Wow.

Sometimes life can sure take you for a loop. I guess that's one thing about life - you never know what's going to happen next, or whether or not you'll have the life you had the day before.

Today, my mom woke up just fine, being her normal self. Then all of a sudden, she told me that she couldn't remember things that had been happening in the past week and a half - she didn't remember quitting her job, or taking some tests for her new job as a Disney travel agent. I wasn't sure what was wrong - so I called Dad upstairs to their room, where Mom was laying down.

Dad called my grandparents over - my grandma is a nurse, and they eventually ended up taking her to the hospital forty-five minutes away from our house. Mom has been under a lot of stress lately, and so we're thinking that it might be related to that.

Please be in prayers for her. My mom is my best friend. If this wasn't her, she'd be the one that I was talking to about what was going on.

Right now, she's at the hospital. My grandpa called and said that they had taken her back to a room, but they haven't heard anything since then.

I turned on Christian music, and am letting that soothe me while I'm praying for and thinking of my mom. One song came up, though, that seriously made me stop in my tracks, and I think that it was played just for me.

/

Well Hello, Do You All Remember Me?

Decided to put a funny picture to start out my post, because everyone needs to have a little giggle at something every day, right?

Of course they do.

I've been so busy that I barely have time for my writing, let alone do I have time to get online and write a blog post! I used to have a phone call with my best friend every day, but now we rarely ever talk on the phone anymore. Does that make me a bad best friend? LOL, I sure hope not.

Busy, busy times. But ya know, isn't that just life? Especially as I get older. Well, whatever.

Christmas was really good! We had a great time. On Christmas Eve, we went to my grandparents house for the day, to spend time with my uncles, aunts, and cousins. There were (with my brother) 6 little boys under the age of 7. It was surely interesting. Not gonna lie.

It was quite an experience, but a good one! It was nice to have us all together now that my uncle and aunt got home with my baby cousin, Grant, from Korea!

Then on Christmas Eve evening, we opened all our gifts. That's not normal for us, usually we open Christmas day. But because this year Christmas was on a Sunday, we knew we'd be going to church, and wouldn't want to get up super early for gifts.

Christmas day we got up and went to church - we had a nice church service full of special music and a great message by our pastor. After that, we came home and had my grandparents over for stromboli~ our Christmas day meal tradition.

As for New Years Eve, I'm not sure exactly what we're doing yet! I don't have any plans! I'll probably be ringing in the new year here are home!

Wish you all a very Happy New Year!

~Ashley

Blog Party by Abigail!

Abigail at Abigail Kraft is hosting this blog party that I just felt like I needed to be a part of because it looks like a ton of fun!
{Party Questions}

1} What's the nerdiest/geekiest/weirdest thing about you?

Probably the fact that I'm so weird that I can't find just one thing to mention! My geekiest quality - well, I'm a writer, and I have glasses. Does that count??

2} If you could live in a fictional universe from any book, movie, or television show, what would it be?

I would love to live one day as Juliet O'Hara from Psych. I don't think that I'd forever want to be a police detective - but I think that it might be fun to do for a day or two!

3} Little or big, practical or frivolous, what is one of your favorite items in your house?

My favorite things, huh??? My iPod touch, my laptop and my guitar.

4} Do you like animated movies? If so, what is your favorite?

I absolutely, positively love animated movies. My favorite? Definitely Tangled!

5} What is your favorite household chore?

We're supposed to have a favorite? Maybe washing the dishes. Since I need to do it all the time anyway, I might as well enjoy it, right?

6} What's your favorite thing to get at Starbucks (or your favorite coffee shop)?

Vanilla Latte!

7} What is your favorite pizza topping?

I like pepperoni, ham, bacon & hamburg all together! So, meat lovers!

8} Waffles or pancakes?

Waffles!

9} Do you like to play games? If so, what is your favorite?

We don't play games too much, but when we do, I always have fun! I really enjoy the game Apples to Apples because every game is very different and there's always fun in it!

10} Have you ever let anyone win a game?

No! I like to win! ;)

11} Have you ever dyed your hair?

I've highlighted it a time or two, but I actually like the color of my hair and don't want to change it.

12} Do you make your bed every morning?

Um...no. Never. I figure that since I'm going to crawl back into it that night anyway, there's no reason for me to make it!

