What I'm Afraid Of

Sometimes I forget how scared I am.

Maybe all those fantasy books that I've read throughout my life has instilled this idea in me, but I've always considered courage as a very important trait to have. The heroes in those stories are always brave. Sometimes, I like to think that I'm brave, too. But now and then something comes up that reminds me that I'm definitely not.

I'll start with a rather amusing example of one of those situations.

It happened the other day when I was in the shower. I was taking a shower, doing the usual showery things, when at the corner of my eye I spotted something on the wall just a few inches from my face. A humungous spider.

Friends, I screamed. I screamed like a girl in a Alfred Hitchcock movie. Real brave of me. I can't really blamed for that one, though.

Spider Horror Stories aside, there's other things that I'm afraid of, too. Not the kind of fear that involves screaming and frantically fleeing the vicinity, but is very scary all the same.

The fact is: I really, really don't like being up in front of crowds. Doing a speech or presentation in front of a church or class sounds like the most terrifying thing to me. I'm not sure why exactly - there's no logical reason for it - but when I'm in those situations, my knees start shaking and I struggle to catch a breath. It terrifies me.

Usually, it's not a problem. I'm not often required to get up on a stage and give speeches or sing solos.

That is, except for recently.

Scary Thing #1: The other day, a lady in my church emailed me saying that she was organizing a ladies' chorale group to sing for our new church building's open day. She asked if I was interested. My first thought was:

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NO."

Me? Singing in front of my church? Ridiculous. Sure, there would be four or five other ladies singing with me, but still. No way.

I had a very polite decline all written out. My finger was hovering above the Send button, when all of a sudden a thought struck me. Why am I saying no? I like singing! It sounds fun! What's my problem? I realized there was only one reason.

Because I was too scared.

When I realized that, I couldn't bring myself to press that Send button. I knew it wouldn't be right.

That was when I found out that being brave is a choice.

Scary Thing #2: I'm going to be baptized this month, which I'm very happy about. One aspect has been worrying to me, though - and that's sharing my testimony in front of my church. Again, there's absolutely no reason to be scared. But I am. 

I think pushing myself to agree to do Scary Thing #1 has made it easier for me to choose to be brave about this one, too. I need to remember that this isn't about me at all. It's about obeying a principle found in God's Word, and sharing what He's done in my life. If I remember that, I think I'll be okay.

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

II Timothy 1:7

It's not easy for me to admit to all these silly fears, but I'm realizing that being scared of things doesn't make me a coward. Everyone's scared of something. Giving into those fears is where the problem lies.

I'm not really sure what the point of all this is, but I just wanted to share with you guys something that's been going on lately, and what I'm learning through it.

love,

Hannah

P.S. VLOG UPDATE! I've filmed my Q&A vlog, and now I just need to edit it. It should be up pretty soon! :)

The Cutest Birthday Party Ever

Last month we threw a party for my mom's birthday. It was honestly the cutest party that I've ever been to. So many flowers. So much pink. The bulk of the planning and decorating credit goes to my sister, Heather. She's a party genius.
 

 I loved helping Heather bring this party together for Mom. All the little touches (like the Diet Coke party favors and the old photos on display) made it really special. I got to bake and decorate the cake, which was rather terrifying exciting.

The party itself turned out so well. Yummy food, fun games, and there was even a craft table set up where people could fill in a page of a scrapbook for my mom.

Mom deserved to have a such a special party thrown for her. :)

love,

Hannah

P.S - A big huge thanks to all of you who left questions in the comments of my last post! You guys ask the best questions ever. I'm looking forward to answering them!

Ask Me Something?

So, I was thinking (a dangerous pastime, I know). I was thinking that it was about time that I made another vlog, and that this time I should make it a Q&A. I've always enjoyed watching other bloggers' Q&A videos, and I thought you guys just might have something you'd like to know.

(To be quite honest, I've been putting off making this, because I was worried that I'd come across as conceited or something. Like, "Hey peasants! Seeing as I'm such a cool and fascinating person, I'm sure you're all dyyying to ask me questions!" But then I realized that I was just being dumb. So here I am.)

