FreakieGeekie

So I failed NaNoWriMo because I didn't get 50k words.
I believe I only made around 20k, and that's not all written up as a coherent story. Just bits and pieces of scenes and world-building ideas.
I figure over the next year I can come up with more ideas for it and hopefully type up the story next November, if not before then.
These days I mostly try to keep the toddler from destroying my house and seriously injuring or killing himself (he likes climbing on EVERYTHING).
He currently has a purple bruise in the center of his forehead because he ran into my sewing table. And I mean ran in the literal sense: he was running around the living/dining area (our living/dining/kitchen is open concept) and decided to try to run under the sewing table.
Sometimes I have time for crafting. As always, my crafting stuff is over on RedheadWithThread.



Keep It Creepy,
FreakieGeekie

With little success so far.
It's a little over a week in and I've only got 1871 words. And they're not very good words.
I don't have a cohesive plot. I started out with one and my characters decided "No, that's not our plot" and it changed.
No, I'm not crazy: when is started, I just had the characters and a plot that were created separately and I tried tweaking the characters to suit the plot.
But they weren't created for that plot so it felt way too forced so I'm trying to come up with a better one.
Right now, I'm just typing up scenes as they come to me, fleshing my characters out more and trying to build up the plot.
By the end of the month, I don't know that I'll have anywhere near 50k words or a plot that doesn't resemble Swiss cheese, but I'll have at least tried.
I need to get back into the habit of writing everyday.
I used to practice writing so much that I never had writer's block, ever.
But I also used to have plenty of spare time for writing and reading. Now that I have a kid, I'd rather use my spare time to just sit and do nothing because, holy shit, my toddler doesn't know how to stop and he exhausts me.
Most days I have to fight him to get him to take a nap. Oftentimes, while he's napping I am too.
And don't even get me started on how much hell I have getting him to sleep at night.
*sighs*
But I'm trying.
I went out and bought myself a notebook to write in and bought one for Lucius, too, to keep him from trying to steal mine and rip it to shreds.

...

I think I may just wind up spending this November plotting and doing characterization writing and character sheets.


Keep It Creepy,
FreakieGeekie

I rarely let my in-laws keep my son.
Monday afternoon my mother-in-law (from here on, MIL) brought Lucius home.
Yay! I was happy to see him after he was gone for a week.
When MIL dropped him off, his nose was dripping snot and he had a wet cough and a low fever.
No big deal. Probably just a cold.
But when I called later (I gave her time to get home) and asked MIL how long he'd been that way, her reply was more or less that she didn't know (she didn't outright say "I don't know" but something along the lines of "Uh...since a few days or so ago?") but that "it's just because he's teething."
Y'all, I was PISSED.
She'd better thank her lucky stars she was on the phone with me because I would have probably lost my shit on her. (I said "Okay, thanks" and hung up so that I didn't wind up screaming at her.)
Anytime Chad and I pick him up or they drop him off and I ask something, such as "When was the last time you fed him?", her reply is often "Uhhh..." and/or a long pause that is typically followed by "I dunno" or "I'm not suuuure".
Her husband is also guilty of this.
I understand that they're raising the nephews (because my sister-in-law is a cunt; there's more to it but that's something else entirely) and that they have to tend to them, too.
But, for fuck's sake, they're nine and thirteen, which means they don't need constant attention/supervision like Lucius does because he's a TODDLER.

I took him to the doctor Wednesday because he was having trouble sleeping.
Turns out he's got RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) and there's nothing they can do for that except hope it clears up within two weeks. And he had the beginning of an ear infection.
So we got a prescription for antibiotics to keep the infection at bay and a recommendation for some all-natural OTC mucous meds (basically baby-safe Mucinex).
The worst part of that whole visit was when the pediatrician asked me how long he'd been having his symptoms and I said "I'm not sure."
Guys, she had the most horrified look on her face when I told her that! Her expression clearly screamed "How could you not notice that your baby is sick?!"
Of course, I explained that my MIL had had him for a week and claimed that it was "just teething".
Doc shook her head in obvious disbelief and said, no, teething doesn't cause a fever or the other symptoms he had (I knew that MIL was full of it) and that it was good that I brought him in.
It's going to be a long while before I let them keep him again.
Fuck her and her fucking stupidity.
*takes a deep breath*
It felt good to get that off my chest.
Now I'm going to go make myself a cup of Earl Grey and watch a movie on Netflix.


Keep It Creepy,
FreakieGeekie


PS,
Yes, I am tired with a sick toddler. But I'm also sick with a sinus infection and fluid in my left ear and one of the meds the doctor prescribed me wires me up (it's considered a "harmless" side-effect) so it's going to be a bit before I get to bed.

PPS,
I can't get any help with Lucius from my parents because my sister has bronchitis, my mom has strep, and my dad has a sinus infection.

Which means I'll be cleaning and crafting. I may try to draw something for Halloween, if I have the time/energy.
I've got to sew my munchkin's costume and his treat bag and do a good deep cleaning of my house (sweep then mop every nook and cranny, do an extra-thorough scrubbing of the tubs instead of the light scrubbing they usually get, etc, etc).
I was just going to buy his costume since I didn't really have the time to sew this year with Chad getting ready to deploy.
But my mother-in-law came over yesterday so that I could go to a dentist appointment (side note: my mouth is sore because I got a temp crown put in) and go to Sam's Club.
When it came time for MIL to leave, he whined for his pawpaw (what he calls my hubs' step-dad) so she volunteered to take him for the week, instead of waiting til this weekend to come back for him.
So I happily packed his bags, helped MIL pack his stuff into her car, then kissed him and waved good-bye.
Funny thing is, I nearly broke my neck earlier in a mad dash to get to my bedroom.
Why?
Well, I was listening to Jaws as I was prepping my sewing table. During the scene where the kid is a crying/whining/blubbering mess because the shark nearly ate him, I heard him but it didn't click that it was the TV.
So I dropped the stuff I was holding and took off at light speed, hoping to soothe Lucius back to sleep.
It was only when my ankle rolled, which is what nearly caused my demise, as I took a sharp turn into my bedroom that I remembered "He went home with Mimi!"
The only thing that saved me from a hard fall was the doorknob, which I frantically grasped at as I fell. I was SO happy that I was able to grab it and hold on for dear life.
Parenting instincts at their finest, I suppose.

Now, I've got a tunic pattern to draft and a pants pattern to track down.


Keep It Creepy,
FreakieGeekie


PS,
For all my crafty projects, watch me over at RedheadWithThread. And if you've got an Instagram, I'm TheRedheadWithThread over there.