Friday Five - Like a Love Song, Wii Dance, and Revisions

1. I - I love you like a love song, baby. And I keep hittin' repeatpeatpeatpeatpeat. Oh, Selena Gomez. The first time I heard this song, I didn't get it. At all.

2. But it kept coming up on Just Dance 4 for the Wii (we won the Wii in a raffle at a benefit!), and suddenly I was addicted. I am determined to get a perfect score on this song, as well as Call Me Maybe, and Maneater. But I am a terrible dancer. It's still fun though!

3. My revisions are done and turned in to my editor! The changes weren't TOO major, but they took some time, and I'm pretty happy with the result. So now I wait. I'm getting good at the waiting.

4. Anyone watching The Voice this season? We skipped the last couple seasons, but with the judge switches, we decided to give it a shot and we're hooked! Blake is hilarious as always and there is some serious talent out there! I already bought Savannah Berry's version of Safe & Sound (she's from Houston, y'all!) and I have my eye on a few others.

5. Some of you may remember my 2013 good eating/fitness goal I set in January, and I did really really good! .... until my book deal. And I admittedly have done a little too much celebrating. And once you taste that sugar, it's hard to knock it again. BUT I've joined a DietBet for April and I'm getting back on track! How are your goals going this year?

Friday Five: Fall TV and Shows Past

1. TVD: I am really really really impatient for The Vampire Diaries to start back up. Have you seen the teaser for the new season?!?! I mean, it's a huge spoiler if you aren't caught up, but DANG. #teamdamon

2. Castle: Last season's finale wasn't exactly a cliffhanger, but the preview for the new season looks super exciting and reviews are good! Love me some Castle and Beckett.

3. Once Upon a Time: I almost gave up on this mid-season, but I stuck with it, and now I'm curious what's going to happen next. They already killed off one of my favorite characters and Prince Charming gets on my nerves in the real world, so twil be hard to keep my attention. Better be good!

4. Revenge: Holy moly how this show is like watching a movie every week. It's so exciting and twisty and full of pretty. Can't wait for the new season! #teamjack

5. New Girl: I really miss the funny this show packs in a 30-minute punch. #teamnick

ALSO: Can't wait for Bones! Can't wait for new Big Bang Theory! Can't wait for the new season of Downton Abbey in January! AHHHHH!!

Missing:

1. I miss amazing shows like Lost and Alias. Come on J.J. Give us another winner.

2. SO upset Jane By Design was canceled. The decent shows always get canned in favor of smutty, pointless ones with no good messages. What's wrong with America? GIVE ME A FREAKING NIELSEN BOX! I'LL SHOW THEM WHAT I WATCH.

3. Now that the show Bunheads is a thing, I'm realizing how much I miss the Gilmore Girls. You can tell the shows are similar, but it's not the same. That dynamic between mother and daughter was so special with GG. Then there was Christopher. And Luke. Bunheads needs to throw us older ladies a Christopher or Luke, right?

4. Pushing Daisies. I'm not sure why I'm not over this yet since it was several years ago now. It was so quirky and funny and adorable. And the narrator was the same guy who did the audio books for Harry Potter!

5. Arrested Development. I watched this series for the first time nearly a year ago thanks to Netflix instant, and oh my if it wasn't one of the funniest things I've ever seen. They keep teasing us with talk of a brief season to catch us up before a movie release, but could they be any SLOWER?

What shows are you looking forward to coming back this season, or what new shows are starting you can't wait to try? Any shows you still miss that are long gone?

Friday Five - Downton, Author Signings and Love and First Sight

1. So I'm STILL not done with my first draft. That is all I have to say about that.

2. I'm back on track working out, and I finally have a virtual buddy doing the same program with me so we're actually being held accountable. Definitely motivating!

3. I'm rather upset this Sunday is the last episode of Downton Abbey for a while. But I suppose I should be glad for one less television show to distract me. I'm not there yet. #teammatthew

4. I got The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith and I can't wait to read it!!!

5. I'm going to two ROCKING author events this next week!!! Tomorrow is the Winter Dark Days tour featuring Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton, and Courtney Allison Mouton. And Wednesday is the Breathless Reads tour with Beth Revis, Marie Lu, Jessica Spotswood and Andrea Cremer. PUMPED! I know I'll end up with more books than I can read any time soon, but I also know the writing high I'm going to have for weeks to come will be put to good use. :)

Friday Five - Book Hoarding and Swapping

1. I had one more B&N gift card left from Christmas, so I ordered My Very UnFairy Tale Life by Anna Staniszewski, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith, Legend by Marie Lu, and A Million Suns by Beth Revis. I can't wait to read ALL of them.

2. Those of you that get the Alice Marvels newsletters every weekday know the awesome giveaways she hosts. I've won two books from Alice so far, the latest one being The Secret Sisterhood of Heartbreakers by Lynn Weingarten.

