A couple of months ago I entered my name to be considered as an advanced reader for Patrick W. Carr's debut novel, A Cast of Stones. I was not really sure this story was something I would enjoy because it was a different style than any other book I have ever read. When my name was chosen, I wanted to give the story a try anyways. I am very glad that I did! Mr. Carr is an extremely talented author. His characters are easy to relate to and realistic. His descriptions are so vivid, readers will feel as if they are part of the story. The pace of A Cast of Stones is as quick as the plot is gripping. I did not want to put my book down until I found out what would happen next! The conclusion of the novel left me satisfied but wanting to read more at the same time. I am glad the next book in this series will be releasing soon! I cannot wait to find out how the tale continues! I recommend this novel to any readers who enjoy a well-written, fast paced, adventure!~V P.S. I know one is not suppose to judge a book by its cover, but the cover of this novel is one thing that got me interested to read the story. Gorgeous and intriguing!
I am extremely happy that it is February the month of Love! I have always loved this month and Valentine's Day! Even though I have never had a sweet heart to celebrate this holiday with, I have always had the best Valentine of all, Jesus! He sacrificed His very life just to save me! What more could a girl ask for? He's the perfect Valentine! (John 3:16)
~♥~
January seemed to last forever for me! I do not want to wish my life away, but I am excited to be making progress with my education! I do not have too much longer now before graduation day! My clinical rotation has been going well so far. Although I miss my best buds (Sharon and Sabrina), I really like the new group I am with and the area I am in. The clinical area is an excellent learning/teaching environment. All of the nurses have been great. I feel like I am really growing into a nurse!
~♥~
I wanted to update you all on my writing. My work on "Flight of the Bluebirds" is on hold for now. I am not motivated to write the story at the moment. I do want to finish this story in the future if it is God's will. In the meantime, I have be writing other stories. I am working on a story with my sister Beth. We have six chapters and over 11,000 words so far! After we have made more progress, I will post the title, synopsis, and an excerpt.
I am also working of another story of my own. It is a retelling on the Nutcracker. I got the idea while I was watching a movie with my sister. What if the nutcracker was bad and the rat king was good? I just began writing the third chapter but the first two chapters are both good lengths.
~♥~
I want to start writing more blogs and posting more updates about my writing. I also plan to include reviews of authors and books I am reading. Writing blogs gives me more practice writing. The more practice I get, the better writer I will become. Blogging updates about stories also excites me and motivates me to write more. I hope you all will read and leave comments, encouragement, and/or feedback.
~♥~
I would like to end this blog with a prayer request. A good family friend lost her mother over the weekend. Please pray for her and her family.Thank you!Have a good week! God bless!~V
Below is the synopsis of my first novel: "Flight of the Bluebirds"! As a bonus, I've included an excerpt, and temporary book cover! (Until I can get my very talented artist sister to draw me one.) Enjoy! Please comment and let me know your thoughts! Synopsis:
Lynne Hoffman wants to be a nurse. She does not realize how
challenging achieving that dream will be. When she starts nursing school she
faces roadblocks and failures she never anticipated. When scandal and tragedy
strike her class she turns to her family, friends, and faith for support. A
psychotic stalker also threatens to keep Lynne from surviving two years of
nursing school.
Based on true events, Flight of the Bluebirds,
tells a story filled with love, laughter, danger, and suspense. Readers will
learn how exciting God can write everyday life. The secret of how nursing
students became known as bluebirds will be revealed. The characters invite
readers to join them on their adventure as they overcome obstacles, earn their
wings, and learn to fly. Excerpt:
Prologue-May 11, 2012
“Lynne
Hoffman!”
I walk proudly across the stage when my name is called. My
smile widens as I hear my family and friends cheering loudly. I cannot believe
this day has finally arrived!
Shirley,
my nursing instructor, pins the symbol of my accomplishment onto my white
uniform right above my heart. I have done it! I have actually finished nursing
school! Now all I have to do is pass the exam to get my license. Taking that
test is too scary to think about. Instead, I want to enjoy this moment.
