The Beauty of Art Carnival is up and running over at Scribblings by Blair. Once again, Blair has outdone herself contributing her artistic talents to spiff up these Carnival entries. Hope you can stop by and visit. She pulled this together despite getting her house ready to go on the market!

Please let me know if you post a Mother’s Love Writing Contest announcement on your site, and I’ll add you to our growing list of supporters, which appears at the end of the Contest post. Some people have written to tell me the trackbacks aren’t working — so I wouldn’t have known. Thanks!

The Carnival of Beauty this week is hosted by Blair at her site, Scribblings by Blair. Our topic is “The Beauty of Art.”

When I was eight years old, my parents paid for me to take art lessons at a painter’s house once a week — it was a thrill and so different from what I learned at school. We painted with acrylics, and I carried a red metal tool box filled with my paints, brushes, and natural sponges to class. I can still remember the creaking sound the box made when it opened, and how the paints and sponges smelled.

I also recall being on the verge of tears nearly every class. I was so petrified that I was a terrible painter. There were two or three of us on one side of the room who were children, and the rest of the class on the other side of the room were adults. I remember one lady spent weeks painting an intricate picture of violets. Everyone seemed to have so much talent and to know exactly what they were doing — except for me!

One night, our teacher asked us to imagine a bookshelf lined with our favorite things. She wanted us to come to class the next week and be prepared to paint “My Favorite Things.”

Can you see what I chose to paint? On the top shelf is my “Heather” doll — I still have this sweet doll. I always loved playing with dolls, not the Barbie type that looked grown up, but the kind you could dress and carry around. I even had a signed Little People doll, named Frances Blanche, who I changed into tiny pajamas every night and dressed in the morning — for years. My friends and I made birth certificates for our dolls and sewed them little stuffed animals! So, it’s obvious I wanted to grow up and be a MOM — my #1 dream.

Next, you can see I’ve always been crazy about the beach — the shells are supposed to represent my love of the ocean. We always collected buckets of shells on our family trips to the beach. My parents took us every summer — traveling used to be so modest back in the 70s. The expense was nothing like it is now. We usually stayed right on the beach in a little motel that had a kitchenette. My parents got us so excited about these beach trips — maybe that’s why I’ve always loved the beach.

I’m not sure about the basket of fruit — did I like fruit that much? Maybe I just liked the bright colors and thought they’d look good in a painting. I do eat fruit every day now — usually an apple. And I hardly ever get sick. I can’t around here!

The cat is interesting; why did I choose to paint a cat? We didn’t have a cat growing up — we had a little gray poodle. Now of course I’ve become a cat person. They make such great pets! I’ve always loved animals of any sort; maybe the cat is supposed to represent pets. If you’d asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always said, “A pet shop owner.” I was too squeamish to want to be a vet. But I thought it would be fun to have a shop full of animals. (hmmm … our zoo around here is similar to what I had in mind, actually.)

And last — Cinderella. I’ve always loved good stories with happy endings. I love to read them; I love to tell them. And gradually, I’m learning how to write them.

Thanks for indulging me in my walk down memory lane. How about you? What are your favorite things now? Were they always your favorites? What would you have painted when you were eight years old? Like words, art helps us preserve our memories.

I went through our chart this morning trying to update Jeana’s new WordPress address, and I accidentally typed in “Daystocome.com” instead of “Daystocome.net.” Whoa. You DON’T want to do that. But I hope everyone can update her new address in your code — her new FABULOUS design is much easier on my aging eyes (those Blogger dots played hide and seek with her words for me).

Once again, I learned so much this week, and I’m kicking myself that I haven’t been doing these Beth Moore studies for the past several years. My faith is growing like a weed under her teaching … a good weed, I think. The kind of weed that blooms through the cement cracks, even in the hot sun. That’s me.

I’m going to a coffee shop in a couple of weeks with the preschool moms who I did the Beth Moore Believing God study with that ended right before this one started. We’re going to discuss what we’ll do this fall — right now, some people want to do Living Beyond Yourself — woohoo! Me and my big mouth. I’d love to do it again — although I did read that the ladies in Carol’s church are revving up to start Beth Moore’s new study of Daniel, and I’m sure that will be amazing too.

