WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS -ER VISIT AND CAR REPAIR

Hey before we get started, could you hop on over to my friend's book blog and check out her review of book 1 in my series! It is an awesome review! (Warning her site can be adult only at times, but my review is NOT!  http://www.authorsajones.com/2013/08/review-virgin-voyage-by-jj-ellis.html

Now on with the show: Holy shizz monkeys!  The saying really is true, when it rains it pours -  and then it rains and pours some more. First off, my car broke down end of last week. It would try to start and then it would just putter out.  So we called the tow truck (79 dollars) and had it towed to our mechanic.  Tuesday we get a call from the mechanic saying it was ready and when I asked what was wrong he said: Fuel pump.  Well shizz all over again, that is an expensive repair and I knew that from previous experience.  So we go pick up my baby and the damage is.............640.22.  Crap!  Thank goodness for interest free for a year credit cards with a decent limit right???  But at least now my fuel pump should be okay for the rest of the vehicle's life (13 years old).  At least it darn site better be!!!!

And then on Friday I noticed Miss Crazy wasn't feeling top of the line and my son had a stuffy nose and so did Little Butt.  Well great, the first cold of the season brought home from school in the first week.  Lovely! Over the weekend Miss Crazy started talking about a sore throat and became a bit lethargic. Yep, she had a fever.  Oh fun!  I was thinking strep so I had plans to take her to the doctor first thing on Monday.  Her fever broke in a dramatic fashion on Sunday night and she woke up saying her throat was still sore but better and she felt fine. So, off to school with her.  When she arrived home, she was still fine but about two or three hours later, the fever was back and we started to see a rash spreading over her body.  Well, that's not good. A fever, sore throat and rash together can mean complications from strep.  So I was wondering how the HECK her fever had broken for almost 24 hours if she had strep.  So, off to the ER we went.

Now you understand I have five kids and they have all (except Little Butt) had strep at one time or another.  Never have they ever lost their fevers for even a moment and never have they ever broken out.  But the doctor in the ER told me that it isn't uncommon for that to happen.  Well shit!  I could have endangered my daughter because I didn't know... Yeah, the guilt lasted about five seconds because I truly didn't know.  Anywhoo, they offered her swallowable pills or liquid and she chose swallowable (I knew we would be changing to liquid at the pharmacy because I knew the pills would be too big but she felt like such a grown up that I couldn't say no)  but then the doctor turned back and asked if she would like one shot and she would be done.  Well as we all know, medicines can be tricky with little ones so yes, I convinced my child to get a big needle shoved in her hip.  I'm not ashamed.  They came in with two needles (oops).  They figured there would be too much medicine in one needle for her to tolerate so they broke it up. Okay cool.

She gets her shots and a popsicle and wanders the hall and stairs with daddy trying to walk off the pain and stiffness of the shot.  We head home and her fever is starting to break and the rash on her face is already looking better. She had to stay home from school for one day (I heard a lot of 'mommy my booty hurts' throughout the day) and is now back at school.  The rash on her face is gone, the rash on her trunk is barely visible and her throat isn't hurting at all anymore.  Phew!  Now we sit and wait...for the rest of the family to get it.  Poo Poo!

SIDE NOTE: My son's stuffy nose cleared up.  He brought a feather he found into the house and it seems he is allergic to feathers like his daddy is!

Until Next Time...There will always be moments when we learn something new and feel guilt because we didn't know it before but you can NOT Dwell on it! What's done is done and we can't change it, we can just
learn new things to carry us through to the next round of life!!!

BUSY WEEK/WEEKEND - RANDOM BITS AND PIECES :)

Well, today is the day!  Gwen starts college!!! I hardly believe I am old enough to have a college Freshman! But alas, there I was wishing her a good first day.  She was nervous but I know for sure she shouldn't be. She will do great!  School is her thing, she is good at it and she wants to spend her life being a teacher so I think she will be fine once she gets used to the freedom that college allows.  She is all set, she has her own car, her school, and her job. We couldn't be more proud.

We have had a sickie on our hands over the weekend. Miss Crazy had a high fever and a sore throat.  We were thinking strep, but the fever broke and she was running around and playing so we will sit tight for now and see if the fever comes back or if the sore throat persists. Don't you love school germs?  Especially when they come home the first week!!!! I am just glad that I don't have to send my sick kids to school and risk losing my job like some parents do.

Lil miss Little Butt is coming down with a cold but so far no fever thank goodness.  I'm just waiting though, waiting for it to spread through the house. :(

My car broke down the other day.  We aren't sure what happened to it yet, but I sure hope it isn't anything too expensive! On top of everything else, my wallet went missing.  I'm pretty sure I left it at the dentist's office on Thursday, but they say it isn't there.  I've checked everywhere else it could have been left. Now we have to tear the house apart to see if by some chance it isn't lost in the big bad world, but in our very own house.

