All My Tomorrows

  The Children's Aid Society was founded in 1853 by Charles Loring Brace and a group of social reformers at a time when orphan asylums and almshouses were the only "social services" available for poor and homeless children. Mr Brace worked under God's hand and began to find many other Christian people who wanted to help these children who had been left homeless by either their parents deaths or their parents turning them out onto the streets. For more than seven decades, the Children's Aid Society helped more than 150,000 abandoned, abused and orphaned children find homes in the west, by moving them across the country on "orphan trains". The emphasis was on giving these needy children a new start and a family life.
 All My Tomorrows is a fictional book with a small touch of actual historical figures. It is the 2nd in a trilogy of The Orphan Trains.  It begins in New York in March,1876 and ends in the west in April 1887. The book follows a number of children who have been left on the streets in New York for numerous reasons and taken in by loving Christian people at the Thirty-second Street Orphanage.
 A 10 year old Teddy Hansen finds himself at the funeral for his mother. His father had walked out two years before and his mother had worked herself to death trying to provide for herself and Teddy. Now he is left with only two aunts and two uncles. One of the aunts wants to keep him and raise him but the other three refuse saying they can't afford him. Teddy finds himself on the streets with other children, some who are not very welcoming to a new comer and soon he finds himself being beaten by an older orphan. Justin Smith, a police officer, is a God send and finds Teddy and took him to the hospital where he is stitched up and fed and given a warm place to spend the night. Officer Smith knows someone who knows someone and he soon finds Teddy a place in the Thirty-second Street Orphanage.
 Twins, Deena and Donna Mitchell, are the oldest of seven and another baby on the way when their parents tell them they have to move out. They are thirteen and should be able to find jobs on the streets. They are to leave the following morning, and as they lay in bed, crying and fearful of how they will make it on the cold streets of New York City, they fall asleep in each others arms.  The strong bond between twins, especially identical twins, never falters, as they start their new journey, are seperated in a few weeks and then find each other after many years. They never stopped feeling the others pain and joy thru the years they had lost each other.
 Johnny had a loving father. His mother had passed away just a year earlier and his father worked hard to give Johnny a loving home. When Officer Justin Smith shared with Johnny how he had helped young Teddy Hansen into the orphanage, it made a great impression on young Johnny's 13 year old heart. He wanted to grow up to be just like his father, a police office who had a heart for those in need. Suddenly, just days after he shared the story of young Teddy, Johnny finds himself sitting next to Teddy at the orphanage. A strong bond begins that day for the two young boys.
 So the journey begins with numerous children on the Orphan Train, taking them across the country to the west. Numerous stops and men and women looking them over, one by one they are seperated and taken to new homes, to start what they hope is a new life with a loving family. It was not always easy and it was not always what they expected but these characters in this book find happiness and grow strong in their faith. 
 All My Tomorrows is filled with love, hate, fear, learning to trust again but mostly young people who find God and learn to lean on Him in tough times and learn to follow His calling in their lives. 
 It was hard for me to read some places because of the torture some of these children went thru and I did have to skip some of it but it was one that was hard for me to put down. It is such a good book on faith and knowing that God is always in control of our lives, whether we even know Him or not.


 

 This book was written by Al & JoAnna Lacy and published by ALJO Productions, Inc.  Al has written more than seventy novels and Joanna, his wife, is his coauthor. Books they have written are Angel of Mercy, Battles of Destiny, Journeys of the Stranger, and Hannah of Fort Bridger series.  The Lacy's make their home in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Al Lacy is also an evangelist. They have three grown children.

My Son, John

  

 Trying to deal with the death of her beloved mother, Liz Peterson tries to understand how anyone could cause harm to her.  Grandma was a lady who would help anyone in need. Liz tries to cope with the death and then the investigation that will turn her world upside down, even more so than loosing her mother. 

 Soon after the murder she notices changes in her family, but due to the circumstance, wouldn't they all, each one of them, have their own way of dealing with this loss? Liz knows they all love each other and loved Grandma with all their heart, so why is he being so distant? Why is he not there with her, his father and his sister, when they need to pull together and support each other?

 When the investigation begins turning toward him, he son, her only beloved son, turns himself in for the murder. Liz's world takes a tumble even further down than she realized she could go. How could her son be responsible for such a brutal crime of a woman he loved so much? Surely they have made a mistake and she and her husband will be able to clear his name.

 As she adjusts to the fact that John is guilty she has to deal with the why's, how's and what will happen to him now. He was raised in church but drifted away as he got older, went to college and had just started a new career as a pharmacist. How could anything like this happen? And she has to learn how to love him, unconditionally and not only forgive him but ask for forgiveness from her Lord of all... 

 Can she do it?Will she ever been free of the demons that torment her? Will he ever be free from the demons that torment him? Will Liz ever be free to love him again? What about his father, sister and other family members?

