Family Talk, a new book I recomend

I want to share a new book with my readers and friends. It is written by Christy Monson, a fellow author and dear friend of mine. It's an awesome "how to" book about organizing family meetings, solving family problems, and strengthening relationships. I highly recommend it.

Family Talk, How to Organize Family Meetings to Solve Problems and Strengthen Relationships

Author Christy Monson helps families achieve healthy synergy through

hosting regular family councils

A retired family therapist, Monson shares stories and concrete examples to guide families through the process of fine tuning communication through family meetings.

She explores the use of family councils as the perfect teaching environment to:

            Understand difficult issues

            Troubleshoot problems

            Find solutions

            Build a child's self esteem

            Give children the message that they are valued

            Help children know they are loved

            Encourage family members to become the best they can be

About the Author: Christy Monson established a successful counseling practice in Las Vegas, Nevada, as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Her books, Love, Hugs, and Hope: When Scary Things Happen and Becoming Free: A Woman's Guide To Internal Strength are published by Familius.

http://www.christymonson.com/index.html

Praise for Family Talk

The Family Council Guidebook is a vital and necessary addition to every home. In this day and age when emails, chat rooms, and staring at computer screens are rapidly replacing real-time human interaction, what better corrective could there be than a guidebook to how to talk with one another in meaningful, productive and healing ways. Christy Monson knows what she is talking about. It is a great blessing that she is sharing it with all of us.

—Ben Bernstein, PhD, Author of Test Success! and A Teen's Guide to Success

Purchase Family Talk on Amazon.

Missing in Action

 

     I apologize to any followers of my blog (and other social media) that I still might have. My waning  posts have weighed on my mind. Unfortunately, other matters have weighed heavier and they have received my attention, thus my blog has suffered.

Please be patient. Check back in the future. It will get better.

Like in most all situations, there lessons to be found among the rubble created by hard times. Patience and the ability to look for silver linings in massive gray clouds are two of the most common ones--two that I am learning at present.

Just a quick update on the massive undertaking that has basically put my life and writing career on hold for almost a year now.

Exactly a year ago, my husband and I decided to sell our large house and downsize so as to use the equity in our house to help us retire a few years early and go on a mission while we were still young enough to do some good. My husband gave me a budget for our new house. I immediately went to task looking for something that would fit in that budget.
Everything I found, that was still large enough to allow my children and their families to still come back for family gatherings was far away from where I cared to live out my life. I really wanted to remain in Kaysville. It's not only where I had raised my family and where I feel at home, but my mother-in-law still lives here and we need to be close to her as her healthy is going down hill and she will only need our assistance more in the days ahead.

I did find a bank owned property last October in Kaysville. It was located in a wonderful, quiet neighborhood with a stream in the back yard. It was "cheap" and I figured we could still pour 100K into the place and still be on budget.

We ended up paying more than the asking price because there was a lot of house flippers competing for the property. The end of November last year, we began the demolition. After the first day of help from friends and family, the remaining demolition basically fell into my hands. I felt like I was trying to move an ocean of water with a thimble. At least close; it was literally a ton of tile I pulled out of that house one bucketful at a time. A big orange crowbar became my best friend, I leaned to frame, run pex, and be innovative when tasks required the strength of a man. My husband and son in law did most of the plumbing, but I have done 90% of the rest of the house by myself. Needless to say, it has consumed my life for the past eleven months.

I've just had to keep reminding myself of our end goal. That and lots of prayer has kept me going. Everyday I would pray for help. The task was so overwhelming and I felt I was doing it essentially all alone. Occasionally, I would get help from someone other than my husband. At first I was frustrated with this, but I kept praying. Then it dawned on me. The Lord did send help. To me. He blessed me with strength and perseverance beyond my normal abilities. I KNOW He has helped me do things beyond whatever I imagined was possible by scrawny, old me.

So there it is: the reason I have not been posting on my blog. Please accept my apology and come back for a visit in 2015. I will be back.

Honey Vanilla Yogurt Suitable to Serve at a Wedding. :)

Earlier this month I made 6 gallons of my honey vanilla yogurt for a dear friend, Ilona Hunsaker--actually it was for her son's wedding open house she had in her gorgeous back yard. She served make-your-own yogurt parfaits. They were a big hit and many of those attending asked her for the recipe for the yogurt. \

I'm posting it here on my blog because I thought it would be the easiest way for me to share it with them. (Also because I have posted these instructions before and I just had to go into my archives and retrieve them. I found that I have changed the recipe a bit since I first posted this, so I have updated them for this post).


