Bonnie Leon – Romantic Real Life Interview – Part 2 of 3

Shannon here: Bonnie Leon shares insight into her real life romance plus a chance to win a copy of her latest Women’s Fiction title, To Dance with Dolphins. Comment or answer the question at the end of any post dated August 12 – 17 to enter the drawing for a copy. Deadline: August 22, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Bonnie:

• What’s the most romantic thing your spouse has ever done for you?

The day our first child was born my husband did something so sweet that it has stayed with me all of my life.
After the birth of our son, I rested and Greg went home to shower and change. He returned a few hours later, carrying a single red rose. With his eyes filled with tears, he handed me the rose and was barely able to get out the words, “Thank you.”
Even now I get choked up when I think of it.

• What’s the most romantic present you ever bought your spouse?

I doubt that most women would consider the gift of a NASCAR drive as romantic. But I believe romance comes in a variety of sources, and the gift of a NASCAR driving experience put stars in my husband’s eyes.
We traveled to Nevada where we went to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Giddy with anticipation, Greg suited up, took an instructional class, drove the track with a professional driver, and then climbed into a NASCAR race car, put his foot on the gas and charged around the track as fast as he dared. It was a great day, and adrenaline is good for romance.

• Do you and your spouse have a favorite romantic vacation destination?

We love to visit the coast, and our favorite place is Depot Bay here in Oregon. We have a time- share that sits on a small bluff on the beach.
One visit was extra special. Our room was on the ground floor so the rocks overlooking the ocean were right outside our room. We spent a very romantic evening in each other’s arms beneath the moonlight, with the breeze and smell of the sea washing over us. We’ll definitely make another trip this year.

• What simple gesture does your spouse do that melts you every time?

It’s the little things that matter most to me. I love it when my husband gets up first in the morning and puts on the coffee. While I’m warming my back on a heating pad we keep on the sofa, he often makes me a cup of coffee. It means a lot that he’s thinking of me.

• How soon after meeting your spouse did you know he/she was the one?

I was only seventeen when I first met Gregory. And I knew he was the one for me right away.
He was a sailor and served on the same ship as my brother. One night I was getting ready to go out with friends when my brother came home and Greg came with him. One look into his gorgeous green eyes and I was hooked. He’s all I thought about that night.
I never dated another man after that. It’s been forty-six years since our first meeting. And we will celebrate our 44th wedding anniversary this month.

• Who is most romantic, you or your spouse?

I think we’re both romantics at heart, but tend to be realists in our daily life. Greg is probably a little more romantic than me. But we both love romantic comedies, and if a movie is especially touching we both get teary and then laugh at each other because we’re so sentimental.

• What is the most caring thing your spouse has ever done for you?

After an accident in 1991 when a log truck tipped over and hit my van, my husband had been caring for me. I was left with chronic pain and disabilities. He’s stuck with me through all the years. It hasn’t been easy.
One incident is especially touching. I’d been bed-bound for about a week, but one morning I got up, thinking I was better—wrong. When I sat down in a chair excruciating pain hit my back. My husband knew the drill and hurried to get my medication, and then he sat with me and prayed with me.
An hour passed and I was no better. And to make matters worse I had to pee and couldn’t wait any longer. Greg lifted me up (I must say his strength was impressive—very sexy under different circumstances). We shuffled together to the bathroom, but when he tried to lower onto the commode an explosion went off in my lower back. I stood, clinging to him. We held each other and cried. Now what? I had to pee.
Finally Greg said, “Just go.”
And so I did, right into my slippers. He helped me to the bed and called 911 to have an ambulance take me to the hospital. Then he did a very sweet thing. He didn’t want me to be embarrassed in front of the EMT’s. So he got me all cleaned up and dressed before they arrived.
It was an awful time, but I still tear up when I think about how much my dear husband loved me—how gentle he was, how he cried with me, and how he protected me from humiliation.

• Who said, “I love you” first, you or your spouse?

Greg said it first. In those days, a woman never spoke up about that until after the man did.
About Bonnie: Bonnie Leon is the author of more than twenty novels, including the recently released To Dance With Dolphins and bestselling The Journey of Eleven Moons.
June 11, 1991 a log truck hit the van she was driving, and her world changed. The accident left her unable to work, and after months of rehabilitation she was told by physicians that she would never return to a normal life. Facing a daunting fight to reclaim her life and in search of personal value, she discovered writing. She has been creating stories ever since.
Bonnie is familiar with the challenges of disability beyond her personal experience. Her sister endured the debilitating illnesses of lupus, MS, and Bi-polar disorder. And her daughter is grappling with the chronic progressive disorder of syringomyelia.
Through chronic pain and disability Bonnie found new purpose. She enjoys speaking for women’s groups, teaching at writing seminars, and mentoring young writers. She also administers an online support group for those living with chronic pain and disability and is a participating member of the Syringomyelia and Chiari Network.
She is married to her teen-age sweetheart, the mother of three grown children, and grandmother of eight. Bonnie and her husband Greg live in the mountains of Southern Oregon. Learn more and connect: http://www.bonnieleon.com, https://www.facebook.com/BonnieLeonAuthor?fref=ts, Twitter @Bonnie¬_Leon
About the book – To Dance with Dolphins: Twenty-two-year-old Claire Murray has suffered from a mysterious disease for years. Her social circle has shrunk to a small support group for people with chronic illness and disability. But what if life could be about more than doctors, pain, and medications?
Claire and three others—old grouch Tom, hippy-holdout Willow, and moody Taylor—hatch plans for a cross-country trip to swim with the dolphins in Florida. Only a day into the trip, they unexpectedly need help. And who happens to be hitchhiking along the highway but a young, good-looking loner named Sean Sullivan? However, the last thing he wants is to be harnessed to a bunch of ailing travelers.
Though the journey proves difficult, following God’s plan might be even harder. Will they find the courage to follow their dreams and dare to live again?
Purchase Link: Amazon http://amzn.to/1SqHoqK
Question for readers: In the book, Claire has a dream to dance with dolphins. Do you have a dream?

Come back August 17th for Bonnie’s romantic excerpt!