt the…music lesson.” But she’s all smirky when she says it, cause her stepsisters have the musical abilities of a cat who just had its tale run over by a child’s tricycle. Gotta give her credit for the well-deserved pot shot.

But it takes two to tango (wait, no, they waltzed…) and the prince isn’t holding up his end of the bargain. Sure, the dude can dance. But it takes more than some fancy footwork and a walk by the fountain to be a worthy romance hero.

And in the end, when his mystery girl bails on him (after 4 minutes, so an improvement on Snow), he knows he’s got to find her. On that, I’m with you, dude. Rock on. You go find your lady love.

Then he just screws up. He sends the freaking Duke out to find her. The Duke is doing all the dirty work. The guy can’t even be bothered to find his own wife. How…princely. Not to mention completely ineffective. The prince spent 4 minutes with her. Don’t you think if he was the one going out and meeting all these women in the kingdom, he could see that the petite blonde her danced with the night before is NOT the hideous redhead with a nose like a sausage? Why waste anyone’s time with that one.

But of course, Cinderella falls for it and is all “Oh, he loves me so much, he sent someone else to come find me!” Their get-away carriage might as well have a bumper sticker saying “I swoon for great delegators.” Talk about romance. Once again, the prince makes a cameo at the end, for their wedding. And since he has about 2 lines in the entire movie, we are once again presented with a hero that has the personality of a walnut.

Lesson here? Guys like women with small feet. And outsourcing courtship is sexy.

Sleeping Beauty: Ah, here we go. Let’s ignore the fact that she is actually sixteen, which so wouldn’t fly in this day and age. And also, in this one, shockingly they are only together for about 2 full minutes (though Prince Phillip spies on her for a little longer than that). So not quite as long as in Cinderella.

Sidenote: My daughter can’t say Prince Phillip. She calls him Frince Pill-up.

But what makes the difference here is that it’s not just singing. There’s a little banter as well. And while animals are involved, there’s no using cute woodland creatures for creepy flirting. Phillip also has a personality of something other than a block of wood, and that helps a great deal.

Let’s skip forward to post-dark moment. Aurora is now locked in the tower. He’s got to get to her and give her a kiss to wake her up. Does he send a representative? NO! He gets a little aid from the good fairies, but the guy’s only human. And in the end, he’s right there, battling the dragon on his own, doing the dangerous work. He’s getting his hands dirty, facing down death to reach the woman he loves.

Now we’re talking.

Lesson with this one? Men, get a kick-butt sidekick like Phil’s horse. It adds to your quality. And when a dragon comes along, kill the damn thing yourself. (This is symbolic, if you didn’t catch the not-so-subtleness of that statement.)

The movie isn’t without its faults, of course. But the point here is that when it comes to a movie where a romance is supposed to be believed, I can’t just have one side of it. I’ve gotta have both. Even as a kid I recognized that, though I wouldn’t have been able to express that opinion back then. It was just a feeling, a preference. And I chose well.

Do you have a favorite Disney animated movie? What’s your 30-second analysis as to why it’s your favorite?

Hey all! Time for a Military Moment. Today I get the chance to talk with my friend Erin and her husband Jake! Jake has been in the Navy for 12 years, and these two have been married for seven years. And I’m sorry, but how cute are their sons? SUPER cute!

Jeanette: You guys, thanks for talking with me! Tell me what first attracted you to each other.

Erin: Jake is a very easy going happy go lucky guy. Just kind of goes with the flow, up for anything. Less than three days after I meet him, I invited him to go to Vegas with group of friends and myself and he was crazy enough to go along.

Jake: Erin was upbeat and loved to see and do new things.  I could tell immediately she was very intelligent and had a grasp on many things that I see as weak points in my own personality, so I knew we would be a good match.

Jeanette: A trip to Vegas? Sounds very much like our first hero and heroine from the Semper Fi series! You guys hit it off right away, but I know this lifestyle isn’t all fun and games. What’s been the biggest struggle of being a military couple?

