Oh wait--you mean I'm NOT just a mom?

I know this blog has turned into Abby central lately, but that's what happens when I'm not writing. Actually, it's not that I'm not writing, it's that I'm not writing my book. I've been doing some freelance work for the first time, and man is it hard! It's so much more stressful than just writing the story you want to write--instead you have to try to read someone else's mind and get down not only what you want to say but what you think they want you to say. I used to think being a writer for hire would be cool, but now I'm definitely rethinking that. I mean, it would be better than, say, not making any money whatsoever, but if I had to choose between that and battling it out with my own manuscript, I'd take my own over freelance anyday.

I've also been doing a little bit of critique work--nothing at all official, just helping a fellow writer with some character development--and it's making me a little nervous about the whole editing business thing. I mean, I know my stuff when it comes to language and such, but do I really have what it takes to give someone the quality critique they deserve? (I probably shouldn't be voicing my concerns about my abilities where potential clients might see, but hey, honesty is a good thing, right?)

Dan's still battling this killer cycle of cluster headaches. Today was the eighth day in a row that he's had at least one, and today's was the worst so far of this cycle. I just ache for him and how frustrated and discouraged he is. Plus he goes back to school the 24th, which is going to be really difficult if he's still in cycle (especially if it continues to be an every day thing). Please pray that the cycle would end NOW so he has time to recover and prepare for school.

Abbyisms amended

Forgot a couple:

--File this under the Little Dictator: She'll bring her coloring book and crayons or Doodle Pad to you, drop them at your feet, then point and say, "Draw!" And she means you. And when we're in the car and she's watching a DVD ("DD" as she calls them) and a song comes on, she'll say, "Dada!" and Dan has to bob his head along and sing. She'll just keep saying, "Dada! Dada!" until he responds, so it's not like feigning deafness helps.

--She also brings her doll to us and says, "Dance!" (though it's usually accompanied by a little boogie of her own, which is adorable, of course), and she wants you to make the doll dance and then, inevitably, wants it to chase her. Now, that to me is just asking for years of nightmares and therapy, but for some reason she loves it. It freaks me out, I don't even like to do it, but she'll beg and beg and what can you do? I suppose this means she'll be one of those kids that likes haunted houses and scary movies, too. Great.

Abbyisms

Some random Abby stuff to post for safekeeping:

-She has a little ditty she chants sometimes, and we have no idea where she picked it up from: "Wow, wow, dit-dit. Wow, wow, dit-dit." Sometimes the "dits" are "doots." Don't ask me why.

-I can't remember if I posted this or if I just meant to, so I'll post it again. The other day she was pointing and grunting for something, and I said, "Abby, I don't know what "uh" means, I need words." So she pulled out her paci, fixed her eyes on me in a no-nonsense way, and enunciated very clearly, "Uh."

-She's really into the things she hears lately. She'll put her finger up to her ear and say, "A sund!" ("A sound.") Then you spend the next five minutes trying to figure out what sound it is she's talking about.

-She's turned into quite the little dictator. When she wants you to move, or go somewhere specific, she'll point very sharply and command, "Go!" This happens more frequently than we'd like, but I'm sure we're not helping in that every time she does it we laugh.

-She's also really big on "helping" these days, which sometimes means helping you with something (like moving the clothes one.piece.at.a.time from the washing machine to the dryer) but sometimes it also means just doing something herself that you're trying to do for her, like brushing her teeth.

-Speaking of brushing her teeth, I sing the Alphabet Song while we brush, once for the top and once for the bottom, and she's starting to be able to sing along (when the brush isn't in her mouth, that is). It's really cute--the other day she was playing with these big foam letters we have, and she handed me the N and said M (which in and of itself was impressive since we don't really "work" with her on letters--and yes, I know she wasn't right, but she was close!!), so I said, "No, that's Nnnnnnn. Like L, M, N." To which she replied, "O, P!"

-She and Dan will strap on Guitar Hero guitars (a game for the XBox) and "play" the game together. It's so cute how far down the guitar hangs on her, and she loves to watch Dan play. I'll try to post a photo; I have some on my phone but of course my phone isn't Mac compatible so I have to have Dan get all the pics off for me one of these days.

Ugh.

Not a swell day in the Morrow house.

Abby's had a cold since Tuesday, and while it's certainly not keeping her down, her nose is running like a faucet and last night she started coughing on top of it. Not a horrible hacking cough or anything, but she had three or four coughing spells that of course woke me as well as her. She'd go right back to sleep--me, not so much.

Then this morning I nearly fainted. That was interesting. Vision fuzzy at the edges, arms tingly and heavy, stomach sick, hands shaking--not good when trying to cut an apple since the whole reason you're about to pass out is because your blood sugar's taken a dive. And even though I've been eating on and off ever since, I just feel completely wiped out.

Dan got through the night without a headache, only to get slammed with one when he woke up this morning. So it was back to bed for him for another two hours or so to try to recover. Thankfully he feels pretty decent right now, medicated but no lingering headache like he sometimes gets.

Definitely one of those days that makes you want to crawl back into bed.

Nobody by Creston Mapes

This week's CFBA book is Nobody.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Creston Mapes is a talented storyteller whose first two novels, Dark Star and Full Tilt, made him a finalist in the American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year awards and the Inspirational Readers Choice awards. Creston has written for major corporations, colleges, and ministries, including Coca-Cola, TNT Sports, Oracle, Focus on the Family, and In Touch Ministries. Committed to his craft and his family, Creston makes his home in Georgia with his wife, Patty, and their four children.

He's been married for twenty-one years to the girl he first loved way back in fourth grade. They have three lovely girls and a boy in a very close-knit family, spending a lot of time together - watching old classic movies, going on outings, and taking in various school and community events and activities. Creston loves to go for morning walks with his dog, read, paint watercolors, meet friends for coffee and Bible study, watch hockey, take his wife on dates, and spend time in God's Word.



ABOUT THE BOOK:

Not everything that happens in Vegas has to stay in Vegas!

They said, “He’s a nobody.”
They were dead wrong.

When reporter Hudson Ambrose hears an early morning call on his police scanner about an injured person at a bus stop on Las Vegas Boulevard, he rushes to the scene to get the scoop.
His world is blown off its axis when he discovers a murdered homeless man with a bankbook in his pocket showing a balance of almost one million dollars. Should he wait for the police, knowing the case will get lost in reams of red tape, or swipe the bankbook and take the investigation–and perhaps a chunk of the money–into his own hands?

With sirens bearing down on the scene, Hudson makes an impulse decision that whisks him on a frantic search for answers, not only about the mysterious dead man, but about the lost soul lurking within himself.

Uncovering bizarre links between a plane crash, a Las Vegas pit boss, a dirty cop, and a widowed Atlanta business mogul, Hudson is forced to find out: who was Chester Holte, what was he doing on the streets, and why are his homeless friends convinced he was an angel in disguise?


“Nobody was absolutely riveting from the opening scene to the final page. With compelling characters, a plot that surprised me at every turn, and a subtle, yet profound message that moved me to tears, this book goes straight to the top of my highly recommended list.”
- Deborah Raney, author of Remember to Forget and Within This Circle

“A taut, entertaining novel of mystery, intrigue, and spiritual truth. Creston Mapes delivers a winner in Nobody.”
- James Scott Bell, bestselling author of No Legal Grounds and Try Dying

“Nobody had me fascinated from the first paragraph and kept the surprises coming to the very end. Somehow, as the pages flew by, it also managed to convey a beautiful picture of faith the size of a mustard seed. From now on I’ll read anything by Creston Mapes the instant it hits the shelves.”
- Athol Dickson, Christy Award—winning author of River Rising and The Cure

In case you needed a pick-me-up

Dan came across this the other day, and oh my heavens, it's just beyond precious. Bookmark this link for days when you just need to see something sweet. I was all melty until the end of it, when I started crying, because I saw the little girl's name and for some reason that just set off my little hormonal self. :)

So sad

I'm not keen on vaccinations in the first place, but talk about having one more reason to stay the heck away from the new HPV vaccine!! This was printed in a Canadian newspaper:

"In just little over a year, the HPV vaccine has been associated with at
least five deaths, not to mention thousands of reports of adverse effects,
hundreds deemed serious, and many that required hospitalization.

Judicial Watch, a U.S. government watchdog, became concerned while noting
large donations to key politicians originating from Merck. A freedom of
information request from the group in May of this year discovered that
during the period from June 8, 2006 - when the vaccines received approval
from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - to May 2007 there were
1,637 reports of adverse reactions to the HPV vaccine reported to the FDA.

Three deaths were related to the vaccine, including one of a 12-year-old.
One physician's assistant reported that a female patient "died of a blood
clot three hours after getting the Gardasil vaccine." Two other reports, on
girls 12 and 19, reported deaths relating to heart problems and/or blood
clotting.

As of May 11, 2007, the 1,637 adverse vaccination reactions reported to the
FDA via the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) included 371
serious reactions. Of the 42 women who received the vaccine while pregnant,
18 experienced side effects ranging from spontaneous abortion to fetal
abnormities."

Yes, this is the vaccination we're being told all our girls should be given, and that many have tried to make mandatory. How about we teach our girls that their bodies are precious and not to be shared around? That sex is a sacred bond between a man and a woman who have pledged their lives to each other? Because, oh yeah, HPV is a sexually transmitted disease, though it's being referred to as a "virus" as though our daughters will catch it at the pool or the drinking fountain. Funny how they don't mention that part much in the vax ads.

