Let me start by saying that somehow I had gotten it into my head that this month’s Writer Wednesdays blog topic was “vacation pics.”  Needless to say I was caught off guard when I recently learned that we were supposed to share a blog on phobias.

Vacation pictures… phobias… they’re kinda close. Not! 😀

So, I had to shift gears rather quickly (as in, just last night) and see what my thoughts might be on phobias—or at least the thoughts worth sharing anyway.

Phobia (according to the Merriam-Webster website) is an extremely strong dislike or fear of someone or something

Yes, there are things I dislike or fear, and there are some people I don’t necessarily care for so I avoid them—thought other than Freddie Krueger, I’m not sure I “fear” someone.

But a phobia? Hmmm, yes, I must admit I have them.

Two to be exact:  fear of falling and fear of tightly enclosed spaces (mostly if I’m afraid I could get stuck inside them).

Let’s start with my fear of falling. I don’t mean, just slipping on a banana peel falling.  But rather, falling out of or off of something and plummeting to my death (or a LOT of pain).

Kinda like this:         

Or say a roller coaster. Hence the reason why I only ride the ones that have those shoulder bars locking me in place. That way I feel secure in my seat and can just enjoy the thrill of the twists and turns and going upside down. Confident I won’t FALL OUT.

Or, I once got stuck at the top of a ladder while painting our cathedral-ceiling-height walls in our foyer. I was doing well, almost done, then I made the mistake of looking down when one of my daughters called me. Whether it actually did or not, I had the sensation that the ladder pulled away from the wall, followed quickly by the vision of me teetering backwards to free fall down until I hit the tile floor with a splat!

My panic attack was more like an insane-like giggle attack paired with a flood of tears streaming down my face, while my fingers death gripped the ladder and my entire body froze. Picture a family member having to climb up the ladder to help me slowly, step-by-step manage to climb down, my daughters looking up at me wondering what the heck was wrong with me.

Not one of my finer moments.

Now, my fear of being stuck in a small space manifested itself in the middle of an MRI a doc once ordered when I was experiencing back pain. As a mom with three young daughters all under the age of 6, I actually looked forward to the test thinking: Cool, I’ll get a 45-minute nap and get out of here feeling refreshed and energized.

Cue my request for classical music when the technician asked what I’d like them to play on the machine’s inner speakers. Nice calming music to put me to sleep. But with my imagination, it soon morphed into more like funeral music.

Five minutes into the test, I opened my eyes and was shocked at how close to my face the machine’s inner wall looked and felt. My first thought: OH MY GOSH, it’s like I’m lying in a casket.

Cue my nervousness. Followed a few minutes later by the technician’s voice echoing through the machine’s speakers saying: Ma’am, are doing okay? Your heart rate has really picked up.

My response: Uh, could you put on a country music or Top 40 Hits station, please?

Flash forward a few years later and I’m chaperoning an elementary school field trip to a science museum that features underground tunnels guests can run through with exits a various places throughout the building. A little mole rat sounding, but still kinda cool, right?

Uh, not so much.

Especially when you climb down the aging cement steps with a child who’s asked you to walk  through them with her. Only, you get to the bottom and all you see are small, dark tunnels going off in various directions with no end in sight, while childish screeches of delight (or fear) bounce off the cement walls that are BOUND to close in on you at ANY MOMENT!!!

Cue this reaction from me:    

This panic attack was more of a hyperventilation, a racing heart, instantly clammy palms… and a chaperone who excuses herself for a trip to the ladie’s room, promising to be waiting for the child at one of the exits.

So what does all this mean for me?

Well, it means you won’t catch me doing this

             OR THIS             

OR THIS 

Unless I was coerced and then that smile you see on her face would be more like ABJECT fear on mine.

But I’m a romance writer who likes to have happy endings. So before we go on to sharing your phobias—because I hope you will, or any tips for overcoming phobias if you have any good ones—I’ll share two positive thoughts for you.

1.  Here’s the type of falling I’m all about:

and

2. My fellow Firebird sister has an AMAZING book out this month about a hero and heroine who can’t help but FALL IN LOVE with each other.

Check out Tamra Baumann’s It Had to Be Love available online now!! 

Tara Carter isn’t looking for romance. She’s content seeing patients at her new practice by day, then going home and cuddling with her puppy at night. Her new life in the tiny town of Anderson Butte, Colorado—known by celebrities as the place to lie low—is the perfect respite for a woman with a whopper of a secret. There’s just one problem: the town’s sexy sheriff knows she’s hiding something.

Sheriff Ryan Anderson, weary of small-town drama, has sworn off dating locals and thinks a fresh start in a bigger city is in order. However, the more he gets to know Tara, the more his heart tells him that she could be the woman of his dreams. But he wants to get to the bottom of whatever she’s trying so hard to keep under wraps. Can he uncover her secret before it drives them apart forever?

