Shannon here: Caryl McAdoo shares meeting her husband for the first time from his perspective. Comment or answer the question in this post to enter the drawing for an e-book copy of her Historical Romance, Gone to Texas. Deadline: March 13th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Caryl:
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT
From my Husband’s Perspective
Hi, y’all! I’m so glad to be back to the Inkslinger Blog and want to thank Shannon profusely for giving me this opportunity to visit with everyone! Since I’ve been here often, and you all know how I met my dearest husband of almost fifty-three years, I thought I’d let him give you a different perspective on it!
Ron and I write all “my” books together! It was when Simon and Schuster published VOW UNBROKEN, our tenth title published traditionally, back in 2014 that we took his name off the cover per their request. Since he’s the big quiet type, it works well for us because I can’t cajole him into helping me market! 😊 He’s the reason I have such GREAT heroes everyone loves!
So without further ado, I give you His perspective of when we met.
Early in my sixteenth summer, I applied at the City of Irving who hired lots of high school kids every summer. For the princely sum of $1.25 an hour, I joined the lawn crew of the Parks and Recreation Department. Me, Freddy Powers—who I knew from church, but he went to the new high school, MacArthur—and our foreman went from park to park to mow what the tractors missed.
That first week, we went to Lee Park. An hour for lunch—in the air-conditioned rec building—left plenty of time for recreation, so Freddy and I decided to shoot some hoops. I went to check out a basketball, and there she was. Her long blonde hair and a smile bigger than the outdoors made it hard to take my eyes off her. Didn’t play much basketball, but I did secure a date for the
following Friday when I turned the ball in.
The following Monday, I didn’t know what to say and thought she was being so magnanimous when I explained why I stood her up without calling. Mother picked me up from school that Friday and the family went to south Texas for my great aunt’s funeral, and I didn’t have the chance. Caryl was even so gracious as to accept an invitation for a date that next Friday.
Ours has been an enduring love. So often, we write using aspects of our relationship in the characters that we fashion. Enoch Lowell—firstborn of Morgan and Charity—and I are similar in that we both married young, at eighteen, to a young ladies we both fell head over heels with.
He’s the hero of TEXAS TRAILS, book six in the Cross Timbers Romance Family Saga that debuted yesterday! Viola is his heroine and is like Caryl in a lot of ways, a born saleslady with a head for business, never meet a stranger, not easily intimidated.
While I’ve never been on a cattle drive, I have wrangled horses when we had a stable. A lot of Enoch’s experiences with the horses came from my time with our horses. His mother’s reaction to him marrying Viola was similar to my own mother’s reaction, especially when I told her I’d met the girl I was going to marry after only our second date. But with the war in Vietnam raging and Caryl’s and my stubborn determination, I wouldn’t let her deter me. Plus, unlike Enoch, I’d made no promises.
So there’s my dear husband’s recollection! Isn’t he a honey? He spoils me truly rotten, and I am so blessed God made him
Giveaway
just for me. I do my best to please him, but that’s never hard. I adore writing with him, creating together. And in TEXAS TRAILS, the cattle drive is so interesting. I loved the research too!
About Caryl : Award-winning, Christian author Caryl McAdoo prays her story brings God glory. Of her best-selling novels, readers love her historical Christian romance family sagas most, but she also writes Christian contemporary romance, Biblical fiction, and for young adults and mid-grade booklovers. A far majority of reviewers award her stories five-stars and praise Caryl’s characters, counting them as family or very close friends. The prolific writer loves singing the new songs God gives her almost as much as penning tales—hear a few at YouTube! Married to Ron over fifty years, she shares four children and twenty-one grandsugars. The McAdoos live in the woods south of Clarksville, seat of Red River County in far Northeast Texas, waiting expectantly for God to open the next door. Learn more & connect:
Caryl’s Website Caryl’s Newsletter Signup Caryl’s Bookbub
About the book – Texas Trails:
The steps of a righteous man are guided by the Lord.
Rife with adventure, this rights-of-passage story comes to life as Enoch Lowell and his best friend Gus strike out to Kansas with their herd of beeves, hoping to make a profit and cut the apron strings. What they find on the prairie changes their lives forever. Promises made, promises kept, but nowhere is it written there can’t be a happy ending for all. A true Texas tale to warm your heart!
Can’t wait for the drawing? Worried you won’t win? Get your copy now!
I’d like to gift a copy of GONE TO TEXAS, book one in the Cross Timbers Romance Family Saga to one of you Inkslingers’ readers!
Question for Readers? Did you know first he was “the one” or did he know you were? Or for single readers: Do you like for the hero or heroine to admit their feelings first? Why?
Come back March 9th for Dana McNeely!
this was fun. I love the wedding photo. sounds like another great book.
it really is hard to tell. I think we both thought the other was the one. but we took our time and got to know what God wanted us to do. I really liked that he chose me and wanted to know more about me and my relationship with Jesus. He said he knew that I was the one, but he was waiting on God to give the go ahead. God was leading us and we have now been married for 37 years. God just keeps getting better and better. Only my “honey” could put up with me. grin
Hey, Lori! I feel the same way in that most men would have thrown their hands in the air long ago! tee hee hee It’s so wonderful when God is the third partner in a marriage. He’s definitely the glue and has brought us through so many hard times! Just because you’ve been married fifty-three years doesn’t mean they’ve all been peaches and cream! Right? 🙂 <3 BLESSINGS!
We both were amazed at out feelings on our first date but what I didn’t know was that he told his Mom the next morning that he had met the girl he was going to marry. I still had a guy I needed to break up with 🤣 I had asked this other guy why we were dating and I didn’t like the answer. I had prayed to meet the guy I was going to marry and God supplied him. We have been married 39 years and I will love him forever. ❤️
That’s almost like our story! Ron knew way before me and told his mom right away! I had another off-and-on guy who lost me to Ron and an airman I’d been writing to in Vietnam. When he came back to the states (for his dad’s funeral) he showed up at my house in Texas (he lived in CA, we’d met when he was stationed in San Antonio). My dad asked him to stay there at our house to watch the superbowl! THAT was ackward! 🙂 Ron came, too, of course. BLESSINGS!
LOL, no I did not know. We met in January at the roller skating rink and he followed me home. He soon asked me to marry him, I kept saying no. He even had dates circled on the cover of his checkbook register as to when he would give me my promise ring, my engagement ring and our wedding date. I was not ready for marriage.
Well, he won and I got my promise ring on Valentine’s day, my engagement ring in March, and we married in May. This year, 3 kids, 8 grandkids and two great-grandsons later, we will celebrate our 50th anniversary.
wfnren at aol dot com
Oh how wonderful, Wendy! Your golden anniversary! Be sure to hint hint hint to those kids to celebrate your 50th! 🙂 It’s a perfect time to ALL gather and celebrate your love! My grandson Matthew (the A&M grad and fireman) is getting married on May 2! BLESSINGS and happy, blessed anniversary! 🙂
Beautiful story!
Ours was not a love at first sight 😉 I didn’t like his name lol
Hey Natalya. That his last name started with an “L” was nice with your Natalya, but it is definitely not easy to pronounce without hearing it first. I imagine you get to spell it every time! BLESSINGS!
Oh how wonderful, Wendy! Your golden anniversary! Be sure to hint hint hint to those kids to celebrate your 50th! 🙂 It’s a perfect time to ALL gather and celebrate your love! My grandson Matthew (the A&M grad and fireman) is getting married on May 2! BLESSINGS and happy, blessed anniversary! 🙂
I have a winner! Phyllis won the drawing. I appreciate Caryl for being my guest and everyone else for stopping by.