My title for this post is “It’s All Greek to Me” because I honestly could not get over what I learned on Day 1. The Greek words for GRACE and JOY.

Grace = Charis
Joy = Chara

Charis means “unmerited favor.” And Chara means “joy, rejoicing, gladness — enjoyment, bliss.”

I never knew that.

Beth Moore writes:

Do you see a very close relationship between charis and chara? That’s because joy is an absolute assumption in grace. Joy is literally written into grace! God is telling us, “If you only understood what grace means and what you have received by way of it, you would never cease to rejoice!”

She gives us the verse in Luke 10:20, where Christ told the disciples, “Do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Yes! The joy of our salvation is all because of God’s grace in rescuing us from the pits of hell — not only in where we spend eternity, but also in this life. We don’t have to live in the pits of depression, despair, and bondage in THIS life — because God’s grace sets us free to REJOICE daily through Him.

I can’t get over this. I have so much to think about. We really miss so much of the Bible by not being able to read it in the original languages. Now Beth Moore has spoiled me rotten. I want to learn the Bible from someone who can teach it to me in the original languages — Hebrew in the Old Testament, Greek in the New Testament. And I guess there’s Aramaic somewhere in there as well.

In the Believing God study, Beth taught that FAITH leads to HOPE over and over again in scripture. Now she’s taught me that GRACE leads to JOY. These concepts are amazing to me. I may never truly understand what faith means or what grace means. But I can’t live a day without hope. And I want my life to be characterized by joy.

My kids are up! Early. On a Saturday. OK — I’ll have to finish this post mentally, while I make pancakes. I have lots I wanted to say about the video, about Beth’s statement “All we need to create an environment for rejection is relationship.” Because MAN! I’ve been rejected a lot lately, and it’s because I’ve crawled out of my shell, and I’m developing a relationship with thousands of people through writing.

And you are too, fellow bloggers. Guess what? Not everybody is going to like you or your blog topics or your ideas that show up in your posts!

Wouldn’t it be easier to log off and quit writing? Of course. Then no one could reject us. But Jesus developed relationships with people. He didn’t sit around the quiet mountaintops, meditating and praying all day. His sandals got dusty from walking the roads of humanity.

Sometimes, I get overwhelmed when I see how many people have stopped by my site — not a huge number compared to the top blogs, but still a lot for a little ol’ mom. When I write, I know some of the people who will read, and I can’t please them all. It makes me dizzy knowing how different all of you are — I can’t make you all agree with me. So some of you will reject me.

But that’s OK. The best thing I’ve learned from my long, rambling road to getting a few things published is that THICK SKIN is required to be a writer because you’re going to get rejected. I got rejected just yesterday. Thanks, but no thanks. When I send stuff off to editors and it comes back with drastic change requests, I feel like a horrible writer, a horrible person. Then I get over it, do my rewrites, and send it back off again.

It’s the same in life. We have to take a risk to develop relationships with people. They may ignore us or outright reject us. But then there are some who will respond — and we’ll be blessed with that deep CHARA, the joy that comes from the Almighty, All-merciful, Never-Failing God of the Universe.

Off to make pancakes now …

Addie	Heather*	Carol
M	Rach	Jeana
Jenn	Amanda	MamaB
GiBee	Boomama	Maria
Blair	Heather	Nancy
Janna	Flipflop	Robin
Sherry	Patricia	Tara
Lauren	HolyMama!	Faith
Christy	Eph2810	Karin
Leann	Rachel	Janice

Thank you, Carol, for posting this test. Of course, she should be a songwriter, and now that she’s learned to play audio on her blog, it won’t be long before she’s sharing her music with us.

Me? Yes, I know that I should be a film writer, of course. I’ve got the Great American Novel on the tip of my … pen. I plan on writing it very soon … as soon as my kids are off to college.

Seriously, I’ve always dreamed of writing fiction … I have stacks of short stories scattered hither and thither in boxes in the basement (where the Entropy Beast lives). But the thought of actually sticking with characters and a plot through conflict and resolution seems impossible for this suburban mama.

It’s hard enough for me to READ a novel without disappearing mentally to another planet. If I tried to actually WRITE one, I’d completely lose touch with reality.

