I toyed with the idea of doing Christmas posts until Christmas.
I'm not quite certain I'll be able to accomplish that.
I can't even manage to put up a Christmas Tree. (Of course, I'm not trying very hard, with that one, either.)
BUT --
I did manage to find a Christmas funny.
It even made the professor laugh.
It's one of our most favoritest Carols.
Had to share.
Christmas is coming! Christmas is coming!!!
But I bet you already knew that.
Every day, the question is asked, "How long until Christmas?"
To J-man I tell him "Soon". He still doesn't understand the concept of "days/nights".
The bigger kids will immediately go to the calendar and count the days.
Or, in Mini-Me's case, just do the math.
I'm glad that it's coming. Honest.
But I don't necessarily feel all the chaos that goes with it. So this blog post might actually start to sound like a Christmas confessional.
I don't have any desire to sing Christmas songs - aside from the occasional "rudolph" because the clock sings it.
We were crazy busy right up to Thanksgiving. Part of it was that I was writing for the entire month. We were sick for about a week before. I didn't feel the urge to decorate. I still don't.
Once I get it up it feels like it's got to come right back down.
I have had more fun buying Christmas gifts, though. That has been a surprise. It hasn't been too difficult to buy for the kids. Mini-E, or Bubbles, Tells me she wants a princess, a cat toy and a mumble mumble toy. She wants two of those.
Part of my lack of enthusiasm comes from the crazy way life is swirling around. Stress at the professor's work. LOTS Of it. Eeking it's way home.
We're on a Constant busy here. And we don't go many places! It nearly seems unfair.
The dog. Don't get me started on the dog.
Did I tell you I had to take the hamster to the vet??
THE HAMSTER. Sigh.
I have joy unmeasurable, but not in decorating for Christmas.
The presents are on top of the piano. Waiting for the great unwrapping. There are no lights up anywhere...well, other than the lights that came with the house. And I'm okay with that.
Maybe this year, with only 11 days to go until Christmas, we'll keep things simple.
There's always next year. (insert gales of laughter here) Maybe next year we'll decorate when the stores do. November 1.
I must confess that I'm not exactly sure what to say lately.
Life is rather boring around the laundry pile.
The two big kids have found that if they work hard at their school work they can be done before lunch time. Which is great, but the constant questions of the morning school rush can be a bit much for me. Especially when the two littler kids want attention, too.
They're enjoying this race to beat the clock - and each other. So I guess we'll make it work for us.
The weather here is down right frigid. I love it.
Don't get me wrong. I'd rather be cold than hot any day.
But we're not used to such cold weather until the end of January. So it's been rather a trip to see frost and frozen tundra before Christmas.
I did manage to get all my shopping done.
The Professor did shop for me. I have "stuff". Which makes me happy.
I love getting gifts! So to know that it's 'stuff' from my hubby and not just a single gift, makes me giddy.
I'm rather looking forward to 2010.
The new adventures that we'll have. New things to begin.
It should be quite fun.
I finally understand why some bloggers have two or more blogs!
I mean, if that's what you wanted to do, as a blogger, more power to you.
But with all the story lines going on in my head, I decided I needed another blog for the other side of my brain. For story ideas or non-mommy things. I went with LiveJournal. I'd toyed with it several years ago. I wanted some place that my characters could say whatever they wanted to say without the mommy-blog getting in the way.
And I think that's one reason I have not much to say. Life is good and continuing on. God still sings over me constantly. But my writing has been focused on the novels and fiction in my head. It makes me laugh because I never thought I'd have so much to write about. Now to figure out how to pay attention to life -- so I have something to BLOG about.
Huh. I've lost a follower.
I don't know if that makes me sad or amused.
Me + "followers" = surreal.
I mean, I walk into walls. or store mannequins.
But really what I wanted to tell you were two conversations ...about me.
Mini-Me saw me in an aqua colored t-shirt.
"Mom, you look great! Is that a new shirt?"
It is.
And now it's my favorite one.
Then last night, J-man was being funny. He tickles himself to no end, by the way.
He was pushing on me and laughing (it was part of the chase and tickle game).
I walked away for some reason -- He told me "you have a santa claus girl tummy"
He's rolling on the floor with gales of laughter, it was hard not to laugh, too.
Still makes me wonder why we wanted him to talk??
I don't keep up with my blogroll like I should.
People change addresses.
They change blogs.
Sometimes you just get tired of them not posting, or what they're posting...mostly because YOUR life changes. Or what you need to read changes. I could keep my blog roll to like 5 or 6 people that I read all the time. But then there are those that I visit and read and feel like I've never been away.
It's hard to choose how long to make the blog roll.
and then...THEN ...
there are the SILLY things I read that might not fit on the blog roll.
And that's what I'm sharing with you today.
The silly.
Maybe you'll find something that tickles you're funny bone, too.
CakeWrecks.
they rate themselves PG-13... but they're funny. And you'll never look at a cake the same way again.
Darths and Droids
How would StarWars universe look if it were played in an RPG game.
This comic shows you.
Warning: Gamer humor abounds.
My Friend introduced me to this thing called "SteamPunk"
Then she introduced me to Girl Genius.
I spent my spare time over a three day period catching up...it's just that much fun.
I love good characters, as you may well know.
This comic has some good ones.
What happens when a cartoonist gets bored?
He draws Ninjas.
Not just any ninjas. Ninja Jerks.
I haven't been just reading comics, honest.
But my time, between writing fast and furiously through the month of November, hasn't given me a lot of time to sit and read at the computer. So I haven't been. Which may be why I haven't visited your blog. Sorry 'bout that.
I'm still trolling for Flair on Facebook, too. :-)
AND
Blogthings.
I love this site.
And they have a blog now. Which makes me all sorts of happy. Because they're on Facebook.
