Happy Friday my dear Scandalicious friends. If you live in the Northeastern part of the US, I hope your fridge is stocked with goodies and your wine selection is plentiful because it looks like you guys are about to get blasted with some beautiful record breaking snow. I seriously love snow so if you get a chance, take a picture and send it to me…let me live vicariously through you! And stay warm and safe…Scandal’s orders.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you about my yesterday. I got my eyes checked yesterday. No biggie, right? Well, wrong. I’ve worn glasses, for distance since I was about 27 years old. I probably needed them long before that but I didn’t want to admit it. Finally, after using my sunroof to navigate far too much…as in, reading road signs through the sunroof as I drove under them and realizing I needed to do a U-turn because I’d just driven through the intersection I needed to turn at…well, you get the picture. Anywho…recently I’ve started reading under my glasses. Yep, old lady style, you should see me trying to read something on my phone – it’s a sad thing to watch. Yesterday I learned I’m one step closer to an old age home. My eye doc prescribed progressive lenses for me. And no, progressive lenses do not imply I’m hip, cool and progressive, it means bifocals people. Bi-fucking-focals. I’m old. I’m decrepit. I’m only 42 and my eyes have decided to give up the ghost. My eyes are telling me, you might rock the hell out of those skinny jeans but don’t you forget, we own you bitch. Not only that, because I’ll now have two different prescriptions going on in my glasses, the glasses themselves have to be slightly larger. So you know what…I decided to rock them. I picked out a kickass pair from Banana Republic, they are black and grey marbled, plastic all the way around, Clark Kent style. I’ll post a picture for you when they come in. I am not taking this old age thing passively, I intend to push the boundaries as long as I possibly can.
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you guys about my girl Lola. If you’re reading this Lola – you know who you are…take a bow! Last week Lola shared her Pumpkin Spice Cake in the comments section. So, like any good friend, I made it. It is delicious. I mean, seriously delicious. As in, my kids almost went to blows over the last piece. No joke – it’s that good. And I didn’t even make the cream cheese frosting, I only made a sugary glaze for the top (a certain 15 year old boy in my house ate an entire package of cream cheese when he got home from school that day while the cake was cooling – that kid is going to eat me out of house and home.) Anyway, I want to formally share the recipe with you guys. It’s so good. I love sharing recipes – if you have any you’re willing to share with the class, send them to me. I’ll try them out, take a picture and post it here. You know I love to cook…and share, so it’s a natural fit.
Lola’s Kickass Pumpkin Spice Cake
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (I like may cake spice so I usually add more)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
250 g cream cheese
1 cup of icing sugar
1 cup whipped cream
Bernard Callabeut white chocolate (or any white chocolate will do)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extractDirections
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl beat the eggs, oil and sugar together until smooth. Stir in the pumpkin, then the dry ingredients.
3. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan and spread evenly. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cake to cool before icing.
4. Mix icing sugar, whipped cream vanilla extract and cream cream cheese all together in a bowl. Spread over cake and shred white chocolate over icing.
Happy eats!(like I said, I made a glaze instead of the frosting, I used about 5 tablespoons of icing/powdered sugar with a cap full of vanilla and enough water to make it pourable)
If we were having coffee I’d tell you about my girl Teena. Teena lives in Australia and she’s pretty much awesome. Teena seems to think I need a Cougar List here on my site. I don’t think she’s wrong. If you are wondering, a Cougar is an older lady who finds younger men attractive. I think many of us might just fall into that category. I have a math equation that keeps me out of trouble…half your age plus seven…anyone younger than that lands you firmly in Demi Moore-land. In real life you need to stay out of Demi Moore-land, it might land you on some watch list somewhere!! But here, since these fellas are fictional, feel free to have at it. I thought I’d share my list with you guys, and see if you have anyone we need to add to the list before I add it formally to the site.
Scandal’s Cougar List
Jasper – Kristen Ashley’s Golden Trail
Finley – Kristen Ashley’s Games of the Heart
Holder – Colleen Hoover’s Hopeless
Lucas – Tammara Webber’s Easy
So, who am I missing? Who would you add to the list? Plead your case well enough and maybe, just maybe I’ll credit you with the Cougar-add!
If we were having coffee I’d tell you about an email I received from a reader named Naomi. Naomi suggested I include a way of searching for books by their price. Excellent idea Naomi. Going forward I will add a tag for books over $3.99 and books under $3.99 – does that seem like a good divider line for you guys? Let me just say, straight up – I’m kinda’ shitty with the technical stuff on the blog. When I first started, I honestly had zero idea how to use the “tag cloud” so I went at it rather willynilly style. Now I’m trying to hone my tags a little better for you. I’m including the rating, the author name and now the price of the book. Is there anything else you’d like to see me include that will make your search of my site easier? Seriously, just let me know. I write this blog for you guys, I want to make it as reader friendly as possible.
