(1868-1930), American cartoonist

We have a saying here in Colorado: If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. It will change. (Note: This statement is always said with a certain amount of pride.)

Weather … when all else fails in a conversation, you can always fall back on, “Nice weather we’re having, eh?” Or “It’s sooooo hot. ” Or “It’s sooooo cold.” Whatever works.

And people pick their favorite types of weather. Several of my kiddos like rainy days. My son loves lightning storms. Me? I like windy days — and we get those a lot here in Colorado. Maybe I’ll post a picture of our newly-sided house once the job is complete. We have 90 MPH winds to thank for our new siding.

In Your Words: So … weather. How do you like it?

**Award-winning author Lena Nelson Dooley interviews me over at her blog today — and offers the chance to enter the Wish You Were Here iPad giveaway & win a copy of my novel. Drop by if you want to find out the quirkiest thing I’ve ever done!**

And I’d like to keep that going — but turn the attention to someone else.

Keli Gwyn is one of the nicest, kindest, most encouraging persons I’ve met as I’ve traveled the writing road. As a matter of fact, I could have filled the previous sentence up with a lot more adjectives about Keli and not been exaggerating. That’s a photo of Keli at last year’s ACFW conference. She wore a beautiful period costume.

Here’s the fun thing: Keli’s a debut-author-to-be! Her novel, A Bride Opens Shop in El Dorado, California releases July 1. I preordered my copy months ago and can’t wait to read it.  Here’s a glimpse into what Keli’s novel is about:

An ever-resourceful widow, Elenora Watkins arrives in El Dorado ready to go into partnership with Miles Rutledge. When he refuses, Elenora becomes the competition across the street. Is this town big enough for the two of them?

Miles can’t help but stick his well-polished boot in his mouth whenever he comes face-to-face with Elenora. Can he find a way to win her heart while destroying her business?

In Your Words: I’ve preordered Keli’s book  and I hope you do too! What books are in your To Be Read (TBR) pile?

One “happy” winner will receive:

• A brand new iPad with Wi-Fi (The must-have, do-everything gadget!)
• Wish You Were Here by Beth K. Vogt (Swoon worthy.)
• $15 iTunes Gift Card (Music, books, apps, & more.)

Hurry, the giveaway ends on 6/4/12. The winner will be announced 6/6/12 on Beth’s website! Just click one of the icons below to enter! Tell your friends about the  giveaway on FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. As a debut author, I appreciate you telling others about my novel. Thank you so much!

Today’s the day — and I couldn’t be more excited!!

Tonight I’m celebrating the launch of Wish You Were Here with three other authors who also debuted in May:

Dani Pettrey: Submerged

Katie Ganshert: Wildflowers from Winter

Olivia Newport: The Pursuit of Lucy Banning

I hope you can join us for a one-of-a-kind live launch party!

Time: 7:30 – 9:00 PM (CST)

Location: Relz Reviewz‘s newly revamped website!

We’ll share fun recipes, give away hundreds of dollars worth of amazing prizes, and, because life is about more than getting, we’ll also highlight a worthy charity to make the night complete.

I hope you join us for the fun!

“A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.” ~ William Shakespeare, English poet and playwright

I think William Shakespeare’s definition of friendship is a good one:

• being known
• being understood
• being accepted
• being encouraged to grow

My life is more honest because of friends who are trustworthy with my heart and my hurts and my hopes.

My dreams are given wings and my disappointments are eased because of friends who stick by me through the good and the bad.

My ability to accept myself increases because of friends who love me for who I really am — and who walk with me as I continue to make the discovery.

My life is all the richer because of friends who tell me “You can be more. You can do more. You can change. You can overcome.”

In Your Words:  Who has been a friend to you? Was it by knowing you? Understanding you? Accepting you? Encouraging you to grow? Or all of the above?

**I am a guest over at writer Pat Trainum’s blog today. I hope you drop by!**

Tomorrow night is the Debutantes’ Story Soiree with debut authors Dani Pettrey, Katie Ganshert and Olivia Newport! Join us at Rel’s new website (Relz Reviewz) for a wonderful time of conversation, hundreds of dollars worth of giveaways, and information about a wonderful organization that ministers to orphans.

“Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.”

~Mother Teresa, founder of the Missionaries of Charity

In Your Words: If you were to focus on one line in this quote, which one would it be? “Life is a promise, fulfill it” is the sentence that caught my eye. It challenges me to stay committed to life … to what I believe in … to what God calls me to … to the promises I’ve made.

**I’m visiting my friend Lisa Jordan’s blog today. I’m sharing how my romantic adventures mirror Allison’s, the heroine’s in Wish You Were Here.I hope you can stop by.**

My family has been the best support for me during this crazy, dream come true time. And I so appreciated that they prayed with me before the party began.

