What I've Been Up To...

So much has happened lately that I hardly know where to start.  I haven't been a very faithful blogger, have I?  But between traveling and having patchy Internet access, it's been tough to keep up.

As I write this, our baby has arrived safely and is getting settled in Germany, where he will be stationed for the next three years. My husband and I flew out to OK the last week in October to attend his military graduation, help him get his car ready for shipment overseas, and make sure his apartment was ship-shape by the time the movers came to box up his worldly belongings.

Then our sweet boy took a few days of leave before his departure and came up to the new "Oyster Haven" VRBO house on Lake Champlain, because he wanted a chance to see it before he began his great adventure.  So we "broke it in"--slept in it for the first time, on the brand new beds we purchased for future renters.

Our first morning waking up in the new house, this was our view out the kitchen window.  Isn't it glorious?!  As my dear late father-in-law always used to say, "It doesn't get any better than this."

That's Valcour Island on the left, and the mountains
of Vermont on the right.

We had a wonderful visit with our baby (which included a night of decadent lounging in the hot tub with cold beverages in hand--talking about the big step he was about to take, becoming a leader of men...and solving most of the world's problems to boot), and then before we knew it, it was time to drive him to the airport for a tough good-bye.

I'm sick and tired of this view, people: the backs of my sons, as they're walking through busy airports, getting ready to fly far, far away from me.

But like it or not, I am learning to deal with it.  The acceptance process includes many tears; but it also includes a heart bursting with love and pride for the amazing men--all five of them--that I had the privilege to carry within me for nine months, and whose care God entrusted me with on their journey to adulthood.  No matter how old they get or how far away their lives may take them, I am comforted by the thought that I was their very first home.

We were going to leave NY on Monday, right after we dropped our son off at the airport, and head back to our poor neglected home in NH; but while we were spending the weekend at the lake house, we became aware of some plumbing problems and other issues that needed our attention, so we postponed our departure until yesterday.  (It's a good thing we gave the house a "test run," so that we could iron out some of the kinks before we have paying customers!)

I can hardly wait to show you some pictures of Oyster Haven!  We have been working so hard on it--cleaning, painting, and furnishing it, and doing needed repairs.  I have had a ball decorating each and every room.  As my sister-in-law, who has a VRBO house less than four miles from ours, has said, it's like playing house.  You get all the fun of making it pretty, without having to see the usual wear and tear your real home gets because people actually live there full-time.

Because our NH house was a bit overcrowded with furniture and framed artwork, we have been able to use a lot of things we already had to make this 1830's farmhouse into a cozy vacation retreat.

For instance, we brought a tan leather sectional to the new house, one we've had since our oldest son was about 14 (and he's 32 now!).  It started out in our basement, then moved up to the former garage that we converted into a sports room/man cave.  It's essentially indestructible, so we thought it was perfect for a rental property.

The brown leather reclining loveseat in the foreground is actually one that we bought over the summer as a gift for my parents, but which they didn't like (that's a story for another post!); so we reclaimed it, and we think it works beautifully in this room.  The coffee table and end stands are ones that we had for years and then gave to son #2 for his first grown-up apartment.  After he got married to a young lady who had plenty of better-looking furniture already, they boomeranged back to us, and we didn't know what to do with them.  Thankfully, we didn't take them straight to Goodwill, and instead stowed them in the attic; because now they've found the perfect home in our house by the lake.

On the wall behind the sectional are pieces of artwork scavenged from our NH house (with the exception of one small drawing of the high school where my husband and I met, which I had framed to add to this little wall gallery).   They are pieces that were becoming a bit lost in the shuffle over the years, as wall space in our NH house has increasingly become as rare and valuable as a parking space in downtown Boston.  (I mean really: when it comes to the walls of my house, my motto is definitely not "less is more.")

This Oyster Haven retreat is really coming together...and I'm starting to love it a little too much.  As in: I'm a little bummed that we have to let other people use the house at all.  But c'est la vie.

In the coming weeks, I'll post lots of pictures of the interiors.  I know I've already shown you the amazing kitchen, but it can't hurt to show it off again, can it?  (I am still in awe of this kitchen.)

But as much as I love the gigantic chef's kitchen, the expansive lake view, and so many other things about our new house, it's good to be back home again, sleeping in our own bed.  We spend so much of our time on the road!  In fact, we don't even have a subscription to our local newspaper anymore, because we're never around long enough to read it.  But luckily, we have thoughtful and generous neighbors who keep us abreast of local happenings.  Yesterday on the drive from NY to NH, our next-door neighbor emailed to say he'd seen my picture in the paper.  When we got home, we found a cut-out copy of the article carefully stored in a ziplock bag and waiting for us by the door.  It was a short blurb about my recent speaking engagement at the Dover Public Library, where I was the guest of a local chapter of the DAR.  (If you're interested in the article, you can read it here.)

