Take on anyone, anywhere in the Cyber Hoop arena! The hoop connects wirelessly to your mobile device (sold separately) so you can challenge your friends through the app! Prove your dominance in quick play, head-to-head play, dunk contests and more. Watch your most amazing plays again with the automatically created highlight reel, which has commentary and slow-motion replay! You can even share your video highlights and stats with others! There are 5 ways to play and room for up to 4 players, so get your virtual dunk on and dominate with the Cyber Hoop!

Challenge your friends to a virtual dunk contest or other ways to play with the Cyber Hoop! Compete with your friends in real time, even when you're not in the same room! Choose from 5 ways to play for up to 4 players! App records your game or dunk and automatically tracks your stats! Creates a highlight reel with slow-motion replay, commentary and the ability to share it with others! Hoop wirelessly connects to your mobile device! App works with iPhone 4/4S/5, iPod touch 4th or 5th generation or iPad 2/3/4. iPhone 4/4S/5, iPod touch 4th or 5th generation or iPad 2/3/4 required (not included).

I've been a writer for a long time. For most of my writing career, I have ghost written for other people. I often get burnout writing other people's ideas. So that is why I decided I was tired of writing for other people and I wanted to write something for myself. Enter NaNoWriMo.

If you are not familiar with the concept, it is National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to write 50,000 words between November 1st and November 30th.

I was able to complete my goal (read how I did it here). I did get to 50,000 words. But what I was not prepared for was how I would feel afterwards.

Writing is draining. I always imagine each word like a tiny smudge of yourself that you leave behind like a snail's slimy trail. The more words you write, the less of yourself there is.

After writing 50,000 extra words in November, I can definitely tell you that I feel like a drained snail. It has been extremely hard to continue working since I reached my goal just before Thanksgiving.

So, what have I done to keep motivated? Basically, three simple things.

3 Simple Ways to Keep Writing after Burn-Out

1. Set Goals: Goals are how you stay focused on what you want to achieve. If you don't have any solid goals, then there is no way you can make it past burnout. I like to plan daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly goals. 
2. Do the Bare Minimum: Normally, I try to do a little more than I have to do to get ahead. But when facing burnout, the minimum is enough for a while. Just make sure you start doing extra again after a small rest period to avoid life-long procrastination. 
3. Plan for Breaks: You will need a lot of off time to recover from burn out. I plan to take off at least a week in late December to make up for my burnout. I have also taken several small breaks each day. My kitchen has never been so clean. 

If you are looking for St. Louis photographers for your next special event, it is important to find the right professional to provide beautiful photos that you can enjoy for years to come. Don’t just go with any photographer; you need someone who can provide exactly what you are looking for. Whether you need a wedding photographer, headshot photographer, or want a photo session for your child or pets, you should look for a professional who specializes in the types of photos you need.

Candid or Posed

Most photographers can meet your unique needs and preferences, so if you are looking for a particular type or style of photos, they can work with you. However, if you are looking for something in particular, such as candid photos leading up to your wedding, let your photographer know upfront.

Research Your Options

Make sure to thoroughly research your options to find the best photographer that your budget can afford. While you can get a good feel for their personality, style, and willingness to help by either looking online or calling your favorite photographers, it may be a better idea to visit some professionals. By meeting for coffee or in their studio, you can ensure that you feel comfortable and relaxed with your photographer of choice so that you are confident working with them on the day of the event.

Plain Peace
A Daughters of the Promise Novel
By Beth Wiseman
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pub. Date: November 12, 2013
ISBN: 978-1401685942
Pages: 320

Review:

Anytime I see an Amish book, I have to read it and that is exactly what happened when I saw Plain Peace by Beth Wiseman was available to review through Book Sneeze. Though this is the sixth book in the series and I've only read one or two books, I still wanted to read it.

Normally young Amish woman have a say in who her future husband will be, but that is not the case for Anna Byler, whose grandfather happens to the bishop and he is an old-school Ordnung, enforcing strict rules on the Amish community. All the marriage-age young men never approach or take interest in Anna, as they are all afraid of what her grandfather might do to them. That is until Jacob Hostetler moves to Paradise and takes an immediate interest in Anna.

She loves her grandparents and wants to respect their rules, but the strict legalism her grandfather has created is practically dividing the community. One woman has already been shunned because of adultery.

Despite disapproval from her grandparents, Anna pursues a relationship with Jacob. She must decide what is more important - marrying Jacob or staying loyal to her grandparents.

