Monday, July 22, 2013

Something personal

Hey guys, I wanted to share something that has been going on in my life for a while. My husband and I have been trying to conceive our second child for a while now. We tried naturally for more months than I can count and have finally been going the fertility drug route since January. I've not shared a lot about this before, although some of you that know me personally know about this.

I recently started doing daily hormone shots....not the most pleasant thing. And by recently I mean last night was my first shot, and it did not go at all as I would have hoped. I got home from church, got the box down from the shelf, laid out my paper towel and set about getting everything ready. I realized a few seconds after setting things out that the pharmacy had not given me any needles. You can imagine the freak out I had when I realized I might not be able to start the very time sensitive shots I was supposed to start.

I drove around to every pharmacy in my area, my husband called another, and no one had what we needed. So, I had to get into the car and drive an hour away to the Kaiser hospital that is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week. After a lot of nonsense (apparently the dr had only put in for one needle for me, but the pharmacist was amazing and sent me home with 15) I got to walk back to my car in a very dark parking lot and give myself my first shot. All of this with a creepy guy leaning against his car watching me through my passenger window.

So far, this journey of infertility has been anything but fun. We knew it would be difficult, but I think I was somewhat spoiled with how quick we conceived my son, only 2 rounds of a medicine called Clomid and we were good to go. This time, I have done more than a few rounds of the pills, and this time they gave me a wacky side effect where in dim light everything looked like it had spiderwebs attached to it. After I told the dr about it, she told me I would not be doing those again.

So, here we are, on out first round of the shots, and I'm terrified to hope. It gets hard to put on a smile and say everything is ok when I want to shatter to pieces. I spend more days than I would like trying to hold back tears. On the days that I can't quite accomplish that, I feel like the worst mom ever when my almost 4 year old asks me, "mommy why are you so sad?" It's a journey, one I had hoped I would not have to embark on again.

 This time has been a lot harder emotionally. Maybe it's because I expected it to be easier because I had done it before, I don't really know. I'm blessed to have so many people in my life who care about me and let me cry and rant about everything. I think my husband should be sainted after dealing with me for this past year. This is me, and who I've been for the past seven months.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Within the Realm

The Gifted walk among us. They are unseen, but in plain sight. The Earth’s energies are as visible to them as the tangible world is to us and they can harness and bend these forces to their will. Atop the Pentagon resides the government of the Gifted Realm. Rainer Lawson is set to join the ranks of Elite Officers in the Gifted Police force. With his fellow officers, they will work together, using their abilities, to try and end the most sinister criminal organization in existence. His parents fought and died to re-establish the Realm, and he won’t allow them to have sacrificed in vain. The will to protect those he loves has always driven Rainer, but his desperation to protect Emily, the love of his life, consumes him. While passions ignite and vengeance is sought, Rainer may discover that all of his money, fame, and power, could cost him the only thing that has ever truly mattered. -

See more at: jillianneal.com

Buy: Hardback | Paperback | Kindle | B&N

 

Author Bio

Jillian Neal is the author of “The Gifted Realm” series of novels. She has a passion for telling strong, character driven stories that stretch the imagination. Her debut novel “Within the Realm” was released in 2013, with the next installments of the series soon to follow. She lives near Atlanta with her husband and children. For more information, visit her website at http://www.jillianneal.com   Follow: http://facebook.com/jilliannealauthor Twitter -@ jilliannealauth Website - http://jillianneal.com Prize: Gift Cards to Emily's Favorite Stores $25 Anthropologie Gift Card $10 Victoria Secret Gift Card $10 Bath and Body Works Gift Card plus....... Within the Realm Fan Pack - Virginia Beach Travel Mug - Cinnamon Discs (Emily's favorite) - A box of Emily's favorite Tea - Dr Pepper Lip Smackers Enter to Win, fill out the form below a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, July 11, 2013

All for Hope Book Blitz

All for Hope

To protect her heart, he left her behind.
To protect her life, he’ll leave the life he’s made behind.
Sometimes the safest distance between two hearts is no distance at all…
Kidnapping a baby wasn’t something Hope ever dreamed she would do. But she’s been burned by the legal system before, so when the court places her friend’s child into the custody of an abuser, she takes matters into her own hands. She steals the baby and fakes her death, hoping to make a clean getaway. She planned every detail, except one.
Her high school sweetheart and best friend, who left her years before, sees her at a gas station. Hope thinks all is lost, until he offers to help them.
Brennan had always been the love of Hope’s life, but he never wanted to be. She knows she cannot depend on him for long. However, as each day passes, it becomes painfully obvious that she is in way over her head. She goes with him, intending to keep him always an arm’s length away to protect her heart. But being on the run together sparks the old flames that once burned between Brennan and Hope.
Families, friends, and lovers must band together to save an innocent baby and a daring woman or both of their lives will be destroyed. Together, they’ll do it All for Hope…
Buy Links - Amazon / Barnes and Noble


It is on sale right now for $1.99





About the Author – Olivia Hardin realized early on how strange she was to have complete movie-like character dreams as a child. Eventually she began putting those vivid dreams to paper and was rarely without her spiral notebooks full of those mental ramblings. Her forgotten vision of becoming an author was realized when she connected with a group of amazingly talented and fabulous writers who gave her lots of direction and encouragement. With a little extra push from family and friends, she hunkered down to get lost in the words. She’s also an insatiable crafter who only completes about 1 out of 5 projects, a jogger who hates to run, and is sometimes accused of being artistic, though she’s generally too much of a perfectionist to appreciate her own work. A native Texas girl, Olivia lives in the beautiful Lone Star state with her husband and their puppy Bonnie.
Connect with her Online -  Blog * Goodreads  * Twitter*  Facebook * Literary Addicts

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Authors Blog Hop



I'm so excited to be a part of this amazing blog hop!!! Check out my novel's section to see what I'm all about :) I'm giving away a $15 Amazon card for my stop on the hop!! Follow along on all the stops so you can enter to win more great prizes!! Thanks so much for stopping by today!



Monday, July 1, 2013

Thought I'd share this

This is the playlist I listened to while writing Blood and Sacrifice. For me music helps me get into the mood to write, and it gets me into the characters heads. It's kind of a weird mix of music lol, I know. Hope you enjoy a peek into my process.




Which song is your favorite from the list??