Ready for July and a Redesign

Soon this blog will look different.
I am working on a redesign for the blog and a more concrete tie-in with my  website.
A one-stop shop for everyone who wants to catch up with what's going in, find out what I'm working on, and conversations about good reads.
At least that's the hope.
In the meantime here are a few brief updates:

Summer is sadly moving fast. Already it is July and I was in a store the other day where the employees were putting out notebooks and backpacks. It's too much already.

I'm currently reading The Girl on the Train. I'm enjoying it although I'm about half way through and I think I have figured out the ending. I'll have to let you know if I'm right but there are still lots of pages left and I'm sure all kinds of developments will still come that will make me change my mind. That's what good books do.

Summer has been spent so far doing a few things with our kids: A Twins game, two days of a garage sale and a movie outing this afternoon. Audrey and Lucy (the grands) keep us hopping and laughing at all of the things they are figuring out and learning how to do. They make us laugh every single day.

We hit up one of the big music festivals so far with some friends and that turned out to be a great weekend.. Country music isn't Kirk's favorite type of music but he was a good sport and we had a good time. 

We spend lots of time with my father-in-law and Kirk made some voluntary changes in his job this past winter that we're still getting used to.

 I'm always excited to get writing assignments and I have a few more of those on tap.
I like what I do because I get to learn all kinds of things and meet wonderful people that I might not get a chance to otherwise. I just wrote a wonderful piece about a lady named Crystal Clancy for Central Minnesota Women. She shared her experience with postpartum depression and touched my heart. I'm glad to be able to share her story so that others can see that they are not alone.
I also just finished an article for Her Voice that will come out in a few weeks on a local 14-year-old jiu-jitsu student who has succeeded at the national level. What an inspiration she is for other young girls.I was so impressed by her confidence and how humble she remains for someone her age.
It was a treat to meet both of these gals. I hope people enjoy both of these stories.
I have some other pieces coming up as well in various periodicals and some things that are assigned for the near future and even some for the winter already.
There are also a few personal projects I've finished that I'm going to try to hit publishers with as well this fall.

The Quillmasters writer's group is up and running once again at the Jessie F Hallet Memorial Library in Crosby. We meet the third Tuesday of the month at 10 a.m. Please join us if you dabble in writing at all or aspire to start your own career or hobby in front of the keyboard.We are looking to assemble a lively and inspirational group of writers.

My friend, Cathi, and I have taken some awesome classes held over in Staples that were offered by the Five Wings Art Council. There is a break over the summer but they will resume in September but they are targeted for artists of all kinds, including writers, and we have found them to be very informative. I've used all kinds of the information from them already. It has been wonderful getting to know other people from the area that are so talented and learn more about the arts that they are passionate about. The classes cover a variety of useful topics so please look them up on their website if you are interested.

Keep an eye out for my own updated Website and blog. I hope to have both up and running for real  before fall but for now I will continue to update this one more regularly in this present format. 

Enjoy summer!  Read good books! (I welcome suggestions if you read something yourself that you're excited about.) I will let you know what I'm reading next. I have three possibilities sitting next to me on the desk.
Happy July.

Oh happy day

It's May. Beautiful, wonderful, sun-shiny May. And I'll take it.
Rain this week? I'll take that too.

What a wonderful ointment spring can be to the soul.

Made our first trek to Boy River last weekend for the year too - which felt wonderful also.
Oh, and this happened....

I have a feeling it will happen again.  Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Fa! La! La! and Ho! Ho! Ho! – Egg Nog,.. Lefsa… Mistletoe.

Tis’ the season for holiday cheer.  The presents are wrapped and the kids are all here!!

It’s a busy time of the year, these few months.  Everything seems to happen at once.

The Vikings are stinking. There’s some hope for the Wild –  The carols sound pretty and the weather’s been mild.

Procrastination hit me hard this year.  Christmas seemed far off - And then Bam! It was here.

I still haven’t baked and I’m only now writing… This letter of bountiful, Christmas glad tidings.

Kyle came home in the middle of May – And worked for the city all summer, each day.

He went back in the fall to electrician school.  He likes it, he says, and the classes are cool.

He’s getting hours on break and he’s making some green. And seeing Cierra every chance in between.

Kirstin and Ben are buried in bins – They just bought a house and are still moving in.

It’s here in Baxter not too far of a jog - to the new home of the couple, two kids and their dog.

She works at our hospital as an RN- The ambulance makes a great gig for Ben.

Lucy arrived here the tail end of May - She’s learning to do some thing new every day.

She’s babbling and sitting and tasting new chow. She’s getting more fun every day for us now.

And Audrey – oh Audrey! She’s a crazy, sweet girl. She has added such joy and new fun to our world.

She talks up a storm and climbs like a pro. Every day we’re surprised at the new things she knows.

Kayla is still a big city girl. She works down in Eagan and her free time’s a whirl.

She plays hockey and softball for something to do. And this year she added something else new.

She hits the lanes each week for a night – of some rad bowling action and her game is real tight.

We all get excited when she comes home again. She likes her job and she has lots of friends.    

For the Fourth of July, Kirk and I took a pass. Booked a trip with some friends and traveled First Class.

“This is the way to fly!”  I exclaimed…and then vowed to have a few drinks on the plane.

A sip in the air at 6 a.m. sounded fine!  I had one, then another, and then mmmmaybe some wine.

I was enjoying the flight – as well as the perks… Until, a Mimosa, landed all over Kirk.

So it no longer matters what method I fly. Kirk says all of my travels, henceforth, will be dry.

We went to Key West with our friends and their son, we checked out the sights and had six days of fun.

We rented a house that sat right on the blue; with a pool and a tiki bar, and one breathtaking view.

