Favorite Book Season

It’s October. Already? Is it just me or did the summer come and go so fast that I missed it? Well, here we are and in just a short while it’ll be Christmas. The Love Inspired Christmas books will be hitting the shelves soon so be on the lookout.

 Christmas books are hot. (not that way) People will buy Christmas themed books when they might not buy any other time of year. Maybe it’s the nostalgic aspect of the stories or the deep sense of family and togetherness. Those who have good memories of Christmas Past want to relive them and those who didn’t want to dream about them.

There are so many parts of the holiday that stir emotions. The lights, the tree, the music, the food and family. But mostly the children. Nothing tugs at the heart like watching small children in a Christmas pageant or play. My grandchildren participate in a huge musical production put on by their Christian school. Grades 1-5 take part and the event is so big it’s now held in the local civic center. Watching those kids singing and praising the Lord – many of the lyrics of popular songs have been adjusted to reflect Christian values – is inspiring.

Who doesn’t like a Christmas pageant or a Christmas play? They are like the star on top of all the other celebrations. Especially when children are involved. Nothing tugs at the heart as toddlers singing Away in the Manger or Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Or how about children dressed as shepherds and angels. How can you resist little ones dressed as lambs, or Joseph and Mary in the nativity?

I wanted to bring a little of that to A Mom for Christmas. This holiday story is all about dreams and for Beth Montgomery her dreams have been destroyed. Her career as a principle ballerina with a New York ballet company ends when she sustains a debilitating injury. She’s had only one dream her entire life and that was to dance. Now she is forced to come home to Dover and start a new life. But how do you move on when a dream dies?

Noah Carlisle has his dreams crushed too. Since losing his parents at a young age he longed to have a family of his own to reflect the happy life he had growing up. But the woman he married had bigger ideas and left him to raise their daughter alone.

It’s takes a Christmas play to help Beth and Noah renew their old relationship and discover new dreams – ones that will prove just as satisfying as the old ones.

I’ve had a dream die and it’s a painful, aching sensation that threatens to tear you apart. I dreamed of being published and I was. Four books with a big publisher but the dream suddenly ended. I assumed I wasn’t supposed to write any more so I quite. But God will accomplish his purpose and after a few years I tried again. It took a long while but I finally made it.

 Sometimes our dreams aren’t the best for us, sometimes we’re told “not yet” or “I have something better for you.”

Beth and Noah find that God does make a way. Losing their dreams was difficult but it brought them together and their love creates a new dream. The ballerina finds teaching little girls to love ballet can be as fulfilling as performing. Noah learns to overcome his fear of abandonment by trusting his heart

 Have you had a dream die? Did you find something new that was even better? I hope so. But just like Beth and Noah, you have to give the old dreams to the Lord and he’ll create a new dream that will be better than you could have imagined. 

A Mom for Christmas    November LI release

                                                                      A Christmas Reunion 

Noah Carlisle is surprised to see first love Beth Montgomery back in Dover. Beth left their small Mississippi town—and him—years ago for a ballet career. Now the only female in Noah's life is his daughter, and he won't risk their future for a temporary reunion with Beth. Home to rehab her knee, Beth counts the days to resume her career—until she sees her long-ago beau. Celebrating Christmas with the handsome man and his adorable child, Beth wonders if the dreams worth chasing were always right in her own backyard. Can she stay and be Noah's second chance and his daughter's Christmas wish—a gift-wrapped mom under the tree?

Pre order now:

https://www.amazon.com/Mom-Christmas-Home-Dover/dp/0373719914/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1473634384&sr=8-5&keywords=A+Mom+for+Christmas