Today’s topic for the Carnival of Beauty is “Aging Gracefully.” HA! I almost skipped out on this one. I wrote a rough draft yesterday, trying to be humorous about it — then I remembered I’m not funny; it sounded like someone trying to BE funny. But I thought of another idea as I drove home a few minutes ago after dropping off my son at preschool.

When I was 19, I spent a month living with a French family an hour outside of Paris. One weekend, we went to visit an aunt and uncle who lived in Antwerp, Belgium. We were sitting outside in a cafe one afternoon, and I didn’t say much — my command of the French language limited me to a few trite phrases and lots of smiling. These French meals usually lasted at least two hours, so I had plenty of time to people watch. I kept seeing young men hurrying by, dressed in business suits, with chains attached from their belt loop to their briefcase.

Finally, I asked someone, “Why do they do that?” And they explained to me, “The suitcase. It’s full of diamonds.”

Oh, diamonds. Those rare and valuable jewels that are a girl’s best friend. Valuable enough that a man would attach a briefcase containing these treasures to his hip.

Years later, I heard a speaker say we’re all like diamonds, and God is constantly refining us, polishing us, cutting away our rough spots so that we can sparkle like a rare and beautiful jewel.

So, this is what aging is to me. We’re being polished in this process of growing older. I can’t say it any better than Carol of She Lives, who says this:

What we put inside of ourselves in the way of food, drugs, even our very thoughts, all have an effect on our physical bodies. If what we put inside of our bodies is pure, free of chemicals and toxins, and if we maintain pure thought lives, free of worry and bitterness, if we exercise in moderation and avoid extremes, we can actually slow down and even reverse the negative effects time can wreak on our physical selves. We can age gracefully. We can age in God’s grace.

Thank you, Carol. That last sentence is something I’ll always keep with me. I like to think that in the process of refinement, I’ll learn to give myself more grace as well as others around me. If someone offends me, I should continue to love through God’s grace … and not let that offense dull my sparkle. If I mess up in my own life, I can let go of my self-loathing and sense of failure by knowing I’m God’s child, and to Him, I’m perfect. I’ll always mess up this side of heaven. The older we get we realize more how imperfect our world is here, and we long for that place we cannot see without faith.

One day, I’d love to go to a diamond cave somewhere and see how a diamond looks when it’s uncovered from the ground, all gray and dusty. Then I want to go visit a jeweler and watch the process of how a diamond goes from dull to brilliant. That would be an exciting process to see.

We’re not a diamond hidden in a briefcase, attached by chain to a man’s hip; we’re a rare and beautiful treasure, being polished by our Master Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).

Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
2 Corinthians 4:16 NIV

You can probably tell I’ve got the beach on my mind this week, can’t you? Here’s another excuse to think about sand and surf. An author who writes mystery books set on islands! And … she’s an award-winning playwright and a grandmother. Everybody say hello to Vonda Skinner Skelton!

Best of all, Mrs. Skelton is a woman of faith who loves connecting with people through writing — AND I’ve met her in person in Nashville. She’s a beautiful woman with a kind heart, who gave me a big ol’ hug. So, I had to invite her to come visit us here.

Welcome to Mom 2 Mom Connection!

Thanks for inviting me, Heather.

I have to tell you, I’ve read your mystery books, and they’re set in places I’m familiar with, on Tybee and Amelia Islands, off the coast of Georgia. Can you tell us how you got started writing mysteries for children?

I’m always asked what gave me the great idea to start an island mystery series. Well, I hate to admit it, but I didn’t have the idea at all. The truth is, it just happened! The first book was set on Tybee Island because we had visited there when I was a child, and the second one was on Amelia Island because that’s where my oldest grandchildren live.

You’re a grandmother! Can you tell us a little about your family?

I’d love to! My sweet husband, Gary, and I were high school sweethearts and have now been married for 36 years. Our oldest daughter, Christina is married to Todd and they live on Amelia Island, Florida. They are the parents of our oldest grandchildren, Garrett (10) and Ellie (7). They are the stars along with Bitsy in the Amelia Island book. Our youngest daughter, Nicole, is married to Steve, and they have Cole (5) and Mallory (2), who will be in the third book, set on Hilton Head Island.

What do your grandchildren think about you writing mystery books?

I’m blessed to have an extremely supportive family, and the grandkids think it’s really cool that I write books, especially when I go to their schools. And Garrett and Ellie enjoyed their own moment in the spotlight when they, too, were asked to sign books because they were characters in the Amelia Island mystery!