Erin: The moving. Moving across town is a big enough pain, but factor in a cross country move to place you’ve never even heard of thousands of miles away from anyone you know it can be very difficult. Especially when you are younger and have not lived outside your comfort zone before.

Jake: Not being near family as much as we would like to be… I don’t see moving as a big hassle and actually enjoy getting to see new parts of the world regularly, but at that same time that means you’re further away from all the people you call “family”.

Jeanette: The space between family is definitely hard. And moving can bring challenges. But hey, there are good points too. Any good parts?

Erin: For us, I think for all the bad that comes with the “military lifestyle” (moving, deployments, etc.) it has really brought us closer. We’ve had to rely on one another, work through and endure many situations that most civilian families will likely never face. We know that as long as we’re in it together we can accomplish anything we want to.

Jake: I agree, it’s amazing how much we have been able to accomplish together! I would say that a sense of unity and teamwork exists in our relationship now that I don’t think we would have garnered if I wasn’t in the military.  I think dealing with all of the challenges and stress that comes with military life makes couples more capable of working through things while taking both sides into consideration. In other words, it seems we have developed a greater sense of family unity from all of the chaos of my work environment.

Jeanette: Love that, together you can handle anything. Speaking of sticking together, military couples aren’t always together physically. How have you stayed connected during long separations?

Erin: When Jake is out on a ship there are no daily phone calls or Skype. We only have email to rely on, and sometimes that’s iffy… Not saying email is the same as snail mail, but it forces you to put more thought into what you are saying to one another. Like (not so) old fashioned love letters, to a certain extent. This last deployment I read a book and then sent it to him to read so we could discuss it afterward.

Jake: I think the best connection is definitely being able to sit down and read an email from Erin and tell that she put a lot of thought into what she is saying there. Then being able to reflect on that and take my time in responding in measure, to put a lot of emotion into each sentence goes a long way towards understanding what we’re both going through, I think.

Jeanette: I remember those, the five page long emails. Some good stuff in there! Last question. What’s been the best experience the military has afforded you?

Erin: As much of a challenge the moves are, it has really opened up my world and exposed me to things and places I doubt I would have even visited. Not to mention the fact that we’ve been able to meet some amazing people and someone to visit in almost every state, and several countries now.

Jake: This is an easy one for me to answer, since after 12 years my reasoning still hasn’t changed much… I joined the Navy to travel and see the world, both overseas and in the US as well. I have really enjoyed just getting out of my hometown and experiencing so much more variety of life than I would have had where I grew up. I think I’ve always really enjoyed bringing family out to visit different places I’ve been stationed as well, and I think they take a lot with them from those visits… So for me, experiencing interesting and unique parts of the world has been the best part of my service and I think it’s been a great deal for my family as well.

I’d like to give a big thank you to Jake and Erin for sharing your experiences with us! Not to mention, being our first couple in this round of Military Moments! Tune in next time for another Military Moment with a new couple. Can’t wait to see what our next couple has to say.

I decided to try my hand at these delicious new treats. Anything small and individually sized, I’m all over. So I went to work. First were the ingredients: cake mix (and all that the mix requires), icing, melting chocolate (found at most craft stores), mini-baking cups, and that’s it!

I prepared the cake exactly as the box specified, then let it cool. Once it was completely cool, I crumbled it into a bowl. Then adding one spoonful at a time, I scooped some icing in the bowl and mixed it in. Keep mixing and adding until the cake is completely mixed with the icing and you can easily mold the mixture. Don’t add too much or it will be too moist (normally I hate that word, but for this recipe, it makes sense) and it won’t form correctly. As you start mixing you will see the consistency and how it works out.

Once the mixture is complete, form them into small balls. I used a cookie dough scoop so that they were all the same size. Definitely helped. Roll them tightly, but don’t smash them together. Place them on wax paper cookie sheet and toss them in the fridge for a few hours. They won’t be rock hard, but they should be stiff when you get them back out.

