Indivisible, A Book Review

From the back of the book:

Battling his own personal demons, Police Chief Jonah Westfall has experienced the dark side of life and iis committed to eradicating it. When a pair of raccoons are found mutilated in Redford, Colorado, Jonah investigates the gruesome act, seeking to unmask the perpetrator before the crime escalates and destroys the tranquility of his small mountain town. Johan fights for answers - and his fragile sobriety - amid a rising drug threat and never-ending conflict with Tia Manning, a formidable childhood friend with whom he has more than a passing history.

But he can't penetrate every wound or secret - especially one fueled by a love and guilt teetering on madness.

From best-selling author Kristen Heitzmann comes a spell-binding tale of severed connections and the consequences of live lived alone.

My review:

Indivisible is a well-written mystery bordering on psychological thriller. Throw in broken relationships and difficult childhoods and you've got a great storyline.

There's an air of mystery surrounding this small town and its residents that has you turning the pages as fast as you can. The plot is definitely gripping.

Kristen Heitzmann touches on the problems people have in their lives and the secrets they may be hiding. Affairs, abuse, betrayal, and addiction are weaved in with mystery and suspense in a way that makes for a good read. Behind the mystery is a story of learning how to let go of the past, accepting people for who they are, forgiving mistakes and choosing to love instead of holding onto anger and bitterness.

I loved the characters in this story, most of them are so likable that you can't help but feel like you connect with each one of them in some way. I got so caught up in the lives of these small town characters that I couldn't put the book down.

The relationship of the two main characters is in the forefront of the storyline but the "supporting" characters are just as much a part of the overall story. Even though Indivisible is a mystery/thriller ,the characters are so identifiable and believable that they become strongest part of the story.

I admit that the animal mutilation/cruelty part of the story wasn't my favorite part of the book, but the author was able to weave it into the rest of the storyline in such a way that it wasn't your main focus of the story. The reason for the mutilations was a bit confusing for me until the end of the book. Once the truth is revealed the depth of the insanity behind the mutilations is intriguing.

The "who done it" was a bit predictable for me. It was fairly obvious early on who is responsible for the mutilated animals, their reason behind it wasn't as easy to figure out. There was enough suspense thrown into the mix that it that made me want to hurry and finish the book.

The end of the book left me wanting a sequel. It left me wanting more of the characters, more of their stories. (They're that likable.) When a writer can leave you wanting more, they've done a good job.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

Project: Love, Me

Prompt #1: iDream

iDream

Your dreams and hopes can tell us so much about who you are and what is important to you. This week we will focus on your current dream(s). It can be anything- big or small. Tell us why it’s your dream- is it because it will make your life easier and give you more time, it’s something you always wanted to do or will help you be the person you want to be or just because it will fulfill you? Have you taken any steps to realize your dream? These questions are just guides to help get you started.

I have a couple actually. One would be to finally finish getting my GED. I only have two (or three) of the test left to take to get it, though there's no way I'll ever pass the math portion of the GED test without taking some classes. I have math anxiety lol. Really, I do. The minute I look it anything that even looks like algebra I completely shut down.

I seems like every time I get ready to start going back to the classes it seems like something comes up. Currently that something is my car. There are a few things that hubs has to fix on it, the last time I took it to the store it ran fine, until I got back in it to come home. The damn thing wouldn't start...dead battery. That doesn't even make sense to me lol.

But getting my car fixed is on the top of our list, just gotta do the work a little at a time. Cause right now our extra money is a little at a time lol.

Another dream would be to move closer to my family. Especially since my sister moved to Tennessee, leaving my Dad living alone. I'm so worried about him. So much that sometimes it consumes me! There's no one who will take care of him the way my sister did when she lived with him, other than me. He doesn't take good care of himself.

I'm sure I don't have to even mention how nice it would be to live closer to my son and see him everyday. That would be my Heaven! I miss him, more than anyone could even imagine.



I'm still hoping, dreaming and believing that all of these dreams will come true. Eventually.