Aah … so that’s why so many people I know are writing novels.

Your turn. What kind of writer are you?

You Should Be a Film Writer

You don’t just create compelling stories, you see them as clearly as a movie in your mind. You have a knack for details and dialogue. You can really make a character come to life. Chances are, you enjoy creating all types of stories. The joy is in the storytelling. And nothing would please you more than millions of people seeing your story on the big screen!

Dear FlyLady,

I have some things to tell you, and I don’t think you’re going to be very pleased. I’ve been one of your faithful, well almost faithful, readers the last several months, and I’m still not FLYing yet. And I should be!

On December 2, 2005, I wrote this in my brand spanking new blog:

I’m going to start something new here in my blog. On Fridays, I’m going to give you an update on what I’ve learned during the week and call it “FlyLady Friday.” My plan is to do this for the next 21 weeks. That should take us from today until April 21. Experts say it takes 21 days to acquire a new habit — so I’m going to give FlyLady’s methods 21 weeks — and maybe you’ll join the party with me.

OK — so today marks 21 weeks since I’ve started reading your emails. I must say, you’ve encouraged me like nobody else. I’ve posted your Morning and Evening Routines up on my refrigerator, and I read them through twice a day. But I’ve never been able to do all of the steps.

I’ve also posted your Eleven Commandments on the window over my kitchen sink. I spend a lot of time there — so I read through them often. I’ve posted Hebrews 12:1-3 right alongside it because you’re part of my “cloud of witnesses” who are spurring me on to run this race God has called me to run. Here’s what these verses say (from the New International Version):

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Right now, I’m growing weary and losing heart. You see, yesterday, I discovered that one of my children put three cans of Mountain Dew in the freezer TO SEE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN, and of course you can imagine what happened. Mountain Dew expands upon being frozen, and now I must add this to my to-do list:

— Clean Frozen drips of Mountain Dew from freezer

My foyer was a little bit clean until yesterday when the red fire engine got involved in a massive pile-up with several hundred wooden blocks, involving the word “EMERGENCY!” shouted loudly 600 times. This type of disaster cannot take place on carpet, according to my youngest son, because blocks are not nearly as much fun to play with on a soft surface. Therefore, my foyer is an emergency right now.

I’m having a little bit of trouble knowing what to do with my three older kids’ school papers — there are thousands of worksheets that I know must be thrown away — but if they see me doing this, it causes tears and gnashing of teeth. “You can’t throw that away! I have to keep that! We need that!”

And let’s not even talk about the monster in my basement that has been breathing fire lately. Every time I feel like I might be moving along and making progress, he makes some kind of awful roaring sound and drags me back down to defeat. His first name is ENTROPY, and his last name is BEAST, and he’s my arch enemy.

So, after 21 weeks of your awesome training, I’m still a failure. I’m not FLYing yet. But I know I can’t give up, so I’ll keep on going. Maybe I’ll check back in with you in a few more months. My dream is to one day send you a testimonial … maybe when my kids are off at college, and it’s just me drinking Mountain Dew alone in my spotless foyer, while the fire trucks and blocks are long packed away.

(Sniff, sniff.) I think I’ll try to enjoy these days, do the best I can, and get busy cleaning out that freezer.

Sincerely,

FlyBaby H wannabe from Georgia

Today is Dr. James Dobson’s 70th Birthday. This morning on the Focus on the Family broadcast, the announcer read birthday greetings to Dr. Dobson from George W. Bush and several other prominent people. This man has impacted our culture for good like nobody else.

If anyone at Focus reads blogs, all of us here at Mom 2 Mom Connection wish Dr. Dobson a WONDERFUL BIRTHDAY and a happy decade ahead.

[picture of birthday cake or hat coming soon, when I finish cleaning Mountain Dew from my freezer.]

A couple of years ago, my husband and I took a 10th anniversary trip from sea to shining sea, flying to Santa Barbara, California. I was in a zany mood and wanted to pass the time on our flight, so I combed the bookstore for a novel that hollered, “Read me. I’m good, clean FUN.” I found it. The cover featured a skinny cartoon girl walking a tiny dog, and it was published by a new Christian publisher, Westbow Press. It leaped off the shelf at me, and I couldn’t even wait until our trip to start reading it.

