December Gephart

Ladies and Germs

2011-06-22T08:37:00.002-05:00

this site is going offline very soon! Pls update your links to my new website www.decembergephart.com.

Thank you, and have a nice day!

WisRWA Conference

2011-06-03T10:42:00.000-05:00

Talking about the WisRWA over on my website www.decembergephart.com -please come visit.

Another reminder

2011-05-29T09:48:00.001-05:00

I've moved to www.DecemberGephart.com
Please make a note of it, soon this blog will be inactive. Thank you!

Please come visit me at my new home

2011-05-23T14:39:00.000-05:00

Please visit my new blog here! Thanks!

Come and knock on our door

2011-05-18T10:54:00.001-05:00

We've been watiing for yooouuuu... Okay - it's just me. At my New Blog www.decembergephart.com

Please don't forget

2011-05-15T20:15:00.000-05:00

I've moved my blog over to my website - www.decembergephart.com

Moving

2011-05-11T10:03:00.001-05:00

Just a reminder to follow me HERE for my blog.

I'm trying to figure out the widget to allow you to follow me there. Any suggestions?

The time has come

2011-05-07T15:51:00.004-05:00

For a little more professional blog and website. I'll be blogging HERE from now on, I would appreciate it if you followed me!

I'll post here to remind you for a bit, but then this site will be inactive.

Spring has Sprung

2011-05-02T20:45:00.003-05:00

sort of. This is Wisconsin, sometimes we zip directly from Late Winter into Humid Summer. Hopefully this isn't one of those years.

As I'm changing over my jackets from winter parkas to light trench coats, I find all sorts of random stuff in the pockets. It's like a little treasure hunt. The prizes are usually chap stick or a few bucks. But today I discovered a fun necklace and earring set in my coat pocket.

How random and unexpected. If I remember correctly, the earrings irritated the bejesus out of me. They were too heavy and made my earlobes feel funny.
Not sure if the necklace also irritated me also.

I'll wear it tomorrow and report back.

I'm still here

2011-04-28T09:29:00.002-05:00

Just busy.

Be well my friends!

Happy Anniversary Big Guy!

2011-04-21T08:43:00.002-05:00

Five years of love and laughter with my best friend. What more could a girl ask for?!

One thing I've learned

2011-04-20T11:28:00.004-05:00

Life changes when you have a baby. (Yeah, you can laugh. I do.)
Not that I expected ANYTHING to stay the same. I knew.

But that's actually not what I've learned. I've learned a nifty survival skill. Compartmentalizing.

When I'm at the donut factory and Baby Nugget is at Adventureland Daycare, I can't sit here and worry about her.

I refocus, and Make The Donuts. Period. Of course if something comes up and I need to worry, I will. But until then, I have to mentally shut off Nugget Mode, and focus on work.

The same for when I'm home. I'm in Nugget mode. We're playing Peek a Boo (the dumbest game ever. But it cracks her shit UP! She goes bonkers.) we're walking, we're walking, we're bouncing, we're walking, we're doing lunges across the house, we're sitting on the couch for a secon-nope, we're walking..

And Nugget is asleep. Finally.

Until 2am, when its all PARTY ALL THE TIME!!! WHOOO HOO! No matter how many times I tell her "Kid, nothing fun happens on a Tuesday at 2am. I PROMISE you are not missing out," she's still up, ready to rock.

So for those brief hours between 9ish and 2am, I compartmentalize into a Writer. A very sleepy, easily distracted writer. And I give up well before 2am. Usually by 11 I'm done for. Obviously I'm still working on this skill. But its a nifty trick to work on.

If Happy Housekeeper mode ever comes into play, well, I just wouldn't hold my breath on that.

Big Guy only gets HotPants Mode um... none of your business. That's a different kind of blog, now isn't it. *wink*

Baby nuggett does an impression.

2011-04-18T06:08:00.001-05:00

The fountains at the Bellagio. Except with vomit. At the grocery store.

I'll share this video, it has much less wailing.

I haz hot dog inspirational!

2011-04-14T08:22:00.001-05:00

A little less conversation

2011-04-12T11:23:00.003-05:00

a little more action.

It feels like lots of things are in transition right now, and I'm scrambling to keep myself ahead of the game. Sorry this post won't have anything witty or super funny or Wombat-esk...

-I'm in the middle of switching to another website, and it's taking time away from my actual writing and editing. Trying to come up with a consistent writer platform identity thing-a-ma-jiggy. Plus, since I'm not ALWAYS smarter then the average bear, I'm trying to muddle through on my own before calling in people to help. I'll let you know how it goes.

- Trying to stay on track with my edits. My critique partner gave me some amazing thoughts to gnaw on, and I'm trying to brilliantly make adjustments. Bring brilliant is tricky when you're working off too little sleep.

-My 5 year anniversary is next week! Yay us! The Big Guy and I have actually been together since 1997. Holy crap we're getting old.

-Baby Nugget is wrestling with a beast of a cold. Little baby coughs just break your heart.

-Working my fanny off at the Donut Factory, trying to save up some dough for a Ladies Trip to Boston this summer. When I say Lady Trip - it makes you think we'll be doing some proper lady type stuff, and not just laying around the pool making fart jokes and getting sauced, doesn't it.

-On top of all that actual STUFF - I'm reading a fabulous book - Lessons From a Scarlet Lady Emma Wildes This author is new to me, and I am LOVING this book. I don't want to make donuts. I don't want to work on websites, I don't want to write or edit. I just want to read!

A blog by The Naughty Little Wombat:

2011-04-07T17:53:00.004-05:00

See - the Baby has all sorts of tasty trash in her room. And it has a swing lid - like this one. And I SWEAR I didn't get into it.

What, this trash can lid around my neck? umm...
Wait - photo evidence? What photos?

I was framed. Some OTHER DOG ran in here, got in the tasty trash, and put this lid around my neck.
I was FRAMED!!

FRAMED I TELL YOU!!! Besides, isn't walking around the house with a trash can lid around your neck all day punishment enough?

(That blue thing is a humidifier. And humidifiers don't rat out their friends.)

It's Been a Long Time

2011-04-05T20:50:00.006-05:00

Today I did something I haven't done since... um.. drunken college days? I skinned my knees.

Seriously, skinned the crap out of them. Ripped my jeans, limping, fighting back tears, blood dripping down my shins. Skinned my knees.

But its a good thing for a few reasons.

1- I crash tested Baby Nugget's car seat. Congratulations to the SnugRide 35, you passed the Clutzy Handler Test.

Yes, I was carrying her in the car seat at the time.
I went flailing, tripped, landed and rolled over her. I scrambled to make sure she's okay. Not a scratch on her, she didn't even make a peep. Which makes me wonder how rough I am with her when I cart her around normally that she didn't even flinch at a massive tumble.

2- Oh yea, it f*cking hurts. But chances are I'll be a little more sympathetic when Baby does it.

Normally I roll my eyes and tell the Big Guy to rub some dirt in it. Even when he's turning green from pain. In my defense, the Big Guy is a big old baby. And the Baby is a wee little baby.
Thus far she's pretty dramatic. WAH WAH I'm hungry!! Is that REALLY something to cry about? Geez. I don't have a tantrum if I get to lunch ten minutes late...
(kidding. Please. I'm kidding. I totally have a tantrum.)

3- Well, I needed some new jean shorts anyway.

Great news!

2011-04-04T20:06:00.004-05:00

I just found out my book, The Undercover Professor, finaled in the Contemporary category of the Passionate Ink's unpublished writing contest!

They announce the winners in June at an awards dinner in New York at the RWA conference.
YAAYY!!!
This is such a great kick in the pants! I'm shivery with anticipation!

Latest obsession

2011-04-01T11:03:00.002-05:00

Edamame:

I picked up some microwaveable steamer bags of these, and have been eating a bag a day for the past week. They're so tasty and healthy! Yum yum yum.

It's the perfect salty snack. If I'm craving chips or crackers, I can turn to these little yummsters and fill up on a low calorie, tasty treat. I like them with soy sauce, or sea salt sprinkled on the top.

Have you tried these yet?

Duck and Cover

2011-03-30T07:55:00.000-05:00

These new fangled Steam in Bag veggies always freak me out a little bit.
Do you remember that scene in Pump Up the Volume where Paige Woodward (the rich, smart girl) nukes her pearls? and her academic award, and some other goody two shoes stuff, in an effort to prove that being a teenager is HARD, GAAAHhh... And they all explode in the microwave, and she shows up the next day with huge black eyes and bandages and a broken nose and whatnot.

Every time I nuke up a steam in the bag veggies, I wince a little and I can't help but take a few steps back, JUST IN CASE they explode and come flying out of the microwave. Because being a TEENAGER IS HARRD!! gAAAAAhhh!!

I couldn't find the scene in YouTube - so I'll just give you some delicious Christian Slater. You're Welcome!

I haz hot dogs

2011-03-29T08:09:00.002-05:00

I wish I could say I've been so busy writing and editing and working that I've been a slacker on the blog. But, old chaps, as you know, life and energy levels often get in the way of good intentions.

I had to laugh this morning when I realized it took me almost a full week to read one VERY GOOD paperback! Normally, if the book is tasty, I zip through it in a few days, or a weekend. Oh well.

