Amish Hearts

Happy Mother's Day!

2012-05-13T04:50:43Z

My mother's nursing home case manager wished me a Happy Mother's Day the other day. She knew I'm a mom because there are photos of my grown children in Mom's room but I didn't know if she has any children so I asked. She said she didn't have kids -- just cats. Well, I think if you're a pet parent you should get to be told "Happy Mother's Day" and I told her so. But even if you don't have children or pets, if you're a woman you probably mother those around you. It's built into us as women.

There have been a lot of messages about mothers on Facebook this week. My daughter posted a note her five year old son wrote her in which he said he loved her, "bekos you are the best mom." Those kind of sweet notes were my favorite Mother's day gifts when my children were little... I'm not sure that anything I've received since they've grown up have ever been as good. Well, the Nook I got last year was pretty nice but I still love those sweet notes and handmade cards from Mother's Day long ago.

I hope that you get to take it easy and enjoy your day today. You deserve it.

Blessings,

Barbara

P.S. Write a comment about something nice you did for your mom (as a child or adult) to enter my contest to win an autographed copy of Her Restless Heart, first book in the Stitches in Time series.

Flowers

2012-05-09T16:11:02Z

I love flowers. Unfortunately, they don't love me back. I posted a couple weeks ago on my FB page about my plan to get houseplants. So far I've got two african violets (one white, one purple) and a croton. I can't tell how they're doing, they kinda look the same as they did when I brought them home. They've been alive for nearly two weeks, so that's progress. Usually I kill them after a few days.

As I'm writing this post, I'm looking out the window at one of our rhododendron plants. Its just starting to bloom. The hostas are coming out, and hopefully some irises will soon. The weird weather we had here (a very warm March followed by a cold April) has confused the flora in my neck of the woods. But things are starting to bloom and green out...finally, spring has arrived.

One thing I'm always impressed with when I visit Amish country are the gardens. Not just the veggie gardens, but the flower beds, hanging baskets, and wildflower gardens. Since the Amish use nature as their "decoration", these gardens are very impressive. They're not elaborately designed or overly mulched and manicured, yet they're neat, elegant, and beautiful. Someday maybe my garden will be described in such a way. Or, at the very least, adequate.

'Til next time,

Kathleen

Vacation!

2012-05-02T17:09:37Z

Everyone needs a vacation. My husband and I are going to Holmes County in June for our anniversary/vacation. We'll be staying at The Barn Inn, which is a lovely bed and breakfast that we've enjoyed in the past. When we go to Holmes, our favorite thing to do is drive around. I just hope gas prices keep dropping until then! We love to take the back roads, roll the windows down, and take in the peaceful countryside. Of course we love to eat, but that's a given. We're leaving computers, tablets, everything but the cell phones behind-and we're only bringing the phones in case of emergency.

Where do you like to vacation? Do you and your family engage in any vacation traditions?

'Til next time,

Kathleen

Back from Lancaster County!

2012-04-30T14:56:10Z

Good Morning and Happy Monday!

This past weekend, I traveled with fellow author Kelly Long and our editor Natalie Hanemann to Lancaster County. We stayed at my favorite B&B there -- Beilers Bed and Breakfast in Paradise. And it was great to reconnect with innkeeper and dear friend Barbie Beiler and also some of my Amish friends.

We had a fantastic time...AND...we ate way too much! Go figure, lol!! Natalie had her first buggy ride, and we visited the home where Amish worship was to be held on Sunday. It was great to see the backless benches and setup. We took some Amish friends to Dienners Restaurant on Friday night, then Saturday night we attended an Amish supper. Lots of shopping, brainstorming on future books, and just fun, fun, fun!

Barbie, Beth, Kelly, and Natalie. And Barbie's cute little dog, Macie.

If you travel to Paradise in Lancaster County, consider a stay at Beilers B&B. Barbie grew up 'Beachy Amish' and she's happy to talk to you about the Amish and send you on her "Off the Beaten Path" tour of authentic Amish shops and bakeries.

And Barbie's breakfasts in the mornings are the best I've ever had! Especially the homemade yogurt and granola!

Some of you might have seen this pic on FB. Here's something you don't see everyday! This is my friend Christ (pronounced like Chris, plus the T) reading Need You Now. We walked in to tell them goodbye on Sunday, and he was 10 pages into my book.