The title? She’s Out of Control by Kristin Billerbeck. I loved it. I didn’t even notice the airline served us nothing but a mini bag of pretzels on our 3-hour flight. So, I’ve been hanging out lately at this totally hip blog for Christian novel fans, Girls Write Out. Have you visited yet?

If you haven’t, you’ve got to meet this Fab Foursome: along with Kristin Billerbeck, you can get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what it’s like to be a Christian fiction writer, from the keyboards of fellow bloggers, Denise Hunter, Diann Hunt, and Colleen Coble.

Well, Colleen’s got a great publicist because she somehow found me and asked if I’d like to interview Colleen.

Would I? She’s an award-winning Christian writer who is also a MOM. You bet! I know that at least one of you is an aspiring Christian chick-lit novelist, but I won’t say WHO. (Oh, excuse me, did I let that slip?)

Let’s welcome author Colleen Coble today to Mom 2 Mom Connection.

Thanks for visiting, Colleen. I notice on your website, you’re a “Romantic Suspense Author.” Can you tell us a little about your pathway to becoming a published novelist?

Thanks, Heather. I’d known I wanted to write from the time I wrote my first story in 1st grade. I can still remember that story. It was about a horse that had twin colts. The teacher praised it, and the seed was planted in my heart.

I planned for it all through school, but got married at 19 and had my first baby at 21. I got busy raising my kids. The seed was still there, but it lay dormant. It took the pressure of adversity to crack it open.

A few months shy of my 40th birthday, my younger brother Randy was killed by lightning. It was a wake-up call that if I was going to follow my dream, I should get on with it. None of us knows how long God has planned for us on this earth.

I’m sorry to hear about your brother. That does sound like a startling wake-up call. How long did it take you to write your first novel?

It took me a year to write and then six more years to sell it. My first book, a prairie romance, sold to Barbour. Seventeen more sales followed to them, but my dream was always to write suspense. People ask why I write about murder when I’m friendly and outgoing. I think it’s because I’ve seen bad things happen in my life, and I want justice to win. I can make sure that happens in my writing.

Wow. You must really get hooked into writing the plots if there’s a murder to be solved. What advice would you give to women who love reading novels and think they’d like to write one someday?

Don’t just think about it! Read extensively in the genre you’d like to write. Join an online organization like American Christian fiction Writers and network with other writers.

Read books on writing such as Stein on Writing by Sol Stein, Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass, and Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell. Attend writing conferences. All these steps will increase your chances of writing something publishable.

I heard James Scott Bell give the keynote address at the Glorieta Christian Writer’s Conference last year, and I’m also reviewing his latest novel now. Do you really think it’s helpful for aspiring writers to go to conferences?

It’s VITAL! I can’t recommend it enough. At a conference you can meet editors and agents face to face, and while you may not sell your book at the first one, you’ll begin to build the networks and relationships that will grow as you meet every year at the conference.

You’ll also find other writers you “click” with who will become lifelong friends to encourage and commiserate as you tackle the writing adventure. And a really great conference has workshops where you’ll learn more about writing than you ever dreamed possible.

Also, they’re just plain FUN! No one else understands the writing life like another writers. Not your family, your best friend or your mother. Only other writers know what it feels like to put your heart into a book only to have it come zinging back in your mailbox. Only another writer knows how it feels when you finally get “the call.” I met my wonderful agent at the conference at Mount Hermon, and we just clicked. She went back to the office and read my proposal for Without a Trace and bought it, and I know it wouldn’t have happened without that conference.

Oh, I can relate to that feeling of sending something out and having it rejected. No fun at all. And you’re right — nobody else understands but other writers! Do you recommend any conferences?

For Christian fiction, there’s no better conference than the ACFW one. Virtually every publishing house in CBA has a representative in attendance. And there’s plenty of time to pitch your book to the many who are there. The workshops are stellar, and this year our keynote is Liz Curtis Higgs, a wonderful writer and amazing speaker. She’s totally hilarious to listen to.

I also think Liz is hysterical. I read her columns in Today’s Christian Woman magazine, and I’m also reviewing her novel, Grace in Thine Eyes right now. Will you be at the ACFW conference in Dallas this September?

