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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Where Have I Been?


So where have I been?

Speaking-- I had my first speaking gig in a long time last weekend, so I was busy preparing for it last week, and getting rightside up after being gone. (That usually takes at least one day, this time it took about a day and a half.) The event went well. Really well. I felt like I helped people. This is a new message and one I'm quite excited about after seeing the effect. Excited enough that I'm considering taking on limited speaking starting in the fall. Contact me if you've got an event you'd like to talk about.

Writing-- It's looking like I'm going to be writing a fifth novel. This one will also be set at Sunset Beach NC and will hopefully come out next summer, which means I've got a LOT of writing to do in a very short amount of time.

Family-- Cooking, getting ready for Easter, soccer and baseball, the usual. Kids are getting ready to start spring break, which we're all ready for. We've got some travel plans, which will double as a research trip for this new novel. Funny how last year I was researching the novel that comes out in June while we were on spring break. I see a pattern here...

Reading-- With running She Reads I am reading a lot as we make decisions about future selections-- but I'm also reading to learn and reading for fun. Good thing I love to read!

For the next few days I'll be gearing up for Easter and spring break. I doubt I'll be posting much. I hope you all have a great Easter and remember the reason we celebrate!
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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Live Near Charlotte NC And Looking For Something To Do This Weekend?



Sometimes I get to see movies early and share them with you guys. This time I'm offering a chance for you to get to see the movie early yourself! If you live near Charlotte NC and want to see the 3D version of Jurassic Park, here's your free chance! Just RSVP to the link provided and maybe I'll see you there! (My advice if you're going-- get there at least 30 minutes early)

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Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Wanna Be An Influencer?


UPDATE: I am happy to report the 50 have been received. But sad to say I can't take any more influencers. To all of you who contacted me, thank you. And for those who didn't make it in, please consider buying the book this summer!

I talked a bit about my new book last week when I wrote this post. Go there to find a link to the book and the cover image. (The part about my book is towards the end.)

Now that you know about it, would you like to be an influencer for it?

What is an influencer? It's someone who agrees to let me send a book to you just before it's released. In return you offer to let people in your world know about it. You can tell people in your neighborhood, your church, your family. You can send out an email to your friends who like to read. You can post a review onto your Facebook page or tweet about it. You can write a blog post about the book. Or pin it on Pinterest. Or some combination thereof.

You're basically saying, "Yes, I'd love to tell people about The Wishing Tree!" And in exchange, you get a copy for F-R-E-E. All I ask in return is that you help to generate that oh-so-important word of mouth in whatever way you feel comfortable. Think your influence doesn't matter? Think again!

My publisher is asking me to send a list of influencers soon so if you'd like to be on that list and are one of the first fifty to get back to me, I'd so appreciate you being an influencer. Email me with your name, where the book should be sent to, and how you're going to share it at marybeth6@gmail.com.
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Monday, March 18, 2013

The Menu Plan (With Links To Recipes)


Here's what we're eating on the homefront this week. I included our weekend menu because they were good and should be tried.

Saturday: Pork Carnitas. I served these with some of the good kind of salsa they sell in the produce section of the grocery store (fancy!) and tortilla chips, with some canned mandarin oranges on the side. I also made a pudding pie-- which is basically chocolate pudding made according to the pie filling directions on the box, spooned into a bought Oreo crust and doused with an entire tub of Cool Whip. My kids love this pie and it takes seconds to make. Ok, minutes. This was a very good Saturday night supper that fit our spring-like weather this weekend perfectly.

Sunday: Greek Chicken Gyros. These made a nice lunch after church-- I just started cooking them on high that morning and they were ready when we got home. All we had to do was assemble and eat with some potato chips. My husband made pancakes and bacon for dinner, which is one of my favorite Sunday night suppers.

Monday: Pork Tenderloin with baked potatoes and roasted broccoli

Tuesday: Potato Chip Chicken (recipe below), Broiled Asparagus, and Cooked Apples-- this was a meal created by my 13yo. Not cooked by her, mind you. She just came up with it, saying it sounded like the perfect meal to her. Then she asked me to cook it.

Wednesday: Stouffer's Lasagna

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Chicken Cacciatore over pasta, salad

Here's the recipe for potato chip chicken. It's not the best thing in the world for you, but it is baked, it tastes good and my kids ask for it often.

2 lbs. chicken breasts
1/3 cup melted margarine
2 cups crushed potato chips
1/4 tsp garlic powder
dash pepper

Dip chicken breasts into butter and roll in potato chips and seasonings. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with remaining butter and crumbs. Bake at 375 for 45 min- 1 hr. Don't turn chicken.



