Package

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and will have a happy new year!! ; ) If you enjoyed my story "Snowman" you also might like this companion story. It's written about a time just like this when you aren't exactly sure what holiday it is. ; ) I hope you enjoy and have a great whatever it is day!

Package

 Corrine tucked her light hair behind her ears and hummed a Christmas song as she moved about the tiny kitchen. Breaking into song, she voiced the words, “Smooth the batter with your spat-la, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la—Wow. Bad idea to skip the hot mitts this time.”

Sticking her tingling finger under the icy cold tap she had left running, she carefully shut the oven with her foot and used her free hand to set the timer. “Sean and Dad will love these goodies, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. Christ-mas is for poisoning relatives, fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaaaaaa.” She stopped singing and caught her breath dramatically.

“Well, that was interesting…” a voice remarked from around the corner, and the speaker immediately earned an icy, cross-eyed glare.

“You were not supposed to hear that, Sean,” she said, spanking her brother with the dish towel she had been absentmindedly drying her blistered finger with.

“Couldn’t help it,” he said, shrugging unapologetically. Glancing at the eighty-odd dishes she had piled in the sink, he added, “What do we have here?”

She moved to spank him again, but he deftly took the towel from her hands. “No comments about my messiness please. Wanna’ help? Or you could go up in the attic and fix those speakers so we can have some real music.”

He eyed her thoughtfully. “Or participate in the world’s most epic battle of the DISH TOWELS!”

She squealed as he began to attack her with the dampish weapon and frantically opened drawers to find her own. “Ah, ha! A bulky hem,” she said, stretching her prize choice out for him to see. “Perfect for whacking the daylights out of meddlesome brothers.”

He had fallen back to regroup—basically take off his glasses so she wouldn’t break them again. “En guard!” he replied, and the battle was on.

Just then the front door opened and a crowd of people fell in. Corinne froze and looked up at her brother with wide-eyes. He stared back and twisted his dish towel nervously.

“I really hope they are related to us. No one else would understand this,” Sean said tragically.

Corinne tried to smother her giggles and ended up snorting into her hand and turning very Christmas-y colors. Sean’s eyes began to water with internal laughter; and, fortunately for them, it was only relatives who found them moments later.

Mom carefully settled a magnificent gingerbread house in the middle of the dinner table, and the younger children gathered to gaze at it and discuss the different candies one more time.

Sean and Corinne were still recovering from their hilarious battle when their middle sister Kristyn came into the kitchen. Placing one hand on her hip and arching an eyebrow, she observed playfully, “So I see the boring people who stayed home from the gingerbread house party weren’t so bored after all.”

Corinne would have spanked her with a dish towel if she had had one; but her older brother replaced his glasses and said quite peaceably, “You see correctly.”

“And besides, boring sister here had her ‘crrrrazy project’ to work on,” Corinne reminded her.

Kristyn grinned. “Did you figure out who your gift this year is for yet?”

“Nopers.”

Kristyn shook her head with a mock sigh. Her older sister was saved from further comments by the sound of the kitchen timer and an erupting argument between the littles about whether or not licorice was actually alcohol. Corinne hurried over to the oven, slid her hands into mitts twice their size, and removed the brownies.

“Oh, Mom,” she called over siblings short and tall. “That reminds me. I need to go to the post office to send my package.”

“They’ve already closed up tonight, but I’m sure Dad could take you in the morning. He has some errands downtown anyway,” Mom assured her. “Like the gingerbread house?”

All eyes turned to look at her and asked the same question. She smiled and nodded. “And I’m looking forward to eating one of those chocolate windows.”

Conversation returned and somewhere underneath it a little voice could be heard counting the peppermints and dividing the number to see just how many he could possibly eat when the time came. It was terrible sitting there with it just in reach and knowing he had to wait until Christmas. Two days was too long.

He was still staring at it during dinner when Dad said, “Do you want to come with us tomorrow, Arron?”

Everyone was looking at him. “W-what?”

“Dad is taking me to the post office tomorrow morning, and you’re welcome to come with us if you want,” Corinne explained with a little smile.

“Oh, sure.” He gave a toothless grin.

The evening passed quickly—too quickly at least for everyone who wasn’t dying to eat the gingerbread house and was actually enjoying the anticipation of Christmas. Corrine had another problem on her mind that made her wish tomorrow would wait longer in coming. Who was she going to send her gift to?

Every year since she had come to Christ, He had laid it on her heart to make a special little gift and give it to whoever He told her to. Every year He had told her who in one way or another. But she still didn’t know yet, and she would be going to the post office the next morning.

Yawning, she turned out the light in the girl’s bedroom. As she fell asleep, she prayed for wisdom then decided to let tomorrow worry about itself.

Arron was up with the first light and already more awake than she was as they climbed into the family car. “I feel like I should say ‘good morning, Corinne’ and ‘good afternoon, Arron’,” Dad joked as they pulled out of the driveway.

Corinne smiled and settled her package more securely on her lap. The blank space for the address looked odd and irked her somehow. Couldn’t she just choose someone on her own? But she knew that wasn’t how it worked. She had committed to let God decide, and she would just have to wait for His answer.

Arron was jabbering in the back seat about the gingerbread house, and she called her thoughts back to the special time at hand. A few miles down the road and three versions of Feliz Navidad later, they had turned off the radio and pulled into the parking lot of the Chesslie Post Office. A few white mail trucks passed them and more were pulling out of the driveway.

“Ready?” Dad asked, turning to her with a smile.

“Nopers, but I’ll do it anyway,” she replied, unbuckling her seatbelt and opening the side door.

“Good luck!”

“Bye!” Arron said before turning back to drawing faces in the frost on his window.

Holding the package tightly in one arm, she slammed her door shut and hurried up to the shining glass doors. No address on her package yet. She was crazy to be doing this.

“Last minute gift, eh?” a voice said, and she looked up to see the young man who had been standing there dusting snow off his coat.

He was holding the door for her; and, as she moved through it, she said with a bright smile, “That’s right. I do hope they get it in time for Christmas day.”

As he followed her through the door, she noticed he was looking at the package. “No address, I know. I really don’t know who it’s for yet.” She grinned sheepishly.

He lifted one eyebrow but didn’t ask any more questions. She found herself strangely glad. This was getting awkward. How was she supposed to take her package up to the counter and tell the clerk that she wanted to send a package but she didn’t know where?

Fortunately there was a bit of a line; so she sat down in a chair, settled her purse and her package in her lap, and began to pray. “Hi God. It’s me, Corinne, again. Who do you want me to send this Christmas gift to?”

She waited, but there was no audible answer. She hadn’t expected one exactly, but it would have been nice. “Better get my Sharpie out of my purse, so I’m ready when He tells me,” she thought.

Her purse was a mess. Kristyn called it “the bottomless pit” once, and Adelinne had countered by affectionately calling it a “bag of tricks”. Either was pretty bad, in Corinne’s humble opinion. She found the Sharpie despite the gum wrappers, old receipts, and compact mirror that threatened to stop her. Mercifully, the only thing that fell out of her bottomless bag of tricks was a lavender-colored business card.

She flipped it over. Why had it been in her purse again? Adelinne had given it to her because it was her favorite color. She had probably gotten it from Arron who collected business cards since stamps were too expensive. An address! It had an address on it!

