2009, you were a good year...

I've never been one to go out and celebrate on New Year's Eve. I remember in 1999, when everyone I knew (seriously, every single person) was doing something big to ring in 2000, I opted to stay home. With 2 great movies (Shakespeare in Love and Sliding Doors--and I know it is weird that I remember which movies, but I can't help it, I remember lots of unimportant details) and a Domino's Pizza (thin crust cheese).

And lots of people called me right before midnight to try and get me to say I was sorry for not agreeing to go out, but I was happy where I was.

For me, the turning over of a new year is more of a reflective time. I don't like the forced cheerfulness and the over-emphasis on having the best time of your life. If that's your thing, then by all means, enjoy, but the best time of my life isn't going to happen at some party or random club at 11:59 on December 31.

I probably sounds like an old stick in the mud. :)

Some might call me crazy for wanting to hold on to 2009 for as long as possible, but I want to squeeze each and every second of it. Big things happened to me in 2009. It was a fantastic year!

Just a few highlights:

• Holding copies of my first two books in my hand for the first time.


• Seeing those books in stores for the first time. I still have to fight the urge to take pictures of them on the shelf (and usually end up caving and photographing).


• Traveling to Washington D.C. and the Grand Canyon for research; traveling to Denver for a writing conference; traveling to Charm, Ohio, for a book signing.


• Book signings: I participated in 6 signings this year!


• Hearing from readers who enjoyed the books! This came in the form of letters, e-mails and reviews.


• Along those lines, one of the biggest blessings of 2009 was meeting so many wonderful people--fellow authors and readers. You guys rock!
  

I'm hopeful that 2010 will be just as wonderful! These aren't necessarily resolutions, but here are a few things I hope to accomplish in the new year:

• Get a new book contracted. Or a new series. :)


• Become reacquainted with my old friend, the gym! It's been far too long.


• Change my diet. I am ashamed of how unhealthy my eating habits are. If I could just add some fruits and veggies I'd be happy.


• Come up with fantastic marketing for my May and October releases.


• Go on a trip that is in no way related to books, research or work. In other words, take a vacation!


• Get rid of a lot of "stuff"--I have way too much and want to downsize. Maybe I'll never really be a minimalist, but I can try!


• Finally figure out how to balance life, work and writing. I'm afraid this might mean adjusting my schedule to where I get up early and go to bed at a decent hour...

Okay, I could go on and on, but will stop. Perhaps I should do a mid-year check on these goals to see how I'm doing!

No matter how you choose to ring in 2010, I hope it is wonderful!

Song of the week...my favorite version of Auld Lang Syne by Mairi Campbell & Dave Francis.

Tis the Season

I'm still feeling a couple of months behind. I still want it to be October so I can carve that pumpkin I meant to carve and put out some pretty mums.

I missed summer while I was locked away writing Love Finds You in Charm, Ohio.

Then I went and missed fall finishing Love is Monumental.

No wonder I'm all off-kilter. I step outside and am honestly surprised it is cold. Where, oh where did that yummy football weather go? The warm/cool that I love.

Clearly I need better time management skills so I won't miss anymore seasons!

With that in mind, I had to make a difficult decision recently--the decision to leave my career as a special event coordinator for a non-profit. It was a dream position for me. I believe very much in the organization and I spent hours upon hours working and thinking about ways to make things better. I was consumed.

But, you see, I was also driven by my desire to be a writer. It was a dream and a gift and something I couldn't walk away from.

When you are being pulled in two totally different directions, both of which mean the world to you, you have to give things up. Like sleep. And seasons. And seeing your family and friends.

So after a lot of prayer and soul searching, I quit the non-profit. I determined that I can't have two careers. I can have a writing career and just a job. But not a career as an event coordinator (that is demanding) and a writing career (that is also demanding).

The same non-profit offered me a part time position working with their database. Such a huge blessing to me. I can pay my bills (yay) but still devote most of my time and brainpower to writing.

Which means that I can sleep again! (I assure you, after several months of working all day and writing most of the night, I feel like a new person now that I'm actually getting several hours again)

And I'm determined not to let any more seasons pass by without me noticing. So my house is decorated--I LOVE the lights of the Christmas tree, the smell of a fresh wreath and the holiday movies on every night.

I'm so glad to be going into this holiday season without the fog of stress and no sleep hanging over me. I can't wait until Thursday--when my entire family will be getting together for gifts and games and lots of food. And Friday we'll do it all over again and maybe catch a movie. Saturday, we'll do some marathon after-Christmas shopping. Then family gatherings again on Sunday and Monday. So fun!

Song of the week: Winter Song by Sara Barielles and Ingrid Michaelson. One of my favorites from my Christmas playlist.

