Peering Through Life's Window

WISHING YOU AND YOURS A HAPPY, BLESSED 2019!

photo courtesy Google Some say Christ wasn’t born on December 25th. They claim Christians took the date from a Roman holiday honoring the sun or a sun god. While modern historians disagree about this theory many agree that the Romans revered the sun. Some claim Christians took the date to rival the pagan feasts that took place during the Winter Solstice, which honored a new age brought by the sun. Depending on location, the Winter Solstice occurs on or around December 25th. Every year in late October, festive decorations acknowledging the birth of Christ begin to appear in overwhelming numbers across the American landscape. By early December, a majority of homes have wreaths on their doors, candles in their windows, lights in the yards and red bows on their mailboxes. And jolly old Santa Claus sits in the middle of the mall to greet youngsters. Nativity scenes abound on people’s lawns, and this country’s biggest celebration continues until after December 25th, so when is Chri...

Hats... Horns... Congratulations, Anita!

A Warm Welcome To Julie Cosgrove Julie shares an easy, yummy Christmas recipe her mom used to make for gifts and quotes one of her favorite Bible verses. Julie will give away an eBook of One Leaf Too Many to one, randomly chosen person who comments. To enter to win leave the comment and an email address below. Julie and her brother gathered under the Christmas tree, taken by her mother in 1955 Stuffed Holiday Dates This recipe graced every family Thanksgiving and Christmas table. We even had a special platter for them. I think it was handed down from my great-grandmother. We used to gather in the kitchen with Mom to make them for our teachers, the postman, the neighborhood patrolman, and as holiday hostess gifts. Several boxes of these, wrapped in white tissue paper with a red bow, waited on the hall table in case anyone dropped by unexpectedly with a gift. Dates and pecan were cheaper back then. One box or bag of pitted whole dates. A small bag of whole pec...

A Warm Welcome to Linda Weaver Clarke Hi Linda, first, tell us a little about yourself. I was raised among the Rocky Mountains of southern Idaho and now live in southern Utah. I am the author of 24 books—which includes Historical Romance, Mystery Suspense, Cozy Mysteries, and historical/Adventure Romance. I am also a missionary at the Family Search Center where I help people find their ancestors and learn about their heritage. Tell us about your latest book. One Last Dance is a Historical Romance with a mystery to solve. It’s set in 1835. Felicity Brooks is a talented artist but her career is cut short when her father passes away. Realizing the importance of family, she travels home to care for her mother. When Felicity meets their new neighbor, a fine-looking bachelor, she soon discovers that he is hiding his true identity. Nicholas Adams is on a quest. But that is not all. When she finds out that someone is after a valuable heirloom…a precious treasure that her...

The Winner Is... Hats... Horns... Congratulations, Janet!

A Warm Welcome to Lisa Lickel Lisa will give away an eBook of Love Is...Everything About You . Read about the lighthearted romance below. To enter to win leave a comment and an email address below. Hi Lisa, tell us about your new Christmas book. Meow Mistletoe was an accidental story my editor suggested when we learned that a different holiday story I had begun would end up out of order in the series due to the publication schedule. It’s the first time I ever wrote a book based on the title. I’m glad it was always supposed to be novella size, meaning about a quarter the length of a full-size novel, so the amount of time researching and writing was doable in the timeline I had. The story takes place in one evening and introduces the characters who become the amateur sleuths of the Fancy Cat series . Ivy Preston is a jilted fiancé who, after a lengthy relationship, decides to start over and moves herself and her business, personal tech services, to a new community at the...

More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website . Amish Romance: The Amish Sweet Shop by Laura Bradford, Mary Ellis , and Emma Miller -- It's almost Valentine's Day at Beechy's Sweets, where the Amish gifts of love and faith are even sweeter than the home-made candy. In The Sweetest Courtship by Emma Miller, bachelor Jacob Beechy is a master candy maker whose mother longs for grandchildren, so she sets out to find him an assistant confectioner during the Valentine’s holiday—and a wife. In The Sweetest Truth by Laura Bradford, Sadie Fischer can’t see beyond her scars from a barn fire, but there’s a young man who sees only sweetness when he looks at her, and he’s sending her Beechy’s chocolate and mysterious gifts leading up to Valentine’s Day. In Nothing Tastes So Sweet by Mary Ellis, Pregnant widow Hannah wants to buy her English employer’s hardware store, but ends up following a clue from Beechy’s to clear a man’s ...