Please enjoy this I haz hot dogs.

The Waiting is the Hardest part

2011-03-22T13:16:00.004-05:00

Waiting... waiting...

Waiting for Spring to come.

Waiting for Nugget to get a little bigger. But not too big! She's starting to giggle in her sleep, mimicking me. Apparently I have a very robust giggle that sleeping babies imitate. *blush* I can't wait until something genuinely tickles her fancy, and she giggles. It's like the first step in getting to know your spawn!

Waiting for writing contest results.

Waiting for the diet and exercise to start working so I can get back into my pre-pregnancy jeans. (Stupid Plateau. Stupid pouchy belly.)

Waiting for agent responses.

Waiting for Conference season, and seeing my writerly friends again. This will be my third year on the RWA Writing conference circuit (both WisRWA and Natls) and I've got some great friends to meet up with.

Waiting for this stupid cold to Go. Away. *Sniff*Snork*Sneeze*

Waiting for Jimmy Buffett! (Just bought concert Tix. I'm so excited to have the heat of summer rising up around me, our tailgate party set up, and that first massive margarita of the day with good friends and good music.)

The exquisite torture of waiting! I am so glad I have some fabulous things on the horizon to look forward to. And I'm not just sitting here waiting, I promise. I'm pushing ahead, setting up more goodies in the pipeline.

What are you waiting for?

Sushi!

2011-03-21T07:33:00.000-05:00

This Saturday we tried out a new sushi place. Its a bit risky, living in landlocked Wisconsin, but we like Sushi, and we like new things.
What A BLAST!! We sat at a diner type counter, while sushi floated by on little boats in a river of water. Two pieces per plate, each plate was color coded according to the price.

It was a nonstop sushi parade!

The Big Guy eating some sushi

You can see the Sushi River in front of him there.

B-man enjoying some sushi (Not pictured, Heter, B-man's wife, or me.)

(not so) Secret Confession

2011-03-17T10:10:00.005-05:00

This morning was a small celebration.
I put on flip flops for the first time all year! YAAY!! We're hitting the mid 50's today. Which is kind of a big deal. Sure, we still have three foot tall snowbanks, but we have a warm balmy Caribbean 50 degree breeze. Ahhhhh

So I put on matching green jewelry. As I got Nugget dressed, the first footie jammie I grabbed was green. We strutted quite proudly into daycare, looket me and Nugget, all matchy matchy.

Then I realized everyone's in green. Hmm... Is this some trend at daycare?

Then I spotted all the shamrock cut outs dangling from the ceiling.
Oh. yeah.

Today's St. Patty's day.
As a rule I FULLY support any holiday that celebrates with drinking.

Heck - I even wear green and raise my cup for 1/2 way to St Patty's day celebrations!
How did I miss this!?
Eh - I inadvertently dressed for it anyway, and besides, my belly won't fit into any of my cute Shamrocky t-shirts with out a girdle.

Maybe I'll get a shamrock shake and Irish it up with some Baily's to celebrate.

This? This splinter? THIS SPLINTER?!

2011-03-16T20:04:00.003-05:00

As I mentioned, this week is Nugget's first week at daycare.

Ask any parent, they'll probably get a little tear in their eye when they talk about dropping their Nug off. It's so hard.

And Little Squishy Baby doesn't even know who the hell I am yet. Right now I'm just the Thing That Makes the Bears (on her mobile) Dance. The bears on her mobile get all the huge smiles and the Squishy Baby coos and giggles. She will look over my shoulder to grin at these God damn bears.
I'm like her big bear bitch. She's all MAKE THE BEARS DANCE, BIAATCH.

And I do.

OR maybe it's because it's my first time PMSing in...um A YEAR. Seriously?
Consulting my calendar... yep, about a year. Whoa.
This first swing back into LadyHood fertility is brutal.

So here I am, playing second fiddle to a bunch of bears, weepy from my body freaking out on Lady Hormones, and racing to get out of the house at 7:30am with Nugget, and perhaps most importantly, but yet least of my concerns, make sure I have pants on. It's a challenge.

You know what pushes me over the edge? A splinter. Embedded deep into the callus on my foot. ITS DRIVING ME INSANE. I keep poking at it, and I can't get the little bastard out.

A Bad Idea

2011-03-14T10:47:00.004-05:00

Today is Nugget's first day in daycare, so I had to make sure to give extra time for feeding and loading, and dropping off the little squishy baby.

My theory was I'd be up at 5 to hit the gym before she's up, then back home and ready to leave the house by 7:30.

Yeah, well, it MIGHT have worked, if it hadn't been daylight savings. So the alarm went off at 5am, and my body thought it was 4am. I was mid dream. No way was I getting out of bed to work out!

I haz hot dog

2011-03-10T08:44:00.000-06:00

My Inappropriate Crush

2011-03-10T07:14:00.000-06:00

Stanley Tucci.

I'm sitting here, watching Julie and Julia for the gazillionth time, and I'm thoroughly charmed by him. He has a very handsome shaped head.
I saw a bald man who had this horrible bullet type head, it was so unfortunate.

He was also in one of my most recent favorite movies - Easy A. If you haven't seen this movie yet, please do yourself a favor and check it out.

Have you read any romances with a bald hero? I guess its not the most romantic of descriptions. "The candle light gleamed off his bald head like the surface of a placid lake. His brow furrowed, rippling from his forehead like a plump stone tossed into the depths of his skull."

It doesn't really translate to books, I guess. Maybe that's what I should write next.

My Paranormal Activity moment

2011-03-04T08:22:00.000-06:00

The other day I walked into the living room and the Big Guy was watching Paranormal Activity, whilst feeding Nugget. It was the middle of the day, sunny and a hint of spring in the air.

Normally I would go running from the room any time a scary movie was on TV, but since it was so calm and innocent, I got sucked in.
It wasn't horribly scary. None the less, that night I had nightmares. Yay.

Fast forward a few weeks to last night. I woke up with some wicked back pain (the side effect of having scoliosis and a 7 lb baby and carrying around a few extra pounds.) I managed to roll out of bed, and I noticed it was 3:33am. Baby hadn't cried yet. I stood there, my arms limp at my sides from pain, debating if I should get the baby up to feed her, since she'd be up within the next hour anyway, or should I stretch it out and try to get some more sleep.
I turned to glare at the Big Guy, so peaceful and pain free in his gentle slumber. And I thought, you know, that demon from Paranormal Activity might have had a valid point. Pain and exhaustion will do funny things to your brain.

No, I didn't hover over him to freak him out. He probably wouldn't have noticed, and my back wasn't in any shape to hover menacingly, no matter how hilarious the results.

I tottered downstairs to get some aspirin, and wouldn't you know, as soon as my foot hit that step, Nugget started crying.

Soon!

2011-03-03T07:16:00.002-06:00

I know my blog posts have been sparse for the past few weeks. I've been up to my earlobes in BabyLandia, and it's really not that exciting.

I could chat about how much The Nugget loves the bears on her mobile. And I suspect she loves them more than she loves me. It's understandable, those bears don't try to suck her brains out with the Snot Bulb sucky thingy.

It's not a very compelling topic, even for me. And I'm the one holding the power of the Brain sucking bulb. Bwa ha ha.

I return to the world of work next week - and the Big Guy will play Mister Mom for a week. I should have more adult topics to share at that point. Promise!

Poor Wombat

2011-02-28T15:48:00.004-06:00

He's not much of an "independent player."
Any time we put him outside, he does his business and then loiters around the door, waiting for someone to walk by so he can heckle them into coming out to play.
It rarely works out for him, since nobody is inclined to play when they're being barked at.

So when he DOES manage to keep himself busy for longer then five minutes outside, I'm all for it. But then we usually have to call him in, because the minute you wander away, (say to go to the bathroom, feed a baby, change a load of laundry) he'll start yelling to come in.

When I call for him to come in, he comes RACING across the yard all Mighty Mutt style, because I always give him a treat.

Well, I ran out of treats. I've been using a package of sample dog food. Wombat gives me the strangest look. Like - Girl, this isn't a treat, this is food.

None the less, he accepts the snack, and looks hopefully for more carrots. Poor pup.

I haz hot dog

2011-02-22T09:15:00.000-06:00

A product rave

2011-02-21T07:52:00.001-06:00

I've talked before of my love of mascara. Before leaving the house, I swipe on deodorant, grab a hair tie and my cup of coffee, and slap on a coat of mascara. Yes, I've done some product testing.

To clarify, I'm a drug store makeup girl. Sure, I'd love to visit the makeup counter and try their (better? more expensive for sure) options. But that would require me to speak with a sales person, which I don't want to do.

So - My ULTIMATE drugstore mascara? Cover Girl Lash Exact.

Just recently I was wooed by a sale on another brand of mascara. Oohh! 40% off on this new type? I'll try it out. (I admit, I can't resist a great price on a new product to try. I'm a sucker for a sale!)

HATE IT.
It smudged and smeared all over, and even after washing my face I still had the Raccoon eye thing going on, which wouldn't wipe off.
Please, like I need any help accentuating the dark circles under my eyes? No.

So even though it was 40% off, I'll go back to my beloved purpley tube of magic mascara.