My New Pet Project

Last week I somehow stumble upon a a really great "blog project" that I immediately knew I wanted to participate in. Especially since I've been having a bit of "blog fog" recently. I just love the idea.

So exactly what am I talking about? Project: Love, Me : A Year of Discovering YOU! Here's how they describe it, Project: Love, Me is an exciting & touching project 52 with weekly prompts designed to help you share your personal journey … 52 messages & stories from you to future generations … a collection for your loved ones … signed, “Love, Me.”

Project: Love, Me is much more than an “All About Me” album. It is about you, of course — but not a laundry list of facts or answers to simple questions, or even a chronological history. It’s an adventure of self-discovery as we focus on specific themes and delve deep with prompts to help you get to the heart of who you are and share that with others.

Y'all know me, I had to make a cutesy tag to go along with each of my post. Lol...wouldn't be me if I didn't! How purdy is it??

And away we go! From the Project: Love, Me blog... (in bold)

{Project: Love, Me} “Pre”-prompt


Welcome to our very first prompt for Project: Love, Me … not Prompt #1, which we’ll post next week when the project officially kicks off — but a “prelude” prompt if you will. Something to get you started thinking about this project and why YOU are participating in it.

So why are you completing the project? Is it for you, or for someone else, or both? What do you hope to gain from the project at the end of the 52 weeks? Do you think it will make a difference in your life? How?

You don’t have to answer every single question I just posted above. They’re just prompts to get you thinking.

I think at first the idea appealed to me because I'm in a (sort of) blogging "funk" or rut. But I think that it would be neat for my Son, Sisters, my family to read this someday. I also think that it just may be a bit therapeutic for me to search within myself to answer the prompts.

I hope that by the end of the 52 weeks I'll have a whole new understanding of who I am, what I want and where I want to be. I do think that it will make a difference in my life because as I said, I'm hoping that I'll finish this with a whole new understanding of who I am.

Well, that wasn't so bad. I have a bit of catching up to do so I'll probably post more than once a month until I'm caught up. If you'd like to "play along" you can go to their blog. If you do participate, be sure to link (in a comment on that weeks prompt) in the comments. I hope to see y'all there! 

Love, Me

Love, Me...

Holy cow, I can't believe it's been 10 days since I last posted an entry. I really haven't had a whole lot going on that would be interesting enough to blog about lol.

Last Friday and Saturday I had one of the worst Fibromyalgia flare ups that I've ever had. It was a bad one. Whew. Usually when I have a flare up that bad, it takes me a few days to recover from it. I've also been battling fibro fog...and I hate it. It's like I can't manage to form a complete sentence let alone a blog entry.

Hubby's daughter ran the Shamrock Half Marathon on Sunday. Thank God I was feeling better, she has worked SO HARD training for this marathon. It was her first. I wanted to be there to cheer her on and to celebrate with her when she crossed the finish line.

Watching the sun come up as we drove to Va, well I had to take a pic! It was gorgeous!

 {Do people really run, for enjoyment this early in the morning? lol}

It was freezing when we got there. We just missed the beginning of the race because hubby didn't realize that we'd have to deal with road closures due to the race.  Since we had three (plus) hours to kill I took a couple of pics when I wasn't trembling because I was freezing my behind off lol.

{King Neptune statue on Va Beach boardwalk}

Before I go any further, how gorgeous are those pics? I took both of them with my Blackberry. The first one was taken while we were driving down the highway! Anygorgeousness....

This is what the statue looks like once the sun is up (lol). Gorgeous huh?

{not my pic, borrowed from Google}

{just a giant seashell} 

I was completely surprised that none of the cheesy souvenir shops were open. Hell we had to stand in line in Starbucks for over 30 minutes just to get coffee. Guess we weren't the only ones who were cold.

{loved this sign lol}

You can't see the bottom of the sign but it says "I bet this was a good idea three months ago!" I can't believe how many people were there. Wow. 

Finally, we saw her. She was just feet from reaching a goal that she's worked her ass off to accomplish.  

