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Never lacking for something to say, Elizabeth shares everything from All My Children to Writing and all the life that's in-between . . .

Getting Festive

December 12, 2011 – 7:43 AM

First things first. Winners. We’ve got two this week. I love sending these out but at the holidays it is just sort of special. So claim them early so if you have a moment to spare, you’ll have a brand new pile of books to pick from!

The first winner is blog post #21, Betty Hamilton, who posted on December 5, 2011 at 9:35 AM and said:

What a wonderful Christmas present winning this would be!! I plan on doing a lot of Christmas cookie baking this week!
Merry Christmas!!! and TY for the contests!

I hope Betty baked extra for me. LOL.

And my second winner is Twitter poster, ToryMichaels who tweeted her contest entry on December 6th.

Betty and Tory, please Contact me and let me know your address and I’ll get your boxes off to you this week.

For those of you who didn’t win, how about this: my favorite quick candy recipe. It makes tons, everyone loves them and they make a great hostess gift or anyone gift. Piled on a plate, or a handful in a cellophane bag is awesome.

Crispy Peanut Butter Cups

Blend:
2 cups of creamy peanut butter
1 stick of melted butter

Mix in a large bowl:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 cups of Rice Krispies

Pour the peanut butter/butter combination over the Rice Krispies and sugar and mix well. Form into small balls and put into paper cups.

Some people would consider this better than chocolate. LOL!

Melt together:
1 1/2 pounds of chocolate Almond Bark
1 1/2 cups of creamy peanut butter

Spoon the melted chocolate mixture over the cups to cover the Rice Krispie mixture and let set.

Enjoy! And if chocolate isn’t your thing, what about a new color Nook? Make sure you’ve entered my Contest to win. The drawing is next week!

Got a quick and easy candy recipe to share? Post it below!

By Elizabeth | Posted in Giveaways, Freebies, & Contests, Good News, Holidays | Comments (9)

Quick & Easy Holiday Gifts

December 10, 2011 – 1:15 AM

I love crafting or making holiday gifts–especially all those small gifts you have to take to parties or because all of a sudden you remember you forgot a gift for someone. I think something you have made or put together yourself just means a little more than a bottle of wine you snagged on the way to a holiday party.

So here is something I am doing this year: Homemade Seasonings.

I got empty spice jars at a local wrap and container store, and then I mixed several large bathes of my favorite Taco Seasoning and a favorite Steak/Chicken Rub, and filled up the jars, made some fancy labels on my computer and voila! Easy peasy gifts.

You could also do a spiced tea mix, a mix for making spiced cider, the ideas are endless. There are tons of recipes out on the web–find the ones you think your friend’s will enjoy and off you go. If you have one you like, please post a link down in the comments–I love collecting and sharing new recipes.

The added benefit of doing spice mixes right now is that so many grocery stores have their spices on half price, making these gifts very reasonable to put together. Personally, I like to get my spices at my local health food store–they sell spices in bulk and tend to be a fraction of grocery store prices. Also, it means shopping locally which is something I try more and more to do.

Any way, have fun mixing and gifting! Don’t forget, if you have a great recipe to share–post it below.

Psst: Come Monday, I’ll be sharing my favorite candy recipes. Homemade candy tops my list for great gifts!

By Elizabeth | Posted in Friends, Giveaways, Freebies, & Contests, Holidays | Comments (0)

Five Things about Candis Terry

December 8, 2011 – 1:01 AM

I met Candis Terry years ago in rather an odd fashion–I was leaving a conference and she and some other friends of mine were on their way to the airport. Since I live near the airport, I offered them all a ride to save the taxi fees. Filled my minivan with old friends and new and tons of luggage and off we went. So you could say I was her driver before she was “Candis Terry.” Teehee. So without further ado, Five Things About Candis Terry:

1. Did you have a nickname growing up?
Yes, unfortunately it was Mouse. I had an older cousin with the exact same name as mine. She didn’t want to be referred to
as Big Candi so she got to go by the real thing and I got Mouse. Not sure Little Candi would have been any worse.

