Journey to the Pumpkin Patch

Sense the cool, crisp, autumn evening air, the whistling wind that shakes the last of the dry colorful leaves from the nearly bare branches beneath the full moon as you travel across the northeast countryside.

On this spirited journey, the reader is destined for the pumpkin patch. But hold on; along the bumpy, eerie adventure, one hears and sees some spooky sounds in the moonlight, and shadows and creatures of the night greet the reader whimsically.

Through this spooky suspenseful ride, the reader learns to breathe through scary feelings, and leave the pumpkin patch unharmed and empowered to overcome anything again that might go bump in the night. Come along and join the fun!

Just Like Us

After Jenny’s best friend and next-door neighbor, Ashley, moves out of the neighborhood, she is sad and lonely for a pretty long time. Then one day, she is excited to see a new family move in with a girl about her age. But the members of this new family are really weird: the mom wears a flowing robe and a turban, the dad dons a thick black beard, and they speak an alien tongue. Maybe they are Martians from outer space.

Jenny’s fears get worse as she watches more strange, mysterious and alien characters dropping in at their house from time to time. What happens next comes as a surprise!

Karen’s Spiritual Pilgrim Journey

This book describes my days on a pilgrimage to Haifa, Israel before the pandemic hit the world, and my feelings and thoughts on each day of the magnificence, serenity, and deeply felt love in each and everything I did with the assigned group of each day. Even today I shed tears when reflecting on my time and being in the presence of such grandeur and beauty. The Baháʼí Faith is just waiting for receptive souls to reach out and grasp hold of the reigns of this glorious pathway to gain virtue and practice daily good deeds. I sit and wonder at how I have been blessed with this wondrous ‘Prescription for Living’ (Rabbani, 1950) in my days of material living. I offer to the readers a glimpse of my journey with the thought that maybe you also are searching, seeking, wondering, ‘where can I find the place I belong?’ The Baháʼí Faith may be that place for you.

Knysna Forest

Sparky, a 19-year old, quick-witted thrill-seeker, went hiking in the majestic Knysna forest in South Africa upon returning from the United Kingdom. After a series of bad decisions, driven by stubbornness, he tumbles off a cliff with no turning back.

Wounded, lost, low on supplies, and without any knowledge of survival, he is plagued by nature’s lethal attacks until he is too weak to carry on. As dusk and dehydration ominously takes its toll, he is faced with fears he never anticipated.

As death approaches mercilessly again and again, he must fight above willpower to stay alive. With every calculated risk, less calculated, hope, survival, and divine intervention, becomes a distant dream.

Knysna Forest is an epic, true miracle race-against-time survival-story that will leave adventurers astounded in anticipation.

“If you are reading this, it means that you are experiencing the result of a miracle, because how is it possible that I survived death, more than once?”

Laughing Out of Context

Mia, mother of her six-year-old son, Cody, strives to balance care and volunteering at Cody’s school the only way she knows how: by recuperating nightly in what she calls her escape room. Meditation and a little bit of solitude at night can fix some hectic mothering days, but sometimes a glass of wine is just what is needed for those extra challenging kids-tell-all no-filter moments.

With the family Dalmatian, Caesar, right by Cody’s side in mischief, Mia works overtime to dodge embarrassing public incidents, hoping her imaginary hats will finally work in making her invisible at just the right time. By getting weekly advice from her mom’s group, Mia realizes she’s not alone in this crazy, funny, and loving motherhood journey.

The struggle is real, and finding a better motherhood routine is right at the top of her list of things to do, before she tips over to the other side of the sanity line.

Leah Marie and Santa

In the times we are living in, we all need to be more aware that we shouldn’t be focusing on differences, but rather on how we are alike. Most children dream of the magical man in the red suit who visits them with gifts during the holidays in December. However, some children may worry that Santa may not know what they’d like because they have difficulty communicating.

In this story, Leah Marie, a little girl with Down syndrome who can’t speak clearly, wonders whether Santa will know what she wants for Christmas. She solves her dilemma by using her own way of communicating and learns that Santa understands all children.