Tonight's the night

2011-02-18T20:43:00.004-06:00

An open letter to all my old boyfriends, crushes, mean bosses, and frenemies:
I would really appreciate it if tonight was the night you bumped into me out and about. Most other days I will probably be in my Mom Uniform of track pants, tank top and hoody, smelling vaguely of baby poop. I'm sure my hair won't be done, and the bags under my eyes will probably have bags under them. (I WILL however, have some mascara on. I physically can't leave the house without it.) Knowing me, if I see you first, I'll manage to dodge you in the grocery store, or scurry out of the Kinko's before you spot me. I'm kind of an asshole that way.

But TONIGHT!! Tonight!! I'll be freshly washed, I'm down a few more pounds, the pants I'm wearing may or may not be from the maternity section. (okay, they are. But they have elasticy waistbands, they're SO COMFORTABLE. I may never wear real jeans again. And there have been some great advances in maternity jeans! These are Gap, bootcut, dark wash...)
I'm wearing eyeliner that isn't scribbled on with a shaky over caffeinated hand. (okay, it is. But I took the extra time to fix it.)
The bags under my eyes have some concealer on them.
My hair is curled - ignore the roots.
I smell of deodorant and perhaps a hint of eau du Vodka.
Instead of looking 6 months pregnant, I truly look like I have a post partum pooch, and I can smile as I say, I have a 7 week old little nugget at home. (she's at grandmas house for a sleep over.)
If you could manage to bump into me between 9pm and 10:30 pm, that would be optimal. I will be drunk enough to be friendly, and not too drunk to say something mean and vindictive.
Thanks! You're the best!

Not that crazy.

2011-02-17T08:01:00.002-06:00

Every morning at my gym a woman hangs her outfit on her locker to avoid wrinkles. I play a little game with myself to figure out who she is. There aren't a huge amount of women at the gym that early, so I've narrowed it down to about 3 women. And actually the woman I had pinpointed took herself out of the running. She was dressed and doing her hair in front of the mirror, and that outfit was still hanging there.

Every day I look at this woman's outfit, and try to figure out her story. I'm pretty sure she's in her mid 40's, and I think she might be single. She takes pretty good care of herself, being at the gym every morning. But she doesn't put much into her appearance. Wait... back up. She clearly CARES about her appearance, but she doesn't dress flashy or feminine or, well, FUN. She doesn't have any personal style.

She wears pants every day, with sensible shoes, and a solid color top. Always in layers, usually a turtleneck and sweater. Sometimes she hangs her jewelry on top of the outfit. I feel like she's a teacher, or maybe an office manager somewhere.

Recently I felt the urge to help her. Not like I'm any style maven, but this woman dresses so bland, it makes me cringe. Fashion and style is FUN! Even though right now I'm trying to disguise a Post Partum Pouchy belly, I still slap on a fun scarf and some cute shoes.
But then again - any time I venture out of the house, it's a BIG EVENT for me.

Of course, I don't touch this woman's clothing. I'm not THAT nosy, or crazy. I just feel like shopping for her, ala What Not to Wear.

One of the fashion blogs I read suggested doing a Style flip book, to try and identify your own style. Find a bunch of photos that you love the style of the clothing, and then try to connect the similarities, and incorporate them into your own outfits. When I have some time, I'll be sure to do this and share with you cats. I can tell it would be a little bit preppy, a little bit rock n roll, a little bit hippy, and a little bit classic. But the photo compilation should pinpoint current trends you can roll in.

Now, if I just had the Body and the Money I needed to dress like I wanted, I'd be all set.
Who am I kidding - if I had the body I wanted, I'd be wearing bikini's all. the. time to show it off.

It's downright balmy

2011-02-16T07:51:00.001-06:00

Feels like a heat wave! We're hitting the Mid Forties outside this week, and I cannot explain how fabulous it feels.
Why the hell do we live here again?

I was out running errands yesterday with just a fleece jacket on, feeling light and airy.
Think of it, I've shed 40 lbs, I can skip around without my hips unhinging, and I'm wearing a light fleece instead of a heavy winter coat. Ahhh - bliss.

I had the window open for a bit, just to get some fresh air in my gills. And all I could think about was a yummy salad for lunch. Here's my favorite:

Lettuce - usually a darker leaf blend
Raspberries - strawberries work too, or you can do dried cranberries
Honey roasted walnuts
Goat cheese
Raspberry vinaigrette dressing of some sort.

It just makes me want to sing.

Baby Photo

2011-02-14T09:37:00.003-06:00

She's about 7 weeks old now.

Chapped Cheeks.

2011-02-14T09:26:00.005-06:00

This past weekend the Big Guy and I got away for a much needed break from Baby - we went skiing and relaxed with a group of friends in a condo resort on the hill.

It was fabulous to feel the wind in my face, the powder under my skis and the adrenaline shooting through my veins.
It was especially fabulous to not have to stop every 3-5 hours and change someone's diaper and feed them.

We didn't take any photos, sorry. However, we did manage to sustain a heavy schedule of Loafing, Drinking and Eating for the entire weekend.

I'm coming back into the work week feeling energized and revitalized. And my cheeks are a wee bit windburned. It hurts so good!

A product Rave

2011-02-08T09:55:00.005-06:00

In a burst of freedom yesterday I got out of the house sans Nugget (the Big Guy was home, don't worry. I didn't leave Wombat in charge.)

I indulged in one of my favorite pastimes - browsing through Target
You know, when you just toodle up and down the isles, checking out random stuff.
I had three items I actually needed to purchase (Envelopes... um, I forget what the other two were.)
(ShopKo is also a great store for toodling about. Wally World is too big and obnoxious for me to browse. Plus I'm always nervous I'll show up on that People of Waly world website.)

In my toodling, I got a pair of exercise pants for skiing this weekend, and I picked up my favorite under eye cream for bags, darkness and wrinkles.
RoC® RETINOL
Right now I have the look of a new mom who averages about 6 hours of sleep a night, in 45 minute to three hour spurts.

Hopefully this stuff works miracles. You know, removes wrinkles, dark circles, makes me look bright eyed and bushy tailed, helps me drop 20 lbs, gets me a wardrobe that doesn't smell faintly of baby poop... I may be asking for too much.

If it does all that, I'll be sure to let you know!

A little Phish

2011-02-04T07:27:00.001-06:00

This song has been going around in my head since I was feeding the Nugget - watching Zombieland. Great movie, by the way.

Velvet Undergrounds Oh! Sweet Nuthin' is in the background of one of the montages. Montage gets it done, yo.

This is Phish's version, a little shout out to Alpine Valley.
Go hit play, I'll wait. Music starts around :20 seconds in. Spoiler alert, someone waives a Muppet or a Fraggle around, you aren't missing much by continuing reading in the meantime.

I like to think that if (when) there is a zombie apocalypse, someone would have the foresight to barricade themselves in a radio booth, and make sure we had a bitchin' soundtrack with a little Velvet Underground. Am I right?

Anyway, this song has been jammed between my ears ever since.

Fun tidbit.
Quinn was born on 12/30 at 3:47 AM.
Phish played Madison Square Garden (12/30)
They played Quinn the Eskimo that night.
LOOK IT UP.

ZoMGWTFBBQ right?
Welcome to the world Quinn. Welcome INDEED. (I don't want to tell you how many of the Big Guys friends called to tell us this tidbit. Srsly, the Nugget is not named after the song. OR WAS SHE... da da daaaahhhh...)
((no really, she was not.))

Enjoy!

Life Lessons.

2011-02-02T12:11:00.005-06:00

Last night the Big Guy and I watched 2012. I would say, its a really fun visual movie, the specials effects are pretty darn good.

The plot? Welllllll.... not so much.

One thing I took away with me is to NEVER EVER EVER wear a nightgown. I hate nightgowns in general. I'm talking about the long, cotton, ugly as sin nightgowns, not the cute little nighties that aren't ACTUALLY meant to be slept in. (wink wink)
I can't figure out the comfort factor of nightgowns. They always end up rucked around my chin, and tangled and twisted around me in a sweaty mess.
How is that comfortable?

In the movie, the family is sitting down to a nice Saturday morning breakfast, with mom in her nightgown, when WHAMO - the earth is destructing. Wouldn't ya just know it!

The mom is forced to out race the destruction of earth IN HER NIGHTGOWN! The rest of the family is in jeans or scrubs or pants. But for the entire rest of the movie (over two hours, people,) the poor mother is forced to run around in her cotton, matronly nightgown. So So So freaking uncomfortable. And the second half of the movie is in the mountains, so she's trucking around in a parka, and a nightgown.

The moral of the story is, at LEAST have some yoga pants or pajama pants or jeans lying around to slip into, just in case the earth implodes. Or explodes. Or whatever.
Just burn the nightgown.

Huzzah Huzzah

2011-02-01T10:32:00.003-06:00

I am back on my editing game!!! Chapter sent off to my critique partners, and I'm diving into the next one with gusto.

FYI - I'm typing this one handed due to a grumpy baby on my lap. So please forgive any grammatical or punctuation errors. She seems to like being draped over my legs potato-sack style. Probably helps with gas.

