by Roseanna White | Jun 24, 2010 | Thoughtful Thursdays, Uncategorized
A couple weeks ago in one my daughter’s Famous Fits of Four-Year-Old Frustration, she tossed out that she hates being alone in her room (and tacked on that I don’t care because I’m mean). Which made a strange idea click into me head. Me, the queen of One Child Per Room, thought “Huh. I wonder if it could work to move them into one room.”
The other day we did it. Stacked their bunk beds up (not that Xoe will sleep on the top yet–she’s been camping on the floor for the past two nights) and turned the nursery into a school room.
And you know, I gotta say–I love it.
See, I’d been kinda panicking at the thought of getting started with home schooling this year, even though I knew it was what I wanted to do. Much of it was apparently rooted in the fact that I had no good place to DO this schooling. But as soon as I considered making the nursery into a school room . . . wow. I was actually excited.
So on Tuesday I put Xoe’s new desk together (all by myself), moved a bookshelf in, organized the bedroom into a mish-mash of boy/girl kid stuff (other than the pink curtains, it was fairly neutral anyway–being very Pooh-ish), and Xoe and I had our first day of school.
It was so much fun. I decided to start with the Five in a Row system and got the book that will take us through kindergarten, and which I can also use with Rowyn. FIAR basically guides you through using actual kids books as your basis for subject-learning, by reading the same book each day for a week and looking at different aspects of it. So, for instance, you’d read a book about a panda–Monday you’d then study bears, Tuesday you’d study China, Wednesday you’d look at vocabulary words, etc.
At the pre-school/kindergarten age, it’s not so much academic as just looking at different aspects like patterns and rhymes, and then trying to incorporate it into your day. We’re also doing some basic letter/number stuff, Bible stories, coloring . . .
My highlight thus far was when we were reading about Adam and Eve eating the apple and sinning, and I explained how that meant they couldn’t talk to God like they had before, because they’d disobeyed him. And she piped in with, “But now we can again, because Jesus died and took the punishment.” A close second is that the American flag is important “because it reminds us of our country and Jesus, because he and God made the world and gave us our country.”
I’m having a blast gettin
g a peek into the mind of my sweet little girl. And my adorable little boy loves being in what was formerly Xoe’s room, and also loves the school room, where he plops down on his belly with paper and a pencil and goes to town. Overall, a great solution–and a new adventure.
by Roseanna White | Jun 23, 2010 | Remember When Wednesdays, Uncategorized
One of the things my critique partners and I have been discussing as I work through
Jewel of Persia is how the Spirit works in the Old Testament world. Under the new covenant, we know how it goes–you are saved by grace, then the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in you and (if you let him) will guide you and whisper Truth into your ear any day, any time.
But back in Esther’s day . . . ?
I find it really intriguing to look at how the Spirit moved back then. In certain cases we see him moving almost forcefully. Like when King Saul was overcome by the distressing Spirit and prophesied.
I’ve mostly been looking to Daniel for my examples, since it’s the same century and empire as Esther. Most of the mentions of a/the spirit in the book of Daniel is someone noticing the excellent spirit in Daniel. But we also see in Daniel a lot of examples of the physical side of the spiritual–like when Gabriel arrives and says, “Hey, God sent me as soon as you started praying. I know that was three weeks ago, but dude! I got waylaid by some spiritual bad guys and had to wait for backup.” Isn’t that cool? I mean, not cool for Gabriel. But I was so struck the first time I read that and realized that that is sometimes why an answer to prayer isn’t instantaneous–God’s messengers travel through space, and they can be held up.
One of my recent scenes in Jewel of Persia is the Spirit coming upon my heroine–she has the impression that she must pray for a certain someone, but she’s mad at him. So instead she prays for her family.
Doesn’t cut it. The Spirit whips away and leaves her. Today’s scene is where she learns why she was to pray that day. Gonna be fun stuff.
by Roseanna White | Jun 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
Claudius lives a quiet life on his Kentucky farm. Not much ever changes in his life, and he’s okay with that. When a man gets to be in his seventies, well . . . he doesn’t need to seek out change. But somehow, when a pretty little blonde crawls in front of his car and he stops to help her, he’s okay with the necessary change to his schedule too. In some ways May, who just graduated from college to pursue journalism, is as unlike him as a creature can be. But in other ways, they’re more alike than he can explain. She has loving parents, and he’s a crusty old bachelor, but it doesn’t take but a couple hours for him to think she’s the daughter he never realized he needed.
