Little Miracles...

Here I sit on the last day of the month. And I am taking stock of what is left for me to accomplish. And truth be told there is still a lot left undone.

I have left to do before tomorrow:
~6000 words (after this blog is done)
~2 chapters of reading, note taking and the end of unit exam
~I didnt get any of the christmas gifts done that I had wanted to get crackin on.

But a friend of mine reminded me of what i did get done.

~wrote 25,000 + words.
~made three pairs of leg warmers
~finished three units
~had two birthdays
~had a giant birthday party with all the trimmings
~went to two other childrens birthday parties
~had a three day weekend trade show
~wrote 4 pieces of flash fiction
~taught my friend how to crochet (even though she lives in England)
~patched up two sick children
~got sick myself and got well again
~maintained my blog through everything

It sometimes takes someone from the outside who looks in on you every once in a while who sees your life and knows your heart to give you a good shake and remind you that you have done far more than most people could have accomplished. To remind you that you are human after all and therefore are not perfect and not infallible.

I reached for the stars and did not fail. I touched more stars than I missed. And at the end of it all I came out victorious. So what that I did not write as many words this month as I said i would, I can always write 1215 a day to make it up next month. I may be half a unit behind but look how fast I caught up after I got sick, it wont take me long to get back on track. And as for christmas gifts? Well I do have time so not to worry there :)

At the end of it all I am proud of me, and what i have done. So I will bid you all adieu and see you next month for yet another wild ride :)

~Allison

Friday Night And Im Feeling Alright !

There is something to be said about a quiet Friday night at home with family and friends. This friday was no exception to the rule. IT was a hell of a good time. Imagine what it would be like if you were young once again. Now, remember how to play hide and seek? Ok now do that as an adult with three kids. Thats what my Scott, and my friends Monica and TJ did tonight with the kids. And let me tell you. Try hiding as a full grown almost 6 foot adult. There aint many natural spots left for you to hide. You figure out a way to make the spot larger or more accessible and pray that whichever child is seeking doesnt look to hard at your hiding spot. In the end it boils down to a night of good clean fun.

The only "casualty" of the evening was poor Daddy who once more found himself at the mercy of his children. I honestly cant understand how he manages to get himself into these situations. I mean he was supposed to be tucking them into bed for the night and somehow he managed to find himself plastered to the floor of the hallway with his young daughters sitting, jumping and laying on him. I just dont understand how it always seems to happen to him.

Oh but I did get the legwarmers done today as I said I would. Now all I really have left to do by the end of the weekend is read two chapters, write the notes for and the end of unit test for school and I need to write about 8k more this weekend, not only to finish off the second of my NaNo09 novels but also to meet my goal of 31k for the month.

It might seem like a lot now, but I WILL get there. Promise :) I have yet to give up on something so close I can taste!

Either way it is no longer Friday night but rather Saturday morning and I am in desparate need of some sleep... I get to see Vix later once I wake up so I need lots and lots of rest!

Nite!





~Allison

Its FRIDAY!!!

And where am I in the list of things to do?

WELLLL...

I left off the night only 5722 words behind my count, I still need a pair of legwarmers and I barely read a thing for school.

Not bad for a days work. Not great either but not too bad. I mean I did write over 3000 words yesterday all together. Which for me is nothing short of a miracle. I never write in January and here I am busting it to finish the novels I have started.

I can do it. It is within my reach. I have a load of time on Sunday to get finished what i need to do, alls I have to do is get the legwarmers done tonight, and some of the schoolwork. If I can make myself stay up a little later I might be able to squeeze in some more writing.

Tomorrow is the day I get to start my great big adventure in grammar and punctuation! I am very excited. It is a day that is two months in the making. Ever since the end of NaNo I have been waiting to find a decent day to get together with my good pal Vix as she is a freelance writer (check out her and regular columns on Suite101.com here) to do a major over haul with my writing.

I NEED HELP FOLKS!!

Oh that works on so many levels it aint funny. Anyways I need to get meself back on track here at the house. So many things are going on, bosses dropping off pay, a smoking survey thing I must go to this morning (the last one today so that means I get paid.), I have a birthday gift to pick up for AJs best buddy, I have school work to read, writing to write, and then there is work and tonight is piano. Mind you the last bit could end up cancelled due to damm cold weather. It is currently -14c out there and thats not counting the wind.

Man! I wish Mother Nature would just get over this whole cold thing. Its not going to be a proper WINTER this year and she just needs to cut out pretending that it is.

Come on Willy! Come on Phill! Noooooo Shadows!!!

~Allison

Where I Stand...

Where do I stand now that the week is half over?

Well let me see. I have managed to catch back up from last week for school and have put myself on target for this week. I have finished one pair leg warmers. And I am about 7735 behind in my word count now.

Better off than I was before thats for sure. I have moved a few mountains in a couple of days. The hardest part for me is getting that writing in. I have no motivation to write. I feel like I wont have enough time to finish this MS before the months end like I promised myself that I would. But in reality that isnt the case at all.

I have ten measly scenes left to write. Average per scene is 1-1.5K worth of wordage. Two of those scenes have already been started. One of which is half way done. That being said its not really as bleak as my pathetic mind makes it out to be.

But here I sulk. Well semi-sulking.

