Menu: Week 26

I'm in shock that its the last few days of 2013. I can't believe how fast this year went. Here's to another year of wonderful things and new adventures.

Monday
- Lime steak tacos

Tuesday
- Oven fried chicken strips and baked potatoes

Wednesday
- Chicken Quesadailla

Thursday
- Tuna cheese melts (Just me and the boys)

Friday
- Ham and cheese sliders and Parmesan green beans

Saturday
- Dinner with the In-Laws

Sunday
- Slow cooker balsamic shredded beef and mashed potatoes



Menu: Week 25


Because its Christmas week and funds are tight. I've decided to plan my meals around what I already have in my house so I don't have to buy a lot of extras. Merry Christmas to you all!!!

Monday
- Santa Fe Baked Chicken and baked potatoes

Tuesday
- Sloppy Joes and green beans (Christmas baking: Crockpot Meatballs for the Baker family pasta bar)

Wednesday
- MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Thursday
- Steak Tacos

Friday
- Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta and green beans

Saturday
- Dinner with the In-laws

Sunday
- Steak Quesadillas

Menu: Week 24

One more week closer to Christmas. I can't believe it. I did get all my Christmas shopping done just haven't wrapped any of them.
My eldest got to go to a Trail Blazer basket ball game with his daddy this week. He was so excited. He ate an entire bag of cotton candy by himself in just a few minutes and downed most of dad's popcorn. He danced the entire time trying to get on the jumbotron. Maybe next time I'll make him a sign. :)
On to the food. 

Monday
- Santa Fe Baked Chicken and bakes potatoes

Tuesday
- One pot sausage skillet pasta and green beans

Wednesday
- Roast beef and smoked Gouda grilled cheese with a side salad

Thursday
- Lime chicken tacos

Friday
- Turkey cream cheese wraps (Just me and the boys)

Saturday
- Garlic Parmesan crusted pork chops with Parmesan broccoli

Sunday
- Philly cheese steak sandwiches with a side salad

 

The McCracken family

I love photographing this family. We always have lots of fun together, even when it is bitterly cold out and all the kids want to do is play. :)





















Free Photo Session GIVEAWAY!


Win a free half hour mini session from Sara Henderson Photography. All you have to do is scroll down to the rafflecopter and enter to win. Don't forget to tell your friends. I will pick a winner on Monday the 16th, 2013. Good luck and Merry Christmas!!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Menu: Week 23

I can't believe its December already. I haven't started my Christmas shopping yet! The boys went to daddy's work and saw Santa. They were so excited that they chatted up Santa for a good 20 minutes. Then they moved on to the outdoor garden center to help daddy pick up the tiny Christmas trees that blew over with the wind. Its was really cute. On to the food.

Monday 
- Tuna Cheese Melts (Just me and the boys)

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday
- Pizza Night

Friday

Saturday
- Dinner with the In-Laws

Sunday
- Left overs or Sloppy Joes.

#PimpMyBio - Here goes nothing...

I really don't know a lot about Twitter, but while I was stalking the #PitchWars feed today this #PimpMyBio tag came up. I started reading what other people had to say about themselves and why the mentors should pick them. I said what the hey... I can do that... I think.
Any who, here are some of the reasons why the mentors of Pitch Wars should pick my MS and help it shine. Here are eight things about me that might make you say... Huh?...

1. My name is Sara but some times I like to add an I. That's right, Sarai.

2. Last year for Christmas I actually gave my sister a jar of Edward Cullen's ashes. It's not that I was obsessed or anything... Would you like a jar of Edward Cullen's ashes? I have extras.
3. I know what the fox says...
4. I wrote a book when I was seven about a guy that grew backwards. His name was Zartan... It was genius I tell you. What? There already was a movie about a guy that grew backwards?
Ah, dammit.

5. Grew up in a family with 8 children. Mom told me I could have a special place under the stairs to be quiet and do my writing. A place where the other kids wouldn't bother me. To bad there were no lights...

6. I love BACON!

7. I wrote my MS during my lunch break at work. Two people I worked with actually paid me to be in my book. I am now $40 richer and have Captain Bruce Decker and Mr. Deedub to thank for that. If you want to know more about them and if I let them live you have to read my MS. 