The Trophy Wives Club by Kristin Billerbeck

THE TROPHY WIVES CLUB

Avon Inspire (September 4, 2007)
by
Kristin Billerbeck

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Kristin Billerbeck was born in Redwood City, California. She went to San Jose State University and majored in Advertising, then worked at the Fairmont Hotel in PR, a small ad agency as an account exec, and then,
she was thrust into the exciting world of shopping mall marketing. She got married, had four kids, and started writing romance novels until she found her passion: Chick Lit. She is a CBA bestselling author and two-time winner of the ACFW Book of the Year. Featured in the New York Times and USA Today, Kristin has appeared on the Today Show for her pioneering role in Christian chick lit.
Her last three books were:

Split Ends: Sometimes the End is Really the Beginning (April 17, 2007)

She's Out of Control (Ashley Stockingdale Series #1) (Nov 13, 2007)

Calm, Cool & Adjusted (Spa Girls Series #3) (Oct 1, 2006)



ABOUT THE BOOK:
Haley Cutler is the consummate trophy wife. Perhaps "was" is the more accurate term. Haley married Prince Charming when she was only twenty years old – back in the day when highlights came from an afternoon at the beach, not three hours in the salon.

When Jay first turned his eye to Haley, she was putty in his slender, graceful hands. No one ever treated her like she was important, and on the arm of Jay Cutler, she became someone people listened to and admired. Unfortunately, after seven years of marriage, her Prince Charming seems to belong to the Henry the XIII line of royalty. When Haley loses Jay, she not only loses her husband, she loses her identity.

With her first independent decision, Haley leaves LA and moves home to Northern California. Feeling freedom just within her grasp, Haley learns that her settlement payments must go through one of Jay's financial advisors, Hamilton Lowe. Haley believes he's nothing more than a spy. And the feelings of distrust are mutual. Yet somehow, Hamilton finds himself handing over the monthly checks in person, and Haley can't deny that there's a kind of tenderness and protectiveness in Hamilton that she's never experienced in a man before.

But before Haley can even consider another relationship, she must learn to accept her inherent worth, and what it is to be loved for who she is, not what's on the outside.

A great way to support a great cause

Two women I know are waiting to hear if they have breast cancer. Talk about scary. It seems like everywhere you turn right now, everyday objects are being reissued in pink for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and while I was rolling my eyes a little bit at it before, now I am so grateful that so many companies are rallying behind the search for a cure. One of those companies is 1-800-FREE-411. You know how annoying it is to have to pay, like, two bucks or whatever just to get a phone number? Well, FREE 411 gives you that number in exchange for you listening to a short advertisement, and during October they're donating a dollar to breast cancer research for every new person who uses their service. I use this service all the time and love it (though they don't connect you automatically, so make sure you've got a pen when you call). Please remember 1-800-FREE-411 the next time you need a number, and try to use it this month!

Remembered by Tamera Alexander

I don't often read the books that we review for CFBA anymore, just because there are so many of them and I don't want to commit to it and then not be able to follow through. But Tamara won the Rita in my category this year, and actually had two of her books nominated--two in my category, and one in the "Best First Novel" category. Yes, she is a brand new novelist, and already rakin' in the accolades and awards. Go Tammy! Anyway, when I saw her third book on our review list, I just had to see what all the fuss was about. And WOW! Now I know! :)

I don't usually go in for historical fiction, but Remembered was quite believable. I don't usually go in for straightfoward romance novels, either, but I have to say that this is one of the best, if not THE best, romances I've ever read. It's also tremendously unique in that--gasp--there was no misunderstandings, contrived obstacles, "he likes her but she doesn't like him and then vice versa" type stuff. Instead, the romance blooms like one would hope a romance would bloom, with an ever-deepening understanding of each other leading to fondness and eventually love. It was SO nice to NOT read one of those scenes where a half-heard conversation leads to misunderstanding that never gets cleared up because the characters are too prideful/embarrassed/whatever to just come out and say "Hey, what the heck?!"

Bottom line: I highly recommend this book! And here to give you an idea of what the book is actually about is the official CFBA description:

REMEMBERED
Tamera Alexander

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tamera Alexander is a bestselling novelist whose deeply drawn characters, thought provoking plots, and poignant prose resonate with readers. Alexander’s books have won multiple awards, including Romance Writers of America’s 2007 RITA® for Best Inspirational Romance, the 2007 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, 2007 Bookseller’s Best, and Library Journal’s Top Christian Fiction of 2006.

Her books have received acclaim from Library Journal, True West Magazine and Historical Novels Review, and Rekindled debuted on the CBA fiction bestseller list. She has a professional background in business management and conference coordination. A leader of women's ministries for over twelve years, she is currently active in music ministry, facilitating small groups, and mentoring other women. A graduate of Harding University, Tamera lives with her husband and their two teenagers in Greeley, Colorado.

Her other two books in the Fountain Creek Chronicles are Rekindled (Book 1) and Revealed (Book 2)

To celebrate the release of Remembered, as well as the 3-volume boxed set of Fountain Creek Chronicles (Rekindled, Revealed, and Remembered), Tamera is currently giving away boxed sets in a contest on her website. Check out the contest at http://www.tameraalexander.com/ .

From a Distance, the first book in Tamera’s next historical series (Timber Ridge Reflections) releases in spring 2008.

ABOUT THE BOOK:
Though loss is often marked
in a single moment,
letting go of someone you love
can take a lifetime...

The threat of war--and a final request--send Véronique Girard from France to a distant and uninviting country. In the Colorado Territory, she searches for the man who has held her heart since childhood--her father. Pierre Girard left Paris for the Americas to seek his fortune in fur trading, vowing to send for his wife and daughter. But twenty-five years have passed and his vow remains unfulfilled. Sifting through shards of broken promises, Véronique embarks on a dangerous search for a man she scarcely remembers.

His grief finally healed, Jack Brennan is moving on with life. After years of guiding families west, he is now working as a freighter to the mining towns surrounding Willow Springs. What he doesn't count on is an unexpected traveling companion on his trips up into the mountains, and how one woman's search will cause havoc with his plans... and his life.

"Alexander again delivers a most amazing story. The characters are more than words on the page; they become real people. Though there are French words sprinkled throughout the story, they enhance the emotions rather than distract the reader." --Romantic Times

"...a rich historical romance by possibly the best new writer in this subgenre." --Library Journal

"Alexander has done it again with Remembered, third in the FOUNTAIN CREEK CHRONICLES. She's fashioned characters that are as rich and deep as the mountains and valleys they explore throughout the pages, coloring the story as adeptly as the heroine does her canvas. I was drawn immediately into the ages-old heartaches of both of the main characters, understanding at once Veronique's reticence to make a place for herself in the unknown wilds of America and Jack's uncompromising love for this land that he’s cut a swath through time and again. They both have a series of mountains to overcome in the search for Veronique’s father, but I enjoyed watching their faith and appreciation grow with each turn of the page. And woven adeptly through it all is the encompassing truth of the Lord's sovereignty—that sometimes He takes away, and sometimes He gives us what we need, not what we're looking for.

Anyone's who's read the other Fountain Creek books won't want to miss this one, but it easily stands alone. The characters will take you by the hand and lead you heart-first into their stories, and by the time they release you at the end, you'll feel as though you've taken up residence just across the Creek from them, as surely as they have in your heart." --Roseanna White, christianreviewofbooks.com

"Remembered, the third book in the FOUNTAIN CREEK CHRONICLES, takes us back to Willow Creek and revisits beloved characters from the previous two books in the series, Rekindled and Revealed. Tamera Alexander has the remarkable ability to create places, and characters who endear themselves to us, even those just briefly mentioned. If I had lived in the late 1800s, I would love to have met these people and would surely have been inspired by the way they lived out their faith.
Remembered is a delightful read, well-researched and well-written. I expect to see great things from this author in the future." --Lindsey Freitas, bookloons.com

"Remembered is an absolutely wonderful continuation of the FOUNTAIN CREEK CHRONICLES." --Amanda Schafer, armchairinterviews.com

Moving on

The decision has been made. I'm foregoing any more attempts to save data off my old drive and have actually started rewriting my ENTIRE manuscript, not just the lost half. I knew I'd have to do some fairly heavy editing of what I already had anyway, so I figured I might as well just start it all now rather than wait until I'd finished the whole thing and have to go back.

So far it's not nearly as painful as I thought it would be. In fact, I was inspired to add a prologue that set a whole new tone for the book and introduced a character I hadn't met yet, so that was kind of interesting. I'm also currently reading "Writing the Breakout Novel," and I'm already thinking of ways I'd like to tweak this story based on the suggestions in the book (which, by the way, is awesome), so I'm starting to think this whole experience can be chalked up to God knowing it would take basically destroying my old WIP for me to go back and make the changes I really needed to make.

"I happy."

Dan, my mom, Abby and I went to breakfast at Ruby's Sunday morning. Abby was content in the backseat, holding "Gigi's" hand the whole way to the mall, and when Dan got her out of the carseat she said, "I happy." Wanting to make sure he'd heard right, he asked her what she'd said, and she said it again, then gave one of her precious shy smiles and laid her head on his shoulder.

Does that make a mama's day or what?

Blessed Assurance by Lyn Cote

BLESSED ASSURANCE

Avon Inspire (October 1, 2007)

by


Lyn Cote

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lyn Cote's journey to becoming a published author was a long one - she started her first book when her daughter was 13 months old and her first novel was published when her daughter was about to enter high school. But Lyn was writing for a market that hadn't taken shape yet - the inspirational fiction market.