{so excited for her}

She's the one in purple on the right side of the second tree from the right lol. With the green and white socks on! Loved her outfit...so cute!

 {I think this is the point where she realized that she's about to accomplish her goal}

 {this is the point where I started crying lol, I'm such a sap}

 {I wish I would have taken a pic of hubby's face for her, he was so proud}

 {I was too}

 {good for you R}

R, I'm so proud of you, and for you. I'm so glad that I got to watch you cross that finish line and achieve what you've worked so hard for! Good for you!!

Since I've had so little to blog about lately I've got a new project that I'm going to be starting soon. I stumbled upon it a few days ago but I wanted to ask permission before I used it here in my blog! I'm really looking forward to doing it!

Hope you're all well! 

It's been a boring couple of days here. This time change sucks. It doesn't usually get to me but this year...it is. Example...I slept until 11:30 today. Damn I hate when I do that. Hate it lol.

This past weekend hubs and I decided that we've got too much crap laying around the house so we decided we're going to have a yard sale. I went through the kitchen cabinets, we've got juice glasses and coffee cups and the likes that we never use. I've got all that packed up, along with some miscellaneous picture frames and knick knacks that we don't need. Right now it's all store in boxes in our guest room, it's filling up fast.

We cleaned out the attic Saturday, there was a lot of stuff in there that we don't need/use. Sunday we cleaned out the garage. Holy cow...I didn't realize how much stuff we had in there lol. Last year one of hubby's coworkers lost his 21 year old son. He'd given hubby boxes and boxes of his son's computer equipment, his wife couldn't take seeing it. So we had all that too.

Our neighbors came over to talk to us while we were cleaning out the garage and saw that in one of the boxes there was an old Xbox with about 10 games and some accessories. She bought it for $75. Then her parents, who live across the street from us came over and they bought all the rest of the computer equipment, some closet organizing shelves that were brand new and still in the box (lol) and a bakers rack that we had, they spent $170. Yay...we haven't even had the yard sale yet and we're already  $240 richer. I can live with that!

We're still having the yard sale though, we've still got plenty of stuff. I should probably go through my clothes, not sure how well they'll sale though.

We've haven't set a date for the sale yet, we're kind of waiting until it gets a little warmer.

This weekend hubby's oldest daughter is running a marathon. I have to kind of explain her situation to y'all for you to understand how amazing it is to see what she's doing this weekend.

She's joining the Navy. When she went to the recruiters office they told her she had to loose weight in order to join. This girl has worked her butt off and she's met their weight requirement. In the weight loss process she decided to run this marathon and she's raised money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. We're so proud of her. Hubby and I can't wait to see her run across the finish line!!

Deadly Ties Book Review

Overview:

Her enemy will stop at nothing for control ... and everything is not enough .

A horrific crime shatters Lisa Harper's idyllic childhood. Her father is dead and her desperate mother, Annie, quickly marries Dutch Hauk, an abusive monster who soon reveals his hatred for Lisa. To protect her, Annie defies her ruthless husband and forfeits custody to a trusted friend. Enraged, Dutch vows to keep Annie and Lisa apart--and he does. Years later, though keenly aware of Dutch's evil intent, Lisa and her mother seize a chance to be a family, safe in a home where love dwells. But they fail to fathom how far Dutch will go to keep his vow.

Determined to control his women, Dutch proves resourceful. His associates in crime are feared at the highest levels across the globe--and for Lisa they plan a fate worse than death. Yet she too has formidable connections: ones like former Special Operations officer Mark Taylor. Burdened by his own traumatic past, Mark has loved Lisa from afar. Now, for Lisa and her mother to survive, Mark must risk his life--and even more difficult for him, he must trust God--as one question haunts them all: Can Mark and Lisa untangle these deadly ties before it's too late?

My Review:

Deadly Ties by Vicki Hinze was everything I love in a good book, mystery, a little romance and a whole lot of suspense. Halfway through the book I was hooked and sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what was going to happen.

