Post Retreat Update

Yeah, it's Wednesday. I said I was going straight back from retreat to regular life. Yep. 

I said I got halfway through my new story. I'm excited. To make sure I stay consistent with the story threads and overall pacing, I'm pulling back to edit the first two sections and send them off for critique. I'm halfway through that now and, so far, it's holding together. 

On the last morning of retreat, I discovered my plan for the rest of the sector books! I'm going to do them in shorts like the current work in progress. They'll be in one book, like an anthology, and each sector will have it's own story. I have the premise for 3 out of the 4 and I know the last one will fill in as I go. 

So that's exciting. 

We did plan our summer retreat. Awesome. 

Anyway. I'm back in real life. Exhausted. A little overwhelmed with everything going on, but there's good stuff in there too. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Retreat: Day Three - PM

Winding down now.

I am officially halfway with this new story which is amazing and wonderful. It's going well and I am happy with it. It's coming together like I want it to. 

But I am fried. My head is killing me and my back hurts from the most uncomfortable couch in the world. (That I've been planted on pretty much all day, despite a failed attempt at a nap)

This has been an amazing and awesome retreat. Probably the best yet, and we are hoping to plan another one this summer. We'll hope and see if that works out. 

And that's all I've got.

There won't be a wrap up post tomorrow. I go from here right back into the real world.

So there you go! I'm going to bed! 

Behave! 

Retreat: Day Three - AM

It snowed!

Looks like maybe four inches so far, but it's still coming down. And it's blowy, so it'll be hard to tell how much we actually got soon. 

Everyone is in their spots and the writing is commencing. I've had my breakfast and shower and am on my third cup of coffee, so I'm ready to roll. 

Diving into part two of four now. 

Behave!

Retreat: Day Two - PM

 It's rocking! 

I'm making fantastic progress on my new project. It's four sections each with a unique subplot, and I am done with section one. Whoot.

It's going well and I'm happy with my progress. 

Now it's going to snow overnight, which is awesome. It's late and it hasn't started here yet. 

But even with my awesome nap today, I am done in. 

So that's it, folks! 

Behave! 

Retreat: Day Two - AM

Good Morning! 

It's the first full day of retreat! Wooo! And of course, on a day where I can sleep in a bit, I was up before my regular time. Oy! But that's okay. I can nap later. And believe it or not, I slept pretty good, and I usually don't on my first night away from home. 

The sunrise was gorgeous and the coffee is flowing. Bills are paid. Organization is underway for the homefront. I'll work on that in little bits over the next day or so. 

The new story is going pretty darned good. I have words and more than just a few. I have a plan and have done some really great brainstorming this morning. So in a few I'll be ready to rock and roll. 

After more coffee and a bagel. 

Later!

Behave!

Retreat: Day One

Here I am tucked away in the middle of Amish country for retreat! It has been far too long! 

It's been a hell of a week so far, so this is even more needed than previously! 

First off, the greenhouse event was fantastic! I had repeat readers, which is always amazing! 

So what else?

On Tuesday, on the way to the day job, we hit a patch of slush and black ice and wrecked my Jeep. It's pretty bad, but not unfixable. So it'll be our project going forward. There is no way I'm letting my Jeep go. We were both unhurt, except for the seatbelt bruises I'm sporting. The people at our work are amazing though. The guy I'm administrative assistant for got us a tow truck, and That Man's boss picked us up from the side of the road. By the time we got into work, every single person knew what happened and were so caring and concerned. 

At the same time, we'd taken the new vehicle back to the shop so they could address some of the issues. Which were addressed to our satisfaction, so that's good. Now we're just waiting to see if they'll help us with the unexpected bill for the wheel bearing. The nice thing is that the mechanic brought it to us, so we didn't have to get a ride to pick it up after work. 

Also, my cousin passed away this week. And one of my best friend's mom also passed away. 

So that's enough of that for now. 

I am here. I am in my comfy pants and gingerbread man fluffy socks that Little B got me. I have a nice cup of coffee and there's lots of talking, which is the norm for the first day. 

Getting ready to go to town on the new story. So we'll see how it goes! 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Hey! It's Friday! 

And it's February! Yeah, I know it's been for over a week, but...

Here's the list:

1. Tomorrow is the annual greenhouse book signing. It's always a fun day regardless of how many books get signed. 

2. Sleeping in tomorrow. 

3. Having a lovely time away with That Man for his birthday. The mountains were beautiful and the relaxation was too. 

4. Getting stuff done - the critique is finished, the planning for the next book is going. The short however is not finished. 

5. Retreat coming up in less than a week! I'm excited! It's been a year since I've been on a writing retreat!

6. The work week flying by. 

7. The weather being gorgeous today!

And that's about it!

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

Ah, here we are at Sunday again...

This weekend was a blur. 

Well, back up a bit. The work week was chaos, but a decent kind of chaos. It went fast, so that's good. We're in crazy time around here and will be until mid-March. 

On Wednesday we went to look at a vehicle. That Man has had his eye on this particular type forever. We figured, what the heck? What do we have to lose? So we checked it out, test drove it, and said we'd think about it. (We had just decided we weren't trading in our Honda.) 

We went to K5's basketball game on Thursday, which is always awesome. 

Friday night we drove home in our new-to-us vehicle. That Man is over the moon happy. And I will say it's pretty damned sweet. 

Saturday was errands and the semi-professional soccer game with B. While we were running errands, we found out that B's first game of the season was in a few hours. We rushed to finish what we had to do and made it to his game on time. He scored two goals and his team won, which was super cool. Then we had less than two hours until the other game and we were an hour + away. And we needed to eat. So we met at a diner, ate, and made it to the game with minutes to spare. It was a lot of fun and B was so happy. They got to meet the team and then run onto the field with them. Home late. Exhausted. But totally worth it. 

Today we had to run a mercy mission for K3 and A. They have the 'vid and are not feeling well at all. A needed a prescription picked up and they needed a few groceries, so we got them taken care of. Got home and made chicken pot pie. Our nephew came for dinner, which is always good. Got some house stuff done and now it's time to crash... 

I have a critique to do. I've started on it at least three times today, but keep getting interrupted so I think I'm going to pick it back up tomorrow. My short story is going pretty good and the planning for the new series is also going well. 

And that's that! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

I'm trying! It's still insanity all around me... 

Here's my list:

1. Friday! Which means a bit of sleeping in tomorrow. 

2. Weekend plans to take K4's Boy to dinner for his birthday. The car repair fell through because the Boy has to work now, but that's been rescheduled and everything is as okay as it gets. 

3. Having dinner in the crockpot.

4. I started working on a short story and it's going pretty good. I also have a fantastic idea for four connected short stories that I hope to start on retreat. I'm letting Sector Two rest for now because it needs more work than I thought. I will brainstorm that on retreat and get the kinks ironed out. 

5. Not dying when I took the mail for work today. The roads sucked and I watched some guy slide into a stop sign and rip the bumper off his car. 

6. Oh yeah... it's snowing!

7. Getting caught up at the day job. Well, mostly. 

8. My dog not exploding the house yesterday. Yeah. We forgot to put the trash can away, and she helped herself. Somehow turning on the stove. We walked into the burner clicking as if trying to start, a burner on, and a house full of gas. We got her outside asap, cleaned up, opened windows, and thanked our lucky stars that the gas didn't ignite the propane heater. No long term damage from the trash eating or the gas, but yikes. 