Enjoy your family this Christmas season! Here are Buster and Arnie who refused to pose together in front of the tree...so I made them pose with my Christmas pillows! :)

Time at the Grand Canyon

First, I must apologize. :) I had trouble with my Internet connection while I was in Arizona. (in other words, there wasn't one) I was thankful to be able to check in on my iPhone, but updating my blog was out of the question.

If that wasn't bad enough, once I finally got back, I was pretty sick. Thankfully, I'm better now and ready to re-connect with the outside world.

So...here's a trip recap:

I drove from Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon via Williams, Arizona. It was a neat place--lots of leftover Route 66 remnants. I spent a little time there before heading north to the Grand Canyon.
I could hardly contain my excitement as I drove through the entrance for Grand Canyon National Park! I drove straight to the lodge area and checked in to my room before my first view of the canyon. I opted to stay at the Bright Angel Lodge--a little rustic, but so close to the rim! I threw my stuff into my room and stepped outside for my first view...

There. Are. No. Words.

You know the song, Jesus My Lord? If not, here are some of the lyrics:
Have you ever look at the sunset
With the sky mellowing red
And the clouds suspended like feathers
Then I say you've seen Jesus my Lord

Have you seen Jesus my Lord
He's here in plain view
Take a look open your eyes
He'll show it to you

That song immediately came to mind upon seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time. Just awesome.

Once I was able to tear myself away from gazing into the canyon, I set out for a walk along the rim. Totally amazing.

Side note: I am a naturally clumsy person. Like I trip sometimes even when there isn't anything to trip over. (don't let my years as a ballet/tap dancer and cheerleader fool you--I learned to hide my clumsiness, but it was always there) The lack of railing at the edge of the canyon made me VERY nervous.

After a quick trip to the visitor center (via the handy shuttle bus) I watched the sunset from Yavapai point. Being November at 7000+ elevation, as soon as the sun set, it got COLD.

Speaking of elevation, it took me a while to get used to it. The least bit of walking left me breathless and I learned how important it was to stay hydrated.

Another side note: By the time the sun went down on that first day at the park, I was feeling pretty awful. I went to the Bright Angel restaurant and ate some soup, then went right to bed. There are few things worse than being sick and far away from home.

The next day (my first full day at the park) was a good one. Thanks to my friend Benedryl, I felt better. I spent the morning exploring the village area--the lodges, the General Store, etc. After a quick lunch in my room (I'd come prepared with groceries) I set out on a lengthy hike along the rim.

First of all, the views are just amazing. Really just breathtaking. But I am a little bit afraid of heights sometimes, clumsiness notwithstanding. The rim being so close and the huge drop offs made me very nervous. There aren't rails for the most part, except for the key lookout points. Which is good, because they kind of detract from the natural beauty.

A third side note: I can't tell you how many people I saw doing stupid things. One of the rangers I talked to shared my feelings and told me that despite the warning signs posted, some people just didn't understand that there were real dangers. I watched small children running around, dangerously close to the edge. I saw many, many people with pets (leashed) whose owners weren't paying attention. When it was an especially large animal, all I could think was if that dog sees a squirrel (which were everywhere) and goes after it, both dog and owner will topple over the edge. And then there were those people who would climb out onto places that clearly weren't mean to be climbed onto just for a photo opportunity. My lesson from watching these people: I think you need to have a healthy respect for the canyon and many people clearly do not.

Okay, back to my story. :) So despite my fear of heights, I plunged ahead. A couple of times I had to stop and sit on well-placed benches away from the rim just to talk myself into going on. But each new vista was worth the fear. I hiked all the way to Hermit's Rest, where I rewarded myself with a cup of hot chocolate from the snack bar. I took the shuttle back to the lodge and watched the sun set.

I decided to try the Arizona Room for dinner. It seemed a little fancier than the Bright Angel Restaurant. The food was delicious. Warm bread and butter, chicken corn chowder and a yummy burger and fries.

All in all, a perfect day.

The next day, I explored a little more. This time, I went to VerKamps visitor center and checked out the displays. Then I attended a ranger program that was very interesting. I talked to the ranger for quite a long time--explaining that I was a writer and telling her a bit about my Walk in the Park series. She was excited about the books and was happy to answer my questions.

After lunch, I set out on what I knew would be a tough hike. I still wasn't feeling that great, so I didn't push myself too much. I desperately wanted to hike down into the canyon though, so I set out on the Bright Angel Trail. I only went about a mile or so down. It was amazing! I had to stop to let a group riding mules pass me. I know those are very sure-footed animals and all, but there is no way I'd ride one down into the canyon! I preferred my own 'hug the canyon wall' method of hiking.

