It’s difficult to believe that December is nearly half over, but I’m happy to announce I’m almost done with my “To Do” list. My Christmas cards are written out and mailed, packages are also mailed, the inside of the house is decorated, and almost all of my family’s gifts are purchased. This coming weekend I hope to help my husband decorate outside, and I also plan to finish my shopping. I’ll have time to wrap in the coming week.
This time of year is chaotic and sometimes stressful, but I try my best to enjoy the season. I enjoy watching our four cats play in the Christmas tree, and I love to wrap and mail packages and gifts. I also enjoy seeing Christmas movies and specials on television. I love seeing the old favorites, such as “A Christmas Story,” “Frosty,” and “The Night Before Christmas.” I also Christmas books. In the spirit of old favorites, I thought I’d share my Kauffman Amish Christmas Collection, which includes two novellas based on my Kauffman Amish Bakery series.
A Plain and Simple Christmas centers around Anna Mae, who doesn’t receive the welcome she expects when she visits her family for Christmas, and Naomi’s Gift re-introduces twenty-four-year-old Naomi King, who has been burned twice by love and has all but given up on marriage and children.
The Making of Naomi’s Gift
My dear friend Lauran deserves the credit for this book! Lauran loved the character of Naomi King in A Promise of Hope and A Place of Peace. When I began brainstorming a concept for the book, Lauran insisted more than once that Naomi needed her own story so that she could find her true love. I’m so thankful for Lauran’s input that I dedicated the book to her.
Here’s an excerpt from Naomi’s Gift:
“Cookies!” Sylvia yelled, trotting toward the steps.
“Yay!” Levina chimed in.
“Wait!” Lizzie Anne called. “You can carry something.” She pulled the covered dishes from the back of the buggy. “Here. Take these.”
The girls took the serving platters and hurried toward the bakery.
“Slow down!” Lizzie Anne called. Shaking her head, she hefted the bucket up from the buggy floor.
“Danki,” Naomi said while she and Lilly unhitched the horse. “You take the empty buckets, and I’ll bring the cookies.”
Lizzie Anne started toward the door, carrying the empty buckets that they would fill with cookies. “I’m going to see if Lindsay is here.”
While Lilly led the horse to the pasture to join the other horses, Naomi grabbed the bucket of cookies and started toward the stairs. A sign on the door said, “Bakery Closed at 4 p.m. for Private Party.”
Lilly fell in step beside her. “Smile, Naomi,” she said as they approached the door. “It’s Christmas.”
Plastering a smile on her face, Naomi yanked the door open and stepped into the bakery. The room was rearranged with a long line of tables placed in the center of the room with piles of cookies lined up from one end to the other. The counter was filled with a variety of covered dishes, which Naomi assumed were desserts other than cookies. Women and girls of all ages were gathered around the table while chatting. Naomi inhaled the delicious scents of cookies, cakes, breads, and casseroles.
“Naomi!” Susie yelled as she ran over and reached for the bucket. “Can I help you?”
Naomi couldn’t stop the smile forming on her lips. “Hello, Susie.” She handed the little girl the bucket. “Are you certain you can lift this? It’s sort of heavy.”
“I got it.” Susie huffed and puffed, but she couldn’t lift it.
Grinning, Naomi grabbed the handle. “Let me help you.”
“That’s a good idea. We’ll work together.” Susie put her little hand on the handle next to Naomi’s, and they lifted it together. Walking slowly, they moved over to the table.
“On three, we’ll dump the cookies,” Naomi said. “One, two, three!”
They dumped the cookies onto an empty spot on the table.
“Team work,” Susie said with a smile.
Elizabeth Kauffman stepped to the center of the room and clapped her hands. “Hello everyone!” she said. “I’m so glad you all could come to our cookie exchange. I’m sure you all remember the rules. We’ll file around the table and fill our buckets until all of the cookies are gone.” She motioned toward the counter behind her. “And then we’ll enjoy our delicious desserts. Frehlicher Grischtdaag!”
Chattering and laughing, the women and girls lined up around the table.
Susie looked up at Naomi. “Can I help you get cookies?”
Naomi’s heart warmed. “I would love it,” she said.
Susie beamed and held up the bucket. “I’ll get us the best cookies.”
Touching Susie’s shoulder, Naomi smiled. “That sounds wunderbaar gut.”
As they moved around the table grabbing cookies, Naomi wondered why Susie had latched onto her when there were a host of other women and Susie’s cousins in the room. And would Susie’s father approve if he saw Susie with her? Her thoughts turned to Susie’s father and she wondered what he was doing while they filled buckets with cookies.
