Tyrean's Writing Spot

What's Wrong With This Picture? and The Story is In the Details, Part 1

2012-01-27T08:34:00.000-08:00

What's Wrong With This Picture?
I'll give you a few hints. This is the American Girl Doll of 2012 from the American Girl Catalog. Each doll comes with a story, and they represent a character. This doll represents a girl from Seattle.
It's really cute, and I'm sure that American Girl has done some research for their two books about this character.

However, there is an interesting detail that is slightly wrong . . . do you know what it is?
If you are from Seattle you don't usually ______________.

If you can fill in the blank or have a guess, put it in the comment section below.

The Story is in the Details, Part 1
Usually I would say the story is in the character, based on his/her motivations, challenges, and deepest heart's desire.

However, stories are often shaped by details, and knowing the details can help us know the story.
A story is shaped by the rules of the world that the character lives in, and the rules that they impose on themself. Those are details that need to be filled in to make the story come alive.

A writing friend of mine told me about a female character that had tears come to her eyes every time she heard someone jingle their car keys in a certain way. When that female's romantic interest jingled his keys, she broke up with him even though she deeply loved him. Why? Well, the story was in the details of that character's background, and the rules she had imposed on herself.

In my current WIP, my character Clara is given a crystal sword, but it isn't just any crystal sword but the one pure crystal sword. She has trained hard for years to be accepted into Septily's Sword Master Circle, but when she receive this sword she struggles to wield it.

Why? The story is in the details of her character, but the story is also shaped by the details of the "rules" of the fantasy world where she lives.

What details matter to your story?

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Matthew 10:29-31

Random Awesomeness

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-08:00

With way too much random awesomeness in the world to share, I have to choose a few items:

Karen Lange's post on dirt. Yes, dirt. Dirt and Life Read it.
E.R. King's guest post with Cassie Mae from Reading, Writing, and Loving It Cassie Mae is Here to Play Check out Cassie's enthusiasm.
I'm Hearing Voices Character Blogfest. For all the rules go to I'm Hearing Voices Rules

The Origins Blogfest, Feb. 13th, hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. For the rules go to Origins Blogfest
The Is It Getting Hot In Here? Valentine's Day Blogfest. For the rules go to Valentine's Day Blogfest

The Seven Lies About Homeschoolers Video Seven Lies about Homeschoolers
The Church Tech Guru Rap Church Tech Humor

and last but for me definitely the most awesome news for today is:

Today is my oldest daughter's 13 Birthday!!!!

Called for . . .

2012-01-23T09:37:00.000-08:00

When we hear the phone ring, we know that someone is calling for a purpose, whether that purpose is friendly conversation or a sales call, there is purpose in every call.
What does it mean to be “called” by the Lord?

Does it mean giving up our whole lives for our faith?

And what does that look like?

At worship yesterday our Pastor had me on the edge of my seat, sitting straight up, listening intently. His subject: the call. We studied Jonah 3:1-5 and 10 wherein Jonah is called a second time, and fulfills his ministry, and Mark 1:14-20 wherein Jesus calls his disciples and says, "follow me." The disciples leave everything to follow Jesus.

Is this what being called looks like every time?

Well, Samuel was called while living in the temple to serve in the temple his whole life.

Lydia, the purple cloth seller, was called to open her home for a new church.

Jesus calls each of us in unique ways.

A friend of mine has been called to Swaziland to teach while her husband builds, digs wells and helps with sanitation and irrigation. Their four kids will learn and serve alongside them. They've sold 90% of their possessions, and they've given up "life as we know it" in America for a 24/7 mission field.

I've been called to sing, to teach, to write, and to speak (occasionally), and to listen.

Beyond his "real" job, my husband has been called to help people with their cars, computers, household repairs, snowboard lessons, youth mentorship, and his favorite area: church tech.

A year ago, my family and I felt called (and pushed) out of our comfort zone to start a new church with a whole bunch of other people who felt called at the same time.

When we follow Christ, we give him our lives and sometimes that means staying where we are, and sometimes that means leaving everything behind. We need to listen to his call, and keep listening. Jesus wants us to follow him, with our whole lives.

How has he called you?

For a moment of light-heartedness about call, check out this video about tech gurus, who plan to rest when they are "with Jesus in heaven."

http://www.jesus-loves-you.org/?p=4348

Interview with Open Minds' author Susan Kaye Quinn

2012-01-20T09:13:00.000-08:00

Open Minds is a fast paced, gripping, adventure with a protaganist of unexpected mental talent. I loved it, and asked Susan Kaye Quinn if she would be interested in an interview. She agreed, and the results are here:

What makes you passionate about writing?

My passion for writing comes from the intersection of several other things I love: science, technology, politics, kids, and reading. I’ve always loved reading, but once I had my kids, I realized the profound importance of stories for kids. Seeing the impact that stories had on them, lighting up their curiosity and creativity, filling their playtime with wizards and robots, impacting their lives … well I wanted to be part of that. Stories have always been a way to teach us about the world, and I think future stories like the science fiction that I write, teach us about what the world can be (as well as what it shouldn’t be) and how we as human beings can fit into it. Stories like that can have just as big an impact on adults as kids, which is why I think so many adults read YA (young adult) novels, and even MG (middle grade).

What’s the toughest challenge you face as a writer?

On the business side, the biggest challenge is discoverability, or building a base of people that know and enjoy your work. On the craft side, the biggest challenge for me is finding the time to do all the writing, and writing-related activities, that I want to do. I love reading in my genre, reading craft books, talking about and teaching writing (to teens at my local library), networking with and supporting fellow writers, and blogging about my writing journey. And then there’s the writing itself, which I try to keep front and center for hours every day. Making sure I keep it all balanced, all the while pushing myself forward in my craft – these are my greatest challenges. But I’ve always loved a good challenge.

Who has been the biggest encouragement to you as a writer?

My fellow writers have been a consistent, constant source of encouragement. Seeing the success of fellow writers, like the recent movie/TV deal for fellow Indelible writer Addison Moore, inspires me. Knowing I’ll be reading a chapter to my local SCBWI group on Wednesday keeps me on track. Reading amazing books like Across the Universe by Beth Revis keeps me striving to be the best writer I can. Even my brother, who doesn’t write any more but cheers me on, keeps me motivated to tackle the manuscript every day.

How do your real life hobbies and experiences strengthen your fiction writing?

I did a lot of living before I started writing. While sometimes I wish I had started earlier, I think everything I did before (engineer working on jet engines, scientist studying global warming, politician running for office) helps me to write the stories I craft today. Writers have to draw from every bit of their lives to create stories that are uniquely theirs. Just sitting in the restaurant with my family today, observing body language of people, fuels my writing.

What’s your favorite part of your book, Open Minds?

This is a tough one!! I don’t want to be too spoilery, so I’ll pick one of my favorite scenes early in the book. I really enjoyed writing the scene where Kira first discovers her power … by knocking out the boy who was about to kiss her. One of the great things about writing YA is that there are so many firsts: first kiss, first boyfriend, first time you knock him out cold with your super mind powers.  The book is very serious about a lot of things, but I try to have fun with it as well.

Susan's book Open Minds reflects her passions in life and storytelling, her balance between home and adventure, her strengths and her encouragement. Her main character Kira lives in a near future science fiction world with tough politics at play, and her challenging adventure is balanced by the love she has for her family, and the encouragement she finds from those she loves.

Thank you Susan, for taking the time to share, and for your writing.

If you haven't read Open Minds yet, go find it at Open Minds at Amazon

Edible Experimentation Day - extra post

2012-01-19T15:53:00.000-08:00

Slushy snow and ice today. Time to do some experimental baking.

Why experimental?

We have tons of food intolerances and allergies in our household, my 12 year old turns 13 next week and she wants to do something different. Our tried and true allergry free cocoa chocolate cake just isn't "enough" this year. So today we tried some allergy free extra vanilla cake . . .and we tried an experimental recipe.

How do I experiment carefully?

I go to an awesome gluten free website like gluten-free goddess, read over that recipe, look in our cupboards, think over our allergies, and proceed to make substitutions that work for our family.

For instance in the gluten-free goddess recipe for vanilla cupcakes, tapioca flour and eggs are in the recipe - both no-nos for my whole household. So, I just use my usual trusty Martinson gluten-free flour mixture (sorghum and bean flours combined in a particular way), and I soak a little bit of chia seed in water.

Isn't chia seed for chia pets?

No, it's actually edible, and when let to sit with water it makes a gelatin like substance that can be substituted for eggs in recipes. It helps recipes fluff up, and it does the osmosis work of an egg in a recipe too.

However, in today's experiment we tried using coconut milk instead of any other kind of milk and our cupcakes puffed way up, and then fell in the center. This would be bad except . . .

my daughter wants to make filled cupcakes anyway.

Next we are onto making chocolate filling without dairy, corn syrup, or eggs. Our solution that we hope will work: chocolate syrup (made without corn syrup), mixed with coconut creamer and . . .we haven't figured out yet, maybe cooked with guar gum (a thickener) or our flour (which is also pretty dense), or maybe we will make our cocoa frosting, and just frost the insides as well as the tops.

Have you tried any cooking experiments lately?

The Snow is Falling, The Snow is Falling!!!

2012-01-18T07:00:00.000-08:00

Photo by "aquilasteve" on Flickr aquilasteve's photostream

I had a regular post planned, but my mind has been overwhelmed by "snowmageddon" outside.

I live 1/4 mile from Puget Sound, and we usually get a dust of snow that melts by mid-morning.

We have six inches of snow this morning, and I feel like I've gone back to my childhood. I grew up in Enumclaw, Washington which is a plateau made from an old lava flow from Mt. Rainier and is nestled up against the foothills that start the ascent to Mt. Rainier National Park. We had a good amount of snow every winter, except maybe one, in my memory of growing up. Snowmen, snowball fights, snow forts, and even snowslides on the neighbor's back deck steps were a wonderful part of life.

Here, my kids are happy to build a snowman every 2-4 years with all the snow in our yard, and hope to take a picture of him before he melts. We go to the mountains to ski and snowboard, sled and throw snowballs.

Today, it's here in our very own yard, and it's deep enough to really play in. True, my girls had friends over on Monday and played in the 1-2 inches that melted by 4 in the afternoon, but this . . .this is so much better, so much more snow.

Humorously, the weather reporters in the Northwest are calling it "Snowmageddon" . . .this is due to most Northwesterners inability to drive, think, or do anything when snow is on the ground. Unless one is an avid skier or snowboarder, or lives in the foothills or the mountains, snow sadly frightens most Northwesterners. If you don't believe me, check out this news article in one of the local papers, Snowmageddon

For us, it is a source of delight. Now, the question is . . .do we romp in the yard all day, or do we head to the mountains for deep powder skiing this afternoon and evening at the snow area with night hours?

I Have a Dream, and a Hope

2012-01-16T07:46:00.000-08:00

"Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; 'and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.'"
- excerpt from Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s I Have A Dream speech

Growing up in a small town, labeled with many labels and not allowed to forget that I came from a "salt and pepper" family, I have a great admiration for Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., his faith, and his work as a Civil Rights Leader and Reverend. Thanks to the efforts of Rev. King and all those involved in the Civil Rights Movement, all of my cousins were able to attend regular schools. Voting, state education, and employment opportunities opened up, and for some, hearts were opened as well.

However, we live in a sinful world, and racism still exists. Each of us is responsible to live, love, and dream a better dream, to make a better world.

I have a hope and a dream that someday labels won't matter to anyone, and that we will all love one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. I have a hope that someday all the children of the world will have loving homes. I have a hope that Christ will bring us peace in our hearts, and in our world.

"There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." Ephesians 4:4-6

To read Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s full speech go to American Rhetoric: Martin Luther King, Jr.

And for the She Sparkles Memory Verse Challenge, Verse B is: "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved . . ." Acts 16:31

Snow School and 280daily

2012-01-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

(pic from 2009 Whistler trip with our nephew)

So, you may be wondering how in the world I actually get any school work done with my kids when we go snow crazy on Fridays during the snow season.

We just get flexible.

If that sounds too loose, don’t worry I often feel that way too. I have a binder to track progress, and keep a list of goals to meet during the school year. Sometimes we start earlier, run later, do school work on Saturdays, do half days in the summer, or whatever it takes to get our curriculum work done, and keep learning alive.

On snow days we: read literature, history and science in the car; take a deck of cards with us on the hill (math review = card games); and bring science and language vocabulary notecards. Journaling happens in the car, or on any electronic device that has a text/note-taking/web option.

280daily is an online site that offers totally private journaling and journal tracking for individual writers. We decided to try it, and so far we like it. Today, we’ll be journaling from the Summit lodge.

For my daughters, this is a way that I can continue their journal work without bringing two separate journals along for the ride. For me, with that 280 character count, it’s a push for concise writing.

If you like to journal daily, or would like to start journaling, check it out 280daily

Foot Undie Picture - it's not as bad as it sounds

2012-01-12T11:30:00.000-08:00

pic of a the Capezio brand foot undie, called Foot Undeez.

Poetry Moment

2012-01-12T07:53:00.000-08:00

With revisions for The Crystal Sword moving along steadily thanks to the advice of a friend, I've had less time for writing poetry.

However, I would like to post some poetry each month, and I found and started revising this poem last night as my daughters danced. Originally I wrote it for all the company dancers from our old dance company who ranged from age five to sixteen.

For the Dancers I Know

We Dance

We dance in taps, sneakers, foot undies, point shoes.
We dance to pop, hip hop, and waltzes slow.
We want to get on with the beat, the show.

We may be only five, or sweet sixteen,
we dance with heart, with rhythm, feeling
music flow from toes to ceiling.

We stomp, tip tap, get down, and leap.
Across the room, we float, we jive, we scuff.
Don’t you dare call what we do just fluff!

Movie and Book Blast

2012-01-09T19:31:00.000-08:00

During the Christmas and Ski/Snowboard Season I don't usually get out to watch many movies, and yet we managed to watch two in the last few weeks. The Twelve Days of Christmas (starting Christmas day) are often filled with mega reading moments for our whole family, so I've managed to read at least 8 books recently, but for the sake of time, I'm only going to mention my favorites here.

Hugo - "Set in 1930s Paris, an orphan who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton."
My daughters and I were involved in reading The Clockwork Three when we saw our first trailer for Hugo, and the parallels of automatons and adventurous kids heightened our anticipation for this movie. Our expectations were different than the movie, but yet we all walked out of the theatre satisfied by the heartwarming, beautiful story of Hugo.

"The IMF is shut down when it's implicated in the bombing of the Kremlin, causing Ethan Hunt and his new team to go rogue to clear their organization's name."
As part of a week long celebration of my husband's 45th birthday, we went to see Tom Cruise race around the screen, climb tall buildings, and take some crazy leaps as Ethan Hunt. I found this to be the best of all the Mission Impossible movies, and really enjoyed it from beginning to end. However, my husband was disappointed that at one point in the movie Ethan Hunt, superspy, struggles in a fight with an older chunky intellectual and I admit, this did strain Ethan Hunt's credibility. However, overall, it rocked with action, humor, and a decent plot line.

"Sixteen-year old Desolation Black wants nothing more than to stay in Hell where it’s cold and lonely and totally predictable. Instead, she’s sent back to Earth where she must face the evil she despises and the good she always feared."

Out of all the books I read over the Christmas season, Become by Ali Cross was the finest crafted novel. Tightly woven, intense, and packed with meaning, I was drawn into this story immediately and read it in one sitting. However, it is dark fantasy, and I had to wrestle with that a bit in my head. I really enjoyed it, but I struggled with some of the intense moments, and it made me realize that I have a tendency to bury my head in the face of some the world's sinful and ugly realities. The dark stuff in the novel is based on real life, ugly stuff that is in our world this very moment. We can't all be kickin' superheroes like Desi but we can make a difference if we take the time to pay attention to the hurting world around us.

"They are outcasts. Hal, Stig, and the others - they are the boys the others want no part of. Skandians, as any reader of Ranger's Apprentice could tell you, are known for their size and strength. Not these boys. Yet that doesn't mean they don't have skills."

I dare you to read The Outcasts and not love these characters, and beside who doesn't love a good underdog story, especially when those underdogs make some serious mistakes and learn from them. Flanagan's new series, the Brotherband Chronicles, promises to be as good as his Ranger's Apprentice series.

"Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss."

The end of the Hunger Games trilogy is bittersweet, and heart-wrenching. (spoiler alert)There are unexpected twists and turns, action scenes, untrustworthy allies and the stresses of war. Katniss battles through them all, and survives to win a better life for her land. At one point, I needed tissues.

All photos and quoted synopsi are by IMD and Amazon

Snow Day Follow Up - Epic Fail and Lessons Learned

2012-01-07T10:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we had a fun, yet challenging snow day.

Usually we have an 8-10 hour snow day, not including drive time to the snow area. My husband teaches snowboard lessons, my daughters and I ski, and then we all roam the mountain together for an hour or so.

Yesterday we spent nearly 12 hours at the Summit. My husband taught two snowboarding classes, and assisted our 17 year old nephew as he taught skiing for the first time.
We skied a number of runs from blues to blacks (intermediate to advanced) and visited with family and friends on the mountain. It was almost a perfect day, except for end of the day exhaustion and

an epic fail on one of my favorite black diamond runs, “360 Showoff” – also called “Face”. One of my bindings was a bit loose, and my left ski popped off on an easy turn near the top of the run. I couldn't get back into the binding, and when I tried to stand on one ski, I ended up back on my rear sliding down the hill with one ski on and one ski in my hand. I tried and tried again, and I started to panic, feeling that all the awkwardness of too much weight and not enough muscle might be too much for me to overcome. I finally settled for the humiliation of sliding down the hill on my rear until I could find an area less steep.

With the run being called Show off you can correctly imagine that I was directly under the run's ski lift in full view of the lodge and several other ski lifts. People pointed, laughed, yelled encouragement and other things, until a complete stranger stopped and helped me by letting me lean on him while I fixed my binding. After accepting my thanks, he skied off, and I skied down the run without any further incident.

Still, I seethed with embarrassment and chagrin until I redeemed myself a few hours later by going back on the run, and staying on my skis the entire time.

I still didn't ski it as hard and as fast as I used to be able to - once upon a few years ago, I raced my husband down that run and kept up with him. (He's an amazing downhill snowboarder and skier so that isn't too shabby)

So, this morning, despite tiredness and sore muscles, I got back on the exercise bike and put in my time. I know that I want to conquer that run again, and the only way to do it with style is to drop about 20 pounds and gain some muscle.

This reminds me of my writing lately, my novel The Crystal Sword is in the throes of a painful revision. Determination and a desire to conquer the story and make it true to my vision are keeping me going each day.

Lessons Learned:
Sometimes the only way to stand up is to get help.

Anything worth doing is worth a little sweat and concentration.

And yes, pride comes before a fall. Even though outwardly I laughed at myself and teased myself, it seriously stung to find myself unable to complete a run I thought I could do easily.

SNOW DAY

2012-01-06T08:19:00.000-08:00

This pic is from last year . . .but it's all I have time to post. We are off for a full day of skiing and snowboarding fun!!!

Insecure Writer's Support Group - Goals and Revision

2012-01-04T06:37:00.000-08:00

Today, in my pre-write notes, it says “share encouragement.” That’s it.

Hmm. So, I’m pre-writing for a moment before I post, but not much before.

And, I admit I’m feeling a bit low on my own writing journey today.

I had these goals, you see. Goals that I wrote last year, that stated I would be finished with a polished draft of my novel, The Crystal Sword, by January 31st.

Umm. Well. That’s not going to happen at this point, unless the rest of my life stops and I only write.