I had my book release party the other day and it was really fun!  I hope some of you were able to join us.  We had contests and giveaways and sneak peeks at the next book.  I also had book 1 of the series set for free on amazon.  We had a great response and I even sold my first book overseas! I mean actually sold, not given away!!! And we actually had a bestseller rank to be proud of - click on the picture to see what it was!!! :)

I want to share a facebook post I made today because this means so much to me and kind of rejuvenated me after I had the depressing time after finishing my book. I hope you will check it out.

Have you ever had a review that made you cry? A review that reminded you why you became a writer? A review that let you know that you accomplished exactly what you set out to do with that particular story/book/article? This is one of those reviews. One that I will cherish forever! Could I please get some YES votes on it? Thanks!

http://www.amazon.com/review/R1QLHAP976O3E6/ref=cm_cr_dp_title?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00EP01L2W&channel=detail-glance&nodeID=133140011&store=digital-text

Until Next Time...Don't fret when your oldest starts college (or gets married or has kids) because if they are at that milestone it means that you have done something wonderful.  You got them to where they are and they are alive!!! ;)

THE CUTE THINGS THAT MAKE YOU SMILE :D

I've got links for my books!!! They became available early! I'll post them at the bottom.

Did missing Sam and Abigail make me cry?

Today has been rough. My car broke down and we were out in the heat forever, which means I am now sick as heck.  Blah!!! Yesterday was rough too. I was having some sort of breakdown.  I am thinking it was based on writer's self doubt but I'm not sure.  You see, my book is done and available on Amazon early. So that means that this particular chapter (pun intended) of my life is over. I lived and breathed those characters for years and then especially over the last two months. It makes me sad :(  And then I found out that a 'friend' was lying about having read my books. Sigh...If you don't want to read them just say so, don't lead me on thinking that you are reading and enjoying them, right????

So I was in a horrible state yesterday. I was about ready to throw out the five or so chapters I already have written for Wild Waves and give up writing for good. I felt like I had been made a fool of and that I was a horrible writer etc. etc. etc. But I have a great group of online friends who supported me through it. Thanks ladies, you know who you are! I was still down all night, but one thing that could put a smile on my face was Little Butt.

You know how kids do the cutest damn things that just warm your heart?  Yeah, she does that a lot lately, but there was one instance yesterday that could actually almost make me laugh when I thought back on it after my meltdown.  We were at breakfast and there was a baby across the way from us (about 10 or 11 months old I would guess) Little Butt thinks all babies are hers. So she was sitting there yelling "hi baby, hi my baby" but she would not wave at the little girl.  She would turn red and look away. So what did she do?  She would pick up my hand and say she was waving at her baby. I have seen kids shy of waving and talking at all to strangers, but I haven't seen one that would be totally fine yakking away and then turn all shy when she was expected to wave. LOL. I spent breakfast waving at a stranger's baby and I'll tell you one thing, Little Butt is strong, my wrist still hurts!!!

It has been a rough couple of days but with the help of my sweet baby girl I have come through it just fine!

Until Next Time...Give little ones credit. Just because they are small and not worldly doesn't mean they can't totally enhance your life in a positive way when things are going wrong.

PAPERBACK OF STORMY SEAS BY JJ ELLIS: http://www.amazon.com/Stormy-Seas-Sunset-Destiny-Romance/dp/0615873111/ref=sr_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377288379&sr=1-11&keywords=Stormy+Seas

KINDLE OF STORMY SEAS BY JJ ELLIS: http://www.amazon.com/Stormy-Sunset-Destiny-Romance-ebook/dp/B00EP01L2W/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1377288477&sr=1-1&keywords=Stormy+Seas

IS IT TIME YET???

What time is it mama?
What the hell do you care, you can't tell time... Okay, so I don't actually say that, but hey it's what I feel like saying.  I was sitting here earlier thinking about how all of my kids have had an obsession with time, starting at about 4 years of age.  'What time is it mama' is a frequent question in this house and every time, through five kids, it drives me nuts! To them one o'clock is the same as 10 o'clock. But being the dutiful, good mama I am, I answer them.

After this initial stage of always asking what time it is, we then move on to things like 'Mama how long until we (Fill In The Blank). Well, if I tell them an hour they look at me like I've lost my ever loving mind. So we started to say two shows on TV (because most of their shows last 1/2 hour).  It's worked so far!  

The next stage?  Well it is when they are looking forward to something that is going to happen in an hour and they ask every five minutes if it is time yet because they have no idea of the concept of time passing. Even when I tell them as soon as such and such show is over, they still ask every ten minutes.

I've come to the conclusion that time passing is the bane of a mother's existence. Or at least this mother's.  What time is it, how long until..., is it time yet. I will probably hear that in my dreams, over and over again until I am dead.  And Little Butt hasn't even started that stage yet!  Mr.Insane is in the first/second stages and Miss Crazy is in the third although she seems to be able to incorporate all stages in one highly annoying conversation.

