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Instant Pot Tortellini Turkey Tetrazzini
Post-Thanksgiving meals bring to mind one thing: leftovers. Now, there are only so many turkey sandwiches and Hot Browns a girl can eat before she says “enough turkey”, so I always freeze a bag (or two) of leftover turkey for when I need a fast meal and am low on ideas – and in the mood for turkey again. (Bonus points for chopping the leftover turkey before freezing it!) Tonight was a typical Tuesday: I’m frazzled, completely “over” cooking, and staring at my pantry and my Instant Pot pressure cooker for some last-minute miracles. Thankfully, I had moved a bag of leftover turkey from the freezer to the refrigerator, so it was thawed and ready…
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Book Review: A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig
I’ve read and reviewed plenty of stories so far that were set in Christmas, but only a few that were about Christmas itself – and none for kids. That was a situation that was more than rectified by Matt Haig’s book, A Boy Called Christmas – easily my favorite of this season. This story will delight both kids and adults alike. Title: A Boy Called Christmas Author: Matt Haig Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers Release Date: November 1, 2016 Pages: 224 Synopsis Before there was Santa Claus, there was a young boy who believed in the impossible. Eleven-year-old Nikolas–nicknamed “Christmas”–has received only one toy in his life: a doll carved out of a…
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Book Review: For the Record by Regina Jennings
FOR THE RECORD by Regina Jennings Genre: Historical Romance / Christian Publisher: Bethany House Date of Publication: December 6, 2015 Number of Pages: 336 Scroll down for Giveaway! Rather Than Wait for a Hero, She Decided to Create One Betsy Huckabee has big-city dreams, but nobody outside of tiny Pine Gap, Missouri, seems interested in the articles she writes for her uncle’s newspaper. Her hopes for independence may be crushed, until the best idea she’s ever had comes riding into town. Deputy Joel Puckett didn’t want to leave Texas, but unfair circumstances have made moving to Pine Gap his only shot at keeping a badge. Worse, this…
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I Went to the 2016 AMAs and This Is What I Wore #KohlsVIPs
I attended the 2016 AMAs as one of the #KohlsVIPs. I still don’t know how it happened *pinch me*, but it did, and while I wasn’t asked to write this, I couldn’t not. A few weeks ago, somehow, somewhere in Wisconsin, some magical people happened to surprise me with an invitation to attend the 2016 AMAs – the American Music Awards. I was sitting at DFW airport awaiting a flight, and I’m sure everyone around me thought I was having a seizure or nervous breakdown (or both) as the invitation came over the phone. I had never been to any kind of awards show before, although I’d watched a lot on TV – along with plenty…
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Sleigh Bells Ring – Four Christmas Novellas
SLEIGH BELLS RING Four Contemporary Romance Novellas by Sandra D. Bricker, Lynette Sowell, Barbara J. Scott, & Lenora Worth Genre: Christian Contemporary Romance Publisher: Gilead Publishing Date of Publication: October 14, 2016 Number of Pages: 320 scroll down for giveaway! Santa Claus is coming to town, and so are the Tucker sisters. Never mind a pony. The Tucker girls have inherited their father’s horse farm for Christmas. Make that . . . a run-down horse farm. It needs some serious TLC in order to make it sell-ready. Joanna knows that by recruiting her sisters and one handsome ranch hand they can fix up the place and even celebrate…
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Review & Giveaway: Champion of the Barrio by R. Gaines Baty
CHAMPION OF THE BARRIO The Legacy of Coach Buryl Baty by R. Gaines Baty Genre: Biography / Sports / Civil Rights Publisher: Texas A&M University Press Date of Publication: February 9, 2015 Number of Pages: 288 Scroll down for Giveaway! In 1947, after serving in WWII and quarterbacking the Texas Aggies during the glory days of the old Southwest Conference, Texas football legend Buryl Baty was drafted by the Detroit Lions. But, the NFL wouldn’t be where he’d create his legacy. He instead became the head football coach at Bowie High School in El Paso, where he’d inspire a team of Mexican Americans from the Segundo Barrio with…
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Three Christmas Wishes by Sheila Roberts
Genre: Contemporary Fiction Publisher: MIRA Release Date: October 18, 2016 Pages: 384 Synopsis Three friends, three wishes—one Christmas! Riley Erickson, her pregnant sister, Jo, and their friend Noel are all wishing for the same thing: the perfect man. Or at least men who are perfect for them. Riley’s hasn’t turned out to be too impressive, dumping her for her bridesmaid three weeks before the wedding. Jo’s husband is being perfectly stubborn. And Noel has given up completely. When the three women visit a shopping-mall Santa on a lark, the guy is full of predictions. Riley’s going to meet her perfect man in a memorable way. Noel is going to get a good man…
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The Christmas Town by Donna VanLiere
Genre: Fiction Publisher: Macmillan Release Date: October 18, 2016 Pages: 240 Synopsis Donna VanLiere, New York Times bestselling author of the timeless The Christmas Shoes and The Christmas Hope, is back with this moving and uplifting story about finding love, hope, and family in unexpected places. Lauren Gabriel spent many years of her childhood in foster homes, wishing her mother would come back for her and be the family she needs. Now twenty-years-old, she still longs for a place that she can truly call home. Her work as a cashier is unfulfilling, and at Christmas it’s unbearable with the songs and carols and chatter of Christmas that she hears throughout the day. When…
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The Soul of Christmas by Thomas Moore
No matter how much you may love Christmas, seeing decorations in the stores before the Halloween candy has even been cleared out can definitely dampen your spirits. Every year, the season feels to be more and more commercialized, and our holiday season becomes more frantic as we get caught up in making it the best, most perfect holiday ever. If this all sounds exhausting, then Thomas Moore’s latest book, The Soul of Christmas, might be just the thing to cure what ails you. Genre: Religion & Spirituality, Christmas Publisher: Franciscan Media Publication Date: September 30, 2016 Hardcover: 160 Pages Synopsis “If you enter the spirit of Christmas, the child could be born in…
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Writers’ Workshop: Afraid of Heights
I was a shy, timid, anxious kid. Not surprisingly, as I have recently clarified, I am an anxious adult. I am also an introvert. Not much has changed in what I’m afraid of, because of said personality traits. I was afraid of heights. Well, it’s not so much heights I’m afraid of (I worked on the 92nd floor of the Sears Tower for a while). It’s the fear of falling. Basophobia. I read that it is common in nearly all people and animals, so I guess my fear is BIGGER than most. For example: On a family vacation one year, we went to New York and visited the Statue of…
