Cel-e-brate good times, c'mon ...

It's birthday weekend in the Carobini house starting today with pre-teen girl becoming Teen Girl II (because we already have a Teen Girl ...).

Tomorrow College Boy turns 20 - wha?! what?! When did THAT happen?

Then on Sunday, Hunk o' Burnin' Love turns, ... well, another year older =)

Yes, three, count 'em three, family birthdays in a row. God has such the sense of humor, don't you think?

Happy Birthday to all of my dear ones. Let the par-tay(ing) begin!

Sweet Waters on Kindle

Learned this morning that Sweet Waters, the 1st of the Otter Bay Novels, has been experiencing a second-wind with brisk sales in the digital market. PTL! To celebrate, my pub decided to drop the price on Kindle to $2.99 for a limited time.

Something's up because paperback sales of A Shore Thing, the 2nd book from Otter Bay, have also been on an uptick. My guess is readers are missing summer and all the beachy-goodness that goes along with it, so why not take a virtual vacation to Otter Bay?

No magic formula exists for book sales (well, other than begging Justin Bieber to hold up a copy at one of his concerts or something =), and there's so much vying for readers' attention these days (think: "Squirrel!" from the movie, Up), that all I can say is Thank you so much! for giving the Otter Bay Novels a spot on your nightstand. I'm honored and tickled pink! (Insert squeal here.)

Mobile Office

BEAUTIFUL day here on the coast! Now that fall has arrived, fog has been lingering lately, grey and web-like. The kind that sends even a beach-lover like me fleeing eastward to Ojai (where you can find lots of heat, mountains, and celebrities hiding on their ranches ...)

Okay, fine. Not really. I only threaten to head to Ojai. Like the skies care when I beg them to turn blue? Anyway, today the fog managed to dissipate early - hooray! I'm working on a project that requires concentration, so instead of staying in my home office surrounded by disarray of all types, I packed a bag and hit the beach. Came home sandy, and turning pink, but - voila! - I have something ready to be typed. I think I'll treat myself to a piece of Dove chocolate. =)

My daughter's watching last night's episode of Giuliana and Bill on our DVR in the other room and I'm smiling. Have I mentioned how cute those two are? (And SuziQ, I must get a copy of their book! Thanks for telling me about it.)

Okay, back to work, in my normal, desk-outfitted office. At least there's still sand between my toes!

Have a beachy week, my friends ~ wherever you are ...

Whipped cream with that?

The nearby foghorn's constant drone finally convinced me that summer has left Ventura. To mark the occasion, I allowed myself a pumpkin smoothie from Jamba Juice. I've been turning up my nose at all the pumpkin-y offerings around town - lattes, muffins, yogurt - because, frankly, I didn't want to see my beloved summer end. It left me anyway and I've settled into resignation. And noshings with nutmeg added ...

On the upside, the beach is still nearby, fall flowers have their own special golden glow, and I'm on to some new editing and writing projects. So I guess you could say that the turn of the season is really Just another day in Paradise.

How are you adapting to the changing season? More importantly, how do you feel about drinking pumpkin?

Otter Bay eBooks for under a buck

Woke up to an email from my biggest fan ~ my mom ~ announcing that my first two Otter Bay Novels are a keen 99 cents on Kindle and Nook.

In Sweet Waters, Tara Sweet longs to live the fairy tale she remembered from her childhood in Otter Bay. When she arrives, she finds a soap opera waiting for her instead.

A Shore Thing is the story of Callie Duflay, an activist in Otter Bay who fights both the development of coastal property and her growing feelings for the architect assigned to the job.

I didn't know about this sale, so I've no idea how long it will last. In other words, get 'em while their hot! =) And please spread the word, too! (UPDATE 6:00 PM: You can also find these 99 cent eBooks on CBD.com and iPad.)

Here are the links: Sweet Waters KINDLE, Sweet Waters NOOK

A Shore Thing KINDLE, A Shore Thing NOOK

Have a beachy day, my friends ~ wherever you are ...

The shimmer of Time Square ...

Teen Daughter and I are planning a quick trip to NYC in the fall (That noise? That's the sound of our savings spilling down Fifth Avenue ...)