The 'rule' about not taking pictures is a bit "Old School." Some Amish still prefer not to have their pics taken based on biblical reference, but most (including Christ) will tell you that it is mostly an invasion of privacy to have a stranger putting a camera in your face. He was happy to have me take this picture. He is a witty, fun guy!

I hope he enjoys this contemporary marriage story based in Texas!

This is the wagon they use to haul around the backless benches, chairs, and dishes for worship service.

Here is what the inside of the wagon looks like.

There are even rolls of outdoor carpet to use when worship service is held in a barn.

Here we are in Intercourse on our way to a roadside stand. No trip to Paradise would be complete without visiting the place that serves the best pretzels, lemonade, and root beer on the planet.

Uh...yes...quite a bit of shopping included during our travels too.

I have some cookbooks and other Amish items I'll be giving away in the future.

One of the highlights of our trip was being invited to attend an 'Old Book Auction'. HEAVEN for two authors and their editor! I'm pretty sure this fellow knew we were taking pictures, and I'm pretty sure he didn't care since we were buying books, lol. It was a benefit for the Gordonville Fire Department.

I wish you could have seen this little man jumping up in the air and yelling every time someone bid. There were a few of us 'Englisch' there, but mostly Amish folks. They were very welcoming!

A grand time was had by all...and an Amish friend sent us home with some fabulous granola! As always, I can't wait to go back!

Hope you all have a blessed week! xo
Beth

Quotes about reading

2012-04-25T12:41:52Z

Today's post is all about you, our readers. Thank you for your support, your kind emails and messages, for liking our facebook pages and following our tweets, for spreading the word about your favorite authors and the stories you love. I believe the relationship between writer and reader is symbiotic and I hope to have enriched your lives half as much as you've enriched mine. Hugs to you all!

"The things I want to know are in books; my best friend is a man who will give me a book I ain't read." Abraham Lincoln

"Reading a book is like re-writing it yourself. You bring to a novel anything you read, all your experience of the world. You bring your history and read it on your own terms." Angela Carter

"The habit of reading is the only enjoyment in which there is no alloy; it lasts when other pleasures fade." Anthony Trollope

"Wear the old coat and buy the new book." Austin Phelps

"We read to know we're not alone." C.S. Lewis

'Til next time,

Kathleen

110 Book Giveaway! TODAY!

2012-04-23T14:21:06Z

Tonight at 8 p.m. (Central Time), my publisher will be giving away 10 paperback copies of NEED YOU NOW and 100 ebook downloads.

This will be a LIVE Facebook Chat, and we will be discussing the book. It will be an opportunity for you to ask me questions, and also a chance to meet others on my FB Readers Page. And, of course...a chance to win a copy of the book!

To check it out and RSVP -- visit Fans of Beth Wiseman on FB, Events.

Hope to "See" lots of you tonight!

Peace and blessings for a great week!
Beth

Oops

2012-04-23T04:43:04Z

Sometimes life can get super busy and things just get forgotten.

I work hard at being organized with lists and computer reminders and all that but sometimes ... well ... things just slip from my memory and my fingers. The other day as I left the house and drove down my street I saw a truck from my cable company drive past me. I glanced in the rear view mirror I thought it turned into my drive. It had been a particularly busy month and I immediately wondered if I'd paid my cable bill. Since I also have high speed Internet and a land line (phone) I knew I had to turn around and see if I needed to give the cable guy a good excuse ... and a check. It turned out he hadn't turned into my drive and while I hadn't yet paid the bill the due date was several days away.

Well, what slipped past me recently was naming winners in a recent AmishHearts contest. I asked readers to tell me about something they had done that was creative...Winners are: Carol E. Quinn, Karen , Donna Krueger, Susan and Julie K.

Faithful to Laura Winners!

2012-04-18T13:42:56Z

Congratulations to the winners:

Anita Hansen

Sharma Darby

Gail Lavender

Kimberly Danice Taylor-Wright

Please contact me through Amish Hearts, Amish Living or Facebook with your address, and your book will be on its way! Thanks to everyone who entered. I'll be having another contest soon!

Amish Las Vegas?

2012-04-16T21:53:29Z

Do you ever wonder where Amish folks go on vacation? Well, Pinecraft, Florida, is one place that welcomes busloads of Amish, reports the New York Times. It's a "major vacation destination for Amish and Mennonites from all over the United States and Canada," drawing 5,000 vacationers annually. The destination, known to many who travel there as "Amish Las Vegas," has a quartz-sand beach, a laundromat, and plenty of shuffleboard courts.