9. No plans this evening except to veg on the couch. Much needed after this week. 

10. Upcoming plans to go to a semi-professional soccer game with Mr. B. It should be fun.

That is all!

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up

Well... Here we are at Sunday evening. I say Boo to that!

We had a pretty nice weekend though. It snowed! Which was awesome, except that it changed our plans to get together as siblings. That was a bummer, but we do have a new date on the calendar (in pen). It just sucks that our schedules are so very different. 

Anyway. We spent yesterday hunkered down. Took Christmas down and stored it properly. Made some awesome white chicken chili. Took naps. My sciatica has been acting up (probably since all I've been doing is running around like a crazy person), so it was nice to rest. And I got some stuff organized, though I still need to clean my office and put away the wrapping paper. 

We've got the greenhouse signing coming up in about a month! Looking forward to that! I'm going to be starting on a short this coming week. Though I'm not sure what it's about yet. My brain is working that out. 

And that's about it. Tomorrow is back to the grind. We had inventory on Friday, so there's that to finish up, but generally, things are nuts. It's that time of year though, so it is what it is. 

Behave!

Well Hey There!

I know it's been a long while! 

So here we are on the precipice of a new year!  I am meh about the changing of the years. I will make no "resolutions". Usually I try to think about goals, but I don't seem to care about that right now, so...

What's been going on, you ask? 

Well, the normal insanity. We had a lovely and very full Christmas. So many good days surrounding the holiday. It was a lot of fun, but I am ready to be a hermit this weekend! Ha! We're not participating in any hoopla for New Year's and I'm glad. 

Our calendar is already full for the beginning of the year, February especially. Well, January, too. March is so far quieter. And we just booked our trip to the beach for the next month. We were priced out of our usual location, but we managed to find a super cute little house for just the two of us. Super excited for that. 

I did finish the book and I am hours away from finally sending it off for critique. Then I need to do a critique for a friend. Then I will decide what I'm working on next. I have a retreat in February, and I'd like to start something new either right before or while there, but we'll see. I feel like I've been in editing purgatory for a long time, and well, I guess I have. 

I'm going to try to get back here again on the regular, but you know how that goes!

Behave! 

Taking a Break...

I'm going to be taking a personal break from social media for a bit, so no worries if you don't see me around. 

I'll be at Ashcombe's for their Holiday Open House on November 11th from 10-4pm. I'll only be there Saturday, but if you can only go Sunday, you totally should. 

That's the last of my scheduled booksignings for this year. I'll be back at Ashcombe's in February for our annual event, which is right before I go on a long awaited writing retreat. 

If I don't get back here before the holidays, (I'm pretty sure I will be) I hope yours are happy and satisfying. 

Behave! 

Want To Hear Something Gross?

Of course you do! 

So, Friday night I took my water cup to bed like always. 

I get up during the night to use the restroom, return, and grab my cup for a drink. 

I feel something in my mouth. The first thing I thought of was a piece of plastic from the ice bag. I pull it out, mush my fingers on it, drop it, and crawl back into bed. 

Then...

I smell it. 

Stink Bug. 

I turn my flashlight on and look at the floor. 

Yes. A stink bug. 

In my mouth. 

So freaking gross. Needless to say, I spent the rest of the night in abject horror. And every time I think about it, I get grossed out. And I haven't taken my water cup to bed since. 

Gross!

Behave!

Time is Flying...

Yeah, I know I slipped off the face of the earth again... 

Turns out, there isn't much to say, even though we've been insanely busy. 

The car is still in the shop.

Editing is going slow. 

The day job is busy. 

I'm exhausted and overwhelmed with all kinds of "stuff". 

There's not much worthy of the blog.

Well, K3 has a birthday coming up super quick. It's almost Trick or Treat for our town. I do enjoy Trick or Treat night. I believe K1 and J are bringing the boys over to home base at our house, which should be a blast. 

The holidays are coming. The cool thing is that the day after Thanksgiving is now a paid holiday at the day job. That's wonderful! 

I don't know what Thanksgiving is going to look like yet. Technically, it's my turn to host the family, but I'm not sure I'm up for it. I've given myself two weeks to decide for sure. 

And that's all I have...

Behave!

Wait...What? October!

Yeah, I know it's been October for almost two weeks now... But still...

Really not much has been happening around the old homestead. Well, beyond the usual and a few not so usual. 

That Man and I got ourselves a good case of some kind of crud. It was yucky and inconvenient and we both felt like crap. We're still dealing with the last vestiges of it, but overall the mending happened fairly quickly. 

I finished Sector Two! Well, it needs edited, but the pages are all written (or should I say "rewritten" since I had to redo the entire last half of it). I'm very far behind on the goals I had to get everything on deck edited, but there's not much I can do about it at this point. Sector Two has been hanging over my head for far too long, so it became priority to finish it. I'll start editing it tonight, and hopefully have it to my critique partners very soon. I'm itching to write something new, but I have all of this editing to do... but we'll see what happens. 

To much outrage (not from me), they cancelled our town's Halloween Parade. Something about the streets being unsafe because of delayed construction. I do enjoy the parade and seeing the people who come to hang out, but I didn't miss the chaos. So it was fine for me, but man, some people in our town were having a full blown conniption over it. 

Other than that... grandkid wrangling, soccer games, house stuff, car stuff. Our one car has been at the shop for five weeks now. They were waiting for a part, but no one is quite sure what's wrong with it. It's frustrating and I'm wary of what the bill is going to be, but it is what it is right now. 

This has been both an exceptionally long and also very short work week. The days have been far busier than normal, or maybe this is just the new norm as I continue to find things that are now my job to handle. I don't mind. I like being busy, but I don't like knowing there are things I don't know about. If that made sense. Ha! 

That is all!

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up!

Oh Sunday! How I love and loathe you so! 

It's been a quiet weekend around here and continues to be so. Thank goodness. I absolutely love the fact that it's been pouring! This is exactly what we needed both for ourselves and for the plants! 

We had no plans, except for the "must do" normal things. And the rain prevented the outside things. The inside things are getting done and they're not much. We hit the store on our way home from work on Friday so we wouldn't have to venture out over the weekend, which turned out to be a great thing. 

So we've napped, watched movies, napped some more, made some soup, and generally have been taking it super easy. Which, see above, is exactly what we needed after the past few months of running around like crazy people. 

I finished the critique that took me far too long to do, and have been writing my own stuff. I'm just a few thousand words from the end. And then I need to edit. Again. I won't lie about being disappointed that my plan didn't work out, but it is what it is. This book...this book is a real *ss kicker. But I'm happy with how things are going with it, so that's something. I still have three books to edit after this one, so I'm not quite sure what I'll be doing next...

That's all for now. I've gotten a good start on words so far, and now I think it's nap time! 

Behave! 

Mid-September Already!

Sorry for the silence! It's been a super busy few weeks and I haven't gotten anything done writing-wise. 

Our niece got married last Saturday. It was a beautiful day and we had an awesome time. The niece was in my care since from newborn until elementary school. She's like one of our own and we still have a very close relationship. We were included in pretty much every aspect of the wedding planning, down to That Man performing the ceremony. The K's were all in the wedding, including the boys spouses, so that was pretty cool. 