I return to my seat
and watch my friends receive their pins. There were times when I thought this
day would never come. I think back over the journey my classmates and I have taken
together to reach this moment. We have faced love, loss, victory, defeat, new
life, and death. Nursing school had been one of the toughest challenges of my
life. It has also been an adventure I will never forget. It all began with a
letter…
November 3, 2012: I am very excited right now! Why? I writing my first novel! My family and friends all know that I love to write. It seems like I am writing all the time. However, I have yet to complete anything and try to get it published. With all of your prayers, I am ready to seriously commit to completing one of my stories. One of my best friends (a talented writer herself) posted about a writers website on her facebook. (Thank you, Wren!) The link is http://www.nanowrimo.org/. Basically it's a website that challenges writers to complete their novels. It also links writers with others across the world so we can encourage each other. I think it is an awesome idea! Can you all help me out by praying that I am able to write as much as I can. Being in nursing school, I do not have much free time. When I do, I am usually too tired to work on my writing. I think it is just the Enemy trying to keep me from using my talents for God. Your prayers and any words of encouragement are appreciate it! I am looking forward to sharing my progress with you all. I will try to post a synopsis and excerpt from my novel soon. As for now, I will share the title: "Flight of the Bluebirds" Have a blessed weekend everyone! Love in Christ, Virginia Burford
It has been ten years since the World Trade Center Towers were brought down by enemies of America. September 11, 2001 is remembered as a day of tragic loss and sadness. No one will ever be able to forget the events of that day, especially the ones who lived through it. Where were you on that day? I will always remember where I was when it happened.
My family and I where on vacation in the Great Smokey Mountains. We were staying in our usual place, the Valley Forge Inn in Pigeon Forge, TN. (We stay in cabins now since our family has grown.) That morning, Daddy and I went to the continental breakfast offered for guests. The inn had a tv on mute playing a news station in the breakfast room. Daddy noticed the station was covering a plane crashing into a building in New York. He ask one of the employees to turn up the tv so we could hear what was happening. She did and everyone in the room grew silent as they listened.
Daddy then took me back to our room and turned the tv on so we could continue to watch the coverage. We saw the second plane hit and the towers fall. For the rest of that day I was afraid every time a plane flew over. I remember swimming in the inn's indoor heated pool, inclosed by a glass structure and watching the planes over head. I was scared that one of them would crash into the pool area. At the time I was only eleven. Daddy explained to me that I did not have to be afraid because it was our military flying over protecting us and watching for more enemy crafts. I felt safe after that. I trusted my Daddy and my country to take care of me.
I think that day is when I learned what is truly felt like to be proud to be an American. I couldn't believe that someone would dare mess with my country. I was confident that they would not get away with what they had done. It would take time and sacrifice, but those who where responsible for the tragedy would be brought to justice. They thought that what they did would break us, instead we banded together stronger than ever. United we stand. We will never forget. God Bless America.
I usually try to post my blogs on Fridays, but this week I was unable. I have a test in each of my classes this coming up week and I have been using most of my time to prepare for those. I also have sprained my wrist somehow and limited my time on the computer typing so it can heal. I've been working on a special homemade Christmas gift as well as reading a wonderful book called "What's A Girl to Do: While Waiting For Mr. Right?" by Janet L. Folger. My sister and I have been reading Quest for Love by Elisabeth Elliot together too. This past Saturday I enjoyed the day with my family. We ran some errands in town, watched some college football games, and an episode of a great show, Wind At My Back. Today, we went to church, watched another episode of Wind At My Back while we ate lunch, then went to visit with my Grannie and Grandpa. We had a good time. Well there's the update of my life. I hope you all have enjoyed this blog and will have a blessed week.
Happy Labor Day Weekend everyone! How are you all spending the weekend? I plan to relax, have a cookout with my family, and go shopping with Mama and Beth on Monday. We are going to window shoping and shopping for Christmas gifts. I love to start Christmas shopping early. I've already bought my first gift of the year. Christmas is not that far away! The days of this year are sure going by quickly. Speaking of which, greetings September. Fall is almost here!College football has begun! Yay! My team is Alabama Crimson Tide. Roll Tide Roll!
Their first game of the season is this Saturday against Kent State. Watching the game with my family is another thing I plan to do during my Labor Day Weekend. I've only been a fan of football for a few years now. I get my love for the sport from my family. Almost everyone on Daddy's side of the family are Alabama fans. It's something we enjoy together. Some of my favorite Alabama football memories so far are: the game against the Florida Gators when Tebow cried,
(That was the best game ever!) the the Campionship game against Texas that year, and when Mt. Cody blocked two filed goals against Tennessee.
I am looking forward to another exciting year and hopefully another Championship. I know this blog is short but I still hope everyone enjoys it. Do you like college football? If so, who's your favorite team? Please comment back and let me know. God Bless!