With two very important family birthdays this month (my husband turns 45 today, and my oldest daughter becomes a teenager in a few weeks), and all of life’s usual activities. I can’t put my life on hold, and I don’t want to. My family comes before my writing.

So, what to do?

Throw out all goals, like all the New Year’s Scrooges suggest?

No. Just rewrite them to be more realistic, and enjoy the journey of life and writing intertwined.

Goals can be changed, revised, and polished – just like my novel.

So, here’s my new goal: Finish polishing The Crystal Sword by June 1st, 2012.
Then, pursue publication.

So, as usual my encouragement really boils down to seven words:
Just Keep Writing, and Enjoy the Journey.

If you need to revise your words, or your goals, it’s ok.

Just Keep Writing, and Enjoy the Journey.

Then, go, and share encouragement with your fellow writers through the awesome Insecure Writer's Support Group:

Worship

2012-01-02T15:22:00.000-08:00

Of all the themes I’ve listed that I would like to visit once a month on my blog, the one that stands out as first is worship.

In all things, in all times, worship is integral.

Worship connects all parts of my life to one purpose in Christ.

When I write, I hope to write with faith.

When I live life fully with my family, I remember with gratitude the one who gifted my family to me.

When I worship at home, in Bible study, prayer, song, and quiet moments, I find peace.

When I think of my friends and family who are undergoing trials in their life, I pray for them and praise God for their hope in all circumstances.

When I undergo my own trials (pretty small ones lately), I give praise to God for giving me the strength and patience needed to walk through those trials and back into the fullness of life.

When I worship at church, I feel connected to the Lord and all the members of my church family and to the members of the whole Christian church around the world.

Worship makes me whole because the Lord fills up my emptiness with love and peace through His salvation.

Worship isn't just one day a week, but a way of life.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade - kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:3-5

Added Later - Just discovered a blogfest that fits with today's theme:

and I've decided to join in. The current verse is:

A - "As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15b
For more details about the 2012 Memory Verse Challenge, visit
She Sparkles

Turning the Page

2011-12-31T08:19:00.000-08:00

New Year's Eve feels like the turn of a new page in an open book. I know, from my faith, that the pages have already been written by the Author of life, but I haven't seen them yet. It's like they are in invisible ink and will only appear as life enfolds, as I turn the page.

New Year's Eve invites me to look back on the story so far, and look forward to the adventures to come, knowing with confidence that the end of the book is a happy one, even if there are trials on the way.

One way that I look forward is to create goals . . . you know, New Year resolutions.

For 2012, I have some goals to improve my blog.

1. Keep my posts shorter - hovering around 250 words. (splurging maybe to 500 once in a while)

2. Post pictures or video with every post.

3. Keep a steady schedule. Unless a blogfest beckons, I will post M, W, F.

4. Pre-write my posts. No more seat-of-pants rambling.

5. Get to each of these themes once a month:

Encouragement
Blessings/Gratitude
Writing
Reading/Books
Parenting/Homeschooling/Teaching
Worship
Poetry/Humming like Pooh
Social Causes/Needs
Movie/Book/Storytelling Reviews
Interview/author highlight/guest post
Blog/website highlight day
Random Day (only once a month)

6. Visit more blogs, and encourage fellow bloggers.

Do you have any goals this year? Feel ready for 2012?
Have a metaphor for New Year's Eve?

Happy New Year!!!!

Gingerbread 2011 Gummi Bear Treehouse

2011-12-28T12:51:00.000-08:00

My kids had a dream of multiple Gingerbread treehouses with walkways of fruit leather, and a zipline of floss and gingerbread. As you can see, we didn't quite get to that level, but we did have a lot of fun.

We have one main treehouse, with two tree platforms - one for cooking gummi worms over a firepit, and one for eating gummi worms.

In the background, the gummi bears are on the forest floor hunting for wild gummi worms with toothpick spears.

My kids ideas . . . really.

Laughter greeted this gingerbread scene when family members viewed, and I hope it gives you that same kind of joy.

I know that fantasy action adventure isn't quite what you might expect out of gingerbread, but in my household, it isn't that surprising.

Now, if I could just get my kids to be Star Wars fans . . . we could try a Milleium Falcon gingerbread scene . . . but so far, they aren't taken with that idea.

Christmas Traditions - Gingerbread Houses

2011-12-22T17:08:00.000-08:00

Gingerbread Houses of Years Past:
2006 and 2007 Gingerbread House and the Big Bad Wolf - one side folded in on us in transport from our house to the "contest" site. I know we have pictures somewhere, but I'll let you imagine what it looked like.

2008 Gingerbread Castle (we won an award for this one)

The "part" that made this one a winner isn't visible from this picture - we made indented lines to make it look like the castle was made of bricks and stones. We also had fun with the candy moat, the well with blue frosting water, and the candy stone paving inside the castle. It took 12 hours to make this particular castle, and my husband was the master chef/engineer.

2009 Gingerbread Village

Faster, easier, and still satisfying. Only 6 hours of preparation, baking, setting up and decorating.

2010 The Dawn Treader . . .our most ambitious project ever. We did get the Dragon-head mast cookie piece attached for a few minutes - but I can't seem to find the picture. And I think by that time the mast had broken off. At one point we just filled the deck with decorated gingerbread people, and then started eating.

We spent at least 12 hours on this thing, and our hopes were dashed repeatedly as one part or another fell apart. We decided not to make a boat again . . . ever.

Gingerbread 2011 Plan - Gingerbread Treehouse Village - three Gingerbread tree-houses, a zipline, and a swaying bridge. Note: this is the plan. Measurements, diagrams, and template patterns have been made. Dough is being rolled, cut and baked. Ideas for a dental string zipline, and a swaying bridge of fruit leather are planned.

Will it work? Will it stand up?
Will we actually get it together before Christmas?

I'll keep you posted, and I'll even take pictures - even if it's a disaster that just gets eaten up.

Note: All our gingerbread houses are homemade, gluten-free, corn-free, and rice-free. Part of the challenge is making it all work with interesting ingredients.

Do you have any ambitious cooking plans for Christmas?

Oooh. I just can't wait! Can I open my presents now?

2011-12-20T07:13:00.001-08:00

Ever had that feeling . . . as if anticipation is just coursing through your veins and making you jump up out of your seat?

The Christmas decorations are up. Christmas carols are in the air. Presents surround the tree.

Every morning, mid-day, and evening, my kids inform me of how many days are left until Christmas, and they say - "oooh, I just can't wait! Can I open my presents now?"

I know how they feel. Except I feel that way about more than just Christmas.

I want to open presents, and see them opened.

I want to go skiing (soon, very soon - despite my foot issues).

I really want to go see a number of movies - and that will have to wait. Sherlock Holmes looks so good. So do a number of other movies that are already out.

Then my oldest daughter and I are eagerly anticipating The Hunger Games, and I've read that Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is being made into a movie with the possible release date in March 2013 - and I love that book.

Of course, there is a flip side to all of these highly anticipated events:

Sometimes they don't turn out the way we expect. Sometimes that's good, and sometimes it's challenging.

I love Christmas beyond presents, so there is no challenge there.

My foot and I are still having an argument over skiing - I want to go, but my foot doesn't like walking so skiing might be really hard. (or maybe the hard ski boot will make it easier?)

Movies, especially the ones made from books that I love, sometimes challenge my vision of the characters and their landscape.

However, that is part of the excitement of unwrapping any moment.
We don't know exactly what is inside the shiny paper.

It's kind of like a life of faith. We know the Lord is good. We know He loves us.
We don't know every plan He has for us.
Some may challenge our plans/vision/imagination.
Some may be joy complete.
Living a life of faith is like opening a shiny wrapped up gift of new life every day.

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

Tis the Season for Life

2011-12-18T07:46:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

I have been out of the loop in blogland for two reasons:

1. The Advent-Christmas season of life is full.

2. My laptop has been seriously ill.

I am so thankful for friends, family, awesome kids at church, the Christmas pageant last Sunday that I wrote, directed, and then fell over from afterwards . . .

The coming week promises three family gatherings, caroling, gingerbread house making (we have the schematics ready to go for three gingerbread tree house platforms fit for gummy bears), the last of the Christmas shopping (just a few more things).

Life is full and merry. Anticipation is in the air, and preparations not just for Christmas day but for 12 Days of Christmas are in the making in our household. The full 12 days won't be as amazing as the first one - Christmas Day -but we want to remember the birth of our Savior beyond the wrapping paper day.

In the midst of our preparations, and at the end of NaNo, my laptop gave me the whiteout screen of illness many times, and then it started shutting off on it's own . . .you know, it was tired and had to take a nap - NOW, and I was left hovering over it in frantic worry that it would not come back to life under my many ministrations.

My husband told me it was time . . . time to give up my laptop for 48 hours so he could save everything on it, then wipe out everything and start it up again. New programs are installing as I write this on my husband's computer, and I have full hope that my laptop will be revived fully in a matter of hours.

So, I am hoping to go caroling/visiting in blogland again soon.

Cleaning the Closets, Finding old Presents

2011-12-16T17:56:00.000-08:00

Have you ever cleaned out your closets just before Christmas, searching for that missing box of ornaments and found, much to your chagrin . . . a forgotten present?

One that was meant to be given last year?

I have. Last year I thought I found them all, but somehow I created two new missing presents that just surfaced today . . .

Hmm.

Other than giving everyone too much information about the state of my closets, I would like to think that this is a providential analogy "aha" moment from the Lord.

Has He given us gifts we haven't opened yet? Or do we have a "gift" like encouragement that we've forgotten that needs to be shared with someone else?

What do you think?

Christmas Clause

2011-12-13T07:00:00.000-08:00

"The Santa Clause: In putting on this suit and entering the sleigh, the wearer waives any and all rights to any previous identity, real or implied, and fully accepts the duties and responsibilities of Santa Claus, in perpetuity until such time that the wearer becomes unable to do so, by either accident or design."

The Christmas Clause: In putting on a santa hat or a nativity play costume, and entering into any public place, the wearer waives any and all rights to any previous identity, real or implied, and fully accepts the duty and responsibility to be merry and know the joy of Christmas, in perpetuity until such time that the wearer becomes unable to do so, by either accident or design. The wearer gives up any semblance of normal life, and becomes whole-heartedly into the Advent and Christmas season.

Have you put on a santa hat yet? Or a suit? or a nativity play costume?

I have.

And the Christmas season is fully upon our household, from nativity ballets and nativity pageants, to homeschool co-op festivities, and decorations and wrapping paper scattered throughout our house. Christmas cookies have been baked and baked again. We hosted a rehearsal for our church's Christmas pageant rehearsal complete with costumes and cider.

And yet, in my heart it is still advent too. I am waiting with hope, peace, and joy for the day when we can fully celebrate the birth of our Savior, the day when Christmas really begins. I've entered into the Christmas Clause, with an Advent attitude.

What about you, have you signed the Christmas Clause this year?

By the way, if you haven't seen it, check out Santa Clause with Tim Allen. I highly recommend an unedited version that's not cut for commercial breaks - there are some humorous gems that you don't want to miss.

Late Insecure Writers post + Shakespeare Sonnet Winner! + Random Awesomeness

2011-12-08T07:05:00.001-08:00

"I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date! No time to say hello, goodbye! I'm late! I'm late! I'm late!" - White Rabbit in the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland

As an insecure writer, I have often felt pressure (from myself) to hurry up and get things done. I love writing, but I have too many ideas and not enough time. Will I ever finish the second draft of The Crystal Sword? And when I do, will it really be finished?

Last year, after NaNoWriMo, I fell into a three month writing slump, where I only wrote poetry and journal entries. I like writing poetry. I like writing in my journal. But my novel was at a standstill. I didn't even want to look at it. When I did, it was so bad I laughed my way through reading it. It was either laugh or cry. Then my kids told me they expected me to make it better. They "knew" I could write a better draft. So I started, then I stopped, then I started again. Right before NaNoWriMo, I was only a little over halfway through with my second draft. It felt like it was taking forever, and my mind was in daydream land over new novel possibilities.

So, I took a month off from my revision work to write On One Wing, the sequel to The Crystal Sword.

Then I took a week off to write poetry. However, this had an unexpected benefit . . .

I won the Shakespearean Sonnet Contest I entered!!! This was totally unexpected, and really cool, and even better - the prize for winning is a free edit of 2,500 words of my current manuscript! To see my "Sonnet of Leaves" go to Winner of the Shakespearean Sonnet at Aimee Beatrice Jordan's blog A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Woman. Thank you Aimee!

That (editing) is just what I needto dive back into revising The Crystal Sword.

So, this year, in an unexpected way, my poetry writing has given me a way to get back into revision, back into prose.

So this is my advice for myself and for all Insecure Writers:
Just keep writing. Write beyond NaNoWriMo. Write something every day. Enter your writing into challenges, contests. Submit your work. Write, and then write more. Surround yourself with encouraging people. And then keep writing.

In Random Awesomeness:

Cherie Reich is having an Editing Giveaway on her blog. Go enter and win a free edit of your writing here: Tis' the Season for Giving Critiques

Go Read Emily Ann Benedict's book, The Father Christmas Confessions

And Watch this Video. It made me laugh, and laugh, and laugh.
Cello Wars - Watch out for Darth Vader, and his . . . accordion?

An Interview With Emily Ann Benedict + a Free Christmas Story!

2011-12-05T17:37:00.000-08:00

The Father Christmas Confessions warms the heart like a cup of sweet cocoa with extra marshmallows in a big Santa Mug. I meant to just open it up, and read part of it, and a few hours later I found myself finishing it and wanting to read it again.

One of my very first followers, Emily Ann Benedict (the author of The Father Christmas Confessions) made me feel at home here in the blogging world with her encouraging words and insightful thoughts on writing. Her generous spirit shines through everything she does, and this is especially true with her recent decsion to share her Christmas story, The Father Christmas Confessions for free with everyone.

Interview With Emily Benedict:
Tyrean: What makes you passionate about writing?

Emily: Writing is easy to become passionate about once you get the process started. It begins with a small idea for a book, then the creative process of writing the story out is too much fun to stop. When you realize how much joy you can bring to someone through a story there is no looking back.
Writing is also a wonderful way to share your ideas with people. Sometimes we have trouble discussing certain topics with each other, but when the same ideas are wrapped in a story it becomes easier to relate to one another.

Tyrean: What do you hope readers will get from your books?

Emily: I really hope people enjoy my books and find in them a moment or two to escape from the stress of life. Hearing my work makes people laugh always makes my day.
The love of God and how involved He can be in our lives if we let Him is one theme I carry from book to book. It’s a lesson I’ve learned, and continue to learn, in my life and I enjoy sharing it others.

Tyrean: Who has made the greatest difference for you as a writer?

Emily: My family has always been a major factor in helping me move forward as a writer. Their encouragement as well as editing and suggestions are invaluable.
In terms of which authors have inspired me the most, I have to say Agatha Christie is a huge inspiration and one of my favorite biographies. She began as an ordinary girl who just wanted to write books. Eventually, she became one of history’s greatest mystery writers and lived an extraordinary life. I also found the many different styles she wrote over the years helped me learn a lot about writing itself.

Tyrean: What words of advice do you have for other writers?

Emily: The best advice is simple to just keep writing and writing and writing. The more you do it the better you’ll get.
I also think it’s really important to find a group of people who will honestly edit your work and help you determine which areas you’re strong in and which techniques you need to work on. Sticking with people who just give you constant positive feedback feels good, but it won’t help you progress.

Tyrean: Beside writing, what other talents and hobbies do you have?

Emily: Besides writing I have lots of little things I love to do. Cooking is a huge favorite among my family, especially at this time of year. We will take any excuse to make more Christmas cookies.
My family is also devoted to taking care of rescue dogs. We have cared for many abused and handicap dogs over the years. Currently we have five in our little home and honestly it is one of the most rewarding things we have ever done. There’s nothing like taking a frightened little handicapped puppy and turning her into a spoiled rotten lap dog.

Emily is the author of two books, Only Angels are Bulletproof, and her most recent, The Father Christmas Confessions . . . which did I mention, is free?

So, go unwrap your first Christmas present of the year, and read The Father Christmas Confessions

What if Santa Claus wasn't one man?
What if he was a secret organization?
Jeremy Ogden has 25 days to accomplish his mission. Just like every man in his family, he has a list of people whose lives can be changed forever if he makes it to them in time. But he has one big problem…And her name is Virginia.

To read more, go to The Father Christmas Confessions

Celebrate His Birth

2011-12-04T07:53:00.000-08:00

My kids are tap dancers, and yet, this year they are into ballet.

We have been friends with a wonderful dance studio owner, director and teacher for years and for the first time this year my daughters are taking classes at her ballet studio, the Metropolitan Ballet of Tacoma.

One of our favorite ballets that Metropolitan Ballet of Tacoma puts on every year is Celebrate His Birth, a beautiful nativity ballet. Each year for 25 years, Celebrate His Birth has been a free gift. Donations are gladly received for the costs of putting on the performance, but not required for admittance.

So, today I am thankful for: the joy and beauty of dance, Damaris - our friend who is both passionate for the Lord and for dance, all the parents and kids who make Celebrate His Birth a ministry and not just a performance, my daughters - just for being who they are, and my husband - for helping out with moving the set and for all his tech skills.

Here's a behind the scenes look at last year's Celebrate His Birth Performance:

Excerpts from Behind-the-Scenes Ballet from Paul Lovelady on Vimeo.

Looking Ahead

2011-12-02T14:02:00.000-08:00

It's Friday, and I'm looking ahead to:

Tonight's Dress Rehearsal for the ballet, Celebrate His Birth

Tomorrow night's and Sunday afternoon's performance of Celebrate His Birth

And, next week, an interview with an author . . . more details to come . . .

What are you looking ahead to/for?

Words of Wisdom

2011-12-01T09:28:00.000-08:00

"To soar or to rest, the daily adventure is soul to soul, not of flesh. And to dwell is to fully live in the adventure of the moment with those we love.
Imagine that!" - Grace Nichols

Today's quote comes from The Daily Adventure at A Grace Story

Grace Nichols is a real world friend of mine, and she has a beautiful blog called A Grace Story where she shares the wisdom that the Lord grants her and her family. She is a precious, and wonderful sister in Christ, and I highly recommend reading all her posts.

We Are the Champions, My Friends . . .

2011-11-30T20:56:00.000-08:00

Ok, I had this post all planned out about dancing, but when I received my NaNoWriMo Winner certificate, and thought of Sommer Leigh's writing support group for NaNoWriMo . . . and I couldn't get this song out of my head.

For all those who participated in NaNoWriMo - We Are the Champions, My Friends!!!

LAST DAY OF NaNoWriMo - The End

2011-11-30T07:33:00.000-08:00

Here I sit, at the brink of finishing NaNoWriMo 2011. As I write this post, my word count rests fitfully at 49,881 words.

Why did I stop there?

Because my husband asked me an everyday question, and I took that as a wonderful excuse to step back from the PC for 20 minutes.

Because the last 1,200 words I wrote totally sucked.

Because even though I've stuffed my inner editor away for 29 days, she's back and she's monstrously huge.

Why?

Because I always have this amazing, beautiful, glorous finale scene in my head when I begin my stories, and when I get to the end, it fizzles. The fireworks backfire, and the smoke rises around the flames on the ground that slowly die into smoking embers. And I'm left choking in the cloudy haze.

So, I have 119 words to cross the finish line, and I want those last steps to rise from the embers and fly like a phoenix into a golden horizon of storytelling.

So, now that I've taken a break, worked on a few old metaphors about writing, and given my husband a big squeezy hug as he goes out the door for work, I can get back to writing the finish, the finale, the end . . .

