Confessions Of A Hair-raising Writer MOM

Like most of you, I've had many times since I began Writer's Alley where life has been too crazy to blog, share important information, or just be silly. Seeing how I didn't connect with you last week, I felt I should at least check in and let you know what's going on.

image credit

Two weeks ago, I was called to a jury pool for jury duty, which axed my week in half. And then last week I had to fulfill my obligation by serving on, not one, but two separate jury trials. Needless to say between family (which included a snow day) and other life obligations, and the Easter holiday, I didn't accomplish much writing. I thought I'd at least get some reading done, but that didn't happen either. Social media devices are frowned upon while serving jury duty. Makes sense. I get it. 
Though I have served on a jury before, this past week was interesting. The folks I served with were all wonderful people. A few times the court officer didn't know if we were jurors or people attending a party conference. We really did get along. Everyone was polite and considerate of others' opinions. No one shied away from speaking up or sharing their thoughts for fear of condemnation or teasing. We definitely saw some evidence with different eyes, but we respected each other. 
There is hope for this world. 
I hope you have a great week. I'll be catching up on writing. Still working on book II of my middle grade series. Stay tuned next Monday when I'll share a new young adult story by Brynn Chapman, the author of BONESEEKER which I absolutely loved!  

IWSG~Winter Blues Making You Crazy?

More Participants Found HERE & a special
'thank you' to this meme's hosts 
Christine Rains, C. Lee McKenzie, and Tara Tyler. 

We all suffer from the winter blahs. The months of February and March drag on like a lame dog doing the dead-man's crawl across the Sahara Desert uphill both ways. 
Here in Maine, it's like endless gray. Lifeless. Dull. Wet. Gloomy. Filthy. And there's sand. And salt. 
Did I mention salt? The stuff that eats your car, scratches your interior floors, and stains everything white! Like we don't have enough white with the snow.
So what's a person to do? 

• Look on the bright side - close your eyes and picture a candle ... lit.

• Find the rainbow in the clouds - buy a colorful skein of yard, cut pieces into strands, and braid. Shoelaces work, too.

• See the glass half full - fill a tall glass halfway with water and then pour that into a smaller glass. If you use wine ... drink.

• Just smile - use red lipstick and a cutout of the Joker's mouth. Trace and bare it. No lipstick? See #3 above, only use a large rimmed glass and milk ... drink. Honestly, this one will probably make you laugh. 

• Count your blessings - collect all the out-of-place belongings others who live in your house NEVER take care of (plates, silverware, socks, underwear included), stuff into garbage bags, and store in a private place only you know about. When they discover their missing items, go to your private place, stare at the bags and laugh. I honestly have done this and it made me feel better.

If all that fails move to St Martin or someplace warmer. 
Any good cliches to add to my list of snark? The purpose of the IWSG is to share and encourage, posting on the first Wednesday of each month. You'll find writer doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Support and a common understanding spread throughout the group as many fellow writers can relate. Feel free to JOIN in anytime.

You Want To See Parent Trauma?

It's been a while since I shared a Sherism with you. So here's to one from my mommy files.

Now, as you read this please keep in mind that I am 1. no expert and 2. the mother of four children - both male and female, currently ranging in ages from 11 years old to 21 years old. I've experienced ... well ... as much parent trauma as the next guy. ;)

Some of you may recognize this image. It's of a restaurant owner from Portland, Maine - my home state and city I lived in while in college. You may have already heard about the incident linked with this image - this woman (said restaurant owner) yelled at a screaming child after the child's parents allegedly did nothing to control (or console, depending on how you look at it), her.
It's been on CBS & NBC News, all our state's larger newspapers and news programs, all social media, and even a subject of debate within Consumerist.com. But unbelievably, it's not on YouTube (or at least I couldn't find it). Thus I can't share the video feed with you. You can click on the links above to get that, though.
Communities at-large have numerous opinions about how this woman - running a business - chose to handle the situation. Some praises for her actions could be heard from the top of the Appalachian Trail. These voices claim it's about time someone took a stand against young children acting out in public - which is really a cry for their parents to set boundaries for their kids - aka Sherism #1. Other voices firmly condemn her for verbal abuse of a young child and crossing the line.
Now I'm not saying she was fully just in the manor with which she yelled at the young toddler. Nor am I here to judge the child's parents in any way, shape, or form. I do not know anything about these young people. But in general, there must be exercised decency and delicacy when bringing young children in public. 
Is there an invisible parental line in public in today's society?

