One of the Many Reasons I Have Trouble Finding Time to Blog

Once again, I dropped off the face of the earth. But no worries, I've been writing, just not blog posts. My most recent project completed is a young adult science fiction novel titled TORN, which I'm currently querying.*

If interested, you can read about TORN here.

You can see photos of what I envision the characters to look like here.

But surely, you say, surely you aren't writing novels all the time. You're right. I not. I'm dealing with things like this:

Today was a busy, fun filled day that required everyone be up, ready and out of the house earlier than usual** so I could go on a field trip with Jenna. I found this nice little surprise when I stumbled came down the stairs to make a cup of coffee.

I rounded the corner of the stairs and did a double take. "Oh no," I said to myself, "please tell me I didn't see something on the floor." As you can see above, I did. What it was happened to be was the first question. The second question was what was behind the hall closet door, because obviously, that was the true source.

Pencil shavings

Why are there pencil shavings in my hall closet? And where is the pencil sharpener that produced the mess? I'm sure it will turn up in a week or so.

Oh, and for the record, those pencil shavings are still there. I didn't have time to clean them this morning before I left and I told myself (and Facebook) I was going to make a blog post. I lived up to my end of the bargain, who's going to volunteer to clean up that mess?

*A query letter is how an author tries to get an agent interested. They send a short letter telling the agent what the book is about. If the agent is interested, then they'll request the author to send them them manuscript.

**You notice I don't mention the time we had to be out the door. Many of you would laugh at me and say you were up and out ten hours earlier, but everyone knows, ten minutes or ten hours, earlier than usual in a morning schedule is a killer.

Part One: Where'd You Go?

It's no surprise I fell of the face of the earth last winter although it might be a surprise I came back.

Last November, I wrote a novel. It was okay. It had some good parts but it had a lot of bad parts. A LOT. It is unedited and sits on my external hard drive where it will spend eternity. Some might consider it a huge waste of time but I call it an incredible learning experience. I learned that I write pretty decent characters that have great chemistry, but I needed to work on realistic plots.

So I wrote a paranormal thriller next. Wait. Wasn't I supposed to be writing a more realistic plot? Here's the amazing part. I did. I love Chosen. The first half was written in a near panic-attack, sure there was no way I could pull it off. But I kept going and before I knew it, I had a completed and edited novel. It only took me five-and-a-half months. I began the query process, the part when you start sending a query letter about your book to agents. I'm ashamed to say I only sent it to seventeen agents. (Ashamed because its an embarrassingly low number) One agent requested to read the full book. Another requested to read the first fifty pages. The partial turned it down, but the agent who requested the full LOVED it. HOWEVER. She didn't think she could sell it.

It was a very sad, soul-searching day the Saturday in June I received that email.

The problem was I didn't know WHY she didn't think she could sell it. The only explanation I could come up with was it's a paranormal book with a romance. There's a glut of them in Young Adult right now, even though Chosen isn't YA.

So two days later I started another book. Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes. A mystery. I call it a cross between the humor of Janet Evanovich and the sweet-southern of Sarah Addison Allen. I love this book too and I think it's more marketable. I am finishing up a round of revisions on it and plan to pitch it to an agent at a writing conference in Denver this weekend.

All of this to say, I stopped writing my blog because I put so much time and energy into my novels I felt like I didn't have anything left to write a decent blog post. Along the way, even though I would think "This would make a good blog post," I was smart enough to know I couldn't tease my readers. Either I committed to writing this blog or I didn't.

In the end, I committed. I STILL had readers email and tell me they missed it. My kids missed it. But the bottom line was *I* missed it. I missed telling funny stories about my kids, our crazy life, and pontificating my crazy views on things. If I write this blog, I want to do it right and not half-ass. If you take the time to read it, the least I can do is make sure I post a half-decent quality blog post. Hopefully better.

I want to thank those of you who still love me and my kids, even if we "abandoned" you. You have no idea how much I love hearing you missed us, because let's be honest, everyone wants to feel loved. Next week, I plan on doing giveaways to show you all how much I love YOU.