We spent the week before the wedding at my sister's helping to get ready. Lordy, it was a lot of work! We hauled our RV to my sister's side yard and while we worked our butts off, we did have a blast. Though physically, we're still recovering. Ha! 

Between family and close friends, it was definitely a day full of smiles and laughs. Friends who moved across country over five years ago came in for the wedding and it was so awesome to see them. We caught up and laughed. It was like no time had passed.  

We got home on Monday after helping to disassemble the wedding stuff. Well, there was still a lot to do when we left, but it was more manageable. Back to the day job on Tuesday, which was insane and still is. 

Hopefully I can get back to writing now! 

That is all! 

Behave!

End of August

Can you believe that? I know! 

Things have been pretty insane around here--both at the day job and on the Homefront. Which should explain my absence. Well, that and the fact that my computer is being a grump. 

I have barely touched my edits recently. Or a critique I need to do for a friend. Okay, I've touched them repeatedly, but it feels like I'm going backwards. By the time I get to an hour where I can concentrate, I'm barely keeping my eyes open and feel pretty ineffective. Plus, see above regarding the computer. 

I don't want to have to buy a new one, but I might not have a choice soon. It ticks me off because I love my laptop, but she's so slow and doesn't want to keep up with what I need to do. 

On the author front, I don't have an event until near Christmas, which is fine due to how crazy things have been. But the writing retreat I go to with my friends every February is already booked, so that's pretty awesome. The winery signing is not happening next year. Well, it is, but not for me. It is what it is, and it was a pretty far drive for very little return. 

I'm really hoping to get this book edited and turned in very soon. And then I have to edit two loosely related books, and a Christmas themed book. God only knows how long that's going to take me! Ha! I had wanted to have all of that done by now, but I hadn't expected to have to rewrite the ending of Sector Two and I didn't count on things being this busy. 

Ultimately, I would love to be able to take the entire summer and the month of December off from writing, and I guess I could, but time off doesn't do anything to move me forward at this point, so...

I woke up Sunday morning with a swollen nose right where my glasses sit. I didn't get injured or anything. It still hurts and this morning it was even more swollen. It's annoying. My research said that it's probably my sinuses, and I think I can agree with that. I was splitting wood on Saturday and most of it was starting to decompose pretty badly, so I guess it's likely to be some kind of allergy or irritant from that. It can go away anytime now though! 

And that's all of the crap I have for you today!

Behave!

Feel Good Friday!

Yay Friday!

It has been a super long week! The day job has been insane and intense. Thankfully today was quieter.

So let's hit the list:

1. Finding the blinds that fit our old house windows and for a reasonable price. For years, no one had our size unless we wanted to pay eighty bucks for one window. But they're back! We replaced four of them. So far. There are still six windows upstairs that need them, but it's a start. 

2. Scoring two chairs to go with my rehabbed outside table. Well, I don't have them yet, but they're coming and they look cool. 

3. Dinner with K5 this week. She's a hoot and we had a blast. Mexican for dinner, thrift store shopping, a little time with our dog, and then ice cream on the way home. 

4. Sitting on the boys so Mom could go to teacher orientation and a meeting. They both make me laugh. Mr. B got a hair cut from Pappy, and Little B and I played Playdough. 

5. Today being Friday! Though I have some errands to run tonight, but I'm not planning on cooking dinner, so there's that. 

6. Minimal progress on my edits this week, but I'm so close to being done. 

7. Sleeping in on the horizon. 

That's about it! 

Behave! 

Catching Up...

Yeah, I suck, but I had good reasons!

This was going to be a Moaning Monday post about my aching body, but since there was nothing leading up to it, we'll get to that in a minute. 

So here's what's going on...

1. Life After released! If you bought it, thank you so much! I appreciate it! If you're so inclined, a review on Amazon would be so helpful! And if you bought it on Kindle Unlimited, just know, I only get paid per pages read. (I only mention that because I've talked to several people recently who had no idea that's how it works.)

2. The fence is 99% up! Last week was brutal with fence work every single night, late dinners, and not much else done. Hence the hurting body, multiple bruises, blisters, and scratches. The only thing left is some trim work, and one more solar post light. (Because apparently we can't count) It is awesome and I love it. Our backyard feels like a little oasis. Especially since...

3. We managed to get a great deal weeded yesterday and rearranged a bunch of stuff. I don't ever remember weeds growing this fast before. 

4. I found a glass-topped table in the neighbor's trash. No cracked or broken glass, just some rust. Brought it into the yard, cleaned it up, painted it, and it's amazing. I love it. Granted, it won't last too long, but that's okay. It has another chance at life and my solar lights look amazing on it. 

5. That Man's family reunion was good. We had a smaller crowd, but it was still really good. Good food, lots of laughs, and good conversation. Our niece and nephew are a lot of fun to hang out with, and the littles are adorable. And it was a gorgeous day. 

6. When everyone left and we finally got cleaned up, it was just That Man and I overnight at our creek. It was lovely to sit by the fire and the creek just the two of us. We were in bed early and slept really well thanks to an epic thunderstorm. 

7. Home early. See #2. Weeding... all of the weeds...also hence the hurting body.

This week should be calmer. Let's hope. 

That is all! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

Yay Friday! 

It has been a week around here! And not a good one. 

But here we are at the end of the week!

Here's the list:

1. My book being up for preorder on Amazon. It's $2.99. Into the Fire is also Free starting today (I think). 

2. Finally moving forward on fence replacement. There's still a huge worry that the lightning struck tree in the neighbor's yard will fall, but we cannot wait any longer. Our old fence is falling down and looks like absolute crap. We ordered and picked up the material, and are in the prepping stage now. I don't know if I'll be able to walk come Monday. Ha! 

3. Hanging with the grandboys twice this week. Little Man wore us out the second time. He's so cute though and says the funniest stuff. He was watering flowers and after spraying the hose, he'd say "that took some damage". Even though there was no damage.

4. Cooler days this week. That was much appreciated. And I appreciated being able to drive my Jeep with the top down most of the week. 

5. My kid and The Boy coming to hang out this weekend. I miss her. 

And that is all. 

Behave! 

Moaning Monday...Well, Not This Week

I know. I know. I was all set to bring Moaning Monday back, but instead...

I HAVE A RELEASE DATE! 

So, we'll get back to Moaning Monday next week. 

August 9th! 

It should be up for preorder by Wednesday. (I have no idea on pricing at this point, but it's an ebook and it's shorter, so?)

Also, if you haven't gotten an e copy of Into the Fire, it will be free starting Saturday in anticipation of Life After's release. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Feel Good Friday on Saturday

Man, has it been hot here! Holy crap! I hate it so much. 

Here's the list:

1. The "Not a Bridal Shower" was good. I was intensely uncomfortable with the poison and I swear if one more person told me "what I should do" I was going to run away screaming. It was good to see people I haven't seen in a while, though I didn't get to spent much time with the people I wanted to (even though I have seen them in a while. lol). I took anti-itch stuff and went to bed before most people even left because I couldn't people anymore. 

2. Getting the final edits done for Life After. I will have a release date very soon, and the good news is, Into the Fire is going to be free in anticipation of Life After's release. 

3. I still totally dig Life After's story. 

4. Editing being done all week. Sector Two. It's going well. I hope to be done with this story really soon. And then I can move onto editing the next one. lol

5. Our neighbor is probably selling her house. That's sad. She adopted a pre-teen and he's becoming ginormous, plus the end neighbors are total jerks to her, so I get it, but... it's super sad. 

