The memories of exploring the creeks and forest trails of the Shawnee State Forest in southern Ohio with my siblings shaped who I am today. The woods and gurgle of the creek, the birds’ songs and cousin’s laughter live on in me. Going to Grandma’s meant more than good cooking, rounds of solitaire, and reuniting with family. It meant escaping …
A Little Table Talk
This week we’re all jumping into a little “table talk.” We’ve posed a question based on one of our books. This week it’s Lisa Wingate’s book Blue Moon Bay: In the story, an estranged brother and sister rebuild bonds despite a past filled with family secrets. Were there childhood adventures you shared with a sibling (or close friend)? A few …
Back from Oregon Christian Writers Conference
Mt. Hood I was honored and thrilled to be invited to the Oregon Christian Writers Conference this year. What a great conference. Going on 50 years of encouraging writers to share the good news of Jesus Christ to readers. The staff and attendees were fabulous. Kind. Helpful. Eager to learn. Joy abounded at every meal. There was such a spirit …
Sequins and Sibling Adventures by Beth Webb Hart
“…she’ll go and fall in love, and there’s an end of peace and fun, and cozy times together.” ― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women Sisters. I’m not sure we fully appreciate them until we’re all grown up, and we realize it’s going to take a whole lot of planning for us to get away and enjoy what used to …
Dinnertime Conversation Starters Week 1 — Childhood Adventures (From Lisa Wingate)
Dinner conversations. Don’t you love the times when friends and family linger long after the meal is finished, the stories stretching and intertwining like the threads of an invisible web as diners lean back in their chairs, push plates toward the center, and get comfortable? As the food slowly congeals and the ice tea goes watery, a silent pact weaves …
Sometimes It’s Not What You See That Really Matters
As I was driving home from another day nursing my mother late Thursday evening, my thoughts turned to our Southern Belleview porch and this week’s conversation. The other belles have given us a delightful tour of their various hometowns and offered suggestions on the many sights we could see if we were to drop in for a visit. To be …
My Neck Of The Woods
If you were to head over to my neck of the woods, I’d tell you to make sure to visit the lovely uptown area. (Our lovely skyline is pictured above, courtesy of my daughter’s photo taking prowess.) For a long time when I was growing up, it was called “downtown” and it was not somewhere anyone went voluntarily. But a few years …
A Tour of Charleston, SC by Beth Webb Hart
Founded in 1670 and an integral player in both the Revolutionary and the Civil War, Charleston, South Carolina nearly rivals Plymouth, Philadelphia, Jamestown and New York when it comes to the rich tales of America’s inception and history. Because of its storied past, a tourist could literally spend weeks in the Holy City (nicknamed for its sky line of steeples …
How About A Mini-Vacation? from Lisa Wingate
Happy Monday Everyone! If you’re father north than Texas, you may be feeling the first hints of the changing seasons right now, but around here, it feels like endless summer. In Texas, August is an endurance test. I’m ready to head to the mountains, but with a new school year just around the corner, that’s not likely to happen. So… …
I Bow Down by Shellie Rushing Tomlinson
I would stop and think before writing this post but, I honestly don’t know if I would remember to start again, so I think I’ll just jump in and see what happens. August has arrived around here like a bat out of H-E-Double L. (My people are fond of that spelling. You do know it stops just short of cursing, right?) No lazy …