Somewhere Between Heaven & Hell by Janet Chester Bly

Snow covered Chevy Lumina

Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell, a country girl adventure by Janet Chester Bly

We never know when we're about to face a frightening moment of decision. Doesn't matter if you're city bred or a country girl out for a ride.

THIS COUNTRY CAPTION SAYS IT ALL

Children walking country road

This picture comes from Pastor Erick Reinstedt of rural Monterey County in California.

He says, "We snapped this picture some years back of our girls taking a walk. I guess I'd call it, 'It Says it All,' because, I guess it does (at least to me)."

 

Erick & Mary Ann Reinstedt

About Erick Reinstedt: I pastor True Life Christian Fellowship, a rural, non-denominational church.I live on 40 acres (about 55 minutes from town) with my amazing wife, Mary Ann, and two awesome daughters. We have two cows, five chickens, and three cats. I enjoy writing on my blog, A Great God & Good Coffee, and sharing my personal thoughts, things God is showing me in my study, reflections, and slices of life. The title of the blog says a lot about me—I love a good cup of coffee and God-centered fellowship in the screen porch in the summer, and by the wood stove in the winter. I believe the Bible is God's writing, front to back, word for word.

Check out Erick's blog link: http://erickreinstedt.blogspot.com/

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What does this picture mean to you?

REBECCA BARLOW JORDAN'S LATE BLOOMER

Winter Butterfly -- Late Bloomer

Here's a Country Life Caption entry by author Rebecca Barlow Jordan. We welcome her as a guest on our blog:

My “country garden” consists of a small town, backyard, perennial plot, but it’s a wonderful place to commune with God and marvel in the lessons from His creations. 

I wrote about this “winter” butterfly—and one of those lessons God taught me in a blog about late bloomers: http://www.rebeccabarlowjordan.com/are-you-a-late-bloomer-in-life/

 

I live on the edge of East Texas. God never gave me my dream house in the country with a wrap-around porch, but He has blessed me beyond measure.

Day-votedly His,

Rebecca Barlow Jordan

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Rebecca Barlow Jordan

Rebecca Barlow Jordan is a mom, wife, grandmom, inspirational speaker and author of 11 books, and devoted Christ follower who loves to encourage others, heart to heart.

Author, Speaker, Greeting Card Writer

Encouraging Others Heart to Heart

Day-votions for Women, Day-votions for Mothers, Day-votions for Grandmothers

Her website: http://www.rebeccabarlowjordan.com,

Her blog is on the same site:

http://www.rebeccabarlowjordan.com/blog



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If you have a photo that symbolizes country life to you, please send it as a feature for our blog. Full guidelines on the sidebar at the right.







 

SHIFTING SEASONS, CHANGING FLOWERS

“I Love Farm Life” says city bred author & speaker, Pamela Sonnemoser.

Caption #1: A weed? A flower?

Note from the Blys:

Flowers are such a rarity, except for dandelions and wild roses, up here in our mountain home in northern Idaho. With great caution, we’ve hung a basket of pansies out on our front porch. . .a gift from our kids at Easter. But we have to watch the temperature gauge with care as we’re still having weather in the 30s and snow flurries.

Last week we had a full-blown blizzard.

We’re delighted to display photos like Pamela Sonnemoser’s on our blog. . .pick-me-ups that maybe Spring will happen sometime soon. She sent these beautiful flower pics for our Country Life Captions feature. . . . 

Country Life Caption #1: Beauty and pain often come from the same source. Give them a chance, every flower was a weed until someone fell in love with it.

“I love my farm life in Northwest Missouri,” says Pamela. “This photo is just one of the many amazing sites we see in our country summers.”

Caption #2: Black-Eyed Susans

Country Life Caption #2: These Black Eyed Susans at the edge of our soybean field come back beautifully each year. They are such a part of life on the farm, that they became the photo for one of my book covers, Praise & Paraphrase.

Caption #3: Fall To Winter

Country Life Caption #3: Fall yields to winter's touch, the beauty of change comes with each season.

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Pamela Sonnenmoser & husband, John

Pamela Sonnenmoser is author of books that include Beside The Empty Cradle, Praise & Paraphrase, and Pamela’s Healthy Pantry. She is also a speaker on various themes as listed on her website. She makes her home with her husband, John, on their farm in Northwest Missouri. Growing up near Los Angeles, she never imagined that God would lead her to a rural life. She has learned to embrace the culture of the country while continuing her family’s legacy of ministry in abuse shelters, summer camps, retreats and churches across the country.

To learn more about Pamela, check out her websites:

www.freshcupministries.com

http://www.pamelasonnenmoser.com

What’s your favorite season and your preferred flowers that goes with it?