Keeping hubby busy drawing names or spinning for winners! This week he drew... Hats... Horns... Congratulations, Sonja!

A Warm Welcome to Carol James To enter to win  Mary’s Christmas Surprise leave a comment and an email address below. Carol shares a Bible verse to nourish our souls and a recipe to whet our appetites.  One of Carol's favorite Bible verses is Psalm 91:1-2 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High     will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,     my God, in whom I trust.” One of Carol's favorite recipes is her mother’s Cookie Canes My mother had the gift hospitality. Not only did she enjoy cooking and entertaining, but she was good at both. One of my favorite possessions is her recipe book. I love looking at the stained pages and wondering how old I was when those markings were made. Some of my fondest holiday memories are the times she and I made Christmas cookies together. My favorites were her cookie canes, maybe because my special job was using a hammer o...

Wow! Not able to choose again without hubby's help. He's been spinning coins with names assigned to heads and tails... And the winner is... Hats... Horns... Congratulations, Anna!

A Warm Welcome to Anita Klumpers To enter to win the eBook of  Christmas Past  leave a comment and an email address below.  Anita shares a Bible verse to nourish our souls and a recipe to whet our appetites. One of Anita's favorite Bible verses Like everyone else who loves God’s Word, I have too many mercies to count! But the verse I found highlighted in my dad’s Bible as God prepared to take him home is a joy to me: Through the LORD’S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. The LORD is my portion,” says my soul. Therefore I hope in Him!” Lamentations 3:22-24 (NKJV) One of Anita's favorite recipes: Adele’s Apple Donuts In the early 1960s, we lived in Denver. My mom, Adele, heard this recipe on the radio and jotted it down. It’s been a family favorite ever since. Not sure why they are called donuts when they are baked in a muffin tin. But who am I to qu...

Have hubby busy drawing names... This week... The winner is... Hats... Horns... Congratulations, Melissa!

A Warm Welcome To Erin Unger Erin will give away a $5.00 Amazon gift card. To enter to win answer the question below in the comment section and leave an email address. Erin Shares a Bible Verse To Nourish Our Souls Phil. 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. A Recipe For Maddie Clare In Practicing Murder, Maddie Clare loves to cook for her cousins when they all come home from college. I bet she’d enjoy making this easy recipe for everyone. And she might even let Joze have a taste if he promises to be on his best behavior. Chicken Cheese Quesadillas: 1 1/2 c. cooked chicken strips 2 c. Cheese 6 soft medium tortilla shells Butter Buffalo wings sauce 1 tsp. Taco Seasoning (optional) Blue cheese salad dressing/ran...

The winner is... Hats... Horns... Congratulations! Sonja!

A Warm Welcome to Regina Merrick Regina shares a Bible verse she's cherished since her teens to nourish our souls and an easy, yummy recipe. She'll give away an E-book of Carolina Mercy . To enter to win leave a comment and an email address below. Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 This verse has been “my verse” since I was a teen and was struggling with a disappointment that had so little to do with what I wanted, and so much to do with what God wanted FOR me. It was years later that I learned, and used as the foundation for my first book, Carolina Dream , that when we literally delight in the Lord, it’s not our “wishes” that we should focus on, but instead that His desires become our desires! Mom's Pecan Pie I struggled to choose between two different pie recipes, both of which I received from my mother – chocolate pie, or pecan pie? Today, since I’m highlighting book 2 in the Southern Breeze ...

More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website . Contemporary Romance: Christmas in Jingle Junction by Tabitha Bouldin -- In the small town of Jingle Junction, Holly Winters owns the local coffee shop, Jolly Java. It's here that she meets Patrick Cooper and promptly throws coffee everywhere. Not only does Patrick not like coffee, he also despises Christmas! It's up to Holly to show Patrick that Christmas is worth giving a second chance, just as Patrick himself deserves a second chance when he is accused of robbing a local convenience store. In a town full of Christmas spirit, lively debates over the best superhero and riding in a sleigh pulled by actual reindeer is just a normal day. Will Holly be able to prove to Patrick that Christmas is more than a holiday that has to be endured? (Contemporary Romance, Independently Published) A Picture Perfect Christmas by Candee Fick -- Freelance photographers Liz...