I could probably get  back at them when they are older.  About the time they turn seventeen  I can start asking. What time is it?  When are you leaving for college?  Is it time for you to go to college yet?  But no, I won't. Because I am the dutiful, good mama.

Until Next Time...When your kids ask stupid questions, just smile and answer.  But then again, you probably already knew that.

CRAZY DAYS, FUN TIMES, SILLY KIDS AND OTHER STORIES

Sorry I'm so late but I had to take Gwen to the doctor today for an ear infection and got waylaid by a lot of crap including a big box store's pharmacy. :/ And then it was family time and an early dinner so now here I am.

It was a weird weekend for sure. We had a lot of family turmoil going on around here (extended family not the ones who live here) but it was all straightened out quickly.  Thank goodness, I'm not up for fighting right now (or ever really). I said some things on facebook that were taken wrong and I really didn't think to explain to certain people about it.  I guess when they say be careful what you talk about on facebook, they aren't kidding right?

Poor Gwen is sick again.  The allergies are killing her this year.  She had an earache so I took her in today and they cleaned her ear out.  She had a piece of was in there so big that it is a wonder she cold even hear out of that ear.  And of course an infection was being caused and blocked by the wax.  It was painful, but thankfully the doctor was able to get it out and she is on the mend.

I am trying to teach Mr. Crazy to recognize his ABC's but it is hard.  He is not all that interested in writing them down and that would be a great way for him to learn. And he can't sit still long enough for flash cards.  If anyone has any suggestions, we'll take em!  He needs to know this by mid August!

Little Butt still amuses me every day with the cute little things she says, however I keep forgetting to write them down. And I have some short stories that I am reading so I can do reviews on them but she won't give me my kindle!  She stays up really late and won't let go of it until it dies completely.  Sigh....I stay up way too late reading now. I need to find the money to buy myself another kindle! (And no, she doesn't have a bed time yet. That will come down the road when she is older.  I like being able to stay up late and work and sleep in late or wake up early and work.)

The writing has been going great!!! People are loving my excerpts from my next book. Especially the one from chapter four.  It is a cliffhanger even! http://www.writerjjellis.com is my site for excerpts and the first four posts are from chapters 1-4 of my next novel. Check them out if you get a chance. I have also received some great reviews for my latest book

http://www.amazon.com/Alaskan-Ambush-Sunset-Destiny-Romance/dp/0615827942/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373323369&sr=8-1&keywords=Alaskan+Ambush
 My books have been called witty...hehe I love that word and think it is a great compliment. LOL

As for the health and diet. I have been  off the supplements for the last couple of days and boy am I feeling it. I feel like crud, so tomorrow it is back on the supplements.  And Wednesday I will hopefully be starting the diet and you can witness the pounds melt away.  My friend who did the diet before me has been called the incredible shrinking woman!

Until next time...Watch what you post on facebook, don't argue with relatives - you love them so it's not worth it, teach your kid to recognize ABC's way before they start school (but not too early, because they are now saying that teaching them too young doesn't do any good because they don't retain it as well as if you teach them a bit later.), and for pete's sake, write down everything your little ones say (and don't give them your kindle to use EVER!!!) ;)

MY WEEK IN A NUTSHELL - 10 STEPS TO INSANITY

Okay, so I have a favor to ask. If you have bought one of my books, please leave a review somewhere - on your blog, on goodreads, on amazon, anywhere they will let you.  If you haven't bought it (I understand money can be tight) but would still be interested in reviewing it, I am willing to provide 10 PDF copies to people if they will review it on their blog (and any other site that will let them without having purchased it there).  If you are interested, please let me know at my email. To find out more about my books go here.  I only want my romances reviewed (I have two) I will warn that they are said to be sweet (romance) and spicy (sex). They are by no means erotica, but they do have their fair share of sex.  Thank you all so much!  Now on with the fun.

10 STEPS TO INSANITY

1. My 6 year old is driving me nuts.  She will not behave, she is relentless in teasing her siblings, no matter what punishment I dole out, she is driving me mad. So I send her to the neighbor who has a little girl she likes to play with. She behaves there. :/

2. My 5 year old boy has been hanging around girls too much.  He has turned into a complete cry baby whiny butt. I have got to get him out of this stage quickly - he  starts school in a couple of months!!!

3. My pain has been through the roof because of my wonderful coughing fits.

4. My two year old has also become a whiny butt.  If she doesn't get what she wants, she freaks out and can cry for an hour. If you finally offer her what she wants, she changes her mind and wants something different. (We don't give in, but sometimes when we misunderstand what she wants and finally offer her the right thing, she changes her mind.)

5. Allergies are going to kill us, all of us, dead as can be. They need to go away and leave us alone.

6. Thanks to my older daughters we are babysitting the neighbor boys five hours a night, five nights a week and I really don't want to.  I was almost in tears by the time they left the last time. I hate babysitting for one and for two when you get both of them together with both of mine, they don't know how to behave, or be quiet, or stay outside or.... yeah. I am thinking that since the teens accepted the job for me, I might have to make them go over and break the news that we can only do it for this one more week and then they will have to find someone else.

