Craft Show!

  A LOT has gone on since the last time I posted! In the near future, I hope to do a post with pictures from my trip to the National Bible Bee in Texas, and other things that I've been doing, but for now, I wanted to give you some information.

         November 25th and 26th in the Roseau High School, I'm going to be working at the 'Country Corn Maze Christmas Booth' during the craft and vendor show. If you're interested in buying any of the 'Adventures of Amy' series, or the Mystery at the Corn Maze book, I'll be there selling them. Mystery at the Corn Maze will be $7.50 and the individual Amy books will be $8.50. If you're interested in buying the entire 'Adventures of Amy' set, there will be a special. All four books for $28.00.  If you know someone who's read the first three 'Adventures of Amy' books and hasn't gotten the fourth one yet, it would make a great Christmas gift!

Above is a picture from our craft show table last year. This year we've got a little more space and we're looking forward to seeing you there!

If you want to look at a few of the other things Mom's been working on for it, you can check my family's blog at www.greenpasturesfarm.blogspot.com

   

Cookie Dough Brownies :)

   For those of you who know me well, you know that if I have to make brownies, I'll probably make cookie dough brownies. It's been a family favorite for a long time!

     After a long day writing, every writer needs chocolate! So here's my favorite recipe. :)

For the brownie layer, mix the following in a bowl.

                                                  1 cup melted butter or oil

                                                  2 cups sugar

                                                  4 eggs

                                                  1 and 1/3 cups flour

                                                  1/2 cup cocoa

                                                  1 tsp. salt

                                                  1 tsp. baking powder

                                                  1 tsp. vanilla

      Mix well, and put in a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

                                Allow the brownies to cool, then mix the following together.

                                                 1/2 cup softened butter

                                                 1/4 cup brown sugar

                                                 1/4 cup sugar

                                                 

                                      Add - 

                                                 2 Tbsp. milk

                                                 1 tsp. vanilla

                                                 1 cup flour

                                Cream together, and spread on top of brownies.

         Then, melt a bag of chocolate chips with 1 Tbsp. shorting and spread on top. You can sprinkle nuts, crushed candy canes, or whatever you want for variety. 

Note - The actual brownie layer isn't what you would describe as gooey, but in order to spread the cookie dough layer on top, it needs to be slightly stiffer. If you're looking to make the brownies slightly gooier and still be able to spread the cookie dough layer on top, you can add a bit more oil/melted butter in the brownie layer, and be careful that they don't get over baked. 

Enjoy!!!:):):):):)

A 'not so practical' joke. . .

      Earlier this year, a certain cousin of mine showed me an AWESOME trick to play on people. :):) (I'll have a picture of it at the bottom, but if you don't like pain . . . scroll with caution:)

      That night, Mom was gone, so I texted her a picture of it. . . the problem was, she actually believed me. Looking back, it's probably NOT a good idea to try to convince your mom that you accidentally stuck a needle through your finger, when you really didn't. That was NOT a very mature thing to do. . . yet if we never tease anyone and we never tell jokes and laugh, and we're perfectly mature all the time, is that really showing maturity?

       My theory is this . . . Maturity is knowing when you're allowed to be immature. :) So trying to convince an adult that you're hurt . . . well, it's not a very mature thing to do. (Remember the little boy who cried wolf?)




       All that being said, I have to share with you the 'illusion' that I was shown. Just don't go and use it on the wrong person . . .

    It's actually two pieces of pencil led, (like you might get out of a mechanical pencil) pressed on either side of my finger until they were stuck. A drop of food coloring, and the lighting that made it look swollen and . . . presto . . . you have a semi-convincing needle-through-the-finger look.

When did I start writing?

      This is one of those questions that I get asked quite often so I decided to do a post about it for your benefit!
      I actually don't remember starting to write. I've loved writing for as long as I can remember and, from different papers I have around, I guess I started writing as soon as Mom taught me how!

Yes, believe it or not, that's me doing handwriting! As you can see from the 'short story' below that I wrote, (which by the way isn't true) I needed help in handwriting! (I still do actually.)

When I was little, I enjoyed writing, but I was TERRIFIED that someone would read what I had written, so I went to desperate measures!

