Spring and Family Collide
March is here! Yea! The wearing of the green, always brings me into a Spring 
mood. This year Easter is right on it’s heels, which makes decorating my house for Easter a short-lived experience. I love all those pastel eggs, bunnies, butterflies and happy things. No I don’t forget the reason for the season either.
It’s time to encourage the brown grass to bring up new green shoots. Daffodils, 
tulips, crocus all have their little green sprouts above ground checking for acceptable weather. Inevitably, they get snowed on at least once here in the Rocky Mountains, but they persevere anyway and put on a colorful show. I love Spring.
I’ve been planning our 2016 camping excursions since December, making those all important reservations at Steamboat Lake, Rocky 
Mountain National Park, Twin Lakes and many more. A trip to Lake Vallecito this year is exciting, especially to meet up with friends. However, last night I discovered that maybe, we’ll have to rearrange a few details this year.
A death in the family, and failure to keep in touch with cousins I was close with growing up gave me pause for thought. I received a letter and an obituary in the mail of a favorite uncle a few weeks after the fact. Why… because my cousin didn’t know how to contact me. She located my webpage, facebook page, but a death is something you don’t want to post on social media.
When I received the letter, I immediately looked her up online and located a phone number, made the call. After forty-five minutes of catching up, I was sad how much we’d missed after we grew up and life intervened. The reason for lack of communication is not always what you think. What a shame.
So… plans to return to my childhood stomping grounds may lessen the amount of time we spend in state and federal parks this year. Connecting with family and friends I haven’t seen in years, seems more important. To my credit, I always send a newsy Christmas Letter with pictures of where we’ve been and what we’ve been doing. That’s how my cousin knew my address. Life is unpredictable, what you assume will always be there when you are ready… can disappear in an instant.
I’m not one for genealogy, but connecting with family that helped make childhood memories so precious is something I wish I’d done sooner. But better late than never. I hope this acts as a reminder to pick up the phone, call someone you’ve put off too long connecting with, because… you never know. Sorry for the less than inspiring post this week.
Some good news. Copy edits are done on my next novel, A Witch’s Journey. A story about how meeting the right person can make all the difference in the world. No matter who or what your are. I await excitedly for a peek at the book’s cover, soon to come. I’ll share it of course.
Do you have people you wish you’d stayed in contact with? Look ‘em up, give ‘em a call. If only to say hi, how are you doing?
I love to hear from readers. Take a minute, write a comment. You’ll be glad you did, and so will I.
Next week I promise a happier topic as I discuss favorite camping haunts. Places to enjoy in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Also the challenge of gardening in a short growing season. Until then, make each day count!
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Posted in Food for Thought, My Say What Blog and tagged A Witch's Journey, camping, Colorado Rockies, family, flowers, remember, Spring, writing by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
2015 Year of Firsts – 2016 What’s Next
After Christmas is done and all the decorations are put away, it’s time for reflection. What was accomplished in 2015? What will 2016 bring?
For me, 2015 was a year of firsts. My debut novel, A Demon’s Witch, came out on September 25, 2015. I dared to dream of becoming a published author since I was young, and through dedication and determination made it happen. The feeling was beyond description to hold my creation in hand and have people enjoy reading it, well — it’s fantastic. I have to admit the promotion side of the business had a steep learning curve.
First interviews on blog sites for both me and my characters were nerve racking. What to say, how to say it and would people like my book? Thunder clap campaign was an experience all its own, thought it brought much needed name recognition.
Participating in my first Facebook Party after the release of A Demon’s Witch was overwhelming, but exhilarating at the same time. Learning to create my website was fun, but ramping it up to promote my books was interesting to say the least. January 9, 2016, will be my second Facebook Party a release party for a fellow author, Mary Morgan and promotion for my second release, Charm Me. I’m ready. Please feel free to join several well-known authors and myself.
Now let’s talk about a first author’s newsletter. I chose Mail Chimp as my provider, but that nasty learning curve rose up and slapped me upside the head, AGAIN. Just type the info in the boxes. Right? All kinds of wrong, arrange the boxes, add the art work, then the content. After blood, sweat and tears, in the end, I won and produced a newsletter my readers enjoyed. Whew!
Whats next for 2016? I’m glad you asked. Charm Me has a release date of January 6, 2016 and A Witch’s Journey will be out later this year. I have work in progress that I hope to submit, one is the second book in the Demon’s Witch series, the other a fun Christmas novel. I continue to strive to reach my goal of 5000- 7,000 words a week, which I met in 2015. Spend quality time with my family and friends, take long 
walks with my dog and more play-time with my parrot. Camping is high on my list of priorities, I’m in the process of making reservations for my family’s favorite camping spots.
How was your 2015? Did it meet your expectations? What about 2016? Any resolutions, changes you want to make, plans or vacations you want to take or do? Please leave a comments as to what you are looking forward to in 2016!