Here's the link to the full story: http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/04/15/travel/pinecraft-fla-an-amish-snowbird-magnet.html?pagewanted=1&ref=travel

Amish snowbirds..... interesting. Please let us know if you've traveled to Pinecraft, Florida and seen this "melting pot of Amish and Mennonite America."

Enjoy your week!
Beth

Be still...

2012-04-15T19:16:31Z

Be still and know that I am God.

It's one of my favorite phrases to use to remember that I do not need to struggle and worry and figure out everything myself.

I want to tell a small story that reminded me of this recently. Please don't worry -- I'm fine and I have learned from what happened!

I was rushing around, trying to get dressed and out of the house. I'm one of those people who needs to lay her clothing and things needed the night before. Otherwise, things happen, particularly these days when I have to remember to put the two foster dogs in a crate before I leave. I If I don't, I come home to shredded magazines all over the living room floor and a shoe dragged from the bedroom and chewed ... So precious time can be lost while I chase the foster puppy to get him into the crate. Who knew a dog with a deformed leg could run so fast?

Anyway, I'm getting away from my point. Fresh from the shower, I went to grab clean clothes from the dryer in the garage, tripped, and fell. Fortunately, my failure to keep up with the wash meant there was a laundry basket full of laundry so my landing was relatively painless. But stunned, I lay there, the breath knocked from me, and wondered how I was going to get up. I have a knee that will be one of those knee replacement stories one of these days and I can't put any pressure on it ...

Then I realized that if I didn't somehow get up, things were going to be interesting. There was no one else in the house -- six pairs of eyes stared at me from the doorway into the house ... all belonging to my pack of Chihuahuas. While they were concerned for me, there was nothing they could do. My cell phone was on the dining room table. But even if I had the phone in my hand, did I really want to have my town's paramedics seeing me without clothes? I didn't think any of us needed that. Be still and know that I am God. So I sent up a prayer, knowing that all help comes from above, from Him.

I managed to get up and while the knee -- and the shoulder I later realized I bashed on the washer as I fell -- took a few days to get over it all, I managed to get my clothes, dress, and make it to lunch with a new friend. I'm working harder to take things slower, to not rush around so much, and be more careful. And yes, wash clothes so they don't pile up. lol

Have you had a little misadventure like I did? Tell me about it here on AmishHearts.com and enter this week's contest to win an autographed copy of Her Restless Heart. I'm giving five away.

Hope you're having a wonderful spring in your part of the world!

Barbara

Contest- giving away advanced copies of Faithful to Laura!

2012-04-11T19:11:57Z

Faithful to Laura is the second book in the Middlefield Family series. Here's a short description:

Laura Stutzman leaves her Kentucky community for Middlefield, Ohio, with one purpose: to find Mark King, the man who pledged his love to her, then left. Sawyer Thompson is a Yankee who spent his teen years in an Amish home. Now he has to make a decision--go back to the life he knew as a child or join the church. Both Laura and Sawyer need to release the anger they're storing in their hearts. Will Sawyer do whatever it takes to remain faithful to Laura?

I'm giving away four advanced copies! To enter, comment here. I'm also counting comments on my facebook page, if you're on facebook. I'll combine the two lists and pick four winners, to be announced next Wednesday. Faithful to Laura won't be out until August, so here's a chance to read it early. Good luck!

My New Online Book Club & Chance to Win a Free Book!

2012-04-09T12:28:34Z

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a blessed Easter. I want to tell you about something new I have going on at my personal blog. We are starting up a book club of sorts for those who don't have the time or opportunity to physically attend a book club. Each week we will be discussing the reading group guide questions in the back of one of my books.

Check it out! I'd love to hear your thoughts! http://blog.bethwiseman.net/2012/04/09/a-perfect-match.aspx

AND, I recently gave an interivew on Lena Nelson Dooley's blog. We're offering a free signed copy of Need You Now.

http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com/2012/04/need-you-now-beth-wiseman-free-book.html

Experience a family's triumph over lies, betrayal, and loss while still clinging to the One who matters most.