Oh wait. Maybe I should let you guys into another thing that happened earlier this week. That might give you an idea of why I am walking a bit wounded.

See I have joined this called Scribophile and it is a site where writers go to give honest critiques of each others works. Which is something I need. As I want to not only write novels but I want to write GOOD novels. Ones that people enjoy reading.

So imagine the sting I felt when someone read the second chapter in my first novel and stopped half way through because of all the grammatical errors in it. OUCH! I know I suck grammatically and it is something that I am actively working on through reading grammar books and working with a kick-butt friend of mine (starting this weekend -- YAY VIX TWO MORE SLEEPS!!) but to have someone actually stop half way through the chapter and say -- Im not reading anymore of this because your grammar stinks, well truth be told folks it did a little more than stung.

But I am starting to get a thick skin about the stinging part of writing. A lot better than when I started out a bunch of years ago. Years ago I would have said the person who made the comment about stopping halfway through was a bloody idiot and didnt have a clue what she was talking about. Now I know better, and realize that while her comment came off a bit harsh there is a lot of truth to what she is saying.

I know that there are going to be people who love my work and people who dont. I know that there are plenty of things I have to work on in order to become a GOOD writer, technically speaking. So I take the comments in as much as I can and use what I have to to make my writing better. Im not an egotist and dont think my work is perfect because I know it aint. I write because I have stories to tell and I want to tell the world all about them.

I will get there one day. Someday. No telling when it is going to happen, but I will get there. And you faithful readers will be there, along for the ride :)

~Allison

On Being A Parent...

It is funny, I am late with this blog. I know I have already heard about it from a faithful follower of mine. (Bless Ya Tweets!) But I have a half way decent reason as to why I am late. I was writing a letter (aka short novel) to my Dad.

I love writing to him. I get a chance to let him into the world of the girls and the things we all get into. It is a blast for me really. Most people get to see the girls often and that doesnt leave much to talk about when it comes to them. So its a treat to tell someone about the girls. Yes I love talking about the kids.

But anyways I digress. The letter I wrote made me think about what it is to be a parent and just how life seems to come around full circle.

Do you remember ever thinking "I cant believe that my Mom wants me to do this!" or "What do mean my clothes look like a mess?" or something along those lines? I know I sure do. And my parents took the same line of thinking with me that most parents do. You dont have to understand why now, but you certainly will when you are older.

Well guess what? I am older now and have kids of my own. And guess what.

I UNDERSTAND NOW!

Its funny, when writing to my Dad I remembered an episode I had with a certain hot-pink hat (yes hot pink, I grew up in the 80's what else can I say?). Now let me tell you folks this thing looked HIDEOUS at least to my young mind. Mind you the hot pink-ness still doesnt sit right with me but then again it was the 80's and we know all about the Neon colours from back then :)

All my classmates used to poke fun at me. Laugh because my hat, complete with ear flaps, did not look like theirs. So I didnt wear it.

It was a very cold winter that year. I got sick more than once. I should have listened but I didnt.

And you know what I wished for today? That god-awful pink hat.

~Allison

Lets Get 'Er Done!

Ok yes I know that was a TOTAL cliche but at the same time that is the mood that I am in. I wont sit here and tell you otherwise. I wont even pretend.

I woke up a few minutes late this morning, and found myself even more hell bound and determined to get myself back on track. I mean come on! I am the woman who can keep a house of five running, keep all social obligations, work two jobs, and STILL manage to write 110k worth of words in a mere 30 days.

I CAN DO THIS!

Here is where I stand as far a being behind in the ranks.

~I am 8011 words behind in my daily word count goals.
~I am three chapters & one test behind in my studies.
~I also need two pairs of leg warmers done by the weekend.

Plus I have to work two jobs and run the house.

I CAN DO THIS. THIS should be easy. I hope.

Now if I could just get my kids to get their butts on track with their chores. They are getting slightly better though, but still loosing points. Ahh well that will change.

Off to start another day...

~Allison

Disappointed....

I am seriously disappointed in myself at the moment. And I know you all are going to think that I am insane for even thinking that I have failed, but I have to tell you I am no where near close to where I want to be for the month. Although I have come far in both my writing and my school, I am falling short.

It started last week. I was doing alright up until that point. Well sort of. I mean I am behind in my writing but that would have been manageable had last week not went down as it did.

Now I find myself a week behind in my schooling and a week behind in my writing. And I am in need of two pairs of leg warmers before the weekend.

*sigh*

I know I did so much else. That the feats that I have accomplished this month far outweigh the things i didnt get to get done, but that is not the point. I made a set of goals and I am falling behind.

So the rest of this week I am going to have to bust a hump to get it all done. At the end of the day I know that I tried. That I have done the best that I could with the time I had and that is all I can ask of myself but I cant help but feel disappointed in myself.

Well off to it I go. Not giving up without a fight!

~Allison

And We're Off...

It is a bright and early rainy foggy morning. And its a monday. Not that I want it to be a monday but I dont exactly get a choice in the matter.

*sigh*

I am honestly shocked as to how well yesterday went off. Yes I know it took a bunch of people to make it happen but the fact of the matter is even with all the childrens around there wasnt anything major to clean up.