The Making of A Plain & Simple Christmas
The idea for A Plain & Simple Christmas came to life during a visit to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Sue Brower, my editor at Zondervan, and I were sitting in her room at the Creekside Inn, located in Paradise, and we were talking about my upcoming book projects and deadlines. Sue suggested that I write a story about a shunned Amish woman who wants to come back to Lancaster to visit her family for Christmas. The story grew from there, and I’m very thankful to Sue for suggesting the concept. The story is dedicated to my godparents, Joe and Trudy Janitz, whom I miss dearly.
Here’s an excerpt from A Plain & Simple Christmas
Anna Mae and Kellan walked up the front path toward David and Kathryn’s farmhouse that evening. She grasped his hand and stopped him before they reached the door. “Let’s wait a minute before we go in.”
“You look beautiful.” He brushed a lock of hair back from her face. “You have nothing to be nervous about, Annie. They’re your family, and Kathryn invited you to come.”
“Thank you,” she said. “Now, you remember that Amish Christmases are different from English Christmases. They don’t put up a tree or include Santa. They may do a little bit of decorating with poinsettias and candles, but you won’t see any Christmas lights. To the Amish, it’s more about family and the Christmas story of Jesus’ birth, not Santa and gifts.”
Kellan nodded toward the house. “I remember that. You’ve explained it to me before.”
“And they have First Christmas and Second Christmas,” she continued, ignoring his grin. “In our family, we received our gifts on Christmas morning. My mother set up the table especially for the kids, and it was called the Christmas table. She put our names by each place setting and placed our gifts on the plate. We visited our extended family on Second Christmas, which was the twenty-sixth, and shared a huge meal,” she said. “It was so much fun playing with all of our cousins. My grandparents would give each of us a little gift, like candy. But each Amish family has its own traditions. Since the families are so large, they have to plan when to get together and some have their Christmas dinners as early as Thanksgiving. Others get together on Christmas Eve and others wait until after Christmas.”
“You’ve told me all of this already, Annie.” He kissed her forehead. “You’re so nervous that you’re babbling.”
Sticking out her chin, she pouted. “I don’t babble.”
“Yes, you do, and I think it’s adorable.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close.
Smiling, she swiped a snow flake that had landed on his nose. “I’m sure visiting with my family won’t be the most exciting way for you to spend a week off work, but it means a lot to me. Thank you. Or maybe I should say danki.”
“How do you say you’re welcome?” he asked.
Anna Mae smiled. “Gern gschehne.”
He pulled her into his arms. “Gern gschehne.” He brushed his lips against hers, and courage surged through her.
“Danki,” she said. “I needed that. Now let’s go see my brother and his family.” Taking his hand in hers, Anna Mae climbed the porch steps and knocked on the door.
Voices sounded on the other side of the door before it opened, revealing four children, two boys and two girls, staring wide-eyed at Anna Mae and Kellan. All four were blond like Kathryn. The girls were miniature versions of Amanda, and the boys reminded Anna Mae of her brother as a child.
“You’re our English aunt!” a little girl said.
“Aenti Anna Mae,” the other girl said.
Amanda marched toward them, frowning at her siblings. “Lizzie, Ruthie, Junior, and Manny,” she snapped. “Please step back and let Aenti Anna Mae and Onkel Kellan come into the house.” After the children backed away from the door, she turned to Anna Mae. “They’re excited to see you. Please come in.”
Kellan held the door and Anna Mae stepped in. The warmth from the fireplace seeped beneath her wrap while the aroma of roasted turkey and potatoes caused her stomach to growl.
The children swarmed around her, asking questions and rattling off their names. Tears filled Anna Mae’s eyes as she spoke with them. It warmed her heart to be with her family again.
“Anna Mae,” a voice bellowed above the chorus of children’s voices.
Glancing up, Anna Mae found her brother David studying her, his brown eyes glistening. He looked just as she remembered: he was tall but stocky with his sandy blond hair cut in a traditional Amish “bowl” cut. His beard had grown longer during the past few years. Although a few lines around his eyes revealed he was closing in on forty, he still wore youthfulness in his face.
“David,” she whispered, stepping over to him. “How are you?”
He nodded and gave a little smile. “I’m gut. How are you?”
Tears spilled from her eyes. “It’s so good to see you.”
“Ya,” he said, his voice thick. “It’s gut to see you too.”
Enjoy the season! Merry Christmas!
Amy Clipston is the award-winning author of the Kauffman Amish Bakery series. Her novels have hit multiple best-seller lists including CBD, CBA, and ECPA. Her new novel, A Hopeful Heart, released June 2013. She holds a degree in communication from Virginia Wesleyan College and works full-time for the City of Charlotte, NC. Amy lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and four spoiled rotten cats.
Amish Fiction Blog 
loved reading this book.