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Crusin’ into 2009!
Happy New Year!So, have you set any goals for the year? Somehow it sounds better to me when I say goals rather than resolutions. I have a few. Some are writing related and a few are of more of a personal nature. I’ll share the writing related goals with you and next December you can come back and we’ll see how I did.1. Actively seek representation.In 2009 I will define my list of potential agents and begin the process of querying said agents.2. Complete the rewrites for The Azalea Sisters.3. Complete a second full-length novel.4. Attend the ACFW conference in Denver.That’s an easy one. I had a blast last year and can’t wait to get to Denver.5. Continue to learn, learn, learn the craft of writing.6. Enter two submission to the Genesis contest.I have to mention that 2008 was an incredible year for me. It was the year I signed my first book contract and the year I signed the contract for my first short story sale. This has been a year of very high highs and a few very low lows but in the end I know I am truly blessed. I have an amazing family, a great husband and kids. My friends are the best that anyone could ever ask for and I am firm in my faith which carries me through the trials. So, bring on 2009. I can’t wait to see what’s coming next.Leave me a comment and share a few of your goals for 2009.Have a blessed new year!Christina -
106 Things About Me
I’ve seen this list quite a few times recently. It got me thinking about how often (especially in the middle-age years) we dwell on what we haven’t yet done. My perspective changed when I went through and marked these for myself. Huh, it turns out I’m not as boring as I thought. My challenge this year will be to remember all the wonderful opportunities I’ve had and to be open to having more, while remaining content right where I am. Afterall, the bible says, “be content with what you have, because God has said, never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
Feel free to copy this list to your blog and asterix the things you’ve done and add a few new things. Leave a comment here and tell me about some of your adventures or leave a link to your blog.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
*1. Started your own blog
*2. Slept under the stars
*3. Played in a band
*4. Visited Hawaii
*5. Watched a meteor shower
*6. Given more than you can afford to charity
*7. Been to Disneyworld
*8. Climbed a mountain
*9. Held a praying mantis
*10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
*14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
*15. Adopted a child
*16. Had food poisoning
*17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
*18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
*21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
*24. Built a snow fort
*25. Held a lamb
*26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
*29. Seen a total eclipse
*30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
*37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
*45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
*48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
*51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
*52. Kissed in the rain
*53. Played in the mud
*54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
*57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
*63. Got flowers for no reason
*64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
*67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
*69. Saved a favorite childhood toy (book!)
*70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
*71. Eaten Caviar
*72. Pieced a quilt
*73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
*75. Been fired/laid off from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
*77. Broken a bone
*78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
*79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
*80. Published a book (in a few months anyway)
81. Visited the Vatican
*82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
*84. Had your picture in the newspaper
*85. Read the entire Bible (I’m not sure on this one.)
*86.Visited the White House
*87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
*88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
*90. Sat on a jury
*91. Met someone famous
*92. Joined a book club
*93. Lost a loved one
*94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
*98. Owned a cell phone
*99. Been stung by a bee
100. Seen Mount Rushmore in person
*101. Learned to play an instrument
102. Kissed the Blarney Stone
103. Ridden a camel
*104. Ridden an Elephant
*105. Petted a cheetah
*106. Eaten Opposum -
Friend’s Thanksgiving
On a recent Sunday, we marked the ninth annual Friend’s Thanksgiving dinner. What a blessing to have 61 of my closest friends all together, squeezed in really, in my home. We cooked two turkeys, one smoked and one roasted. Friends came bearing ham, potatoes, pumpkin pie and all the other Thanksgiving treats including Kristin’s fabulous Sweet Potato Surprise.I find myself thinking about these relationships often this time of year. The base of the group formed in college. I lived at Azalea House, a co-op on the campus of Oregon State University with about fifty other women. My husband lived next door at Avery Lodge with a bunch of guys. As time went by, we Azalea girls found ourselves marrying the boys next door, literally. After graduation, we went our separate ways but over the years many of us have returned home to Corvallis were we live near each other, raise and in many cases homeschool our children together, and attend church together. We are a family.More friends have come into the group, some through marriage and some through acquaintance. Yes, a few of us actually married outside the original herd and I am so grateful. As I write this, I find myself grinning. If you know Lisa, you probably understand why.I have just finished Uncharted by Angela Hunt. A group of friends from college are reunited after many years of lost contact only to find themselves stranded on an uncharted island. Let me tell you, I am so thankful that my life didn’t follow that course. If you’re looking for a good read, pick this one up. I found myself convicted but strengthened by the story. Oh, and if you do read the book I assure you that none of my friends share the same secret as Mark.I think.I pray that you will all have a blessed Thanksgiving. -
How Do You Find the Time?
People often ask me how I find the time to write while homeschooling, taking care of our home and farm, and all the other things that amount to life. The answer is simple. I write at football practice, soccer practice, gymnastics, stoplights (only when I get an idea I can’t risk forgetting), and even while I make dinner. Isn’t multi-tasker one of the greatest descriptions of a mother?My friend, Shannon, walked into my kitchen a couple of weeks ago and laughed at the scene. I had one hand stirring dinner and the the other on a print out. Rewrites are very mobile. So for all of you who are wondering, I do not get up at 5am and I do not stay up all night. Okay, sometimes I do, but not regularly.If you’re a mom I’m sure you can think of the things that you love so much that you fit them in somehow. For me those things are my God, my husband, my kiddos, and my writing.Have a great week and take time to enjoy your passions.