Oh, that sounds like fun! Your grandkids get to help you sign books. I bet they give you a lot of ideas for writing.

Yes, they’ve given me a few ideas for the books, but I find I use their stories most often when I speak at Christian women’s events. The hilarious things they say often fit well with a point I’m trying to make as I speak. There’s nothing like the innocent words of a child to get a point across!

Oh, I know all about those cute things kids say. And if I don’t write them down, I’ll forget! So, do you think a person can write books for children even if their children are grown?

Definitely! I didn’t write until my kids were grown. I also think that some of us are better able to recognize the humor in life as we get older. When I was a young wife and mother, I was so focused on trying to do things right and raise responsible kids, that I often missed the laughter in situations.

And now, as I look back on my childhood, I see so much more than I did back then. The passing of years has helped me see the love my parents had for us and the sacrifices they made; for the struggles they had as a young couple with no money and four kids. I didn’t see the beauty of the experience back then. I do now, and I cherish it.

Now, can you tell us about your mysteries?

I’d love to. My first book, Bitsy and the Mystery at Tybee Island, introduces Bitsy, a 12-year-old tomboy from a poor family who always manages to get into trouble. She’s the oldest of three girls and her mother is expecting the fourth child at any time—and Bitsy’s not happy about it. The family travels to Tybee Island to test her father’s newest invention, suntan lotion. Bitsy and her cousin, Matt, decide to search for buried treasure, but instead discover more than they bargained for.

I remember that in the book. I thought it was so funny that Bitsy’s dad was trying to get them to test out his invention by using homemade suntan lotion on half their body and the leading brand on the other half! Did any of these things happen to you in real life?

Yes, believe it or not, my daddy was one of those great characters who was always going to invent something or come up with a great business deal that would make our family rich. Did we ever get rich? No! But he left a great collection of true stories for me to write about!

I’ve used lots of things that really did happen to me or someone I know and put them in my fictional books. Remember the bully getting his head caught in the porch rail on Amelia Island? That really happened to my brother when we were kids. (And I have to admit, I DID enjoy smearing him with mayonnaise and butter to get him out!)

Remember Bitsy’s Bangles? Well, believe it or not, I really had a jewelry business when I was 12-years-old, thanks to my dad. That’s the joy of fiction—you can do anything you want! You simply use the facts that would drive the story. But then take other scenes from your life, or other peoples’ lives, and use them any way you want—within reason, of course.

Wow! You’re getting me interested in writing some children’s fiction someday! Now, what about your second book?

In Bitsy and the Mystery at Amelia Island, Bitsy heads to Amelia Island, Florida to visit her friends, Garrett and Ellie. Although she has just turned over a new leaf—to live at peace with everyone, her resolution quickly dissolves when she has a run-in with the neighborhood bully, Ernie Van Tache. In this book, the kids search for a “ghost,” run from a “witch,” and attempt to discover what’s so important about a mysterious family portrait, all of which teaches Bitsy the true meaning of “the best things in life.”

How in the world did you come up with ideas for your books?

When I decided to write my first book, I knew several things before I started. I knew I wanted my book to be a mystery because I love to read mysteries; I knew I wanted it to be a book for kids because I love kids and enjoy interacting with them.

I also knew I wanted it to be based on my own family; and I knew I wanted the story to be set at Tybee Island, Georgia because it held special memories for me. (Of course, it didn’t hurt that Tybee had a lighthouse and abandoned forts, which are both great for mysteries.) But I had one little problem—I didn’t have a mystery! So I grabbed my mother and we headed down to Tybee Island to do some research.

That sounds like a fun place to do some research. But how did you find the mystery angle?

I guess you want me to be honest here, so I’ll admit my ignorance: I never realized Blackbeard the Pirate was a real person. I know, I know. I’m probably the only adult in America who didn’t know that little tidbit of information, but I didn’t.

Well, while doing my research, I discovered that not only was Blackbeard the Pirate real, but he really had spent time on Tybee Island. But not only was he a real person who had been on Tybee Island, I also found out there is speculation that perhaps, just maybe, there is still undiscovered buried treasure on Tybee Island! So voila! I had my mystery!

And what about researching on Amelia Island?

It was just as easy to decide to put my second book on Amelia Island, Florida, because, as I said, that’s where my two oldest grandchildren live. Again, I never even thought about the fact that it would make two books set on islands. All I was thinking about was that I could make trips down there for research, spend time with my grandchildren, and have a legitimate tax deduction! Of course, once the book came out, I had to do book signings there, too. (Oh, the struggles of writing!)

