Chunky Writing
Fitting in the writing has been odd this year. Last year I carved out a block of time after lunch and hammered out my words. I've still been using that after lunch block, but I found that it's harder than ever to write during that time of day. I doze off at my keyboard. Not a surprise when you've been up since 4:30 am, I guess. So I've experimented with a few other ways of getting the words down on the screen. The best so far is to write in the little window of time between when I wake M up and when I wake the other kids up. It's totally quiet and I'm fresh, having had some time to wake up already. I can get out about 500 words in that 30 minutes. That's almost a third of what I need for the day knocked out before 6 am. It's a real boost.
Then I fit in little chunks throughout the rest of the morning. They have to be squeezed in wherever I've got the time, in between classroom volunteering, Primary meetings, chores, grocery shopping, and whatever S wants my attention about. But no matter what I get those 1700 words finished up before I leave to pick the kids up. Once they're home and I have to face the homework, piano lessons, activities grind there's a slim-to-no chance that I'll get it done. So far it's working.
Today I had to be extra creative. I got in my 500 words this morning (popping back on the computer for another sentence in between each "wake up!" reminder for B and J) but then S had a well check at the doctor's office this morning. She was a very stalwart figure for her shots (not even one tear!) so I treated her to a treat at QT afterward and promised her a trip to play at the park. While S climbed up the playground equipment I sat at the bottom of the slide and scribbled in a notebook, trying to get the rest of today's writing done. S thought it was a game; she'd wait for me to sit on a slide and then order me to move so she could come down it. I got as much written as I could in the little stretches of time it took her to climb back to the top of the playground equipment and shoo me away again. It wasn't exactly the speediest or most coherent writing I've ever done. Oh well, you do what you have to do, right?
(I gave myself the "Secret Noveling" badge on my NaNoWriMo page for that. I think I deserved it.)
Anyway, my life is so wrapped up in this new story that I can't see to get it through my head that Thanksgiving is next week. I have a host of things that need to be done both for Thanksgiving and as part of my early Christmas prep, but I can't even seem to keep it in my head.
This is going to be tricky. Hopefully, I am able to juggle it all!!
Then I fit in little chunks throughout the rest of the morning. They have to be squeezed in wherever I've got the time, in between classroom volunteering, Primary meetings, chores, grocery shopping, and whatever S wants my attention about. But no matter what I get those 1700 words finished up before I leave to pick the kids up. Once they're home and I have to face the homework, piano lessons, activities grind there's a slim-to-no chance that I'll get it done. So far it's working.
Today I had to be extra creative. I got in my 500 words this morning (popping back on the computer for another sentence in between each "wake up!" reminder for B and J) but then S had a well check at the doctor's office this morning. She was a very stalwart figure for her shots (not even one tear!) so I treated her to a treat at QT afterward and promised her a trip to play at the park. While S climbed up the playground equipment I sat at the bottom of the slide and scribbled in a notebook, trying to get the rest of today's writing done. S thought it was a game; she'd wait for me to sit on a slide and then order me to move so she could come down it. I got as much written as I could in the little stretches of time it took her to climb back to the top of the playground equipment and shoo me away again. It wasn't exactly the speediest or most coherent writing I've ever done. Oh well, you do what you have to do, right?
(I gave myself the "Secret Noveling" badge on my NaNoWriMo page for that. I think I deserved it.)
Anyway, my life is so wrapped up in this new story that I can't see to get it through my head that Thanksgiving is next week. I have a host of things that need to be done both for Thanksgiving and as part of my early Christmas prep, but I can't even seem to keep it in my head.
This is going to be tricky. Hopefully, I am able to juggle it all!!
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