Well, I’m a day late, but I figured what the heck.

I think the ultimate test of being a man is fatherhood. This is not to say that men who don’t have kids are wimpy or anything…not at all. But fathers…fathers have to be strong, patient, gentle, firm, consistent and kind. They have to lead by example. They have to teach, protect, shelter, comfort, encourage and lay down the law. And they have to do it every day, rain or shine, tired or rested, sick or healthy. Every day for the rest of their lives.

In honor of Father’s Day, I’d like to tell you about the fathers in my life, okay? It’s sappy, but in the best ways, I hope.

My husband. Ah, McIrish. You guys have heard about him, of course, and he loves when I tease him on this blog. But here’s something you don’t know. Screaming children don’t bother him a bit. He can calm any baby, no matter how colicky. Despite a neck injury he sustained at a fire, he still gives piggy-back rides, lifeguards at pool parties, builds forts in the woods. When our son was born ten weeks early and I was too sick to see him, McIrish stood by our little guy in the neonatal unit, talked to him, told him he was doing great, tickled his feet and called him “buddy.” He adores our daughter and always seems a little stunned that so lovely a creature as she is somehow his little girl. There’s a saying…the best thing a man can do for his children is love their mother. McIrish lives this every day.

My grandfather,  Jules Kristan. Poppy, as he was called, was simply the best man I ever met. He recently died at the age of 92. Married for 67 years to his childhood sweetheart, father of 9, grandfather of 28, great-grandfather to 26 and counting, Poppy was kind, intelligent, even-tempered, loving, even if the words “I love you” were difficult for him to say. Every time he saw a new grandchild or great-grandchild, he’d get tears in his eyes. Never in all my life did I hear him say anything unkind about anyone. Never. Not even once!

My neighbor, Hank Robinson. Hank will do anything for anyone. He stepped in as a grandfather for my own kids, taught my son to make paper airplanes, hugs my daughter. He’s one of the few men I know who can state his feelings: “I’m so proud of you,” he’ll say to me, my kids, his kids, his grandchildren. “I love you.” Hank has no trouble with affection—he is a cuddly bear of a man, and my kids adore him. And so do I.

My grandfather, Kyle Higgins. Pop-pop was the type of grandfather who’d toss you into the air, squirt you with the hose, sneak you extra desserts, take you for rides in his convertible and let you steer (eep!). He married my grandmother and adopted my father when my dad was 10 years old and never once used the word “stepson.” He thought we three Higlets were perfect. He died when I was eighteen; just before, I went to visit him in the hospital, and even though he couldn’t speak at the time, he called the nurse over and wrote something down. “My granddaughter.” He was so proud of us, loved us so completely, thought we were the best things ever. Everyone should have a grandfather like that.

My father, Ed Higgins. My dad died when I was 23, but his life was full nonetheless. Dad taught me to believe in myself, told me I could do anything I wanted—President, astronaut, and yes, writer. He was handsome, confident and a big softy. Once, when I was little, my mom demanded that he give me a spanking (well deserved, I assure you). Instead, Dad took me into another room, clapped his hands and told me to whimper. Mom bought it. My father bought me a horse for my 11th birthday, came to all my recitals and plays during high school, sent me to a wonderful college and would pop in on me unexpectedly and take me out for a fabulous dinner, maybe buy me some clothes or something cool for my dorm room.

More than anything, my father taught me that I was enough. No matter what, I could always count on myself…I was smart enough, brave enough, good enough. And, in his eyes, anyway, much more than enough. To him, my brother, sister and I were simply the best.

Happy Father’s Day, Dad.  Happy Father’s Day, Poppy and Pop-pop, Hank and McIrish.

To the dads who walk the walk of a good man—let me just say this. Those heroes we romance authors write—they should look awfully familiar.

I am not much of a TV watcher. I just can’t force myself to commit to a particular date and time every week. I do catch a few shows periodically – shows that don’t require the viewer to have seen every episode in order. Mostly, I just see sports – hockey games and basketball play-offs. Even some golf. ( I know – ugh! – right?)

But wow – I just discovered something I was missing for two seasons. Actually, I’m sort of glad I did miss the first two seasons. Because it’s on “On Demand” now, and I’ve been able to watch one episode every day for the past two weeks. No waiting for next Sunday at 10 PM (or is it 9:00? – I’ll have to check.)

When I was in NYC last fall, my editors were raving about this show. I’d heard of it, but didn’t really have time for it then. But I turned in a book two weeks ago, so I had some free time and decided to check it out.

