One of the greatest compliments a reader can give me isn’t just that they loved the characters or enjoyed the story. It’s when they tell me they wish they could visit the place I created.
I happened upon a review of Declaration of Love recently that made me smile when the reviewer wrote, “If Holiday is ever commissioned as a city, I would move there.”
Oh, how I wish we could make that happen!
Since I can’t put Holiday, Oregon, on a real map, I thought it might be fun to take you on an imaginary visit to the little mountain town that has been the setting of several of my stories.
It all started with the Holiday Brides series, then the Holiday Express series, and Holiday Dreams. There were also single title books like Henley, Love on Target, Lucky Shot, and now Declaration of Love.
Today, we’ll pop by a few popular places in the mountain town.
You’ll want to arrive early because mornings in Holiday are too pretty to miss. Imagine sunlight spilling over the mountains, touching the peaks with gold before filtering through towering evergreens. The air is cool and fresh, flowers spill from hanging baskets along Main Street, and American flags flutter from lampposts and storefronts.
Our first stop is Sunni Buns Bakery. The scent alone will draw you through the door. Fresh coffee, cinnamon, warm bread, and something sweet baking in the oven make it nearly impossible to leave empty-handed. Would you choose a cinnamon bun or a raspberry roll, one of her savory sandwiches, or go straight for dessert first?
There are a few fun shops in town, but most of the locals know they can visit Milton’s Feed & Seed to find everything from home décor and a new shirt to garden tools, gloves, boots, flowers and plants, plus so much more.
Holiday is the kind of place where people notice when someone new comes to town—and before long, they’ll probably know your name, where you’re from, and whether you’re single.
Which brings us to… a visit with Matilda and Ruth.
If you happen to see two older ladies sitting together outside Golden Skies, by all means stop and say hello. Just understand what you’re getting yourself into. Matilda, with her flamboyant sense of style, and sweet Ruth may look perfectly harmless sitting there enjoying the sunshine. Do not be fooled. They are wily matchmakers who keep their fingers on the pulse of what is happening in town.
By this time, you might have found a postcard to mail and stop by the Holiday Post Office. Kate Barton came to town as the temporary postmaster in June, only planning to stay for the summer. If you haven’t read Declaration of Love yet, I won’t give you any spoilers, but Grady Guthry might give her a reason or two to consider staying. While you’re at the post office, make sure your postcard gets a Holiday postmark. After all, how often do you get to send mail from a town where love seems to find people whether they’re looking for it or not?
Roll down the windows and take a drive on one of the country roads. You’ll pass green pastures, weathered fences, grazing cattle and horses, wildflowers dancing in the breeze, and mountains rising in the distance. You might see a gorgeous lake in the distance, or hear the whistle from the old steam engine Hope if it is taking tourists for a ride today.
After dinner at the café or, if you’re feeling fancy, the Italian restaurant, wander over to the gazebo in the park. Strings of lights begin to glow as dusk settles over Holiday. Neighbors gather. Children run across the grass. Someone laughs nearby. The mountains turn dusky blue against a sky streaked with the last traces of sunset.
Holiday may exist only in the pages of my books, but in my imagination, it feels wonderfully real and I hope this little tour made it feel like a place you’d love to visit.
Even though you can get in a car or take a plane there, you can travel to Holiday through the stories. If you haven’t yet, I hope you’ll begin with Declaration of Love, Book 8 in the Petticoats & Patriots series. Come visit Holiday and discover a wholesome romance filled with patriotism, community, family, freedom, and abiding love.
If you could pack your bags tomorrow
and spend one day in Holiday, Oregon,
where would you go first?
Also, if you haven’t yet, be sure to enter for a chance to win
my huge Declaration of Love prize pack.
But hurry! Time is almost up to enter!
After spending her formative years on a farm in Eastern Oregon, hopeless romantic Shanna Hatfield turns her rural experiences into sweet historical and contemporary romances filled with sarcasm, humor, and hunky western heroes.
When this USA Today bestselling author isn’t writing or covertly hiding decadent chocolate from the other occupants of her home, Shanna hangs out with her beloved husband, Captain Cavedweller.
I would first go to Sunni Buns Bakery for cinnamons bun and raspberry tolls and any other yummy chocolatey desserts!
That would be a great first stop, Joannie!