24 hour programmable timer lets you set and go
Removable filter
Convenient pause and serve function
2 hour keep warm function so your coffee doesn't get cold
Automatic shutoff for your safety
Convenient cord storage
Programmable
2 hour keep warm
LCD digital display
Automatic shut off
24 hours programmable timer
Water level gauge
Automatic pause and serve
Glass carafe
Cord storage
Removable filter
Includes measuring scoop

Billy's Review:

Book Description From Amazon.com:

From a cold, loveless childhood in the south, Dean finds sanctuary in his well-ordered brownstone in Manhattan. Single and successful, his life is shaken to the core when he meets soul mate, Melissa. But not because he can't take his eyes off of her, or because they're both products of dysfunctional families, but because Melissa's baggage contains fur and paws. Four cats enter Dean's life, nicking and clawing to stay number 1 in Melissa's heart. Dean maintains his sense of humor until his heart bursts when their two-year-old son,Craig, is diagnosed with autism. Stricken, Dean's past, present, and future collide when the world rejects his son. As Craig's need for human contact slips away, Melissa and Dean watch in awe as the cats reach through the veil of autism and touch Craig's heart. These unlikely furry, spiritual guides pierce Dean's defenses allowing him to see light, to see the other side of himself, and the reason he was put on the planet.

Billy's Review:

Book Description from Amazon.com:

The Kidd siblings have grown up diving down to shipwrecks and traveling the world, helping their famous parents recover everything from swords to gold doubloons from the bottom of the ocean. But after their parents disappear n the job, the kids are suddenly thrust into the biggest treasure hunt of their lives. They'll have to work together to defeat dangerous pirates and dodge the hot pursuit of an evil treasure hunting rival, all while following cryptic clues to unravel the mystery of what really happened to their parents--and find out if they're still alive.

Billy's Review:

Gru, his adorable girls, and the mischievous Minions are back with a cast of unforgettable new characters in the blockbuster sequel to the worldwide phenomenon. Just as Gru has given up being super-bad to be super-dad, the Anti-Villain League recruits him to track down a new criminal mastermind and save the world. Partnered with secret agent Lucy Wilde, Gru, along with the wildly unpredictable Minions, must figure out how to keep his cover while also keeping up with his duties as a father. Assemble the Minions for laugh-out-loud comedy in "one of the funniest, most enjoyable movies every!" (MovieGuide)

CLEVERFIT is the world's first precision fit adjustable collar stays for business, casual and formal shirts. For years men has been frustrated with the average collar stays made from metal, plastic, brass and sterling silver, which are rounded at one end and pointed at the other ends to help stabilize a collar.

Over time, regular collar stays can become warped, broken or even missing, but CLEVERFIT Collar Stays have been created to solve these problems by using a collar stabilizer mode. The CLEVERFIT uses the science of leverage and is able become a collar stabilizer in an extended positions. 

When it comes to fancy dress events, there are enough of them to choose from. There are festivals designed to celebrate fancy dress while other events are held that people simply choose to dress up for. It might be a music festival or it could be a kids’ fancy dress party. Here are just a few of the biggest events around the world.

Benidorm

This Spanish town plays host to a huge fancy dress festival every year. Claiming to be one of the biggest in Europe, the party has tacked itself onto the end of the Benidorm fiestas, taking place on the first Thursday after the events. While it started off from quite small beginnings, the party has since expanded and is now thought to be a very popular event each year.

Snowbombing

This annual snow festival is held in Mayrhofen, Austria every year and visitors spend the days skiing, snowboarding, going to gigs, relaxing in the spa hotel and dressing up. The fancy dress element to this festival has become quite a big deal with different themes being held on different nights. Everything from carnivals to Disney films are recreated through the outfits of the partygoers for a week that they'll never forget.

The madness of Thanksgiving is finally over. In the madness, I mean the cleaning, cooking and putting up with the relatives you can only tolerate for once a year. For me, I like all my relatives that where at Thanksgiving dinner, but I couldn't stand my three young cousins (the youngest is five) jumping up and down, running around the house and screaming for three hours. I disappeared briefly to take a break from everything, thankfully everyone left a few minutes before I went to the big Black Friday (well, Thursday night) sale at Walmart.

The sales were supposed to start at 6pm, but all the 1-hour In-Stock Guarantee $98 32" Funai TV wristbands were already given out, which really isn't fair since the sale was to start at 6pm and I arrived an hour earlier. Nevertheless, I still got one of the 1 hour guarantee gift cards and an access code when I checked out. I had to get on the internet when I got home and wait on the Walmart site for over 2 and half hours to redeem the gift card. I did however get the TV ordered, which is supposed to be delivered at my local Walmart before Christmas.