Category Archives: Uncategorized

May22

Blind Date Anxiety?

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Blind Date Anxiety?

Having lived the life of a professional and a single mom, time for establishing girlfriend friendships has been at a minimum for a number of years. Now, having moved, I find myself somewhat rusty at the dance one partakes in to establish and form strong and comfortable bonds with the new people one encounters and the friendship opportunities that present themselves.

Yesterday, I had such a laugh at myself!  My wonderful sister-in-law volunteers with a woman that she thought I should meet.  She arranged a meet for lunch with this targeted  woman, one of her girl friends and the two of us. She informed me ahead that we had tons of things in common: fairly new to our community, both … Read the rest

Apr21

Authors in Bloom Give-Away Winner

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Authors in Bloom Give-Away Winner

Thank you to all the visitors who participated in the Authors in Bloom Blog Hop!  Hopefully you gathered some wonderful gardening tips, recipes and became familiar with some new authors and their novels! It is my pleasure to announce that the winner of the raffle at my site, Follow the Blog is  Ninette Swann.  Congratulations Ninette!

Ninette will receive gardening shears and gloves and my first two books of the Frenchie Series: Frenchie’s Best Friend-Follow the Blog and Frenchie X2- Follow the Blog. 

Happy Gardening and Reading Ninette!

Image… Read the rest

Apr4

Kindle Fire Prize (Authors in Bloom Blog Hop Contest)

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Kindle Fire Prize (Authors in Bloom Blog Hop Contest)

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Are you ready to participate in the Authors in Bloom Blog Hop?  Authors (all 65 of us) are getting our gardening tips and/or recipes  prepared to post on April 10th by 6am EST. The fun part is planning the prizes. All you have to do is visit each author site, and leave a comment at each blog and, of course, you are always welcome to make a blog subscription to any that you truly enjoy. This will register you for give-aways from individual authors and  the chance to win the GRAND PRIZE (after checking out all 65 blogs): a Kindle Fire or Nook and a $25. gift card.  The tour lasts 10 days and ends April 19th at … Read the rest

Mar26

Fighting Fur Kids for the Remote

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Fighting Fur Kids for the Remote

Watching the news the other night, a segment came on introducing DogTV. You guessed it- a cable channel for dogs. Seriously, it’s no hoax! This cable channel was launched recently in San Diego for our fur kids who are left home alone while their human pawrents (coined by Petworld Insider) go out to work. Apparently the need for this cable channel arose solely from the discomfort doggie parents felt over leaving their canine babies home alone. (There’s a movie with that title- oh right; it was a human child left home alone, not a fur kid.) So for an extra $4.99 on monthly cable bills, they can leave behind their fur kids – guilt free.

Everyone’s aware that … Read the rest

Mar20

Authors in Bloom Blog Hop is Coming!

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Authors in Bloom Blog Hop is Coming!

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Get ready for some fun, tips, and prizes!  You’re invited to participate in an Author Blog Hop.  The tour begins on April 10th at 6:00 am EST and finishes on the 19th at midnight EST, so mark your calendars!

Readers will have 10 days to enter each author’s individual contest (giveaways) and submit their entry for the GRAND PRIZE (a KINDLE FIRE or NOOK and a 25 dollar gift certificate for eBooks). Visiting 6 author sites per day and leaving comments will enter you in author site give-aways and also provide you with 65 chances to win the Grand Prize. As well, each author site (65 in total) will also post a giveaway and either a gardening tip … Read the rest

Mar19

A Title- Can You Help?

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A Title- Can You Help?

Okay, you’re going to want to laugh at me.  I am agonizing over the title of my third MG novel in the Frenchie series.  The novel itself has gone through a dozen edits and revisions and now I need to put a title on it and I’m struggling to come up with the perfect  one that will grab my readers’ attention.

You probably don’t think this part is a big deal, but you would be wrong. Titles are extremely important, they either peak your interest or they don’t. A reader isn’t going to pick up a novel off the shelf and read the synopsis if the title doesn’t grab him/her first.  I know, I know you’re probably jumping up and … Read the rest

Mar8

BLOG POST ANALYSIS

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BLOG POST ANALYSIS

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Having just finished my third novel of the Frenchie Series and reflecting upon my skills as a blogger: I’d have to say that the books are road maps for an author who continues to evolve and improve one’s writing skill. For anyone who has not read my first two MG novels: Frenchie’s Best Friend- Follow the Blog and Frenchie X2- Follow the Blog; it may be no big surprise that there is a blog post at the end of most chapters.  (You did catch the subtitle- Follow the Blog, right?) The blogs are written in the voice of a thirteen year old who is “gaga” over French Bulldogs and he blogs each night to his following of Frenchie … Read the rest

Jan28

MEET the AUTHOR: Mary Laudien

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MEET the AUTHOR: Mary Laudien

photoFrenchie X2 Author PhotoMary's visit

After reading the article entitled Meet the Agent- Barbara Lowenstein in Writer’s Digest (Feb., 2013), it occurred to me it might be helpful for my blog readers to know more about Mary Laudien, the Middle Grade Author. I decided to follow Kara Gebhart’s simplified format to provide this info to my blog followers (All 3 of you, but I know there are many more of you who were just waiting for an invite to subscribe!). If you seek more detailed information, you can always go to my website: http://www.twocandobooks.com

Who is Mary Laudien? 

  • a retired innovative educator  (Known for successfully transforming the public schools she was principal of into International Baccalaureate World Schools)
  • a newly appointed International Baccalaureate
… Read the rest
Jan15

Pudsey YouTube Video Hilarious!

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Pudsey YouTube Video Hilarious!

Authors find inspiration for their writing from all sorts of places.  It just so happens, as I finish revising my third Middle Grade novel of the humorous Frenchie Series, that watching the Ashleigh and Pudsey YouTube video from Britain’s Got Talent, helped me create the best ending ever.  Each time I re-read those final three chapters, I end up laughing hysterically.  This amuses my husband to hear the belly laughs coming from my office upstairs. I don’t want to give anything away, yet, but give yourself a treat and watch this humorous video.  It will make your day.  Share it with others who would enjoy some pet humor and love.

If you enjoy Ashleigh and Pudsey, why not … Read the rest

Jan5

‘Fur Kids’ New Year’s Resolutions

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‘Fur Kids’ New Year’s Resolutions

It’s that time of year when everyone has made their New Year’s Resolutions and some are already struggling with them. It got me thinking about our ‘fur kids’ and how they must also make resolutions after over-indulgences throughout the holiday season.

‘Fur kids’ were referred to in an article in The Globe and Mail (14/12/12) by Peter Scowen.  He was  discussing just how “gaga” society is over their ‘pet kids’:

  • They eat nothing but the priciest, organic foods.
  • If their ‘pet parents’ work- they attend high-end day cares with check-up webcams.
  • They travel everywhere with their family (often First Class) and receive routine spa treatments to keep them looking their best.
  • Costuming is big (In the USA, 350 million dollars
… Read the rest