6. Yeah. I think I'm going to bring back Moaning Monday... I mean...

7. Trying to sleep in the morning didn't work, but I am hopeful for tomorrow.

8. Grandboy's coming for dinner tomorrow! Excited about that even though it means I have to vacuum. lol

That is all! 

Behave!

And Here It Is...

Waiting on a release date, but here is the cover for Life After...(Isn't it pretty?)

When Mia realizes she's the only person left in the world, her first thought is that she's free. After years of abuse by her mother and an accident that makes her financially responsible for her comatose mother's care, Mia embraces her new life.

Though the solitude was intended to torture Mia, it is the best thing that ever happened to her. She spends the time healing while trying to figure out who she is and what she wants. Before long, she realizes she's not truly alone in her paradise. John claims to be her guardian but insists she needs to go back to her old life. How could that possibly be good?

Together they strive to figure out why Mia's life was manipulated and who is responsible. Their journey uncovers deceit and evil—and their love for each other.

I will let you know as soon as I have a release date. This one is only available digitally, but I hope you'll still check it out. 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday!

Well Hello Friday! Thank you for arriving!

It's been a long week! 

The poison on my legs and arms is still raging. I keep getting new spots, but some of the first ones are healing. It's irritating. I am so sick of being so itchy! 

Anyway! Here's the list! 

1. Friday! Yeah. It's been a long week, but I think I said that already. Ha! 

2. A little bit of sleeping in tomorrow. I hope. 

3. The "Not a bridal shower" for our niece this weekend. Should be fun and it'll be nice to see people we haven't seen for a while. 

4. Getting editing done. I'm making pretty good progress! 

5. Still waiting on the final cover for Life After, but it should be soon! 

6. Driving my Jeep. 

7. Air conditioning. 

I used to do this thing called "Moaning Monday" here. I might have to bring that back just so I can complain about the heat, poison ivy, and all manner of irritants! 

That is all! 

Behave! 

Tuesday Check In

It's still hot here. I'm over it. So over it. 

On Saturday, our daughter-in-law stopped in with the grandboys. The intent was a quick bathroom trip. Except they didn't leave for over three hours. Ha! The boys "washed" my car, soaked themselves in the hose, ate every snack we had, bugged Pappy, rearranged a bunch of stuff, and turned on the fire place in the living room. And while waiting for their clothes to dry, their mom helped me remake our bed with the sheets that had been in the dryer. During that time, Little B turned on the alarm clock I never use, and turned our air conditioner down. So we woke at midnight to a blaring alarm and wondering why it was so danged hot in our room. Ha! 

To back up before that, we did hit the weeds first off. My legs are now covered in very itchy poison. I showered as soon as I got out of the patch, but the bumps came anyway. I think it's a mix of poison and spider bites because it doesn't all look the same, even though it itches the same. Ha! At one time in my life, I was immune to poison. Obviously that has changed. 

I got to see the first draft of the cover for Life After. It is so gorgeous and I can't wait to share it with you when I can! I should get that and a release date soon!

Oh, so the shopping trip to the mega mega mall got changed to local stores. Turned out for the best considering the two hour drive and expensive tolls. We did well, with all but one bridesmaid finding her dress. My sister also found hers, and so did I even though I hadn't even planned on looking. We had a lot of fun though--complete obnoxiousness and laughter. Lunch was fun, too. We were home at a decent time and it was freaking hot outside. 

This weekend is more wedding stuff. It's coming up fast! 

That's all I have! 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Yay Friday! What a long week! Except it's freaking Hades hot outside! 

Even with our air conditioner on high and a huge fan blowing, sleeping was miserable last night. And my office is super hot too. I've had my fan blowing since a little before seven am, but it's just hot! 

Anyway. Let's get to the list...

1. Not cooking tonight. The thought of heating up the kitchen isn't setting well with either of us, so we're opting for whatever we find at the grocery store that doesn't require turning on the stove. The microwave is out, too, since we don't have one anymore. It turned into a fire breathing monster and had to go. As in, it started catching everything we put inside on fire. I like my open counter top too much to think about getting a new one right now, though eventually we will.  

2. Even though we'll be doing yard work in the early morning hours, a day without any obligations tomorrow. I do plan on sleeping in a bit, but we want to hit the large weeds before it gets too hot. And then we can spend the rest of the day being bums. 

3. The bridesmaids shopping trip to the mega-mega mall on Sunday. I'm equal parts excited and equal parts anxious. I got roped into driving, which I didn't want to do, but besides that, the place is huge. And there are many dresses that need to be procured. 

4. Getting book stuff done. I've worked on Sector Two almost every night this week. I'm making decent progress and I think I know where it needs to go. 

5. Hopefully having a cover and a release date for Life After within the next few days. 

6. Getting caught up at the day job. It took me until this morning. But that's okay. 

And that is all! 

Stay cool and...

Behave!

Time Marches...

 Sorry for the silence! I've been off doing fun things with fun people! 

We left on the 1st for our trip to the mid-West. That Man and I and my brother and sister-in-law. The trip there (the very long drive) was equal parts traffic/time frustrating and hysterical. 

We arrived and immediately went into caretaker mode. Our uncle is still in rehab for his hip and our aunt definitely has her hands full. I feel like we barely got to spend any time with our uncle, even though we did. But his physical therapy comes first. He's making great progress and that's what matters. We had good dinners, good conversation, dancing in the kitchen, lots of working, lots of running around (though we didn't get to do much of the stuff we wanted to), cute dogs, and lots of ticks. The week went fast. 

Oh yeah, the ticks. They were crazy. Luckily, they don't have a lot of Lyme there, so that wasn't a concern. But they were freaking everywhere. Gross. Also, That Man and I both got bit by a Brown Recluse spider. Also Gross. Well, not the same spider. Obviously. Ha! Mine happened while I was in bed. Who knows where he got his. Both of our bites are better. Though I was pretty worried about mine. I had a circle around it and everything. 

It was a good trip--fun, but not too relaxing. Which is whatever. We did what needed to be done. Being there was important and I don't regret anything. 

Came back to insanely high grass, no dead plants, a dog with a hot spot (her first one ever, but it's getting better) and to be shunned by her even though she was very well taken care of and had a good time, a super insane day job that has not calmed down yet, and still no word on Life After's cover or release date. But I am back to editing, so that's good. 

And now we go back to our regularly scheduled insanity. 

That is all. 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Whoa! Friday already! It's been a crazy week! 

I don't think I'm going to do a list this week...

That Man went on his annual fishing trip last weekend. He definitely needed the break and had a great time. It was the first time I've been all alone for that long and it was weird, but good. I had three nights at home, and then I headed up to my sister's to keep an eye on their pup for the weekend while she and my niece went to a music festival. It rained pretty much the whole time.

I was going great guns on my edits. And then I wasn't. I got to the part I wrote during the beginning of the pandemic and was like...wtf? I ended up cutting almost half of the book. Some of what I cut can be added back in where it actually belongs, but for now, I am writing over. It was a big kick in the gut and while I did get many new words written, my weekend did not turn out as I'd hoped writing-wise. But it'll get there. 