Have you ever been told you couldn't do something and it made you want to do it even more? Well, let's just say that my threat note didn't stop any of my siblings from trying to 'kidnap' my notebook. So I went through more desperate measures. . . See the tape on the spine? Well, I ruined the original spine from standing on it while doing dishes . . . and since I wear shoes all the time for arch support after my arches fell when I was nine . . . to put it mildly, it was hard on the spine. I also sat on it at meal time, and all kinds of other ridiculous things! Then, one day, I found out that if you don't react to siblings teasing, they won't tease you as much, and so when I stopped caring if people read my notebooks, people stopped wanting to read my notebooks. Of course I still protect them some but . . . Anyway, I started in notebooks with pencils.

I don't know why this picture is turned like this but . . . it gets the point across.

I started wearing out notebooks and pencils and I had a dozen half finished stories and even more half filled notebooks. I remember sitting in one of my cousins' vans with my little purple notebook when I was really little and telling my cousin that I was going to write a book. That notebook had a story about a missionary to Africa in it. As I wrote more and more, I began liking it more and more.

Then one day, I was bragging about how I was going to get a book published, and one of my brothers told me that it would never happen. Now that may seem like a mean thing to say to a twelve year old girl who's trying to write a book but, in my case, that was the comment that lit a fire under me. If for no other reason than to prove him wrong, I had to write a book.

Then, Mom bought me the One Year Adventure Novel curriculum for school when I was thirteen. I wasn't excited about doing a high-school writing curriculum, but once I started, I fell in love with it!

I started what is now known as the 'Adventures of Amy' in these two notebooks. I mostly used a silver glitter pencil that one of my cousins gave me. When I finished it, I typed it out onto our old computer in the attic. . .  The one as big as a wheelbarrow . . . the one that took three minutes to move the mouse across the page. . . the one that would occasionally not save my work. . . the one that I learned to type on. Then I switched the document over to one of my brothers' old laptops and re-wrote the entire thing. I eventually got my own laptop and tried moving the document from the old laptop to the new one. Only problem was, the old file wasn't compatible with my new program so, it showed up as gibberish. My oldest brother happened to hear about my problem and although I have no idea what he did, he somehow got it to show up in English. I still had a bunch of re-writing to do to change the format to the way I wanted it but it was there on this laptop.

So I put my old red notebooks away, and the truck sized computer and the thick-as-a-bread-loaf laptop and sat down with my new computer to keep writing.

I was seventeen before I finished that first book and written the two after it. I began editing and thinking about publishing. It was somewhere in there that I learned about writing for God. My motives had been really wrong and after an 'argument' with God, I finally yielded my writing to Him. I had to come to the place where I could say that even if I never wrote or published a book it would be okay with me.

After that point, things just seemed to fall in place. I learned that prayer was a huge part of successful writing and I began to go on spiritual journeys with my characters. 

At this point, I'm nineteen, and I have five books self-published, I'm working with a publisher on my next book, and I have many short stories saved away in files all over my computer.

I thank God for the incredible writing journey He's led me on and, although I don't know when He'll call me to stop writing, I know that I want to be in His will wherever that may be. So my challenge to you is, what areas of your life are you doing for yourself and not for God? Are there things in your life that you're holding onto? Give them to God. He may take it away from you, or He may turn it into something WAY more amazing than you could ever imagine, but He will do the RIGHT thing and you'll never regret having given Him your dreams.

Ever wondered what God's will is for your life?

   The following is part of an article I wrote after hearing a sermon on thankfulness. I hope you enjoy it and are challenged by it. It's hard to live up too, so if you ever see me 'grumbling' remind me to be thankful! :) :)

I think most of us have asked this question at some time or another.

       “What is God’s will for my life?”

We all want to know God’s will for our lives, but how can we know? After all, God’s will is different for different people, right? We can’t all be pastors or writers or doctors or any other one thing. God wants us to be different.

So how can we know what God’s will is for our specific lives? Truth be told, that’s between each individual and God.

      However, in the Bible, God does tell us some things that are His will for all of us. They're not all easy,

           “In EVERY THING give thanks: for THIS IS THE WILL OF GOD in Christ Jesus concerning YOU.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:18

     For years I read this verse and thought nothing of it. After all, I could quote it when I was two-years-old, it obviously couldn’t be that important, right?

         I was wrong.

When we put this “simple” verse into practice, we not only change our own lives, but the lives of those around us.

Giving Thanks for EVERYTHING, is hard. If you don’t think so, try to be thankful for the mosquito buzzing in your ear. Try to be thankful for your car breaking down. And try to be thankful when your mom ends up in the hospital on life support.