Probably first stop would be Sunni Buns. I would order a cinnamon bun and a coffee. Then off to the Feed Store for some shopping.
You can’t go wrong with Sunni’s cinnamon buns! Or shopping at Milton’s! Thank you for stopping in today!
Fantastic blog, Shanna! I would go to Milton’s Feed & Seed. It looks like a place I would have visited with my dad often.
Oh, how fun! Milton’s is inspired by the feed store we went to when I was growing up. Always loved to walk in the door and draw in a big breath that carried such amazing scents.
I would want to go to the bakery first and get something delicious.
A perfect place to begin your Holiday adventure.
Definitely the bakery for some delicious treats before taking a complete tour of the town. Really make a day of it and see all that the town of Holiday has to offer.
Love that, Laura! Thank you for stopping in today!
bookstore
That’s always a fun place to visit on an adventure!
Milton’s first – then for a cinnamon bun and coffee!!
I think I would spend way too much time and money at Milton’s!
Sunni Buns for a cinnamon roll and tea, then take a drive.
Great way to go on a Holiday adventure!
I would definitely go to Golden Skies first.
It would be a hoot to watch Matilda and Ruth in action!
Holiday sounds like the ideal small town and a place to live. I’d stop at the bakery for a raspberry roll, go to the feedstore for a new book, and then go to the gazebo to read for awhile. Sounds like a lovely day well spent!
That sounds like a fabulous way to spend the day, Karen! Thanks for stopping in today!
I would take a pleasant stroll down main street, to soak in the atmosphere, then visit the stores, one at a time. I absolutely adore this beautiful picture of Holiday. It is a vision of the place I fell in love with years ago, lived there for a number of years, but had to move because work was not available. It was and is like tearing my heart out to leave a place I called home. Being in these books while reading was bittersweet as, unfortunately, there is always an ending.
Oh, hugs to you, Judy, for having to leave a place you loved so much. But how lovely you found a place your heart called home.
Ok, Shanna, you need to move to Utah because we have a town here named Holiday. Pretty good place too.
Your book looks great.
I would definitely go to Sunni Buns Bakery first for a cinnamon bun for myself and a raspberry roll for my husband. Then 2 Huckleberry Lemonades to go. Oh my, that lemonade sounds wonderful although so does a Huckleberry iced tea.
I would walk down Main Street and then stop at the bakery for a cinnamon bun, stop at the gazebo and rest and eat the cinnamon bun and then I would visit the rest of the stores and take a drive in the country.
I would go to a bookstore.
Definitely the bakery and grab some yummy rolls and then head out to the park to eat and enjoy the early morning sun rays!
Definitely to Sunni’s bakery! Have to be properly fortified for the rest of the day!
Sunni’ Bakery!
I would start at Sunni Buns. I love the layout and it looks like it would be a great way to start my visit. Thank you so much for sharing as well as the opportunity. God bless you.
Sunni Bakery.
After a beautiful, early morning drive to Holiday I venture into Milton’s Feed and Seed to discover the “treasures ” that await me. The temptation to linger in the store is great but Holiday has so many other places to discover and I’ve got so little time. Holiday is without a doubt a place I would be proud to call home!
What a fun walk/drive through town! Of course I’d want to move there. It sounds so peaceful. I think I’d love to stroll through town first then visit Sunni’s Bakery. I would inquire about living at Golden Skies and get into shenanigans.
The bakery would catch my eye right off the bat! Especially if they had some Arbuckle Coffee brewing. Ha!
Shanna, your creativity never ceases to amaze me!
I would want to visit all the places but start with the bakery.
After the drive to get there, the first stop would be the Sunni Buns Bakery for a cup of coffee and a raspberry roll or a cinnamon bun…or maybe both. That stop would give me a chance to recharge and plan the rest of the day. We have a mountain town not far from here that fits the Sunni Buns Bakery description perfectly. Whenever we pass through the town we have to stop for a coffee and one of their wonderful baked goods, plus a few to take home.
We grew up in the mountains and would happily move to a place like Holiday, Oregon.
I would check out the town first and then go visit the bakery and get me a cup of coffee and a good pastry and then do other things.
Good Wednesday Evening Shanna,
I would visit Sunni Buns first. Always been partial to baked goods!
Thank you,
Julie Bullock
Maybe Sunni buns bakery.