When You Can't -- God Can! By Carrie Fancett Pagels

I blogged last week about some packing suggestions for folks with autoimmune or other chronic health issues. I haven't made any more progress with our packing, I confess, but this week I was enabled by God to transport my son up and down the road to the College of William & Mary for an ID Tech Camp. Isn't that a great statue, above? It's in the lovely business building where my son took classes!

To many people, commuting a child may not be a big deal. It didn't used to be to me -- or rather I didn't think it was until during an arthritis flare I fell asleep in the parked car after commuting my then-elementary school aged daughter to horseback lessons. But I've learned since then what some of my limitations are. So in this case, the weekly experience for my son was something I thought -- I will just stay out in Williamsburg all day and drive him back later rather than  thirty to forty minutes up (and returning - for a sum total of about two and a half hours driving for the day). And I did pray about this camp before we enrolled Clark. I quickly discerned that staying all day up in Williamsburg was going to be more physically taxing than attempting a double round trip drive. Hubs also offered to go up and get Sonny if I couldn't. 

To make a long story short -- I don't believe I could have commuted my son up and back every day, twice a day, without God's help. The first three days I did it, praise the Lord! The fourth day, my husband picked up our son afterwards. And on the fifth day, we both drove up together to attend his graduation, during which he received his certificate and they had a "Graduation Ceremony" which was fun!

That same day I learned my novella, The Substitute Bride, was a Maggie Award finalist for Published Authors in the Romance Novella category!!! My book is the only Christian fiction among the five finalists, and again that is just a God thing! Winners will be announced in October at the RWA Georgia conference. The fortunate Maggie winners will receive that gorgeous medallion pictured above left!!!


Tea Shop Folly by 
Carrie Fancett Pagels

My new novella, Tea Shop Folly, in A Teacup Courtship collection (Forget Me Not Romance, July 2016) is about what happens when you can't do something but God can. Here's the blurb:

Almost destitute, Lilly has run out of hope when she inherits her great-aunt’s home -- but it’s not the Tea Shop that a handsome young gentleman thinks it is. Lilly’s inherited house is crammed full of tea cups. Theo, a Soo Locks engineer, visits frequently in the hopes he will find the perfect antique teacup for his mother and is charmed by the lovely 'Shoppe owner.’ Lilly can’t turn the bachelor away when he persistently peruses her aunt’s collection, which she’s trying to pack up and remove from the house. Is the man only interested in the teacups, or in her? When Theo begins referring people to Lilly, and the genuine Tea Shoppe owner sets the police on Lilly for her lack of a business license, sparks fly!

  Maggie Award Finalist The Substitute Bride 

Giveaway: A copy of The Substitute Bride (choice of format) and Tea Shop Folly (ebook only - print releases in August.) Answer this question -- Has God ever done something for you that you knew you couldn't do under your own strength?