The Sonogram - March 20, 2016 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods - WeWriWa

Welcome back for this Weekend Writing Warriors edition of Missi Wanderin' in the Woods. 
Weekend Writing Warriors is where a wonderful group of authors, from prepublished to multipublished, share eight-to-ten sentences from one of their works. We welcome critique, observations, and any other comments from blog readers! Find them here!!
We left off in the Italian Emergency Room, where we just learned Sara's (well, my) baby was still alive -- unlike what the Army doctors said. Adrenaline still surging, let's see what happened next. 

Before the words were out of the nurse's mouth, the doctor had the internal probe inserted and located the source of the problem. He spouted off a slew of musical Italian words and, though I didn’t understand what he said, I understood the soft tones of relief that colored them.

“The placenta is detaching,” she relayed, her eyes still on the screen. A fast little heartbeat 

 pounded in perfect rhythm from the speakers. “See the blood clot there? Your body tries to fix it, to save precious bambino.” 

The doctor rattled off something else and patted my naked thigh before disappearing.

Charlie stammered from the other side of the table. “Did um -- well, our -- did we cause this?”

“No," the nurse smiled, "but no more having the sex, okay?”

Researching some pictures to go along with this excerpt, I was glad to find this article. 

That horrific "birthing center" on the American military base in Vicenza has shuttered its doors. This was the establishment that gave me the advice to "let the miscarriage happen naturally" and that it was "God's will". 

WeWriWa - 8/15/15 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods - The Italian ER

Welcome back to this week's ten-sentence snippet from MISSI WANDERIN' IN THE WOODS. Click here if you would like to be a part of my blog tour for my forthcoming Amish Western, Old Amarillo, September 4-11, courtesy of Loving the Book blog tours. I would be honored to be hosted by my WeWriWa friends! Find my launch party on the 3rd of September here!

Without further ado, let's see what's in store for Sara and Charlie and the baby they may have already lost . 

I bit back a sob. “I understand, but I’d really like a sonogram to be sure.”

“Go on about your business and if you’re still cramping Tuesday, come into the walk-in clinic. After all, you’re just ten weeks along.”

Too upset to talk anymore, I handed the phone off to Charlie, slunk to the bedroom, and buried my head in the pillow. The next morning after dropping the kids off at the on-post childcare facility, Charlie packed me into our pink and purple Volkswagen Beetle – Pink Floyd edition and took me to the Italian Emergency Room, or l’ospedale.

The nurse pulled us back first, before the patients sitting in the strap-backed wheelchairs and through the jungle of glass bottles that dangled from threatening IV poles that would have looked more at home in a 1960’s mental institution, and into a room no larger than a humble office with wood paneling and magazine pictures of wolves taped onto the wall. A small exam table sat off to the side, almost out of place amid the tangle of books and misbegotten papers. The doctor, who hadn’t looked up from his work since we walked in, mumbled something in Italian before turning around expectantly.

     “Strip now,” the nurse translated brusquely, “waist down.” 

Thank you for popping by. Follow this link to get back to the other contributors for the weekly Weekend Writing Warriors blog hop where authors in all phases of publication post eight to ten sentences of the work of their choice and add their link so that readers may enjoy their work. Comments from others are what make this something we all look forward to each week, so feel free to let those fingers fly and tell how you feel about this and all of our snippets! 

WeWriWa - August 8, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back to this week's snippet from Missi. Last week, our characters feared a miscarriage. Find out what happened next. 

“I’m afraid I’ve lost our baby.” The cramping was enough to double me over and the onslaught of impending hysteria wasn’t helping. Charlie put me to bed and called the clinic on post. As luck would have it, we were at the beginning of a four-day weekend.

"I’m sure it’s just a simple miscarriage,” the nurse explained, nonchalant. It sounded as though she were sucking on a lollipop. “God does these things, let it happen naturally.” Then, she waited, letting her end of the line grow silent.

Thank you for popping by. Follow this link to get back to the other contributors for the weekly Weekend Writing Warriors bloghop where authors in all phases of publication post eight to ten sentences of the work of their choice and add their link so that readers may enjoy their work. Comments from others are what make this something we all look forward to each week, so feel free to let those fingers fly and tell how you feel about this and all of our snippets! 

WeWriWa -August 2, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back! Last week, we got a peek into soldier Charlie's softer side when he insisted they go back to the Italian pound and adopt the twin brother of the little dog we'd just given a home. 

Thoughts of our puppies fizzled as I glanced from my ring to his haggard face and rested my hands on my belly again. Charlie seemed to read my thoughts. “I am so, so sorry Sara, I love all of you, Lil’ Grub, too.”