Thanks for stopping by and listening to me rant for a moment. It actually cheered me up . . . it's odd how that works.

I hope that all of you NaNoWriMo Champions out there have an awesome last day.

May your endings be golden!

Thanks for Thanksgiving Participants, and NaNoWriMo Last Days Reflections

2011-11-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

Many, many thanks to my sweet and wonderful particpants in the A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge.

I admit, it was a last minute challenge, and one that I realized belatedly I would even have a tough time posting on in the midst of two Thanksgiving dinner extravaganzas and the inner drive to finish NaNoWriMo.

These two wonderful ladies made my Thanksgiving week by participating in the A To Z Challenge and writing beautiful posts:

Pam at 2Encourage wrote two amazing posts splitting the alphabet over two days: Thanksgiving Challenge Part 1 and Thanksgiving Challenge Part 2

and

Jasmine Walt at An Author's Ramblings wrote it all in one A-Z Thanksgiving Challenge

Their thankfulness, and full participation in this tiny little challenge warmed my heart completely, and I feel encouraged by their attitudes of gratitude. Thank you Pam and Jasmine!

In NaNoWriMo news . . . these are the last days, and I am thankful for the writing drive that compelled me to write hard and long hours over my word count, and to struggle with my plot, seeing the horizon line coming closer each day. To meet the minimum NaNoWriMo word count goal, I still have a little over 1,500 words to write. To meet "The End" of my story, I have about 5,000 words to write. I am very happy with my progress, both in word count and in story.

Last year, during my first NaNoWriMo, I was at least 8,000 words behind at this point, and sweated my way through the last day, giving my kids only a half day of homeschool lessons, and telling my family to eat "whatever they found in the fridge." I did a mad, crazed dash to the end of the word count goal and the end of my story. I finished, but celebrated with dazed contentment.

This year, I hope to celebrate with vigor, enthusiasm and dancing. Even if I have a sore foot, there will be dancing. I just might have to dance while leaning primarily on one foot. It will work.

And I plan on dancing to Superchick, Newsboys, Toby Mac, and a new family favorite: Icon For Hire.

Off With Her Head by Icon for Hire

Make a Move by Icon For Hire

A to Z Thanksgiving with Randomness

2011-11-24T14:27:00.001-08:00

A - Anna, Amanda, Annette, apple pie

B - bears, burgers, belugas

C - courage, C.S. Lewis, Christmas

D - Dads

E - Easter, eagles

F - Friends, Family and Fellowship, Faith

G - God, grandparents

H - Hope, Husband-of-mine

I - Inspiration and Imagination

J - Jesus, Joy, John, Jessica, Jacob

K - Kathleen, Katie, Kites

L - Lynn, Lambs, Lions, Lilies

M - Mary, Moms, marriage

N - Noel, Neverland

O - Owls

P - Piglet (from Winne-the-Pooh)

Q - Quilts, quiet (at the right moments)

R - Ronald, rainbows

S - Stephanie, snow, skiing, snowboarding

T - Trisha, Terry, Tigger

U - umbrellas, undines (I just like the word)

V - Violins and violas

W - Water, waterfalls

X - xylophones

Y - Yaks, Yellow

Z - Zoologists

Please join in the A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge!

Here's how it works:

1. Add your name to the linky list.

2. Write down all the letters of the alphabet and for each letter, name at least one person, place, thing, or idea that you are giving thanks for this year. You can name more than one if you have more than one you want to mention.

3. Post your list on your blog between 11/23 and 11/27.

A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge Pt 2

2011-11-23T18:31:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Challenge Invite #2
We are all swamped with NaNo, family, feasting, and various real life activities, and yet I still think there is time to give thanks!

Maybe my Challenge sounds too tough, but I think it's very possible. You see, you can make your Thanksgiving list silly - A to Z animal thanks - aardvark, butterflies, cats, dogs; or serious - Alpha and Omega, Beautiful One, Christ the Lord. You can make it into any kind of Thanksgiving list you want . . . it doesn't have to take all day. It can take less than five minutes. Really. I gave it to all my students in my homeschool co-op classes on Monday and most of them finished it in under five minutes. Just try it, you might even find it addictive.

So, I invite you to join me in the A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge!

Here's how it works:

1. Add your name to the linky list.

2. Write down all the letters of the alphabet and for each letter, name at least one person, place, thing, or idea that you are giving thanks for this year. You can name more than one if you have more than one you want to mention.

3. Post your list on your blog between 11/23 and 11/27.

Thankfulness and A To Z Thanksgiving Challenge

2011-11-21T14:50:00.000-08:00

Thankfulness is a gift, a good habit, and a way of life.

Whether or not you enjoy the American holiday of Thanksgiving, the act of Thanksgiving is worthwhile. It can give you joy, peace, comfort, and strength.

So, I invite you to join me in the A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge!

Here's how it works:

1. Add your name to the linky list.

2. Write down all the letters of the alphabet and for each letter, name at least one person, place, thing, or idea that you are giving thanks for this year. You can name more than one if you have more than one you want to mention.

3. Post your list on your blog between 11/23 and 11/27.

For Example, here's part of my list for this year:

A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge:
A - Anna, Amanda, Annette, apple pie

B - burgers

C - courage, C.S. Lewis, Christmas

So, now the A to Z Thanksgiving Challenge has been passed to you. Will you join me in giving thanks?

Longing For Poetry PT 2 and Random Thanksgiving!

2011-11-19T07:37:00.000-08:00

NaNoWriMo is my priority this month, but as I shared in an earlier post, Longing For Poetry, I am longing for poetry, for other projects, for the haziness of random writing. At the same time, I really want to finish NaNo, and then go back and finishing revising my last NaNo novel, and then . . . and then . . .well, I have lots of plans.

So, today I NaNO, and I plan for next month.

Through Sommer Leigh's awesome NaNoWriMo Champions Support Group, I have met many awesome blogger-writers, like Aimee Jodoin of A Portrait of the Artist
Aimee is hosting a Shakespeare Sonnet Writing Contest, which is awesome! The deadline is December 4th, and I already have a few notes about subjects and word choices for mine, but I'll write it between December 1st and December 4th . . . after NaNo. So, my longing for poetry will be fulfilled soon.
Here are the rules for the Shakespeare Sonnet Writing Contest from the link:

"For this contest, write a Shakespearean sonnet. For those who need a refresher, here are the parameters:
1. Shakespearean sonnets are 14 lines long.

2. Shakespearean sonnets follow the a,b,a,b, c,d,c,d, e,f,e,f, g,g rhyme scheme.

3. Shakespearean sonnets are in iambic pentameter, meaning there are ten syllables per line.

Please send your sonnet to cheesepuff5292@yahoo.com by Sunday 4 December 2011."

Thankfulness:
1. Red robins running covert operations among the fall leaves, blending into the red, browns and yellows in listening and watchful poses as my old dog sits with her ears alert.

2. The wiggly happiness of our beagle, as he rubs his back all over the carpet with is legs and ears flopping everywhere.

3. My daughters dance at church tomorrow! I'm excited for that for them, for our amazing friend who is an amazing dancer/director/teacher and for our church.

4. Christmas Rehearsal Take 3, tomorrow, and I am almost ready.

5. Four adult men from our church who will be acting as the Three Wise Guys and their Camel for the Christmas Pageant.

6. My cat stayed calm for the car ride to the vet because she could see her friend, the beagle, the whole time.

7. Thanksgiving plans . . . two dinners coming our way, but thankfully split over three days, not two dinners in one day.

8. Looking forward to sitting at the "mega" table at my Aunt's house with 20-30 family members. There is always laughter, always the mock arguments over the turkey skin and the last olives.

9. Looking forward to sitting at my in-laws beautiful expanded dining room table with 20 family members, and then joking our way through dinner. I love the humor of my husband's family, and the stories we all tell.

10. My husband is getting over the sniffling sneezing "bug" that he had this last week, and I know he will be back to his usual energetic self soon.

And, I have a few prayer requests:
1. My sister-in-law had carpal tunnel surgery yesterday, and her husband is completely immobile with MS, so they both need prayers for healing and strength for this post-op time.

2. Our sweet friends' daughter has been home and recovering from her big surgery since mid-October, but she still needs prayers for continued healing and pain management.

"Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise." James 5:13

Treasures, Shoeboxes, and Operation Christmas Child

2011-11-18T06:52:00.000-08:00

What would you keep in a treasure chest, if you had one?

What would your character keep in a treasure chest, if they had one?

Jewels? Lazer Blasters that will help them defeat the giant space monster? Gold? A Bible? Light that is brighter than the sun? Love? Truth? Justice? A billion dollars? A gold crown? A wedding dress? A bag of seashells? An old baseball and glove?

I invite you to write that into your story somehow.

And I invite you to think about the treasure of giving.

Every year at this time, my children, my mom and I go out and fill a shoebox with simple gifts for Operation Christmas Child. Some of the shoeboxes go to kids in the United States who don't have anything for Christmas. Most of the shoeboxes go to other countries all around the world.

The kids that receive them usually receive them for Christmas, but depending on shipping, political problems in war-torn countries, or simply bad weather, they may receive them on just for a regular day. I trust the organization, Samaritan's Purse, to get these gifts to children who need them most and in the timing that works best.

I highly recommend filling a shoebox for the sheer joy of filling it with treasures. It's like a mini-treasure box that we get to fill with love in the form of scarves, books, balls, dolls, fancy hair clips, toothbrushes, combs, drawing and writing paper, pencils and erasers. Plus, you can send letters and cards too.

There are only a few days left to fill a shoebox treasure chest this year for National Collection Week, go to Pack a Shoe Box to learn more.

Longing for Poetry But Still NaNoing

2011-11-17T07:04:00.000-08:00

Just over half of my way through NaNoWriMo, and my heart is longing for poetry, for the concise sweetness of sounds capturing a single, simple moment.

Last week, I longed for three other fiction writing projects, and even spent some time writing some notes for them, either notes for writing, or notes for revising. I dreamt of other stories and woke, longing to write them and not my NaNoWriMo novel.

This week, it’s poetry: rhythm, language, haunting soul-binding moments of perfect clarity. That's what I have been longing to write. Never mind that when I actually write poetry I fight for every nuance and word choice to come close to the image in my heart.

So, I write notes for five to ten minutes on my distractions, and then force myself to write the next sentence and the next sentence of my current WIP, and after four or five sentences the story begins to flow again . . . at least for a while.

Sometimes, however, allowing myself even a few moments with my distractions adds up to a major problem.

I fell behind over last weekend with NaNo and had two mega writing days to make up for it. Yesterday I wrote 4,000 words over the course of the day - and whenever I felt distracted, I closed my eyes for a few moments, thought about my novel and plugged myself back into the writing. I couldn't afford those few sentences here or there.

So, my advice for all my fellow writers: just keep writing.

Thankfulness:
1. 4,000 words in one day!!!

2. Getting my word count in this morning already!

3. Finally, a fight scene. (It took my 25,000 words to warm up to it this year)

4. I "get" my characters better in this year's NaNo novel.

5. Writing is on my mind, and I am fully immersed in my novel writing.

6. Many cups of caffeinated tea.

7. Writing through the "junk" moments and finding a good writing rythm again.

8. My cat, who often tries to grab my attention with all claws while I'm trying to write, let me play with my PC instead yesterday. Then after I finished she demanded a game of pounce, chase, claw, and scrabble. (This involves hands, string, and her favorite washcloth or sock)

9. My kids have their own NaNo goals to fulfill, and they are working at it every day. Their work, plus the work of the students at our co-op totally inspires me to keep writing.

10. This crazy little hamster toy that we purchased at Target a few years ago. He is just this silly little singing toy that waves a set of nunchuks and sings "Everbody was Kung Fu Fighting" in a high pitched voice. He moves from our house to my husband's office and back on a regular basis, and currently he is sitting by my PC. Don't ask me why this helps me keep writing, but it does. He is the mascot of anyone in our house who needs a laugh, or an extra push in the right direction.

11. An extra dance rehearsal last night for my daughters . . . for a dance for our church.

12. Having a wonderful friend who is passionate about faith and dance, and who is one of my daughters' teachers this year.

13. Toby Mac's new Christmas CD - yes, I said, Christmas.

14. Listening to Christmas music for the sole purpose of planning the Kids Christmas Pageant and some of the Music for our worship services for the next month. Really, I don't like the canned stuff they are already playing in retail stores - that kind of Christmas music before Thanksgiving is just wrong.

15. Thanksgiving is one week from today! Wow!

16. Looking forward to seeing friends and family over Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving weekend!

17. Awesome homeschool friends.

18. Seashells on the windowsill.

19. A ceramic rabbit painted by my oldest daughter. It's sitting on the windowsill, looking out towards the green grass.

20. My youngest daughter's drawing of a young woman with an expression of determination. She thinks she's "not that good" at drawing, but I am impressed by how she captures the personality of her characters.

21. My husband is awesome. He brings home chocolate. (and he's just awesome anyway)

22. My daughters, my mom, and I all filled shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, and we love doing that each year - it is a source of joy for us. (and I'll write more about it tomorrow. There's a few more days left to take part in that project)

23. The convicting scriptures in the book of James.

Scripture Blessing:

"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." James 4:10

Humor and Thankfulness

2011-11-15T07:05:00.000-08:00

I admit I'm not great with jokes. I have a tendency to tell the punchline too early, and I only remember the super short jokes like:

Why did the girl mushroom date the boy mushroom?
Because he was a fungi (fun guy).

It makes me smile every time . . . so you know the humor bar is pretty low with me.

Despite that, I love to laugh, and often find it a great way to warm up to writing and life.

Today I went meandering from Every Day Poets to Christie Isler's blog Letters Home (she was the featured poet today), and found this postPomegranate Season that had me laughing and thinking about writing. Trust me, her humourous diatribe about fruit carrying "how-to" labels when Halloween candy doesn't is way funnier than my favorite mushroom joke.

So, check out that post, and laugh today.

Thankfulness
Today I'm full of thankfulness for:

1. Christie Isler's post, Pomegranate Season.

2. Laughter.

3. Jokes that make me smile.

4. My husband's smirk, and his full out smile.

5. My cat's determination to pull me away from the computer with a brush of fur, and a swipe of playful claw at the power cord.

6. The wonderful enthusiasm of my students at our homeschool co-operative.

7. One of my students has finished her NaNoWriMo already - she wrote a 45,000 word novel for the young writers' program. (young writers make their own goals)

8. All of my teen students have unique, in depth worlds that they are writing about, with some interesting characters.

9. My younger writing class likes to tell stories on the board together.

10. My C.S. Lewis class wrote their own "blurb" length stories, and were trying to press them on me at lunch-time because they were so excited about them . . . which was really cool, except I was really hungry.

And now, I have to return to NaNoWriMo, or P90X with my husband (before he goes to work) . . . lifting weights might help spur my NaNo, right?

"Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow." James 1:17 (NLT)

Campaigner Challenges 2011 Book! and Thankfulness

2011-11-14T07:31:00.000-08:00

found at Amazon and Smashwords

Amazon Blurb:

All proceeds go to Harry Moseley's charity "Help Harry Help Others". Harry single handedly raised over 85,000BP (roughly 137,000USD) for cancer Research. He died October 8th aged 11.

This eBook contains 176 flash fiction stories, poems, and essays from 81 participants of Rachael Harrie's Blog Building Campaign 2011. Everyone donated their stories freely and willingly for this worthy course.

During the Blog Building Campaign, participants were challenged to write posts containing specific words or themes of no more than 200 (or 300) words. Despite the same premise, the stories contained in this anthology couldn't be more different.

Thankfulness!

Today I'm thankful for these blessings:

1. My story, "Butterfly Imago" making it into The Campaigner Challenges 2011 Book.

2. Katharina Gerlach of always try a little harder who edited The Campaigner Challenges 2011 book, and made this project awesome!

3. Rachael Harrie from Rache Writes for organizing an awesome campaign!

4. Amazing fall leaves of red, gold, yellow, and brown.

5. Evergreen trees that make a striking backdrop for the fall deciduous leaves.

6. Wading through piles of leaves with friends.

7. My daughter's comment yesterday, "I think the leaves are where people got the idea for confetti". I just think kids see the world in a wondrous and unique way.

8. Singing praises to the King of Creation, Savior of my life, and Spirit that guides my path with a fun group of people on my church praise team.

9. Preparing for the kids Christmas pageant at my church which will take place in early December.

10. Thanksgiving - the act, and the holiday.

11. Wood chopped for an elderly couple in our church, and a yard mowed, trimmed and fixed up for a family that's not of our church . . .I love our church family's determination to be the hands and feet of Christ in our world.

12. A new church name!!! Our new church has been a church with an awkward name, a name that served for getting our paperwork done with the state so we could receive and give offerings within taxation laws as a church and not a business. It was a name thought up in a moment of indecision, and we often called ourselves a church with no name. But now, we have a name: One Hope Church! Christ is our one hope, and our one foundation.

"There is one body and one Spirit - just as you were called to one hope when you weree called - one Lord, one faith, on baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." Ephesians 4:4-6

Thanks for Tiny Blessings

2011-11-13T06:50:00.001-08:00

Today I'm giving thanks for some tiny blessings:

1. Chocolate Chip Cookie Crumbs

2. Grains of salt

3. A small match for lighting a candle

4. A votive flame in the dark

5. The tip of white on my beagle dog's tail

6. The brush of softness from my cat

7. The tiny sparkle in my older dog's eyes

8. A drop of dew on the grass

9. A sprinkle of cinnamon in a mug of apple cider

10. A tiny leaf fluttering in the wind

11. Each word that I write for NaNoWriMo.

Do you you have any tiny blessings to share today?

A Call to Give Thanks

2011-11-12T06:42:00.000-08:00

In the spring of 2010, I felt called to count my blessings, to give thanks in all circumstances, and to post it here. I considered it my own 365 Days of Blessings Challenge.

It opened my eyes to the amazing number of blessings I have in my life . . . things that I often take for granted too regularly.

It opened my eyes to my own sinful inclination to be crabby, doubtful, and full of worry . . . that was a bit uncomfortable. There were far too many days during my blessings challenge when I struggled to get beyond counting four blessings, and my challenge was to find ten new ones each day.

Lately, through prayer, study, and life circumstance (God's providence), I have realized that just because my personal challenge year ended I am still not done learning about the need for giving thanks.

So, I'll be giving thanks every day for the rest of this month for at least ten blessings each day, and every time I post on my blog, I'll add them on at the end of my posts.

On December 1st, I'll be revealing a new challenge for 12/1/11 through 12/1/12 - and welcoming any who would like to join with me on a year long challenge . . . anyone interested?

Today I'm giving thanks for:
1. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Hebrews 13:8

2. Laughter with friends and family in an interactive theatre experience. I love laughter, and laughter with friends is sweet. Laughter with friends we haven't seen in a few months is even sweeter. I can't quite describe it, but I hope you know what I mean.

3. Seeing three actors and one actress show off their amazing talent while they performed various roles for a re-telling/showing Robin Hood. 12 roles, 4 people, theatre in the square kind of performance but done at Seattle Childrens' Theatre by professionally trained actors.

4. Reading the playbill, and coming across this job: Fight Director. I knew they had fight directors for movies, but for a Childrens' theatre production? Wow. I had been extremely impressed by the smooth exchange of pretend blows by the cast, and wowed by some of the more extreme stunts, but I didn't know that they hired a fight director. It made sense. (oh, and on the "kid" side of things - they did a great job of having intense fight scenes and yet making sure the audience knew that no one was "really" hurt)

5. Eating at the Crab Pot on the Seattle waterfront and having a great time, even if no one in my family eats seafood. They make awesome burgers too, and we enjoyed watching our friends crack open their crab, mussels, and clams with wooden mallets and giant bibs.