One of the funny things was sleeping. Okay, me and two dogs in a queen bed. Already tight considering my dog is pretty large. My sister's dog is medium-sized. They're both bed, covers, and pillow hogs. I ended up sleeping in my sister's bed due to my niece telling me I was a fool if I didn't experience the "purple" mattress. It was super comfy and my hip didn't hurt when I woke up, which it always does when I sleep in the guest room. So there's that. Anyway. They have an automatic light in their room. I knew there was a way to turn it off, but I couldn't figure it out. So, Friday night, every time one of the dogs moved, or I moved significantly, the ceiling light blared on. It was ridiculous. Thankfully she called me Saturday morning to tell me how to shut it off. Saturday night was better, but I still didn't sleep all that great (see above. Two dogs.)

It was still good. I ate ice cream for dinner one night and binged cooking shows on the TV when I wasn't pulling my hair out about the book or going crazy because the dogs would bark at every tiny noise. 

K5 turned 13 yesterday. We picked her up to take her to dinner and give her presents on Wednesday and had a blast. She helped me pick out shorts, and got herself a dress with some of her birthday money. We went to dinner at her favorite pizza shop, hit the playground for a few minutes, and then stopped for Italian ice before taking her home. She cracks me up!

Lot's of stuff coming up, so forgive me if I'm absent. We were going through our calendar to try to find a weekend to do our fence replacement and we ended up just laughing, because there is literally something every single weekend. Oy! 

No news on Life After's release yet. And no cover to share yet. Hopefully soon! 

That is all...

Behave! 

Mid-Week Check In...

Well, Howdy!

Today is the first day of summer! Yeah...whatever. Ha!

Backing up the weekend...

The grandboys were a hoot on Friday. Little B told his mom that he was never leaving Nana and Pappy's house. Mr. B wanted to stay, too. We had to promise a weekend soon! It helped that we had absolutely no food in the house that they would eat. Ha!  

We did get to see K3 and A on Saturday. We had a nice dinner and hung out for a bit. That Man and I were exhausted after a day spent working on his truck and taking care of house stuff. They left early and we went to bed. 

Sunday we got up early and drive about an hour away to take a ride on the oldest ferry around. I had no idea what we were doing. That Man said we were going on a trail ride. He'd throw little hints out, but I was not picking up what he was throwing down. We he drove onto this rickety boat on the river, I thought we were going to die. It was awesomely cool though. We stopped for breakfast and then went home to work on the truck some more. It was a nice weekend! 

The uncle is doing okay. He's at a rehab facility (or so I think?) to help him get his mobility back. We're hoping our upcoming visit motivates him to do what he needs to do. He told me he doesn't want to be the "flat tire" while we're there, so fingers crossed. 

Still no info on a release date for "Life After". I will let you know as soon as I do! 

And that is all...

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Friday again! Yay! 

I meant to post earlier in the week, but this week has flown by! 

Here's the list:

1. Surviving our town's annual street fair. We left work early to defend our parking because we've had so many issues in the past. We haven't actually gone to the street fair in probably ten years or so. It's too crowded - like shoulder to shoulder crowded - and that's definitely not for me. Anyway. We had one offender this year. They pulled in front of our camper and stayed for like eight hours. I left a passive-aggressive note, but I didn't call the police. The police had enough to do yesterday. How inconsiderate though! I mentioned something to the landlord that owns the building behind us and he brushed me off, I did say if the car was still there in the morning, that I would be calling the cops. It was gone. How freaking rude though. How dare you park in front of someone's private parking? It doesn't matter your reason. Or how about you pop your head up the yard and ask if it's okay? We would have said yes. I'm still irritated by the whole thing. 

2. Since we were home early yesterday, I got a ton of editing on Sector Two done. The story has some rough spots, but nothing unfixable (yet). At this point, it makes sense and my time line is good, so there's that. After I get the whole way through I'll go back and smooth over those areas and hopefully be ready to send it out to my critique partners. 

3. My uncle is okay after falling and breaking his hip. He's having surgery today. We're all worried about him, and our aunt. So waiting to see how he's doing after surgery. That Man and I, and my brother and sister-in-law are heading out to see them soon, which is a good thing. 

4. Sleeping in a little tomorrow.

5. And then hopefully plans with K3 & A. A has a case of strep throat, so waiting to see how she's feeling before finalizing anything. We haven't seen K3 since Mother's Day, and we haven't seen A for quite a while. So looking forward to it. 

6. A lower key weekend coming up. That Man doesn't want to do much for Father's Day, so we're just going with the flow. 

7. Getting to see the grand boys tonight. We're keeping an eye on them for a little while J takes care of an errand she can't take them along for. 

8. Checking out our new meal plan. We switched to a different one at the recommendation of our friends. Way cheaper and similar, so we'll see. I'm excited to see how this works out. 

9. The day job being busy. That's a double-edged sword. The days go fast and I love being busy, but I find myself a bit behind lately. I'm also doing things I've never done before, but I'm figuring it out, so there's that. 

10. Maybe I'll get a nap tomorrow? 

Oh and one more thing! My short is due to come out in July. That's all I know right now! I'm waiting on the cover and will share as soon as I receive it! 

That's all! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

Ah! Friday! 

What a freaking long and crazy week! 

Let's get to the list!

1. Sequestering was amazing! We did what we wanted and actually got a lot of things taken care of. That Man worked on his truck and I wrote, and we did a bunch of other things that needed to be done. It was a good weekend!

2. The day job is crazy! One of our coworkers left and her duties have been spread out among many of us, with me getting the most of it. Which is absolutely fine and good, but also a little nuts! I love it, and I am still getting used to everything!

3. I am writing again! Whooo! I finished my "old lady" story. And started edits on Sector Two.

4. Today I received my second round edits for my short. Yay! I have the edits done, but I have to do a read through before I send them back. I'm hoping to get a release date soon. 

5. My kid and her boy came home this weekend. They went to his house on Memorial Day and we haven't seen them since. We've talked on the phone a bunch, and of course, texted a bunch, so it's good to see my kid! We/They have a lot going on this weekend, and they have a ton of laundry to do. But it's nice to have them here. 

6. Friends coming this weekend! We haven't seen them since the beach, so we're looking forward to spending some time with them!

7. Sleeping in tomorrow. 

8. We finally got black out curtains for our bedroom. Oh! How nice! It's like a cool, peaceful, and dark cave! Sleeping has been amazing!

9. The tiny bit of rain we had earlier. It was a nice gentle rain and my grass and plants appreciated it. 

That's about it!

Behave!

End of May

First thing... Happy Birthday to my oldest! 

It's hard to believe you are as old as you are! I very distinctly remember the day you were born. I am so proud of the man you have grown into!

Camping was a blast! We had amazing weather and a lot of laughs. Mr. B slept in his tent all weekend and had so much fun fishing, swimming, and playing with the other kids. We had a pretty full meadow, which was awesome. K1 and J came for the picnic and Little B had so much fun with his cousin. They were super cute, even when they busted into a fellow campers tent and started ravaging toys. Friends came to visit, which was also great. It was a good weekend. 

We dropped the camper off for inspection on our way home and retrieved it last night. So good there. When we picked it up, we dropped our car off for inspection, so hopefully that's ready tonight or tomorrow. Then that's all done. 

This weekend That Man and I are sequestering ourselves at home. We've been on the run so much that we need a weekend just the two of us. So much. Yeah, we'll be working around the house, but that's one of the other reasons we're staying home. There are many things that need taken care of. I'm looking forward to it. Sleeping in a little, planting flowers, working on his truck, and hanging new curtains in our room... Oh and grilling. Nice! 