Emotion threatened to choke me as I remembered the night we almost lost our baby. I was ten weeks along and we’d just made love. I went to the restroom to get ready for bed and discovered I was bleeding. Big black clots trailed by bright red blood covered the bottom of the tiny European toilet. I called for Charlie through a veil of tears. 

Follow this link to get back to the rest of the amazing Weekend Writing Warriors.

WeWriWa - July 26, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods/ Sara and Charlie

Welcome back everyone! Last week we left Sara, scared and pregnant in the Volkswagen. Let's delve a bit deeper into her mind today.

My mind wandered back to our family, aside from our children. We had visited the Italian version of animal control, the canile, in hopes of adopting a family pet and left with one of two twin puppies of unknown lineage. We promptly named our new girl, who looked to be a mix between an Italian Greyhound and a border collie, Rosie Giulietta. Rosie for Caillou’s little sister and Giulietta for Juliet, the most famous Italian. 

After arriving home to our rented two story villa in Arcugnano, the little mountain town just outside of Vicenza at the base of the Dolomite Mountains, it was Charlie who insisted we go back for her brother, the little black and white puppy with the floppy black ears. “I can’t stand the thought of him being in there and missing his sister, and they’re so young . . . plus, we are able to give them both a home, and it would make them happy. Let’s go back and get him tomorrow.” That is how Rosie’s brother, Romeo, came to live with us.

Thank you for stopping by! To get back to the amazing WeWriWa bloghop contributors here!

Follow Sara's trail of trouble over at her website: www.sarabarnardbooks.com 

Come check out the Prairie Rose Publications Christmas in July and Fandango! Join the event here! All books 26 books are only .99  or if a duet, 1.99. Look for The Bank Robber's Lament, by me! <3 

WeWriWa - July 18, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods - What's Next for Charlie and Sara?

Welcome back to the Weekend Writing Warriors bloghop and this week's eight to ten sentence snippet from a published, pre-published, or work-in-progress (or WIP). We are making our way through the first chapter of my forthcoming memoir, Missi Wanderin' in the Woods. 

Last week, Charlie confessed that he'd been tossed out of the Army shrink's office for being honest and telling the psychiatrist exactly what he was thinking . . . scroll down and check out the last couple of entries for that little gem . . . and what earned him an MP escort out of that office, along with an invitation NOT to return.  Let's see what happens next. 


He chuckled again as my grim expression transformed to a half-smile. Without meaning to, I let go a little laugh, followed by a bigger one. Before either one of us could make sense of the sudden onslaught of jocularity, it was there, just as real as either of us and filling the car with much needed comic relief. Tears streamed down our faces as we gasped for breath before becoming tickled all over again at our cacophony of funny whoopings and whistlings and snorts.

As our laughing jag faded away, Charlie started our car – a pink and purple Volkswagen Golf, Pink Floyd Edition – as the stark reality of our situation settled over me like a cloud of buzzards over a rotting carcass. Here I was in Italy, pregnant, so far from home, and with my two precious babies to protect. I had a husband, fresh from combat and already exhibiting irrational, self-medicating behavior, who had just managed to get himself blacklisted from the only psychiatrist within reasonable driving distance. Just. By. Being. Honest. 

Thank you for stopping by for this week's snippet of military madness. To get back to the other WeWriWa bloghop participants, follow this link. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to pop over to my Amish blog, Sara's Amish Dreams, for a cover reveal! 

WeWriWa - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods - July 12, 2015

Last week, we finally found out what Charlie did to get thrown out of the Army shrink's office with an MP escort. He told the truth. Many of you commented and stated that you weren't sure how you would have reacted to news that your husband told the shrink he was dreaming of throwing her out the window . . . let's see what happens next. 

Cupping my hands around my mouth and nose, I closed my eyes. I didn’t have time to draw a breath before he continued.

“Her eyes got real wide. Real, like, deathly wide. Then she went all white and picked up the phone.” Charlie gave a little laugh, breaking the solemnity that had filled the car. “Then the MP’s came. Thought they were gonna arrest me, and I said for what, telling the truth?”

To get back and sample more from other delectable Weekend Writing Warriors, click here. 

My debut novel, A Heart on Hold, is on sale for just .99 this week! Get yours here! See where we are falling in love with Charlotte and Sanderson eight sentences at a time on my Everlasting Heart blog here. 

Keep up to date with my upcoming releases at my website. 

Missi Wanderin' in the Woods - WeWriWa - July 5, 2015 - What Got Charlie Kicked Out of the Shrink's Office with an MP Escort?!?!?