If we were having coffee I’d tell you I wrote up a kick ass review of Lisa Renee Jones’ next Rebecca’s Lost Journals installment. This one is The Contract and it is full of clues for us to Nancy Drew. I’m proud to say, I now have a theory. My plan is to post the review, sans theory, on Monday. The novella comes out Feb. 18th so I’m keeping my theory to myself until you guys get a chance to read this one. I don’t want to spoil the fun, and I want you to read it without me coloring your impressions. I’ll share what I think is going on in the Feb. 22 Virtual Coffee Date. Deal? Cool.
If we were having coffee I’d ask if you have any plans for Valentine’s Day. Doing anything fun with a loved one? Hopefully you’re doing something scandalicious. Do share, please.
If we were having coffee I’d ask what’s in your reading queue? Anything I need to check out? I’m reading some fun Jaye Shields books right now and then I have one more book I want to read before my big trip to Orlando. And speaking of Orlando, I’m getting a book full of autographs for you guys – I’ll do a special giveaway for it when I return. Happy weekend. Stay safe, stay warm, read lots and always do something scandalicious. Smooches!!
I’m in Mass and I’m fully stocked here. The snow is pretty and all, but I freaking HATE it. Cold, wet, shoveling. Hubby works for another towns light dept, so when the power goes out, he has to go, which sucks. The ice storm 4 years ago he worked 18 on and 6 off for 16 days straight. The best part is that he’s salary so he didn’t get a dime of over time. sucked big time, but I digress. we’re planning a move to Texas and I definately won’t be missing the snow. But I’ll send you a pic tomorrow when it’s all over, it’s just starting now.
My most popular recipie is for buffalo chicken. everyone says it’s better than any restraunt. Here it is:
In a gallon zip lock put about 2-3 cups of flour and assorted spices (generally garlic powder, onion powder, seasoning salt, papricka)
cut chicken breast in half so that you have 2 thinner slices the same size, put in bag and make sure they all well coated, i usually do about 3-5 pieces (which ends up being 6-10 pieces)
put in fridge at least over night, or up to 3 days, the longer the better.
fry in a deep fryer if you have it, or in pan on stove top, use veg oil.
for sauce, use one bottle of frank’s red hot, 1 stick of butter and a little garlic powder.
I’ve actually been catching up on a bunch of freebies and 99cent deals i’ve downloaded and other than a few (disasterous, devoured, both awesomeness) they were all kind of meh, so i decided to get sins and needles which looked good and has been near the top od my tbr pile a while, and it was freaking awesome. totally didn’t see the direction it took coming. there is a cliffhanger, but the sequel comes out in may. the end of it I was like wait, what? no, no, no, this is not happening!!!
I started another freebie last night, candy shop and i know some people liked it, but i’m kinda of rolling my eyes, it’s like a soft porn and a guy who wanted to avoid marrage at all costs is envisioning a life with her after 2 weeks? come.on.
I have the perfect game on my kindle ready to go, but i’m scared. I know there’s angst, and that shit stresses me out. I thought I was going to jump off a bridge reading Thoughtless. So tell me people, what am I in for? how bad is it compared to thoughtless? how about the opportunist, cuz i have that puppy ready too.
oh, and in typing this, i think we already got half an inch of snow out here. And when did they start naming snow storms? Nemo? all I can think of is the kids movie…
When we lived in NYC I didn’t have a car and everything was within walking distance so the snow was never really a pain in the ass for me. I grew up in the south so experiencing the snow that way has given me a romanticized vision of snow…now ice storms – belch!! We get ice storms down here in the south and those things are atrocious. And yes, since when did we start naming winter storms? I noticed that just recently, Weather.com is my homepage – I’m a bit of a weather junkie that way! And Nemo doesn’t sound threatening at all.
Love that recipe and Frank’s Red Hot…I put that shit on everything! Love that stuff!!
Sadly, I can’t give you any insight on the books you have at the ready but I am curious to see if anyone else has read them as they’re on my TBR list, too.
Hope Nemo fizzles out quickly and doesn’t hit you guys as hard as they’re predicting. Stay warm and dry.
Smooches
Good morning, we’re in the more of the midwest (at least that’s what they call Ohio, I just don’t get midwest from Ohio) and we’re in for some lake effect snow too. But, we’ll see, it’s hit or miss around here. I’ll take some pictures for you if it actually happens. Right now it’s raining and about 38. I love snow and snow storms. Hubby and I only vacation in cold climate locations. Love it! Nothing like staying somewhere that you can tour but then go back to your cabin/cottage, build a fire, crack open a bottle of wine and drape yourself all over the one you’re sharing that with. Wow! that sounds kind of cheesy, but it’s so much fun!