Melt the hard candy as per the directions on the back of the bag. Here’s the main tip…heat on defrost rather than normal heat. It goes slower, sure, but that’s what you want. Worst thing possible is to overheat. Stir every 20-30 seconds, and keep an eye on it. This is not something to nuke and walk away from. Once the candy is melted, take a couple of the cake balls out of the fridge at a time. Dump one in the melted candy, cover completely with a spoon, then deliver to a wax sheet to harden. Repeat process until you’re done.

Now you should let them harden. (Should take about half an hour, total. No need to pop them in the fridge for this.) If you want, take a toothpick while the candy coating is still warm and draw a line around the ball itself. This will make it easier to break off the excess once they are set. But if you forget to do this, it isn’t a big deal.

Now, time to decorate! Well, okay, if you are choosing sprinkles, you should sprinkle them on BEFORE they harden. But if you are doing designs with color like I did, then wait for them to harden completely. After that, you can melt another color of candy (they come in every color possible) in a bag. After melting it, snip off the tip and go crazy. I just did squiggly lines because I lack creativity and imagination. But if I had more of each, I’d have done something cooler. Either way, they worked.

Let THAT coating set, and then you can place them in their individual baking cups for a cute presentation. You’re done! Congratulations, and let me know if you plan on trying these at home.

These guys make great gifts. I actually created these for Teacher Appreciation week at my daughter’s preschool. And from all accounts, people enjoyed them. So much easier for people to handle than cutting into a cake, right? Oh, I created a video of this in case you were curious. It’s most of the same, but it might help to play it before you give this a try as a refresher.

And PS: Did you see my excerpt that was posted earlier this week? If not, give it a quick check!

Come back on Friday, when I’ve got my first-ever military couple that I’m interviewing for my Military Moments segment! They’re such a cute couple, you won’t want to miss this chance to support some unsung heroes.

Until then, stay sweet and fall in love with a good book!

Jeanette

Honor Bound, the first book in the Semper Fi series, is undergoing some changes. After some discussion, it was decided that the book title could use a little tweak. And so the team at Sourcebooks and I brainstormed, and eventually the end result was The Officer Says I Do. I think, from the back cover blurb and the book’s cover, you see where this one is going, right?

Now, that’s not all that’s changing. As you can see, the book cover itself is different too. Don’t freak out, the Hottie McHottie Pants that appeared on the first cover is still there! (Whew.) But of course, the title had to be changed, and they swapped around a few other small details. I really like how they made the title two different fonts. I think it’s unique and fun, don’t you?

And lastly, now that that’s all done…how about an excerpt?! With less than two months before The Officer Says I Do hits shelves, I figure it’s time to let you guys know what to expect. So head HERE for an excerpt to get your engines revved!

And stay tuned for Friday, when I have a special guest coming in to talk about life as a military spouse. It’s my first-ever interview in my new blog series Military Moments!

Jeanette

Let’s take a jaunt back to the historical for this month’s Reading Recommendation. Today, I’m going to suggest you try out Stephanie Laurens, particularly her book Mastered by Love. This one is the final book of the Bastion Club series. Laurens is quite gifted with the art of the series, her Cynster family series is on book forty-three…or something. Math isn’t my strong point. Suffice to say, the woman knows how to weave an intricate web. And this series is no different.

I really looked forward to this book, partly because the culmination of any series is interesting in how the author will wrap it up. But also because…it’s Dalziel’s book! Finally! Those who followed the series book-by-book, all of the previous seven books, know what a relief it was to finally know Dalziel’s life.

Let’s back up a minute. The Bastion Club was founded by men who were a big part of the war effort. The war is now past, but these men were behind enemy lines. They were the silent heroes. And now, something in most of their lives has happened to where they have inherited titles they never expected. To remove themselves from the public eye—and over-eager matchmaking mamas—as much as possible, they joined alliances between them and formed this club. Naturally, one at a time, they fell like bowling pins.

