Wedding Photos!

Yes, the wedding photos have finally arrived! To showcase the beautiful occasion, I've created an online album on my website for family and friends. I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I enjoyed the wedding and creating the album.

Catching Up - Part 2

Thanks to a round of stomach flu, compliments of the grandkids, part 2 is late. But at least we're all feeling better, just in time for Thanksgiving.

My#2 daughter's wedding was just over a week ago, so we're all still recovering from that, too. It was a beautiful wedding and so was the day. We started at 8 a.m., getting our hair done, then on to the church to dress and have photos taken. After that, the wedding, followed by the reception at the church. Later, after a 3 hour break, we attended an "after party" in the ballroom at the huge community center on the Air Force base here. The food was great and so were the music, provided by a DJ, and the dancing until 11. pm. All in all, it was a fabulous day, but I wouldn't want to do it again too soon.

The photo is of Lyndsay and her new husband Adam. There are more pictures, and I quickly added them to a webpage. Wedding Photos The plan is to have a complete album online, as soon as the professional wedding photos arrive.

Catching Up, Part 1 - Post Halloween

Time sure can get away when a person is busy! Halloween has been over for more than 2 weeks, and we've made it through the first of our family's weddings. (Catching Up, Part 2 to come.) My 3 grandkids (kidlets, as I call them) enjoyed their candy-filled holiday, although little Gavin was pretty tuckered out long before the trick-or-treating was over for the other two. I've included a photo of them, all dressed up in their costumes. Scarlett, who is almost 4, was a cat. For the second year in a row. Is it obvious that she likes cats? Alex, who was less than a week from her third birthday, was a princess. Cinderella, to be exact, but she didn't get the movie on DVD until her birthday, so "Princess" was good enough for her. Gavin was a pint-sized vampire--sans the fangs--and looked quite stunning in his little "Count" suit. I'm sure there's still candy left. Both moms and dads were smart and tucked it away and are still handing it out to the little ones, a little at a time. They're all already planning costumes for next year!

Happy Halloween!

With a wedding coming up in my family in less than 2 weeks, time has been short to do everything I've wanted to do. But with today being a holiday, I wanted to stop in and spread the spirit.

Halloween's origins date back to the 5th century and the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). It marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of winter. It was believed that the souls of the dead walked among the living on this night. By the 7th century, the Christians attempted to replace the Celtic holiday by proclaiming November 1 as All Saints Day, to honor saints and martyrs. Yet Halloween lives on in most communities.

If you'd like to read more about the history of Halloween and how our modern customs of this holiday came to be, I've included some links.

http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/halloween/ Read about the origins of Halloween, check out some spooky recipies, and watch some creepy video clips.

Halloween will be celebrated on the History Channel October 31 with the following programs:

2/3c History's Mysteries: Amityville: Horror or Hoax?
3/4c History's Mysteries: The Real Dracula
4/3c Time Machine: Bloodlines - Dracula Family Tree
5/4c History's Mysteries: Ancient Monster Hunters
6/5c Haunted History Of Halloween
7/6c Haunted History Of Halloween
8/7c Houdini: Unlocking The Mystery
10/9c UFO Files: Russian Roswell
11/10c Weird U.S. Creepy Curses

More Halloween history:
http://wilstar.com/holidays/hallown.htm
http://www.theholidayspot.com/halloween/history.htm
http://www.bhg.com/bhg/story.jhtml?storyid=/templatedata/bhg/story/data/13587.xml
http://www.halloweenishere.com/history.html

Hope your Halloween is fun and safe!

Burned Out

No, not me, my computer's power supply. There's nothing like spending time without a computer to appreciate everything it does that makes life easier. From relaxing with a quick game (my favorite is spider solitaire) to doing research for a book and everything in between, I use my computer constantly. And I, like most of us, tend to take technology for granted. I paid the price for that, not only in $$$, but in time.

I decided to spend some of my downtime by hitting my TBR (To Be Read) pile. I wasn't disappointed and was in fact energized after reading 3 books, enough so that I pulled out my trusty Alpha Smart and wrote 16 pages in 2 days. To my surprise, my power supply arrived 4 days after I ordered it and that included a weekend. WOW! I was back in business again. But I had a lot of catching up to do.

Now that I'm (relatively) caught up, I'm curious to know what others are reading. Frankly, my reading tastes are eclectic, and I'll read just about anything if it looks good or interesting. I'll especially look for something someone has suggested, so feel free to post what you're reading now or have read in the past. I'd love to hear what's out there that's good!

Writers and Writing

Happy Saturday!

One of the greatest joys in my adult life is being a part of a group of writers. The Ditzy Chix began in August 2001, and it's amazing how much the eleven of us have grown as friends since then. It could be because we're women, and it could be because we all understand that it's okay to hear voices in our heads...aka characters' dialogue. More than likely, it's a little of both, in addition to the fact that we all support each other in our lives and our writing.

Writing can be a lonely profession. Writing can be a profession that brings little money. But those who write do so because they can't NOT write. Sounds crazy? Okay, it is, and I'd bet each and every writer would agree. We're all a little crazy, but who isn't? Keep in mind that only a select few--Stephen King, John Grisham, James Patterson, J.K. Rowling, to name a few--are making the big bucks. The rest of us are quietly waiting for our next sale or next royalty check to help pay the bills or maybe have the extra to redo our bathroom. And we do it alone. Just one on one with a computer and those voices in our heads.

But we're just like the guy or girl next door. Many of us have regular jobs, families to take care of, mortgages or rents to pay, soccer games to go to, and the need to buy gasoline that keeps going up and up in price. We laugh and cry like everyone else...sometimes a little more, because we laugh and cry at the characters we write about. So we may be crazy, but we're pretty normal, too. You probably couldn't pick us out of the usual crowd at the grocery store.

So if you've ever had an itch to write, but a little voice in your head keeps telling you that you must be crazy, there's no time in your life to write a grocery list, just remember that lots of others out there are doing it. What can you lose? A little time watching reality TV? Go ahead, give it a try. Be a little "crazy", just for fun.

Until later...

My First Post - Bits of This & That

The first day of Fall...The Autumn Equinox...Mabon...

A time for new Beginnings. Today, the day and night are the same length. Equalizing. Like the yin and yang of our lives. It reminds me to slow down and take stock of the things in my life: Family, writing, and the inner-self.

But enough about that. Who wants to take stock now? Instead, I thought I'd add a recent story about one of my grandkids (aka the kidlets), since we spend so much time together.

Last week, Gavin (he's 16 months old) got his pinky finger slammed in the hinge side of a door. A real OUCHY! And it involved a trip to the emergency room. His mom and dad were an hour away at the State Fair, so off we went. Poor baby nearly lost the tip of his finger, but, hopefully, all is now well. As you can see, it's well wrapped, but it doesn't stop him from doing anything. Besides the huge slice to the tip of his finger, the tip of the bone is fractured. After having 4 girls, life with a little boy is going to be...interesting.

Right now, my thoughts are on those in the path of Rita, and I'm praying that all stay safe. After Katrina, we are all now aware of just how destructive Mother Nature can be. With over two full months left of hurricane season, there's so much chance for more devastation. For those affected by the storms, stay safe.

If you haven't visited my website, I've done some redecorating and have a fresh, new look. Stop in when you have a chance. www.roxanndelaney.com

Until later...