I grew up in a small town within the confines of close-knit, nearby communities. No one would bat an eye if a child was scolded by an adult other than the child's parents. I'm not talking about yelling at a child to degrade him. But those times when mom and dad were either absent or distracted and didn't notice Little Jimmy stuffing a piece of candy in his pocket. In my youth, the adult would tell the child to put it back or even give a simple evil eye. And guess what? The child would comply. More importantly, the child learned that society is a whole and we are all in it together. Thus, if we all want to enjoy it, we must respect it. And the real kicker here is that the parents would thank the other adult for helping them out. 
It takes a village to raise a child. Yeah, that's where that probably came from. A village. Not an overly, abusive, condescending, belittling, or accusatory village. But a village that guides for the betterment of all.
I will not lie. In today's world, this social ideology is much harder to achieve. There is deceit and crime all around us. The news is the most depressing and negative entity out there, spreading the hate and discontent of the few instead of nurturing the connected concern for humanity among most. Stranger danger is a norm in our children's vocabulary. You can't ride your bike to the playground with your buddies anymore and make a pit-stop at the corner store. Not everyone is out for the betterment of another; sadly, most are not. And honestly, if tomorrow another adult bellowed at my child, my gut reaction would be to swipe at the person with my momma bear claws.
The key: don't allow yourself or your child to be in that situation - if you can help it. Give them the tools right from their beginnings and be there to exercise those tools for them when they can't. 
Parenting nightmares are well within my personal mothering lineage. Please, I have an ADHD kid with the high achiever let's-drive-myself-crazy gene, the Evil-Knievel kid with more broken bones and medical expenses then you want to know, the tomboy girl with a gift for athletics yet has suffered setbacks because of major foot-reconstructive surgeries on both feet, and the generation internet kid with no idea how to hold a conversation without a controller in his hand.  
Let me use my ADHD kid as an example. (BTW - he's a senior in college with a 4.0. Keep your chins up, ADHD parents.)
Child #1 was label ADHD, when the label was only two years old and most people knew nothing about it. I had people telling me that if I spanked my son often he'd eventually learn to listen. People just didn't get it. We could have beat him with a bat and it wouldn't have helped. His brain didn't work that way. 
Now let's gear this conversation to the incident above. Going in public with this kid for the first eleven years of his life was like going grocery shopping and bringing a pack of lions along. My head was on a constant swivel. My arms were windmills tugging, pressing, and keeping items on the shelves. He was always getting hurt or touching things.  
One day when he was two years old and still our only child, he and I went to Church alone. After struggling to keep him in the pew for over half an hour, feeding him Cheerios and reading him books, I was exhausted. The straw that ripped the coat off the camel's back was when he pulled a shoe off the lady in front of us and threw it. I knew Church was not for him. At least, not for some time. Why? Because it wasn't fair to the other people trying to spend time with God. I was a pretty faithful Catholic, so it pained me to stop going. But I had to adjust. So, I set a boundary.
Going out to a restaurant was unheard of in my family until he was nine years old. Before that, he couldn't sit in a seat at a table, on a stool at a bar, or in a booth. He'd go limp at a table and then slide beneath until my poor husband would have to crawl under there to pull him out. It was way too much work for us and it was too disturbing to other patrons. So, I set a boundary.
I could go on and on with these experiences as well as others from my motherhood arsenal. That would just be redundant, because, in the end, they all revolve around the main theme of this post - setting boundaries - Sherism #1. 
Setting boundaries for our children is not always pleasant, and it sure as heck is rarely convenient. Nonetheless, it MUST be done. Boundaries are teaching tools. There's nothing wrong with using them.  