Hope you"re staying warm today, mi amigos. Looks like this winter storm is kicking the butt of 2/3 of the country. Especially places where they aren't prepared for snow and ice.
But my particular location, where we ARE prepared for winter weather, is missing the storm. Weird.
Happy Tuesday!

More ways to rot your brain.

2011-01-31T07:22:00.000-06:00

I was sitting on the couch (what else is new) feeding the little Nugget, and watching Archer on FX, (Totally appropriate for a wee little babe, no?) when a preview for Wilfred came on.

I am irrationally excited about this new show. Man, I hope it doesn't disappoint! It looks funny and touching, and like there is some good opportunity for interesting characters.

Plus, Wilfred is supposed to be a dogger, and you KNOW what a nut I am for the doggers. A dude in a big dog costume, who everyone else sees as a dog except our deeply disturbed hero, who sees a surly 6 foot dude in a dog costume?
Oh. MY. GOD I'm already a total sucker.

You can clap your hands, its allright...

2011-01-26T08:46:00.003-06:00

A page from the movies

2011-01-25T07:40:00.000-06:00

Last night for dinner the Big Guy and I took a page from one of our favorite movies.
Elf.

The Big Guy's co-worker's family owns a Maple Syrup farm. Or whatever you call it. So we got two large jugs of real maple syrup.

I marinated some pork chops in maple syrup, and we had carrots with maple syrup. Except I think you're supposed to make some sort of syrup glaze, rather than just pour it over the top. Whatever...
The tricky thing with maple syrup when not used on porous and absorbent Pancakes (or french toast,) is that it gets everywhere. Including in your baked potato. Which, does taste surprisingly good, but a bit strange.

Decisions decisions

2011-01-24T11:43:00.002-06:00

You know what sucks? Having so many good decisions spread out in front of you, and being unable to just pick one and run with it.

My wonderful lovely Newborn photographer Hillary Quella gave me a few top options of newborn photos. But I had to be a pest and ask to see more. She helpfully gave me a plethora of fabulous photos, and I can't pick!

And on top of that, I can't decide which announcement card to work on.
She warned me this would happen, she knew I'd be overwhelmed with the Baby Cuteness. Darnit.

There must be some German for French or Italian word for this feeling? Overwhelmed with fabulous choices, and unable to chose at all.

A short attention span list

2011-01-20T08:08:00.003-06:00

Of things on my mind right now. In no particular order, with no amount of elegance or flowery words. Sorry.

1- Baby. She's 3 weeks old today! That deserves a cake (for mom) right? Right. Glad we agree.

2- Coffee.

3- Sleep.

Those are the expected ones, right?

4- Packers! GO PACK! Sunday is Packers v Bears. We're doing a family party thing, so I'm hoping there are enough other loving arms around to snuggle baby while I hoot and hollar during the game.

5- Weight loss and Gym attendance. With the way the Big Guy and my schedule works out, I am still up at 6am, hitting the gym while he's feeding baby. (yes, he is an amazing guy. I'm very lucky that he sees how important my exercise is to my sanity.) The first week in I dropped a lot of water weight. That was AWESOME. Week two, it appears I'm back to fighting for every pound. Poop.

6- umm... what was I going to list as #6... Oh - yeah. Romance Writers of America opened up their registration for the 2011 conference in New York. I registered, and now trying to sort out the roommate situation.

7- The weather. Wisconsin is in the middle of a nasty assed cold snap. We're supposed to get to negative gazillion degrees today with the wind chill. It makes me think fondly of trips I took in the past few years. Ohhh how I wish I was lounging on the beach with a fruity drink in my hand right now, the sun warm on my (non pouchy) tummy. *sigh*

8- My own personal demons with working on edits for my current book. I have critique partners lined up, I have some stretches of time when I can work on the edits, and yet I resist. Hopefully if I talk about it today here, I can embarrass myself enough to just get moving on it.

Great - now we're all caught up. Gotta go, someone's crying!!

I haz hot dog

2011-01-18T07:52:00.000-06:00

B.A.N.A.N.A.S.

2011-01-17T07:08:00.000-06:00

The Big Guy and I are spending more time home, and less time out at happy hours or late night bar hopping.
So we picked up BananaGrams - a fun new scrabble word type game.

Last night we broke it in with a group of friends (who were all smitten with Ms Baby, and faster to pick her up than the Big Guy or I, which was really refreshing to have a team of baby wranglers, rather than just us.)

As the wine flowed, the game got a little more wild. Soon the rules changed to include any made up word that you could convince the majority of the group was actually a word.

If you're looking for a fun game, pick up the little banana hammock. (snortgiggle) you won't be sorry.

Beep Boop Beep

2011-01-14T07:41:00.001-06:00

My latest obsession:

Baby ESP App on my Droid phone.
Yes, it does the same thing a pen and paper would do. But its easy and quick, and the Big Guy and I agree it may just save our sanity with the new Baby.

You can quickly (and with one hand!) drop in feeding times and amts, sleeping, diaper changes, etc. So when I'm up at 4am for a feeding, I can log that I also changed a wet diaper. And the Big Guy doesn't even have to check with me how much she ate, he can quickly see for himself.

I'm sure there are other methods, like, oh, maybe communicating verbally with each other. But this works really well for us. Especially becuase when I'm sleep deprived, its tough to remember 1 oz vs 2.5 ozs of food. And this information directly reflects back on how long we have between nap times and next feedings and (shudder) poopy diaper changes. Yuck.

Life is either a daring adventure

2011-01-13T07:24:00.000-06:00

Or nothing.
-Helen Keller

I'm really excited for 2011. Did I mention that yet?

As I was sitting on the couch, recovering from birthin mah Baby, I read the gluttony of New Years goal setting blog posts from friends and online acquaintances. I love these posts. I love the sense of excitement everyone shares at the dawn of fresh new calendar year.

Since my Birthday (yes, it gets a capital B - since it SHOULD be a national holiday) is so close to New Years, I always reset my mental calendar on that date.

Okay, if you know me In Real Life, you can stop laughing. I have no mental calender. Which is why I write EVERY SINGLE DATE in my datebook, and upload it all to my Google calendar, which links back to my celly.

Seriously, I have no concept of time or date. You can ask me on a Tuesday what day it is, and I may have a vague idea that its a week day in winter.

This is going to be a problem while I'm on maternity leave. I cling to my daily schedule to keep me upright. Anyway, I do manage to remember my Birthday each year, and reset my goals at that time.

Except this year. 2011.

There are so many new experiences flying at me I'm simply opening up my arms and my heart, and letting them soak into me.
The Year of NO FEAR!

I can't be afraid, I have too many fabulous things on the horizon. To quote the fabulous Kelly Cutrone, "Let's not be scared of the abundance we've created."

I haz hot dog

2011-01-12T09:01:00.000-06:00

A Wine Review

2011-01-11T22:12:00.000-06:00

Ahhhh Bliss. After Nine (ten) long months, I was able to indulge and share a bottle of wine with the Big Guy.
Apothic Red

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

bliss. Smooth and tasty. Around $10. Its a blend of reds, Syrah, Zinfendal and Merlot. Went quite nicely with the Monster Spaghetti I made. Healthy, and slightly indulgent.

Tiramisu torte recipe

2011-01-10T08:12:00.000-06:00

TIRAMISU TORTE

I didn't actually take a picture of my results, I'm sorry. It wasn't NEALY as pretty as this one pictured here, but a similar idea. The only clear bowl I had large enough was my Salad Spinner bowl. And even though it looked ugly, it went over like gangbusters. The only adjustment I would suggest is perhaps doubling the frosting, since that's my favorite part.

Cake:
2 box White cake mix
1 C. coffee (cooled)
3 eggs.

Frosting:
1/3 C. Chocolate Syrup
½ C. Sugar
8 oz. Cream Cheese
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 C. Shaved Chocolate

Syrup:
½ C. Kahlua
1 C. Coffee (cooled)

Mix cake ingredients until smooth. Pour into 2 – 8” greased/floured cake pans. Fill pans ½ full. Bake at 350* and cool.

For frosting: cream together cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add chocolate. Whip in cool whip.

For syrup: mix ingredients together.

Torte: Tear up cake. Put 1/3 of cake in bottom of LARGE bowl. Brush syrup over cake. Spread layer of frosting. Sprinkle with with chunked chocolate. I just chunked it up into chips to give a little bit of a crunch. Toffee pieces would also be really tasty.

Repeat layer 2 more times.
Chill and Enjoy!

I haz hot dog

2011-01-07T07:17:00.000-06:00

Dexter.

2011-01-06T07:23:00.000-06:00

Have you seen Dexter yet? I'm pretty sure I've blogged about the show a few times. I just started watching, and finished season Season One.
Its delightfully disturbing.

Dexter's Kill uniform (pictured here) is my new obsession. I want.

I would feel like such a bad ass strutting around town in my very own kill uniform. (Probably with a chunky pink baby strapped to my chest in a baby Bjorn and my boobs leaking...) None the less, I want. Its all in the attitude my friends.

Except, look at his fantastic muscle tone, his delightfully slim hips. Neither of which I posses.

(And yes, I KNOW I'm not a boy. Duh. I still envy his slim hips.)