If you’d like to participate in our Country Life Captions, send us your country life photo(s), follow the guidelines to the right on our blog’s sidebar.

A CHURCH WITH A 'NO TRESPASSING' SIGN?

SANCTUARY

Here’s our Country Life Caption feature for today, sent by Valerie Comer of Canada. 

At first glance, this seems like a very sad or rude photo: a church with a ‘No Trespassing’ sign. But read on . . . . 

Says Valerie: "We came across this abandoned church on a back road in southern British Columbia and were disappointed to see the emphatic 'No Trespassing' sign attached to the door. Later we discovered that the landowner over-wintered bee colonies in the church. What had once, presumably, been a sanctuary for worshipers is now a sanctuary for honeybees."

About Valerie Comer

Valerie Comer writes contemporary romance set in British Columbia, Canada, as well as fantasy set in uncharted dimensions. She lives on a small farm with her husband, an energetic dog, two psycho kittens, several hives of bees, and a herd of Herefords.

Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local foods movement as well as their church. She only hopes her creations enjoy their happily ever afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughter.

Valerie is represented by Joyce Hart of Hartline Literary Agency and has recently sold her first work, Treasure’s Promise, a novella, to Barbour Books. To be released March 2012.

Valerie’s website: http://valeriecomer.com

Valerie’s blog: http://valeriecomer.com/blog

 

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What are your thoughts about an old church with a 'No Trespassing' sign? Or being used for a bee colony?

HAVE YOU NOTICED THE CHARM OF A BILLBOARD BARN LATELY?

'See Rock City' Tennessee billboard barn

Today we feature author Jo Huddleston of Alabama for our Country Life Captions. She sent us this billboard barn photo. We tend to favor country barn pictures, as does she. 

JO SAYS: 

“Traveling in Tennessee gave me beautiful rolling hills, grazing animals, and barns to view. The roofs of many of those barns were specially painted with white-on-black letters of the slogan, 'See Rock City.' 

Reading these signs, I dreamed of what I’d never seen: a young girl’s fantasy land of escapism in the 1940s.”

Jo Huddleston

ABOUT JO:

Jo Huddleston has written numerous articles & stories and traditionally published several nonfiction books, including His Awesome Majesty: Praising God's Greatness, available on Amazon. She has also completed her first novel. Her theme: "Offering spiritual tonic and hope."

Jo receiving Literary Hall of Fame plaque

Lincoln Memorial University (her alma mater) inducted her into their Literary Hall of Fame. Dr. B. James Dawson, President of Lincoln Memorial University, presented her a plaque at the special ceremony.

Scream, the cat

Besides writing, Jo enjoys her special furry friends, including her dogs, Monica and Jackson, plus her cat, Scream.

Find out more about her at her website: http://johuddleston.com.

Sign up for her newsletter and be eligible for book giveaways!

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What's an interesting billboard sign that you've seen on a barn?

If you'd like your country photo to be featured on our blog, check the guidelines on the right sidebar.

COUNTRY LIFE CAPTION photo. . .by Andrea Kuhn Boeshaar

Cedar Creek Lake, Kentucky

Kentucky Rain on Cedar Creek Lake

by Andrea Kuhn Boeshaar

In 2008, my husband and I visited Stanford, Kentucky so I could research my novel Love Finds You in Miracle, Kentucky. It was July 4^th and it rained that day, but we drove around town anyway. After cruising through the rural area known as Miracle, we found ourselves at Cedar Creek Lake. The rain had stopped and off in the distance, a rainbow appeared. Somehow I knew God had anointed my story.

ANDREA'S LIFE & CAREER PHILOSOPHY:

"The Lord is my light and my salvation." Psalm 27:1

I am a firm believer that good decisions lead to happy endings. In a world filled with wounded hearts and broken lives, it's comforting to know there is hope -- and it's only a decision away.

MORE ABOUT ANDREA:

Author & Beauty Queen ANGELA BREIDENBACH: A COUNTRY GAL AT HEART

God's country

Angela Breidenbach loves country living. She considers her home of Missoula, Montana, as God's country. She sent us photos for this Country Life Captions feature. 

See her horses, the view from her office, her adorable toddler grandson, and she uses her barn for a pinata party!

Chief & Spanky

KING OF THE HILL

Winter snows don't stop the games with our two horses, Chief, the standard sized Morgan/Pinto cross, and Spanky, the miniature class B. Spanky loves standing on the hill in the pasture and lording over his domain. Chief and Spanky will often play King of the Hill, tossing their heads and galloping around showing who is king. Spanky ends up back on the hill every time.

