Thoughts

There has been a lot going through my mind the last few days.

Dreams, plans, ideas....

I've been trying to sort them all out, but that just doesn't seem to happen all too easily for me.

So my head is a muddle of thoughts.

But one came through steady and clear all week long.





I want to start a blog for writing.

I don't like how I mix my posts about writing and life and randomness and everything else in the world.

Writing is different. It is totally different.

A part of me that can't be shared or second rate to anything else.





So I have started a new blog.

Here is the link to it: Stories in the Mind.

Inspiration: that's what that blog is. And I hope a bit of God shining through too.

May it give him glory in the long run.





But anyway, just dreaming and thinking today....

CKC

Turn up the music!

To clarify: this was written Tuesday, the 25.

Continue:
 

Music. That is the only thing that has kept me on track this week.

 

It has been yet another busy week, and here I thought it was slowing down. My bad...

 

It didn't.

 

Aside from tackling two books now, I traveled all over creation this week.

 

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were all relatively normal days for me. (normal being...well, nevermind.)

 

Thursday was the beginning of the craziness...and the fun.

 

 I went to SDC (Silver Dollar City, the nearby amusement park) with two of my good friends.

Ashton, Anna, and me.

We had such a fantabulous time.

Between riding the rides, jogging up and down the many hills (it seems SDC is made of hills), eating good food, having great talks, and watching all the shows, it was an awesome day.





A special trick rider came out at noon and did some incredible riding. The horse is "taking a knee" here. It was so pretty. And big.





This is one of the roller coasters...Well, the only part of it I could photograph. It shoots you off at 260 mph all at once and then takes you off a drop of how many feet I don't know (ask my expert SDC friends. This was only my third time there.)





Anna bought this cute hat while we were there. Isn't she gorgeous!!!





And poor Ashton (of the three of us the only one who doesn't sing) got called up to do "You are my Sunshine" at the last show... There were about 400-500 people watching. They thought she was hilarious. She says the cutest most awesome things.

Friday was, as usual, orchestra and choir. I am teaching three classes there now. It is a lot of fun.



Jonnah!!!!!




And Grace!!!!!!

That night, I went to a fall party at some friends house. They live out in the middle of nowhere. My friend Lauren drove us. She thought we were going the right way down the highway, until my brother decided to get out his gps on his iphone and we found out we were going in...exactly the wrong direction. So we turned around and after one more misturn, arrived at their beautiful old farmhouse. It is two stories, entirely restored, and super incredible. I didn't get any pics of it, unfortunately. All the doorknobs were in the middle of the doors!!!

Then we started a bonfire, had chili and desserts, and sang around the fire. (My FAVORITE!!!)

 

the moon that night was beautiful, but I couldn't get good pics of it. They all came out blurry. (Compliments of the bad camera. :P)





Written in the dew on Lauren's car.

We got home just after midnight.

The next morning I had to wake up with the sunshine to go to work. (We all love work, right! Right?)

Then I came home, did some cleaning, and got ready to go to two of my friends weddings: Abigail and J.B. Mitchel.

It was such a pretty wedding!

The reception was so much fun.

I think I laughed my insides out several times while sitting around a big table laughing with my friends.

After that, Lauren and I went and met Thadden (who unfortunately had to work and couldn't go to the wedding even though he wanted to) at Hammons Hall - begging your pardon, but I don't know if I spelled that right or not, so just pretend I did - for a performance.

I love the music our orchestra plays. Some of the songs make me want to either cry or burst into song.

And after that I got to go to the REAL Springfield Symphony afterwards for free!!! Compliments of playing in the orchestra. Well, Thadden did. But I count cause I'm his sister. :D

It was amazing. Simply, truly, incomparably amazing.

My heart was full of happiness when we came home.

Sunday morning, we went to church.

When we came home, we got ready to go to my littlest brothers first ever piano recital.

Of course, being who we are, we couldn't just do it the normal way. No. Not us.

So we oldest four kids all got dressed in the finest clothing we own.

My brother Thadden wore a 3 piece suit.

I wore the special black and white dress that I bought for my State performance.

Abrienne wore a black dress with silver sequins Mommy bought for a banquet she went to with Daddy.

And Brisa wore her black performance outfit with my finest jewelry.

We arrived at the recital - hosted at a friends home - and everyone else was in jeans.

But that was ok. We had fun anyway. :D

AND... this is the only picture I got of that day.

 

Then came ultimate football ~ just like ultimate frisbee, except with, well, a football! (Am I being ironic today or what? And I keep using parenthesis. I hate parenthesis...)

