Ramblings-n-Writings

Archive for the ‘skittles’ Category

Ramblings-n-Writings has evolved so much since I started blogging in September 2007. As you can see from the “Archive” list in the left sidebar, sometimes I blog, sometimes I don’t. Originally, my plans were to write about editing, writing, and life on the farm. Over the years, I created my business blog, left the farm, and started writing about books and more books.

Now, as I’ve spent the last 3+ months contemplating what direction to go, I want to return to a more personal blog. One that is about our life in the rural hills of West Virginia. One that chats about the challenges and blessings of rearing twins. One that still mentions books because they are a part of my soul. One that showcases photos of flowers and critters and country life. One that just follows life as it happens and reflects on what has gone by.

I plan to return to my roots of writing about what I want, not what the blogging rules dictate I should write about. My niche’ has evolved into a personal diary for the world to see. You, as my reader, can expect honesty, frankness, and opinion about a vast array of topics.

I do desire to protect the privacy of my little family; therefore I will not share many individual details about them. DH is my husband, LG or Peanut is my firstborn daughter, DJ or Munchkin is her twin sister born 6 minutes later. And I’m still on the fence about sharing photos of my girls. If and when I do share them, the photos will be watermarked for protection and piracy. (For those who know me in real life, friend me on Facebook for up-to-date photos.)

So, with all that said, I’m hoping to blog once or twice a week. It’s hard to say exactly how much time mommy will have each week with twins in the house!

I have a confession to make. I really thought I wrote about something here on Ramblings-n-Writings, but in looking back over the archives of recent months, I only made a subtle hint to a HUGE life-changing event. Some of you I’ve “known” for a couple of years now, and I want to apologize for not sharing the news much sooner!

So, what’s the big deal? Back in November, I wrote about being Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. While the main focus of that post was about overcoming divorce,  there was a subtle little hint thrown in … “maybe the two little girls growing inside their momma right now?!”

Apparently, that’s all that I’ve mentioned about our baby girls! Since we’re approaching our due date, I decided to write an update pregnancy post, but then discovered I never even wrote about being pregnant! So, here’s everything in a nutshell …

I’m 32 weeks with twin girls! We knew at our 5 week ultrasound that it was possibly twins and confirmed it at 11 weeks. Yes, twins are genetic on both sides of the family – DH and I both have grandparents that were twins – but we never dreamed we’d be double blessed!

Size of babies: The girls are approaching 4 lbs with their weight. It’s been tons of fun watching their growth and changes at our ultrasounds!

Total weight gain: I’ve gained about 35 lbs so far – mostly in the belly but I can tell my limbs are chunkier.

My size: My waist is a whopping 43 inches now – I think it will be a while before I’m back to my pre-pregnancy 26-inch waist! My belly  size measures the equivalent of a 41-week singleton pregnancy.

Things I miss: Recently I’ve started to miss being able to sleep on my back or stomach. It gets tiring always sleeping on my side. And I have the feeling I’m going to miss my mobility more and more as the weeks progress. It’s getting hard to do simple tasks like getting up off of the sofa or rolling over in bed.

Pregnancy highlights: I’ve had a relatively easy pregnancy – no sickness, no unusual symptoms, etc. If I had to make a list of pregnancy symptoms I’ve dealt with … fatigue, occasional brain fog,  heartburn, and nausea (but only early on until I figured out how much I had to eat). I’ve passed all pregnancy tests with flying colors. Both girls appear to be very healthy as well. The “worst” thing I’ve had to deal with is keeping enough food in my body! Carrying around two growing little ones makes for one hungry momma! Seems like I’m constantly in the kitchen looking for food.

Recently we had our series of steroid shots to help give the girls’ lungs the extra boost they need in case they are born early. The average length of a twin pregnancy is 36 weeks, so we’re prepared just in case.

At our last ultrasound, Baby A, who will be the first to be born, was breech, so we’re praying that she turns sometime between now and delivery time. Without her turning, we may be looking at a c-section, something I intend to avoid if at all possible!

Well, that’s everything in a nutshell. Can I blame pregnancy brain for not remembering to share our news sooner?

We’d appreciate your prayers as we enter the final weeks before the girls arrive!

Ever since I started my first office job and was introduced to DayTimers, I’ve had a love for calendars and planners. I also have a strong dislike for how much a nice planner costs.

And, I confess, I’m the type of person who loves planners but usually ignores what they say, other than making note of impending deadlines. So… paying for planner pages I may or may not look at every day just doesn’t strike me as wise stewardship of my funds.

Last month, my awesome business accountability partner shared a link that she found to free planner pages for freelancers and bloggers.

What I like about Productive Flourishing’s planners …

• Designed with the freelancer in mind
• Printable – choose which ones you want and forget the others
• Includes instructions on how to use them to maximize productivity
• Can be placed in a notebook or folder or hung on a wall
• Clean design
• And best of all, free!

 So, if you’re tired of “making do” with commercial planner pages, jump over to Productive Flourishing and check out the free planner pages for June.

ABOUT THE BOOK

They took away everything she loved…now, she’s out for revenge.

Sage Morrow had it all: life on a beautiful Colorado ranch, a husband who adored her, and a baby on the way. Until five ruthless gunmen rode up to their ranch and changed her life forever. Now Sage is a bounty hunter bent on retribution.

Accompanied only by her majestic hawk, she travels throughout the Rocky Mountains in search of injustice, determined to stamp it out wherever it’s found. The stakes are raised when two young boys are kidnapped and Sage is forced to work with Marshall Parker Timmons to rescue them. But Sage may ultimately get more than she bargained for.

In this exciting historical romance set in the late 1800s, murder, intrigue, kidnapping, and questions of faith will keep you in suspense until the final pages.

If you would like to read the first chapter of A Woman Called Sage, go HERE.

Watch the Video Book Trailer:

A special thank you to Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for sending me this book to review. Unfortunately, I haven’t read the book because I took it out of its mailing envelope, got distracted, put the book down, and now can’t find the book. Oops! As soon as I find the book, I will read it and let you know my thoughts!

One of my projects for the month of April has been focused on social media and my business. Living in a rural area, and one of the poorest counties in the country, doesn’t exactly lead to high business volume. My desire is to spread the word more about who I am and what I have to offer. So, I’ve been looking for ways to expand my client base.

The wave of the future seems to be social media – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs. People are obsessed with knowing what others are doing and what their opinions are. What better way to connect with potential clients than to go where they are?

My first step was to find a way to make my business website dynamic. That means I needed something that changed periodically so people would keep coming back to the site. What did I do? Created a blog.

My second step was to start tweeting as my business. (Follow me @SkalaCreative.) I’ve been on Twitter for over a year now as an individual. I tweeted about my business and promoted my website with my personal account, but now I wanted something more focused. Having a business twitter helps build name recognition in the minds of potential clients.

My third step involved updating my profile on LinkedIn and making some more connections. I started using LinkedIn a long time ago (don’t ask for specifics because I don’t remember how long ago! ). Since the connections on LinkedIn are more professional in nature, I view it as a good spot to showcase my previous work experience. 

My fourth step started today when I made a Facebook page for my business. I have a totally different group of friends on Facebook than I do on Twitter. Creating a Facebook page will help put that group of friends in contact with my business on a regular basis too. (If you want to join the Facebook page, the link is in the sidebar to the left. Hope to connect with you there!)

Throughout this entire process, I’ve read hundreds of articles about “how to” and “how not to.” I’m so grateful for friends who have walked the road ahead of me and aren’t afraid to share their knowledge with me.

My goal for May is to be consistent in blogging and updating (that goes for both my business and personal sites!).

Now I just need to figure out how to automate everything …