Beth’s new book, The Creole Princess, 
Review to follow later today. For now, WE PLAY!!
I look like I mean BUSINESS!! (and like I have a fauxhawk…)
The rules are simple. I ask Beth some random questions. She replies and then I give my answers. Each winning answer is worth one point and I get to decide whose answer is better.
It’s my blog.
Here we go!
1. Have you ever accidentally shoplifted?
Beth – I actually did, at TJ Maxx. I don’t remember what I’d bought, but something among several purchases didn’t get rung up. So the next day I brought it back and had them charge my credit card. The clerk looked at me like I was crazy. She said she’d never ever had anybody bring something back and ask to be charged for it! She even brought the manager over to make sure she was doing the right thing! haha!
Charity – Nice! I am a natural blond and a complete hot mess, so…I have done it more times than I care to admit!!! ha ha. I get so annoyed because I don’t feel well and then I have to drive back to the store…I am so happy that my son will have his driver’s license in a couple of months!!!!
— tie
2. Funniest Holiday mishap?
Beth – I don’t know if you’d call this a mishap, since it was done on purpose, but my husband talked me into letting him give our 5- and 6-year-old kids a go-kart for Christmas one year. Needless to say, they ran it into a fence on the second day and bent the axle, and it stayed in the shop for several months before we could afford to pay to get it out. Not one of our wiser parenting moves.
Charity – Oh my goodness! ha ha. That’s so funny. I would have LOVED to have a go-kart as a kid! I STILL WOULD!!
I was just going to say that we went to NY to spend Christmas with my parents and while we were opening our stockings, my 70+ year old mom and dad started spraying us with silly string. It was EVERYWHERE!!!! I was so grossed out. ha ha ha. At least I know where I got my fun streak from (:
— I think the go-kart to a preschooler wins! ha ha
Charity 0 / Beth 1
3. What is your favorite Yankee Candle scent?
Beth – Yankee?? Seriously? I live in Lower Alabama! Okay, just kidding. I’ll play. I’m not a big scented candle fan, except for a little bit of cinnamon around Christmas time (migraine odor sensitivities). The only Yankee Candle I own was given to me, and it sits in my kitchen window. It’s Maple Walnut. I lit it one time, and it smelled really nice, but it just made me hungry, so I doused it.
Charity – HA! I didn’t even think of that when I asked. Well, hmm…The South lives on!!!! So funny!!! I love, LOVE Yankee Candles!!! They do make me hungry though. You may be on to something though! My next diet may consist of dousing my candles!!
— Beth’s brilliant diet wins! ha ha (:
Charity 0 / Beth 2
4. Have you ever ridden a double seater bike? (Is that what they are even called???)
Beth – I have never actually ridden one, but one of my favorite childhood songs was “Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do. I’m half crazy, all for the love of you! It won’t be a stylish marriage, for I can’t afford a carriage. But you’ll look sweet upon the seat of a bicycle built for two!” So I guess that’s what you call it!
Charity – I ALWAYS sang that to my kids when they were little!!! Of course, I replaced “Daisy” with their names. I haven’t either. It reminds me of the turn of the century and all the beautiful dresses and boardwalks of the time… 
— Tie!
5. Do you like Disney World?
Beth – I really do. My first trip was shortly after it opened, when I was in the 9th grade in high school, and my church youth group piled in a bunch of vans and went. Naturally we had a break-down or two, which added to the adventure, and I had very little money to spend on souvenirs. But I did come back with a Mickey Mouse T-shirt which was a prized possession for years. I wonder what happened to it….
Many years later, my husband and I saved up to take our kids there. One of my favorite pictures is one I took of my then-5-year-old daughter Hannah watching the fireworks over Cinderella’s castle during the evening parade. Her mouth was literally hanging open in awe. Priceless.
Charity – So precious!!!! I love it too ❤ The first time I ever got to go was when I was 27 years old! It was so magical. I could go there every year!!! We went a couple of years in a row, but haven’t been back since I had my youngest son (who is almost 8). Someday…
— Tie!
6. Favorite TRUE story from the Revolutionary war?
Beth – In April, 1778, an obscure shopkeeper-turned-Patriot Captain James Willing sailed from Spanish New Orleans into nearby British-held Mobile to distribute copies of the Declaration of Independence. For his pains he was given guest quarters in the Fort Charlotte jail, until he was traded in a prisoner exchange.
Charity – Wow. It’s so hard to even imagine going through that and all they endured!! It really blows my mind that it wasn’t even that long ago.
Favorite story…It’s so hard to thing of just one!! I am such a American History buff. It’s annoying, I’m sure! ha. It would probably be a toss up between The Culpepper Spy Ring, Francis Marion (The “Swamp Fox”), or George Washington’s amazing attack on NY during New Year’s Eve.
— Another tie!! This isn’t good!!!
Charity 0 / Beth 2
7. Have you ever been in the cave that General Cornwallis hid in so he wouldn’t have to surrender to George Washington?
Beth – Didn’t know there was such a thing. Where is it?
Charity – At the battle of Yorktown, he knew that he was defeated, so he hid in a cave there by the water. He was planning on sneaking across the York River. The French showed up just in time to stop him. He wouldn’t come out of hiding, so he sent his second in command to surrender to George Washington. He was quickly found.
I live in the Historic Triangle area (Williamsburg, Yorktown, and Jamestown), so it is rich with history!
