PUG PALS: YAY FOR VAYCAY (Second book!)

Hello, friends!  I know it's been a while since I've posted here, but this past year has been crazy.  Crazy work, crazy book work, crazy family and health stuff.  Everything flew by so quickly, I'm still in a bit of shock that we're now in 2019. It's been a tough past few months.

But, the good news is that my second book in the PUG PALS series was released on January 29, 2019.  Yay!  Or I should say, YAY FOR VAYCAY!  After the first book, TWO'S A CROWD, the second book, YAY FOR VAYCAY, follows Sunny and Rosy as they visit their grandparents (aka my parents) for some time away while their human is traveling.  Adventures ensue!

Here's the blurb for it:

The pugs are packing their bags! 

Sunny and Rosy's human is going on vacation and it's NO DOGS ALLOWED. But they don't mind -- they're headed to Grandma and Grandpa's house for unlimited snuggles and as many pug snacks as they can eat. 

But when a mystery animal destroys Grandma's garden, the pugs get blamed. It's all paws on deck to clear their names. If they don't, their pugtastic vacay will be ruined!

And yes, there will be more pug yoga, dressing up in costumes, and sleepover shenanigans.

Sunny and Rosy are super excited about the second book!  But, Monkey is super jealous.  There's a new character in the second book, but it's a groundhog named Clover.  Monkey's not in the series yet, but if there are more books in the series maybe she'll pop up soon...

Look at how mad she is.  Look at that stink eye! 

 It was impossible for me to get a photo of the book with just Sunny and Rosy. 

 We were also on the front cover of some of the Scholastic flyers!

Isn't that cool?!  I used to loooove picking my books out of Scholastic flyers as a kid.  The best day was when we'd return from recess or lunch and there would be the small pile of books I ordered sitting in the corner of my desk.  Good times, good times.

The PUG PALS series is meant to appeal to a wide audience, so you don't need to be a pug lover to enjoy them.  Sunny and Rosy still do a lot of dogish things, but they also do stuff that nonfurry kids can relate to like fighting with siblings, visiting grandparents, dealing with adults not believing them, making new friends, and handling concepts like theft, caring for others, and unconditional love.

You don't need to have read the first book to enjoy the second, but the first book does add the background and setup to more fully enjoy book two.  Also, the more trade sales we get for both books, the better chance we have of more in the series, including an introduction of Monkey!

We hope that you all enjoy the PUG PALS series!  We all worked very hard on them!  (Well, I worked hard, the pugs snuggled and slept a lot).  Amazon links for the books below.  But you can also find them at Barnes & Noble, Target (online), Walmart (online), Book Depository (online) and your local bookstores and libraries.

PUG PALS: TWO'S A CROWD (Amazon link)

 PUG PALS: YAY FOR VAYCAY (Amazon link)

Pug Magic

I, sans pugs, will be going to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter soon with my niece and nephew.  I've been rereading the series before our trip to get in the mood and remind me of everything since I haven't read some of the books since they were released.

I'd love to hear any tips or advice from those who have gone before.  Also, most importantly, are there any good souvenirs I can get for the pugs?

Hunger Games (Pug Version)

For pugs, hunger is a constant.  Even after a big dinner, they are still hungry.  They are ALWAYS hungry.  So in my interpretation of Hunger Games, pug version, the Katniss pug is always hunting for more kibble out in the wild to feed the neverending stomachs of her pug family.  Hunger Games?  That's every day for every pug.

I finally saw the Hunger Games movie and wanted to do a drawing for it, pug style of course.  I did a drawing for Hunger Games a while ago and was going to post that, but when I was looking at it recently it now looks so old and outdated!

My caricature of pugs has changed a lot since this old drawing.  I kinda like seeing the evolution of my pug though.

The Pug of Oz

August was full of strange events.  An earthquake in Virginia?!  Wtf - I did not leave the west coast for this.  The east coast has brutal summers but I at least thought I was safe from earthquakes here.  And then we had the hurricane/tropical storm.  What's next?  Tornadoes?!  Actually, I think there were tornado watches during the hurricane/tropical storm.

To be more realistic, my pug would really be more like a cross between the lion and the scarecrow, not Dorothy.

Twilight Vampire Pug

I am the Bella to my pug's Edward.  I must smell super delicious to her because lately she has been sniffing my arms and legs and licking me like crazy.  Seriously.  I think she's basting and preparing me for dinner.  It gets a bit annoying having a lil vampire pug constantly licking me but I guess I can't help it if I'm just so enticing to my pug.  On a random note, my sister and I convinced my mom to read the Twilight series which she loved until the last book which she said was, "gross."