Again, I didn’t have any idea what the mystery was going to be until I went down there for research. That’s when I discovered that Amelia Island is very old, dating back to the 1500’s. And, as is often true of old towns, Amelia Island has an active ghost tour industry. So of course, I had to take a ghost tour.

A ghost tour! What did you discover?

That’s when I heard the true story of a nun who died in 1877 while caring for the sick during an outbreak of yellow fever. But the legend says that her ghost rises up out of the cemetery and walks into the church. Suddenly I had my mystery! And although the book does not involve “real” ghosts, the kids have to recognize that the bad guy is the one behind the mysterious occurrences.

By the time the second book was done, I realized it would be fun to continue the island theme. And now kids ask me what island Bitsy is going to next! In case you want to know, it’s set on Hilton Head Island, SC, and involves loggerhead turtles. It’s scheduled to be released in the spring of 2007.

We went to Hilton Head Island last summer and loved it. We’ll have to read your third book when it comes out. And I see you’ll be forced to do another author tour at the beach. With your grandkids of course! Do you have any advice for us if we’d like to write something about a trip we take?

I’d definitely say do your research. Find out the history of the area. But don’t just go to official places like museums and such. Talk to people who live in the area; get a flavor for the culture, for their way of doing things; find out about events that aren’t common knowledge.

For Bitsy at Tybee Island, I talked to a lady who had had a beach house there for years. I didn’t know her, but just knocked on her door and told her I was writing a children’s mystery. I told her I wanted to talk to someone who had lived on the island for a while. She invited me in and we talked for hours. She told me story after story of things that had happened to them and others on the island—many of which ended up in the book.

Remember the rat? True story. Remember the broken bridge and someone trying to get to the hospital? True story (although in real life, they got off safely). And the kids digging up the skeleton? Yep, you guessed it—true story.

For Amelia Island, I talked with a couple of women who had grown up there. They told me about their own experiences of hunting for ghosts and the teenage dares to tempt the “Pogy Witch Woman” out of hiding. I went to the cemetery where the nuns were buried and took a tour of the house that once was the convent. All those details make the location come alive and help you develop your story.

How do you remember all these details? Does it help to take pictures?

Yes! Take lots of pictures. You’ll be surprised at how much you forget the landscape or the color of the house or the layout of the building. But don’t just take pictures of things you plan to include. Snap photos of anything that looks unusual or out of place. The scene in which the bad guy is captured at Amelia was developed simply because I took a picture of a crane beside the river. I never intended to use a crane in the book, but the story invented itself through the pictures.

Well, Vonda, this has just been too much fun hearing all these behind-the-scene details about your writing! Now, I can’t wait for you to come back tomorrow and tell us how you became a four-time award-winning playwright because I know there are some moms out there who have a flair for drama!

******************

You can learn more about Vonda Skinner Skelton on her website. If you’d like more details on how she got started writing, here’s an interview with her at this site.

I’ve been noticing that my Travel category in this blog is a bit wimpy. I mostly focus here on books and parenting issues. But if you’re like me, blessed with little ones at home, you may have to do a lot of your adventure-seeking from your armchair (or should I say rocking chair? Or maybe I should even say laundry room, after seeing a picture of a mom tapping away on her laptop a la washing machine over at the recent contest on Mommy Net).

Did you know people all over the world are writing travel blogs? This technology did not EXIST when I did some international traveling in my late teens/early 20s. As I mentioned once, when I lived in Japan, I spent every evening writing letters, one by one, BY HAND telling my family and friends (and my special pen pal who later became my husband) all about my adventures living overseas.

But now the technology is here to be able to update everyone instantly — with words and pictures. This is also useful for anyone preparing for a trip somewhere. I mean — why read a guidebook that was written like two years ago when you can read about a traveler eating in a trendy bistro this morning?

The best site I’ve found so far is one called Travel Blog: Live Travel Journals. Have you heard of this site yet? I recently went to Rome — and before that, I climbed a mountain with a traveler somewhere along the coast of South America! The pictures are stunning. Of course, since the blogs are not edited, you never know what you might read. But for the most part, I’ve been interested to hear people’s fascinating stories.

You can choose any continent in the world, and hundreds of countries. The site owners pick different blogs to feature on the home page — I’m not sure if they’re updated daily or maybe weekly. Today’s front page features:

— On March 30th, a traveler named Keith took pictures and wrote about seeing humpback whales off the coast of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

— An explorer dubbed Honest Abe reports on sheep herding and eating curry on the island of Fiji.