Thanks for being patient with me. I hope I was worth the wait.

Tomorrow I'll give you an update on the kids.

Here's the book trailer I made for Chosen. I STILL love this thing. ;-)

(Little known secret-- that's Ross' arm with a Sharpie marker tattoo.)

Conversations with a Forensics Team Captain in Training

Meet Ryan. Ryan is the future caption of his high school debate team.

Ryan is different than the rest of us. While the girls and I have more creative, free spirited personalities, Ryan's tends to run into OCD tendencies. I did a blog post back-in-the-day about a then three-year-old Ryan packing his own lunch because I didn't do it right. One of the happiest days in his life was the day I taught him to make his bed. He ran around making everyone else's too.

Let me take a moment to wipe away a tear of joy. Okay, better now.

In a house full of creative souls (aka slobs) Ryan is like a cool breeze on a hot summer day. But just like everything, there are some negative aspects to Ryan's rigidness. Ryan believes he is always right. Always. While some might call this a birth defect attributed to all humans with a Y chromosome, I will refrain from making that "leap." HOWEVER, if that is your own personal philosophy, I'm not gonna argue with you. Whatever Ryan's reason, I confess some days he drives me batty. This is the kid that argued with me for ten minutes this summer that he couldn't to bed at 9:00 because it was still light outside.

Emma proves to be frustrating to Ryan. She loves to argue back out of pure stubbornness. As you can imagine, the provides HOURS of entertainment.

Conversations Yesterday Morning:*

Time: 9:30 am Scene: Mommy's office aka the dining room

Emma: {jumping up and down} I'm a monkey!
Ryan: No, monkeys don't jump!
Emma: {jumping} I'm a monkey!
Ryan: {growling} I said monkeys don't jump!
Mommy: {sitting at laptop, accidentally typing the word "jump" into scene in book} Ryan, monkeys can jump.
Ryan: No, they can't. I never saw them.
Mommy: {drinking coffee like a tequila shot} Yes, they can. I have seen them.
Ryan: No, they can't.
Mommy: Yes, they can.
Ryan: {sobbing} Monkeys can't jump.
Mommy: {Pours Kahlua** into coffee and guzzles.}

Emma: {jumping gleefully} I'm a monkey.

Later:

Ryan hides in pantry broom closet. Emma tries to enter. Jostling ensues.

Ryan: Emma! There's no room for you!

Emma: ARG!

Mommy: {tuning out children}

Ryan: {Pushing Emma out and shutting door} There's no room!

Emma: {crying}

Mommy: What's going on?

Ryan: Emma wants in and there's no room!
Mommy: Emma, come sit in a minion chair*** and color.

Ryan: {Opens cabinet door} I'm Diego. {shuts door}

Emma: {sitting in minion chair, coloring} You're a spaceman!

Ryan: {opens door} No! I'm Diego!
Emma: {sweetly} Spaceman!

Ryan: Diego!
Emma: Spaceman!

Ryan: {sobbing} I'm Diego!

Mommy: {draining the Kahlua bottle} Jesus, take me now.****

Just a day in the life people.*****

* I am now rethinking my career as a novelist and considering expanding upon my obvious screen writing skills.

** While Mommy has been known to ask Starbucks employees at the drive thru window if they would add a shot of Kahlua or Bailey's, she has never actually tried it.

***Minion chairs

Yes, I have chairs at my "desk" that are known as minion chairs.

**** I am neutral on the post/pre Tribulation theories. However, if I'm gonna be raptured, that would have been a good time to go. Just sayin'.

*****Mommy's reactions may have been slightly exaggerated for entertainment purposes. But only slightly.

Chasing Rainbows

Almost 4 years ago I learned that life is short.  You can plan to do things "some day" but some day may never come.

When I was a little girl I loved to read.  I also loved to write.  In the 4th grade I had a dream that I loved so much I decided to write it down.  I got a spiral notebook and hand wrote 40 pages, front and back, before I stopped.  I don't really remember what the dream was about but I still remember the burning desire to take the dreams in my head and put them on paper. I still have that burning desire.