I’m not a huge vampire fan (although I have nothing against them ) but now I understand why my editors were raving about True Blood. They were enthused about the story, the characters, the conflict. There are great, three-dimensional characters in True Blood, and a plot that just won’t quit. Or I should say – several plot lines – that keep you guessing. Best of all, I’ve found an amazing prototype for the hero of the book I’m working on now. How did I miss this guy? Stephen Moyer is his name, and he plays the protagonist vampire. (You guys probably all knew about him years ago, but well … I’m just a bit slow on the uptake, I guess!)

I don’t think I’ve ever found a picture of anyone who so perfectly fits the idea I’ve got in my head of one of my characters -  Stephen Moyer is exactly the kind of brooding, damaged character who is the hero of my February book – Seducing the Governess. He was injured at Waterloo, and returns home to his estate after he becomes earl, and has to sort out the mess there – including finding a proper teacher for his orphaned niece. Enter the heroine – although I have yet to find the perfect picture of her. I’ll keep at it, though. Maybe you can help me out. She’s an average-sized, dark-haired beauty, but she was the prim daughter of a vicar. What do you think? Any suggestions?

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The Jaunties are kicking off summer with a contest! We’re giving away a Sony e-reader, and all you have to do to win is comment on the blogs you read here every day. A winner will be randomly picked from all those who comment until Wednesday, June 30. So the more you comment, the more chances you have to win! Keep visiting and keep commenting. Not only could you win a Sony e-reader, you won’t miss any of the dish on books, life, and (of course!) me, Jaunty P Quills, Porcupine Extraordinaire.

The winner of the copy of THE MAKING OF A DUCHESS is Laura! Laura, email me at shana@shanagalen.com and let me know your address. Thanks for all the great comments. I had a lot of fun and read 2 books (worked a bit on mine too!).

Once a week one of our local radio stations has “Open Phone Day” where, during a specific time, you can call in and comment on any issue involving the community.

I thought it might be fun to do an Open Blog Day where you can make a comment about, well, anything. With, of course, some exceptions. No spam type comments. No “I’m a wealthy doctor who is lonely” or “Loose a gazilion pounds in two days with our proven weight loss method and eat all you want.” Seriously. Do people even read, much less follow the links on those types of messages?

Remember each time you post (until June 30) your name goes into a hat for a chance to win a Sony E-Reader! so….c’mon….surely you can make a comment about something or comment on someone else’s post.

Oh, and BTW, In Love With John Doe, is still on the shelves!

Today I’m going on a girls’ weekend. It’s been far too long (years) since I’ve been on one of these. This isn’t a true girls’ weekend. We’re only going for 24 hours. But I’ll take what I can get, you know?

My friend and critique partner Tina suggested this little outing. (Remember I blogged about her last month?) She’s in her third trimester with baby #4, so who can blame her for wanting some time away before the little guy makes his appearance? I thought this would be a good opportunity for Ultimate Sportsfan and our little one to have some daddy-daughter bonding time.

And what do you know? My parents have a house they’re not using this weekend. It has a pool and is far enough away that we can’t be called back for any minor emergencies.

I’m all packed and ready to go, and not in the least worried because Tina told me to brush up on my baby delivering skills. This weekend is all about relaxation, so that baby will just have to wait until his due date. I plan to read, sleep, sit out by the pool, and read some more.

What about you? Do you have any fun summer plans? If you’d like to take a book along, I’m giving away a copy of my latest, THE MAKING OF A DUCHESS, to one randomly selected person who comments. And don’t forget every comment also enters you in the Sony e-reader contest!

First of all I want to apologize for being M.I.A. lately. Deadline, you see.  But now that’s all done and I can unchain myself from the computer for a bit. When I saw Catherine’s post on ‘To-MAH-Toes’ it made me smile. Really, is there a woman alive who doesn’t appreciate a good British accent?

One of my fave Brits as of late is comedian Russell Brand. I will admit to finding him very attractive mentally as well as physically. I blame this partly on John Taylor of Duran Duran, who was the first tall, skinny Brit I ever fell for. After that I’ve always had a thing for long, lean fellows obsessed with their hair.

So, when a friend asked if I’d like to see Get Him to the Greek — Russell’s new movie — you can bet I did not say no! I knew I’d like it because RB is in it and because Judd Apatow and Jason Segel were involved with it. Plus, I loved the character of Aldous Snow in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I expected to laugh and perhaps even groan a few times. What I did not expect was for the movie to push certain buttons of mine in very subtle ways.