— A traveler shared views of life on Penang, a large island off the northwestern coast of Malaysia.

— An April Fool’s Bike Ride through Pittsburgh (I suppose exotic to someone).

— A duo who call themselves “Cumberland Sausage” share pictures of a Holi Festival in Udaipur, India. You won’t believe their pictures. And they close their brief post with this: “No more blogs for a month I’m afraid, we’re off trekking in Nepal.” Ughhh!!

You gotta love it. I can travel the world for free via reading these people’s blogs — and you can too.

With two more months until summer, I’d love to hear back from you readers who don’t live in America. I know you’re out there! You may not realize it, but your home is very exotic to me. I know where a few of you live, but I’d love to learn more. Can you write me and tell me what it’s like? You don’t have to send a picture — I can probably find one on Google.

Do you live on an island? Anywhere near the ocean? I don’t. So in my opinion, you’re on vacation year-round. I want to know what the ocean sounds like for you. What color is the sand? Do you eat fish from the sea, and what kinds? Do you cook it at home or eat it at a restaurant?

You don’t need a blog to write — and you can email me, and I’ll use only your first name or initial. I just think it would be so interesting to use this blog technology to bring the world to my home — and yours.

If anyone else knows a good travel website, I’d love to hear about it.

(Sigh … bigtime sigh.)

Edit: (after much sighing) — If anyone reading this happens to live on an island and is in need of a family to herd your sheep for a while, we’d be happy to consider your offer. I think I’m kidding, but I might not be.

I’ve got spring fever today! Our kids are out of school for spring break this week, so we’re trying to do some fun things.

Amanda has posted the Carnival of Beauty on her site today — I hope you enjoy her garden of stories on the topic of flowers.

CONGRATULATIONS to children’s author R.K. Mortenson! He’s writing the Landon Snow series, which is a Christian fantasy series for children published by Barbour Books. Mortenson and his wife have become parents again! They’ve just brought their adopted baby son home from the hospital.

I enjoyed reviewing Landon Snow and the Auctor’s Riddle last fall. His second book has just been released, Landon Snow and the Shadows of Malus Quidam. If you get a chance, you can visit him today over at Gina Holmes’ amazing blog, Novel Journey. And leave him a comment that you’ve stopped in. (If any of you love to read or write Christian fiction, you’ll also have to check out Gina’s archive of interviews.)

Sally of All About Children’s Books has already reviewed the second Landon Snow here, and she had an interesting chat with the author in her comments section — which will give you some insight into Mortenson’s good sense of humor (which of course shows up in his books for kids.)

Here’s my poem for the day:

I can type in red.

I can type in blue.

I can type in pickle color too!

And how, you might ask

Can I do this so well?

Because Sallie has shown me

The H-T-M-L!

P.S. I may even get brave and download the new WordPress upgrade — but every time I seriously consider it, they fix another bug. Those hi-tech smiley faces are starting to be hard to resist. Any advice from fellow WP bloggers?
🙂

Amanda of following an unknown path is hosting the Carnival this week. Our topic is “The Beauty of Flowers.” Very timely, don’t you think? What are the flowers like in your part of the world?

In thinking back to the time I lived in Japan, I remember how passionate my Japanese friends were about the plum and cherry blossoms. Everyone went to the park together to celebrate the spring flowers! I lived with a Japanese family for a year, and I remember being in awe that my homestay mother received a bouquet of fresh-cut flowers every week — delivered right to her front door.

She arranged them in a special alcove in the entrance hall, the tokonoma. She taught me that in the Japanese art form of arranging flowers, ikebana, the space between the flowers was just as important as the flowers themselves. That advice has always stuck with me. It’s the same as in music — the pause between sound is what makes the melody. I once attended a national ikebana exhibition, and I was amazed — not only at the flowers but at the people — they seemed to be in no hurry and would stop to stare at an arrangement, seeming to admire the perfect placement of every delicate petal.

I’m not very good at arranging flowers. I wish I were. My mom and mother-in-law have that touch of being able to make anything look pretty in a vase. I keep piddling around and make things look worse. I do have the knack for putting a small tuft of freshly pulled wildflowers in a vase on the kitchen table — I give myself grace since they look childlike. Those are the bouquets I enjoy the most around here. And like my Japanese homestay mom, they’re always delivered fresh.

Our spring is just beginning here in the Southeast U.S. We’ll soon have bright bursts of azaleas all over our hometown. The dogwood trees are popular as well, and maybe I’ll remember in a few weeks to blog about the spiritual meaning of the dogwood blossom. It has a lot to do with Easter.

