Saturday, March 28, 2015

Best Friends...Forevers?

I am happy to host my fellow Clean Reads (Astraea Press) author Krysten Lindsay Hager on my blog today. Book two of her series True Colors was released this week and reached the #1 spot on the Hot New Releases in Children's Books and the #1 spot for Hot New Releases Teen and Young Adult in Values & Virtues. 




Here is an excerpt of her best selling book Best Friends...Forever? (Book 2 of True Color)



I got ready for bed and then stopped to check my social media page one more time and that's when I saw it — another picture of Peyton, India, and Devon hanging out. They were sitting on the couch with their heads scrunched close together and laughing. It was a cute picture, but then I saw the caption: So glad we could all be together for the holidays. Love these guys soooo much! Best friends forever. #Alltogether #Threemusketeers #BestFriendsForever #ThreeBestFriends #ThreesCompany.

My heart sank. It was India’s caption and anyone who read it would think what a closeknit group of friends and not realize anyone was missing from that photo. Sure, I was in another state, so naturally I couldn’t be there for it, but the way India wrote that made me feel so left out. I mean, what did she mean by the "ʺThree’s Company"ʺ hashtag? And sometimes people tagged friends who weren’t there in pictures and added, "ʺWish you were here,"ʺ but there was no mention of a fourth member of the group.

“Ready for bed, hon?” Mom asked coming into my room.

“Yeah, just signing off.”

“Okay, sleep well.”

I got into bed and hoped I was reading into things, but the knot in my stomach wouldn’t go away.

 
 
 
 
 

Author bio: Krysten Lindsay Hager is the author of the Landry’s True Colors Series, a clean reads young adult series. Krysten writes about  friendship, self-esteem, fitting in, middle school and high school, frenemies, modeling, crushes, values, and self-image in both True Colors and Best Friends…Forever?
Krysten is an Amazon international bestselling author and book addict who has never met a bookstore she didn’t like. She’s worked as a journalist and writes middle grade, YA, humor essays, and adult fiction. She is originally from Michigan and has lived in Portugal, South Dakota, and currently resides in Southern Ohio where you can find her reading and writing when she’s not catching up on her favorite shows. She received her master’s degree from the University of Michigan-Flint.
What people are saying about True Colors (Landry’s True Colors Series Book One):
From Teenage Book Recommendations in the UK: "This is a fantastically relatable and real book which I feel captures all of the insecurities and troubles which haunt the modern teenage girl. It is about a young model who has to go through tough times when she is torn between a life as a model and managing her friendships. You learn which friends she can most trust and which will create the drama typical of teenage life. Follow the life of Landry and try to see if you can find out which are her true friends before their true colours are revealed. This book is all about relationships, hopes and truth. I loved this book!"
From Books & Authors Spot: “This book is such an inspiration for those who just care about their looks and are tensed about them. This thing is looks aren't everything. This book is related to every teen's problem. Hager has written a very inspiring novel.”
Buy Links:
Amazon international: http://authl.it/B00UIP1N5S
Connect with Krysten:
Website: http://www.krystenlindsay.com/     
 
 

 
 



Saturday, March 7, 2015

One Breath at a Time-A Year Later

                                                                              

  On the day of my mother-in-law's funeral I made a promise to my niece that I never dreamed would come true. She asked me if I would take care of her children if anything were to happen to her. Having lost her brother in a car crash, father from a sudden heart attack, and her mother at the hands of a murderer, my husband and I were whom she turned to for family support. Of course I reassured her that if something were to happen, we would take her children, but that she would be around a long time. She was a single mom who did an amazing job of raising her kids on her own. The children were fourteen and twelve, I fully believed that God wouldn't allow her to be taken from them.

One year ago today, five months after I made that promise, I received the news she'd died. The words knocked me to my knees. I cried out to God asking him why this kept happening. Why she, like my nephew, and sister-in-law were taken from us without warning. Each death tragic. Now two children were motherless in a state away. Just like when we got word of her mother's death, the five hour drive was a blur.

 The enormity of what lied ahead of us weighed heavy on my chest. Planning her funeral, how to pay for it, and most importantly what was best for the children. The thought of their future depending on us took me under many times. I awoke from a sleep in the hotel in a panic more than once, broke down in tears on and off daily. Voices of others drowned me. Some told me we were doing the right thing by petitioning for custody. Others treated my husband and I like we were the villains in this situation by taking the kids away from their home.  The voice I needed to hear the most was God's.
   

  I asked him to lead my path a day at time, an hour at a time, and some days....a breath at a time. He answered..through words from someone, a verse I'd read, a door opening, or blessings poured onto to the children and us through the generosity of others.

  The last year hasn't been easy. The children had a tough road to travel. Grieving their mom, transitioning to new schools, a new home and family, leaving their friends..but each day is another step forward. One year later, I couldn't imagine my life without them. They are my kids now. I love them with all my heart. They are no longer my daughter's cousins, they are their sister and brother. Today isn't going to be easy. It'll bring a fresh batch of tears and grief. We'll make it though...one breath at time.