Unfortunately - I'll probably look like John Goodman in the Big Lebowski. Iconic, yes. But not quite the bad ass look I'm going for.

An Incomplete Guide to Birthin Babies

2011-01-05T05:37:00.000-06:00

WELL.

I have no words other then: That sucked ass. I went in wanting LITTLE to NO PAIN. I got myself a heaping helping of pain.

Let me clarify. I've only birthed one baby, so I don't have much experience. I expected the epidural to work. I expected to be numb.

Neither of which happened.

But, the fact is, once I came to terms that there was going to be a Monster sized helping of pain and the only thing to stop it was push out a baby, I did what I had to do. The nursing staff in the hospital was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. Whatever they make for salary, its sure as hell not enough.
It could have been worse. And the Baby is here, she's healthy, and I'm healing.

Not that I've forgotten the pain already, but I made it through. And hopefully, if there is a next time, the Epidural will work.

Now, five days later, my boobs are huge and aching, my bottom is healing (slowly) and my Baby is healthy and happy. The Big Guy and I are gradually finding our way.

An Incomplete Guide to Pregnancy Part 3

2011-01-04T07:59:00.001-06:00

Each month, each week, each DAY is exponentially harder.
People say the First Trimester is rough because it is.
However, the second trimester is rougher. Even though people talk about how energetic and easy it was.
And I remember thinking Well, jeeze, this kind of sucks too. When does my huge energy rush come?
They say that because IN COMPARISON to the third trimester, its easy.
It's still not easy while you're living in it.

Take some comfort that its going to get a hell of a lot worse before it gets better. And you know how this whole thing ends, right? That baby is gonna come out. One way or another.
This brings me to my next topic.

Whining.
Don't whine.
Correction... be very careful who you whine to. Whine to your significant other. (I'm very lucky to have the Big Guy. You may have a life partner, a sister, a mother, a best friend. I hope you have someone to go through this with. I hope you have someone to confide in and support you. Someone to rub your fat snausage feet, and someone to comfort you when you're crying. And there will be crying.)

Whine to your best friends who already have children. Don't whine to your co-workers, or random strangers. Don't whine to people who don't have kids, unless they ask.
DO NOT WHINE to your Dr.
S/he doesn't have time to listen to your nonsensical ramblings.

I'm sorry, but its true.

Your Dr. is there to take care of your body. They are not there to listen to a three page list of minor aches and pains, and the insensitivity of your co-workers.

This means - If you have a serious physical issue, for God's sake tell them. Read up on what your body is going through. One of the old standbys, What to Expect When You're Expecting, is a great reference. Ask your Dr. what they would suggest for you to read. Don't believe everything you read on a chat room on the internet.

Briefly inform the Dr. of new swellings, or things that feel weird or off. Here's where you have to trust them.
They will know what is normal and what is not. But if you bury the important stuff under twenty minutes of your struggle to get into pants, they may miss it.

Also - don't whine to every person who asks. They're being polite, and they don't need to hear about it.
Nobody cares. Truly.

Here's the biggie. I cannot stress this enough.
For every one of your aches and pains and whines and gripes, there are THOUSANDS of people who would gladly take your place in a half second. People who would give anything to have a baby. Don't be so insensitive and caught up in your own drama that you forget that fact.

YOU ARE LUCKY.

You, my friend, got the golden ticket.

An Incomplete Guide to Pregnancy Part 2

2011-01-03T08:58:00.001-06:00

There are two groups of women.
The ones who love being pregnant and the ones who hate it. You probably fall in between those two groups somewhere. And that is OKAY! You don't have to love it, nor do you have to hate it.

For me, I tended to not enjoy it. Not because I was sick, or had any sort of trouble. I was very very lucky to have a SUPER easy pregnancy. (as I write this, I'm still pregnant. You'll probably read it after I'm already in the hospital.)

Some people wax poetic about the Miracle, and Magic, and your body is a Wonderland. BullSh*t.

Sure, its kind of cool. But its also really creepy and weird much of the time. Things ooze. Things leak. Things move independently around inside you with alarming regularity. Some people think this is amazing. Others (me) think it looks like an alien is about to rip its way out and start terrorizing Tokyo.
Its not pretty some (most) of the time.

But do take some comfort that this is temporary. You won't be pregnant forever.

Believe the beautiful lies.
When kind people tell you how lovely you look, just believe them. Don't try to act coy or embarrassed. Just say thank you, and accept it. Yes, they are lying. You are as big as a barn. But it feels good to believe them. Run with it.

Don't give up on yourself.
If you loved fashion before you got pregnant, find things that are comfortable and you can accessorize easily. This last month I have just about lived in stretchy yoga pants that I pretend are slimming, (the beautiful lie) and jewel tone tops that make my boobs look good. (Another beautiful lie.) I make an effort to accessorize every day. And it IS an effort. When I forget to put in earrings, I have to force myself back upstairs to pick out a pair. For me - this is worth the effort.

Shoes are no longer an option, I have two pair that fit. So I make do. It's important to me that I feel good when I walk out the door. This may not even matter to you, but don't lose yourself.

It was VITALLY important I get to the gym and exercise. I exercised nearly every day up until I was at 38 weeks. Then my hips were so loosey goosey and sore, I didn't feel it was safe to do any cardio without a spotter.
The Big Guy said he wouldn't hook me to a safety harness, so I had to stop. And since its December, in Wisconsin, its too icy outside to walk safely, and on top of that, I don't have any jackets that cover my belly.

An Incomplete Guide to Pregnancy Part 1

2010-12-30T08:41:00.003-06:00

Looking back over my nine months (40 weeks) of pregnancy, the next few days I will share my little tip sheet.

First of all - don't get hung up on that Nine months thing. It's Ten months. 40 weeks. So when you're at eight months, people will say "Hey! One more month!"
Not true. It's 8 more weeks. Don't fool yourself. It's too painful.

You're Special - Just Like Everyone Else.
Every pregnancy is different.
What works for one person might really irritate the crap out of you.
Go with what works for you and keep in mind, you are NOT the first person in the universe to be pregnant.

People have advice. TONS of advice. Accept it graciously, and always ALWAYS check with your trusted Health care expert. (I will refer to this person as your Dr. YOU chose who you feel most comfortable with. Nobody says you need a Dr, some women prefer a Douala or a midwife, a shaman, or whatever. YOU have to figure out what your comfortable with. Trust your gut.)

No matter how hard your pregnancy seems, women have been doing this since the beginning of time, in much worse circumstances.

Suck it up, buttercup.

With friends like these-

2010-12-29T06:29:00.000-06:00

I received a package in the mail yesterday. Not full of birthday goodies, but a stunning, thoughtful package full of helpful, beautiful, tasteful parenting stuff.

From fun toys, to sweet little embroidered lovey blankets, groovy looking bath soaps and hand wipes and stain sticks. A pink Sock monkey, and a hip bottle travel case. And a book, with a beautiful, encouraging, heartfelt message from my friends, that somehow makes my eyes wet every time I read it.

Darn these wet eyes.

With friends like these, I feel like I might just have a chance to tackle this Mom thing head on, with some sense of style and the Boy Scout Motto - Always be prepared. And I know that when I stumble, they will be there to help pick me up.

Here's Wombat, waiting patiently for his chance to "taste" the new toys. Sorry Wombat, you may be the little prince, but there will soon be a new sheriff in town.

Happy Birthday to me!

2010-12-28T11:16:00.003-06:00

Yep - today's my Birthday! Whoo HOO!!
For the first time in about 20 years, I'm actually working on my birthday. And, for the first time in 15 years, I'll be sober. Um, whoo hoo?

I'm a bit surprised that the world is the same as normal.

Naturally, I assumed everyone celebrated on my day...

Apparently not.
Don't worry world, you can plan better next year.

Peace on earth, my friends

2010-12-25T07:22:00.000-06:00

The rule of Two.

2010-12-23T07:42:00.001-06:00

To stay on top of my life lately and try to keep my zen, I've developed a Rule of Two.
After work at the Donut Factory, I tackle two things on my To Do list.

Such as: Go to grocery store, and do laundry.

or Bake pie and Do Dishes.

Rework Once SINGLE scene in current book, and change sheets.

Or hang bacon mirrors in Baby's room, and prep guest bedroom.
(Bacon Mirrors are from Ikea. They look like the ones pictured here, but turned horizontal)

Two things.

Its doable, its not overwhelming, and the rest of the night can be spent eating brownies. Followed by discovering tasty brownie crumbs down my cleavage becuase its the size of the grand canyon. Normally Cleavage Brownies wouldn't tempt me.

But now, its like a delightful snack I don't have to get up off the couch for. And trust me, getting off the couch is kind of a task itself.

I haz hot dog

2010-12-22T20:42:00.001-06:00

Tron

2010-12-21T07:50:00.000-06:00

We went and saw Tron in 3D this weekend - it was pretty good.
That first 3D experience with Avatar was so rich and luxurious, its hard to compare to Tron.

I'm not talking plot, I'm just talking visual effects.

It almost feels like the 3D is old hat now. What else do you have to excite me? Every movie needs to be Bigger, More 3D, more exciting.

