Hey there friends!

Thanks to all of you who helped me celebrate my birthday this week! I’m at the age where my birthdays are a paradox. On the one hand I don’t like using that new, larger number as my age. Yikes! How did I get this old? There must be a mistake.

On the other hand, I am overwhelmingly grateful to have lived another year and experienced all that God has brought my way. So there’s the paradox - angst and joy.

If you know me at all, you know that big moments always push me to become reflective. When my birthday rolls around, that reflection always goes to the experience of having a birthday when school is out for the summer.

You might remember one of my “One Story Wednesday” story prompts from last summer that gave you an opportunity to also remember summer birthday parties. I’ve also included the prompt in my new book.

To celebrate my birthday this week, I wrote a blog article that expounds on this subject and includes that story prompt. You can find the link below.

If you’re interested in building an ebook, I’ve shared Step 3 in that process in this issue. It’s a BIG step and takes a while to complete. Read on down to see what I’m talking about.

Happy weekend!

Family Stories About Cake, Melting Ice Cream, Balloons + Friends

Birthday parties for kids who have been out of school for a few weeks just have a different vibe, don’t they? When I was writing this blog article about this topic, I dug into my Family Story Collection photo archives to find a photo from one of my August birthdays.

I hope you enjoy the photo above of the cake my mother baked for my 5th birthday. It’s definitely a vintage 1960s birthday cake. It’s hard to see, but trust me that my sister and I recently identified that the 5 candles are held in place by plastic animals! I can see a camel, a unicorn and a pig. And, you’re welcome for this peek at our washing machine and the pine paneling on our kitchen walls. That kitchen holds a treasure trove of sweet memories for me.

Here’s a link to the article. Why not take a few minutes today to reminisce about your own summer birthday parties or those you attended? Those memories will make a delightful story to share with family.

Today I’m sharing Step 3 in the Build An Ebook system. This step is focused on Content Creation. It’s time to write your content or adapt content you already have to the ebook format. Writing and creating content that people want to read is hard work. Sometimes just getting started is the hardest part. But you can make that process easier if you make good choices before you begin. Click the button to dig into Step 3. I'll help you choose the writing tool that fits your needs and share some valuable writing tips that will speed up your process.

Marketing a book certainly isn’t for the faint of heart. 😲 I need all the help I can find with getting this book into the hands of those who will benefit from what I've written. Please help me spread the word about the book to anyone you know that needs a nudge to start collecting their family stories. I’ve made the process of getting started as easy as I could so that more families can enjoy the rich heritage of family stories.

Available on Amazon for Kindle and as a paperback.

Things that delight and inspire me this week ✨

I’m delighted today by the photography of my sister Pat in the late 1960s and early 1970s. I'm inspired by a story about a grandmother who shared stories from her childhood with her grandson - who then wrote a novel based on those memories.

✨What is delighting and inspiring you these days?

Earlier this summer my sister Pat shared some slides with me that she had taken in high school and college. She let me scan the ones that were of our family life together. It has been so fun to see what she photographed, including my favorite of our sweet Dalmatian peeking through our bedroom window with The Lone Ranger playing on the TV.

Author Kristopher Jansma’s grandmother told him stories about her childhood in the Netherlands during a Nazi blockade at the end of World War II when tens of thousands of people died from starvation. He has a new book of fiction based on her stories of this forgotten piece of history. Watch a CBS story about the book.

#delightedandinspired

​​​​

I'd love to have you follow my social feeds. I promise to not be boring but will most likely be cheesy now and again. 😉