Not Me... Friday? Maybe it will catch on.
I would never put on shoes on Alex without socks because he had no clean socks, and then buy him a 75cent pair of socks at the store.
I would never tell Kristen she could have two braids in her hair when her hair was wet, but when her hair was dry she could only have one braid.
I would never argue with a two and a half year old about whether or not the strange rise he saw in the distance was train tracks, and then let him win because I wanted him to stop talking about it and I didn't care if he learned they were in fact not train tracks.
Speaking of train tracks, I would never take a different route home just so I didn't have to hear "Train tracks, Mom, LOOK TRAIN TRACKS! Over THERE!! LOOK TRAIN TRACKS!!!"
And I would never turn the radio up so loud just to drown out such an outburst.
I also would never speed down Wadsworth just to get to the train crossing in time to see the freight train passing through.
I would never tell Kristen that the McDonald's playplace was closed all day because they were cleaning it, and then force her to sit through a lunch at Panera Bread instead.
I would never let my children have cookies with breakfast.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Writing Woes
I figured since I was staring at a word document and I couldn't decide what to write next I should change it around in an attempt to not drive myself deeper and deeper into writer's block.
I am working on Book #2-- Susanna's story, for those are playing along at home. Wait, did I mention I finished my first book?? Well, I did and it felt AWESOME until I had to go through two more edits and then start sending it out to literary agents. Let me tell you, querying lit agents is horrifically stressful. Its like putting your creative brain child out there for ridicule and criticism-- who in their right mind does that?? I've come to realize that being an author is an incredibly self-deprecating career. It is a constant rollercoaster of "Wow I am awesome!" to "No one will ever want to read this," to "I am so amazed that I actually wrote something so beautiful," to "I am a complete failure and I should give up now." For those of you who read, you need to send your favorite authors a thank you note or cake pop bouquet or something because every little bit of positive feedback is so unmeasurably comforting.
Here is my tally list (thus far):
Queries sent: 32
Rejections: 9 (however, some people won't email you back at all, so it is probably much higher)
Requests for more material: 5 (4 partials and 1 full)
Querying is just about as difficult as writing the dang book in the first place. Blood and sweat and tears (no kidding) go into writing the book, but its the emotional destruction that comes with the putting it out there for someone to turn you down that is so hard to deal with.
So I'm plugging away at the next book with the hope someone somewhere sometime will want to represent it, and that someone somewhere sometime will want to buy it. There is a difference. First you have to get a literary agent, then that agent has to try and sell the book to a publisher. The whole process could take years. YEARS. Don't they know I already spent years writing the danged thing?? I'm really hoping Book #2 (which is still untitled and its REALLY bothering me) doesn't take as long and since I don't have the distraction of school-- but those pesky kids are still here to claim my attention-- but then when I stare at a stream of dialog and my little cursor is blinking at me, like "Okay, what next?" and I don't know what comes next, well that is irritating. Sometimes the scene will just write itself, sometimes it takes five or six (or fifteen) passes to get the scene right. #2 is going along nicely, so I really shouldn't complain, but I HATE getting stuck.
Oh well. Even as I type this I took a ten minute break to get three sentences out before loosing my thread of thought. Kristen is very adamantly demanding that I show her how to draw a face using a plate and I hear some popcorn and Eclipse calling my name. If I can't write my own woefully romantic stories then I will have to make due with the ones already successfully made into motion pictures. Tomorrow is another day.
I am working on Book #2-- Susanna's story, for those are playing along at home. Wait, did I mention I finished my first book?? Well, I did and it felt AWESOME until I had to go through two more edits and then start sending it out to literary agents. Let me tell you, querying lit agents is horrifically stressful. Its like putting your creative brain child out there for ridicule and criticism-- who in their right mind does that?? I've come to realize that being an author is an incredibly self-deprecating career. It is a constant rollercoaster of "Wow I am awesome!" to "No one will ever want to read this," to "I am so amazed that I actually wrote something so beautiful," to "I am a complete failure and I should give up now." For those of you who read, you need to send your favorite authors a thank you note or cake pop bouquet or something because every little bit of positive feedback is so unmeasurably comforting.