National Apraxia of Speech Day 2014!

Imagine sitting in a room with a group of people. Conversation murmurs to your left. Laughter bubbles to your right. A lady shares a story about an amusement park ride she enjoyed during her last vacation. 
You shift in your chair. 
Another person chimes in and chuckles over the last county fair he went to, where he ate too much cotton candy and had the worse stomachache ever. You want desperately to tell everyone that your favorite ride is the Tilt-A-Whirl and that you love cotton candy, too. 
But you can't. 
That's what it's like for a child with Childhood Apraxia of Speech. They have so much to say, yet lack the ability to do so. 
Apraxia of Speech is a neurilogical disorder, where the pathways from the brain to the mouth muscles (approximately 100) are nonexistent, rendering the brain unable to send its messages for speech. Typically, these children are extremely bright and have a zest for learning. But in order for them to exercise that zest intensive therapy is needed to create those pathways from the brain to the muscles needed for speech. 
My youngest was diagnosed at age 22 months. We were extremely fortunate to catch it early. Lots of kids aren't diagnosed until they reach elementary school, causing delayed development. I've written about our family's experience before (published elsewhere), but here's a snippet of one of my articles I'd like to share: 

As a family, we dedicated ourselves to learning sign language and used amazing DVDs to do so. Once CJ was given his “Picture” book, he could hand us little images of his wants and needs. It was then that I finally understood what he had been telling me all along. 
Hearing CJ’s diagnosis being described as a neurological disorder could have crippled me. Instead, I collected research and questioned his two therapists on ways I could help him at home in addition to his therapy regiment. I searched magazines, the internet, and any other source to find pictures of everything under the sun. Shrinking the images and laminating them into a deck of cards made it easy to take to any ice rink or field my older kids were playing at. We would use car rides as therapy by flipping pictures to CJ and encouraging him to form the sounds. My older children helped, too. Slowly we saw improvement.CJ had lots to say. He only needed help finding his voice.
My greatest joy was the first time I heard him say, “Mama.” (Full article can be found HERE.)

Recently, Apraxia of Speech Awareness was awarded its very own national calendar day ~ May 14th. I couldn't be more thrilled. 
Let's help all children everywhere find there voice. 
(NOTE: CJ is currently a bright and thriving ten year old. He stopped therapy a few years ago and loves playing ice hockey, soccer, video games, and reading loads of books. He's one of my beta readers for my MG novel.)
I'd be honored if you'd share this post and help raise awareness for Apraxia of Speech. This is a disorder that, with therapy, children can overcome and live long, healthy, productive lives. 

The Zest & Zeal of Motherhood ~ A to Z Challenge

My A to Z Challenge.  What I'm doing: OFF the CUFF ~ Basically, I'll be keeping posts short and writing about whatever moves me~themes, inspirations, causes, and silliness. I'll stick to my normal posting of Mondays & Wednesdays (possibly an occasional other day), highlighting the appropriate letter for said day. But I will visit blogs throughout the week. I am looking forward to reading your words!

So I thought I'd exit this year's A to Z Challenge with some ZESTY humor to show you that my almost twenty-one-years of motherhood has not stolen all my ZEAL. 

First up ~ The Angst of the Toilet Seat *** Set the scene: We only have three kids ages 7, 3, & 1 at the time. I'm putting 1-year-old for a nap and hear a bellow from the half bathroom. #2nd child--who's head is still too dang big for his short body--was on the toilet and leaned forward to play with his huge firetruck that he brought into the bathroom with him. His gigantic head was too heavy for him to hold up, and its weight pulled him towards the floor. Only ... um ... his 'thingy' got stuck between the toilet seat and the porcelain, stretching the freaking thing out. You should have seen it. It was bleeding, black and blue, and ... OMGosh ... try explaining that one to your pediatrician. (NOTE: Luckily for us, our pediatrician knew our 2nd child well. His mischievousness had already gotten him into so much physical trouble, he was a regular in her office. I could write a book about him alone. We dubbed him Denis the Menace.)