Office View. . .Miss Piggy

COLORS OF THE COUNTRY 

The view out my upstairs office window. It's good to work from home as a writer with these views! This is early October last year (2009) with Miss Piggy. She passed away a year ago Christmas week from a fall on the ice. I keep this photo as a beautiful memory of her. The magpies land on our horses backs all the time. They hitch a ride all over the pasture.

BIG YARD, LITTLE GUY


We've got lots of hoses to move. Our grandson takes on this task. The horses look on from the pasture as he mimics grandpa. I love watching him play outside and discover all the amazing things toddlers find. It reminds me of the joy of life.

BATTER, BATTER, BATTER--SWING!


Creative uses for barns...pinatas at parties!
My daughter, Mariah, was overseas in Thailand for 10 months. I loved my son's playfulness with the pinata. He'd lift it every time she swung the bat. It was the perfect way to bring her home since they all played so much in the barn growing up. Lots of laughter!

Ever Heard of a Barn Quilt? Rose McCauley's Got One. . . .

We know a number of friends who quilt. But we'd never heard of or seen a barn quilt. Rose McCauley of Kentucky sent us these photos of her own barn quilt for our Country Life Captions feature. . . .

Note from Rose:

"I live on a cattle farm in KY which isn't very far west, but I still thought you might enjoy this pic of our barn quilt. They’re becoming quite popular around here."

"This barn quilt was given to us by our three children and their spouses for Christmas, 2008. They chose a red, white  and blue pattern because their dad is a veteran. I always plant red, white and blue flowers in front of our house in the summer and fly an American flag."

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Rose McCauley has two sites www.rosemccauley.com and www.rosemccauley.blogspot.com

She features a book contest each month on her blog.

 

Rose McCauley

A Bit More About Rose:

Rose received her first fiction contract last September at the 9th annual American Christian Fiction Writers Conference in a surprise announcement by Becky Germany of Barbour Publishing.

 

Her novella is entitled Nick's Christmas Carol and will be in the anthology Christmas Belles of Georgia that will release in September 2011. 

Congratulations, Rose! 











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Got a question about barn quilts for Rose? Click on the comment button.

IT'S WINTER, BUT KYM MCNABNEY'S GOT BUTTERFLIES!

For those of us in the throes of winter, butterflies and fall flowers seem a distant memory. But Kym McNabney of Illinois reminds us of country life when the snow’s blown and flown. Here's our latest 'Country Life Captions' entry. . . . 

Gods Creation

When I hear of one questioning whether or not there’s a God, I have to wonder if they’re missing the amazing creations right outside their window. There is so much marvel in a dainty little butterfly feeding on nectar from another of God’s beautiful creations, a flower.  

The Beauty of the Butterfly

Yellow, black, white, orange, green…Just a few of God’s colors for us to enjoy.

 Tiger stripes

Butterflies: What an amazing assortment of colors and designs like the flowers they feed on.

Flowers for the Picking

Orange and red and yellow, reaching for the bright, warm sun above.

Kym McNabney calls herself an aspiring Contemporary Romance writer. A wife, mother of four, and an animal lover, she’s been fostering Collies for Collie Rescue of Greater IL since 2005. She’s also the Adult Pen Pal Coordinator for Willow Creek Community Church, as well as involved in other areas of the prison ministry. She loves to write, read, and listen to music. “But,” she says, “in ALL things I do, I do for the glory of God.”

For more info about Kym and her projects, check one of the sites below:

Blogs: http://kymmcnabney.blogspot.com/ and http://fortheloveofbooksmusicandmovies.blogspot.com/

Contributor to blogs: http://prisonjailministry-illinois.blogspot.com/ and

http://wccc.blogs.com/compassion_and_justice/

twitter: http://twitter.com/kymmcnabney

Facebook: kym mcnabney

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If you'd like to be considered for a 'Country Life Captions' feature, check out the guidelines on the right sidebar of this blog.

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Awakening Your Sense of Wonder

 You might also enjoy reading Janet Chester Bly's book, Awakening Your Sense of Wonder, available at http://BlyBooks.com/store.htm/

MARY CONNEALY WRITES AND DELIVERS...BABY CALVES!

Fiction author Mary Connealy provides a series of calving photos for our blog's ‘Country Life Captions’ feature. . . .

 

Oopsie

1.) First baby of Spring

Nicknamed

OOPSIE

Simmi Blaze

2.) SIMMI BLAZE

 

This calf is what we call a Simmi Blaze

Or maybe Simmi Angus Blaze

A simmintal/angus cross calf with a white blaze on her face. My cowboy is particularly partial to this kind of calf. He says, "I like some chrome on them."