Thanks to many hands it only too about ten minutes with all the hands to clean up. Even the huge pile of balloons got popped and disappeared -- thank god because I hate dealing with them things for months after a party.

Anyways I have a ton of things to get through today, although I managed to make my life as easy as possible. I have an assembly at the school to attend at 9:40. I have a paid survey to be at at 11:30 or earlier.

And then I have to go to both jobs. Plus catch up on my school work, and write of course. I am taking the week off baking due to the fact that I am utterly whipped and desparately need a bit of a break. This month has been hell.

Ahh well. Best get at then!


~Allison

I survived!

There wasnt any question about it I knew I was completely nuts to even attempt this party. Let alone after having been sick as heck for almost a week. But I have to say it was shaping up pretty good before the party started. The only thing I was truly worried about was if A) We were going to have enough room for the amount of kids who were coming over, B) Was anyone going to get hurt and C) If there was going to be any massive fights break out. Luckily for me... aside from one injury to one of our beloved babysitters, we didnt have any injuries, nothing major in the fight department and due to a few no shows we had sufficient amount of room for the amount of children we had. (We ended up with 12 kids under the age of 10 total, and our four babysitters.)

We were lucky though. Most people arent as lucky as we are. We have four very awesome and wonderful babysitters who have proven themselves completely invaluable time after time. I know I would have been so stressed if they had not been able to make it. I honestly dont know if I would have been able to pull it off as stress free as I did with out them. Yes I repeated myself and said the same thing in two different ways, but I have no words that can accurately describe what these four mean to me and the girls who love them so much.

The Cake itself was a wonder, and I have to give myself two pats on the back for bringing my brain child out of my head and onto a plate. It is most certainly one of the most, if the most, elaborate cake I have made to date. And folks believe me when I say I tend to go a bit nuts on my cakes when kids are involved. But this one I think took the cake. Pun intended.

It took 4 cakes, two 9x9" cakes and 2 9x13" cakes, all made from scratch, dyed pink, 6 tubs of icing, dyed to make those colours, 2 packages of candy belts and a whopping two hours to decorate. But the look on their faces when I walked around the corner made it all worth while.

Every moment I dragged myself through in the last two days... heck even the back ache I am tending to as I write this. The prep time to get it all ready in time, the groggy just-getting-over-a-cold feeling that I pushed back and the headache I woke up with this morning. All of it was worth it to see them happy as they were.


Dad provided a lot of the entertainment for the day and I must say he did a bang up job!

And I know for fact that although he was beaten pretty badly by a pack of rabid girl children, he was more than happy with the way things turned out too.



~Allison

Insanity and Hilarity Ensues

So It begins. We are sitting t minus three hours before the big bad birthday bash begins. And Im not dressed (in PJ's), rooms not decorated, and cake is not iced.

*sigh*

I still got lots of time :)

It is going to be an interesting day to say the least. I have a confirmed 19 kids in the house. That means. There are going to be 16 children under the age of majority inside this tiny house of mine that do not bear any blood resemblance to me what so ever.

I have gotten some good craft projects to work on. And I have loads of junk food. Going to order pizza soon.

Oh what fun, 19 kids hopped up on Junk food and Sugar.

Fun.

If I survive Ill post later.

~Allison

A Dawn of A New Day...

Well I am proud of the idea I have come up with with regards to the girls and their chores. The Contract was put into place last night post piano. It is something that I hope will inspire the kids to do their chores to earn the bonus' that they want.

The Deal:
1 chore completed when asked, in a timely manner & completed properly = 5 minutes of video game time on the weekend.

1 chore left incomplete, not completed when asked or if it takes more than a reasonable amount of time to complete = 5 minutes lost of video game time.

Also bad behavior (ie lying, stealing and poor attitude) will also result in a loss of 5 minutes for each infraction.

Any negative time left at the end of the week will result in an extra chore to be done around the house to make up that time.

Any video game time can be split between the computer and the Wii to be redeemed on the weekend.

We have a log book to keep track of their time so that there is no confusion.

So far we have one young lady who does not want to get her butt moving. Otherwise the other two have jumped at the chance to get their time :)

Heres hoping this works. I get very tired of telling them to get this done and that done. It causes a strain on our time together, which during the week isnt that much. Ahhh well. It should work. At least for now.

In other news. Our friends birthday party was cancelled today due to her little sister being sick. Poor thing. But I on the other hand am feeling mucho better and should be running out the door shortly to get the party supplies and then i have to come home and bake some cakes.

No I didnt get to that yesterday, too much running around to do and me with very little energy.

Oh well today is a new day and I got time to burn. So here I go!

Catch yall later :)

~Allison

Thank God Its Friday

Not that I am entirely sure why I am so happy about this development as I seem to have a totally nonstop. I have a good friend of my (mines?) daughters birthday on Saturday and then we are having a GIANT SUPER-SIZED pulling out all the stops birthday party for Hope and Kylie on Sunday here at the house.

*sigh*

I have a lot of baking to do. I figure to make the cake I want I need about two 9x9" cakes and two 9x13" cakes. Yes I said pulling out the stops. I am going to build a three tier cake for them and decorate it up to look like three presents stacked on top of one another. Complete with edible ribbons and decorations galore. I am soooo looking forward to this.