6. After weeks of beautiful, flame colored leaves flickering against a blue sky, we had a Northwest rain and wind storm that didn't cause many power outages, and now is gone with the new dawn.

7. Days and days of no clouds on the horizon, one day with them, and another without . . . I am so thankful for that. I love rain. I just don't like the overhang of gray from horizon to horizon that made up our winter last year. Rain is a good relief, and even better when followed by clear skies.

8. Scented candles that smell like apple pie.

9. Three types of chocolate chip cookies: Otis Spunkmeyer (from pre-made dough) for my sweet husband, bean and sorghum flour with no egg and little dairy for my daughters and I - split into dark chocolate and white chocolate varieties. Seriously sweet and yummy.

10. Celebrating my youngest daughters' tenth baptismal birthday. Her faith, which faltered last year in the midst of too much dance competition pressure, has been renewed by rest, hope, and time to just be her beautiful self. We learned a lesson together about the hype of competition that neither of us is likely to forget. She loves to dance, but competition just isn't her style. (and I am thankful for that)

11. My oldest daughter is taller than me (finally, she says), and although I miss the warm bundle of sweetness that she was as a baby, I love the tall lengthy sweetness that she is now. She is growing into a thoughtful young woman, who still loves to be silly and laugh.

Slice of Life: Veteran's Day, Birthdays, Movie Reviews . . .

2011-11-11T05:58:00.000-08:00

Veterans' Day is a day when we honor those who have served our country.

Some of the veterans I honor today: Grandpa Schneider, my uncle Buddy (my Dad's brother that I never met), John Martinson Sr, John Martinson Jr, my cousin Myron, my cousin Duane, my uncle Lloyd, my old neighbhorhood friends Bob and Mike Hougham, and men and women from my church (past and present).

Thank you Veterans!

I am also thankful for the lives of our friends, Kevin and Ron. Their birthdays are today, and my husband I have been blessed with years of their friendship. Kevin is a tough-talking guy with a heart of gold that we met in college, and Ron has been John's good friend and fellow tech guy since childhood. They both have a unique way of looking at the world, and dry humor that gets them through life's hard moments. (and they don't even hang out together, they just share the same birthday) Happy Birthday Dear Friends!

We also celebrate our youngest daughter's baptismal birthday today! Happy 10th Baptism Day to Trisha! We're going to light the her baptism candle at breakfast and sing Jesus Loves You (just Jesus Loves Me, with a few different lyrics)

And now for the movie reviews. My husband I were kidless for two Friday nights in a row, and we went all out for "grown up" movies that we wouldn't normally let our kids see, and these are our thoughts:

The Three Musketeers – Swashbuckling swordplay, moments of praiseworthy acting, but with some stale lines and a new element taken to overblown heights. Wait until it comes out on Netflix, or Redbox. I’ve seen several versions of Dumas’ books, and this one has good moments, but it isn’t worth $14 for a ticket and a pair of 3D glasses. (However, our kids could have seen this one, and probably would have enjoyed it)

Tower Heights – superb characterization, talented actors, hilarious unexpected plot twists, and a sweet but surprise ending. Warning: 10-15 minutes of screen time wasted on extremely crude humor scattered throughout the movie.

On Netflix: The Warrior’s Way – A surreal fantasy in full blown cinematography, The Warrior’s Way shows depths of love in the midst of gritty violence creating a haunting dichotomy between life-giving and life-taking ways of life. Warning: Full out bloody violence. Despite this, I really liked the message given. The protagonist is redeemed, but there are still consequences for his actions.
(I kept thinking about King David after I watched this movie, although there were no Christian themes presented and it is seriously violent - but then the Old Testament is seriously violent)

Today, we plan to see Robin Hood at a Children's Theatre, and visit with some sweet friends who moved away a few months ago. We will be flying our flag, and remembering those who gave us our freedom. Again, thank you Veterans!

Here's hoping you all have an awesome weekend, filled with the blessings of freedom!

"Therefore since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire." Hebrews 12:28-29

p.s. for NaNoWriMos - I am just barely keeping up these days with my WC, making it over the top of the requirement each day by checking the word count. How's your word count going?

Dancing on the Ceiling

2011-11-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

Over 15,000 words into NaNoWriMo, and I'm feeling in the need for some whimsy:

What I love about this video is that it shows some of how the scene was created, and it reminds me that for every bit of magical storytelling, there are hours of hard work behind the scenes.

So, here's to those magical moments of film and writing that take hours of sweat and concentration to pull off . . . just like National Novel Writing Month.

Just keep writing, writers!

Hebrews 12:12-13 "Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. Make level paths for your feet, so that the lame may not be diabled, but rather healed."

Fly Away Synchronicity

2011-11-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday at my church, we ended worship with this song:

I came home, went to blogland and the first post I read was this one: Fly Away

And yesterday afternoon I wrote about my characters taking off in flight – two literally, and one figuratively. Tonight I’ll start with the flying scene and see where it goes from there.

This afternoon I came across this awesome post by Ali Cross: Reach about stretching ourselves as writers. (BTW Ali Cross’s book is out – go and read, or plan to read when NaNo is done)

So has anyone else been flying lately?

Or have you stretched yourself?

“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint."
Isaiah 40: 31

When The Furnace Breaks, Let's Give Thanks?

2011-11-06T06:01:00.000-08:00

Our furnace broke, just when we started feeling a need for it, and just when our lives reached a high peak of stress with work and volunteer commitments. My husband, with all of his mechanical and tech skills, confirmed that the furnace had indeed kicked the bucket completely.

When we are home, we want to feel snuggly warmth, and restful comfort.

Instead we felt cold.

For a few hours, we (my husband and I) were crabby about it.

Then some friends of ours called my husband (Mr. Fix It Engineer Tech Guy) and told him that their furnace was "acting up." They told him that they were all right for the moment because their gas fireplace still worked, but they just wanted his opinion on whether it was fixable.

For a moment after that, my husband and I were even crabbier - our gas fireplace stopped working about three years ago, and we never got around to fixing it or replacing it. But something about their thankfulness sank into our hearts, and we stopped crabbing and started thanking God for what we have.

We have warm blankets. We have electricity, and hot water. We have friends and family who offered us their homes for warmth. My parents gave us all of their space heaters (they actually own four).

We are also thankful for the things we did to stay warm while our house was cold.

We took hot showers, drank extra hot beverages, cuddled together in big piles of blankets, wore warm sweatshirts, and sat next to space heaters. The dogs sat on our feet, and we piled them with blankets too. The cat cuddled more than usual, and kept us warmer at night.

We are thankful that the time of cold is past us, and went past us easily.

My husband found two furnace companies who gave us two different bids, and he did research on the net, and after five days two wonderful furnace guys came to our house and replaced our furnace for a decent price. We are thankful that we can afford to replace our furnace in a time when our country's economy is troubled.

There are people in our country and people all over the world that experience far worse situations than the inconvenience of a broken furnace.

Our heat is back on, and we are so thankful for the steadiness of our furnace's warmth. But we are also thankful for the lessons learned and re-learned in the cold.

We need to give thanks even when the furnace breaks.

We need to look beyond our lives to the lives of others, and see what we can do to warm their lives with the blessings that we have been given to share.

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things." Philippians 4:4-8

Have you learned anything about thankfulness lately?

Have any unexpected blessings to share?

NaNoWriMo on Pointe and Random Awesomeness

2011-11-04T07:37:00.000-07:00

While my daughters earned their first blisters from going on pointe at the ballet barre,
I wrote 1,431 words in the midst of distractions.

All three of us persevered in pursuit of our dreams.

I love writing.
They both love dance.
We are all willing to work hard for our dreams.

When I asked them if dance was really worth the blisters, they said yes. (Trust me, as a parent, I've asked them many times if they truly want to pursue something so painful, and they keep saying yes)

When I ask myself if the craziness of NaNoWriMo is worth it, I know my answer is yes.

Thankfully, my daughters have amazing dance instructors, and fellow dancers who know the strength and stamina it takes. They encourage one another.

Thankfully, writers like us have fellow writers who know the stamina and mental strength it takes to succeed at NaNoWriMo, and we can encourage one another.

Check out Sommer Leigh's awesome NaNoWriMo Support Group for a list of awesome NaNoWriMo supporters!

And since I'm mentioning awesomeness, I think it's time for more:

Catch Fire with Alex J. Cavanaugh’s release party for Cassafire on February 28th Catch Fire

Spread the Word, Arlee Bird has the A to Z Challenge Blogfest site up and running here A To Z 2012

Do you have any awesomeness to share?

Are you involved with NaNo this year?

Are you willing to get blisters for your dreams?

Liebster Award and NaNo update

2011-11-03T08:46:00.001-07:00

Many thanks to Cassie Mae at Reading, Writing, and Loving It for giving me the Liebster Award!

So, in accepting the Liebster Blog Award, the recipient agrees to:
- Thank the person that gave the award and link back to their blog
- Copy and paste the award to your blog
- Reveal the 5 blogs you have chosen to award and let them know by commenting on their blog
- Hope they pay it forward by accepting and awarding it to bloggers they would like to honor

This award is for anyone with under 200 followers. :)

Picking 5 blogs is tough with so many awesome blogs to choose from, but here are the five I chose:

Kate Coursey of Weaving Colors is an aspiring author, who works as an editor with Teen Eyes, which she co-owns and operates with another young, aspiring author. Check out her blog for tips on writing YA, and writing tips in general.

Pocketful of Playdough by Brianna is a brilliantly written blog with posts that transport me to coffee shops and football games, and always in the midst of them, give some helpful writing advice. Brianna's post on NaNo filled my nose with the scent of hot cocoa. Check it out here

Charissa Weaks blogs about the journey to publication at A Day In The Life of An Aspiring Author with honest posts, humorous posts, and interviews.

Katie Mitchell's blog I Write, Therefore I am is a poetry place that I love, and when her posts aren't poetry, they remind me of Winnie-The-Pooh's Thoughtful Spot, where I can rest and have a place to think.

2 Encourage by Pam, is an awesome place to find encouragement and devotions based on real, every day life events and places.

So, check those blogs out, and follow them. They deserve your support and love, and big hugs!!!

As far as NaNo goes . . . I had one awesome day, one day that thickened the plot, and now, I have spent too much time in blogland and will have to write in the evening to up my word count . . . which is dangerous for me. My brain shuts off at 8p.m. . . . unless I drink enough caffeine to keep me up all night.
But wait, I just remembered, I can type while my daughters dance tonight . . . I'll just find a corner in the dance studio, post a sign on my chair that says "Beware: NaNoWriMo Mad Writer" and type furiously.
I'm at 4700 word so far, and have a long ways to go . . .

Insecure Writers' Support Group: Just Keep Swimming

2011-11-01T19:54:00.000-07:00

In the midst of NaNoWriMo, typing like I've never typed before (see the keys smoking?), I have just two pieces of advice for insecure writers everywhere (including myself):

Just keep writing, just keep writing, just keep writing, just keep writing, just keep writing . . .

and

"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." Hebrews 10:24

NaNoWriMo 1

2011-11-01T09:45:00.000-07:00

Day 1 of NaNoWriMo . . . . 1,803 words so far, and may have a chance to write more later today!!! Would love to get ahead.

Anyone else participating in NaNoWriMo?

Blessings Belated

2011-10-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

Blessings that I am Thankful for today:

1. Musicians working together to sing to the Lord.

2. Fun co-op classes.

3. NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow!!! And I feel ready for it!

4. The Writers' Chair in my CW club class.

5. Mapping with my Writers' Workshop class.

6. Getting into some Biblical meat with my C.S. Lewis class - they are 10-12 year olds with strong faith, and great Biblical knowledge.

7. Fun paper clips.

8. The Velma costume coming together . . . maybe I'll post a pic, maybe I won't . . .

9. Carving pumpkins.

10. Toasting Pumpkins Seeds.

11. Chocolate.

12. Pizza.

13. The awesome life and witness of my father-in-law and his birthday party last night!

14. Fun with family and friends that feel like family.

15. The Casting Call Blog Hop and the Halloween Hop - fun, and helpful for getting ready for NaNoWriMo . . . the Casting Call Blog Hop helped me get visual with my storyline, and the Halloween Hop gave me something completely fun to do . . .that still helped with plotting even if there are no characters like Sully, Velma or Scooby Doo in my storyline.

16. A gorgeous fall day with sunshine, flame-colored leaves and a brisk coolness that wakes everyone up.

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

Halloween Hop

2011-10-28T09:01:00.000-07:00

Today I'm posting for the Halloween Hop. My Casting Call Blog Hop post can be found here

Sully is my favorite monster of all time from Monsters, Inc. - big, furry and full of sweetness – who couldn’t love a “monster” like that?

Skillet’s Monster

Skillet rocks this Monster song! (one of my husband's earliest in-concert videos - he's the first one howling as the video ends)

And finally, this year I'll be dressing up as Velma, my favorite character from Scooby Doo. Last year I couldn't find the right skirt - this year I have something close enough after a 10 minute second hand store shopping trip.

And my favorite show with "monsters" that get unmasked:

As you can tell I'm not really a true "scary" movie fan . . . sorry, but this is how I thought I could best participate since I had a cool invite from Jeremy Bates

Casting Call Character Blog Hop!

2011-10-26T20:02:00.000-07:00

Casting Call Character Blog Hop!!!

I found out about this Blog Hop at Eagle’s Aerial Perspective and it fits perfectly with preparations with NaNoWriMo, so I decided to squeeze in one more Blog Hop before NaNo. So today is Casting Call, then I'll Halloween Blog Hop this weekend, and after that I’ll be slowing my posts to twice a week – blessings and writing posts only.

The Casting Call Character Blog Hop is hosted by Carrie Butler
Melodie Wright
and Lisa L. Regan

The Rules: Choose one of the following options and post:

1. Photo montage - Grab photos online, and post them with small descriptions of your characters. Let's be safe/smart about this. Don't take copyrighted photos without permission, provide attribution on photos with a Creative Commons license, etc. Basically, give credit, where credit is due. I'm sure most of you do that with your posts, anyway. :)

2. Book trailer - You've seen them online, right? This is the perfect excuse to try one of your own!

3. Paintings/Drawings/Doodles on Napkins - C'mon, we won't make fun of your art skills. It's all for fun. :)

When I saw this awesome blogfest, I was immersed in drawing a map for my story, and decided to check out some photos for scene setting and geography.

This is Aerland, home of the Aerland Griffins and their human counterparts, the Griffin Watch.

source

This is the Northern part of the Septilian coast, the last edge where the dark sorceress, Sihrqayya has not yet reached.

source

Leander, once cursed with his 12 brothers to live in swan form by day, still has one wing, and longs for the simplicity of his life as a swan. He hates court life, and wishes that he still looked like this:

source

It's really hard for me to choose an actor for him, I think I've looked at about 10 actors, and tried to figure out who would fit Leander both in age, and in looks. Jake T. Austin is the closest I've found for Leander, and yet, he needs longer hair . . . like maybe a much younger Orlando Bloom? But the reality is all the pics I can find of Orlando that are free are of him with a mustache and that so doesn't fit.
So here's Jake T. Austin:

source

Perren, is Leader's unwanted mentor, and he is the Rrissorrian Royal Falconer. He doesn't care much for court life and prefers the company of his hawks, which he hopes will help him gain Leander's trust. This picture helps me visualize the size of his favorite hawk to the size of Perren himself:

source

Maybe Viggo Mortensen would fit Perren's character

source

My character Clara from The Crystal Sword will be entering into On One Wing, so this is a pic for the crystal that she is searching for, in the hopes to "heal" her sword:

Clara is supposed to be making allies, but instead she has struck out on her own mission.

And although I have a tough time choosing pics of actresses that I think fit my characters, I think that AnnaSophia Robb comes close (but she needs more sword fighting muscle):

source

Klyan, the griffin, makes me wish that I had artistic skills, but I really like this drawing by Joshua Stephen Mersereau, even if I picture Klyan's coloring a little differently. BTW, Klyan is mourning his last Griffin Watch partner, and is seeking out Clara for the Triune Council of Allies.

source

Thank you Carrie, Melodie and Lisa for hosting this awesome blog hop, and getting me to find some pics that help me with characterization for this year's NaNoWriMo!!!

And next . . .I'll be taking all the photos I found at Wikipedia Commons to make a collage that will stand by my writing space for NaNo!

NaNoWriMo Pre-Writing

2011-10-26T08:56:00.000-07:00

NaNoWriMo Pre-Writing, Plotting, Brainstorming, Daydreaming
(Casting Call Blog Hop Tomorrow)

As a writing teacher at my local homeschool co-operative, and as a writer, I have found myself scrambling to prepare for NaNoWriMo both for my students and for myself. What is the best, most useful and awesome advice I can give them, and use myself?

The reality is, I don’t know. I have ideas. I know what has worked for me before, and what hasn’t, but each writer is an individual with different methods of pre-writing that work best for them. How do I give the best, most useful and awesome advice to a group of people, even a small one?

I know what it’s like to be in a writing class and get all excited about the teacher’s method that “works for most writers” only to find out that maybe I’m not in the category “most writers.” Are any of us, really?

Here’s what has worked for me: daydreaming, drawing maps, writing character profiles, jotting down notes about world building, and the five scene method.

For the five scene method, I jot down notes about the top five most important scenes or scene images for each character that matters . . . not just main characters, but their top buddies, and the antagonist. I have to know each character’s beginning scene, climax scene, end scene, and two scenes that show character development or tension between characters. That doesn’t mean I write out those scenes, but I take notes on what I think they might be, including some description of the setting where they take place. Last year, I used most of my scene ideas during NaNoWriMo, but some were just left in a folder, and ignored as useful but unnecessary background. (This method was one great writing class gem that I learned from Pamela Goodfellow in a University of Washington Commercial Fiction class.)

This year, with the impetus of teaching a group of hungry (for writing), enthusiastic, intelligent, and highly motivated and committed teens, I feel in some ways like that’s not enough. I feel like I need to find more for them . . .more methods, more specific pre-writing plot ultimate “truth” for writing and finishing a novel.

Yet, despite having read more than a dozen books on writing, and some specifically about novel writing and plotting, I don’t feel like I have “the answer”. I just have ideas.

Do you think there is one answer for pre-writing plot that will drive you to the finish of your novel by the end of NaNoWriMo?

Casting Call Blog Hop Tomorrow

My Left Foot and Other Blessings

2011-10-23T19:13:00.000-07:00

My Left Foot

Whenever I feel like complaining about my foot, all I have to do is say that phrase, “my left foot” and I take pause. Many years ago I watched a drama entitled

My Left Foot

Description of My Left Foot: “In this true story told through flashbacks, Christy Brown is born with crippling cerebral palsy into a poor, working-class Irish family. Able only to control movement in his left foot and to speak in guttural sounds, he is mistakenly believed to be retarded for the first ten years of his life. Later, through the help of his strong-willed mother, a dedicated teacher, and his own courage and determination, Christy not only learns to grapple with life's simple physical tasks and complex psychological pains, but he also develops into a brilliant painter, poet and author.” Written by David Mullich

So when I start to complain about my left foot, I remember that movie and I stop complaining, or at least I pause long enough to realize how silly it is that I complain about one small part of my body that doesn’t work well.

True, I’ve had 13 surgeries on other parts of me. I’ve got scoliosis, hypothyroidism, and too much weight. However, my doctor often takes notice of how remarkably healthy I am. My blood work always turns out well. I have great blood counts, and perfect blood pressure. So what is the point of worry over my left foot?

