Normally on Tuesday, you would see a fresh “Tease Me Tuesday” post here…especially since ON THE VERGE OF I DO is coming out in only 7 more days!!!  :jumping But sometimes, cruel taunts & blatant promotions simply have to be set aside for something more important.  Today, that something is our annual

“No RITA for Me-Ta” Party!

Calls went out yesterday, & I’m sure there are some very happy entrants out there who are spending today celebrating. But for the rest of us, today is the day we adopt a corny Mexican accent & declare, “We don’t need no stinkin’ RITAs!” (Or Golden Hearts, as the case may be. :moon )

No! Instead, we’re putting on our party dresses & our dancing shoes & we’re celebrating our endurance & our unsung talents.

Welcome to the party. Here’s just some of the fun that awaits…

Our Party Playlist:

“Friends in Low Places” – Garth Brooks
“I Will Survive” – Gloria Gaynor
“Invincible” – Pat Benatar
“Fighter” – Christina Aguilera (bonus points for being from an album titled Stripped :winkwink )
“Got to Do It” – Andrew WK
“The Touch” – Stan Bush
“Standing Outside the Fire” – Garth Brooks
“Two Pina Coladas” – Garth Brooks
(with apologies for referencing Hannah Montana :moon )  “The Climb” – Miley Cyrus
“The River” – Garth Brooks
“The Edge of Glory” – Lady Gaga
“Eye of the Tiger” – Survivor  (A song about survival by a band named Survivor…this should be, like, our anthem!)

At the Bar:

Bad News Bear
A Bumpy Sunrise
Unsung Hero
Pina Colada (of course – to go with the song :winkwink )
Hara Kiri shots
Absolut Rebuilder
Back in the Saddle
I’m Good Now
Brain Candy
Best Year

On the Dessert Table:

CHOCOLATE!!!

in every size, shape, & style imaginable

And a bevy of hot, sexy, blatant beefcake ready, willing, & able to serve them all…as well as you:

So sit back & relax or get out on the dance floor & boogie down.  But either way, today we’re celebrating (the rest of) US! :blowkiss

P.S.  I’ve been sneaking out every few minutes to pop in on the Brava Authors blog & chat about MUST LOVE VAMPIRES.  Today, I’ve posted some fun quotes from favorite television shows that remind me of my vampires-in-Vegas paranormal romance.  And I’m hoping you’ll stop by to check them out…maybe even add some quotable quotes of your own. :winkwink

I’m always late to the party, but I finally decided to open a Pinterest account.  I really want to pin a collection of photos for ON THE VERGE OF I DO—as well as future books—that I can share with you guys all in one place.  Or all in another place, anyway. :winkwink

So I go over to get the ball rolling, only to discover that someone else has opened an account with my name.  What the hell is somebody else doing with my name?!  And even if that is her real name, what the hell is she doing opening accounts with it when I want to open an account with it?!  I mean, really—it’s not as though I can change the name on all my book covers. :curses

Be that as it may, however, she got there first (bitch) so I guess I have no choice but to come up with a different user name.  (Dammit.)

My first inclination was simply to add an underscore—i.e. Heidi_Betts.  Alas, Pinterest does not allow symbols or spaces, so back to the drawing board. :angry

And that’s where you guys come in. :muahaha   I need you to help me come up with a new user name for my Pinterest account that you—& future readers everywhere—will readily recognize.

Something like…

HeidiBettsAuthor

HeidiBettsRomance

THEHeidiBetts  (with thanks to Darling Laura J. for that one :cuffs )

HeidiBetts1 (or some other number-like addition)

HeidiBettsPinMe

Okay, so they’re not all great ideas. :Huh   But let me know if you like any of them or can think of something that might work even better.  Just remember—no spaces or symbols, & it has to be under 15 characters.  (Pinterest’s rules, not mine. :moon )

As soon as I settle on one I like & think I can live with/properly promote, I shall open my account & begin pinning like the wind!

P.S. Don’t forget about “Moan & Groan Monday” on the HappyBookers loop.

You can probably figure out what I’ll be moaning about this week, but feel free to drop in & get some stuff off your chest, too!

If you’re already a HappyBooker, you know where to find us. And if you aren’t yet, joining is easy!

Happy Sunday!

How’s everybody doing this weekend?  Great, I hope…with a long list of happy thoughts you’re ready to share! :winkwink

This week, I AM HAPPY that Spring seems to have truly sprung!  I know we have a fairly mild winter, but it’s so nice to be able to open all the windows, get some fresh air, & watch The Kittehs as they positively gonzo over being able to watch & hear all the little outdoor critters—birds, squirrels, chippies—through nothing but a thin layer of screen.  I honestly thought they were going to hurt themselves the first day, they were so excited!  LOL

I AM HAPPY that the new neighbors we’ve gotten in place of the nightmare ones from last year seem great so far.  I say “so far” because we actually thought the last one was decent, too; & he was, for the first couple years, then the girlfriend & her pit bulls moved in & it was all downhill from there. :sick   But so far, this family is really friendly.  And all of the awful stuff the last neighbors did, they aren’t doing.  Instead of burning all of their trash in the middle of the back yard (which is illegal, but try getting anybody to give a sh*t around here :curses ), they cleaned up the burn pit & planted grass. :thumbsup   And even though they’ve got a dog house set up beside their porch, they are not planning to chain their dog outside.  They’re only going to use it if they need to keep the dog outside for a little while or if they’re going to be gone for a few hours during the summer.  To quote the mother—who’s obviously a woman after my own heart :blowkiss —“What’s the point of having a pet if you’re just going to leave it outside?”  Which is probably why I offered to pet sit for them, or even just run over every few hours to let the dog out if they ever need to go somewhere for an extended period.

I AM HAPPY, too, that when these same neighbors found a tick on the dog (they just adopted him & he’s their first pet), they felt comfortable enough to call me after living next door only a week.  I ran over with a tick remover, then gave them the names of the flea/tick medications they should use & the numbers for my veterinarians & the spay/neuter clinic.  It makes me happy to help, happy that I know so much of this stuff from my own long-time pet experiences, & also happy that I could give them good pet care advice when there’s a lot of bad advice & bad pet-care beliefs floating around out there.

And finally, I AM HAPPY that the editing & proof-reading on my latest Harlequin Desire manuscript are going well.  It’s a slow progress, but I’m moving right along.  It’s also reading really well, which I love.  Shouldn’t be too much longer until it’s polished & ready to go! :twirl

That’s a lot of happiness for one week, huh?  Now it’s your turn!  Tell us what’s putting you in a good mood this week or what you’re grateful for so we can give a good, old-fashioned Huzzah! in your honor. :kitty

Now to announce the winner of Friday’s Free Book Friday giveaway—an early autographed copy of my very own April Harlequin Desire release, ON THE VERGE OF I DO!

:twirl Laura J.!!! :twirl

Congratulations, Laura! :thumbsup Please contact me with your mailing information & I’ll get your book out to you as soon as I can!