But Dalziel was their leader, the man who led shadows. Though they suspected all along that he had some sort of role in society, but just what, they didn’t know. Nor did we, as readers. But as it turns out, Dalziel is Royce Varisey, tenth Duke of Wolverstone. A duke, you say? Yes! He’s ready to head back home after having left. His father has passed, so it’s time to assume the title. And luckily for him, he’s got a little help from a very attractive source…

Our heroine is Miss Minerva Chesterton, the estate’s chatelaine. She grew up as a ward of the duke and duchess, and made a promise before they passed that she would help settle Royce before moving on to her own life. But she can’t quite get rid of this attraction she feels for the new duke. Best to help him settle as quickly as possible and then move on to start her own life, live her own adventures. The sooner the better.

Naturally, these two can’t quite leave each other alone, and Royce realizes that Minerva would serve both him and the estate in a much better role: his duchess. But first, he’s got to make sure she’s fully his.

I think the anticipation leading up to this novel was almost as delicious as reading the book itself. So that right there makes it a keeper for me. I also love the mentions and “cameo roles” that some characters from Laurens’ other series have in this book. But the connection between the two main characters—both of whom are more mature than your typical Regency character—was the best part.

So head on out and grab a copy. Have you missed some of my previous suggestions? Head here! And until next month…

Happy reading!

Standard Monthly Disclaimer: I am not affiliated, nor do I receive payment/compensation for, any recommendations I give on my blog or any other social media outlets. These opinions are mine alone and I receive nothing for them but the pleasure of sharing books that I’ve enjoyed with other romance readers.

I’ve got a toddler of the female variety. Along with the fussiness, the frivolity and the fun, little girls come with a lot of STUFF! And it’s the most ridiculously adorable stuff ever…at least most of the time. But what I’m tackling today is the issue of hair accessories. Hair ties, hair bows, hair bands, hair clips… The possibilities for what you can put in a little girl’s hair are endless it seems. And they’re all tiny and easy to lose. And even easier to let get completely out of control.

I started with a craft box from JoAnn Fabrics. This cost me $5.99. It’s plastic, and it was in the section where the jewelry making stuff is. I guess it’s probably meant to hold beads or fastenings or some other delicate, tiny pieces of what-not. But for our express purposes, it’s clearly going to work. I also picked out a piece of scrapbook paper from my stash that I liked. For this, I only used one piece of paper for most of it, then I used a second piece as a contrast. (More on that later.) But you could do this entire project with just one piece of scrapbook paper. That’d be like 40 cents at any craft store. And then Mod Podge, which I also already had, but that’s like $6 a bottle, and the bottle will last you through several projects. (Mod Podge is my new obsession. Seriously. This thing goes on everything!)

I started with cutting down squares of the scrapbook that would fit snugly at the bottom of the individual boxes. That was a pain in the butt, I won’t lie. But the result was worth it. Plus, I just used the time to watch The King’s Speech with the commentary on. Really, I wasn’t wasting any time.

After those were cut, I smoothed on a very thin layer of Mod Podge and smoothed out the paper. The key here was to look up from the bottom of the container, because that’s where you’ll see the bubbles and where you need to smooth it out. Wash, rinse, repeat over and over until all the squares are finished. Let it dry as long as you want, but preferably at least one full hour. I waited two, because I didn’t want to screw this up. Those squares were too much a pain in the butt to redo!

I chose to use a contrasting pattern for that longer section in the middle. And then I printed out the little strip saying “sugar, spice & everything nice” just to add a little something extra to the container.

After that, I slid a layer of Mod Podge over all of squares. Just spread it on nice and evenly in each of the boxes. It will go on like thin white paste, but I promise it will dry clear! Don’t panic! So let it dry overnight.

And then in the end, you have a wonderful way to organize out your daughter’s teeny tiny bows and clips and hair ties. I love the fact that it has a latch, because I’m notoriously clumsy and I was constantly knocking over the container holding those rubber bands and scattering them all over the carpet. So now I just latch it when I’m done, and even if I knock it over, the ties stay in their own boxes.