13} Picasso or Norman Rockwell?

N.A

14} Do you like carpet, tile, or hardwood floors?

I grew up with hardwood floors - we live in an old house - so anything different is weird to me! So I prefer hardwood.

15} If you could put one thing in a safe under your bed, what would it be?

My notebooks full of stories that I wrote.

16} What's your favorite condiment?

Ketchup! My family says that I need that shirt that says "I put Ketchup on my Ketchup". It's only true.

17} Have you ever thrown up on someone (excluding when you were a child)?

Um...other than myself? NO.

18} What was the last thing that made you laugh?

Talking on the phone to my best friend, Kylie & thinking back to the time that we had together when I was at her house last November!

19} Think fast...what's the first song that pops into your head?

Firework by Katy Perry

Just Another Monday

Wow, Mondays always seem to be the craziest day of the week. We have to get back into the swing of things about an all-too-short weekend of sitting around and being lazy!

So our Monday today was particularly crazy. We started out the day working on laundry! Mom did it all today, so we don't have any to worry about the rest of the week, which is really nice! I don't mind doing laundry, but I'm so glad that it's done and I have stuff that I can wear all week.

Then Mom and I spent almost all day working on cleaning the entire downstairs. Most of the day I listened to music while I worked on the dining room! Now Mom and I have what we call our 'office'. It's a place for both of our computers and our calendars and planners and such.

I should have really cleaned my room today, too, but I didn't feel the need to since we worked on the whole downstairs. Although, I did clean off the landing up to my attic-bedroom. It had been full of clothes and shoes forever now and it was good to get all the stuff off of it. So now all I need to work on is getting my room all the way finished.

Tomorrow I'm working all day. Not sure of what I'll be working on tomorrow, but most likely I'll be answering the phones and doing receptionist work.

Wednesday, I'm going away with a friend and hopefully getting the rest of my Christmas shopping done! I am usually done by this time of year, and for whatever reason, I'm not! So I really would like to finish it up.

Thursday is Thanksgiving! I'll be sure to post about that later on in the week! :)

~Ashley

Beautiful People - Holiday Edition

I think that this month, since it's the first "real" book that I've ever written by myself, I'll focus on writing about my NaNo book so the questions will be focused on that. :)
My main character's name is Lainey.

1. What kind of holidays do they celebrate, if any?
I almost always have the Christmas season in my books. If there's not Christmas, there's usually one of the other major holidays, such as Easter or Fourth of July. There always has to be some sort-of holiday in my book because it just adds spice to the book.

In Lainey's book, there is a Christmas season, and a couple of birthdays that are celebrated.

2. What are they most thankful for?

I think that Lainey is most thankful for the family and friends that she has been blessed with. She knows that she couldn't live without them & that they were given to her for a reason.

3. Do they have any family traditions?

Hmmm....well, her family gets together on Christmas day to exchange gifts and have a large lunch together. In the story, her brother, Kent and his wife Kaelyn, had just had a baby, so it was something fun to add to the story - having a baby around at Christmastime.

4. What is their most memorable holiday memory?

Mostly just having the time to spend with her family & being able to be with them during the season.

5. What is the most memorable gift they have ever received?

Lainey would say it was her guitar. She doesn't play it much - but when she gets the chance, she loves to. And toward the end of the book, she picks back up her guitar and starts strumming again, finding her love for it once again.

6. Do they consider it important to be with family during celebrations?

For sure! Lainey doesn't have an amazing relationship with her family, but she does think that it's important to be with them. She doesn't get along with her family a lot, but she does love them.

7. Do they usually wait till the last minute to purchase gifts, or do they buy them ridiculously early?

No, Lainey is definitely a planner. I think it's because I mostly based her off of me. She's so much like me, actually, that sometimes I even get surprised by some of the things that she does! I'm thinking 'um...am I gonna do that sometime?' Well, anyway, the point was, she's a planner and she always buys her gifts early.

8. Favorite Christmas song? For fantasy authors, is music a part of their celebration?

I'd have to say that it's a toss-up between Hark the Harold Angels Sing & Silent Night.

9. Do they celebrate for religious reasons?

As Christians, yes.

10. How do they celebrate the beginning of the new year?

Huh, I didn't even think about bringing in the new year in the story. Maybe I'll have to add that in a second draft. Gives me some ideas!