The main character Lisa was likable and believable. I liked that after everything she'd been through in her life that she wasn't a coward and that she didn't depend on anyone to save her, that she was resourceful and strong. Lisa's love interest Mark was likable as well. He had that "wounded soul" aspect that every woman loves and can relate to. His need to protect Lisa and Annie is apparent from the beginning.

I was a bit taken back by Lisa's mothers character. I didn't understand how a mother would stay with someone so abusive, how she would give up her daughter because of her husband all because of her belief in God. But it did make for a good storyline.

This storyline involved so many different elements of crime. Kidnapping, murder, human trafficking, and physical abuse. I loved that it was intertwined with love, friendships, faith and trust.

I'm surprised that I've never heard of Vicki Hinze's books before, I'll be getting the first book in this series and I'm really looking forward to the next book in 2012.

A great read.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review”.

That's Just Dirty!

Hey y'all...I know it's been a couple of days since I've posted. Things have been uneventful here. Hubs and I have just been enjoying the quite (except his yelling when he's playing playstation uugh) and time alone.

My Son called me the other night for a chat (I love when he does that!!) and was telling me that he and his friends are making plans for their annual trip (you may remember I mentioned it last year here) to Mud Nationals.

They've got a whole gang of people going this year, mostly guys but there are a few girls going. I asked him if he was taking the girl he's been "talking to" (he refuses to say they're "dating" lol) and he laughed at me. He said "Momma, that's like taking sand to the beach!" The kid kills me y'all. Lol..

Here's a couple of pictures that he took last year while he was there.

{I cannot believe my child wore those light ass jeans in that mud!}

{one of the girls who went with their group last year, he was teaching her to drive his 4 wheeler}

{I totally freaked when I saw this pic, the girl in white is one of his best friends wife. But...the best friend is the one who took the pic so I guess he was ok with her sitting on Rusty like that.}

{Ghetto cruiser?}

Rusty's excited because this year he's taking his new toy instead of his 4 wheeler! Look at this baby!

 {I can't wait until he takes me for a ride on it!}

Apparently the guys have decided to go all out this year and they're "dressing up."

 {the mardi gras bead tie is that "special" touch!}

The too short sleeves add just the right amount of "country hick" to the ensemble lol. They've even had t shirts made, I don't have a pic of them so I thought I'd "recreate" them for your viewing pleasure. You're welcome.

{what gentlemen huh? buyin' all those "ladies" drinks!} 

 {See! I taught him to share!}

They've picked up the Mardi Gras beads. Last year they went with over 200 strands of beads and came home with none. They gave them to all the "ladies." Now, since most of you aren't from Louisiana let me remind you how these "ladies" get the beads...

{throw me sumthin' mista!}

{I love the expression the guys face behind her}

Let's talk a little more about the "ladies" that go to mud nationals shall we? Well, they're little angels I tell ya!

{the have skankalicious "sweet and innocent" written all over them} 

{pure as snow}

Lol I kid, I kid! He's being a perfectly horny normal 21 year old kid. No worries, I've sent him a huge box of condoms in advance lol. He's gonna kill me when he gets them! Those skanks little angels aren't Rusty's type anyway. When he was 12 or 13 he hung a sign on his bedroom door at his Dad's house, and I think it's still hanging there.

{If he could find this woman, he'd be a happy man}

These girls are more his "type."

{cute lil country girls}

{that wont be a problem}

{what? even country boys like boobs y'all!}

Now see, those girls (from the last three pics) would fit right in with my kid. You may remember these...

{I can't help but notice that the girls are "dirtier" than him lol}

{I'm sure he prefers it that way}

{eww eww eww}

Lmao! I'm really kidding with this post kind of. I know he's going to have a blast and he deserves it. He works hard all the time so the fact that he's taking time off of work to go...I can live with that. 

As long as he doesn't bring any of those girls home with him. lol

All images from Rusty's personal pics or from Google.  

Good Lawd...You'll Thank Me Later!

This morning I was bored out of my mind checking out TMZ (don't judge me) and I stumbled across these...

{helloooo}

{woah}

{look at that view}

{geeze...the muscles}

{damn you red star!}

{DAMN YOU!}

In case you don't recognize him let me refresh your memory.

