Fire of the Raging Dragon - Review

Fire of the Raging Dragon by Don Brown follows the brink of a possible WWIII, as conflict between China and Taiwan heats up to a boiling point.  The race is on for control of the island of Itu Aba and after the overly ambitious and power hungry Chinese President orders an attack on the island, the US President responds in an attempt to avoid an all-out war between the two Chinas.

Aboard a submarine tender in the area, the US President's daughter assists the efforts to divert this impending conflict.  As her ship gets closer to danger, she finds herself a potential pawn in what now looks like China's attempt at becoming a global dominating force.  The President is forced to decide between acting to save his daughter, or taking action against an evil far greater than anyone imagined.

Honestly, I couldn't stand this book.  I should have known better than to read a military based book with political overtones.  While likely very well written, as Brown has an extensive history in both fields, I found myself completely bored with the military lingo, war strategy, and political crap that droned on an on.  The actual characters were underdeveloped and seemed second to the very drawn out and elaborate plot.  I imagine that is preferable to some readers, but I enjoy getting to know my characters and developing a sense of relationship with them and their plight.

There was hint of attraction between Stephanie and another officer, but that went absolutely nowhere….and i mean NOWHERE.  A little time for some sort of romantic side story might have kept me a tad more interested.  As it was, it just felt out of place since it was so utterly underdeveloped and pointless to the entire story.  The military lingo was completely overwhelming and boring. The political agenda was so obvious and overdone.

Overall, I am sure this sort of novel is ideal for those interested in military-political sorts of plots.  I, however, am SO VERY MUCH NOT that sort of reader.

Thank you to Booksneeze / Thomas Nelson Publishing for the free copy of this book for review.

old navy sample and share

i had the chance to participate in another crowdtap sample and share through old navy.  we were given coupons to try out their selection of dresses.  i was very excited to be a part of this sample and share as i have been wanting to add a dress or two to my wardrobe.

the coupons arrived and i took my best gals (including my two adorable daughters) out to our valley old navy store.

i was able to find a TON of dresses to try on and ended up having to decide between several on which dress i was going to use for the coupon.  i ended up choosing two as well as a few extras from the ever wonderful clearance section!

i went with a long sweater maxi dress and a shorter plum/maroon colored wrap dress.  i am SO excited to get to try these dresses out and am thrilled to have been selected for this!

thank you so much crowdtap and old navy!!

want to get in on the action?  check it out...
http://bit.ly/j5mm2y

crowdtap mccormick bbq sample

oh my goodness...DELICIOUSNESS.

i was able to be a part of a sample and share for crowdtap and mccormick grill mates.  i was given samples of two dry rubs: montreal steak, and molasses bacon; two marinades: memphis pit bbq and spiced brandy & herb; and brown sugar bourbon bbq sauce.

we all got together to have a bbq at my in-laws' house.  they had their foster boys there and so we had a ton of us.  we had the steaks and chicken marinading in the sauces overnight, so they were ready to go!

we fixed up a salad and muffins and had some apples from off the tree in the yard.  and an apple crisp was ready and waiting for the oven when we were done.

we grilled up some chicken, steak, and t-bones in the various sauces and rubs.  it smelled HEAVENLY!!

when it was all ready, we gathered around and tried a bit of it all.  the spiced brandy & herb wasn't a huge hit, but was okay.  and the montreal steak rub was a bit peppery, but also decent.  the molasses bacon, memphis pit bbq, and the brown sugar bourbon sauce were OUTSTANDING.  everyone was moaning with delight at the flavors.  the meats were so moist and tender from the marinades, and the flavors were so bold and rich.

it was an absolute success and i am so thrilled to have the dry rubs and the bbq sauce left to keep using in our home.

thank you crowdtap and mccormick!!!

totally biased...

i watched the premier episode of Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell tonight.  i was selected by crowdtap.com to be part of a group to watch and review the show.  overall, it was decent with a couple laugh out loud moments.  however, the heavy political edge made it a little out of my scope of knowledge and appreciation.  i'm not much into the political sphere of humor/current events.  Bell was, however, able to make the humor pretty universal and i really enjoyed what he had to say about obama.  it was rather hilarious!  i think my favorite part was him calling one of obama's titles the HNIC...just go ahead and guess what that stands for!

i thought Bell's delivery was a little lacking.  it felt like he was reading from a prompter the whole time and looked really stiff.  he messed up a bit on delivery, but that does happen from time to time.  the screen that was supposed to show visual aids was a bit off as well.  he would make the joke and then a pause would happen before the screen would catch up and show the corresponding image.