Perfect! An easy, relatively cheap way of keeping things separate and neat. Now, if only I could find the rest of her clips that are scattered all over the house…

Just for Kicks - New Release Cover

Another contemporary coming your way this month, but when I read a ton of them, is that any shock? This month, my recommendation is Susan Andersen’s Just for Kicks. The book was recently re-released with an updated cover, but I happen to like the original, which is the one I own. I think it’s the shoes… Anyway, not the point!

This one’s got a lot of humor, a lot of sass, and some absolutely adorable pets thrown in the mix. Plus, added tension and fun, a surly and (understandably) pissed off teenage nephew to deal with. I’m not always a fan of kids (minors in general, really) in romance books. But when it works, it works well. And I think this book pulled it off.

Carly Jackson, our heroine, is a showgirl at the Avventurato Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. She’s spunky, she’s loud, she dresses for fun and show, and she loves animals.

Our hero, Wolfgang Jones, is one of the head security guys at the same Casino. He’s also her new neighbor. And also? He pretty much hates animals. He finds Carly loud, brash, and completely ridiculous. Which is fine with her, as she finds him robotic, boring and a stick in the mud. No problems at all, right?

I love these “opposites attract” stories. Wolf’s got plans, big ones, and they don’t include a woman like Carly in them. Carly’s got plans too, like having FUN. And that obviously isn’t Wolf’s forte in life. But even as these two bump heads—both at work and at home—the sparks from their meetings are more than just anger.

Just for Kicks - Original Cover

I do adore how Wolf is described too. Big (which I love, being a 5’10” gal myself), with white blond hair and a faint German accent. Ah, I love it. I’m not usually a fan of blond men, actually, but it works here. (Isn’t that a funny pattern? So many of my recommended reads tend to be books that break my typical “rules” for reading! Ha!)

There’s another plot involving a stalker for poor Carly, but I wouldn’t call this a suspense. It’s just a nice backdrop to highlight the growing relationship and the emotions behind it.

As I said, this one’s a re-release so you can likely find it easily at bookstores in paperback, or as an ebook always. I hope you enjoyed this month’s Recommended Reading! And if you missed any of my previous ones, find the Recommended Reading category right here.

Happy Reading!

Standard Monthly Disclaimer: I am not affiliated, nor do I receive payment/compensation for, any recommendations I give on my blog or any other social media outlets. These opinions are mine alone and I receive nothing for them but the pleasure of sharing books that I’ve enjoyed with other romance readers.

So I thought I would spread some moving tips and tricks from the experts. No, not moving companies. The people who are the ones dealing with these moves daily: military spouses! A few fellow spouses dish with me on what their favorite tricks are to make moving slightly less painful.

Karen says a staple for moving cross country is two wine glasses and a corkscrew. Can’t say I blame her for that one. A cross-country move definitely requires some liquid relaxation after a long day of driving, when you’re in the hotel room for the night!

Jill, a Navy wife, and Sara, an Army wife, both suggest a survival box to keep with you so you can cook meals before your household goods get there. Plasticware, paper plates, a small Foreman grill, a pot and pan, bottle openers, can opener, and ziplock baggies are included in Jill’s kitchen necessities that go with her. Sara adds a crockpot, a cutting board and knives to the list so you can cook in a hotel room if you’re stuck in one for awhile.

Jill also says when the movers are there packing you out, to pick the smallest room available and put all the things you are taking with you in there. Then close the door and tape a sign on there saying nothing should be packed from that room so nothing you need during the move get packed on accident. Emily, a Marine wife, adds to this, don’t forget to stick the dog leash in there. It’s an easy thing to forget, but a pain in the butt to be missing!

Navy spouse Whitney reminds you to keep some cleaning supplies with you. First, you’ll probably need to clean out the place you’re leaving before you close the door that last time. And then you’ll want to have supplies on hand to do a quick once-over at the new place before all your things get there! Her laundry basket of cleaning supplies include: a bucket, Lysol, window cleaner, sponges, gloves, dust pan, broom, paper towels, toilet paper, trash bags, rags, and a mop.