My blog has reincarnated a part of me that was long lost, the writer.  I love putting our crazy stories into words (and photos.)  I love being able to use my imagination to come up with some of the off the wall ideas that make it on my blog.  But there's a part of me that wants more.

I was writing the story of Darrell's accident and death.  I know there's a story to tell but it's a painful one.  The farther I get from it sometimes the harder it is to revisit it.  So, for now, that project is on hold.

This past summer the seed of an idea was planted in my head.  The idea of a story.  The story grew, and changed and by September I had a plot of a novel.  I researched.  I organized my plot in a flow chart on a dry erase board.  I wrote part of my first chapter, the seed that grew into the plot on my board.  And then I stopped.

Writing a book is a daunting task.  There's a lot of words.  There's a lot of planning.  Characters, plots, subplots, motivation.  But there's also fear.  What if I can't do it?  What if it's bad?  The entire month of October, two people lived in my head begging to come to life but yet I couldn't do it.  What if I failed?

November is National Novel Writing Month.  Over a decade ago some people got together and challenged themselves to write a novel* in a month, 30 days-- the month of November.  They named it NaNoWriMo. (* A full length novel is actually 80,000-100,000 words which is my ultimate goal.)  I decided NaNoWriMo was exactly what I needed.  I also needed to realize that a first draft can suck, in fact usually does suck. Once I realized that it gave me the freedom to write without fear.

Now on November 8th, I have written 14,071 words, 17, 569 words total when I include what I wrote before.  My story is flying onto the keyboard and the amazing part is that I love it.  It's a first draft, so it's far from perfect, but I love it nevertheless.  But even better is support that I have gotten.

I expected people to call me crazy.  I expected looks of "oh isn't that cute, she thinks she can write a book."  I never expected the full on support that I have received. I never expected people to be excited about my book.  I have been blessed beyond belief to have people ask how it's coming, cheering me on.  This morning at church, my 10 year old nephew Zach asked me what my current word count was. My friend Kathleen, a doctor, answers my every medical research question, even the most mundane,  and is happy to do it.  My friend Kristi, a medical transcriptionist, answers every question I have about the job of a transcriptionist.  I've had 3 people offer to edit my book when it's done.

I ask myself, if all these people believe in me without hesitation, how can I not?

And so I write and my heart fills with joy with every word that goes onto my screen and I think maybe, just maybe, I've finally found myself.

Some Things Are Better Shown Off At Home and Not School

Ryan has made remarkable progress since he started preschool. Since August he now knows all his colors and can even count. I wrote his name and Julia, Jenna and Emma's names on index cards and he can point to each card and tell me who's name it is. But when he sees the letter "R" he doesn't call it an R, he points excitedly and says "That's my name!"

This morning he was writing on a dry erase board as I was preparing to take him to preschool and I wrote an "R" on the board.

"That's my name!"

"Yes, it's the first letter in your name. It's an R." I drew another one and told him to try to write one. He wrote a P so I told him that the R was missing his "leg." I added one and finished loading the dishwasher. When I checked back on him I found that he had written several R's.

 On the 3rd R, Ryan decided to personify it.  The Mr. R has a face, hair, arms and hands.  And something else.

How do I know it's Mr. R? Ryan excitedly showed me that the R had a peepee. Anatomically correct letters, yeah.  Hopefully Ryan won't show off his new found writing skills at preschool today.

The Cougar

When I write a blog post, I sit in a quiet spot with soothing music playing in the background while scented candles are burning around me. I'm filled with peace and serenity as the sounds of the tap, tap, tap of the keys echo in the deathly quiet room.

Yeah, right. When I write anything I have to have some kind of noise around me. When I work on my book I usually listen to music, and not soothing music. Loud music with a heavy beat. That's just one clue of many that Trace inherited his ADD from his mother. (I've never officially been diagnosed but many people have accused me of it and it wasn't without merit.) Many parents of children with ADD or ADHD have a hard time understanding why their kids need noise around them as they study. I so totally get it.

