The Amish View: First Christmas I’VE RECEIVED many letters responding to A Simple Amish Christmas, my debut book. Most readers appreciated the Amish way of life. How do they manage to keep things so simple? Wouldn’t it be nice to not have all the rush and stress around Christmas.? When I began my research for this book, I wasn’t aware …
Wednesday’s Spotlight: Amish Grace I would not have picked this book to read; however, my 72-year-old mother saw the movie on tv last week — said she cried through the entire thing. Of course I remember the Nickel Mines tragedy. It occurred before I began writing Amish fiction, but even then I was aware of the Amish presence within our country. …
Happy Labor Day weekend. I’ve been looking forward to this one–the school year started back up two weeks ago here in Texas. The first few weeks are usually the toughest. Labor Day comes at a perfect time for teachers (and probably students as well). Which started me wondering if the Amish take Labor Day off. So I consulted my notes (nothing …
The more I learn about the Amish, the more I learn I don’t know. I suppose that’s true with any new friend–and I do consider the Amish my friends. Recently I learned that there is an Amish community in Stephenville, TX. How cool is that? Stephenville is only 86 miles from me! I don’t think I’ll be ordering a …
I can’t think of two words that are more lovely and more lovely TOGETHER. As the fields around me fade to browns and grays, I look back over my Amish pictures and what jumps out? QUILT GARDENS. When we were in Shipshewana this summer we were delighted to discover the Quilt Garden Tour. Free, spread across 7 communities in …
Usually on Wednesday’s we talk about ANOTHER author’s writing, but this week I wanted to share a little of my writing. This week I had the opportunity to blog with Shannon Vannatter. MONDAY she had me relate some of my husband’s most romantic moments. That was fun (love you, honey). We’re a bit unconventional when it comes to romance. …
I thought since it’s so blazing HOT across the states, I’d do a blog that amuses me — Amish BUGGIES. When I first started reading Amish books, I had a hard time envisioning what these looked like. I suppose I pictured something like a prairie wagon. Of course I’d seen a few on book covers, and one or two in …
I’ve enjoyed sharing what I learned on my trip to Shipshewana, Indiana. When my editor, the wonderful Sue Brower, picked Shipshe for the setting of our cozy Amish series, I had never heard of it. I went on-line and did my research. I googled. I even posted to my writing groups and asked questions. That was when I received my …
I’ll wrap up this series next weekend. It’s been a pleasure to share photos with you from my trip to Shipshewana, Indiana. Today we’re going to focus on FARMING, and I’m sure I will get much of the terminology wrong. Although I now live in the country, I was born in LA. It will, no doubt, show. So let’s get to …
I wanted to recap a little more of my visit to Shipshewana, Indiana where I was researching my upcoming series, Shipshewana Amish Mystery (Zondervan 2011). It’s possible that Amish clothing is part of what draws us into the story. We are a bit fascinated with this simpler style of dress. It would be nice to not have to worry about …