7. I had a release party for my newest novel. It was fun and we are seeing a smattering of results, but only time will tell if it was worth the work it took.

8. The hubs and I are still working on a top secret project (and hell no, it is not another damn kid).

9. I discovered that I hate hate hate marketing my book.  I'm so tired of it. This is something you don't get immediate results from usually so I will be doing it for years to come until I build my fan base. What happened to my patience....oh I covered that in another blog didn't I. ;). I guess it is a good thing I didn't follow my degree to a career (PR- business) Ah crap! I did follow it in the end. Only this time I added writing to the mix.

10. It's hot outside, the kids are driving me nuts, except for my writing, I'm bored out of my mind. Yep, sounds like a typical summer week to me!

Until Next Time...TGIF  We all need a break from a crazy week. But then my weeks lately run from Friday to Friday so I don't get a break. Sigh.....Enjoy the weekend anyway. :D

SUMMERTIME FRIENDS

I was looking forward to having the two elementary school kids out of the house, playing outside for the summer, and then...they won't go outside! They don't want to be outside without anyone to play with. Um, these are the kids who can think up the most amazing games to play together inside - so why not outside? 

The bad news is, their friends don't live here anymore. So I had to resort to making them go outside if they wanted special snacks or computer time. And what do they do? Walk around beside the porch  and sit on the steps. :/  It is like the fresh air dampens their imagination or some stupid thing like that. 

Well now for the good news.  We found out the other day that their friends are coming to visit their dad and grandparents for 2-4 weeks. I have never beens so happy to hear that trouble making kids are coming back to the neighborhood!  WOO HOO  my kids are finally going to play outside all day! Another bit of good news is that the neighbor kids are much better behaved now that they live with just their mom so maybe I won't have to work to undo any damage done this summer.  At this point, I don't care as long as my kids go outside and enjoy their vacation!

Another good bit of news is that we will be babysitting them for about five hours a night a few nights a week and will get a bit of extra money coming in to cover meals and snacks for them. Extra money is always good right?  And did I say I'm happy about my kids going outside to play without having to bribe them and listen to them whine all day?  

Gwen works all day, The Sophomore can take care of herself, the littles will be outside so that leaves me with Little Butt to cuddle while I write my next great masterpiece...umm I mean Romance Novel, erotica short story or blog.  ;)

Until Next Time...Sometimes, in this day and age, it seems you have to force kids to be kids and enjoy their free time. When I was a kid, you practically had to tie me down to get me to stay inside during the summer and I lived in Southern Nevada where the temps often topped 110!  But then again, I didn't have a computer, tablet, mp3, xbox, playstation etc.  

WE ARE HAVING A PARTY! We are celebrating the release of my latest novel - Alaskan Ambush.

Join us at http://www.facebook.com/writerjjellis for giveaways, contests and sneak peeks at future books. We would love to have you stop by

THEY LIVE ON, IN YOUR HEART

Tomorrow would have been my daddy's 74th birthday.  Some years, I don't think about it until it's over but this year I think it popped up in my mind because of The Senior's graduation.  My daddy actually got to meet her, I remember he held her when she was a baby - her head in his hand and her butt in the crook of his arm, as comfortable and safe as she could be, cradled in his large hands. I really wish he could be there to see it, or at least to receive pictures of it when it is over.  I wish he could know what is going on, but then again maybe he does know and my sadness comes from not being able to be the one to tell him.

I'm sure I will feel the same way when The Freshman graduates too. He was able to see her a few times before he passed. I remember once, after he was already sick and the strength in his arm was really bad.  He was afraid to hold her, but she was old enough to sit on his knee and balance herself. I remember her sitting there giggling as her grandfather's big shaky hand held onto her as best it could. This was a child who wasn't super smiley or giggly and she was very uncomfortable with people she didn't know well, but she was happy as could be sitting on her grandfather's knee.

And when my other kids graduate I'm sure I will think of him too because he never got to meet them and this is one life event where I will wish he could come back long enough to see their big day. Do you ever think about your lost loved ones on special days? I think for me it is the really special ones that bring up the memories.  Things like graduations, engagements and weddings.

I don't have a whole lot of beliefs about spirits and Heaven and Hell, but the one thing I do believe for sure is that my father knows his grandkids.  No matter how many times he saw them in real life, he knows them well.  He knows the struggles, triumphs and pretty much everything else in their lives. I don't know that he would be proud of them, I know that he IS proud of them.  The Senior had an award ceremony the other day the celebrated her being in the top 10 percent of graduating seniors in our district.  Her grandfather knew this and he was so proud of her.  I know that on Grad night, he will be there somewhere, the proudest grandfather ever as his Granddaughter graduates high school in the top ten of her district and as a member of the national honor society and the Japanese honor society, as he will be there and proud of all of his grandkids when they graduate.  And get engaged, and married and have kids of their own.