But when you're asking $10 a person for a matinee, you damn well better bring some fancy film making. I feel so old when I say that, but its been a long time since I've been to the theater, and I was downright shocked at the $10 per person charge. For a MATINEE!!

Busy Busy Busy

2010-12-18T07:32:00.003-06:00

Just a quick post, I'm here, doing dandy!

My hips are keeping me up at night now, is this another lovely side effect of pregnancy? Hobbling around like an 80 year old? Or did I push it too hard yesterday cleaning and running errands? Not sure if Yoga and stretching can save me now.

Today we're hosting Christmas for eight at our house. I'll share recipes for my Tiramisu torte and Apple cake once I taste how they turn out.

The ham is smoking away on the grill and the family is bringing the rest of the dishes. No time to chat, got more cleaning to do!

(The Big Guy is vacuuming, and totally distracted by some Lifetime Christmas movie. Big sappy goof.)

I want my two hours back!

2010-12-15T11:50:00.005-06:00

Yikes - Last night I watched the latest installment on DVD of a certain Sparkly Vampire series. The Big Guy was gone at a gig, there is no way he'd ever watch it.

Plot holes ahoy.

Damn, am I glad I didn't read it. What a waste of time.

I stopped reading this particular series after the second book, I was so irritated with the entire storyline. I know some people (tweens, teens and adults alike) really ADORE this entire series, and gobble up every morsel they can get their hands on.

I am not one of those people.

Even though I'm not reading the books, I feel compelled to watch the movie. Some sort of obligation to finish what I started.

Speaking of plots and simple solutions - this made me laugh my fanny off. Have you seen Inception? I enjoyed it, it made me think a little, and visually it was pretty cool to watch.

SuhWEEET!!

2010-12-14T16:04:00.007-06:00

The Big Guy and I have been together for about 13 years. When we first got together, I was in college, working at Eastbay.com and waitressing, saving up for a backpacking trip to Europe with my girlfriends.
(I was also nude modeling for the art dept. But that's another story for another day)

Eastbay was a good company to work for. I'm sure they still are. I worked in the call center and made a lot of friends over the years.
We got a nice employee discount, and since I had myself a shiny new Boyfriend who was pretty easy going, I got to dress him up all fancy with my favorites. Adidas, Northface, Columbia, etc.

I picked up a clearance pair of suede Adidas Sambas, in forest green. The Big Guy LOVED these shoes. To the point that he Gorilla glued the bottom flap back on when they wore through.
Finally, they died a sad and tragic death. The victims of a rainy camping trip. If I remember correctly, they were sucked off his feet and into a muddy sink hole. (okay, I could be dramatizing that. I may have just thrown them out when the foot stank was too much to take.)

So. For nearly 13 years, he's been asking for replacement Forest Green Sambas. And of course, they were clearance when I bought them, I've never been able to replace them. I tried, with black ones, but its just not the same. He always looks at them sort of sad and wistful, like a shadow of a memory of those Green Sambas, when we were young and foolish.

Until this year.
He asked - as always for Forest green Sambas. And I told him they no longer make them, as always. But I searched, as always, without much hope.
And then.... BINGO. Zappos.com BABY.
I'm tempted to buy three pairs.
I bet he cries.

PS - he never reads this blog unless someone points it out to him, so dudes, don't tell him.

Its on AMC!

2010-12-13T07:33:00.001-06:00

A few friends of mine have been raving about a show on AMC - The Walking Dead. Speaking of AMC - who over there is making all these fabulous programing decisions? Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad? Plus your meal ticket, all the amazing classic movies I love. Kudos to you, whoever you are.

The Walking Dead is an hour long show about zombies and a small group of survivors.

So when there was a marathon on, showing the first five episodes, I figured why not DVR them to check out.

Oooooh - they're delightful. The plots are nicely twisty, the tension is high, but what really grabs me more than anything is the character development. Even the 'unlikeable' characters are enjoyable. The brutal realistic-ness of the writing is so admirable.

The depth of the characters written is stunning, there's a particular scene in the final episode of the series that just made me gasp. It couldn't have gone any other way. I didn't want it to, but it was so HARD to watch the decisions they had to make. It was gripping to see the push and pull of the personalities.

Its certainly not a show to watch during dinner, because its gooey and gross and bloody. (mmm, brains!) I was a little surprised how graphic the gore is. But I'm excited for season two to start up in a few months.

If you have a chance, check it out!

I haz hot dog

2010-12-10T07:44:00.000-06:00

20/20 vision

2010-12-09T10:21:00.002-06:00

Hindsight.

Oh well.

Sometimes you just have to let it go, right? You do the best you can under the circumstances, and hope that the rest will be forgiven.

Life is about learning and putting yourself out on a limb.
You can't be expected to know it all or get it right the first time.

Sometimes this kind of stuff wakes me up in the middle of the night. (Well, this, and getting kicked in the ribs by the guest in my uterus.)

I hate those night time wake ups where you lay there and fret. What's done is done, just accept it and move on.
But that never clicks at 3am.

So hey - how are you sleeping these days?

As a side note, there's still time to order your Edible Bouquet or Godiva chocolate gift basket before my due date. Don't delay!

Naughty Little Wombat

2010-12-08T07:43:00.002-06:00

The Problem:

Its cold outside. I'm 9 months pregnant. Wombat's going stir crazy, as rowdy little pups do.

The Solution?

A slobbery racquetball, and a flight of stairs. If you have hardwood floors at the bottom, all the better for skidding across, my fuzzy friend!

I stand at the top and fling the ball down, Wombat RACES down, chases the ball, and tears back up the stairs. He throws the ball at me to do it again. Six to ten more times and we have a nicely tuckered out Wombat.

Problem solved.

I have a warm fuzzy

2010-12-07T13:10:00.004-06:00

A friend of mine was going through a really rough patch at her Day Job.
Intense stress, massive deadlines, huge overtime hours.

She commented that she had picked up a romance novel as some Brain Candy, to unwind on her commute home. (On the subway, of course. Not driving.) She's one of those Superwomen who manages to balance a day job with being a mum, and a loving wife, as well as a top notch, bang up friend! (If you read this Ro Ro - LOVE you!)

I perked up immediately and shipped out a few packages with my favorite Romance novels.
This was a few months ago, and I'm just tickled to say she's now a die hard romance reader like me! We've been swapping back and forth our favorites.

I'm happy because I have never been one to re-read my Keepers, and I just LOVE to share my favorite authors. It was hard at first, to say good bye to those old favorites. But I got over it.

She's happy becuase she gets to unwind with a Happy Ever After, and we'll have a little chat after some of the more interesting novels.

Win Win.

Tell me - do you re-read books, or keep them on a shelf collecting dust?

I haz hot dog

2010-12-03T08:50:00.000-06:00

Let the Holidays begin!

2010-12-02T09:42:00.003-06:00

I don't know about you, but these next few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas always become a huge blur of rushed festivities. My energy levels are already low, just looking over my schedule makes me want a nap.

Too many parties packed into just a few scant weeks.

I'm not much of a Christmas junkie.
Sure, I like it okay, but I get irritated at the commercialism jammed down our throats from before Halloween until the MAJICAL DAY.

Last year the Big Guy talked me into doing the tree for the first time in 13 years. It was actually really nice. Very pretty and festive, and the Wombat never confused it with an indoor bathroom. (I was a little concerned.)

I was sort of looking forward to that again this year. We're not going to, since we're busy with other home front type stuff.
aka - Baby prep.

Its a whole new world of experiences this year.

FYI - I'm at 9 months today. Four more weeks to go. If you have a pregnant gal in your life, tell her she looks great.
Don't mention her waddle, or her huge belly, or her fat thighs, or her jowly face, or her sausage feet.
Seriously.
Even if you think you're being funny, DON'T MENTION IT.

Just tell her she looks great. Lie, if you must.
She'll appreciate it.

Set Adrift

2010-12-01T08:01:00.001-06:00

I've been so focused for the past few weeks on my set writing goals, now that I've achieved them I feel so.. whats the word? Lonely? Unfocused?

I'm giving myself a break before diving back in for another round of edits, and I know there's still work to be done.
But I carved out so much time each day to write, now that I don't need the extra hours in front of the computer, you'd think I'd find something to do I've been neglecting.

Nope.

I find myself surfing online uselessly.

Sure- I have holiday gifts to purchase. But without the deadline looming over my head, I can't seem to make any decisions!

Even my To Be Read list I tackle like a project, instead of a leisure time activity. A fun project, that I love to do, but I can't just pick up a book and read it. I have to log it and catalog it and rate it and update it. Man, am I obnoxious.

The sucky part is, I'm sure a month from now I'll be kicking myself for wasting this time. But right now I am simply drifting unsteadily on the current.

A farewell food tour - part 1

2010-11-29T09:11:00.003-06:00

Not long now until the Baby is due. I have a few key menu items I want to make before I go on my post baby diet. (aka Weight Watchers.) And I'm really hoping my cardio will return soon.

Wombat is disgusted with me. I used to walk briskly for about 5 minutes as a warm up for our jog. Then we'd trot down the river path about a mile and a half. Turn around and come back.
Now I can make the warm up distance in about 15 minutes, at a sweaty waddle. Then I have to waddle back the same way, and the last ten minutes are a little worrisome. Usually because I have to pee, and I'm not sure I'll make it in time. Or because my leg is cramping up, or Wombat is still fired up and I'm exhausted. So pathetic.

