I love new time and count it such a blessing! Sunday is the first day of the week according to the calendar, but Mondays begin a new “work week”—a whole new week to get lots of work done! I’ve always liked Mondays—they never get me down! New Years are also special! A time to reflect over the past one and the wonderful expectations for the new months ahead!
A Look Back at 2020
In the light of Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” I will keep to the great things that have happened! Definitely won’t be talking any politics.
FAMILY – two proposals are adding two new ‘grown’ grandsugars to our family! My precious Jeremy King (#20) will marry my first grandsugar-daughter and my mother’s namesake Naomi (#2), to be his bride in March, and my Aggie grandsugar-son Matthew (#8) has chosen the beautiful (inside-and-out) Kami (#21) to wed in May!
“Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord.” Proverbs 18:22
Hudson Ebeling
Also, the best blessing God can give, on eleven-eleven (November 11th), the first of another generation of McAdoos came into the world—Hudson Ebeling McAdoo (#19)—son of my grandsugar-son Seth (#4) and his wife Shaey (#17) to his big sister Waylen’s (#18) delight! Our first great-grandsugar-son! <3 Praise be to God!
“Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.”Psalm 127:3-5
BOOKS – In January, LEAVING TEXAS launched, book four in the Cross Timbers Romance Family Saga (CTRFS) series, followed by my Lockets & Lace contribution, book twenty-two, BITTER HONEY. From the Prairie Roses Collection, LILAH debuted in May, then KENTUCKY BRIDE book eight in the North & South Collection. A NURSE FOR JACOB was book nine in Nursing the Heart Collection and launched in July. I released TEXAS TROUBLES, book five in the CTRFS series and also part of the Thanksgiving Books & Blessings Collection, and QUINCY & PRISCILLA At The Lowell House ended the year in November.
I love every single one of these stories and thank God for giving them to my husband and myself. I love writing with him . . . It’s another way for us to be as one, and I welcome every opportunity for that!
“My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” Psalm 45:1
THE PEACEABLE – Our sweet homeplace in the woods has improved by leaps and bounds this year! We finished the utility room from it’s raw state and carved out the start of an orchard with the addition of another pear tree and two nectarine trees! We also planted two blueberry bushes and two raised beds yielded wonderful vegetables! Tomatoes from May all the way to November! Yummilicious!
All that’s in the back, including the beginning of a system to keep our pool from overflowing and be a part of a cistern Ron has plans for and a patch of St. Augustine grass where only dirt once was! We bought a zer0-turn and I get to mow the levi around the pond; it’s like a Six Flags ride to me and I have so much fun on it! Plus keeping the grass and weeds mowed all season, the Bermuda is covering the ground well!
In the front, it’s even better! I had planted more flowers and on summer evenings would have to move the water sprinkler ever thirty minutes or hour. It took me a long time to get to everything that needed a drink. So, my brilliant husband built me a watering tower. Testing it, he first used two T-posts together with a sprinkler head at the top about six feet into the air, and it went all the way around full circle and watered everything! I only had to turn the faucet on!
But, it wasn’t pretty. I mentioned he’d have to go take it down whenever company came, so he fashioned several bois d’arc posts around a steel pole inside attached to PVC at its bottom that goes underground toward the faucet then comes up and attaches with a hose to the said faucet! We planted azalea around its bottom.
It waters the whole yard and is beautiful! One of the longer posts curved at the top and we hung a hanging basket I created with dianthus and petunias. I stuffed the cracks between the posts and pressed in moss that is now growing there! Ron built a shelf on one side for a pot with hanging vines, and another hanging pot on another side.
It’s fabulous! We finished our curving pebble path, lined with rocks from other homes (since 1993) and bricks from an old cistern on the property. It goes from the drive to the front door and also to the woods through the bois d’arc arch. On that offshoot of the walkway, we built a brick planter with a bois d’arc post that Y’ed at the top for two hanging plants! Then we laid in a lot of St. Augustine on two sides of the yard which I’m going to love!
We stayed home except trips to town. In March we stayed in as they asked, but by mid-April, we forgot about it and lived our lives as if there was no China virus. We wore masks when required, but never slowed any company down and hugged freely. They thought I had it once and tested me in September maybe, but it came back negative.
“And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;” Isaiah 32:18
I am blessed to know that God is on the throne and in control and understand that because of that, I need not fear or worry about my home, family, state, or country. This brings me great peace
And 2021! Looking Forward to What’s Ahead!
All plans we have are, of course, if God wills it.
FAMILY – As mentioned afore, we’ll have two spring weddings! In March Naomi Elizabeth McAdoo will wed Jeremy King. We all love him! And in May, our Matthew will make Kami his wife. We adore Kami. These are divine matches, and all the family are thrilled for them both.
Grami loves adding grandsugars by marriage or birth and will be thrilled with more great-grands as they come!
BOOKS – Ron and I only have five titles planned this year, though we’ve averaged seven a year since 2015. On January 11th, DUPLICITY At The Lowell House, my fifty-seventh title, debuts! It’s first in my new Cross Timbers Mystery series—given that name because characters from the Cross Timbers Romance Family Saga (CTRFS) will be popping in and out . . . and DUPLICITY even has a few from the Texas Romance Family Saga! Such fun!!