 This is a touching book of betrayal, faith, love and forgiveness. It was hard to read at times,   reading the torments a mother had to go thru but I could not put it down. God had a reason for me to read it and I feel he has a reason for you to read it also... and yes, tears came for me in the end.

 This book was written by Kathi Macias and published in association with Hartline Literary Agency. Kathi is n award winning author of more than twenty fiction and nonfiction books. For more information on her visit 111.kathimacias.com

Coming Soon: My Son, John

 Family, murder, loss and faith in God....

Prairie Hearts

 In Cedar Bends, Kansas in the 1890's, this book tells the stories of three Christian women, of different ages, that are searching for romance in a Christian world. 
 Circle of Vengence
 Carrie Butler  has been waiting on the "Mysterious Stranger" since she was a small child. She has his picture engraved in her head and her heart. One day as she is traveling by buggy home from town after a day at the dress makers shop, getting a dress fitted to her for one of her best friends weddings, she comes face to face with the "Mysterious Stranger" who literally saves her life from a runaway buggy,and she know immediately that he is the one she has been waiting for.
 John Thorton is bound and determined to avenge his parents death and while he waits for the right time, he happens to meet the beautiful Carrie Butler and his whole life starts to change. When the time comes to avenge his parents, and make the man who is responsible, to pay, he learns that things are not always what they appear.
 Will he and Miss Butler be able to accept the past and will he be able to accept God as his Lord of all?
 Mariah's Hope
 The second woman in this book is Mariah Casey, who has been raised by a loveless mother in Willow Creek, Ohio. She is closing in on age 40 and she has never been loved. She has worked all her life for a disable mother and a schoolteacher. After her mother passes away she receives a letter from her cousin in Cedar Bends, KS and then a 2nd from the President of the school board in Cedar Bends, asking her if she would be interested in taking on their teacher position. Mariah puts her faith in God and takes the position. This seems to be a perfect match, as the school has a reputation of loosing teachers every year due to marriage and seeing that Mariah is an old maid, there should be no chance of her marrying and leaving the teacher position. Until she arrives and meets Sherman Butler face to face.
 Mr. Butler lost his wife many years ago when Carrie was born. He and his two partners raised Carrie, doing the best they could but it left Sherman lonely for female companionship. With Carrie no longer in the house he longs for a companion and someone to love. Could Mariah be the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with? Will Carrie ever understand his loneliness and will she accept any female in his home?
 Joanna's Adventure
 Joanna Brady, who is one of Carrie's best friends,  has been praying for adventure and love. When Clay Shepperd rides back into town she feels he has been sent by God to fullfil her emptiness for love. The problem with that is that Clay is not a Christian and she knows she is not to be unequally yoked with a life partner. Did God answer her prayer by sending her Clay, who is not a Christian man or  Mark who is a Christian and has been in her life for many years?

Written by M.J. Conner ( Mildred Colvin) who began this series with her sister Jean. Jean passed away before they completed Mariah's Hope and she never knew it was completed and published.

 This is an easy book to read. Three short books in one for a total of 344 pages. The price range was what first caught my eye, $5.87. There are also two more in this series, Painted Desert and Mountaineer Dreams. This book is published by Barbour Publishing.

"Y City "

"Y City", Arkansas is a place everyone would love to visit. It is settled in beautiful Western Arkansas and the home of Sheriff Hollis Brown, a sturdy man who works hard to serve and protect his town, even when the majority of his town is in an uproar of the mystery of what really happened to Leah Taylor. Leah was a beautiful woman, inside as well as out and the town people loved her. She was raised poor but married rich and she cared for all those around her. Harley Wright, who seems to be the only person to know the truth of her death, runs for the border. The book will take you through the 24 hours of investigation beginning when Harley is brought into the jail. In an exciting ending, the truth is revealed. Was it Harley? Could it have been Leah's brutal husband, Rip? Or her beautiful spoiled daughter? In this intriquing book, you will be unable to put it down until the very end.

Y City is written by Wade Rivers.

Introducing....

Hey there...
I just said this morning that blogging is not for me but here I am giving it a shot... So, here goes... a start of sorts...
My name is Gina ( Jag, Jagster, Jaggie ) which ever you prefer... Call me anything just don't call me late for dinner... I am married to Doc ( Paul ) and we live in Central Arkansas. We have known each other basically all our lives but have been married only just over 2 years. Together we have three kids, Jan, Erron and Justen, one son-in-law, Clint, one possible future son-in-law Cody, two grandkids, Eden and Cain, three pooches, Catfish, Dusty and Cleatus, one cat, Samantha, two granddogs, two grandcats and last AND least, a grandsnake.
I work full time in a home health care office, I am an LPN and have been for 20 years... WOW that makes me feel old... I do love helping others but my current position is mostly in the office taking care of paperwork, phone calls, doctor orders, etc...
Well, that's about it for my first blog... Will work in this later... We are fixing to get ready to go see our two youngest kiddos and maybe spend the night...