Eliza Noel Author

What is a beta reader?
A beta reader reads through a story and gives input on...

• parts they like and don't like
• parts that were confusing, boring or out of place
• ways they think the story can be better in general
• spelling and grammar mistakes (although this isn't the focus, the story is)

I want all the input I can get- positive and negative. I also plan to send signed copies to all of the beta readers once it's published.

Here's a little about this book...

Dawn Chandler Book #2
Genre: Christian Contemporary Middle Grade
Target audience: girls ages 8-12
Dawn Chandler has learned to love Lone Pine and feels perfectly happy there, well, almost. She spends her days with the Jenning girls chatting about an upcoming wedding and helping plan a Valentine's tea party. When Rochelle holds the only clue to a mystery Dawn and her friends are trying to solve, will Dawn learn to love her enemy?

Hey Eliza! I'm so happy to be here! Sure! 

The book signing took place to the right of the Lonestar Bistro where this scene takes place.
Uncle Wesley's rental house is fictional, but this is about where I picture it.
The brick wall next to the church the Chandlers and Jennings attend (a fictional place based on a church that was once there).
When they arrived, Dawn was surprised to see that the church was in an office building attached to a cable company. A brick wall separated the office’s property from the post office next door...
The three girls sat at a table together. They had invited Kenneth and Walter, but the guys chose to sit outside on the brick wall.
One of the first stops on the Chandler's Alabama Hills hike.

A while back a friend asked for a post about being a big sister. In my current season of life, I like to consider myself a 'full-time big sister'. I still have a part time job and spend some time writing, but I'm home with siblings the majority of my time. It's kind of like training to one day be a stay-at-home mom. I'm not an expert, but being the oldest of nine kids I do have a lot of experience. Here are some tips for taking care of little siblings.

This picture is over a year old now.

• Go phone-free. This isn't a rule I always follow, but I find that it's a good idea. I'll still keep my phone nearby with the ringtone on in case my mom needs to contact me. It's just best not to be staring at a screen when taking care of children. Make it clear that you value them more. If they are playing well without your constant guidance, and you feel like you should be doing something else while watching them, opt towards something like reading a book or journaling.
• Play music. Most of the time music brightens toddler's moods. I love to shuffle play Steve Green (he sings Bible verses for kids), The Wiggles (their accents are amazing), or Raffi (a childhood classic). Sometimes you can even get a dance party started in the living room. Those are always adorable.

• Find fun activities. When kids are bored they get in fights or whine. If they're having fun they'll be easier to take care of. Try to find fun activities to do with them or toys to play with. Keep their lives exciting and maybe even come up with a game they've never played.
• Embrace their cuddly moods. If they're in the mood to snuggle, enjoy it. There's nothing that helps get rid of stress quite as well as a hug from a toddler, even if he's rubbing snot on your shoulder at the same time.
• Pray for them. Life may be easy for them right now, but it is gonna get hard. Pray that they'll always keep their trust in Jesus. If they're hurt or scared take the time to pray for them out loud. One of my brother's had an earache the other day so I prayed for him. I couldn't even tell if he was paying attention, but later my mom told me he had told her about my prayer and that it meant a lot to him!

• Take them to the park. Kids love to get out of the house and so do I. A trip to the park is always a fun way to pass the time watching them. Also, it means fresh air and exercise, both great things!
• Include them in parts of your everyday routine, like working out. I didn't make it to the gym one morning so I decided to do a workout using an app on my phone. I invited the four littlest ones to join me and they had so much fun! It was literally the cutest thing. There were a few exercises where the littlest one flopped on top of me as if he thought I needed more weight to lift, but it was still so cute.