(yes I will post pictures)


Yesterday rocked Hopes world. I did everything I could, sniffling and slugging along to make sure that I still managed to give her the birthday that she wanted. And somehow despite all the problems that arose she was still happy as a lark by the end of the day.

The boss at my day job left for a business trip yesterday. Hes gone for the rest of the weekend. Thankfully I dont need to see him today. Hes really a trying human being. His drug and alcohol habits im sure are lending themselve to making his attitude towards his staff worse.

Yesterday I found out that he likes to talk about me behind my back. Not that I didnt know that before hand. Anyways heres the situation:

I was informed that our logo on our store invoices had disappeared. Now I know I didnt touch it but clearly someone else had. The implication that I had screwed something up was clear. So when I couldnt find a copy of our old logo I used a copy of our new logo and rolled with that. I didnt think that it looked any worse than the one before it had, if anything I thought the page looked cleaner.

Apparently he didnt agree with me. But when he asked about it. I said I didnt have the old logo, no clue where it was and that the new logo was the best I could do at the moment.

Nothing more was said about the issue.

Now get this. HE has the balls to bitch to another one of my coworkers about the fact that hes "tired of dealing with Allison" and could my co-worker fix it. I was in the process of using my noodle and putting it back together.

Then the co-worker had the audacity to turn around and start nit-picking about how the columns were precisely lined up. Telling me what I was doing was not something he couldnt have done himself. I said to him Well then why didnt you do it yourself then? Hes like well I was going to today.

Needless to say I wouldnt have bothered wasting my time fixing it if I had of known that was how I was going to be treated. I would have just left it.

Oh well. Its friday and the weekend is here. I will enjoy every moment I have to sit and do nothing.

YEAH RIGHT.

Ill enjoy it alright but the sitting and doing nothing part is totally not in my vocabulary.

~Allison

My Huggy-Bear

Its your birthday today. You are 7 years old now my Teddy Bear. Gone are the days when you were just a little baby in my arms. Even then you were the sort of baby that never caused me no trouble. Always had a smile for me.

To this day it is your hugs, the unconditional and whole body enveloping kind, that make my day just that much more bearable. Yes I said it. I love your hugs, even the ones I dont get because I am running around like a chicken with my head cut off. But thats being a Mom for you, if I could I would sit there all day snuggling with you but I will take the moments when I can.

I have loved the chance to watch you grow into a wonderful little lady. The smile that you were born with may now be missing a few teeth but it is just as warm as the day you were born. It is the thing that keeps me going at work when the going gets tough. All I have to do is look on my desk and see your face smiling up at me and I know Im going to get through the day.

I am so proud of the things you are doing, the stories you read to me, the drawings you make for me.

Dont stop smiling kiddo.

Happy Birthday Dear Hope, Happy Birthday.

~Allison

My Little Hero....

Ok while I admit I have turned into a bit of a suck today what with being sick and all. No I havent worked a stitch all day. I have to say that I have a Little Hero in my house today.

And that is my daughter Ambyr. She came through for me today when I REALLY needed her. I had cupcakes to make and I had promised Hope that I would have in time for her class tomorrow. But being sick I didnt want to be standing there breathing over them as I put things together.

That being said I turned to the one other person in the house that I knew could read and follow a recipe that was hand written in my chicken scratch, Ambyr.

As per usual when I stick her with a less than usual task she shined. Did everything the way I wanted it as I sat there across the room supervising.

What a girl. So proud of the good things that shes been doing.

So Ambyr saved the day and help me give Hope what she really wanted for her birthday.

Thanks AJ, you rocked today.

~Allison

My Body Is Revolting...

... and it has decided that I can not be a hero all the time. But what it fails to realize is that it really doesnt have a choice in the matter.

Yes. I am sick. Thanks in part to my beloved children, two of whom have managed to get a cold this week, and thanks to a weekend full of nonstop action. One kid is much better just had a runny nose and a cough earlier this week and the other lost her voice yesterday and has been nicknamed Squeeky until it comes back again. Shes not doing too bad except the squeek in her voice and being a bit sluggish. Nothing that one day home with hot liquids and rest wont cure.

Me? Well my head is feeling like a bongo drum, and nose is running like somebody's leaky sink and my throat feels like I swallowed a mouthful of gravel. Not a pleasant feeling to say the least. I would normally go into work even as I am but since Hope is off resting I will be taking the day to rest myself.

Except for the fact of course that I need to make 36 cupcakes by mid-day tomorrow, and let me tell you folks. I am missing a VERY important ingredient. Vanilla extract. I have none. Not a drop. And I need it.

Oh and my oven wasnt broken after all. A button which shouldnt have been pulled out was and once it got pushed in by my hubby it worked fine. Bloody people messing with my oven making me look like some ditzy dumb blonde.

*groan*

My head. Dammit.

I also am not taking another night off my evening job today. I have already taken two nights off to try and patch up my kids. So that being said I am NOT taking another night off.

But oh god how I WANT to. This is bad. I want to and I have reason to. But I know I cant. ARGH!

So okay now I know I am not now I have to find a way to get all my ducks in a row... maybe lemon extract? They are supposed to be yellow cupcakes after all... maybe make breakfast for dinner? Bake another banana bread for tomorrows lunch or banana muffins? Hmmmm now my brains getting it on.