Second for today ~ High Aspirations  *** Mom: "What do you want to be when you grow up?" 4th child/10yr-old: "I want to be the forty-year-old creeper in the basement designing video games and living off YouTube."

More Participants

Lastly ~ Youngest Child's Broadened Mind *** Set the scene: I'm in the kitchen preparing dinner. The time is during the last presidential race. A political commercial airs. It's message is encouraging voters to head out to the polls to vote.  4th Child: Mom? Mom: What? 4th Child: Are those polls like stripper poles? 

I have many, many more Sherisms to share with you from my twenty years of motherhood. So stay tuned! It's been a pleasure sharing this year's A to Z Challenge with you. 
Until next time .... Have any interesting stories either you or your kiddos have done? 

I do have one other surprise for today, although it doesn't have to do with the A to Z. Those who know me know I LUV supporting my fellow author. A while back, I released a review for KEEP YOU FROM HARM by the talented Debra Doxer. Today is her cover release day for book II in the series. I just had to share for her. 

ADD to your GOODREADS

To Have and to Harm (The Remedy Series) by Author Debra Doxer  Cover Design: Okay Creations  Release Day: JUNE 10TH 
 About the Book: She kept everyone from harm, except herself… Raielle’s life was shrouded in secrets. Her power was a secret and so was her past. When she came to Fort Upton, everything changed. She discovered her family, and she found the boy who would own her heart forever. But it couldn’t last. Knowing so little about her power nearly destroyed her. She had to leave and break both their hearts.
Now she’s back in California, and she doesn’t have to hide who she is anymore. But there is no relief in that because she’s drowning in regret. She knew it would take a miracle or a sin to save her, and there was no miracle. Her survival came at too high a price. She found her father, but she can’t go back to Lucas until she finds redemption. 
 She saved him. Then she left him… 
She came out of nowhere and changed him forever, then she disappeared and left him reeling. Her whole life, she never had anyone who really loved her. Until him. Did she think he wouldn’t come for her? Did she believe she wasn’t worth it? 
 Lucas leaves everything behind to follow Raielle. When he finds her, she’s a pale shadow of the girl he remembers. Her power is betraying her and so are the people around her, but one thing hasn’t changed. She selflessly wants to save the world, and he just wants to save her. 
With more secrets to uncover and dark truths to face, Raielle and Lucas must make sacrifices to be together again. But in the end, will those sacrifices bring them closer together or tear them apart? When he’s forced to make the ultimate sacrifice, will she turn her back on everything she believes in to save him again? 
~ This book is intended for mature readers due to sexual situations and strong language. ~ 
 And now, what you’ve all been waiting for!!! Debra is give away a signed set of her Remedy Series! Enter here: a Rafflecopter giveaway

OH, The Travels My Motherhood Reading Has Gone ~ A to Z Challenge

My A to Z Challenge.  What I'm doing: OFF the CUFF ~ Basically, I'll be keeping posts short and writing about whatever moves me~themes, inspirations, causes, and silliness. I'll stick to my normal posting of Mondays & Wednesdays (possibly an occasional other day), highlighting the appropriate letter for said day. But I will visit blogs throughout the week. I am looking forward to reading your words!

READING: A SHERISM

For those who are already Alleywalkers, this is old news. So I'll address this introduction to our newbies or visitors: I'm the mother of four children--current ages of 20, 17, 15, & 10. Each developed the skill of reading in a different way. Needless to say, I've had my share of hands on experience when it comes to reading with children and getting them to read. 
So I decided to share with you my Sherisms aka personal experience/advice for reading with children. My wisdom is not scientifically based. It hasn't undergone some litmus test, either. The chart I've created below is from my motherly experiences and mine alone. I do, however, believe it's quite accurate and could apply to many. 

PLEASE CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE SO YOU CAN READ

I designed this chart using Scrapple. As promised, I'm working on a post describing the programs uses - COMING SOON ...

