Vosburgh Vagabond

We are just over a week into NaNoWriMo! I'm behind in my word count goal, but feeling really good about the progression of my story. My friends Scott and Hannah came over this morning and we closed ourselves into the bungalow at my condo complex and wrote for a few hours. Marc was kind enough to watch the baby while I wrote (and also while I threw a Jamberry party later this afternoon). It was so good to get some solid writing time in. I've really been struggling with finding time to sit down the write, between work and hanging out with the baby, especially during the week. I am going to try to get at least a little more writing in on weekdays, but I really enjoyed being able to get caught up on the weekend.  My total word count is 5497 so far! 

Most of the time, I don't miss the days when my 14 month old toddler was a newborn. We sleep now. We didn't used to sleep. Our time is primarily filled with cuddles and giggles and bubble baths. I love having a toddler.  But man, sometimes that little monster drives me nuts.  I have a newish friend. She works in my building. We have stuff in common. I've shared the Happy Planner love.  We made a Michaels date for after work today. I swung by and picked up the kid, who fell asleep in the car on the way to Michaels. He was still sleeping as I made my way through the dark (thanks, daylight savings time) to a parking spot right next to the store.  Strike one.  I woke him up from his nap with gentle tickles, making a game out of putting his shoes on. I made my way into the store, and found my friend. She was near the Happy Planners, which is near the washi tape.  Strike two.  This kid loves washi tape (like mother, like son). ESPECIALLY tubes of washi tape....

It's officially November! I've packed up the Halloween stuff and I'm ready to enjoy a month of fall before we break out the Christmas stuff after thanksgiving dinner! That means football and chili and pumpkin everything! No Christmas in our house until we've fully appreciated and embraced fall and all its unique beauty. November means that it's also time for NaNoWriMo! For the uninitiated, that stands for National Novel Writing Month! I plan to write, and finish, an ENTIRE NOVEL this month! I started my first NaNoWriMo attempt in November of 2011, but was thrown off a horse the day before my first wedding anniversary (November 5th) and there was no more novel writing for me that month. I am going to pick up where I left off and work on the same novel... something I've been mulling over for years. I'm also going to participate in NaBloPoMo, which means that I'll be posting on my blog every day this month, as well, to try to get back into the habit of wr...

So, technically, it's the 16th of November. But since I haven't gone to bed yet, I'm still counting this as my blog for Friday. It's fine, trust me. I went into work two hours early today and got a ton of work done before I even "officially" was at work for the day. I hate getting out of my bed that early, but it's so good to get things done while it's still quiet and I don't have the phone ringing in my ear nonstop. After work, Marc and I went to Starbucks so that I could do some NaNoWriMo writing. I picked up where I left off last time and realized that I really need to be keeping better track of my characters, locations and all of the little details that I've already written. I don't want to forget to mention something later on in the story that is relevant to what's going on, and (more importantly), I don't want to have any sort of inconsistencies if I can avoid it. That will help with editing after I finish (if I decide to ...

I have a confession to make. I am WAY behind on NaNoWriMo! We are talking like a WEEK behind. I made a really good start on my novel while we were on vacation last week, but enjoying the last couple of days of relaxation followed by the stress of going back to work after a week out of office, not to mention the ridiculous migraine I had yesterday meant that I haven't been putting in any time at my laptop, working on my story. Never fear, though. I have not given up hope. I still think about my main character and her story. In the two years since I had the idea for my novel, my main character and I have become well acquainted. I think of her like an old friend that I maybe haven't talked to in a while (which actually works really well with where her story is going). I want to enjoy writing my novel, not feel obligated to stare at a computer when I get home after I've already done that for 9-10 hours at my job. I'm not going to reprimand myself or feel bad about the...

New discoveries and what I'm listening to now.  I was thinking of ideas for recurring features on my blog, a sense of organization about the whole thing. One thing that I would like to feature HAS to be music based. I can't go through a day without music. Tonight I helped round out my day with some lovely nocturnes by Chopin and it was the perfect way to help me relax after my first day back after my vacation (the first day back is always the worst!).  Writing for Confront Magazine  has helped me to discover new music and has given me a ton of opportunities to review music rom bands that I might not have heard of otherwise.  Recently I've written two playlists, based on Canadian singer Katie Bulley and a band called The Medicine Hat .  This week, I reviewed a new Christmas album by the Robertson family, of Duck Dynasty fame. The album is hilarious! You can read my full review by clicking here .  I should be listening to a ton of De...

The worst thing about vacation is when it comes to an end. We still have one more night left of our time here at Whistler. I think it's been the perfect amount of time for a relaxing village that doesn't really have that much going on this time of the year. We have spent a lot of time in our hotel (which I like doing when we pay more than we would for a "just a place to sleep after we go out and do things" room). I've finished two and a half books (Today I started on Mindy Kaling's "Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me?" and it's hilarious. I love it). We've lazed around watching movies and HGTV. I lounged in an amazing, deep bathtub and had my own spa day in the room. I finished crocheting a little Christmas-y towel thing for the kitchen and made a ton of progress on the blanket I'm working on. I've blogged every day for NaBloPoMo and have gotten a REALLY good start on my novel for NaNoWriMo. It's been a little creative retrea...