"You might think you are familiar with Beth's wonderful storytelling gift but this is something new! It's a story of how God can redeem the seemingly unredeemable. It's a message the world needs to hear."
--SHEILA WALSH
Author of God Loves Broken People

Hope you all have a blessed week!
Beth

Easter--from God's Word

2012-04-04T13:47:14Z

This morning I read a devotional that stated despite all the great Christian books out there, only one book is the most important, the book we should all read, digest, ponder upon, and study. That book, of course, is the Bible. Here is what happened on Resurrection Day, straight from God's Word. Have a blessed Easter!

Luke 24: 1-12 (ESV)

(1) But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. (2) And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, (3) but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. (4) While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. (5) And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? (6) He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, (7) that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” (8) And they remembered his words, (9) and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. (10) Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, (11) but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. (12) But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

It's here!

2012-04-02T04:18:59Z

It's here, at last!

April 1 is the official release date for Her Restless Heart although reviewers have had it for a while and it's been starting to pop up here and there.

I'm excited because it's the first book in my new series Stitches in Time, one set in a very special shop and revolving around three special cousins and their grandmother.

I love crafts even though I don't get much time to do them so I enjoyed what each of my heroines does in the books. Mary Katherine, a weaver, is the heroine in the first book and then Naomi is a quilter in the second book, with Anna, a knitter, in the third. I'll be having some contests in the months to come with prizes of craft items reflecting those in the books.

The winners of the five books from last week are: Cheryl Kaufman, Nancee, Kat Ruhlman, Bobbi Peppin, and Gail. Please send me a note at barcameron39@yahoo.com with your mailing address. I loved all the stories of how spring is popping up around the country.

I'm going to hold another contest this week and award five more autographed copies of Her Restless Heart. This time tell me about the most creative thing you've ever made or done.

Have a great week!

Barbara

Not Breathing

2012-03-30T13:52:18Z

Amish and Englisch mothers alike know what it's like to watch their child breathe...The waltz of breathing is something we have to be trained to be conscious of---until we can't breathe. My daughter was diagnosed with swine flu once, and, for the first time in 24 years of parenting, I had to call 911 because she couldn't breathe. She has asthma, so I know the whole drill about breath, but I've never seen anything like the ominous blue color on the face and the drowning panic in the autumn leaf eyes. So, I called. I was surprised at how calm I sounded on the phone, like there were two of me---one freaked out mother and one ER specialist giving stats without missing a beat. She is, thankfully, well now, dancing the breathing dance...I realized that there are spiritual implications to breathing or 'pneuma' in the Greek--The Breath of The Living God. I wondered how long I go without breathing spiritually, if I gasp like a catfish on dry land at God's Holiness and don't even know it. Vital signs might be as simple as Bible reading, prayer, and fellowship, but they might be more subtle----the exhibition of kindness, the cheek turning love, the knowing of the fact that it's God's ride I'm on---not mine. Here's to breathing spiritually, good color of the soul, and exhalations of praise.

Kelly Long

Winner, and Kelly Long's USA Today Interview!

2012-03-28T23:28:11Z

Wow, thanks everyone for your thoughts and advice on the ice cream recipe! The winner was chosen randomly, but I appreciate everyone's participation in this contest. I can't wait for summer and ice cream season to get here. Wait, every season is ice cream season.

The winner is Sandy Rutowski! Sandy, contact me through the blog with your email address and I'll send you a list of titles to choose from.

I'm also having another give away on my blog--winner's choice again. If you haven't entered yet visit http://kathleen-fuller.blogspot.com/. Thanks!

Congratulations to Kelly, who is featured in USA Today. It's a terrific interview, make sure to check it out.

'Til next time,

Kathleen

"An Amish Gathering" broken to e-bits

2012-03-26T17:54:59Z

My publisher, Thomas Nelson Fiction, announced this week eBook-only versions of the three novellas previously published in the collection “An Amish Gathering” by me, Kathleen Fuller, and Barbara Cameron.

Aimed at reaching new readers, the novellas make quick, affordable selections for those interested in trying this popular genre. This new initiative makes it easy for readers new to this collection or to the authors to experience a sampling in an affordable way. A novella is about half the length of a typical romance novel.

New, individual covers grace the novellas: “A Change of Heart,” by Beth Wiseman, “A Place of His Own,” by Kathleen Fuller, and “When Winter Comes,” by Barbara Cameron.

I hope you will give them a try and tell us what you think.

Peace and blessings,
Beth

Ready for Spring?