i think my favorite segment was with Rachel Maddow.  she is very funny and i enjoy her energy.  i think i might just have to take a look at her show and see if that might be a way for me to get into some political knowledge.  right now my extent goes about as far as The Daily Show.  (i <3 john="john" p="p" stewart="stewart">
anyway, i'm glad the show was 30 minutes...not too long and we were able to keep our attention on the show for that long.  i think he needs to work on his delivery and maybe broaden his scope of humor a little outside of politics.  but overall, it was decently entertaining and i think we had about three or four laugh out loud moments.

crowdtap fail

i was selected to participate in a sample and share for woolite extra dark care.  i LOVE sample and shares and the hosted parties.  it is such a great way to try out products!  anyway, this one was a bust from the beginning.  crowdtap had a huge delay in shipping out the product to begin with.  and once i received my package????  well, it came in a torn apart shipping box, with gaping holes on either end, a sticker indicating it was "damaged in handling" (no sh*t sherlock!) and had to be "repackaged in seattle" due to the damage.  inside the box, were TWO samples.  one sample was even without the plastic protective packaging that the other had.  and the other TEN samples i was to receive?  the good lord only knows that.  and no welcome letter that i was to receive as well.  *sigh*  some sample and share this will be!

i FINALLY received a response regarding the issue from the feedback form(s) i submitted, and they are checking into it.  but there is NO way i can get the rest of the samples in time for the deadline.  so i suppose i will just do my report on the two samples i received in this sample and share.

i am giving my one extra sample to my mother in law.  she does foster care for 7 BOYS.  i imagine if anyone could use a sample of a detergent that keeps your darks dark, she does!  she is out of town right now, so i will have to wait to give it to her.  but i am sure she will love it.

the lovely box








my two sad, sad samples

sticking with two...

the past week or so has definitely solidified for me that i don't want another kid.  at least not for a LONG time.  i know everyone touts, "you'll miss these days when your kids are all grown up..." but i think that's a load of shit.  the days i'll miss are the ones where i feel loved by my children.  there are one or two of those here and there.  but mostly, i feel used.  my two little girls have mastered disobeying, disrespecting, and throwing major tantrums when they don't get what they want.  and listening?  definitely not.  it is so hard to have day in and day out where my children ask me for this and beg me for that and whine about this and then, when i try and snuggle, kiss, or love on them, tell me to leave them alone, give them space, or simply shriek at me to let them go.  very comforting as a mother.  makes me want to spend more time with them, for sure, right?

i am having a very hard....month, i suppose.  and with steve so often gone at basketball, i feel alone.  my friends are all going on family vacations and trips and taking their kids to the park and water features and amusement parks.  i am sitting on my ass at home while my husband is at yet another weekend tourney.  or practice.  or had such a hard week at work that all he wants to do is sit on his butt at home.

so, are these the days i'm going to miss?  no.  not one iota.  i'll miss (and already do) the days when my children snuggle up to me and tell me they love me.  i won't miss the nights where they can't figure out how to stay in their bed and sleep through the night and wake up fussing and crying and back talking and whining.  definitely not those nights.  not the days where i get whiplash from my two year old talking sweetly to me one second and then yelling at me the next.

i feel awful, but i wish i had more days away from my kids.  i feel suffocated.  i need more breaks.  spending all day, every day with these girls treating me like this is really wearing me thin.  and when daddy gets home?  oh, they are all lovey on him.  they want special daddy dates.  they want daddy home.  makes me feel like shit.  but hell, i want daddy home too, so i guess it's par for the course.  and when do my girls want me?  at nap time.  at bed time.  whenever i am trying to get a minute of peace to keep myself from screaming.  so then i feel even more like a crappy parent because all i want is to be left alone at that point.  i wish i had more time to myself so that i could come back and actually MISS my children.  and maybe even have them miss ME.

so, are we going to have another kid?  nope.  not likely.  so can i please stop seeing pictures of cute babies everywhere!  and now i have to go tell my youngest to stop crying and get back in her bed and take her nap.

About Emma, age 4

i'm a few months late in this, but i want to start this tradition.  i asked emma a few questions and hope to remember to do this every year.

Emma, age 4

favorite color:  pink, purple, green
favorite food: fruits, jelly & honey sandwich (which she's never had together!)
what she wants to be:  a princess fairy
best friends: ava, addie, avery
favorite cartoon: duck tales, special agent oso
favorite candy: cotton candy
favorite movie: aladin
favorite song: cinderella song
favorite toy: rapunzel doll
favorite activity:  dress up