Summer Grab-Bag

The Department of Education is trying to kill me. Thirty days notice before the biggest, most-popular-with-our-clients grant is due?! In the middle of summer? If I make it to August first with my sanity and blood vessels intact, it will be a small miracle. I have already been having eye twitches and heart palpitations (Which, if this is early menopause, kill me now...), and I really don't want or need any further stress-induced ailments.

The good news is I finished my new book proposal just before the grant was announced. (Hopefully more on this soon! Fingers, toes, eyes crossed...)

Also, our Klassy neighbor recently buzzed over on his motorized scooter to tell us several important things:

1) He recently entered a snapshot of our house in a "cute homes" contest
2) He has a brain tumor and will probably be dead by November
3) He's thinking about entering an amateur stand-up contest. Key words there: STAND-UP

Later in the week, if I'm not curled in a fetal position on the floor clutching my heart, I'll tell you about our special paper delivery man. Boy. Man.

Also, we recently spiffed-up one of our bathrooms. Here is a before shot:

And here is the after:

Again, the before:

And after:


Finally, if you read this before Monday afternoon, you may be able to still catch Allison Winn Scotch's fantastic BOGO offer: if you pick up a copy of her newest novel, The One That I Want, before she lands in Seattle, she will mail you a copy of her NYT Bestseller, The Time of My Life. I have the former on my nightstand, and I absolutely DEVOURED the latter. You want this book, people. Well, you want both of them! Click the linkie for instructions on how to enter.