In 1996, Lyn Cote's first inspirational historical manuscript was a finalist in the Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart Contest. This became her first historical novel, Whispers Of Love, in her BLESSED ASSURANCE series.

Most recently, Chloe, the first novel in Lyn's "Women of Ivy Manor" historical series was a 2006 RWA Rita Award finalist for Best Inspirational, as well as a finalist for the Holt Medallion and the National REaders Choice Contest.

Lyn also writes contemporary romance and romantic suspense. She lives in the lovely northwoods of Wisconsin with her husband and three cats. Aside from writing, she also likes to knit, crochet, read, and do lunch with friends.



ABOUT THE BOOK:

Now available for the first time in one edition--All three novels from Lyn Cote's beloved Blessed Assurance series

In Whispers of Love, Civil War widow Jessie Wagstaff must fend for herself and her son. When a stranger, Lee Smith, befriends Jessie's son, even though she recognizes nine-year-old Linc's need for a father figure, she's reluctant to let a new man into their life. When the Great Chicago Fire blazes, every heart is pushed to its limits.

In Lost In His Love, Jessie's son Linc, a social activist and reporter, charms his way through the upper class of San Francisco to build much-needed support for his fight against child labor. His main target is Cecilia Jackson, a beautiful heiress who doesn't recognize the crucial part she plays in this dangerous exploitation. As the secrets of her family's dark past are exposed, Cecilia must revive her own wounded spirit and find the strength to lean on the never-failing love of Christ. But when the 1906 earthquake hits, everyone's faith will be put to the test.

In Echoes of Mercy, Meg Wagstaff challenges the racial barriers of 1920s New Orleans in order to prove that her childhood friend did not commit murder. The stubborn lawyer prosecuting the case, Gabriel St. Clair, is an authentic Southern gentleman who makes the mistake of underestimating Meg, both her tenacity and her charm. Despite their many differences, sparks begin to fly. But when Meg discovers the truth, will Gabe be able to protect her from those who can't afford to have justice prevail?


"A beautiful tale of love, forgiveness, and acceptance."
~CBA Marketplace

And so it goes.

Mark, a good friend of my dad's, emailed me the other day to say he'd heard about my computer woes and to give me the name of a friend of his who used to work as a Man Genius at the Apple Genius Bar. He's apparently one of those guys who knows computers inside and out, macs especially, and managed to recover a ton of info off Mark's computer when it crashed a while back. I called him today and we did some long-distance troubleshooting--he's in Tennessee--and sadly, the final assessment is that we're looking at the worst case scenario: a bad drive. His professional opinion? "Kiss everything on there goodbye."

Well, I'm just about ready to do that, but I'm going to call some data recovery places just in case. I called the Apple store to see if they recommend anyone, and one of the places they suggested isn't that far from here, so I've contacted them and am waiting for a response. The other place they suggested is for "high end recovery", whatever that means--I'm guessing not me, but if this local place can't do it I'll probably contact them next.

Though I'm starting to wonder if maybe this is God saying, "That book wasn't the right one for right now." My mind keeps sneaking over to plotting the book I'd planned on writing after the current one--maybe this is a sign to go ahead with that one instead? I don't know. I honestly can't imagine trying to piece back together what I'd added to the manuscript; it's hard enough for me to rewrite an email I've accidentally deleted, never mind nearly 50 pages!

So anyway, I'm in limbo for a little while longer while I wait to see what happens with data recovery. In the meantime, maybe I'll start research on that other book...

Such is life.

Dan has loaned me his Dell laptop while I wait for mine to get sorted out. It's so cold and utilitarian. Using Windows always makes me feel like I'm in a technical Siberia. But beggars can't be choosers and heaven knows I like it more than working on a hulking desktop. Thank you, baby!!!

Abby and I are sick. Poor baby can barely breathe at night, but I prayed hard God would give her a great night (since she'd already woken up 3 times in her first hour and a half of sleeping and I knew this was not headed for a good night for either of us) and He did. She's slept surprisingly well, only really woke once after I went to bed. I, on the other hand, did not do so well, and finally gave up around 6 to just get up. I kind of like this early rising thing, though. Got my contacts in, my teeth brushed, and my clothes on without the grab-grabbing of little hands and the begging of "Uppy?!?!?!?!" And now that I'm vertical the pressure in my head is not quite so bad, and with almost all of my first-thing-in-the-morning 16 oz. of water downed I'm feeling much less dry.

And speaking of being less dry, it rained out! The streets are still wet and weather.com says the high is only going to be 70. Beautiful. We were so loving the temperature in Ventura; it's always so lovely there. But it looks like we've finally turned a corner and can start hoping for some more autumn-like weather. Yay! Now I can finally start taking Abby to the park again; it's been so roasting hot that I haven't dared.

So I found a new obsession to keep me busy since I'm not nearly as overrun with activities as an OC mom ought to be. It's called Heritage Makers, and basically it's digital scrapbooking. A friend of a friend invited me to a party she was doing for it (it's a direct sales thing) and I got so excited! I mean, don't get me wrong, I looooove scrapbooking, but let's be honest; I've been doing it for three years and have yet to finish an album. This does not bode well for me. And given the fact that I only do it about 4 times a year because I can't bear to drag the stuff out unless I have half a day to devote to it, chances are I'll never finish anything. But I made 5 pages on Heritage Makers in less than 2 hours, and that was the first time I'd worked with it, so part of that time was me trying to figure out the program. Hello!?!?!? Five pages!! That would be at least 3 or 4 hours of work and half a metric ton of paper scraps on the floor when doing regular scrapbooking, at least for me. I've actually decided this is how I'll scrap, for the most part, from now on.I'm going to hand-scrap 3 books for each kid--the book of their pregnancy, their first year book, and a personalized alphabet book--and then just do yearly family albums for all the rest of the stuff on Heritage Makers. I'm also going to use HM to do biographies of all the grandparents and great-grandparents so my kids know those people. I still get a little weepy to think that this new baby won't know my grandparents. Abby still says, "Nana!" when she sees her picture, but honestly, how much of her will she really remember? And HM was actually started for the purpose of telling family stories, though you can do anything you want on there. So that's how I'm keeping busy while I wait for my poor laptop to be resurrected. I went ahead and became a consultant just for kicks, so if you want more info let me know. :)

Woohoo, Abby is STILL sleeping and it's 7 AM! I think I'm going to get to have breakfast without her trying to steal food off my plate. What a morning!

D'oh.

It's not like I'm new to the whole computing thing. I've been doing it for a long, long time, actually. I know the risks. I know you're supposed to back up, and often. But do I? Did I?

I'll bet you know the answer.

Yesterday, my procrastination and lack of discipline came back to bite me in the butt. My brand-new laptop was working just fine one minute, and then...a bizarre clicking sound coming from the hard drive and the Blinking Folder of Death on a gray screen. Dead. Totally and utterly dead.

Since it's so new, I haven't added much to it. I haven't downloaded any photos yet--though, if I had, I also would have uploaded them to Snapfish, thus having a backup. No, the only thing that's on there that is of any worth at all is my manuscript. And how much of it do I have backed up? Only whatever I had written when I got the new computer; whatever I had at that point is still on the old computer. If memory serves, I've added somewhere between four and six chapters since then.

We're in Ventura until Wednesday, and wouldn't you know it, the closest Apple store is closed for renovation until Thursday. So I won't know until then what the extent of the damage is. I'm praying it's just the hard drive reader and not the drive itself. If it is the drive, then hopefully a data recovery service will be able to get it back for me for cheap. I'm trying not to stress, but man.

Take it from me, boys and girls. Go now and back up your files. Thumb drives are cheap, Google files and Snapfish are free--heck, open a Gmail email account and email your important stuff to yourself; it'll all be saved in your inbox or archives or wherever you choose to put it. And then you won't be a sad little girl like me.

Sushi for One

Hey all! I TOLD you I'd be back with more info on this great book by the awesome Camy Tang. I'm today's stop on the blog tour, so for those of you popping in for the first time, welcome! Please leave a comment and introduce yourself, and be sure to come back now and then to check things out. :)

Camy and I did a little email interview a couple weeks ago. Those of you who come here often know I LOVE to hear how other writers tick. I'm always looking for a new way to approach my writing, brainstorming, whatever--and I have that tiny little voyeuristic streak that all writers have because we're just so darn nosy. (Um...at least I think all writers have it...)

ALISON: Tell us about your path to publication. When did you start writing, what led you to this genre, and how did you come up with the premise for "Sushi for One"?

CAMY:
I originally wrote ethnically neutral characters, because that's what
I was reading--ethnically neutral romances. I still love them, but I
felt God telling me to go a different direction. To write what WASN'T
being published--romances with Asian American characters.

Then at an American Christian Fiction Writers Conference, author
Brandilyn Collins prayed over me. I had told her to pray as the Spirit
led her, and the first thing--the FIRST thing--she said was she felt
God telling me to "write your heritage."

I hadn't told Brandilyn about my writing dilemma--to be a risktaker
and write Asian American romances or continue writing ethnically
neutral romances--and so this word from God hit me like an earthquake.
Doesn't get any clearer than that, does it?

So I trashed my premise for my manuscript and rewrote it from an Asian
American woman's perspective. And I discovered that suddenly, the
woman's extended family just wouldn't shut up! They kept nagging her
about marrying and having children before her parents die, and all
kinds of faintly threatening, rather morbid predictions. In fact, it
sounded a lot like my friends' parents/aunties/grandmas.