Aldous Snow is a drug addict who had cleaned himself up, but then started doing drugs again basically because his lover said he was boring without them. Then, she left him and he spiraled ever downward. Enter Jonah Hill’s character, Aaron. Aaron is a fan of Aldous Snow, and is charged with getting him to the Greek Theater for a concert. Hilarity ensues.

Here’s where I started to occasionally squirm. While Russell is delivering his lines in that wonderfully eloquent, bastardized English of his, you begin to see that he doesn’t really have to ‘play’ this role. He’s lived it as a recovered drug addict. So, when he’s doing his thing as Aldous, there’s a level of truth to the portrayal that adds a real depth to it. There is a scene though, where Aaron destroys Aldous’s heroin stash and suddenly Aldous goes from affable to frightening with an ease that made me go a little cold inside, and made me feel for Russell the actor in a new way.

Normally I have no sympathy or patience for alcoholics or drug addicts. That may sound harsh, but I think anyone who grew up around either (or both) will agree with me. Oh, I sympathize with people who fight the addiction and have a hard time with it, but not those who … wallow in it.

Anyway, this scene is what changed the movie for me. It wasn’t just a comedy with heart anymore. This was… well, life. And it is just as startling for the audience as it was for Aaron in the movie. There’s also a bit of a commentary on fatherhood as well that adds a surprising poignancy to the story. I came out of Get Him to the Greek feeling surprisingly good. I *really* enjoyed it. I laughed, I cried and yes, it moved me. Okay, I didn’t really cry, but I came close. And let me just say that Sean Combs is amazing in this. He was so good I forgot he was ‘P Diddy’ and completely became Sergio to me.

Favorite moment had to be when Aldous tells off Lars Ulrich from Metallica. Go Aldous!

OK, so I’ve raved about this flick long enough. Go see it. You may be surprised at how much you like it. Afterward, drop me a note. I’ll be singing along to ‘Furry Walls’ which I snagged from iTunes. Meanwhile, let me know some of your fave movies of the summer. What are you looking forward to?

And don’t forget every time you post between June 14 to June 30 you increase your chances to win the Sony E-Reader we’re giving away! Good luck!

Okay, so, yeah … we all know stalkers aren’t sexy. (Or funny. Yep, I know that. But stay with me here.)

I recently went onto iTunes and bought a playlist of ’80′s music. I’ve been in heaven. As a child of the ’80′s, I love all that cheesy pop. So today, I tooling around town with the radio cranked up singing along to some of my favorite tunes.

And then it hit me. All of the great romantic songs from the ’80′s are about stalkers.Previously, I’d thought of the ’80′s as an age of musical innocence. Okay, sure, there were plenty of sexual songs, but they were charming and romantic. Unimpinged  by the sexist and misogynistic undertones of Rap (yes, I’m openly biased against Rap) Seriously. Don’t believe me? Let’s review:

Centerfold by the J Geils Band (“I was shakin’ in my shoes/Whenever she flashed those baby-blues”)
867-5309/Jenny by the Tommy Tutone (“Jenny, Jenny you’re the girl for me/ You don’t know me but you make me so happy”)

Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran (“Stalked in the forest/ too close to hide/ I’ll be upon you by the moonlight”)

Don’t Stand so Close to Me by The Police (okay, so that one’s obvious)

Every Breath You Take also by The Police (clearly, they have issues)

Even my beloved Jess’s Girl (by Rick Springfield) has stalkerish undertones. I mean, he barely knows her and yet he’s obsessed. These are songs I loved when I was a kid. I still love them. But … well, they’re just clearly about stalkers. How could I have been so misled? Maybe it’s because longing is romantic. Yearning is sexy. And you can’t yearn for what you already have.

So what do you think? Are you there any songs you love that don’t stand up to too close scrutiny?

Congratulations to catslady for winning the copy of Desire Me and The Making of a Duchess. Email me (robyndehart@gmail.com) and send me your snail mail addy.

I have just had the best weekend I’ve had in a really long time. My family was all around me and my best-friend flew in. We talked sometimes all of us at once, we laughed and reminisced about old days. Its just the kind of happy times that help remind me why I write romance.

I love the bonds that falling in love creates between a couple. I like to explore how that bond between two people expands to help create a community.

This weekend I was reminded of how much I love my little community!!!

What about you? How do you refill your well?