Here is my tally list (thus far):
Queries sent: 32
Rejections: 9 (however, some people won't email you back at all, so it is probably much higher)
Requests for more material: 5 (4 partials and 1 full)
Querying is just about as difficult as writing the dang book in the first place. Blood and sweat and tears (no kidding) go into writing the book, but its the emotional destruction that comes with the putting it out there for someone to turn you down that is so hard to deal with.
So I'm plugging away at the next book with the hope someone somewhere sometime will want to represent it, and that someone somewhere sometime will want to buy it. There is a difference. First you have to get a literary agent, then that agent has to try and sell the book to a publisher. The whole process could take years. YEARS. Don't they know I already spent years writing the danged thing?? I'm really hoping Book #2 (which is still untitled and its REALLY bothering me) doesn't take as long and since I don't have the distraction of school-- but those pesky kids are still here to claim my attention-- but then when I stare at a stream of dialog and my little cursor is blinking at me, like "Okay, what next?" and I don't know what comes next, well that is irritating. Sometimes the scene will just write itself, sometimes it takes five or six (or fifteen) passes to get the scene right. #2 is going along nicely, so I really shouldn't complain, but I HATE getting stuck.
Oh well. Even as I type this I took a ten minute break to get three sentences out before loosing my thread of thought. Kristen is very adamantly demanding that I show her how to draw a face using a plate and I hear some popcorn and Eclipse calling my name. If I can't write my own woefully romantic stories then I will have to make due with the ones already successfully made into motion pictures. Tomorrow is another day.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Signs we've made it
For some reason I always judge our financial/economic status on really weird things. One of those criteria is having a flat screen TV mounted on our wall. Now that we have one, its not as satisfying as I thought it would be.
For starters, we have irregular beams in our walls. They are not a uniform distance apart from each other, so it makes it difficult to detect them with a stud finder. Oh, and our stud finder didn't exactly work. Jason's solution? Poke a hole in the wall every half inch or so and find the stud that way. So now we have TV mounted on the wall with a string of little holes on either side. Fabulous.
Secondly, the stupid TV we bought didn't work. Its a 32" LCD with a built in blue ray player that sounds like its grinding up the DVD/Blue ray while it tries to load it disc. Come to find out with a little internet research that one in THREE of these TVs has this issue. 1 in 3?? Who makes such a crappy product?? Oh ya, Insignia. Well we returned the TV for one that works (made them open the new one and try it before we took it home) so now the NEW TV is on the wall and we can lay comfortably in bed and watch TV-- well DVD, blue ray or Netflix because its not hooked up to the Directv.
Thirdly, its not as relaxing to have a TV in the bedroom because then Jason wants to watch a movie every night as we go to sleep. Okay, I can't sleep to a movie. Call it an over active brain, call it talking irriates me when I want to go to sleep (I personally think its my writer's brain that gets too involved in the story to fall asleep, whereas music has no story so it so its just relaxing) but almost every night we have the argument over turning the TV off.
But Jason is not home tonight so I can watch Eclipse in the bedroom without having to hear him fuss over how "lame" of a movie it is (his words, not mine; I would never be so sacrilegious!). Or maybe I'll just play Pandora. Or maybe I won't have the dang thing on AT ALL!!!
But then again, it is really cool to have a wall mounted TV. Even if it is jacked up, like everything else. :)
For starters, we have irregular beams in our walls. They are not a uniform distance apart from each other, so it makes it difficult to detect them with a stud finder. Oh, and our stud finder didn't exactly work. Jason's solution? Poke a hole in the wall every half inch or so and find the stud that way. So now we have TV mounted on the wall with a string of little holes on either side. Fabulous.
Secondly, the stupid TV we bought didn't work. Its a 32" LCD with a built in blue ray player that sounds like its grinding up the DVD/Blue ray while it tries to load it disc. Come to find out with a little internet research that one in THREE of these TVs has this issue. 1 in 3?? Who makes such a crappy product?? Oh ya, Insignia. Well we returned the TV for one that works (made them open the new one and try it before we took it home) so now the NEW TV is on the wall and we can lay comfortably in bed and watch TV-- well DVD, blue ray or Netflix because its not hooked up to the Directv.