That's how the Sushi Series was born. I started with four cousins,
each with very different personalities, and wondered how each of them
would respond to the pressures of being 30, single, and Asian American
in the San Francisco Bay Area.

A: Wow, don't you just love it when God speaks that clearly? :) Okay, so, the first thing that pops into my head when I read your description of the book is Amy Tan's "The Joy Luck Club." I'm guessing I'm not the first to tell you that--are you sick yet of that comparison? :) Having read Tan's book on writing, I know that her own family dynamics played heavily into her writing. Is the same true for you? Beyond just the ethnicity of the characters, does "Sushi for One" reflect your own upbringing and life experience?

C: Not necessarily. My family (especially my grandma) is certainly not as dysfunctional as Lex's! However, Asian American culture is very family oriented, so it's impossible for me to write about Asian Americans without having some family influence in their lives.

I think a lot of ethnicities can relate to this. Think of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. The heroine's family pestered her about EVERYTHING. My Italian American friend says she can relate to the whole family thing, too.

While I like Amy Tan, my one goal in writing Sushi for One was to write something not as serious and more romancy. So the family issues are looked at with a tongue-in-cheek attitude, because really, if you can't laugh at yourself, there's no hope for you. :)

A: *lol* Well, I must have plenty of hope then. ;) Okay, so, tell us what other books you have in the pipeline. Are you already contracted for another?

C: The second book in the series, Only Uni, releases February 2008.
That's Trish's story. The third book in the series, Venus's story, is
Single Sashimi, and that releases in the fall of 2008.

I'm also working on a Young Adult Asian chick lit proposal, so let's
hope that gets accepted!

A: Oh good, I love knowing there's another book to go to (or at least to wait for). So describe your writing process. Your books are releasing so close together--are you that fast a writer, or did you have them all written? Are you an outliner or a "seat of your pants" type writer? What does a typical writing day look like for you?

C: I had the general storylines for all of them figured out, but the
other two manuscripts weren't written. However, I'd written my last
couple books in 6 months, so I was reasonably sure I could finish the
other books on contract.

I'm definitely an outliner, I'm incredibly anal about it. I like using
Randy Ingermanson's Snowflake method:
http://advancedfictionwriting.com/art/snowflake.php
I also use 45 MASTER CHARACTER by Victoria Lynn Schmidt, and WRITING
THE BREAKOUT NOVEL WORKBOOK by Donald Maass.

My typical writing day varies depending on what I have to do. Usually,
I spend about 2 or 3 hours on email and internet marketing, and then
the rest of the time on writing, freelance editing, the ACFW Genesis
contest, or any other writing-related business.

A: Oooh--I just discovered the snowflake method, too, and it's been awesome! I'll have to check out the other two books you mentioned; I think I have "Writing the Breakout Novel" but I didn't know it had a workbook, too.

So let's talk a little more specifically about "Sushi for One." Give us a quick summary of the story and tell us a little about the main character.

C: Here's a bonus just for you, Alison! This is the original blurb for
the book that I used for my proposal:

Sports-crazy Lex Sakai isn't too worried about "winning" the
unofficial family title "Oldest Single Female Cousin" when her cousin
Mariko marries in a few months. Her control-freak grandma is easy to
ignore, until Grandma issues an ultimatum—if Lex can't find a date for
Mariko's wedding, her ruthless Grandma will cut off funding to the
girls' volleyball team that Lex coaches.

Lex isn't about to look desperate by dating every player in the
dugout. She comes up with a stringent list of requirements from her
Ephesians Bible study in her search for The Perfect Man. She always
wins in volleyball—if she ups her game, she's sure to succeed.

Then her brother introduces her to non-Christian,
non-volleyball-playing, no-immediate-physical-appeal Aiden.

Aiden's on the rebound from a girl named Trish, who dumped him because
he wasn't Christian. Then he discovers that Lex is 1) not attracted to
him at all, 2) Christian, and 3) Trish's cousin. No way is he hooking
up with anyone from that crazy family, much less another hypocritical
Christian chick. He's certainly not masochistic.

Time is running out for Lex, and no matter what she does, she can't
find the right guy. Especially when she keeps running into Aiden
everywhere. If only the List would stop getting longer and longer...

Camy here: Lex is the volleyball player I wish I was! I'm only so-so,
unfortunately. She's also stronger and braver than I could ever be,
which made her fun to write! She and I also share the same penchant
for Wonderbras.

* * * * *

So hey, if that hasn't grabbed your interest, then maybe this will: Camy is holding a huge website contest right now where she's giving away baskets of Christian fiction and an iPod Nano! Only her newsletter YahooGroup subscribers are eligible, though, so join today: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Camys_Loft/join

Like I said when I first posted about Sushi for One?, it's a great book, and I stayed up two hours past my bedtime just to finish it. I highly recommend it and can't wait for the next installment. Buy it today!

Go Shep!

Alrighty folks, the time has come to flex your voting power and click here to help my friend Matt Shepardson ("Matt S" on the ballot) win a chance to sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at a Cubs game! I do beleive this is the last round of voting. Thanks!

It's just pain.

No, this is not a post about childbirth--I promised to keep those on the baby blog, remember? :) No, this post is about church--because we actually went last night! For the first time in, like, a year! (That's what happens when you have a toddler who loves to run (and your church has an outdoor "parents' room" complete with giant field that just begs kids to come frolic) and hates being left in a nursery with strangers. We finally realized we were just distracting everyone else and not getting anything out of the message ourselves because we were so busy chasing Abby. Hence a year has passed...) I found out two of my teacher friends go to a church about 20 minutes away, and they have Saturday night services, and indoor parents' room, and do expository teaching. The perfect church trifecta, as far as we're concerned.

I really enjoyed it. I don't think I've heard that much Scripture in a church sermon in my life. It was beautiful. A bit hard for me to follow at times, since half my attention was on keeping Abby occupied in a room where all she had to play with was her coloring book and crayons, but considering that she did very well. But anyway, the main gist of the message, which was taken from Hebrews 12:1-2, was about growing in your faith in order to combat sin in your life. One of the points he made was "Minimize the sacrifice." In other words, don't get a martyr complex, don't focus on what you stand to lose when being obedient, but focus instead on what you stand to gain. He commented on how we tend to fall into sin because, when faced with a choice to make, we start thinking about how painful it's going to be to deny ourselves what we want, to choose the right path, to remain obedient. Instead, he said, even though it might hurt in the short run, think about all you stand to gain by making the right choice.

That really stuck with me. I'm a pain freak. I am terrified of it. Not just physical pain, but emotional pain, mental pain, relational pain. I am a total scairdy cat when it comes to confrontation because I hate pain--feeling it or causing it. It has been an issue for me my whole life. But it really got me thinking when the pastor said that last night. I mean, who cares? It's just pain. It won't kill you. It won't last forever. It sucks, no doubt, and it's not pleasant, and it's worth avoiding when you can, but if avoiding it means staying in the same place year after year after year, never growing as a person and never growing in your relationship with God, then isn't it in your best interests to just buck up and take it? The potential payoff is so much bigger than that of staying complacent and never going all-in with God, or your husband, or your friends, or your passions, or whatever.

I have been at about the same level in my walk with God for the last ten years. Ten freaking years. That's not only pathetic, it's dangerous. Mediocrity is not a good place to be, ever. The worst part about it is how oh so very comfortable it is. Predictable. Cozy, like one of those memory foam beds that holds your shape. And, just like those beds, very difficult to get out of. For me, I think a big part of why I've been here so long is my fear of pain. I have this idea, and I don't know how theologically sound it is, that if I turn everything over to God and pray that most dangerous prayer--Take me, Father, I'm yours, do with me what you will--then my life will not only be turned upside down, but I will suffer. There will be pain. Refinement requires fire, does it not? Sort of hard to refine with a warm bath. And now that I have a husband, a child, I fear that the fire God will use to refine me will have something to do with them, with losing them, or seeing them suffer. Me suffering I can take, but seeing my baby girl sick or harmed? No way. Seeing Dan ill? Lord, I can barely stand it when he has his cluster headaches, I can't imagine seeing him suffer something worse.

And yet, I feel like I'm giving God an unfair shake by assuming He'd do that to grow me. I mean, he's my Father, he's not going to purposefully harm me or my loved ones (for whom He is also a Father), right? But it's a fallen world and bad things happen to good people...*sigh* See, I keep going back and forth and I don't know what to think. But despite the see-saw of confusion, I keep coming back to the fact that I shouldn't be here any more. I need to grow. I need to change. I need to be closer to God than I am. I need to be more disciplined. I need to be more immersed in the Scripture. I need to be more proactive about my relationship with Him. And I just don't think it's possible without some sacrifice. Some pain.

So where does all this leave me? Honestly, I don't know. But I'm tired of telling God I'm sorry for not being better, for the same sins, for not trying harder, for not hardly caring sometimes about the fact that I'm such a spiritual loser. I don't want to wonder anymore what it would be like to know God intimately. I want to know.

So I'm bracing myself.

It's just pain. Right?

Sushi for One?

So one of my fellow ACFW members just released her first novel, called Sushi for One? I was lucky enough to score a free copy (you, too, can be a lucky free-copy-scorer if you join the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance!) and downed the thing like it was the best bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream I'd ever tasted. CFBA is promoting Sushi for One? for this week's featured blog tour, but I will also be blogging about the book on September 15th as part of a month-long blog tour the author, Camy Tang, has arranged. I'll post an exclusive interview with Camy that day, as well as my personal review of the book, but until then here is the CFBA review:

Sushi for One?