Here’s a picture of some native azaleas and dogwoods. This little chapel is on St. Simon’s Island, off the coast of Georgia. Wouldn’t his be a nice place to sit and ponder the beauty of flowers?

True, the grass withers and the wildflowers fade,
but our God’s Word stands firm and forever.
Isaiah 40:8 (The Message)

I have a dear friend who has a heart for children with special needs. In fact, she’s hoping to start a blog soon to help connect parents who are raising exceptional children. She asked if I would share this website with you and see if there is ANYONE out there who might be able to offer some help.

There is a family with a precious 6-month-old daughter named Grace who was born last September. She has mysterious symptoms of turning a purplish color after she eats, and she has trouble breathing. She sleeps about 20 hours a day. Her parents have started a blog called Purple Baby with the hope that someone may recognize Grace’s symptoms and have suggestions for medical tests or point them in the direction of a diagnosis. When you see her sweet picture, you’ll be overwhelmed — please pray for them.

*****

Here’s something I discovered yesterday that might be helpful for parents of babies or toddlers who aren’t sleeping all night on a regular basis. Do you have bags under your eyes from lack of sleep? Are you tired and irritable throughout the day because every night it’s the same old thing: as soon as you get to sleep, your baby wakes you up wanting to be fed or held?

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how having a feeding schedule can bring order and peace to your day — but here’s a post written by a DAD who has been there, done that, and has some awesome advice for the weary.

His one secret tip will change your life if you’re still getting up several times a night to care for a fussy baby.

*****

I got an email recently from a woman who would like tips on how to publish her first children’s book. Since this is something I’ve never done before, all I could do was encourage her and pass along some great websites. I told her publishing is a journey that is different for every writer. The more you read other people’s success stories, the more you realize it’s an art, not a science.

Although there are people who write one book that gets published right away and sells millions of copies, most people find it a gradual process of taking small steps toward their publishing goals.

Here are a few places where you can find good information:

The Institute of Children’s Literature offers a free weekly e-newsletter, which is very helpful. The editor, Jan Fields, has a thorough inside knowledge of the children’s publishing industry. The newsletter contains articles from published children’s writers, question/answer topics with Jan, and interviews with writers and editors.

I love reading interviews with editors because you can glean details that will really help you stand out if you contact them in the future. In your query letter, you can say something like, “I recently read in your interview with Jan Fields that your publication is looking for stories about ___.” Don’t you think the editor will be impressed if you’ve done your homework and are sending exactly what has been requested?

Another site that is helpful for any writer is Terry Whalin’s Right Writing website and The Writing Life blog. He has dozens of articles that will point you in the right direction. If you read his blog regularly, you’ll see over and over again his advice that you start out writing articles or stories for magazines, then move into writing books.

For one thing, your publisher will want to know that you’re a professional. Also, he tells his blog readers a lot about marketing. These days, you can’t expect your publisher to do your marketing for you. When you send them your book proposal, you must also include a marketing plan — how will you help promote your book? Are you a speaker? Will you do school visits? Can you do radio interviews? I’ve been shocked to learn in the past year that most writers must also be speakers if they want to publish books. (Especially if you choose to self-publish!)

Another helpful resource is Mary Demuth’s website, as well as her blog. She recently posted about 14 ways you can improve your writing and line your pocketbook. She has a free newsletter that is packed with awesome tips, and she is a true Christ follower. I love reading her newsletters.

Guten Tag! Wie gehts? Danke gut. I have Germany on my mind today since our friend Iris, who is a native of Germany, is hosting today’s Carnival of Beauty. Be sure to bookmark her site and read through the ten submissions on the topic of “The Beauty of God’s Sovereignty.”

I’m not at all an expert on German language or culture, though I did plow through two years of der/die/das and German/English translation work in high school. Yet all I can remember is what we sang on Fridays in our class. If I ever go to Germany, I’ll actually be able to order a pizza, with lots of cheese — because that’s what I remember from one of those silly songs. (Actually, kind of useful, huh?)

I wanted to share with you all a great opportunity if you have an interest in German language and culture. There’s a magazine called German Life that is seeking good writing and photographs. If you’re a homeschooling parent who is teaching a unit on Germany, this might be an activity you could involve your whole family in. Or if you’re a teacher in a school, this may interest your whole class.

I KNOW many of you bloggers are incredible and PROLIFIC writers; in addition, some of you are also fabulous photographers.