My goodness, what a day it has been today! It all began at 2:30 this morning. A cell phone ringing woke me up. Daddy answered it but no one said anything. It was a number we did not recognize. I went back to sleep and slept until 8:15 a.m. (later than usual for me). I ate breakfast and wrote an essay for my social problems class. By that time is was noon. Mama, my brothers, and I went swimming in our back-yard pool. At one I ate lunch and helped with chores from 2-4. The whole day I've been wanting to work on this blog so I could post it. Sorry it's late, but here it is....
Ring ring goes the bell...
It's time for a new school year once again. Some have already been in classes for a couple of weeks now. Others will not begin until after Labor Day. (Those lucky ducks) My fall semester started 2 weeks ago. So far it is going pretty well. I am not planning on this blog as being as long as the previous one. I just want to share a few personal memories, graphics, quotes, and songs with you all. I hope you enjoy. Thanks for reading!~Virginia
As I wrote in my previous post, Mama taught me what I needed to know for my preschool and kindergarten education at home. For first and second grade I attend a public elementary school and then began homeschooling again from third grade to twelfth grade. I have good memories from both experiences. A certain event that I witnessed in my second-grade year has inspired me to write a children's story about it. Maybe in another blog, when I have worked on the project more, I will write more about it. So stay tune.
1st grade class pic above
2nd grade class pic below
The first day I went to school my little sister cried because she missed me and wanted to go with me. She now tells me she was crying just because she wanted to ride the bus. I loved to ride the school bus. I pretended I was on a traveling bus, going on an adventure. My bus driver was the coolest. She would let us listen to the Space Jam song during our ride home sometimes. Each side of the bus sang a certain part.
One day, though, she made us have a silent bus ride home. We were not even allowed to talk to other students. I guess she did not feel well that day. I loved book fairs, open house, field days, and field trips. One trip I remember most is when we visited a Christmas tree farm. I really had to go to the bathroom after a while and the cold weather was making it worse. I accidentally wet my pants. It was embarrassing, but my teacher, principal, and parents took care of me. I loved music class. We also put on an awesome play called "Stone Soup".
The extra curricular activities got even better when Mama began homeschooling me. We've been on many memorable educational trips with the local home-school group and on our own. My favorite was when we visited the Mayfield plant and got free ice cream. I ate Super Man Flavor. I also loved back-to-school picnics, cookouts, and hiking. My favorite subject I remember from all my years of school, beside Bible, was a Science curriculum Mama used one year. It was really interactive. Mama has always been good at making learning fun and interesting.
In high school , Mama used a video program to help with the tougher subjects. The video program filmed teachers at a Christian school in Florida and I was able to view the lessons on Dvd. My favorite video teachers were my English teacher and my Bible/History teacher. When I graduated I was able to do so with many other students who went through the same program. My family and I traveled to Florida and I got to meet some of my video teachers. It was a neat experience.
I wrote some about my college education in my previous blog. I am also thinking about writing a story about my journey to my degree. So many things have happened since my freshman year. I'm excited to work on this project as well. I will post more about as I do so.
That is all of the personal school memories I am going to include for now. Here are some back-to-school pictures and quotes that I like. Note: I got most of my pictures from this website: Susan's Daily Dose .
"A teacher effects enternity: he can never tell where his influence stops."
-Henry Adams-
"Books are friends that never fail."
-Somerset Maugham-
"There are two educations. One should teach us how to make a living and the other how to live."
-James Truslow Adams-
"A teacher makes two ideas where only one grew before."
-Elbert Hubbard-
"A great teacher makes hard things easy."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson-
"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island."
-Walt Disney-
"Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher."
-Japanese Proverb-
"Life is painting a picture not doing a sum."
-Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.-
"Life is a series of lessons that must be lived to be understood."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson-
"As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in schools."
-Author Unknown-
"The best teachers teach from the heart, not from the book."
-Author Unknown-
"I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework." ~Lily Tomlin as "Edith Ann"
“The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor. The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything.”
-Unknown-
"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself."
-John Dewey-
"I can't give you brains, but I can give you a diploma."
-The Wizard of Oz-
“Boredom shouldn't be a problem for God's children--our Heavenly Father is so creative and delights in blessing us with ideas and opportunities to learn and grow in Him every single day of our lives--in sunshine and in rain, and warm weather and in cold!”
-Tamara Eaton-
Finally I would like to share with you all this song Mama has sung to me ever since I was a little girl I'm not crazy about how the man in this video sings, but the lyrics are great. The chorus is my favorite!
Have a wonderful school year everyone! Until next time~Virginia