I was also humbled and touched when my publisher told me that Erin's Ring was going to be mentioned in the December 2015 issue of Catholic Library World.  (Catholic Library World is the official journal of the Catholic Library Association).  I am grateful for the positive feedback I have received recently about Erin's Ring, and I hope that the novel finds its way onto the shelves of many Catholic schools and homeschools.

Speaking of Erin's Ring, the two winners of the recent giveaway here at String of Pearls have been so generous: Madeline already has a copy of the book, so she has asked me to send her prize to the young daughter of a fellow blogger; and after she reads it, Kathy is going to share her copy at the Catholic school where she works.  I have the best readers!  I never knew how many gifts I would receive when I joined the Catholic blogging world, but I have truly been inordinately blessed during my time here.

Now before I sign off, I'm going to ask for some prayers.  (Having readers who pray for special intentions is one of the all-time greatest blessings of being a Catholic blogger!)  Last night, my middle son and his wife Preciosa had to rush our sweet little G-Man to the hospital.  He had a fever, which eventually got to about 105 degrees, and he was shaking and vomiting.  All the tests, thank God, came back negative.  The fever did break, and he was released at about 3:00 a.m.  But he will be seeing the doctor today to follow up, and hopefully his worried parents will get some answers.  If you could keep this little guy in your prayers, it would be much appreciated.

Until next time, God bless you, dear readers!

Visiting with the DAR, at the Dover Public Library

On Saturday morning, I had the rare privilege of being a guest speaker at a meeting of two local chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (the Margery Sullivan Chapter, and their guests from the Mary Torr Chapter).  The event was held at the Dover Public Library--which I told these wonderful ladies was absolutely the perfect venue to talk about Erin's Ring, as it is essentially a supporting character in the story.  The library is where Molly and Theresa become friends, and where they meet up every weekend to delve into the historical archives in search of some clues that will help them solve the mystery of Erin's ring (that is, the old Irish Claddagh ring that Molly finds in the garden outside her parish church, with "To Erin--Love, Michael" engraved inside the band).

I also told them that the book opens on a Saturday morning in October...and here it was, a Saturday morning in October!  The stars appeared to have aligned, in other ways, too; but I'll tell you more about that in a minute.

My husband (who is and always will be my favorite human, my best friend, and my most loyal supporter) came with me and helped me set up my things in a large conference room upstairs, just across the hall from the library's Historical Room (another important side character in Erin's Ring!).  When we got there, some of the ladies were already bustling about, getting everything ready.

While they put out doughnuts, pastries, and coffee and set up their head table and podium in preparation for their meeting, I worked on my area--a display table and a book signing table.

When I was finished, I sat at my table, smiling on the outside while dying a little bit on the inside.  My husband, who was in the back of the room silently cheering me on, took this photo.

I call this photo "Smiling Bravely on the Outside, but Freaking Out on the Inside!"  Well, I guess freaking out is a tad dramatic; I was nervous, though, because I wasn't sure how this was going to go.  The only times I've spoken about my books to an audience (at my niece's Catholic grade school last May, and several times on Catholic radio), it has been done through Q and A.  But what if these sweet ladies thought I was just going to get up and give an actual speech?  I hadn't prepared anything from which to read.

The meeting got underway, following a pattern that any DAR member would recognize, I'm sure.  It included an invocation, the Pledge of Allegiance, and something called "The American's Creed," which I'd never heard before.  I just have to share this with you, in case it's something you've never heard either.

The American's Creed

I believe in the United States of America as a government of the people, by the people, for the people; whose just powers are derived from the consent of the governed, a democracy in a republic, a sovereign Nation of many sovereign States; a perfect union, one and inseparable; established upon those principles of freedom, equality, justice, and humanity for which American patriots sacrificed their lives and fortunes.
I therefore believe it is my duty to my country to love it, to support its Constitution, to obey its laws, to respect its flag, and to defend it against all enemies.

(Written  by William Tyler Page in 1917,

accepted by the United States House of Representatives on April 3, 1918)

In an age when so many Americans act ashamed of their great nation and its history, I found the DAR's love of country so very touching.  (Also, as the wife of a veteran, with sons who have served and are still serving, I was moved by the way the DAR respects and honors the US military.)

