I'm a Dog In-Betweener.

Does it make me a bad person that I dropped my puppy off at the groomer and I am kind of enjoying this peaceful time sans dog?

Hmmm...

I think there are three kinds of dog owners out there. People who love dogs, who "get" them and see them as true companions, who will roll all over the floor with them and not care if they get slobber all over themselves, THOSE are true "dog" people.

Then there's the other kind. They have a dog, and it's cute and everything, but it's a lot of work and it POOPS IN THE HOUSE and it stinks sometimes and they just want to shove it in a kennel or room and deal with it as they please.

Then there's the in-betweeners. Not necessarily DOG people per se, but enjoy little moments with the dog and play with them and keep them clean and happy. But they still hate poop in the house.

I think I'm an in-betweener. I am not a bona fide dog person. I am not a dog loather, either. I just sort of...have a dog. My kids LOVE the dog. My husband even loves the dog. I LIKE the dog. But I'm also her primary caretaker/groomer/walker/poop scooper, so I am happy to have the kids watch her when I need a break.

I think with dogs, you either have it, or you don't. I don't, but I try. Is that worth something?

Very Very Very Bad.

I've been a bad blogger lately. Very Bad. And a bad friend. VERY bad. So, since my mother begs me to blog so she knows what's going on in my life, I will try harder.

I was emailing a dear friend of mine this morning, and I realized it's really easy to get caught up in Life. Right now, my life is very busy. New puppy, kids in sports, kids in activities, demands on my time--I just don't spend a lot of time on the computer anymore, unless it is to write (ha, haven't even done that in a week). I have friends who juggle it All. They can do the Kid thing, the Writing thing, the Working thing, and not drop a ball. Me? I've never been very good at juggling. When I'm sailing on Home things, the writing suffers. When I'm sailing on the Writing front, the Home suffers. I've lamented this before. It's a tough thing to do.

One day at a time, right?

Thank you for all the well wishes on my book. As soon as I have a cover and more info to release, you know I will! I'm very excited about it and excited to move forward. Right now my days are filled with Puppy Poop cleanups and sports practices and trying to keep the Mt. Vesuvius Laundry Pile under control.

Juggling. Juggling...

So I Decided to Write a Novel...

and I sold it!

I am thrilled to announce that my YA novel "Unearthed" will be released in July 2012 by Cedar Fort. The designers are working on the cover art, so as soon as I get that, I will post it for all to see!

I'm tickled pink about it, I have to admit! Things are going to get busy in July, folks! Wooeee!!!

We Bought a Zoo.

Okay, we didn't really. It just FEELS like it lately. We have a new addition to our house--an 8-week old Maltipoo pup named Maggie. She is ADORABLE. Weighing in at 1.8 pounds, she is teeny tiny. We've had her a little over a week, and I have been seriously sleep-deprived with Crate training. But she's a doll in the crate at night, now, and other than some bad reactions to her shots, she's been a lot of fun.

I have been keeping a very very low profile lately, writing and dejunking. (It is the new year, after all!) I've sent more stuff to Goodwill and consignment shops. I'm waiting for the go-ahead on a special announcement, and will have it out soon! In the meant time, I hope everyone is keeping their New Year's resolutions! I can't believe this month is already almost over!!!

SLEEP Would Be Nice...

Stayed up until 1:30 am this morning, biting my nails over the Iowa Caucus results. Hubby and I finally went to bed before we knew, we were just too tired.

I think today will be a "power nap" day!

I think I have Elves in my house. Or Brownies. Which ones steal everything? So far they seem to be stealing batteries, hair elastics and clean underwear. Oh, and SOCKS. My boys refuse to wear white socks anymore. It's black ankle socks with Sperrys, and black longer socks with Basketball shoes. But white socks? I have about 947646 clean pairs clogging up their sock drawers, and they won't touch them. Unless they're wearing jeans. And even then, they hunt for DIRTY black socks before they will wear CLEAN white ones. UGH.

Those Brownies. They have been eating all the chips too. And leaving the lights on in the garage. And they use waaayyyyy too much toilet paper. I think they unroll it just for fun, and eat it. I swear they do.

It was a balmy 19 degrees this morning. My phone says it might snow. Well, I will believe that when I see flying monkeys coming out of my chimney, because it's going to be 45 degrees today, and the sky is clear as can be. Wishful thinking?

Time to take Thing Four to preschool. Run run run!

I Resolve...

New Year's Resolutions. 99% of people have them on January First. I, being the lazy person I am, tend to rarely make them, because I know I'll break them. Not right away, but usually after about two weeks, I'm done.

I changed tack this year. I figured I needed SOME resolutions, because 2011 ended up being a kind of a crappy year. I've resolved that 2012 will be better. As in MUCH better. I'm following my 45/15 rule. Monday through Saturday. It won't be easy. I'm making time to write EVERY day. (Yes, editing stuff I've already written does count!) I have a few other resolutions I won't share here, but I've made them, and I've resolved to keep them--as long as I can.

Why not?

We're getting a Maltipoo puppy in a couple of weeks. We're going to name her Maggie. I've already visited her, she is a sweet lil' two pound thing. I think fully grown she might only be about six pounds. We're talking teeny dog. I'm just not into big dogs, and if we're going to get one for the kids (who, by the way have been begging and begging and BEGGING for a long time) then a Maltipoo it is. Heck, I think her poop probably looks like rat turds. She's that little! ;-)

I hope all of you stick with your New Year's resolutions. Heck, I hope I stick with them! One can always hope, right?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful SAFE celebration last night! I have made many New Year's Resolutions (normally I don't, but I figured this year should be different) and one of them is to be better with this blog!

Happy 2012! This year is going to be a crazy, wonderful year!

Spelling Bee.

Want to hear something sad? My daughter told me last year she deliberately "flubbed" the spelling of her words so she would be out in the class spelling bee. Because it's not "cool" to be in the Bee.

SAD!!!

Well, my son, who is smart, and frankly doesn't care what people think of him, beat the entire 7th grade a few weeks back and will be in the school Bee today. So Good luck, Thing Two!

And now, the Running Around will continue...

Happy Birthday, Thing Three!

Thing Three, my sweet ray of sunshine, is eleven today! He was the baby for seven years, until Thing Four came along, but he's always been a ray of sunshine in our family. Love ya, buddy!

Today is pretty tightly packed. Lots and lots to do! I just hope I can fit it all in. I hope everyone has a lovely Monday!

Sick.

I have a sinus infection. Apparently you can get those from allergies. Who would have known? My allergies are so bad this time around, I am finally seeing an allergist. I can't handle the constant pain and pressure and stuffed-up-ness. And I know that's not a word.

Misery. I hope everyone has a good weekend.