Country Music, Tired Selfies, and Spring Weather || February Recap

Holy cow...what just happened?

January flew by, but February? It flew by, y'all. As a wise human on Instagram said, "january took a whole thirty-six years to go by but february only lasted as long as your last meaningful relationship."

Which is basically true.

|| Life. || 

>> I went to a Zach Williams/Citizen Way concert with my mom on the first Saturday of the month. The bro got us tickets for Christmas. It was so awesome! :D

>> When you're watching WCTH and they're talking about past presidents... But like, y'all are Canadian... *scratches head*


>> Someone told me that the song Nothin' Like You reminds them of me and that totally made my day. ^-^


>> The When Calls the Heart blog party gave me the notion to re-watch the entire season. We're currently in season 4, and I can hardly wait to start season 5. :D


>> Weather around here has been so weird lately. It's rained nearly all month (okay, so that part isn't so weird. We practically live in a rainforest ;P) and it's been really warm! It's quite a bit cooler now, but for awhile it felt like spring. Which—as much as I like winter—was kinda nice. ;)

>> I didn't mention this in my January recap, but I made an unofficial resolution to exercise more this year. In January, I...didn't do so good. I took short walks pretty often, but I only biked like two days. This month, I did a bit better, and I've started running with my mom a couple days a week...which is harder than I expected it to be. Someone is in much worse shape than she thought. *cough*


>> I listened to music this month—a lot of which was country music, thanks to a certain human whom I stayed up to midnight to write with. Some favorites are... Pray With You - Mallary Hope. Looking Back at Me - Mallary Hope. Water Tower Town - Scotty McCreery. Marry Me - Thomas Rhett. Satisfy - Tenth Avenue North. I Am Sure - Dan Bremnes. Five More Minutes - Scotty McCreery.


>> I took a lot of tired selfies this month...? According to my phone photos, I did. xD Here's a fav, which made it's way to Instagram on Saturday night...

|| Books. || 

Sooo...reading didn't go that well this month. (Not sure what was up with that, other than I've noticed that I rarely have two good reading months in a row. :P) But the books I did read? AMAZING. <33

// Reads 

A Marriage of the Heart by Kelly Long -- 5 stars
At the Edge of a Dark Forest by Connie Almony -- 4.5 stars
Sleeping Handsome by Rebekah Eddy -- 4 stars -- Review HERE.
Meet My Boyfriend by Willowy Whisper -- 5 stars -- Review HERE.

I also read the books of Deuteronomy and Joshua. Loving this Old Testament history! :D

// Books Bought 

I got two darling little books this month. <3 And took less than $10 from my reading challenge!

Kindred Souls -- Thriftbooks
Andora's Folly -- bought from author

|| Writing. || 

Writing was kind of interesting this month. Sad too, as I made the decision to set War Tears aside for now.

Yeah, you read that right. After tottering back and forth since shortly after the holidays, I finally decided that it just wasn't working. I literally dreaded having to sit down to work on it. I was improving it in many ways, sure. But it didn't feel like enough.

I finally came to the realization that my heart wasn't in it. I was no longer passionate about the story that I poured two years into, on and off. It still holds a special place in my heart and it always will. I have no doubt that, someday (probably sooner rather than later ;P), I'll dive back into it. I'll cut all those unnecessary rambles, strengthen the characters, and discover the book's theme and purpose.

But now is not that time.