And I should really study. I cant allow myself to fall behind on that. And my writing. I sucked last night. When I was supposed to be writing I ended up reconnecting with a very special friend of mine. We hadnt spoken in over a year. It was a bad thing for both of us as we were very much a part of each others daily lives. God damned economy crash. Shes back again and Im mucho happy to see that she and her family survived it all and are getting back to normal.

Me? Well I have some to catch up on.

Right. Getting on it.



Dammit... what do you mean the laundry aint going to wash itself and that the baking aint going to put itself together??


~Allison

So this day is not....

... going very well.

I should have known that this day was not going to go very well when i was awoken to the sound of my husband and oldest telling me that my coffee maker wouldnt perk.

*grumbles something incoherent*

So I was lucky enough to have gotten a new coffee maker for christmas so I was able to get myself a fresh brew.

After that I started in on my day. I went to preheat the oven to 350C to bake a batch of chocolate muffins and ....

it wouldnt heat. I think the ovens element is blown. Which wouldnt surprise me as I use my oven almost every day for something or other. But dammit man. Im trying here and my kitchen is revolting against my almost constant use.

ARGH!

*grumbles something else less that polite*

Ok mission:

Find new heating element for oven or else find another way to bake 3 dozen cupcakes by thursday for Hopes class for her birthday.



~Allison

So about yesterday....

Yes I got the majority of my tasks done yesterday. I didnt study, but I wrote a scene and a half. Didnt go to my evening job, but I took my eldest to the doctors to make sure the cough that the teachers were telling me she had was nothing more than a normal common cold.

I was right as per usual. However with schools and teachers now a days you just dont want to mess around.

I didnt get pancakes made but we ate left over banana breads :) So we are good....

Off to get some studying done and some baking and cooking... its going to be another long day ...

~Allison

Monday Monday...

... Cant trust that day.

*sigh*

*groan*

Ok I am alive. Slightly. Have a knot in my left shoulder the size of Texas, and where it is is making every breath a pain. Argh! and I let Scott go to work before i realized I was having a knot moment.

See I get these sorts of knots all the time. They are right under my shoulder blades and usually are about the size of a good-sized gumball. Not fun little things as they are a pain to get at by myself and can turn a decent day into one where Im trying to find ways to get the knot out of my shoulder.

Grrr.

Ok Ill be alright. Going to go have a coffee with a friend of mine in a little bit so I should be able to get her to get it out for me. She is good at those sorts of things.

*headdesk*

What do I have to get done today... what to do what to do.

~Bake banana bread
~Make dinner
~Dishes
~Pancakes
~Study
~Write

Oh and father in law is headed over to bring presents for Ky and Hope after I drop off the kids at school. So this is going to be an interesting morning to say the least.

Oh well here goes nothing :)

~Allison

Its Over....

Its about 945pm on Sunday night and I am happy to report that the weekend is FINALLY over. And I have never been so happy to see a Monday on the horizon as I am tonight.

Friday wasnt too bad. It was busier than most fridays of this show. But it wasnt crazy busy. Just enough to keep us going all day and that was about it. I spent about 8 hours running cash. Not too many idiots that day.

There was however one chick that I just wanted to give a good shake to. I mean at these sorts of shows you always have what are called "booth bunnies". For those that dont know they are scantily clad women who's soul purpose is to stand there show their fake-n-bake tans and their other "assets" to men who walk by, in the hopes that they will gain attention to their booth.

Thankfully my boss does not feel the need to stoop to that level of marketing. I for one would NOT be the one standing there showing off my assets.

ANYWAYS back to this one girl was wearing a pair of "Daisy Dukes" that looked like not only had they been run through a shredder but they had also been shrunk in the wash a few times. I am not kidding you when I say that this chick had about three quarters of her butt cheeks sticking out. Now dont get me wrong this gal had not an ounce of cellulite on her anywhere, but cmon folks there are kids around and here she is in four inch heels and a blue jean thong.

Her mother and father must be so proud.

I managed to get out of there with the help of freinds and then spent the evening at home with my hubby, kids and amigos watching a movie and eating chinese. Definately a good way to spend a night!

Saturday was an entirely different story. It was insanity at its best. We are talking wall to wall people of every shape and size imaginable. These shows certainly bring out all sorts of people. It was nice to see some of our regulars, one of whom you may know George Stroumboulopoulos. Nice guy and manners that would make any mother proud. I got a chance to meet him last show we did in December and was happy to get a chance to say hello again this show between the massive amounts of people that came rolling into our booth.

We broke records that day. Best show day I think we have had in the history of our shop. But I am telling you by four oclock my brains were like the consistancy of Jello and it showed. So here I am thinking okay Ill have myself the Rockstar I packed and that should get me rolling good.

It lasted about two hours before the fog started back in. And then to make matters worse, when I left at 630 no one else was heading out and I ended up taking the bus home from the airport. MAN! What a totally long ride. Got home just a bit before eight and all I wanted to do was sleep. But somehow I managed to muster enough energy to spend sometime with the kids and my neighbour who came over to play some Wii Sports with us. Another good night was had.

