Buffy's Ramblings

BIRTH PLANS & DOULAS
One of the many scary parts of labor, at least for a first timer, is not knowing what’s going to happen other than “I’ll have painful contractions and eventually have to push a giant baby out of a small orifice”. If you take a class, you will learn about what to expect from the experience. In that class, you’ll be asked, or at least advised, to make a birth plan.

A birth plan is basically a bulleted list of what you want during labor. Things like whether or not you want an epidural or some other drug for pain relief, who you want present during labor and delivery, what positions you want to labor in, where you want the baby after he/she is out (get cleaned up first or directly on you), and other related things.

My birth plan basically had line after line of “I want…” or “I don’t want…” though maybe phrased a little more politely. I didn’t want drugs to even be offered and I wanted no intervention or augmentation. Everything on mine leaned towards “just lea…

***This book was originally reviewed for Book Trailer Showcase.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Holly loves her job as a private nurse, but the ill and injured offer little chance to explore her secret longings, especially not for a submissive seeking a master worth risking her heart. When she braves the exclusive La Ceinture Noire, a mysterious dom takes charge of her. She never sees his face, but she'll never forget his powerful mastery.

Demon hunter Colin avoids the sweetly submissive nurse next door because she doesn't deserve to be drawn into his nightmare world. No one does. All he has to offer her is pain and heartbreak. He damn near trips over his own tongue when he spots her in red lace lingerie at the club. After a too brief interlude with the enchanting little slave, he comes to his senses, and alters her memory of their encounter before leaving.

But there's more to Holly than he suspects. For openers, she's immune to his mind games. He can't eras…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Can a determined librarian convince a mythological beast of the night that fairytales do come true?

A good book, a puzzle to solve, a riddle to master--these all get Elena Xavier’s blood pumping. But is her drive for a solution enough to break a powerful wizard’s curse and free the beast of her dreams?

Over two hundred years ago a man was cursed by a spell of humility and his mortal life ended. Now he soars across the heavens under cover of darkness, praying to the gods for an end to his tortured existence.

Elena has one chance. Her problem-solving abilities are put to the ultimate test when she finds herself in a race against time. She has until the stroke of midnight on All Hallow’s Eve to solve a riddle. Then, only consummation with her one true love will undo the ancient incantation cast centuries before. One obstacle stands in her way--a very stubborn gargoyle reluctant to fol…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Steven Henderson and Leslie Carlyle have been friends since childhood. When they opened Baby Cakes, a cupcake store, they had no competition. When a new cupcake shop opens and starts eating away at their business, it's war.

Loner Duke Waldon owns three cupcake stores and is opening a fourth. He didn't realize his newest store had to compete against the most delicious, tempting cupcakes ever baked! When he discovers his competitors are a tall blond bombshell and a tempting young gay man, he knows he's in trouble. He decides to ferret out their secrets no matter what he has to do.
Thoughts:I hadn’t peeked at the blurb before reading this book, so looking at the cover and title, I was expecting a M/M romance. I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a ménage story!

The good: Steven and Leslie’s characters were consistent in their behaviors and attitudes, and the…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Willow Yancy lost her career as a ballet dancer, and nearly her life, after being in the right place at the wrong time. Located by her shooter, she's transferred and placed into the protection of people who have secrets of their own. As bait to lure the enemy, she'll accept all the help she can get, especially if it comes from the one man who makes her body sizzle with desire.

