This Tuesday on Stitches Through Time, my blogging buddy Terri Wangard shared a very interesting tidbit about a Nazi version of the Titanic movie. It was so interesting that I just HAD to share it. http://stitchesthrutime.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-nazi-version-of-titanic.html Cover Reveal COMING UP!! I also wanted to let ya'll know that I will be releasing the cover for my new Christmas boo, Solve by Christmas, on Monday evening! This goes along with an amazing Christmas in July extravaganza. There will be a FB party on Monday evening, and then we've got over 20 Christian Christmas books on sale for only $0.99 cents! It's going to be amazing, so I hope you'll stop by. My new cover will be revealed between 9:30 -10:00pm EDT. Here's the link https://www.facebook.com/events/1710480295914160 You don't have to have a FB account to take advantage of the 99cent sale. I'll be sharing that link with you on the blog later (when it goes live) so that you ...

Good morning, friends! I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season and you're looking forward to a blessed Christmas. One of my favorite Christmas treats is Candy Canes. The problem is, I have a sensitivity to Red 40, the red coloring used in almost every Christmasy candy, that makes my skin break out in a rash. I searched the world over, but I had a very hard time finding good candy canes without the Red 40. So I decided to be brave and try to make some homemade. I'm sharing the recipe today on Stitches Thru Time! Click below to check it out. http://stitchesthrutime.blogspot.com/2016/12/homemade-albino-candy-canes.html

Today I'm blogging at HHHistory.com about one of the Christmas icons in my local area.  *****  Most of my growing up years were spent in the vicinity of Castle Rock, Colorado. This is a quaint town along the I-25 corridor between Denver and Colorado Springs. The town is named after a large rock structure that is visible for some time before and after you drive through the town. To me, it never quite looked like a castle, but apparently to the early settlers, it did. Around this time of year, one of the things that my siblings and I looked forward to the most was seeing the Christmas star shining from the t op of Castle Rock. As we were driving, we'd always watch for it to come into sight. The star is quite an icon for the community, but until recently, I didn't know the interesting history behind it. Click Here to read the full article.

Today I'm blogging over at Stitches Thru Time sharing one of my favorite holiday crafts. Check it out for a chance to win this Winter Wonderland Scene. http://stitchesthrutime.blogspot.com/2016/11/capture-scene-in-jar-with-giveaway.html I hope you all have a very happy and safe Thanksgiving!  God bless ya'll.

This Day in Christian History: December 29 December 29, 1849: The Christmas Hymn It Came Upon a Midnight Clear first published. Born on April 6, 1810 in Massachusetts, Edmund Sears was a minister and author who is best known as the author of the Christmas hymn, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear . He began preaching as a missionary at age 27 in Ohio, and later served several towns in the Boston area. He wrote a good number of theological works in addition to his hymns. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear is said to have been written upon the request of Edmund's friend, William Parsons Lunt. Originally, the poem was written as a reflection on his time as a minister, but it has since become a beloved Christmas carol. It was first published in the Christian Register on December 29, 1849. While we here in America know the song as set to the tune of  Carol by Richard Willis, it is sung to a different tune in the U.K. Arthur Sullivan composed a tune known as Noel and adapted the lyri...

This Day in Christian History: December 24 December 24, 1818: The beloved hymn "Stille Nacht," or Silent Night was sung for the first time. Franz Gruber On December 5 , we mentioned Joseph Mohr, who was the composer of the lyrics to "Stille Nacht". Today, we're exploring how this hymn came to be.  Joseph Mohr and his friend Franz Xaver Gruber were in need of a new Christmas Carol for their Christmas Eve midnight mass. On Christmas Eve, with the midnight mass only hours away, Joseph brought a poem that he'd written some time earlier to show Franz, who also was the organist and choir master at the church, in hopes that he might be able to set the poem to music. Franz did compose the melody, in only a few hours, and the song was performed for the very first time that night. The song has gone on to become on of the most beloved Christmas Carols of all time and has been translated into about 140 languages. The lyrics to this song still touch our ...

This Day in Christian History: December 19 December 19, 1843: Charles Dickens first published A Christmas Carol One of the timeless classics of Christmas, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was first published on December 19, 1843. It was an instant success, and Dickens is often credited with changing Christmas forever with this novella. One thing is for certain, his tale left a lasting impression on our culture, from the expression of "Bah-Humbug!" to images of Tiny Tim and his words "God bless us, everyone!" In Dicken's story, an old cranky businessman by the name of Ebeneezer Scrooge dreams that he is visited by three ghosts of Christmas. Through his dream, he learns that one can choose joy, peace and kindness, and it can be found even through darkness and despair. Read more about A Christmas Carol on Wikipedia

This Day in Christian History: December 8 December 8, 1907: Christmas Seals sold for the first time Emily Bissel 1907 Why is this Christian history? Because the first Christmas seals ever sold were to raise funds to fight tuberculosis. At the time, Tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in America. Born in Deleware during the Civil War, Emily Bissel was an interesting personality. She testified against the women's suffrage movement stating "The vote is part of man's work. Ballot-box, cartridge box, jury box, sentry box all go together in his part of life. Women cannot step in and take the responsibilities and duties of voting with assuming his place very largely." Several years later, Emily felt drawn to help in the fight against tuberculosis. She came up with the idea for Christmas Seals and sold them at post offices for a penny each. It took some persistence, but eventually the charity took off. Still today, the Christmas Seals raise hundreds o...