“Oh, thank you! I have it now!” she said aloud.

The clerk was looking at her strangely.

“Sorry,” she said with a little smile.

“Can I help you next?”

The line was gone. “Oh, yeah, just a minute. Let me write out this address a second.”

A few minutes later, she emerged triumphantly from the post office, still holding the business card in one hand.

“Did you find out who to send it to?” Dad asked as she got in the car.

“Melanie Tweeny, piano teacher, is getting a wool scarf for Christmas,” she said happily, handing him the business card.

“Then hooray for Corinne, and hooray for God!” Arron interjected.

Corinne was sitting in a folding chair in the middle of living room with a pile of Christmas lights at her feet. She wanted to sing, but she wasn’t sure what since it was too late to sing Christmas carols and too early to sing the one good New Year’s song.

“What would you sing in this no man’s land between Christmas and next year?” she asked Kristyn, who was carefully packing away the ornaments they had taken from the tree that morning.

“How about ‘Let It Snow’?” her sister offered.

Wagging her head with a huge red bow fixed to the top of it, Adelinne added, “Yes, do. It seems so lonely without music.”

Coming in moments later, the boys were greeted by three laughing sisters who immediately began singing another verse of their odd song. “You both look rather frightful, but we’re sure the walk was delightful. Now since you’ve no place to go, help us…”

“Nothing rhymes,” Adelinne said, exchanging glances with Kristyn.

“Spreading the disease, Corinne?” Sean said, looking at her over his glasses with amused disapproval.

She gave him what she thought looked like a very innocent face and Arron laughed. “Not exactly the desired effect,” she said wryly.

“Well, anyway, you have mail. Something from a Melissa—no, wait it was Melanie—yeah, Melanie Tweeny. Whoever that is,” Sean said, running his fingers through his hair.

“Melanie Tweeny! Isn’t that—“ Kristyn almost swallowed the tiny piece of candy cane she was sucking on.

“That’s the woman I sent my package to this year,” Corinne said with surprise. “They never write back.”

“This one did,” Arron said, plopping the envelope down on her lap.

They all drew back respectfully and waited for her to read it.

“What did she say?” Adelinne asked, seconds later.

“I’ll read it aloud. ‘Dear Corinne, I loved receiving your gift. Since I’m an older lady, I get cold a lot more often now, and the warm scarf was just what I needed. I don’t need to ask if you made it yourself, because I’m sure you did. It’s very beautiful. I’m a little short on friends right now, and I’d like to invite you and your family to come over tomorrow if it’s all right with your parents. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Mrs. Melanie Tweeny.’ There you are,” Corinne said.

“Wow,” was all Sean could think of to say.

“Let’s take a break and show this to Mom and Dad.”

The next day, almost New Year’s but not quite, the whole family found themselves packed into the van and on their way to Mrs. Tweeny’s. They were literally packed in, since coats and sweaters made them a lot bigger than usual.

“You know something,” Arron told Corinne, pressing his nose against the frosty window. “It’s sad that Christmas is over, but at least ‘Feliz Navidad’ isn’t on the radio anymore.”

Corinne laughed and ruffled his hair. Although she could laugh, she felt a little nervous in the pit of her stomach. Never before had she been able to meet one of the people she had sent a package to. It was exciting and scary at the same time.

Dad turned the van down another street, and she knew from the signs that they were getting close. The neighborhood was half decorated for Christmas and half not. Since it was a sunny day, they noticed that a few people were out in their yards taking down their decorations.

When they reached Mrs. Tweeny’s house, there was a man on the roof who waved to them with one hand and held a coiled string of Christmas lights with the other. They waved back as they piled out of the van. Taking the baby out of her seat, Corinne handed her to Mother and followed Arron out of the van then shut the door behind her.

Walking up the cracked sidewalk, she joined her family at the door and waited as Adelinne rang the doorbell. No answer.

“Try again,” Mom said.

She tried again and nothing happened. They even tried knocking since they knew that sometimes old doorbells didn’t work. Just when they were deciding to leave, the man came down off the roof and tucked his roll of Christmas lights into a dilapidated cardboard box.

“Hey, can I help you all?” he asked, wiping his hands off on his pants and shaking hands with Dad. “I’m Mrs. Tweeny’s nephew.”

“Nice to meet you. Mrs. Tweeny invited us over for a visit. We’ve been ringing the doorbell, but nothing has happened. Is it broken?” Dad asked.

The man laughed. “She’s probably playing piano in the back room. Want me to go in and tell her you’re here?”

The family all nodded at once and told him “thank you” then waited while he went inside. A moment later, a tall older lady with curled gray hair and a moss green dress opened the door.

“Hello, everyone! Do come in! I’m so happy to see you!” She opened the door and let them come in, talking all the while. Her nephew was standing next to her, looking rather amused. “I’m so sorry I didn’t answer the door, but I have to get all the Christmas songs in I can before the season is officially over. Sometimes I can’t hear anything over the grand, especially when I play Handel.”

Mrs. Tweeny was one of those remarkable people who was able to talk, urge you over to the living room, make you feel quite at home, and seem to know you completely by the time she was done with the process. The whole family found themselves sitting around the living room, some on the rug and others squeezed together on the tiny sofa, listening to her hilarious stories of being a piano teacher.

“There was one little girl who was about…your age I think,” she said, looking at Adelinne with a bright smile. “She used to tell me that she couldn’t play the piano unless she took her shoes off. I only smiled at that, but when she took them off at a recital I nearly died of laughter.”

Everyone laughed, especially when Sean added, “Just better hope she’s not a famous pianist someday. Who knows what she’ll do.”

Mrs. Tweeny laughed the hardest; and, when she had finished, she asked, “Which one is Corinne?”

Corinne raised her hand and gave a shy wave. “I am.”

“Thank you so much for the Christmas gift dear! It blessed me so much,” she said, laying a hand on the girl’s arm. “Now, tell me, what made you decide to send it to me?”

“Well, it sounds funny when you say it out loud, but God did. Every year since I really came to Him, I’ve been making an extra gift each Christmas and sending it to whomever He wants me to. It’s been everything from a decorated mug to a store bought book,” she explained, hoping the older lady would understand.

“Why that’s wonderful! A nice way of showing faith in Him and love to other people,” Mrs. Tweeny said. “I feel even more special now that I know.”

            Corinne smiled. “Thank you for your encouragement.”

            “So how did you decide to become a piano teacher?” Kristyn asked, hugging her knees to herself.

            “Well, I’ve always loved music and—“ Her eyes fell upon Arron. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I totally forgot. I made some goodies you all can have if it’s all right with your parents.” She started to rise from her chair.

            “Corinne and Arron, would you get them for her please?” Mom asked, then added when the older lady started to protest, “Where are they?”

            “We’d love to help you this way. Honest,” Arron said, happy to rise and stretch his legs.

            Mrs. Tweeny sat down again and smiled. “You dear people. Blake, will you show them to the ice box, please?”

            Her nephew stood up and led them into the kitchen, then opened the refrigerator door for them. Corinne took out a tray of tiny cheesecakes and handed them to Arron before taking the other tray herself.

            Blake shut the refrigerator door again, and she said, “Thank you. Always opening doors, aren’t you?”