Blizzard Baby

3.) SURPRISE BLIZZARD BABY 

Born at the Connealys. Mama apparently ... ahem ... was a bit too generous with her affections during an ... encounter ... so brief only the presence of the calf attests to ... let's call it an 'elopement'.

Mad Cow

4.) MAD COW 

Look very closely and you'll see she is pawing the straw. Pawing the straw. As in bull fighting, el toro, pawing the dirt getting ready to CHARGE. I'm taking these pictures through an iron gate or you'd have pictures of me RUNNING. Even extremely tame, gentle cows, which this cow is, have instincts and I don't disregard them.

ABOUT MARY

Mary Connealy

"Don't be afraid to strive and sweat and pray and fail and strive and pray some more for the desires of your heart. Because my books and site are proof that dreams can come true. That with God all things are possible." Mary Connealy

Mary Connealy writes romantic comedy with cowboys. She is the author of the Lassoed in Texas series, Petticoat Ranch, the Christy Award nominated Calico Canyon and Gingham Mountain. The Montana Marriages series, Carol Award Finalist Montana Rose, The Husband Tree and Wildflower Bride. A stand alone romantic comedy with cowboys, Cowboy Christmas which won the 2010 Carol Award for Long Historical Romance. A new series with ties to both of the old ones, Doctor in Petticoats, Wrangler in Petticoats and Sharpshooter in Petticoats.
 

Also an avid blogger, find her online at:
Seekerville
Petticoats & Pistols
My Blog
My Website










Have you ever been close to a calving experience?

If you've got a country life caption you'd like to send us, follow the guidelines to the right in our blog's sidebar.

DREAM COME TRUE COUNTRY HOME

Both of us California natives, we believe that Winchester, Idaho, provided us our country 'dream home' ... not fancy, but comfy. We do ministry here. We're close to our kids & grandkids (all who live 45 miles down the mountain from us). We also have been able to write here, producing over 120 published books ... his, hers, and ours. 

Joan Matthews' Deer Buddy

Joan Matthews found her country dream home too ... in Oregon. She sent us this photo above of her deer buddy for our Country Life Captions feature. Here’s what she has to say:

“These big guys only come up to our deer fence, in the rut season.  This guy comes once a year.  Other times, we have quite a lot of tame herds, of does and fawns.  Although we only have one acre, it is my dream come true to live here, after being raised as a city girl.”

”We live on the largest subdivision in the U.S., but it is quite wild and rugged.  It is ‘Crooked River Ranch.’ * There is a cougar that comes through twice a year.”   

“We overlook the cascade range, with 2 rivers on either side of us, deep in canyons, that look like a mini Grand Canyon.  We are in Central Oregon, near Redmond, Oregon, which is in high desert country.” 


WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF A 'DREAM PLACE' TO LIVE?

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* Crooked River Ranch is 12 miles northwest of Redmond and encompasses app. 12,000 acres. A planned unit development with residential sites from one to more than five acres each. Includes a golf course, tennis courts, swimming pool, ball field, clubhouse, canyon palisades, deep gorges and the Deschutes and Crooked Rivers.

http://www.crookedriverrealty.com/ranch_info.htm

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If you have a country life photo you'd like to send us to feature on our blog, follow the guidelines to the right on the sidebar.

JAMES DEAN & COUNTRY LIFE CAPTIONS

Here's a recent entry in our "Country Life Captions" feature. . .which includes some interesting tidbits about the actor James Dean and his hometown.

 

Tractors Reflect Farm Life

by CATHY DULING SHOUSE

“This vintage photo from Fairmount, Indiana is typical of farm life I knew and loved, along with a cut-up cake shaped like a tractor for a young boy's birthday party. The color of the icing reflected the family's preference for the brand. Green meant John Deere!”

Cathy Duling Shouse

Writer Cathy Duling Shouse is the fifth generation of her family to live in Fairmount, Indiana. Her first book, "Images of America: Fairmount," released in July 2010 offers 223 vintage photos, including a young James Dean posed on the family tractor http://www.cathyshouse.com/

James Dean’s hometown of Fairmount has fascinated generations of movie fans for decades. Cathy Duling Shouse explores the culture of Fairmount through the eyes of Fairmount natives, including many of Dean’s classmates. 

This historic photo book has a full chapter of James Dean with previously unpublished photos. It also contains a chapter on Jim Davis, and covers the Gas Boom era, the Underground Railroad, and the mammoth bones found at Lake Galatia. 

 

Get your copy of this unique book of photography. . . .

Images of America: Fairmount

Images of America: Fairmount is currently available by emailing the author at cathy_shouse@yahoo.com. 

The book is also available at Walgreens in Marion, Indiana

or www.amazon.com

Fairmount (Images of America) (Images of America Series)

and at www.arcadiapublishing.com