But after a summer on the farm, May’s headed for Rwanda. Not as a missionary, mind you, but just to help out a priest in a little village. She just wants to do her part, you know? And since the job she was hoping for fell through, she doesn’t have much else to do. And Rwanda . . . who’d have thought a third-world country could enrich her so? The people become family, and Father Isaac helps her see that God still loves her, and Jesus matters.
Until war breaks out.
Oh. My. Goodness. What starts as a really nice, touching story gets churned up into a cauldron of humanity’s darkest instincts when May finds herself in the middle of the genocide that took place in Rwanda in the 90s. What she goes through is just beyond reckoning–that it changes her goes without saying. But the how . . .
Had someone told me this book was about an old farmer, a young woman without direction, an African priest, and a death-row convict (I know, I haven’t mentioned him yet–consider this your mention, LOL), I would have scratched my head and gone “Huh?” Although if you told me it was by Lisa Samson, I would have added an “Ohhhhhhhhh. Lemme at it.” And I would have been right.
This book is good all the way through. Great as you dig into the meat of it. And excels into truly amazing in the latter part of the story, when said death-row convict enters the scene. Resurrection in May is way more than a look into the heart of a woman. It’s way more than a story of redemption and renewal. It’s a book about the awesome power of a God who brings the dead back to life every day, every year. Sometimes we see it in the blossom of a flower killed by frost a few months earlier . . . and sometimes we see it in a heart unfolding in the sun after life has frozen it to the core.
Humanity is capable of so many atrocities. But our Lord–He’s capable of healing them. Resurrection in May is a book that doesn’t just make you ask “Why does God let this stuff happen?” It helps you understand how even in the worst of cases, the answer is always, “Because He loves us.”
My recommendation? When Resurrection in May hits the shelves this August, get your hands on it. Read it. Be changed. Send me a note thanking me for telling you about it. 😉
by Roseanna White | Jun 21, 2010 | Uncategorized
I’m deviating from the normal post-type today because, well, I’m not sure I have the brain power for creativity, LOL.
So, Saturday was the first stop of the Life & Faith Tour. There was lower-than-expected turnout, and it was HOT. Under the author tent it was probably about 100 degrees, and we were all well-roasted by the end of the day.
But that’s not what made my weekend truly awful. See, Friday night Xoe couldn’t get to sleep in the hotel bed. She finally did at midnight, at which point Rowyn began waking up coughing every half hour or so. So I didn’t get much sleep. Then Saturday morning my poor little boy-o was wheezing and having trouble breathing, clingy and lethargic. We hoped he would get better as the day went on but . . . no. David kept him at the hotel for a few hours, since the heat made it worse, but mid-afternoon he and my Dad ended up taking him to the emergency room.
Now, I’m not usually one to lose my cool, but knowing my baby was headed for the hospital while I sat there sweating behind my book table, with nary a customer? Yeah. Several of the other fabulous authors gathered around while I cried and prayed with me. Thanks Danny, Bernard, and Wanda!
They ended up giving him three breathing treatments and a chest x-ray, which showed a spot of pneumonia. I got to the hospital a little before 9 p.m., at which point we were just waiting for discharge papers. But when the doc realized we were out-of-towners and that the nebulizer we have wasn’t handy, our options became admitting him or driving the four hours home.
We drove home. Got here at 2:30 a.m. Didn’t get to bed until 4. Rowyn woke me up at 6:30. I was a little tired yesterday, LOL. But the boy-o was happy, playful, talkative, and basically his usual self.
I would appreciate continued prayers for him–hopefully this pneumonia will clear up without trouble, now that we’ve got him on antibiotics. And really, that’s the silver lining. Had this happened at home, I would have just given him the medicine I have on hand for this type of thing, it would have helped the breathing, and I wouldn’t have taken him to the doctor. Which means no x-ray, so we wouldn’t have known about the pneumonia. The Lord’s ways, you know?
So thanks to all who were praying. Today’s going to be dedicated to getting things back in order around here (had no energy for that yesterday), and hopefully tomorrow I’ll be back on schedule.
by Roseanna White | Jun 18, 2010 | Uncategorized
Well, while y’all are enjoying a normal Friday/weekend, I’m going to be in Richmond on the first stop of the Life & Faith Tour! Say a prayer for me, will you? Specifically, that there is a steady line of people at the table. =)
Now, onto what you actually came for! Let’s give a hearty welcome to Lyn Cote as she talks about her gorgeously-covered novel, Her Abundant Joy.
