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It's been about 2 weeks since The Parker House was published and I'm so grateful for all of the support and for those of you that have purchased the book. I've received lots of questions about the book and my messages on Instagram and Facebook have been overflowing. I figured it would be easiest to share a blog series with Q&A's over the next few weeks!
Question: What made you want to write this book?
Most people who have read my blog or follow me on social media know how much we love it here on this little sandbar. You see the beautiful beaches and the happy kids and tell me that I make it look easy. But here’s the thing; it wasn’t always good for us here.
When we first moved here, Joey was 7. He left his home in Pittsburgh, his grandparents and aunts, his friends and his school. He didn’t just happily move to his favorite vacation destination like we did. He struggled! There were tears every single day, fighting us on going to school every morning, difficulty making friends for months because he didn’t want to forget his old friends. It was heartbreaking watching him struggle and I remember crying to Jason after we finally got Joey to bed one night. “We need to move back.” I was ready to give up on my dream life for my son's happiness.
The truth is, when you pick up and move to vacation land, everyone tells you that it’s the wrong move. People question your sanity. No one really lives there with a family! I felt like maybe all of those people were right and I hated watching Joey struggle.
But then, Joey came home one day and mentioned a classmates name. It was the first time he had mentioned another kid since he started school. I played it cool. You know, ask a question but not more than one because you don’t want to poke the bear...
Ever since Joey was a little boy, I would tell him made up bedtime stories. It’s something my mom did for me and for my kids. My husband has even started doing it with the girls. Story time with Joey was specific. Joey would pick the main characters and setting and I would fill in the details. On this particular night, Joey added his classmates name into his character list and picked the story to be set in the woods.
From here, nightly stories of Joey and “Finn” were told by me and on occasion, by my mom. In all of these stories, Joey and Finn were the hero’s who made a difference or saved a kitten or escaped a band of evil snapping turtles who held them hostage at a lighthouse.... the possibilities were endless.
Soon, real life “Finn” was a regular at our house and my son outgrew bedtime stories but we have a mutual understanding of how important those stories were.
If you’d ask Joey today, he is so glad we moved from chilly, gray and gloomy Pittsburgh but he does consider the University of Pittsburgh as a potential college choice. (I'm pushing for a good NC school...)
So, why did I write The Parker House? I didn't want those epic bedtime stories to fade away. It's like replaying your favorite song over and over again for months and then ten years go by and you still remember all the words.
Photo Credit: Ryan and Rach Photography, Outer Banks NC