Did you ever think that a magazine might be interested in paying you good money for your stories and photographs?

Most magazines use freelance writers for at least some of their content, and since they work several months in advance, now’s the time to be submitting fall story ideas.

Do you have an Oktoberfest in your area? If you’ve ever been to it and taken pictures, you could write something up and send it to German Life. Here’s some information from the magazine’s website about submissions:

“German Life is a bimonthly magazine, written for all interested in the diversity of German culture, past and present, and in the various ways that the United States has been shaped by its German element. The magazine is dedicated to solid reporting on cultural and historical events as well as travel information. ”

“Each issue of German Life is bound by our editorial calendar and seasonal events. The April/May issue deals with travel in Germany and other parts of German-speaking Europe. The June/July issue is primarily on German-American travel destinations. Our August/September issue includes Oktoberfest and educational pieces. Given scheduling restraints, we prefer that you submit your work several months prior to the appropriate issue. Deadlines will be given when the article topic is accepted.”

And payment? Is it possible to be paid for writing about something you love? YES! German Life is a well-paying publication, making it worth your time to research and write a great story:

“Payment is upon publication and ranges from $300 to $500 for feature articles, from $100 to $130 for reviews and short pieces, and up to $80 for fillers.”

If you have any kind of German festival or event in your hometown, you may have a great idea for a story or review — here’s something your kids could even help you with. If you’ve been studying Germany in school, why not go visit a German restaurant and write a review of it? Or read some brand new books about Germany and write reviews. If it fascinates you, chances are it might fascinate someone else — and this could be something you could write for German Life!

And I can’t resist passing along this information. On the topic of writing (one of my favorite subjects of course), have you ever considered becoming a travel writer? These are people who get PAID to travel to exotic places and write about their adventures. Well, here’s a quick plug for the Travel Writing program I took a couple of years ago.

So far, I haven’t traveled on assignment to faraway lands, but it’s given me new insight into discovering interesting places in my own state. Since finishing the course, I’ve become a regular contributing writer to a regional magazine that highlights travel, arts, and leisure in my area. I’ve enjoyed writing about our state parks, gardens, and other areas of interest. In fact, my editor wrote yesterday and asked if I’d like to work on an article featuring fun things for families to do this summer. (A topic I’m researching now anyway!)

Since graduating from the travel writing program, I’ve more than paid for the cost of my tuition. (In fact, I sold my second course assignment!) I’ve also learned that many places will offer writers and photographers free admission, meals, and overnight stays in exchange for publicity. Although I can’t do much international traveling right now because our children are so young, I dream of helping to fund future family trips through selling articles and photographs. And you can too!

In fact, you can become a travel writer right now by jotting things down when you’re visiting places in your hometown. If you go to a great restaurant, ask for a take-out menu. Describe the food you ate, and write a review of it. Your local newspaper is a great place to start. Or blog about it! (OK, Lauren, you’ve got me totally interested in that adorable coffee shop that serves plate-lickin’ good quiche!!)

For me, when I’m working on a story, it makes my senses come alive — I start noticing details that I would have missed. I overcome my naturally shy nature and start asking people questions. Having a notebook with me even seals some memories I would have forgotten. If you like to write fiction (as some of you do), being a travel writer will make your fictional stories more captivating because you’ll intrigue your readers with vivid detail (and you may even find a way to fund your research!)

Don’t forget to stop by Iris’s place today and tell her Guten Tag!

A couple of days ago, I somehow managed to take a walk alone — just a 15-minute stroll around the back of our house.

It was chilly, so I wore my heavy wool coat. When I came up the hill of our driveway, our little beagle mix puppy came running out toward me barking.

He didn’t recognize me!

Normally, he takes a walk with me while I push a baby stroller, but that day he’d been busy “helping” the others work in the garden. So I was completely surprised to see him acting like I was a stranger.

Then I called out his name, “Jasper!” When he heard my voice, he immediately quit barking and ran over to me, yipping and showing his happiness to see me.

He knew my voice.

This reminded me of the verse in the Bible about the sheep knowing the voice of the Shepherd. I looked it up, and here it is:

My sheep recognize my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. So no one can take them from me. The Father and I are one.

John 10:27-30
New Living Translation

Do I know my Master’s voice? When He calls me, do I listen and follow Him? If Christ is truly Lord of my life, then I’ll want to stay near Him, so I can continue to hear His voice calling me.