Ben Alexander is a charming ski instructor and go-to guy for the Colorado shifter wolf pack. His engaging attitude lands him baby-sitting duty- only this baby turns out to be a gorgeous redhead that captivates his senses. With the pending full moon, Ben must tell Willow the truth about himself and many of those she's come to call friends. A daunting task because if she runs, she'll destroy him. Yet how can she resist being seduced by a shifter?
Thoughts:I loved this book! It was sweet, sexy, r…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Amelia Barker and Keon Munro are about to meet face-to-face for the first time. With F-16 butterflies dive-bombing her belly, she nervously awaits her soldier and the promises he made over the internet. Fresh off deployment, Keon is ready for some one-on-one action with the woman who captured his heart through cyberspace. Too bad she’s not who he thinks she is. Either way, she’d better be ready for his special force. He’s been dreaming of this night for months, and her sweet behind is his.
Thoughts:This is a quickie read, but oh so enjoyable. I’m a sucker for a man in uniform, so I loved the military angle, and the homecoming scenario that’s created. Though I’ve never been in that position, the way it’s portrayed feels authentic. The dynamic between the characters feels a little awkward at first, but once they get past big secret, the chemistry is sizzling.

The reference to “spec…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Mark’s been working as a bartender at the monthly meeting of local female dominants for months. He’s played out scenes, he’s knelt, he’s served to the best of his ability, but he’s still yet to date any woman who inspires inside him a genuine desire to completely submit in the way he’s always desired.

There’s one domme at the meetings who Mark longs to submit to—Olivia—but she’s never shown any interest in him, and he knows it’s not his place to approach her. When he suddenly feels someone watching him across the room, Mark doesn’t expect it to be Olivia. He really doesn’t expect the interest he feels in her to be returned either. However, Mark needs to learn to expect the unexpected, once he starts obeying Olivia.
Thoughts:This story is a little quickie, bringing you heat and a happy ending. We start off just as Olivia get Mark in her sights, and we follow them through their first…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Melody Manning’s workaholic ambition, coupled with a slave-driving former boss, has made her the youngest market analyst in her firm. It’s also killed her personal life, including losing her fiancé. When she receives a message from him on New Year’s Eve announcing his engagement to another woman, Mel loses it. Her new, more compassionate boss has the perfect solution for her—get laid. Good and laid.

At his suggestion, she signs up with the 1Night Stand service, listing her deepest sexual desires on the application. A speedy response from Madame Eve has Melody on her way to Sonoma Valley wine country and a one-night stand with a mysterious Dom.

The sexy, masked Master promises to get to the bottom of her guilt and provide ultimate satisfaction under the safety of his stern hand. After an emotional night of submission and uninhibited passion, will her lover’s unmasking lead to the en…

***This book was originally reviewed for The Forbidden Bookshelf.*** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:Rob adores his girlfriend, Daisy. She’s a Southern belle girly-girl, which is perfect, except for one thing. As much as Daisy likes sex, she draws the line at oral. She’s not good at it, and Rob has resigned himself to doing without. That is, until Daisy offers to get a tutor. Is this a great idea or the worst mistake Rob has ever made?
Thoughts:I am not normally one who particularly enjoys dwelling on the oral part of foreplay, but this was pretty damn hot. Every good couple strives to better themselves to please each other, and when Daisy asks Rob if there’s anything he wants or that she could do better, he answers honestly, fearing it could ruin them. What a pleasant surprise when she decides to do something about it, rather than slap him and run.

The tutor they hire is sexy, hot, and is surprisingly kind, especially for a Dom. This short story takes you on a ride as a couple …

THIRD TRIMESTER
Now begins the home stretch. It’s a little surreal to be in the third trimester because it suddenly seems very imminent that birth will happen. Obviously it’s got to happen eventually, but it’s suddenly very real and feels kind of like “omg it could happen any time” in your head. At least that’s how I felt.

Oddly enough, transition from second trimester to third happened a lot quicker than first to second. It was like a switch was flipped. I started feeling more tired and achy, a little nausea (the 3rd trimester seemed to mirror the 1st in the fatigue and nausea department, only not as severe – thankfully!), and I felt like my belly grew even faster. I couldn’t get comfortable sitting, standing, or even lying down much at all. This baby loved to be in my ribs making it hard to bend or even breathe.

The early movements from the second trimester, which felt like bubbles, are a lot more distinctive in the third trimester. You can mostly tell exactly what the baby i…