Low Tide

Beautiful weekend on the coast! Summer is often foggy here, so late fall/early winter is the best. The tide was so low on Thursday that I could walk out (almost) to the end of the jetty. Sooo fun--at least I thought so. Doggy didn't seem to care for it, ha.

Ah, well, I'm back to work. Have a beachy week, my friends ~ wherever you are.

Happy Black Friday! (Does that look as weird as it sounds?) Hmm. Anyhoo, wanted to let you know that ALL of my beach reads are discounted in my beach shop and include FREE shipping in the USA. I'd be happy to sign any or all for gift giving. Just let me know.

You can reach Julie's Beach Shop on the button bar above, or go directly to the beach read category here.

Happy shopping (and wrapping) :)

Mind Over Madi

UPDATED: 11/23/11 Congrats to Lauri! You're the winner of Mind Over Madi. Woo-hoo! Thanks, everyone, for playing!

Fellow ACFW member, Lynda Lee Schab, and I met online several years ago after she read one of my books and dropped me a note. (Thankfully, it wasn't a scathing review or anything, ha ha.) I'm SO excited to announce that Lynda has a book of her own now, Mind Over Madi, published by OakTara.

Here's the blurb:
All men cheat. At least, that's what Madi's mother has always told her. Madi McCall admits her husband lacks a little in the romance department, but all in all, he's been a good husband, a good father. Now, though, she suspects Rich is having an affair with Fawn Witchburn, the mother of one of his fourth-grade students. To say Fawn shows off her "assets" more than should be legally allowed in public is an understatement, and Madi's insecurities kick into high gear. When, in a heated moment, she asks Rich to leave and he complies, Madi is forced to deal with her issues. Issues of love and trust she's tried so hard to avoid. Issues that trail all the way back to her childhood and make her act like a total moron.

Julie here. I've got an extra copy and would love for one of my readers to have it for the holidays. Just comment on this post with your email address AND tell me what time your family has Thanksgiving dinner. (I won't be showing up or anything ... just checking to see who's paying attention :) I'll let you know the winner's name on Wednesday at noon, PST.

Now, go forth and comment! (p.s. Just learned that IE sometimes prevents people from commenting. Until I figure out why, try Mozilla. Works great :)

You like?

Kelli Standish of Pulsepoint Designs lightened up my website and blog for me. Amazing what a new shade of lipstick, er, background colors can do for the psyche. Know what I mean? I wanted the same design, but a little less, oh I don't know, boom. I wanted some softness with my sizzle, some seaglass inspiration for my beachy website.

So anyhoo, she's lighter and brighter and that fits me--and my mood--just fine. Now if only I could find that perfect shade of lipstick ...

I have disappeared ...

If you're looking for my website, it's a bit under the weather today. Hang on ... my trusty web designer is on it!

Updated: I'm back. Thanks for noticing I was gone in the first place ... :)

p.s. Busy schedule lately. If you're on FB, feel free to connect with me there. If not, I'll try to post something fabulous here soon. Pinky promise.

college daze

This is the building that houses the admissions office at Drexel University in Philly. Doesn't it make you want to go to school? Outside the locale is urban and hectic, but inside evokes reverence. The hallowed halls of learning and all that ...

Teen girl is deep into application time, which for a fashion design student means more than transcripts, essays, and test scores--as if that weren't enough. It means creating dazzling portfolios for each school. Have I mentioned that my drawing talent goes no farther than the stick figure? Yeah. I'm not much help to her.

I honestly don't remember things being this complicated when I applied to college. But then again, I applied to one, got accepted, and went there. Bada bing bada boom.

Anyone else going through the college app process with their child? How's that going for you? :-)

Live in the 805

My son, Matt, attends BIOLA University and works as a school ambassador. He gives tours, makes phone calls to prospective students, and he blogs for the university. His blogging gig even landed the school in the Huffington Post and you can read about that here.

Anyway, Matt usually blogs about dorm life, but this weekend he came home and waxed poetically about that instead. (He even posted a gorgeous photo of the Ventura coast that makes me want to walk to the beach this instant!) Thought you'd enjoy a snippet of life in Ventura from a college kid's perspective. Notice the first two draws on the list are food, hmm ...:

Matt's Blog