It's healthy, tasty, and easy. You just need a candy thermometer, a good sauce pan, an oven that can maintain a temperature of 100 degrees, and the following ingredients:

HONEY VANILLA YOGURT
8 cups of fresh milk
2/3 cup powdered milk
2 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin (1/2 envelope)
2 scant teaspoon instant pectin

Mix together in a heavy sauce pan with a wire whisk.
Turn the burner to low-medium low and let the milk slowly rise in temperature up to 170 degrees, but DO NOT let the milk come to a boil. Stir occasionally to prevent a film sticking to the bottom of the pan.

When the milk mixture reaches 170, remove from heat and stir in:
3/4 to 1 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla

When the mixture reaches a temperature between 112 and 108, add:
1/2 cup of yogurt starter. (Use plain or vanilla. You can reserve a 1/2 cup from your previous batch of yogurt).

Mix well with wire whisk. Strain and pour into containers. I like to use Pyrex bowls that come with lids, but I have found that used yogurt containers work, as long as they have snap on lids.

Put the lids on the containers and place in a pre-heated 100 degree oven for 8 to 10 hours. Turn off the heat and let remain in the oven for another 1 to 6 hours, depending on how strong you want the yogurt flavor.

Refrigerate and enjoy.

Another Year Older, But Still Kickin'

Today is my birthday. I'm as old as the year I was born. ('57). That will only happen once in my life. Though that is not a major milestone, I always choke up a little (sometimes a lot, but in this case only a little), when something will never happen again, marks the end of an era. When you look at the grand scheme of things, our mortal experience here on this earth is one of a kind--it will never happen again. And it is very short. For this reason, I want to make the most of my life because I love life.

As a person who has always set goals and strives to meet them, I have the goal to live 30 more years. I realize that this particular goal might be slightly out of my hands. But there are some things I can do to increase my odds of success.
* First I will apply one of my most favorite sayings: "work like everything depends on you and pray like everything depends on God." Yep, I'm going to pray that God will grant me a long, healthy life--can't hurt.
*Second, I'm going to do everything I can to maintain good health. I've already started--unfortunately, it took a pair of sore knees to remind me that I wasn't eating right. I've cut out refined foods, especially sugar. My knees and my energy levels are feeling better already. This leads to the ease of accomplishing another goal--take a brisk half hour walk at least 5 times a week.

Aren't birthdays great? They remind us we are getting older, which reminds us we need to take action so that all those previous birthdays don't do us in.

The Hitler Dilemma Official Book Blog Tour Starts Here

The first stop of the Official Book Blog Tour for The Hitler Dilemma is here on my very own blog, Frankly Creative.
To kick off this blog tour,I'd like to share with you some purchase links and what you'll read on the back cover of the printed book

WHERE YOU CAN PURCHASE THE BOOK

Amazon

Seagull Book

Deseret Book

“We’re Nazis, Max. Everybody in Germany is Nazi—if they want to be safe.” Papa pulled up a chair and sat down, crumpling the newspaper in his hand. “We don’t have to think like them, son, but we’ve got to act like them—at least on the outside. Try to remember that. Okay?”


Saarbrücken, Germany—1938 Change is in the air in Max Adams’s home town: The censorship of classic literature, the elimination of math and science courses, the addition of extra physical education classes. Along with thousands of other young men, he is forced into the Hitler Youth and is being groomed to become the next generation of Nazi soldiers. But as a faithful Latter-day Saint, how can Max serve the villain who destroyed his younger brother in his effort to create a Master Race—a man who is bent on tearing apart not only a single nation, but also the entire world?


From the horrors of battle and the sorrow of separation from family to the privations of a prisoner of war, Carolyn Twede Frank’s groundbreaking novel The Hitler Dilemma is a poignant chronicle of one remarkable young man’s struggle to reconcile his sense of duty with his staunch opposition to the evil tyrant destroying the country he loves.

"Compelling, life-affirming, historical fiction.  