Thirdly, its not as relaxing to have a TV in the bedroom because then Jason wants to watch a movie every night as we go to sleep. Okay, I can't sleep to a movie. Call it an over active brain, call it talking irriates me when I want to go to sleep (I personally think its my writer's brain that gets too involved in the story to fall asleep, whereas music has no story so it so its just relaxing) but almost every night we have the argument over turning the TV off.
But Jason is not home tonight so I can watch Eclipse in the bedroom without having to hear him fuss over how "lame" of a movie it is (his words, not mine; I would never be so sacrilegious!). Or maybe I'll just play Pandora. Or maybe I won't have the dang thing on AT ALL!!!
But then again, it is really cool to have a wall mounted TV. Even if it is jacked up, like everything else. :)
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Its Resolution Time!
Oh my god I'm blogging again.
Its one of my New Years Resolutions, so I figured why not.
2010 was an interesting year. It wasn't a bad year, though it wasn't a particularly good year. It was just another year. Jason and I got another year older. Kids are bigger, smarter, cuter than they were a year ago. We are doing the same stuff-- dance, soccer, playdates. I graduated from college, Kristen started pre-K and will be going four days a week. Jason is chipping away at his degree and I love to tease him endlessly that I graduated before he did. It was a productive year, but there wasn't anything amazing. We didn't win the lottery or have another baby or anything monumental. It was just another year. It went by really fast, thats for sure. As I type this I'm thinking that it can't possibly be 2011 already. Jason's high school reunion is this year. Kristen starts kindergarten in the fall. Its just amazing sometimes how time flies.
So on to the resolutions. First I'd like to address some of my ressies from last year:
1) I will finish a book.
Technically I did not do this, but did make it past 100 pages. I'm at 274 to be exact, about two-thirds of the way there. I have the last 100 or so pages mapped out, I just need the time to sit down and pump them out. I'm getting there. I'm almost to a place in my head where I can feel comfortable opening myself to this damned book again, because once I do it consumes my life. I need to read a little more and sew a little more to get my creative juices going, then once Jason is back in school I think I can feel better about writing all day long. Did I mention I'm really excited about it too?? I did, however, finish a short story, well, its 110 pages so I don't know if that counts as short, but its a complete story-- beginning middle and end-- so thats something. And its a pretty awesome, completely different than what I normally write which was kind of exciting in a way.
2) I will loose weight.
Yeah, that one is getting carried over. I'd like to blame school for this one not coming to fruition and then my baby obsession, but now its looking like all of my excuses are going away. Bummer.
3) I will keep the inside of my car cleaned.
Again, this one is going on the 2011 list. I HAVE to do it this time because I get my new car in the summer and I'd like to turn over the Rodeo to Jason is decent condition and prove I won't trash a new car. Fingers crossed.
4) I will make a better effort to keep my house cleaned.
This one actually happened. Notice how the wording was "make a better effort" and not "I will keep my house spotless." For one, spotless is not possible with two kids, three pets and Jason, plus I HATE to clean. HATE HATE HATE HATE. Beyond hate. Its a waste of time because two seconds later the dang house is messy again. But I did make an effort. The house was cleaner (overall) this year than in previous years. It had its moments of awfulness but whatever. I'm a work in progress. Therefore I am not putting this one on the 2011 list because it would seem redundant. Continue to make an effort to keep house cleaned? Ya, it isn't much of a resolution anymore, now its something I actually think about, so I guess this one was a success.
5) I will finally graduate from college.
CHECK!
While some of these are going to be repeats there are a few that I am adding to the list.
Repeats:
1) Finish that book already.
2) Keep car cleaned
3) Loose weight
Newcomers:
4) Organize and maintain my household and my life
I don't have school anymore as an excuse to fall back on. My house needs to stay cleaner. My basement needs to be fixed. Its over flowing with boxes and clothes we don't use and just stuff. I need to stay more organized with bills and appointments and develop some sort of routine for the family. Make sure everyone is up and moving by 9am. Clean the bathroom every Monday. That sort of thing. My children don't need a set schedule, dinner by 6 and in bed by 8, they do just fine with a routine, but something has got to give. We need some sort of organization to our lives. Its time.
