Shannon here: Inspirational author, Caryl McAdoo shares her real life romance plus a chance to win a copy of her latest historical romance, Sins of the Mothers. Comment or answer the question at the end of any post dated May 25 – 29 to enter for the drawing. Winner’s choice print or digital. Deadline: June 6th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Caryl:
My husband Ron and I met in June, the summer of our sixteenth year, were engaged the next June at seventeen, then graduated from town rival high schools in May and married on June 22nd, 1968 at eighteen. I’d been eighteen one full month, and he was eighteen-and-a-half! His parents wanted us to wait, but mine loved Ron and never uttered a word of objection. We had our precious firstborn son the following year in June (1969) and another handsome boy the next September, 1970.
Looking back at Polaroid Swinger photos, I see babies rearing babies. I was reared Baptist and Ron Church of Christ, and he’d shown me a letter where his sweet Grandmother Lewis told him adamantly not to marry me unless I converted, but I had no problem going to his church—same God, right? Before the wedding though, I was missing the instruments accompanying our singing…well, Ron isn’t a signer, no, not at all. After the wedding, we attended First Baptist.
One of the first gifts he gave me while we were still dating was a bracelet with a medallion that had Latin on it: I love you more today, but less than tomorrow. It became our couple’s life mantra. I remember that first year, he drove a Coca Cola delivery truck, my Uncle Jim hired him there. He picked up love cards all the time and mailed them to me. I remember one saying he looked forward to turning eighty years old with me. He often wrote poems on them. I still have those cards! Forty-seven years later – next month!
When a sixteen-year-old, I couldn’t imagine loving Ron McAdoo anymore, but I can tell you as a testimony that the more hard times you go through together, the stronger that love becomes, and my sweetheart and I have been to Hades and back many times in our forty-nine years together. I strongly encourage all you younger wives to STICK* IT*OUT! No matter what he has done!
Walk through it with your husband—and God, of course—and I promise your love for him and his for you will grow stronger and deeper, more and more like God’s love for us. I can see now how Romans 8:38 KJV: “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” can operate in our own lives and mirror a perfect never ending, everlasting love.
Nothing can separate us from God’s love, and there should be nothing to separate yours for your husband.
My O’Pa and I (a.k.a. Grami) turned sixty-five in the last year, and I cannot imagine life without him. In the morning when I wake—he’s an early riser and never wakes me—the first thing after his cheery “Good Morning, Sweetheart” or “There’s a Grami” or “I see you”, he gets up and gets me a cup of hot lemon (fresh squeezed) water with honey. As soon as it’s gone, he retrieves my cup and fills it with coffee. Through our days, he honors me, tells people how smart and gifted I am all the time (in his opinion 🙂 ).
For him, no matter where we are, I always fix his plate before getting my own. I honor him, respect him, and submit my will to his according to Ephesians 5:22 “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.” Admittedly not always happily which would be getting it JUST right, because ANYTHING the Lord asked of me or commanded, I’m sure I’d be less grouchy and snarly about it 🙂 But, anyone who’s been around me much more than ten minutes knows how wise and wonderful Ron is. I oft say I’m like Mary – blessed among women – for being chosen by God to be Ron McAdoo’s wife. Romance will never die in our lives!
About Caryl: Christian, hybrid (Simon & Schuster & Indie) author Caryl McAdoo is currently writing three series from a perspective of faith: her historical Texas Romances; the contemporary Red River Romances; and The Generations, her Biblical fiction. The novelist loves singing new songs the Lord gives her and painting. In 2008, she and her high-school-sweetheart husband Ron moved from the DFW area—home for fifty-eight years—to the woods of Red River County. Caryl counts four children and fifteen grandsugars life’s biggest blessings believing all good things come from above. Praying each story gives God glory, she hopes it also ministers His love, mercy, and grace to its readers. Caryl and Ron live in Clarksville, the county seat, in the far northeast corner of the Lone Star State.
Learn more and connect:
All Books – http://tinyurl.com/CarylsAmazonPage
May release – http://tinyurl.com/SinsMothers
Website – http://www.CarylMcAdoo.com
(All First Chapters are offered here)
Newsletter – http://carylmcadoo.com/sign-up-to-the-caryler/
(Get FREE books for subscribing!)
