April, 2026 Author Update
Whispers Across the Prairie
Rebecca is busy formatting the interior right now. Soon, I’ll have it back to proofread and approve for printing.
Later this month, I’ll send the text to Ellen Quay, who will narrate it for the audiobook version. I’m excited to hear this story come to life!
Isatu Boyce
Most of you know I worked with Isatu on her first book, Overcoming the Bitterness of War, which was released in May 2025. Well, she’s written another book!
This one is shorter and written more like a personal journal of growth and grace. Its title is: What Healing Really Feels Like.
The purpose of her writing this is to help others she knows who are struggling to forgive and let go of things that have hurt them.
We’ve just sent it off to be edited. Now we wait…
Mary Ann Hoffman
Mary Ann is a local children’s author of the book called: TA-DA! It’s a lovely picture book with a poetic look at the wonder of creation.
She met me last September at the Local Author Fair at the Mid-Continent Library. This year, she reached out for publishing help from me. I’m pleased to announce that her book is now available on Amazon.
April Chickadee Cheer Giveaway Winner
Congratulations to L. Brickey! Please respond to the email I’ll send you inviting you to choose a paperback book of your choice from my shop. Thanks for subscribing and reading my blogs.
Creature Feature: The Giraffe
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Giraffes walk at about 10 mph. But they can run up to 35 mph.
They’re the TALLEST land animals. Girls are about 14’ tall and weigh about 1,500 pounds. Boys grow to about 18’ tall and weigh up to 3,000 pounds.
Giraffes rarely lay down. They can survive on only 30 minutes of sleep per day. They even give birth standing up.
They’re tough! Their spindly legs are strong enough to support over 2000 pounds and they can kick with a force of 2000 psi. Even lions avoid them.
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They are herbivores and feast on the high leaves of the African veld—Acacia tree leaves are their favorite. They eat about 75 pounds of food each day.
They are ruminants and have 4-part stomachs and chew a cud like cows.
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Their ears are up to 8” long and they have acute hearing. They actually communicate at night by humming to each other at very low frequencies.
They use their long prehensile tongues like an elephant uses its trunk. They can even clean their own ears with it.
They have very good eyesight and excellent peripheral vision.
Their sense of smell is well-developed, but since they’re so high, they don’t use it much.
Their skin is patterned uniquely, like our fingerprints. And their skin secretes chemicals that repel insects and disinfects their skin—to prevent fungal & bacterial growth. On the downside, the chemicals smell—and their scent can be detected over 800 feet away. Old giraffes are stinky!
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This is the name given to the things on top of their head that look like horns. They’re really bones covered with skin and fur—not horns.
They use these as a weapon when fighting with each other. They call this fighting “necking” because they use their necks like a whip to hit their opponent with their ossicones.
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Giraffes have very long necks—up to 6’ long. (Our necks are about 5” long.) But guess what? We both have 7 neck bones! The giraffes’ bones are just bigger.
Do they get tired of using 600 pounds of muscle to hold up their heads? NO! Because they also have a NUCHE LIGAMENT which runs from their skull all the way to their tail. It acts like a spring to bring those necks back up.
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How do they drink? Doesn’t the blood rush to their head?
Well, God designed them with a WONDER NET at the base of their brain, which collects the blood and then diffuses it to the brain, so it’s not all there at once, which would cause them to have a stroke and die.
Creature Feature is a new addition to my Author Update each month and is inspired by the books by Reasons for Hope. The Giraffe is from the book called A Pocket Guide to the Zoo: Fascinating Facts, Volume 1: Africa. If you’re interested in learning more about God’s design in animals, please check them out. (Next month: the hippopotamus!)