If you have children or work with them, can you relate to one of my five titles above? 

More Participants

Chatting in Strands of Thought

On Wednesday the delightful Kai Strand released a post, and guess what? It had some secrets in it about me. See where I've been, where I feel I'm headed, and what top three pieces of advice I'd give to every child growing up today. Just click HERE to visit me there.

And if you haven't already, ENTER my giveaway! Spreading the word is still appreciated. There's still thirteen days to enter. Thanks so much and have a fangtabulastic Featherbrained Friday! 

Enjoy your weekend!!

A Spoonful of Raspberries

I contemplate what to eat for breakfast.

Cereal? Nay... Oatmeal? On occasion. Yougart with fruit? I really like that. But it has to have granola in it. I need some crunch.

So that's what I'll start you off with today. Fruit. A spoonful of writerly raspberries, plump and red and juicy along with my summerly adventures sprinkled with a bit of new-found wisdom.

I'm what you would call a self-diagnosed spazz. I have lots of energy, which means I must keep busy or I'll lose what sanity I have. But even my spastic personal needs balance. This is something I learned over the summer.

As some of you know, I took July and August off from blogging, with the exclusion of a few posts to help fellow authors promote themselves and their new releases. Here's where the birth of new wisdom comes into play. Although I did write three nonfiction pieces that were published in Martial Arts Magazine, I backed off from all other writing all together. I took what I'd call a Life Sabbatical.

Living in our environments while dreaming outside our surroundings to create fantastical worlds for our stories is vital to a writer's life. I'd forgotten how to simply LIVE, thus tap into that writerly place. With four children, I've had to be scheduled up to the gills in order to tend to their needs, wants, and goals. And I've been good at it; but being so regimented has clouded that natural fervor and childlike trust in living.

For the past eight weeks, I've taken life as it comes, letting it fill me with new passions and hopes. I've attended high school boys summer soccer and ice hockey games, and U14 girls soccer games. I read a ton of YA at requests from publishers (reviews will be forthcoming), went to a water park, took long walks with my daughter, helped my youngest rollerblade, attended a wedding and lots of high school grad parties, and barbecued a ton, enjoying all I've been given. I've even been working on my official author website. It's felt like a right of passage for me, the writer. Kind of like preparing my oldest son for college. He'll be attending classes, growing and learning, just as he's done since he began kindergarten. Only now he has different convictions and purposes.

Same goes for me. Most of you are aware of my good news about receiving offers for my YA book and signing with a fabulous agent. I'm excited to be on this new road in my writing career and I'm thrilled you'll be there with me. I'll still be writing, reading, and editing, only with different convictions and purposes. Oh, and please be patient with my Writers Ally site. From time to time you'll see changes and widgets disappearing. I'll be relocating some of the information here to my new website, which I hope to launch sometimes this fall. Stay tuned for my bigger-than-a-shopping-mall giveaway beginning Monday the 10th!!

I've missed you, and I'm so glad to be regularly blogging again! Looking with high hopes to what this Fall brings me and each of you!!

Never SURRENDER Blogfest

According to Dictionary.com, the word surrender means:

• to yield (something) to the possession or power of another.
• to give up, abandon, or relinquish (comfort, hope, etc...)
• to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another.
• (without an object)  to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield.

By today's standards, my husband and I were married young--he being almost 22yrs old and myself 3 weeks shy of 21. We didn't need to get married. He was building a house and wanted it to be our house. Well, coming from a strict Catholic family...'Nuff said. Shortly after that discussion, he asked me to marry him.

Fast-forward almost nine years. There we were, knee-deep in financial and household responsibilities plus three kiddos: a 9 year old, an almost 6 year old, and a 4 year old. We get pregnant again - The ins and outs of how our fourth little one came to be and how that pregnancy almost took both our lives can be found HERE. But he did finally arrive. 

In our human ignorance and already raising three children we figured we'd seen and experienced it all. We were wrong.