Reviewer? – http://carylmcadoo.com/christian-evaluaters/
(Join Caryl’s Street Team!)
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/CarylMcAdoo.author
Blog – http://www.CarylMcAdoo.blogspot.com
GoodReads – http://tinyurl.com/GoodReadsCaryl
Google+ – http://tinyurl.com/CarylsGooglePlus
Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/CarylMcAdoo
Pinterest – http://www.pinterest.com/CarylMcAdoo
About the book – Sins of the Mothers: Persistent faith brings redemption and reconciliation. Blind love propels Mary Rachel to defy her father and elope to California with Caleb Wheeler. The newlyweds partner with his cousin in his San Francisco dry goods business. Unbeknownst to the young bride, her new husband sends his kissing cousin ahead to have both his love and his new wife’s money. Betrayal and murder drive Mary, soon a young mother, to the depths of despair. Is there a man who can love her enough to cover her sins and deliver her out of the horrible pit she’s dug for herself? She travels from frontier Texas to the raw bone boomtown of 1850’s gold rush days, then all the way to genteel New York to find redemption for the sins of her mothers.
Reviews:
I tell you what, folks, this girl can write! I do love this series, and maybe most especially this book Mary Rachel Buckmeyer is smart as a whip. She can out-negotiate the experts, out-guess marketing trends, and out-stubborn a mule. Trouble is, she tends to follow her heart into disaster. She falls in love with Caleb Wheeler, a man her father says is a boy. As she finds out, he’s not only irresponsible, he has a meandering eye, lies like a braided rug, and has all the loyalty of a new-born pup. Mary hops from one frying pan to another until one man shows up who could steady her and get her out of the fixes she gets herself into. But again, trouble is she might throw him away. When will this girl ever learn? Such a great story! I know you’ll love it
–Patricia Baxter Campbell, Author of
I’ve often wondered if the past can repeat itself in a person’s life and Mary Rachel Buckmeyer gave me my answer. Love, betrayal, despair, the sweet faith of little children, and the perseverance of a miner. These all made for a wonderful story of what life was like in San Francisco during the gold rush of the 1850’s. When I finished the last page of Mary’s story, I smiled and thought… I loved this story! But… There had better be another book coming because I want more of these Buckmeyer’s! I’d recommend this story to anyone who enjoys reading a good Christian, historical fiction of the 1800’s.
–Deanna Stevens, Nebraska reader
Question: Which do you prefer out of the three genres Caryl writes? Historical, Contemporary, or Biblical?
Come back May 27th for Caryl’s character interview!
That’s a hard one… I like all three genres but I believe I prefer historical. (And with such beautiful covers who could resist 😉 )
Enjoyed reading this. I enjoy all three genres but if I have to choose maybe historical. I have read Sins of the Mothers in e-book form and loved. I would love to win a print copy for my library.
Historical
Bibical
I like Historical the best.
If I had to pick only one it would be historical but I like them all!
I normally pick historicals, but have read many more contemporaries lately. Of Caryl’s books I have only read her historical novels.
I prefer historical genre but have read all 3. I would love to win this the date it’s over is my birthday, June 6th. It would be a great read. Congratulations Caryl on your long marriage. All this worth having are worth sticking it out
Hi Miss Caryl! I always enjoy reading about you and your hubby, Ron. Your anniversary is the birthday of my dear, sweet aunt that I lost back in December. A special day, for sure!
I enjoy Biblical fiction! 🙂
Sins of the Mothers sounds like an awesome read. Loved reading your real life romance. You’re so right. A good marriage takes a heap of commitment and a lot of selflessness, not to mention, hard work.
Caryl and Ron are true soulmates and lifelong partners. Their love radiates to all who are around them and offers us a blessing by just being in their presence. Caryl is a natural Romance Writer and the faith she and Ron share comes through in each book. Caryl, you are the Proverbial (Prov. 31) woman and you and Ron just bless each other in all you do and say.