Encouraging Ladies of All Ages In Femininity And Biblical Womanhood

Shalom Dear Friends!

I would like to let you know about a special purchase that Shining Stars Magazine made this week …

Left to right: Samuel (11 yesterday!), Abigail (12), Ruthie (17), Lydia (8), Tommy (19), Sarah (15 tomorrow!) and myself (21).

On Wednesday, my brother Tommy and I made the 12 hour round trip to northern Kentucky/almost-Cincinatti to pick up a printer that I had purchased on eBay. This HP 5550DN prints in color (and black and white), on 11×17 paper and it connects to my computer! :)

When we children gathered around to take a picture this evening, someone suggested that we all wear sunglasses … because it was only through sunglasses that the past issues looked okay!

Can y'all tell that we have a lot of fun around here? :)

While we are so thankful for the 400+ pound Toshiba FC22i that has faithfully copied the past fifteen issues of SSM, we are hoping and praying that the blurry covers, discolored and fuzzy pictures and streaked text will be a thing of the past and that this new printer will serve us well from now ’til kingdom come :) I don’t know how many times I looked at the copied covers and groaned – wishing that you all could see the original. I printed a couple pages today and the quality was EXCELLENT! Now I just need to figure out how to print on 11×17 paper – double sided :)

Thank you for your prayers and support … we’ve been praying for this printer to come for a long time and I am so happy that it is finally here!

First, I would like to announce the winners of the Featured Home Business Giveaway … Samantha L won the Teddy Toes blanket from Happy Heels by Hannah and Hannah M. won the tea package from Day by Day Creations. Congratulations y’all :) :)

Thank you all for participating! There will be a book review and giveaway beginning on January 8th and another FHB review and giveaway on February 8th.

Volume5 Number1 is coming together nicely – I still have some more layout/design work to do and a little more space to fill … there are a couple of things I am looking for :)  I decided to add a few regular columns – at least, that is the plan for now. We’ll see how it works out! The columns consist of:

• A Peek Into My Hope Chest
• Being Beautifiers
• Heroines In History
• Out Of The Mouth Of Babes
• Recommended Reading
• Serving Our Families

I have also thought about adding one that focuses on nutrition and healthy living. Any thoughts? At this point, I do not have entries for Being Beautifiers, Out Of The Mouths Of Babes and Serving Our Families.

Being Beautifiers ought to contain topics like “What are some ways that you make your home a pleasant and welcoming haven?” and “How do you combine modesty and femininity to present a beautiful outward appearance?”

Out Of The Mouths Of Babes will contain short stories about young children – these can be thought-provoking, inspirational and humorous.

Serving Our Families will contain ideas on practical ways that you serve and bless your family.

If any of you have anything to share that could fit into one of these columns, please let me know as soon as possible! We do not have the cover photos picked out yet, so there is still time to submit photos if you have some that you would like to share.

Thank you all so much for making this possible. This is not my magazine … Shining Stars provides a way for each of you to encourage many others with the insights and thoughts that the Father has given you. I am honored to be a part of this and join with all of you in blessing your sisters in Messiah!

Amidst all the hustle and bustle of our family’s preparations to join a conference that our fellowship is hosting this weekend, I have not yet been able to complete the FHB giveaway! I’m sorry for the delay and I will do my best to announce the winners on Monday, the 26th!

Hi Ladies!

It’s getting to be that time again … time to submit material for the nest issue of Shining Stars!

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The Theme For The Next Issue Is: From Wives And Mothers -

I would like to fill this issue with testimonies, stories and advice from ladies who are married with children and can share some of their experiences with us younger women. I understand that many of you were not raised in the path that you are now walking (i.e. wives, mothers, keepers at home) and I would love to hear some wise advice, some “do?s and don?ts” (voice of experience!) and testimonies of how the Heavenly Father has led you and things that He has taught you.

As usual, I would love to receive testimonies from unmarried young ladies and non-thematic articles as well. Please ask the Father if He has something for you to share with the rest of us …

… and submit all articles by December 15th!

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Feedback Wanted!