Thanks for stopping by this week. In the time since we've met last, we have had quite a few adventures: an interstate move, a mess of new baby animals added to the pack, and a family vacation to my cancer doctor down at MD Anderson. Scroll down for those posts, if you'd like to read about those adventures :-) 

Now, to get caught up to speed on MISSI WANDERIN' IN THE WOODS, my forthcoming memoir where one woman must rely on her eclectic wilderness background to face a host of frontcountry problems, from a PTSD-infected marriage to an extreme cancer diagnosis. 

In our last eight-to-ten sentence snippet, our fresh-from-Afghanistan Charlie had just gotten himself escorted from the Army psychiatrist's office by the MP's . . . but his pregnant wife has yet to find out why.  

Charlie quit his cyclic observation of our surroundings and stilled in his seat. “I answered her  truthfully and said that yes, yes I do think of killing, dream of killing . . . often.”

Chills chased each other up and down my spine, dancing a terrifying dance that brought beads of sweat to my face.

“That’s not all.” Charlie’s voice was uncharacteristically soft, “then she said I got a funny look on my face and she got real sarcastic and said ‘Well what are you thinking about right now?’”

I swiped at the pearls of sweat that had begun their epic descent. Already, I dreaded hearing what would come next. 

“So again, I told the truth . . . I told her I was thinking about what sound her body would make when I threw her out that second story window and she hit the concrete sidewalk below.”

Thank you for stopping by today and I hope you had a wonderful Fourth of July holiday! To get back to the other wonderful Weekend Writing Warrior contributors, follow this link here. 

If you would like to keep up to speed on my current releases and forthcoming events, feel free to check out my website or on Twitter @TheSaraBarnard  

WeWriWa - May 31, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back to this week's snippet from my forthcoming memoir, MISSI WANDERIN' IN THE WOODS, where one woman must rely on her back country experiences to get her through some of life's toughest trials -- from a PTSD-infected marriage marriage to an extreme cancer diagnosis.  

I gulped and adjusted my growing weight in the seat. “And . . . what did, um, you say?”

Driver side mirror, rear view mirror, passenger side mirror, over the shoulder, out the window. Driver side mirror, rear view mirror, passenger side mirror, over the shoulder, out the window. “The truth, like you told me to.”

Sucking in the side of my cheek, I waited for him to continue. 
He didn’t.

“What is the truth?” I caught a squeak at the end of my word. 

Check out the other eight sentence offerings from wonderful weekend writing warriors here. 
If you are a fan of Amish fiction, enjoy my latest excerpt from my forthcoming Amish fiction novel, OLD AMARILLO here.
If historical romance is more your genre, you might like my debut novel - eight sentences at a time - A HEART ON HOLD here. 

WeWriWa - 5/17/15 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back, y'all! Here we go . . .

“What did . . . mean,” I huffed, struggling to keep up, “when you said . . . honest like I told you to be?”

Luckily, we were coming up on the car and his stride slowed considerably. Without missing a beat he went to my side first and opened the door, as usual, and waited until I was situated before shutting it and getting in himself. His hands were trembling and his eyes darted from side to side, as though he was just waiting for someone to appear at the window. Something in his eyes gave me the impression he wanted something to appear, just so he could deal with it. Icy fingers of fear gripped my spine, leaving me with a sense of utter, terrifying helplessness in the passenger seat. What if he flipped and felt he had to deal with me?

Whatever had clouded his eyes passed almost as quickly as it had come, and he began to speak. “She asked me the same question a million ways, and none if it was about what happened between us . . . she didn’t even let me talk about that.” 

Thanks for stopping by and riding the storm out with me as we make our way through the first chapter of my forthcoming memoir, Missi Wanderin' in the Woods! Leave me a comment and tell me your thoughts, if you like :-) 

To get back to the other awesome WeWriWa authors, go here!  

WeWriWa - May 3, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back to this week's eight sentence snippet from my forthcoming memoir from Missi Wanderin' in the Woods! Let's see how Charlie, the soldier who had just sought help for PTSD symptoms only to be escorted out of Mental Health by Military Police and told not to come back. 

“Just so long as we’re clear,” the smaller officer snorted as they turned to go.

            Charlie stiffened. “Excuse me?” Both MPs froze, their backs to us, as my husband with the dreamy dimples continued, his already loud voice now a bellow. “You two may be Military Police, but I am still your senior NCO, so turn around and stand at attention for God’s sake!”

Wind gone from their sails, the Private First Class and Corporal slowly turned. “I appreciate your doing your job, but you will conform to military standards when addressing your senior NCO. Is that clear?”

Get back to other Weekend Writing Warrior participants here! 

