Join in Nattie’s Friday Felicities @ beckyperry.us.
I’ve added a new category called “Way Back Machine” in an attempt to actually have something to post. LOL!!! Over the years I have actually written in several of the blogs that I started. Shocking, I know, but it is true. This post is originally from 2002. It made Carol laugh, but don’t use that as a marker of the quality of the post. Carol is my friend, and she laughs at stuff just to make me feel good.
I took my Mother to Food Lion and the post office today. Do not get me wrong. I love my Mother very much, but it is her habit to question my driving skills at every turn, every brake, every inch of the road! LOL!!! Today I discovered the secret to driving my mother—Kenny Chesney. Before setting out on our little journey, I had popped KC’s Greatest Hits in the CD player. Notice the before? God forbid I change the CD while in motion or stopped at a traffic light or even while waiting in the drive through of the bank. If the motor of the car has been started and Mother is in the car, the stereo is exactly whre it is going to be for the entire trip. This is why I chose Kenny. He is one of my favorites that she finds least objectionable (forget Bon Jovi). In fact, she actually likes him. OMG, I have become my Mother! Oh yeah, I was going somewhere with this . . .
So KC is in the stereo, and Mother is in the passenger’s seat. About 27 (not literally) miles before reaching the first traffic light, Mother says, “You need to start putting on brakes now.” Uh, no Mother. Stopping in the middle of the highway is NOT proper driving procedures, but thank you for the help. Twenty-seven miles later, we reach the traffic light and my Mother is desperately trying to help me put on brakes. *sigh* It is moments like this that I am eternally grateful that my car is not one of those driver’s ed type cars with brakes on both sides. LOL!!!
We travel onward until we reach a crossroads intersection. Cars on the left and right are supposed to stop at the large red octogonally shaped objects. Cars headed straight (like mine) are supposed to keep going. This is a fact of traffic life that Mother has yet to grasp. “Slow down! Stop! Slow down! See that car over there!” Yes, Mother, I see the car. The man in it must be quite a learned man of letters because he likes to read things—like the big red sign that says STOP. Besides Mother, that big Kenworth (18-wheeler) is behind us, and while it is a lovely shade of blue, I would really rather that it did not mix it up with my little white Mazda.
Shortly after the intersection where I avoided being rear-ended by the large blue truck, “What I Need to Do” comes over the stereo, and I start singing this line, “but I drive on, and on and on” quite loudly. Mother takes this as an affront to her driving tips. (Wonder why? LOL!!!) Still, it serves it’s purpose, and she stops the driving tips for at least three good miles.
We survive the post office and Food Lion. Before we leave Food Lion, she asks, “Can I hear that Bill Anderson song?” She means “A Lot of Things Different,” and I break a cardnial rule of driving by popping in another KC cd while the motor is acutally running. I suspect the reason that I am forgiven is because Mother loves that song—and because I had yet to put the car in gear.
We made it home. No one died, not even a squirrel. No vehicles sustained any damage, and I owe it all to Kenny Chesney. Thank God for Kenny Chesney. LOL!!!
I think I need a nap now.
Until next time . . .
I miss my mommy!
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Twice Loved
Avon Inspire (July 22, 2008)
by
Lori Copeland
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Lori lives in the beautiful Ozarks with her husband Lance. Lance and Lori have three sons, two daughter-in-laws, and five wonderful grandchildren. They are very involved in their church, and active in supporting mission work in Mali, West Africa.
Lori began her writing career in 1982, writing for the secular book market. In 1995 after many years of writing, Lori sensed that God was calling her to use her gift of writing to honor Him. It was at that time that Lori began writing for the Christian book market. To date, she has more than 95 books published including Now And Always
and Bluebonnet Belle.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Texas, 1865 Willow Madison and her friends, Copper and Audrey taught school in neighboring Texas communities until the Yankees rode into the area and burned them out. In the midst of fear and chaos, survivors banded together to fight for what remained of their homes. Then word reached the people that the terrible war was over.
Now penniless but still hopeful, Willow vows she will take care of her friends, Copper and Audrey, and her ailing uncle, in Thunder Ridge, Texas, even if it means having to marry wealthy Silas Sterling, a man thirty years her senior. But standing in her way is handsome sawmill owner Tucker Gray, with his enticing eyes and infuriating headstrong manner—the man Willow cannot get out of her head . . . or her heart. Even though her friends beg her not to give up her dream of happiness, Willow is determined to do the right thing for those who are dearest to her. But which path does God want Willow to take: a life of duty and commitment . . . or a life of everlasting love?