I'm not going to lie. Coming up was HARD! And I can totally understand those people who go to far and get in trouble--hiking down was easy. And it was SO TEMPTING to go around another bend to see the view that waited around the corner. But hiking up was very difficult--I can't imagine doing it during the summer heat.

I headed to Hopi Point for another beautiful sunset.

The next morning, I got up before daylight and went out to watch the sun rise over the canyon. First of all, it was FREEZING! But such an amazing sight to see.

I treated myself to breakfast at the El Tovar. It is the "fancy" place and I have to say the food was delicious.

Sadly, all good things must come to and end. I spent the night in Flagstaff, then drove to Phoenix early the next morning. One cool thing--on the way back to Phoenix, I drove past some kind of hot air balloon event and saw tons of hot air balloons. I wish I could've gotten a picture of them flying over the red rocks.

Despite the sickness that plagued me, it was a fantastic trip.

Song of the week: Elevation by U2. Enjoy!

Go West....

Well, I'm off on another adventure! This time, I've headed west to Arizona. That's right! I'm writing this from Flagstaff, elevation 7000 feet!

I'm going to spend a few days at Grand Canyon National Park, exploring and talking to rangers about what it's like to work in such a place. I've never been to the Grand Canyon, so I figured there was no better time to visit than while I'm writing Love is Grand the third book in the Walk in the Park series.

Unfortunately for me, I'm a little under the weather--I'm headed to Walmart for some daytime allergy medicine that will hopefully stop my sniffling and make me feel better. I always manage to get sick when I travel.

The flight from Little Rock to Phoenix wasn't bad. Thanks in large part to the fact that I have the soundtrack from Glee on my iPod. :) Love that show!

Driving from Phoenix to Flagstaff last night was an adventure. I had no idea I'd be climbing from 2000 to 7000 feet. Not fun = driving on an unfamiliar, curvy, mountainous road with signs warning of rocks falling and elk crossing. But I made it. Lots of praying going on. :)

Today I'm going to explore some of old Route 66 before arriving at the Grand Canyon. I can't wait to actually see the canyon in person. I've heard that the feeling is tough to describe. We'll see if I'm finally rendered wordless. :)

My plan is to blog and post pictures all week. (provided the Internet connection is available) I thought it would be fun to give away three copies of Love is a Battlefield when I return from my trip. So readers, leave a comment for your chance to win a FREE autographed copy of Love is a Battlefield. Make sure you also leave your email address (name at domainname dot.com/net). You won't be entered in the drawing without it.

I'll pull from the comments made throughout the week, beginning today.

And if you become a follower of my blog, I'll consider it an extra entry!

Song of the day/week: Go West by the Village People. Enjoy!

On the Road

I got the chance to travel to Charm, Ohio three weeks ago. It was fantastic. I did a book signing at Keim Lumber during Charm Days.

For those of you who've read Love Finds You in Charm, Ohio, you'll remember Keim as the place Noah Weaver works.

I decided it would be fun to drive from Memphis to Charm, so I rented a car and hit the road. It was actually a great trip. The weather was nice, I had my favorite music with me, and the car even had satellite radio.

Every now and then, a girl just needs a road trip!

And for the most part, it was tons of fun. Except for the time I was stuck in road construction traffic for more than an hour. Or the part where when I finally got to the hotel (somewhere in Kentucky) it came a monsoon and I was seriously drenched by the time I got inside. And then I left my laptop charger at said hotel, so I was without my laptop the entire trip. And of course, on the return trip I decided to take what turned into an hour long detour to see the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln but it was CLOSED by the time I got there.

Everything else was perfect. :)

I arrived in the picturesque town of Sugarcreek, Ohio just in time for dinner on Friday evening. After I got checked into my room, I went to eat at the Dutch Valley Restaurant. The food was so good I felt compelled to take pictures. In fact, pretty much every meal I ate was photo-worthy.



Fun side note: the hotel I stayed in had my book for sale. As did the restaurant. I'm still waiting to get used to the feeling of seeing my book on the shelf. I resisted the urge to tell people. :) I'm sure they wondered why the weird girl was taking pictures of the book rack though.



Saturday morning, I set off for Charm. There were lots of buggies on the road and I saw lots of Amish on bicycles. Once I got to the "Charm" sign, I could see that Charm Days were already well-underway. There was some kind of horse show going on and there were people everywhere.

The signing went really well. Susan Downs and Connie Troyer (both from Summerside Press) came to the event and sat with me at the table. I was very thankful to have them there. It would've been really daunting to be there alone. I met a lot of very nice people--some who'd already read the book and some who purchased it at the signing. I signed for nearly three hours in all and just had the best time.