3. Recently I met up with a group of Houston blogging friends for lunch and field trips to two of our Houston Half Price Books. I picked up Wither by Lauren DeStefano, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by  Michelle Hodkin, and Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer. Like I should be adding more books to my pile, but I can't resist a good deal on a book I know I'm going to read!

4. Tomorrow I'm going to another local bookstore after lunch with with my blogging friend from Cari's Book Blog! The same bookstore I recently picked up Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare.

5. My name is Kristin and I'm a book hoarder. Hi, Kristin!


Here's the current list of used books I have up for swap if anyone is interested!

YA:
-ARC of Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culberson
-Paperback of Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
-Hardback of Ten Things We Did (and probably shouldn't have) by Sarah Mlynowski
-Paperback of Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead
-Paperback of Red Riding Hood by Blakley-Cartwright/Johnson

Adult:
-Paperback of The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs
-Paperback of The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Friday Five

1. I just dropped off my Tahoe to get looked at/worked on. She's been running funny for a while and the brakes are squeaky. I probably won't get her back until MONDAY which means I'll be wheel dependent all weekend. Odd feeling.

2. YA author Joy Preble interviewed me for her blog (along with some other fab Texas bloggers), so if you haven't seen it, check it out HERE!

3. My WIP is finally approaching the end of that tunnel... you know, where the light is coming from? I hit 72,000 words yesterday (EEEEK!!!) with at least five known chapters left to go, so it's safe to say I'm going to be quite scissor happy during revisions. Easier to cut than to add though!

4.  I was hoping for a winter this year, but it's been warm the past month and I'm sneezing like it's allergy season. The wildflowers are already popping up all over town too. It's FEBRUARY, WHAT THE WHAT?

5. I have The Hunger Games fever. The new trailer has reminded me I want to read the first book again before the movie comes out NEXT MONTH!! It's getting closer! Who's ready?! The first trailer had a ROCKING song which you can listen to HERE. It only took me forever to track it down. haha. Too bad those people aren't doing the music for the movie. I lurve it.

Friday Five

1. I'M MEETING JOHN GREEN TONIGHT!!! YES! THAT John Green! I've only read one of his books, but it was brilly and I'm anxious to hear what he has to say in person. Apparently his brother will be there too, and they're hilarious together as those of you that watch their vlogs know. Anyone else in Houston that's NOT going to ALA in Dallas going tonight??

2. I stayed up until 1:30 in the morning reading Simone Elkeles' Perfect Chemistry. So what if some of it was total cheese, I was ADDICTED. SO GOOD!!

3. Tomorrow is the Montgomery County Teen Book Festival, which is pretty smallish, but it's maybe 5 minutes from my house at the local high school, so that's exciting! Gayle Forman will be there and the keynote speaker is Kristin Cast.

4. I was taking January off of photography, but I got sucked into a 1-year cake smash session this morning. I'm actually nervous about it. Total jitters. o_O

5. I'm getting SO close to finishing my first draft of my WIP it's making me even MORE nervous than photography. I'm so worried about tying up all the loose ends that I keep putting off writing. AHHHHH!!! It will get done by January 31, I'm just making myself sick over it even though I KNOW HOW GOOD IT WILL FEEL to be done!!

Happy Weekend!! Anything fun planned?

Friday Five (TV Show Edition)

1. I'm a newer fan of The Big Bang Theory. So far I've watched the first few seasons very slowly through Netflix (it hasn't been available instantly), and I've been keeping up with the new season. I haven't yet seen how Amy Farrah Fowler became part of the group but WOW is she funny. Last night's episode when Sheldon gave her the tiara... please someone else tell me they laughed as hard as I did.

2. Arrested Development, where have you been all my life?! I'm well into season two on Netflix instant and it's so golden. Tons of big name guest stars, lots of quirky humor, and Jason Bateman. That is all.

3. What was THAT on The Vampire Diaries last night??? Are they trying to pair Klaus and Caroline now?!?!?! I'm still loving this show. I never know where they're going with anything.

4. BONES came back on last night! I still have to look away when they show the dead bodies (MAN they look GROSS) but I love every single one of the characters on this show. I meant to record the spin off show, The Finder, but I forgot! I guess I'll have to catch up online before next week!

5. Downton Abbey is FINALLY back for a second season (you lucky UK residents have already seen it!!) and it's fabulous! Funny how they start you off disliking Mary and now we're rooting for her and Matthew (at least I am! ;). And Anna and Mr. Bates... sigh. This better work out for them or I'll be SUPER SAD!

Bonus - I'm still completely sucked into Revenge. What a wild ride this show is! Some of Emily's actions seem a little sloppy sometimes, but just when I'm sure she's going to get caught, she doesn't. And having "Amanda" around makes me nervous! I don't like Jack with her!! *bites nails*

Double bonus - Alcatraz starts on Monday!!!