Was there a particular article or two that blessed and encouraged you? Do you have concerns about something that was printed? Do you have suggestions about the material that we feature, the layout and design of SSM, or something else? We love to hear from our subscribers and especially want to know what you are thinking about the magazine and the articles that are published. Thank you for your feedback!

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Pen Pal Place!

Would you like a pen pal? Just send us your name, age, address and a little bit about yourself … and we will try to print your request in the next issue!

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The Recipe Theme For The Next Issue Is: International Specialities!

We did this a couple years back, but I think it’s about time we do it again. If you have a special recipe from another country/culture, please submit it by December 15th!

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I also have another request … I am thinking about adding several “permanent” columns to the magazine – columns that feature particular topics in each issue, but authored by different writers. A Peek Into My Hope Chest is the first and was added in the past issue. If you would like to see certain columns – regular topics in each issue, and/or if there is a particular topic that you would be interested in writing about, please let me know!

I hope to hear from you all soon! Abundant Blessings ~ Hannah

I mailed all the copies of Volume4 Number4 yesterday morning! Those of you in the States should be receiving them in the next day or two … if you have not received your copy within a week, please let me know! (By the way, if you are a follower of this blog and would like to receive a copy of the magazine, you can email me your address and I would be glad to send you one).

The theme for the next issue is one that has been on my heart for awhile. I put the information in the magazine but I will include it here as well so that all of you can be pondering it :)

The Theme For The Next Issue Is:

From Wives And Mothers -

I would like to fill this issue with testimonies, stories and advice from ladies who are married with children and can share some of their experiences with us younger women. I understand that many of you were not raised in the path that you are now walking (i.e. wives, mothers, keepers at home) and I would love to hear some wise advice, some “do?s and don?ts” (voice of experience!) and testimonies of how the Heavenly Father has led you and things that He has taught you.

As usual, I would love to receive testimonies from unmarried young ladies and non-thematic articles as well. Please ask the Father if He has something for you to share with the rest of us …

… and submit all articles by December 15th!

Please feel free to pass on this request to your mother, grandmother or anyone else who may be interested in sharing. As I mentioned, unmarried young ladies are welcome to write as well. I look forward to seeing what the Father gives you to share!

I also have a prayer request. As some of you may know, we print the magazine on a Toshiba FC22i, which is a large commercial copier. I purchased this machine through eBay several years ago for an excellent price. The drawback is that this copier did not have the fiery controller that facilitates connecting it to the computer and printing directly. Since 2008, I have taken the magazine to Staples and had them print me one copy of the magazine. I bring that copy home and start running copies on my machine. This is why the quality of the pictures is usually not very good! You should hear us groaning as we compare the copies to the original :)

Even though I don’t like the low quality prints, I have been very thankful for this copier that the Father provided – especially as it came with six toner cartridges that I would have had to buy for close to $100. However, I am concerned that my Toshiba is on its last legs! For the past two issues, I have had to juggle settings and turn everything “up” and “dark” just to get it to copy clearly … and the text still looks faded. My brother thinks this is an issue with the drum and if that is the case, it would be extremely expensive to fix.

So here is the prayer request! We need another printer! If we were to take the magazine to a copy/print shop to get all the copies printed, plus the cost of postage, we would be looking at a cost of about $1200 to publish one mailing – $4800 for a year. I do not have the money to do that! I am praying that the Father will provide another machine and I would love if you all could join me. There are a few specific requests involved …

• That it would print 11″x17″ paper, so that the magazine can stay the same size it is.
• That it would come with the technology so that it can be connected to the computer without a lot of extra expense.
• That it would be smaller than the one we have right now (my mother would be really thankful for this!).
• That we would have the necessary finances to purchase it and any accessories (toner, etc).
• That the Father would “place it in our laps” (not literally!) and we would know beyond any shadow of doubt that it is the one He is providing for us.

I look forward to seeing how the Father answers our prayers. If any of you are familiar with copiers/printers and have any advice or suggestions to share, I would be very grateful!

One other thing … I would like to congratulate Raechel K who won a copy of “The Beauty Of Modesty” last night! Thanks to everyone who joined the book giveaway … check back in a few weeks for our Featured Home Business Review and Giveaway … we will have more fun things to win :)