Shenandoah National Park

A Stay With Me Giveaway for National Park Week, 2018

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April 21-29 is National Park Week in the U.S.! I love our national parks and hope to visit many more than the few I’ve been blessed to experience.

My favorite is Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. I even set some scenes from my novel Stay With Me there!Shenandoah National Park landscape

To celebrate, I’m giving away an Audible audiobook copy of Stay With Me across all of my author platform. To be entered, comment below, and I will enter you in a random drawing. Winner to be announced May 1, 2018.

Stay With Me audiobook coverStay With Me is a contemporary (Catholic) Christian romance that leans a little more spicy than sweet. Although perfectly “clean” by most standards, it’s what I call a Theology of the Body romance and, as such, sexuality is treated frankly.

If it sounds like something that appeals to you, comment to enter, and if you know someone else who might enjoy it, tag a friend.

I think Patricia Santomasso did a fantastic job on the narration!

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The Mixed Blessings of Progress

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For the first time in four years, we spent some time in Shenandoah National Park. We typically tent camp, but there was a period in which my husband feared having two toddlers in the wilderness (along with our other kids). We gave it a shot last week, choosing a spot in the Big Meadows Lodge over a tent this time out.

Dark Hollow Falls

Dark Hollow Falls, photo by Michael Astfalk

It’s no secret to anyone that frequents my blog how much I enjoy the park. I love its lush rolling mountains, its wildlife, and nearly everything about it. It’s even a setting in my novel Stay With Me. I’m grateful that its beauty is accessible to me and thousands of others for our enjoyment. I’m often surprised at the number of international visitors to the park that we meet; it’s a worldwide vacation destination. Continue reading →

Celebrate National Park Week With A Chance To Win

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Today through April 24 is National Park Week 2016 in the U.S. That means admission is FREE at all national parks!

Buck Hollow Overlook Sunrise

Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

This photo is of a sunrise at Buck Hollow Overlook in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. It was used for the cover of Stay With Me, since the park is the setting for several scenes in the book.

I love our national parks and would love to visit more of them. Do you have a favorite you’ve visited?

To celebrate our beautiful national parks, I’m giving away a Kindle copy of Stay With Me.

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Small Success Thursday

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Small Success Thursday

Why small success? Because that’s the only kind I know! Even the big ones come in small steps. Here’s my paltry offering for the week:

  1. Scheduled Vacation/Summer plans – Maybe it’s the balmy weather we’ve had here the last couple of days, but although spring has not yet sprung, I’m thinking about summer. I updated our various calendars and began completing registrations and reservations for camps and vacations. Among our plans is an overdue visit to Shenandoah National Park. Continue reading →

Stay With Me: The Settings – Shenandoah National Park and Gettysburg

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In each of the six months leading up to the release of Stay With Me on October 1, I’ll be blogging about an aspect of the book. Today’s post is dedicated to settings. The bulk of the novel takes place in and around the Gettysburg and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania areas with several forays to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia.

Shenandoah National Park

When Chris invites Rebecca to visit the park with him, he tells her, “It’s my favorite place in the world, and I want to take you there.”

When they arrive at the park, Rebecca takes in the natural beauty. “Two white-tailed deer, a doe and a fawn, ambled from the campsite on her right toward the road. A pair of robins chased each other across the grass, calling to one another. Peaceful. She loved the park immediately.”

My husband and I have had plenty of adventures at Shenandoah National Park, and it’s one of my favorite places to visit. We camp in a tent and typically choose walk-in sites that require a short trek from the parking area but are nestled in the woods rather than alongside the road.

Walk-in Site at Big Meadows Campground, Shenandoah National Park

Our tent and hammock at our wooded campsite.

Continue reading →