The best way for me to do this is to keep reading from my Bible every day. Little by little. Some days, I have more time and can slowly absorb whole chapters or fill in a Bible study workbook. Other days, I may be hanging by a thin thread and only have a minute to read a verse and meditate on it throughout the day. (And that’s OK, according to Barbara Curtis — when she had a super busy household of 12 children, she found her moments with God in the laundry room!)

Do you know your Master’s voice? If He called your name, would you recognize Him? If He asked you to follow Him, would you go?

P.S. For those of you who entered Barbara’s Laundry Room contest, have you seen her suprise for you in her Contest Winners post?

Since I joined Women4God Blogs, I’m starting to visit more people’s blogs, and I’m realizing that everybody has a different style of writing and even a different niche. Some people are witty and describe things in a funny way; others are great at expounding on scripture or other deep issues of life.

I’m not exactly sure what my niche is — but it’s pretty obvious I like talking about books and writing. So when you come into my blog, you’ll probably be hit over and over again with my encouragement for you to write down and share your life stories.

In his blog at The Writing Life, Terry Whalin recently wrote about his lifelong habit of capturing memories with words. I thought he offered some great advice — I hope you can click over and read his post on this topic. Sometimes we try to capture our favorite moments with a camera, but it’s also good to jot down a few sentences. Terry described how he wrote down a brief conversation when his family was going through a difficult and sad time (one of their children was dying). But later he was able to go back and write the story up, which was published in Decision Magazine and read by thousands of people.

Now, here’s what we’ve been doing in our house at dinner every night, thanks to learning about this from Mary DeMuth. She shared how her family plays high/ low during their evening meal in France. They go around the table, and each person gets to say what the high point of their day was and the low point.

Before we started doing this, my husband and I were always trying to talk to each other across the table, catching up from our day. We’d tell the kids to be quiet and listen — which of course didn’t work very often. With the age our kids are, someone always needs the ketchup (catsup?), spills something, needs another napkin, is humming or wiggling too much, needs a refill, etc. (You know, right?)

Now I have this little agenda — we take turns and each child gets to share their favorite part of the day, and their least favorite. Even our toddler says things like, “I liked playing in the new sand in my sandbox. I didn’t like when I had to take a nap.” It’s amazing what kids will say. And it makes us all feel closer when we share the low points because it gives us a new perspective. Things aren’t so bad when you can share them with your family. (Even me — having to share my low points about cleaning up some messes you don’t even want to know about!)

Guess what my high point of the day has become? You got it. Playing high/ low. And of course, the busy mom writer that I am, I’m jotting these tidbits down in a little spiral notebook which I keep by the kitchen table. The funny thing is that my girls also bring spiral notebooks to the table now. We just laughed so hard last night because all us girls at the table were busy writing in our notebooks. We of course put them away so we could eat! (Can I just tell you how adorable their writing is? My heart is FULL after a meal now!)

I don’t know that we’ll do this EVERY SINGLE night, but I’m just imagining what my notebook will look like in five or ten years if I do make a consistent habit of jotting down our highs and lows. Hopefully, someday I’ll be able to go back and write up some stories. It will be fun to see how the kids grow and change every year.

I mean, despite all the cluttery countertops, endless laundry, and fast-paced schedules, being a mom is a joyful role — bringing us closer to the heart of God, who is also a father and loves writing down stories about his children too.

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Don’t forget … tomorrow by 3 pm, post something on the topic of “My Life” and send it to this week’s Carnival of Beauty Host, Sallie of Two Talent Living. Finally! She’s hosting her own Carnival. Now, there’s never been an easier topic, so let’s all send her something!

This week and next: I’ve got two great interviews to share with you from busy moms who’ve done some amazing things. One mom is going to tell us how she started her own newspaper column based on her ability to look for humor in the crazy things of life. She also runs a successful business from her home and will be giving us some tips on working at home — WITH kids.

Another interview is with a mom who didn’t think she was a very good cook, so she decided to start swapping meals with a friend — and the most incredible thing began to happen that led to her being featured on Dr. Laura Schlessinger’s talk radio show. So check back in and visit — I should have these posted soon!

I’ve been giving this whole idea of paid blogging some thought, obviously. I’m sure those positions with ClubMom.com are going to be highly competitive, and they’ll be swamped with thousands of applicants. One of the main reasons I posted that job opportunity is because it highlights the level of respect companies are starting to show for blogging.

Personally, I think most writers are underpaid for the amount of work that is required. There has been a huge discussion this past week in one of my online writing groups about plagiarizing and copyright infringement. Since it’s so easy to cut and paste, people do it all the time without a second thought.