Valentines day is kind of just another day around here. Roy is always doing little things for me and taking care of me so most days are pretty fantastic. (not all… that would be unrealistic). I still get something small for my guys but they don’t like when mom get’s all mushy, so chocolate or a coffee and they’re happy. It’s also my grandaughters birthday so that’s what acually makes the day special.
I think you need to add Shy, Tack’s son, to the cougar list. I know we only have the bare details for him right now, but I’m feeling good good things. And even though I absolutley hated Kiera in Thoughtless (I mean really, fucking pick one or the other, quick the non-stop whining! She should get neither! Neither I say!!!) I did love Kellan. He needs to be added. Neither of which meet your cougar calculation, so I’m out of luck.
I will be doing lots of baking this weekend. It’s cold, nothing planned so baking is a given. Love to bake. My youngest love the tres leches cake I make, but I have a sticky toffee pudding recipe that I love and it’s soooo good. If you want it let me know. You can’t go wrong with a rich date cake, home-made toffee and a warm vanilla pudding over top.
And glasses? I’ve had glasses for about 10 years now. Wearing them is another story. I think we’ve been riding in the same car. My husband just quizzed me on the license plate of a car we passed the other day. Cound not read it. Thank goodness the kindle has the setting so that I can have about 8 words per page some days. Lot more page turns, but it works.
Just finished the second book in the Gamble Brothers series by J Lynn. They were pretty good and I really liked Chad in the second book. I’m also finishing up the IAD series. Lothiare was a surprise. I really didn’t think I’d like him as much as I did. I can’t wait until she does one for Thad and I need the story for Nix! Nix has got to get some badass Lore man for herself! It would just not be fair for her not to get her own hot guy!
So, I’m going to go try to get through the last of The Valentine Arrangement. It’s just not doing anything for me. I like Kale, but meh. I may re-read the Fantasyland series. You all got me thinking about that one again.
Petra, I completely agree about loving the cooler temps. My skin is so chicken white, the sun is not my friend and my theory is, you can always put on more clothes or snuggle with someone to warm up but you can never get naked enough to cool off! Glad to learn I’m not alone in my thoughts!
Yeah, Valentine’s day isn’t a huge deal around here either. I love Mounds bars…silly, I know but I do so My Guy always gives me some King Sized Mounds loving and I don’t have to share with anyone! He also writes me a poem…also usually silly. In fact, the one he wrote for our anniversary back in November rhymed the words misbehave and shave – he’s a funny guy!
You are correct in including Shy but he’s not Tack’s son, he’s Tabby’s love interest in Own The Wind…he’s a member of Tack’s MC. And I remember thinking he was going to cause all sorts of cougar trouble for us horny old ladies at the end of Motorcycle Man. Tack’s boy’s name is Rush I believe…also list worthy.
And Lothaire…how about that?!!? I didn’t see that one coming either but I certainly loved it. I want Nix to get her own book and I want it to happen right now! Can you imagine who she’s going to end up with?!!? That’s going to be some story.
Happy weekend and I hope you stay snuggled!
You’re so right. Shy is not Tack’s son. Mini brain melt down this morning.
I really thought Nix and Lothaire would have been good together. Nix needs someone who is slightly off too….Ooooo how about Thad and Nix?! Now there is a May/December romance.
Petra, it’s like you are reading my mind…I totally think Thad and Nix are going to end up together!
Feel you on the glasses. I have been wearing one near-sighted and one far-sighted contact since I was 24. My eyes were bad before I got pregnant, but they were horrible once my son was born. I have to close one eye to bring things in to focus sometimes and–more than once–some jackass thought I was winking at him.
I used to love baking….then I started doing it as a side job. I despise it now. That cake looks very good, though.
$3.99 is not really a good price point to break at? I would not balk at $3.99. I don’t even balk at $7.99. I start balking at the Lauren Dane price point. Yup, don’t care how good your lady porn is, I am NOT paying $13.99 for an E-book.
My Neecey’s hubs is in Afghanistan, so I am gonna pop down to Savannah and visit her this weekend as a prelude to V-Day. I miss my bestie and she really misses her husband, so I’m gonna go give my girl some moral support.
You need to add Travis Maddox to the Cougar List. And Andrew Parrish–Edge of Never. READ. THAT. BOOK. Don’t make me tell you again, young lady, or you will spend the weekend in your room. Go ahead. Insert pervy bedroom joke.
I’m with Linnick! You MUST read Edge of Never! Andrew Parrish will be guaranteed to land his ass on your Cougar List!
ok, ok…I don’t want you and Linnik ganging up on me Hope – I’ll read it next weekend when I’m traveling!!
Twenty anything is too damn young for me, but I would totally tap that!
haha!!!