            “I suppose so,” he replied, looking at her strangely. “Oh, that’s right! I know you from the post office. You’re the one who didn’t know where your package was going.”

            “Yes, that’s right,” she said, smiling. Then she balanced the tray on one hand and offered the other, “I’m Corinne.”

            “I’m Blake,” he said, shaking it. “Nice to meet you. Who could ever have imagined that that package would show up here?”

            “I’d call it God’s sense of humor, I suppose,” Corinne said with a little laugh.

            “Indeed,” Blake replied. “Sure you don’t need help with that tray, Arron?”

            “No thanks, I can eat it all by myself,” Arron said, slyly.

            Corinne laughed happily as she came into the living room and set her tray down on the table next to Mrs. Tweeny.

            “Thank you, dear,” the older lady said. “And I’ll still say ‘Merry Christmas’ just because I like to.”

            “Merry Christmas to you as well,” Corinne replied.

Christmastime Is Here!

Ten days ‘til Christmas, wow! This year has really sped by for me. These first two weeks of December, there has been so much to be grateful for! Let me share some of it with you…

I’m grateful for…

• Our family’s Advent celebration. Every night (at least every night we are able), Dad pulls out the Advent calendar after dinner and reads aloud that night’s little book that tells a part of the Christmas story. It’s a time where we all slow down to remember the Story again, sing Christmas songs together, and share in good conversation. This year, my littlest sister is finally old enough to participate in the celebration and understand what’s going on. It’s a really special time. ; )
• Our church’s Christmas recital early this month. I got to sing alto to “Joy to the World!” in a performance with some of my family members and friends. ; ) It was so amazing to be a part of! I also enjoyed listening to Anna and her friends sing “O Come, All Ye Faithful”; Tyler and Perry do “Mathew’s Begats” (by Andrew Peterson); and Tyler, Perry, and Dad perform “The Holly and the Ivy/While Shepherd’s Watched Their Flocks” (another Andrew Peterson).
• Babysitting nice nephews while their parents did music at the recital and that Sunday for church. Chap was hilarious sitting on my lap and coloring all over my sermon outline. Later when he was sitting with his parents again, I used his crayon to take notes. ; ) I also got to experience the “cry room” with the littlest one, which was a new experience. ; )
• Funny to say it, but…the clothes! All the best colors—red, green, black—are Christmas-y and my family actually finds it pretty easy to coordinate during this season. ; ) And I actually get to wear my warmer, favorite things since it’s a tiny bit cold out!
• My Christmas-present-making buddy! Betsy Bea and I are partners this year to prepare gifts for the siblings whose names we drew. It’s so much fun discussing our secrets and surprises. ; )
• The awesome gifts boxes we got from Aimee’s yard sale. That yard sale had a ton of Christmas stuff, and we bought some really cute little boxes from her. We turned on Christmas music and dragged all of our wrapping and scrapbooking supplies into our place of choosing. With a bit of decoration (one of them had lime green decorations that I colored darker green so they weren’t so hideous), Bea and I have them ready for their presents to go inside. ; ) Very exciting!
• Christmas music! Right now I’m listening to a cd of orchestral music; but it’s ranged from Nat King Cole to Andrew Peterson, from a collection of Christmas favorites to even a bit of the radio. ; ) Last Saturday, we got to hear a live performance of Handel’s “Messiah”! It was so amazing!!!
• Inspiration! Besides my story “Snowman”, I wrote another one currently called “Package” which I finished last week. They're even a little bit related. ; ) So much fun!
• Elderberry syrup to help us get healthy and stay healthy!
• All the Christmas baking I’ve been able to do since we are almost healthy now. ; ) I got to use my mini muffin baking tin for the first time ever last week! I brought the brownies to church yesterday which was pretty fun. I plan on making more for our church’s upcoming ladies’ tea.
• Mushy Jimmy Stewart Christmas movies. ; ) We just watched his little-known and hilarious movie “The Shop Around the Corner” (thanks to a generous friend); and I look forward to watching “It’s a Wonderful Life” soon among our other Christmas favorites. ; )
• The fact that Aimee and I get to host a table at the ladies' tea together! It will be really fun, though we do have somewhat different decorating styles. Not as far apart as they used to be though. When we were younger it was really bad. ; )
• The cold-ish weather that is coming!
• The book of Isaiah. I’ve been trying to read two chapters of it a day this Christmas season since there are so many prophecies related to Jesus. It’s pretty amazing!

Soon we will decorate our house for Christmas, if we are well enough; and we ladies will participate in the tea. After that, Christmas caroling with our church and then Christmas day—the celebration of our Lord and Savior coming to earth for us. What more could we ask than the Maker of the universe would humble Himself to come to His people? God is with us, and I am truly grateful.

This Christmas, what are you grateful for?

The Carol of the Bells (x3)

I love the song "The Carol of the Bells", and I love three different version for three different reasons to boot! ; ) Would you like to hear them? Enjoy, and remember to be careful since YouTube is a secular site!

First off is this Irish-y, awesome-y version by Keith and Kristyn Getty. 
I love the peppy, excited sound! ; )

And the PianoGuys version meshed with "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"...very dramatic. My littlest sister used to love pretending to sneak up on something whenever we listened to this song. ; ) 

Love the cello!

I had to share this one just because it's funny, and I love the Swedish Chef. ; )

Which one is your favorite?

Snowman

Merry Christmastime, all! I've been puzzling over just when you start saying "Merry Christmas", so I've decided to include the whole season in my greeting for now. ;) 

And now a little gift for you...my most recent Christmas story! It was inspired by wanting to have something to write, a Scripture verse that has been stuck in my head, and my fascination with country mailmen. ;) I hope you enjoy!!

Snowman

            Blake pulled on his snow boots and opened the front door. A cold gust of wind slapped him in the face, and he slammed the door shut hastily. Sitting down again, he pulled on another pair of socks and wound a thick scarf around his neck. He clomped over to his closet and said ruefully to the German shepherd that dutifully followed him, “It’s gonna’ take more than a regular coat today, old girl.”

            He yanked his heavy overcoat out of the closet and threw its broken hanger across the room into a waste basket. “Twelve miles to Chesslie, and the whole route on Christmas Eve. Calculate in the snow…” he mumbled into his scarf as he twisted the double-breasted buttons into their holes. “We should make it back in time for dinner. However lively that will be.”

            He didn’t say a word as man and dog walked out the door together. Thoughts about dinner had been quickly replaced by worry over the weather. If the local weathermen weren’t playing a joke on them, they were truly in for a storm. Seconds later, he confirmed their predictions by running his hand along the hood of his truck and absently measuring the snow. Two inches already. Getting to Chesslie was one thing but getting back was a whole other matter. Better chain up.

            “Minstrel,” he called, when he was done. The dog turned her attention from the snowflakes she was barking at and bounded over to the open truck door.

            Shaking the snow from her coat, Minstrel hopped up expertly onto the passenger’s seat; and Blake shut the door behind her. Tipping his head back to look up at the sky, he squinted his light eyes from the falling snow. This was no weatherman prank. Shaking his head, he prayed for safety and hoisted himself into the driver’s seat.

            The truck engine sputtered to a start, and he began to ease it down the driveway. “Granny gear all the way to town, it’s looking like. Never go out before the plows,” he remarked as they moved slowly down the road. “That snow’s moving faster than we are.”

