Weekend Wrap Up

Oy! It's Monday again! Monday showed up too quickly and I don't like it. I definitely could have used another weekend day and some more sleep! 

It was a crazy weekend! 

A guy from work gave us some flowers, so on a whim and in the drizzle Saturday morning, we decided to plant them. Which meant clearing out the spot--removing a small tree and some vines. It took a little longer than we thought, but we got them in the ground and it looks nice. 

Then off to B's soccer game, which was good, except for the bathroom being six-hundred and fifty-two miles away. Ha! From there, food and flower shopping. 

Back home for a hot minute, and then off to a surprise birthday party for a former coworker. It was a lot of fun and it was so good to see some of my previous coworkers. We hadn't planned on staying long, but then we did. 

I did sleep in Sunday. K4 made me a german pancake for breakfast and it was so good. My boys and families came over for kebabs and hang out and it was fantastic. Lots of talking, eating, and laughing. It was a good day. I managed to get some editing done before everyone showed up and I'm making good progress with it. 

I'm tired today though. We have another busy weekend coming up, but thankfully, the week itself doesn't look too crazy. 

And that is all!

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

What is up with all of this rain? I feel like I'm growing moss... Ha!

It's been a really long week! 

Here's the list of Feel Good's:

1. Making progress on the book. I am 3/4 written and almost 1/2 edited. The goal is to input the critiques on section two, edit section three and send out and then plow through the final pages. Got a little stuck on section three, but I think I managed to make it make sense. We'll see what my crit partners say. 

2. Retreat coming up in a few weeks. I want this book as close to done or completely done before then so I can work on other things. Still haven't decided what yet, but it'll probably be deep edits on two other finished projects. Maybe. 

3. Sleeping in tomorrow. Sleep has sucked lately. Though it's going to be a busy day starting at like 11am. Good stuff planned, but lots of running. 

4. Winning a gift card at work for knowing our company values. That'll get me some more flowers!

That is all! 

Behave! 

Well, Hi!

That was a longer break than intended... But it was much needed. 

But here I am! I can't promise I'll be on the regular. There's a lot of craziness and really unexpected stuff going on around here, but I'll try. 

Mother's Day is coming. 

I miss my mom. A lot. It always gets rough now since this is the time of year she died. It's especially rough this year, without a doubt. We had a fabulous, and surprise - for once in our lives - birthday party for her, and then a lovely Mother's Day together, and then she went to the hospital and never came home. I know I probably tell that story every year. And I probably always will. It was the worst and I often think about how I could have made things different. In a lot of ways. 

I also miss my child who I haven't talked to in quiet some time. And I wish I could tell them how much I love them and miss their presence. How I miss their sense of humor, their elegant and sometimes messy but always fun, chaos, their wisdom, and their opinion. I miss the way we could talk things through and how their refreshing perspective brightened every single thing. How we could respectfully debate life and understand each others stance without anger or judgement and come away with some different perspective that made me think. Also, how much everyone in this family misses them, despite the angry words thrown. I wish they knew how I think about them all of the time and how I wish things were different. How I lay awake at night and wish them peace, joy, and happiness. Like my mom, there are so many things I would love to share with them. But I can't. And how, no questions asked, I would welcome them with open arms and an open heart if they ever decided they wanted to. I currently have no way to say that to them though. So I will wait and hope and wish them happiness. 

I know that's heavy, but it is what it is. Life happens like that sometimes. It's happened in my past with my brother. It was so confusing and painful, and still is in a lot of ways. The way it broke our parents was awful and I feel that now in a way I cannot describe. My heart also broke for everything he missed, everything all of us missed, especially when he realized all that was needed was communication and all of those years being angry were wasted. But our parents died before those fences could be mended, and afterwards he tried to be the brother he wasn't for far too long, but it was too late. We had learned to live without him and live life without him. And then he died. And now because of estates and property, I cannot have the relationship with my sister-in-law that started the whole thing. And I miss that. 

So yeah... I guess you might be sorry I came back with all of this deep stuff. I'll try not to be such a downer in the future, but no guarantees. Life is heavy right now. 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

Yay Friday!

I've got nothing I feel like reporting, so...

I'll be taking an Internet break for the next few weeks. 

Have a lovely Easter weekend! 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Yay! I am in my comfy pants and ready to spend the evening relaxing!

Here's the list:

1. Going to dinner with J, Mr. B, & Little B for J's birthday. We had a nice time, except J and I both got sick overnight. Some kind of food poisoning--has to be. We had items no one else did, so... Also, they had to remake Mr. B's burger, because they didn't listen to his request, and they charged us for both. Stopped in there and talked to the manager. He gave us some gift cards, though I can't say I'm eager to use them. Ha! I am feeling better, but still kind of weak and yucky. 

2. I didn't get much writing done this week because it's been crazy, but I'm heading there as soon as dinner is done. 

3. We have the boys overnight tomorrow so their mom and dad can have some alone time. We're going to color eggs, which is something we haven't done in ages. Our great-niece is going to come too! Should be a riot! 