So why would God command us to give thanks in everything when He knew it would be so hard? Well, when we give thanks for everything, we realize how much we really have. How often to we remember to thank God for that last heartbeat He allowed us to have? Or that last breath we just took?

And by giving thanks for the things that we don’t like, it changes irritations into chances to praise God. And when we praise God in EVERYTHING, it not only cheers us up, but those around us see God’s peace in us.

When we as Christians get upset and irritated, the world sees that and thinks we’re no different than them. But why would anyone with a God like ours get irritated? God knows what is best for us, and sometimes, we need the storms of life to water down our deserts of dry mirth.

So why aren’t we thankful to God for sending trials, when it’s those trials that make us more like Jesus?

No one makes you have a bad attitude. That’s a choice that we make. So why do we choose to have a bad attitude when God commands us to give thanks? When we truly give God thanks, He helps us have a better attitude.

So what about you? What situations are there in your life that you’re not thankful for? Maybe you just lost a friend. Maybe you’re persecuted because of your faith. Maybe, you’ve had to live with the most undesirable circumstances imaginable.

              Whatever the case, God still commands us to give thanks.

It’s hard. It’s tough. It’s difficult. But the peace that God gives when we follow His commands, makes doing hard things worth it.

     So roll up your sleeves and get to work. Be thankful for that annoying kid at school. Be thankful for the pain you’ve suffered. Be thankful for EVERYTHING.

After all, that is God’s will for your life.

An Inspirational Read!

       Now I know a lot of you are just trying to finish school, stay out of trouble, and do the next thing. If that's the case, then you probably won't find this book as fascinating as I did. However, if you ever decide to try to sell something, get an audience, or just a bigger following on your blog . . . this book is a must-read.

           Platform - Get Noticed in a Noisy World by Michael Hyatt, is a book that my publisher recommended to me when I first signed my contract with Ambassador International. I wasn't really excited about it but, as soon as I started reading it, I changed my mind. I absolutely LOVED it! Not only was it full of excellent advice on marketing any product, it had a LOT of good advice for bloggers! Since I know some of you have blogs, I thought I would recommend it to you so that you can be blessed by it as well! 

          One of my favorite things about the book (besides the fact that it was full of good advice:) was the fact that it was written in an enjoyable style. I tend to be more of a fiction reader than non-fiction and, if a non-fiction book is boring, I put it down. This book, however, kept my attention with its' personal style and humor. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to get an audience!

Interview with Amy Penner

      Here's a little interview I put together with nine questions to help you get to know Amy Penner from the 'Adventures of Amy' series a bit better. I've also included a few pictures of 'Amy' that didn't make it to the book covers. (Thanks KNJ!)

1. What is your life motto?

  “Well, it’s obviously changed off and on, but since I became a Christian, it’s probably been ‘Trust God.’ I mean I’ve had other mottos as well, but ‘Trust God’ is the one that I always went back to. It just seems to fit with every situation.”

2. What is your greatest regret?

“Umm . . . well . . . probably that I didn’t get to grow up with my real family.”

3. Who are your heroes?

           “That’s easy, Dad and Mom, and my brother-in-law Jim. Dad and Mom have always been there for me when I needed them, and Jim’s just . . . well, you know Jim. He’s a hero to the core.”

4. If you could go anywhere, where would you go?

             “I would stay home. I’ve been around the country and I’ve never been anywhere that I liked as much as home.”

5. What would you like to change about your life?

          “My life? Umm . . . well . . . nothing that I can think of. Well, I would like to change the fact that Uncle Keith hasn’t gotten saved.”

6. What is your most valuable possession?

                “The Bible that Dad gave me when I thought I was leaving the Penner farm for good.”

7. What is your most embarrassing moment?

          “I would definitely have to say that it was the time I met Timothy. I didn’t know he was my brother, and I accused him of being a thief. We were at an airport and I actually called security on him, and later that same day, I called Grace his wife. Yeah, it wasn’t my day. You probably haven’t heard about that though because I had Priscilla edit it out of my book. It was just too embarrassing.”