My sister in law wears contacts but should probably get her eyes checked again. I spent some time with her over Christmas and watched in horror as she gently slide her contact to the side in one eye so she could read something. And girl, if you are reading this…I’m still kinda’ freaked out by that move!!
I’ve seen your duckies – if those cupcakes of yours taste half as good as they look then well done! The Lola’s cake is delicious – and super easy to make. Try it.
Maybe I should add more tags, less than 3.99, more than 3.99 over 7.99…see I have a warped sense of what people will pay since I get many books for free – that means I don’t feel as guilty paying a over $10 when I have to.
I have Edge of Never on my Kindle…I’ve got a couple of flights coming up soon, to make you happy and to avoid Linnik punishments (even if being locked in my bedroom with My Guy isn’t really punishment) I’ll read it then.
Say hello to Neecey for us. You’re a good friend Charlie Brown – enjoy your visit.
I’ll tell her.
And Hunter from Liberating Lacey. Holy Hot Man in a Kevlar vest….. Hunter is SEX ON FIRE. That fucking song was written for him.
duly noted…in bold print in my notebook by the way!
Liberating Lacey….Kevlar….SEX ON FIRE!? Hmmm Im off to read me some of that! Thanks for the Tip Linnick!
Hunter is a cop and he is younger than Lacey. There’s a whole scene involving his vest and his “tool belt.” Holy shit. HOLY SHIT. I told Scandal about this book eons ago, but she has more important shit to read than this SHIT HOT book.
oh my god Linnik…you’re sooo killing me. I have it on my list I swear to you!! I’ve even stopped taking review requests from authors so I can catch up on my list…see, I’m trying – I want to read all the SHIT HOT books with the fuckhot guys!
All I heard is tool belt. This book is getting bumped up my list.
TOOL BELT….Holy shit! just DL it!
Giggle!
Hubby is going to laugh SOOO hard. See he is an engineer of sorts and ALWAYS tease him about his TOOLS!!! TMI!?
ok, so i have to read a book for a blog tour post on Wednesday but this tool belt stuff has decided what i’m reading after that…or do i do My Brother’s Keeper, Linnik says the doorway sex is better than wall sex…hummmmmmm
Y’all this is his POLICE tool belt, not a carpenter’s tool belt, just to clear up any miscommunication. Handcuffs….etc….you’re getting the drift.
Chossing between the doorway sex and Hunter, I’m gonna have to go with Hunter. There’s a lot of shit-hot NON-sex in MBK, but there’s just a lot of sex-sex in LL.
hunter it is…toolbelt and all! done.
Oh I pick up what your putting down Linnik! Loud and clear!!! It is still getting bumped up my list. Jace from Sinners Tour has a suitcase full of goodies…so I like a tool belt, very portable, easy for travel if you know what I mean!
Isn’t Jace the one that makes his own toys? I get Sinners and Black Falcon and Emily Snow and who the fuck else has rock band books all mixed up. But I remember a suitcase of self-made toys….
That is Olivia Cunnings other rock series called Sole Regret! One of the band members is a bit of a nerd and likes to make toys. You were on the right track.
Scandal, you say, “I have a math equation that keeps me out of trouble…half your age plus seven…anyone younger than that lands you firmly in Demi Moore-land. ” I am not so sure this equation works for those of us over 50. I am 54….so according to that equation, any man 34 and up is ok. I don’t know….34 sounds pretty young to me! Attractive, no doubt….but young!
I have seen many a women that can rock the 34 yo and be in their 50′s. Age ain’t nothing but a number honey.
preach it Lola!!
Hey, at 34 he probably owns a home or at the very least, shouldn’t be living in his mom’s basement…I say rock on girl!! I won’t report you for crushing on a 34 year old man Julia!!
I know! I was just going to say the same thing. He will mostly have a job, a home, a car and mature enough to handle things in the bedroom. I say they are the perfect age for you.
I should toss in here that I *did* cradle-snatch; at 38 I married a 31 yr old – and was nervous with the 7 yr age difference. He’s 47 now and still rockin’ the same body he had then; there is something to be said about hooking up with a younger man.
Rock on with your hot mama self Julia! My Guy is younger, not by 7 years but still – it counts, especially when I turned 40 and he was still in his 30s…gotta say, it feels good being the older woman!
Men love that older women shit! maybe I am looking in all the wrong places. Younger men, come to momma!
SHHIIIT …..You lot make me laugh…..Just choked on my cup of Tea!
NOTEt to self DO NOT eat or drink whilst reading Scandal and Co’s posts!
PERMA GRIN ☺ with my coffee this morning. I am so glad you liked the cake, it is funny to now that your children had the same reaction that most of my friends and family have when I make it. They all bring out their fiend-like personas once the aroma of the cake gets within whiffing distance. All sense of civilization goes right out the window.
