Big Family Tip #1

When we first married and combined our five kids into that wonderful thing called a blended family, we all had to get used to living with more people. Specifically, to sharing a bathroom with more people. In the case of the kids, a LOT more people. (All five children share one bathroom.)

Though we did our best--we thought--by sending them up in waves, there were still numerous low-key conflicts in the bedtime routine.

"He won't give me the toothpaste!"

"Her wet toothbrush just touched my arm!"

"I don't have any floss!"

"He spit swish in my hair!"

Only a few months in, I finally got smart and found a solution: we gave each child a little bin labeled with his or her name to hold flossers, toothpaste, and fluoride rinse (which we call swish) or mouthwash. Not only is there no more fighting over toothpaste, but they don't share their germs as everything is separated! It's also very easy to pull the interconnected bins out and wash them in the kitchen sink when they get a little nasty.

 As I share these big family tips, I hope others who are looking for ways to make their lives less stressful can adapt them and find inspiration. Yes, even in the dried-out spit trails of a kids' bathroom sink. :)

Soul Saver: A Supernatural Winner!

"Your opening pages set the tone for the entire novel, so make sure you follow through with the promise you’re setting up from the first page. Is the mood light or serious? Romantic or mysterious? Tense, suspenseful? Comedic or literary?" Maureen Lang gives this advice on ACFW's blog today.

Which was funny, as I read it right before starting this review and the very first thing I was going to say is that this debut novel by Dineen Miller is clear from the first pages that it's not your usual book. The Soul Saver is a supernatural story of a woman in a mismatched marriage, meaning she is a strong believer in Christ and her husband has lost his faith.

Desperate to love each other and have the strongest marriage possible despite their different beliefs, Lexie and Hugh find common ground in many areas. But Lexie has a special talent, a calling straight from God, and Hugh could never understand it. Or could he?

With a demonic presence out to get Lexie through a most unlikely source, both she and her husband will be stretched beyond what they thought they could bear emotionally, physically, and spiritually. If you are a fan of Frank Peretti, you will love this book!

(BTW, he just released his first new adult release in years and years, Illusion.)

Christy Award Winners and Carol Nominees

We're having a birthday party with 30+ people for sweet Liliana in a few hours, so I'm too busy/lazy to do this myself, though I had planned on it: here are links to someone else's blog with all the award winners and nominees listed PLUS their covers.

Seeing the covers is such a better way to show the winners, in my opinion, because I might forget someone's name, but I can remember the cover art--like a "photographic" memory. Get it? hehe

Hmmm...maybe the frosting fumes from the 48 cupcakes are getting to me ...

Enjoy, peeps!

Carol Award Finalists

Christy Award Winners

Thanks to Cecelia Dowdy for going to all that work to make such beautiful posts!

If you'd like to re-live my Carol and Christy experiences, here you go. :)

Sparklers and Guns: All-American 4th of July

I guess The Start is a really good place to start when talking about the 4th, so here it is.

Before I met Dave, I never really ran much. I would try, and end up out of breath and dying after a few blocks. As a sprinter in junior high, I was used to RUNNING when I ran.

Turns out that running for most people is really a controlled, even jog. Once I found my sweet spot, it's become my favorite form of exercise. Especially because I run along a creek and see bunnies and ducks and squirrels.

So Dave proposed we do our first ACTUAL run together. The Oregon Road Runner's 4 on the 4th was a great one to start with! A nice, flat, four-mile run. So we got up early, drove 30 minutes to Wilsonville, paid money, waited for the start time--all to run four miles which we usually do very near our house for free.

Kind of cracks me up.

Here I am with my sweat man. Oh, I mean, my SWEET man. ;p

(I believe this is also the first picture I've ever put up on a blog of me pre-shower ...)

There was such adrenaline in the air! As they counted down the last seconds before the start, I had to keep my breathing nice and level or I would have been dying as I ran.

Check out the costumes! Made me wish I'd done something a little patriotic.

My favorite parts were wearing the little paper on my stomach, taking a water cup from a volunteer around Mile 3 and trying to drink while running, and finishing hand-in-hand with Dave.

(We decided to run our usual pace and not try for any great time, but we liked our 38:42 just fine on a hot, holiday morning.)

Then we got to take all five of the kids out to Gaston for the usual 4th of July antics as the Raichart Ranch. Nikki got great shots of the kids that you can see here, with a not-so-great-shot of me.

We always have a swinging good time there. (Andrea and Lili flying high on the tree swing)

Four of the five kids pose as they wait their turns.

But, wait! Where's Tanner?

Filling a plate of chips, of course.

After many dips in the pool, the kids finally got their clothes back on to play with sparklers.

At one point Josh ran below the deck past us, a lit sparkler in one hand and an Airsoft gun in the other, mouth wide in a gutteral scream.

Warmed my heart, that very moment capturing why young rebel America declared her independence!

(Half of me lighting some sparklers. Had no idea how to use the lighter ... lol)

Can Lili handle one in each hand?!?

Tanner and Josh defend their country.

It's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it.

A Book that Brought Publishing Freedom

I recently read James Scott Bell's Self-Publishing Attack: The 5 Absolutely Unbreakable Laws for Creating Steady Income Publishing Your Own Books. Jim and I have been pretty tight for years and years, ever since Mom and I wrote a second verse complete with hand motions for his Hairy Man worship song. Oh, but he might not be aware of how tight we are, so you don't need to mention anything to him. Ahem.


Jim's been publishing traditionally for years, but he produced a lot of writing from his discipline, and not all of it fit what his traditional audience expected. He began e-pubbing some short stories and a novella, then moved into full-length fiction. 

He's got great advice in this book for anyone interested in writing, but where I found so much freedom was in his assertion that e-books allow writers to have more than one brand without harming the other. Also, as an author who continues to publish traditionally, he shows that authors CAN have it all--traditional contracts and printings AND instant feedback and sales for e-books. 


I think this is particularly exciting because some of the things I've written since The Familiar Stranger are not in the same psychological-twist contemporary intrigue vein, yet they want to bleed out on a page for others to read. Mom and I have been planning for the last few months--might have even slipped to nigh a year--to edit and buff and polish and release our joint novel ourselves.

Jim's book made me believe I could do it, that I wouldn't be rebelling against traditional publishers by publishing material they can't place anywhere in their lineups. That it could be a mutually beneficial move where I can build readers and more platform by publishing what I've written and then future traditional publishers can reap that benefit as I gain ground. At the very least, I'll gain experience.

~~~

On this 4th of July, I'd like to point my readers to the great gift of freedom ever: our Savior Jesus Christ; and the Book that sets us free, the Bible. 

John 8:36 NLT 
So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.