Our youngest Caleb-Jared (CJ for short) was born with a True Knot in his umbilical cord. The most powerful way I can describe what that means is sharing with you what the doctor said to me in that moment: This baby should be stillborn. And at birth, CJ was lifeless. Nothing.

But yes, he started breathing, and obviously we were relieved, only it wasn't over. He also was born with a birth-defect; a hypospadias. (Long story short, it has something to do with his urethra not growing long enough. Feel free to look it up.) This meant he needed major reconstructive surgery at 12 months old--the most successful time to preform this kind of surgery. Just so happened, the pioneer in this field of medicine lived only an hour and a half from us. 

Top that, the poor kid was colic for about 4 months and never slept through the night until he was 20 months old. Yes, you read that correctly. 20 months. It was hell. But there was more to come. 

Just after his surgery, I began to notice he had difficulty making the normal sounds my other children had at his age. I kept watch, took notes, and talked to his pediatrician. Eventually CJ was tested. For what, you ask? The first obvious diagnosis--some sort of mental retardation. Seriously? was all my husband and I could think. We didn't have to have a fourth child. As a matter of fact, I had to have major surgery in order to be able to get pregnant again so we could possibly have him. (Again, it's explained more HERE.)

CJ passed every test with flying colors. Then he had x-rays taken of his neck, throat, and head. Doctors were looking for a blockage or something else to operate on. Finally, a speech therapist was called in. BINGO. At 22 months old, CJ was diagnosed with Childhood Apraxia of Speech--a neurological disorder where the pathways from the brain to the mouth muscles are  non-existent. 

CJ with Josh, his oldest
brother, at his
First Communion 

For the next three years, my little guy went through therapy three times a week. And he never wavered. He went on to elementary school, where he continued to receive therapy. Today, he's an amazing 8-yr-old boy, who was discharged from his speech services last Fall and was recently asked to become a student of our elementary school's STRETCH program. He's one of the top academic students in his class. He was so proud to be considered one of the smart kids, I couldn't help but smile.

CJ never surrendered to anything that came his way, so neither could I. And I never will.

Thank you, Elana, for asking us to do this. Sure, I cried the entire time I wrote this but who cares.

For more of Elana Johnson's brain child Never SURRENDER Blogfest, click the highlighted text.

Pinterest Reflection

Yesterday I was up over on Oasis for YA. Mind taking a gander over there and sharing your thoughts about the latest, greatest social media time-sucker??

No. Serious. I think I made a few good points on how a writer can use Pinterest to reflect and find inspiration.

AND for all of you who are or know a woman like this ... 

... raise your hand and leave a comment, sharing something silly, funny, or downright weird about motherhood that you've experienced. 

~Happy Mother's Day!!~

Naptime

Sharing some motherly wisdom using the letter N.

When I (we) brought our first child home from the hospital, it didn't take me long to realize how important nap time was to him. As he grew older, I realized his nap times were even more important to me.

Once a newborn grows from infancy and into toddlerhood--meaning fully mobile without an off button--even catching a break to go to the bathroom is tough to get. So I learned to cherish my son's naps. It gave me the opportunity to catch up on housework, talk on the phone, or actually take a shower.

But once child 2, 3, and then 4 came along, nap time became null-n-void for me. It didn't matter that baby 4 and child 2 were napping. I still had child 1 and 3 to contend with, plus housework, phone calls, and organizing bills. Showers were few and far between for me for a few years. (I think there is a span of about four years where few photos can be found of me. lol) During those years, anyone aiming a camera at me did it at their own risk.

The other thing about nap times with multiple children is that the older children usually have activities that interrupt the younger ones' naps. It could be a sports activity or simply picking up the older child from preschool, which in most places is half-day. Nap time became nothing but a pain for me, totally stressing me  out.

CLICK to access the
other A to Z participants.

Mother-Writer Lesson: don't stress. The baby, as well as the older children, will adjust. Life is life, which must be enjoyed at every moment.


Writer Moms & Dads out there, what has been your experience with naptime?

