​"There are books enough to find a thousand worlds. You can play in the woodlands or write home or mend your socks. It is only for lack of imagination that you are bored."

"These stories make us remember something we forgot. They make a young boy want to hop out of bed and see the ruins of a castle. These kinds of stories wake us up."

"Grief is the price I paid for loving fiercely, and that was okay, because there was no other choice but to love fiercely and fully."

This book made me want to reread all of the Narnia books and so many other things that C.S. Lewis wrote. It made me excited to read with a new outlook, to look for those hidden stories inside of the story. I felt so many emotions as I read the last quarter of the book. A book that can pull that much out of me deserves to be shared with others. 

Check out her website for more information on her books: Patti Callahan Henry

A big day on my running journey was Saturday, February 7, 2026. My youngest daughter bought us tickets for my birthday back in November. She didn't just buy one for me but bought herself one because she wanted to do something WITH me. That was the true gift, time with my grown daughter. We had planned to "train" from December to the race, but we didn't. She works full time in food service on top of working with me four mornings a week. I had all sorts of excuses, mostly just not feeling like it. I have a high stress job and by the end of the workday I'm just done. I also wanted to run outside instead of the little treadmill I bought so I COULD run inside when it got dark too quickly or it was too cold. I let those things stop me from doing what I knew I wanted to do and needed to do.  That didn't stop me from getting out there and doing my best. 

I started getting really excited after I picked up our race packets on that Thursday night. Friday, I gathered all the things I'd need for an early Saturday morning race. I got us both some long sleeve shirts when I picked up the packets so we could wear them during the race and after because they are so comfortable. I did my best to set an early bedtime but I'm terrible at that. I went to bed around midnight and got up at 5:30 so I could get dressed and have some time to do my Bible Recap before my daughter arrived. 

We got to Fair Park by 7:30 and had some time to walk across the parking lot and grab a few pics before the race started. We weren't sure of the plan, but I had downloaded three of the audio runs from my MADE4 app that I use frequently on my runs. My plan was to use those to make running the 6.2 miles as easy as it is to run the shorter distances. The run audios always make it pass so quickly and I feel so good afterwards. She told me she didn't want to run by herself, so I decided to stick with her. She was listening to her favorite TV show on her phone while I was listening to the runs. I started telling her what I was going to do for each interval, not to make her do it, but so she would know. She decided to run with me when I ran and walk when I walked. 

The miles passed so quickly. Each mile marker on our app took us by surprise. That spurred us on and we put more effort into the running intervals. She even made a short video at mile five to send in our family text showing that we had made it that far and were so close to finishing the race. We walked maybe a fourth of the time, but we ran the rest. It could have been a bit more or less, I'm not really sure. I just know we did a great job and finished strong. We ran through the finish line and got our medal.

They had the Finisher's Cup waiting to be picked up. The first thing we wanted was that banana. It tasted so good. We both agreed they could have had most of the things in the cup in exchange for another banana. We ate the banana and pretzels dipped in the chocolate. We found a place to sit down to enjoy our treat before walking back to the car. The walk to the car seemed to take forever, maybe if we were walking much slower than before. My feet were feeling a bit of pain but not as badly as they have in the past for a really long run. 

The drive back to Arlington was filled with talk of the race. We picked up my husband and took our daughter to our favorite burger place for our first real meal of the day. It was fun to sit and talk for a bit while we enjoyed our food. I went home after and did my best to lay down and talk a nap before having to get up. I slept a little bit not a deep sleep. I normally can't even sleep that much after a race. I get so keyed up that it stays with me. 

I really loved the time together with my daughter doing something that is fun and good for us. This race has so much meaning for me because it was my very first race 13 years ago. I did the 5K. I've done two 5K's, one 15K and now one 10K. I'm not sure if we will do the 10K again next year or do the 15K. We just need to decide now so we can buy the early bird tickets cheaper. I'd love to do the 15K just because I feel it is a big accomplishment. My feet want me to pick the 10K. I'll do whatever she decides. 

The weather is getting nice and the days are growing longer. That means I can get more runs outside where I can get some sunshine and get out of the house for a bit. My goal is to get out there two or three times a week. 

Thanks for joining me for the race update. I'm going to be putting some "look back" posts for some other runs soon, just so I have them all in one place. I love to look back at all the fun I've had doing the races. 

​As always, 

~A Simple Texas Girl living life on the Jesus Way!

I've got so many wonderful books on my TBR pile, and it just keeps getting bigger. My goal is to read one classic each month that I haven't read or haven't read in a while. I want to read some of the older titles each month along with the newer books and new releases that I can't help but get. I love supporting the authors and gracing my shelves with beautiful books at the same time. I do read a lot on my kindle with KU. It helps me decide what I need to get for my shelves. Honestly, I'd love to be able to get all the books, but I have limited shelf space and funds. That doesn't seem to stop me in MANY cases. 