So on my daddy's birthday I try to feel happy and celebratory because it reminds me that he might be physically gone, but I truly believe he is still here with us, loving us and being a huge part of our lives. I save the sadness at his loss for the anniversary of the day we lost him physically.

Until Next Time...Only you can keep someone alive...in your heart. They might not be here physically, but they can still be a part of you, a part of your life if you open your heart and let them live in a tiny part
of it.  There's plenty of room, the heart is unlimited in every way. <3

MILESTONE - A HARD PILL TO SWALLOW (PLUS A BONUS POST!)

Today I will give you two posts for the price of one...Okay for the space of one since you aren't paying to read this. Post 1 is a normal mom's adventures with kids post and Post 2 is an article I wrote for my writer's website JJ Ellis, Romance Author that delves into the mind of a writer. I have two other articles on that site too if you want to check them out (Courage was the first and Imperfections was the second)

POST 1
Okay, so I am big about milestones right?  I talk about them a lot (remember when I was all emotional because my little man preferred more grown up kids shows to Mickey Mouse?)  Well, it seems we have hit another one.

Allergy season is upon us - hardcore and since most allergy medications are over the counter we spend a fortune on them every couple of weeks.  The little one is doing well on zyrtec so she has her own bottle of liquid children's zyrtec and the only antihistamine that doesn't turn Mr. Insane into...well, Mr. Insane times 100 is Claritin so he and Miss Crazy have a bottle of liquid children's Claritin to share.  Then The Freshman decided she was tired of refusing her medicine and wanted to feel better so she needed something to take. (Zyrtec turns her into a crazy woman too). My pocket book started to ache along with my heart in watching my kids suffer.


So, The hubs and I came up with a plan.  The Claritin pills (age 6 and up) are tiny so why not see if Miss Crazy can take them. We get those at his work in bulk for cheap!. So Miss Crazy was given a try on her very first pill.  Could she swallow it? Would our experimental work?  YES!!! My baby girl is no longer a baby girl.  She is a big girl.  She can take pill forms of medicine. She is growing up, I am feeling old, this is an exciting day, I am feeling old, what a cool milestone, I am feeling old...yeah, you get the picture.  Once again this is one of those bittersweet milestones.  (I'm not even going to think about the fact that in 22 days I will be the mother of a high school graduate, and in 26 days the mother of a high school sophomore, a second grader and a kindergartner.)

So now I am happy/sad and my pocketbook is thrilled.  We can buy 400 pills really cheap for The Freshman and Miss Crazy to share and a small bottle of medicine will last Mr. Insane a long time as does the medicine we get for Little Butt.  See, there are advantages to your kids growing up!!!  Rejoice in it :)

Until Next Time...ENJOY LIFE :) There are a lot of benefits to our kids growing up and to us getting older. Embrace it or you might just drive yourself crazy. I have had to learn that lesson the hard way but I finally did. Yes, I get a bit teary eyed at milestones, but I no longer dwell on them to distraction.  There is too much fun to be had, too much life to live to dwell on how old my kids and I are getting.

POST 2

A few weeks after I published my first book, Virgin Voyage, I came to a realization that really stung, but in a way made so much sense. The story I had practically lived, and loved like a child, would never bring me reading pleasure like it did others.

In the first few weeks after publication I truly can not tell you how many times I read the book. I had this urge to see if it was a pleasurable, enjoyable read. I wanted to enjoy it (or hate it) the same way a stranger who purchased it would.

There were short periods of time where I could blank my world out and get caught up in Mari and Graham's, but my world always came crashing back in. (And I'm not talking about  my kids bother me or the phone ringing or someone knocking on the door)  You see, I can never not be the author of Virgin Voyage. I will always read it with a critical eye. 'Should I have done this, or written that, or left that out. Or will my readers enjoy this or that better.' Truthfully I just wanted to live in Mari
and Graham's finished world for fourteen chapters. I guess you could say that I was craving the ability to just be a reader to my book.

I couldn't help how I felt. I knew I shouldn't feel that way but I did. It almost felt like a betrayal to the characters. I created them, I loved them, I nurtured them,  I put them to paper and I enjoyed it thoroughly. But I couldn't experience them as they were meant to be enjoyed.

And then my first reviews started to come in. Not only on Amazon, but through people contacting me personally to tell me how much they loved the book. All of a sudden, everything I've mentioned above didn't seem to matter anymore. Friends, family and strangers were reading my book the way I wanted to, and I realized something, the whole reason I wrote the book in the first place was so people could live it, love it and enjoy it.  Low and behold, they actually were!!!!  I never betrayed Mari and Graham, I gave them a happy life, in more ways than one.

I know I will most likely have the same feelings about future books, but now I will know how to handle it - just sit back and wait, someone will enjoy it and tell me they did, and then
the world inside that book will be complete.