WeWriWa - April 26, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back to this week's eight-sentence excerpt from my forthcoming memoir, MISSI WANDERIN' IN THE WOODS. Last week, Sara followed two MP's into the dark Mental Health wing of the Army Clinic where her husband, Charlie, had his first appointment. Our last scene closed with Charlie being escorted out by the MP's and a pregnant Sara wondering what in the world was going on. 
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Charlie, however, didn’t lower his voice as heat flooded my face. “I was honest, just like you told me to be.”

Once outside, the MPs clarified the situation without going into detail, also without lowering their voices. “Sergeant, do you understand that you are not to enter this facility unless for a valid medical reason and you are forbidden to make any appointments with Mental Health until a new provider arrives?”

Charlie puffed out his chest and squared his shoulders. “Yes Private, I do.”

Most of those peeping eyes from the clinic had followed us outside, anxious to catch a glimpse of the dirty laundry that my husband had no intention of hiding. Covering my face with my hands, I wanted to melt into a puddle.
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Thank you for stopping by and sharing in these experiences with me! Though MISSI WANDERIN' IN THE WOODS is nonfiction, please feel free to visit my other two blogs dedicated to my distinctly different fiction works: 

Sara's Amish Dreams
An Everlasting Heart

Weekend Writing Warriors are a group of diverse, talented,and passionate authors who share pieces of their hearts and souls in eight sentence snippets each week in this bloghop. Check out their work, fall in love with their books, and be sure to leave them a comment on their blogs :-) Reach out to them here!

Welcome author Pete Abela!

Please join me in welcoming author Pete Abela to the blog today! 

Hi Pete! I have read your book WINGS and to be quite honest, I was blown away. From historical accuracy to the passion in your words about your subject . . . this book simply has it all. Can you tell us a little bit about WINGS?

WINGS tells the story of Walt and his grandson Scott, who both have a fierce longing to fly albeit in vastly different circumstances. Walt - who grew up in the depression - found out first hand that becoming a pilot takes sacrifice and tenacity. When World War II broke out, he pestered the RAF (Royal Air Force) for eighteen months before they finally accepted him. Scott spent his childhood listening to tales of his Grandfather's aerial exploits and developed an intense craving to be a pilot. However, the number of people wanting to be a pilot vastly outweighs the limited opportunities on offer.

How interesting! What drew me in was the way you were able to combine Walt's yellowed, reminiscent memories with Scott's modern day exploits. Who is this story more aimed toward?

WINGS weaves together two tales: one set in war-torn northern England, and the other set in the modern-day Illawarra region of New South Wales. As Scott progresses, his grandfather declines – Walt loses his wife, his sight and his hearing – but throughout these difficulties is still there to offer support and encouragement. With insights into the modern aviation scene and life in the Royal Air Force of World War II, this is a must for anyone who has an interest in history, aviation or simply an old fashioned love story.

It really felt as though you had personal connections to your characters, thus lending the feeling of familiarity to your readers. Are Scott and Walt based on real people? 

Although Wings is a novel, I did draw inspiration from two men I greatly admire. The first is my grandfather who was a fighter pilot during World War II; the other is my younger brother who is a commercial pilot with a major Australian airline.

I consider them both to have lived through fascinating, unusual and difficult circumstances and I thought I could draw on and extend some of their experiences as the basis for this novel. One of the scenes I really enjoyed writing is the story of Walt’s wedding. He was given a 48 hour leave pass to get married, although more than a quarter of the time would be spent travelling. Heavy snow held up the train and it began to look as if he would not make it home. Given Walt was about to be posted overseas for twelve months, these few hours with his sweetheart were very important. I enjoyed this because of the contrast between the situation faced by Walt and the relative luxury and freedom we enjoy today.

Thank you so much for being here today! I hope you'll be willing to come back and share with us two more of your vastly different works -- A PAINTED ROOM and LESSONS FROM A TWO YEAR OLD! How can readers find out more about you and find your works? 

Author Name: Pete Abela

Website: http://peteabela.blogspot.com.au

Twitter: @PeteAbela

Facebook: facebook.com/PeteAbela

WeWriWa - April 19, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back to this week's eight sentence snippet from my forthcoming memoir, Missi Wanderin' in the Woods. Without further ado, let's jump right back into the mix and see what is going on in the Army clinic that drew the MPs on the run . . . and see why in the world I followed them inside. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The MPs stepped to the side, like something out of a movie, revealing my husband standing between them.

“Is this your wife?” one of the burly officers barked.

Charlie nodded and stepped beside me, but the Military Police officers just stared at us - unmoving. “Are we leaving?” I asked, feeling as though I’d walked into a group where the punchline of a joke had just been delivered.