            Minstrel sat up for a moment to look out the window then whined and lay back down on the seat next to him. The ancient heater did its best to drive the cold air out of the cab; but, despite its efforts and two pairs of socks, Blake found his feet were growing numb on the pedals. Turning on the radio, he listened as a static-y Christmas station and a definitely Canadian talk show mixed themselves together and came through his speakers. At least the odd noise was some company on the road. Everyone else had decided to wait for the plows.

            The drive proved uneventful and maddeningly long until they pulled up outside of the Chesslie Post Office. The snow wasn’t as thick in town, but the parking lot was empty of all vehicles except the box-like white trucks that covered the town routes. He was the only rural mailman that had dared to come. Better to be out in the snow than dying of bored loneliness at home.

            Jumping down from the truck, he untangled his arm from the seatbelt and slammed the snowy door behind him. A few uniformed mailmen glanced over at him before getting into their own vehicles. Giving a goofy salute after them, he said ruefully, “Yes, sir, the hick is here.”

            Stamping his boots together and doing his best to dust some snow off his coat, Blake looked up in time to see a young woman coming towards the door with a large package in her arms. He opened the door and moved politely aside, saying, “Last minute gift, eh?”

            She looked up with a bright smile. “That’s right. I do hope they get it in time for Christmas day.”

            Blake glanced at the package again. Something about it struck him as odd, and she voiced his thoughts a moment later. “No address, I know. I really don’t know who it’s for yet.” She grinned sheepishly.

            He lifted one eyebrow in surprise, but she didn’t tell him any more. He was still thinking about this odd exchange as he pulled out of the parking lot with his load of mail. “You know, Minstrel, I bet a lot of people are hoping this mail will get to its owners in time for Christmas just like she did. Maybe I didn’t come to work today just because I was bored and certifiably insane.”

            He reached down to scratch the patient dog’s ears. “Maybe it’s my Christmas mission from God. That’s really not as goofy as it sounds—it could be really important to Him that people get their mail. He knows about swallows and hair and stuff. He of course knows about the mail.”

            Blake sat up a little straighter. It was all he could do at the moment to “work as unto the Lord and not to men”, but he whistled a Christmas carol with renewed purpose. The plows had been through, but the snow was still falling; and he watched the road carefully for any signs of ice.

            Suddenly, Minstrel sat up and barked. Peering ahead through the frosty windshield, he saw a minivan pulled off the side of the road. Five very bundled up people were standing in a circle nearby with their heads bowed. Blake slowed down next to them and rolled down the window. The sound of his idling motor made them open their eyes, and he said cheerfully, “Need a shovel?”

            The tallest one, probably the father, waded towards him and pulled his scarf away from his mouth. “Thanks for the offer,” he replied, “but it’s actually broken down.”

            “Sure thing,” Blake said. He put his foot on the pedal and was about to drive away when a thought struck him. “Hey, where do you need to go?”

            The bearded man turned back around and came up to his window again. “Just up the hill. We live in the community up there.”

            “So do I. It’s my route. Hop in if you like,” he offered.

            The family looked at each other, then one of them opened the side door and the others piled in. Minstrel moved to the floor, and the father and one of his children took her place on the front bench.

            “You know,” the father began a little uncomfortably. “You’re an answer to our prayers.”

            Blake grinned widely and slapped his knee. “I knew He sent me to work today for more reason than just my being bored.”

            The family smiled too and began to lift their voices together in beautiful Christmas carols. Who needed a static-y Canadian-Christmas-talk-show-station now? The beautiful music filled the cab and already the frigid day seemed warmer. The mailman found himself not minding granny gear so much anymore, and Minstrel fell asleep from the fond pats the pink-nosed little boy gave her.

            They continued up the hill before stopping at the first house, and Blake got out to rummage through the mail. Finding the right address, he slipped a few envelopes into the mailbox and got back in the running vehicle.

            “Is this always your job?” one of the kids asked curiously.

            Blake nodded in the rearview mirror. One of the boys declared that he wanted to be a mailman when he grew up causing everyone to smile. A few mailboxes later, the mother said, “Well, here’s ours.”

            Blake stopped the truck and got out with them. Looking through the mail again, he said, “Oh, so you are the Andrews. I have a bit of interesting mail for you.” Smiling widely, he pulled out an oddly-shaped package addressed to the boys and handed it to one of them. Giving the rest of the mail to their father, including a green envelope, he added, “I’d better be off now.”

            “Thank you, and Merry Christmas!” They said, waving as they turned towards the house.

            “Same to you!” he called from his open car window.

            A little farther down the road, he rolled up his window and shivered. The snow had started again. There would be many more mailboxes to get done before dark, and he only had a few hours. Luckily the post office would close early, and he didn’t have to bring any outgoing mail back tonight.

            Whistling one of the cheery songs his new friends had taught him, he methodically worked his way through the route of mailboxes he had to fill. There wasn’t usually much mail on Christmas Eve, but it seemed that this year everyone got at least one piece of mail. It was always a green envelope with a gold seal just like the one he had given the Andrews family.

            Everyone seemed to think he was crazy for being out, but they were also very glad to get their mail. One older lady thanked him with a cup of coffee that helped to keep him warm as the daylight began to fade. Christmas lights came on about that time and helped to show him where the next house would be.

            Stopping at the second to last house, he jumped out of his truck and carried the mail up to the front steps shielding it from the snow with his coat. He rang the doorbell and waited as a voice said from within, “I’m coming, I’m coming,” accompanied by the sound of shuffling feet and a thumping cane.

            A wizened old man opened the door and peered out at him.

            “Merry Christmas, sir, here’s your mail,” Blake said, glad for the shelter of the porch roof.

            “Same to you, and thank you,” the elderly man said gruffly, looking over his glasses at the addresses on his mail. He lingered longest over a green envelope.

            “You’re welcome,” the mailman replied, shoving his mittened hands into his pockets.

            “You know,” the other man said, pointing a finger at him. A wheezing laugh came up from his throat and made it impossible for him to speak for a moment. “You look as round as a snowman with so many wraps on. Could be one too with all the snow you’ve collected.”

            Blake gave a wry smile. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

            “You should be called the snowman instead of the mailman. It could almost be a super hero name,” the man said, getting deeper into his joke. “You’d have to be one to be out in this weather. Either that or crazy.”

            Blake laughed this time. “Merry Christmas, sir.”

            One more house to deliver and only a small package and two white envelopes. No green one here. He sighed when he realized that this house was the one belonging to the pastor’s family. It had a long narrow driveway that had more than likely been neglected by the plows.

            His sanity had been doubted twice that day, but he determined that he would go no farther. Braking to a stop at the bottom of the hill, he leaned back in his seat to think. The Chesslie Post Office wouldn’t mind if he turned back now and delivered the mail another day. It was definitely impossible to drive up such a steep and snowy hill. But he wasn’t working for the post office anymore. He was working “as unto the Lord”.

            He made his decision. Finishing off his coffee, he declared, “Minstrel, old girl. This snowman super hero on a Christmas mail mission for God is going in. You are going with him because it’s too cold for you to stay that long in the truck.”

            Jumping out, he opened the door for her like a true gentleman and tucked the mail into the front of his overcoat. “It’s going to be a long walk, but one of our New Year’s resolutions was going to be more exercise. We’ll survive.”