And then Monday, I went into town unexpectedly and finally upgraded my foot wardrobe. I am really happy with the deals I got at a secondhand store. (They are the best!)

 

And, well, that takes us to yesterday, when I wrote this post but didn't POST it.

:P

Ready for a day of relaxing.

But anyway, I am sorry to everyone since I haven't been able to get on any blogs and comment. I'll try to catch up soon....

Until then, rest well. I plan to.

Last night I was up half the night surrounded by rumbling thunder and flashing lightning....

The music is going off now.

G-night! ;)

 

Snippets of the Story

I am going to follow Aubrey and Cait and do Whisperings of the Pen's linkup. This is a chance for us authors to share bits of our works-in-progress with each other.

I have to admit, it is hard finding pieces that I like well enough all by themselves to post. Poor little snippets. :( But, anyway, here they are.

AND: I have some potential title idea's. Let me know what you think of them.

Book #1: Undone.
Book #2: Unafraid.
Book #3: Unconditional.

Or:

Book #1: Unknown.
Book #2: Unsheathed.
Book #3: Unforgettable.

And the series title...still under construction, but what do you think of The Endless Fire?

I wasn't sure I like the alliteration (besides, that's Cait's theme), but Brisa was dead sold on them. :P Her favorites are the first three.

So, idea's? Thoughts?

My personal opinion... is void. I don't have one. I'm still not bewitched myself. At all.

And the snippets:

“I would tell the Senator,” he muttered uncomfortably.

“Tell the Senator!” Merrie burst out, her eyes growing large.

“Aye.” Cyrus lifted his dark eyes up to hers across the gulf of blackness between them. “Merrie, tell the Senator.”

All at once, she was not afraid of the dark.

From Book #1.

copyright Pure Grace

 



“I will never belong here.”

“Perhaps. For now, we would be obliged if you would at least pretend you did.”

Ionez was taken aback. He freely admitted she was unhappy here? And he did nothing about it! Anger constricted her throat and she took a step toward him. “I would chop every finger and toe from your body before I would surrender to that!”

“Thank you. Maybe I can do you a favor sometime.”

From Book #1.

copyright Pure Grace



Julia smirked. “Clumsy oaf.” Suddenly, her eyes grew wide. “Hai, Merrie look!”

Merrie darted up and gasped.

At the edge of the table one of Messalina’s expensive crystal perfume bottles tottered. And there beneath it sat Aurelia, looking up with expectant brown eyes.

Just so you all know, Aurelia is a puppy. :D

From Book #1.

copyright Pure Grace





Marcellus watched her, his eyes glowing with humor. “You are confident to ask such a question.”

“Should I shiver to hear its answer?”

“Some would.”

“I am not one of them.”

“Good for you.”

Claudia stiffened. “Oh, charming Marcellus, you scorn me.”

From Book #2.

copyright Pure Grace





“All I need say is Claudia’s days are numbered."

 

From Book #3.

copyright Pure Grace



 

Whisperings of the things Claudia had told her tingled in her ear and she tried to brush them away. She didn’t want to hear it. Forget it, she ordered herself. It means nothing.

But again, the memories flooded her mind. “God loves you!” Claudia had said. “He wants you to come to him. Open your heart and let Him in, and He will take care of you.”

“Take care of you,” Merci whispered to the darkness.

From Book #3.

copyright Pure Grace

“I am entirely to blame,” he ended. “If it weren’t for me, none of this would have happened.”

“So she is dead?” Cyrus’s whispered.

“Aye,” Marcellus bowed his head, overcome. “And it is all my fault.”

 

From Book #3.

copyright Pure Grace

 

Claudia laughed out-rightly.

“So will you stay or go?” Aelia asked eagerly.

“Stay,” Blessing said.

“You’re staying with them?” Claudia jerked back, surprised.

“Nay, we’re all staying. Boat’s gone.”

One by one they turned and gazed out across the bay where the schooner floated mid-water, its oars dipping rhythmically toward the ship.

Slowly, Claudia began to chuckle. Then Lavy laughed. The entire group began to shake with laughter except Blessing.

“What?” she scowled, shaking her fist. “It left without us!"

From Book #3.

copuright Pure Grace

 

 

 

 

Unraveling Days

Well, it has been quite the week for me. Shall I tell you about it? Good, I think I will. :D

Thadden finally came home (eek!!!!) on Wednesday from his three month adventure in Canada and Oregon. We have been cleaning up the limbs that fell in the driveway from the storm. It has rained. And rained. I was soaked through twice yesterday morning while working, first at my job, then at home hauling more branches. :P

Yesterday we had a little get-together here at our house for some friends. We played...ahem.... "mud volleyball". If I had gotten pics, they would have been amusing, lol!!! But, sadly, I did not... (Don't blame me, my hands were covered in mud!!! ...and my arms...and my legs...and my cloths...and everything else of me that ended up on the ground...which was...more than needs be told...)