PRETTY COLORS AND SWIRLIES OH MY

I have a new addiction/obsession. I didn't plan on it, but it happened and it slowly taking over my free time.  You see I received a Kindle Fire as a gift and I thought I would be spending a lot of time on it catching up with my midnight reading or playing four pictures one word types of games and maybe watching the occasional movie with my free month of Amazon Prime.  Well you know, I've done a bit of that stuff, but how do I spend a majority of my free time these days???

Playing with the Kaleidoscopic drawing app.  I basically sat there for hours the other day when I was under the weather running my finger over the touch screen again and again and again.. (See and you folks didn't think I had an exciting life...haha!) How can it not be fun right?  Colors and swirlies and mirror images oh my!

It used to be when I would come home from going somewhere I would get on the computer to market this blog or my books and check all of my stats obsessively (Yeah, I talked about that last time I think).  Well, the last few days I head straight for my kindle and my kaleidoscope app. Who cares if I'm going to sell books right? Umm well I actually do care and I have kept up with the marketing, just maybe not as religiously as I should.  I am proud to say that I haven't been checking my stats obsessively :)  (Are you proud of me?).

So how did I realize that I was addicted/obsessed or whatever you call it?  When one of my kids asked if they could have a turn on my kindle (yes I downloaded stuff for them and in fact the kaleidoscope was supposed to be theirs). I grabbed the damn kindle and held it to my chest and cried..."No! Leave me alone, I'm drawing!"  Um yeah, I think it's time I revisit my priorities here.  I have vowed to let my kids use the kindle more (okay, once  day each if they behave) The rest of the time it is MINE!!!  I must see the colors and pretty swirlies, I must see the colors and pretty swirlies, I must see the colors and... Oh um, sorry about that.  I am hoping that some day I can put the kindle down and get back to life as I know it....Kids, Husband, Marketing, Writing and REPEAT. ( See, I told you that you didn't think I had an exciting life!)

Until next time... We all have our little obsessions/addictions but they usually go away with time.  So I guess I'm trying to say enjoy it while you can because eventually life will come back to you and intrude...and then it is onto the next one! ;) (And check out the kaleidescope app, it's hella fun! )

SPRING FEVER AND ME!!!

Spring fever doesn't just hit school kids. Guess how I know that?  Yep, it has hit me so hard  I can't even function.  Of course it doesn't help me that my hips are driving me up a wall lately and I think I am coming down with something. Sore, dry throat, earache, stuffy hurting head.  Blah!

I am so excited about the next installment of my Sunset Destiny Romance series but I can't seem to bring myself to work on it much.  I assumed it was because of my hips and not being able to sit comfortably anywhere in the house to type. But then I started thinking about it.  I think I have spring fever.  Even as a school kid I never got it this early.  But then again as a school kid, our spring break was never the first week of March. :/

We had a few days of sixty degree weather and I must say it was heaven! Yeah yeah I know, sixty isn't too warm for most people, but for us here in Centeral Wyoming, that's bikini weather! It was perfect.  We'd had spring break and temps in the 50's and 60's spring must be here so the brain kicks in with spring fever.  And then what happens? I woke up to three inches of snow this morning and more is expected throughout the next few days.  Winter is back! So maybe my spring fever will go back into hibernation?   Yeah, probably not.  Once I get it I am stuck with it. (at least it's not a forever thing right?)

So what does that mean for my novel?  I'm not sure yet.  Maybe when this bug goes away and I'm not achy and stuffy and tired and blah I will feel comfortable enough to sit at the table and type again and I will only have to worry about keeping my mind on track and my novel will complete itself (seemingly not really). Or maybe once I feel better I will still be unable to get my butt up off the couch to head to the table and work. And maybe I will be able to write, but still not be able to figure out how to best structure my complicated  sentences. (Which makes for even more complicated editing).

For some reason I don't see this bout of Spring fever getting any better. And the main reason why is that we are all looking forward to The Senior's graduation. [SCHOOL IS ALMOST OVER!!!] How in the heck can I concentrate when my daughter is going through one of the most stressful, exciting, wonderful times of her life!  And then I have to prepare for the relatives that will invade in May.  That will be much more exciting than concentrating on sentence structure and Grammar. (Although it won't be as exciting as concentrating on my story line. so hmmmm....)

As it is, I have started to let the kids slack on chores and they got so used to it that I had to get tough again. Hopefully my house will shape up but I somehow doubt it will, at least before guests start to arrive.  But that's okay, it's spring right?

I've met people who don't suffer from spring fever and I envy them.  I always have, I probably always will.  I crave watching my kids go outside to play or being able to sleep in, or do whatever they want during the day.  The teachers that pile on the homework start to piss me off this time of year and I know it's wrong to be mad, but come on people it's spring, the weather is changing (in most places at least) It's time to relax and have some fun! Okay, so I know the work still needs to be done, but I DON'T WANNA!!!! I have spring fever after all ;) And all I want to do is play with my new Kindle Fire (a very generous gift) and relax to recover from scraping windows all winter!