(Psst...I totally spaced that this week is my kids' spring vacation from school. Sadly, I won't be able to post again until Friday. Have a great week and see you then!)

Deja Vu Blogfest: Inspiration

Do-over.
Repeat.
Second chance.

Three terms which can mean the same.

Today is a cool day. Bloggers all over the blogosphere are posting past posts that either were loved by their readers, or they felt didn't get the attention deserved. Thanks for this brain child goes out to Cruising Altitude, Katie Mills, Lydia Kang, Nicole Ducleroir.

I could have chosen many posts, but I thought this one could double as a Christmas message of being thankful and recognizing our blessings, hopefully putting a smile on your faces. I heart you all.

Originally posted December 8, 2010, R U an Inspiration?


Have you ever noticed how much we writers discuss what inspires us? I read post after post, as I'm sure you do. Inspiration can be found anywhere ~ while at a stop light or in the grocery store, in music and nature, or in the genuine smile of a child.



But are you an inspiration? Do you inspire others? I want to share a personal experience I recently had with my newly-turned seven-year-old son, CJ.


(Yeah, that was him this past Halloween. He was originally supposed to be a zombie, but everywhere he went people kept calling him Edward. Hah... He was like, "Ma, who's Edward?" Oh my little Cullen boy.)


The hubs and I went to CJ's parent/teacher's conference. Granted, we were LATE...Uh-hum...a week late. Yup, I completely spaced out the Wednesday we were originally scheduled. His teacher is wonderful, and let us reschedule. For the sake of this little story, let's call her Mrs. P.


When we first arrived for the conference, Mrs. P. looks at me and says, "Man, is he a reader! And wow, we have quite the little writer on our hands."


I acted a bit surprised, but not fully. He'd recently been using more paper in our house than usually, and had been asking me how to spell this word and that word. Of course, he seemed to always ask while I was writing, so I'd answer him but never inquired what he was doing.


Mrs. P. proceeded to tell us about a conversation she recently had with CJ.


Mrs. P. said, "CJ, I just found out something about your mom."


"What?" CJ asked.


"Your mom's a writer."


A bright smile broke through his blush. He said, "Yup."


"Is that why you like to write so much during class?" Mrs. P. asked.


He nodded his little head, and said, "Ah-huh, want to see?"


CJ then rushed to his cubby and pulled out his backpack. He ambled back to Mrs. P's desk with a handful of papers, which he laid out for her to see. He'd been writing little stories and lots of them. One or two sentences, but to him they were the world.


Here's a few:


Giraffes - by CJ Giraffes have long necks. They eat leaves off the trees.


The Monkey - by CJ The monkey likes bananas because they are yummy.


The Cat - by CJ The cat was licking his paws because his paws were dirty.


Seals - by CJ The seals go to get food. It takes over 3 months.


The Cows - by CJ The cow helps people survive because they produce milk.


The Fox - by CJ Where is the Fox? He is in the cave. (Illustration)


Now by reading those, you can tell he's a reader. (I typed them just how he wrote them.) I have no idea how he's such a good reader. I used to sit with my older three kids and read every night. I'm lucky to get two times a week to read with CJ, and one of those times is probably off the cereal box. 


BUT...this one did me in. Mrs. P. displayed this story on the wall of his classroom. It made me cry.

Yeah, Mom writes about werewolves.

I hadn't even noticed how my time, energy, and hard work had been noticed by my seven year old. I only new my older three kids noticed my work when it interfered with taking them to a practice or running around for project supplies - (or when I forgot to buy more school snacks - Bad Mom). 


I surely didn't realize how deeply I was influencing my youngest guy. (Yeah, I'm crying right now.)


It's all good. I am so blessed. AND a quick 'SHOUT-OUT' to my new followers!! Thank you!


Have you paid attention to how your writing might inspire others around you? Share with me, so I'm not the only sap out here. ";-D


December 16, 2011
PS: I won't be blogging much today. I, well...I'll tell you on Monday. Just wish me luck. THX!

