Hello, friends. The weather in Texas right now is as close to perfection as it can get. We are in the 50s at night and around 80 in the daytime. 🙂 It’s my favorite time of year!
I’m happy to report the shattered back window on my car is now replaced and good as new.
And remember back when someone scraped the front end of my car in the grocery store parking lot? I finally got an estimate on fixing that damage and it’s not as much as I had anticipated, so that’s getting taken care of this week. Then I’ll be back to new. And hopefully that’s the end of all the weird happenings with it.
Reviews are trickling in for Painting Christmas and I’m so grateful for each one! I was thinking about Christmas stories in general and had to wonder if they are indeed limited to the holiday season. Or, do folks read them year round? It’s an interesting question, to which I have no answer. As a reader, I enjoy a good Christmas story anytime of the year. I am running this Facebook ad and hope it generates some new readers. What do you think? Would this catch your eye?
Halloween is coming this week and the grandkids are primed and ready! I’ll have pictures to share next week. This is the outside of my daughter’s house. They LOVE Halloween and go all out on decorating.
I usually go out and serve as the official hander-outer of candy. But I am working in the store this year, so haven’t yet decided if I’ll go out or not. I probably will just because I like to see all the costumes. 🙂
On the writing front there is nothing happening except some vague ideas rolling around in my head. I’m trying to ignore them as I need a break before I start something new. But I’ve made some notes on my whiteboard so they can’t go away just yet. 🙂
I’ve scheduled a couple of in-person events in December, hoping to find new readers. These are both mixed market events that are not limited to books. I find that helps with foot traffic. It’s hard to get folks out for just authors and books these days.
My youngest grandson spent the night with me Saturday and I treated him to a burger at Kenny’s which is a popular restaurant here. He loves to act silly.
Afterward, we went home and played a fun new board game. Have you ever heard of or played Catan? It is so much fun, and not so complicated I couldn’t figure it out, unlike some of the games they like to play. He won, of course, but we had some good laughs. Then we got out my old coins and looked through them. I have lots of liberty dimes, buffalo nickels, silver dollars, half dollars and on and on. I even have a bag of foreign coins from around the globe. I have no idea what to ever do with them, but we enjoyed looking.
I will be taking a blogging break the latter half of November as I am going to be working in the store lots. So between November 15th and December 1st, I won’t be around much.
I loved this quote from Mark Twain. I do believe it is correct. Isn’t the imagination such an amazing thing?
I chose to pull from the Angel deck for this week’s message and it definitely resonates with me. If we can give and receive love, even in these tumultuous times, we can maintain some semblance of peace. I’m willing to give it a try. When I think about spiritual laws, it’s the golden rule that comes to mind.
That’s it for today. I hope you all have a great week ahead!
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It’s so pleasant to read all this about you, Jan. Great reviews for your book, fun time with the grandson and upcoming Halloween time is so nice. It’s good your car got fixed. I hope you have a wonderful week and enjoyable Halloween.
Thank you so much, Tim!
What an amazing and also lovely week you must have had. I am sure, your grandson enjoyed every moment… and you too! Your daughter’s house looks amazing, and I am not talking about the decoration. Wow!
I love the quote and even more the angel card. Only reading it, spreads such a peaceful feeling!
The busiest season for my business has already begun too, I might not be blogging from mid-November unitl Christmas. I will see.
So far, have a great week, Jan!
I hope this season brings you some lucrative business, Erika. That would be worth being absent for. Thank you for the kind words. Yes, my daughter and her husband have done well for themselves. They are both highly paid professionals. I am proud for them. I agree about the angel card. It brought an immediate sense of peace. Thank you for taking the time to visit and comment! Have a great rest of your week.
Lots to like about this post, Jan. First of, I thought that Painting Christmas was an enjoyable read. I also think your ad is eye-catching. Jacob was a great character. I felt a lot of compassion for him because of his despicable father-in-law. Your daughter’s house looks amazing! My guess is that most people would read a Christmas story anytime of the year. It’s different than some stores I’ve seen that are already putting up Christmas decorations when it’s not even Halloween yet.
Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, Pete. I’m so glad you enjoyed Painting Christmas and thank you for taking the time to leave a review. I am appreciative! I think the general consensus is that most readers would enjoy a Christmas story anytime of the year. And yes, stores AND houses are already putting up Christmas decor and Halloween isn’t even over yet. It gets earlier every year. I hope you have a great week ahead!
I’m glad you got your window fixed. Sure wouldn’t look good driving around with cardboard on it. LOL The Klein family does love their Halloween. I can’t wait to see what their costumes are like this year. Always interesting. I have got to get over to leave a review on Painting Christmas!! I keep forgetting. Love you, Sister!
They certainly do go all out for Halloween. I should have taken pictures of the inside of the house. 🙂 If you get time to post a review, that would be great. Thank you for all your support!! Love you!
I read Christmas stories all year, Jan. Nothing better than a good Christmas story in July. The car window looks great. Playing board games with the family is so much fun.
I agree, John. A Christmas story in July is a bit of relief from the summer heat. 🙂 Thank you for stopping by. Happy you enjoyed the post.
Thanks for the update, Jan! Your ad for Painting Christmas looks great! I hope your in-person events go well. I’ve been doing a rethink on in-person events that charge a table fee.
Thank you for your comment, Liz. I’m glad you like the look of the ad. I also hope the in-person events go well. I do think they are worth doing, even if there is a table fee. I have a limit as to what I’m willing to pay, though.
You’re welcome, Jan.
I love the marketing piece for this. Nicely done.
Thank you, Jacqui. Fingers crossed that it gains me some new readers!
I’ll read a Christmas book any time of year. They are particularly nice in Texas in July when you want to cool off, if only in your mind.
That is so true, Priscilla. This past July, I read a book set in Alaska in the winter and I loved it!! Thank you for stopping by!
Love your daughters Halloween decorations, it’s such a fun holiday! And with Christmas books, I think they’re fun to read all year around.
I’m all for Christmas books year round, Jan. The ad is definitely eye-catching. My next two events are mixed market, and I think you’re right about the foot traffic. Keeping fingers crossed for both of us. Your daughter’s house looks fantastic!
Absolutely, Teri! I hope we both have some success selling books at the markets. Glad you approve of the ad. I hope it gets me some new readers. Thank you for visiting!
The ad is very eye catching. Perhaps when you post it on Facebook, remind people that Christmas books aren’t just for Christmas reading. Because they aren’t! I loved spending time with my grandsons at that age because we could be goofy together. Have a super week.
That is such a great suggestion about the Facebook ad, Darlene. Time with my grandsons are precious to me as we don’t get it very often and especially as they get older. We certainly had fun. Hope you have a great week ahead!
What a fab week. The FB ad does catch the eye. As for Texas? It sounds like amazing weather 😊
Thank you so much, Charlie! I’m happy to know the FB ad caught your eye and we are certainly enjoying this weather, especially after the brutally hot summer.
Aye, I watch Dutton Ranch, apparently Beth thinks it hot over there in the summer😂
Sounds like a nice week, Jan. Enjoy Halloween. We’re about 30 degrees cooler up here, but it’s still my favorite time of the year. I do believe Twain was right. Have a great week.
Thank you, Dan. I appreciate you stopping by. Do you and the missus get many trick-or-treaters on Halloween? They are predicting rain here so it might be a soggy night for the kiddos.
Hi, Jan! I’m so happy for you that you had a wonderful week! I’m glad to hear that the window was finally fixed, and the house looks awesome! As for the book ad, it would catch people’s eyes. It caught mine, and you did very well!
I had a great week, and it was so full of creativity. I gave my blog a little makeover, and I hope you like it. I’ve also started my last big mission for this year for my projects! After that, I’ll have so much fun!
I hope you have a wonderful new week ahead! ☺️
Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, Aptivi! Glad you enjoyed the post. I will check out your blog makeover. I just love it when the creativity flows!
You’re most welcome, Jan! Me too, I love letting my imagination and my creativity flow! ☺️