On the other hand, I'm making great progress on A Soldier's Freedom. I finished my read-through of the first draft, left a ton of sticky-notes throughout (you can take a peek at the notes here, if you're really bored...pardon the background noise), and brainstormed a few things that didn't add up. I'm looking forward to starting the actual edit soon! :D

I got Love Needs No Words back from beta-readers, and I'm currently working through edits. Everything is on-track for a March 20th release for the story that's in that awkward spot that's kinda a short-story and kinda a novelette...whatever that is. ;P

Also, #sidenote. Lisa from Inkwell posted about her top anticipated releases and she included Love Needs No Words, y'all!! :D *happy author squeal*

And while we're on the subject of squeals... I won a short-story contest!! I entered the Circle C Short-Story Contest back in January and found out this month that I won. The winners were posted here. :)

|| Blogging. || 

// Favorite Posts

The Peculiar Messenger ~ Every Breath is a Gift

The Ramblings of a Bookworm ~ Me

Merikthorne Library ~ Dandelion Dust by Faith Potts

Nadine Brandes ~ Dear Singles, It's Okay to Be Picky

A Purpose and a Promise ~ Right Here

// Blog Party

My friend, Rebekah, and I co-hosted a When Calls the Heart blog party this month. It was so much fun! :D 

Day One ~ Day Two ~ Day Three ~ Day Four ~ Day Five ~ Day Six 

// My Posts

|| Goals. || 

~ February Goals 

>> Read 8 books.        *sobs* nooo...

>> Finish editing War Tears pt.2 and send it to alphas.        Nope. For #reasons

>> Stay caught up with emails and blogging.        Nailed it. xD

>> Post on both blogs once a week, plus a couple posts on the group blog.        Yep. But only one post on the group blog. ;D

>> Start applying beta-readers feedback on Love Needs No Words.        Yup!

>> Finish my read-through of A Soldier's Freedom.        Yes!

~ March Goals 

>> Read 8 books.

>> Stay caught up on emails.

>> Publish Love Needs No Words.

>> Edit 9 chapters of A Soldier's Freedom.

>> Finish my Grammar, Bible, and History courses. (Finishing these subjects for the last time as a high schooler is like.... o.o)


How was your February? What are you looking forward to in March? Let's chat!

~Faith

My Life in Books // a tag I stole from my favorite book tuber

Am I the only one that absolutely adores books, bookishness, bookstagram, and booktubers? I think not. ;) Today I bring to you a bookish tag that I unofficially borrowed from my favorite booktuber.

Lindsey blogs over at Books for Christian Girls. On her booktube, she recently did the My Life in Books tag. It looked like SO much fun, and I decided to nab it for a bookish post for the blog. ;D

// Find a book for each of your initials

F ~ From This Moment by Elizabeth Camden ~ Charming, intriguing, historically-rich mystery! 

L ~ Love Finds You in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts by Melody Carlson ~ This book looks super sweet, and the cover is just lovely. <3 

P ~ Promise Me This by Cathy Gohlke ~ Titanic and WWI? Sign me up. ;D 

// Count your age along your bookshelf. What book is it?

Because I have several shelves full of books, I chose to count along my TBR shelf. The 17th book is Behind Enemy Lines: The Story of a Young Pilot by H.R. Demallie.

// Pick a book set in your country. 

Well...nearly every book on my shelves is set in my country. :P So, I copied Lindsey and took it a step closer, and chose a book set in my state. The Mandie series by Lois Gladys Leppard. Sure, Mandie travels a lot, but her home is in North Carolina. ;D 

// Pick a book that represents a destination you'd love to travel to. 

Umm...Well, I want to visit WWII battle places, so lots of books would work here. xD We'll go with Remembering You by Tricia Goyer...

// Pick a book that is your favorite color. 

My favorite color is blue (betcha saw that coming... XD), and I have a ton of blue books. Anchor in the Storm is one of my favorite blue covers though.

// Which book do you have the fondest memories of?

Literally anything by Wanda Brunstetter. Well, anything that's not a recent release. I read most of her  Amish books when I was younger. I carried The Hope Chest into a tree and spent nearly the whole day there, lost in the story. Another book (Looking for a Miracle, perhaps) went with me into the back of a dog house where I read...and got trapped there by two dogs that decided to reclaim their home... *ahem* Story for another time. ;) 

// Which book did you have the most difficulty reading?

There have been a couple books that I had to finish to review, but I can't think of anything that I really struggled with, other than just not having the time for it... 

