Pacing myself

Typically, when I read at my Writers Critique Group, I've written about 20 or 30 pages ahead of the pages I share. The pages I present to the group are a little polished and I know the plot line of what's going to happen next.
This past Thursday was different. I've done very little new writing in the last couple of months and I admit to being unfocused and unable to come up with anything new, so when I read to the Group, I read up to and including the last pages I've written. The pages felt raw and unfinished; I felt lost in my own plot.
One of the group members asked me if a certain scene foreshadowed the story's conclusion. I have no idea, because I haven't written anything past that scene. I was asked why Sophie's character didn't have a better understanding of what was happening around her yet. Again, I don't know why, and I'm not sure I'll leave her in the dark quite as long as I have in this first draft. I just know that I need to write the whole book and then get a better idea of how to pace it once I've got it finished.

Christmas books

I just picked up two Christmas picture books for my teen Sunday School class to read to the church's younger kids. One is called Joseph's Christmas Story and it rhymes its way through the familiar story, but from Joseph's point of view. I've heard the story of Jesus' birth told from every perspective imaginable, most often from Mary or the shepherds but also from the barn animals, the angels, and even the star over Bethlehem. This is the only story I've seen that tells Joseph's side of the story.
The other picture book is called The Tale of Three Trees, and it is the retelling of a traditional folktale. The three trees each have dreams, one to become a treasure chest, another to sail the seas, and the third to be the tallest tree in the world. In classic picture book fashion, their dreams come true but not in the way they originally thought. It's a fabulous tale, full of Christian symbolism and meaning and perfect for either Easter or Christmas reading.