            They did survive, but it wasn’t very pleasant hiking through drifts to deliver a few pieces of mail. The snow had stopped, and icy white stars glared down at them through patches in the receding clouds. The lights of the house soon came into view, and Blake smiled as he neared the twinkling icicle lights.

            Pausing to admire the homemade wreath, he knocked on the door and waited. Minstrel sat patiently next to him only breaking from her stance to bark a greeting at the dog who really owned the place.

            The front door opened, and a wave of warmth and music reached out onto the porch. “Hello, and Merry Christmas,” the pastor said with a welcoming smile. “Come for the party?”

            Blake was flummoxed by this greeting. “I just brought the mail.”

            “Walked here, did you?” the pastor said with surprise as the cold mailman handed him the parcels.

            Blake nodded.

            “Thank you very much. It’s just in time too. You’re welcome to join us. We meant to send you an invitation anyway,” the pastor replied, smiling.

            “Oh, thanks for the offer, but I have my dog with me.”

            The pastor looked down at Minstrel. “She’s welcome too.”

            “Thank you very much, sir; and Merry Christmas to you as well.”

            With these words, Blake and his dog entered the warm living room. Many people were gathered around the piano singing Christmas carols, and others chatted companionably at the refreshment tables. The Andrews waved to him, and he recognized several others to whom he had delivered mail. Removing his coats, snow boots, hat, and scarf, he handed these to the waiting pastor’s wife and joined the others around the piano.

            The door opened again a little while later, and an old man came in with one of the pastor’s sons who had brought him there on the family snowmobile. He shed his coat and tottered straight over to Blake. Clapping him on the back, he said heartily, “Hello again, Mr. Snowman. Thanks for bringing me my green envelope.” He waved the invitation for the astonished mailman to see.

            So, it had been important for the mail to get delivered that day! If he had stayed home, none of these people would have known to come to the party. They would certainly have missed out, and he would have too. He wouldn’t have been there to help the Andrews get home either.

            “You’re welcome, sir,” he said with a smile.

            Listening to the beautiful music around him, he mused over his day. He hadn’t known before why he was out delivering mail during a storm, but now it all made sense. God had used his loneliness to give many others gifts and give him one too—community.

            It was certainly interesting working “as unto the Lord”.

If you enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy my other Christmas short stories. 

Autumn Rose and the Perfect Gift

Autumn Rose and the Perfect Gift Part 2

Smiles in Their Hearts

Keep Your Rebekah’s Straight

Last summer, this test reading maniac was supremely blessed. One of my author friends, Rebekah Jones contacted me again and asked me to test read her newest project “24 Days Before Christmas”. It was a huge book, but since there was a generous deadline I accepted heartily.

A few weeks later, my other Rebekah—Rebekah Morris—contacted me with a test reading emergency. One of her test readers had to drop out at the last minute. Could I read her manuscript in two weeks? If I did, my review along with my name and my book’s name could be on the back of her fifth Triple Creek Ranch book. I was screaming over here with delight!! Of course I would do it!!!

You can imagine what it was like after that. Two novel-sized (at least) books to read in a month. Add to that the fact that both authors have the same first name and their email addresses start with the same letter. ; ) (I never mixed them up, though!) My family probably missed me; but, aided by my trusty tiny laptop, I finished the jobs. Rebekah Morris published her book on schedule (review will be here after the new year), and Rebekah Jones began the long editing process to get her book ready for Christmas time.

Rebekah Morris asked for my help again this autumn with a request for hand-drawn snowflakes for her newest project “Through the Tunnel”. My siblings and I experimented with several different ideas and finally got them to her. It was so fun to be able to help with yet another book! ; )

Now, to make the Tale of Two Rebekah’s even more confusing, their books both came out this last weekend in time for Christmas! I'd encourage you to check out Rebekah Jones’ mystery and Christmas story 24 Days Before Christmas. I plan on reviewing it here this December, so stay tuned! ; ) Also be sure to look at Rebekah Morris’ book Through the Tunnel and let me know what you think of it. I’m very anxious to read it myself. ; ) But remember, keep your Rebekah’s straight! ; )

And yes, this test reading maniac is currently working on another project. It's pretty fun. ; ) Have you ever been a test reader? 

We Gather Together

Wow, has this week been busy!! I am so grateful to have been able to spend time with my hilarious, Chick-fil-A loving, Hobby Lobby loving, music loving relatives. We had a great time singing Christmas carols together and making a ton of food in the kitchen. (I got to help out this year.) ; ) If you'd like to see a picture of the crazy crew, you can follow this link to our family blog.

Tons and Bunches: Happy Thanksgiving!: Happy Thanksgiving!!! All of Betsy's family came to town for a couple days, and we've enjoyed hanging out with  them while they...

I'd like to encourage you to listen to this sermon on thankfulness if you haven't already. ; )

My Ebookshelf (Small Though It Be)

Wow, what a nerdy title! Only the 21^st century could present us with such an awkward, amazing thing. Paper books are definitely my preference, but giveaways and sales have given me a few of my own ebooks to talk about. Sorry--I had so much fun with my paper-bookshelf tour, that I couldn't stop there. ; )

Brothers and Betrayal by Sarah Holman

Sequel to Adventures and Adversities (Love the alphabetical!), I got this book through a giveaway. I really enjoyed reading it since I’m a medieval and Robin Hood junkie. The best thing about it, though, is that it’s those things redeemed. ; ) Robin Hood without the thievery. It does bring up some interesting moral dilemma discussions, but you’ll hear more about that when I post the full review sometime.

Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster

I picked this book up because it was cute-looking, famous, and free. I really enjoyed the letter format and the endearing, down-to-earth character of Judy. ; ) It is a product of its times, however, so there are some things I don’t agree with. (And I found the romance disappointing but I’m picky, so...) ; )

The Graham Quartet and the Mysterious Strangers by Rebekah Morris

I picked this up because it was free online, and I knew it would be good since I’ve read a lot by the author. ; ) My siblings and I all really enjoyed it since it’s an adventuresome mystery where the kids have their parents in on it and they actually call the police when they need to. We are so excited for the next book to come out! ; )

The Green Ember by S.D. Smith

My mom picked this up for free through a Famomook friend’s recommendation and asked me to preview it. Cute cover, probably Beatrix Potter-like, right? I decided to try it out to see if maybe the younger kids could read it. And I love it so much!!! It’s definitely a very favorite ever, as you can probably tell from the extended review I have on here. And I just read the prequel The Blackstar of Kingston. And I just found out there’s another book in the series coming next spring. Eeek!!

It Took a War by Emily Ann Putzke

This book looked really interesting, and since it was discounted for a summer reading program on Homeschooled Authors I thought I would give it a try. Very neat story concept, but I found the story to be a bit like a textbook sometimes and somewhat abbreviated with not much character development in some cases. Still an interesting read, but not exactly my taste.