Well, I can’t exercise just the way I want to – dance, running, and even walking are out for the next four weeks. However, I am smart enough to be creative – lots of ab exercises and leg lifts might be just the thing to trim me down. Who knows? Maybe four weeks from now I’ll be in better shape than I am now.

My left foot has been sprained, strained, pulled, twisted, fractured, impacted by a softball, and now is suffering from my “heel-striking” walking stride and planter fasciitis. But it isn’t the only part of my body that I can use.

So, for a Sunday Blessing count today, I have:
1. My left foot - which reminds me to be thankful for what I have that works.
2. My friends who encourage me and pray for me when I most need it.
3. My family, who hold me up, love me, and laugh with me.
4. My Savior – He can move the mountains!
5. An awesome Christian musician I know, who knows how to lead worship with a humble and reverent heart. He’s only 17, and is more mature than some of his older contemporaries.
6. Our friends’ daughter return home. She still needs prayers for recovery and strength, but she is home!
7. Sugar cubes stacked like Egyptian pyramids . . . until they are eaten lovingly, cube by cube.
8. Corn Maze fun!
9. Sweet youth leaders who opened their home to us last Friday night and warmed our hearts with their loving fellowship.
10. Ice, ibuprofen, and being able to put my feet up.

Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, Rejoice!”

Maps and World Building

2011-10-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

Lately, when I'm not busy with regular life, or revising The Crystal Sword, I've been world-building, and map-making for my next novel, On One Wing.

My amazing, enthusiastic, and highly knowledgeable teen Creative Writers' Club class at the homeschool co-op we attend, has pushed me to re-think my map-making and world building. I really didn't do a very good job of either before I started The Crystal Sword, and I now regret it.

There is a benefit of map-making if you are writing a fantasy novel that is set in a pre-industrial world with old world transportaion abilities. To get anywhere, my characters have to take a boat, a horse, a sea serpent, or a griffin, and the sea serpents aren't friendly. The roads are rough, and the forests can be dense. Weather patterns matter when my characters are slogging along outside trying to get from point A to point B in the story.

I thought I had a pretty good map of my character's country in The Crystal Sword, but it didn't really have enough information on it - like topography, or waterways, or blown up maps of Skycliff (the main city featured in the story). I had a pretty good handle on the underground section of the city where the characters' escape from the onslaught of war, but when they try to return over sea and land, I don't have those maps figured out well enough. It's taken me some time to fix.

So yesterday I mapped out my the area my main characters in One One Wing will be traversing three times, and I'm still not satisfied. I need more of an understanding of the topography, and the weather patterns and how it will affect their journey.

The interesting thing is that even though I don't draw all that well, I enjoy map making in the writing process, or pouring over real world maps to understand key locations for a story.

Have you ever considered making maps in the world building process for your writing?

Even for non-fiction, or fiction set in the "real" world, I think that maps can come in handy. In a book I recently read where the characters stopped in Portland . . . the author didn't know the downtown area that well, and mistakenly thought the biggest and best place for books was the library. He obviously didn't know about Powells. Oops. (BTW more info about Powells can be found at my post Biggest Bookstore in the World, or at the Powells' website )

So, Maps Anyone?

Week of Blessings

2011-10-16T06:47:00.001-07:00

A long time ago, in a blog nearby (this one), I spent a year counting 10 blessings a day, trying to be original or at least specific each day, and I saw a difference in my life, and the way I treated others. My faith grew, my relationships bloomed, and it was sweet.

Lately, I've been thinking I may need to reinstate that challenge in my life, either here on my blog or in one of my journals. Why? Because I've been getting crabbier, and seeing the glass half empty far too often.

I had a good week this last week, but I don't think I realized it until I sat down to count up my blessings and give thanks.

A week of Many Blessings
The Blessing of a Strong Faith Family

The Blessing of Enthusiastic Students - both my own two, and the ones I get to teach at homeschool co-op

The Blessing of walking

The Blessing of fall leaves

The Blessing of wellness

The Blessing of good books

The Blessing of getting my husband to be a book lover - it took 5 years of dating plus 15 years of marreage, and a number of years reading my favorite books aloud to him before he caught the reading bug.

The blessing of making Fried Green Tomatoes just right – on the second try! And they are gluten free, dairy free, and egg free . . . my very own new recipe. (Means: I didn’t measure my amounts exactly so it’s not exactly a recipe that I can share yet. Let’s just say it involved my very own flour mix, with my very own egg replacement that consists of flaxseed, chia seed and water, some Italian seasoning, some mesquite seasoning, pepper, and some salt).

Sharing Fried Green Tomatoes with my parents – and they liked them too! (my husband won’t eat tomatoes, and my kids can’t eat tomatoes, so I’m glad I had someone to share with)

The Blessing of Prayers

The Blessing of Friendship

The Blessing of Family

The Blessing of Deciding that my Rough Draft doesn’t totally suck, and actually much of the latter half is salvageable

The Blessing of 5,000 words of revision on a Saturday morning after a week of “freak-out” revision tactics and feelings

The Blessing of a clean house (cleaned for friends)

The Blessing of Homeschool Buddies

The Blessing of Dance – the footloose, jump around the house kind, and the tap dance-ballet-jazz kind. Both are good.

The Blessing of An Awesome Husband – the Best Man for me – the Sweetest, Most Hard-working guy I know, and the only one I know considering purchasing bike shorts . . .he’s getting serious about his biking these days.

The Blessing of a Clean Dog (or two) . . . seriously not to be under-rated . . . our Beagle Mutt likes to find all sorts of fun stuff to roll in, but now he smells like tea tree oil, mint, and shampoo. Our older dog always smells good . . .she’s such a lady.

The Blessing of French Vanilla Tea, and Red Rose Tea, and Mint Tea, and . . . many types of tea

The Blessing of Laughter, especially a whole family of laughter

The Blessing of Daddies, and their love for their children –so many times this week I’ve been thankful for this – for my Dad, for my Husband, for a few friends of ours, especially a particular Dad friend of ours who held his daughter for the first time in many weeks in the ICU this week. Moms are awesome, but sometimes Dad’s voice is the one we need to hear, and Dad’s arms are the ones we need to have hold us.

The Blessing of meeting new blogging buddies through Pay It Forward Blogfest
and deciding join yet another blogfest - the Halloween Hop - even though I am not a big "monster" fan, I think I might have something I could post that day that I hope will be a little different and fun.

Scripture Blessings:
"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. and let us consider how may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." Hebrews 10:23-24

Pay It Forward

2011-10-14T19:05:00.000-07:00

Pay It Forward

Alex Cavanuagh’s awesome book trailer for his second book. Alex is one of the hosts for this blogfest, so we all know him, but hey, check out this book trailer! It's awesome.

And now, I was supposed to only highlight three blogs, but there are so many awesome ones out there that I had a tough time choosing, plus I admit I didn't realize I could only do three . . . and my days been kind of packed with good and bad, and all the inbetween stuff too.

E.R. King’s Get Busy Writing site – E.R. King inspires writing with humor, encouragement, and a "just do it" attitude.

2 Encourage
Pam encourages faith with beautiful, thought-provoking posts.

Notes from the Writing Chair Angie gives insight to writing and life, and her posts frequently give me a kick in the pants with inspiration.

Writing With Shelly - humor, inspiration, and again, the swift kick when needed.

See a theme here?

Pay it Forward link: Pay It Forward Originator You know he's awesome because he's one of the hosts of this blog fest. Check it out!

There are so many awesome writers, and awesome blogs that I wanted to highlight more, but the day is at a close, and I have fried green tomatoes burning on the stove . . . that's what my day has been like.

Pre-writing in the Post Writing Phase?

2011-10-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

As mid-October approaches, and I realize that I haven't finished the revision of my novel The Crystal Sword, and every day I am tempted to spend more time pre-writing for my next novel, currently titled On One Wing. I realized that I am pre-writing in the post writing phase.

What I mean is, even though I had pre-written story starts for the Crystal Sword, I never sat down and did any pre-written world-building, supportive character files, or any major plotting. Last November, I had some pre-written stuff, that I mostly ignored, and I started new and went for broke. My first draft is awesome only in that I finished it. It has some crazy plot twists, some repetitive plot twists - my character battles sea serpents twice in three chapters and in much the same way, and a romance that basically dies in the first paragraph.

So, here I am in the my revision a year later, still figuring out my world building, and still creating character profiles, and trying to give my characters a swift kick in the right direction. Plus, I cut the romance - there's 10,000 words of utter drivel completely gone.

And I have to finish this second draft in the next 18 days because I promised myself it would be done already, and . . . On One Wing is kind of a sequel. This is both good and bad.

Good - I can world build for both, and still consider it revision, as well as pre-writing.

Bad - I really should have had a map for my "world" already - it would have made the plot for The Crystal Sword a little more sensible. I have some messy ones that don't make any sense . . . and I have to fix that. It shouldn't take a two week sea voyage one direction, and only three the other way.

Good - I know some of my characters really well.

Bad - I realized that my main character for The Crystal Sword has backstory that never gets used, and also has some gaping wholes in her character file. Considering that I am working with her every day, I really should know her better. Sometimes I feel like I've just met a stranger at a coffee shop when I'm writing on my laptop. That's really, really bad.

Double bad - I like some of my "new" characters better. Leander (despite his name) is reluctant, messed up, and has an attitude - but I like him. Clara is just too goodie goodie, even with her doubts and temper tantrums. Leander runs from fights, Clara (even with all her doubts) is triumphant, victorious and all "she-ra" when a fight comes her way. And I can't seem to change her, even when I do break her sword, and bonk her over the head. And now I'm writing about them like they're real . . . a sign of a crazed writer.

But somehow, writing all this makes me just want to open up those files on my laptop one more time, and add just a bit more, finish that novel so I can start the next one.

Anyone have similar issues getting ready for NaNo? Characters that just don't do what you want them to do? Maps that don't make sense? Romance that belongs in a shredder?

Also, if you can - please pray for my friends' daughter. She had a really scary surgery that went well, but her recovery is going rough. She's been in ICU for three days now, and needs help to breathe. Her name is Jessica.

"Guard my life and rescue me;
let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in you."Psalm 25:20

Praise and Blessings!!! and good news!

2011-10-10T14:56:00.000-07:00

Our friends' daughter, whom I've posted about before, is out of surgery now and headed to the ICU! The x-rays were wrong, and her spine had straightened to a good 60 degrees (instead of a bad 85) and the surgeons were able to do the "best and easiest" surgery for her, and insert two metal rods on the outside of both sides of her spine, instead of doing the scarier inside (through the front) type.

So, this is good, good news, and a huge Blessing, and something I Praise the Lord for . . . answered prayers! Good health! Life! Hope and Peace for our friends and their little girl. Her strength is amazing. She is enduring more at the age of 7 than most of us have to deal with in our lifetimes, and I am so thankful to know her.

However, if you're the praying kind, please pray for her continued recovery, health, hope, joy and peace - both for her and her family.

Plus, on an every day kind of blessing note, I am thankful for all my students today at our homeschool co-op who sweetly attentive and hard working despite my distracted thoughts.

The Biggest Bookstore in the World

2011-10-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

Powell's City of Books in Portland doesn't look like much from the outside - even I have to admit that.

However, it is a whole city block of a bookstore, with more than one floor devoted to books. And . . . there are two other nearby satellite stores for their technical books, and their home and gardening books, because there isn't enough room in their main store for those too.

They give out free maps at the entrance. Maps, kind of like at Ikea, but bigger, better, and leading to rooms filled with books . . . the greatest treasure of all. Who needs a new couch? Books are better. (ok, now you know why my husband doesn't take me there all that often)

Just to give you an idea of the size, this is a picture of just one room - the rose room:

There are over one million books . . . just at the main store. And I get to go there today, and browse . . . and buy responsible homeschooling books, and then . . . maybe a few fun ones.

We already have books pouring off the bookshelves at home, so I really shouldn't buy too much . . .and someday we might want to buy a couch that hasn't been clawed to pieces by our cat.

Of course, I'm doing this hard work today to become a better writer . . .to inspire myself to write more . . . to . . . oh, I'll be honest, to just indulge in my love of books.

Some women love shoes, I love books. Some women love clothes, I love books. Some women love beautiful artwork and furniture, I love books. Really. I would rather shop for books than anything thing else in the world.

And we get to visit our neice too, and see Portland, and maybe I could call a cousin of mine who lives there too . . . so maybe, it won't all be about books today . . . maybe.

Insecure Writer's Support Group #2

2011-10-05T06:23:00.000-07:00

The Insecure Writers' Support Group, started and hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh, strikes again!

Today, I wasn't sure what to write for this group.

You see, I do have insecurities as a writer, but today I have some fruits of success to report. It feels ironic/paradoxical . . . or just odd to report that my poem "here or there" has been published today online at Every Day Poets.

In his post, Alex admitted that he hasn't always dreamed of being an author, and yet he has found success.

I have dreamed about being a writer for years, but I have to admit I haven't always put in the hours needed to hone my writing. I daydream about my writing more than I actually get writing done. I have a tough time focusing on one project for long periods of time.

In fact, right now I'm trying to finish my revision of The Crystal Sword, but the last few days I've worked more on character files and writing warm ups for the next NaNo, coming next month. I was tripping along at 1,000 or more words of revision a day, and now 4 days have gone by, and ooops - I've been writing 600 words a day of "other stuff" that has little to do with The Crystal Sword.

So, to echo Alex's post, sometimes when I have success I feel like maybe I don't deserve it. And, sometimes when I am almost done with a project, I have a tough time seeing it to the end when something new and exciting is beckoning just around the corner.

If you can, please take a moment and check out "here or there" at Every Day Poets today - it's only as good as the editing help I received from the editors at Every Day Poets. Thank you editors!

"A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver." Proverbs 25:11

"The Horse in the Well" . . . Just Here

2011-09-30T17:01:00.000-07:00

Due to a major mix up with my old hotmail account that somehow became part of a scam to sell people bigger and better ______ in just three days, and my immediate need to extinguish said account, I have somehow lost complete touch with the blogger who was going to publish half of my retelling of my grandmother's story, "The Horse in the Well."

I feel . . . sheepish, but yet, I decided, even if the story needs another bit of polish, I am just going to put it out there . . . err, here. Just here. Exclusive to my little self-published blogging adventure.

When asked to write this story, I realized that the glory of sunset memories of my grandmother made it hard for me to capture the story inside the story. My story is of my grandmother telling me her real life stories. Her real life stories were hers, and as I tried to recall the details I felt like they were slipping away. My first draft awkwardly tripped over the paper. I couldn’t seem to do the story just right, not like my grandmother used to tell. So I attempted to use her voice, and make it mine for a short while. I’m not sure I found it, but here is the story of “The Horse in the Well” the best that I can write it.

Once upon a time when I was a little girl, I lived on a farm in Canada, just over the Washington border with my father, my mother, my two brothers, and my three sisters. I didn’t go to school at the time because of my cleft palate. I hadn’t had my surgery yet, and the opening in my mouth gave my mother a lot of trouble just to help me eat at home. I couldn’t really talk properly so I was quiet most of the time. My brother Clayton and my sister Edna always seem to understand me anyway, and the horses spoke a language that I could understand with broad gestures that swept through their bodies. They were always good company even when I just stood on the lowest fence rail and watched them in the pasture.

One day my sister Edna and I stood together leaning against the fence watching the newest colt take springy steps away from his mother. We both wanted to touch his soft new fur, and stand by his side, but we weren’t allowed inside the pasture without our brother Clayton. The mare might think we were a threat to her baby, and even when we leaned against the fence the first few days after his birth, she stamped at us to make sure we understood we weren’t to come near.

This particular day we watched him, he was about a week old, and beginning to get a little adventurous, getting further and further from his mother in little short ambles. After a little distance, he would sprint back to her side, and kick his feet, proud of his little adventure.

In the corner of the pasture, an old well was covered up by a rounded set of boards. It hadn’t been used in years, and the water was low in it. Even boarded up, I knew that I wasn’t allowed to play by it. It really was just a long hole in the ground, with a board over the top that stood even with the grass. The horses even stayed away from it, although I don’t know how they knew. They just did in the way that horses know things. But the colt didn’t know yet.

As he explored the pasture, getting a little farther away from his mother all the time, he came closer and closer to that old well. Edna and I weren’t really thinking about it, just watching him play and explore. He started to gallop back and forth, all over the pasture and to his mother. His lively enthusiasm was infectious and my sister and I smiled to see him run. But then he ran towards the end of the pasture where the old well was hidden in the grass, and he stumbled.

We heard the boards break, and then he squealed in terror and fell from our sight.
Edna wanted to go to him, but I held her back.

The mare screamed and pounded down to that end of the pasture. She looked down into the well, and screamed again, throwing her head in the air. Her eyes went white and wide, and she started to run in circles around that old well, unable to help her baby.

My brother Clayton came out of the barn and Edna shouted to him, “The colt’s in the well, Clayton, the colt!”

He didn’t say a word, but ran back into the barn. He came back with rope, and quickly tied it to the fence post closest to the well. He leaped over the fence in one motion, and then approached the mare, speaking quietly to her.

She reared at him, and then came down and stopped, looking at him with one wild eye.
He kept speaking, and she let him pass to the well. Then he climbed down into it, clinging to the rope.

I was so frightened, for the colt and for my brother, that I felt like I couldn’t breathe. The air seemed suddenly thick with stillness, and the mare began to run back and forth, not crossing the rope, but still keeping vigil on the well. My sister and I clung to the fence, pressed up against it and gripping it hard, as if our grip could somehow help.

After what seemed to be too long, my brother’s hand came up over the edge of the well. He carried the colt over his shoulders, and the colt lay there quietly as my brother came over the edge of the well, and crawled into the grass.

The mare stopped still, and watched until the colt tumbled off my brother’s shoulders, and took shaking steps towards her. She bent and sniffed him all over, and he leaned against her.

My brother lay panting in the grass for a few minutes, and then he stood, and the mare whuffed his hair, and nuzzled his shoulder. He held her for a moment, and then he came to my sister and me. He swung us up in his arms, and held us close. I breathed in his work clothes smell, and the smell of the colt, and I knew things were all right again.

Inspired!

2011-09-29T09:03:00.000-07:00

Awed by the amazing writing I've read through Rachael Harrie's Second Campaigner Challenge I feel inspired to write with clarity, and expanded vocabulary.

Instead of simply woolgathering before writing my stories, perhaps I should check out Dictionary.com for a new word or two before I start. (today's word of the day: woolgathering)

Seriously, I am surprised at the amazing ways that the words oscitate, lacuna, miasma, sychronicity, and imago could fit into so many different stories, some of which went further with the additional challenge of using the word mirror. I highly recommend reading as many entries as you can. It's inspiring to see the quick wit of writers in action.

In addition to all that inspiration going on with the Second Campaigner Challenge, my family has been super supportive of me. My youngest drew two different possible covers for my novel in progress. My parents are reading my current rewrite and giving me feedback. My husband says any day now I'll get published and he can retire. (I chuckle but appreciate the encouragement) My oldest daughter wants to know when I'll have it fully polished, so she can read that copy first (before my parents) and says that she likes this second version far better than the first. (honesty and enthusiasm mixed). My daughters are both glad that I've taken out most of the "awful romance".

So, another day, another page or three, and I feel up to the challenge of polishing my novel for concise clarity.

Scripture Blessings:

Hebrews is one of my favorite books of the Bible. There are so many verses bursting with meaning that I have to pray over to unpack fully. So, it's hard for me to pick just one, or even two during my daily readings.