So usually when I write my blog posts, often after the kids are in bed, I have the TV on and sometimes I even pay attention to it a little bit. Last night was no exception. I was channel surfing trying to find something to watch and I happened upon a show I had seen advertised.

Hmm, maybe I want to be a cougar too. I did practice my cougar growl with Demi from the Unreal Housewives of Kansas City. I decided to watch and see if it was for me.

Then again maybe it's not.

Meet Stacey, a 40 year old commercial real estate agent with four kids. She thinks men her own age are boring and lack spontaneity and a "zest for life." Stacey's looking for a 20 something guy to spend the rest of her life with 'cause we all know how deep 20 something guys are.

The Cougar is brought to us by the creator's of The Bachelor so it came as no surprise that The Cougar makes her appearance and meets her baby's in waiting men in front of the The Cougar Mansion. Stacey was the center of attention (of course) as the men were in a semi circle around her (just like kindergarten!) waiting for their chance to make their introduction.

Oh my goodness!!! Each one was trying to out do the other with their introduction and the one who impressed her the most got one on one time first. Oh my goodness! The testosterone was flying because who has more testosterone then 2o something guys? Teen ages boys, but that probably would be illegal so they had to go with the guys in their 20's. Who could have impressed her the most? I was on pins and needles waiting to see.

It was Travis.
Meet geeky Travis who just turned 21 and impressed her by presenting her with a champagne glass. He poured them both a glass of champagne and told her it was one of the first times he had drank alcohol. Ah, that's so sweet. He's totally into anything "boarding," skate boards, snow boards. Maybe she could drop him off at the skate park later. Travis was rewarded with a nice kiss after their little chat. I hope it was legal. Maybe she should have carded him first...

It was the first of many kisses for Stacey.

Here she is kissing some other guy during their little chat. Isn't that sweet? She doesn't want anyone to feel left out. Only she has to, because before the night is over she has to "kiss off" 5 of the 20 men in the room.

Say what? Kiss off??? Instead of handing out roses, the Cougar's handing out kisses, or not. If she lets you kiss her on the lips you're in! If she turns her cheek, you're outta there! Hope Stacey brought some chapstick with her. Before the night was over she kissed 15 guys, some multiple times. Cougar gets around.

I found it interesting that as she talked to the guys, she seemed more interested in the guys who weren't into responsibility, but then maybe I misread her. Because, she must totally be looking to settle down with a young little whipper snapper. I also have to say that as I watched the boys hangin' out that I was more than a little grossed out thinking out dating one of these guys. But maybe that's just me. Can you imagine me with a 20 something guy? He'd just blend in with all my kids. "Brody! I told you that you couldn't go to the skate park until you cleaned up your room!" Oops! I've got enough babies, thank you very much.

What's the term for dating a guy less than 10 years younger? If a 40 year old dating a guy 12-19 years younger is a Cougar, maybe 5-10 years younger is a wild barn cat can be a Liger.

Remember the mythical creature created by Napoleon Dynamite? It was bred for it's skills in magic. Cool. Maybe I could use those magic skills. You're just jealous because I spent 2 hours chatting with babe's in a chat room.

Make you own dang casadilla Brody!




(Sorry, couldn't resist the Napoleon quotes/adaptations!)

Today's Post Brought to You by the Letter "R"

My new BFF Brandy at I'm Not Your Average Soccer Mom -- oh wait, Brandy did I tell you that we were BFF's now? Anyway, Brandy had a tag of sorts. She had to list 10 of her favorite things that started with the letter "L". I was quite impressed with her list. She made it look entirely too easy so when she asked if anyone else wanted to play I naively jumped up and down waving my arms yelling "Me! Pick me!" And she did and gave me the letter "R."

