Trondhjem's Pie & Ice Cream Social 2015

If you know me well, you know that I concoct an annual poem leading up to my home church’s Pie & Ice Cream Social. This year marks the 10^th anniversary of my Social poems! I wrote my first Social poem in 2006 on a whim. It was something new for me to try to do. And here we are, in 2015, and I’m still writing them!

Trondhjem’s Pie & Ice Cream Social 2015

The Pie & Ice Cream Social’s around the bend.

All of Trondhjem invites you to attend.

September the twentieth is the date.

It begins at 5; we don’t have long to wait!

From the kitchen we’ll be serving sloppy joes,

And as for dessert, most anything goes.

It’s a potluck of pies, a spectacle of taste.

Should you want first choice of pie, then to the food make haste!

Will pumpkin, raspberry or cherry appear?

Would eggnog pie promote pre-holiday cheer?

There might be chocolate or banana cream.

So many pies, which for you reigns supreme?

Do not forget that there is more upstairs.

There’s a silent auction and baked goods to spare.

Those treats may be salty, spicy, sweet or tart.

Know that all has been made/created with heart.

Donated by WELCA is a quilt that’s great,

And the talents who made it are first rate!

A ticket won’t set you back much, just a buck,

So buy a lot or a few and try your luck!

We hope you can come for an evening of fun

On 9/20 at 5. Please walk. Don’t run.

Visiting with you will make our day a success.

We’ll see you real soon. Until then, God bless!

"Not by Sight" by Kate Breslin

Not by Sight (Aug. 4, 2015) by Kate Breslin.*

The color white stands for many things: purity, innocence, light, mourning. Grace Elizabeth Mabry, the daughter of Patrick Mabry, one of London’s wealthiest tradesmen thanks to his tea business (Swan’s Tea Room), hands a white feather of cowardice to Jack Benningham, Earl of Stonebrooke. Grace, a suffragette, is full of patriotism, especially since her brother, Colin, is fighting in the war (it’s 1917, so WWI), so by handing a white feather to Jack, she’s telling him that he’s a coward for not representing Britain in the war, as he is an able-bodied man.

            Things turn for them both when Grace and her lady’s maid/friend, Agnes Pierpont, volunteer for the Women’s Forage Corps. It’s more work than Grace has ever done in her life, but it’s better than the house arrest she’s been under. They’re assigned to Roxwood, where dwells a monster.

            Naturally, that “monster” is Jack Benningham. He knows the name Grace Mabry, but he doesn’t know her face, because he can’t see it. Great tests are in front of the both of them. Grace will need her faith more than ever, and Jack needs to regain his. There will be hurt, the likes of which happens only when you fall too hard for someone and care too deeply. Unfortunately, matters of the heart are only part of the problem, because in those times of war, the threat of enemy spies is constant. And if the truth isn’t discovered, the innocent will take the blame, and relationships will be forever ruined.

            Mystery. Espionage. Intrigue. Romance. Doubt. Faith. If you enjoy stories containing any of those things, this is a book which I would recommend to you. This Christian historical fiction novel is intelligently written with a focused plot, descriptive characters and a fast pace. The author has clearly done her research. I think it is clever that Jack’s stance as a conscientious objector is a ruse, for it still propels his character to help his country. I was captivated by this novel and know I’ve found another author whose books I’d like to keep reading. It has a good message for us as well: Walk by faith and not by sight. In the spiritual sense, yes, but also in the literal, seeing-with-your-eyes sense. We take for granted that which we have, not realizing what we’re missing until it’s too late. Keep the faith, give thanks for what you have, and try not to take anything for granted.

* Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions are expressly my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

"In Good Company" by Jen Turano

In Good Company (July 7, 2015) by Jen Turano.*

Life cannot be avoided, and apparently those you would rather avoid cannot be avoided, either. This is the case for Miss Millie Longfellow and Mr. Everett Mulberry. She has been ousted from yet another nanny position, and he has lost yet another nanny due to the antics of his young charges: Elizabeth, Rose and Thaddeus Burkhart. The matron of the employment agency is at her wit’s end with the both of them and pairs them together as a last resort, much to their initial resentment. Millie loves children, and the reason she often (always) ends up fired is that her teaching tactics are somewhat, erm, progressive and unique. Surprisingly or not, the children end up loving her, but the parents or guardians, not so much.

            Everett is a successful businessman with high societal aspirations. He wants to be part of the cream-of-the-crop amongst the upper echelons of NYC – and his summer home in Newport, Rhode Island – in 1882. His lovely, though imperious, spoiled, dramatic, soon-to-be fiancée, Caroline Dixon, fits to perfection his idea of the perfect woman for his standing in society. The children he was willed guardianship over? Not even close. He’d rather they’d been willed to someone else or that their parents hadn’t died in a freak accident. But when Elizabeth is certain she sees her late father’s yacht, something niggles at Millie. Something potentially very dangerous. And that danger isn’t just the attraction that Everett and Millie discover growing for one another. Life is funny that way.

            While we met Millie in “After a Fashion,” we as readers really got to know and understand her in this story. It was a riveting tale. Millie is a woman of good spirit, and even when life hands her lemons (which it has, a lot), she makes lemonade. She isn’t immune to disappointment and frustration, but her faith and amazing ability to love others when she didn’t receive much herself growing up drives her to be the spunky, kind-hearted, sometimes misunderstood woman she is. “In Good Company” encourages us to improve our strength of character no matter what we do – whether we are CEOs of corporations or we’re working retail or we’re homemakers or we’re balancing a full-time job and three kids or we’re looking for work. This is a novel of faith, finding understanding and bridging that gap between high society and pretty much everyone else. Throw in a whodunit plot and a spark of romance, and you’ve got another shining novel from Turano. Highly recommend!

* Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions are expressly my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”