Until Next Time...If you get spring fever, enjoy it! But don't let it take over your life because eventually you will HAVE TO get back to work!!!!

NEW MOMMY BLOGGER BOOK!!!

I have a new book about my blog coming out this weekend.  It will be available from create space, amazon and kindle!  I am giving you all a sneak peek at my cover right here and now.

MY LITTLE CHATTERBOX - NUMBER 5

Well, the silent times are over.  It is official, I now have five chatterboxes living in my house.  Little Butt could talk and knew many words, but she just didn't do it much, especially all at once.  And now we can never shut her up.  She has something to say about everything that is going on in the house.  And she has already learned from her sisters to be a smart ass and to speak with attitude.

My wittle chatterbox

Typical conversation these days:

Me: Little Butt no. We don't do that.
Me: Little Butt mama said no!
Little Butt: No mama me do it. (look of defiance on her face)
Me: Little but No! We don't do that. (re direct her)
Little Butt: No mama me do it. Mama bad. (screaming and crying)

Sigh...She was so quiet at first, I had such hope that she wouldn't be a big talker.  But I should have know better. Her brother  was the same way and now he talks all the time (okay yells, but that is a whole other story) The other girls all talked continuously from day one. I guess I will never get a word in edgewise now, but that's okay because truthfully I'm tired of saying no and stop! haha

The other day Little Butt literally sat there and chattered about everything she was doing, for almost two hours.  It was so cute!  But also a bit frustrating because she was talking to me the whole time. Luckily I can understand most of what she was saying, but when I didn't, boy was there hell to pay!  I think she will have the speech problem three of the others had but that's okay, that is what speech therapists are for right?

Sweet chatter girl!

So, I had hoped that one day my house could be a quiet one, but now I'm not so sure.  She could always grow up to be a silent, broody teen, but with me as a mother and The Shooter as a father....yeah, I somehow doubt that.  We all have the gift of gab I would say.  I think our house will be crazy noisy until the last one leaves (Little Butt). But you know what?  I think I'll take it.  What would I do with quiet anyway?  Truthfully I think I would probably go insane with too much quiet.  I wouldn't know how to live that way anymore. (Although, I could do with a little less yelling ).

Besides, Little Butt talking can be the cutest thing you've ever heard.  When the dog licks here she turns to him, points and says stop it kroogie, like she's the boss of the world.  You really can't get any cuter than that.

Until next time... Sometimes, the things that you think are annoying actually have become a way of life for you, a way of life you actually can't live without.  Enjoy it! :)

I WANT I WANT I WANT TO EMBARRASS MY KIDS

You know that new car you want so bad you can barely stand it, but then you either can't find one you can afford or one that is just right? Or maybe that new gaming system? Or the new big screen TV? Or the new house? Or the new computer/tablet?

Then suddenly, one day you find just the right one and you can afford it and you finally get it!  You are so unbelievably excited.  You tell everyone you know about it, even strangers. And the minute you get it home/drive it/move in, it is all you can think about and you do everything you can to make it perfect and you don't want to leave it for the first month or more! So much excitement and joy in something so trivial right! You dance, you sing, you jump around and give people high fives (strangers and your kids mostly). But best of all, you embarrass the kids. (**evil grin**) Can you tell which one of those things is my favorite? Remind me one of these days to tell you about dancing in my chair and lip syncing to 80's music while I type my novel.  The kids hope and pray their friends aren't over then. (**another evil grin**)

This is it! (points and jumps up and down)

Well, the other day, I experienced the joy of finding that one perfect thing I have wanted for years. Can you guess what the product was? It was a desktop copy holder. You know, one of those mini easel looking things that hold your papers while you type.  Yep. I had been looking for one for years that would be just right. They were either too expensive (when I first started looking many years ago, they were in the $40.00 range and they all had to be ordered which meant shipping cost too) or I couldn't find just the right one, even at office supply stores. Well, I finally found the perfect one!!! With shipping I will be spending under $16.00. I am so excited I want to shout it from the rooftops. I just have to wait for it to arrive and then I will not let it out of my sight. I will probably even sleep with it. (Don't laugh, it will make me more likely to sleep with it. I'm defiant like that.)

What does this mean for me? It means no more sore neck and shoulders from having to bend over too far when I spend a marathon five hours at the dining room table working on my novel. (I know, I know, I really shouldn't do that, perhaps I should move to the couch for a bit? But don't you understand, I don't have a copy holder so it is even worse to sit on the couch because then the papers are too far away from me to read. Hmmm, maybe I need new glasses too?  I guess that will be the next purchase I get super excited about. But I won't sleep with those or they might break. haha!)

So, what is the point of this post? Is it to not be materialistic?  Nah, I think for many people we can't help but love our toys. I just try to balance that out with caring, charity and friendship. The point to this post is, even if you are weird enough for your kids to make fun of, keep being yourself.  (They'll either get over it or be embarrassed for the rest of their lives, which is great payback for all of the labor, headaches, and heartbreak.)