Wishing you a safe, heath, prosperous and Happy New Year!
Next we tackle camping plans and making reservations for the summer. See you then.
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Posted in Camping, Food for Thought, For Fun, My Say What Blog and tagged 2015, 2016, A Demon's Witch, camping, Charm Me, goals, New Year Resolutions, novels by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
Camping is Over the Holidays Are Here – No Place to Hide
Camping season is over, the fifth wheel is all sung in its storage space under it’s cover until next summer. Well, really early spring, I hope, weather permitting.
The holidays are careening towards us, with Thanksgiving just passed with Christmas on its bumper only a few weeks away. I did survive Gray Thursday, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but barely. Yes, my Christmas shopping is all done, no thanks to the aforementioned shopping days. 
Rather than brave the crowds, I hid in my house under mounds of Christmas decorations, deciding which ones went up first, the outside or the inside. And did all the lights still work? I stood knee deep in strands of lights and threw up my hands. Decided the weather was much too nice, grabbed my husband, dog and parrot and went for a glorious walk. To my chagrin, the elves didn’t put up the decorations, so we did it ourselves.
With the decorating chore behind us, we can concentrate on enjoying the holidays with friends and family, then try to relax. Okay, only kidding about the relaxing. Still Christmas light looking and cooking to do, a group Christmas letter to write to be included in Christmas Cards that will delight.
To everyone who read my blog this year, Thank You! I wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a very prosperous New Year! Join me next year for more camping adventures and a new experience as I scamper through the path of traditional publishing. My first book, a paranormal romance, is due out in 2015. I will keep you apprised of my progress and a more definite release date. BE SAFE AND ENJOY THIS HOLIDAY SEASON! I look forward to hearing from you next year!
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Posted in My Say What Blog, Uncategorized, What If... and tagged Adventures, Book, camping, Holidays, Paranormal, Publishing, Romance by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
Rocky Mountain National Park – An Enchanting Adventure
The quiet beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park (RNMP) is spell binding whether during the summer months or when covered with a fresh
Afternoon Storm Headed Our Way In Rocky Mountain National Park
blanket of newly fallen snow. My husband and I plan at least one camping trip to RMNP during the summer and we stay in Moraine Campground at the edge of an expansive meadow. Down below you can see Elk herds and the cars moving slowly by the area. More than once, we’ve opened the fifth wheel door to find ourselves face to face
View From Our Campsite in RMNP
with a bull elk or an entire elk herd. That is an interesting experience. Usually we back off, shut the door, quiet the dog and wait for a few minutes for the elks to move on. It’s an adventure we wouldn’t trade for the world and keeps us coming back year after year for at least the last 15 years.
Fourth of July Weekend is our excuse to explore the 415 miles of wilderness, which is located about 140 miles north of Colorado Springs on the Western edge of Estes Park. By the way, Estes Park has a fantastic fireworks display over Estes Lake on the fourth of July. It’s a fun time for all, if you don’t mind the throngs of people. Some years we join in the festivities, others we remain at our quite campsite and watch the marauding wildlife.
Yellow-Bellied Marmot
You can’t miss the drive up Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous paved highway in America. Above tree line, you’ll marvel at the small but vibrant yellow, blue and red alpine flowers able to survive in this harsh climate along with the hearty Yellow-Bellied Marmot. We’ve even seen, but only once, a little furry Pika, but he was camera shy. If you are quick enough, you might catch a glimpse of a long tailed weasel darting between the rocks.
Hearty Alpine Flowers Above Tree Line
Alpine Flowers
We especially enjoy the evening ranger talks in the pavilion not far from our campsite. The history, landscape, wildlife and what you can expect in Rocky Mountain National Park are just a few of the topics.
The weather can be volatile in Rocky Mountain National Park. We’ve left our campground in warm sunshine traveled up Trail Ridge Road, only to encounter hail, lightning, thunder and then snow all in one afternoon. The storms are spectacular, if you like that sort of thing and we do, but you must always be prepared. Always pack with you a parka, warm clothing, snacks and water, even if you are just going for a ride. The warm clothing also makes sitting around the campfire in the evening a lot more enjoyable.
There are family friendly trails, Ranger –led Programs, and six campgrounds, two of which are tents only and the other four accommodate RV’s varying in size. Man’s best friend is not allowed on the trails, but dogs are allowed in and around the campgrounds, which our dog is perfectly happy with. She enjoys the ride up Trail Ridge Road too, as does our parrot. They each have their own backseat window, so there are no disagreements.
Rocky Mountain National Park’s Bear Lake
Bull Elk
If you are looking for high altitude adventures, great camping, stunning views and a wide variety of wildlife, Rocky Mountain National Park should be your next destination. Reservations are highly recommended during the summer months.
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Posted in My Say What Blog, Uncategorized and tagged Adventure, camping, Colorado, RMNP, Rocky Mountain National Park, wildlife by Tena Stetler with comments disabled.