If you would like to read the first chapter of Twice Loved, go HERE
Book Review
Cute, fun and easy to read. I understand that this will be a series of three books, and I have to say that it would be worth it to find the other two books when they come out. I really enjoyed this one!
There are moments in my life when I realize that the my world did not simply begin with my birth. Every time I look at the picture of my maternal grandmother, I am struck by the sensation of knowing that the world was turning for a brief forever before I was born.
You see, in my mind, Granny always lived in the funny little Old House with no hot water heater. She always wore gingham dresses, and she always sat in a goose-neck rocker feeding M&Ms to a grouchy little Chihuahua named Muffin. She was always shuffling around in those corduroy bedroom slippers. She was always old. She was always my Mama’s Mama.
But none of that is true. There was a time before she was Mama’s Mama. There was a time that she cared about pretty flowered dresses and painted lips. There was a time when Granny cared about being young and pretty. Granny was once Mattie Mae, and even if it is only in pictures, I am glad to meet Mattie Mae.
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
That’s (Not Exactly) Amore
FaithWords (August 14, 2008)
by
Tracey Bateman
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Tracey Bateman published her first novel in 2000 and has been busy ever since. There are two other books in the Drama Queen Series, Catch A Rising Star (#1) and You Had Me At Goodbye (#2)
She learned to write by writing, and improved by listening to critique partners and editors. She has sold over 30 books in six years.
She became a member of American Christian Fiction Writers in the early months of its inception in 2000 and served as president for a year.
Tracey loves Sci-fi, Lifetime movies, and Days of Our Lives (this is out of a 21 year habit of watching, rather than enjoyment of current storylines.
She has been married to her husband Rusty for 18 years, has four kids, and lives in Lebanon, Missouri.
ABOUT THE BOOK
When Laini Sullivan lands a job designing Nick Pantalone’s coffee shop, there are two problems: one, Nick’s nephew Joe hates all of her ideas and two, Laini has to admit he’s right–she’s a disaster at design. Still, she can’t risk losing the job. To compromise, Joe brings in help on the project, while Laini continues to bake the goodies that keep his customers lining up.
Their relationship is moving along, so when new guy Officer Mark Hall implies that Joe’s family is tied to the mob, Laini doesn’t want to believe it. But things spin out of control when she meets the family, including “the uncles,” who seem to confirm Mark’s suspicions. To make things worse, Nana Pantalone makes it clear Laini isn’t the kind of girl she has in mind for her grandson. Laini’s not sure if she should give Joe the benefit of the doubt or just set her sites on Mark and fuhgetaboutit.
“Tracey draws us into the world of family and friendship with a few surprising twists along the way Bravo!”
~RACHEL HAUCK, author of Diva NashVegas and Sweet Caroline
If you would like to read the first chapter of That’s (Not Exactly) Amore, go HERE
My Book Review
I loved this book. It was silly, goofy and funny. Just right for a light read. I admired Laini’s struggle to find her true love and her true calling in life, all while learning to lean on God. It kind of made me sorry that I missed to first two books in the series! This would definitely be worth going back and seeing how the other women in the series found their true loves!
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Dogwood
(Tyndale House Publishers - July 9, 2008)
by
Chris Fabry
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chris Fabry has a variety of titles to his credit including At the Corner of Mundane and Grace, Spiritually Correct Bedtime Stories, Away with the Manger, The H.I.M. Book, and The 77 Habits of Highly Effective Christians. His latest work is a collaboration with Jerry B. Jenkins and Dr. Tim LaHaye.
Chris has recently completed the final book in the Left Behind The Kids series, available Fall 2004. Readers of all ages have followed the lives of Judd, Vicki, Lionel, and the others. Now read how their exciting stories culminate in book 40 of this beloved series. Dogwood is his first adult fiction.
Chris and his wife, Andrea, are the parents of nine children and make their home in Colorado. Chris has worked in Christian radio and now enjoys narrating audio books as well as writing. He believes his career as a husband and father is the real evidence of God’s grace in his life.
ABOUT THE BOOK
In the small town of Dogwood, West Virginia, Karin has buried her shattered dreams by settling for a faithful husband whose emotional distance from her deep passions and conflicts leaves her isolated. Loaded with guilt, she tries to raise three small children and “do life” the best she can.
