The Blog

Places We Like … Amish Life Another question I asked you a few weeks ago is where you would like to visit, where you would go to see the Amish if you could take a trip. I like trips! It’s fun to go somewhere different and see how people live. Here are your answers. Pennsylvania Ohio Indiana Florida Missouri There... read more

Why We Care … Amish Life A few weeks ago I asked you some questions. I believe it was while I was running a contest. (Sounds like me. Right?) One of the questions was WHY did you care about the Amish? WHAT was it that interested you the most about them? WHY do you read their stories? The answers were... read more

Special Announcement: A Perfect Square A Perfect Square is available beginning today in ebook format! WooHoo! It’s like the birth of a child. I’m so stinking excited that hubby is worried about me. He’s gently removing the coffee cup from my hands. : )- This is Book 2 in my Shipshewana series. (No-you don’t HAVE to reaad them in order.) This IS a cozy... read more

All Things Amish–Gardening, part 3 March and gardening seems like a real possibility now. Right? This is one of my favorite pictures from my visits to Amish farms. There’s a LOT in this picture–there’s an entire story in this picture. I’ll even admit that THIS picture was the inspiration for Esther’s garden in my Shipshewana series. Isn’t the giant ball... read more

All Things Amish–Gardening, part 2 Are we in the gardening mood yet? I realize many of you still have snow on the ground. My hope is this series will warm you up a little! I was surprised how large Amish gardens are, but then again they are using them to feed their families. But other things surprised me as well–look... read more

All Things Amish–Gardening, part 1 February might SEEM like an early time to talk about gardening, but I like the idea of planning out my garden. When I look back over the photos of Amish gardens I have visited, it’s easy to see they are well planned. Lots of work and effort went into these vegetable patches–and for good reason. Here... read more

All Things Amish–Blue Gate Restaurant in Shipshewana Blue Gate Restaurant is a special place in Shipshewana, and it’s special for several reasons. It’s a memorable place to stop and eat–and yes, I’m talking Amish food. It also is home to a remarkable theater which this year is hosting talent ranging from Amy Grant to plays such as Beverly Lewis’ The... read more

All Things Amish–Menno-Hof in Shipshewana When you visit Shipshewana, one of the first things you notice is the big red barn on South Van Buren as you’re driving through town. The Menno-Hof was actually built in a traditional barn-raising with the help of local the local Amish and Mennonite communities. I was in Shipshe the last 2 summers to research my books, Falling... read more

All Things Amish–Shipshewana On Saturdays, I’m sharing some of my favorite spots in Shipshewana, Indiana … the setting for Falling to Pieces and my upcoming release, A Perfect Square. We don’t think of an Amish community as being the home of Native American Indians, but Shipshewana was the name of the Chief of the Potawatami Indians who had settled in the... read more

All Things Amish–Lolly’s Fabrics and Quilts For the next few Saturdays, I want to share with you some of my favorite spots in Shipshewana, Indiana … the setting for Falling to Pieces and my upcoming release, A Perfect Square. When I decided to use a real town for my fictional series, I kept some things the same, and I changed... read more