All whining aside, I've had a pretty good nine months, I was able to indulge in most of the things I wanted, including a number of Donut runs, a few jumbo sized bags of Frosted Flakes, and weekly bagel and cream cheese binges. There was also much pizza consumed, and burger and fry fiestas. I indulged in pasta dishes, with unending servings of garlic bread.
Lunches aren't too exciting, but Breakfast and Dinner are my main passions. Dessert falls into its own love letter. mmm - cake. Cookies, cake and brownies and cake and cake. CAAAAAAKKKKEEE!!!! Since the bulk of my pregnancy fell into fall and winter, I didn't really crave ice cream much. Just cake.
I can't even count the number of buttery bowls of popcorn. My all time favorite. Geez, just mentioning it and I want some right now. ::drool::

The sad part is, eating like crap makes me feel like crap. So it was good incentive to just eat healthy. I do try to keep a well rounded meal, veggies and fruits as well as the junk. (You'll be happy to hear my latest craving is grapefruit. Why? How the hell do I know.)

The thing with Weight Watchers is, sure, you can eat what you want, in moderation. But when you look at an actual serving size of some items, its never going to fill you up. It just makes sense to eat more of a healthy option.

So, to kickoff my farewell food tour, Sunday I made Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff. I used This Recipe. Its not gourmet or fancy, and it involves Cream of Crap soup from a can. But last time I made it three of us split it, and there were no leftovers, it was so delicious.
Its also not a healthy dinner, excluding the side of peas.

I'll be honest, I'm a little crabby I had to share it with some dinner guests. I could have happily eaten those leftovers for the whole week. Oh well.

I did it.

2010-11-26T12:44:00.002-06:00

I forgot to update you guys.
Wednesday I was able to finish all the projects on my list, and get my two entries off to the Golden Heart. *whew*

It's a great feeling to go into the long holiday weekend with my To Do list on this project DONE!! I can dig into my To Be Read pile, which is a glorious freedom. I owe a few friends some critiques, but that's pretty much the extent of my obligations right now!

Starting my next To Do list, of course, which involves Christmas shopping, Christmas prep, and of course, baby prep.

Hope you all have a lovely holiday weekend full of friends and family and love and laughter.

Time warp

2010-11-24T08:07:00.000-06:00

I swear, I've been working my tail feather off on these projects. I'm (mostly) staying on task, and really working hard.

It's important to cut myself off at a reasonable time, so I don't work straight up to bed time. Especially after a hard day at the donut factory.

Anyway - last night I got home from the donut factory and buckled right into writing. Took a small break for dinner (soup and grilled cheese, yum!) and then back to work. I planned on finishing.

Yeah. Right.

I glance at the clock, its 9:30! What the hell!? I just finished prepping my synopsis, I needed to go over it and edit and clean and.. and.. and... crap.

I give up for the night, totally mystified at where three hours went. Then I started reading the final few chapters of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Great - its now 11:30, and I'm racing through the last few pages.

Time warp, I tell ya.

Topless

2010-11-23T07:22:00.000-06:00

You know what I can't figure out?

I was watching the Art Mann Presents show. From what I can figure, he goes to all these different parties around the US, and films people getting drunk. He tries to interview them.

Think Mardi Gras sized parties.

I THINK he's sober, for the most part.

And he has a really high tolerance for drunken fools. Way higher then I do. I imagine, for him to get a 2 minute clip with these people, he has to talk to them for a good fifteen minutes. And that's about ten minutes longer then I'd want to!

It's fun watching different people at different stages of drunkenness. Some just get stupid and yell a lot.
Some slur and don't make any sense.
Some you can't even tell their drunk, they really stay composed. But then they start talking, and they won't freaking shut up.

Usually he tries to ask some sort of interesting question to get the conversation rolling.

Anyway - this weekend he had a Guest Host - a girl who clearly had none of the interview skills that Art has.
Plus, she couldn't stay sober very long.

My point is... this particular street party had lots and lots of gals walking around without any top on, with body paint.
And, as usual, the ones with no bra are NOT the ones you'd like to see with no top on.

I can't figure this out.
Going without a bra bugs the bejeezus out of me.
Why would I want to prance down the street with nothing but some body paint? I'd be miserable. I could do the halter top, MAYBE a tube top, a swimsuit top is okay but without some support, I'm really twitchy.

Maybe someday, when I get myself a nice fancy pair of silicone gravity resistant ones, I'd be okay with it.

A successful weekend!

2010-11-22T14:09:00.004-06:00

I went into the weekend with 5 rather major items on my writing list of Things To Do.
Friday I buckled into work right away, and cut myself off at 8pm.
Enjoyed a few hours of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

Saturday I got right back into more work. I was distracted by the interwebs for a few hours in the afternoon, but managed to get back to work, and cut myself off at 9pm.

Sunday I hit it hard. Up, work. Lunch. Work. Dinner, More work. Cut myself off at 8.

I was able to cross off three items! Item number four is 3/4 of the way done, and item number five is started, at least.

Tonight I will cross both those items

You know what stinks? I'm pushing so hard right now, and I'll have a three day weekend with nothing but time on my hands. Oh well. Strike while the iron is hot, right? This should save me some money for rush delivery.

Into my Writing Cave

2010-11-19T08:20:00.002-06:00

This weekend is a massive writing push for me. The Big Guy is gone playing gigs, it'll just be me and the Wombat.

Which is awesome - because I need to kick out a few thousand words on my current book, polish, edit and prep for the contest.

So, into the writing cave I go!!

Hmm - Not that bad!

2010-11-18T11:46:00.003-06:00

As I was prepping my entry #1 for the Golden Heart contest last night, I re-read some of the judged responses from other contests I entered. Just to make sure I addressed all the issues that came up.
I remember when I received one particular judged entry, I cringed and put it aside without really reading it, because it hurt WAY too much. It sent my self confidence into a downward spiral. The score was the lowest I had received in a long long time.

I told myself I'd look later, when I was stronger.

So I avoided it for a few months. And last nigh I looked, and I read it through start to finish addressing each issue. I compared what that judge said, vs all the many others who have judged my stuff.

And it wasn't that bad.
Truly.

Yes, the judge used a RED critique pen, which automatically made me feel defensive. (reminder to self - use an alternate color when judging.) And yes, she brought up some good questions. BUT - upon retrospect, I really think that particular judge was much too harsh in her scoring.

She rated my grammar as a 2 out of 5. She flagged a few then/than issues, and suggested rather bluntly that I figure out the difference. I dug deeper, and I WAS RIGHT. I used the correct form, and SHE had flagged it incorrectly.

She nit picked a few comma placements, and indicated where semi-colons were appropriate or where a sentence should end, and new sentence begin. However. I did some research, and in those specific situations, a comma was PERFECTLY acceptable.

In fact, I read the particular paragraph out loud to compare the two. (Because I'm a dork. But the Wombat already thinks I'm awesome, and he was the only one listening anyway.) When I added in all the periods she suggested, the work felt choppy and... stumpy?
When I read it with my commas, if felt very much like it flowed. Additionally - of the multiple other judges, not ONE mentioned any sort of issue with my grammar. I'm not pretending to be a grammar master. NO SIREE - My critique partners will attest to that. But I do try to respect the rules.

Some of the other things this judge flagged were actually questions that were answered earlier in the entry or in the following paragraph. Which made me think she was reading distracted, or perhaps looking specifically for those grammar issues, instead of taking in content.

After I finished ripping my piece apart, and reassuring myself I had addressed the issues, I wanted to thank that judge.
Not for her low score, because that really stung.

But the judge forced me to prove to myself that I was actually on the right path.
Also - I have memorized the then / than issue.
Now I'm wrestling with its / it's.

Things that are awesome

2010-11-17T11:24:00.002-06:00

My latest obsession. Forget you (or its less radio friendly F*ck You) by Cee-Lo Green.
I heard this song a few weeks ago on the radio, and couldn't figure out the artist. Of course, last night on Glee it came rushing back.
I quick downloaded it, and had it on repeat all night. Becuase I'm a fool like that.

Now here's a weird little twist of bizarro... another song I've been obsessed with is Broken Bells - The High Road. A duo including artist producer - Danger Mouse.

Cee-Lo Green and Danger Mouse are the duo who make up Gnarls Barkley.

A little Crazy, to be sure.

2010-11-16T08:36:00.000-06:00

The Golden Heart is the national Romance Writers grand poo-bah contest.

The top of the heap.

Every year, the finalists are announced at the National Conference. Last year it was in Washington DC, in 2010 year it was in Orlando. In 2011, its in good old New York City.

I've entered Stepping Out, and I need to mail in the entry by December 1st.
But I went a little wacky, in my quest to not go nutters with baby prep.

Yep, I also entered The Undercover Professor.

For the next two weeks I'll be busting my hump to edit, polish, perfect, and zing the pages.

Hopefully I don't stress myself out too much. Maybe this is my form of Nesting. Whatever.

If it works, run with it.

Hey - That looks great!

2010-11-12T09:08:00.005-06:00

I like to rotate out what I bring for breakfast to work.