Charlie just put one hand on the small of my back and began guiding me toward the door with the MPs following us closely.

I kept my voice at a whisper, acutely aware that all eyes in the clinic were fixed on us. “Charlie, what is going on?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To get back to the other amazing WeWriWa participants, click here! 

To see my other blogs for this week, click here for my snippet from A Heart on Hold, my debut novel, and click here for a snippet from my forthcoming Amish novel, Old Amarillo. 

WeWriWa -April 12, 2015 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back! Last week, a character I called Villa the Strangler swept by and it was pointed out to me that such an interestingly named character hadn't been properly introduced. I hope you enjoy this next eight-sentence snippet from my memoir, Missi Wanderin' in the Woods, as you brush shoulders with Villa the Strangler :-)

***

I kicked my way through the ankle-tall grass, wishing I had an Italian version of an Audubon field guide so I could identify some of the interesting birds that flitted about. I’d already discovered ivy, growing unchecked, choking out an ancient grove of towering trees, but when I mentioned to my husband’s unit commander the need to get someone to cut down the troublesome vine, I was met with condescending smiles and smirks, laced with a general who cares attitude. I was seriously considering, in all of my pregnant glory, taking to the ivy myself with a pair of scissors when I noticed a twosome of Military Police officers, or MPs, walking down the street toward me. Abruptly, they turned up the covered walkway and almost sprinted into the clinic, passing me without so much as a glance.

Curious, I followed them. Had Villa, the friendly soldier who tried to strangle his pregnant wife in her sleep, freaked out on her right there in the clinic?

I squinted as I entered the dark building, unable to make out much of anything except for a flurry of excited chatter coming from every direction. Then, as the MPs slowed to a stop, everything started to come into focus. 

***

Thank you for stopping by for this week's eight! Be sure to come back next Sunday to find out what happens when Sara's world comes into sharp focus . . . 

Are you in need of a professional editor for your manuscript or WIP? Contact me, Sara, at Silver Line Editorial Service to see how I can be of service to you! 

silverlineeditorial@gmail.com

The Weekend Writing Warriors are a group of talented writers that spans most every genre imaginable. Head over to check out some more of their work back at the WeWriWa blog!

WeWriWa - 3/29/15 - Missi Wanderin' in the Woods

Welcome back for this week's eight sentence snippet from my forthcoming memoir, Missi Wanderin' in the Woods, where one woman's reliance on her eclectic wilderness background helps her navigate some of life's most unexpected curves from a war-torn marriage to children to an extreme cancer diagnosis. 

***

My breath caught in my throat. In all the wisdom of the Army, they’d hired a Muslim woman to treat combat soldiers who were having problems adjusting after returning from fighting Muslims?

“You,” she gesticulated at me roughly. “You wait in downstairs waiting room.”

Charlie’s knee was bouncing and his knuckles had gone white from gripping the sides of the metal chair. Ever nervous, any noise made him jump and a thin sheen of sweat veiled his forehead. “No, you don’t understand, she has to stay with me.”

She stared at us through sour, empty eyes and growled, “She wait outside. I call her in later.”

***

Thanks for stopping by! Check out other great authors at the WeWriWa blog :-)

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In need of affordable editing services for your manuscript? 

Trust an author who has been there!  

Sara Barnard's own Silver Line Editorial Service is now accepting manuscripts for editing.

 Check out their rates on the Silver Line page on this blog! 

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Custom cookies for custom taste buds? What a novel idea!

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The Inaugural Post

Hello from Utopia!  Dinner is done.  The kids are bathed.  Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman plays in the background.  My husband, G.I. Joe, plays with Sun 2 (middle son) and Moon Princess (daughter) while Rambo, the German Shepherd, looks on like a furry guardian angel.  Sun 3, (the baby) just learning to crawl, attempts mobilization on the living room floor.  And Sun 1 (oldest son) ... well, Sun 1 ... where did he go?  Oh, he's back in the bathroom, bathing all six of the stuffed Angry Birds in the sink.  Belle the Wondercat just dashed through the living room, clearing Sun 3 in a single leap.  The two Italian dogs are asleep, hidden beside the entertainment center, while the little blue-eyed husky, Luna, just snuck out the doggy door, sopping Angry Bird in tow.  WELCOME TO MY HOME!  We had a wonderful home cooked meal tonight, the recipe is going to be posted next.  Needless to say, G.I. Joe and I are exhausted, happy, full, and ready to go to bed so we can play Words With Friends ... but the kids are all STILL set on go!  I hope you enjoy it here as much as we do!