(Zondervan, September 1, 2007)


by

CAMY TANG

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:


Camy Tang is a member of CFBA and is a loud Asian chick who writes loud Asian chick-lit. She grew up in Hawaii, but now lives in San Jose, California, with her engineer husband and rambunctious poi-dog. In a previous life she was a biologist researcher, but these days she is surgically attached to her computer, writing full-time. In her spare time, she is a staff worker for her church youth group, and she leads one of the worship teams for Sunday service.

Sushi for One? (Sushi Series, Book One is her first novel. Her second, Only Uni (Sushi Series, Book Two) comes out in February 2008!

To celebrate the launch of her debut novel, she's got a huge contest going on. Camy is giving away baskets of Christian novels and an iPod Nano! Only her newsletter YahooGroup subscribers are eligible to enter, so join today.

For more information about the contest, visit her website.

Contest ends October 31, 2007!

ABOUT THE BOOK:


Lex Sakai’s family, big, nosy, and marriage-minded, is ruled by a crafty grandmother. When her cousin Mariko gets married, Lex will become the OLDEST SINGLE COUSIN in the clan, a loathed position by all single female family members.

Lex has not dated for years.

Grandma homes in on this fact and demands, bribes, and threatens Lex to bring a boyfriend (not just a date) to her cousin’s wedding.

Lex does not want to date ... not since that terrible incident a few years back ... but, Grandma doesn't give her that choice.

Lex's options are slim because she has used her Bible study class on Ephesians to compile a huge list of traits for the PERFECT man (and the more she dates, the more she adds to the list).

The one man she keeps running into (and is completely attracted to) doesn’t seem to have a single quality on her list. It’s only when the always-in-control Lex loses control and lets God take over that all the pieces of this hilarious romance finally fall into place.

The heat, my gosh, the heat!

It's been really unbelievable. I mean, yes, we're in California, but honestly it's not usually THIS bad for THIS long. And it usually cools down significantly at night, but lately it has not. The other night it was 83 upstairs at 1 AM; Dan finally just put the a/c on because we were all so uncomfortable. We can't use our whole house fan because the air outside is just as bad as it is inside. Arg! Our electricity bills are KILLING us. I don't know how people can live in the Inland Empire and the desert and Las Vegas. It's just insane.

My dad did the message at Saddleback Church (home of the Purpose Driven everything) this weekend and Dan and I ran the book table to sell copies of "The Case for the Real Jesus", which released a couple weeks ago. Saddleback is weird when it comes to buildings; they don't have very many. Most of their stuff is held in tents or under canopies an stuff, so we were outside from 4:30-8:45 Saturday night, and from 9:45-1:30 Sunday morning. They had an easy-up type thing set up for us, but it was just as hot under it as it was outside; we just didn't have the sun beating down on us directly. Truly, the heat was remarkable. We kept chugging water, and I just felt so bad for all the folks standing in line to buy the book, and then standing in an even longer and slower-moving line to have Dad sign it. But obscene temperatures aside, the book selling went awesome. They have 6 services and we sold out by the end of the 4th. But for the rest of the afternoon and evening I was so dog-tired I could barely think straight. I ended up going to bed at 8:30 and slept nearly solid until 7:15 this morning!

And speaking of sleeping, Abby never napped yesterday! Saturday we didn't get her home from my parents' place until nearly 10, and she didn't get to sleep until nearly 10:30, and then Sunday morning I had to wake her up at 8:45 so I could feed her her breakfast banana before taking her back to my parents' place so Mom could watch her while we did the book thing. So when do you put a kid down for a nap when they've woken up so late? Turns out, you don't. :) And she did great! No meltdowns, really, just slightly more dramatic reactions to things than normal. I put her down at 8 she slept until 7:30. Not bad!

So, back to the heat. Sorry, what can I say, I'm obsessed. All manner of creepy/crawly/flying thing is worming its way into the cool confines of the house, all of which Abby points to and shrieks, "Bee!" when they come anywhere near her.

Oh, non-heat related comment: agave nectar + cinnamon = SO FREAKING GOOD. The best syrup for French toast or pancakes or whatever you'll ever have. And so much healthier for you than regular syrup! Yum!

Now I'm hungry.

Two, three, two, three, two, three, two, one!

Abby's really big into numbers lately. She counted backwards from three yesterday, and when she saw a big number 2 on the TV she pointed to it and said, "Two!" And today she's just been chanting numbers over and over (see post title).

Turns out I was wrong about her knowing the word "pink." She was actually saying, "Pick," as in, "I picked out this piece of chalk for you," which is what I finally realized she was saying in her own little Abby way. It just sounded very much like pink and happened to be said while holding pink chalk. Oh well.

I've read four books in the last week and a half. Two of them in less than 48 hours each. Man, I love it when I rediscover reading. The books were, "The Glass Castle" (awesome), "Split Ends" (entertaining), "Sushi for One?" (great, and more to come on this when CFBA does the blog tour for it next week), and "Remembered" (also great and also more to come when the CFBA blog tour comes around). My next pick is "A Thousand Splendid Suns" for my book club, which met last night around a fire pit in the backyard of one of the members. We made s'mores! I don't remember the last time I made a s'more. It was goooood.

I finished half of chapter 8 the other day, but I discovered a plot flaw and had to go back and rework some stuff, so I'm still in the process of fixing that. Glad I found it now and not later, though!

Tonight my dad and Dan are going to see the Simpsons Movie and then to dinner, and my mom and I are going to the mall for dinner and to let Abby play in the indoor play area, provided it isn't overrun with kids. It's been so melting hot here that I've avoided it, knowing everyone in the county is thinking the same thing. WHEN is the weather going to turn fall-like?! Not that we have fall here. *sigh* Man, I miss crunchy leaves and sweater weather.

Writing and reading

I said last week I'd tell you how often I wrote. Sadly, it was not three times. But it was two! And I'm finding that I'm able to get about 5 pages done on the days I do write, which is half a chapter. I'm really happy about that. I'm seven chapters in now, a little over 30,000 words, and I'd say about 1/3 of the way through the story. That has me on track for somewhere between 90-100,000 words, which is perfect! The first time I've hit a normal word count! Woohoo!

I've finally started reading more. I actually moved my laptop from the kitchen to my office so I'm not as tempted to spend every spare second checking blogs and email and Babycenter.com. So now I actually read! Shocking! I just finished "The Glass Castle" for my book club (which I just realized I can't attend, I'm SO bummed!) and it was incredible; I highly recommend it. Then I finally read Kristin Billerbeck's latest, "Split Ends," which was classic Billerbeck and very enjoyable. Now I'm starting in on Camy Tang's first novel, "Sushi for One?" and am thoroughly enjoying it. It's so wonderful to rediscover reading.

Oh, another awesome book I finished recently (though it took me about two months to read it): "It's All Too Much." Can't remember the name of the author, but he's the guy frm HGTV's "Clean Sweep." He helps people declutter and organize. It was a fantastic book. It really helped me to figure out why I'm a pack rat and what I need to do to get over it. Dan and I are itching to do a whole-house purge and clean, and while I was looking forward to having the place clean, I wasn't looking forward to the process. But now I'm totally psyched. I'm thinking of doing a garage sale where nearly everything is a buck or less. Talk about priced to move! A friend of mine did that and, if I remember correctly, she sold everything. Anyway, if you're like us and have a garage so packed you can't park your car, or you have a storage unit, or every room is chock-full of stuff that doesn't necessarily belong in that room, I strongly recommend the book. It has a great cleaning and organizing plan and is very encouraging.

Whole buncha random stuff

Since I tend to compile all Abby's little accomplishments and such on this blog, rather than in a baby book or something, I wanted to do a quick documentation of random little things I've been meaning to record. So here goes:

1. Today she identified her first color, and fittingly, it was pink, which she said very clearly as she handed me a piece of pink chalk.

2. Four new words, totally out of the blue today. (Oh wait, five--already forgot about pink!): fork, kiwi, tummy, and pick.

3. We read the same five books every day before nap and bed, and every time she does funny things with some of the books:
--turns "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" upside down when we get to "On Thursday he ate four strawberries, but he was still hungry." After a few times of her doing this I realized one of the strawberries is upside down.
--on "Good Morning, Good Night," which is one of those lift-the-flap and touch-and-feel books, she pets all the animals with her feet, and on the last page, where there's a little girl in a bed where you cover her up with a little felt blanket, she always uncovers her. Fitting, since she hates being covered up and always violently kicks off the sheets when they cover even just her feet.
--she has made up some hand signs for "Personal Penguin": she pokes her finger up her arm, all the way to her neck, while I read nearly every page, and when we get to the line "here and there and everywhere and always with you" she points straight out, like she's pointing to someone.

4. The whole pre-potty training thing is still sort of going on, though she's not nearly as interested in it as she was those first couple days. She has, however, for the last couple days, told us when she needed a poopy diaper changed. Progress!

5. When you ask if you can kiss her, she throws her head back and bares her throat. I guess we've kissed her there so many times she's just making it easier for us.

Pray for us!

Tomorrow (or today, if you're reading this on Wednesday) the children's book Dan and I wrote a couple years ago is up for review at David C. Cook Publishing. Please pray that it passes this editorial board review with flying colors! Thank you!

She counted!