I stay busy each day and sit at a screen, writing copy on-line and for magazines.

I interview people and share what they say; And keep Audrey and Lucy, too, on some days.

This fall Kirk took care of a bum right-side shoulder –Just one more sign that we’re both getting older.

He stepped down at his job to slow down the pace. And take a breather from the crazy, rat race.

More time for hunting for fishing and friends; More time for grandkids and some down time again.

That’s it in a nutshell, that’s all that we know. And who cares if there’s any Christmas snow?

I’ll still hum with carols and open some gifts, and live in the moment and all of this bliss:

Kids that are here, and babies that coo - and everything we have been able to do.

May your Christmas be jolly and your hearts filled with glee. And a Happy New Year for 2015!!

Love, Sheila and Kirk

Mulling over my options

Since I work from home people often wonder what I do all day. Which is crazy because I "work" from home.
And so this time of year assorted family members also wonder why groceries aren't bought, the Christmas shopping list isn't completed, said gifts from the list aren't wrapped, the stocking stuffers aren't gathered and ready to stuff into stockings and why the house isn't immaculate at the end of every day (well that last one is just me).
And I don't really have an answer for any of that other than writing takes a lot of time and so does everything else.
I read a quote recently that said "Being a writer is like having homework every single day for the rest of your life." But explain that to anyone else who doesn't do it.
So here I am today teetering back and forth between writing the Christmas letter my husband asked whether or not was finished or working on other writing that I actually have to complete at an agreed time in exchange for a paycheck.
Or, you know... wiling away a little time on Facebook and Pintrest and then leaving the house to actually work on some more of that shopping that has to be done.
What would Erma or Jen do? (Bombeck and Lancaster that is. Oh, never mind, I think I know what Jen would do. I'm already warming up the car.)
But, keep an eye out for that Christmas letter. 

Falling

I've never really thought much about fall before
But this year for some reason I have realized it might be my favorite season of them all.
I've long been a lover of spring in fact.
Because I hate the winter so much spring has always been a welcome end to snowy roads and months of captivity indoors.
This year I have a long list of books I am ready to read and a notebook full of story ideas that need to get on paper. And Netflix, wonderful Netflix, means I might not ever have to leave the house other than for work outings. This is going to be great.
Besides, fall also signals the end of the water season in Minnesota. Since water isn't a place I long to be it's nice when everyone else comes in off of it and joins me on shore also.
Besides, by the time we're getting rid of the last of the Christmas wrappings everyone will be heading back onto the lakes anyway - this time in cars and trucks and on ATVs and snowmobiles to try their hand at winter fishing.
That's Minnesota.

Another perk of fall, besides the pop of color that surrounds this time of year, is Halloween.
Because it's all so suspenseful and thrilling.
Besides the costumes and the fun involved it's always a crap shoot to see how the weather might be. And no matter what the forecast calls for you'll never know how it might really be until 24 hours before. 
October 31st will either signify the beginning of a long, snowy winter and the neighborhood children will come calling in heavy jackets and mittens or it could be warm enough to let them shred the jackets all together and go  door to door in costumes alone.
Every year is different.

Changes are also coming to our home this year as well. Big things a little at a time.
I will fill you in very soon and after that you will notice my updates coming a lot faster as we adjust to a new pace of life.
Fall. Beautiful fall.
 

A gasp a gulp and a grimace

The older I get the more I realize what a wuss I am about certain things.
I'm not a great flier so for decades I just avoided doing it. 
But now I realize that I love a good get-away and I hop on a plane when the situation calls for it. (A good stiff drink before take-off  helps.)

And I still hate the water. That has never changed.

Last week we spent the week in the Florida Keys. (More about that in a separate post soon.) Apparently I slept during the Florida part of geography at Cherry High School because I envisioned Key West being in the neighborhood of Miami. (You know, actually connected to the rest of the United States.) SO not true.
The rest of you might know this but it turns out those are seriously surrounded by water. This gave me something to mull over for months before the trip once I was enlightened as to their true location.
 
Then two of my deepest fears were seriously combined when my husband, who sat next to the window of the airplane (I....just....couldn't)  kept commenting on the ocean we were flying over for miles and miles and miles and miles.

While we were in the Keys the opportunity arose for us to take a drive during the sunrise to Key Largo. (Whaaaaat?!?!?! Key Largo?? Shut the front door! )

But then I remembered how proud those locals are about there being only one road from Miami to Key West and we were renting a property somewhere in the middle of it. And I had already heard about the one, huge, unthinkable obstacle that stood between me and Key Largo.
After thinking over all of the pros and cons, including mapping out the one-and-only route to get there, I knew I could never forgive myself if everyone else drove to Key Largo and I stayed at the rental.

So we set our alarms for 5:30 in the morning, and I went.
Gulp!   OVER THIS!

  

For seven miles.

Twice.
Once there and once back.

Remember how you held your breath when you were little to get through tunnels?
Turns out that works if you do it off and on for bridges that extend over miles of deep water too.
And I can still barely look at this picture.
But I have been to Key Largo.

What are some of your fears?  Have you faced any lately? What worked to get you through it? (Snakes, even harmless ones, is another of mine and I have no plans to face that one. )

The good, the bad, and the super ugly

Sometimes, when you live in Minnesota you can just be going along with a push mower, doing your husband a favor, and you'll spot one of these. 

 

Then you may, or may not, throw in the towel and go back into the house and send him a text on your cell phone that says, "Bring home whatever you have to from work tonight to rid the world of this." 

And since he knows you're probably serious, he does.

The real crying shame is the tree looked like this. Except for that. Minnesota is not for wussies.