I’ve been “off the blog” for a few weeks because of my trip to Europe. I may go back and add some thoughts on that trip and post-date them so if you’re interested make sure you sign up for my RSS feed so you don’t miss them. But if you’ve been a reader for awhile, you know that I also disappeared for a number of weeks in February and March of this past year and I didn’t write anything about it on my blog. Until now.

This week, a new book was released called “First Things First” by Kurt and Brenda Warner. I was fortunate enough to collaborate with them on the book.

It all happened very quickly. On a Thursday night in February, I got a call from my publisher asking if I thought I could write a book in a month. I told her it depended on the topic but I had previously done one in six weeks or so a few years back. Then she told me it would be with Kurt Warner and his wife Brenda. After five or seven more phone calls that night, including one with the Warners, I found out the next day that I was chosen to work with them on the book. Four days later I left for a week in Phoenix and spent six days interviewing the Warners and their kids. I returned to Atlanta and took the 569 pages of transcripts and in nineteen days helped them turn their words into a book.

We all know that what you hear in the media isn’t always the truth–especially when it comes to celebrities. This was also true in the case of the Warners–they’re even better in person than the media makes them out to be.

Here’s a video from Greta’s show that gives you a good feel for the book and for the couple.

Chances are you may think you know Kurt’s story, but you probably don’t know the true story. And most people have no idea of Brenda’s story which in many ways is more inspiring than Kurt’s. The Warners are really terrific parents and very intentional about the way they parent. And their kids? They’re pretty exceptional too.

So that’s my secret. When I disappeared earlier this spring, I was working on this book.

~Jennifer