Mental Health Matters

For most of my adult life, no matter what was going on in my life, I have always put one foot in front of the other and kept moving forward. I never made myself a priority. I never made my mental or emotional health a priority. To be honest, I never made any aspect of my own health a priority. I did what I felt had to be done to care for my family, and ignored my needs and wants. No one knows…

View On WordPress

I'm Not Your Typical Girl Shopper!

Daily writing promptWhere would you go on a shopping spree?View all responses Shopping Spree? Me? I promise you, it won’t be any shoes, clothes, make-up, or any other girly procurements. Nope! Truth be told, I HATE shopping for clothes and shoes. I buy my make-up at the Dollar Tree and do most of my grocery shopping online. But… Turn me loose in a thrift store where I can buy furniture on…

View On WordPress

Why Your Writing Needs Layers and Texture.

Have you ever picked up a book because you thought it would be a great read only to find yourself disappointed before you ever finished the first chapter?

Monotony is boring; unless you’re Ben Stein (pictured above from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) who cashed in on it as a character trait in the eighties and nineties. But that doesn’t work for fiction. We don’t pick up a book to read through a grocery list of events. At least I don’t. The point of fiction is to escape our own reality. The authors I return to time and again are the ones that can paint…

View On WordPress

Will 2024 Be a Better Year?

2023 was tough. It was a year of painful changes. I'm praying and hoping for a much better 2024!

I’m praying that it will be. 2023 was a difficult year for me personally and my family as a whole. It was one thing after another until about July, I would say. But it was also a year to let go and take stock of our blessings and God’s graciousness. He held us together and gave us strength and peace through separation, death, cancer, and starting over with a new normal. As for me, I’m trying my…

View On WordPress

Making a Way

When you can't find what you need. Make it yourself.

I’ve been trying to find a job for over six months. I’ve applied to everything possible. EVERYTHING. I don’t know if it’s the gaps in my work history, not having a college degree, that I’m separated and heading towards divorce, or that I’m homeschooling a special needs child. Possibly all of the above. I did have one place take a chance on me. I lasted a whopping two days. They were great. The…

View On WordPress

Hang-ups and Catch-ups

I didn’t sleep very well last night. I’m tired, my head hurts, and I’m trying to be productive while supervising my son’s homeschool assignments. I would love to burrow back into bed and slip into oblivion until morning. Unfortunately, it’s two-forty in the afternoon and that little fantasy is out of the question. We’re still catching up on last week’s work and we haven’t even started this…

View On WordPress

A New Business from Old Hobbies

When you can't find a job, you find a way to make money from your hobbies.

I don’t know what I’m doing wrong, but I can not find a job. I’ve applied to everything that I feel that I’m qualified for. I’ve even applied to basic retail jobs. My inbox is full of rejections. So, I’m going to try a different route. I’m going back to building furniture and home decor. For the moment, I will list pieces on Facebook as I complete them. My mom took a couple of old mirrors down…

View On WordPress

Wasted Summer

I had so many plans for the summer.

It’s Labor Day. The official end of summer and do you know what I have accomplished? NOTHING! Nada! Zip! Bubkiss! Do you know how many times I have started this blog post only to delete and rewrite it? Let’s just say, I’ve lost count. I did not foresee myself still being stuck in this useless cycle nearly six months after my separation. I thought I would have a job by now. Well, I did, for…

View On WordPress

Rebecca Leola

Where did your name come from? Is it a family name? A reflection of something meaningful to your parents? Have you changed your name to suit you better?

Daily writing promptWhere did your name come from?View all responses When my mom was pregnant with me, my parents had decided that if I was a girl, they were going to name me Paula Kay Mann. Paula after my dad, Paul, and Kay after my mom Sharon Kay. However, I was born on my great-grandmother’s birthday, December 10th. Her name was Leola Hancock Mann. We have a neighbor named Rebecca and my…

View On WordPress

I don't discriminate!

Daily writing promptDogs or cats?View all responses Are you a dog person or a cat person? If it lives and breathes, I love it! I’ve recently moved back home with my mom and brought three of my five dogs. My ex-husband-to-be kept the other two. Currently, with my mom, we have four inside dogs, somewhere around thirty cats, (Is anyone looking for a cat to adopt? We can hook you up!) a…

View On WordPress

Fun Down on the Farm!

Life on the farm has not been kind of laid back. In fact, it's been a little bit challenging and highly entertaining this week.

It’s been a while since I posted anything. Though I’m not writing as much or as frequently as I would like, life has been anything but boring. This past week has been a bit more interesting on the farm. So let me give you a little background before diving into the zany pigventures of this last week. As you know, I moved back home in March. This was my great-grandparents’ farm, but my…

View On WordPress

Ireland Before I Die!

Daily writing promptWhat countries do you want to visit?View all responses I’m not exactly sure when my obsession with Ireland began but I’ve felt a strong pull to be there for a long time. I love the history, castles, folklore, and accents! As a kid, I was obsessed with Stonehenge and I still am to an extent. I scroll through Pinterest and look up old castles and wonder what ghosts haunt them.…

View On WordPress

Changes

Change is a huge part of life. Some changes we want and we are intentional about them. Other changes...not so much.

Change is a huge part of life. Some changes we want and we are intentional about them. Other changes…not so much. I’m currently in a season of change(s). In the end, yes, these are changes that I wanted and more importantly, needed. These changes have brought about positive improvements to my mental and emotional health. I’m happier, more at peace, and overall, much less stressed. Don’t get me…

View On WordPress

Here Piggy Piggy

It ain't Green Acres, but farm living is the life for me. God gives us the desires of our hearts, but He does it on His time.

Growing up, I never understood why people would choose to be farmers. Getting up early, cleaning out smelly pens, and digging in the dirt to grow food when you could just go to the grocery store. I grew up next door to my great-grandparents. Pawpaw raised cows, pigs when I was really young, chickens, guineas, and beagles (rabbit dogs). He was up, feeding and milking as I was heading out to the…

View On WordPress

A New Writing Path?

When your normal course of action doesn't work, change directions!

For the most part, I am a romance author with my preferred trope being paranormal romance, though I have veered into other tropes here and there. I’m thinking that I may need to step away from romance; at least for a while. Mentally and emotionally, I am dead to the idea of love and relationships. Several of my short stories were completely void of romance altogether. I know it’s a result of…

View On WordPress

Resume Cover Letter

I'm more than a little fed up with filling out applications, submitting resumes and cover letters, only to receive a polite rejection time and again.

The Letter I Plan to Submit VS. The Letter I Want to Submit I’m currently searching and applying for jobs. I’ve updated my resume, I have an active LinkedIn account, and I have been steadily applying to everything that I feel capable of doing. I have also written and rewritten several cover letters in the process to coincide with each application. So far, the only people interested in me are…

View On WordPress