Two Year Blogiversary!

Can you believe it?!?! Tomorrow marks two years of blogging for me!!

*throws confetti on all your heads*

I've made so many friends, found a few indispensable critique partners, and I've learned so so so much. Thank you to all my lovely 373 followers, I appreciate each and every one of you!

So how should I celebrate this anniversary of blogging? What would you like to see from me? A giveaway? A contest? Giftcards? Specific books? Let me know what rocks your blogiversary world!

And since today is Friday, here are five random things on my mind today:

1. Food journaling is hard.

2. My lemon tree is inside most of this week, since it's been freezing at night. I think it likes the toasty temperature because a lot of the little flower buds have opened up and they smell HEAVENLY!

3. I keep forgetting Christmas is so close, and there are still a couple people I have NO CLUE what to gift them with.

4. Santa has elves, we have Target. So true. So. True.

5. Every year I let myself buy a new Christmas album, and this year I bought Michael Buble's newest called "Christmas," if you can believe it. Now I usually enjoy his songs on the radio. I love his throw-back voice and a little part of me tingles at the thought that he can sell out our largest stadium in town in the matter of an hour (isn't it awesome that the general population can still appreciate this style of music?! I love it.) This album is loaded with classics sung only the way he can sing them, and it's a welcome addition to my Christmas playlist.

Friday Five

1. STRESS IS MY MIDDLE NAME

2. So, today while I was trying to decompress, enjoying an episode of Castle while eating lunch, my carbon monoxide detector goes off. I change the batteries. Same thing. Open the windows. Call the gas company. Wait for gas man for about 45 minutes outside. I thought it had "cooled off" outside. No, it has not. Gas man comes and waves this little thing around everywhere. Nope. No CO anywhere to be found. No leaks. All's well. Guess I need a new detector. And a nap I don't have time for. AFTER I get the new detector because I'm nervous like that.

3. Allergies have set in. Huzzah.

4. Do self-imposed deadlines actually work? I'm thinking no, because if they did, I would have finished my first draft in July. Then August. Nope, maybe by October 1st. No? October 15th then! Um... not gonna happen.

5. Vampire Diaries fans... isn't the whole fun of tension between characters that "unspoken" element? You just pick up on the subtleties, the looks, the longing. You DON'T talk about it. "Why don't you take a beat from Elena?" Excuse me? No. "You have feelings for Damon!" "OMG what if I do?" PAH-LEASE. Don't tell us there's an issue. SHOW US. That's writing 101, TVD.

Friday Five

1. There's a box of soup mix in my pantry with a serving size of TWO TABLESPOONS. Are they serious? Two tablespoons? FOR SOUP? That's not being eaten any time soon. I read my labels in the store now.

2. I actually got some writing done this week! Wednesday I managed to squeak out 1,500 words. Hopefully I'll get another nice chunk written this weekend!

3. Switchfoot's new album comes out Tuesday!! CAN. NOT. WAIT.

4. Lots of new shows are starting up. The Vampire Diaries is off to a strong start, and I'm enjoying The Secret Circle and Revenge so far. Parks and Rec is just as hilarious as always, as is The Big Bang Theory. Castle's premiere left me going, eh. Glee was another let down for some reason. I guess my expectations were too high for those two shows. Looking forward to checking out Hart of Dixie, Once Upon a Time, and Smash when they start. Maybe Grimm too. Can't decide about Tera Nova...

5. Tonight will be a blast from the past! I'm going with Heather to see HEART! Well, Def Leppard is the headliner but I only know the one song. Heart was MY BAND as a youngster, and was also my first concert. If I remember correctly (which I honestly might not, because I was around 7) the line-up was Blind Melon, The Black Crowes, and Heart. I've been a concert addict ever since.

Friday Five

1. I went to the chiropractor today for the first time ever. Nothing crazy yet, since it was the initial visit, but apparently I'm pretty crooked. I look forward to getting cracked and feeling better!!

2. To the woman that drives the same route as I do to work in the morning, WAKE UP EARLIER! Seriously, five minutes or less is all it takes to put your makeup on at home in front of the bathroom mirror. It won't be my fault when you poke out your eye with your mascara wand when I honk at you to STAY IN YOUR OWN FREAKING LANE. When you're behind the wheel, driving is your JOB. Not putting on your makeup, not texting or checking your email or updating your Twitter status. That's great you care so little about your own life to drive like an idiot, but I CARE ABOUT MINE.

3. Wow that felt good to get off my chest.

4. Does anyone else counting calories feel hungry, like, all the time?

5. Netflix just added Felicity to their instant offerings, and while it's not Bones (WHERE ARE YOU SEASON SIX?), it still has some great moments. Best quote so far is from Ben: "There's like this wall, in my head. On one side there's the part of my brain that understands things and absorbs things. On the other side of the wall is poetry." Ben... I'm with you!