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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Got Any Big Weddings Coming Up In Your Family?



We just had a big wedding in our family this past weekend and-- while my family and I couldn't be there-- it seemed like it was the dominating topic for everyone involved-- directly and otherwise-- for a year. So when I found out that this movie is coming out April 26 I knew it'd be on "must see" list. I bet we can all relate. And just look at that all-star cast. I love fun movies like this! See below for a description:

With an all-star cast led by Robert DeNiro, Katherine Heigl, Diane Keaton, Amanda Seyfried, Topher Grace, with Susan Sarandon and Robin Williams, THE BIG WEDDING is an uproarious romantic comedy about a charmingly modern family trying to survive a weekend wedding celebration that has the potential to become a full blown family fiasco. To the amusement of their adult children and friends, long divorced couple Don and Ellie Griffin (De Niro and Keaton) are once again forced to play the happy couple for the sake of their adopted son's wedding after his ultra conservative biological mother unexpectedly decides to fly halfway across the world to attend. With all of the wedding guests looking on, the Griffins are hilariously forced to confront their past, present and future - and hopefully avoid killing each other in the process. Screenplay by Justin Zackham. Directed by Justin Zackham.

And speaking of weddings, my new book is called The Wishing Tree and is about a wedding at Sunset Beach NC. Something to add to your beach or pool bag this summer... Release date is June 4!

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Monday, March 11, 2013

Memoirs For A Monday


I love a good memoir-- the true story aspect blended with plain old good storytelling sometimes results in faster page turning than any other type of book.

Here are some on my radar:



NORTH OF HOPE by Shannon Polson

After her parents are killed in a rare grizzly attack, the author is forced into a wilderness of grief. Turning to loves she learned from her father, Polson explores the perilous terrain of grief through music, the natural world, and her faith. Her travels take her from the suburbs of Seattle to the concert hall where she sings Mozart's Requiem, and ultimately into the wilderness of Alaska's remote Arctic and of her heart.

This deeply moving narrative is shot through with the human search for meaning in the face of tragedy. Polson's deep appreciation for the untamed and remote wilderness of the Alaskan Arctic moves her story effortlessly between adventure, natural history, and sacred pilgrimage, as much an internal journey as a literal one. Readers who appreciate music or adventure narratives and the natural world or who are looking for new ways to understand loss will find guidance, solace, and a companionable voice in this extraordinary debut.





DAYS LIKE THESE by Kristian and Rachel Anderson

There are love stories and then there's the story of Kristian and Rachel Anderson. When Kristian wanted to show his wife Rachel how much he loved her after learning he was terminally ill, he ended up winning millions of hearts around the world, thanks to the now famous YouTube video he made for her 35th birthday. Social media is often seen as trivial and self-absorbed, but this heartfelt and moving tribute by a young Australian father of two in the midst of a battle with cancer, drew attention to a much larger story we all wanted to know more about and an ordeal so many families face alone. Like Oprah, who invited Kristian and Rachel on her show, and Hugh Jackman, who helped make one of Kristian's dreams come true by appearing on the tribute, many of us didn't know him but we were so inspired by him that we felt like we did. He touched lives, gave hope and left behind a precious legacy that will mean a longer and better quality of life for thousands of cancer sufferers. Kristian's faith was foundational to him and he openly shared his prayers, his struggles, and the hope he found in his relationship with God. His story, told in his own words from his blog entries, with additions from his beloved Rachel, will inspire others to know that even in the darkest moments, the light can shine through.



SATURDAY NIGHT WIDOWS by Becky Aikman

In her forties – a widow, too young, too modern to accept the role – Becky Aikman struggled to make sense of her place in an altered world. In this transcendent and infectiously wise memoir, she explores surprising new discoveries about how people experience grief and transcend loss and, following her own remarriage, forms a group with five other young widows to test these unconventional ideas. Together, these friends summon the humor, resilience, and striving spirit essential for anyone overcoming adversity.

Meet the Saturday Night Widows: ringleader Becky, an unsentimental journalist who lost her husband to cancer; Tara, a polished mother of two, whose husband died in the throes of alcoholism after she filed for divorce; Denise, a widow of just five months, now struggling to get by; Marcia, a hard-driving corporate lawyer; Dawn, an alluring self-made entrepreneur whose husband was killed in a sporting accident, leaving two small children behind; and Lesley, a housewife who returned home one day to find that her husband had committed suicide.