5) Make more time for me.
This one is more of a happiness thing. My life is so much about Jason and the kids and sometimes I feel like I get lost in the mix. Part of my solution was to go back to school. I did that. I have my degree. I can support myself (probably) and do not need to rely on the Marine Corps for everything. I could have a career if I wanted to. But this resolution is also about keeping me sane. When I was in school I had two days a week to be me, to be a functioning adult who didn't need to think about Diego or Barbie or Toy Story. Now that is gone and I am going to need to find a way to fill that void. I'm hoping my book will help, completing this one and getting on to the next. But I also think I deserve mini vaca's. And more nights out. And to buy stuff for me.
6) Blog more.
I figured I'm going to have more time now. I never really understood how school was going to take up all of my time. Sometimes I look back and wonder how the hell I made it through with two kids and a 3.0 GPA. I mean, I had a baby in the middle of going back to school. I am fricken awesome! But now that its over I am realizing how much time I have to do whatever I want. Its a little bit of awesome. So I'm going to have to fill this time with something, I might as well put blogging back on my to do list.
Twenty-eleven will bring some changes for us. For one we are moving to Virginia in the fall. I hate not knowing when and we won't know until a month or so before we actually move, but we;re used to that. Second I am not in school. For the first time in three and a half years I don't have to worry about papers and exams and I can focus all my energy on Kristen and Alex and playdates and dance class and soccer and that fun stay-at-home-mom stuff I've never been able to fully experience. Third change coming our way is Jason's impending graduation and subsequent commissioning. Transiting to the Officer world will be a new challenge for us, and around this time next year I will be fresh in Virginia trying to find my footing as an Officer Wife. Some say its different than enlisted, some say its completely different. What sucks is I can't get a consensus, so its going to be trial and error sort of thing, which I hate.
I don't have any renewed faith in my motivation for the coming year. I'm thinking baby steps is a good thing. I accomplished two of my five resolutions from last year, and that is a lot better than zero out of five. So one year from now if I can say I accomplished at least that, at least 2 out of 5, then I think I'm good. 3 our of 5 would be golden.
Its one of my New Years Resolutions, so I figured why not.
2010 was an interesting year. It wasn't a bad year, though it wasn't a particularly good year. It was just another year. Jason and I got another year older. Kids are bigger, smarter, cuter than they were a year ago. We are doing the same stuff-- dance, soccer, playdates. I graduated from college, Kristen started pre-K and will be going four days a week. Jason is chipping away at his degree and I love to tease him endlessly that I graduated before he did. It was a productive year, but there wasn't anything amazing. We didn't win the lottery or have another baby or anything monumental. It was just another year. It went by really fast, thats for sure. As I type this I'm thinking that it can't possibly be 2011 already. Jason's high school reunion is this year. Kristen starts kindergarten in the fall. Its just amazing sometimes how time flies.
So on to the resolutions. First I'd like to address some of my ressies from last year:
1) I will finish a book.
Technically I did not do this, but did make it past 100 pages. I'm at 274 to be exact, about two-thirds of the way there. I have the last 100 or so pages mapped out, I just need the time to sit down and pump them out. I'm getting there. I'm almost to a place in my head where I can feel comfortable opening myself to this damned book again, because once I do it consumes my life. I need to read a little more and sew a little more to get my creative juices going, then once Jason is back in school I think I can feel better about writing all day long. Did I mention I'm really excited about it too?? I did, however, finish a short story, well, its 110 pages so I don't know if that counts as short, but its a complete story-- beginning middle and end-- so thats something. And its a pretty awesome, completely different than what I normally write which was kind of exciting in a way.
2) I will loose weight.
Yeah, that one is getting carried over. I'd like to blame school for this one not coming to fruition and then my baby obsession, but now its looking like all of my excuses are going away. Bummer.
3) I will keep the inside of my car cleaned.
Again, this one is going on the 2011 list. I HAVE to do it this time because I get my new car in the summer and I'd like to turn over the Rodeo to Jason is decent condition and prove I won't trash a new car. Fingers crossed.