I love vacation. Marc and I picked Whistler for a few reasons. It's within driving distance, we hadn't been here before, and we knew that we would be able to have a nice, relaxing vacation. Most of our trips are go go go. We hardly ever have trips where the main purpose is to rest and recharge, which is exactly what I wanted from this trip. After a great night's sleep in my cozy hotel bed, I woke up to this view: Not bad, eh? I spent the morning lounging in bed, finishing The Fault in Our Stars. From the moment I started reading, I had an idea of how it was going to end and I wasn't wrong. If you would like to spend some quality time with tears running down your face, I highly suggest this book. It was depressing and beautiful all at the same time. It was so good. We spent the afternoon walking around the village after having a delicious lunch at Dups Burritos, just a minute walk from the lobby of our hotel. It had a cheese quesadilla with peppers and it was...

Marc and my first anniversary didn't go so well. We had lived in Washington for less than a year at the time, and hadn't done too much exploring outside of our area. After a little research, we decided to go down to Long Beach, Washington. We found an adorable little hotel and left early from work on Friday to go down and enjoy a weekend on the coast to celebrate our first year as a married couple. The hotel was incredible. It's called Adrift Hotel and you should DEFINITELY check it out if you want to spend a weekend in Long Beach. It's chic and wonderfully decorated and so cozy. We had Chinese food in our suite that night and got up the next morning to explore. I immediately found a place to ride horses on the beach. We signed up for a session and spent the time waiting for it to start wandering along the cold, blustery beach. My horse was named Earnhardt. He was sweet. It really wasn't his fault. Long story short, Earnhardt wasn't happy about going on o...

I woke up this morning, thinking that I had to get up and take a shower and go to work. Then, I remembered that it was Saturday, and not only did I not have to go to work today, I'm off work for nine days straight! YAY anniversary week! After the crazy week I've had, all I wanted to do was relax. So, we laid out in the living room for most of the day, listening to the torrential rain and ridiculous wind. The power kept flickering, but it was so gorgeous out. We didn't leave the house until I had to go meet a friend to pick up some lotion that I had ordered from her through Pink Papaya. It is called Pumpkin Latte and it smells SO GOOD! While we were out at Target, the power went out! It was kinda fun, with everybody giggling excitedly, walking around the dark store. I was in the middle of buying a new pair of jeans when it happened. They feel like they fit, and I used my phone flashlight to check them out in the mirror, so I think they look okay. I hope. After that, ...

I worked 55 and a half hours this week.  I'm so tired.  Regardless of THAT, though, I knew that I wanted to come home and start NaNoWriMo (for those of you unfamiliar, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month... you write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November... about 1,667 words a day!).  I'm crazy. I'm also doing NaBloPoMo... I think that's what it's called. National Blog Posting Month? Anyways, so that's a little more simple. All I have to do is at least post a blog post a day. I REALLY miss writing my blog, and I think NaBloPoMo would be a good way to get back into the habit. What's that thing I keep seeing on Pinterest? It only takes 21 days to make a habit? We'll see.  RIGHT, back to the cheating.  My story idea for the novel I'm writing came to me back in November 2011. Marc and I were getting ready to celebrate our first anniversary. I was listening to a lot of Death Cab for Cutie at that time (and all...

I think it's pretty easy to say that The Head and the Heart's Let's Be Still is my most eagerly-awaited album release of the year so far. I pre-ordered the special "Loser" edition on vinyl from Sub Pop and it arrived on Friday (even though the album didn't come out officially until today), and I got a digital pre-release last week to review for Confront Magazine , so I've been lucky enough to listen to it non-stop for the past week.  Shameless plug: my album review goes up tomorrow, and it would be GREAT if you would go read it.  Don't worry, I'll be sure to put up a link after it goes live. Spoiler: I like it.  Along those lines... my creative buzz , which started with craft day at the Luce's house a few weekends ago, has not yet worn off. I started a book club with two nice ladies (if you live in the Bothell-ish area, you're welcome to join!) and I've been writing more for Confront, and I've decided to do NaNoWriMo! A...

It started with craft day at my friend Stacy's house. I didn't realize how much I had been missing a creative outlet. In high school and college, I was always MAKING something, whether it be music or magazines or writing stories. Now I work in insurance. There are rules. Things are very black and white. My brain works that way, too, so I didn't feel the effects of my creative dry spell at first. But then I spent an evening with some lovely ladies (and an even lovelier [almost] three year old) and I had SO MUCH FUN. I made Thanksgiving cards for my friends and family from scratch. I glittered pumpkins (sorry about the "craft herpes' all over your house, Tom). I had fun. When I got home, I felt good. I was doing something outside of work other than sitting at home. I was creating something. Since then, I've been crafting at home a lot... crocheting a blanket while I watch TV, Mod Podgeing literally everything, and thinking about writing more. I decided I...