I can't wait to share with you the books for February! I have a book review I need to write and am in the process of reading two other books.  

As always, 

~A Simple Texas Girl living life on the Jesus Way! ​

​The whole reason for Sloane and Ivy being there is because Ivy needed someone to stay with while her adoptive parents went on a long mission trip. Sloane is her real aunt. Her birth mom, Harper arranged for an open adoption with Ivy's parents. Harper and Ivy were allowed to have contact with Ivy anytime. Sloane built up a great relationship with her while Harper did not. Sadly, Harper chose to end her life four years prior. There were so many unanswered questions for Ivy. She wants to find her birthfather, even though Harper never told anyone who it was. It takes a bit of sleuthing, but they figure it out. Once she goes down this part, secrets unfold that no one ever dreamed about. 

Sloane has lots of baggage from her childhood. Her mother left them and her dad really didn't take care of them. They lacked basic needs, including food and clothing. They learned early how to take care of themselves. Sloane deals with some of those hurts with her dad during this book. 

Quotes from the book that stuck with me. 
"She'd been conceived accidentally. But the bigger part of her identity was that she'd been adopted purposefully."  I was adopted so this one touched me. 

"Give to other people what you need. I've spent time pondering it as a question. Am I giving to other people what I need?" She later talks about how in doing that it isn't something the person has to quality for. It isn't if they will be grateful or if they deserve it. Neither of those things matter. 

Despite the fact that something HUGE happened between Max and Sloane, something new that they never explored in their past starts to grow. They each had stronger feelings for each other in the past but neither one acted on it or shared it with anyone. They had too good of a friendship to want to mess it up. As this starts to grow and change, they slowly fall back into the easy friendship they had. Max does apologize for how he acted four years ago and it surprises Sloane, but she accepts it. Sloanes part in it is a bit more complex and it comes out later. 

There are some big ups and downs as well as a set back here and there. Don't expect an easy ride because it is anything but. It is a great read and wrap-up to the three-book series. Read all three, in order, if at all possible.  It is worth it!


​Check out the authors website for more information about her books: ​BeckyWade.com

​One of Gemma distant cousins, Cedric was involved in illegal activities, and they needed her help catching him. The only reason she chose to help was because he was doing things that went against her family's standards and beliefs. He had caused her father to be put in prison for working with him and instead of her cousin getting caught, her father took the fall. 

Gemma and Jude had to pretend to be dating to get close to her cousin. The lines of pretend and reality became hard to determine quite quickly. Gemma took it as playing a part, like in a movie or a play. She went all out to make sure they didn't leave any detail out. He fought it for a short time but felt she had a point that they needed to know things about each other, so it didn't look forced and unnatural when they were around her cousin and his henchman, Victor. That situation made me nervous because I didn't know just how dangerous it was going to get. I knew that Cedric wasn't beyond playing dirty and getting what he wanted any way he could. Victor sounded worse than Cedric, so I knew it could get very dicey. 

She doesn't introduce her boyfriends to her family. She seems to end her relationships before they get serious. At the start of this book, she has a long-distance boyfriend. They hardly see each other and there really is no connection there. She ends up ending things with him because she is starting to have feelings for Jude and the "fake boyfriend" seems more real than her real boyfriend. 

There were a couple of quotes that stuck out to me.

"You'd think, once you find the right person, that the road to happiness would be straight. For me, it wasn't. But I can tell you that it was worth all the stress it cost me." 


"Love the people in your life with all that you have and all that you are. Show them grace. Forgive." 


Check out the authors website for more information about her books: ​BeckyWade.com

Looking back, one thing has always been a HUGE part of my life; books. When I was little, my grandmother taught me how special books are. I have memories of her reading certain stories to me. Those memories are filled with the sense that it wasn't a one-time read. I saw her reading all the time, too. She modeled what she felt was important by her actions. The ONE book she read more than any other was her Bible. I have two of her Bibles in my possession, filled with her hand-written notes. My Bible is my most prized book. I have many copies, even many different versions. It is what I use as my ultimate how-to guide for life. All other books are secondary to it. 

I believe my love for books is the reason I get the greatest joy when I teach a child to read. When another child learns to read, I know I have given them what I call the "keys to the world". They are able to learn anything if they can read. They can go on fantastical adventures and travel the world in a book. They can also learn about any subject they have a desire to know more about, learn a new skill and even create their own works of art with the written word. What an honor it is to be a part of that.

Two decades ago, I started meeting authors and became a part of writer's groups in hopes of becoming a writer. While I didn't go farther in my writing career than doing book reviews and blog posts, I met some of the most amazing authors and future authors. I am so blessed and thankful for that. I have some long-time friendships with many of them. I get the honor of reading their books and sharing them with others. That has always been something I felt I was called to do; share with others the well written Christian fiction books on the market. At the time, it was more or less a NEW thing. It isn't anymore, thankfully. There is an abundance of wonderful books with content that touch the heart in so many ways. I still want to share those with everyone I am able. People need to know they can read fiction that isn't filled with worldly "garbage" and still have the adventure, the love and all the feels. 