If you’re wondering how I felt about the day, this photo pretty much says it all: I had a blast! It was so much fun to be surrounded by family and friends who were excited about my novel. How could I not spend the day smiling and laughing?

Me with two of my dearest friends! Shari (middle) — well, let’s just say there wouldn’t have been a book launch party without her making it happen. And Sonia is my ever-faithful “Preferred Reader,” who gives me feedback on my novels.

This photo is one of my favorites! It’s me with my a-ma-zing agent, Rachelle Gardner. I thank God for blessing me with Rachelle’s influence in my life. (I also love how the photographer framed my wedding gown in the shot too.)

I enlarged the cover of WYWH and matted it. Guests signed it instead of a traditional guest book and I plan to frame it and hang it in my office.

I had lots of fun talking with people. I love the people God has brought into my life — and Saturday was a one-of-a-kind reminder that I have a lot to be thankful for. Oh! That ceramic plate on the table? My family made that for me. It looks like a stamp (think postcards & stamps, as in the postcards in WYWH) and says “First Edition” and has my book cover on it. It’s going on the wall in my office too.

What’s a WYWH celebration without a llama kiss? Or cake? Or a hug or a kiss from my husband?

This celebration included all that and more! I’ll be posting a photo album on my author Facebook page!

**I’m guest blogging over at The Writers Alley today about Real Life and Writing Life. I hope you drop by! **

“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” ~Winston Churchill (1874-1965), British politician & statesman

You know what the all-wise “they” say: It’s all a matter of perspective.

I can’t argue with “them” this time.

Am I going through life seeing all the difficulties? Or am I going through life embracing all the opportunities?

Probably a bit of both.

I haven’t kept track of my optimist versus pessimist tendency. Some times I’m all about “I can do this.” And sometimes I’m an Eeyore with this kind of perspective:

We may chuckle at Eeyore … but, really, do we want to be an Eeyore?

In Your Words: Choose one  – difficulty or opportunity. What helps you turn the one (difficulty) into the other (opportunity)?

** I’m a guest over at Jill Kemerer’s blog today. I hope you drop by and visit! **

You read that right: 32 years. I celebrate my 32nd wedding anniversary with my husband Rob on May 24.

With my book launch celebration slated for May 5 (just a couple of days ago), I decided it was time to unpack my wedding gown. Why? In Wish You Were Here, my debut novel, the heroine’s wedding gown is almost a secondary character.

Women spend a lot of time searching for the perfect wedding gown. Then again, sometimes they find themselves wishing they hadn’t said yes to the dress. That’s exactly how my heroine Allison feels about her dress, which she thinks of as a “walking fire code violation”  a “designer debacle” and, oh yeah, a “silken tsunami.”

Unlike Allison, I felt beautiful in my wedding gown, which included a hoop skirt because, well, how romantic is that? 

At my celebration this past Saturday I displayed my wedding gown on a dress form — right next to a beautiful wedding cake made by my friend, Wendy. It was fun to tell people that was my dress.

And then … I shared the mystery we unpacked with my gown. Inside the box was my pristine dress, my simple wedding veil … and some other bride’s wedding veil.

Gasp!

It’s a lovely, expensive long lace veil, complete with an ornate crown. And I have no idea who it belongs to or how to find the owner. Sounds like the beginning of a novel, doesn’t it?

In Your Words: Yes, that’s me holding the mystery veil (my husband has my veil). If you’re married, did you find your perfect gown? If you’re not yet married — do you have a dream gown in mind? What would you do if you found a mystery veil hidden in the box with your wedding gown?

**I’ve started a website photo gallery of readers/friends in their wedding gowns. I’d love for you to send me your photo to add to the collection! Please send the photo to beth@bethvogt.com.**

“If you aren’t in over your head, how do you know how tall you are?”
T.S. Eliot (188-1965), poet

My son Josh isn’t afraid of a challenge.

On Sunday, May 6, Josh ran the Spartan Race, a 5 mile race, complete with some crazy obstacles. Imagine climbing wooden walls slicked with mud and soap. Yeah, that’s ironic, isn’t it? And throwing javelins. And flipping huge tires. Doing a low-crawl barbed-wire obstacle course through water. Oh, yeah. And jumping over a line of fire before running past some guys with pugil sticks.

Fun, eh? Crazy fun.

Five miles of challenging himself. To conquer obstacles. To finish the race. To do what he set out to do: be victorious.

Before my son even began the course, I was proud of him. He’d already stepped up and won just by choosing to take on the challenge. He’d looked at something he’d never done before and, instead of backing down, he said, “I’m all in.”

All of my kiddos are like that. They don’t back down from challenges. I love their “Bring it on” attitudes. And when one of their siblings takes on a solo challenge, they stand on the sidelines (literally or figuratively) and cheer each other on.

In Your Words: Life: Are you in over your head or are you playing it safe? When you’re facing a challenge, who stands on the sidelines and cheers for you?