My name is Joan Nicholes, age 52 and currently reside in Houston, TX, where I have lived all my life.  I graduated in 1982. At the age of 21 I lost my first child in a bus accident.  I then went on to have a beautiful baby girl at the age of 28, but not without complications.   For the first five years of her life we struggled with her serious health problems.  As a single mother, I found this to be very stressing.  I don't know how I would have endured it without the help of my parents.  At the age of 46, in September 2006, I was diagnosed with stage I Breast Cancer.  I went through surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation.  Now seven years later I am still in remission.  I taught myself to crochet before my daughter was born.  I made her blankets, hats, cute little dresses.  Now that I have two beautiful granddaughters, I crochet constantly, making them all kinds of toys, blankets, dolls, hair accessories.  I can't begin to tell you how many things I have made for them.  Hundreds it seems.  But I love doing it.  Now I have begun making crochet scarves and handbags and often find myself experimenting with crocheting hats.  Some turn out great.  Others not so much.  Throughout the years I have managed to travel to many beautiful spots in the United States.  The first place I visited was New York.  I love baseball and travelled there with the Houst Astros Booster Club.  Then the following year I travelled with them to San Francisco and watched the Astros play the Giants at Candlestick Park.  Of course the game went into extra innings.  By the time the game was over, it was so cold that I can't remember feeling anything when I left the stadium.  I would later travel to Denver, Colorado, Hawaii, The Caribbean Islands, and lastly Wrightsville Beach, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC.  Of all the places I have been, North Carolina was my all time favorite.  I so often dream of going back there some day.   I have been writing sine I was a teenager.  I have always dreamed of becoming a published author.  I have shared my writings with many people.  They have always told me how good I was, that I should try to get published.  You can read some of my short stories and full-length novels on MY BOOK STORE PAGE.  I will also be publishing other books through Amazon.com and you can find a link to purchase them.