Bucket List Bloghop & Survive & Thrive Bloghop

It's time for some more hops this month. There has been quite a few!

The Bucket List bloghop is co-hosted by Sherry Ellis at Mama Diaries and Susanne Drazic at Putting Words Down on Paper.

Travel to...

1. Australia/New Zealand

2. Hawaii

3. Yukon for camping trip

 

Visit...

4. Yellowstone National Park

5. Yosemite National Park

6. Niagara Falls

 

7. Finish/Publish my WIP

8. Find our forever home

9. Have my wardrobe look like my Pinterest wardrobe

10. Go white water rafting one more time

 

 

 

Survive & Thrive Bloghop

 

Monday, October 20, 2014

Stephen Tremp, Michael Di Gesu, Diane Wolfe, and Alex J. Cavanaugh 

 

I'm going to highlight a chronic disease my husband battles every day.

 

Crohns Disease - also known as Crohn syndrome and regional enteritis, is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract from

mouth to anus. Symptoms often include: abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever and weight loss. Crohn's disease is caused by a combination of environmental, immune and bacterial factors in genetically susceptible individuals. Crohn's disease affects about 3.2 per 1,000 people in Europe and North America. While the exact cause is unknown, Crohn's disease seems to be due to a combination of environmental factors and genetic predisposition. Crohn's has a genetic component. Because of this, siblings of known people with Crohn's are 30 times more likely to develop Crohn's than the general population. The diagnosis of Crohn's disease can sometimes be challenging, and a number of tests are often required to assist the physician in making the diagnosis.

 

Ok, so thats the short Wiki version... my husband was diagnosed in early 2006 but had symptoms starting in late 2005. He was sick for months, going from 198lbs to 125lbs in a matter of months. The biggest symptoms were his very high fevers and an enlarged segment of his stomach that was bulbous, red, and hot to the touch. And it could be easily noticed just by looking at it. I took him to the hospital because I thought it was his appendix. This is when his condition went from Acid Reflux/IBS to Crohns. After a week long stay in the hospital and almost having a section of his intestines removed, the doctors put him on some serious meds which helped! After a series of medications that wouldn't stabilize his condition, the doctors decided to put him on Remicade. Remicade is an intervenes drug that helps treat anything from arthritis to various cancers. (He sits at the hospital for 4 hours, once every 6-8 weeks.

 

Side effects from Remicade:

• serious and sometimes fatal blood disorders
• serious infections
• lymphoma and solid tissue cancers
• reports of serious liver injury
• drug-induced lupus
• demyelinating central nervous system disorders
• psoriasis and psoriasiform skin lesions

and others.

 

Since taking Remicade, he is back up to his original weight and seems to be healthier. Although, taking this drug diminishes your immune system so he [we] have dealt with some serious skin infections and it happens on a regular basis. He now has to treat these occurrences with more drugs. It's a never ending cycle.

 

Side note: Another side effect... crabbiness (that's gentle way of putting it).

 

Thank you for stopping by and taking a peak at my Bucket List. And big thumbs up for taking the time to read about Crohns.

 

Stay Healthy my friends!

 

 



3rd Annual Spooktoberfest Hosted by Cover Girls

Are you feeling spookerific?

It’s baaaaack! 

 

Welcome to the 3^rd annual  SPOOKTOBERFEST hosted by Cover Girls!

This year we are doing a bit of a rewind and using the original Spooktoberfest requirements.

 
Requirements:

1. Follow Cover Girls blog if you don’t already. It will be reciprocated!
          And on Twitter: @covergirlsdj
You can also follow our individual accounts: @jackiefel & @danibertrand
If you have a Twitter account, please feel free to use the hashtag #spooktoberfest14

2. Your Flash Fiction piece cannot be any longer than 300 words. Sorry… that’s part of the challenge.

3. You must use the MANDATORY 5 words listed below…
      (You may use any variation of these words as you like.)

            chill
            cocoon
            commotion
            curse
            virus

4. Post your Flash Fiction piece any day from Friday Oct 24^th thru Tuesday, Oct. 28^th.

5. It’s a blog hop, so… hop around to other participating blogs and leave them some awesome comments.

6. Have fun.

Your flash fiction piece can be scary, comical, romantic, or whatever you choose, just be creative! You can use pictures to set the scene and/or a song to set the mood.

The winners will be posted on HALLOWEEN, Oct. 31st!

Jackie and I will each choose a winner. That’s right – two winners!

 

PRIZES: This year I will be giving away a $25 giftcard of your choice! Check out Jackie's page to see what she's giving away!

 

Oh, and yes, this blogfest is international. So what are you ghouls waiting for? Sign up using the Linkie Thing below and please, help spread the word!

 

Follow Fest - A Little Bit About Moi

Follow Fest is hosted by Melissa Maygrove!

Name: Dani Bertrand

 

Fiction or nonfiction?

Fiction

 

What genres do you write?

Paranormal, Fantasy

 

 

 

Are you published?

Not yet; I have taken a break from writing until my muse decides to visit again. However, I still jot down ideas which inspire me for later.

Do you do anything in addition to writing?