I have been fiddling around with my mum's awful camera ~ awful meaning nothing particularly awesome. I suppose if I have to own to it, it's not dead meat. But it certainly not a diamond necklace!

I must admit to you all, I have not said much about my personal photography because I am still mourning the death of my incredible $800 camera that died a year ago. I love to take pics, and all I have now is just a little Cannon snapshot camera. Even so, it can take some interesting pics.

I really like this picture, actually. It has a very ethereal, mystical appearance. I want to try to figure out how to get a different subject in the mirror, with a cool background like that. I don't know how I'll do that, but I'll figure it out... :D

Which one do you like better? I have no clue, myself.

This is Armani (the horse ~ he belongs to my good friend Lauren). I think that tree is awesome. I took a bunch of pictures of it.

Anyway, one day I hope to get a good camera again, and start taking more pictures in earnest.

Last night I watched War Horse. I loved it. That was inevitable. Because, duh, it was about a horse!!! :D Horses are my favorite animal (in case anyone didn't know). They make their way into everything. My room, my pasture, my writing, my blanket... yep, everything.

This is my horse, Fly Like the Wind. I call her Windy for short, lol!!!

Isn't she pretty!!!!

Anyway, back to War Horse. Sorry, I get easily distracted. It was a very good movie, but definitely was for horse lovers (so it was great for meeeeeee!!!!!! [screeched like gollum]). But, if you aren't a big fan of Black Beauty, I wouldn't recommend you watch it. Unless you are infatuated with World War I. Then have at it!

NEWS:

Come Monday, I was typing like a mad woman. Well, not really. I'm quite sane. At least, I think I am. Maybe not. Because I maybe to me my insanity is normal. Hmmmm, I'll have to think about that. (Just so you know, I'm in a wacky mood. Giggling my head off at everything!)

Back to the point. I joined the 100 words for 100 days challenge over at Go Teen Writers. Because that adds up to 10,000 words...I decided NOT to add that to my already gargantuan novel, and started a new project!!! And, to make it even more interesting, embarked on a further new adventure.

I am writing a fantasy.

Breath in. Breath out. Breath in. Breath out.

Ok. So, I have had several ideas in the past, but never really written anything before. I have read a few real fantasy's now, and two of my good friends (Cait and Mary) have written and sent me their fantasy novels...and I now have a better knowledge of just what they are... Anything you want them to be.

Sounds like fun right!

Right?

YES!!! Of course!!!

Well, anyway, I started it on Monday. And got so excited, instead of writing only 100 words...I ended with almost 5,000. Yeah, half of the goal. Well, anyway, it is a good thing their is no maximum. LOL! Today, there are over 7,000. (The rest of my week was a bit more, well, self-controlled.)

I am having such a blast though. (I even drew my little world on a random notebook sheet in my binder!!!)

And for those of you interested.... I joined a new blog this week. The Teen Writers Group. And I am posting my fantasy, The Last Scribe, over there. Here is a link to Part One. Enjoy and let me know your thoughts!!! Feel welcome to join that blog too! All the gals and guys over there welcome your comments and suggestions!!! Don't feel awkward, by any means. :D



Ok, so I wrote all of that yesterday. I couldn't finish it because my awesome siblings dragged me outside to go play volleyball. So now I am done, because I don't want to write anything else to this little epistle. I think I overloaded you all enough as it is. :D

Naming a Character

Names are important. They tell you a bit about a person before ever you know them.

Some names create a feeling of sweetness inside you. Others make you curious. Some are strong and bold.

Yet one thing I know about names. They come to mean something. A person's name becomes what they are.

If you are quiet, when people hear your name, they think of peace.

If you are outgoing, when others hear your name, they imagine laughter.

And yet there are other times when the following is true.



This makes me sad. It is so hard to believe that in so many people, this is true. To be honest, in a way, this is very true for me. (But you don't know my story, so how will you believe me? :D )

A good name is crucial.

A name with feeling and passion.

A name with meaning.

Roll it on you tongue. Speak it aloud. Test it. Try it. Feel it.

I love names, so much.

Particularly different names, (like my own).

But choose a name that speaks to you. Something you can imagine the character you want to develop standing behind.

Personal, up-close, and real.

Names are the backdrop of your creation.



This made me laugh....