Carolyn Frank Builds a rich and very readable

 narrative that brings this true story to life."

--Brad Westwood

Director, Utah State Historical Society

I hope you take the opportunity to visit as many of the stop as you can. Here is a list of the other bloggers that are participating.

The Hitler Dilemma Book Blog Tour Stops
May 24th. www.franklycreative.blogspot.com
May 25th: annadelc.com/blog
May 26th  http://www.fayklingler.com/
May 27th: lindzeearmstrong.blogspot.com
May 28th: sueysbooks.blogspot.com
May 29th: themusingsofabookaddict.com
May 30th: ldsandlovinit.blogspot.com
May 31sth: http://www.tarynataylor.com/
June 1st: Julielcasey.com/blog
June 2nd: renaeswritespot.blogspot.com
June 3rd: thewriteblocks.blogspot.com
June 4th: maryanndennis.blogspot.com
June 5th: whynotbecauseisaidso.blogspot.com
June 6th: donnakweaver.com
June 7th: lisaswinton.blogspot.com

The Hitler Dilemma Book Trailer

Check out this book trailer for my new book. I'm so very pleased with the qualitly of work my son-in-law did in creating it. And I was floored by the music my son, Jordan created for the trailer. He said it took him less than half and hour.

My book, The Hitler Dilemma is ready to launch

My book The Hitler Dilemma is ready for launch. This Saturday, May 24 marks the beginning of my book blog tour filled with awesome bloggers. It will be full of interviews and reviews and I myself am excited to see what everyone is saying about my new book.

May 24 is also the date of my book launch party at the King's English Bookshop in Salt Lake City, Utah.
There will be door prizes, refreshments, and a guest appearce by Max Adam, the German soldier whose
amazing story is retold in The Hitler Dilemma.

Mental Illness is not Fair--Please Help my Fellow Author

A fellow author and friend of mine is in a tough situation caused by his mental illness. My heart aches for him

Many of my close friends and family members suffer from mental illness, so this situation is hits close to home for me. That is why I'm donating to this amazing cause Rob's friends and associates have put together. It certainly warrants checking out. Please take a moment to do so, and if you can, please by a copy of the book.

Stumbling Block can be Blessings in Disguise

Sometimes stumbling blocks can be blessings in disguise. This, I feel, is very much the case in the many problems that have besought the release of my latest book. Allow me to go into detail.

     March 31 I received an early April Fool's jolt: a call from Max Adam, the ex-German soldier whose story I retell in my book. He informs me that he cannot accept the title of my book--that I'll have to change it. I Wouldn't Serve Hitler was just not true. He had to serve Hitler or his family would be in danger, and thus he felt the title would reflect poorly upon his name.
     On a side note, for the past several week up to this point, I had been hounding my publisher for a copy of the book's cover. I had a book blog tour in place and I needed to make a banner for its PR. Also, The King's English Bookshop had been asking and asking for a copy of the cover to post on their site to advertise my book launch party. The same morning I received the call from Max, I was finally sent a copy of my book cover.

     I immediately called my editor after talking to Max and told her about Max's disapproval. The book was literally fifteen minutes away from going to press. She pulled the plug on it, took the matter to the committee, and they quickly came up with a new title: Surviving Hitler, A Mormon Soldier in the German Army. I liked the title better than the original one. It was more accurate. Max liked the title and so the ball got back in motion at top speed designing a new cover to fit the new title. I never saw that cover. My editor didn't get a chance to send it to me. Instead she called to tell me that we had to change the title yet again. Deseret Book was coming out with a WWII novel in July titled: Surviving Hitler: the Unlikely story of an SS Officer and a Jew (or something like that). If we went with our Surviving Hitler title, they wouldn't carry my book in their stores.

     The committee met and came up with Conflicted: a Mormon Soldier in Hitler's Army. 
     I hated the new title. It sounded like a romance novel to me--at least the main title. And who really pays that much attention to subtitles? I racked my brain, trying to come up with something better. Nothing was coming to mind. I dropped to my knees and begged for some help. I got back up and decided--with almost a flippant attitude, for what did I have to lose--that I'd go to the scriptures for help; I'd just let them flop open at random and see what inspiration I could pull from the page. My book is a WWII story and I was going to the scriptures for ideas--yeah right. It wasn't really expecting anything. My quadruple combination (4 books of scriptures in one for those of you not familiar with Mormon lingo), fell open to Alma, chapter 7. The word dilemma almost jumped out of verse 18. That was it: The Hitler Dilemma. After all, that is really what Max's story was about; the dilemma of serving Hitler when it went against everything he knew and felt.

