Spread Smiles And Sparkles

Happy Friday All,

As those of us who are Christians remember Jesus's death on the cross today, and then on Sunday celebrate His resurrection, a thought occurred to me.

I'm a self-described eccentric. At least, some people have thought of me as that way, and to be honest, I like being quirky. Sometimes you gotta have a bit of quirkiness to keep your spirits up. To that end, I believe in trying to spread smiles and sparkles wherever one goes. What do I mean? Well, it's rather simple, really.

Either you know someone who is this way, or you're this way yourself, but they can't seem to find anything positive, like, hardly ever. They tell you all the things wrong or they're having a horrible day. You try to point out something positive, even something small, and they find a way to make it negative. I've met people who are this cynical. I don't know if they're aware of it. For me, their cynicism and negativity drags me down. I'm not the sort of person who LIKES to be miserable. I struggle with anxiety nearly every day. I've suffered depression.  And even though somethings are hard and sometimes I have trouble seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, I don't care to wallow. Oh sure, I'll give myself a pity party here and there. You gotta let those emotions out or else they eat you up. But don't stay there.

When I'm with other people, I try to keep upbeat. If I can make someone laugh or smile, then in my mind I've done something right and if it's the only right thing I do all day, well, it's better than nothing. Although, I wouldn't want to settle for the bare minimum, of course, but you get the idea.

I've got a friend who has a truckload of health issues. Like, every time I talk to her something has flared up. But no matter what flares or goes wrong she always says she's blessed. I'm of the opinion that she could have a limb hanging off of her and she'd still be sitting there counting her blessings. I admire that so much. I'm not always that way, but I want to be. 

A friend of my grandmother's once told me that when my grandmother was alive she never had an unkind word to say about anyone. I was impressed. I know I haven't followed that example; yet, it's something to keep in mind and try to follow, even if I fall short.

My point is, negativity is easy. Except the negativity doesn't do anything to make your life or anyone else's better. It doesn't make the world a brighter or better place and it just makes living hard. I'm not saying it's easy to be positive and I'm not saying I don't have bad days. I do, honest. However, you can't let the bad days win and ruin ANY good days. And trust me, I understand how hard it can be to find something positive sometimes. But if all you can find is ONE good thing, hold on to it and spread that good to someone.

I challenge you, my darling readers, find one positive thing a day. Just one. Even if all it is you woke up without a headache (if you normally have one) or that your arm didn't fall off or something like that. Find one thing. Just one. And then find ONE thing to laugh about. If you have to, turn on YouTube and look up funny stuff. Laughter releases tension and it's good for you. Think you can do it? Try it for one week. Just one week and see what happens.

If you need a funny read, I highly recommend Christie Craig's The Cop Who Stole Christmas. It doesn't matter that Christmas has passed and we're going into Easter. Shake things up! Read something out of the ordinary. And trust me, Christie's books are anything but ordinary! Or if that's too much of a stretch to read a Christmas story in April, then go for Shanna Swendson's Enchanted Inc. She's got some humor and it's light and fun.

Have A Fantastically Fabulous Friday!

Also, blessed Good Friday and Happy & Blessed Easter, too. :-)

Mystery Abounds In SHADOWFALLS...

Happy Wednesday All,



I apologize for all the silence. I've had a lot going on lately, and with it being Holy Week, I'm taking some time to reflect and prepare myself for the Easter celebration. For that reason, I will NOT be putting up a post on Friday since it's Good Friday.


However, I have a special post for today...


It’s almost here! C.C. Hunter’s release of her 3rd Shadowfalls book, Taken At Dusk, will arrive on shelves on April 10, 2012.

In the meantime, here’s a glimpse into the exciting next installment of Kylie Galen’s adventures:

When Awake At Dawn closed, Kylie was about to meet her grandparents. Yet, what should’ve been a happy reuinon, turns into a bigger mystery than before. Especially when they leave Shadowfalls and just go poof!

If that's not enough strangeness, Kylie starts seeing weird evil-looking animals coming after her. Burnett and the others start wondering if there’s some kind of shapeshifter at work. It’s got to be Mario, but Mario isn’t a shapeshifter…so who is the one doing this?


The love triangle between Kylie, Derek, and Lucas takes a new turn when Kylie and Derek call a quits. But, is it really over? Can Kylie give Lucas the chance Miranda and Della want her to give him?


Of course, none of these things would be complete without the amnesasic ghost haunting Kylie. When Kylie learns of a possible identity of the ghost, will she continue to help the specter, or is it “Adios, spirit!” for the identity-challenged ghost?


One thing is for certain: every twist, turn, mystery and new information you learn with Kylie will be nothing you expected. As far as I'm concerned, Taken At Dusk is Ms. Hunter’s most exciting installment, yet!


Taken At Dusk will be released at bookstores everywhere on April 10, 2012, check your favorite bookstore or website for more information.
 

*********GIVEAWAY IS OFFICALLY CLOSED.  I am NOT accepting anymore entries. Thank you.*********** 

I got an email from Ms. Hunter's assistant who let me know that she's giving away a copy of TAKEN AT DUSK!

Here's how to enter for a chance to win your very own copy of this awesome novel (please read the directions CAREFULLY):

Two ways to enter (one entry per person):

1.  You can comment on this blog. When you leave a comment please put your FIRST name and your email address. (If you do not include your name and email address I will NOT be able to enter you).  (NOTE:  When you leave a comment it goes into my moderation folder for me to publish before it appears on my blog. If you don't see your comment within 3 hours of posting, please send me an email).

2.  OR, if you don't want to leave a comment, you may send me an email at bethany.averie@yahoo.com please give me your first name and email where I may contact you. If I haven't responded to your email within 3 hours, please email me again.

I will be notifying the winner through email.

****I will close the giveaway at 11 p.m. Central Time today, Wednesday, April 4, 2012. Any entries I receive AFTER 11 p.m. Central time on Wednesday, April 4, 2012 will not be entered.****

***Note on INTERNATIONAL entries: I've emailed to ask if we're accepting international entries. I will update the blog post once I find out.***  EDITS: 8:35 p.m. 4/4/2012:  I apologize, but this giveaway is restricted to USA only. Thank you!


Have fun :-)


Have A Wonderful Wednesday!