06/29/26 My Author Life

Dear Friend,  

Has it really been a few weeks since I last posted? So much has changed, and so much hasn’t. 

My brothers buried our mom next to our dad on the 18^th in Madison, Wisconsin. Although I was unable to attend, I did get to watch the ceremony. Mom didn’t want anything fancy and didn’t want any fuss so it was short and sweet, just like her. 

Coming to grips with that fact, I am slowly getting used to not calling her every day and not looking for her favorite shows that might be on. Although I do catch myself doing that off and on. I’m sure that, with time, this part of me will settle into a new norm. 

I was privileged to be selected to beta test a new feature for an online program I use regularly. I can’t say anything about what it is, but I do like it. And like any new program, there are a few tweaks to be made. As soon as I can give you more information, I will. 

Christmas in July on Hallmark and Great American Family channels started over the weekend. Some of my favorites are replaying and the chance to discover a few new ones presents itself. There are so many former Hallmark actors I love that are now on Great American Family; it feels like seeing old friends again. Warm and cozy. 

And Christmas movies are exactly what we need around here. As I write this at approximately 10:30 this morning, it is already 87˚F out there with a heat index of 95˚F, and we are expecting around 100˚F this weekend. Hey! We do what we can to stay cool, even if it’s only a state of mind.

I attended the best play yesterday at our little community theater with my granddaughter Makenna and friends Carlotta and Amy. It was The Lion King Jr., and I would say 95% of the cast included kids ranging from 5 to 17. It was the best show I’ve seen there so far. The fire alarm went off, and the kids just didn’t panic. The stage manager came down and said that everything was fine, and that the interrupted scene would start over. The cast was great and started it over as if nothing had happened. 

Also, over the past few weeks I’ve attended a couple of colonial craft classes at our local library. They were fun, and it’s always nice to just sit and relax somewhere other than at home. 

Chapter Chat Book Club meets tonight, and with this heat, I’m not 100% positive I’m going to attend. The book I’m reading is from 8^th grade that I’ve had on my shelf over the years. April Morning takes place during the Revolutionary War and is by Howard Fast. It’s a short and easy read, except with these 72-year-old eyes, the yellowed and browned pages make it a bit difficult, even in the best light. If I finish it, I may venture out in the heat and attend the meeting. 

That’s about it for the past several weeks, and time for me to get back to writing. I can never thank you enough for continuing to read these snippets into my life as an author. I hope I have not bored you too much with them. 😊 After all, other people's lives are never as glamorous as we may think.   

May your ereader or bookshelf overflow with delightful books to read! 

Maxine

  

6/8/26 My Author Life

Dear Friend,  

The phone call that every adult child dreads came at 4:09 on Saturday morning. The one that changes your life and makes you an orphan. My mother had passed after a short illness at the ripe old age of 91, just 14 days shy of her 92^nd birthday. I take great comfort in knowing she is home with God, my dad, her parents, and brothers and sisters. That lastborn of 7, she is the last to arrive in Heaven. Rest in Peace, Mom. We all miss you tremendously.

I took two classes last week on colonial crafting. One on candle making and another on quilling. They were taught at the local library by a couple of 4H instructors. The candle making was fun and easy, while the quilling was fun but made for little fingers. I will definitely use the candle making to make use of leftover candles that don’t burn all the way down.

I’m finally back working on my November release, and that warms my heart. More on that later.

That’s about it for the past week, and time for me to get back to writing. I can never thank you enough for continuing to read these snippets into my life as an author. I hope I have not bored you too much with them. 😊 After all, other people's lives are never as glamorous as we may think.   

May your ereader or bookshelf overflow with delightful books to read! 

Maxine

  

6/1/26 My Author Life

Dear Friend,  

We are in the second week of summer vacation, and the heat is certainly giving us an idea as to what summer could look like. It was in the mid-90s yesterday, and today the heat index could be in the low 100s. While we are hoping for the predicted rain to put a bite into the drought, the grass still grows and needs to be cut. At least it is green—for now anyway. That may change once summer sets up camp and decides to stay for a while. 

This month is the Festival of Freedom in my town. Festivities are going on from the library to local downtown businesses. This coming weekend is the annual Wings & Wheels at the local airport, followed by festivities downtown. The Chickasha Area Arts Council has blocked off several blocks on Chickasha Avenue for an arts and craft show, including food trucks, to kick off this month-long celebration of our country’s 250^th independence celebration. 

Last Friday I took a basket-weaving class at the library. Boy, making these baskets is not as easy as it looks. We started from scratch, having to glue the spokes into the base and then wait for the wood glue to dry, which in itself is a challenge, as the glue took forever, and some of us, including myself, ended up bringing our materials home to make our baskets. My base is still sitting on my dresser, and I’ll get to weaving the basket soon. This was only one of several activities for kids and adults to experience. I’m looking forward to the candle making and might even try my hand at quilling. Check out the Chickasha Public Library’s list of June events, including Literary conversations, as well as living history and trivia. 

I am part of a small group of women from church who are widows (ages range from 60-93). We try to get together for lunch whenever we can, and Sunday was the first time in a long while that we were able to do so. Marcy, who is now homebound, opened her home up to Marj, Laverne, Cheryl (who is Laverne’s daughter and not a widow), and me yesterday (Sunday). She had pizza waiting for us, followed by pecan pie with ice cream. It’s always fun when we get together with these wonderful women outside of church. That’s when everyone lets their hair down, and we laugh about a lot of things. It was a happy but sad luncheon as Marj is moving to OKC and may not be in church as often as she is now. But we will try to get together whenever we can and hopefully when Marj can come back to attend church with all of us. 

That’s about it for the past week, and time for me to get back to writing. I can never thank you enough for continuing to read these snippets into my life as an author. I hope I have not bored you too much with them. 😊 After all, other people's lives are never as glamorous as we may think.   

May your ereader or bookshelf overflow with delightful books to read! 

Maxine