    I ran the new title past Max. He liked it. I submitted it to my publisher. They liked it and decided to go with it instead of Conflicted. (Perhaps it was because I lambasted the lame title, telling them I didn't want my book to come up on an Amazon search grouped with racy romance novels). So the cover artists got to work immediately using the new title.
     Yesterday I received a copy of the new cover. I hated it. Maybe not hated, but it was so absolutely boring that it made me cry.

     I emailed, and then called the cover person and begged them to change it. I told them I didn't mind the design, but please change the coloring. In fact, I loved the coloring of the previous cover, couldn't they just used that same red and gray color scheme. Red absolutely had to be in the cover somewhere--I think red when I think Nazi.

     Today when I checked my email, I saw the new cover. I liked it much better. Still I wondered why they didn't go with the gray and red like I had requested. Then I read her explanation; they had discovered that the book that Deseret Book was releasing in July looked very similar to my original book cover with the red and gray. I agreed, we needed my book to be distinctly different from theirs.
     Just as I was ready to give myself a pity party for all of the hurtles and delays in the release of my book, and overwhelming sense of gratitude pushed my negative urge away. All these road blocks stood out as blessings instead. At the beginning of this entire process, I asked for God's help in getting my book out there into the hands of as many readers who would be blessed by this story as possible. God sees the big picture. He knew what was needed for my book to stand out, appeal to the reader, and get it seen by the most people. His tender little mercies are humbling.

   Here it is, finally, the official title and cover of my new book. Details of its release date are upcoming.

Delay in Release of My Next Book :(

I've had a major upheaval today concerning the release of my upcoming book. It was literally 15 minutes away from going to press when I received word from Max Adam, the gentleman whose story I was retelling in the book, and he expressed his disapproval and major concern with the title, I Wouldn't Serve Hitler, My publisher has been scrambling and came up with a new title that Max approved of. The new title will be Surviving Hitler: A Mormon Soldier in the German Army.



This means the book's release date will be pushed back several weeks, if not longer. Strangely, I'm very at peace with it all. The last thing I would want to do is create a book that Max would not be proud to have his name attached to. It will be worth the delay to have everything done right. Ironically, I finally received the image for my book cover first thing this morning for my approval--I'd been waiting on it what felt like forever. I actually really liked it. I'll share it with you--even if it's going to totally be changed now.

Book Blog Tour: I Am Strong! I Am Smart

I thought the book was very well done. I loved the art, the grandma, and the self-talk lessons. I Am Strong! I Am Smart! brought a lump to my throat as I thought about being a grandmother myself. Though I only have one small grandson at present, one of these years I'll be old and gray like Grandma May in this book. I can only hope that my grandchildren will love me as Lu did her Grandma May, and like Grandma May, I pray that I might be able to make a difference in their lives.

This book touched on the subject of bullying in schools. Teachers are not always aware of what is going on. Luckily this little girl felt close enough to her grandma to reveal her hurts. The author did a beautiful job in weaving a cute story around these important lessons.

You can purchase Fay Klinger's I Am Strong! I Am Smart! on Amazon

and in Christian bookstores. Check out the author's website for those links

www.fayklingler.com

www.facebook.com/FayKlingler

Author, Fay Klinger

A Hedge Against Discouragement

My husband and I are in the throes of a major house renovation project. The project has sucked my time and sucked my desire to write. Needless to say, I am discouraged and feel like giving up on writing. But something inside me nudges me from time to time and won't let me quit. There are scores of novels inside me, begging to be written. When I stumbled onto this quote below, it gave me the encouragement I needed. Even if I write but a page a week while I'm in the midst of this remodeling project, I will continue to write.

I wanted to share my encouragement with you in case you are having some discouraging moments and need a boost.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. (Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love)

This quote is often attributed to Nelson Mandela, but was written by Williamson. I mean, really, can you see Mandela saying, "brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous" in an inaugural address?