8. And of course the good stuff...
I've been given the amazing opportunity to be a stay at home mom. I get to be at home with my 3 adorable boys and do what I love. Writing! Between the poop filled diapers and the drooling baby on my lap, I have become an expert at typing with one hand. That's right folks, I can do tricks. On top of being temporarily one handed, I have an amazing ability to drown out annoying sounds. Armpit farts, battle cries, Word World. Actually... I kinda like that show. 
Anyway, if you pick me I will work my ass off. I will never give up. As I bid you adieu, I shall leave you with these words of wisdom...


P.S. Who could deny these faces... They say "Mommy should win!"




Pitch Wars 2013

I'ts that time of year again. Pitch Wars is here and as usual I'm freaking out. Its the same "Did I do enough?" "Did I do to much?" "Is my MS crap?!" I hate the waiting game, but I hate the rejection more. Ahhhhh!
Like a good aspiring author I sent my MS out this morning to 4 mentors that I thought would be a good fit for me and my writing. I had to narrow the field from 46 to 4. Let me tell you, that was not fun or easy. Now I wait till the 11th to see if I was picked for the agent round. I heard there is a lot of competition though. 1700 entries with still 10 hours to go. Not good odds, but I believe in my work... I think... Yes, yes I do.
Even though its too late change anything, here is what I submitted for Pitch Wars.

     
The ancient blood of the master races flows through Tabor’s veins. Power. Magic. A death sentence.

In the south, the Dominion hunts down anyone with the blood of the ancients –and on her nineteenth birthday, they find Tabor. Captured by the murderous Dominion leader, Lord Farenan, Tabor and her magic are all he needs to claim true power in the world. He will use her magic to find her people and enslave them.

Unwilling to be used, Tabor escapes and places her trust in her new caretaker who promises to aid her in finding her people – a people who have not been seen in a century.

Tabor quickly finds that her new ally has his own agenda. Betrayed and recaptured, Tabor is taken to the heart of Winter Land and forced to search out her ancestors. Her people hold the secrets to her safety and her freedom – but Farenan seeks to make Tabor their destruction.

Chapter 1

The history books tell us of the three master races. The one’s that came before us. It is said that they created this land together for their peoples to live in peace, but as always, greed did not escape them. One race wanted more. More land, more power. They waged war with the other two nations, creating havoc across this new land.

No one knows how long they fought, or if there was a victor, but what we do know is that the master races are gone now. Some say they fought till they annihilated themselves. Some say they left this new land in search of freedom. I say they went into hiding, waiting for the right moment to strike, freeing this land of evil. That is why I wait. I know they will come for me.
~*~

Then the dream came. It was cold. The chill touched my soft cheeks and bit at my nose. Momma was screaming nearby, calling to me. Where was she? I cried, letting the warm tears run down my face. I cried to her without words, only because I didn’t know any. Momma? Her screaming had stopped. They all had.

The silence that came was deafening but calming in an odd sense. I was the only thing making sound with my crying now. The heat from my tears helped warm my skin but it wasn’t enough. I still shivered from the cold, or was it fear? I was too young to know the difference. Where was Momma? My hands reached for her but all they found was the cold snow around me. Where was she? Why didn’t she come?

I woke with sweat running down my face. A cold draft blew over me from the open window as I tried to make sense of the nightmare that haunted me. It was always the same. I could hear her. I could hear all of them, but the only thing I could see was the snow falling around me. The eerie sounds of their long lost voices played over and over in my head. I ran my hands through my sweat soaked hair. Make them stop!

My thoughts were interrupted by the bell in the tower. I dreaded that sound. It meant that I would have to live one more day hiding who I was and where I came from. I guess it was better than the nightmares I faced when I slept, but I didn’t know how much better it was.

As the bell chimed again calling to me to get out of bed, I remembered what this day meant. It was my nineteenth birthday. It would mark one year that my magic refused to emerge. One year that I was a misfit between normal and Artican. I was beginning to doubt my origins. Maybe I wasn’t who I thought I was all along. Maybe this master blood that was supposed to be running though my veins was a myth. Who knew? The masters had been gone so long they could just be stories that were told to children at bed time. No. I had to keep believing in my future. Otherwise, what was I living for?

My small room was oddly cool. Rolling onto my side, I gathered my sheepskin blankets up around my chin and pulled my feet close, attempting to warm them before I dozed back off to sleep. What was the point of waking now? I had nothing to show for myself. Not even a speck of magic flowed from my finger tips. It was embarrassing. Not that anyone knew who I was, but I knew, and that was enough.