— I WIN ONE!!
Charity 1 / Beth 2
8. What’s the meal/dessert/appetizer that you are “known for” making?
Beth – Killer Banana Pudding, which involves Eagle Brand milk and Cool whip. I’m also known for blowing up everyone’s calorie allowance for the decade.
Charity – Lol! Sounds amazing!!! I love to make Pumpkin Whoopie Pies. 
— Tie!! Good food ALWAYS WINS!!
9. Any secret recipes passed down from your parents that you would never give away?
Beth – My father would make milkshakes occasionally, and he never let us know he put raw eggs in them until we were old enough not to throw a fit. Oops, I just gave away that secret. Um, okay, there’s this beautiful cornbread our family makes, and I truly can’t tell the recipe because there aren’t any measurements. You just have to watch it being done and practice with somebody standing over you until you get it right.
Charity – Yum!! We have a similar thing. It’s the “Caldwell Fudge” (My mother’s maiden name). You just have to watch it and learn from one generation to the next.
Wow. I am getting HUNGRY!!!
— Tie again!!
10. How do you strive to bring God the most glory in your life?
Beth – Well, I used to consider myself a sort of chicken Christian. I was afraid to “witness” to others because I didn’t want to “get it wrong.” And I walked around feeling vaguely guilty all the time. Then, as I matured, I began to pray for God to take away my fear. I wanted to live bold, to truly risk my life for the sake of the gospel. A few years went by and I started to realize that real courage is acting in spite of fear. So when opportunities came for service that I was afraid of, I embraced the fear and sort of closed my eyes and leaped. Gradually I realized that my circle of influence has deepened and broadened until I hardly recognize myself as that scared teenager. It’s uncomfortable, but the more petrified I feel on the inside about whatever God commands me to do, the more glory He receives in the outcome.
In a similar way, I used to be a “hoarder” of my financial resources, because it seemed I really didn’t have much to give. But then I got a job teaching kids whose families are
way less advantaged than mine. It seems like the more I give (in secret, not expecting a return), the more joy I find in generosity. This is in no way a “health and wealth”
doctrine—it’s simply something that I’ve observed in my own life. And I’m trying to teach my students to be both grateful to God and generous to others.
Charity – Beautiful!! I just always want to bring Him glory in all things. Even the dumb things like a car breaking down or WHATEVER! Just try to get the focus off of myself and see how I can show God to the people I will come in contact with.
— GOD WINS!!
11. Favorite version of the Bible?
Beth – I enjoy the New Living Version. The Living Bible came out when I was in high school, and it radically changed the way all my peers and I read and understood the Bible. Of course we knew it’s a paraphrase, and we supplemented our studies with the Revised Standard Version and other good translations. I actually like to read several versions and compare for best meaning when I’m doing a deep study.
Charity – I love The Message and New American Standard. I had “Life Application Bible” when I was a teenager that did change how I saw it. Unfortunately, I didn’t care too much about God until I was well into my 20’s. booo!!!
Our house is funny because each of us like a different version. It’s awesome though (: I love that my kids care enough to be passionate about it!
— Girl! This is ridiculous!! We are tying on everything!!
Final:
Charity 1 / Beth 2
— Now, I see that you have some questions for me!! Tricky!!!!
Ok, GO!! (:
Beth – What’s your worst/funniest parenting mistake, and what did you do to fix it?
Charity – HA!!! HA HA HA HA!! Wow. I don’t even know. I just know that I desire to watch their eyes and their heart at all times so I know right away when I mess up. I am quick to apologize because I always want their hearts open to me.
We joke A LOT. I am the only girl of a house full of boys (I LOVE THAT!!). I always had boys for friends growing up because I love sports and bathroom humor. We are wild and crazy. Playing hide and seek in the middle of the night in the dark, shooting each other with airsoft guns, food fights, etc… So, probably hearing them say or do things that are ok in our home, but not so much elsewhere.. ha ha. Yikes!
Beth – What was your favorite youth group trip as a teenager?
Charity – We had a lot of fun weekend trips and lock-ins. Unfortunately, I only cared which boys would be there 
Like I said, God didn’t get ahold of my heart until I was in my 20’s.
Beth – What’s your favorite silly song?
Charity – Lol. Well, I don’t know about that… Besides “Mr Hanky the Christmas Poo”? See, I told you it’s a boys’ house here!!!!
Let me think…I love songs from Bye Bye Birdie, The Daisy, Daisy Song, Sippin’ Cider through a Straw, lots of fun songs from my youth (:
So much fun!! Thank you, Beth!! 
Now, onto the GREAT NEWS!!! Beth has offered to giveaway a copy of her NEW RELEASE!!! All you have to do is follow this: a Rafflecopter giveaway
*US Addresses Only
**Remember, all entries are checked and any that are falsified are disqualified!
Rebecca Avery has never been one of “them”—the popular kids, the beautiful people. With less than fashion-plate looks and an off-beat, quirky style to living life, she has been relegated to finding “alone” activities to fill her time throughout high school. Unfortunately, college hasn’t changed that. Then she meets Eric Barnett, a nice guy who seems a little quirky himself. The only problem is, he’s in love with her roommate—one of the truly beautiful people. When Rebecca finds herself falling for him, she must find a way to break out of her shell or risk losing him forever. Who will win out in this mixed up jumble of feelings and loyalties?
