October 2018 New Releases Do you enjoy ACFW Christian Fiction? Check out Fiction Finder – a searchable website for the best in ACFW Christian Fiction of every genre. More in-depth descriptions of these ACFW Christian Fiction books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website. Contemporary Romance: A Christmas to Remember by Julie Arduini, Valerie Comer, Janet W. Ferguson, Kimberly Rose Johnson, Deb Kastner, Elizabeth Maddrey, Lindi Peterson, and Ginger Solomon — Eight authors from the popular blog Inspy Romance each share a Christmas-themed novella to put you in the mood for the season. (Contemporary Romance, Independently Published) Their Family Legacy by Lorraine Beatty — Annie’s inheritance will provide a home for her twins and all she had to do is keep a man paying for his mistake forever. (Contemporary Romance from Love Inspired [Harlequin]) The Return by Marianne Evans — A prodigal who never wanted to return home must repair his family farm and rush back to the big city before an old love convinces him to stay. (Contemporary Romance from White Rose Publishing [Pelican]) A Harvest of Blessings by June Foster — When Nadia accidentally sits on a stranger’s lap in the graveyard where her late husband Read More
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Comfort & Joy
This week, I’m finishing up my Christmas novella, The Christmas Glory Quilt. It will be my contribution to the 2018 Christmas Lights novella collection: Comfort & Joy. This year’s collection is going to be bigger and better than ever before, with contemporary Christian Christmas stories from Alana Terry, April Hayman, Toni Shiloh, Chautona Havig and me. Isn’t it a beautiful cover? Frost Heaves by Alana Terry The Trouble with Christmas Cheer by April Hayman Deck the Shelves by Toni Shiloh The Christmas Glory Quilt by Cathe Swanson The Ghosts of New Cheltenham by Chautona Havig The Christmas Glory Quilt The Christmas Glory Quilt will be the first in a series with a seasonal quilt theme – Autumn Glory Quilt, Easter Glory Quilt, etc. (I still need to work on those titles!) Being an overachiever, I designed a quilt to go with the book and plan to offer the pattern as a bonus for early purchasers of the book. It was a busy summer – and I had to write the book! – so it took a long time just to get it pieced. Yesterday morning, my good friend and book cover designer, the multi-talented Chautona Havig, said, “I Read More
ACFW Christian Fiction ~ New Releases ~ September 2018
September 2018 New Releases Do you enjoy ACFW Christian Fiction? Check out Fiction Finder – a searchable website for the best in ACFW Christian Fiction of every genre. More in-depth descriptions of these ACFW Christian Fiction books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website. Contemporary Romance: A Baby for the Minister by Laurel Blount — Jilted at the altar, Natalie Davis has no one she can turn to—until Jacob Stone steps in. The single minister’s drawn to the beautiful mommy-to-be and wants to help…even if it goes against his congregation’s wishes and could cost him his job. But when she refuses to accept charity, can he convince her she’s more than a ministry project? (Contemporary Romance from Love Inspired [Harlequin]) Courting Her Secret Heart by Mary Davis — Deborah Miller lives a double life as an Amish woman—and a fashion model! All photography is forbidden in her Plain community, so she must keep her job a secret. But when Amos Burkholder starts helping at her family’s farm, hiding the truth from him is impossible. And soon she must choose between the Englischer world of modeling and the Amish man she’s come to love. (Contemporary Amish Romance from Love Read More
ACFW Christian Fiction ~ New Releases ~ August 2018
August 2018 New Releases Do you enjoy ACFW Christian Fiction? Check out Fiction Finder – a searchable website for the best in ACFW Christian Fiction of every genre. More in-depth descriptions of these ACFW Christian Fiction books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website. Contemporary Romance: Out of Their Element by Angela Breidenbach, Robin Lee Hatcher, Vickie McDonough, and Deborah Raney — They are totally out of their element! Four mismatched couples find unexpected romance. (Contemporary Romance, Independently Published) The Redemption Road by Christa MacDonald — As Alex awaits retribution, he means to keep Annie safe at any cost, but she knows it’s redemption he needs and she’ll pay any price for him to find it. (Contemporary Romance from Mountain Brook Ink) Scarlet Tears by Laura Hervey — Caught in a romantic triangle with her brother’s best friend and a charming pastor, former call girl Carly Lawrence struggles to start a new life. (Contemporary Romance from Alabaster Box Press) Historical Romance: Rebecca’s Legacy by Betty Thomason Owens — After a threat against her family, a spoiled heiress is sent to the country to work on her aunt’s produce farm and finds love. (Historical Romance from Write Integrity Press) Read More