I tried to doze off again. Maybe I could get another hour of rest before I faced the world. The images of my nightmare haunted me still, lingering in my thoughts. Nineteen years. Nineteen years had gone by with these images. For some reason they bothered me more this morning than they had previously. It was unnerving.

There was a knock on the door, bringing me from my haze. A sigh escaped my lips. I knew who it was. Delah my best friend. She had probably come to check on me, to make sure I was ok.

“Yes?” I said.

The wooden door creaked open and Delah’s mop of red hair peeked around the corner, followed by the rest of her. There was concern present on her face. I hated it when she looked at me like that. It was pity in her eyes. I didn’t need her pity or anyone else’s for that matter. I had accepted the fact that I was alone, why couldn’t everyone else?

“I’m glad to see you’re… awake,” she sat on my bed next to me as I sat up and scooted over to make room for her.

Glad? Who was glad? I was nothing. I wasn’t a human and I wasn’t an Artican. How could she be glad? I forced a smile. Maybe she would leave me alone if I looked optimistic. Probably not, but it was worth a try.

“Tabor, are you listening to me?”

I was startled out of my daze again. Delah was probably trying to tell me something important, something that would cheer me up. I didn’t even know why she tried. I was a lost cause.

“Sorry,” I rubbed my eyes, “I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“The nightmare again.” Delah rested her hands on mine, giving me a weak smile. It was of little comfort now, but a nice gesture all the same. My white skin was pale in comparison to her dark tan and cold as well. It was a reminder of how different we were, how I didn’t belong here. She was one of two people who really knew what I was. An Artican. A member of one of the three master races that have long since disappeared. No one knows why they left, but it was convenient for them to leave me here without a hint as to where they went.

I had been separated from my people when I was a baby, brought here by the grace of the Overkeeper, and raised with the knowledge of what I was and what I was capable of. Although my magic hadn’t began to surface yet, it would hopefully come soon and those who found out of my Artican decent would try to use me for their own bidding.

“There is always hope,” Delah whispered. It felt like she was reading my mind. I didn’t like it. She had a way of always knowing what I was thinking. I was beginning to wonder if she too had special powers or maybe she was just that in tune with my moods. I had heard stories of mind readers. People claiming they were decedents of the Dominion, one of the master races. People would say or do anything these days to gain power, but still, there was talk of a warlord from down south that used dark magic. He was gathering an army. For what, I didn’t know, but I had to be careful these days while I was without my magic.

“You’re right Delah, there is always hope,” I sighed. I felt a little better, but I was sure the feeling wouldn’t last long. It never did.

“I just wanted to bring you this,” Delah placed a small bundle in my hands. It was wrapped in a scrap of brown burlap and tied with twine in a neat bow around the top.

“It’s a birthday present,” a smile crept across her face.

Speechless, I pulled the twine. The scrap fell open on my lap revealing a leather bound wrist cuff with brass rivets around the edges. It was amazing. My fingers caressed the worn leather. It was oddly soft, not like anything I had felt before. Not even from the leather workers in the towns nearby.

“Where did you get this?” I picked up the cuff to examine the broach secured to the middle of the leather. It appeared to be a family crest with a snow leopard in the middle. I wondered what it meant.

“Father Michael found it recently while traveling through the mountain passes. He thought it belonged to your parents possibly or maybe one of the members of their traveling party. He thought it might be a nice trinket to remind you of who you are.”

“Why didn’t he give it to me himself?” I pressed her for more information.

“He seemed upset when I talked to him at dawn prayers. He asked me to give it to you. He ran off before I could ask him anything more.”

Menu: Week 22

I am super excited about this weeks menu. I'm trying some new foods that I'm not sure about, but what the hay, i'm going to eat them anyway :) Maybe I can get my kids to eat it with me... On second thought, not a chance.

Monday
- Chipotle Steak Quesadillas

Tuesday
- Tuscan Grilled Chicken

Wednesday
- Grilled Chicken with Peach BBQ Sauce

Thursday
- Crock pot Tortellini Soup

Friday
- Beach Boy's Pot Roast

Saturday
- One pot Chicken Risotto (pictured above)

Sunday
- Left overs or Sloppy Joe's