Book Review: Tell Me No Lies by Rachel Branton

     It's been quite a while since I've read such a fun, engaging romance as Tell Me No Lies, by Rachel Branton (aka Rachel Ann Nunes). I found the characters vivid, the plot intriguing, and the writing crisp.
     I'm not generally a reader of romance, but after browsing through numerous e-books, that I had down-loaded from Book Bub, I was almost ready to give up on purchasing bargain books. I had found so many of them either boring, vulgar, or poorly written. When I stumbled onto a book by a fellow local author, I decided to give it a try knowing that at least it would be a clean read. When I started reading Tell Me No Lies I was drawn in by the first page. I felt like a 49er who'd finally struck gold.
     I would highly recommend this book to those who love a good, clean romance. and/or anyone who is looking for a fun read.

Book blurb:
With her trust fund in jeopardy, Tessa Crawford enters into a relationship with a mysterious neighbor that soon turns into something more dangerous than either of them could have imagined.

Two days before her wedding, Tessa Crawford’s world crumbles, leaving her hurt and betrayed. Worse, if Tessa doesn’t marry and receive her trust fund, her younger sister will lose her house and the homeless girls she helps will have nowhere to go.

Book Review: Behind the Mask, by Elizabeth D. Michaels (aka Anita Stansfield)

I purchased this book as an e-book during a $0.99 promotion two weeks ago. It was one of my better investments. I loved the book.
Since receiving my Kindle as a Christmas gift just over a month ago, I've been downloading lots of free and heavily discounted books--because I can at little cost to me. (I've had a Nook for several years now, but the deals just aren't there for the Nook). Anyway, I was getting discouraged, having yet to find a book that pulled me in among all those cheap e-books. I was about to adopt the attitude I was determined never to tread upon--because I am a self-published author who has two e-books out there for $0.99 each on Amazon: the attitude that self published books are of lesser quality. Then I was directed to Behind the Mask through one of Rachel Ann Nunes's promotions.

I more-than-welcomed the feeling of being pulled into a book within the few pages. By the end of the first chapter I was fully engaged and had a hard time putting the book down. Lately, this has been hard for me to find such a book. I think it's because I've become overly critical in my reading because I'm overly critical of my writing. I find all the writing "no-no's" as I read, often letting them distract me from enjoying the story. Though I was bothered at first at Anita's writing style of jumping from one character's point of view to another's, sometimes even in the same paragraph, I was able to look beyond that "no-no" because the story pulled me in with such power.

I would highly recommend this book, especially to those who love a good, clean romance with a touch of mystery.

The author was recently interviewed on a blog I visit. You might want to check it out to learn more about the author and the production of this multi-book series.

BOOK BLURB:
Abbi has the gift of dreams. But her uncanny ability to see glimpses of the future has no apparent purpose or meaning until a dream leads her to a man on the brink of despair and destruction.

Cameron is a man without a name and without a country, framed for a crime he didn’t commit. Long ago forced into exile and believed dead, the passing of years have defaced him of all hope.

The country of Horstberg suffers beneath the weight of tyranny, and only Cameron holds the secret that could see her ruler undone and restore the people to peace and prosperity. While revolution brews and whispers of treason threaten all that is dear to Abbi, she remains unaware of her own ability to answer a nation’s prayers.

Trusting only her heart and the power of her dreams, Abbi gives all that she has to lead Cameron back into a civilized world, where love is real and freedom comes only in facing what hides behind the mask.

Resolutions: Why only in January?

     With the dawn of a new year, it seems to be a time we all make resolutions to do more, eat less, and change things about our lives we don't like. But there is a problem with this paradigm--at least that's what I've found.  
     By procrastinating making these needed life changing goals until January 1, instead of grabbing the bull by the horns at the time we first recognize these needs in the previous months, we are already establishing yet another bad habit--the very thing most resolutions aim to battle. We are also setting ourselves up for potential failure. It is easy to be caught up in the popular trend of making New Year's resolution, often becoming over zealous in our goals. By mid-February our enthusiasm wanes. By mid-summer we give up or even forget about our resolutions--we'll wait until the new year to change.
     I've found that if I continually make goals throughout the year as different situations arise, and work at them slow and steady, picking myself up and dusting myself as needed, has been much more successful for me than making New Year's resolutions.
    What is your feeling about New Year's resolutions?