Well, hello there, friends! 2020 is halfway over and while I've been quite active on social media this is my first 2020 blog post. Here are just a few highlights & updates.
{dyed my hair with Kool-aid cuz I needed something fun & new}
Life...
Back in January, God provided me a job in a cute little town, we'll call it Mayberry. This job is absolutely perfect! I'd been frustrated before as I was submitting job applications and nothing was working out, but I know now that was because God knew the job I needed and it wasn't any of those other ones. So in "Mayberry" I'm the baker at a little restaurant and gas station. I also wait on tables, wash dishes, and restock shelves. My boss even lets me sell copies of my book there. So basically I have this perfect little job at a Hallmark location that involves my passions for baking, writing, and people. Ok, it's not quite as perfect as a Hallmark movie, but almost.
{peach & berry cobblers are the main things I bake}
In February, three of my siblings, my dad, and I went on a trip to Mexico to build a house for a family. We went along with a church group from the "Mayberry" area. It was a wonderful trip. The worship and devotional times were SO good, and we got to know a bunch of the "Mayberry" people quite well.
{the house in Mexico}
My family had known for several months that we had to move, but we weren't sure where we were going. In April I think (I don't know, that's when quarantine happened and all the months blended together) we finally moved to a house in "Mayberry". So not only did God provide us with a home, but he provided us with a home in an area where he'd already set my brother and I up with jobs, and where we already had good friends. Like what? God is so good, my friends!!! Gotta say as much as I had adjusted to city life, and it does have it's pros, I'm so happy to be back in a small-town community.
Since moving closer to the mountains, and since so many things have been shut down, I've been spent a lot more of my free time outdoors. That's included hiking, kayaking, off-roading, swimming in the lake, and just basically ADVENTURE-ing.
{this hike felt like I'd discovered another world like Narnia or something when I reached the top of the mountain}
I spend several hours a week taking care of my two youngest siblings so my mom can homeschool the rest of them. I'm constantly trying to find new fun things to do with them. Often we'll go on park playdates and our most recent field trip was going to a friend's property to see alpacas, tropical birds, and other animals.
{aren't they so precious???}
A small group of friends and I are halfway through the Old Testament Survey course offered on biblicaltraining.org . It's been so eye-opening! I've loved learning more of the historical and cultural context of the laws God gave the Israelites and just seeing through the Old Testament how incredibly important Jesus is! The New Testament makes so much more sense on the foundation of the Old Testament.
Writing...
Somehow in all of this, I've still found time to pursue what I'm passionate about- writing and publishing positive fiction. I'm definitely not consistent and sometimes I beat myself up over that, but I have to remember I'm working almost full-time and that spending time with loved ones is important too.
{my room doesn't look anything like this anymore, but I thought it was a fun 'writing' picture}
As embarrassing as it is, I have to admit that Dawn Chandler had typos in it. I finally updated the document to fix *hopefully* all of those the other day. Why did I put off those three hours of work for over a year? Ya, I have no answer... Anyways, it's great to be done with that now.
{pictures I found on Pinterest for each of my characters
Walter, Caroline, Moriah, Dawn, Kenneth, Uncle Wesley, Miss Sandy, and Rochelle}
I'm also in the late editing stages of the sequel. This week I got a copy of it in the mail for my mom to read through. When she's done I'll be sending it off to my editor! I don't have a release date, but if you wanna join my street team now is the time to start doing that :)))
Here's the unofficial blurb for book two:
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?
As much as I love the Chandlers and Jennings, I'm looking forward to plotting and hopefully writing a totally new story during NaNoWriMo!
Reading...You can click on each of the book titles to read my Goodreads reviews. These have been my favorites so far this year.
Health...My motivation comes and goes quite often sadly, but I'm back to eating on the Trim Healthy Mama plan the majority of the time and doing home workouts. I'm choosing to eat healthily because I know when I do I have so much more energy and I'm a lot happier. I also wanna live a healthy life so I can serve Jesus the best I can and be the happiest most energetic human I can be for my future family, and for myself. I'm also possibly working towards becoming a licensed Trim Healthy Mama coach. It's something I'm passionate about, a way I'd love to help other people, and a job I can have even as a stay-at-home mom someday. If you wanna see what recipes and workouts I've been trying you can follow my health instagram.
ANYWAYS, update me on your life! I'd love to hear all the things. What have you been reading? Have you been doing any adventuring? Has God been teaching you anything new?
p.s. If you're not already following my author instagram go do that. I'm in the middle of one book giveaway and I have several more planned ;)))