Other than that... the writing has been super slow. The goal is to change that asap. My brain is working, but my time hasn't been. The calendar is filling up, so I need to make a concentrated effort to put my writing at the top of the list. 

And Geeze! Tomorrow starts June! 

And that's all I have for now! 

Behave! 

 

Touching Base...

Here we are at Tuesday again... Time goes by so fast. Well, except sometimes. Ha! 

My edits and art sheet have been finished and returned to my editor. Now I just wait for the next round and the cover art. Excited for both. I don't have a release date yet. This one will only be available as an ebook since it's way shorter than my other books. 

So the weekend with the grandboys was a blast. Little B barely slept Friday night, but Saturday night he conked out early and slept until five am, which is amazing. Of course, he was exhausted. We spent the day playing outside. Took him to where we camp to run off some energy and he did so good. But That Man and I are still tired. Ha!

Camp is coming up quickly. We're trying to get ready, but it's a crazy week. The camper is almost ready, but then we need to drop it off for tires, so we're trying to get it packed up with everything but the cold food before we take it since we'll pick it up and drop it at camp when it's done. (The shop is only a few miles from where we camp) I've been rearranging cupboards in there and so far I'm okay with the results, but not completely. There's so much wasted space. I'm still thinking about how to maximize. 

I'm very much looking forward to the camping weekend. A little sleeping in. A lot of camp fire. A lot of chair sitting and hanging out with some of my favorite people. I am also looking forward to That Man and I going camping on our own somewhere. I've been looking at places, but so far haven't found a place that I want to go. 

And that's about it! 

Behave! 

Happy Birthday, Momma!

Hi Momma!

It's been eight years since you left us to go and be with Dad. Eight long years of missing you both and wondering what life would have been like had you both been able to stay a little longer. You would be turning 83 today. You were taken far too young. 

I know Covid would have seen you making masks and running to the fabric store even though you wouldn't have needed to because of your already impressive stockpile of fabric and supplies. That makes me laugh to think about because I could fully imagine our conversation in my head. Dad would have been annoyed, but he probably wouldn't have said much to deter you from your mission. And he would have been happy to sit in his chair and not have to interact with the world during that time. 

You've missed so much, Momma. I guess part of me knows that you've only missed things physically. That you're still here, watching and smiling at most of it. Your great grandbabies that never got to meet you. The weddings. The shenanigans. Triumphs. 

And you're not smiling, but you've seen the bad stuff that's happened too... the deaths, disappointments, stress, rejections, and the severing of important family ties. I wish I could talk to you about all of that. I can't help but wonder what you would say and do about some of it if you were still here. 

Not a day goes by when I don't reach for the phone to call you or text you something you would find funny or interesting. There have been so many times that I just needed to hear you tell me that everything was going to be okay. Knowing you weren't worried was enough to keep me from worrying. Now, though, I know that you really were worried, but didn't want me to be. 

But we go on without you. Not that we have a choice. This year has been especially hard for some reason, though it's never easy. I find myself remembering your last few days with absolute clarity. The surprise birthday party we managed to throw you for the first time ever. The relaxing Mother's day. And then everything bad that came after. 

I just miss you, Momma. 

Happy Birthday in heaven!

Better?

Hey! It's only been a week! That's better, right? 

Same old, same old around here. Mostly. 

I got my edits for my new short story. Not sure when it comes out, but it will only be an ebook, which is fine with me. I'll be digging into them over the rest of the week and will hopefully get them done before total chaos erupts this weekend. 

We'll have the grand boys this weekend. Sleepover at Nana and Pappy's! It should be a blast, but I'm a little nervous because Little B does not sleep well or much. We'll figure that out. K4 is borrowing our car for her camping trip to a festival, so we'll have to borrow K1's car to haul them around. I think it's going to work out okay though. 

This past Sunday was Mother's Day. So bittersweet. Saturday was the anniversary of my momma's death. I know it's been eight years, but this year felt harder. There was a lot of nostalgia and memories. The day was good though. We had a fire in the backyard, good food, lots of laughter, and my boys and grand boys came over. 

Next weekend is our first camp out of the year. So getting the camper the rest of the way ready has to happen soon. We'll figure it out. Still waiting on tires, so there's that. Mr. B will be along with us for camp. He's super excited and wants to sleep in a tent, so we'll figure that one out. It'll all depend on what the weather is supposed to be like. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Feel Good, Weekend Update, and Stuff

Yeah, I know I suck! 

Hectic is the only word I have...

1. The Jersey signing was fun, but somewhat of a bust at the same time. But it's a fantastic experience. It rained all day, which is controversial regarding did it keep people home or encourage them to come out since it was not a day to do yard work? No idea on that one.

2. The day job has been absolutely insane. I came back from being off and had one day to try to reset before I had to cover for my counterpart for eight days. It was crazy busy for both jobs and I still don't feel like I am caught up with myself.

3. Which leads me to the writing going super slow right now. Well, okay, not super slow...halted. I'm working on a critique and then I have another one to do, but I haven't touched my own stuff in far too long. That will change very soon, but it's killing me. 

4. The warmer weather is so nice. We've gotten the yard mostly cleaned up. Next is to get our fence fixed. We've been holding off because the tree in the neighbors yard is half dead and has already taken out a huge section of our fence. And you know exactly what will happen... We'll fix our fence and the damn thing will fall. This tree is the one that was hit by lightning two summers ago. It's ginormous, but half of it is dead. And of course, it's the half that faces our house. We've spoken to the landlord about it, but so far he's done nothing. So we'll see... We really can't put off the fence project any longer. It looks like absolute heck right now and I hate it. 

5. Camping season starts soon! The camper is partially ready. Well, if you don't count the fact that it needs new tires. And state inspection. Those will be taken care of very soon though. It's been de-winterized. Now we just need to clean and load for the season. I am looking forward to camp fires and relaxation. 

And that's all I have at the moment...

Behave! 

Absent!

Yes, I have been absent! Sorry about that! 

Last week That Man and I took a trip to our favorite place on earth! We rented the same little cabana we had two years ago just steps from the beach. 

It was lovely and a much needed break. 

The weather was amazing! Top down on the Jeep kind of weather! We took the top down on the old girl when we arrived and didn't put it back up until we were ready to pack to come home. Of course, the little cabana has a parking area underneath, so even if it had rained, nothing would have gotten wet, so there's that. But it didn't rain.

Lot's of sunny beach days--mostly on the beach in front of our rental, but some days traveling to nearby beaches. One day we found what looked like a desserted tropical island. There were trees in the water, a huge sandbar, and absolutely no people. The tide was going out and the water was calm. We spent quite a bit of time there. Well, until the winds died down and the black flies decided we would make a good lunch. 

Our friends were down at the same time we were. They stayed pretty close to where we were, so we gathered for some meals, Jeep trips, sunset watching, and fishing. He used to work with That Man, and I've known her since high school. We always have a good time with them and this was no exeception. It was nice to have our own space, but also have the option for hang out time if we felt like it, and it was the same for them. Everything was optional and understood. 

Coming home was rough. Torrential rain and accidents everywhere. We ditched off the main road as soon as possible and took back roads home. Even though it took a few minutes longer, it was worth it to not have to deal with the insanity of the main highway. 