• Turn chore time into quality time. Teach the little ones how to do everyday chores. Embrace that special stage where washing dishes is oh so fun and exciting! Take time while doing everyday tasks together to ask them questions. Children often have way more to say than we think!
• Read to them. Plant a love for reading in their little hearts. It's never too early to start developing a love of literature! It's something that can benefit them for the rest of their lives. Find story books at the library or even try reading a chapter book to them a little bit at a time.
• You are being productive. Often you may have what feels like a never-ending list of things to do, and then you get stuck taking care of siblings. Don't believe the lie that you're not being productive. You totally are. You're investing your time in caring for children who have eternal souls. Just about anything else on your to-do list can wait.

another photo taken by Autumn Rose

True! They've always been a big part of my life and I can't imagine living in a house without kids for long.

photo credit: Autumn Rose Photography

Let me back up for a moment and introduce you to Above Rubies. Above Rubies is a ministry that the Campbells started in 1977. Its main focus is a magazine that encourages wives and mothers. There's also a podcast, Facebook group, online bookstore, e-newsletter, retreats and family camps. They believe that couples should trust God with the number of kids they have. They also remind women that motherhood is a high calling and every child is a blessing. My family was introduced to Above Rubies back when we were a small family of six and people were telling my parents they couldn’t afford more kids. Now there’s eleven of us.

Mr. and Mrs. Campbell

Last year I was reading an article in an Above Rubies magazine and saw that it was written by a young woman named Eliza. It's not often that I see people with my name so I thought that was neat. I found her on Instagram and sent her a message saying that I enjoyed what she wrote. She messaged me back and we chatted for a bit. I soon found out that she was an Above Rubies Helper (or as we like to be called, Ruby Girl). I mentioned our conversation to my parents and they thought it’d be a great idea for me to go be a Ruby Girl. I loved the thought but was shocked that my parents (the ones who didn’t ever want to send me off to summer camp) were in favor of me moving across the country for several months.

I emailed Mrs. Campbell...and I didn’t get an answer. This happened a few times throughout the Fall. December came and the family I was working for asked if I was gonna be able to work for them during the Summer. I told them I didn’t know yet, but to go ahead and plan like I wasn’t. In January I called the Above Rubies office and talked to Mrs. Campbell. She told me to email her. So I did. Again. No answer. I called once or twice more and each time she told me to send her an email. By the time April came around, I knew I didn’t have a job for the Summer and I didn’t know if I’d get to be a Ruby Girl. I was stressing out. I so badly wanted to go somewhere new and out of my everyday routine, but most of all I wanted to be in control. I wanted to know for sure what was next.


Sometime mid-April I was praying and I felt like I was finally able to surrender my Summer into God’s hands. I stopped worrying and overall just had more peace even though I still didn’t know what I was doing during the Summer. Towards the end of April, I decided to call the Above Rubies office “just one more time”. I talked to Mrs. Campbell and she said, “Oh yes, we need someone right away. How soon can you come?” My reaction was a little panicked. I finally knew she wanted me to come, but I had to work for at least another month and I had a book signing to do. I told her it would be at least a month before I could come. She called me back a few days later saying that would work and I bought my plane ticket. When I got there and I was sorting her emails I discovered all my emails to her had gone to the junk folder! That’s why she never responded to any of them. As frustrating as the whole process was, I think God used it to teach me patience, that He’s in control, and to trust Him.

Last selfie in California before leaving.

The next morning Gabriella drove me to LAX. I made friends both in the airport and on the plane. When I landed Mr. Campbell picked me up. We had a nice chat on the drive from Nashville to Primm Springs. One thing I love about the Campbells is that they typically don’t know anything about the Ruby Girls when they first come, but they’re immediately accepting, loving and seem to assume the best about us. When we finally arrived in Primm Springs, or the ‘hilltop community’ as people fondly call it, I met Mrs. Campbell who welcomed me with a hug. I also met the other two ruby girls, Annah and Mary Beth, in the downstairs office. The Ruby Girls gave me a tour of the Ruby Girl apartment upstairs and chattily filled me in on many of the household rules I needed to know. At one point Annah said something like, “I feel like we’re only telling her rules and negative things. The people are amazing. You’re going to love it and God’s gonna move.” I remember thinking to myself something like, “Well ya, God’s always there, but I’m not expecting anything big.”

