Busy Busy

Sorry to have been absent, but I've been busy!

Last week I had book signings in Columbus and Greenwood, IN and then Jim (my hubby of nearly 31 years) and I taught basic writing at a conference in Indianapolis at the national American Christian Fiction Writers conference.

We had such a great time.  Above,  I am at one of the booksignings with a really great lady named Militine.  Isn't that an awesome name?  It's a compromise of Millicient and Christine. 
We met a lot of wonderful people and in Columbus got surprised by my mother's cousin Anna Ruth and her daughter Denise and son-in-law Jim.

On our last night in Indianapolis,
Jim and I dined in the revolving restaurant
at the top of the Hyatt and enjoyed this view of the Capitol Building. 



All in all, it was an incredible trip and God was so very present.  We met wonderful new friends and had great reunions with longtime friends.  I imagine heaven will be much the same way.

Olympic National Park

I love national parks and Olympic National Park was no exception. We have been blessed to have wise forefathers who set aside land for national parks. If you get a chance to visit the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, I highly recommend it. With Judy Miller, Cathy Hake and our dear friend Merrill DeGroot in tow, I found myself so very blessed by the beauty of Washington.




We didn't get a chance to travel all over the park on this trip, but we made a brief trip to Hurricane Ridge in the northern part of the park.



While there we were amazed by the flowers.





Indian Paintbrush and Fireweed dotted the sides of the road and the glorious variety of evergreens were everywhere.



















We enjoyed the visit of a mother deer and her very photogenic fawn.



The company of good friends was such a blessing. I looked out at the landscape and my friends and felt that God had blessed me above and beyond all that I could ask or imagine. I wish I could have taken all of you with me.



Later that night we enjoyed beautiful views of Mount Rainier across Puget Sound.



When the moon rose in all its fullness, I couldn't resist capturing this picture of the ferry we would soon take back to Seattle.






It was an incredible trip and God blessed me in so many ways. Next week I'll share a wonderful little spot Merrill and I ran across on our way back to Montana.

Sitka Revisited

One of the biggest blessings I have as an author is in visiting the places where I set the books. Sitka is one of those places I would gladly go on writing about, if I found the right stories to tell.



Jim and I taught a mini writer's conference while there and the turn out was so great. The people who attended were a blend of young and older, men and women, native and transplants, but all had a passion for writing.



As Jim and I shared with each other after the conference, we realized once more how God works through us even in little "chance" encounters. We were blessed to meet new people and hear their stories, know their thoughts and see tiny pictures of their dreams. Some will no doubt go on to see their dreams born, while others will give up somewhere along the way.



Sometimes I feel like giving up. The goal seems too big. The road too long. It's easy to look at the big picture and say, "There's no way I can endure this or overcome that."



But God never leaves us to bear it alone. I'm one of those who firmly believes that God's puts in our hearts the desires and dreams that He has for us. Sometimes we corrupt those dreams. Sometimes we ignore them, but when we are seeking the Lord and striving to do His will--it's amazing how those desires and dreams come together to bring Him glory.



Have a blessed day in Him.