Shopkins Hot Cocoa Mug Set

Believe it or not, there are only 21 days till Christmas Day, so if you haven't finished your gift shopping yet, then you better get to cracking at it.

Almost all of my shopping is finished, and most of the gifts are already wrapped and placed under the Christmas tree.

I know not everyone has their gift shopping finished ahead of time, so I've been posting a Holiday Gift Guide on this blog since Nov. 25th. However, I'm taking a one day break today from the event. Instead I've teamed up with Oriental Trading to bring you a neat little post that I have titled "Christmas Mugs & Sweets."

Oriental Trading is a party, school, and craft supplies company. Their website has a neat Christmas Store section featuring a variety of toys and games, Christmas party decorations and supplies, crafts, treats, candies, and gobs of other things.

Now finding the perfect gift for a loved isn't the easiest thing in the world to do as some people are just hard to buy for. If you happened to fall in this situation this year, then I would recommend the Shopkins Hot Cocoa Mug Set. Retailed at $9.98, the set includes two ceramic mugs with a Shopkins characters printed on them and two 0.71oz packages of Nestle Mini Marshmallows Rich Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix.


The Shopkins mugs are really cute with a colorful design that will easily appeal to children and even some adults. Nestle is one of the best brands of cocoas, so pretty much everyone will like the two hot chocolate packet.

DIY Travel Mugs

Now if you want to get really creative this year, you can always craft your own coffee tumbler set to give your family and friends. You can purchase DIY Travel Mugs (holds up to 16 ounces each) on the Oriental Trading website for $15.99 for a set of six. There is also directions on the website on how to decorate the mugs with Washi tape.

Now I've taken this idea, but I've changed a few things about it.

Along with the DIY Travel Mugs, the supplies I needed were the Jingle Bell Gift Tags ($6.49 for 24), the Red Washi Tape Set ($4.99 for three rolls), the Green Washi Tape Set ($4.99 for three rolls), and the Five Pounds of Holiday Chocolate Candy (currently out of stock), which can be purchased on the Oriental Trading website.

Now available from Fiery Seas Publishing is the science fiction novel The Malaise Falchion, book one in the Spade Case Files by author Paul Barrett.






When did you become interested in storytelling?

I’ve been interested in storytelling since I was age 5, when I would help my dad in the kitchen and pretend we were on a TV show. My first short story I wrote at age 8, so I’ve been telling stories a long time.

What was your first book/story published?

My first novel was my only self-published novel. It’s called Godchild and is a coming-of-age story set in the South in the summer of 1969. It’s based on a screenplay that my partner wrote. My first traditionally published piece was the short story As You Sow, which was published in the anthology Sha’Daa: Last Call.

What inspired you to write The Malaise Falchion?

I’ve always enjoyed the noir stories of Raymond Chandler and Dashell Hammit, although in all honesty I know them more from the movies than the books. I thought it would be fun to take the hard-boiled noir stories and run them through a fantasy filter. Matt Forbeck did something similar with the Shotgun & Sorcery stories, which I highly recommend, although my take on it is far less serious than his.

What character in The Malaise Falchion is the most/least like you, and in what ways?

The characters in The Malaise Falchion are my fantasy versions of the archetypes used in noir storytelling: The Hardboiled Detective, The Faithful Sidekick, The Femme Fatale. As such, they bear little resemblance to me. The closest trait would be Spade’s sarcasm, which is certainly close to my own caustic wit.

What is your favorite part in The Malaise Falchion?

I'm hoping everyone has recovered from the all the Thanksgiving meals last weekend. Sadly, there is only a few more weeks to drop those unwanted pounds you might have received from eating too many slices of pumpkin pie before Christmas Day arrives, where we all will probably indulge in way too many sweets. So there's no better time than the present to get a jump on losing those turkey day pounds by starting a new workout program.

Just moments ago, I finished the CORE DE FORCE Live Stream Workout on Facebook!

What is CORE DE FORCE?

Well, it's the newest workout program from Beachbody. It features MMA-inspired workouts that is supposed to get you into shape in 30 days. No equipment is needed. The program is created by trainers Joel Freeman & Jericho McMatthews.

The Live workout was supposed to start 12 PM Central Time according to the Facebook page, but it ending up starting 30 minutes later. I had never done the program before, so I was looking forward to the Live workout, so I patiently waited for it begin.

The workout was around 27-28 minutes counting a short warm up and cool down. The camera was awkwardly pointed to the side view of trainers Joel & Jericho, though I could clearly see there were many participants in the room with them.

If you want schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

What to do:

1. Post on your blog answering this question:

  This week's question is submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews!

What format do you use to set up your giveaways? Rafflecopter, Google, Leave a Comment for an entry, or some other style?

2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below (enter your Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Failure to do so will result in removal of your link).


3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading other posts and possible become a new follower.  The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.

  

My Answer: 

 Normally, I use Rafflecopter for my giveaways.

Now available from author Nancy Gideon is the paranormal romance Prince Of Honor, book one in the House of Terriot series.


When did you become interested in storytelling?

Before I could write, I made up stories for the amusement of my sister when we didn't want to go to sleep. As a youth, I "embellished" the ordinary, boring truth to make an occasion more interesting. In school, my essays were so grandiose and wandering that I'd get an "A" without really knowing the answer. I can't NOT expand upon the obvious. Life is too short to be dull! I can't paint or make music, but I can do both with words!

What was your first book/story published?

My first publication was a fractured fairytale based on Cinderella in my elementary school paper when I was in 5th grade. I was hooked the minute I saw my name in print! My first published novels were in 1987, a Regency-set historical, SWEET TEMPEST written under the name Lauren Giddings and a swashbuckling romance PIRATE'S CAPTIVE written as Dana Ransom, both published by Zebra/Kensington and released in the same month! 60 books later, I now use my own name.

What inspired you to write PRINCE OF HONOR?

I love bad boys, and they don't get more deadly, damaged and delicious than the princes in the House of Terriot, a clan of thuggish warriors introduced in my "By Moonlight" series. Looking to enlarge my shape-shifter world, I gave their would-be king his own book in PRINCE OF SHADOWS and fell hard for the rowdy band of brothers who are prisoners of their own pride and isolation, so I just had to invite them into the "real" world to serve their clan, protect their king, and find females strong enough to tame them.

What character in PRINCE OF HONOR is the most/least like you, and in what ways?

All of my characters have stolen something from me. Kendra's strength, Cale's stubbornness, Sylvia's fears, James' fixations, Turow's dreams, Colin's pragmatism, even Fawn's bitchiness. They're the voices that speak to me at night and in the car during my drive to work. If I wasn't a writer, I'd probably be on medication!

What is your favorite part in PRINCE OF HONOR?

The verbal sparring! I love writing gritty action scenes and pouring on the heat between the covers, but give me a good, bitey, snarky repartee that makes you laugh out loud and I consider my job well done. There's some great dialog in PRINCE OF HONOR to balance out the angst and occasional darkness. I consider it a reader's reward for turning the pages.