If you do have any questions, go ahead and ask them down in the comments (or by email, if you prefer). Any kind of question: random questions, deep questions, impertinent questions. Now is your big chance :D I'll hopefully have the vlog up later in the month.

Later, my dear peasants!

love,

Hannah

Ain't We Got Fun // Cover Reveal!

Hey lovelies! 

Today is an exciting day. Some of you may know about about Ain't We Got Fun - a beautiful story by Emily Chapman and Emily Ann Putzke, which was originally published as a series of letters on the blogs of those two girls. I completely fell in love with that story as it was being released on their blogs. I was so excited to find out that it is going to be published as a real book on May 25th! It greatly pleased my fangirl heart.

This brings me to the point of this post: today is the day that Ain't We Got Fun's cover is revealed! Take a look:

I think I'm in love. Just look at that perfection.  

The Story:

1935: It was never much of an issue for Bess: living contentedly on her family's farm, despite the Depression which loomed around them. But when her older sister Georgiana takes off to New York City to make a fortune and help Papa out, feelings of adventure and wanderlust strike Bess at home. Through their lively letter correspondence, the sisters recount to one another their adventures, surprises, and heartaches, leaving little room for depression. For in a world of such wonder, ain't we got fun?

The Girls:

EMILY CHAPMAN, also known as Bess Rowland, is a young hobbit living in the dear old South, and she is entirely bonkers. She's a dreamer, an optimistic pessimist, and an introverted people person. Blue skies, dancing, Disney, and whipped cream make her happy, and she swears she's been to Narnia. She's been a reader all her life, became a writer because of that, and published her first novel, Cry of Hope, in March of 2014. But without her Savior, all of this would mean nothing. It is in Him that she puts her hope. “And hope does not disappoint us, for God has poured out His love into hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” – Romans 5: 5

 

EMILY ANN PUTZKE and Gi Rowland have two big things in common – their love for God and coffee. Besides writing historical fiction, Emily enjoys being an aunty, photography, Irish dancing, spending time with family, attempting to play the guitar, reenacting, and reading. She loves polka dots, war movies, and all things vintage. Her first novella, It Took a War, was published in December of 2014.

I'm so excited to get my hands on a copy of that gorgeous book, and for more readers to get to experience this story!

love,
Hannah

Dystopian Dishes // Fictional Feasts

“I'd go home now if they'd let me. But you have to admit, the food's prime.”

“What’s impressed you most since you arrived here?” 

I rack my brain for something that made me happy here. Be honest, I think. Be honest. 

“The lamb stew,” I get out. 

Caesar laughs, and vaguely I realize some of the audience has joined in. 

“The one with the dried plums?” asks Caesar. I nod. “Oh, I eat it by the bucketful.”

- The Hunger Games

“Have a piece of cake for me, all right? The chocolate. It's delicious.”

- Divergent

"'There was cake?'

...'Yeah, someone just brought it out. Found a couple of boxes of the mix in the back and baked it,' he says. 'You can have a few bites of mine.'

'A few bites? So you're planning on eating that mountain of cake by yourself?'

'Yes.' He looks confused. 'Why?'”

 - Insurgent

 Coincidentally, my very first Fictional Feasts post was published exactly a year ago today. I didn't initially intend for it to be such a long-lasting project, but it's been way too much fun to stop. Thank you all for being enthusiastic and encouraging about it from the start! Hope you like this latest edition.

 I don't think that it's possible to read The Hunger Games and not find yourself wanting to try Katniss' favorite lamb stew, nor to read the Divergent trilogy and not end up longing for a piece of Dauntless chocolate cake. All that food just sounds so good. It was a Fictional Feast waiting to happen. I wasn't disappointed.

Katniss' Lamb Beef Stew with Dried Plum: As a long time Hunger Games fan, I was pretty excited to finally try this. I used this recipe, and it was SCRUMPTIOUS. A lot of work to make, but worth it. I changed the recipe a bit - the biggest change being that I used beef instead of lamb. Personal preference, and I figured Katniss wouldn't mind. My family liked the stew a lot - my mom said it was the best stew she ever had!