The women meet once a month, and over the course of a year, they strike out on ever more far-flung adventures, learning to live past the worst thing they thought could happen. They share emotional peaks and valleys – dating, parenting, moving, finding meaningful work, and reinventing themselves – while turning traditional thinking about loss and recovery upside down. Through it all runs the story of Aikman's own journey through grief and her love affair with a man who tempts her to marry again. In a transporting story of what friends can achieve when they hold each other up, Saturday Night Widows is a rare book that will make you laugh, think, and remind yourself that despite the utter unpredictability and occasional tragedy of life, it is also precious, fragile, and often more joyous than we recognize.



THE SPARK: A MOTHER'S STORY OF NURTURING GENIUS by Kristine Barnett

Kristine Barnett’s son Jacob has an IQ higher than Einstein’s, a photographic memory, and he taught himself calculus in two weeks. At nine he started working on an original theory in astrophysics that experts believe may someday put him in line for a Nobel Prize, and at age twelve he became a paid researcher in quantum physics. But the story of Kristine’s journey with Jake is all the more remarkable because his extraordinary mind was almost lost to autism. At age two, when Jake was diagnosed, Kristine was told he might never be able to tie his own shoes.

The Spark is a remarkable memoir of mother and son. Surrounded by “experts” at home and in special ed who tried to focus on Jake’s most basic skills and curtail his distracting interests—moving shadows on the wall, stars, plaid patterns on sofa fabric—Jake made no progress, withdrew more and more into his own world, and eventually stopped talking completely. Kristine knew in her heart that she had to make a change. Against the advice of her husband, Michael, and the developmental specialists, Kristine followed her instincts, pulled Jake out of special ed, and began preparing him for mainstream kindergarten on her own.

Relying on the insights she developed at the daycare center she runs out of the garage in her home, Kristine resolved to follow Jacob’s “spark”—his passionate interests. Why concentrate on what he couldn’t do? Why not focus on what he could? This basic philosophy, along with her belief in the power of ordinary childhood experiences (softball, picnics, s’mores around the campfire) and the importance of play, helped Kristine overcome huge odds.

The Barnetts were not wealthy people, and in addition to financial hardship, Kristine herself faced serious health issues. But through hard work and determination on behalf of Jake and his two younger brothers, as well as an undying faith in their community, friends, and family, Kristine and Michael prevailed. The results were beyond anything anyone could have imagined.

Dramatic, inspiring, and transformative, The Spark is about the power of love and courage in the face of overwhelming obstacles, and the dazzling possibilities that can occur when we learn how to tap the true potential that lies within every child, and in all of us.
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Tuesday, March 05, 2013

The Weekend Report


Had a wonderful weekend at Quarter Moon Bookstore's Moveable Feast in Topsail Beach NC this past weekend. Not only was it an amazing event that gave me a chance to meet and hear from readers, but it was also an unparalleled opportunity for some girl time! The event organizer (thanks Lori!) arranged for four of us to stay in a gorgeous home on the ocean. And when I say gorgeous, I mean jaw-dropping. And when I say on the ocean, I mean on the ocean. See for yourself.

 

That photo was taken from the deck where we spent every available minute-- sipping wine while wrapped in blankets and talking talking talking. I used all my words, which my husband will tell you is rare. We also didn't get much sleep-- we saw the wee hours of the morning every night. But I reasoned I could sleep later-- I don't get this kind of time with girlfriends very often.

So now it's time to recover and reclaim my domain (my house, my kitchen, my laundry room, etc). My husband does a great job in my absence but he doesn't exactly do it like I do. (Nor do I expect him to.) So today will involve grocery shopping, errands, meal planning, tidying, laundry, etc. It won't take long til it feels like mine again.

I've thrown some chicken and black bean soup into the crockpot that I was forward-thinking enough to already have the ingredients on hand to do so. (That was an awkward sentence but you understand what I meant, right?) Sometimes present me wants to hug past me and say "Well done, you!" (This is rare-- usually present me wants to shake past me and say "What exactly were you thinking?") Today I'm happy with past me, and so is my family because thanks to her, we have dinner.

I'm also hoping to make some chocolate chip banana bars and a lemon pie for desserts after I pick the kids up from school. We have nothing sweet in the house and lately my kids have been thinking that is just not allowed.

I'm hoping to write this week and get back into the routine of making writing a priority. After a lo-ong time of not writing, it's time to get serious. My next novel is apparently not going to write itself. And yes, I do hope there will be a next novel. I'm working on it!

I hope whatever is on your to-do list-- work, household chores, catching up on rest, exercise, ferrying kids, watching mindless movies, tackling your TBR list-- you have a great week. I will be back as soon as I have something to say. As brain-dead as I feel right now, that may be awhile.
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Friday, March 01, 2013

Monsters University



Anyone else looking forward to this movie?

This is a family favorite for us. We loved the original and can't wait to see the next one. But we have to wait til June! :(
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