Updates

I figure it's about time I get off my butt and actually write a post. I can't even use "I'm busy" as much of an excuse, since I find time to work on my book and to visit other people's blogs. I guess I just don't know what to write about. That's rather funny considering I'm a writer.

Updates:

Kyle is almost 10 months old. Time is going so fast. He is getting so good at pulling up and cruising along furniture. He now holds on with just one hand, and yesterday he actually stood on his own for about 2 seconds. It won't be long before he'll be walking.

Ryan loves school and is doing great. I'm amazed at how smart he is...I think he's going to be a math wizard. He's already doing simple math in his head. The kid is sometimes too smart for his own good.

We had a nice Thanksgiving. We spent it at my parents house watching the Packer game. The Pack won! They are awesome this year.

I'm typing from my new Christmas present........my early one. Hubby gave me a laptop for Christmas this year! woo hoo!! I'm so excited....and I love it! It's your basic one.....no big bells and whistles. I don't need anything extravagant....all I mainly use it for is internet and writing. Now I don't have to freeze in the basement anymore while on the computer! I can sit on my nice comfy couch.

If I think of something exciting to say, I'll post more often! Right now I think I'm just in a slump of some sort. Though reading other's blogs has been encouraging for me.

Happy Thanksgiving

I'm thankful for everything God has given to me, both good and bad.

Have a happy Turkey day!

So tell me, what are you thankful for?

I am a Christian

I am a Christian

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not shouting "I'm clean livin'."
I'm whispering "I was lost,
Now I 'm found and forgiven."

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble
and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak
And need His strength to carry on.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed
And need God to clean my mess.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible
But, God believes I am worth it.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches
So I call upon His name.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner
Who received God's good grace, somehow!

By Maya Angelou

It's done!!!

My book that is!!!!!!!!

For nearly two years I have been attempting to write a novel in my spare time. Ha! What spare time you ask? Not much. That's why it's taken two years to finish it! But the first draft is now complete!

It started out as a project to keep my mind off from TTC (trying to conceive). I was having a very difficult time conceiving, and I was on fertility drugs at the time. I needed to find an outlet to NOT obsess about TTC, to keep my mind off from it for a while, even if it was just a few hours in the evening. Back in high school I had started a novel based off a fantasy I had about a certain celebrity. I had only gotten to chapter 3, then lost interest (Mainly because I had a boyfriend at that time).

A while back I was going through old papers and found those chapters. I was a little nostalgic since I still have a crush (infatuation....maybe even close to stalker-like) on this celebrity. I started up another fantasy in my mind about what it would have been like ten years later. And wha-la! My book was born.
I spent quite a bit of time just working on the story and plot. Without a decent plot line you have very little to go on....even if you have appealing and interesting characters. So I basically took the chapters from high school, used the same characters but aged them ten years....so it's the story of what happened ten years after, of course, assuming I would actually write the FIRST book. hahha. Eventually I do plan on making a trilogy....the before, ten years later, and even later. LOL

I made notecards and broke scenes up into who is in what scene, what the action is, any specifics like smells and looks. I spent quite a bit of time developing the characters. These characters actually have pages upon pages of data....including physical description, personality features, family structure, former relationships, life history, how they relate to other characters in the book and why, even what makes them tick. My best friend (Julie) helped me on those since I'm more of a plot person than a character person.

After all that prep work, I finally got down to the nitty gritty of writing. Two hours here, two hours there. I would mainly write after Ryan went to bed at 7:30, then stay up until about 10pm. Would I actually stay up all night to write? Heck no. I'm not that dedicated to lose my sleep....at least not yet. LOL This is something I enjoy and want to continue to enjoy! Instead of writing by chapters, which is confusing IMO, I wrote by scenes. And I started with my favorite scenes first. I read a book once that stated if you start writing a novel by writing in chapter sequence, you'd never get past chapter 3. (gee, sounds faguely familiar). So I wrote my favorite scenes first. It really got me motivated to continue to write, since I wanted to form what happened before and after that scene.

Of course, it took so long because I did end up getting pregnant and having a baby (my wonderful baby Kyle!). I discontinued writing during my third trimester since I was getting too tired and couldn't fit the laptop on my lap anymore. I was more excited about the pending birth than the book at the time. And of course, I didn't write for the first six months after his birth due to sleep deprivation, adjusting to two children, and PPD. But a few months ago I started writing again...about once or twice a week. It met my need of some "me" time along with my creativity craving. Plus, I was so close I really wanted to finish it!

So this week I finally wrote the last word on the last scene! And I'm happy with it!

Now I need to edit, proofread, rewrite, and make it all one happy, cute little manuscript. That should take only about, oh, another two years. LOL

Happy Editing!

Kyle's 9 month appt

He's perfect! :)

He's 17 lbs 11 oz
27 inches long.

He's right on target for everything.

I need to start giving him more textured foods so he gets used to them. And he has a bit of a cold....a small cough and weezing...just a virus.

Otherwise my baby is perfect :) But I already knew that :)

My two boys

Kyle's 8 month pictures

Here is Kyle at 8 months.

Ryan pictures

Here is Ryan at 5 yrs old.

New pics

As you can see from my profile pic, we just recently had our pictures taken. I always like to get them done in Oct. since that's Ryan's birthday (and I like getting pictures taken close to birthdays), plus, Oct is usually when JC Penny starts their Christmas pics.

I have been going to JC Penny for 5 years now....ever since Ryan was a baby. I've always been happy with the job they have done. Previous years the pictures have always turned out nicely, and have had many selections on what to order. They have always complied with what I wanted or what I had in mind.

This year, it was very disappointing. First off, they were really busy. They normally aren't so busy the first week of Oct, so I felt very rushed while taking the pictures. All the pictures have the same background (I had wanted several different backgrounds for variety along with certain themes I wanted). In the midst of the rush I had forgotten to get a picture with both Ryan and Kyle in their dress clothes. And I had a change of clothes for the boys because I wanted a sports themed (particularly Green Bay Packers) picture of the boys together. Normally they give props and various backgrounds to match what you want. Not this time. No props. Nothing. It was all very disappointing.

But at least some pictures turned out well and I received them within two weeks. So I guess I can't complain too much. Here we are as a family. Ryan is 5 yrs and Kyle is 8 months.