I co-blog over at Cover Girls

Tell us a little about yourself.
Check out my About Me section, that will give you a good idea. I enjoy running/obstacle 5k challenges, post-apocalyptic topics, reading, watching movies, listening to music, crafting, Halloween, & the outdoors. I'm a wife and a mother of 4. FYI, High-Schoolers are drama!

What are you reading right now?

In The End by Demitria Lunetta

Which authors influenced you the most?

Lots! Neal Shusterman, Scott Westerfeld, Clive Barker, J.K. Rowling, Gail Carriger, and more.

 

Where can people connect with you?

Blog: Entertaining Interests

Co-Blog: Cover Girls

Twitter: @danibertrand

Pinterest

Goodreads

Google+

 

Is there anything else you'd like us to know?

**Currently my co-blogger and I are hosting a Walking Dead inspired blogfest you can find here in the Zombie Apocalypse:Survival Kit & Crew tab!

**Also, coming this Friday, a post about the 3rd Annual Spooktoberfest, hosted by Cover Girls, will be posted!!

 

 

Zombie Survival Kit & Crew Blogfest

Our joyous excitement for The Walking Dead premiere on October 12^th has reanimated another blogfest idea for the vivacious trio:

Jackie @Bouquet of Books

Dani @Entertaining Interests

Mina @Some Dark Romantic

Zombie Apocalypse: Survival kit & Crew

Post date: Friday, October 10^th (cause no one wants to post on show day!)

To help build your zombie apocalypse dream team and survival kit, you will need to pick ONE person and/or ONE item for each of the topics listed in the below categories.

(Items you already have on your person: undergarments, shirt, bottoms, socks, tennis shoes & a backpack. If you want special shoes and/or boots, jackets, belt, etc.; those are extra and will need to be listed for one of your items below.)

And since this bloghop is all about having fun, if you have kiddos, we can assume they are safely tucked away in a safe haven somewhere while we’re out in the world fighting off zombies so do not worry.

*The Walking Dead character is the only one that needs to be from a zombie themed entertainment outlet, but please feel free to choose characters from your other favorite books/movies/tv. They may or may not be zombie related. It's all up to you. Just let your imagination flow!

With the characters below, please include the book, movie & TV show your characters are from.

Crew:

1 TWD character

1 book character

1 movie character

1 TV character (other than TWD)

1 loved one

1 friend

1 freebie

Backpack:

1 comfort item

1 weapon

1 luxury item

1 food item

1 medicine/first aid item

1 hygiene item

1 freebie

Background:

Outpost

Outbreak

Cause of it

Cure (if applicable)

1 item you NEED to find

1 item you WANT to find

Method of travel

Please display the badge on your blog and join us on Friday, October 10^th to build your zombie apocalypse dream team and kit.

And most of all HAVE FUN and BE CREATIVE as you want!

Celebrating Confessions Blogfest

Friday! I can't believe it's here already! Woot!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week... 

• My son got the cameras he needed for his photography class, which would have cost me an arm and a leg if I didn't know great people that would lend theirs to him!
• Color Me Rad was awesome! Go here to read about my blog post on it!

• My mom is taking the kids tonight so the hubby and I can have date night! I want to watch a scary movie.
• Today is Confessions day! See below my confessions.

And with it being Friday, August 30th, the Confessions bloghop is here!

Jackie @Bouquet of Books and I have so much fun hosting blogfests that we decided it was time to do another one. This one is geared toward confessions...

These are my confessions **cue Usher music**

A confession is a statement made by someone, usually a personal fact that they would not prefer to keep hidden. 

My first confession is a little risque. Ready?

When I was a junior I found out my boyfriend of two years had been cheating on me. And you know what they say about a woman scorn...

While in "the throws" of foreplay one evening when his parents were out, I had my chance to get even. Wicked even. Let's just say that while he was expecting to get his way, I got mine by giving him a golden shower. (who says revenge is best served cold)

I know what you guys are thinking... WTF! But he had it coming. He shoved me off of him and screamed WTF (but not in acronym form). I smiled coyly at him and while putting my clothes on, I explained I had found out about him and "the-girl-that-shall-not-be-named". He looked at me with wide bright eyes and sunk to his bed. I finished getting ready, grabbed my purse and walked out.

That was the end of him.

On a more not-so-scanky-note, I will confess that I put things in the grocery cart just to keep my 3 yr old from throwing a fit but when she's not looking I put them back. Don't look at me like that! She forgets about them anyways.

Want to confess? And remember... a confession is usually something you're not proud of (or maybe your are) so give us some dirt.

It's not too late to join! Go here to find out all the details.

Have a good weekend!

Race Day Wednesday

This Saturday, Jackie and myself are "competing" in Color Me Rad 5k.

How does this differ from other races I've done... well for one, it's the first one I've done where someone douses you in colored corn starch.

And, besides the bike race, this is the first one that I will be doing with my husband. Not that we are going to be anywhere near each other once the race starts, he will probably be running with Jackie's husband, ahead of us. And it's the first race that Jackie and I have done together... and hopefully this will inspire her to do more with me! *hint hint* *wink wink* *clears throat, coughs Dirty Girl Mud race, coughs*

Another difference in this race, I plan on making tutu's for Jackie and I to wear. My outfit consists of a white tank or T and a pair of yoga pants... the tutu is to cover my rumpshaker. No one wants to see my fanny in a pair of tight, painted on, yoga pants.