// Which book in your TBR pile will give you the biggest accomplishment when you finish it?

A classic, probably. xD Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, to name one.

Since I wasn't tagged I'm not going to tag anyone, but if y'all would like to do this, you should totally steal it from me. ;)

Hope y'al enjoyed! Who's your favorite booktuber?
~Faith 

When Calls the Heart party ~ Day Six ~ Character Bios

A lovely Saturday morning to you all! I seriously cannot believe that today is the end of the party, but... *shakes head* I suppose all good things must come to an end. ;)

For the final day of the party, I went back and forth on several ideas for a post and finally decided on seven character bios. I've placed them in order of appearance on the show. ;D

Elizabeth Thatcher 

Sweet and caring, Elizabeth enters the series on the first episode as the new schoolteacher of Hope Valley. She comes from a wealthy family in Hamilton, and she is the middle of the three Thatcher daughters. Elizabeth has had a relationship with Jack Thornton from nearly the beginning, and the two got engaged in season 4.

Abigail Stanton

Compassionate and wise, Abigail is a widow of one of the miners that was killed shortly before the show begins. She's on the show from the beginning as well. Partway through season 1, she opens a cafe in town. Abigail briefly dated Bill Avery in season 1 and 2, and then began a relationship with Frank Hogan in season 3. She also adopted Cody and Becky, two orphan children.

Jack Thornton 

With the Royal North West Mounted Police, Jack is the town's loyal and protective constable. His father died when he was young, but both his brother, Tom, and his mother, Charlotte, make appearances on the show. He also has been on the show since the first episode, and he's engaged to Elizabeth Thatcher as of mid-season 4.

Rosemary LeVeaux Coulter 

Rosemary is a hilarious and charming former actress. She enters the show toward the end of the first season as Jack's former fiancée. Thankfully, she and Jack decide that would never have worked and, romantically speaking, part ways. Rosemary remains in town and begins a relationship with Lee Coulter. The two were engaged and married in season 3.

Bill Avery

Bill appears on the show at the end of season 1, when he comes to town to investigate the mine disaster. Even after that is resolved, he sticks around. Bill was in a relationship with Abigail Stanton for awhile, and then later briefly dated Dottie Ramsey. His wife/ex-wife, Nora, also makes appearances on the show.

Leland (Lee) Coulter 

Lee is a business man who comes on the show in season 2. He opens a lumber mill in the thriving town of Hope Valley, offering a source of employment after the coal mine closes. He pursues a relationship with Rosemary LeVeaux, and they got married on the season 3 finale.

Rip

Rip is Jack's dog. Jack found him lying in the street (literally) near the beginning of season 1, and rather adopted him. He lives with Jack in the jail, and is the source of several humorous moments.



Don't forget to visit Rebekah's blog for her last post of the party! :D

Who's your favorite character? Have you enjoyed the party as much as we have? :D
~Faith

When Calls the Heart party ~ Day Five ~ Funny Moments

Happy Friday, dear friends! Can you believe there's only one day (well, after today xD) left of the party? It has seriously flown by!

Today I'm going to share some random funny moments from the show, interspersed with humorous random pictures. Most of the photos are behind the scenes/off-set. ;) 

~ Jack and Elizabeth's arguments and disagreements in Lost & Found. The way they go back and forth is so hilarious! ;D

~ When Elizabeth falls asleep in the classroom/saloon and Jack leaves a note stuck to her forehead.

~ When Elizabeth gives Jack the intelligence test, and then he gives it to her and tells her she didn't do very well... Those scenes are just so adorable and cute and comical. ;D <3

~ The canvas. Need I say more? Jack secretively paints a backdrop for a play that the children are presenting, and includes a depiction of himself and Elizabeth...kissing. It's quite amusing when she confronts him about it later. ;)

~ Rosemary enjoys doting on Lee after he hurts his foot at the lumber mill. I don't usually like GIFs, but this one is absolutely adorable. *points below*

~ Rosemary and Lee's marriage counseling session with Pastor Frank, shortly before their wedding. The part where Rosemary talks about 'sticky children' never fails to crack me up.