~*~
About Lyn
When Lyn Cote became a mother, she gave up teaching, and while raising a son and a daughter, she began working on her first novel. Long years of rejection followed. Finally in 1997, Lyn got “the call.” Her first book, Never Alone, was chosen by Steeple Hill for the new Love Inspired romance line. Since then, Lyn has had over twenty-five novels published. In 2006 Lyn’s book, Chloe, was a finalist for the RITA, one of the highest awards in the romance genre. Lyn’s brand “Strong Women, Brave Stories,” always includes three elements: a strong heroine who is a passionate participant in her times, authentic historical detail and a multicultural cast of characters. Lyn also features stories of strong women both from real life and true to life fiction on her blog http://strongwomenbravestories.blogspot.com Lyn also can be found on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. Drop by and “friend or follow” her. Now living her dream of writing books at her lake cottage in northern Wisconsin, Lyn hopes her books show the power of divine as well as human love.
Her latest release is Her Abundant Joy, the final book in her Texas Star of Destiny series, to purchase drop by her website or blog http://strongwomenbravestories.blogspot.com.
~*~
About Her Abundant Joy
Can a beautiful young widow find peace in the arms of a Texas Ranger?
In 1846, young German widow Mariel Wolfe comes start a new life in the “promised” land of Texas. Texas Ranger Carson Quinn is responsible for leading her party of immigrants through dangerous Comanche-held territory. As he watches Mariel hold her head high, he will stop at nothing to protect her. But war is brewing: Mexico will not accept the U.S. annexation of the young Texas Republic without a fight. Honor bound to fight for Texas, Carson’s deepest longing is to lay down his rifle. As Mariel and Carson fall deeply in love, could her painful past or this new war destroy all their hopes?
~*~
What’s your latest book?
It’s a Historical Romance, the final book in the Texas Star of Destiny series–Her Abundant Joy, from Avon Inspire released 1 June 2010.
That is an absolutely breathtaking cover! What’s your favorite part of the story?
I love my ending. I always make my hero and heroine face and conquer their greatest fears. So I always give them a great joyful uplifting finale. They deserve it. I also try to make it seem impossible and I think I did that this time.
Love the “they deserve it”–they really do after all we authors put them through, don’t they? =) What do you hope your readers will get out of the story?
Hope is always my underlying theme. If we trust God, we should never give up hope.
Roseanna-Optimist agrees! Is there any other theme to this book?
The humble shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace….
Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace. Psalm 37: 11, 37
What are you reading right now–and what do you want to read next?
I just finished reading Kim Vogel Sawyer’s A Hopeful Heart ( 4 star classic mail order bride with a unique heroine) and next I’l be reading Nancy Mehl’s Simple Secrets. Drop by my blog and on the right column is my GoodReads bookshelf. I always blog about books I read. If you haven’t read Kathy Herman’s suspense books, you should!
What are you writing right now?
Just finishing the 2nd book in my Love Inspired series, New Friends Street. It’s titled Daddy in the Making and stars a basset hound. I’ve enjoyed writing this one!
Awww! Any upcoming releases we should keep our eye out for?
The first in this series comes out in September, A Shelter of Hope, a story of a single mom and a lost soul hero. I love wounded heroes. Hope my readers to too!
Thanks for having me as a guest, Roseanna!
Thanks for visiting, Lyn!
~*~
Readers, you can purchase Her Abundant Joy directly from Lyn or at CrossPurposes.
by Roseanna White | Jun 18, 2010 | Uncategorized
And the winner of Jill Elizabeth Nelson’s
Calculated Revenge is . . .
Michelle Massaro!
Congrats, Michelle! I just sent you an email.
A couple weeks ago in one my daughter’s Famous Fits of Four-Year-Old Frustration, she tossed out that she hates being alone in her room (and tacked on that I don’t care because I’m mean). Which made a strange idea click into me head. Me, the queen of One Child Per Room, thought “Huh. I wonder if it could work to move them into one room.”
g a peek into the mind of my sweet little girl. And my adorable little boy loves being in what was formerly Xoe’s room, and also loves the school room, where he plops down on his belly with paper and a pencil and goes to town. Overall, a great solution–and a new adventure.
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.