Well, Christmas is over, the presents unwrapped, and the torn wrapping paper (mostly) cleaned up. It was a lovely Christmas altogether, especially the surprise bag of presents my family and I found by our door on Christmas Eve after we'd been out. It was very heartwarming to find it there, and we're very grateful, though we're not sure who to be grateful to. So perhaps we should just make an extra effort to be nice to everyone, since anyone could have done it.

A neighbor introduced me to a new tradition that I would like to try out with my family in Christmases to come. It's called The White Stocking. And here's how it goes:

THE WHITE STOCKING

It wasn't that anyone had really been forgotten,
no child had been slighted or made unhappy
and no adult had been left unremembered.
The presents had all been distributed and
all the stockings were beautifully filled--all
that is except one; one stocking that had never
even been hung. It was the stocking intended for the
Child of Bethlehem.

Of all the people belonging at that Christmas
gathering, only He had been forgotten.
Only he had been left out of the festivities.
This didn't seem quite right, inasmuch as it
was His birthday that was being celebrated.
Since then, the little white stocking has been hung
in a special place in our home. On Christmas Eve
after our special dinner, we gather in the living room
and have a program. During this time we reach
into the stocking and pass out the papers
that were placed in the stocking the year before.
Each person then writes a new gift for
Jesus to be placed in the stocking.
Your gift could include: personal goals, ways you will
be of service to others in the coming year, or
relationships you wish to improve.
Wishing You A Special Holiday Season.

The Hobbit!!

Those of you who know me personally, know I am a huge fan of Tolkien and his stories. So it gives me great pleasure to express my joy at the official announcement that Peter Jackson is teaming up with MGM and New Line Cinema to produce The Hobbit in two parts. Principal photography is tentatively set to begin in 2009, and the release of The Hobbit set for 2010 with its sequel in 2011.

I can't adequately express how ecstatic I am about this! I think Peter Jackson did a phenomenal job with translating The Lord of the Rings trilogy into movies while staying true to the story line and the spirit that Tolkien created in his books. A tough job, I have no doubt, but I think he did it splendidly.

I look forward to the magic he will create with The Hobbit!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Since Thanksgiving is almost here, I want to mention the things I am grateful for. For one, and most importantly, my children. I am also thankful for good friends, for my health, my job, my cute little house, and for my parents. I don't know where I would be without them.

Here's some news about the Whitney Awards!

PROVO, UT—OCTOBER 23, 2007FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWHITNEY AWARDS COMMITTEE ANNOUNCES LARGE CASH AWARDS

The Whitney Awards Committee announced today that they will beoffering seven large cash awards to be presented at the upcomingWhitney Awards banquet in March 2008. These cash prizes are due tothe generosity of the Whitney Awards' marquis sponsor,ExclusivelyLDS.com.Founded earlier this year, the Whitney Awards program is a non-profitorganization dedicated to rewarding excellence among LDS authors.With the new sponsorship of ExclusivelyLDS.com, winning authors willreceive up to $1000 along with their trophy.The Whitneys offer a total of seven awards. The five genre awards(Best Romance/Women's Fiction, Best Mystery/Suspense, BestYA/Children's, Best Speculative Fiction, Best Historical) will eachbe accompanied by a $500 cash prize. The two overall winners, BestNovel by a New Author and Best Novel of the Year, will each receive$1000."We're very excited about the sponsorship with ExclusivelyLDS.com,"Robison Wells, president of the Whitney Awards Committee,explains. "There is enormous talent among LDS authors, and everyyear seems to produce better and better novels. This is an excitingtime to be part of the LDS fiction industry. Our hope is that theseawards will raise awareness about the high quality fiction availablefrom LDS authors, and to draw in new readers."Over a hundred years ago, Latter-Day Saint Apostle Orson F. Whitneydeclared "We shall yet have Miltons and Shakespeares of ourown. . . . In God's name and by His help we will build up aliterature whose tops will touch the heaven, though its foundationmay now be low on the earth."Anyone can nominate a novel published during the previous calendaryear in any of seven categories, and a final academy of industryprofessionals will vote on the final ballot. Nominations are beingtaken for books published in 2007 by LDS authors at the WhitneyAwards website: www.whitneyawards.com

Well, it's October and Halloween is just around the corner. We've been reading some great books in my English classes. To Kill a Mockingbird is one of them, and I love that story for the way it sheds light on human nature, the great good, and the great evil that we bipeds are so capable of. I think Atticus Finch is one of the greatest heroes in Literature that I know of. I am thoroughly in awe at the wisdom and bravery of his character. And it gives me hope that just maybe there are real humans very much like him.

September!

Goodness! I'm amazed that it's September already. School is great, and I love teaching English. I'm glad to have the examples of so many classic authors to read, and to discuss with my students. I'm blown away by the talents of people like O. Henry, and Flannery O'Connor. Those people had fantastically brilliant minds to create the stories they did!

Harry Potter (No Spoilers)

Well, I wasn't in line at the bookstores Friday at Midnight, but I did get Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows on Saturday. There were a few things that I expected, a few things that I didn't, and through it all, Rowling's writing was fantastic! She has definitely improved as a writer. I have enjoyed every book, and have seen her get better with each one. She is a fantastic storyteller, and manages to pack every page with action. The book is 759 pages, but it doesn't feel like it.

I enjoyed the story and she ended it in a way that was very satisfying. I can't wait for the next two movies.

Oh my goodness! Harry Potter number 7 comes out tomorrow! I can hardly wait to find out if Harry lives or dies, (or something in between) and if Snape is truly good or evil, and lots of other things. There might even be some surprise twist that no one is expecting. I'm looking forward to getting my own copy as soon as I can. *big grin*

It's already the middle of July, and I'm getting ready to start teaching school at the end of August. I'm really excited and nervous, but mostly excited. I'll be teaching English, my most favorite subject.

July is here already, my goodness! Feel free to check out my website at www.loraleeevans.com. Oh boy, the end of August will be here before we know it.

Well, summer is going by fast for me. And it's busy! I'm not able to write as often as I'd like, but I've got some pretty promising ideas for my next writing project. Since my books, The Birthright and The King's Heir are interconnected, I was thinking the third book, when I have the time to write it, would also be connected to the other two somehow.

Hello!

Hello! My name is LoraLee Evans, and this is the first time I'm posting to my blog. I'm an author, and have published two books, The Birthright, and The King's Heir. My publisher for these two books is Cedar Fort Inc. You can read about my books on my website, www.loraleeevans.com. Look for updates from me, in the future!