UPDATE: The winner is…Sarah Ulfers!
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I didn’t post the puzzle-contest yesterday, so I’m adding it to my weekly Report Card! I have tons of excuses, but they all add up to me being extremely lazy yesterday. I couldn’t be bothered to post. I slept late, swam long, and watched a Chinese reel about a woman who was a goddess and didn’t know it. Perfect day, actually.

Puzzle-Contest

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then let me know what content you enjoy on my blog. What catches your eye? What contests are fun for you? Do you like the puzzles? The visitors? Glimpses of my personal life?

Enjoy today’s puzzle! It’s of the now-11-year-old being her not-so-angelic self when she was little. ~DD

Report Card

Last week…

1. I continued working on edits for two authors.
2. I’ll continued reading entries for the Burn: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology!
3. I had my every-three-week infusion on Monday and was hit hard with fatigue and other unpleasant side effects for the following three days. (I’m feeling better today!)
4. I swam every day, at least once!
5. I didn’t paint a thing. *sigh* And I only have one more piece to complete to finish up #the100dayproject.

This next week…

1. I’ll complete edits of a manuscript for another author and continue working on another author’s story.
2. I’ll continue reading the Burn: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology entries!
3. I’ll get some chores out of the way—laundry, packing—in preparation for my trip to visit my sister this week!
4. I’ll pre-post blogs for the days I’ll be on trip so you have some fun things to read/do while I’m away from my desk!
5. I’ll (hopefully) paint my last piece for #the100dayproject.
6. I’ll swim every day the weather cooperates!

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. What are your favorite romance tropes? (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Gabbi Grey: Jane Austen as a Muse for Queer Romances (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win two eBooks and an audio book!
3. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: What are they doing? — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Gabbi Grey: Rucking Yet Again?!?! (Contest) — Win a FREE book!
5. Sliding Puzzle: A visit to the apothecary… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
6. Story Cubes — Tell Me a Story (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
7. Health Update & a Trip News (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
8. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Jessie Redmon Fauset — Mother of the Harlem Renaissance (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!

UPDATE: The winner is…Cindy!
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Let’s play!

I bought this little brainstorming tool years ago at a writers’ conference. “Story Cubes” is a brainstorming game. You roll the dice, and whatever pictures appear face-up are the ones you use to riff off a story.

You can try to include all the cubes in your “story” or choose a few. The story you tell doesn’t have to be long or even any good. They all count!

To make this fun, I’ll offer a prize—a $5 Amazon gift card—good for purchasing one or two stories…
Have fun with this! Don’t overthink! Here’s the roll…

UPDATE: The winner is…Diane Sallans!
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It’s time for another puzzle! Something to flex that gray matter!

As an incentive to give the puzzle a try, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me why someone might be visiting this apothecary! Have fun! ~DD

UPDATE: The winner is…Shirley Long!
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It’s Saturday! You know what that means! It’s puzzle time!

So, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me what these two people are doing! Have fun with it!

UPDATE: The winner is…Karynne!
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We’re not big sweet-eaters in this house. In fact, when my kids were small, there was a rule that kids didn’t get candy or cake until after they reached three (other than maybe on a birthday). This was done because of the rate of diabetes in my family, and we didn’t want to encourage the kids to develop a “sweet tooth.” Instead of candy and cake, we encouraged the kids to eat fruit or to taste the sweetness in healthier choices (savory and sweet entrees—sweet and sour pork, sweet potatoes, salads with a sweet-savory dressing). As a result of our “programming” my kids grew up favoring vegetables.

When they grew older and were in school, we couldn’t keep them away from sweets, but we still didn’t keep candy or cakes in the cupboard for snacking. A candy bar was a once in a while treat. And guess what? These days, my dd still eats a portion of a standard candy bar and puts the rest in the fridge for another day because it’s too much.

The other night, the adults had a sugar urge and went to Baskin Robbins to buy those pints of ice cream. We all had a bowl, and the rest went in the freezer—and most of what was left over is still there. Doesn’t mean we don’t love ice cream—oh no. We love ice cream, but my daughter can take a couple of bites, and she’s done. A bowl looks enticing, but she can’t handle eating more than those couple of bites. (I like a bit more!)

What are our choices for that once in a Blue Moon splurge? The SIL loves vanilla. My dd loves peanut butter/chocolate. I love Rocky Road. The 11-year-old’s fave is always orange sherbet. The other two girls take spoons of all the flavors.

Anyway, for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me what your favorite ice cream flavors are! Enjoy the puzzle! 

UPDATE: The winner is…Eileen McCall!
*~*~*

I’m feeling lazy today. Insomnia struck last night, and I watched a movie on my iPhone instead of sleeping. Watched a good one with my family earlier in the evening. If you like action and comedy, you have to check out Heads of State. Idris Elba and John Cena? An epic plane crash? Witty puns? Yeah, we enjoyed it mightily!

Anyway, all those foreign settings they zoomed through got me thinking about vacations. For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me your ideal vacation. You can solve the puzzle to figure out mine. 🙂

UPDATE: The winner is…Beckie!
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I adore Sci-Fi movies and TV shows, hence my lifelong dedication to all things Star Trek and my recent binges of shows like Lost in Space and Time Tunnel. I really want to binge the Stargate world, but it’s so big that it’ll take significant commitment. Maybe after I finish up Grimm and Psych, I’ll start the SG series, taking “breaks” with Lost in Space (it’s very cheesy, so small doses!).

Anyway, I came across an image that made me think about the Stargate series. I won’t tell you what it’s about because I want you to solve the puzzle then tell me what you think is going to happen next. Do so for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card! Have fun with it!