My eyes, oh my eyes! I wear glasses to and have worn them since I was 18. I have pretty much worn the same prescription since then, till I turned 40 last year and all of a sudden it seems like I see everything in a fog. So I agree with you Scandal, if you are going to rock the glasses wear them in style. I think I have 10 different styles that I try and coordinate with my daily outfits. But my staple pair are the black hipster Clark Kent style classes, the kind I have seen our dear Mr. David Gandy wear in a few Dolce and Gabbana ads (small shout out to his hawtness!!).
I love the idea of the book list but like I mentioned before I don’t have a problem paying for e-books as long as they are under $12. As for The Contract, that Lisa Renee Jones is a teasing lil’ wench. I can’t wait to read your review once I read that book. She has me all worked up about finding out whom the master is and you Scandal are not helping either, it has turned into addiction.
I am reading Olivia Cunnings’ Hot Ticket. The third book in her Sinners Tour series. If you like rock bands, then you will like this series. The SEX is HAWT and KINKY! After which I am planning on reading Ella Frank’s Exquisite series, she is another tease and since all this teasing has gotten me frisky, I might as well fuel the fire with some good sexy reading.
Lastly, I shared this recipe with a colleague who has a sister that is chef. She featured it last year in her restaurant as a lunch special and it was a hit. If you like heat in your food and you are not allergic to nuts this soup will warm things up for you, especially this time of year, with winter storms and all.
African Peanut Soup
Ingredients
2 Large Roma Tomatoes
1 Large Red Pepper
1/2 cup Red onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 of A Habanero Pepper
4 Large Basil Leaves (Fresh)
1 Litre of Vegetable Broth (or chicken broth)
3 Heaping TBLS of Organic Peanut Butter (or regular will do as well)
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp of Savory Spice (you can use chives as well)
2 TBLS of Coconut Oil (any other oil will work too but I love the flavor of the coconut oil in food)
Tools
Food processor or Bullet
Prep Instructions
Loosely chop your first six ingredients (tomatoes, pepper, onion, garlic and habanero pepper) and place in food processor. Process until the contents look like a delicious salsa texture. Heat up soup pot with oil and add contents of food processor into the pot.
Once contents of the pot are hot, add peanut butter and vegetable broth and the rest of the spices. Let soup cook for about 35 minutes.
Suggestions
I obviously have made this soup to adhere to my vegetarian lifestyle. Feel free to add chicken if you need the extra protein or sweet potatoes to make it a more heartier dish. Also, if you aren’t into hot spices, cut back on the habanero pepper. Enjoy!
you almost lost me to the rest of your comment when you mentioned my favorite, favorite Gandy but the recipe quickly brought me back!
oh man, that recipe looks delicious – totally printing that one out…and I love the sweet potato add. And just so you know, I have a request from both kids for that cake again this weekend!
I have Hot Ticket on my Kindle but I haven’t started the series yet so I’m guessing I need to read the others before I jump off that sexy bridge, right?!?
I’ll keep working on the proper tag for book prices, it is helpful hearing everyone’s limits or lack there of in some cases!!
I know it’s so shameful how distracted I get when it comes to that man. I almost missed my work out last saturday morning when I shamefully fell down the hole. I signed up for a tumbler account and all hell broke loose.
Book pricing seems to vary from person to person so I understand you trying to provide a range would be very helpful. I ain’t gonna lie, I am the first one to hit up the freebies and the 99 cents deals when I can find them. But if I am in the mode to read a book and it’s an author like, why not support the creative geniuses that they are.
Oh yeah! Start from the beginning with the sinners tour series. Each book is about each member of the band but there are general events that dictate the order. Her last one that was released in November should technically be the last book even though it was published 3rd. So read that one last.
cool, thanks
YUM Lola! That sounds really good! Will slot it into my cooler months recipre list!
Sinners Tour ROCK! SERIOUSLY HAWT!!!!!
I think a feel a hot flush coming on….umm Brian! Phew!
It is delicious Teena! I’m planning on making some this weekend and it freezes well. I agree Brian is so yum. I am usually drawn to the more alpha characters but he plays beta male very well and makes it swoon worthy! But I am reading Jace now and he is tearing me up…gosh I love wounded men.
AAaaaahhh Yes Jace! very alpha. I am normally like you and go for the alpha but between these two men I prefer Brian. I am not sure why. perhaps it is because Myr need the nuturing? Brian wasnt threatened/ing he just…allowed and empowered Myr.
Myr…hehe! I had trouble saying her name too! I like Myr. Myrna just sounded like an grannie name…no offence to any grandmas out there. It just sounds like a name for my 90 year old great grannie.
The cute thing is Brian’s consistent reference to being the chick in the relationship. Loves it!