Every few days I bring an Oatmeal Parfait, and without fail, someone comments on how tasty it looks. So I thought I'd share my Super Sekret Recipe:

1 packet Quaker Instant Oatmeal:
Use the flavor of your choice. When I'm not gestating, I use the Low fat ones. But I'm getting a little crazy with the caloric freedom I have now, so I'm partial to the tasty full fat ones. Don't tell anyone, but SOMEtimes, depending on how hungry I am, I use 2 packets.
I know! INSANITY!!!

A generous handful of frozen berries:

They're wildly nutritious!

Then I dump it all together in a bowl, and add some hot water. Mix, and you got yourself a tasty breakfast, mister.

Plus, you've knocked out one fruit serving at your first meal.

Give yourself a pat on the back!

I Haz Hot Dog

2010-11-10T07:43:00.000-06:00

Keep on truckin'

2010-11-09T07:32:00.000-06:00

My feet are swollen. No doubt about it. I know its a side effect of pregnancy, but I was really hoping with my exercise schedule, I'd be able to beat it back.
No such luck.

Summer and most of fall, I was able to skate by with flip flops and sandals. But now that its chilly, I had to bust out the actual shoes.

It's so depressing.

I know this sounds silly, but I dress around my shoes most of the time. I know what shoes I want to wear that day, and pick the outfit around it. Not that the shoes are all that spectacular, but they fit my mood that day.

Now that I'm down to about five pairs I can jam my bloated paws into, my outfits are suffering.

Normally I get rid of anything that doesn't fit as quickly as I can. I hate seeing crap in my closet that irritates me. But I have high hopes that my collection of ballet flats will once more fit my paws.
And I refuse to buy new stuff just yet.

So for now, its the three of us, Chuck Taylor, Rocket Dog and Me.

Here we go again

2010-11-08T07:13:00.000-06:00

Bring on fall, winter, the holiday season.

How do I know?
Besides the annual change over of summer to winter clothes, (most of which I don't fit into... *phht*) but also - the release of the Holiday Coffee-Mate creamers at the grocery store.

Normally I drink my coffee black, or, heck, if I'm being honest, with a little toot of Baileys. But since that's not an option right now, I'll take my half regular, half decaf coffee with some Pumpkin Spice Latte creamer.

I have eight weeks until I return to my pre-pregnancy eating habits, I need to live it up while I can, right?

Yer so Bad

2010-11-02T07:50:00.000-05:00

The video is a bit odd, but I really like this sweet little song.

whew I made it

2010-11-01T07:11:00.001-05:00

This year Halloween, for some reason, I really want to get out and cause some mischief.

I haven't TP'd a house in nearly twenty years, yet the urge was overwhelming. The only thing I can figure is, this is my last Halloween before I become someones mom. And I wanted to have one last fling. And also, I'm usually out at the bars for Halloween, probably to drink away the TPing drive.

Unfortunately, the Big Guy was out playing gigs all weekend.

And he's tried to talk me out of it, claiming he didn't want to get arrested. Puh-LEASE. First of all, I have never been caught. I stand by my track record.

Second of all, I don't think its an arrest worthy offense.

Third of all - I HAVE THE PERFECT EXCUSE!! AND I can whip up tears in a few seconds. It's my last year before I'm someones mom, if that's not a reason for ripping it up Old Skool, I don't know what is.

Every now and then, don't you just get the urge to be a deviant? c'MON, its not that big a deal.

On the downside, I can't run very fast right now. And I don't have any neighbors I hate, so I'd have to TP a friend's house. Half of my friends are trying to sell their homes, and that would just be mean. Plus I'd probably have to help them pull it all down. Whats fun about that?

So I didn't end up going TPing. Any homes that were targeted by TPers this Halloween can look elsewhere. I was home with the Wombat. Granted, he's not a very good alibi, since you can bribe him with carrots, but I swear, it wasn't me.

Yes, I did recently purchase a carton of Toilet Paper, but it was on sale! It's for in home usage only! And sure, I'm dressed in all black. But I've worn a steady rotation of all black outfits for the past four months, because it's slimming!

Not Doing Nano

2010-10-30T07:31:00.001-05:00

I think this is the second year I have skipped NaNoWriMo. The timing just isn't right for me, again this year.
I'm too far into my next project (The Undercover Professor), plus I am entering the Golden Hearts with Stepping Out this year. (Did I mention I finaled in the Molly's with this piece? I just found out I didn't win. But top three is pretty darn impressive.)

I need to do some clean up edits for the next two weeks, which takes me smack dab into the first week of NaNo.

I am, however, hosting a two week Fast Draft. I'm about 35,000 words into this current novel. Unfortunately about 20,000 of that is utter crap. Or, at least needs to be re-arranged in the timeline. I need to push on through to the end. If I write about 1500 words a day, for 14 days, it gets me in the habit of getting my butt into the chair, and the words on the page. AND it gives me something to work with, to make the sprint to the end of this story.

Different writers have different styles. Some people write really clean, tidy first drafts that barely need a glance to know its ready to go. (This is NOT me.)
Some write big sloppy messes without truly discovering their main plot until the second or third swipe through editing. (Again, this is not me. I don't have time to burn like that.)

I'm still trying to find out my own style of working. But - one thing I DO know! You can't edit a blank page. So unless those words are written, I can't get anywhere.

If you're interested in joining me on a Fast Draft sprint - let me know!

Does this baby make my ass look big?

2010-10-28T07:11:00.000-05:00

I'm having a bit of a disconnect between how I feel:

And how I look:

What a feeling

2010-10-27T14:26:00.004-05:00

I subscribe to a library service. With the amount of books I read I really can't afford to buy them all new, nor do I have space to keep them all!

I'm in the middle of a great book, from a new to me author: Storm Front by Jim ButcherAnd I have two books waiting in the wings that I've been itching to read for weeks now.

Its a really great feeling, especially on a Friday, when all I want to do is loaf around on the couch eating buttery popcorn and reading.

My latest obsession

2010-10-27T12:55:00.005-05:00

The Big Guy and I just upgraded our Cell phones. Somehow, I manage to burn through phones faster then a fat kid eats cake. (And by fat kid, I mean me. And by cake, I mean cake.)
I can barely make it to the tail end of my contract before my phone does something bizarre, like shorts out or freezes up just as I'm composing a VERY important text to my buddy about the emo girl in front of me at the Starbux or something.

Meanwhile, The Big Guy has managed to keep his phone for over four years without a scratch or dent. How the heck? I don't know.

So. His phone FINALLY dies, and we can go in together to get new phones. I lusted after the Iphone, but the service in this area is pretty crummy, and the Big Guy wanted to stick with our cell company. (verizon) I got the Droid Intensity (I flex my muscles and say it with Feeling. Rawr.)
And I'm obsessed. I love the fun features, I get sucked into these stupid games. In theory, I will only play Angry Birds while sitting at the Doctor for my Bi-Monthly appt. In reality, I sneak in a quick game every twenty minutes. (ARRRG DAMN you smug pigs!! DAMN YOU!)

I actually get grumpy if there's no application for a service I want. How DARE you not have an app for that?!

I am still a Mac girl all the way. But until they improve their service in my region, I'll have to blow my money on the next best thing!

I haz a hot dog

2010-10-25T07:53:00.001-05:00

Favorite Gym Machine

2010-10-22T07:40:00.001-05:00

At the gym, there's this one machine I just adore.
I call it my Office Shoulder Hunch Buster.

I spend ten plus hours a day hunching over my keyboard, either at the donut factory or at my desk at home, writing. I'll find as the stress builds, the shoulders creep up higher and higher around my ears, and I have to force myself to roll them down and relax.

This Shoulder arm thingy seems to zero in on the exact shoulder stress spot, and just blast the tension right out. LOVE it.

Five Stars!

2010-10-21T07:43:00.001-05:00

I need to change how I rank books. I'm a pretty easy ranker, if its readable, and grammatically passable, I tend to give it 4 stars. (and I'm no grammar queen, so I don't even notice half the time.)

Even books I don't finish, I end up giving a 4 star to. I put the blame on myself more than the book. I'm the one at fault, I wasn't in the mood or the story didn't grab me.
It's like I feel bad that I failed the author.

But that's the thing with ranking. Its MY opinion! So I'm going to revise my rank system.
1 star means Sucked ass. Did Not finish
2 star means I finished it. But I may not remember the characters names ten minutes after I put it down.
3 stars means I finished it and it didn't suck. (this is where the majority of the books I read fall.)
4 stars means I finished it and liked it okay.
5 stars means I finished it, and LOVED it enough to recommend to others.

See - I just put a book down, simply because I was bored with it. And yet, I ranked it 3 stars! GAH!! I need to re-read my ranking above, I guess.

Don't be an idiot.

2010-10-20T07:37:00.000-05:00

Am I the only person who checks traffic before flinging my car door open and leaping out?

Even if its a low traffic street, I still look! And if I see a car coming, I will wait for them to pass.
In the past few days, I've dodged at least one person whipping their door open each time I drive.

I don't think this is even an etiquette issue, I think its just basic common sense. I don't want to get run over, so I check traffic.
SofaKing annoying.