On a deeper note, please pray for a friend of mine who lost a finger in a tractor accident yesterday. It is his left ring finger. He also broke his little finger. He is home from the hospital now and is doing better. The doctors were able to reconstruct half of the finger. Still, it is going to take him some time to learn how to do things now, particularly play his viola (he can use his little finger once it heals). We are all thanking God that this is all that happened, because it could have been so much worse. Farm equipment is dangerous.

All prayers appreciated and welcome.

Thanks everyone!

Caitria

My blog is a mess....

Ok, I don't know what to do. Blogger is being disobedient and rebellious and I can't get it to do what I want it to. I changed my view to a page from the cutest blog of the block and now I can't get it to leave. I want to go back to a regular blogger background, but it is not allowing me to choose what it looks like. My fonts are all messed up and the header refuses to center.

Any suggestions? All tips welcome. I am in some pretty desperate shape!

I remember...

 

9/11

 

 

A day this nation with always remeber.

 

We can never forget the men and women who lost their lives, the firefighters who fought the flames, the rescue teams and squad members who bravely strove the help the trapped and wounded.

 

Need I say more? This is who we are.

 

 

Stream of consciousness...

So I recognize that I just did a post. BUT...

Cait did an awesome prompt over at notebooksisters and I just had to do it.

Because it is about weather.



The rules:

1. Set your timer and write for 5 minutes.

2. Publish! (No editing. This is rough, unrefined writing.)

3. Grab our SOC button from the sidebar.

4. Sign in with our LinkUP on Sundays.

5. Stop by the other blogs and say hay!

today's optional prompt: a little change of weather


Start: now.

Last night, the weather blew in. Literally. We had a nice sunny morning, with a little bit of wind. It is the end of summer here in Missouri. The clouds are white and fluffy. The sky vivid blue. Birds sing, dance in the sky, alight on homy limbs to rest. It is not too hot anymore.

But last night....

The storm came.

This thunderhead did not come from our neighbors, Kansas, Ohio, or any other Western States. No, it grew over us. Mountians of clouds burgeoning in the sky, dark and onimous. Yes, that was what they were.

All of a sudden, it seemed, they hit.

At 3:15 we had a perfectly sunny sky, not a cloud in sight. At 4:15, we had tornado sirens going off in town because the straight line winds were so harsh. They destroyed trees, buildings, tore down power lines, and wrecked many homes.

Our driveway is lined with ornamental pear trees. Almost half of them are ruined.

Fall has begun. Winter is coming.

It reminded us with a vengeance.

STOP.






Daddy and I removing a limb so we could open the gate and get home.



This barely give a glimpse of the damage. I might upload more pics later.

For now, so long, fellow linkers. :D

Stories in the Mind

 

It is so easy to write.

And so hard.



The emotions, burning deep within you, screaming to be let out.

You stand admist an open sea, its waves lapping at your feet, waiting for the inspiration to wash over you.

And it comes. Slowly. Surely.



Having a story....

It's like containing a secret that you MUST share. Pressing upon you, tantalizing you, driving you on madly, until you can no longer think.

Words come to mind.

Spread across you page like a silent ocean.

People, places...they spring before you eyes, dancing, whirling, showing you the way they want to be.



Hearts break, souls mend, and in the end, you discover that though it all pulls through to the end, you will never be the same.

The gift of a writer is going through everything your character does.

Pain, joy, sorrow, contentment, upheaval, bitterness, longing, love, animation, disgust...

It all goes through you, one by one. You feel it. Keenly.


And so we write. We write and write and write.

There is no Frigate like a book to take us lands away nor any coursers like a page of prancing Poetry.
Emily Dickinson

A writer would never trade their life for another's. They would never give up writing. The dreams. The agony. The silent screaming. The joy of creating.

The life of a writer. Irreplaceable. Indescribable.

My life.

Picture day

 

 

I had five hours of sleep last night. So I am going to post a bunch of pictures, some from pinterest, some I took today, instead of writing anything.

Having fun with my hair!

 

This rose is just outside our porch.

This picture...just happened. I have not edited it. At. All. It is completely awesome. I love it. But I don't think I will ever get a pic like it again.

 



 

Playing around...

from pinterest

I love to imagine stories behind pictures like this.

 

 

from pinterest

A book like a heart. I <3 it!!

 

 

 

It's good to be happy. :D

The sister to my other rose!!! So pretty...



Other flowers in our flower garden.

 

 

from pinterest

This picture is simply amazing...

from pinterest

 

When I look at this, I can hear music playing in my head.

 

from pinterest

Let us fly away together....

 

I know this is not much, but it is all for now. :D Have a great day, my friends.

 

<3 <3 <3