♫♪ My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard... ♫♪

Yeah, not so much!

The last differences, It's not a boring, plain 5k. I won't be covered in mud. I'm not being chased by crazy faux zombies at Run For Your Lives trying to tear away my football flags. And my bum won't kill for weeks on end because it was glued to a bike seat for 4+ hours at Urban Adventure Games or UAG.

What plans do you have this weekend?

Don't forget to sign up for our bloghop happening August 30th! You have 9 days to get your confessions in order. Muahahahahah

Go to the Page tab that says Confession to find out more!

Celebrate the Small Things + Bloghop Reminder

Ahhh, it's Friday! The weekend is upon us!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week I'm celebrating... 

• This past week the kids have watched their little sister all on their own for the very first time. They are super excited because they got paid for it. Too bad school starts on Monday cause they really had fun! They really showed us how responsible they are. So proud that I don't have to worry.
• Dentist appointments for the kdis tomorrow and a party for the husbands department at work. (We work at the same company)
• Today I'm sitting at home relaxing with the kids on their last day of summer vacation. I definitely not missing work.
• Don't forget to check out the new bloghop, Jackie and I are throwing August 30th. Check it out below. And remember... you don't have to dig deep for a your confession... just share something about yourself that you normally won't. i.e. "I sample grapes before I buy them." See, super simple!

Jackie @Bouquet of Books and I have so much fun hosting blogfests that we decided it was time to do another one. This one is geared toward confessions...

These are my confessions **cue Usher music**

A confession is a statement made by someone, usually a personal fact that they would not prefer to keep hidden. 

Spill. We want to know what not-so-dark secrets you have. If you want to share the dark ones, by all means, but this is the world wide web, so... yeah, that saying "What happens in Blogosphere, stays in Blogosphere" ... That probably won't happen, so use your own discretion.

It can be fun facts about yourself, important memories, or a mixture of both. 

We just want to learn more about you.

Examples:
Do you secretly love a one-hit-wonder band?

Do you snack on food at the grocery store?

Do you want to share a recent dream? Dirty or clean *wink wink*

Are you a road-rager? What things do you do when you’re road-raging?

The sky is the limit when it comes to confessions.

• On Friday, August 30th, post your confessions.
• Make sure to post the Confessions badge on your blog.
• You don’t have to be a blog follower but we'd appreciate it.
• You can also follow us on Twitter @danibertrand & @jackiefel and don’t forget to Tweet your blog confession using #confessions.
• And most importantly, sign up in the Linky Thingy below and hop around to other blogs on August 30th!

This is a Blog Hop!

---

1. Bouquet of Books	2. Entertaining Interests
3. My Baffling Brain	4. In Between - Adriana Dascalu
5. The Write Game	6. The Writer Ambitious

You are next... Click here to enter
This list will close in 14 days, 19 hrs, 9 min (8/30/2013 11:59 PM North America - Eastern Standard Time)

What is a blog hop?
Get the code here...

Linky Tools  |  Linky Blog 2013

This is a Blog Hop!

---

1. Bouquet of Books	2. Entertaining Interests
3. My Baffling Brain	4. In Between - Adriana Dascalu
5. The Write Game	6. The Writer Ambitious

You are next... Click here to enter
This list will close in 14 days, 19 hrs, 9 min (8/30/2013 11:59 PM North America - Eastern Standard Time)

What is a blog hop?
Get the code here...

Linky Tools  |  Linky Blog 2013

Celebrate the small things and Blog Hop Reveal - Confessions

Ahhh, it's Friday! The weekend is upon us!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week I'm celebrating... 

• Going to a baseball game with my hubby tomorrow.
• Got the kids school shopping all done.
• Jackie and I are hosting another blogfest.

Jackie @Bouquet of Books and I have so much fun hosting blogfests that we decided it was time to do another one. This one is geared toward confessions...

These are my confessions **cue Usher music**

A confession is a statement made by someone, usually a personal fact that they would not prefer to keep hidden. 

Spill. We want to know what not-so-dark secrets you have. If you want to share the dark ones, by all means, but this is the world wide web, so... yeah, that saying "What happens in Blogosphere, stays in Blogosphere" ... That probably won't happen, so use your own discretion.

It can be fun facts about yourself, important memories, or a mixture of both. 

We just want to learn more about you.

Examples:
Do you secretly love a one-hit-wonder band?

Do you snack on food at the grocery store?

Do you want to share a recent dream? Dirty or clean *wink wink*

Are you a road-rager? What things do you do when you’re road-raging?

The sky is the limit when it comes to confessions.

• On Friday, August 30th, post your confessions.
• Make sure to post the Confessions badge on your blog.
• You don’t have to be a blog follower but we'd appreciate it.
• You can also follow us on Twitter @danibertrand & @jackiefel and don’t forget to Tweet your blog confession using #confessions.
• And most importantly, sign up in the Linky Thingy below and hop around to other blogs on August 30th!