Yeah it is isnt it! Thats why I wrote Myr.
Lola, the sex in all of the Sinner’s books is hot! The opening scene with Trey and Brian in the third book???!! Were you thinking Brian better not be fucking cheating?! I love Trey but Brian is off limits! I’m also a little pissed that they skipped the other two band memebers and went right to the fifth couple. I do not understand what they were thinking. Why give us the last story third when we now know who the other two got together with? On the plus side, the 4th book just came out on the 5th.
I know! Olivia Cunning has actually addressed this. She mentions that Trey’s book was always meant to be last but her publisher felt that there was a big following for Trey and that it would be wise to publish his story first. I actually didn’t read Trey’s story once I heard about this. I am OCD about my stories being read in order.
Me too. I hate reading books out of order. But I got into Trey’s book before I realized they were mentioning Jace & Owen it was too late. It’s almost worse for me to stop reading a book once I’ve started it, which is why my DNF pile is so very small…
Nothing much new here. We still have snow on the ground but the sun is shining. Living so close to the mountains,if you wait 5 minutes, the weather can change. We can go from sub zero white out blizzards to a beautiful sun shining warm day in 24 hours. Unfortunately it’s hell on people (like myself) who suffer from migranines due to severe weather changes.
Had my eyes checked before Christmas. My optometrist had to do a double take at my chart. Apparently I have very healthy eyes for “someone my age”. Momma gave me some great genes and I have barely any wrinkles and the gray in my hair is covered up with regular visits to the salon. I am forty fan-fucking-tastic years old I am rockin’ that bitch! The optometrist warned me that now that I hit that geriatric stage in my life, my eyes will change and I may need bifocals. I hate wearing glasses! I didn’t need them until later in life so I have never gotten use to them. I abuse my contact lenses. So my question is, how is that bifocal shit going to work with my contact lenses?????
As soon as I saw your Cougar List I thought of Travis Maddox and Andrew Parish. I see I am not alone in my opinion. I also thought Jordan Levitt from Bad Rep was hot. If they are hot and legal, I am looking, regardless of that math equation
Most days I feel and act like I am still 20 years old so I am gonna run with that! Although all my Gandy porn doesn’t make me feel like such a pedophile since he is almost 33 and that is a completely respectable age for a 40 year old woman!
Our household has been overrun with sickness for the better part of a month. Kids seem to bring everything home. I am hoping to spend this weekend relaxing and getting everyone healthy. I was so sick a few days ago, I couldn’t even read! That has got to tell you something!
I second that you are a foxy momma at 40! You even make one of our collegues at work jealous because she is younger than you and looks older. Keep strutting your fine self!
Ok, I’m not convinced our dear Gandy is as young as he says but either way, his age would never be a factor in my book!
I asked about contacts and she said I could get them for distance but I’d still need reading glasses which seems to defeat the purpose of contacts. Apparently they make bifocal contacts but she said they don’t have a very good success rate so she does’t recommend them. Your doc might tell you something entirely different so who knows!
Living in NC, we experience those same extreme weather shifts in the winter months which like you, do nasty things for my sinuses thus causing grumpy headaches.
Hope the cooties have evacuated your abode. And being too sick to read is straight up awful. Hope you guys are well now.
Funny, I question his age at times too. Mind you I question Daniel Craig’s age as well but I usually find that men that are extremely fit tend to look older. I think it’s because they keep their percentage body fat so low. Sometimes fatty tissues aren’t so bad for keeping young.
Daniel Craig… YUM. Watching him right now in Layer Cake.
OMG Petra! I love that man and that movie. He is so much younger in that film but much hawter now.
I love that through the whole movie, you never find out what his name is…. he should just be listed as incredibly hot guy with killer blue eyes.
Gandy is only 33?! He looks more like 43!
I know, right?!!? I’m not complaining, however old he is, he totally rocks it and is a mighty fine specimen of man but I’m thinking ole’ boy aini’t 33!
To be exact he is actually 32 and won’t be 33 for another 2 weeks! Okay I am just being silly now.
i know he’s selling the 32, I’m still not buying!
YES!!!!!!! Cougar List!
Morning All. Greetings from the land Down Under!
If we were having coffee I would be saying Woot Woot to the Ole Cougar List. Nothing list a bit of eye candy to make my heart go pitter patter!
Mine would go like this
Dean Holder – Hopeless
Andrew Parish – Edge of Never
Lucas – Easy
Travis Maddox – despite the fact he was a man whore, BD
Liam – The Boy who sneaks in my bedroom window, Kirsty Mosely…great protector!! Just Saying!
Jordan – Bad Rep, A Meredith Walters…Bad Arse, in a band, Tatts and piercings…need I say More!?