And after you commented here, hop on over to the other Firebirds who are sharing their phobias this month.

Carol Post, Tamra Baumann, Wendy LaCapra, and Kay Hudson

Hope to see you here next month for another Writer Wednesdays group blog. We’ll be chatting about our favorite character name on October 14th!

PS I’ve been having a ton of spam lately so I had to switch to moderated comments only. I’ll be checking regularly so you’re post will be approved fairly quickly. My apologies for the change. 🙁

Today’s Writer Wednesday blog topic is a fun one—share three interesting items you found while researching on the internet recently.

Seeing as how I’ve been deep in revision mode lately, my Googling has been more for fun, or in the midst of a conversation with someone and we don’t know the answer to a question. So what you’ll see is that my three searches have nothing in common, and only one has to do with writing.

1. My last day in New York City before heading home from the RWA National conference I was lucky enough to spend the day enjoying the city with one of my daughters. We went on a run through Central Park, enjoyed a delicious lunch at Carmine’s, enjoyed a FABULOUS Broadway show, shared a tasty dessert at Sardi’s, and then headed off to the airport/train station.

I tell you this to preface my guilty pleasure, motivational music Google search for YouTube videos featuring music or performances of Something Rotten—the AHHHmazing musical we had the great fortune to see.

This musical has everything to entice everyone from the theatre lover to the theatre novice. Catchy tunes, hilarious writing, incredible performers, beautiful costumes and more!

I can’t get enough of this album!!!

2. My day job is a sedentary one, so I have to make sure I get up and walk around our office building to get moving. Some days I’m better at remembering than others. Then I get home after work and jump on my lap top to work on my writing.

Sitting all day and a good part of the evening makes for a back that tweaks with pain and a bottom that wants to get bigger. Not a nice combination.

So, I started looking into a standing desk. Something that travels easily so I can bring it to my day job office, then take it home at night—at least for the weekends. This meant, Googling “travel standing desk” to see what I might find.

Voila! I came across this site with several options I’m considering:

3. And finally, I didn’t find this last site because I was doing research, but more because it’s less than 5 weeks from opening day of college football, when my beloved Gators take the field. I couldn’t resist checking out the latest news on my Gator football team, anticipating tailgate season and all the fun that entails.

In case you’re interested too, here’s the link to Gatorzone where you’ll find the latest info about all University of Florida athletic teams.

As you can see, my tastes and interests are varied, it really depends on my mood and what’s going on in my life at that moment. Hence, the variety of topics I’ve Googled in recent days.

What about you? Care to share something interesting you’ve researched lately, or came across by accident while surfing the web?

And don’t forget my fellow Firebird sisters who are blogging about their interesting research topics. Check out their posts and who knows, maybe you’ll discover a topic or a site you’ll want to dive into yourself.

Historical romance writers – Wendy LaCapra | Sweet and Inspirational writers – Kristen Ethridge | Novels with Romantic Elements – Jean Willett – Natalie Meg Evans | Romantic Suspense – Carol Post – Sharon Wray | Paranormal writers – Kay Hudson – Pamela Kopfler | Contemporary romance writers – Kat Cantrell – Priscilla Kissinger

Finally, if you’re looking for an interesting read, check out these books by fellow Firebirds. You won’t be disappointed!

The Millner’s Secret and The Dress Thief, by Natalie Meg Evans available here and here!

The Doctor’s Unexpected Family by Kristen Ethridge, an Inspirational Romance available here!

We’ll see you back here next month, for another Writer Wednesdays post!

Goodbyes are never easy. At least, not for me. Especially when they’re shared with loved ones, people I’m fond of, places I enjoy being, or blogs to which I feel a connection.

I guess you can see where I’m going here.

It’s my final blog on the Peanut Butter on the Keyboard site. I haven’t been a PBOK mom for very long, but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. The camaraderie, the shared insight and advice, the comfort in hearing from other women with similar issues. Whether we have kids or not, have toddlers or adolescents or young adults, whether we’re married or single, whether we’re writers or not… we’re all women, striving to do our best, give our best, be our best… in a world that is ever changing, ever challenging, ever hectic.

There are times we want to fix everything, accomplish anything and feel like we’re SuperWoman. And there are moments when we just want to curl up on our couch, cover up with a warm blanket and take a nap.

We’ve shared celebrations, tragedies, family traditions, and posts about ideas or organizations or injustices we feel strongly about and staunchly support. We’ve questioned ourselves, our kids, our parenting, our actions—and in return we’ve received guidance, pats on the back, reassurance, tips, “hang-in theres” and commiseration.

I’m sad to see our time here come to an end. But the rose-colored-glasses, wide-eyed optimist in me refuses to think of this as “good-bye” but rather “FAREWELL!” Until next time. On the next blog somewhere on the internet. On the bookshelves. At a conference. In the grocery line. In spirit.

