I was ten. That's the only excuse I can give. I honestly don't know this many years later what I was thinking, but I looked in the mirror one day and decided I hated my eyebrows. They were too bushy, or so I thought. This was not during Brooke Shields' meteoric rise to stardom. Again, for some unknown reason, I didn't ask my mother what I should do to fix this horrible defect. This was way, way, way before computers, so I couldn't Google an answer. Instead, I grabbed a razor. Yep. You guessed it. I shaved off part of my eyebrow. At least it wasn't all of my eyebrow. I figured out after only part of my eyebrow disappeared that it might not be a good idea after all. Well, believe me, I felt pretty foolish, especially over the six weeks it took for my eyebrow to grow back.

Then there was the day at school when I was in third grade. Mrs. Hudson was reading Little House on the Prairie, right after lunch. While she read, we were allowed to doodle at our desks. I had this new nifty hair comb. My best friend had bought it for me when she went to Galveston on vacation. It was shaped like a fish, and the combs were like the bones, so they stuck out on both sides. Well, that day it was rainy and my curls had fallen. The travesty! So while I listened to the story, I wrapped my hair around the fish comb, hoping it would curl my hair. Wrong again. How would you like to be in third grade, with half a day left, and a yellow fish comb stuck in your hair?

It wasn't the first time, and it certainly won't be the last time I've made a fool of myself.

Just in case, you think these two events were flukes, I'll share about the time in sixth grade when I sprayed red paint in my face. Yep. And no, it was an accident. Thankfully, it did wash off. But it didn't erase the embarrassment I felt.

Of course there are many different ways to make a fool of yourself. As I read the headlines these days about Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber, I wonder if they are embarrassed by their antics. Maybe one day they will be. Even though I'm happy I've never been arrested or twerked in public, I am not immune to doing stupid things. I'm thankful, my embarrassing moments weren't plastered all over the internet or put my life in danger. Hopefully, Miley and Justin will return to their faith, mature and gain wisdom. I hope there are Godly folks in their lives who can speak the truth to them. As I've grown older, I've learned to shrug off those foolish moments and keep them safely tucked away. (Believe me, there are many of those moments I'm not about to share on the internet!) Maybe I've gotten used to embarrassing myself. Or maybe (and I hope this is the reason) I've simply learned that one's outward appearance isn't as important as one's inner beauty.

Is that something some elderly person came up with to make those of us growing older feel better? Maybe. But then again, Peter tells us God's opinion in his epistle: "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight." (I Peter 3:3-4)

As I am getting of an age that I don't look the way I used to, I reflect on my grandfather's words more and more: "Pretty is as pretty does." I truly believe my grandfather was right. I have been blessed to know some amazing women in my life. Not all of them were Angelina Jolie beautiful. But they were beautiful nonetheless. And their inner beauty was something to behold as they served God, loved their families, and cared for others. You see, there are some ways in which the world might perceive us as being foolish but which brings glory to God.

I can't tell you how many times I've been looked at by friends and family who didn't understand our decision to homeschool. God led us to that decision for our family. It doesn't always make sense to the world. But we're not doing it to please the world.

Shakespeare said, "A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool." Frankly, the world will never understand Christians and the choices we make for Him. King Solomon said, "Why should fools have money in hand to buy wisdom, when they are not able to understand it?" (Proverbs 17:16) The world's wisdom is not the same as the Lord's. It is better to risk everything, even making a fool of oneself, for God's glory than to seek the things of this world.

Unfortunately, I'm still apparently making a fool of myself at least occasionally. In light of the Super Bowl game yesterday (Congrats to the Seahawks!), there is no explanation for this picture of me.


So how have you made a fool of yourself? And how are you letting your inner beauty shine through?