Yes! I’m actually teaching an early bird main morning session with Deb Raney.

I notice that your latest novel is called Alaska Twilight. Did you have to go to Alaska for research?

I’m an Alaska nut. I’ve read about it, dreamed about it, and watched every movie about it 40 times. Okay, maybe not quite that many, but a lot.

So when WestBow asked me to do a Women of Faith book, that was the first setting I thought of. I also had two writer friends from Alaska who read it for me to make sure I got it right.

How do you decide on where your novels should be set?

I generally start with setting when coming up with a new story. It needs to be some place that has a certain mystique for me. I like my setting to play a role in the story where you couldn’t take that story and set it anywhere else.

I know so little about Alaska, though I’d love to go someday. I read on your website that you had a contest for one of your readers to identify the Alaskan craft mentioned in Alaska Twilight. A hoofaboo! How interesting.

I had so much fun writing that book. You can read several reviews of it on my website.

Can you tell us more about that fun blog you participate in, Girls Write Out? I discovered it through being a reader of Kristin Billerbeck’s chick-lit. How did you get to know each other?

Kristin and I have been friends the longest. We were both writing for Heartsong Presents at the time and connected online. We first met at the Glorieta Christian Writers Conference. Her mother-in-law was appalled she was going to room with someone she’d never met!

But we clicked as much in person as we did on email. Diann and Denise both live about an hour from me, and we all started at Barbour. The three of us get together a lot and all four of us room together at the ACFW conference. It’s our yearly girls night out.

That sounds like WAY too much fun. How did you get started blogging?

The four of us knew we’d like to have a blog but we also knew we’d never have the time to maintain one on our own so we pooled our resources. And we wanted it to be for READERS not just writers.

We wanted it to be relevant to women no matter what their age or occupation. We blog about stuff our husbands do, the perplexities of life, all kinds of things.

Well, I’m certainly enjoying reading it. I have one more quick question. Do you have a mentor of any kind?

The four of us mentor one another. We’ve been iron sharpening iron. And my editors have really helped me grow as well. Stephen King is my favorite author. He can write characters like no one else. I bet I’ve read THE STAND thirty times.

Do you have any more advice for aspiring writers?

The writing life can be tough. Friends make it more about the journey and less about the arriving, so make finding some writing friends a top priority!

Thanks, Colleen! This has been such a wonderful chat. I hope at least one of us will be able to meet you and the other writers in your Fab Foursome in Dallas at the ACFW conference. Thanks for stopping in.

Thanks, Heather! These were great questions.

If y’all enjoyed this chat with Colleen Coble, be sure and stop by Girls Write Out or her website and say hello! There’s also another great interview with Colleen at the ACFW website, where I learned that she reads 4-5 books a week!

The Carnival of Beauty is in full swing over at Allison’s Autumn Rain blog. Ten bloggers have submitted essays on The Beauty of Rainy Days. As always, thanks to Two Talent Living for being the official sponsor of this lovely Carnival, which gathers posts by Christian women bloggers.

Barbara over at Tidbits and Treasures tapped me for this “Ten Simple Pleasures” meme, which I think fits quite nicely into the theme for today’s Carnival of Beauty, “Rainy Days.” The hostess is Allison of The Autumn Rain.

Here are Ten Simple Pleasures for me, things that bring me joy and keep me going on those rainy days, when the skies are gray.

1. Our pets — five cats and a dog right now. I sat out in our backyard last night petting our white cat, Snowball, and thought to myself that life doesn’t get any better than this. Of course, he started purring, and it was even more fun because I let my one-year-old stroke his neck, teaching her how to be “gentle.”

2. Pure joy is when I get up early enough to drink a cup of coffee and read and/or write before anyone else in the house is up. (It didn’t happen this morning.) I love those quiet hours of darkness where I can dig in my roots and feel a sense of growth — it keeps me going all day. When I can read my Bible and meet with God, I’m as excited as Mary, the day she saw Jesus on the first Easter.

3. I’ve got three vases of wildflowers in our kitchen right now — brought inside by my kindergartener. She loves to hide the fresh-picked bouquet behind her back and say, “Mama, I’ve got a surprise for you.” I never get tired of her surprises — and now the wild dogwoods and pear blossoms look so pretty in our kitchen.