Until next time...Be yourself no matter what.  You can't be truly happy unless you are truly you!

OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES

I have had kids home for a five day weekend and there is constant talking going on here (and usually driving me nuts) So I started to think about things that kids say. You know those silly, crazy, funny, scary, insane little gems we all know and love.

 I list this stuff into three categories:

1. Words they make up themselves as they learn to talk:

• Beenum Beenum - In our house this started out as peenum peenum first uttered by The Senior when she was first learning to talk and she wanted to say peanut butter.  Pretty soon, anything that was close to the consistency or look of peanut butter was called this. Eventually it morphed into beenum beenum.  The official definition now?  Diaper rash ointment. 
• Tampertakes- This was the word for pancakes when The Senior was little. We make sure the kids know the proper way to say stuff but once they do, pancakes become tampertakes again.
• Cooper-pons. This one I can't credit to my kids.  One Halloween we were handing out coupons for free donuts instead of candy and a little one asked what it was. When we told him a coupon for free donuts, he ran to his parents yelling Cooper-pon, Cooper-pon in the most excited little voice ever.  It was one of those super cute moments that makes you smile even years later. 
• Pupcakes - One of my oldest and dearest friends has a little girl Miss Crazy's age and she has always called cupcakes, pupcakes.  It is the cutest thing ever! 
• I think you could also put into this category things like how Little Butt calls Mickey Mouse hot dog because of the hot dog song. Instead of saying Gangnam Style she calls it Opp Opp again because of the word Oppa in the song and she is always asking us to play it again. 

2. Things they say that they aren't supposed to or that you aren't expecting them to:

• You know when a bird craps on the windshield and a child yells Bird Shit and it turns out to be there first real words.
• Or how about when my darling husband's brothers teased him that if he could ask for a cookie they would give him one (thinking he couldn't say it) and he said plain as day' Cookie Brubber'
• Or when a two year old is having trouble carrying something and drops it on their foot and instead of crying they drop an F bomb. Yeah, that's a fun one.

3. Things they say when they are trying to act grown up:

• Kids can be quite philosophical at times, without meaning to be. I've had a child tell me not to be sad because life was too short and I needed to get on with things. This was a 4 year old, and the thing I was supposedly sad about was that there was no more milk in the fridge. 
• The other day Miss Crazy was playing a game where she was an adult and she said: I'm old, i'm 105 but i'm dead now. Umm okay.  Not sure what she really meant, but at least she was having fun right? 

Until next time...Enjoy every minute of what your little kids say because they are only little and cute once. Before you know it they will be back talking, brooding, grumpy teens.

THE MONSTER IN THE DRYER

Have I told you how much I hate having to get up at 4 am to take the husband to work? Wait, what? Oh yeah, that was the blog from Wednesday. Let us talk about missing household items instead then.

Every household has something that goes missing. All. The. Time. (At least I hope so, because if not, that means we are the most unorganized group of Yahoos on the planet.) In our house the main thing that goes missing are hair brushes.  At this point in time we have 5 and today I can not find even one of them. The older two kids are already at school and that means they brushed their hair with their hands instead of waking me up to do a mass search of the house. Damn kids - now everyone is going to think I don't make my kids brush their hair :/

So how do brushes go missing so easily?  My kids, although I have been trying to train them for years, will not EVER put anything back where it goes when they are done. God forbid they have to stop reading, watching TV, or playing on the computer to do something as easy as putting a brush on a bathroom counter. I don't think they realize that their chore time would also be cut in half if they would just put stuff up as they go.  99 percent of their chores are putting stuff away that was left out through the day. I used to try to lead by example, but sometimes I just can't when my hips start hurting and I have to sit down. So now I am all about the old saying, 'do as I say, not as I do'.

I hope someday that it will all click with them and they will understand. (Maybe when they have their own messy house to clean and no one to help them???) I think it did with me so maybe it is just a normal right of passage. I guess we shall see. The Senior is 17 and will probably be moving out in two years to head down state for the last two years of college. I've done my part and now it is up to her to remember what I taught her.

Now, the second biggest thing that goes missing in our house - Pens. And the reason?  Just read above and insert pens where it says hairbrushes.  The third biggest thing that goes missing in our house - socks.  That one I can't blame on the kids though.  I have no clue where those things go.  I've contemplated aliens, a sock eating monster that lives in my dryer, a black hole in the laundry room...but then again, maybe it is the kids' fault.  Maybe they throw them away so they have less laundry to do. Hmmmm now that's an idea. But nah, I could always refuse to buy them birthday and Christmas presents to pay for new socks so I think I'm going with the sock eating monster living in my dryer.



Until next time...Don't blame your kids for everything that goes wrong in your house (although it is kinda fun)  There are just times when you have to blame the monsters that live in appliances.