confessions

Category

Why I’ve Been Scared to Blog About Getting Back into Riding

November 25, 2013 confessions, Horses

Life has drastically changed for this former rodeo queen in the past six weeks. I went from seeing my horse once every few weeks, to seeing him once every few days. We moved him to a local barn with a covered arena (COVERED ARENA!) and I’ve been loving it. I’ve journaled about it. Wrote a few blog post drafts…   But I haven’t got the guts to post them yet. And here’s why: I have so much on my plate, so many people waiting on things from me, that every moment with my horse, I feel guilty. I feel like I shouldn’t be allowed to do something that isn’t for...

Movie Review: Catching Fire

November 22, 2013 Book Reviews, confessions, Photography

I break from my blogging hibernation in order to bring you the news: Hunger Games fans, rejoice. Where avid book fans might have seen the first movie as rather … different from the book, the newest movie installment, Catching Fire, sings true to the original heart of the series. All of the witty banter, all the powerful statements and nearly all of the symbols that made these books more than just entertainment. Jennifer Lawrence digs deep into what Katniss Everdeen has become after the 74th Hunger Games. We see the scars of war — on her mind, on the society, on the family. Lawrence also masters the awkwardness and distrust...

The 16-year-old me would kick my ass right now

October 4, 2013 confessions, Photography, thankful thursdays

In March, I scaled back on my blogging because other life priorities began stressing me out. I started my own business, which has consumed my nights, weekends. We started a garden, which meant canning/preserving/watering consistently. I took on a new role within my day job that offers a great portfolio and a higher degree of stress. I continue to write, edit and tweak my historical fiction. I volunteer with the Oregon Christian Writers and dedicate many hours a week to the cause. Family is still, and always will be, my number one priority that goes before all of these. These things have prevented me (now and over the past five...

Book Review: On Distant Shores

October 1, 2013 Book Reviews, confessions

Description: Lt. Georgiana Taylor has everything she could want. A comfortable boyfriend back home, a loving family, and a challenging job as a flight nurse. But in July 1943, Georgie’s cozy life gets decidedly more complicated when she meets pharmacist Sgt. John Hutchinson. Hutch resents the lack of respect he gets as a noncommissioned serviceman and hates how the war keeps him from his fiancée. While Georgie and Hutch share a love of the starry night skies over Sicily, their lives back home are falling apart. Can they weather the hurt and betrayal? Or will the pressures of war destroy the fragile connection they’ve made?   My review: Sarah Sundin...

Book Review: The Invisible Girls

September 24, 2013 Book Reviews, confessions

I had the pleasure of hearing Sarah Thebarge speak at the Writer’s Connection meeting recently, and I picked up a copy of her book, “The Invisible Girls.” If her stories at the meeting weren’t enough to stir my soul, her book drove me to near tears. Amazon’s description:  Twenty-seven-year-old Sarah Thebarge had it all – a loving boyfriend, an Ivy League degree, and a successful career – when her life was derailed by an unthinkable diagnosis: aggressive breast cancer. After surviving the grueling treatments – though just barely – Sarah moved to Portland, Oregon to start over. There, a chance encounter with an exhausted African mother and her daughters transformed...