{Jeremy Jackson aka Hobie from Baywatch}

Hobie grew up y'all. He's going to be on the upcoming season of Celebrity Rehab. He started working out {ya think??} a few years ago to help him kick his meth habit. Now he's addicted to working out, steroids and "various supplements" whatever that means. But dayum...Hobie looks good lol.

You're welcome.

My IL's are leaving today. Hubby's brother will be here (it's 3am right now) around 9am to pick them up. Tonight hubby and I are going to either go out to dinner or grill some steaks, drink a couple of beers and cuddle. And I'll be braless lol. Thank you sweet baby Jesus! I feel like I've had a bra on for the last 7 days, without ever taking it off lol. 

I'm missing Mardi Gras y'all. So in the spirit of the "holiday" I'll leave you with a song. Makes me shake my bootay!

Again, you're welcome!

Oh I'm Still Alive!

I know, I know! I haven't been blogging much lately, this past week I've had one headache after another! Today is the first day knock on wood in four or five days that I haven't had one. Shit sucks!

I've also been working on a blog layout, and trying to design the layout for my "design" blog at the same time. As many blog layouts as I've designed you'd think it would be easy. It's not. I mean, it has to be perfect right? Who would want to hire someone to design a layout for their blog if my layout is all fonkatated? (Yes, I made it up!)

I'm frustrated too. I'm sitting here watching hubby's heart break. He tries to put on a "brave face" but I know it's breaking his heart that he's selling his Harley. I also know that he's stressing out over getting it sold so he can pay off his truck and pay our damn taxes. It breaks my heart, for him.

It also makes me think of the people who I've loaned money too. One person in particular. He's a family member, he's "trying to find his way" whatever in the hell that means, he knows I have a soft spot in my heart for him. It's hard for me to tell him no. We could almost pay off the taxes (over $2000 tyvm IRS bitches) with what he owes me. What he's been owing me for YEARS.

But I don't even bother asking if he can pay me anything. First of all, I shouldn't have to ask. He knows that when he was in need an no one else would "loan" him the money, I DID. He also knows that he owes me. Hell, maybe he forgot? NOT!

Meanwhile, I sign into FB and see how he's going out on dates, out to dinner, to the movies. How he's shopping for new "threads" for these dates. How he's buying a new stereo for his truck, taking trips, having fun. Really? Could you be any more selfish?

Yet here hubby and I are, I couldn't tell you the last time we went out on a date, the last time we went out to dinner. The last time he's (we've) had some stress relief.

Do you know how good it would feel to hand hubby the money to pay off those taxes so he would stop stressing, so maybe he wouldn't have to sell the most important thing to him (besides his family of course)?

The stupid part? I've loaned him money a bunch of times. I knew better, but how could I say no? I mean, he's "family!" I didn't think I'd continually be screwed over! Like I said though, he's not the only person who I've "loaned" money too. Yeah...I'm an idiot!


I have made a decision though. Starting today, I'm gonna be...

When does "Can I borrow some money?" or "Can you help me out?" or "Can you lend me some money?" mean..."thanks for handing over the money that you busted your ass to make, see ya sucka"? What line do I need to stand in to have "free" money handed to me? Must be nice. It's a damn slap in the face. But...trust me, it WONT happen again. Believe that.

He'll be in need again, maybe not tomorrow or the next day...but someday. And when he does...I pity his ass if he ask me.

It just pisses me off, I see hubby hurting. I see him stressing, I see what the stress is doing to his health and I'm sitting here helpless. I'm trying to find a job, I haven't had one call back. Not one.

Sorry, I know that I said I was going to try to stop writing post bitching and complaining. I hate it really. But I'm not the type of person to hold shit in, I can't. It'll drive me nuts. And it's not like I'm going to add more stress onto hubby by talking to him about it. He's under enough pressure as it is. Sigh.

Hell, at least y'all know now. Yup, I'm the girl formally known as "The National Bank of you big sucka Dee!"