Have you seen those projectors that make you feel like you're at the movie in your own living room? My sweet family got me one for my birthday yesterday!! We tried it out last night. Kevin hung the screen from the ceiling in front of the fireplace (it's retractable and hardly noticeable when not pulled down) and we watched X-men. Wow. The clarity and crispness of the picture was amazing. With the 90" by 90" (that's 7 1/2 foot square!) screen, I really felt like I was at the movie theatre. We tried out the projector to see how big we could make the picture without losing clarity and, to our amazement, were able to fill the whole width of the screen. Wow. A wonderful surprise. We don't get any television channels and don't watch movies a lot, but everytime we do now, it'll feel like a special occasion! Popcorn anyone?

Speaking of movies, we recently went to see Facing the Giants. This Christian movie is phenomenal. First movie I've seen in years that I came away with renewed faith and hope. The acting seemed slightly amateurish at first, but within minutes, it wasn't important or noticeable. The story ran away with our hearts. We laughed and cried and cried some more. If you get a chance, take your family to see this. You'll be glad you did.

What are you doing for Thanksgiving? We'll be in and out. We have a busy few days planned. Saturday, I'll be signing my brand new release (I haven't even seen a copy yet!) Promise Me Always and my other titles at the Bible House bookstore in Searcy, Arkansas from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Stop by if you're in the area.

What does Thanksgiving mean to you? I read my daughter's answer to this in a school publication and cringed (aloud) because she didn't mention God. She said Thanksgiving to her is a time to get together with family under one roof and enjoy each other and that we need to say thanks to the women who slave over hot stoves to cook the delicious food we all gobble down. She might have a point there. But I asked her about leaving out God. She let me know that she figured everyone knows we're thankful to God on Thanksgiving and every day.I realized that she wasn't trying to give a politically correct answer. She just said what was in her heart. And truthfully, I knew all along she didn't forget God, I was just worried about what others would think when they read it. Isn't it strange how we're afraid our children's public actions might serve as a reflection of our own private actions? I'm ashamed of my momentary cringing and proud of my daughter. I'm very thankful for my family and friends, this day and every day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Saturday, I did a booksigning at the Wal-Mart in Newport, Arkansas. My family all turned out to support me since this is my "hometown" Wal-mart from childhood. My dad even sat at the signing table with me for a while. And even when he was out in the truck listening to the Razorback game, I knew he was with me in spirit. (Love you, Daddy!) We had a big turnout. I'm guessing we sold around 60-70 books and I signed several that people brought in that they'd purchased earlier. If you came by and bought Arkansas Saturday, thank you! I asked several people to stop by and sign my guestbook after they finished the book, but alas, today my guestbook is messed up!! Wouldn't you know it? Usually they get it straightened out within a few days, but if you'd like to, please leave a comment at the bottom of this blog. I think you can leave an anonymous comment without having a blogger account or you can use your google account. Meanwhile I'm going to check into getting a new guestbook.

Next Saturday (November 25, 2006) I'm having a booksigning at the Bible House at Searcy. If everything goes as we hope, I'll be signing my brand new release, PROMISE ME ALWAYS, along with my other titles. Officially PMA isn't out until December, but I think Dennis, the Bible House owner, is going to manage to get some early! YAY! Stop by if you're in the area!

Elections are over. I'm not thrilled with all of the results, but I have to admit I'm relieved it's over. I've grown so tired of hearing those mudslinging ads on the radio. We live near the stateline, so we got to hear Missouri's ads, as well as those from Arkansas. The desperation is sickening. Is that really necessary? Surely not.

We did have a good local turnout. We went out for supper and a family movie last night and on the way to eat, the voting place was so packed, we decided to do it after, then after, it was still packed. We signed in and sat and waited though, until it was our turn. Our teenager sat in the car and listened to the radio. Bless her heart, she was horrified when she realized that the battery had run down. Thankfully, a nice guy with a mustang convertible had jumper cables and jumped us off. Then Kevin skipped the movie and went to Wal-mart and got a new battery. (I think he preferred the automotive dept over the movie anyway, but it was still sweet of him.)

I have to get to work today on Forever Christmas, due January 31st. But I'm still going to try my best to blog more regularly. See you next time.