Celebrate Those Small Things

This weekly blog hop is sponsored by the amazing Lexa Cain, and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner from Writing Off the Edge and myself. 

What exactly are we celebrating?

Every week, wonderful things happen, tiny things, which make us smile. But as time grabs us up, we forget all about these moments as if they never existed at all. This is the chance for us to reflect back on those and remember that there are tons of things worth celebrating.

This week, I'm celebrating. . .

1) My son cooking dinner for us! It was a huge surprise. I stood at the stove with the recipe in front of me, and he suddenly came up behind me and pushed me aside saying, "I'm cooking tonight." Since I'd copied the recipe off of the internet with my chicken scratch, I needed to translate. But it was delicious.

2) Rocks! Rocks? Yes, rocks! I'm building a terrace garden, which includes a lot o' rock wall. Luckily, that's something we have tons of around here. So my husband, and I have been taking trips with the tractor and trailer down to the creek and moving rocks. I find the way they've been shaped and cut by the water so neat. (I'm getting a nice row of bruises on my thighs from lifting those heavier ones though.)

3) Wind chimes! My brother gave us one years ago, and it's been playing so nicely in the evenings lately.

What put a smile on your face this last week? Read a good book? Book a vacation? Meet some one for dinner or lunch? What are you celebrating?

Celebrate the Small Things

This weekly blog hop is sponsored by the amazing Lexa Cain, and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner from Writing Off the Edge and myself. 

What exactly are we celebrating?

Every week, wonderful things happen, tiny things, which make us smile. But as time grabs us up, we forget all about these moments as if they never existed at all. This is the chance for us to reflect back on those and remember that there are tons of things worth celebrating.

This week, I'm celebrating. . .


1) Valentine's Day! We had a lot of fun creating a Valentine's box with my daughter. The teacher sent out a note weeks ago that the parents should help their child build imaginative boxes.
My husband had a blast with this and let his inner engineer take flight.  The two towers on either side are sweet-tart-heart dispensers with a slide compartment...and so robust an elephant could stand on them. Well, not quite, but my hubs tends to build like that. 
Anyway, I put the basic thing together. My daughter decorated with pretty pink fun. And even my youngest son jumped in and made the factory sign. 

2) Chocolates from husband!

3) Weeding? That sounds ridiculous, but it's true. We've jumped to upper 60's/lower 70's and are supposed to stay there at least over another week. From what I understand, it isn't rare around here that lettuce and such is planted mid-February. So, it's time to get my terrace garden built and planted. Part of me is happy. But most of me is grumbling. I REALLY wanted a longer winter because when it's nice on a farm, the work load explodes. Can't I be lazy just a little bit longer? Please!!!!

4) Writing! That's flowing better this week. So yay to that!



And what about you? What put a smile on your face this past week? Staying dry? Staying warm? Basking in the sun? Get a big Valentine's surprise? Watch a good movie? What are you celebrating?

Celebrate the Small Things

This weekly blog hop is sponsored by the amazing Lexa Cain, and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner from Writing Off the Edge and myself. 

What exactly are we celebrating?

Every week, wonderful things happen, tiny things, which make us smile. But as time grabs us up, we forget all about these moments as if they never existed at all. This is the chance for us to reflect back on those and remember that there are tons of things worth celebrating.

This week, I'm celebrating. . .

1) Sunshine! It's makes the world seem so bright and warms the cheeks. I leaned against a fence post this last week after feeding cattle and simply enjoyed the warmth.

2) A new monitor! Well, new for me. My oldest son bought himself a new one and left his old one to me. Old = half a year in his book. But it's a big one (27 inch) and has a stand which lets it slide up and down or turn head over toes (well, if monitors had toes). Anyway, I can put two documents right next to each other and still read them! I'm a happy writer.

3) The chickens are laying more eggs. Finally. I find it frustrating to feed 24 chickens and MAYBE get 1 egg a day. Kind of makes me wonder why I even have them. But as long as they make up for it, I'll forgive them.

4) Broccoli cheese soup! I made a crock pot full this week with home-made Flat bread. Cream soups are one of my favorite comfort foods when the days are still a little chilly.


What about you? What put a smile on your face this last week? Get to play in the snow? Go swimming? Clean those windows? Catch a ray of sunshine? Finish your MS?

What are you celebrating?

Celebrate the Small Things

This weekly blog hop is sponsored by the amazing Lexa Cain, and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner from Writing Off the Edge and myself. 

What exactly are we celebrating?

Every week, wonderful things happen, tiny things, which make us smile. But as time grabs us up, we forget all about these moments as if they never existed at all. This is the chance for us to reflect back on those and remember that there are tons of things worth celebrating.

This week, I'm celebrating. . .


1) Online writing conferences and things! I don't participant in such things very often, so I was super excited to get on board for WriteOnCom this weekend. I also received a free voucher for a week long seminar on book marketing this past week. So, I've been soaking my brain full of information for the future. 

2) Chickens! I joined my parents at a small animal auction (for fun) this past week. My mother wanted to buy some chickens and ended up getting more than she'd hoped for. So I adopted four more. . .not that I really needed them. But yay to chickens, I guess.

3) Birds! They are gliding in again. So it looks like Spring isn't too far away. Actually, if the weather holds (and it appears it might), neighbors are telling me it will be time to plant lettuce and such in only two more weeks. 


And what about you? What put a smile on your face this last week? Go on a walk? Meet a friend somewhere? Find the perfect pair of socks? What are you celebrating?

IWSG - Bring out the Clowns!

A brand new year, and new breezes in the writing world. What a fresh IWSG!

This is a monthly blog hop created by the super stealthy and amazing Alex J. Cavanaugh. Writers are a species of their own and often misunderstood. This hop offers a safe place to seek support or offer it to others.

Go ahead and head on over here to find out more or jump on board!


My writing mood this month?

The circus is in town, and if I want to to perform, I'm going to have to start the hard, back-breaking work of pulling up that tent... organizing the performs...getting those animals calmed down...and the clowns???
Pft! You try to control a bunch of pie throwing clowns.

That's what I feel like this month.

One short story is warming in publication giddiness...I can already smell the cotton candy.
One MS is on the tight rope, being viewed by the ring master as to whether or not the world is ready to see the act.
Another short is being mended...hopefully, those stitches hold in time for the acrobats flight!
And yet another story has shown up at the gates, wanting a chance to join in on the fun..exactly the sort which might bring the audience to cheer.

It's down to a juggling act and lots of hard work. Will the circus take off? Will it run out of funds before the big day and have to postpone...shutdown? That's why this month, I'm screaming---bring out those clowns!


As to the question: Has being a writer changed me as a reader?

Big yeppers to that! As a reviewer, I read 195 books last year. I still get lost in the stories and fall in love with characters. BUT I see the mistakes. Not only grammar but pacing, plotting and bad descriptions. I've learned what works, and what doesn't (for me, at least, as a reader) I recognize and analyze the reasons right away. I've even thought of starting a series on my blog about it.

That's the good part. I could learn from this. I should know what to watch out for and improve my writing immensely.

Then reality hits - I know all of this, but that doesn't mean I can use the knowledge myself. Not completely. As a writer, it's impossible to step back far enough away from your work to be able to see these problems...even if you know what they look like. And it frustrates me to no end. This knowledge has made my inner editor a pathological psycho and all but strangled my writing. It's turned into an out-in-out war to get even one page written and not want to tear it up.

And this kind of ties in with my circus. I only wrote one new short story last year. Only edited the year before. Everything else...all bright new WIPs...were killed before they were born thanks to the inner editor psycho. But I'm pulling up that tent...fighting those stubborn elephants.

The show will go on.