4. I love the moment when my husband walks in the door from work. He’s tall and handsome — and I realize I love him more every day. I’m not the type to be mushy in public — but this is one of my simple pleasures. I can’t believe how good God is to me!

5. The beach. Anything about the beach. The salty sea breezes, the feeling of sand under my bare feet, watching our children make sand castles and play in the waves. My stress unwinds completely when I can be near the sea. I feel God present there more than anywhere else — at the horizen of sky meeting the water — He’s there.

6. As I’m writing, it IS raining outside! My three-year-old is beside me playing with his Thomas the Tank Engines and saying, “Look, Mama. See the rain?” I love the quiet sounds of rain, especially when I’m in a barn with a tin roof, and I can smell hay at the same time (and be near horses).

7. My new pleasure of going to work out at Curves. It’s hard to believe I can relax while I exercise — but I’m having so much fun listening to upbeat music, talking with women about non-stressful things, and getting my chance to breathe (like on the airplane, when we’re told to give ourselves oxygen first before helping a child).

8. Encouraging words — it’s so refreshing to read or hear something nice, where someone took the time to reach out to me. When I’m feeling good about myself, it directly affects the six other people in our home, as well as everyone else I come in contact with.

9. Our Sunday School class. I’ll wait and post more about that on Friday for the Living Beyond Yourself group. We’ve been gone for four years, and we feel like we’re back home again. I love these people!

10. Being outside in the garden area with my family. We are really country bumpkins these days. Our baby playpen stays out on the porch — she is content to play out there for hours while everyone is doing yardwork. My husband is whipping the garden into shape and getting the kids to all do all kinds of chores. Soon, we’ll have cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, beans, and a host of other homegrown vegetables.

That’s it for today — I could keep going of course … but really, everything centers around my family right now. And I guess the neat thing is that I can blog about it — and maybe I should print this out and keep it somewhere for me to read when the sun is hiding behind a cloud.

I think I’m supposed to tap ten other people for this meme. I’d like to tap everyone in our LBY group — in the Blogroll. So, if you’re in the group and you’d like to share your ten simple pleasures, consider yourself tapped!

I did it! I finally made an appointment and got a new haircut! I’ve been wearing it in a ponytail for years — it’s so hard for me to spend time and money on myself. But I have to thank Alyice Edrich of The Dabbling Mum Christian magazine — she wanted a headshot to go along with an article I wrote for her. This sent me into a panic, as I had nothing to send her.

So I made an appointment with someone I’d never met before. When I walked in, she had gorgeous long, wavy hair — shimmering with blond highlights. “What can I do for you today?” she asked me.

“I want something fun,” I told her. “Like yours. Can you give me some highlights like yours? And cut it however you want … I’m just sick of this same old look!”

Well, I had no idea that I was putting myself under the hands of a master cosmetologist. And she had no idea that I like to ask millions of questions when I find someone interesting. So the hours flew by. I think I’m going to have to write a story on this lady.

She’s a single mom who is raising two daughters all on her own, working as much as 50-60 hours a week. She said, “I love what I do. It’s amazing the passion is still there after 23 years.” She said when she was a little girl, she used to love putting curlers in her doll’s hair and lining them up at her beauty shop.

Now her dream is to someday open up a full-service salon/ day spa. The first one in our town. Doesn’t that sound exciting? I had fun helping her think up some names for her new business. Since I write for two local magazines that help small businesses, I hope maybe one day I’ll get to interview her and help her find some new customers.

My husband took some pictures of me yesterday afternoon right before we had a backyard Easter egg hunt. We waited until the last minute to buy plastic Easter eggs, so the stores were sold out. Instead, we had to hide little cardboard boxes of Jujy Fruits candy and other toy prizes. But the kids didn’t care — they had a great time.

My article was posted this morning on The Dabbling Mum, How to Write Online Book Reviews.

If you’d like to write for The Dabbling Mum, Alyice Edrich is always looking for great articles about a variety of topics related to parenting, business, travel, faith, and writing. And she’s a paying market! (That will help pay for those highlights.) You can read her writer guidelines here.