Characters Who... Have Children

November always reminds me of family.

The whole holiday time of the year does, really. Between buying and wrapping Christmas presents and planning for what I'll make for Thanksgiving, my family members are constantly on my mind and in my prayers. While I think I'm nearly done with Christmas shopping already, I'm nowhere near ready to bake yet. I know I'm making my practically famous (non-alcoholic) eggnog and always-requested sweet potato casserole. I just haven't figured out what my other one or two dishes will be. I like to try new recipes some years, while others are better for tried-and-true things. It's a little hard to tell yet which type of year this is.

If you have any simple holiday recipes, please feel free to share in the comments section.

The reading challenge for November will be in the tradition of family. Any book in which a character has children will count. It can be a children's book or a grown-up book, nonfiction or make-believe. The person who has the children could be a daddy or a mommy. It could be a grandparent raising their grandchildren. It could be a foster parent or surrogate parent.

Dark Ambitions by Irene Hannon

Hey, friends! So sorry this is coming to you a day later than expected. We had a wicked storm here Sunday night with scary fireworks-like sparks coming off a couple of power lines that were smacking against each other. Terrifying stuff, really. Thankfully, God kept the sparks from catching the tree or any rooftops on fire. Yesterday, the power company sent guys out, and they fixed the wires so that hopefully this problem won't happen again.

Now, back to regular programming...

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Reads. A positive review was not required. These are my honest thoughts.

I’ve got mixed feelings about this story. It was quite the intriguing mystery featuring high stakes, politics written well (and I’m tough to please on that front), and plenty of twists and turns along the storyline.

Positives:

The mysterious scene at the camp near the beginning was fantastic. It pulled in my interest and set the bar for the suspense vibes for the remainder of the story. I had hoped this was a sign the camp would play an integral role in the plot, but I ended up not missing it until about two thirds of the way in, so that speaks to the pace and twists being strong enough to keep me invested through the lack of focus on the camp.

A Distance Too Grand by Regina Scott

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Reads. A positive review was not required. These are my honest thoughts.

So I requested a review copy of this book by accident. Sort of. See, at first glance, I thought it was by Regina Jennings, an author a friend of mine has been recommending for a while. The cover of this one has that same whimsical, fun, lighthearted feeling as Mrs. Jennings’s novels usually have. Once I realized it was by a Regina of a different surname, I wasn’t quite sure what I’d be in for. I was still hopeful about that cover, though, as it remained beautiful and inspirational.

Much to my great and happy surprise, this story turned out to be quite wonderful. It was adventurous, mysterious, sweet, dangerous, and faith-filled. I rather enjoyed it from beginning to almost-end. The romance in this story was sweet. Sometimes it was cheesy, but it was also clean and mostly realistic. The characters were quirky and unique, with great goals and dreams but also facing pasts and trials to overcome. 

Childhood Memories

Last night, I was thinking about animated Disney movies that I grew up on.

The Little Mermaid was the very first movie I saw in theaters when I was nearly three, and it's forever been my favorite Disney movie. I remember the theater in the old mall that's now demolished (and has been for most of my life, sadly), the Front-Row Joe preview, and, of course, seeing the redheaded mermaid meet her prince on the big screen. While I never wanted to replace Jodi Benson as the best Ariel ever, her vocals and that movie did inspire me to shoot for my dreams. That was the first movie that impacted my ideals, because Ariel's journey showed me that dreams were possible to reach.

(Mrs. Benson, thank you for your work as Ariel. I'm sure you hear this a lot, but your contribution to that movie inspired me and added a touch of whimsy to my childhood. I can't tell you how many Little Mermaid Barbies and Little Toys [action figures] I had because of you. In fact, I still have them.)

Ariel and her voice, Jodi Benson; compliments of Google Images

The song "This Little Light of Mine" also shaped me. It gave me courage, because it told me that God would shine through me if I lived for Him. I've seen proof of this many dozens of times in my lifetime so far, and I'll keep believing it through to eternity.

In the Office

Hey, friends!

I'm in the waning days of an editing deadline at the moment, so I'm in my "office" with my nose practically glued to my computer.

Great for production on chapters to be edited for a client, but not so great for my blog.

Unfortunately, I've run out of time to come up with something creative and fun for you today. Once I get off this deadline on Wednesday, I'll try to spark up some inspiration to post an extra piece later this week.

I'll be thinking fondly of you guys throughout the week.

Thank you so much for your patience and support.

Hugs,
Andrea