Abby's been big into counting and the alphabet lately, though she doesn't really know how to do either--we get lots of "One, one, one, eight, three!" and "Y, B, O, P!" while pointing at whatever text happens to be nearby. Well, this morning we were going through one of her books and there's a page with ten babies for counting. I went, "One," and she went "Two!" and then we both said "Three" at the same time! I squealed and hugged and generally gushed, then we did it again--and she said "Four!" at the same time I did! More gushing, more hugging. Then we did it again, and she said every number right along with me, no hesitation or anything (well, except "one," which she seems to expect me to do alone to launch us) and then, wouldn't you know it, she said "Five!" right along with me, too! No hesitation, no waiting to see what sound I started making. Unbelievable! I must have overwhelmed her with my enthusiasm, though, because she didn't want to count anymore after that. :)

Lisa Loeb!

I think I've mentioned recently that we've all had a little crush on Lisa Loeb around here lately. One of her videos is played often on "Jack's Big Music Show" on Noggin, and we found some others online that are really cute, while I won't say I was a huge fan of hers when she hit the music scene in the 90's, I always did like "Stay" and "I Do." Well, tonight she did a free concert in Lake Forest, which is just up the road from us, so we went and it was so cool! It was one of these outdoor concert series installments, where everyone brings picnic dinners and blankets and the city brings in a few food vendors and have contests for the kids before the show starts. It's been Africa-hot here lately, so even though it was at 5:30, we were worried it would be way too hot to actually stay, but the park where they host the shows had this great hill in the shade, so we got great seats and didn't melt at all.

Abby was a little upset at how loud the pre-show music was--frankly, I was too, it was way too loud, and not just because I'm a party-pooper adult. She spent the first fifteen minutes in Dan's arms, eyes intent on the stage where all the pre-show antics were going on, but once Lisa got up she mellowed and was eventually just hangin' with us like she'd been looking forward to the concert all day, too.

The music was really great, I have to say. It was just her and her acoustic, and she seems very down-to-earth and friendly. She did a couple of her kids songs, and while I only knew those and the two radio hits I already mentioned, I have to say I really enjoyed the other music. I wish I had more time to just listen to albums anymore, because I'd love to get some of hers, but I honestly don't listen to anything anymore unless I'm in the car by myself, and you can just guess how often that happens. Makes me kind of sad, really; music has always been such a big part of who I am, and now it's just...not.

In other news...I have been working a little bit on my manuscript, and I found a great new research resource: Craigslist.com! I needed a visual to work with for my character's new apartment, so I went to craigslist.com and did a search for cheap apartments in Chicago near a university campus, and lo and behold I found exactly what I needed, including pictures, which really helps. And Google Maps, being so freaking cool, allowed me to search for coffeeshops in the neighborhood of this apartment, thus providing me with a place of employment for this character, and eventually I'll look up things like grocery stores and Target and other random stuff like that. Depending on the tone of the story, I really like to be able to place my characters in real settings and not just make everything up. Not only does it come across as more realistic to me, it also keeps me consistent and stops me from taking too many creative liberties. That being said, the next book will not be like that, because the tone of it will be vastly different from what I've done so far, and the themes of the story are the most important elements; when that's the case, I feel like the real-life connections can detract from the story, because readers can potentially get caught up in the "Hey, I've been there before/know where that is!" type thing, and that's not where I want their focus.

I'm bound and determined to write at least three days this week. I'll be sure to check in and let you know how I do...

Now I lay me down to...something....

Mom and I were talking last night about praying with Abby and when to start. She thought this would be a good time, but neither of us were sure exactly how to do it. On the one hand, you don't want kids to get the idea that praying means saying the exact same thing every single day, but on the other hand, they're not really developmentally ready to come up with their own stuff until, like, 4 or 5, so until then you either do all the praying for them and just have them listen, or you do something simple they can learn and say themselves. So during last night's bout of insomnia (close to two hours, I think), I rewrote the "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep" one, since I'm not going to have my child praying about the possibility of dying. Here's what I came up with:

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray, O Lord, my soul you'll keep
Bless my friends and family
And lead us 'til your face we see*

Help me always to do right
Use me to show the world your light
Make me always speak what's true
And each day make me more like you, Amen.

*Not real crazy about this line, but I really like the one before it and there are shockingly few small words that rhyme with "family". I like the concept of praying for guidance, too, so...any suggestions for alternate endings to that line?

We were also talking about mealtime prayers. We weren't real good about this in my family growing up, and pretty much said the same thing (at lightning speed) every night after fighting over who had to pray, me or my brother. Not really the approach I want to instill. :) I remembered a prayer we used to sing in Girl Scouts before snack time (yes, we prayed in Girl Scouts! I wonder when they stopped doing that--I assume by now they have); the lyrics were: "The Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord for giving me the things I need, the sun and the rain and the apple seed. The Lord is good to me." Now, I understand the sentiment behind the song--thank you, God, for the ability to get food--but it's a little obtuse and there are many more heartfelt things one could say. So I rewrote the lyrics to:

The Lord is good to me
And so I thank the Lord
For giving me my family
My friends and love and food to eat
The Lord is good to me

It's not real meal-centric, but most mealtime prayers I've heard in my day include things outside the food, so why not, right? Now I just have to get in the habit of actually saying these with Abby, and heaven knows I am NOT good at starting habits, especially when I'm preggo and forgetful as a gerbil. I"m thinking of posting the nighttime prayer on the lamp in the bedroom so I see it (and remember the words!) before turning out the light, and of making a placemat for Abby's highchair that has the mealtime one on it. That would be cute, huh? Drawing it on posterboard and laminating at Staples or something would work, right? Put all those scrapbooking tools to use? That would be cool. Speaking of which, I've got to get going on my pregnancy scrapbook and get Abby's book done before the new baby comes. Think I'll go get started right now...

Houston, we have pee-pee.

She did it. This morning, by golly, she actually did it. Peed on her little training potty and didn't even bat an eye. 'Course she had to celebrate by sticking her hand in it--understandable, I suppose--and there were some slightly distressed tears as we flushed it all down the big potty, but there ya go. We're officially potty training, I guess.

Already?!

WARNING: This post contains numerous uses of phrases like "pee-pee" and "poo-poo." Those uninterested in toddler potty issues may want to skip this post. :)

Abby has been quite interested in bodily functions lately. She follows us into the bathroom all the time, saying, "Mama pee-pee? Poo-poo?" She'll watch you with great interest, and has even cheered me on once or twice. But lately she's been noting her own, um, activities as well, and today we took a huge leap forward into the land of potty training.

It started when Dan was watching her while I finally did some writing. (Two pages, woohoo!) Twice she took him by the hand and dragged him into the bathroom, saying, "Pee-pee!" Now, it just so happens that we bought a trainer toilet seat a number of months ago, just to have handy. So he whips it out and sets it up and situates her on her little throne, and she just sort of kicks her feet and hangs out for a while. Nothing happens, but we're still all "Wow!" over the fact that she seemed at all interested in taking it this far.

A little while later Dan catches a whiff of something and asks Abby if she has poo-poos. "Noooo." "Okay, did you pee-pee?" She thinks a moment, says her equivalent of "yes" (you wouldn't think that to be a particularly difficult word to master, but she's really been slow on picking that one up), then trots over to grab a diaper for Dan and lays down on the floor. Sure enough, she's wet.

Half an hour later it's time for her bath. We get into the bathroom and she says "Pee-pee!" Now I'm thinking she's just reacting to seeing the little seat there, which has Winnie the Pooh (ironically) on it and is thus way more exciting than anything else in the room, but I set her up while I get the water going in the tub. After a while she says "All done," and when I pick her up there's a couple drops of something on the seat. I can't tell if she actually went or not, since she'd had mostly water in the last hour or so and with the bath water running I couldn't hear if anything else was going on in the potty or not. But just to be on the safe side I praise her like crazy, then get two squares of toilet paper and am about to wipe her when she daintily takes them from me and dab-dabs in the appropriate place before dropping the paper into the toilet.

What the heck?! I mean, she's not even twenty months old, for cry-yi-yi! I didn't think this would happen until she was at least 2, and I honestly didn't expect to have to deal with it until after the baby was born. But I gotta say, it's pretty dang cool to have a kid with so much initiative.

SO we went to Target this evening and picked up a trainer potty, which she thinks is cooler to use as storage for balls and stuffed animals, but she has opened it up and say on it the way she ought to (still fully clothed, of course--the one snag in all of this is that she still can't even pull her own pants down, much less get her diaper off). I'm not really anticipating actual success in this arena any time soon, but still, it's pretty exciting. Yes. Exciting. These are the things that turn your crank once you're a mom. And I love it.

One last sweet post before I go to bed

Forty-five minutes after we turned out the light, I FINALLY got Abby down--it's a heck of a lot harder at night when she's had a THREE hour afternoon nap, but what am I gonna do, wake her up? Heck no!

So anyway, she was all bathed and dressed and ready for bedtime stories, so Dan asked for hugs and kisses before I took her into the bedroom. She ran at him from across the room, arms wide open, and said, "I hug, I tiss."

MELT.

Oh! ONE more thing, I promise. Since, like, the dawn of time, I've been trying to teach Abby to either say or sign for "pacifier." The thing has been her constant companion since day one, and yet it's one of the few everyday items for which she has no form of communication, and heaven knows there have been plenty of times when she's had to spend five minutes "uh-uh!"ing and vague pointing into the distance trying to get me to figure out that's what she wants. So today we're watching Blue's Clues, of course, and it's the same episode we've seen about 30 times this month. One of the characters has a picture of herself as a baby, and Steve asks what's in her mouth. She says it's her "yi-yi"--her "paci." Well, all of a sudden, through a mouthful of strawberries, Abby parrots, "Yi-yi!" And when I ask, "Abby, do you have a yi-yi?" she grabs her paci and shoves it in her mouth.