In addition to the cleaning supplies, Jess suggests you should bring a shower curtain and hooks, if at all possible. Houses and apartments never seem to come with them, and it’s a messy business trying to shower without one!

Acacia, a Navy spouse, suggests buying those large wardrobe boxes. But before you hang up your clothes, toss in some shoes at the bottom. Saves you a few boxes and makes the most of the space provided!

And lastly, Erin, a Navy wife, suggests getting a babysitter for the actual packing out day. And I’ll add in here, if you have a dog (or dogs) and you don’t have a fenced in backyard for them to hang out in, consider sending them to a friend’s house, or boarding them for the day. My 75 pound bundle of loving is a sweet dog, but he just assumes everyone is his friend and he gets in everyone’s way!

These are just a few of the great tips professional movers (you know, the ones who are moving!) come up with after doing it enough times. I’m gonna be packing out here soon, and I’m going to need the support and advice from my fellow military spouses to get through it!

Oh, in case you are wondering where we’re heading, well… That’s still undecided. But that’s life in the military. Nothing’s for sure until it already happened!

Yet another post about my Goodwill treasures I’d found. I’m turning into quite the crafter these days! Can you believe it? Neither can I. But there it is. This “treasure” was also purchased the same time I bought the duck-painting-turned-chalkboard. And I have to say, it was much easier than the chalkboard. Not that the duck was all that difficult. Just, less steps.

I started out with this dirty frame with an ugly-butt faded flower photo. The glass was sticky, the frame had some delightful chalk-like substance that I didn’t examine too closely (in fear that I might have to turn it in to the police as evidence) and the photo was, well. Hello, 80′s. That basically sums it all up. But it was 35 cents. How could I pass that up? Knowing what I was going to do with it, and knowing another frame of this same size, even a plain one, would have cost me at least $5. And knowing I was about to basically start from scratch, why would I spend more?

I had white paint already. I removed the glass and the adorable floral masterpiece and painted the frame white. I already had this paint, but I’m sure it’d only be like 2 or 3 bucks if you bought this size. But you wouldn’t need this much paint. A small 59 cent bottle would get you through a frame this size. I wiped the frame down (bye bye, suspicious white substance) and gave the thing three coats, to cover up any nicks and all that.

After that, I cleaned the glass (which took an hour…what the HELL was on that thing?!) and then cut to size a piece of scrapbook paper. 33 cents. Popped that in, called it done. (See where I’m going with this yet? No? Then keep watching, my little pupils.)

Oh wait, not quite done. I knew that I would be hanging this bad boy up, but I also know that thanks to living in an apartment, I didn’t want to do any more nail holes than I already had. Plus, it was going on the back of the door, so there was no way I’d be nailing anything in there. So I purchased some of those Command strips and followed the directions. They’re in English. So read them.

Then I hung it up. Ah. You get it now, don’t you? I turned the ugly picture frame with the ugly picture and the dirty, grimy glass into a dry erase board. Now, looking at it more, I think I might have chosen poorly for the color of the frame. White frame, white door… You see the problem. I have yet to choose another color (I’m picky this time around) but I will likely repaint it some other color.

My only advice if you try this is to pick a paper pattern that is cute but not too busy, and a color that has something to it, but isn’t too dark. You want to be able to read what you’re writing on there! This will work on any size frame, any color paper, any color frame, anywhere, anytime. Glass is glass, after all! When Hubs saw this, he said “Why didn’t you just buy another dry erase board?” Well, first of all, because regular simple dry erase boards are typically ugly. Not to mention, a board this size would likely be 8 or 9 bucks by itself. Considering I had everything else on my own, the frame cost me 35 cents and the paper 33 cents. So overall, this cost me 68 cents. Much cheaper, and much prettier! A little more work, but worth it. Let’s see the beginning and end results side-by-side here.