However by the time I got rolling this morning I had barely enough to go on to get me there. But it was no where near as busy today as it was yesterday. It was busy enough for the day to go by at a decent rate. However there was a lot of stupid people today. No one seemed to get that I wasnt anywhere near going to budge with our prices and was certainly not going to do tax in on any of our already ridiculously low prices. ARGH! Stupid people when I say no and that I have to add tax on top of it get it through your head I am not backing down! Dont stand there with the item on my counter or in your hand for ten minutes going between staring me down and staring at the item thinking that it is really going to do ANYTHING to help your situation.

BECAUSE I WONT BUDGE!

BLARGH! I swear one guy did that today. EASY ten minutes. I wanted to tell him to like give up and that I wasnt going to change my mind and just go bugger off or pay the tax.

*sigh*

Tear down went quickly. Many hands making light work. I was out of there and on my way home by about ten to eight.

I was very much happy that I got a chance to see one of my hubby's cousins this weekend. She also works for a bike shop and they had a massive booth there. They were on one end of the convention center and our booth was on the other. However it was quite nice to be able to walk down every day to go see her. It was a touch of sanity in the midst of total chaos. Definitely something that will have to happen every show as it became something I looked forward to and I know she enjoyed the three minute visits as much as I did. Again its that breath of sanity. We need/deserve it!

At the end of it all I find that I am not quite as tired as I thought I would be. Thats not saying that once I finish this blog up for the night that i wont simply pass right out here on the couch. But for the moment I am doing alright, sipping my coffee and waiting for my samosas to settle down in my stomach before I hit the hay.

Back up and to the rat race again tomorrow. No rest for the wicked and the weary.

~Allison

So It Begins....

.... The International MotorCycle Show.

I am not sure how "prepared" I am for this show. It is generally one of the more brutal shows as everyone there is looking for a better deal than the best you have and they are always asking about the taxes.

*groan*

But I will say after yesterdays gauntlet of housework I am proud to say that anything that my dear hubby will have to do aside from keeping the house tidy will be minimal at worst.

*Sigh*

I have to leave in less than 15 mins now so I should get my act together.

Might update after the show depending on if I have energy when I get home tonight. Either way Ill be back tomorrow morning to at least let you all know that I survived.

~Allison

Im getting there....

Its almost show time. That is tomorrow I will be at the International Motorcycle Show 2010. I will make the most of it like I always do but Im so tired this week that I dont really *want* to go.

Not to mention I have a poop load of things to do before i can go. Today I need to do half the baking for the weekend. That is I need to make enough muffins to get me through to saturday night. Might make all four batches I need and just freeze two. Have to see, Im tired this morning.

That and I have to do as much of the shopping as I can as well so that the poor hubby dont have to. He's already going to have enough on his hands without needing to do everything that I do.

And then there is laundry. Need to get that done as well. And my writing for the weekend. Plus I should really do my exam today at some point for the week and actually complete that lesson in its entirety.

~Hope just came to me and said she didnt get to do her show and tell yesterday because she didnt have the project done that she was supposed to. please note she didnt even tell me about when she had to do it and what she had to do. Just handed me a sheet of paper a week ago and expected me to remember it all. DAMMIT~

GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

This house is SOOOOO going to fall apart without me around. I totally detest weekends like this money or not.

*takes a deep breath*

I can do this. I can do this... I can.

~Allison

So About the Writing...

I have been working away in this world of mine on my school work and it has gone well. I have done a weeks worth of reading and note taking in two days. And that has been good as I will be spending the weekend working the International Motorcycle show.

Not entire sure how I feel about that yet other than OH GOD NOT ANOTHER ONE! Every year we do two shows in the winter. It is what we use to keep us open year round. The problem is this. We are understaffed. Not so much that we dont have enough people to fill our booth, but we need brains not just bodies. And we are short people this year too. And to top it off this is the more annoying of the two shows. People just dont get it when you say 'no sir you have to pay taxes on everything' ARGH!! Ahh well it comes and goes. Its got its high points too, dont get me wrong, but I dont know for some reason I am not looking forward to it.

Either way I may have been keeping up with some of my things, my blog for one, and my school work and I may have already prepped my F3 (Flash Fiction Fridays) post but I havent been writing my book. I am supposed to be writing a scene a day and that just hasnt happened as of late. I need to get back on that soon otherwise i shall not finish first draft by the end of the month as I have planned.

Things to do in the next two days:
Need to finish plotting out the scenes.
Need to find the end of story.
Need to write it all out.

Ok writing time :)


~Allison

Drill Sgt Mom is in the house!

Yes you heard it folks! Be the first to know that the letters DMWM mean Dont Mess With Mom. The girls learned that this morning. The hard way.

See I was nice last week. That was my problem, when they were late in the morning I just took time off their bedtimes. That didnt seem to work out very well. So I got wise folks yes I did!

It was a 6 AM wake up call for them this morning. And it was feet hit the floor running this morning too. There was no lazing about for these three. No siree! They got all of their daily chores done and then some before they left for school. And fancy enough they even had time to practice piano!

Amazing no?

Im beginning to think that they are going to think twice about messing with me next time I say lets get going in the morning.