R seems like an easy letter. Its pretty common, right? But just try coming up with your favorite things that start with R. I received my assignment on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, so I put it off for a few days. I was so arrogant about my abilities to complete this task that I only gave it momentary thoughts as I cooked my turkey and ate until I had to let my pants out and then half passed out from the postprandial alkaline tide after my large feast. (Heads up, that was my moment of brilliance in this post so if your searching for another you might as well quit reading and wait for tomorrow's post.)

The first is Ridiculously easy. #1) is Ross and Ryan. (Do I get extra points for using the word Ridiculous?)


Two of my 3 favorite boys. Aren't they cute? I could have split them up and made them #1 and #2 but they seemed like a pair to me.

After this I was stumped. Trace showed up and helped me brain storm. Unfortunately he kept coming up with things I didn't like, let alone be my favorite things. But he was somewhat useful. He stated one that should have been totally obvious.

#2) Reading. Duh! Why didn't I think of that? It's so obvious, maybe too obvious. I love to read and wish I had more time to do it. But its to the determent of my family when I get too absorbed.
I haven't made my obsession with this series a secret. Enough said.

Trace's next suggestion left me somewhat Righteously offended but then I saw he spoke the truth.

#3) Rambling. I admit, with Relish, that I tend to Ramble at times. But if I didn't Ramble my posts would be much shorter and much more boring. Rambling's a good thing. If I keep telling myself that then I'll keep believing it.

So that was the end of Trace's usefulness. Great, I was only at #3. Was it too late to split up the boys? Hey, who needs Trace? Moving on to #4

#4) Ring. My wedding Ring which I now wear on my right hand. I love this Ring!

My fingers are kind of shiny because my hands were freakishly dry so I put lotion on, hence the shiny moisture laden skin.

Confession: This is not my original wedding Ring. My original Ring had tons of bagette diamonds. When it was cleaned at the jewelry store, it was shiny and beautiful, but 1 hour later it looked grimy. It drove me crazy. About 8 years after we were married Darrell decided to stop the whining make his wife happy and we spent about a year looking for the perfect Ring, my need for perfection, not his. Did I mention that I love this Ring? No, I didn't think so.

#5) wRiting. I freely Resign myself to the fact that writing does not really start with an R but it sounds like it does, right? You know the 3 "R's"-- Reading, 'Riting and 'Rithmatic? Not to worry, 'Rithmatic won't be # 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10.

Here I am hard at work at my laptop with my staRbucks cup in hand.

#6) Range, as in GAS Range. When I moved I left behind my beautiful semi professional gas Range. Now I cook on a glass top electric cook top. In my dream of dreams I would have one of these:

If I had one of these bad boys I would probably cook a LOT more. And it would be good, like Food Network, good. If only it came with a Sous Chef.

Which brings me to #7

#7) Restaurant. I love to eat out! I could eat out and eat out all the time. I'm not talking Golden Arches here, nor any other establishment that has a drive thru.

Wait, staRbucks has a drive thru! But I only get breakfast there. Okay, never mind. Olive Garden is one of my favorite places. Yeah, its a chain restaurant but it doesn't have a drive thru so it qualifies!

Unfortunately with all of my children, and my ever shrinking budget, eating in a Real Restaurant doesn't happen very often. Oh well.

With all that cooking and cleaning could it be any surprise that my next favorite thing is:

#8) 'Rita, as in maRgaRita.

I love Margaritas. I love the lime and the salt. I like them so much I could drink them without the tequila, which I did at times when I was pregnant.

Which now leads me to my next item:

#9) Riesling, my new favorite wine. And not just any Riesling, my favorite is by Relax.

Not only does it taste extraordinarily good, but it comes in a totally cool blue bottle AND it has a metal screw top, no messing with a cork with this bottle. It totally Reeks quality and class.

I'm looking like a total lush here. Time to redeem myself. On to the Big Finish.

Only, heRe's where I get stumped and want to go back and split up my babies. No, be strong, don't split up the kids. You can do this.

Okay, maybe I can't but my next item really is a favorite of mine.