Will returns to Dogwood intent on pursuing the only woman he has ever loved–only to find there is far more standing in his way than lost years in prison. The secrets of Will and Karin’s past begin to emerge through Danny Boyd, a young boy who wishes he hadn’t survived the tragedy that knit those two together as well as tore them apart.
The trigger that will lay their pain bare and force them to face it rather than flee is the unlikely figure of Ruthie Bowles, a withered, wiry old woman who leads Karin so deep into her anger against God that it forces unexpected consequences.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Dogwood, go HERE
Book Review - My Thoughts
This book is never what you expect while you are reading it. Every page is a different story, but Fabry’s writing will keep you turning the pages anyway. Although the Christian themes are not as overt as in some Christian fiction books, the storyline of Dogwood will remind you of the love of Christ that has no end.
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Painted Dresses
(WaterBrook Press - July 15, 2008)
by
Patricia Hickman
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Patricia Hickman is an award-winning author of fiction and non-fiction, whose work has been praised by critics and readers alike.
Patricia Hickman began writing many years ago after an invitation to join a writer’s critique group. It was headed up by best-selling author Dr. Gilbert Morris, a pioneer in Christian fiction who has written many best selling titles. The group eventually came to be called the “Nubbing Chits”. All four members of the original “Chits” have gone on to become award-winning and best selling novelists (good fruit, Gil!).
Patty signed her first multi-book contract with Bethany House Publishers. After she wrote several novels “for the market”, she assessed her writer’s life and decided she would follow the leanings of her heart. She says, “It had to be God leading me into the next work which wound up being my first break-out book, Katrina’s Wings. I had never read a southern mainstream novel, yet I knew that one lived in my head, begging to be brought out and developed.” She wanted to create deeper stories that broke away from convention and formula. From her own journey in life, she created a world based upon her hometown in the 70’s, including Earthly Vows and Whisper Town from the Millwood Hollow Series.
Patty and her husband, Randy, have planted two churches in North Carolina. Her husband pastors Family Christian Center, located in Huntersville. The Hickmans have three children, two on earth and one in heaven. Their daughter, Jessi, was involved in a fatal automobile accident in 2001. Through her writing and speaking, Patty seeks to offer help, hope and encouragement to those who walk the daily road of loss and grief.
ABOUT THE BOOK
In this story of sisterhood and unexpected paths, Gaylen Syler-Boatwright flees her unraveling marriage to take refuge in a mountain cottage owned by her deceased aunt. Burdened with looking after her adult sister, Delia, she is shocked to find a trail of family secrets hidden within her aunt’s odd collection of framed, painted dresses. With Delia, who attracts trouble as a daily occupation, Gaylen embarks on a road trip that throws the unlikely pair together on a journey to painful understanding and delightful revelations.
Steeped in Hickman’s trademark humor, her spare writing voice, and the bittersweet pathos of the South, Painted Dresses powerfully captures a woman’s desperate longing to uncover a hidden, broken life and discover the liberty of living authentically, even when the things exposed are shrouded in shame.
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE
Book Review
I enjoyed the book from the minute I opened the front cover. The relationship between the two sisters in the story reflect my own with my sisters. It’s rocky and stormy, but you never stop loving them - never. Delia and Gaylen each learned this in their own way. For all the sisters out there who aren’t quite sure where they belong in each other’s lives, this book will remind you that all you can really do is love your sister and leave her in God’s hands.
Thursday Thirteen: 13 Random & Assorted Sites I Visit At Least Once a Week
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Tom Morrisey is a mountaineer, aviator, shipwreck diver, and explorer, who holds a Full Cave certification from the National Speleological Society - Cave Diving Section.
He has launched, edited or contributed to numerous national publications and is an award-winning adventure-travel writer. A popular speaker, he is also active in both evangelism and the arts. Morrisey earned an MFA in creative writing from Bowling Green State University, and his fiction has been featured in numerous anthologies and magazines.
His first novel, Yucatan Deep (Zondervan, 2002) was a finalist for the Christy award, and he is the author of four other novels: In High Places (Bethany House Publishers, 2007), Dark Fathom (Zondervan, 2005), Deep Blue, (Zondervan 2004), and Turn Four (Zondervan 2004). In addition Tom has also written two nonfiction books: 20 American Peaks & Crags (Contemporary Books, 1978) and Wild by Nature (Baker Books, 2001). He and his family live in Orlando, Florida.