Yup. It works. Well, there’s another example of turning Goodwill “treasures” into real treasures. I’ve got one more from this trip to share with you…a Christmas basket with a lot of problems. Come back soon for more Trash-To-Treasures time!

Jeanette

But then again, I doubt Suzanne Brockmann would call this book paranormal. Sometimes, books just hover over the line of several sub-genres. This would be one of them. It’s got just a little bit of everything. Action, cowboys, a ghost, strong family bonds, great best friends, a movie set…I could go on but I’ll just move on from here.

Unlike what is typical in the paranormal genre, the hero or heroine were not shifters or vampires or any other other-worldly being. The bad guy (guys, really) weren’t either. So who was? The hero’s great-grandfather. Yeah, little different, right? See, our heroine, Alison Carter, is the history consultant on a movie set that involves the legend of Kid Gallagher and Silas Quinn. The way everyone knows the story, Quinn is the hero and Gallagher is the bad guy. But the problem there is…history got it wrong. And Jamie Gallagher is back to make sure they get it right in the movie.

What that means though, is that his poor great-grandson (and our hero) A.J. Gallagher, is stuck looking like a loony nut because he’s the only one who can see Gramps. Even his own mother doesn’t believe him. Now, granted, A.J. has had his fair share of … we’ll go with the word “issues” in the past, and that might lead people to be skeptical of this tall tale he’s been sharing. But he’s determined to help his Gramps clear the family name.

Alison though, not having it. And so begins the long trek for A.J. to convince her that not only does she have the history incorrect, but that A.J. is getting his information straight from the source. The source that, according to Alison’s research, has been dead almost 100 years. But in reality has only been dead about 30. Either way you slice it, doesn’t lead her to take him very seriously. At least at first.

Along the way, and completely unrelated to the movie or clearing Jamie Gallagher’s good name, Alison unknowingly becomes witness to a crime, and she’s Target Number One for a group of baddies on the loose. Herein lies the place where we get a majority of the action, since her life seems to be in constant jeopardy.

I think what made this book really resonate with me and stay on my keeper shelf is the hero: A.J. Gallagher. The guy has baggage, and it’s not cute Louie Vuitton cargo either. PTSD, recovering alcoholic, seeing his long-dead great-grandfather’s ghost…the guy has a few problems. But that’s what makes him so endearing. And he’s so cute about things too. He’s completely willing to let Alison take the lead when it’s honestly best. But he also has no problem flipping the Alpha switch and getting the job done, regardless of who he has to plow over to save his woman.

“I love her,” he said. “The way I know you love Charlotte. I can’t let her die, so shoot me if you have to, but shoot me dead, because I’m gonna keep going until I light this fuse.”

Okay. Excuse me while I recover from my swoon. I mean, hi… The man has guns drawn on him and he’s just like “can I save my woman before you kill me dead? ‘Kay, thanks.” Ah. Amore.

I thought, after realizing there was a ghostie involved in this book, I might really hate that. See comment above about paranormal not being my usual thing. But I honestly LOVED the Jamie moments. While the rest of the book is third person, the Jamie ghost scenes are in first. It was actually really helpful during the action-climax at the end, when our hero and heroine were split up, because he was able to pop back and forth quickly so we could see what was happening between the two of them from one standard perspective. Plus, the moments between him and his great-grandson were great. That familial bond was there, strong, and interesting. These two learning how to interact as adults (Jamie comes back as a man in his mid-twenties, and A.J. was only ten when Jamie died. So it’s a new deal for them too.)

Overall, the book is a great one, and I still go back from time to time. I’m a big fan, and this one stays firmly on my keeper shelf.

Come back next month to see what my recommendation will be. Missed out on the last one? On the left hand side bar, under Categories, find “Recommended Reading” and you will be taken to all my previous recommendations!

Happy reading!

Jeanette

Standard Monthly Disclaimer: I am not affiliated, nor do I receive payment/compensation for, any recommendations I give on my blog or any other social media outlets. These opinions are mine alone and I receive nothing for them but the pleasure of sharing books that I’ve enjoyed with other romance readers.