8. Do you have a strong memory that’s stuck with you since you were a small child?

          “With Uncle Keith and Aunt Fay? It would probably be the time they took me to the Grand Canyon for my ninth birthday. I remember a lot about that trip because we all seemed so happy on that trip. I remember us laughing together and having such a good time. In those days, I always gave a wish when I blew out the candles on my cake and I wished that we would always be that happy. I know now that wishing doesn’t do any good. I honestly thought that wishing would make it all stay that way. It was right after that trip that I got bone cancer, and then Mom died shortly after that and then Dad started stealing money and. . . Well, it doesn’t really matter now; I’ve learned that God has a reason for everything.”

9. What words or phrases do you tend to use all the time?

         “Well. . . I guess it’s probably the word ‘well,’ I tend to use it more than I should and . . . Well, you know what I mean.”

End of a season

     The last few months, I've been CRAZY busy with our family's corn maze. (You may have noticed that a few of my posts have been overdue) :(:(  Well, as of Monday, the maze has been closed for the season. We've had some snow this week and fall is coming to an end. I find myself looking over the last few months, and asking myself how I've changed. Am I making progress in my walk with the Lord? Am I closer to my life goals than I was last fall? What decisions have I made in the last few months that have changed me to be more like Christ?

      It's always important to take time to examine ourselves and make sure we're living in line with the Word of God. Sometimes we get so caught up with comparing ourselves to other people, that we forget to compare ourselves to what God wants us to be.

    As you go about the end of the fall season, working on school, and preparing for Christmas, take time to examine yourself in light of the Word of God. Are you where you should be? What changes can you make to help you increase in faith? Are you totally surrendered to God? A month from now, what are you going to have done for God? Are you going to be a more steadfast Christian next month than you are now?

Blond vs. Blonde. . . and this isn't a joke:)

       Have you ever been writing a description of someone and been unsure of whether to use 'blond', or 'blonde' when describing their hair color? Well, hopefully this will help you keep them straight!

       In older English, and even today in French, and European English, 'blond' always refers to a male, and 'blonde' always refers to a female. Similarly, a brunet, is a man, and a brunette, is a woman. However things have changed in our American/Canadian English writings. You may have noticed that in books now days, 'blond' is often the only word used while the word 'blonde' is rarely seen. Since our culture is trying to get away from the fact that there is only male and female, they've begun to drop the distinct difference between the two words.
      So, to be politically 'correct' you would use 'blond' at all times unless it's a noun referring to a woman, then you use 'blonde'. To be grammatically correct, you use 'blond' for a man/boy and 'blonde' for a woman/girl.

         And since this is a 'blonde/blond' post, I figured we better end it with some 'blonde' jokes.:)

   
         A blonde was pulled over for speeding, and the officer asked to see her license. She replied with a huff. . . "When are you guys going to get your act together? Yesterday one of you guys took my license away, and now you want me to show it to you!"

       If a blonde and a brunette both fell of a building, who would hit the ground first? The brunette. The blonde would have to stop for directions.

        How do you make a blonde laugh on Saturday? Tell her a joke on Wednesday.

      A brunette goes to her doctor and says that her body hurts wherever she touches it. "Impossible," he says. "Show me." She presses her finger on her elbow and screams in agony, then pushes her knee and screams, then her ankle, and so on; everywhere she touches makes her scream with pain. The doctor asks her if she's really a brunette. She says, "No, I dyed my hair. I'm naturally blonde." "Thought so," he says. "Your finger's broken."

GREAT Preaching!

      I'm sorry for being a little behind with this post, but I've been gone the last few days and didn't get home till around one o'clock this morning. I was at a church conference in Fargo, ND and was REALLY blessed by all the great preaching.
        There was a lot of areas that God 'stepped on my toes' so to speak, and I was really encouraged and challenged. I can't cover everything in this post, so I may end up doing another post about one of the messages later, but for now, I'll just talk about two of the messages I heard.

         One, was about prayer, and it really got to me. You've probably heard it said, 'we can't change people, we can only pray for them.' That's true, but how often do we live that? How often do we quit trying to figure out how to 'fix' someone and actually get on our knees and lift them up to God? I know my prayer life isn't perfect, but I want it to improve. I can't help but wonder how many people wouldn't be making the decisions they're making if someone was fervently praying for them.

During one of the sessions they split the guys and girls up and Mrs. Larry Brown spoke to us ladies. She covered a lot of things, but the biggest thing that got to me what she said about our attitudes. I've always known that my attitude affects the people around me, but I needed the reminder of how much of a difference I can make. It's easy when we have a headache or something to give ourselves the 'right' to be crabby, when really, we should always let the JOY of the Lord be our strength.