Labels: Angelina Jolie, Brooke Shields, foolish behavior, homeschooling, inner beauty, Inspirational author, Justin Bieber, Leanna Ellis, maturity, Miley Cyrus, pretty is as pretty does, Shakespeare, wisdom

Everybody's doing it! Have you heard that excuse before? Well, I'm using it. So many authors are now epubbing their backlist of books. Thankfully, my agent suggested I get the rights back to some of my old titles a few years ago. Once that happened, I've been updating the books and getting them ready. Now, my very first book, Strong, Silent Cowboy, has been epubbed. It is available on Kindle. I loved writing this story, and I've loved rereading it after all these years. I loved (and still love!) my hero, Kirk. He's a stuttering cowboy but a rough-and-tumble cowboy. I think you'll love him too. Strong, Silent Cowboy won the Golden Heart Award from Romance Writers of America.

Labels: cowboy, first book, Golden Heart award winner, Leanna Ellis, romance

Writer and friend Candace Calvert once upon a time was a nurse and she has implemented something new on her blog: asking authors to cover her shift. So, Candace asked me to blog for her today. Here's the link: http://candacecalvert.blogspot.com/2011/02/author-leanna-ellis-cover-my-shift-2.html

Hope you'll check it out!

And in case you're wondering where I've been…well, after I turned in my book last December I decided to take a much needed break. But the holidays weren't quite as relaxing as I had hoped. The week before Christmas, my uncle died, and the week after my dog Belle died. So my break extended into January…and I'm embarrassed to say February too! I have been writing and working on revisions for FORSAKEN as well as working up a couple of proposals, and I am slowly getting back in the groove. So I hope to be blogging a bit more regularly.

Blessings,

Leanna

Labels: Candace Calvert, holiday, Leanna Ellis, writing break

FORSAKEN


Hannah Schmidt, a young Amish woman mourning the mysterious death of her beloved Jacob, now a vampire, must choose between two brothers, between good and evil, between a lasting love and the damnation of her soul.

Labels: Amish, Forsaken, Leanna Ellis, new book cover, Sourcebooks, vampires

Spread the news! Elvis is in the house! Actually on the Kindle! And for FREE! Yep, until Oct. 8th, it will be FREE on the Kindle. Elvis Takes a Back Seat is my first women's fiction title! I adore this book and hope you will too. So rush over to Amazon.com and download it. Quick, while it's FREE!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/digital-text/154606011

If you don't have a Kindle, don't worry. There are applications for FREE to help you download on your PC, iPad, Mac, iPhone. Check these out:

Kindle free application for your Windows PC:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000426311&tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=6386153591&ref=pd_sl_c0q9u5y7v_b


Kindle free application for your Mac:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_mac_mkt_lnd?docId=1000464931


Kindle free app for your iPad:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000490441&tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=5505446007&ref=pd_sl_88rlub1lit_b


Kindle free app for your iPhone:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_iphone_mkt_lnd?docId=1000301301

So with a few clicks, you can easily download Elvis Takes a Back Seat for free! But you have to hurry! It's only available for free until Oct. 1st.

Labels: christian author, Elvis, Elvis Takes a Back Seat, FREE, Kindle, Leanna Ellis

"Facelift by Leanna Ellis is my favorite book by this author so far! When Kaye Redmond reluctantly
accepts the challenge of taking care of her ex mother-in-law during her recovery from surgery,
things can’t get any crazier! I love Kaye’s “can-do” attitude and I can’t help admiring how she
handles single parenthood, caregiving and her job. This is one of those stories where you forget
this is a work of fiction because the characters just work their way into your heart."

Susan Choy Lee aka The Reading Mom
www.readingmom.net (under construction)
join her e-newsletter by emailing thereadingmom@gmail.com

Labels: Facelift, Leanna Ellis, Susan Choy Lee, The Reading Mom, women's fiction

Hi, y'all! Wanted to give you a sneak peek at the new trailer for my upcoming book, FACELIFT, which comes out Oct. 2010! Check it out!

http://vimeo.com/10460467

Labels: book trailer, christian author, Facelift, inspirational fiction, Leanna Ellis