Anyway. We're back at the grind. 

This weekend is the big book signing in New Jersey. I'm on Saturday's schedule. It's a long drive, but a lot of fun, so there's that. So, hey, if you're in Jersey, stop in and see me. 

And that is all! 

Behave! 

Monday Again!

So I'm kinda peeved... 

Someone reported a post on here from 2009 for being offensive. 2009. 14 years? 

I have no idea what was even in the post because I can't see it now. All I know is that the title was about coffee. I cannot imagine that anything was offensive in the post. At all. I never post stuff to be offensive, rude, or anything. 

I'm not going to fight about it. I mean... 14 years? What the what? 

But it makes me sad and mad and it sours my love of this blog. 

I don't have any intention of getting rid of the blog, but I'm definitely disgruntled. And I don't appreciate it. 

Anyway...

Back to the grind today. It was a crazy and fun weekend. 

This week is insane, but next week should be better. In fact, I know it will. 

That is all. 

Behave! 

Week End Wrap Up... HaHa!

Look at that! It's actually Sunday! 

Haha! 

Okay... here's the list...

1. Getting stuff done. Closets have been cleaned out. Drawers have been cleaned out and organized. My office has been mostly organized. Also, plant stuff. Car stuff. 

2. I'm tired. 

3. Sleeping in both days. Not a lot, but still good. 

4. Getting through a looong work week. 

5. The holiday coming up. Looking forward to it. There's going to be good food, family and friends, and I'm going to say a lot of laughter! 

And that's about it... I'm tired (did I say that?)

Behave!

Another Weekend Wrap Up on Monday...

Ha! I guess this is the thing now... 

This weekend was super busy, so there's that. 

We took off Friday to help K1 & J out. Got the grandboys to school, did the shopping, and then had a "reverse" sleepover with them. J had to have surgery and K1 needed to be with her. We had a blast with the kids, but sleeping was horrible. Little B woke up around 4am on Saturday. And it rained all day which prevented our plans of running around and doing stuff. But it was fine. We chilled, made their mommy cards, and cleaned up constantly. Ha! Made them soup so they didn't have to worry about dinner, and made sure the house looked good so J wasn't stressed out by a mess. It was exhausting, but it was good. 

Finally got our snowmen off the front porch and replaced them with some spring flowers. And we got several other items checked off of our list. 

Easter plans are underway, too. 

It's hard to believe that it'll be April in a few days! 

I, unfortunately, didn't get any writing done this weekend, which I expected but it still bums me out. I didn't even take my computer! 

Other than that... it's the same old same old busy stuff. 

And that is all...

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up...On Monday

I'm not going to say I need another weekend day. You know it. You feel it, too! Ha!

It was a busy one. Lots of housework, laundry, and errand running...blah blah blah. No napping either. 

The taxes are done. All I have to do is write the checks. Ugh. 

My stupid leg has been giving me fits. I don't know if it's sciatica or what. I'll be walking just fine and all of a sudden I get a shooting pain down my leg that stops me in my tracks. I hate it. Though it's a little better today. Last night I could barely walk and don't even ask me about going up the stairs to hit the bathroom. 

I absolutely hate this cold. I'm super cranky about it. I'm done with being cold. The wind has been brutal. I know today is the first day of spring and I'm glad for that, but it's still too cold.

And that's all I have. Despite it being a busy weekend, there is nothing to actually report on that you would care about. Ha!

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up!

Sunday again! Oy! These weekends are just never long enough! 

And I forgot about the stupid time change! Oh how I hate it! 

For the most part, it's been quiet around here. Some stuff yesterday, but not bad. Today has been reasonably lazy. Laundry done. Kick ass dinner made, eaten, and cleaned up from (and it's only five...). 

Best part is that I just signed and returned a contract for my novella! Yay! Currently it's titled "Life After". It's about a woman who wakes up to find she's completely alone in the world. It'll be an e-book only due to length, but that's okay with me. 

Now to get some more words on the page! 

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday!

Thank goodness! This week was also a long one! 

Here's the list: 

1. Sending my novella to my editor. Nothing guaranteed there, but fingers crossed that she likes it. 

2. New words. I'm cranking it on my new story. It's a mess, but my word count is growing. And even though it's a little messy right now, it's coming together.  

3. Light weekend plans. It's about time. I'm not saying we have no plans, but they are easy. Well, if you don't count potentially exhausting yard cleaning, weather permitting. There will be naps! 

4. Sleeping in a bit tomorrow. Which is good considering we were up before four am this morning. Today was our annual work breakfast and we had to cook our stuff and get into work super early. It was a huge success, though I'm dragging now. And still full. We had so much great food. 

5. Potentially seeing the boys this weekend and plans to see K5 next week. 

That's enough... Stay warm!

Behave! 

It's Monday...And I'm Tired...

Oy, Monday! 

I definitely could have used one more weekend day! 

Little B was a hoot on Saturday. We made brownies, played with magnetic blocks, and made nine-hundred and fifty six trips to the bathroom. (Ha!) He helped water plants, and wash dishes. He really wanted to go outside and ride bikes, but it was just too cold and windy for that. 

Then our friends came over, which was really nice. Dinner turned out well and we had a good time talking and laughing. 

Sunday's plans were waylaid by our niece and future nephew's sewer pipe breakage. We went over to help. Well, That Man helped. I heckled. But it got fixed. No mega store happened. When we got home I took a long and hard nap and I'm still freaking exhausted. 

But I got to see K1 for a bit and I talked to K3 on the phone when he got off work, so there's that bit of goodness. 

Tonight, however, it's mega store time. Ugh. But very necessary since there is no laundry soap or coffee. 

At this point, our weekend coming up is looking quiet, but it's too soon to tell yet. 

I got through quite a bit of edits on Friday night, but haven't had the time to sit down and work on it since, so that has to happen this week. I'm so close to being done! 

That is all...

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday!

This has been the absolute longest week! 

Let's just hit the list! 

1. Getting almost through my critiques for my short story. I'm halfway through the last one. Then I'll give it a final read through and send it off to see what my editor thinks. Whoo! 

2. Sleeping in a tiny bit tomorrow. 

3. Little B is coming to hang out tomorrow while his mom and brother go do some stuff. We'll have fun. We went to the store and loaded up on his favorite snacks and drinks. We'll make cookies or brownies and probably play chase through the house per usual. He's so funny and is a joy to be with. 

4. Most of the laundry getting done tonight. 

5. And the grocery store. Except for the mega store run, which will happen probably Sunday. 

6. Work stuff working out. Ha! There was a slight situation that caused me a lot of worry and dismay, but it has been settled and all is well. Cryptic? Well, maybe, but do you really care? It wasn't anything I did, so there's that. 

7. Scoring a like new office chair. The one in our guest room is in terrible shape. I managed to snag the new one before it was tossed in the dumpster. There is literally nothing wrong with it. I'm not sure why it was being thrown out. (except that it is a little...okay, a lot... ugly)(but it kinda fits with the retro theme in the guest room, so there's that)

8. Getting to see my little boys briefly last night. 

9. Seeing our friends tomorrow night. It's been a while. It's our turn to cook and we're making Butter Chicken. Very much looking forward to the evening. 

And now...

We had a handle on the skunk smell. Our jackets were washed and no longer smell. The house, after boiling apple cider vinegar with lemons and limes, no longer smelled. 