I wish you and yours a life full of peace, joy, health and love—much much love.

So, in the spirit of my musical theatre-loving family, I leave you with a song, a little dance, a little laughter and a fond, fond farewell.

If you’d care to share what movie or TV show farewell is your favorite, I’d love to hear it.

I watched many sad farewell videos before I selected this one. But seeing as how I prefer to close on a happier until-we-meet-again note, I close with this classic.

Until we meet again my friends…

<a href="[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qy9_lfjQopU&w=560&h=315]” title=”So long video” target=”_blank”>

There are numerous platitudes meant to help people push through rough times. Or to help you find the positive in what could be considered a negative situation.

Sayings like:

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Challenging times strengthen you.
Some of the best things in life are mistakes.
When God closes a door, He opens a window.
When one door closes, another opens.

Some are words of wisdom from famous people. And they become daily mantras to strengthen our character and drive.

“Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.” Jim Valvano
“Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” Lou Gehrig
“Failure will never stand in the way of success if you learn from it.” Hank Aaron
“Just tell yourself, Duckie, you’re really quite lucky.” Dr. Seuss
“I am not what has happened to me. I am what I choose to become.” Carl Jung

Sometimes, when a good thing comes to an end, we struggle with accepting the situation. Wanting to hold onto that something, even if the wise decision might be to release it.

So, it’s with a heavy heart that the PBOK moms have decided it’s time to close the blog. We all have different reasons, but there’s one major reason we have in common—lack of time in a busy world.

I’ll admit my first reaction to rally the troops. I’d set a 2015 goal to take a more professional attitude with my writing, making sure I dedicate a specific amount of time to writing every day. Without fail!

The blog has been an amazing way for me to combine my writing life with my mom/family life. What a blessing!

So why would I want that to end?

Well, because in 2015, my writing time needs to focus on doing whatever I can to make a strong push toward publication. I’m not getting any younger. For years I’ve let my writing time slip by the wayside in the wake of other responsibilities. And let’s be honest here, other “fun” activities.

I’ll miss stopping by the PBOK blog to see what my fellow moms have posted. I’ll miss sharing my thoughts with all of you. And I’ll definitely miss the camaraderie and friendship between us.

But my wish for all of us is that we finish 2015 able to look back over the year and find accomplishments we’re proud of, despite the changes or sacrifices we faced.

We’re all strong, wise passionate women. Change can be good. If we face it with the right mindset.

I’ll be back in two weeks for my final PBOK blog. For now, I’ll close with a question I hope you’ll feel inclined to answer:

What do you plan to accomplish in 2015? Personally or professionally?

And just in case you could use a mantra for the day, the week, the month or the year, here’s a little something one of my daughters shared with me:

By now many, if not most, school districts and universities/colleges are back in session. Summer is over and it’s time to get back in a groove of school, homework, longer commutes and busier schedules.

The dog days of summer are behind us—though in the Southeast, we’re still feeling the heat and humidity. And typically will for months to come.

With our kids and teachers starting back to school, I thought I’d call upon a beloved class assignment from my past: the age old, “What did you do this summer?” essay.

I have to say, I had a blessed summer of 2014. My girls are older, so they’re not home all that often now and when they are, I treasure every moment.

I started off with a three-week visit from with my youngest before she headed back to college for the summer session. Yes, I tried to pack as much fun as I could in her short time with me.

Then, my youngest niece and nephew arrived to spend two months with my parents and me. Talk about reliving my past. It’s been a while since I’ve had elementary and middle school kids running around the house. From World Cup soccer parties to 90 minutes of trampoline time at a local Skyzone…they certainly kept me hopping—in a fun way!

Between two writers’ conferences, a rousing family reunion celebration in Texas

and the passing of a beloved uncle, my June and July flew by.

To cap off my summer, my middle daughter arrived home for two weeks and we headed off for a long weekend in Key West, my old stomping grounds during junior high and high school.

We biked all around the island,

hit Duval for a little dancing and nightlife, watched a glorious sunset on Mallory Square, caught sunrise before hitting the tennis courts, spent a relaxing day on a boat with old friends, passed by my childhood home and enjoyed playing tourist. It was a jam-packed weekend of catching up with good friends and sharing my hometown with my daughter.

Some folks have commented on all the traveling I managed to do over the past few months. Yes, I’ve been blessed in that respect.

For me though, what I really count as a blessing is the time I’ve been able to spend with family. The memories we created together. The hours spent in each other’s company. The opportunity to say, “I love you” in person to loved ones I don’t get to see often enough.

I’d say the highlight of my summer was the blessing of family time. With the traveling being the icing on the cake. ☺

So, as the Key West sun sets, the homeschool teacher in me wants to know: What did you do this summer?