~ When Bill is filling in for Abigail at the cafe and someone dares complain about their food... Clara tells Bill, and he approaches the man, wearing an apron with spatula in hand. ;D

~ The baseball game! Elizabeth and Jack as opposing coaches was sweet and funny, and the game—including Bill and Abigail disagreeing on a call—was so fun.

~ When Lee's loses his voice...and Rosemary accompanies him to work and 'assists' him. Oh goodness, it's insanely funny. Poor Lee looks miserable. ;)

I hope you enjoyed!! Obviously this isn't all of the comical moments from the show, but these are a few I thought of. Be sure to visit Rebekah's blog and read her post for today. :D

What's your favorite funny moment from WCTH?
~Faith

When Calls the Heart party ~ Day Four ~ Collaboration

Welcome to day four, friends! :) Rebekah and I have a special When Calls the Heart collab chat for y'all today. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading as we chat about our beloved series!

F: Hey, Rebekah! I’m enjoying the When Calls the Heart blog party so much! How about you? :D


R: Yes! This is always such a fun blogging week!


F: Agreed! And co-hosting with my WCTH buddy makes it special. ;)


R: Co-hosting definitely makes it all the more fun! Having a When Calls the Heart buddy is the best!


F: It definitely is. And you’re the one who got me started watching the show! How did you become a Heartie?


R: I’m pretty happy about that! ;)
I watched the When Calls the Heart movie and it was okay. Not my favorite movie though. In the bonus features it mentioned that there was going to be a TV series. I wasn’t all that excited seeing as how the movie wasn’t a favorite. Well, in the summer of 2014 my dad was at the Christian bookstore and When Calls the Heart: A Telling Silence was on sale so he picked it up. We watched it and I enjoyed it. So we went and got the first one and I couldn’t wait for the rest to come out. I got hooked on this lovely show very quickly. So, that’s pretty much how I became a Heartie. ;)


F: That’s so cool!! Kudos to your dad. ;) A Telling Silence is a really sweet show. You’d been telling me how great the show is for a couple months, and then I found the first three shows for only a couple dollars on CBD. So I bought them and my family watched them and loved them immediately! We’d re-watched those three several times by the time the rest of Season One arrived. ;)
Speaking of the movie...I almost want to watch that one to see how it compares, but no one could ever replace Jack and Elizabeth. ;)


R: Yes, I was thinking that it was a show you’d really like so I was so thrilled when you told me you got those first three! I was even more excited when you loved them as much as me! ;) Talking with you about When Calls the Heart is so wonderful. :D
The movie is sort of good, but yes, no one can replace Elizabeth and Jack. Actually I don’t even think Jack is in the movie… ;)


F: I’m so glad I took your advice! ;D
Hehe, I was wondering about that… Is the love-interest still a Mountie?


R: :D
Yes, the love-interest is still a Mountie. Jack is way better though. ;)


F: *grins* I imagine he is.
Who would you say are your top favorites characters? :D


R: Oh, this is a hard one to answer! ;) Well, I just love Elizabeth, Jack, Abigail, and Rosemary. Those would be my top favorites.
What about you? Who are your top favorite characters?


F: I should have known better than to ask that, huh? ;) It is a hard one! Hmm...I think I would have to choose Jack, Elizabeth, Rosemary, and Bill as my top favorites. Abigail and Lee would be close ‘honorable mentions.’ ;)


R: Hehe. ;) It is hard to pick!
Those are great ones! I almost said Lee. He’s so great with Rosemary. ;)
I had a feeling you might choose Bill. He is great though, a bit confusing at times, but I’m so glad that he stuck around.