Dauntless Chocolate Cake: Just like the cake in the book, I made this from a mix. However, I tweaked it. I googled "how to make a cake mix better" and discovered these two awesome tips: 1. Use hot water instead of room temperature and 2. Add an extra egg yolk. I also added some instant coffee for a flavor boost. Topped with my favorite chocolate icing, this cake was the earth-shatteringly gorgeous. Not even exaggerating. I think that Tobias would approve.


Katniss and Tris' worlds may have be utter disasters, but the food is great.


love,
Hannah

P. S. Yesterday I posted over on the awesome blog, Plottinger Twist. I talked about What I Look for in a Fantasy Novel. I'd love it if you went over and checked it out! Make sure you stick around to see what lovely things Hannah has going on there.

Words That Mean a Lot

Home, Nostalgia,

Gratitude, Regret,

Story, Love, Family,

Hurt, Grief, Alone,

Forgiven,

Together, Remember,

Maybe, Wish,

Hope.

Unrelated message: Hey lovelies! For the last few hours I've been working on uploading this new blog template (it shouldn't have taken me "hours" but I'm not very...technical). I'm very very excited about it. A new design was long overdue. When I saw this one on Designer Blogs I was just like yep, that's mine, thank you, bye. I hope you guys like it, too!

Also, have a lovely Good Friday, and a lovely Easter. I'll be around with a new post soon!

love,

Hannah

How to Feel Better

I hate being sick.

I know I'm not alone in this. Even something as common as a cold is just downright miserable, isn't it? This past weekend I was experiencing a particularly nasty cold. Most of my poor family had gotten it earlier in the week, so I knew that soon enough (despite the vitamins that I was being diligent to take) I would end up with it, too.

For the last few days I've been trying my hardest to battle against this cold with all of my tried-and-true weapons. They made being sick a lot less horrible. Everyone has their own methods of dealing with feeling sick and bleh and gross, but in this post I thought I would share some of mine. Some of these things are incredibly obvious, but I thought it just might be helpful to someone out there. (Hi Someone- out-there! Hi!)

i. Long, Hot Showers. Goodness, am I grateful for showers and hot water! Showers somehow make you feel a lot less sick. It may not cure your cold, but at least you'll be clean and smell like flowers (or whatever your shower gel might be). Remember to moisturize afterwards!

ii. Herbal Tea. I don't usually drink herbal tea - most of the time I much prefer a cup of regular tea or coffee. When I'm sick, though, I head straight for the shelf of herbal teas. It works wonders, I'm telling you. Also, stirring in some honey supposedly helps soothe a sore throat (plus it makes the tea yummier). Personal favorite teas: Twining's Mango and Strawberry and Twining's Blackcurrent and Rhubarb.

iii. Watching happy movies definitely makes you feel better. I always watch Sense and Sensibility (1995) when I'm not feeling well. It's a tradition. Hugh Grant Jane Austen makes everything better.

iv. Radio theatres. Focus on the Family Radio Theatres are some of my favorite things. They are especially nice when you're sick - because you can just lay in your bed, close your eyes, and enjoy a good story. I listened The Secret Garden yesterday (for the billionth time) and it was awesome.

v.  Eating healthy is a good idea. You might think that since you're sick you should "treat yourself" to junky food, but it really doesn't make you feel any better. But healthy food actually does. Healthy food is happy food, right? (an exception to this is chocolate. Chocolate helps everything. Eat up.)

vi. Listening to a sermon is a great thing to do when you're stuck in bed. I had to miss church yesterday, so while my family was gone I made myself a cup (or two) of coffee, laid on the couch with my blankets and pillows, and listened to a sermon from the interwebz. Definitely recommend.

vii. Hang out with your cat. Cats are awesome because they'll just hang out and be lazy with you. Amelia and Alfred thought it was pretty great that they had a person to sleep on all day. If you don't have a cat, borrow a friend's?

viii. Keep your room tidy. It makes you feel better. I realized this after a few days of living in a messy room.

ix. Drink WATER. Stay hydrated, folks.


Do let me know what YOU do to make yourself feel better when you're sick! I MUST LEARN YOUR SECRETS.

love,
Hannah