ABOUT THE BOOK
You Can’t Outrun the Sins of Your Past
Desperate to forget what happened to him in Iraq, Tyler Perkins flees to the emptiness of Wyoming. He’s here to escape and also to fulfill a long-ago promise by accompanying his 86-year-old friend Soren Andeman on a fly-fishing trip–once more for old time’s sake. But their trek to an idyllic trout lake soon becomes something more deeply harrowing–a journey that uncovers long-held lies, deadly crimes, and the buried secrets of the past. Ty barely has time to contemplate the question of what constitutes justice when nature unleashes her own revenge. Trapped in a race back to safety, he must face his own guilt-ridden past or risk being consumed.
Powerfully imagined by the acclaimed author of In High Places, Wind River is an engaging wilderness adventure that explores the power of confession, the beauty of forgiveness, and the freedom of truth unveiled.
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Love Starts With Elle
(Thomas Nelson - July 8, 2008)
by
Rachel Hauck
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Rachel Hauck is a forty-something, a child of the ’60’s, ’70’s, ’80’s, ’90’s and ’00’s, who roller skated through the ’70’s into the ’80’s with Farrah Fawcet hair and a three-speed orange Camero. She graduated from Ohio State University (Go Buckeyes!) with a degree in Journalism.
After graduation, she hired on at Harris Publishing as a software trainer, determined to see the world. But, she’s traveled to Ireland, Spain, Venezuela, Mexico, Australia, Canada and the U.S. from California to Maine.
Rachel met Tony, her husband, in ‘87, at church, of all places. They married in ‘92.
They don’t have any children of their own, just lots of kids-in-the-Lord and they love them all. However, they do have two very spoiled dogs, and a very demanding cat.
With a little help from my friends, my first book was published in ‘ 04, Lambert’s Pride, a romance novel. My current release is Sweet Caroline from Thomas Nelson. Romantic Times Book Club gave both books their highest rank of 4.5 stars, with Love Starts With Elle being honored as Top Pick!
ABOUT THE BOOK
Elle’s living the dream-but is it her dream or his?
Elle loves life in Beaufort, South Carolina-lazy summer days on the sand bar, coastal bonfires, and dinners with friends sharing a lifetime of memories. And she’s found her niche as the owner of a successful art gallery too. Life is good.
Then the dynamic pastor of her small town church sweeps her off her feet. She’s never known a man like Jeremiah-one who breathes in confidence and exhales all doubt. When he proposes in the setting sunlight, Elle hands him her heart on a silver platter.
But Jeremiah’s just accepted a large pastorate in a different state. If she’s serious about their relationship, Elle will take “the call,” too, leaving behind the people and place she loves so dearly. Elle’s friendship with her new tenant, widower Heath McCord, and his young daughter make things even more complicated.
Is love transferrable across the miles? And can you take it with you when you go?
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE
The Review - So far
I packed Elle with me when I started out for my road trip to Maine. The group I am traveling with is taking a roundabout route from Georgia to Maine. Elle has been along for the journey, but it is hard as heck to read while riding through West Virginia. However, Elle and I made good time through Pennsylvania and New York, and I am really enjoying the book. I will reserve final judgment for when I finish the book and find out if it ends the way that I want it to! LOL!!!
Rachel Hauck’s writing style really makes me feel as if Elle is a friend who is traveling with me and telling a story of her life. I enjoy a book when I feel as if I know the people and places.
UPDATED:
The story also reminds us that the love of God is never far away. All we have to do is draw near to Him to have Him draw near to us. When Elle finds herself stripped of everything that she valued - the gallery and Jeremiah - she gives up all hope until Miss Anna challenges Elle to find God again. Although, Elle finds it hard at first, she learns to let go and turn things over to God that she cannot control. Elle learns that giving up burdens to God makes them easier to carry.
Reading about Elle’s renewal of her relationship with God, brought to mind Psalm 37:4. Elle learned to delight herself in her Lord, and He rewarded her with the desires of her heart - a career in art as a ministry and the love of a Godly man in Heath. Like Elle, I am working on learning that God is better at being in control than me.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book because I saw myself reflected in the pages. Go buy yourself a copy today!
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