2012-03-26T02:16:46Z

Many people are reporting an early, beautiful spring after a surprisingly short winter. And no one is complaining.

I used to love to garden. When we lived on Primrose Lane, I had these cute little pink primrose bushes in pots in the front yard. At our next house I really enjoyed the window box because it was such a great way to have a touch of color near the window. I loved, too, the way my elementary aged daughter found it just the right height to water the flowers and occasionally pick some.

These days I try to keep my gardening fever in control since I don't have much time and I often forget to water my flowers. My gardening genius neighbor next door rescues the flowers by coming over to water them. So I keep things simple: hardy geraniums in colorful pots painted with flowers.

I figure I'm planting my seeds with words, nurturing them in a story, and watching them bloom when they come out in book form... This week I received some nice reviews from Romantic Times and online and hearing some reactions from readers who got their copies of Her Restless Heart (Book 1 of Stitches in Time) early.

There were so many great responses to last week's contest I'm sending books to six, not five, readers: Betty Hamilton, Kathy Rowe, Carolyn Jefferson, Rhonda Nash-Hall, Judith Cooper, and Rachel Wilson.

And I'm going to have another contest this week and give out five more books. This time, I'd love to hear what spring looks like in your part of the world. What's blooming? If you have a yard, what are you planting? What are you eager to get out in the nice weather and do?

Have a great week!

Barbara

Blind or Refusing to See?

2012-03-23T15:35:12Z

The Amish have the great benefit of a spiritual check and balance system within the context of their community, but I have to find mine elsewhere...There's a relatively famous spiritual painting entitled "The Difference Between Being Blind and Simply Refusing to See." The painting depicts a man with a blindfold on who is attempting to travel through a rocky and dangerous-looking crevasse. He's fallen already as his clothes are torn and his knees and elbows are bleeding. When you view the painting, the ominous background and the visible futility of the man's journey strikes you first. You feel bad for the guy and his pain. Then, it hits you, why doesn't he take the blindfold off? You rationalize, think that maybe his eyes have been injured somehow, but the blindfold is clean and neat. Then, your perspective on the painting changes and you feel a sinking in your heart and spirit because the painting becomes familiar to your own spiritual life. The man isn't blind; he's simply refusing to see...the applications of this realization are enormous. How many times do I go through life as if I'm blind...stumbling along a perilous path, getting myself bruised in the heart or bloodied in the soul when all I really need to do is to take off the spiritual blindfold. To realize that I am not walking through life's problems alone, that Christ upholds me by His right hand, that He keeps my feet from sinking, that He knows what it's like to stumble and fall with the cross of the world on His shoulders. Too often, we live narrow spiritual lives, barely getting through...there's no head up confidence, no boldness in grace, and we end up like the man in the painting. I'm also thinking that removing that spiritual blindfold has to be a daily process, because some days are harder then others. It's the difference between seeing with your eyes and seeing with your heart, and that makes all the difference in the world. The old hymn, "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus," seems especially fitting to this way of life:

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!

Refrain:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

Through death into life everlasting
He passed, and we follow Him there;
O’er us sin no more hath dominion—
For more than conquerors we are!

His Word shall not fail you—He promised;
Believe Him, and all will be well:
Then go to a world that is dying,
His perfect salvation to tell!

Finish this recipe! Oh, and a giveaway, too.

2012-03-22T18:28:31Z

I love my Amish cookbooks. Not only do they have great recipes, they give me a chuckle because some are incomplete. And a few are REALLY incomplete. Such as this one for Dutchman Ice Cream:

6 eggs

2/3 cup Karo

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 can Carnation milk

1 1/2 T vanilla

1/3 cup instant pudding

3/4 gallon milk

And...that's it. We used to have an ice cream maker, and as I recall we had to use ice and salt and turn it on to churn the ice cream for an hour or three. I'm not sure what this is exactly, or even what kind of Carnation milk to use (don't they have both evaporated and condensed?) Then there's that 3/4 gallon milk. That's a lot of milk. Or maybe its not, considering its ice cream. I don't know because THERE ARE NO INSTRUCTIONS!

If anyone has any idea what to do with these ingredients, comment here. Even if you don't know, comment anyway. I haven't done a giveaway in a while, so if you comment you're entered in a drawing for a copy of one of my books. I'll give you the choice of which one and post the winner next week. Have fun!

'Til next time,

Kathleen