After all the opening ceremonies, I was on.  I stood up and started talking, and after a somewhat shaky start began to feel surprisingly at ease.  This was an exceedingly receptive and kind-hearted crowd, and after just going off-the-cuff for a bit, I asked if there were any questions--and that helped me to keep from going off on too many tangents.  (As shy as I am, I seem to be able to talk at length about my books--my babies!-- and the whole writing process...it has caused my husband to wonder, more than once, "Who is she, and what has she done with my wife?")

When I was finished talking, The Margery Sullivan Chapter of the DAR surprised me with a Women in the Arts Recognition award.  That was the last thing I was expecting when they contacted me many months ago about this speaking engagement.

One of the ladies told my husband that my name will go on

to the state level now; and if I win there, on to the national.

They also surprised me with a sweet gift, a pewter Christmas ornament.

A Teddy bear dad reading to his kids--adorable!

There was one woman in attendance who'd come from MA to be there, and I was tickled to learn that she was a descendent of Irish immigrants.  She had two elderly uncles who'd regaled her with stories of what it had been like to be a young Irishman in Dover, back in the days when the Irish were one of the most discriminated against groups in America.  I felt so fortunate to meet this woman, and she thought that it was interesting that Erin's Ring told what the immigrant experience was like from the women's point of view, when she'd only heard about the ways the men had struggled to overcome prejudice and hardship.  We were both so glad she'd made the trip to NH to be there that day.

Another interesting thing happened at the meeting.  (I told you the stars seemed to have aligned, right?)  To be accepted as a member of the DAR, a woman must apply and have official documents that prove her direct lineage to someone who fought in the Revolution or had some sort of supporting role in the conflict.  And one of the women there had been accepted because of a relative named John PEARL.  Isn't that a crazy coincidence?  But even if my husband could prove he was also a descendent of this man, I couldn't become a DAR member; you can't do it via marriage, you have to have a direct blood line.

I found this organization so fascinating and its members so admirable, and I will always be extremely grateful that they allowed me to come and spend some time with them.  And as a bonus, there were three young people there, a boy and two girls, grandchildren of the chapter's regent.  They were junior high students, just the right age to read Erin's Ring.  And they were so delightful!  One of the girls said something along the lines of, "I've never met an author before.  This is exciting for me."  And I told her, "Getting to meet someone who's reading my book is exciting for ME.  It's an honor." 

I'm feeling very blessed right now, on so many levels--especially, though, because I have the best "wing man" a shy public speaker could ever ask for.  Maybe my favorite part of the whole experience was watching my sweet husband interacting with the DAR women.

I've got only a smidgeon of Irish blood; my mom is part-Irish, with the maiden name Kelly, but I'm very much a mutt.  My husband's people, on the other hand, all come from the Emerald Isle.  But I certainly had the luck of the Irish when I married him, I'll tell you.

Thank you so much to the Margery Sullivan Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution for your warm welcome, your kindness and support, and your love of history--including the Dover history I wrote about in Erin's Ring.  (And I'm especially glad now that the book had some brief mentions of two Revolutionary War heroes in it: Gen. John Stark and Gen. Lafayette!)  I was truly honored to be your guest, and I won't soon forget my time with you.

(Now before I go, just a reminder: leave me a comment by Oct. 31, and you could win a free signed copy of Erin's Ring.)

Erin's Ring Receives Two Catholic Press Association Awards!

My publisher, Cheryl Dickow at Bezalel Books, emailed me yesterday with some exciting news:  Erin's Ring received two awards from the Catholic Press Association at their recent annual gathering in Buffalo, NY.

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B09b: CHILDREN'S BOOKS AND BOOKS FOR TEENS: Books for Teens & Young Adults

First Place

Chastity Is for Lovers by Arleen Spenceley, Ave Maria Press

Second Place

Erin's Ring by Laura H. Pearl, Bezalel Books

Third Place

Real Life Faith: Bible Companions for Catholic Teens by Mary Elizabeth Sperry, Liguori Publications

 

B28: CATHOLIC NOVELS

First Place

Master of Ceremonies by Donald Cozzens, ACTA Publications

Second Place

The Oblate's Confession by William Peak, Secant Publishing

Third Place

Erin's Ring by Laura H. Pearl, Bezalel Books

 

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I suppose I didn't need to add the highlighting.  I guess I'm just. so. excited!

Now it is my job to figure out how to get the word out about these awards, which will hopefully make Erin's Ring more attractive to prospective readers, booksellers, schools, and parishes.  If you're reading this and you have any advice to offer or know of any people I should contact, please email me.  I'd love any help you can give me!

God bless you, dear readers!

(Also, if you'd like to see a complete list of the 2015 Book Award winners, here's the CPA site.)