If we were having coffee I would tell you i have been reading KAs Fantasyland series this week as per your advice Scandal Girl. I just finished Fantastical a few hours ago and …..I FUCKING LOVED THEM! Forget the men ……Seriously…ALL I want is my very own Salem (ive been riding horses since before I was born…true story!) Now my pick of the men( this will shock you!) ……is…….(drum roll)……Lahn! Tor….VERY close second. I mean Eight Months! And the delivery scene’ Push Baby’, oh and how he treasures Isis and his speech to his people about how Circe never gave up…and then he goes and measures himself to Dortak. I think bc Lahn has grown SO much from the start of their relationship is the biggest reason i chose him..WOW!
But Appollo….hhmmmm…..now he many take the Fantasyland man prize! We will have to wait and see!
Glasses!? I have them too! I am SOOO glad you went Kick Arse on yr glasses, bifocal or not, EVERY woman needs a pair of Kick Arse reading glasses! I mean how are we supposed to do the sexy intelectual look without them! Abso- fucking-lutely I want photos when you get them! Mine have Bling up the arms, cute!
Too Hot here at the moment for Lolas Pumpkin Spice Cake. I have already printed off the recipe and I have all the spices ( i will have to generate my own pumpkin spice). I will probably bake it in April when it cools off a little!
I have well over 60, last time i checked, on my TBR. I am still a Newby at this whole ebook gig so I am sure I will catch up!
I am hanging in bed a little longer( it is 5.30am here) maybe I will get up and get a cup of tea and re- read a few of my Fav bits from The Golden Dynasty! Enjoy yr weekend and I will catch you alll next week!
I’m so stinking happy you loved that series…and Lahn!!! Seriously, when I read your “push baby” comment I got a chill!! I’m holding out until I get Apollo’s book to rank my guys in this series but right now, even with as little as I know about him, Apollo is my man.
My current glasses are light brown tortoise shell but they kinda’ blend in with my hair – these new ones are going to be far more noticeable I think. And yes, I’m totally going for the sexy librarian look! I’ll share a pic when I get them.
Awesome Courgar List…i see I’ve got a lot of work to do on that list!
Have a great weekend Teena – keep cool!
I Know, I Know…I actually cried when he hit Circe…but then I also cried when Circe ‘grew’ the flowers and told Lahn she loved him. I think bc the two of them had to ‘travel’ so far to get their relationship to work. Hmm….yes I think Apollo just may ‘ take the Cake’ so to speak!
Oh and I dont care how old we are we can Fictionally ‘Tap’ any one of those young men. If they are legal they are fair game. Just last night I was sitting reading with my Boy as he watched the Aussie vs West Indians at One Day Cricket. One of the bowlers got hit with the ball and was checking out his ribs where the ball hit. Well I must of ‘Hmmd’ bc My Boy turns to me and says ‘Seriously Mum!?’ and I said ‘WHAT!?, just looking!’ Now that West Indian cricketer was FINE! Full on Eight Pack I tell you! Sigh!
HAHA!! I drive my son crazy when I point out the hotness of someone on tv like that. And my girl gives me the “soooo gross mom” look and then to piss her off I’ll say something like “totes ridic, right?!!?” that makes her eyes roll so hard, they might just pop out of her head!
And I get it with Lahn, I didn’t want to like him but the sucker just went and changed so much, he gave me no option! And don’t get me started with Circe’s flower growing, I was a mess then!
Oh God! I totally pissing myself laughing right now!
My Girls eye rolls at me too!!! No comment required!
Yr saying “totes ridic, right!”
hers…” Well thats just redonk!”… one we have all adopted!
when will these kids learn we do shit just to make their eyes roll – it’s sport, really! Redonk sport!
Hopefully never!……It too much fun!
I think it’s completely adorable when you British folks say arse. Just sayin.
Hey from beautiful upstate SC! I’m reading Bella Andre’s Sullivans series. I’m almost done with the 4th book. and I am lovin this series! I’m a big Kristen Ashley fan & I absolutely loved the books with the kids in them. I am a mom and my son is my heart but I never thought kids really belonged in romance novels. At least not as much as those kids in KAs books. I don’t know if just anyone could pull it off but the Goddess of romance novels certainly can. Have a great weekend!
Great Series, Southern Girl! Book 4 is my FAV! Jakes YUUUMMY!
The Sullivans ROCK! I LOVE Jake! He is the one with Sophie, right? He is my fave!
Have you read the Proby “With me” series? They remind me of the Sullivan series. There are 2 books so far and I like them just as much if not better than the Sullivans so far…
YES! So far, Jake is my favorite. And you are correct, Hope. Jake is with Sophie! I haven’t heard of Proby but I will check her out. Thanks! The Sullivans remind me of Marie Force’s McCarthy’s of Gansett Island series. I haven’t read all of those books yet but everything I’ve read by Marie Force is great!