F: Lee and Rosemary are just SO cute! They need kids. You know...sticky ones… ;)
I’m glad Bill has stuck around too. There was several times I thought that he might get ‘written off’, so I’m glad he didn’t.


R: *laughs* Yes! Lee and Rosemary totally need kids! Hehe, yep...sticky ones.. ;)
I’m so glad that Bill didn’t get written off! I don’t like it when that happens to characters.
So, what would you say is your favorite season?


F: I don’t like it when that happens either! Like, Tom and Julie. I’m dying to know what became of them after Season Two. I’ve heard that Julie will be on Season Five though… Do you have any speculations on that?
Oh, that’s hard too! Well, I really loved season one with all the aftermath of the mine cave-in. And then season three was really great with all the Lee and Rosemary moments! And season four is amazing too. Haha, I’m having trouble with this one. ;D What about you?


R: Yes, Tom and Julie just disappeared! I really hope that story-line comes back. I remember you saying that you heard Julie will be in season 5! It’s about time. ;) I don’t have too many speculations on that story. I just really hope something happens. Season 2 ended really badly with that story line! (Well, actually it ended badly overall. ;))
Hehe, choosing a favorite season is hard! ;) Season 1 really was great and a great start to a wonderful series. I think I’d have to say that season 4 is my favorite though. :)


F: Hehe, agreed! The end of season 2 was a terrible cliffhanger in more ways than one! I only have one speculation on Julie’s return—that she comes to Hope Valley for her sister’s wedding. ;) That’s something that I really hope to see on season 5!
Season 4 is really wonderful!! :)


R: Definitely! I was excited when Jack was heading to the school with the ring for Elizabeth but then Charles had to go and ruin it!!
Oh, that’s a great speculation! I really hope Jack and Elizabeth get married in season 5!


F: I know it!! I may or may not have been yelling at the TV when I realized who was down on one knee...because, you know, that totally helped… ;) I wonder if Jack will ever tell Elizabeth how long he’d had the ring before he actually got to propose.
Me too!! I imagine them having a really pretty wedding. :D


R: Haha! Yes, yelling at the TV totally helps… ;) Yeah, I kinda wonder the same thing!
I think they would really have a nice wedding. The proposal was SO sweet so I’m sure their wedding would be too!


F: Totally. *wink* It would definitely be an emotional scene! <3
Yes!! The proposal was very sweet and thoughtful. Jack is quite romantic. ;) Sometimes I get focused on recent happenings between them, and I forget that they have been an item nearly since the beginning. Remember when he painted them into the backdrop? And gave her the picture he drew of the two of them? And the first kiss? <3


R: Jack really is quite romantic. ;) Yes, they’ve been an item for a long time now!
Yes! The backdrop! And when Elizabeth went to go tell Jack that someone painted them in the backdrop? His response was so funny. ;) The picture and their first kiss! <3 Eeps! So many sweet memories between those two!


F: *laughs* Yes, that was funny! He did a good job on the innocent act. So much sweetness! <3 Do you have a favorite Jack and Elizabeth moment? :D


R: Yes, he definitely did! ;D
Oh wow! A favorite Jack and Elizabeth moment...Hmmm...well the proposal was the sweetest, but I really liked it in the beginning of season 4 when Jack and Elizabeth were the baseball coaches. ;) That was so funny and sweet!
Do you have a favorite Jack and Elizabeth moment?


F: The proposal was very sweet! That whole episode was. <3 The baseball episode was great too! Haha, yes, I loved seeing them opposing each other...and Bill breaking up the near-fight. ;D
Hmm...there's just so many! I really loved the end of season three when Jack got swept away in the flooded river and developed pneumonia. (You know how I am with injuries… ;))  I liked a lot of the early shows too, when they weren’t always happy with each other. ;)


R: That episode was sweet! Emotional too!
*laughs* Bill the umpire did almost have to break up a fight!  That was great. ;)
There really are! Oh my goodness, yes! How could I forget that part! That was another emotional part! (Hehe, yes, you always love those injuries. ;))
It was so funny when Jack and Elizabeth didn’t always get along. ;D


F: It was so funny! ;D
That show was so great! And much better season finale than season two, I believe we can agree. (Anything feelsy and I’m in. *wink*)
It was! I’m glad they came to like each other eventually, though, and fell in love despite some opposition.