Duplicity can be pre-ordered at: https://www.amazon.com/Duplicity-Lowell-House-Timbers-Mystery-ebook/dp/B08NYZJXSG
March sixth is the release day for TEXAS TRAILS, book six in the CTRFS, our fifty-eighth title published. This book is a coming-of-age story with a cattle drive and dress shops and the characters so many readers have come to love! Pre-order Texas Trails here: https://www.amazon.com/Texas-Trails-Timbers-Romance-Family-ebook/dp/B08RD2N5D3
In May, just in time for Mothers Day, RUTH debuts! It’s a Prairie Roses Collection addition, and fifty-nineth published title. We’ve just finished writing it, December twenty-nineth, we wrote “The End”! It’s another covered wagon story that all that research we did, including a drive along the Oregon Trail, really shows!
We’re planning another mystery for July, SKULLDUGGERY In The Sulphur River Bottoms, sixtieth published and then in September, a Thanksgiving Books and Blessing story, also a CTRFS story, TEXAS TIMBERS, book seven in the series. We’ll see if the Lord has any additional plans.
THE PEACEABLE – We love our home and have got big plans to repaint and decorate the guest bedroom. Ron will put ceramic tile on the floor. We’ve chosen a gray board plank, like the brown in the rest of the house, it looks like boards. I love the color and plan to paint it sky blue after we use a primer.
It’s the decks that I’m so looking forward to! We’ve had small 4 x 6 concrete porches, but there’s 42 x 10 under roof; it’s been only dirt, but we plan to deck it this year, hopefully front and back. Ron’s got an Alaska Chainsaw Mill and intends to cut trees off the ranch and make boards for the deck.
“For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.” I Timothy 2:2
I’ll totally finish with all the woodwork painting inside! And who knows what else the Lord might show us? We love making the “garden” around us more beautiful. After all, it was God’s first command to man: TEND THE GARDEN
Outside, we’ll put in more St. Augustine and flowers–all the fore-ground yard in photo has Augustine laid in already! Of course, I’ll mow—in back on the zero turn and in front with SunJoe. He’s a little 14” push mower, very lightweight and cordless and good for my exercising! You charge him like you charge your phone. I love him and the zero-turn both! The more I mow, the better it’ll look, and I love mowing!
God’s blessings have been unfathomable in past years, and I know He will continue to bless us and our family and our home because He is Love, and He loves the McAdoos! We could not get through a day without His mercy and grace. We wait with great expectations for Father to open the next door He plans us to walk through.
I pray that you all will be as blessed as we are and greater, that His great favor will envelope you, going before and following close behind you! I pray that you will know His will and have the strength in Him to do it! You are greatly loved!
Father, in the name of Your Beloved Son, Thy Kingdom come, and Thy will only be done in our lives here on earth as it is in heaven. Thank You. Bless You. I love You. Bless my family and friends with peace, health, and prosperity. Amen.
Austin, Texas, fall of 1844 Wallace Rusk put his coffee mug down and nodded toward the saloon’s swinging doors. “Hey, that’s got to be that lady reporter. Remember? The one from New York City the Major told us about.” Levi didn’t turn around, only grimaced. The woman slipped into the empty chair and set her…
Then . . . studying the Word, meditating on it day and night—we had this new hunger for it—we started seeing things like how important it was not to mix the holy things of God with anything that was unholy. A farmer doesn’t mix his seed, priests weren’t to mix fabrics, and one bad apple does spoil the whole barrel.
Lillian Jane came to Grami’s for her first-ever sleepover. The plan was to stay two nights but she asked her daddy (Russell) for “one more sleep” since we were having such a grand time! She wrote a story while she was here THE HAPPY RAINBOW and it launched on Amazon in November! A precious children’s picture book for my six-year-old author! I illustrated it for her. To God be the glory!
One Comment
I love your comment, Caryl! I also couldn’t make it without the Lord in my life. I pray that God will continue to bless and keep you and your family in His care. And that He will continue to inspire you to write books that we all enjoy!
FAMILY – As mentioned afore, we’ll have two spring weddings! In March Naomi Elizabeth McAdoo will wed Jeremy King. We all love him! And in May, our Matthew will make Kami his wife. We adore Kami. These are divine matches, and all the family are thrilled for them both.
BOOKS – Ron and I only have five titles planned this year, though we’ve averaged seven a year since 2015. On January 11th, DUPLICITY At The Lowell House, my fifty-seventh title, debuts! It’s first in my new Cross Timbers Mystery series—given that name because characters from the Cross Timbers Romance Family Saga (CTRFS) will be popping in and out . . . and DUPLICITY even has a few from the Texas Romance Family Saga! Such fun!!
March sixth is the release day for TEXAS TRAILS, book six in the CTRFS, our fifty-eighth title published. This book is a coming-of-age story with a cattle drive and dress shops and the characters so many readers have come to love! Pre-order Texas Trails here: https://www.amazon.com/Texas-Trails-Timbers-Romance-Family-ebook/dp/B08RD2N5D3
I love your comment, Caryl! I also couldn’t make it without the Lord in my life. I pray that God will continue to bless and keep you and your family in His care. And that He will continue to inspire you to write books that we all enjoy!