The book starts out in Summer. It is moving day for the Maxum family and it is not going well. Everyone is overwhelmed and they all need a time out. A new friendship begins on this day that will last a lifetime.
I focus a lot on Larry, one of the older children in this book. He has some anger issues. How does he learn from his outbursts of anger? Can he learn to change his attitude?
The kids are encouraged to pull pranks by one set of parents. The other parents are divided in the wisdom of pranks that are supervised and where safety is the major issue. They all learn there are consequences to pulling pranks on each other.
There is fund raising for the East Side Soup Kitchen. How good can actually come out of a bad situation.
Of course there is wedding - I don't think I can write a book that doesn't have a love story in it!
There are vacations in Montana. My husband and I traveled to Montana this past year to gather information for this book. The people we met were kind and helpful and even allowed me to put them in the book. Some of the book is set in Traverse City, Michigan. One of our favorite vacation spots. One of the children wants to work there over the summer. But she needs to learn what it means to have good work ethics before permission is granted.
I hope you will love this book as much as I loved writing it. I am in the last phase of editing and have really enjoyed getting to know these characters. Watch for the announcement of publishing. I can't wait!
Chapter 1
Amanda
yelled down from the top railing of the gleaming oak staircase, "Mom,
where are the boxes from my bedroom?" Her mom was in the kitchen in the
back of the new house. With the
dishwasher running she couldn't hear her daughter.
Amanda
screamed louder, "Mom!" Still
no answer. She stomped angrily down the stairs, stopping at the landing to yell
again. This time with all the pent up anger she felt about moving, she shouted,
"Mother, where are my belongings?"
Without
waiting for an answer she turned on the landing and ran down the last set of
stairs to the entry hall. She randomly started opening boxes and as she
rummaged through them, the contents began spilling out onto the floor. Her mom
had heard the last yell and as she walked into the long entry hall to see what
was wrong. When she saw the mess Amanda
was making she gasped, "What are you doing, Amanda Jane? Don't start
pulling things out of boxes right here in the front hall."
Tempers
were short. Moving day was taking its toll. Mrs. Maxum stopped to regain her
composure. She stared out the front door
and started thinking about the move. When
their fifth child, Timmy, was born it was evident they would have to find a
larger home. The only other boy, the
oldest, Larry was sleeping in a room no bigger than a closet. The three girls, Amanda, Clare and Joanna
were crammed into the largest bedroom which had no place to put a crib. Timmy had been sleeping at the end of the
hallway.