Annah, Mary Beth and I

That evening after a delicious homemade dinner many of the grandkids and neighbors, or ‘cousins’ as I often refer to them, came over to play volleyball and I got to meet them. Soon after arriving I was calling Mr. and Mrs. Campbell Grandad and Nana just like everyone else. It felt like I was instantly part of a huge family. Everyone there is so real. I felt comfortable and like I actually fit in with them. I don’t think I’ve ever met a group of people I felt so at home with. We all shared a common faith in Jesus, similar values and large family experiences.

A typical day as a Ruby Girl involved going on a walk with other ruby girls and sometimes granddaughters, having breakfast and washing dishes by eight, 'family' devotions with everyone who lived in the Campbell household (for most of my time there it was Mr. and Mrs. Campbell, their son Rock and his four kids), office work, lunch break, more office work, ‘family’ dinner and devotions, dishes then some free time that was usually filled with volleyball games.

Two days after I got there I learned what CNN was- Cousin News Network. Let’s just say a mischievous little girl started a rumor that made me a CNN headline. It was rather annoying at first, but honestly, the whole situation was pretty funny.

It should've been so much worse.

Three days after I got there, I was in my first car accident. Nana and Grandad were out of town speaking at a conference so the other two ruby girls, many of the ‘hilltop’ young people and I decided to drive several cars into Nashville to go to a rock climbing gym. It started raining and the car I was in hydroplaned, bounced off one side of the freeway, spun, and bounced off the other side. We came to a stop halfway on the lane and halfway on the shoulder then the driver pulled us out of the way right before two semi-trucks went by. I remember, as we were spinning, the situation being terrifying yet I felt at peace. It was like I honestly wasn’t afraid of dying because I knew if I did I would go to heaven. All five of us girls got out of the car and stood on the side of the freeway. While looking at the busy traffic I asked, “How did we even survive that?” One of the other girls replied, “Only by God’s grace.” I remember calling my dad and saying something like, “Don’t freak out, but I was just in a car accident. We’re all fine.” And thinking, “Also, please don’t come take me home. I’m having so much fun.”

Some crazy parts of that story, that we found out later, were that a few nights before the accident one of the ‘cousins’ had had a dream her friend died in a car accident. The dream had scared her so much that she prayed for that friend. That friend was in the accident with me. Also, even though Grandad was in a different state around the time of the accident he felt like he needed to pray for us, so he did. We were totally covered in prayer and God protected us all. There were several other prayers I saw answered. I definitely did see God move in big ways.

I have such a strong desire to one day be a stay at home mother, but often people make me feel like that’s wrong or that I should have a more career-focused life plan. It was so nice to be encouraged by Nancy Campbell. She told me that my desires are completely natural and God-given.

Mary Beth and I

Mary Beth, my roommate I had for the longest, became like a sister. We made so many memories together, went through some drama and had deep conversations late at night. We were both able to encourage each other to draw closer to Jesus. Her family only lived two and a half hours away so I spent two weekends there and got to know them well. Her parents are my "Southern parents". I also got the opportunity to share my testimony with a large group of her friends. That was great because it challenged me to step out of my comfort zone a little bit.



I'm so happy that God worked out all the details for me to go to Tennessee. I realized while I was there that even Him saying no to my desire for a relationship a year ago left me more free time to serve this ministry. I wouldn't trade my time with the Campbell family for anything.

Leaving all my new friends was sad, but I know we’ll keep in touch and that I’ll see them again. I’m so happy to be back with my family. I think the distance taught me to appreciate them all even more.

Aside from writing another book, working in childcare and typical large family life I’m not completely sure what this next season holds for me or what my next adventure is, but I know God’s in control.

Tell me some of your Summer highlights or funny moments! Did you read any good books? 

If you want even more pictures see my Facebook.