The moments shared in this book come directly from the experiences of Leah Marie, the great-granddaughter of one of the authors. This book is relatable to all families, caretakers and teachers who struggle to help children realize the many ways they can express their thoughts and feelings.

There is a positive message at the end about creative and unique ways to communicate with others. This is a must-read for a wide audience of those who live with and interact with children of all ages and abilities every day.

Learning How to Let It Go in the Shadow of the Belvedere

Sometimes it becomes difficult for us to recognize the beauty of the forest in its full splendour and diverse grandeur, even though it has always been right in front of us. Our view becomes obscured by the thick, opaque tangle of branches. To overcome this universal challenge for us all, we need to be able to adopt a new perspective. This can come from meeting new people and considering their point of view, or even by putting oneself in an entirely different time and place. In doing so, even the most stubborn and set-in-their ways can be jostled out of their slumber and comforting complacency.

The elements necessary for this process of self-transformation are already in our souls for those who allow them to surface, while for others who are more resistant, a more literal journey can be exactly what is required to shake us loose from our preconceived notions.

Let's Have a Parade

The countdown begins, and the band strikes to play! Those famous words are announced: "Let's have a parade!" From the lead stars, the highly popular high-kicking Rockettes, and of course, the big guy in red, Santa Claus, we kick off the holiday season down 6th Avenue as people gather in the streets of New York City to give thanks at the infamous Thanksgiving Day Parade!

Licorice and Black Jack

This fable is about Licorice and Black Jack, twin seafaring cats that lived on the Clipper Ship “The Fair Winds” during the mid-1700s. These brother cats were famous for catching rats throughout the Seven Seas. One night, they were kidnapped by a dishonest, disgruntled crew member who sold them to a witch. After ridding the old harridan’s hut of rats, there was nothing left for them to eat, so they snuck off seeking freedom, food, and hopefully their ship. They then had the misfortune to be discovered by a disreputable merchant who sold them for their beautiful pelts. Their troubles took a turn for the worst from that moment on.

Life and Times of Miss Daisy Weed

A magical and mysterious garden where the unexpected seems to take over. A dissatisfied Daisy, an adventurer, caught up in mischief and desires, bringing about a whole new world of humor, tears, and love. The wild flowers and creatures take on a new meaning, as they grow in the imagination of the reader, each new character with their special task and story blends reality and fiction into a magical world of flowers, fairies, and humans. Plants that appear in this innocent garden, pushing their way in, overtaking other more charming plants, echo similarity to what the children and adults appear to go through, in this magical, enthralling story.

Life of the Party Girl

Life of the Party Girl is a raw and inspiring debut memoir of a top wedding planner reflecting on the moments that define us as human beings, both the traumatic and fantastic.

The author and subject, Megan Estrada, isn’t your typical wedding planner. She is tattooed, assertive, stylish, and doesn’t take no for an answer. She is reflective and decisive, in bringing a fresh and unique perspective to the special events industry. Estrada is a trailblazer in the event industry and harnesses her past experiences to create momentous occasions.

Before Megan Estrada became a nationally recognized wedding and event planner, she spent forty-years navigating a life of unexpected circumstances, one that was dictated by a twisted series of trauma and celebration. From enduring a school shooting, an unsuccessful suicide attempt, and a difficult marriage, to landing a record deal, becoming a mother of two, and leading the special events industry through the Covid-19 pandemic, Life of the Party Girl follows Estrada’s journey to self-worth and self-discovery.

Life's Love Song

The Trestin family, with their enviable upper-middle-class life, large house, and prestigious school, is the epitome of aspiration –until their perfect world begins to crumble.

Maddie and Duncan, basking in the glow of admiration at school, find their star status dimming as a series of misfortunes strikes the family. Illness, injury, and the turbulent tides of high school romance test them all. United, the Trestins draw strength from one another, facing each challenge head-on. In the midst of turmoil, they discover the true value of what they have, learning a profound lesson in what matters most in life.