Never by J. Grace Pennington

I won this book in a giveaway and was interested to see what it had to offer since I’d only read the author’s sci-fi works. It was a very well written complicated story, but I had trouble enjoying it because of the grunginess and the violence. I also wished the Christian theme had been stronger. Once again, a good book but not my taste. ; )

Waltz into the Waves by Sarah Holman

You know how when you have an Amazon giftcard and you squeeze as many real books onto it as possible there’s still those delightful little bits of money left over? Yeah, I found myself in that troubling situation. Coming across this short story, I decided to give it a try since it sounded really cute. ; ) It was a really cute. And a really clever Cinderella retelling. One problem though—too cute. The romance was more of the kind that gets into the characters' thought lives (i.e. Oh, wow, I want to kiss him.), and I try not to read much of that because it can affect my brain. ; ) So, I did enjoy it for its good writing, but it’s not something I’ll read again for a while. ; )

So, that’s my ebookshelf. As you can see it’s been collected mostly through giveaways, discounts, and the like which is exactly what Kindle is for, right? I want to publicly thank my brother for figuring out how to link my account with the family’s so we can have our books on the same Kindle. Pretty awesome, bro.

What does your ebookshelf contain? Do you like the adventure of trying out books or do you find it discouraging and maddening? Which do you prefer—paper books or digital ones? ; )

Baking with Absolutely Nothing

We've had a wild weekend, so today is a catch-up day and a birthday celebration all in one. ;) I'll tell you all about it later, so for now I leave you with this adventure from a few weeks ago...

It all started when I decided I should try to bake something out of absolutely nothing. Well, not quite nothing. Just no eggs, no butter (or at least hardly any to speak of), no whipping cream, and no baking chocolate. I spent over an hour searching the internet for recipes that had the keywords “eggless”, “lemon”, and “cream cheese”. (It’s pretty rare for us to have cream cheese. The only reason we did was because I forgot we had some and didn’t use it on our bagels.) ; )

If you’re eggless you’re supposedly vegan, and they don’t use cream cheese. If you are using cream cheese, you’re probably going to make cheese cake; and you definitely need cream. And if you want to switch over from lemon to something with chocolate, you of course need baking chocolate.

For once, the internet had nothing. Nothing for my unique circumstances, that is. I did find a few recipes to save for later when we finally grocery shopped and it was the proper time between sweets again.

So I got very daring. I decided to make something up.

Cutting my precious loaf of cream cheese in half, just in case one of my experiments turned out super disgusting, I made a lemony-spready-thingy out of part of it. It didn’t turn out the bestest ever (baking gives me lapses in grammar); but what I did with the other half of the cream cheese turned out pretty amazing. Which is nothing short of a miracle, since I had nothing to go on; and I have a reputation of being a walking kitchen disaster.

Taking the other half of the cream cheese, I whipped it up in the blender with some powdered sugar, milk, and cocoa powder. (No baking chocolate!) It turned out really chocolate-y, and cream cheese-y, and lapses-in-grammar-y with just the perfect hint of sweetness. And my taste testers had very positive things to say. So far so good.

Then I got really creative. I’ve recently been drooling over a book on mini pies, so I immediately decided that this pudding stuff wouldn’t stay pudding stuff. I had been fortunate enough to find a few pie crust recipes that didn’t take oil (I was searching sour cream ones before I found out that the tub we had in the frig was two months out of code); but I also was advised by dear Mom that that wouldn’t be the right thing for the filling I had made. Think, think, think. No graham crackers. We buy those about as often as Shemitah and the blood moons line up.

We had some Nutter Butter cookies in the pantry which I decided would have to do, and I gleefully smashed them up with a rolling pin. Taking the half stick of butter left in the house (it wasn’t enough for anything else anyway), I mixed it with the cookie crumbs and a bit of powdered sugar into a gooey, icky-looking dough.

Don’t laugh, but I greased three spaces of our twelve count muffin tin (that’s all I could make!) and pressed the crust into it. After it had baked in the oven for a while, I took it out and was surprised to find that the crust had risen and completely filled up the muffin spaces. So much for filling. I really should have looked up how to do this. Doing the only thing possible, I smashed the middle of each down with a spoon while it was still hot and left them to cool until I felt I could take them out without breaking them.

They broke a little when I took them out; but that pleased the taste testers (who thought this part tasted good as well), and I was able to paste most of it back together with the filling. Carefully spooning in the filling so that the walls of cookie would not crumble, I admired my work and asked for a bit of Dad and Mom’s chocolate syrup for their coffee to drizzle on top. Now it looked like something real; not just crazy Kate’s unnamed experiment that might turn out to be a real treat or the new atom bomb.

I put it in the refrigerator until we ate it the next day. There was only three, remember? Perfect number for our family to divide up. Everyone ended up with an allotted piece, and the taste tasters were satisfied again. (There were even offers to buy the pieces that belonged to people who couldn’t eat them yet.) I was surprised, delighted, and blessed. I’ve ruined so many real recipes before (or at least almost ruined them) that who could have guessed a complete experiment would turn out so well?

I really enjoyed baking this dessert out of absolutely nothing (or almost nothing, anyway) and really enjoyed eating it. Next time, I’ll use all the cream cheese, more Nutter Butters, and possibly a mini muffin tin so the “recipe” stretches farther. And I’ll look up parbaking or whatever it’s called. ; )

Now, what do I do with that lemon frosting stuff? Hmm…

And isn’t amazing how God can orchestrate something as small as forgetting to use the cream cheese so that I had it later when I wanted to bake something?

My Bookshelf of Oddities and Amazingities (Part Two)

Hello again, it's me. I'm crazy. Book crazy. (That's the good kind.) ; ) Anyone else excited to see the rest of my book collection? ; )

The Little House Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder

I’m collecting these, because I think every bookshelf should have ‘em. They are timeless. ; ) I don’t quite have the full series yet, but they’re everywhere so it’s coming. There are also a few “extra books” written by other authors in the spirit of the originals that I’d like to add to my collection too.

Dance at Grandpa’s

This is a picture book version of one of my favorite parts in Little House in the Big Woods. The paintings are so cute! ; )

Summer Days with the Moodys by Sarah Maxwell

Another book I picked up because I was out of things to read and this one would be safe. ; ) Dad and Mom got it primarily for me at the one of the Maxwells’ conferences, but it was for me to share with my siblings. ; ) We all enjoy them, but there not our very favorites.

The Heavens Declare by Perry Willis

Yeah, I know. She’s Perry Kirkpatrick now. I have one of the old versions. Sister privileges. ; ) (It’s signed too.) It’s a really fun book!! You learn science without knowing you are which is always a good thing. ; )

Light of the World by Perry Willis

Sorry, old version too. ; P This one is similar to the first one in writing style, but this time there’s something of a mystery and an amazing Gospel presentation. ; ) I love it.

Pearl’s Practice by Perry Kirkpatrick

There we have it—now she’s married. Phew. This book is so cute!! It’s the only pro-life, pro-baby, pro-Christ one I’ve seen of its kind. I love it.

