Holiday Supper Southern-Style

Holiday Supper Southern-Style I am by no means a Foodie. In fact, if I didn’t need to eat to survive, I probably wouldn’t bother. Except when it comes to the holidays! We moved from Northern California to Tennessee almost seven years ago. A lot of people have asked if I suffered from culture shock—which I haven’t—except when it comes to …

Guest Blogger: Amelia Hutchinson of A Canine Christmas

Guest Post by Amelia Hutchinson of A Canine Christmas Authors are strange sort of people, don’t you think? I mean, they get it into their heads their fictional characters are real—my creator, Jennifer Sienes, even asked me if I’d tell y’all a little bit about myself, as if I truly exist. We’re going to give her a little grace and …

A Canine Christmas Devotional

This is Day One of A Canine Christmas release. I’d like to start with a devotional since the heart of every one of my books is to draw people closer to the Lord. For a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card and the ebook version of A Canine Christmas, share in the comments below how you combat today’s …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Seven

Here we are—the last day of A Canine Christmas Countdown. Tomorrow it officially releases, and for a limited time, you can still get the ebook version for only $2.99. If you’ve been following along all week, you know this has been a total dog-fest. In case you’re not sold on dog ownership (that’s where the dog owns you, not the …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Six

We’re closing in on the end of A Canine Christmas Countdown. I intended to write a post about the importance of training our dogs, but that’s a no-brainer. No one wants a dog that behaves badly, and the only way to change that is through consistent training, positive reinforcement, and a close bond with its owner. A couple of years …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Five

Have you ever made a spontaneous decision that you later regretted? It’s one thing if we buy a pair of jeans that don’t quite look as good at home as they did in the store. Or if we purchase a piece of exercise equipment that sits in the garage month after month collecting dust. When those spontaneous decisions affect a …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Four

I thought I’d do something a little unique for Day Four! Instructions on making homemade dog food. If you scroll ahead to the video, you will miss some important instructions I received after I put it together. Some might think it’s a little neurotic to make my dog’s food, but it’s well worth the effort. First off, it’s better than any kibble …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Three

Yesterday, I shared how my husband and I don’t fit into the Southern mold when it comes to our eating habits. The same could be said of our exercise habits. Our first date (almost twenty years ago) was a five-mile run. Two months later, Chris talked me into climbing Half Dome at Yosemite National Park—a steep, 18-mile round-trip hike. If …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day Two

My husband and I don’t fit the “Southern mold” when it comes to food. We’re not fans of fried anything (except Oreos—those are downright dangerous) and we aren’t big meat eaters. When it comes to what we put in our bodies, we lean toward home cooked, healthy meals. They take a bit more time to prepare, but the benefits far …

A Canine Christmas Countdown Day One

It’s countdown week for the release of my last Bedford County novella, A Canine Christmas. As you probably know, dogs have been a part of most of my books. Illusions (Book 2 in my Apple Hill Series) had Rambo, the family’s West Highland Terrier. The Bainbridge family dog in Providence (Book 3 in the Apple Hill Series) was a Bichon …