Love Marie Force also. But her new release coming? Not liking who the H/h are. Total ick going on for me…
I just read up on this over on Goodreads…so the H/h with this one is a girl and her ex-boyfriend’s brother…yeah, that’s kinda’ gross
But other than that, it’s a good series?
I really liked the first 2 in the series. The first one was free…not sure if it still is. The second is my fave. After that they kinda went down hill, until the last one. That one was HAWT! (Sorry, I don’t remember titles but they are all “something for love”) But I think she lost me on this one. Sorry, not interested Marie Force. Mainly because the brother that is the ex-boyfriend was hung up on the ex-girlfriend and moved on with another girl and now the ex-girlfriend will be sexing up her ex-boyfriend’s brother? And they were together for many many years. I know all of that is confusing but…trust me…it’s pretty fucked up!
But I really like her stand alones. Line of Scrimmage is my favorite.
yuck…not loving the sibling sharing twist at all, that feels dirty, and not in a good way!
I know, KA writes her teens is such a way – it’s pretty special, no?!!?
I have a couple of Bella Andre’s books on my Kindle, I’m guessing I need to bump them up
I first fell in love with KAs teens in AT PEACE. The way those girls wormed their way into Joe’s heart, made him smile, it was just awesome. Besides the Sullivans, I’ve read only a couple of Bella Andre’s books and so far I’ve really liked everything I’ve read. Definitely bump her up!
will do southerngirl
I haven’t been reading anything new…just re-reading some of my faves and catching up on my tv. I just re-read Games of the Heart and got to experience Fin all over again. SIGH. Love him. Maybe I should re-read Jasper…. I have been in the mood for KA’s comtemp so I am super excited for her new release! Maybe I’ll re-read Knight and Creed. I really need to get caught up on my tv. I am only able to do that by re-reading books because I have no will power…I just cannot put a book down.
Have fun at your book weekend, Scandal. I, and am sure many others, look forward to your recap!
OOOO, Hope, read Jasper again for me. MMMM, Jasper.
I’ll take pics and bring back goodies from the book weekend for you guys!
It’s been snowing here in upstate NY for 9 hours now and disappointedly there is maybe 1 inch of snow, though they say it’s supposed to get bad tonight (14″-20″). I’ll take a pic for you in the morning. Schools closed early (when the bus came by, the roads weren’t even covered, so big jumping of the gun there) though in my house that was no big deal as I had planned to take the day off since the 6 year old came down with walking pneumonia yesterday (joy o joy).
I must say, I love Kristen Ashley’s books for the older alpha-males. I recently finished Leave Me Breathless and while Ghost was hot, I probably wouldn’t go all cougar on him. I guess I never really pictured myself in the cougar position (maybe I’m in denial about my age or maybe I’m in denial about the age of some of the guys I read about). Does it count if they are from a different time period? Like in Melissa Mayhue’s novels of highlanders, fae, and time-traveling women? Or Moning’s Highlander series? Technically the highlanders are hundreds of years older than their female counterparts.
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I would love to play Nancy Drew with you with the Lost Journals (my very first series books ever – I was 7 when I got my first Nancy Drew and was hooked). But, I haven’t read Inside Out Yet and don’t want to spoil it. Why, you ask have I read it yet (it’s on my list), but I promised myself to clean up my Kindle of all of the books and samples that I have on there before buying anything else. I’m starting at the oldest download and working my way up. Samples are being tossed if they grip me right away and books purchased are being read instead of being buried with all the new stuff you make me buy. I just finished The Sun and the Moon by Patricia Ryan (I had read the first book in the series over a 1 year ago and this one had been sitting on my Kindle for about that long). It was a great read, I gave it 4 stars. It was a nice change of pace but still had some sexy schmexy guys and scenes.
If we were having coffee, I’d tell you glasses are no biggie – I’ve been wearing them for 25 years now (but then again I mostly wear contacts during the day). Did you look into contacts? I would LOVE to be able to wake up and see the clock or go swimming and open my eyes under water. Though I can’t bring myself to have someone clap open my eye and slice it open with a laser (too Clockwork Orange). Not much make me squeamish, but the eyes definitely do.
And lastly, if we were having coffee, I’d tell you that I’m jealous that you are making to Orlando. Warm sun, good laughs, lots of alcohol, and incredible, funny, smart women to gift you with secrets of their upcoming books! Yep – that’s me sitting up here, green with envy.
I’ve worn glasses forever…it’s not the glasses that have me freaked out…it’s the bifocals aspect of it! Bifocals make me feel old…but I’ll rock ‘em!
as for Orlando, I’ll take lots of pics and bring back some goodies to give away for you guys – I like to share that way!!