2. Where is the most beautiful/romantic place you’ve ever been?
Quite honestly, a mountaintop in Idaho. My husband and I had packed a lunch, grabbed a bottle of wine, and jumped on our
ATV to look for a nice picnic spot. We found one where we could see for miles and miles. It was a beautiful sunny day with an
endless blue sky and we were surrounded by lupine, poppies and daisies. For some reason the wine tasted especially good.

3. Do you celebrate when you finish a book and what you do?
Yes, I do celebrate. Even if I’m alone. I make a nice martini and take a nap. I know, I’m so boring.

4. What new authors have you recently added to your TBR pile?
I have two of them. The first may not be new but she’s new to me. Kristina Douglas’ book Raziel and the second is KC Klein’s
Dark Future.

5. If you could go on a date with any superhero, who would you choose and why?
Mighty Mouse. Love the ears.

EB: Really? Didn’t see that one coming. Candis, you should meet Anna Campbell, she has the oddest obsession with big noses.

Candis has a brand new ebook release from Avon Impulse, Any Given Christmas. To find out more about Candis and her stories please visit her website, www.candisterry.com.

By Elizabeth | Posted in Friends | Comments (2)

Winner. . . New giveaway

December 5, 2011 – 1:12 AM

Got a whole bunch of work to do this week–so I am going to make this quick and get right to business. I have a winner from last week and two boxes to giveaway this week. So check and see if you won and make sure to comment and enter below for a chance to win one of this week’s prizes.

Last week’s winner is Commenter #39, Linda, who posted the following:

Linda says:
November 28, 2011 at 10:00 PM (Edit)
Christmas songs are all so lovely; it’s hard to pick one fav but probably “Hark the herald angels sing” if I had to choose one.

If this is you, email me with your mailing address and I will get your prize off to you.

And if you didn’t win, then it is time to try again!

This week’s drawings (yes, there will be two prize boxes) filled with, what else, books–a number of them signed, along with some fun author swag!

This is how you can enter for a chance to win:

1) Leave a comment below and tell me what on your To Do list you are determined to get done this week,

and/or

2) Tweet the following: @ElizBoyle hopes one of you #wins this box of #romancebooks. http://elizabethboyle.com/blog/?p=1792

Do both and you are entered twice! I’ll give you all until midnight, PT, Saturday, December 10th to get your entries in.

Make sure to check back here Monday December 12th to find out if you won. You’ll have a week to claim your prize.

PS: If you haven’t already, hop over to my Contest page to enter for a chance to win a Barnes & Noble Nook!.

By Elizabeth | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (97)

Five Things about Margo Maguire

December 1, 2011 – 1:01 AM

Margo and I have been Avon Authors together for ages! It’s sort of a sisterhood of friends and chatty buddies and it affords one the chance to meet some great authors and call them friends. Margo is dropping by Five Things this week because that’s what the Avon ladies do for each other–show up, pitch in, help out. So welcome, Margo Maguire!

1. Do you celebrate when you finish a book and what you do?
I read. It’s something I LOVE to do but don’t have enough time while I’m in the midst of writing a book. So when I finish, I gorge myself on romantic suspense novels and literary fiction.

2. What new authors have you recently added to your TBR pile?
Laura Griffin. Although she’s not really new to the scene. New to me.

3. If you could go on a date with any superhero, who would you choose and why?
Superman. Because he doesn’t really have any deep dark secret. Secret identity, yes – but nothing creepy in his past.

EB: Margo, this answer totally cracks me up. It’s not because he can fly, but because he isn’t creepy! LOL.

4. What blogs do you visit?
I’m part of the Jaunty Quills but I only blog about twice a month, so I enjoy reading my fellow Quills’ blogs on all the other days. I also check out Riding With The Top Down and Risky Regencies.

5. If you were going to an island for a long time, name 5 things you would bring.

  • My iPad, loaded with hundreds of unread books by my favorite authors.
  • My pillow. I’m very particular.
  • A row boat
  • Some tools, including fishing equipment
  • My husband

Margo’s new book, Brazen, is available now! To find out more about Margo Maguire and her adventurous stories, please visit her website.

By Elizabeth | Posted in Friends, TV, Movies, & Good Reads | Comments (6)