The Treasure Hunt by Kate Willis

Oh, my, that’s me! I’m so happy to have my own little book on the shelf (can you see it in the picture?), and I couldn’t be more grateful for the awesome people who’ve made this dream come true. ; )

Hank the Cowdog by John Erickson

I have two of these fabulously weirdly funnily interesting books. I have the first one, because it’s the first one. And I have Lost in the Blinded Blizzard because it is the best ever. (Except maybe the fishhook one and the tornado one.) You’ll never look at a dog the same after reading these. ; )

Along Came a Dog by Meindert Dejong

This book is really slow, as is usual of the author’s style, but I like it a lot for that reason. Charming story, especially since I remember Mom reading it aloud when I was really little. ; )

Man O’ War by Walter Farley

My favorite horse book is King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry. That one and any other about an awesome horse always refers to their relative—Man O’ War. I was beginning to be frustrated that I had no idea what they were all talking about when I found this book at the thrift store. (Thrift stores are a bookaholic’s BFF.) It was really neat to finally know something about this famous horse, but I still think I prefer books about the Godolphin Arabian and Seabiscuit. ; )

The Middle Moffat by Eleanor Estes

Our ancient church library was not always complete in their series I bought this book myself to see what happened next. We like this series a lot, but there can often be ghost “sightings” and slight attitude throughout. ; )

Adventures and Adversities by Sarah Holman

Oh, the wonders of the Homeschooled Authors booth! I found this there too. ; ) I’ve already reviewed it on here before, but it’s worth saying again—it’s awesome!! ; )

Before You Meet Prince Charming by Sarah Mally

This book—wow. Very helpful for the topic of boy/girl interactions and keeping a solid brain in Christ. My older sister gave me her copy when she got married. ; )

It’s (Not That) Complicated by Anna Sophia and Elizabeth Botkin

I got this book last year with book money (from the year before’s birthday). My relatives are so nice to me. *sighs happily* This book most definitely goes on the list of “very favorites ever”. If the book I mentioned before goes far in being helpful, this one goes even farther! You might see me quote it on her sometimes as it deals with everything from sibling relationships to interactions with young men, from social media guidelines to contentment in Christ. It covers all the bases. Wowzers. (I would recommend this book for older teenagers, and the other one for the thirteen to sixteen age group.) ; )

Babywise by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam, M.D.

Ha, ha! You can tell that this is definitely one of the books I’m not using right now, but I’m sure it will be good for the future. It’s what Mom used with me! ; )

To Train Up a Child by Michael and Debi Pearl

And this one too...no children to “train up” currently. ; )

Little Pilgrim’s Progress by Helen L. Taylor (not pictured because it’s on loan)

I love the story of Christian! Unfortunately, I’m not fluent in Middle English, so I really appreciate that this version is in regular English. ; ) It’s also awesome how in this version Christian is a child. Makes things a bit more relatable. ; ) I bought this book at a homeschool convention after enjoying my sister’s copy.

Evangelists in Chains by Elizabeth Wagler (also on loan)

Remember that Christmas I mentioned when I got the knock-knock joke book? This was my gift in the mail around New Years’. I love it so much!!! The whole theme of the story is “Our God, whom we serve, is able”. It will truly wow you and strengthen your faith! (And start some good discussions on non-conformity and non-resistance.) ; )

The Family Treasures Coloring Book by Breezy Brookshire

I love this!!! We all love it! Just enough detail and charm to be one of the good coloring books (that can keep even old people like me interested) without making it tedious to work on a picture. We especially love the family-centeredness of the scenes! ; )

Audrey Bunny by Angie Smith

I’ve screamed about this on here before, and I’m not hoarse yet so I’ll scream about it again. Take a tear-jerking story with Gospel overtones and hidden references to a true life tear-jerking story then have Breezy Brookshire illustrate it in full color. Yep.

Our Flag Was Still There by Tracy Michele Leininger (now Craven)

I love this story. And I love the pictures. One of the best patriotically-_geared books I’ve read.

Rosemary for Remembrance by Tasha Tudor

Mommy got me this gorgeous calendar treasury book for my birthday. I haven’t used it yet, but I love just looking and looking at the pictures. ; )

Large Family Logistics by Kim Brenneman

This book is awesome for now and awesome for later. I loved reading it for ideas, and I look forward to implementing it in my own household someday. One really excellent thing it did for me was to help me see motherhood as the exciting art, science, and ministry it really is. ; )

I’ve mentioned a few of the more notable books in my stack of sideways ones, but as you can see there are many more. If you were to browse through that part you’d find a knitting book, a Bible Bee workbook, picture books from my past and waiting for the future (though my little friends pull them out to enjoy once in a while), an old Highlights magazine (1975), full journals and empty ones, a book one of my little sisters made me, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”, and cds full of old family photos. I have my two ultimate favorite audio dramas on there too—“Sir Knight of the Splendid Way” and “The Last Battle”. It’s time to listen to those again. ; )

Over on my desk are a couple more books. They’re mostly there because they are the pretty ones, but also you can probably see that I’m running out of space. *grins sheepishly* *adds another book to that Amazon wishlist* I like my desk to be pretty (and cluttered with projects, but that’s beside the point), so these ones got to go on top.

Prayer Devotional Bible by God (and whoever wrote the devotions)

My Dad bought me this NIV Bible a while back because I’ve always had an interest in prayer warriors and intercession (and because it is really pretty). Unfortunately, I don’t use it much because our church uses NKJV for services. Maybe it’s time to switch back to it though, because my regular Bible is super beat up. ; )

Sir Knight of the Splendid Way by W.E. Cule

Eeeeeek!!!!! I LOVE this one!!! It’s like a medieval (and you know I love medieval) version of Pilgrim’s Progress. Soooooo awesome!!! Life-changing. My Dad references “The Vision of the Face” when he’s encouraging us to keep our eyes on Christ. I can’t decide if it’s better in book or audio drama format—it’s probably better in both. ; ) A very favorite ever? Definitely. Very good birthday present.

The Lost Clue by O.F. Walton

Really great story! I don’t usually like the “our-main-character-is-the-long-lost-noble-something-of-wherever-and-that’s-the-reason-they-have-good-character” books. This book is half that and half not. (One of the only reasons it passed muster. The other reasons include a great mystery and a sweet Godly romance.) That “half not” part really made me love it. Marjorie is such an amazing character! She is really inspiring and encouraging. I love it. ; ) Another birthday present. Now I know why I was born—birthdays.

Comfortable Troubles by Elizabeth Prentiss

When you’ve enjoyed Stepping Heavenward and Aunt Jane’s Hero you naturally want more. I was so excited to see that Lamplighter Publishers had reclaimed another one of her books and even more excited to see it on the scratch and dent table at a homeschool convention. It came home with me, and I loved it as I did the others. In a way, it’s actually very different from them; but good all the same. I don’t tend to recommend it for younger readers, just in case they pick up on the wrong worldview the main character moves from.

So, that’s my bookshelf! Thanks for stopping by and bearing with my wanderings! ; ) If I know you in person, I’d love to loan you something; and, if I don’t, I’d love to meet you! ; )

What are your favorites? I’m not sure what mine are but you can judge that for yourselves from my descriptions. ; )

Thanksgiving Sermon

Since  it's finally handiwork weather, we've been listening to read-alouds and sermons. The height of fun. ; ) Here's my favorite sermon currently, especially applicable to Thanksgiving season. I hope you are as blessed by it as I was!

My Bookshelf of Oddities and Amazingities (Part One)

This weekend I've gotten to go with my family to help our aunt set up her yardsale (and do some awesome "pre-shopping"); help my siblings make a storm of snowflakes to go in this book; attend a concert by Sam Rotman; listen to a fabulous sermon on true religion (from the book of James); and yesterday I got to go celebrate Chap's birthday. ; ) So many blessed and blessing adventures!