Then we come to the writing part of this journey. I still feel that I am supposed to write. Not just blogs posts and reviews, but actual books. I have come up with ideas for children's books, chapter books for kids, young adult and adult women's fiction. When my youngest daughter was little, I would make up stories for her at night. I dreamed of making those into a book to share with others. That dream quickly was forgotten as I went through some years of struggles. As a teacher and homeschool mom, I saw how fun it could be to create books for kids in upper elementary and jr. high. My heart always wanted to write women's fiction. I started many times but that was in the midst of my struggling years, and they quickly fell by the wayside, as well. Looking back, I think now, they could have been an answer to my need for an outlet. We can't go backwards, only forwards so, here I go! 

I want to write fiction, but I keep having these flashes of telling my actual "story" in the sense of what I've learned and how I've grown. I just might have to work on that one a little here and there in the middle of writing some fun fictional stories. That book may end up being just for me and my kids for them to pass down to theirs. I won't know until it's finished. 

Leaving a legacy for my children and grandchildren is important but above all else, I want them to remember and share my faith in Christ. When they remember me, I want them to think of His love that I shared through my love for them. One of the things I want to give them is a quilt that will be a comfort and will bring a smile to their faces when they see and use it. Quilting is another thing that I learned and loved doing and got put on the back burner years ago. Like books, I could not walk into a fabric store without wanting to buy more fabric. I finally forbade myself from going into the stores unless I had a specific purpose. I can't say that I didn't buy MORE fabric on some of those occasions. I never finished the really large quilts I started and never started the ones I gathered material for. One reason was I felt it would be impossible to do the quilting on the entire thing with the machine I have and without a large quilting frame. I did make a few large quilts and some baby quilts but not my huge quilts for queen size beds with all the detailed quilting. I have my eye on a new quilting machine and frame with a goal of starting those quilts in 2026. If I am successful at getting those and starting that quilting journey, you will see the fruit of that labor on this blog and on my social media pages. 

I have been on a journey of cooking healthier for decades and I have slowly but surely changed many of my cooking habits. Recently, I purchased a grain mill to make my own flour from the wheat berries. It has been a learning curve, to be sure. The fresh milled flour "acts" differently than the stripped flour we buy in the stores. It took me three tries before I made a loaf of bread that I didn't want to throw in the trash. It was well worth the effort it took to find a recipe and a person who could instruct me on the process and art. My goal is to change out everything we eat that uses flour to something I make myself. I will be sharing that on this page and all the resources I have found beneficial. 

I began my running journey in 2015 with the Couch to 5K guide. I also enjoy lifting because I know that is key especially at my age, to a healthy life. I have let my busy life and stresses get in the way of putting it as a TOP Priority of my life but that is where it should be. If it isn't, I won't be here to do all the other things I want to do. I know full well it HELPS with the stresses I deal with, and yet, I'm as easily tricked into thinking it doesn't matter and won't help anyway. Those lies we believe have a way of taking our goals and dreams and trashing them, if we let it. Time for a "turn around" in this area, too. I have a 10K race in just 2 weeks! YIKES! It may not be my fastest race, but it will be something I accomplish, and it will get me out there again and give me the desire to sign up for more. 

I hope you have at least enjoyed something about this glimpse into my "turn around" plans for 2026. If something resonated with you, please feel free to share it with me in the comment section. I'd LOVE to hear more. Turn arounds aren't always easy but they CAN be an adventure IF you let them. It is really all about how you set your mind. God can use our experiences to bring Him glory even when we feel like it is too much of a mess up to matter. You matter to Him! 

As always, 

~A Simple Texas Girl living life on the Jesus Way! ​

​Jeremiah is a man with no memory, but Remy can tell he came from money. He has a wedding ring, so she knows he is a married man. He is demanding and seems to know deep down what he likes in life. Despite the loss of his memory, he seems to know what he wants and is used to getting it. Remy does a bunch of internet searches trying to find out who he is and if his family is looking for him. When his health takes a turn for the worse, they head to the mainland for medical treatment. 

The story turns into a "murder" mystery partial way through. It is gripping and filled with amateur detective work paired with some real detectives helping out. It also has a "second chance's" theme running through it with some secondary characters. 

I'm so glad I got this book! It kept me reading even when I needed to put it down. I enjoyed it very much and it ended perfectly. I can't wait to read book 2, "Uneasy Street". Jude, his brother, is the main guy in book 2. He played a pretty big part in helping solve this murder.

*Trigger warning. There is r*pe mentioned in the book in some detail as a memory retelling. ​

Check out the authors website for more information about her books: ​BeckyWade.com