Oh - On the easily amused front I just found out that I can get Twitter Feeds through my Google Reader. Ha! LOVE IT! Because I don't have to sign up for Twitter. It was confusing me just a bit...
I'm not sure I love the fact that our dog is currently gnawing my bubble wrap to pieces.
Guess my time here at the Laundry Pile computer is over now.
It's become more and more evident.
This mom is a writer. I always wanted to be. But never thought it would matter.
Somewhere deep inside there's that voice that tells you if you're not published, you're not a writer.
This is no longer the case for me.
I'm a writer. It's not all I am. I'm a singer. A worshipper. A dancer. A mom. A Wife.
but it's fun to think that if someone asks what I do -- I can tell them, "I write."
It really became clear that I should and could make this distinction when I finished my NaNoWriMo novel. I did. I wrote the final scene (first draft) (First drafts suck) the night before Thanksgiving. I was really quite glad for the hubbub of Thanksgiving. We had so much fun!!!
BUT -- the next day. The Friday after.
There was a funk.
It's much like the "After Christmas blues" I would get when I was a teenager. I loved Christmas. I loved the build up. The decorating. The anticipation. The joy. The music. That's changed as I've gotten older and a bit more disillusioned, I'm afraid to admit.
After Christmas was over and done with came the blues. The feeling of "now what?"
That's how it's been both times I've finished my manuscripts. The sudden -- "Now What?" of my brain. The sudden fact that I had nothing pressing on my thoughts. During the writing process I was always plotting. If not plotting then my characters were somewhere in my brain. Talking to me. Telling me how to handle the next scene.
There will be rewrites, of course, but you can't do that when you're in the "Now What?" stage of the process. Being in this stage of the process is also a very bad time to have someone lamblast your writing. Even though I know it's all part of the process. It's still not good on the "after book funk". Or would it be the "Post-novel blues"?
Either way, it's confirmed to me that I'm a writer.
It's good to have this process ... to be able to look at it and recognize it as such.
Moving on is important for the next phase or the next novel.
One day I'll learn what to do after the novel is finished.
Because I hope there will be many more in my future.
There has to be, because I'm a writer.
On Reading:
Mini-me read her first "Mandie" book. The First one, in fact. I remember reading these as a kid, but I can't say that they were my favorite books. I don't know why, exactly. I remember one scene where Mandie's friend prays ... Open Eyes and open face toward the sky. But I can't remember why.
Mini-Me devoured the book.
She turned the page and groaned, "Aaaaaaawwww. It's over."
Music to my ears.
She requested more books for Christmas.
Even more music to my ears.
On Animals:
Last Christmas, we had a great challenge keeping Shaggy from getting into the toys while unbinding them from their Packaging. Oh, the packaging that hell hath brought!! The endless miles of twisty ties. The mindless bits of tape. The pieces of plastic pierced through Barbie's head. (so glad we aren't getting Barbie's this year.)
It was the Christmas packaging that keeps a pair of wire cutters in my kitchen drawer.
What was I saying??
Christmas. Dogs. I promise.
Gizmo tends to be wild. Just as prone as Bubbles to take a toy and run.
Thinking it might be good to have things for him to chew on, new toys make him happy, I purchased a few things.
When I was showing the Professor purchases for the kids, talking about the next steps. Oh, these are for the dog, says I.
He looks at them, "did you get something for the cat?"
Well no. -- I'm rather stunned that he asked. He doesn't like the critters. Tolerates them for our sake...mostly the kids sake.
"She's part of the tribe. You should get her something for Christmas."
"Are you serious??"
He was. Maggie's presents are stashed with the rest. I went last night and bought her a play mat.
Sigh.
We're goofy.
On Phonics - the inspiration of learning:
G-man was walking by Mini-Me. In a rather awed voice he said: "Did you know there is a vowel in every word??"
Well, I'm way over due for a blogger update. Sorry about that. I know - I'm blogging without obligation - it says so somewhere on my sidebar. I had originally thought that I would blog about the life of NaNo. And those plans fell through as writing, PLUS life, just took all my spare time.
Today I'm not feeling well - so i'm not entirely sure how much of this blog post will make sense.
I may have to edit it after the haze clears. :-)
It started out well. I had a crazy plot, and some good characters.
I'm a sucker for good characters.
I had the beginning of my story already in my head. That was the easy part.
Then the middle part hit.
Good grief. That was not easy.
Nor was it, turns out, fun.
One bit of a blessing that came about in the midst of this, was the word count battle between a lady in New York -- MercOne. The word count happened by accident and we both had more fun with it than I think either of us thought we would.
Chiding each other with faux frustrations but genuine cheers.
Today I reached the official mark of 50,000 words. I'm not done with my story. I've got 15 more days or so to finish it. The fact that it's nearly done, thrills me.Though, I know once I reread it later, say in December, to begin to edit it, I might wonder what the heck I was thinking.
To be honest, I love to write.
I always have.
But having Merc there to constantly get ahead of me in word count, urged me to keep going. Her being 3,000+ words ahead of me during a few days really ... I was glad for her..
but it IRKED me.
She was sick.
She wrote a drinking song for me.
Still got ahead of me in word count.
And she was sick.
And working.
and that motivated me to kill my inner editor -- that voice that says "Edit now" or whispers "plot flaw". MercOne motivated me because her 3,000k and plus word count mocked me.
So I pushed on.
writing little bit by little bit.
I had to eat her lead like you would eat an elephant. Bite by bite..or in this case..word by word.
She helped me get past the "middle of the story" blues.
She kept me going ....
Really - I couldn't have asked for a better writing buddy.
So thank you, MercOne!!
You have my undying gratitude and probably a place in my book, after I rewrite it. :-)
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