4) I will make a better effort to keep my house cleaned.
This one actually happened. Notice how the wording was "make a better effort" and not "I will keep my house spotless." For one, spotless is not possible with two kids, three pets and Jason, plus I HATE to clean. HATE HATE HATE HATE. Beyond hate. Its a waste of time because two seconds later the dang house is messy again. But I did make an effort. The house was cleaner (overall) this year than in previous years. It had its moments of awfulness but whatever. I'm a work in progress. Therefore I am not putting this one on the 2011 list because it would seem redundant. Continue to make an effort to keep house cleaned? Ya, it isn't much of a resolution anymore, now its something I actually think about, so I guess this one was a success.
5) I will finally graduate from college.
CHECK!
While some of these are going to be repeats there are a few that I am adding to the list.
Repeats:
1) Finish that book already.
2) Keep car cleaned
3) Loose weight
Newcomers:
4) Organize and maintain my household and my life
I don't have school anymore as an excuse to fall back on. My house needs to stay cleaner. My basement needs to be fixed. Its over flowing with boxes and clothes we don't use and just stuff. I need to stay more organized with bills and appointments and develop some sort of routine for the family. Make sure everyone is up and moving by 9am. Clean the bathroom every Monday. That sort of thing. My children don't need a set schedule, dinner by 6 and in bed by 8, they do just fine with a routine, but something has got to give. We need some sort of organization to our lives. Its time.
5) Make more time for me.
This one is more of a happiness thing. My life is so much about Jason and the kids and sometimes I feel like I get lost in the mix. Part of my solution was to go back to school. I did that. I have my degree. I can support myself (probably) and do not need to rely on the Marine Corps for everything. I could have a career if I wanted to. But this resolution is also about keeping me sane. When I was in school I had two days a week to be me, to be a functioning adult who didn't need to think about Diego or Barbie or Toy Story. Now that is gone and I am going to need to find a way to fill that void. I'm hoping my book will help, completing this one and getting on to the next. But I also think I deserve mini vaca's. And more nights out. And to buy stuff for me.
6) Blog more.
I figured I'm going to have more time now. I never really understood how school was going to take up all of my time. Sometimes I look back and wonder how the hell I made it through with two kids and a 3.0 GPA. I mean, I had a baby in the middle of going back to school. I am fricken awesome! But now that its over I am realizing how much time I have to do whatever I want. Its a little bit of awesome. So I'm going to have to fill this time with something, I might as well put blogging back on my to do list.
Twenty-eleven will bring some changes for us. For one we are moving to Virginia in the fall. I hate not knowing when and we won't know until a month or so before we actually move, but we;re used to that. Second I am not in school. For the first time in three and a half years I don't have to worry about papers and exams and I can focus all my energy on Kristen and Alex and playdates and dance class and soccer and that fun stay-at-home-mom stuff I've never been able to fully experience. Third change coming our way is Jason's impending graduation and subsequent commissioning. Transiting to the Officer world will be a new challenge for us, and around this time next year I will be fresh in Virginia trying to find my footing as an Officer Wife. Some say its different than enlisted, some say its completely different. What sucks is I can't get a consensus, so its going to be trial and error sort of thing, which I hate.
I don't have any renewed faith in my motivation for the coming year. I'm thinking baby steps is a good thing. I accomplished two of my five resolutions from last year, and that is a lot better than zero out of five. So one year from now if I can say I accomplished at least that, at least 2 out of 5, then I think I'm good. 3 our of 5 would be golden.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Just Between Friends
Last spring I consigned at the Just Between friends sale and after one sale with them I wish I would have learned about this four years ago!!
From Just Between Friends:
Just Between Friends of Denver will hold it's Fall & Winter Kids' Gear & Clothing ReSale event Sept 17-19th at the National Western Complex. This event provides families with the convenient opportunity to buy and sell quality, gent...ly-used items for preemies through teens. From Gymboree clothing to Jumparoo exercisers and from Little Tikes playground equipment to Little People toys, Just Between Friends sales events offer pretty much everything needed to clothe, entertain, teach and enjoy your children. Consignors make up to 70% on their sold items and volunteers, who shop first before the public and earn a higher percentage on their sold items, help make the sales run smoothly for everyone. Just Between Friends brings the community together for a fun, unique and environmentally–friendly event. Please visit the JUST BETWEEN FRIENDS website to learn more: http://www.jbfsale.com/denver.