Me? Well I too have had a productive morning. I have gotten all of my chores for the day done, cept I have to toss the wash into the dryer. But aside from that everything else is DONE! I have even had the chance to get about 3/4 of my reading done for school. Just need to finish that up and get the notes written and we are done!

Then I can write and do crafts for the day :) YAY!

Maybe this might become permenant? Except for the 5.5 hours sleep I got last night it isnt all that bad.

~Allison

Bloody Monday....

You all have heard the song that goes "Sunday....bloody Sunday" well its not sunday but hot damm it is a pain in my arse day.

The kids have decided that today is going to be one of those days where they push every single button I have and to manage to do it all before they even head out the door to school.

It was 8:05 this morning when my oldest and youngest finally made it downstairs for breakfast. It was 8:10 this morning when I went upstairs and dressed and brushed the hair of my middle one. This is after I had been nagging and harping on them to get moving for almost an hour (I started at about 7:25)

For the record, we are supposed to be leave to take the older two to school at 8:20/8:25...

ARGHHH!!!!!

I think it is time for me to pull out the Drill Sargent Mom and let them see how they like me after a few mornings of having to get up at 6am. Me I can find a ton of things to do at that hour.

Speaking of things to do I have managed to get a ton of stuff done myself this morning.

~Baked & Decorated 24 green Monster cupcakes (to be taken to school for Ky's Class)
~Baked a loaf of Blueberry bread (Think banana bread, only blueberries)
~Made pancakes for breakfast tomorrow
~Cleaned the kitchen, dining room and living room
~Washed and dried Adult Laundry
~Washed one out of two loads of kids laundry
~wrote my F3 for friday as I know I wont be around during the day to write it and will be too burnt out by the time I get home to write it.

And now I am doing my blog for the day. I still have half an hour to get ready for work, do my hair and make up and pack my bag.

I guess I really should get to that :) Cant stop the productive day :)

Talk later!


~Allison

So This Is What It Feels Like....

....To Be Old.

Today my "baby" turned 6. My middle daughter lost yet another tooth. And I realized that I dont need to bend down much to wrap my arm around my oldest daughters shoulders when we walk down the street anymore.

*sigh*

Its so amazing how fast the years roll by. It seemed not so long ago they were just babes in my arms and now they are three young ladies. Scarey is more the word I think I am looking for here.

I often wonder how I am going to handle it when they are starting into high school and then university, god I shudder to think what life will be like then.

Truth be told I also look forward to it. Yes my babies will be grown, but I also cant wait to see the kind of people they turn out to be. Will Hope be the doctor shes aching to be? Will AJ head to Hollywood to make movies? What about Ky? Where will she end up?

The possibilities are only limited to the scope of their imaginations. Im just along for the ride!



~Allison


b

My Baby....

.... Turns six years old today. It is a day for me to be proud. To sit back and smile because my baby is getting so big. It is a day for me to sit back and reflect on the six years gone by.

Six years ago today I met my youngest daughter for the first time. I still remember the first moment I laid eyes on the tiny bundle in my arms. She would be the last little one to lay her tiny head on my shoulder. She was and still is the tiniest of my lot but what she may not have in size she makes up for with her spirit. She is all spunk and giggles. This little one never stops from the moment she gets up to the moment she goes to bed. Shes always about the giggles and making others laugh.

She has grown so much in these last six years. She has learned to spell her name, write letters to her Dad and I, draw the most beautiful detailed pictures, read small books and tells the most fantastical stories.

I wish for her all the joy and happiness that life has to offer. May she continue to brighten peoples days, and make people laugh every day for the rest of her life.

Happy Birthday my dear Kylie. Happy Birthday.



~Allison

Week One Is Done....

Well week one of the new year is done.... How have I fared?

All things considered I dont think I have done too poorly.
I wanted to get the following things done this week (From Sunday to Saturday):
~One School Unit (DONE)
~7 Blog entries (DONE)
~7 Scenes (3.5/7 DONE)
~7000 words cumulative (6001/7000 DONE)
~One F3
~One christmas stocking

BUT I did also bake fresh muffins and pancakes every day, plus all other household chores, made a pair of legwarmers for my next door neighbours daughter for her birthday, plus worked two jobs. Oh! And I made a really neat desktop background of pictures of the girls, and started a new pair of socks for myself. Crocheted of course :)

SO all in all I dont think I did too badly at all. Next week its more of the same. I am going to try and get caught up on a few writing things before bed. Seven minutes left to publish this blog :)


~Allison

Why is it that...

....when we parents are the busiest it is then that our children seem to enjoy slowing down?

I wearing all the hats that I do have precious little time to just sit around and do nothing at all. I mean I do try to make time for myself to sit and do nothing, but it rarely works out the way that i have planned it to.

Now as far as my kids are concerned they have the same responsibilities that kids their age should. But why is it when the end of the week rolls around that they are sloggin off more and more?

Ok fine I get it. They are kids. They are built to be pain in the arses. But for the love of GOD it drives me nutty how they just dont seem to have a concept of time at all.

Especially in the morning. They know they have to get to school. They know they have to get up, make their beds, get dressed, brush hair, eat breakfast and grab their lunch for school.

It is the same way EVERY morning, but for some odd reason they love to not be bothered and seem to think that they have time to do whatever instead of getting ready for school.

