November: Time to Vote… for 2024 Calendar Pics

Stuff from Ann’s Brain …

The leaves are all golden here in the mountains and it’s time to start daydreaming about holiday fun and family traditions.

Almost ten years ago, we moved to Arizona from western Washington, leaving our extended family behind for a new adventure with just the four of us–Sam, Beaker, Chicken Noodle, and me. That wasn’t an easy decision, but life is short and we wanted to move where our kids would go outside and play more (leaving the beautiful but rainy Pacific Northwest).

After arriving in Arizona, we decided to change up some of our family traditions. The idea of traveling during Thanksgiving, one of the busiest times in the U.S., was not appealing, so we opted to stay home but do something different. This was the start of our Thanksgiving Day marathons, when we’d choose a movie series and watch them all throughout the day. One year it was the Indiana Jones series. Another year, we enjoyed the Lord of the Rings back to back, then Jurassic Park, Star Wars, Big Bang Theory, and Fraiser. We expanded this idea one year and spent the long holiday weekend playing video games together hour after hour. It was wonderful!

Another change for us was stepping away the usual menu for the holiday. We opted instead to try something different. One year Sam made several Dim Sum dishes. Another year, we had various Indian food dishes. We played with a day of appetizers another time. And then we settled on a mix of all of these and more. We each pick our favorite dishes and desserts and mix it all together.

Changing up our traditions wasn’t only fun, but it helped us not miss our extended family gatherings as much. The kids enjoyed being able to have a bigger say in the Thanksgiving dinner menu, not to mention being able to enjoy their favorite shows and games throughout the day. No matter what we have chosen to do or eat for the holiday, we have done our best to make our kids’ holiday memories special in their own way and teach them that when they aren’t able to celebrate in the usual style, to make their own traditions.

I hope you have wonderful holiday season, whether you choose the traditional celebrations or something new and fun!

Now, let’s move on to this newsletter. I’ll announce the winners of last month’s giveaway drawing and Deadwood Deputy promo team winners, give you the lowdown on voting for your favorite two calendar pictures for a chance to win a 2024 desktop calendar and, at the end, give you a recipe for Cheddar Bacon Ranch Potatoes that makes me drool as I type.

Happy November!
Ann

2024 Calendar Pics–Voting Time HEAD OVER TO MY WEBSITE BECAUSE … it’s that time of year again–2024 Calendar pic voting! This year, I wasn’t able to travel as much due to family life and book writing taking up a little more time, but I still did manage to capture some fun shots along the way. Choose TWO of your favorite pics and write those numbers IN THE COMMENTS ON MY WEBSITE.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE!

TimeReaping in Deadwood Available in Ebook & Print (Audiobook on Dec 5th) Deadwood Mystery Series: Book 13 Time is a tricky devil. And so is that blasted imp! Violet Parker needs to catch the little terror before it wreaks even more havoc in the Black Hills. But now that she’s saddled with this dang Timekeeper gig, she has a lot to juggle, like the real monsters wanting to tear the flesh from her bones just for fun. If she can’t figure out how to wrangle “time” to save her family, the Grim Reaper might come swinging for them next. But what about that danged honey-loving imp? BUY LINKS: If you prefer to buy direct from authors, YOU CAN BUY THE EBOOK AND PRINT BOOK in my online store. (If you purchase the ebook, you will need to email the downloaded EPUB file to your ereader device or account).  CLICK HERE to get the book from Ann’s store. Amazon US Canada Australia UK Apple US Canada UK Barnes & Noble US KOBO US Canada UK

Deadwood Deputy Promo Team Rockstars! Many thanks to all of you Deadwood Deputies for helping me promote TimeReaping in Deadwood both online and in person so that we could let long-time fans know about the new book and hook some new readers, too! Check out my website to see if you are one of the lucky prize winners for this promo run. If you aren’t, remember that I’m already working on another book and more prize opportunities will be coming your way! Click here to see the winners.

Hat & Boots Tote Bag Winners Announced! We have three winners for the tote bags contest from last month’s newsletter. Congratulations to Helen Imo, Raelene Getter, and Sandy Fredrick on winning a Hat & Boots tote bag!Thank you to all who threw your hat in the ring. For those who really wanted a tote bag, we still have some left for sale in our online store as part of the Swag Sale.

There is still some swag left … We came home from Deadwood in late September with some cool swag that is available for sale in our Ann Charles store. While many items have sold, there is still some fun swag left if you’re looking for a fun Christmas gift for yourself or someone else who loves to read our books. We still have tote bags, drinkware, book cover magnets, coasters, and more! ALSO, you can grab the first three audiobooks from the Deadwood Mystery Series and the Deadwood Undertaker Series in CD-ROM format. Check out the Swag Sale’s page at my store! Many of these products are limited in quantity, so when they’re gone … they’re gone. 🙂

Cheddar Bacon Ranch Potatoes Here is another yummy recipe from the out-of-print 2020 Ann Charles MOON THE COOK cookbook, which Mark and Michelle Davis helped put together. This month, Mark, Michelle and I decided to share a recipe from Old Man Harvey’s family cookbook–one of Cooper’s favorites. NOTE: This cookbook sold out in 2020, so for those of you who were unable to buy a copy from my Ann Charles online store before it was gone, now you’ll have access to some of the great recipes via my monthly newsletters.

Wrap Up Keep an eye on my Ann’s Charles store for some new print book bundle deals coming just in time for the holiday gift-giving season (in addition to the Deadwood Mystery series, Deadwood Undertaker series, and Jackrabbit Mystery series). Stay tuned for next month’s newsletter where I’ll list the winners of my 2024 calendar contest. I’ll also include information on how buy a desk or wall calendar for yourself and how to sign up for a door hanger calendar. Have a healthy and happy month, Ann

Happy November!

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