Half a Year of Hard Knocks...It Got Better.

Sorry it's been so long since I've written, but a lot has happened in a short amount of time. My life became complicated and depressing and I wasn't blogging. In fact, I wasn't even thinking about it. I also wasn't writing and got into a boring routine. I guess I'll start with the bad things that happened so that I can end on the good.

I mentioned that  my Grandmom died a few posts ago, but I didn't mention that a few months after my she died, I got pregnant. I was very excited, but it wasn't meant to be because I miscarried about a month later. I basically had just enough time to start feeling an attachment only to have it just sort of go away. From what the doctors said, it probably wouldn't have been a healthy baby since the pregnancy didn't take. I think that everything happens for a reason, so I have to know that it was probably for the best, but I still was depressed for several months. Incidentally, I haven't given up on having a baby one day, but I need to get on medication to do so. (On a side note, during this time my salamander that had lived fourteen years also died, so it just sort of felt like icing on the cake.)

At the beginning of this year, my Mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Still, I'm very proud of how well she handled it. She was very brave and did what she needed to do to get better. Thankfully, my prayers were also answered. She had a lumpectomy and they were able to treat the cancer with radiation and without chemo. There were no complications and she didn't react baldy to the radiation. So, she was very lucky and she's better now. This cause has become important to me now that it touched me in a personal way, and I'm going to try to keep all those suffering from breast cancer in my prayers.

So, long story short, as you can see, things have been special the last part of last year and the first part of this year. But, things have gotten much better as they always do. Always remember to hang on during difficult times because there's always hope and always a reason to persevere. Now to count the blessings.

First of all, my husband and I are on an aggressive program to get out of debt, and it's working. We've started listening to the Dave Ramsey "Financial Peace University" program and it actually works. I'm not being paid to say this, I'm being serious when I tell you that we've managed to get an emergency fund saved up which has saved us from car trouble, a hole being blown in the house during a storm, and other disasters that happened (that weren't listed above) during this time. Also, if we continue to stick to our budget, we'll have all of our debt paid off by next year. For those drowning in debt, I highly recommend this program. Just paying off bills really makes a person have a better outlook on life.

Also, I've become inspired to write again. I've got a fantasy novel nearly completed that I'm going to post a sample from very soon. This is the first book in a trilogy and I have a very good feeling about it. I also recently went to a publishing class at the SC Book Festival and I'm buckling down and becoming serious about getting my novels published. I've created a logo for myself and am working on a website this weekend. I'll post a link once it's finished.

I'm also going to Dragoncon in August. It'll be a lot of fun and a great opportunity to meet other writers who have been successful in the genres that I prefer. The goal is to have business cards ready by then to hand out. I also hope to attend the writer's workshop. It'll be a great time to network and to get to talk to many writers that I respect. I'm going to take lots of pictures. I might post one or two of those as well.

And, finally, this might be a small thing, but I'm starting to take better care of myself. I'm eating better and have gotten back on my exercise routine and have already lost seven pounds. I had a birthday recently and turned thirty years old, and I've determined I like the age thirty. I'm looking at this birthday as a new start in life, and I'm excited about the future. My goals for the coming year are to get an agent, to move into a bigger house (with our debt paid off, we can actually do that), have a baby, and keep reading and getting in shape. There's a lot to look forward to, and this time I'm keeping up the blog to keep you posted. Sorry for so many months of silence and solitude, but I needed it.

 To new beginnings. Cheers.