This Day in Christian History: December 5 December 5, 1848: Death of Joseph Mohr Josephus Franciscus Mohr was born on December 11, 1792. His mother, Anna Schoiberin, was an embroderer who became mixed up with a deserter of the mercenary army. He left her before Joseph was born. Joseph's rough start and upbringing did not cripple him. He went on to become an accomplished violinist, singer, and vicar in the Catholic church.  However, Joseph is best known as the composer of the beloved Christmas carol, Silent Night. On Christmas Eve of 1818, Joseph was in need of a carol for the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass service. He brought along a poem that he had written several years before and got together with the church's choir master and organist by the name of Franz Xaver Gruber. Gruber composed the tune in only a few hours and "Stille Nacht" was born.   Read more about Silent Night and Joseph Mohr here.

Moravian Christmas Traditions By Tamera Lynn Kraft In my novella, A Christmas Promise, I write about Moravian missionaries in Schoenbrunn Village, circa 1773. The Moravians brought many Christmas traditions to America that we use to celebrate Christ’s birth today. Here are a few of them. The Christmas Tree: Moravians brought the idea of decorating Christmas trees in their homes in the early 1700s, long before it became a popular tradition in the United States. Christmas Eve Candlelight Services: Most churches have Christmas Eve services where they sing Christmas carols and light candles to show Jesus came to be the light of the world. The Moravian Church has been doing that for centuries. They call their services lovefeasts because they also have a part of the service where they serve sweetbuns and coffee – juice for the kids – and share Christ’s love with each other. For candles, Moravians use bleached beeswax with a red ribbon tied around them. The white symboli...

THANK YOU!!! We can’t say it any more plainly. As each day grows closer to those times of the year that makes one pause and reflect on what they are thankful for and what their year was like, we cannot help but come back to the one place any Author or Publisher needs to think of and consider with each and every word- YOU – our readers and supporters . We count on you each and every “Thirsty Thursday” Party for your feedback, every review you give, every email and direct message you send the Authors in our Community. Without your guidance and support we know that we would cease to exist. “THANK YOU!!!!”   As a small token of our appreciation we are going to try to do a few fun things for you over the next 4 weeks. We are going to offer all of the paperbacks, audio books and ebooks in the Helping Hands Press Store at 30% off from Nov. 20 to Dec.18 th .All you need to do is use the code word “ THANKYOU ” when you check out to receive the discount.   We a...

It's Christmas in July at Helping Hands Press! Starting July 25th and going on until August 7th we are featuring two paperbacks: Best-Selling author Amber Schamel's "The Swaddling Clothes" and Linda Wood Rondeau's "Joy Comes to Dinsmore Street"!   There will be contests, prizes, giveaways, and much more! Go to the HHP blog page HERE and answer the questions to get in the drawing! They also have chapter samples. On Monday HHP will announce the prizes and have more reading samples up for you to enjoy. Let's start the contest for a variety of giveaways! What are the prizes? We will announce those on Monday! Be sure to follow HHP on Facebook and on the Blog so you don't miss out on the action! Saturday we will have some Fun questions about Amber Schamel, so be sure to check back! There will also be posts by the authors here on the main blog, who knows maybe some fun questions may come from them. http://myhelpinghandspress.bl...

I must admit that Christmas Eve has always been my favorite time of year. When I was a child it seemed “magical,” as we waited for Santa to bring us the gifts we would open the next morning. I know now, that though Jesus most likely wasn’t born on the night of December 24, the real gift of Christmas is what we celebrate on this most loved of holidays. I also know, as a former biblical counselor on a large church staff, that this is the time of year that heightens all our emotions–whether joyous or heart-wrenching. Right now I can’t help but think of the many families who have been impacted by various tragedies throughout this past year, particularly school shootings or other crimes involving our beloved children. Regardless of where they stand on the purpose for Christ’s birth, this has got to be the most difficult time for them that any human can experience. We’ve all lost loved ones at some point in our lives, but our children? No pain can compare–except perhap...

We hear a lot about generics these days. Everything from prescription drugs to clothing has a no-name brand. The big draw is the lower price tag. I've discovered another kind of generic: the generic holiday. Decorations adorn stores without the context of its meaning. In one store, the decorations were linked with the word, "dream." Ah yes, dream of those clothes and household items, and put them in your cart. I'm sad today. I miss the Christmas Carols playing, the Merry Christmas greetings, the warmth of society celebrating one of the singular events in history - the birth of Jesus. We're left with the trappings of a holy-day, stripped bare of its meaning. As a believer, I've committed to keep things in context. While I enjoy the decor and the fun, I'm in awe of the greatest gift I've ever received: forgiveness and a relationship with the One who created heaven and earth, Jesus Christ. Writers and Readers: Has ...

Joining us today is friend and author Murray Pura to bring us an inspiring devotional. THE PRAYER TREE A person can pray anywhere or should feel free to pray anywhere. But sometimes it helps to have a special place to go to, a spot that helps you quiet your mind and focus your thoughts. Some people like churches, some like gardens, others like porches, still others prefer a walk along a path or a ride on horseback through a field of tall grass. Jesus liked lonely places away from people and when in Jerusalem preferred the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. When my children were young they had a prayer tree.             There were two prayer trees actually. One in the woods only a few hundred feet by the home we lived in when they were five and three. Another up a mountainside when they were twelve and ten. The first one was always arrived at after a long walk in the woods that included visiting horses...