After the signing was over, Connie, Susan and I had lunch at Grandma's Homestead Restaurant, which is featured several times in my book. The food was yummy and we had a great time visiting. After lunch, Connie and set out on a walking tour of Charm. First we stopped at the Charm General Store. The owner and her son were so nice. They're selling the book in the store and I actually signed a copy for an Amish family who bought it while I was there. We went to a quilt store and a fabric store--the quilts are just beautiful. I bought the cutest apron to add to my apron collection. (yes, a random thing to collect, but I love aprons--especially cool vintage ones)

Then it was back to Sugarcreek to visit the Christian bookstore. That was the first time I'd seen both of my books on the shelf together. Everyone I met was so nice and many had read the book and told me how much they enjoyed it. (I did meet one lady at the signing who told me she wished I would write just a regular book with no romance in it because she was tired of reading about love--I thought that was kind of funny)



By this point, I was seriously exhausted. I had a quick dinner at Beachy's Restaurant in Sugarcreek--again, the food was delicious. I had some of the best food ever on this trip!

The next day, I spent a couple of hours driving through the small Amish towns. I went back to a deserted Charm and took some pictures. The leaves were beautiful and I loved passing the houses--one yard full of Amish guys playing football and another driveway with Amish girls playing basketball. It was just a very neat place.





But all good things must end, and it was soon time for me to turn my car toward the South. Uneventful, except for the aforementioned detour to see the (closed) home of Honest Abe. I made it to Nashville for the night and then to Memphis the next day.


Oh yeah. One more thing. 1500+ miles in a rental car with no problem and I backed into a tree in my driveway on the way to return it to the airport. (am just thankful it was only a tiny ding...but still I felt pretty silly explaining to my insurance company!)

The song of the day: Life is a Highway, the Rascal Flatts version. Enjoy!

A few more photos:

Love is a Battlefield Has Arrived!

Okay, I am the world's worst blogger! But I have the best intentions!

Two weeks ago, on October 1, Love is a Battlefield officially hit the shelves!! It is the first book in my Walk in the Park series. Each book will be set in a different National Park. (Coincidentally, the Ken Burns National Park series premiered the same week Battlefield released...and I am hoping everyone has a renewed interest in National Parks!)

Things have been a bit of a whirlwind lately--I went to ACFW Conference last month in Denver. Fantastic time! In fact, that was the first time I'd officially seen Love is a Battlefield in real book form! My editor, Becky Germany, held up a copy on Thursday night in front of the entire room full of conference attendees. I thought I was going to bounce out of my seat! I was so excited to hold that book--it was seriously years in the making. The next night, Barbour passed out copies of Battlefield at the author reception, which then turned into an impromptu book signing. Very cool.

Photos below are me right after I got the book for the first time and then signing at the author reception:

Denver was really fun. I even met Ted Dekker (who gave me advice about writing: once you've turned in a project, stop thinking about it and look ahead to the next one...don't look back.)

Here we are, and I'm still holding Love is a Battlefield like a trophy! haha

And now, Battlefield has been out for two weeks. Hard to believe! I'm learning that once the book releases, the hard part begins! You see, I love this book. I want you to love this book. I want your grandmother and your mailman and your slightly annoying co-worker to love this book. But I realize that everyone isn't going to. And that's kind of hard. :) But I am dealing.

The song of the day...could it really be anything else??

Love is a Battlefield by Pat Benatar

First Book Signing!

There's just something about "home" isn't there?

I did my very first book signing Sunday afternoon in my hometown. The ladies at the Woodruff County Monitor hosted the event at the local newspaper office, and I was really touched at how many people came.

I had lots of family there, which was cool. And several people from my mom's church. Some high school friends and former teachers. Lots of people who have known me since I was a baby. It was really neat. In all, I signed nearly 60 books!

I tried to explain it to someone later and this is the best I could come up with: (and Carrie Bradshaw made this same point once, so I know I'm not crazy--haha)

I'm not married (yet) nor have I had children (yet) nor do I own a home (yet). So I've not had a wedding shower/wedding/baby shower/house warming. And you know, after you graduate from high school, if you remain single and childless, there aren't many celebrations for you. Sure, there's the occasional birthday get together, but not anything major.

So it was a little weird for me to be the center of attention. Each time I'd look around and realize all those people were there to celebrate me I was really shocked. And happy. It was nice to feel so loved.

I have to thank everyone who stopped in and encouraged me to keep writing and told me how proud they were of me. I can't thank all of you enough!

The song of the day is My Town by Montgomery Gentry--it has always reminded me of home.

Photos from the day:

Megan, Elvis and me:


Me and my grandmother:



Mom and me with my display of books: