No, not the book by Franzen.
I made a decision last week that I think will really help me. I stopped babysitting. I have been babysitting anywhere from 1-4 kids regularly for the past five and a half years. Since January I've had a little girl just a few months younger than Truck Boy and an infant less than six months old. That meant I had four kids under the age of three. As you can imagine, some days all I did was feed them, change them, and sweep the floor upon occasion.
I'm very excited to move forward. Sure, my book budget may have dropped down to zero but spending time doing fun things with my kids and over all being a good person who isn't too stressed to think is well worth it.
Mostly I'm hoping I can find a little more time to write. Or just that I won't fall asleep every time I sit down at the computer. I'm going to finish this book and send out my first query by the end of June. I'm putting it out there so you can all hold me accountable. So, I'm off to work now. Do you have a goal to share?
Five and a half years? Ha! I never made it past 5 weeks. Babysitting was just not my thing, Sara, even when I had my own kids at home all day. It was too stressful (or I was too uptight?). I think the latter. So, with that said, I expect to hear about your first batch of queries sometime in early July. :)
ReplyDeleteI hope to have news for you! Even better if it's good news, like a partial request.
DeleteOh no! Not BABYSITTING! I've never done it and don't want to start in my old age. ; )
ReplyDeleteMy goals are to continue being productive and use THE ARTIST'S WAY to jump start the process.
Productivity! That's a great goal for all of us. Good luck!
DeleteYay! I'm excited for you! I only babysat one baby for just under a year and that was enough for me. Totally stressed me out. Enjoy your new change!
ReplyDeleteThanks, I plan to!
DeleteMy mother babysat for 15 years when I was a kid living in the States. She only had time for the "other kids" as I would call them and the house keeping. I was so happy when she stopped. You'll definitely have more time to write, just make sure others things don't creep into your writing time and you'll be good to go!
ReplyDelete15 years! That's crazy amazing. I hope to keep my writing time sacred. It's still limited to nap time and after children's bed time but there should be less distractions now. I used to have an hour in the morning but son has been waking up before six.
DeleteIt sounds like a great step for you, Sara. I have thought about doing some babysitting from time to time, but I finally got myself in a good groove with my writing and don't want to upset things. Sending good luck your way in regards to your upcoming submission!
ReplyDeleteThe babysitting was a good experience, I'm glad I did it, but it was time to move on. Thanks for the good luck vibes!
DeleteSounds like an exciting change. I'm looking forward to hearing your journey forward.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for carving out time for yourself! I'm so excited you're almost ready to query! Keep going!
ReplyDeleteThanks, it's exciting and terrifying.
DeleteIt's a really good feeling to make a decision about something, isn't it? Good for you, and sadly there's always compromise, but at least you're giving yourself some space. Lots of luck with getting your book ready to query!
ReplyDeleteIt is a good feeling, I've been dithering over it for a while cause I felt guilty telling her I couldn't do it.
DeleteGood luck with your goal! I'm trying to finish the first draft of a book right now and want to be done by mid-June.
ReplyDeleteThanks! And good luck on your goal, I hope your draft goes well.
DeleteI hope you do have more time for writing! I'm loving my schedule so far, now that I'm into my second week. Thursday night is rapidly becoming a catch all - I haven't scrapbooked at all yet; last week I attended a happy hour and this week I think I'm going back to transcribing Alfred Wallace's letters.
ReplyDeleteSo far so good. I'm glad your schedule is working out so far. Enjoy your Thursday nights.
DeleteGood for you! I used to do day care in my home, and I finally reached the same conclusion.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I realized exactly how stressed I was until It was over. It's been nice so far this week.
DeleteI think it's great that you're creating more time for yourself. Good luck with your writing and querying!
ReplyDeleteYay for querying! Good luck! And I wish I had more time for writing. *sigh* Someday...
ReplyDeleteHey, you still write a million times faster than I do so no worries. :)
DeleteI saw your comment on Peggy's blog (that you are a SAHM mom, too) and had to come over and say hello. That's great to hear you will have more freedom. When my kids were at home (the youngest started K last fall) I also babysat a lot for friends and I felt the same way. Some days I didn't get much done other than feed, entertain, and clean the kids. So hooray for more writing time!
ReplyDelete