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joinst and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16

Monarch Imago: Second Campaigner Challenge

2011-09-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

In the midst of life, I completely spaced the first campaigner challenge. Big oops!

The Challenge is:

Write a blog post in 200 words or less, excluding the title. The blog post should:
include the word "imago" in the title
include the following 4 random words: "miasma," "lacuna," "oscitate," "synchronicity,"

Monarch Imago

After months of cancer treatments that left her too weak to clean out the miasma that lurked around her fridge, Jane finally had the strength to look around her.
She opened her studio to the sea breeze, and found herself oscitating at the splendor of spring.

She had so much to do inside, so much work to fill in the lacuna of her life: people to call, and her book series still left with a gap between the prequel trilogy and the present trilogy. She wanted, at that moment, only to fly free of it all.

As she stood there, torn between duty and the promise of a spring day, the cocoon she had watched on her windowsill opened, and a beautiful Monarch stretched its way out, flapping its wings slowly in the sunlight. The sweet synchronicity of the butterfly's life and her own showed her exactly what to do.

Just One More Blessing . . . Maybe

2011-09-26T17:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I would wait until tomorrow to post . . . but it so happens that I'm sitting in a Starbucks while my kids are in ballet class at the barre (double rr being the important part of that particular word when kids are involved), and behold, they have internet access.

Now, I should be typing my revision to my novel to the sweet sounds of the old fashioned jazz music behind me, but the reality is . . . it just makes me want to dance, and I get distracted picturing tap dancing and swing dancing to the music . . . think stuff that could fit somewhere between the Astaire and Rogers, and the Singin' in the Rain era, maybe moving up to the big band - like say "In the Mood" by Glen Miller that just started playing . . .ok, enough said there. Some of you are probably gagging, but I happen to like all kinds of music, as long as I can dance, jump, or sing to it, and I happen to like the tune . . . personal choice not one genre.

But, since I'm digressing, I'll finally get back to the point.

I have one more blessing to share.
This awesome lady I know from my co-op, who happened to run a half marathon just last Sunday while I walked/jogged a 10k, is also a short term missionary who will soon be a long term missionary with her husband and their four kids. They are amazing people, and the really cool thing is, they are just like you and me, like she states in her blog, NOT "super-christians" with wings and halos.

So I consider knowing this fine lady and some of her family to be a huge blessing.

If you would like to meet her, or help their family get the funds they need for their mission trip, check out her/their blog at robandjennifer

Jennifer is usually the writer, but the support goes for the whole family's efforts to go to Swaziland.

Do you have "just one more blessing" to share?

Or more?

New Accounts

2011-09-25T13:47:00.000-07:00

Ever had your e-mail attached to a virus? Not fun.

I just deleted my hotmail account, changed settings on various platforms I use to private, and created a new account. If you have received something awful that somehow reached you through my e-mail, I apologize. My blog e-mail should now be private . . . I hope. If you need to e-mail me, please leave a comment in the comment section, and we'll figure it out.

Sunday Blackberry Blessings

2011-09-25T07:13:00.000-07:00

Blackberries - sweet, wonderful fruit found on extremely thorny vines.
Blessings - sweet, wonderful, undeserved, and random awesomeness found both in the good moments and the thorny moments of our lives.

Blessings (some of the Blackberry variety):

1. On October 30th, Christine Tyler will host a piece of my grandmother's story, "The Horse in the Well". She picked a handful of authors to interview or host at her blog during Sparkfest, and being picked for that encouraged me and wowed me at just the right moment. Thanks Christine! Sparkfest Interviewees

2. Anticipating my poem "here or there" being published on-line at Every Day Poets on October 5th.

3. Just received an e-mail acceptance yesterday from Susan May James who is publishing my story "Bridge Snap" in the Sunday Snaps: The Stories anthology.

4. We watched our daughters dance at the fair on Friday night. They did great! And I think it is their last time tap dancing with a tricycle and jumpropes.

5. We enjoyed hanging out with dance friends at the fair, eating curly fries (cooked in the right oil for us), drinking all fruit smoothies, eating baked potatoes and cotton candy. My husband had a piroshky. Five girls rode on the Tilt-A-Whirl together. My family went on the big wooden roller coaster twice. We packed tons of fun in just 6 hours.

6. Our friends’ daughter had a day out from the walls of the hospital with her family yesterday. They didn’t get to go very far, but they were able to be someplace different, in the sunshine, together.

7. We visited with them yesterday, and the girls played a highly competitive game of Sorry.

8. Time together as a family, at home and out and about.

9. The last of the blackberries at the turn of the seasons.

10. The book of Hebrews.

Have you eaten any blackberries lately? Experienced any blackberry blessings?

Scripture Blessings:

“We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such great salvation?” Hebrews 2:1-3a

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” Hebrews 2:9

“For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Hebrews 2:17-18

85 to 60

2011-09-22T10:22:00.000-07:00

Praying for 85 to 60!!!

Want to know why and what I'm talking about, check out this link:

Jessica's Journal

If Jessica's spine improves from 85 to 60 degrees in curvature, she gets to have the safest, easiest surgery. So, pray with me. 85 to 60.

Thanks!!!

Social Causes: What Can I Do?

2011-09-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

I've been reading lately - ok that's not new - but I've happened upon a couple of books in the last six months that have made me realize just how blessed I am due to an "accident" of birth . . . I live in the United States, one of the wealthiest countries on Earth, even in the midst of our economic crisis.

I could have died at birth, but instead doctors and nurses whisked me away to a special unit and pumped oxygen in my lungs, and kept me in an incubator for nearly two weeks of my life. Right there, that is a sign of wealth. And no, I'm not saying my parents were rich. I'm just saying I live in a country with accessible medical care. Due to medical help, I think of my life as a miracle. I'm living on borrowed, undeserved time.

Everything around me, as I sit in my house, screams wealth, and I don't live in the fanciest neighborhood or the fanciest house. Just having a house, furniture, a laptop, spices for cooking, food in the fridge and cupboards, books, a home entertainment system (tv, radio, speakers), clothes, and clean water - all this puts me, and mostly liked you if you are reading this on a computer screen in your home, in the top 10% in the world.

We are often tempted to look "up" the chain of success at our wealthier neighbors. So and so has a 2 million dollar mansion (ok, I don't know anyone in that category, but it's the kind of thing that gets splashed around in the media), and so and so has a new car, new kitchen, new, new, new . . . you get the idea.

When we look down the chain of wealth, we see that not everyone has a house, or stuff, or a change of clothes, or even clean water. Not everyone lives in safety.

In fact, when I look at the world's needs, and not at my wealthier neighbors, I see such an overwhelming need that I want to close my eyes against all that pain. What can I do for millions of children who have been forcibly trafficked into the sex trade? What can I do for millions without clean water? Without safety? Without food? Without a house? Without an education or any medical care? Without any hope in an eternal Savior?

Well, I can pray. I can hope. I can give. I can look for ways to reduce my spending on myself to give money to organizations that help. I can blog about it, and try to create awareness. I can pray again, and ask for the answers to those questions.

What can I do?

I can do what I'm doing now, and hope that tomorrow I have an even better answer.

If you want to know more about the needs of women and children in our world, check out these two books:
Half the Sky by Kristof and WuDunn
No Longer a Slumdog by K.P. Yohanan

If you want to know more about the general needs of people in our world, check out these websites:
World Vision

Compassion International

Samaritan's Purse

And there are more organizations that help those in need. These are just a good place to start.

Scripture Blessings:
"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." Hebrews 1:3a

Giving Thanks!

2011-09-20T09:38:00.000-07:00

Today I just want to say THANKS because I'm just feeling so thankful for life,

family, friends, good health (ok, I still have weight to lose, but otherwise I'm healthy),

writing, books, homeschooling, homeschool co-op, my dogs, my cat,

the beautiful blue sky day we're having here after a week of gray.

I am so thankful for all of that, and for everything I see around me . . . salt, pepper, glue sticks, pens, a green sweatshirt, table, chairs, pc - ok this is mundane, but you get the idea, I am thankful for everything in my life, even the mess.

Praise God from whom All blessings flow!

Worst Movies Ever Blogfest

2011-09-19T06:12:00.000-07:00

I admit when I saw the rocking Alex J. Cavanaugh's invitation for the Worst Movie Ever Blogfest, I thought it would be easy. Who hasn’t seen an awful movie and wished they hadn’t even spent the money for a movie rental/matinee show/Netflix fee?

The reality is, I've either forgotten most of the really awful ones, or purposely blocked them from my mind to protect myself. There were really only 3 or 4 that stood out that met the qualifications for this blogfest - had to a be a movie released on screen or DVD first, and not made for TV. I know there have been other perfectly awful movies over the years that I have seen, but these are the ones that stand out over time as being the worst ever, can't-believe-I wasted-my time-or-money watching them.

King Kong (the classic) – in short summary: scream and faint, scream and faint, and some Freudian references about men, women, and great apes.

Watching this movie as a teen, late at night, trying to figure out why it was so loved or considered a classic, I realized that I NEVER wanted to write a heroine that weak, or hero that dumb. Lesson learned. The only scene I like from the movie is where King Kong hangs from the Empire State Building, you know the one that most people know without ever torturing themselves by watching the whole movie.
Oh, and I hate the new King Kong too. It didn't get any better with a facelift.

Bonfire of the Vanities – a literary comedy about shallow, selfish people that was stilted, boring, and anything but funny.

Based on a literary book that was based on Ecclesiastes, the statement “all is meaningless, a chasing after the wind” gives you an idea of what it feels like to sit through this movie. I almost didn’t make it, but a friend of mine wanted to see if it got better. It didn’t. I’ve had people tell me that if I didn’t enjoy it, it’s because I just didn’t get the rich, literary irony. Sorry. I did get the attempts at literary irony. They sucked. It had great actors going through the motions of attempting to show the shallow lives of their characters, but they just came off stilted and ineffectual.

Expendables – an action movie with too many tired action heroes.

I thought having Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenagger, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Steve Austin, and Terry Crews in one action-packed movie would be fun. I was wrong. The movie should have been made into a comedy, but instead it tried to be serious. The torture of the General’s daughter was icky to watch, and made the tears that the heroes shed over their own lost souls seem shallow. I know they were supposed to be crying over the loss of innocence, but it felt like they were just crying over themselves. And they looked like they had to use onion juice to get the tears. It just didn’t work for me, and most of the lines seemed stilted. Statham and Jet Li were still great in their roles, but even they couldn’t make this movie worthwhile.

Speed 2 - do I really have to explain?

Sandra is one of my favorite actresses, but this movie ... well, I barely made it past the first 10 minutes. Once you know the set up, you know the movie. There are no interesting quirks, turns, or sparks to make this movie entertaining.

Almost any horror movie with Bruce Campbell – he’s funny, the movies he’s in are just plain dumb.

And, actually almost any horror movie makes into this category for me anyway. Horror usually equals dumb. And when it doesn't, I have nightmares. So either way, I generally don't watch them any more.

And there are many other awful movies, but I'm trying really hard to forget them, if I haven't already.

Scripture Blessings:
"I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind." Ecclesiastes 1:14

"There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too I say is meaningless." Ecclesiastes 8:14

So, shall we chase after the wind, or should we chase after the Lord? (for me that's the pointed question of Ecclesiastes.)

Life Blessings:
Walked/Ran a 10K Yesterday!

Visited a sweet angel in the hospital!

Made more progress on my WIP revision this weekend than I have in a week (mixed blessing)

Slipping Through My Fingers Like Grains of Sand

2011-09-16T09:24:00.001-07:00

In my last post I mentioned that there would be/might be something special today . . . and I had my dates wrong. This has been an all too common occurance this last week. I've forgotten a myriad of details like:

sending a fax to a friend, sending a mailing and a fax of my homeschool intent form to the school district (remembered on the last possible legal day), purchasing ski/snowboard season passes before they turned expensive (the passes were $20 less yesterday but I forgot until today), sending an important e-mail to the worship team at my church, and getting to the grocery store for dog food.

And . . . last but not least (although not of first importance to my dogs), not knowing the date that my story of my grandma's story "The Horse and the Well" will be featured on Christine Tyler's blog. That's the something special I thought might be today - I'm just getting a little ahead of things. September 30th, Christine Tyler is hosting half of that story on her blog, and the rest will be found here. This will take place thanks to Christine's awesome Sparkfest, and her sweet invitation.

So, have you ever let details slip through your fingers like grains of sand into a tide of forgetfulness?

Sailing, Powerboat, and Seadoo Writing + Blessings

2011-09-14T10:15:00.000-07:00

My post was inspired by a boating trip a few weeks ago with my family, and my writing life. I am in the midst of powering through activities and life with my kids and writing, and I apologize if I haven't been a good blog visitor lately. Tomorrow, I'll dedicate some time to visit, and on Friday . . . I just might have something exciting to share.

Drifting, Sailing, or Powering Through Plot?

I used to think I could jump onto the Dawn Writer, and flourish my pen to fill my sail-pages without using a compass, or a chart. I thought I would have clear sailing into the horizon . . . which would naturally land me in Published Author’s Port.

I didn’t count on the Storm of Doubt, or the misguided winds of Unexpected Characters who seemed better than my protaganist, or the Lazy Channel that sent my Dawn Writer drifting into the Island of Unrelenting Fog. The horizon line went missing, the Dawn Writer hit a dead calm, and I abandoned my first novel-ship.

At that point, I decided I only had the strength and stamina to write poetry and short stories. Basically I went from a sailing vessel to a seadoo.

I tried to turn all my ideas into shorter pieces. It didn’t really work. I kept taking seadoo-stories onto the open ocean, and then stalling them. I often received this feedback from magazine editors when they rejected my stories: “This is not a short story, seems like a piece from a longer work.”

So, I went from reading books about sailing into the horizon line without a compass or a timeline, and started reading books about outlines, charts, compasses, and travel timetables. I checked books out from the library that normally would make me cringe. First Draft in 30 Days by Karen S. Wiesner went from being a “not-sure-if-I-want-to-check-it-out” book to a book I checked out and re-checked out until I received a notice from the library stating politely that they really wanted their book back, NOW. So, I politely turned it back in, and then joined NANOWRIMO 2010. I wrote my second novel in 30 days.

It was smooth sailing.

Well, until I sailed out on Dawn Revision with a compass that blew overboard during the Storm of Busy Life. A few months ago, I finally went back to port, made myself a Map of Revision Crevasse, and decided to take the power boat Dawn Revision II out for the trip. I gave myself a deadline, and I’m keeping it. Daily, I check my compass and my charts of the troubled waters, powering through the safe passages, heading straight for the bustling Port of Query.

So, do you like to drift with the tides, sail with a full set of charts, or drive your novel like a powerboat?

This is a link I recently enjoyed that gives a good snapshot of plotting for the reluctant plotter.
Provost Sentence - Shelly Brown's great post on writing a provost sentence, which I like to call a basic plot sentence.

Scripture Blessings:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13 (yes this one again)

Other awesome blessings from my life:
1. My Dad's upper G.I. test results showed no cancer or internal bleeding in that part of his digestive system. Praise God! He has more tests coming, but with some iron supplements to fight the anemia, he is feeling much more energetic.

2. Our dear friends' daugther who is the hospital continues to amaze her doctors and nurses with her joy, her peace, and her health progress. Her brother has been shining his light with the other patients at the children's hospital too. Their family has been a blessing to us, and now they are blessing others!
Thanks for all your prayers and kind thoughts!!!

Blessed by Sacrifice

2011-09-11T13:46:00.001-07:00

Today we rememberd those whom have blessed us with their sacrifice:
1. Jesus, who showed us how to lay down a life for the sake of others.
2. Firefighters.
3. Police Officers.
4. EMS.
5. Those who serve, and have served in our military.
6. All the chaplains, and workers who worked at the ground zero site for months, uncovering wreckage, finding remains, and encouraging one another through one of the darkest valleys our nation has ever faced.
7. The FBI
8. The Secret Service
9. The CIA
10. Those who died on 9/11 just going about their daily lives, being every day heroes.
11. All the families of those who serve, and have served our country.

Thank you.

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

Do Engineering and Latin and Greek Root Vocabulary Mix?

2011-09-09T19:35:00.000-07:00

So, it is an amazingly hot September night in our household. We've been swimming, grilled chicken for dinner, and worked our way through a few science experiments. My husband asks our daughters what else they did while homeschooling today. Somehow we ended up discussing my youngest daughter's vocabulary lesson in which she is learning words rooted on the word "cycle" and "circ." My husband, being the kind of guy he is, started thinking about how this vocabulary related to his life and work.

So . . . what do you get when you mix Latin and Greek Root Vocabulary with an Electrical Engineer? And then have a snarky secondary education major/English major commenting on the sidelines?

Bad jokes like this one.

Cycle means one wheel or one revolution.

Bicycle means two wheels.

Unicycle means one wheel.

Hertz is the name of one electrical cycle.

What happens to an electrical engineer on a unicycle?

He hertz - he hurts.

It has nothing to do with writing, unless you want to create a character with an individual sense of humor . . .

My oldest daughter has also been helping me warm up my writing with riddles.

What is set on the table, is cut on the table, but never gets eaten?
A deck of cards.

What goes in the house, around the house, but never touches the house?
The sun's rays.

With all this warm up help, I'll soon be writing some kind of riddling quest fantasy book - watch out Bilbo!

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Fear of the Unfinished

2011-09-07T08:21:00.001-07:00

Alex J. Cavanaugh, in his usual encouraging way, has blessed the blog-world with the Insecure Writer's Support group. To find out more check out his Insecure Writers Support Group main page, and his first post Insecure Writers Support Group Post and Tips

My post today is based on one of my biggest fears, and the best way I've found to fight it.

FEAR OF THE UNFINISHED WORK! It just doesn't have the same ring to it as "Shark Survivor 3" but the reality is I find the thought that I might not finish my novel to be far more frightening than any horror movie. I've had other projects that haven't been finished, so I have a foundation of failure that builds up this particular fear.

I know I'm supposed to view those past novel projects as learning step stones. I feel more like they are ugly skeletons that threaten to pour out of my closet in the dark of the night when I wonder if I will ever finish the revision of my current WIP.

So there, I admitted it, my biggest fear. So now what? How do I keep from panicking?

1. I sit down and write. Every Day. Just write.

2. I pray.

3. I visit other writers' blogs, and find encouragement.

4. I read the first novels of other writers, and find encouragement in knowing that they've been where I am now, and they made it.

5. Then I teach writing to my kids, and to kids at our homeschool co-operative.

6. Then I write, and pray.

7. And write.

What's your biggest writing fear, and how do you overcome it?

Scripture Blessing:
"For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord. How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?" 1 Thessalonians 3:9-10

Blessings and Blackberries Again

2011-09-05T13:51:00.000-07:00

Awesome Blessings from the last 7 days:

1. Bike-riding over 20 miles with my family and my hubby. (Girls rode about 13 of that)

2. Tubing behind the boat at Sun Lakes State Park in Eastern Washington (the sunny side of the state).

3. Remembering how to drive the boat while my husband either tubed with the girls, or water-skied.

4. Relaxation time.

5. Making three way allergy free chocolate chip cookies - one third regular, one third white chocolate, and one third regular and white chocolate chip with Macadamia nuts! Love making it work for everyone.

6. Staying in a little cabin while on vacation in EW. (The wind would have blown a tent down easily at night)

7. An awesome church family.

8. God's Word Sunday.

9. The Heart of Worship song, and the Heart of Worship story . . . have to find that link one of these days.

10. Watching my girls get horse-riding lessons from my sister-in-law.

11. Visiting with my sister-in-law and her husband.

12. All the prayer support for our friends and their daughter. She is doing "the best that the nurses have ever seen for someone her age in a halo" and she is going without any pain medication and playing every day. So, thank you, and keep it up!