I soaked her collar in white vinegar and blue dawn. This morning, there was white chunky stuff all through the container. And her collar did not smell at all. So there's that. 

But it's raining...

And the dog absolutely reeks again. She's currently sitting beside me and depending on how she moves, I cannot take a deep breath. Oy! 

And that is all for now! 

Behave! 

Stay Away From the Striped Kitty...

So yeah... you can probably guess what this is about based on the title! Ha!

This morning our dog got sprayed by a skunk right in the face. My poor old girl. 

That Man was outside with her. I was in the bathroom. I heard him yell "nooo". Got out there and...oh boy...

Almost threw up. She's trying to rub her face on my pants, on the rug, on our chairs...That Man is wiping her face down with water and blue Dawn. It's not helping. 

We bathe her, which is always a fun treat. But she actually cooperated. More blue Dawn and being careful around her eyes and ears. It helped, but not. 

Our whole house stinks. We stink. It's vomit inducing. 

Got to work and it was immediately pointed out that we reek of skunk. I have a headache. The smell doesn't appear to be around and then all of a sudden it hits me in the face. 

Texted K4 since she's off today. She said her room, which is on the third floor, reeks. I'm afraid to go home. (We made it into work only two minutes late, so I guess that's something)

I know she'll need another bath when we get home. I've looked up all of the things related to how to get rid of the smell. K4 is also on it. 

She got sprayed about five years ago, but this time is far worse. And no, I don't think she's going to learn. Ha! 

Oy! And that, folks, is what kind of week it's been for us. No lie. Every single day it's been something different. 

The weekend is coming! 

Behave!

End of February...

No, I'm not going to say how fast this year is going... 

The past week has been super hectic and chaotic. Nothing major, just a constant flow of obligations and stuff--most of which are boring and you don't care about. 

We had Mr. B over the weekend. It was a chill and relaxed time. He got a break from his little brother, lots of outside time, and he earned a few bucks by cleaning out flower beds. He helped cook, wore out the dog, and made our grocery bill go up. Ha! Then, Sunday we took him home and hung out with both boys while their parents got a little break. Little B is a riot. 

This weekend is more craziness with multiple obligations. Little B, friends, and more friends. So much to look forward to, but oy! I'm still tired from last weekend! But this is where our calendar picks up steam, so it's going to be this way for a bit unless something changes. 

Needless to say, the writing has taken somewhat of a hit, but it'll come back around. I figured out where I went off rails and am in the process of correcting it. I also finally remembered to send the novella to the critique partners. So, nervously awaiting their comments on that. 

And that is about it...

Behave!

Mid-Week Check In

See? I'm trying! Ha!

Retreat was awesome. I ended the weekend at the halfway mark of my new book, which was amazing! (Of course, we won't talk about how I haven't done crap since coming home...) 

My ice maker died. I am so very sad. That Man has to take it apart to see if it can be fixed, but we're pretty certain it reached the end of life. It's been five years though, so that's not a terrible run. But now I need to find a new one. And a new blender since we fried ours. 

So Mother Nature is having a breakdown or something. Right now it's snowing. Tomorrow it's supposed to be in the 70's. And then the temps plummet over the weekend. It's no wonder everyone is sick right now. Our trees are trying to bud and my flowers are trying to grown. I mean, at this point, my vote is to just stick with the 70's temperature from here on out. 

And that's all I have...

Behave! 

Retreat: Day Three!

And Retreat is almost a wrap! We're in the final hours. 

No, I didn't post this morning because, really, how much do you care about how I slept and what I had for breakfast? Ha! 

Today has been writing, writing, and more writing. There were no adventures. Plus, damn. It's cold! 

I did manage to sleep in a little. And I smashed yesterday's word count into dust! Not by much, but I did beat it. I only have about 1,800 words to hit the halfway mark, which is my goal before I leave tomorrow. 

But for now, my brain is a little on the fried side. I am loving this story and how it's coming together. The words are flowing so well, but I've been marinating this one for a while. 

Oh and no nap today. Damnit! I had a plan, but lost track of time and the next thing I knew it was time to start my dinner. Oh well. I know I'll be in bed early tonight. I'm already feeling it. Ha! 

I probably won't post in the morning, but hopefully it won't be weeks and weeks until I get back here. 

These retreat days have been excellent and exactly what I've needed in my writing world. Though, sadly, this will be our last retreat for this year. I was already on the probably no more because of trying to cut expenses, but one of our members officially cut herself out for the rest of this year. I mean, it is what it is and we'll pick it back up next year. 

And that is all! 

Behave! 

Retreat: Day Two! Evening!

What a stellar day! Oh! And it's also Feel Good Friday! So let's do that!

1. Hitting a grand total of 12,006 words for today! I am loving this new story and it's flowing so well! I hope to get at least that tomorrow, which would put me around the halfway point. 

2. Our little trip to the outside world for fudge, cookies, and hot pepper jelly. The place was pretty cool, though most of the shops were still closed. We wanted to go in between rain sessions, so we hit it early. I could have spent a ton more money, but I reigned myself in. Ha! I didn't partake in the fudge or cookie part of it, but I did get the hot pepper jelly and some mango salsa. And some cool wax melts. And some cool coffee. 

3. Trying to take a nap. I did try. I might have nodded off for like ten minutes. It was still good and the option to nap is awesome. The best thing is that I have that option tomorrow as well! Ha! 

4. Drawing the lucky straw and getting the master bedroom. Though it's only a master while I'm sleeping. If I'm up, then the bathroom is free for anyone to use. Though this decision was based on how many times each of us gets up to pee during the night. And that's what made me the winner. Ha! But it's nice not to have to put pants on every time I need to get up. 

5. So much talking and laughing going on! It's good for refilling the well, especially with people who don't think I'm super weird. 

6. One more day of retreat! I'll head home Sunday morning. We have a long standing social obligation with friends on Sunday. Though because I'll just be coming home, the option to opt out is there. We'll see. So far I'm still a go. 

And that's about it. I am currently hating the wind and the dropping temperature, but I'm hoping that means a better night of sleep. 

Behave! 

Retreat: Day Two! Morning!

Good Morning from Retreat!

Here I am setting in my spot on the couch, drinking coffee, chatting, and listening to the horse and buggy's go by. And yes, my manuscript is open and I'm getting ready to write.

I slept okay. Had to get up and open a window, but that's just me. Was up far earlier than I wanted to be, but that just means a nap will be well deserved later. It's raining right now, which is nice. Makes my position on the couch even more cozy. You know and the fact that my only actual requirement today is writing. 

I managed over 3K words on my new manuscript! So, yeah, that's going well so far. 

We have plans to head down to the local farmer's market in a bit. Little field trip. Hopefully that's cool. 

That's all for now!

Behave!

Retreat! Day One!

Well, here we are at retreat! I haven't been on retreat since last May!

But here I am! I already have my couch seat picked out. It's a recliner and it's very comfy. We haven't picked bedrooms yet since one of us isn't here yet, but food is put away, the heat is on, and writing will commence shortly. 

Right now it's a lot of talking, which is normal. Yeah, we all saw each other on Saturday, but we were busy, so it's not the same. I think the last time I saw everyone together like this was last May, so...

Getting ready to start a new project. I even have notes! 

That's it for this first update...

Behave!