Friday Five

1. A friend of mine has one of those calorie burner monitors (must research those today) and she reports 800 calories burned in 2 hours of house cleaning. I cleaned the house pretty much all day yesterday, so... that's exciting caloric news.

2. The fall season of TV shows is coming up! The 7th season of Bones starts in November, and I hope to be ready by then. Just started season 4 and can I just say "NOOOOO, DR. ADDY ARE YOU STUPID?!!!!!" Sad face.

3. The Vampire Diaries starts in like, two weeks. CAN. NOT. WAIT. (Yes, that deserved it's own number)

4. Why are there so many book signings AND a teen book festival coming up? Don't they know I'm drowning in my TBR pile??

5. In case you missed it, I have more books up for swap, including these ARCs. Check them out here.

   

Friday Five

I keep forgetting about these Friday Five things. I love reading them on other blogs, so here's mine for this week!

1. I worked out so hard yesterday, I was in bed before 9pm. I wouldn't mind making this a habit.

2. My TBR pile is drowning me. I think I'm actually reading SLOWER now because there's so many piled up and it makes me nervous. hahaha.

3. So, my new part time job is at a dentist office. I see and hear quite a bit... but one thing that had me laughing this week, was a little girl that only brushed the front of her teeth. The hygienist was talking to the parent about brushing habits and the little girl said, "I didn't know I was supposed to brush the inside too!" That made for one embarrassed parent!

4. I bought a French phrase book. I'm not sure why. I'll blame Stephanie Perkins.

5. My ten year high school reunion is in October... I now have ten weeks to lose 30 pounds. Not possible?? Okay. I suppose I could settle for 10. Off to the gym!  o_O

Happy Weekend!

Friday Five

1. I'm getting a little impatient for The Vampire Diaries to start back up again...

2. It's fascinating that the singer Pink has successfully gotten people to know her simply by the name of a color.  I'm thinking I'll go by Heliotrope from now on.

3. Anyone buy any good music lately? Maybe movie soundtracks?? I got an iTunes gc for my birthday and I need help picking out an album or two.

4. STILL thinking about Anna and the French Kiss.... :)

5. Switchfoot signed my shoes last year, right?  Most of my followers saw this picture when I ranted and raved about it the next day.





<--Mom






<--Me

Lately when I've been wearing them, people have been asking, "Who signed your shoes?!"  Sadly, not everyone knows the glory that is Switchfoot so I get some blank looks or assumptions that they are a local band.... well, this won't do.  Here is a little sampling of my all-time favorite band for your weekend.  It's a silly music video, but it features Jayma Mays from Glee, so that's fun! :) 

Friday Five

1) Eisley's new album, The Valley, came out this week! FINALLY!!! Loving it so far!

2) I wrote just over 600 words last night, and I feel like I'm back in the game! The ideas are still flowing and I look forward to being able to get some serious writing done this weekend!

3) I don't understand why people have pet turtles.

4) THE MONKEES ARE GOING ON TOUR!!! They still don't have any Texas dates posted yet, but fingers crossed!! I've been in love with The Monkees (namely, Micky) since I was in jr. high when my mom introduced me to them. I've been fortunate enough to see them in concert twice (Micky, Davy, and Peter anyway--Mike is a bump), and I've seen Micky on a solo tour with his sister.  This is their first tour in 10 years (and let's face it... it's probably one of their last), so I'm really hoping they come at least within driving distance.

5)  Tonight is going to ROCK! I'm going to dinner and to an author signing to meet Rachel Hawkins, author of Hex Hall and the newly released sequel Demonglass (can't wait to read that)!  Joining me will be fellow bloggers Heather, Jen (and her sister Kim! :::waves:::), and Meredith!

Friday Five

So I've seen this meme around the blogs where you post five random things, and I'm really not sure who to give the credit to on that.  So THANKS to whoever thought it up :)

1) Wasn't Adele's first CD called 19, and the new one is 21?? Is this how old she is when she records them??  Either way, girl can SING!

2) After finishing Anna and the French Kiss (omg, best book I've read in a LONG time...swoooooon), I sat down to write, and everything came out present tense.  I am now in the process of changing my MS from past to present (so far it's only 13k words I think, so it shouldn't be too terribly awful).  Wish me luck.

3) I'm such a Gleek... and I could listen to every song Darren Criss sings over and over again. Oh wait, I do. (currently obsessed with "When I Get You Alone", and "Bills, Bills, Bills" :)

4) I just finished week one of the couch to 5k program.  Do I have to move on to week two, or can I just keep doing week one over and over again? ;)

5) I'm meeting with a photographer today for a mentoring session! I'm nervous/excited. I'm sure our time together will FLY by, and I hope I can soak up all the info she throws at me without getting too confused or discouraged (as I'm known to do).