So, thank you Steve and Side Table Drawer for finally giving Abby a word for her paci. I never would have thought to try yi-yi.

'Round and 'round and 'round she goes...

Abby has discovered spinning. She's done it before, but she's really addicted to dizzy now. Five solid minutes of turning and turning and drunkenly falling all over everyone and everything while laughing like a maniac.

And now she's reading a book. Slightly off-balance.

Yay Matt!

THANK YOU to everyone who voted for Matt last week. He won his day and is now one of the main finalists! I will let you know if there is another round of internet voting. Keep an eye out here so you don't miss it!

As long as she doesn't start saying, "How you doooin'?"

Remember that episode of Friends where Phoebe is trying to teach Joey how to speak French for a role he wants? The lesson went something like this:

Phoebe: Repeat after me: Je m'appelle Claude.

Joey: Blah doe be dooh.

Phoebe: Um, no, listen closely. Je m'appelle Claude.

Joey: Fwah blah nobee dee.

Well, whatever auditory processing issue Joey has, Abby apparently has too. She was "counting" yesterday, saying very clearly, "One. One. One!" So I said, "Abby, can you say, 'One, two?'" She replied, with much enthusiasm, "Peh-dee!" She didn't even say the "one" correctly! And whenever her diaper is just wet I'll say, "No poo-poos!" And even though she is very good at saying "No!" she will say "Ah poo-poos!" instead. What gives?

So today I am fall-down tired. I slept really well, comparatively, and Abby only woke up once, which was awesome. And I only had one bout of insomnia, which, granted, lasted me about an hour or so. But still! I'm just cross-eyed exhausted. And I feel so bad for Abby, because Dan was up late and is thus still in bed, and I've been comatose on the couch since about 9:45, and she's trying so hard to keep herself occupied, but bless her heart, she's just not used to having to entertain herself for so long. I can't wait until she's old enough for me to say, "Go on outside for a little while!" Not that I'd be able to say that today since it's about 462 degrees out already. This heat waves sucks! And everywhere you go that has fun indoor stuff for kids to do is just swarming because everyone in the county had the same idea, and invariably there are older kids banging around in the play areas, too, even though they're way too big, because their little sibs are in there, and poor Abby always gets run over and stepped on and knocked down, and I just don't have the energy to be Mama Bear today and be all vigilant. So we're watching Blues Clues. Again. I oughtta buy stock in Nick, Jr.

Thirty seconds to myself? Time to blog!

Okay, it's more than thirty seconds, and I have Dan to thank for it. It's bedtime for Abby, and while that usually means I'm upstairs reading "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" four times in a row, tonight it means I'm comfy on the couch because Dan offered to do the bedtime routine. Unfortunately, I hear some serious screaming. I may be pressed into service soon. But regardless, he gave it a shot and kept her happy for quite a while, and that's a huge load off my shoulders.

A couple Abby things I want to document for posterity:

About a month ago she got the hang of the word "hat." Suddenly any item which she could hold on her head became a hat. One day Dan was driving her around and he looked in the rearview mirror; she yanked off her bib, tossed it on her head, and said, "Hat!" Dan said, "Just because you can put it on your head doesn't mean it's a hat!" She pulled of the bib, gave it a look, put it back on her head and with a level stare at Dan, said emphatically, "Hat."

She's started crossing her arms. When I do it, she'll do it, and then give me that brilliant, "I am so cute" look. But today she also started doing it when she was angry, and it's SO hard not to laugh. You tell her no, and she'll throw whatever she's holding and then cross her arms. Hilarious.

I swear there was something else, but I can't remember it. Oh well.

On the non-Abby front, I've been contemplating presidential candidates this past week. I find myself getting more and more political the older I get. It's a frustrating endeavor, getting political, because there's always that feeling of "my vote doesn't matter" or "what can one person do" and "things will never change" that pervade the whole arena. But on the flip side, if everyone stopped thinking that and started flexing their voter muscles, can you imagine how different things would be? Honestly, I don't get people who don't vote, especially if they also complain about the state of things. If you don't like it, then do something about it! And if you vote for someone and they lose, well then you get griping rights when things go to pot the next four years or whatever. But it's such a privilege to be able to make your voice heard. People die for that right in some countries. Heck, people died HERE so WE could have that right.

Anyway, I digress. The point is, I've been trying to figure out who I'd like to back. I'm actually at the point where I could see myself joining a campaign, volunteering a little, wearing the t-shirt, you know? But for whom? It's a three-way tie right now. There's Romney, who won the Iowa straw poll and as far as I can tell looks good on the issues, but his website makes you watch videos to hear his stance on everything, and I hate videos, so I haven't figured out all his positions yet. There's Brownback, who I've heard fantastic things about, and he came in third in Iowa, so that's a pretty good showing, I'd say. I don't honestly know a lot about him yet, but what I do know I like. And then there's Ron Paul, who I love for making the health freedom one of his big issues. He recognizes the evils of CODEX and how the FDA is getting WAY out of hand, and no other candidate is even talking about it. But his stance on Iraq and national security is a little iffy, so I still need to check into that.

*sigh* Which way to go, which way to go...

Vote for Matt!

Matt Shephardson was, once upon a time, a much beloved worship leader at Willow Creek Church, where I grew up. He was a great guy; had such a great heart and a boatload of musical talent. And, of course, was an all-round great guy. And of course, it's the great guys that get the short end of the stick--he was diagnosed with MS a few years back, and nearly died, if I remember correctly from the email updates I received so often. Not long ago I wondered whatever happened to him--and was almost afraid to ask, in case the news was worse than I could handle. Well, out of the blue I received an email from a friend today, saying Matt is one of 5 finalists in a contest the Chicago Cubs are holding to pick a one-time singer of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" at the 7th inning stretch! Today, and today only, you can vote for Matt and help him achieve a life-long dream. Please stop over there today and put in a vote for a great guy!

Where, oh where have my brain cells gone...

Yesterday was one idiotic moment after another for me. Pregnancy brain has hit HARD, let me tell you. And I have to write a book with this mind? I am in so much trouble.

First Idiotic Moment: We were in Ventura, and when Abby and I woke up I gathered our clothes and her diaper stuff and went into the living room. I then realized I didn't have the wipes, and instead of looking, oh, two inches to the left of the pile of stuff I'd brought out, I went back in the bedroom and proceeded to toss the place (as quietly as possible since Dan was still sleeping) trying to find the stupid wipes. I finally give up, go back out, and see the wipes sitting right there, mere inches from where I'd been sitting.

Second Idiotic Moment: I'm at the kitchen table writing an email when Dan says, "Hey Ali, my dad is calling you." So I take out my phone and say, "No he's not," all the while thinking, How does he know he's calling me? Dan looks at me and says, "He's calling you from the den." Oh.

Third Idiotic Moment: I'm packing our stuff up in the bathroom and try to put my glasses in their case, but the case won't close and it looks like the glasses don't fit. I take them out and suddenly cannot tell if these really are my glasses. They look similar, but they seem a little too small...and the inside color doesn't seem quite right. I put them on and and everything goes all fuzzy, then I realize they must be Nancy's and she's probably accidentally taken mine and put them away somewhere. So I take them to her and say, "These were in the bathroom, but I can't find mine. Did you accidentally take them?" She looks at them and says they're definitely not hers. I put them on and say, "Well, the prescription isn't right at all because everything is all--oh...wait...I have my contact lenses in."

This lame and I'm only at 7 weeks?! How on earth will I function in the last trimester?!

While Abby sleeps and the chili simmers...

...thought I'd try to post a little, though this will probably send some psychic vibe to Abby to wake her up. Oh well.

Her new thing, speaking of Abby, is "me" and "my." She points to herself and says both of them very emphatically, thought not typically about any particular object. But it's really cute anyway. Though then she points to me and says, "me", and how on earth do you clarify THAT concept?

Also speaking of Abby, we were at Babies R Us the other day picking up a booster seat (yes, she's about to graduate from the high chair, lucky girl!) when we were approached by one of the Kiddie Kandid photographers. Now, I took Abby in for her 18 month photos not too long ago, and the outing was just a few inches short of disastrous; we ended up with only three pictures, and only had those because of the Photoshopping-like skills of the photographer. She cried, she hid, she was hungry, she was tired, and though she was all smiles while walking around the studio, the minute the camera was on her she was miserable.

Anyway, the photographer on this day says they're training new staff and need some models, and we'll get a free 8 x 10 if we bring Abby on over. We don't even have to buy anything. So I ask Abby, "Want to go get your picture taken?" And she replies, "Okay!" Harrumph, I think, we'll just see how cooperative you are once they're trying to get you to smile.

Well.

She smiled. She laughed. She played with the blocks and didn't freak out when the photographer (despite me explaining how Abby tends to get really shy when strangers try to interact with her) started tickling her with a feather duster. She cooperated while they changed backgrounds and props, she didn't try to get off the table, and only once or twice did she try to hide behind me. In the end, they got a ton of fantastic photos, and I ended up spending $50+ on the pictures I wish we'd gotten the first time around--when she was dressed in an adorable outfit and not a very-obviously strawberry-stained polo. I'll try to figure out how to post them here; they really are precious.

Her language, both spoken and comprehended, continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Oh! And I think she said her first sentence yesterday! Those who know her well will not be surprised at the subject matter: "I want avo!" (Avo = avocado)

I'm continuing to work on my WIP, and currently about 5 pub houses are reviewing the proposal. One has already accepted it at the editorial board level; in August it goes to the pub board level and hopefully will pass there, too. I'm writing (in theory) about 4 days a week now, though only for a couple hours a day, but it feels so good to reconnect with the story, even if it's just for a short while.