4. Taxes are completely complete. I hated writing that check, but I'm glad it's done. 

5. Looking forward to Easter! I have my frozen potato cubes to make potato casserole! Last year no store had them, so i grabbed them when I saw them. 

6. Upcoming plans! Though the calendar is crazy! It's all good and everything will be fine. 

That is all... I'm thinking about taking another social media break here soon. 

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

Here we are at Sunday again...

I am not looking forward to the work week, but what are you going to do? 

Let's see... What happened last week?

Well, it was a lot. Too much to even start to list. 

But my Jeep is home. 

And I am tired. 

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

What is with this weather today? One minute it's sunny and beautiful, then next it's like a blizzard, and then it's not snowing but windy as heck. And it's cold! I hate it! Actually I'm super sick of the weather we've been having. 

Also, time change sucks. I will be happy with it being light longer, but the messed up sleep and all of that crap is not happy making.

And again, this weekend has gone by too fast! Friday was just a lazy evening. That Man made dinner and we just chilled watching a movie. 

Saturday we had plans with friends, which was a blast. Got to see people we haven't seen in a while and hear some awesome music. Also, good food. When we left, we went to pick up K1 at work since it was so late and they're down to one car. It didn't make sense for J to drag the boys out of their beds. We got home super late, but didn't really sleep in. 

I tried to take a nap, but it got cut short. That Man and K1 went to look at the Jeep and make a plan for getting it home. Not as bad as we thought, but it's still going to be a process and cost us a good bit. But it'll be done. 

Sent section two off for critique and now I'll start writing section three. It's going pretty good, I think. I still need to come up with a title, but I'll get there soon. 

This week is going to be crazy between the day job and everything else. 

And that is all! 

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up

 Ugh. Why does the weekend go so fast?

We're hours from a brand new work week and it's making my head hurt. I could definitely use another weekend day!

Here's the recap:

Friday - quick trip to the grocery store, then home for burgers and relaxation. 

Saturday - K4 and The Boy came home. They had last minute social stuff so we found out they were coming about two hours before they showed up. Which is fine. They did their thing and we did ours. 

We had the sibling dinner, which was good and fun. Our nephew is a crack up and had us laughing almost the whole time. Good food and lots of good conversation. 

Sunday - errand running, cleaning That Man's old car, listing it, and selling it within a half an hour of posting the ad. Wow! But that's done, which is huge! Made mac and cheese for dinner, packed lunches, laundry. Went through the critique notes I received back and organized my files. I have no more brain power today though. Kids are getting ready to head out. 

Back to the grind, I guess...

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

 What a long week! The work week was absolutely insane! Like "what the what is going on" long. But I lived and it'll all be there on Monday, so there's that! 

Here's the list:

1. Participating in an hysterical practical joke on one of the coworkers. The other participants provided the photos and general gist and I got to take care of the rest. It was pretty awesome. 

2. The new vehicle being sorted. Though I was a little worried when all of the lights came on as I was returning from my post office trip, but they went off after less than a mile and... idk? Finger crossed though. 

3. Making progress on the new book! 

4. Youngest grandson hugs! We got a quick visit so J could pick up something K1 needed to borrow. He is so stinking cute! 

5. Tomorrow plans with the siblings! 

6. Easy dinners. Being warm. My dog. 

7. Taxes are done. I did do my feds by hand and it was fine. I mailed them even though it's not recommended, but I'm also not paying out the nose for something just because I need a few forms. Now all I have to do is send money, but whatever. 

8. Sleeping in tomorrow. (After a week of rough sleep, I am looking forward to it)

And that is all...

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...on Monday...

I started to post about four times yesterday but kept getting distracted. 

Got to see my kid this weekend, which was awesome. It's been well over a month since she's been home. She cooked dinner Saturday night and it was so, so good. She's been perfecting her fried chicken recipe and I'll tell you what, she's got it down. She and The Boy hung out with friends and chilled, and we also chilled while getting stuff done. 

Talked to K3 for a long time, too, which was also awesome. And That Man's sister stopped by to catch up. Always a pleasure. 

Still dealing with issues on the new vehicle, but hopefully they will be sorted this week. It's been frustrating on a lot of different levels, but the dealership is doing their best to help us out. 

Taxes - ugh. Do I need to say anything more? I think I've decided to do them by hand this year. I'm having issues paying a lot of money for the same result. (And yes, I do know what I'm doing)

Upcoming plans - This weekend is a sibling gathering at our sister's. We've been trying to plan it for months. Last time, snow stopped us, so I'm hopeful it'll actually happen. It's been a long time since we've all been together. 

That Man and I have our annual alone trip coming up soon and I am so excited. Lists are being made and components gathered. The house sitter has been secured and the work tasks are in the process of being distributed. 

The new book is coming along. I sent the first section out for critique and am almost done editing the second section. Once I get the critiques back, I'll make the changes to one, make sure things flow into two that I might have missed and get that out. Then start section three. It's in my head, so hopefully I won't have too many issues getting it down. 

And that's it...

Behave! 

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!