R: Oh yes! I definitely agree, the season 3 finale was way better than the season 2 one! (*wink*)


F: Yes, it was! Now, if they’d left Jack unconscious and not told us if he lived until the beginning of season 4, I might have had a different opinion on that. ;)
Well, it’s been so much fun chatting with you this afternoon, dear girl! :D


R: That would’ve been horrible!!!
It has been blast chatting with you too! :D


F: I know!! How would we have survived months of waiting?! ;)
This party is so much fun! So glad we were able to do it again this year. :D


R: I’m not sure if we would’ve been able to handle it *wink*
It is super fun! I’m so glad we were able to do it again too! Doing a post together has been really fun too! :D


F: *wink* Definitely wouldn’t have been good for our health.
Yes, it has been! :D Have a good day, Rebekah!


R: Definitely not! ;)
You have a great day too, Faith!


F: Bye! :) Thanks for reading, all!


R: Yes, thanks for reading! We hope you enjoyed it. ;)


F: Yep! :D




Hope y'all enjoyed this as much as we enjoyed putting it together. Click here to check out Rebekah's post! :D

~Faith

When Calls the Heart party ~ Day Three ~ Cute Couples

Happy Valentines Day, friends! :) In honor of the day, we're going to talk about all the cute couples of When Calls the Heart. ;D

(My apologies for the lateness of this post. Faith overslept, skipped breakfast, dashed out the door, and just got home from a class. :P)

I'm going to divide the couples into 'those who made it'—the ones who are still couples—and 'those who didn't'—the couples who didn't last. ;)

Those Who Made It 

Lee and Rosemary ~ Lee and Rosemary are a super cute couple! Rosemary appeared first on the show in late-season 1, and I did not like her. She was trying to come between Jack and Elizabeth, which is not okay. Lee came onto the show in early season 2, I believe. (The seasons run together in my mind, y'all. xD) I didn't like him at first either. I thought he was a con-man. ;D But eventually, I came to adore them both, especially when together. Their proposal and wedding was so sweet! <3

Jack and Elizabeth ~ Being the main characters, these two have been on the show since the beginning. Elizabeth is Hope Valley's schoolteacher and Jack is the town's constable. These two have some really cute moments and I'm hoping for a wedding in season 5. :D <3

Jesse and Clara ~ Clara originally entered the series as Abigail's daughter-in-law who no one knew existed. I wasn't sure if I liked her at first, but she's super sweet. Jesse first appeared in the New Years special that is part of season 3. I...didn't like him at first either?  (I'm so untrusting. xD) But he proved himself, so I guess he can stick around...and they are pretty cute... ;)

Those Who Didn't 

Bill and Abigail ~ Bill came to the town and the show in season 1 to aid Jack in investigating the mine disaster. Pretty soon, he was dating Abigail Stanton, one of the miners' widows who's been on the show since the beginning. Before long, it came out that Bill was married—something he'd lied to Abigail about—and their relationship obviously fell apart. :P They are now business partners though, and Abigail is dating Pastor Frank Hogan.

Julie and Tom ~ Elizabeth's little sister, Julie, came on the show near the end of season 1, and then returned in season 2. Tom is Jack's younger—and quite troublesome—brother. We haven't seen anything from either of them since the end of season 2. Both of them need to grow up a bit before attempting a serious relationship, but they were still pretty fun. ;D



Visit Rebekah's blog for lots of adorable Jack & Elizabeth moments! :D (Also, in case you missed it, there's an epic indie book sale going on right now.)

Who's your favorite WCTH couple? :D
~Faith