Uh-oh! She wakes!

I love a good book list

This meme is going around and it looked like fun so I tagged myself for it. :) I love seeing what books are considered good reading; it helps me to broaden my horizons and read outside my usual authors and genres. Let's see what we've got here....

* Bold the ones you’ve read.
* Italicize the ones you want to read.
* Leave in normal text the ones that don’t interest you.
* Put in ALL CAPS those you haven’t heard of.
* Put a couple of asterisks by the ones you recommend.

1. The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown)

2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen) **

3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) **

4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)

5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)

6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)

7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)

8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery) **

9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon) **

10. A FINE BALANCE (Rohinton Mistry)

11. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Rowling)

12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)

13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)

14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)

15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)**

16. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)

17. FALL ON YOUR KNEES (Ann-Marie MacDonald)

18. The Stand (Stephen King)

19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)

20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)**

21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)

22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)

23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)

24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)

25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)

26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)

27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)

28. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)**

29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)

30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)

31. Dune (Frank Herbert)

32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)

33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)

34. 1984 (Orwell)**

35. THE MISTS OF AVALON (Marion Zimmer Bradley)

36. THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH (Ken Follett)

37. THE POWER OF ONE (Bryce Courtenay)

38. I Know This Much Is True (Wally Lamb)

39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)

40. THE ALCHEMIST (Paulo Coelho)

41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)

42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)

43. Confessions of a Shopahaulic (Sophie Kinsella)

44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)

45. The Bible **

46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)

47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)

48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)**

49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)

50. She's Come Undone (Wally Lamb)

51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)

52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)

53. Enders Game (Orson Scott Card)

54. Great Expectations (Dickens) **

55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)

56. THE STONE ANGEL (Margaret Laurence)

57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)

58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)

59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)

60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger) **


61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)

62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)

63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)

64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)

65. FIFTH BUSINESS (Robertson Davies)

66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)

67. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Ann Brashares)

68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)

69. Les Miserables (Victor Hugo)**

70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)

71. Bridget Jones's Diary (Helen Fielding)

72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)

73. Shogun (James Clavell)

74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)

75. The Secret Garden(Frances Hodgson)

76. THE SUMMER TREE (Guy Gavriel Kay)

77. A Tree Grows In Brooklyn (Betty Smith)** (One of my all-time favorites!!)

78. The World According to Garp (John Irving)

79. THE DIVINERS (Margaret Laurence)

80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)

81. NOT WANTED ON THE VOYAGE (Timothy Findley)

82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)

83. REBECCA (Daphne DuMaurier)

84. WIZARD'S FIRST RULE (Terry Goodkind)

85. Emma (Jane Austen)

86. Watership Down (Richard Adams)

87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)

88. THE STONE DIARIES (Carol Shields)

89. BLINDNESS (Jose Saramago)

90. KANE AND ABEL (Jeffrey Archer)

91. IN THE SKIN OF A LION (Michael Ondaatje)

92. Lord of the Flies (William Golding)

93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)

94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)

95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)

96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)

97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)

98. A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE (Barbara Taylor Bradford)

99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)

100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

All the big news

So many blessings to report! I just love days like this. :)

First off, as most of you know, this past weekend was the much-anticipated First Weekend Without Abby and RWA Rita award ceremony. Many of you have been praying for us, that Abby would be alright, that my mom would be alright as she took care of Abby, that our trip to Dallas would go without a hitch. Well, y'all are mighty prayer warriors, because things could not have gone better. Granted I was crying inconsolably (no joke) when Mom took Abby Saturday morning, but we managed to get out of the house and to the airport much earlier than planned, which gave us time to grab some breakfast as well. Our flight, um, flew by--definitely didn't feel like we were in the air for nearly three hours--and got in twenty minutes early. Woohoo #1! Got down to the baggage claim and both our bags were coming 'round the corner. Woohoo #2! Got to the car rental place and there was no line and we got a nav system as we'd requested. Woohoo #3! Had no trouble getting to the Singers, where we were staying, and even had plenty of time to eat a leisurely dinner. Woohoo #4! God is so good.

We did have a little trouble figuring out where to park when we got to the ceremony, but it was quickly resolved and we got into the event without a problem. It was a bit uncomfortable, though, because everyone else had been there all weekend and knew each other and had been bonding through critique groups and workshops and whatnot, so we just sat in our row and kept to ourselves. The program was a little silly, but not terrible, and it was awesome seeing all these women be rewarded for all their hard work. The first award, called the Golden Heart, is given to an unpublished author who's trying to get published--they submit their manuscripts and they get critiqued by editors, which is an amazing opportunity for them to learn and improve and hopefully get their stuff sold. The Rita awards came after that, and Tamera Alexander did indeed walk away with the big gold statue, just as I predicted. But, though it's a cliche, it's true: it was a huge honor just ot be nominated. There were thousands of books submitted for this award; to be one of such a select group is a huge vote of confidence for me.

Afterwards we went to Cheesecake Factory for dessert and then back to the house. I didn't think I'd sleep well without Abby right next to me, but it turns out I slept for a solid 7 hours! I haven't done that since before I was pregnant! Man, did it feel good. :) Dan didn't get up until 10:30 so I was able to lounge and read and relax, which was lovely. It was so weird to have all that time to myself! When the Singers got back from church we all went out for lunch, and then they drove us around some really cool parts of Dallas--down Kennedy's motorcade route, around some mansion neighborhoods where folks like Ross Perot and the owner of the Dallas Mavericks live. Gorgeous places. After that we went back to their place and packed and talked until it was time to get the car back in order to only pay for one day's worth of rental. We had a ton of time at the airport, but DFW has tons of shops and restaurants, so it was actually kind of fun, like going to a mall but with planes outside. :)

Coming home all we could talk about was Abby. We missed her so much. She did fantastic, though--save for sleeping Saturday night, which she kinda didn't do. No meltdowns, though (Woohoo #5!), and Mom's body held up (Woohoo #6!) though I heard she went to the chiropractor today, poor thing. When we got home I literally ran to the door and through the house until we found her, along with my parents, playing in one of the bedrooms. Abby looked up, said, "Mama," handed me a Lego, and went back to playing. Much better than the angry, "Why did you leave me?!" meltdown I was expecting (Woohoo #7!) though I wouldn't have minded some spontaneous hugs.

When we got ready to go, we outfitted Abby in a new shirt we got for her--Woohoo #8 is written on the front:



Yes, that's right, come mid-March Abby will have someone else to boss around! Talk about a surprise. Though it wasn't at all planned, we're SUPER excited, of course, and Woohoo #9 is that Kyle and Kelli will be in the states from November-June, so they'll be able to be here, if not for the actual birth, at least sometime in the first couple months. Woohoo #10 is that, so far anyway, I'm not experiencing the protein aversion that had me on a carbs-only diet and which contributed to the 75 pound weight-gain during my first pregnancy, so despite the fact that I'm ravenous most of the time, at least I'm able to eat some more solid stuff. I have already gained a couple pounds, but I'm not anticipating the 10-pounds-a-month like last time; I think most of what I've already put on is from the lousy eating I was doing earlier in the month. As of tomorrow I'll be 5 weeks, and I'm going to start blogging at my old pregnancy blog again to keep the pregnancy stuff separate from this blog, so if you're interested in following the development of the newest Morrow, be sure to keep an eye out there. For those of you who are the praying type, please say one for myself and the baby--especially for this one to culminate in a natural birth and not another c-section. I'd really like to avoid that this time around if I can.

Well, that's all the news here. Guess I'd better go unpack!

Just keeps getting better

Okay, so yesterday I said the best part was that I didn't have to blow-dry it, but I was wrong. That's not the best part. The best part is that, when I woke up this morning, all I had to do was put the sides back in a barrette and I was done! Score!!

In other news...

My blog has been added to a blogroll of folks attending the Nation Romance Writers conference this month. If you're big into romance writing (or maybe just romance writers) check out http://bloggingnational.blogspot.com to see who else is writing about the experience. Since I'm only attending the award ceremony, I won't have info on any of the other aspects of the conference; these folks most likely will, and would be a great source for those of you considering attending in the future.

Have I mentioned lately how freaking huge Abby is getting? More specifically, her stomach. She looks pregnant, it's ridiculous. I'm guessing we're gearing up for one mor growth spurt--other that or we're going to have an obesity issue soon. I measured her height for the first time (as opposed to length like they do at the doctor's office--there's a difference, you know!) on her little Winnie the Pooh height chart. 31-1/4 inches, or 2'7-1/4" for those of you not used to converting. And 24 pounds, all of it concentrated on her little tummy. Her t-shirts are all getting tight around the middle and she has to wear her shorts and skirts on her hips.

Things are looking god for my current WIP. One house has already expressed an interest in making an offer, and more houses will be receiving the proposal this week and next. Now if I could just find some time to work on the thing...

And speaking of working on it, I started using Randy Ingermanson's snowflake method and retrofitting my WIP to fit with what the method was helping me come up with for the story. It's a fantastic tool; for any of you interested in writing but unsure of how to approach the organization of the story, I strongly encourage you to check it out at Randy's website. I've only gotten about halfway through the method and it's already helped me come up with plot points I hadn't thought of before. It's not going to help you be creative, but it is going to help you analyze your story.

Well, Abby and I are off to the farmer's market for some fresh yummy strawberries. It's a far drive for just one item, but SO worth it. Yum!