Angie's a high school senior and hopes to attend college in NY, or possibly Ohio (I know ... what?). So she and I will head east to tour campuses and buy shoes. I just hope we can hit up all the places she wants to see and have time for a show and maybe some streetside haggling. It'll be a whirlwind, for sure!

This photo is from her summer college program in New York last July (second from left). She spent a couple of weeks out there studying Fashion Design--and was hooked. Like we were really surprised ... ;)

Super-size me

The more I write and edit, the more I have to wear "cheaters." You know, those lovely glasses you pick up at Target? Hubby tells me they look sexy (right), but it feels more like I'm wearing indoor goggles. That's a pretty picture, huh?

Maybe it is the kind of work I do. Yes, that's it. It's not, pshaw, age or anything. It's the work, I tell you. Ha!

Ah, well. If only life were written in large print ...

Giuliana & Bill

Yesterday I called my mom to see if she wanted to help me walk off all the poundage I gained after eating my way through the holiday weekend. Instead, Dad invited me to join them for lunch. What's one more day?

So while we're eating, my dad asks me for the billionth time, "Do you watch The Closer?" I laughed and reminded him that, no, I do not. Nor do I watch Blue Bloods or any of the other TV shows that make you think. My parents actually watch TV to think. Apparently, I was adopted.

So anyway, I don't watch those kinds of show, but instead I'm obsessed with Giuliana & Bill on the Style channel. This is a fairly new obsession. I caught a couple of episodes last year and couldn't get enough of the reality show of a prince and his bride. Okay, he's a winner of The Apprentice and she's an E News anchor, but they're SO cute together. Who cares that their reality show is scripted? She's Italian and he's, well, he's not, but they have great chemistry and what appears to be genuine love for each other.

And they make me laugh. Last week Giuliana stressed over Bill's surprise 40th b'day party. Bill didn't want any big party, of course, so the entire show was spent with her convincing him to have a little weekend getaway with friends ~ which they do ~ only that was really a smokescreen for the BIG bash she planned for him later in his hometown of Chicago. Loved watching her blubber during her speech at his bash, talking about how much she loves him and how much he loves all his friends and family, etc., etc. ... sigh. With moments like that, who needs to think?

Learned today that one of my shop's vendors just sold their brand. So hoping this is a good thing and that my supplier doesn't change much because my little beach shop would be so sad without their beachy products. The Webkinz people bought them and ~ how weird is this? ~ my new rep lives in ... Ventura. A national company and the rep is in my backyard. It's got to be a sign or something (A beach sign, perhaps? Lol ...). Seriously, I think I could sell beach stuff all the livelong day and be happy.

A friend and I were talking about careers over coffee the other day and she said something like, "I know what I do well, and so I do that. But if you ask me what I'd be happiest doing ... well, I have no idea."

As for me, it's hard to say. When a story gels in my head and makes it onto paper, I'm happy. When readers write to me, I'm happy. But I'm fickle. I get bored. Sometimes I wish I could travel the world finding treasures to stock my beach shop. Then again, I'd probably spend more time buying than selling, and there's this little thing that my family enjoys doing called "eating" ...

Ah, well. There's a darling shop in downtown Ventura that draws me in like a cat to catnip. It's filled with beachy signs and shell-encrusted mirrors and seaglass-inspired everything else. I call it my "happy place" and laugh all you want, but just walking in there puts a smile on this girl's face.

Have a place like that too? What's it like? And if you could do anything (and still eat), what would that be?

Laboring in the summer sun ...

After a couple of chilly, foggy days, the sun showed up bright and early this a.m. Wa-hoo! A sunny Labor Day! My husband declared that I should enjoy the day since I was in labor three times over the years (delivering the kids, he meant). I can accept that! So after some house and yard "labor," hubby and I took a leisurely ride along the state beach bike trail. Lots of peeps out and about, but we tried hard not to hit any of them ... ;-)

Portions of the bike lane had been crumbling into the sea for years, but finally, the trail has been fixed. This second photo shows how pristine and wide open it is now. Nice!

Hope the weekend was a beautiful one for you, too. I pretty much ate my way through mine ~ not proud of it, but hey, it was a holiday! (She says as she wads up another Dove chocolate wrapper and tosses it into the trash ...)

Here's to a beachy week, my friends ~ wherever you are =)