The A-Z Challenge is ICY

I'm going for simply today. When thinking about the letter I, Ideas and Inspirations first came to mind. I've written many posts about what inspires our writing. I'm kind of a sap like that. I've also explored where ideas come from and how to formulate them. (Gosh, love it when I sound smart. Trust me; it's all a facade.)


But there's one 'I' word that melts my heart above all others. Ice. I.C.E.

Son #2, Jake, helping out our youngest, CJ.

I am an Ice hockey mom. It's one of those labels that describes who I am as a person. Other moms out there know we wear many hats. We are tagged with many titles. This is one I am proud to wear.

My dad was a youth hockey coach back in the days when most rinks were outside. When a local rink was built, hockey practices were usually before the crack of dawn and games where at the same ungodly hours. My younger brother played. So basically I was a rink rat.

Nothing changed as I moved into Motherhood.

It was only natural for me to introduce my children to the game of ice hockey. And yes, they all love it. Devotion to my kids and ultimately the game has helped mold the person I am today. I've sacrificed much--and yes, have been frozen on many occasions. For me, it's all been a part of growing-up-Sheri.

And if you take a gander over to Adventures That Score, you'll find Kris Yankee--another hockey mom!

Links to other participants

Do you have an activity or family tradition so ingrained within your psyche that it's influenced who you are as a person? How can we as writers achieve this kind of depth with our characters?

Lil'Devil Turns 14

He crawls on hands and knees, quietly casing the room. The door closes behind him, left just ajar...just in case. Slowly, he stalks the crib, knowing what lies inside. The smell, the softness, the lull of each baby breath lures him nearer. A plush stuffed elephant catches his eyes. The gray color is just as he remembers it, one ear flapping over. Reaching for it, he flicks the trunk and grunts, irritated. It's all too familiar. He presses on.

The wood of the crib is solid. A stable place for a babe to lay her head...one would think. His stubby fingers cling to one post. He pulls himself to stand just enough to see the snuggled image before him. The wave off his eyelashes is faint, but his blue eyes sparkle, deviously ready to strike. His thick lips pull into a grin. His tongue rolls out like a shade, draping over his bottom lip. He sputters. Saliva pools in his mouth. Speckles of spit pepper his cheeks and outstretched arm. Excited, he accidentally shakes the crib. The teeny lump under the blanket stirs. He squawks. And to his delight, the baby cries.

Out of nowhere, long slender fingers attached to strong hands lift him off the carpet. His chubby legs dangle in midair, the scintillating blue of his eyes now fading to a pale fear as they peer into the unexpected abyss of Mommy's big, scary, and angry blue eyes.

Oops, she caught me waking up baby sissy, Kate. Crud, Jake thinks as Mommy's lips flutter up and down, saying words he doesn't understand...but he just heard earlier this morning.

Did I get'chya???

Summer '10

We celebrated child #2's 14th Birthday yesterday. It's still amazing to me that he's grown so old. He came into this world at 2:02 in the morning like a lion and has never stopped roaring. He's full of life and ambition, and has a loyal heart just like his dad. As much as he's tested me, he's made me laugh...and made me proud.

So here's a flashback of my devious little boy.

Can U C it in his eyes?

Big brother Josh giving advice, "Mom said
'No touch, Jakie.'"

Caught again...

OH, yes, she see's me...I'm
touching it anyway.

Does she see me?

Did mommy say to stop jumping
on this book that makes noise or 
jump more?? I'll go for more...

IT's hard to make his b-day special. 
Always feels like we rush it, being six
days before Christmas.


I wanted him to know that every moment
he's given us has been noticed, and yes...
ARCHIVED! *Mom winks, thinking of
senior video material in five years because
he's given Mom plenty.*

HAPPY 14th BIRTHDAY to my Magical, Mystical, Mischievous boy who lights up everyday with his grin cocked to the side, his challenging glares, and his teasing taunts. Oh yeah, and thanks for all my gray hairs!

Love Mom.

So tell me. Do any of you have children or close relations with birthdays close to a holiday? How do you manage to make it special?