Summer's winding down.

In Western NY, you know summer is almost over when the Erie County Fair starts. It started last Wednesday. It's 12 days of fun that ends the 19th of August this year. After that, there's only a couple more weeks til Labor day, and the start of school. Right now everyone is trying to pack in as much fun as they can before life goes back to hectic schedules.

We haven't done anything super exciting this summer. Lots of little things though. We went to NYC the first weekend in June. We have season passes to Darien Lake, a local amusement park. We went to Niagara Falls Canada last weekend (it's maybe a 30 minute ride for us). My daughter did theater camp this summer. My son did a play group. We had a Toga party. We went to the beach a couple times. It's been a fun summer so far. We still have a few fun things left. We're going to the fair tomorrow. I was hoping to take a day trip to Toronto...but we'll have to see about that one.

Around here school starts after Labor Day. I know some kids around the country are starting up this week. But we still have a few weeks. We've already bought new sneakers and clothes, jeans and undies. Gotta get school supplies. I still don't have a list for my daughter, but I won't bore you all with the annoying details of that! My son is starting preschool this year, so I have to get the few things he needs too.

I'm looking forward to the fall and getting back into a normal routine. With my son starting school, though only for 2-1/2 hours a day, it will be time everyday that is silent for me. Pure gold to a writing mama. I need to work on my next book. I need to get something else finished and perfected and out there. I need to grab the attention of an agent if I ever want to get where I want to go.

Finally!!!!! The anthology is released!!!!

Back in, oh Spring of 2007, my writers group told me about an anthology that was being put together...all local writers writing about local things, fiction, non-fiction, poetry. I thought it sounded great. I've lived in Western New York my entire life (aside from two years away at college and a brief 9 month stay downstate), so I had to have something I could write about.

I started a piece about myself and titled it The Girl from Black Rock. (the nickname given to the area of Buffalo I grew up in). It talked about my life as a kid growing up in Buffalo and the simple things we did for fun. My family did not have much money but we did some really fun things. I sent the piece in and within a day or two, it was accepted. The editor said it was exactly what they were looking for. I was BEYOND ecstatic. I hadn't been writing for long and I was actually going to be published!!!!!

Then I wanted more. I started a fiction piece and polished that in a day or two...sent it off again. Yep..they loved that too!! Yippee!!!! I'm in the book twice!!

Well, after three years and several calls for submission, the book is FINALLY finished and available for sale!!! Click here for the link!

All proceeds benefit the Just Buffalo Literary Center, who do amazing things for our community.

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Did you happen to see it this past Sunday, the 24th??? I DVR'd it and finally got to watch it last night and all I can say is Wow!

This is my hometown.....and EM showed off what Buffalonians do best and that's help one another. We aren't called the City of Good Neighbors for nothing. Ty Pennington made mention of this being the most volunteers they've ever had for the show and obviously the producers felt it necessary to extend it's normal hour show to two hours for a reason. There was just so much footage of people helping people that they had to double their allotted time.

I have always loved this area. I was born here, grew up here and I'm raising my family here. For my entire 32 years of existence, I only lived elsewhere for about 8 months time (not including the two years I spent in college). There is an unbelievable amount of culture and history in Buffalo and so often it is hidden behind poverty and unfavorable economic times. Yes, we have our share of run-down neighborhoods (one of which was shown on Extreme Makeover) and no, the job market is not great around here...been that way for years, not just recent times.

But what we do have is amazing. Our people LOVE this area with everything in them and it's quite infectious. And we have many many poeple who have moved to this area for one reason or another and fell insanely in love with Buffalo.

Isn't this a gorgeous picture?? This is Niagara Square in downtown Buffalo:


This is where we often take our kids for walks. It's the Erie Basin Marina:


And this is Delaware Park and the Albright Knox Art Gallery:


My hope for the future of Buffalo is for the world to know how wonderful it is here and hopefully Extreme Makeover helped with that!!