And no amount of telling them that they are going to be late makes any difference. They say yes mum and go right back to whatever it was that they were doing.


ARRRRGGHHHH!

Ok I am done ranting about the kids this morning. I will try and come back and write a proper blog later.

~Allison

Another Day ....

.... Another Blog post.

So here I am starting out on day four or five of my new resolution of writing more this year.

You see I love writing but I dont seem to be able to make it a full priority in my life. There is always something that is getting in the way of my writing. Whether it be work, school, the kids, social obligations or whatever there is always some excuse that I can come up with as to why I cant write at least a few hundred words a day.

So this year I have decided that 2010 is going to be the year that I start putting my writing as a priority.

So without further ado here is my Writing list of Things To Do for 2010:

~Write one blog post every day, or as close to that as I can.
~Finish the four thriller novels I have partly done.
~Work with other writers to tighten and improve my writing.
~Work on getting myself a job and a following on Suite101.com
~Write a Flash Fiction Friday for google groups every week.
~Write a cumulative total of 365,000 words for WriYe (the entire year)
~Write 115-120K during the month of november for NaNoWriMo.

That may seem like a tall order for anyone but for me its the fuel for my fire. A tall order will be just enough to keep me in line to actually DO all of it.

I dont fail. So therefore I will get all this done this year. Just you wait and see.

~Allison

Ok So Now Im Angry......

..... about this:

high risk sex offender released in mississauga area

I am so angry I see red. One for the record I live in the Mississauga Valley area. For two the guy's father lives in our complex. I have actually seen this guy out after dark. The night before he got arrested just over two years ago. Which was about eight months after he had been released for breech of bail conditions.

So yes this guy has been in and out of jail more times than I can say rubber baby buggy bumpers without stumbling.

The whole thing has gotten my goat more than once. It is to the point I have sat back and actually counted the parks and play grounds, the schools, both public and catholic, elementary, junior and high schools, within a three km radius of my house.

And the results are shocking. Just off of Mississauga Valley alone there are 6 schools, 8 play grounds, three full sized baseball diamonds, three full sized soccer fields, a library, a public splash pad, one community center with a public ice rink and swimming pool, and not to mention the miles of walking trails. And those that are just the ones not actually on the school grounds. There is more than that if you count them too.

I figure there are anywhere around 3 thousand children in and around the Mississauga Valley area. THREE THOUSAND.

But here the brilliant minds at Corrections Canada are releasing him like a kid into a candy store! They say he has served his time but that he is at a high-risk to reoffend. And then they tell us to remember that he is still a Canadian citizen and we should not take matters into our own hands. This is our HOME, and these our CHILDREN for crying out loud. How stupid and totally ignorant can they be?

From the perspective of a parent with children who are growing up fast and who are getting to be more and more independent as time goes on it is like my children are the ones who have landed with the jail term.

My house backs onto a small parkette, that my kids love to go play at together with their other friends in the community in the summertime. I cant let them go by themselves when this guy is out because i do not know if he is around. I certainly cant let the girls go out and around by themselves anywhere. I just cant trust it. And refuse to risk it.

Now my kids are good about it. I tell them about things like this and arm them with as much info as I can so that if they do find themselves without me, that they know what to be on the look out for. But what of the parents who cant be there for their kids all the time, for the children whos parents dont watch or read the news, what about the parents who cant read or understand english and worst of all what about the parents who dont care.

Where is the justice for the children? Where is the safety for the children? Why do they need to suffer needlessly?

I say if you know that the guy is going to reoffend one day then I say do not release him somewhere he will be able to get close to a child. Plain and simple.

But no, thats not fair to his basic rights Corrections Canada? Well his being in the area impedes on our childrens basic rights. Get him out of here.

Monday Again...

It never seems to fail. Every time I start feeling all relaxed and rested another Monday comes waltzing in.

This Monday just seems a little more brutal than others. It is the first Monday back to school for the kids and that means it is not only the first day back to work for me after almost two weeks off, but it also means that our beloved tree and all the trimmings needs to come down.

I hate this time of year. It means that I have to wait almost a whole year before I get to see the shining glory that is our tree. I have to wait almost another year before I get to secretly spoil the heck out of my kids, and shower my friends and family with handmade gifts and goodies.

It also means I have to start cracking on next years christmas gifts and that all the ones I had made are gone off to their new homes and that my hidden store of stuff is gone.

This Monday also signals the start of a super busy month for me. Two of my kids have birthdays this month, that means two birthday dinners, and one giant party. I also have a motorcycle show mid month smack between the girls birthdays.

Long month. Best get cracking.

Welcome 2010

Well I am not sure how long that I am going to be able to keep this going this year however I am going to try to do the best that I can. It is my goal to keep a blog running for the better part of a year. Some of this will be bits and bobs about my personal life. Other entries will be simply my Flash Fiction Friday shorts.

So a bit about me.

I am a mother of three young ladies.
I am a wife to one wonderful man.
I work two jobs, one afternoon and one in the evening.
I write suspense thrillers.
I do most any sort of craft out there, including but not limited to crochet, knitting, cross stitching, sewing and quilting.
I love to bake.
I love to cook.

I think thats about it for now. The rest you all will have to learn as we go along.

Enjoy the ride :)