Musing #83 - Belated Wrap-Up Post + Special Announcement

Hi friends! *waves hand* It's me, Ellen, again, and I'm here to share with you all a (belated) wrap-up post for the fabulous month of August. I've never done one of these wrap-up thingies before, so you'll have to let me know in the comments below what your thoughts are of this first attempt. 
Ready? *draws deep breath* Here we go!
In August, I:

*acted as an eager ARC reader for Hosanna Emily's novel The Torch Keepers

*went and saw a special, colorized edition of five I Love Lucy episodes at our local theater with my precious mama. :-) :-) :-)

*spent the last week with sandy toes, wet hair, and a sun-kissed face. (Yep, you guessed it - a family vacay to the beach!)

And here are just a few (*giggles*) of the pictures that I took during the past month. 

Both this photo and the two found below it were taken from one of my walks around the neighborhood.

Between bites of yummy strawberry Twizzles, my siblings and I did "The Andrea Carter Challenge" while traveling the road to the beach (a four-hour drive). The questions found above are from the fourth book in the CCSS series, Andi Lassos Trouble. I write the questions; my siblings answer them. Winner receives a 1/2 pound of candy. :-)

Posters from the trip to see I Love Lucy. For those of you who are Lucy fans, can you tell me just by looking at these posters which episodes played that night? :-)

At the beach!

Seagulls aren't fun to have around while you're trying to eat your lunch or enjoy a pack of crackers, but I'll have to admit that they are fun to photograph. ;-)

 

It was that kind of ice-cream-for-dinner night. Yum!

Beautiful light rays piercing through the clouds.

Our view of the beach from the balcony of the condo where we were staying.

Horseshoe crabs, anyone? LOL

A gorgeous sunrise.

A picture says a thousand words. ;-)

I love the simplicity of this picture.

Shoe, bucket. Same thing. 

 So, yep, we had a great month, as well as a fantastic week at the beach. Almost every day was filled with shells, waves, and body-boarding fun. Every time I placed my feet in the sand, I thought of God, His Word, and His love. Isn't it amazing that His thoughts towards us are more than the sand? You truly experience this when you shift those many, many teeny grains through your fingers, then feel even more beneath your toes. Oh, how awesome is our God!!
On the final day of our vacation, my mom and I went together for a stroll on the beach. I'd been collecting shells - shoving them all in my pocket after both my hand and my shoe failed to carry them - and had my eyes fastened on the ground, looking for more treasures. Mom and I were just heading back to the condo when I discovered a small shell in the shape of a conch sitting upon the sand. With much excitement and joy, I hurried to pick it up . . . only to drop it back to the ground a second later when I found it to be the home of a tiny hermit crab. After recovering from the shock, I placed the crab on my shoe and carried it an arm's length back to our condo to show the kids. We made a cage for it out of an empty popcorn tub from the Dolle's candy store, then filled the tub with fresh sand and a bottle cap of water. Our best-ever souvenir lasted only a day, but he was such an amazing little creature. We brought him home with us. :-)
Okay, I think this takes care of August's happenings (these wrap-up posts are fun; I'll have to do more in the near future), so now the time has finally come for me to share my special announcement! 
Drum roll, please . . . 

"The Torch Keepers" has officially been released on Barnes & Noble and will soon be for sale on Amazon (but you can preorder it now)! I still plan on doing a giveaway for a copy of this amazing book if the Lord wills, but right now I'm looking for ideas on how people can enter this giveaway. If you have any idea that you care to share, feel free! You'll find the comment section below. :-) 

Well, signing off for now. Thanks for stopping by and joining me as I shared my first-ever wrap-up post!

Blessings,
Ellen