I’ve finally gotten fed up with people who forward me cute stories and jokes that don’t have a writer’s name on them. This is plagiarizing, people. STEALING. There are a few individuals who keep sending me these things, and I’ve finally asked to be removed from their lists. I don’t want any part of that anymore. (Plus, people assume I’m only interested in “religious” things, so I keep being sent pictures of “The Last Supper sand sculpture” and things like that.)

I do subscribe to a few e-newsletters that send me interesting stories, quotes, news items and devotionals, and these help keep me updated on topics that interest me. But these newsletters always contain a byline, giving the author full credit. Often, the author is supported by advertising, so when I click through to check out an ad, that helps the author earn money.

Have you ever cut-and-pasted something funny in your blog or in emails to people without giving the author credit? Don’t do it. It’s the same as making xerox copies of a book and not paying for it. Or burning CDs without paying the artist. You can actually be sued for plagiarizing. If you copy more than four words in a row without giving the writer credit, that’s plagiarizing. It’s done all the time, and is rampant in schools and colleges now. (Students must think their professors are idiots. You wouldn’t believe some of the stuff they try to get away with around here. They say, “Oh, I didn’t know it was plagiarizing to cut and paste an entire article, then sign my name to it to get a grade for it. Oops. My bad.”)

I enjoyed reading about La Shawn Barber’s new direction for her blog. In her post, LBC Retooling, she explained that she’s not going to be posting as much because she’s publishing her opinions in a lot of different places now. She’s also been approached by several literary agents and publishing houses lately who want her to write a book — so that’s where she’s headed. I say way to go, La Shawn. Here’s what she wrote in her post:

Before the blog, I used to submit op-eds to newspapers twice a month. Sometimes I hit, sometimes I missed. But the process became a habit. As the blog began to grow, I lost the habit and concentrated on writing for the blog. The audience grew. If all I wanted to be was a blogger, the goal was achieved. But I want to be a writer again. In fact, I want to be considered a writer first. Blogging is great, but I want to be influential and known outside the blogosphere…

Then again, political bloggers with heavy traffic tend to do a lot of outside-the-blog writing and speaking. I’ve been approached by literary agents and publishing house editors about writing a book (because of this blog!), and I’m just now at the point where I can focus on it. I’ve written a couple of very rough draft proposals, but I need to get serious.

I also like what her Language Artist site says about the future of business blogging. One of her interests is blog consulting. I like what she says about it here.

Most of us moms who blog do it because we like reaching out of our own small sphere of influence. Through writing online, we’re able to reach people around the world, bridging cultural and language gaps. I started a blog for two main reasons: one, because Stacy from Mind & Media asked if I’d join her book reviewing team, which you must have a blog with decent traffic to do. And the second is because I got tired of emailing people the same stories over and over. Although I don’t use my blog as an online journal, it still helps my family and friends see what I’m up to. (I actually do have a life outside of changing diapers and wiping up spilled juice, see?)

Yet I’m starting to realize that I do a disservice to the whole profession of writing when I spend hours and hours of my time to write for somebody else for free or for low pay. My personal blog is one thing — I enjoy posting whatever’s on my mind here — and I’ll continue to do so. But if I’m working hard for someone else, I’m not going to write for free or for peanuts anymore — unless I choose to do so.

So, for one thing, people keep sending me books to review that I haven’t asked for, and I’m sorry, but I’m just not going to write reviews unless I receive an assignment from a publication. If I read a great book on my own and want to post it here, I will. If I request one of the new books offered to Mind & Media reviewers, I’ll post my review here because I’m free to post my honest opinion in my own blog. Otherwise, I’d rather write ad copy for a publisher who will pay me to write about the good points of a book. I know I can do this — why not be paid for it?

It takes time and energy to market myself and seek job opportunities that pay well — but this is what’s best for my family. If I’m going to sit at the computer and write, I’d rather be earning money that can help pay our bills or buy some things our children need (like new clothes — why do they insist on outgrowing things?)

This is my long, drawn-out version of the word “no,” which I’m going to be saying a lot more in the future. I’ll just send people the link to this post and say, “Here’s why I can’t write for you for free.” We don’t expect dentists to work on our teeth for free. We don’t expect plumbers to fix our pipes for free. So writers shouldn’t be giving away words for free either. Unless we choose to do so. (The same as some dentists will go to poor countries and do dental work as a ministry.)

Whew. No time for FlyLady talk today. I’ve got to get off the computer and get some other work done around here. Hope you have a good weekend.