Okay, Heather!

I walked into the Weight Watchers meeting after waffling all day back and forth as to whether I'd REALLY ACTUALLY go. But I sucked it up and went for it. I had gotten a card in the mail with a free registration if I came back before Dec 3 and I still had some coupons I had purchased for the meetings in June that won't expire until the end of December, so I didn't have to pay anything until the end of the year. REally, I didn't have a good excuse.

I had gained 3 of the 12 pounds I lost during the beginning of the summer. But after one day of strict WW, I lost it. So this morning I started off at the exact weight I was after five steady weeks on WW before. So I feel great!!! And newsflash....eating fiber foods really DOES keep you full.

I've had a lazy week. Besides ACFW business which kept me steadily working, I sort of stayed up late and slept in. But next week is back to schedule and back to work.

An extra hour of sleep tonight. How lovely. And I love the dark. :)

Well, off to work for awhile.

Sox Won!

What a couple of nights! I actually bit my nails night before last when the game when on until 1:30am central time. I swear, you have to feel a bit for the Astros, but come on, the Sox haven't won a series since 1919. It was their year. WOOHOO. I think it was God's will, but I'm sure every Texan in america would attribute the win to other supernatural agents. :) It was kind of cool to see the President's parents at the game.

I have to tell you all: Tonight I return to Weight Watchers. Yep. As a matter of fact, I'm heading from this blog to the shower and out the door to the meeting.

I'll let you know how it goes.
Tracey

supposed to be writing

The best time to blog is when I'm supposed to be writing, am not sure where to go with the scene, and remember. Hmmm, I haven't blogged in a few days.
So here we go.
PTL Rachel Hauck and her family made it through Hurricane Wilma safely. Thank you Jesus. You always try not to worry, but still, Hurricanes haven't been too nice this year.
Loved Rachel's last Song of Songs post. It gripped my heart. I'm so tired. I need my first love to hold me and woo me back. Excellent, Rachel. Keep up the Songs, it's great.

Am back on a writing schedule. Rusty and I decided I need to write at night. I'm much more productive and that leaves my days free to do what I need to do, and for watching Oprah and Dr. Phil (I get cranky if I have to miss those two shows). so Ten pm to one or two, however long it takes to write 2K every night. Usually only takes two hours, but when I sign online--like now for instance-- it takes longer. I didn't start tonight until almost 11, and I've done about 1200 words. So I figure another hour and I can go to bed. If I can sign off line and just write.

I am going through books again and selling off some of my darlings. Well, not really the precious ones. Some I have a bit of trouble parting with just because I love the authors so much. But good grief. I don't have my own library and it does get annoying walking over books all the time. I have books all over my living room floor getting ready to put them into packages for the ones buying them.

Noticed on B&N.com today that Leave it to Claire is supposedly going to be available mid December. I don't think that's right. Last I heard it was a January release. I'm going to ask my editor tomorrow. It'd be fun to encourage people to give it away as Christmas gifts. Right now I'm writing I Love Claire, book three. It's the most fun so far, I think. I got to add a big fun, lovable dog in this one as one of the secondary characters. I love to write about kids and dogs. Lots of great material there. And with four kids and three dogs in my family I should know.

Tomorrow, a group of pals will be helping Rachel brainstorm her new Westbow (YAY RACHEL) chicklit. Looking forward to that.

Well shoot. I better get back to work. I have 800 words to write before I can go to bed

Plan B

Well, yesterday was a big fat bit of disappointment. The Cardinals lost. BOOOOOOOOO
and then I didn't win powerball. So much for all my plans. Oh well, on to plan B

Today I'm working on ACFW business (board meeting tonight and I'm the big Cheese, so I get to run the meeting), and trying to finish the next chapter of CLAIRE 3 (I won't say WHICH chapter just in case any of my editors read this. What they don't know won't hurt me.)

Lost two pounds. I'm back to where I was when I was doing WW this summer (remember that?) Back to where I STOPPED I should say, so I haven't gained back all the weight I lost. That's good.

Started walking again on my treadmill. Have to lose 15 lbs during the next five weeks in order to have a medical procedure done. I need to wire my jaw shut.

If I win the Powerball

The Cardinals are playing Game 6 against the Houston Astros in the Championships. The Cubs broke my heart last year, so I'm trying not to pay too close attention to the TV.
Rusty is home after being gone for two days so I think we'll watch Batman Begins

Okay now...if I win the powerball. I know I'll take 160 million one time pay off. Half of that will go to taxes (and they need it, so I don't mind, hopefully they won't give it to tree-huggers). So 16 million will be tithe. I wonder if I'll get my own personalized pew. :) I think with that kind of money, you'd have to buy a new house for each of your siblings and your moms (mine and Rusty's). I don't know...that's too much to even think about. I was thinking today if I'd actually keep writing?
Well, I think I would, but I would only write one book a year instead of umpteen. I would write exactly what I want and exactly how I want to write it. I write too fast to write as well as I want right now. And I would buy a beachhouse to do my writing in. And I would pay off my friends' bills-- all of them. And we'd all go to Europe. And I'd have plastic surgery. (You have to if you're a millionaire).