The Blackberries are still ripe, and ready to be picked again! We will be out there with our hands among the thorns tonight, pulling off the juicy sweet fruit and getting a few scratches along the way.

And in life, well, the blackberries are still at large. Our friends still need prayers, and my Dad is undergoing multiple medical tests. I know he's 73, but I'm not ready for him to be ill in any way yet.

Homeschool starts here tomorrow.

My book is still under revision and I wonder when I'm going to carve out time - less sleep? Not giving up family time.

Our new church is always an adventure.

Keeping this scripture blessing close at the moment:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13.

Blackberries, Prayers, and Vacations

2011-08-29T09:35:00.000-07:00

Blackberry season is here! We celebrated the rich ripe sweetness with plenty of picking, followed by a hot date night with my husband and I making jam, and canning it. (while our kids were at a friends' house)

In the midst of the fun of the weekend, which included a get together with friends, a wedding, blackberry fun, and a going away blessing party, we also had many prayers on our hearts.

Dear, sweet friends of ours are undergoing a major storm in their lives. Their sweet seven-year-old daughter (who also has a rascally sense of humor) underwent surgery today to be fitted with a halo. She'll be in traction for six weeks, and then undergo a more major surgery - one that has only been performed 5 times in the world, and she'll have three surgeons working on her during that time. Our friends need marjor support in prayer, in presence, and in just dealing with the every day mess, and bills. The mom in the family will live with her daughter at the hospital, while the Dad works, and the older brother goes to school. Grandparents are marshalling their support, along with friends.

You may remember that our church sent a family to Disneyland . . . this is that family.

So we have been praying a lot for them, and we know they need more ongoing prayers.

In addition to that, we have friends who are moving away, accepting a Pastoral call and a family call to a ministry in Post Falls, Idaho. We have known them, and considered them sweet, good friends for 10 years, and it is really hard to say Godspeed. We'll keep in touch, but it won't be the same. Our lives have been inter-connected for so long that although we are excited for the blessings they are receiving, we are also saddened by the fact that we won't see them at least once a week.

Today, we transition in one more way . . . we are going on a mini-vacation tonight, with my parents in charge of the house, dogs, and cat. We are excited to have one last splash of summer before school starts. However, intermixed with all of the joy is the ongoing concern and prayer for our friends.

So, it's blackberry season. Sweet fruit, big thorns . . . all mixed together like life.

Campaign Plunge

2011-08-25T06:26:00.000-07:00

I've decided to take the campaign plunge, by joining Rachael Harris' Third Writers' Platform Building Campaign. It sounds like awesome writing fun, and a great way to encourage and build each other up as writers.

The last time she hosted a campaign, I saw some of the really cool fests that fellow bloggers were participating in, and I struggled with writer envy. Seriously. She knows how to hosts some fun events. So, if you would like to get know fellow bloggers with similar interests, join in on some awesome writing fests, I recommend joining the Third Writers' Platform Building Campaign.

I admit, I sat on the fence a few days thinking of this . . . just because my life feels slightly swamped with awesome blessings . . . but then I decided I would join in and try it anway.

Sparkfest: Doomed to be a Writer

2011-08-25T06:09:00.000-07:00

Sparkfest re-post?! Believe it or not, the month of July was so crazy with busy-ness and sick kids that I actually thought the sparkfest started on July 22nd - I literally was a month early when I first posted "Doomed to be a writer". Considering that I am usually 15 minutes late to everything, and hope to be late to my funeral . . .well, it was interesting timing for me. Kind of embarassing really. Anyway, here it is again. Doomed to be a writer -

Sparkfest is an awesome Blogfest hosted by Christine Tyler at The Writer Coaster

We get a choice of three questions, or the wonderful random choice of making up a little bit of our own idea and mixing it with the theme . . . which is more the way I write already.

So, I thought about the question: which book made you realize you were doomed to be a writer?

And I have to say . . . all of them. Really, every book I read makes me realize that I'm doomed to be a writer. Whether I love the books I read, or strongly dislike them to the point of barely restraining myself from the urge to throw them across the room . . . I still come away wanting to write. And I love reading. I read like I breathe. I read fiction all the time, and non-fiction every day in smaller doses. Every time I put a book down, I am filled with the compelling urge to write, and write, and write again.

Sometimes the perfect, sweet, wow, amazing, incredible books fill me with a bittersweet hope that I will write like that someday.

Sometimes the awful, disgusting beyond belief, yuck, crummy, no-way-would-the-heroine-be-that-naive books fill me with the need to write a better story.

I can't remember the first book that made me realize that I'm doomed and blessed to be a writer, but each time I read I feel the need for paper and pen, or keyboard and screen.

If you haven't joined Sparkfest - go and sign up. Or just add your thoughts to the comment section - what book (s) fill you with the urge to write?

Scripture Blessings:
"And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." Genesis 1:3

Sparkfest: The horse in the well

2011-08-24T06:26:00.000-07:00

What? You've never heard of "The Horse in the Well" - one of the greatest stories from my child hood?

Just kidding.

In my early years, "The Horse in the Well" was my favorite bed-time story at my Grandma's house. My Grandparents lives just across the street from me. When my parents decided to move to Enumclaw in 1974, my mom's parents discovered that the house across the street from our dream home was for sale, and they managed to buy it and finish moving in before we did.

Spending the night at Grandma and Grandpa's house became a regular, and delightful part of my childhood. I would ask if I could spend the night there, even if my parents weren't going out on a date night. Everything about bedtime at their house was just a bit different than ours. Instead of sleeping in my familiar second story room, I was in the second bedroom - the guest room in their tiny two bedroom home. A pink, fuzzy slip-cover adorned the wide guest bed, and my Grandmother had a collection of ladies gloves and scarves in the top drawer in the guest room. I liked to try them on before she came in to tell me bed-time stories.

At my house, my mom would read to me every night: one book, and the Bible. I loved hearing her voice, and the familiar stories. Books are meant to be read aloud. There is a certain rythm and beauty to a story well-read.

At my grandparent's house, my grandma would tell me stories without a book in hand. For a while I was fascinated with how many she knew and how she could tell them so well. She knew many standard stories like Goldilocks, The Three Little Pigs, and Sleeping Beauty. Her voice would strengthen and soften in all the right parts. However, her best stories were ones that couldn't be found in any book. They were stories from her life like: The Boy Who Fell in the Ice, The House that Caught on Fire, The Man who Played the Fiddle like a Violin, and my favorite, The Horse in the Well.

In nearly all of these stories, my grandmother's voice would become passionate and tender. Her voice and face portrayed a strength of memories and emotions. As a teen, when she lived in our home so we could care for her after a stroke, I asked her to write the stories down. They weren't the same on paper. I wish I had tape recorded her voice telling those stories.

Even after the stroke, when she spoke those stories aloud there was power in the words. I could picture her brother Clayton (always the hero in each of the stories), the mare and her foal, the old well cover, the fall, and the heroic climb from the bottom of the well with the foal on my great-uncle Clayton's shoulders. I could even picture my grandma as a little girl, with her sister Edna, both half-up the fence, with their feet on a lower rung, and their arms over the top, wishing they could help, and knowing they couldn't step in front of the mare who ran wildly around the well.

After hearing stories like that, I wanted to tell my own. I rarely ever write stories from my real life, but I consider it now and then when I think of my grandmother's voice rising and falling to a hush in the right moments. Storytelling is the heart of writing, and I long to capture the truth and passion of life in words.

Sparkfest: Long ago in a galaxy far, far away

2011-08-23T08:14:00.000-07:00

Sparked by a Movie Again!

A Long Time Ago in galaxy Far, Far Away . . .

I watched a movie that fed my imagination with more flight, with a fight for justice against overwhelming odds and evil, a Princess with spunk, a young man/boy with a new vision, a rebel without a cause and his best furry friend, and a wise man without enough time to teach his student to use the force.

Maybe it's just my generation, but this movie and the series of movies affected the way that I played, dreamed, and wrote stories. I didn't venture into writing sci-fi until my college years, but I certainly daydreamed, played "pretend" with my cousins and imagined new Star Wars plots.

For me, the Star Wars movies were deeply meaningful, fun, and fulfilling. They hit me on many levels. Today I'll just mention one: the spiritied heroine.

The idea that a woman could be beautiful, strong of mind and spirit and be the romantic lead was awesome. I never wanted to be a Princess in a tiara and a spotless dress. Princess Leia gave me hope that I could at least pretend to be a Princess with spunk, fire, and strength - even if my dress got dirty in a trash compactor.

In all of my writing, I hope to create heroines like Leia . . . well, maybe not exactly like Leia, but determined, pivotal characters who take a stand against injustice, fight for their people, and still have time for some romance while fixing a spaceship in a swamp that turns out to be the stomach of a planet dwelling giant alien.

Sparkfest is an awesome blogfest hosted by Christine Tyler. The official questions to answer are:

What book made you realize you were doomed to be a writer?
What author set off that spark of inspiration for your current Work in Progress?
Or, Is there a book or author that changed your world view?

As writers, we're always striving to get out a message of inspiration to others. This blogfest is a celebration for those who have done this for us. Join the Spark Blogfest, aka Sparkfest, by posting your answer to any of the three prompts above (or make one up as long as it fits the theme).

I admit, I've kind of gone into the "make one up" and hope it fits the theme. I'm looking at all the storytellers who sparked my imagination and drive to write great stories. Tomorrow, I'm going to write about the first storyteller and reader to touch my life, and then I'll write about books and authors . . .really, I will.

Scripture Blessings:

"On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worship of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message. When she and members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. 'If you consider me a believer in the Lord,' she said, 'come and stay and my house.' And she persuaded us." Acts 16:13-15

(This Scripture is dear to me because it portrays one of the strong women of the Bible, who is often overlooked. We have to realize that in the time of these events, women were not often treated well. To have one show up in the Biblical narrative shows that women were leaders in the early church within their societal roles. The Bible is one of the few ancient books, and one of the few religious works, that shows women acting as role models and leaders. Just read it, and see.)

Sparkfest: Off to Neverland

2011-08-22T06:58:00.000-07:00

(Disney Image)

Sparkfest: Off to Neverland

“We’re off to Neverland. Here we go . . .”

Sitting in the theatre, watching Peter, Wendy, Jon, and Michael fly around the Darling nursery, then around Big Ben and into the starry sky – straight on until morning – that moment sparked my imagination for the first, fully amazed moment in my memory.

I don’t know if I was an imaginative child before that. My earliest memories are about running with my dog past my mom’s row of sunflowers. After Peter Pan, I daydreamed of flying to far off, magical places. Neverland had endless possibilities. My second story bedroom window seemed like the perfect launching place for flight, and I liked to leave it ajar, just in case.

It helped that my airplane mechanic Dad had his own Ercoupe, and I had been flying with my parents in that from the age of two months. Flight has always been and always will be a part of my dreams.

(pic from Young Eagles website of an Ercoupe 415c)

Sparkfest invites us to remember who, and what sparked our writing. Before I started writing my stories, I was daydreaming them, flying through night skies and blue days. Before I read Peter Pan, I sang the songs from the Disney movie, and danced and leaped through my own creative re-tellings of the story in my bedroom, in our living room, and in our yard, from tire-swing to tree branch – anything that could almost capture the feeling of flight.

And now, I feel an urge building to write a little story about that . . .
Then, I’ll try to figure out how to “fly” through my novel revision . . .

Enjoy Sparkfest this week! If you want to know more, visit The Writer Coaster: The Spark Blogfest

Scripture Blessings:
“but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31

Barefoot in the Park Birthday

2011-08-20T05:45:00.000-07:00

(Photo by David April)

Have you ever walked barefoot in the park, or just the grass outside, and let the cool seep in through the soles of your feet on a hot summer day?

Have you ever truly stopped to smell a rose?

Or dipped your toes in cool water?

Eaten watermelon for lunch?

Today's my 40th's birthday.

I've been asked these last few weeks to plan a celebration or allow my husband to surprise me, and I just couldn't. There were too many other events on the horizon . . . or at least that's what I told myself. I didn't think that 40 mattered that much to me, but suddenly it did.

It felt heavy. A day that full of weight, circumstance, and measure. I started to weight and measure the circumstances of my life and ask myself these kinds of questions: What had I done with my life that mattered, really? Had I succeeded, lost enough weight, measured up?

Until I woke at 3a.m. this morning and realized, I would rather walk barefoot in the park and smell the roses than measure my life's worth against some kind of crazy scale of worldly success.

That's never been me, so why would I think of doing that on my birthday?!

So today and tomorrow (I can't just celebrate once!) I'm going to walk barefoot in cool grass, eat watermelon for lunch, dip my toes in the ocean, smell roses, go for a walk, and spend some time on, near, and in the water.

If you would like to help me celebrate my birthday, I invite you to walk barefoot in the grass, eat watermelon, smell a rose, enjoy some water in a lake, ocean, or river. Enjoy life!

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

WriteOnCon, Walking On, and Writing

2011-08-18T09:13:00.000-07:00

If I followed my schedule, I would be blogging about an important world concern that has touched my heart. There are many worthy topics there.

However, currently I am gathering wisdom from WriteOnCon, walking my legs off (they could use lots of that) with my youngest daughter and my mom, writing some fun new little pieces, and revising, and revising, and revising, and on and on.

So, here's to writing on, walking on, and revising on! Go writers!

If you haven't joined WriteOnCon, or checked it out, click on the link on my right sidebar. It's pretty awesome!

Acceptance, Revision, WriteOnCon, Kayaking, and Monetizing my Blog?

2011-08-17T08:31:00.000-07:00

The Title and the Reality

The title of my blog sounds like too much. I can't possibly tackle all those topics at once, can I? Well, it's just all part of my life. I love how much God has blessed my life with family, friends, and purpose. Don't get me wrong about that. But there are moments when the purposes that God has placed in my life seem to conflict like multiple rocks thrown into a pond creating a maze of ripples that push against one another, and I strive to find a common theme, a moment that ties it all together.

So, Acceptance - it's awesome, isn't it? When someone accepts our writing, our work, a part of who we are? Yes, it is. However, in the writing world, and sometimes even in the real world, that acceptance comes with a list of suggested revisions from an editor/supervisor. "Yes, we want your story/poem/novel/idea, but we feel you need to make changes, here, here, here, and here, and oh, there too." Even when the revisions make our writing stronger, there is that moment when we first get THE list that feels like someone put rocks on our stomachs.

And it's not just me saying that, check out this video from Lindsey Leavit at WriteOnCon: The Debut Year where she shares the ups and downs of her debut year as an author, and exactly how she felt about the 12 page list of revisions she was given.

So, if you haven't joined Write On Con, I highly recommend it. I think it's running today and tomorrow. It's my first year checking it out, and the reality is, I don't have enough time to get everything out of it, but I'm enjoying the tidbits that fit into my life, like that video, and this short article Middle Grades Got Heart by Joanna Stampfel-Volpe.

All of these amazing tidbits mixed in with my ongoing revision of my current novel, and the poem that is going to be published (yay!) are working my writing muscles to the max, king of like how kayaking worked my stomach and back muscles to the max yesterday.

My oldest daughter is fully engaged with Junior Zookeeper Zoo Camp in the afternoons this week, and my youngest loves to kayak almost as much as I do. So away we went yesterday, for the first time in a year, kayaking south from Owen's Beach, across the ferry terminal docks and marina entrance and towards Ruston Way. Heavy boater traffic forced us to turn around, and to paddle harder than we normally would. At the time, if felt great. I was loving every moment (well, except when we weren't sure that power boat saw us - yikes!)and then we slowed down by the beach shoreline, and checked out crabs, jellyfish, sea stars, and lots of kelp. It felt wonderful to be out on the water.

By the time we returned to our starting point, I realized that maybe, just maybe, I was even more out of shape than I realized. My stomach and back muscles were already protesting. In fact, I thought I might be sick from the pain in my stomach muscles. They burned and ached, and I wasn't sure I wanted to walk to my car. Lots of water and some ibuprofin later, I resolved to get serious again about getting into shape. I don't want my generally lazy nature to get in the way of having fun with my daughters.

How does this relate to writing at all? Well, I have a tendency to get lazy with my writing now and then, and when I decide to be serious, it takes a painful revision effort to get my writing into the kind of shape it needs to be in to be fun. That poem that's getting published? I revised it at least a dozen times already. And it still needed more.

This scares me a bit, when it comes to my novel revision. I keep calling this revision step my first revision, but it's not, not really. I started revising it twice before now, and then stopped to say . . . "oh, it just sucks too much." This is my third time with revision with the Crystal Sword. It's going better than it has before, and I am sticking through the painful, "cut-three-pages-at-once" and "take-those-characters-out-of-the-picture" parts. I'm a fifth of the way through it. I know I can finish it. I just have to crunch my way through the pages, much like I need to crunch my stomach every day, so I can kayak without pain.

And monetizing my blog? Well, not today, but it's a thought, maybe. Is it worth it? That's my question for all of the bloggers out there. Is monetizing worth it? What do you think?

Scripture Blessings:

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ - to the glory and praise of God." Philippians 1:9-11

Sunday Blessings August 14th

2011-08-14T17:30:00.001-07:00

Sunday Blessings!

Music Blessings:
1. I'll Fly Away

2. Amazing Grace

3. Heart of Worship

4. Another Hallelujah

Worship Blessings:

5. Prayer

6. Communion

7. Sharing of the Peace

8. A great sermon!

Church Picnic Blessings

9. Fellowship at the park right after worship at the park!

10. Conversations and laughter

11. Small children, big kids, and adults who act like kids

12. Water balloon tosses, and bubble blowing contests.

Church Softball Blessings:

13. We played hard, we cheered for one another, and we had fun.

14. The team that beat us is playing in the finals, and they are a great bunch of people.

Reading/Home Blessings:

15. Sweet dogs, and cat, and quiet time.

16. Girls reading, beading, sewing, and playing.

17. Finishing a good book about true friendship, forged in the midst of sci-fi action.
CassaStar by Alex J. Cavanaugh starts slow, but builds tension and pacing quickly to reveal the heart and depth of friendship, in the midst of action packed, page turning space battle. I highly recommend this book, and I'm looking forward to the sequel, CassaFire. Plus if you happen to be a blogger, or just a blog-lover, I highly recommend Alex's blog Alex J. Cavanaugh - he writes a fun, friendly, and helpful blog for writers, readers, and movie lovers. He'll be hosting the Worst Movies Ever Blogfest in September. No one can make you wish you'd seen awful movies like Alex . . . so check it out.

Scripture Blessings:
John 14:6
"Jesus answered, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'"

Hunger

2011-08-12T11:41:00.000-07:00

Hunger. 12 million people. Thirst. Pain. Death.

It's hard to imagine the scale of painful suffering that is taking place right now in the Horn of Africa. As we sit in our comfortable homes, sip on our expensive coffees, and drive our gas-guzzling cars, there are chilren and adults dying of hunger.

What can we do?

We can pray.

We can give.

We can change our lifestyles to free up our finances so we can give more freely.

Do we need all the stuff we buy ourselves?
Do we need that cup of coffee, or that bottle of soda?

How do we live a regular life while people are dying?
Are we turning a blind eye to the suffering?

Please understand, these are questions I am asking myself, and I hope that you consider them too.

For more information about giving through World Vision, an organization with a record of responsibility, please follow this link World Vision and Horn of Africa or watch the video.