Running by Dave Milbrandt – a book review
Running is a tightly-plotted, fast-paced thriller/political suspense novel with believable and interesting characters. Dave Milbrandt obviously knows his way around the political scene, journalism and police procedure; he handled all of those aspects skillfully, without distracting the reader with extraneous details. Jim Mitchell, the hero of the story, is a complex man. He’s a new Christian, with a new wife and a baby on the way, when he’s thrust into an unexpected and unwanted legislative role. He’s an admirable man, too, with good intentions and a commitment to his new moral code. I liked the way the author brought in one reality: especially in politics, one’s past mistakes and actions are always brought to light and can have serious consequences. He didn’t sugar-coat that or have an instant resolution to the problem. I haven’t read the previous books in this series, but I was able to figure out what had happened and enjoy this one as a standalone novel. The dialog was sometimes a little long, but the action was fast. It moved along quickly, never getting dull. It was a suspenseful book, not romantic suspense, with various threads that tied up at the end – not in a tidy Read More
I Love My Instant Pot
You probably don’t need another raving endorsement for this popular new appliance, but I just can’t stop myself. I love this thing. The Instant Pot does it all. Often, it does it all at once, and there is only one pot to clean up – a nice big stainless steel pot that washes up easily. I was skeptical when the kids gave it to me for my birthday. I’d been encouraging the girls to get one, since they have families to feed, but I didn’t think it would be worthwhile to get one for myself. All of our children are grown and gone, and I just cook for my husband and myself. The Instant Pot seemed unnecessary. Frivolous. I didn’t want another bulky appliance cluttering up my kitchen and collecting dust. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, go to Amazon and buy one. Here’s my affiliate link: INSTANT POT. This is the one I got: Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Maker and Warmer I started with white rice. It was perfect – just like the chow mein place, A little sticky, but not at all mushy. Brown rice was Read More
You probably don’t need another raving endorsement for this popular new appliance, but I just can’t stop myself. I love this thing. The Instant Pot does it all. Often, it does it all at once, and there is only one pot to clean up – a nice big stainless steel pot that washes up easily.
I was skeptical when the kids gave it to me for my birthday. I’d been encouraging the girls to get one, since they have families to feed, but I didn’t think it would be worthwhile to get one for myself. All of our children are grown and gone, and I just cook for my husband and myself. The Instant Pot seemed unnecessary. Frivolous. I didn’t want another bulky appliance cluttering up my kitchen and collecting dust.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot, go to Amazon and buy one. Here’s my affiliate link: INSTANT POT. 
This is the one I got: Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Maker and Warmer
I started with white rice. It was perfect – just like the chow mein place, A little sticky, but not at all mushy. Brown rice was just as good. My usual rice is unpredictable, and I always make a mess when the starchy water overflows onto the stove top. If all the Instant Pot did was cook rice, it would be worth the expense. But it also makes perfect boiled eggs. (See note above, about my rice-making issues. My eggs technique is similar. ) We now eat more rice and eggs than we used to.
Then I made yogurt. I eat a lot of Greek yogurt, and the cheapest quart available is nearly $4. I was able to make more than twice that much with one gallon of milk, which cost less than $2, and it’s delicious. Tastes just like sour cream, and look how thick and yummy it is!
I took a seven-pound ham from the deep freezer and cooked it in an hour. A whole chicken. Pork. Sweet potatoes, carrots, winter squash, and even spaghetti (including the dry noodles – just one pot!) Chili and soup of every kind are fast and easy in the amazing Instant Pot! Dried beans without overnight soaking and hours of cooking! Apparently, corn on the cob and popcorn are possible, too, although I haven’t tried them. And, of course, it operates as a slow cooker, too.
There are many Instant Pot cookbooks, including those for special diets, but Pinterest will provide abundant information and recipes.
So there you have it… my unsolicited, unpaid, hearty endorsement of the Instant Pot.
Do you have one? Do you love it? What do you cook in it?