A Silly Thing

You guys! For, like, a week I've been worried about something. Something small and easily discoverable, but if discovered to be true it would become something big and stupid. So I've avoided discovering it. I'd rather worry that I messed up than know I messed up. Wouldn't you? Because then there is always the chance that I didn't mess up.

I had to know, though.

I had to know whether or not I had neglected to put my phone number in my contact information on the cover letter I sent with my picture book manuscript. Duh! But I honestly couldn't remember even thinking about it until well after I'd mailed the darn thing.

This morning I got up early and chopped veggies so the beef stew could cook for 11 hours on low instead of 5.5 hours on high, and since it was quiet and calm and dark it seemed like a good time to either squelch the worry or learn a lesson for next time. Either way, I could stop worrying. I opened Word. I opened coverletter.docx. I scrolled down to the bottom...

I'm not a doofus. Well, not all the time. And not when I mailed my awesome poem that any publisher would be lucky to have and turn into a picture book for preschool-age children. Now I'll know, when they don't call by April, that it was because they don't love me like they should, and not because they just couldn't find my number.

Nice Christmas. How About You?

Yesterday, I spent the day with my family. None of us got out of our PJs except Lulu, whose jammies got all wet when she was trying out the new toothbrush Santa left her. She changed into the blue jean leggings I gave her and the SuperCool sweater she got from our CA relatives. She looked way cuter than I did, as she should.

Today, I am spending the day with Nana and Poppop. 'Nuff said.

Can't talk about Christmas without mentioning presents, can I? Maybe you can. I cannot. I need a new bookshelf. The Grandpa and Meme sent me books and books and books and books. Yay for books! I am particularly looking forward to reading One Year to a Writing Life: Twelve Lessons to Deepen Every Writer's Art and Craft by Susan M. Tiberghien. My plan is to read a chapter a month for the next year (because that's the obvious plan, right?). We'll see how that goes. You know me... I also got a SLOW COOKER! A Great Big Slow Cooker. I have one, but it's small and the pot part doesn't come out. My new one (thank you, Moomie!) is 6 qts, has removable stoneware, and came with a tiny baby for melting chocolate or making single servings of soup or something else yummy. If you have any suggestions for what to make in a 1.5 cup slow cooker with just 1 temperature setting, let me know.

I hope you all had wonderful holidays, whatever you celebrate. I know that last year around this time I promised to post more (possibly I even said every day) and that I failed miserably, but this year I have written it into my schedule (a post for another day) so am planning to do better. You too, okay.

Oh! One more thing. You should check out Septembermom's blog Write With Pictures. She posts a beautiful photo every day during the week for you to use as a writing prompt. It's a lot of fun. And, I think, needs way more traffic. Go see her!

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

Hello, old friend.
Remember me? We met yesterday afternoon.
You were doughy and smelled of cinnamon.
I was covered in flour.

You have grown some since we were last together.

Can I interest you in a sauna?
It's a very special sauna.
With the butter and sugar you're sitting in,
it will be like getting a tan in a sauna while sitting in a hot tub.
Or a hot caramel bath...
I promise not to let you burn.
See you soon, then. Enjoy yourself.

I will be!

Hi, again!
You look wonderful!
Ooo... You're all gooey...
Mmmm...

I'm afraid you're not going to like what comes next...

At least we, I mean, I have my memories...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

LL Says:

A little while ago, Lulu and I were checking Santa's locatioin on NORAD Tracks Santa, and we clicked the video from the Taj Mahal. The voice over said, "This video was captured..." and Lulu gasped and cried, "Santa was captured?!"

Pete Says:

The other day the 4 of us piled into the car for the hour+ drive to Moomie's house. We were about halfway there when Husbandguy said, "There's Santa on a motorcycle."

Pete said, "Where?!" We showed her and she said, disappointed, "Oh. I thought you said Nana on a motorcycle."

Remember When?

Hey! Remember when I used to blog about my kids? Remember "Pete Says:" and "The Name Giver"? Remember when I used to post cute little poems about lost teeth and not wanting to nap (I sent that one off as a potential picture book, by the way...)? I should do that again!

Um...

Oh! I've got something it's a Pete Says:

Pete has had her picture taken with the same Santa since she was almost 2 (same mall, same man, very good at his job - and he's also a civil war reenacter! - I don't know how to spell that...) This year she is almost 9. So she's just the right age to, you know, be in on the secret of the Mall Santas. Know what I mean? Last year she made a comment that made me think she might be suspicious about the true identity of the person who leaves her gift under the tree, but she only said 1 thing and never mentioned it again. This year I asked her if she talks about Santa with her friends and she said, no, that they don't believe in him anymore.

I asked her what she thinks and she said, "You told us that the Santa we see at the mall is the real one and all the others are his helpers so I believe that."

On the one hand, it's fun to be the Santa for another year. On the other hand, it would also be fun for her to be in on it and be my partner in crime creating the magic for her sister. But, it's not my place to tell her, and I got one more super cute Santa picture with both of my babies this year.

Hi there!

Have you missed me? I admit I was concerned that you might be tired of me whining about my writing all the time so I took a break. Unfortunately for you, I'm back, and I don't have anything else to write about except writing...

I currently have 2 rejections pending. I know rejection is a big part of being a writer so I thought I'd go ahead and get started on it. For 1 of my submissions, I wrote a cover letter. That was, I believe, more difficult than writing the original piece had been! It's craziness, I tell ya! I did it though, and if I don't hear back about it by mid-April, I'll be able to add 1 to my rejected tally.

Whoa! This post is really negative. Sorry.

The positive side of that is that I've had practice now with cover letters and won't be so thrown by the next one. Hopefully...

Does this happen to all writers?

I was feeling glowy and proud of this story I wrote.

Then I submitted it somewhere.

Now it seems trite and shallow and unpublishable, and I can't read it anymore.

I'm pretty sure I'm on my way to my very first rejection for several reasons, but not because the story isn't good. It is, and I will be submitting it other places too.

Once I get out of this inadequacy funk I'm in.