15 Years

2011-08-10T07:13:00.000-07:00

15 years ago,

I woke up to bright sunshine after a night of little sleep. Anticipation, nerves, and excitement ran through my veins, and every moment felt new, sharp with sweetness and excitement.

My soon-to-be husband, my dad, and my uncle all unloaded a moveable floor onto my parents back lawn next to their old patio. Instant dance floor.

My mom, my aunt, my best friend, and I folded a few more origami cranes, and walked through the plans for the food. We didn't have caterers, but family and friends would all pitch in to make sure the trays of food were put out and taken away at the reception. (In reality, I think my aunt and a church friend did 90 percent of the work.)

A friend of ours from our church brought my finished dress, and I eagerly put it on. It was perfectly lovely, and just right for me. Designed by a talented woman, stitched with care, and with added features like snaps to hold up the short train of my dress when I wanted to dance later, and the flowing sleeves to hide my surgery scars on my arms but not constrict my ability to hug everyone. No shop dress could have been as beautiful or fitting.

My shoes were another matter, purchased to please friends who thought I should wear heels. But I wore them for the ceremony, and the pictures, and then kicked them off to run and dance barefoot at the reception.

The wedding took place in a small brick church, stuffed full of family and friends, some of whom sat in the narthex because of the lack of seats inside. Pastor Martin lovingly conducted the ceremony and said a few short words about marriage. He had planned something a bit longer, but with the heat inside those brick walls, it seemed best to keep it short and sweet.

My aunt stuck her tongue out at my husband to keep him from getting the jitters, and we all shared laughter together throughout the ceremony. My husband's hands were warm just like mine, and we were both nervously happy. Despite dating for five years, we were still slightly cautious about this big step . . .this union between man and woman, husband and wife, bound together by the Holy Spirit, by our Lord Creator, and our Savior. We knew this would be forever, a lifetime commitment.

Then, we celebrated! We were married, we signed the papers, we walked to our reception through a grassy field behind the church, and into my parents back yard blooming with flowers that my family and I had planted just for this day. The apples were ripening on the old apple trees, we were tempted to stop and pick the last blueberries, but we continued on to the crowds at the rented tables, and immediately were swept into one grinning conversation after another.

My cousin and his band started to play fun music, and we danced, and we danced. Then we stopped to eat, and then everyone started to dance. We danced, and talked, and danced again until most of our guests had gone. Some were disgruntled that we didn't follow the "regular procedure" of being swept away in a limo after cutting the cake, but we wanted to celebrate with our friends and family on our wedding day. Our friends and family who stayed understood, and celebrated with us until after the sun went down. My cousin's band said they had never played before for such a lively, fun crowd.

My husband and I went away together, in our car bedecked in well wishes, into our future together, with face muscles that ached from smiling for hours on end.

And today, 15 years later, we are still smiling, and celebrating, still going into the future together with every step and every moment, with our Lord and Savior holding us close in our commitment to each other and to Him.

I am so thankful for my husband, my marriage, for our family and friends, and for our Savior who binds us together at all times, and in all seasons.

"Two are better than one,
because they have good return for their work;
if one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up.
Also, if two lie down together, they will
keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly
broken."
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Saturday Sharing

2011-08-06T12:59:00.000-07:00

"In our lives and in the church, we are never without revelation from God. At all times you and I have his message to us in all its power, authority, clarity, and might. We don't have to work to come up with a word from God; we siimply have to trust the Word he has already given us. When we do, the Word of God will accomplish the work of God among the people of God."
from p.40 Radical Together by David Platt

Just thought I would share a smidge of what I'm reading today. I'm feverish and not feeling well, but still reading some great books.

Hope all is well in blogland.

Psalm 119:105 (I think - reference in the other room) "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

Writing Wednesday: Deadlines or Lifelines?

2011-08-03T07:44:00.000-07:00

Deadlines or Lifelines?

Deadlines sound final, imposing, possibly even painful, or fatal.

Are they final? In some ways, yes. A certain time limit is given, and a certain word count, polish, and final touch to a story or article must be might. In some ways, no. The editor asks for a little revision, and a new deadline is set. The proofs come. The magazine/e-zine/anthology is published, and rejoiced over far past the last deadline for the writer. The work feels alive on the page. (even if one wants to tweak it just a little more to make it better)

Are deadlines imposing, possibly even painful? No. Well, yes. Well, No. At first a deadline is like a wonderful goal. Mini-goals are set to make it. Success feels certain. Then, a stumbling block arises, and the deadline hangs over one’s head like a guillotine. Then extra time is found, creativity is maximized, and the deadline is reached with a sense of satisfied freedom.

Are deadlines fatal? No. The deadline is a lifeline. When you know your work is wanted, needed, planned for, it gives encouragement, and shoots energy into the words.

Even when the deadline is self-imposed, there is a liveliness of writing to be found while racing the clock, or calendar.

What do you think of deadlines? Are they lifelines?

Scripture Blessings:

"'I am the Alpha and the Omega,' says the Lord God, 'who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.'" Revelation 1:8

Tuesday, I love you.

2011-08-02T15:46:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, Tuesday, Shoesday, Tuesday . . .

Tuesdays are my real Mondays . . . or at least that's what I like to think. Mondays fall apart just after the weekend, with weariness and busy-ness, and so much to conquer for the week.

Tuesdays sweetly slip by with a relaxed pace. I feel energized, and at peace with my giant checklist of "things to do". I feel like it's all possible (with God in charge).

Tuesdays feel like a comfortable pair of shoes.

Aaaah. Tuesday, I love you.

Tuesdays are the days when I begin/finish projects, and set aside time for the rest to happen throughout the week.

Tuesdays are the days when I don't mind if my writing is sloppy, but if there is a kernel of something good I embrace it.

On many Tuesdays, I actually get to classes/appointments early or on time . . . without painful struggle. If I get someplace on time on a Monday, it usually involves at least mental pain, and some important item being forgotten or lost. My daughters are usually lamenting a lack of sleep, an important item . . . or just something being lost. But on Tuesdays, we get where we are going. If we forget something, somehow it all works out.

Tuesdays are full of grace.

Plus, Tuesdays start with the letter "T" which is my favorite letter in the alphabet. T for tea, and T for Tyrean, and T for terrific. (Mondays are Moody, Tuesdays are Terrific, etc)

Do you have a favorite day of the week?

Scripture Blessings:

"But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it." Ephesians 4:7

Sunday Blessings - Every Day Blessings

2011-07-31T17:26:00.000-07:00

Every Day Blessings

When I woke this moring, I wanted to write something profound. Instead, I found myself thankful for the every day stuff, the mediocre things of life. I decided to put off my post until later.

It's later, and yet I find myself still thankful for the every day Blessings . . . so I thought I would share some with you, and you can decide if they are profound or not.

Today I'm giving thanks for:

1. Spoons.

2. Strawberries.

3. Apple trees.

4. Mornings.

5. Tea.

6. Dogs, and cats.

7. Softball games - even the ones we lose.

8. A small child stepping on my foot and leaning against my leg, like I'm someone reliable to lean on . . .

9. My daughters, husband, parents, in-laws, family, and friends.

10. My church.

11. Trust.

Scripture Blessings:

"The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, 'Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.'
Elisha replied to her, 'How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?'
'Your servant has nothing there at all,' she said, 'except a little oil.
Elisha said, 'go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few. Then go inside and shut the door behind you and our sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.'
She left him and afteward shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, 'Bring me another one.'
But he replied, 'There is not a jar left.' Then the oil stopped flowing.
She went and told the man of God, and he said, 'Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.'" 2 Kings 4:1-7

Writer Wednesday on a Thursday

2011-07-28T07:53:00.000-07:00

Writing for Writers Wednesdays on a Thursday . . . well, that sums up my life's scheduling abilities at the moment, yep.

Thank you for the wonderful birthday wishes for my daughter yesterday!

So, I've been to some amazing writing sites in blogland, and I have to say that I would like to add to the fervor, the cleverness, and the helpfulness that I see being shared from one writer to another across the world. However, I think my main piece of advice, my main standby is
Just write!

Seems to simple, doesn't it? And yet, isn't that we all need to keep encouraging each other to do?
Just write.
Write when the day is l-o-n-g.
Write when the time seems short.
Write when it rains, or it's so beautiful you ache to go outside.
Write when there are tears in your life, and when there is laughter.
Write when there is rejection, and write when you've gained success.
Write every day.
Write every time you have a moment.
Be a writer. Own it. Live it. Just do it.
Write.

Scripture Blessings:
"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses all knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3:17b-19

What time is it? and a Double Digit Birthday!

2011-07-27T11:04:00.000-07:00

What Time is It?

Well . . . it's not time for Sparkfest yet! I posted a whole month in advance! Whether this was due to lack of sleep during Creation Fest, or a sense of "busy-busy-ness" I can't say. However, I feel a bit sheepish and foolish, and . . . well, I can only hold my head under a rock for so long, so I'm just saying . . . sorry. On the bright side, I'm very ready for next month's SparkFest!

Double Digit Birthday!!!!!!!!!!

My youngest daughter is turning 10 today! She is officially into her double digits now, and is very excited about that. Ten years ago today, I went through an extremely hard and scary childbirth experience that was worth every nanosecond for the priveledge of having Trisha Faith in my life. Trisha - because that's the only girl's name my hubby and I agreed on, and Faith - because it took some faith to get her here. From the first moment I heard her voice, I knew she was going to have a big say in my life. She's a sweetheart with a generous heart, but she also has some strong opinions about right and wrong. She wants justice and fairness for every person.

So, how did we start her special day?

with chocolate chip pancakes shaped in her name.

Then, she pulled out our new sponsored child packet, and wanted to mail our sponsored child some pencils, paper, a journal, and some hair ribbons right now, before it might get forgotten and pushed into a pile of "to-do-someday" papers. She wrote a loving letter, helped make sure it all fit into the right sized envelope, and then went to pick out her favorite outfit.

Later, we plan to swim, scrapbook, and bead. She'll probably tap dance around the house more too . . . that's just a given part of the way she moves. She tap dances everywhere.

She loves art, and dance, and life, and having Jesus in her life. And I am thankful for her sweet presence, enriching our family life with her passion and her creativity.

God knows how to design masterpieces!

Scripture Blessings:

"For this reason I kneel before the Fther, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." Ephesians 3: 14-17a

Sparkfest #1 Doomed to Be a Writer

2011-07-25T16:25:00.000-07:00

Sparkfest is an awesome Blogfest hosted by Christine Tyler at The Writer Coaster

We get a choice of three questions, or the wonderful random choice of making up a little bit of our own idea and mixing it with the theme . . . which is more the way I write already.

So, I thought about the question: which book made you realize you were doomed to be a writer?

And I have to say . . . all of them. Really, every book I read makes me realize that I'm doomed to be a writer. Whether I love the books I read, or strongly dislike them to the point of barely restraining myself from the urge to throw them across the room . . . I still come away wanting to write. And I love reading. I read like I breathe. I read fiction all the time, and non-fiction every day in smaller doses. Every time I put a book down, I am filled with the compelling urge to write, and write, and write again.

Sometimes the perfect, sweet, wow, amazing, incredible books fill me with a bittersweet hope that I will write like that someday.

Sometimes the awful, disgusting beyond belief, yuck, crummy, no-way-would-the-heroine-be-that-naive books fill me with the need to write a better story.

I can't remember the first book that made me realize that I'm doomed and blessed to be a writer, but each time I read I feel the need for paper and pen, or keyboard and screen.

If you haven't joined Sparkfest - go and sign up. Or just add your thoughts to the comment section - what book (s) fill you with the urge to write?

Scripture Blessings:
"And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." Genesis 1:3

Creation Fest Here We Come!

2011-07-20T12:10:00.000-07:00

Our family is off on a mini road trip to Creation Fest Northwest, a Christian concert, speaker and fun festival for four days!!!

Will definitely be missing my friends on the web, but we are excited to go, and have a little soul lifting rest with a little dancing and singing in the mix.

My in-laws are graciously taking care of our dogs, cat and frogs, and the house, so we are free to go!

Scripture Blessings:

"Rejoice in the Lord Always. Again, I say, Rejoice!!!" Philippians 4:4

Blog Schedules? Right or Wrong? And Teaser Tuesday

2011-07-19T05:20:00.000-07:00

Blog Schedules?

Are they worth it?

It depends. There are bloggers that have a very set schedule that they follow faithfully week after week, without fail. There is a comfort in knowing when I can read certain posts by those particular bloggers. There is also a joy with certain types of posts.

Teaser Tuesdays can be fun, short and sweet.

A blog I read used to have One Goal Fridays where all the readers were invited to share one goal for the coming week. The feedback and encouragement were wonderful.

As a blogger, there are benefits to having a schedule. I know what I "should" post every day. It's set out in advance, and I can write my posts ahead of time if I want to . . . and even give myself some "random" days in between.

I tried blogging for 365 Days for a blessings count with relative success. Relative meaning, I had plenty of missed days and make up days. I just didn't get to my blog every day.

So, do schedules work?

I think it depends on the blogger.

I have a tendency to be random. I like the idea of a schedule, but here I am breaking it one more time. I gave it up mostly for Poetry Schmoetry last week. I missed Monday. It's Tuesday. I have a Teaser Tuesday post, but this topic weighed in on my mind along with a thousand other things at 5 a.m. this morning. So here I am, blogging randomly. No plan. No pre-writing. Just throwing it out there. Is that wrong? The antithesis of all good blogging?

What do you think?

Teaser Tuesday
"What does it mean?" Stretch asked, suddenly interested in the story behind the ancient text.
"It means the Author is at work even if in the darkest of times, we just have to trust him."

from Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow by The Miller Brothers

Scripture Blessings:

"Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith." Galatians 3:23-24

Sunday Blessings! July 17, 2011

2011-07-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

Sunday Blessings Count

This Sunday I'm especially thankful for:

1. A day trip to Mt. Rainier with my family. The challenge of hiking in the snow was fun and invigorating. Wish I could find the camera I took pictures with that day, but our house is topsy turvy at the moment.

2. We prepped the girls room for painting and re-flooring this week, and have finished painted the ceiling, above the closet area, and one wall blue. Later this afternoon, we will go green for the rest. These pics were taken with my husband's camera:

3. My house is nearly free of all carpet!!! With 2 dogs, 1 cat, and 4 people with mild dust allergies, we need easy floors - fake wood is better than dust-holding carpet. Only 1 room, and the stairway still have carpet, but the stairway will probably still have a safety runner when we are done.

4. Our dogs and cat are enjoying having the girls sleepover in the living room while their bedroom is being worked over for the week.

5. The 24/7 small group hosted worship today at our church, and they are riding in the Courage Classic in August to fundraise for the Intervention and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect. Go 24/7!!!

6. Poetry Schmoetry Blogfest hosted by small town Shelly Brown was a fun, and encouraging blogfest!!! Thank you Shelly! If you want to re-read the week from the beginning, just go here: Writing With Shelly's Poetry Schmoetry Post Day 1

7. We went to see Harry Potter on Friday and loved it! We thought the Christian symbolism was handled well, and the closure with Snape brought tears to everyone's eyes. Now I'm reading the books again.

8. The ingenuity and humor of the filmakers who made the short film "Plot Device."

Plot Device from Red Giant on Vimeo.

9. We're getting really excited for our mini road trip to Creation Fest Northwest, coming mid next week.

10. Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world!

Scripture Blessings:
"Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.'" Matthew 19:15

Blogging for a Cause: Courage Classic

2011-07-16T06:40:00.000-07:00

Courage comes when we choose to do right even when saying nothing, or doing nothing feels easier.

Courage Classic is the name of a challenging bicycle ride in the Northwest that fundraises to support Rotary Endowment for the Intervention and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.

We need to be aware as we go through our lives that physical and sexual child abuse has risen statistically in the U.S.A. since 1988. This is a problem that isn't going away with silence.

So I urge you to speak, write, pray, and have courage.

It can make a difference. We each can make a difference.

I speak from family history, and personal experience here.

Two of my great-aunts took their father to court in Canada for physical and sexual abuse in the 1920s. They protected their youngers sisters, and were shamed by their home town. Their father went to jail. They moved their family to California and started a new life.

This didn't end the cycle completely. My grandparents continued to have violence in their lives when they argued with each other.

My parents made a pact never to live the life their parents lived. They broke the final chain.

At the age of 7, I witnessed incestous rape and abuse at a friend's house, was threatened and molested, and I went on to finally tell my mom, one teacher, and the school district psychologist about it.

The school district pyschologist tried to convince me that I was lying. For a time, I lost my ability to trust anyone outside my immediate family. I acted out in shameful ways that I will regret all of my life. But eventually, my friend's family was investigated. They received counseling. I lost a friend, and was socially labelled a "tattletale" at school, as well as other names that are too many to count. I received counseling from a psychiatric counselor I could trust as a teenager.

Would I speak up again, if I had to live those awful moments over again? Yes. In fact, I would speak up more quickly, even knowing the personal price I paid.

So please, if you have been a victim of child abuse, or have witnessed child abuse, take courage. Speak up. Get good counseling. Forgive. (That's the part that takes the most courage.)

Tomorrow, an amazing team of people from my church will be serving in all areas of worship. They are a Courage Classic team for the Courage Classic Bicycle fundraising event, and I am thankful that they are speaking up and taking a stand. Next month, they will ride a 173 mile grueling Bicycle ride over three mountain passes to "Pedal for the kids" and fundraise to prevent child abuse and neglect.

If you would like to support the Courage Classic Fundraiser, visit these links for more information:

The Cause

Courage Classic's Main Page

The Ride

Please know that whoever you are, wherever you are in life, there is life and courage in Christ. He died for our sins, for our shame, for our pains. He lives in us when we call his name, and gives us courage when we most need it.

Scripture Blessings:

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing." Galatians 2:20-21

Poetry Schmoetry Blogfest: Running in the Rythm of the Dark

2011-07-15T06:33:00.001-07:00

Poetry Schmoetry Blogfest, Entry 3, Reading Day

I know, today, I am supposed to just read. And I will. There are too many awesome poems that I don't want to miss, too many blogs to enjoy involved in Poetry Schmoetry Blogfest.

But, I woke up wanting to write/rewrite/post just one more poem.

I scribbled a bit, and then I looked through my files, and found one. It isn't the one I was thinking of originally. It's one that hit me in the gut, and reminded me that not everything is as simple as pen and ink.

This poem is dedicated to all the kids who have been hurt by someone they love, and adults who still live with the pain of childhood hurts. This poem is for the girl who told me that Job is her favorite book of the Bible.

Running in the Rythm of the Dark

She finds four walls invasive
reminders of harsh words,
hard fists, and the ragged sobs
of her mother
so she runs into the darkness
running circles around the
church.

She stops
by the bell tower, looks
up at the shadowy corners
where the bell waits
to ring away the cobwebs.
It stands still and she cannot,
running in the rythm of the dark.

She knows that boogiemen
don’t lurk in dark corners,
but lie their way through the day,
keeping their deeds hidden with
false smiles, or false tears
as needed.

They aren’t strangers
but the men we know
and call father, uncle, brother,
family friend
and yet, she knows some
are good, some are worthy
of trust.

She wonders why her father
who used to make her laugh
has turned out this way.
The pain twists inside from
the hurt love she still
feels for the man he was
once upon a time.

Now
in a moment of quiet
when she is tired enough
to stand still again,
she tells me her favorite
book of the Bible
is Job.

So, for all us writers - why do we write? Is it all just for fun? For a purpose? Can we write to heal the hurts and share the joys?

Scripture Blessings:

"Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm. He said:
'Who is this that darkens my counsel
with words and without knowledge?
Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you,
and you will answer me.'"
Job 38:1-3