Things are revving up in ACFW. Zones, contest, conference, new publicity officer (Lisa is marvelous).

okay, I have to go. The Cards almost got on base and I had chest pains from the stress (not really). Still...too many emotions invested. I'm putting in the DVD of Batman Begins.

If I win the powerball, don't expect to hear from me for awhile. :) I'll either be in Europe or having plastic surgery or planning my new house. I wouldn't build a mansion, though.
Ok, off to watch Batman Begins. (my 7 year old is rooting for the astros, who just made a run, so I'm going to have to beat him before I watch the movie)

A good weekend

Spent the weekend in bed. I know. I should be ashamed, but I'm really not. I had a horrendous day Friday, actually all last week. Friday was the culmination. God woke me up to go somewhere and I thought, "This is going to be awesome," and it WASN"T it was terrible. Well, the first hour and a half were fabulous. Sometimes I think ministers should just quit when God's done and not try to keep going past the anointing.

A person totally destroyed my confidence in my ability to minister through humor. Have you ever noticed that sometimes people minister from their irritations about you or what they assume from what you show on the outside? Someone prayed that I would stop using humor so much. I was devastated! Later God assured me that he wouldn't have given me my joy if He didn't want to use it as a tool to accomplish his purpose through my speaking and through my writing. I mean would he really give me a three book deal to write a comedy series if it wasn't okay for me to be funny? I can't help it that my personality lends itself to humor. :) I would never speak if I couldn't quip. God saved my life through humor. 15 years ago I was bound up with fear and couldn't leave my house. Now they call it agorophobia, I just called it fear. I was depressed and snarly. But God infused me with joy and set me free. And I can't help it if some people prefer to be grumpy! Not this kid!

To confirm my theory that it was indeed God's idea for me to be funny, I picked up She's All That by Kristin Billerbeck. Awesome book and JUST what I needed to heal my wounded soul. I cracked up! Sunday I wasn't quite ready to face people, so I stayed in bed. :) Finished Kristin's book, finished Deb's book Over the Waters. Also a great book. Totally different. Kristin made me laugh, Deb made me cry. :) I bet the person who prayed for me would think Deb's a lot more spiritual.
Okay, I'm over it. I really do take things to heart too much. LOL You think?
Moral of today's story? Be sure that you know who you are in Christ. People are well-meaning and they truly believe they're hearing from God, but people are fallible. :) Only God is perfect.
Don't let people, no matter how much you respect them, be "thus saith the Lord" to you if it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. There is the matter of being willing to take correction, but usually God isn't going to correct you through a lay minster or someone who doesn't like you in the first place. :)

Being the Teacher...

My eleven-year-old son came home with a stack of papers to grade last night. Last week, on an assignment from his teacher, he went to the library, rented a video and made a five question paper on the video.

I noticed as he was grading that his countenance (that had been so bright when he came home) was starting to droop. I questioned him. and he confided that he was nervous because a couple of kids missed three (which was an F) and several missed 2, which was a D. It was five questions after all.

So he asked me to regrade just to be sure he was giving everyone a fair shot.
And in all but two cases the grades were right. I said it's hard be the teacher isn't it? He nodded glumly and said, "Mom, I let them do the paper while they were watching the video. How could they have miss any?"

Funny, I wonder if God thinks that about us sometimes. "Life is an open-book test. Open the Book!! Pay attention. All the answers are right there!"

It's not easy to be the one the red pen. But that's how it is in leadership. I'm learning that. Learning not to apologize for making the right choice and the right correction. Even if it's hard not to. I want to be liked. I don't like being misunderstood. Just like my son. It's not easy being the teacher.

:)

Tomorrow is another day!

Woke up too late to get ready for church today. Feel lonely for cooperate worship and like I really failed Jesus. Rachel walks on the water with Him. I can't even drag my butt out of bed to make it to the late service. 10:45!!! I stayed up until 4am discussing "priorities" with my poor husband. His priorities of course, not mine. Mine are oh-so in line. Anyway, HE made it to church with the kids, but there wasn't time for me. Besides I had a headache and was in a bad mood. Then they told me about the service which is always amazing and I kicked myself for not hurrying and going. I need to do better. I think Rachel needs to write a book about letting Jesus be the emotional equalizer. :) I really want to be Rachel when I grow up.

Tomorrow I get back into the daily word count routine. I'm not ready emotionally. I'd like to have weeks off. Only I know I could never do it. I always seemed to end up right here. In front of the computer. I need three weeks on a beach alone with no internet service. Are there still such places?

Had to set Deb Raney's book aside. I remembered I had a book to endorse that I'd committed to and it's due tomorrow. Such an amazing book. If you've never read Athol Dickson. Check him out. an AMAZING author. truly. He makes me look like I'm writing Dick and Jane. Back to Deb's book tonight. I think this one is going to be right up there with Beneath a Southern Sky. I'm half through and absolutely loving it.

Okay, enough of the self-loathing and head-on-the-wall banging.
Tomorrow is another day, Miss Scarlett