One of the other blessings I've noticed recently, as I've gotten to loan out books to various friends from church, is just how overflowing my bookshelf is! So many relatives (especially Dad and Mom!!) have helped me collect them all, and the amazing authors make it all possible. ; ) God has truly blessed me by giving me something to share. 

Would you like a tour? Here goes...

My bookshelf is an odd collection of a little of everything. My favorite mystery serieses (??) from when I was 13…Bible study books…picture books…books for the future on teaching babies to sleep…audio dramas…adventures—ordinary and extraordinary…an amazing coloring book…an old-fashioned cookbook…even a board book… Like I said, a little of everything. ; ) My tastes and my standards have changed through the years, so not everything is always super recommendable or applicable to the stage of life I’m in right now.

Still, since I’m so book crazy (that’s actually my reviewer name on Amazon), I’ve decided to give you a quick tour of everything on there. Oh, don’t worry. This won’t take all day--I'll split it into two parts. ; )

The Mary Frances Cookbook by Jane Eayre Fryer

I spotted this book ages ago in a quilt store along with the rest of the series. I’ve always been interested in cooking and was excited to see cooking lessons in story format. The different utensils in the kitchen are teaching the little girl how to use them. ; ) Seeing my interest, my dad so sweetly picked it up for me. Unfortunately, it’s an old book so the utensils and methods are too antiquated for our kitchen; but I’ve kept it anyways since it’s so cute. ; )

A Man Called Peter by Catherine Marshall

After watching the amazing movie version of this story, we were excited to find that some friends of ours owned the book and borrowed if from them. Partway through the story, I found that it was going to be one of my “very favorites ever” and (having book money on hand) decided to purchase it. ; ) Mom finished reading this book aloud from the copy I bought, and it truly is amazing!!! Even better than the movie in some ways!!

Bonnie Prince Charlie by G.A. Henty

I got this book for Christmas when I was ten or eleven. At that time, the typical-of-Henty pages of straight history at the beginning were too much for me; but I was fascinated by the Jacobite revolution/resistance and delighted that there was next to no romance in the story. ; ) I still enjoy the story, but it’s not the best ever.

At Agincourt by G.A. Henty

Love the espionage and disguises, hate the astrology and feminism. Sigh. Very interesting, not bloody (always love that!) look at the times; but once again not super awesome.

Calico Bush by Rachel Field

This story is one of my most favoritest historical fiction books ever. (Right up there with “Carry On, Mr. Bowditch”!) Just enough history, realism, romance, and excitement for me! My Mom read it aloud to us a while ago, and she did find a few parts to skip for younger listeners (Really sad pioneer-like accidents); but we loved the story!!

The Viking Quest Series by Lois Walfrid Johnson

I’ve already reviewed this series on here before, but I’ll say a little about them again. They have had a huge impact on my life both for good and for ill. I ran into them at a time when I need to learn to forgive others and trust God. They helped me a ton in that! Unfortunately, the romance was too much for my fourteen-year-old brain, so I don’t loan them out to younger readers now. Instead, I keep them for old times’ sake and older readers. ; ) My favorite book in the series has got to be The Invisible Friend, but the others are awesome too. ; )

Dreamlander by K.M. Weiland

Frequent readers on here will remember me screaming about how awesome this book is about six months ago. I still love it. Someone make a movie of it. I will pay you. I have chocolate. I make brownies.

Gift from the Storm by Rebekah Morris

And this one. I keep these two next to each other because they are both gorgeous, I got them at the same time, and they go on my list of “very favorites ever”. I recently loaned this one to some friends, and they love it too. So it’s not just me. ; )

The Triple Creek Ranch Series by Rebekah Morris

Oh, wow! Same author as the last one. Since I bought the first book a year and a half ago at Perry’s Homeschooled Authors booth, I’ve been loving and collecting this series. The four books I currently own have been enjoyed by approximately seven people, and I think that whoever opens them next will love them just as much. ; ) God-centered, exciting, non-violent westerns—what could be better? More.

Little Miriam of Galilee by Edith Martin

I found this book through one of the Mennonite catalogs we order our school curriculum through. It’s one of my earlier ones, so the reading level and content are great for younger readers. I’ve always loved stories set in Bible times, and I really appreciate how the author didn’t try to portray Jesus and fall short. ; )

The House with Two Grandmothers by Rebecca Martin

Another from the same company, this one is about a family during the Great Depression. It wasn’t the best story or style ever so it hasn’t become one of my favorites, but it served the purpose of giving me something safe to read. ; )

Tanya and the Border Guard by Anita Deyneka

I bought this book after reading the sequel Alexi’s Secret Mission from our ancient church library and really enjoying it. It isn’t as amazing as the second book and has a bit more attitude, but it was neat to know backstory of what I had read first. ; )

Flat-Out Awesome Knock-Knock Jokes for Kids by Bob Phillips

We were snowed in with friends for Christmas, and the mail had stopped until New Years’. Some of our Christmas presents wouldn’t be on time, but Dad and Mom gave us what they had on hand. This little book was one of my gifts, and that’s why I keep it. I’m not a kid comedian anymore, but my younger siblings like pulling it out once in a while. ; )

The Farm Mysteries Series by Mr. and Mrs. Stephen B. Castleberry

My oldest sister is five years older than me, so I used to get a lot of my reading recommendations from what she had read when she was little. Hearing about this series, I asked for it for my thirteenth birthday and my parents got it for me. (They are so supportive of my obsession.) ; ) I accidentally found out what I was getting before it was time, but that didn’t spoil my reading appetite. I read all nine books in maybe two weeks! Then the next siblings down the line read them, and I wrote a letter to the authors telling them how much we enjoyed them and that my brother and my younger sister had started their own detective agency just like the characters’. They sent me the tenth book since it had just come out. You can imagine how pleased I was. ; ) I can’t wait to share them with my littlest sister when she can read well enough. ; )

The Scripture Slueth Books 3 & 4 by Matt Halverson

I’ve always loved mysteries, and nothing shows that better than this part of my bookshelf I suppose. My Dad purchased book 3 for me at a homeschool convention and I loved it! (Still do, actually.) Mysteries you solve yourself using clues from the Bible then reading the ending to see if you were right. What could be better? Like I said earlier—more. ; ) My brother and I ordered more (I got book 4 this time) making sure to have them signed by the author. We spread the joy to a friend and between all three of us we have the complete series. ; )

Janette Oke’s Animal Friends by Janette Oke (what a surprise!)

I got these two books at a Christian bookstore when I was say, nine or ten. (All I remember about that day was that I got confused about how much money I had and Dad came to my rescue by adding a little.) ; ) These aren’t the best books ever, but they are fun for young readers. ; )

The Three Cousins Detective Club by Elsbeth Campbell Murphy

Dad and Mom got me two of these books for my eleventh birthday and signed them with really sweet messages. ; ) Four days later, we flew up to the Greatest Northwest that ever was to consider moving there. I read one of the books on our flight and saved the other to read on our trip. Since then I’ve been collecting as much of the series as I can. A few here and there for birthdays, one for a quarter at a library booksale, and so on. At first it was for me, and in a way it still is, but now it’s mostly for the younger family members and friends I share them with. I always love it when I find a safe series for that 8-12 age when it’s hard to find anything. ; )

Next time I'll tackle the next shelf... ; )