I highly recommend everyone to consign for the fall, or just go to shop. GREAT deals! I am so excited for this fall!!
From Just Between Friends:
Just Between Friends of Denver will hold it's Fall & Winter Kids' Gear & Clothing ReSale event Sept 17-19th at the National Western Complex. This event provides families with the convenient opportunity to buy and sell quality, gent...ly-used items for preemies through teens. From Gymboree clothing to Jumparoo exercisers and from Little Tikes playground equipment to Little People toys, Just Between Friends sales events offer pretty much everything needed to clothe, entertain, teach and enjoy your children. Consignors make up to 70% on their sold items and volunteers, who shop first before the public and earn a higher percentage on their sold items, help make the sales run smoothly for everyone. Just Between Friends brings the community together for a fun, unique and environmentally–friendly event. Please visit the JUST BETWEEN FRIENDS website to learn more: http://www.jbfsale.com/denver.
I highly recommend everyone to consign for the fall, or just go to shop. GREAT deals! I am so excited for this fall!!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Officially a Soccer Mom
Today was Kristen's FIRST soccer game
Tear.
Okay, not really. In reality she was the one with the tears and all I could do was crack up laughing because of the absurdity and chaos. Its like corralling chats. And its a little counter productive to their social development. We teach them to share and play nice then let eight of them loose with one call and tell them to take it from the other kids
We won, even though there is no official score-- just the one Jason keeps (it was 6-1, Kristen didn't have any goals, but a couple assists).
There were a few injuries. At one point half our team was on the ground crying, Kristen included. Though, in her defense she didn't cry when she fell down like the all boys on the team did. She just cried when someone took the ball from her.
Here are some pics that I'm going to save for her varsity soccer banquet her senior year. They will look great in the slide show.
Tear.
Okay, not really. In reality she was the one with the tears and all I could do was crack up laughing because of the absurdity and chaos. Its like corralling chats. And its a little counter productive to their social development. We teach them to share and play nice then let eight of them loose with one call and tell them to take it from the other kids
We won, even though there is no official score-- just the one Jason keeps (it was 6-1, Kristen didn't have any goals, but a couple assists).
There were a few injuries. At one point half our team was on the ground crying, Kristen included. Though, in her defense she didn't cry when she fell down like the all boys on the team did. She just cried when someone took the ball from her.
Here are some pics that I'm going to save for her varsity soccer banquet her senior year. They will look great in the slide show.
She was happy after they got to play a little.
Running back to her team
Kristen with a dad who was helping out because our coach was out of town.
Game play
Heaven forbid someone take the ball away from her.
I think she did a pretty good job at participating and playing especially since this was her first time ever. And a lot of the other kids on her team had played together in the fall. So so far so good!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Off To See the Bunny
We went to see the Easter Bunny Friday night. Finally Kristen was not terrified of the Easter Bunny. In years past she has screamed and refused to even look at him. Alexander on the other hand was no thrilled.
In all fairness, though, that bunny looks a little creepy.
We always go to Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World to see our fictional characters and they usually have a great set up. For the Easter Bunny this year, not so much. It was worse than the bunny at the mall. But you can't tell from the pic. Afterwards we walked around a little while Daddy shopped, then we met Auntie Sandra for some Qdoba.
Sorry for the wacky pics, Outdoor World has wonky lighting.
Alex kept saying, "You see it? You see it?" and pointing. He is way cute.
In all fairness, though, that bunny looks a little creepy.
We always go to Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World to see our fictional characters and they usually have a great set up. For the Easter Bunny this year, not so much. It was worse than the bunny at the mall. But you can't tell from the pic. Afterwards we walked around a little while Daddy shopped, then we met Auntie Sandra for some Qdoba.
Sorry for the wacky pics, Outdoor World has wonky lighting.
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