#10) TyleR FloRence. So his name doesn't start with an R but he has an R in both of his names, so that has to account for something, right? I know, you're thinking "What is she talking about? Tyler Florence?"
Just look at him! Not only can this guy cook, but he looks hot while doing it. Hey, maybe he's the Sous Chef that comes with that Range in #6. Or maybe I could be his Sous Chef. Did it just get warm in here??? Its too bad he's married because apparently I'm not anymore. Hmmm....

Wasn't I trying to improve upon my reputation after #8 and 9?

Soooooo, if anyone wants to play this game let me know in the comments and I'll send you a letter.

Sorry, I've got to get back to Tyler.

I've been tagged AGAIN!

AGAIN!

I think that Kay at Kay Bratt Uncensored just didn't get enough esoteric tidbits about me with my last tagging and tagged me again! Or maybe its payback for actually suggesting the only reason I didn't go as her for Halloween was because I wasn't blond. In any case, its a good thing I'm such an interesting person! Yeah, I didn't fall for that myself. I'll try to not make this a snoozer.

So my 7 "interesting" facts straight off the top of my head:

1) I can't smell oh wait, I used that one already The above statement brought something to mind. I am the queen of rationalization. If you want to do something but there's some reason not to do it I will help you rationalize why you SHOULD. (Maybe I should sell this service) Want that cute pair of shoes that cost too much? You really SHOULD get them because they are really one of a kind and they'll go so well with the black dress. If you wait for them to go on sale they might not be here and then you'll be so sorry you didn't get them.

Some people get great super powers like flying or x-ray vision. I got rationalization.

2) I like to sing and dance all over my house, oh they know that already OK, something along those lines. I used to want to be an actress and a singer. Slight problem with that, I really can't sing that well. American Idol was in KC this summer and I told my kids that I snuck away and tried out. Julia's bestie from Nashville was visiting and those crazy girls thought I actually did. (I'm not that crazy!) But I had them going. I told them "Well, you know, I'm really not supposed to talk about it since its all a big secret but lets just say be sure to watch in January." They were all excited thinking I was going to Hollywood (?!?!?!? these girls have heard me sing!!!) Then I told them "Now, I'm not saying I made it but... Simon was quite impressed." I think that one was the kicker that sold me out. Simon's never impressed.

3) I love to write my blog, wait, I've told them that time and time again I have always loved to write. I started to write a book when I was in 4th grade. It was based on a dream I had. (Hey, it worked for Stephenie Meyer. She had a dream, woke up and wrote it down. Its chapter 16 of Twilight) I made it to about page 80 and stopped. Not to bad for a 4th grader.

In high school I had an English teacher who saw "great potential" in me. Imagine my surprise when I turned in a creative writing paper and I got a C. I went to her after class and asked her why I got a C when so-and-so's paper got a B and wasn't better than mine. She looked me straight in the eyes and told me that I was better than that paper I had turned in and she was grading me according to my potential not to the class standard. I had never been told anything like that before and it stuck with me forever. She was my biggest supporter and I thought the world of her.

A couple of years after I graduated I found out from my mother that my English teacher had been very sick and found out that she had cancer. It was very advanced and aggressive. She died soon after her diagnosis leaving a husband and small children. I decided that if I ever wrote a book it would be dedicated to her-- Mrs. Connie Davis. So all you teachers out there who wonder if you make a difference, please know that you do. I will always regret not thanking her for believing in me.

Wow, that's a tough one to follow but the list must go on.

4) I have a lot of kids and love being a mother, most of the time. TOO OBVIOUS! I knew that I wanted to be a mother when I was 17. Just deep down I felt a need to be a mother. I had 2 boys with my first husband and getting Ross was a miracle in itself because my first husband wouldn't have had any kids if he could have gotten away with it. I can remember thinking to myself that I wished that I could have just one more child-- hopefully a girl that I could dress up in cute little dresses and bows. I can tell you that I would have never believed 15 years ago that I would get FOUR more children. So Kay, hysterectomy or no hysterectomy you can still have more kids if you really want to.

I am so totally blessed, even when I'm a crabby cake on Halloween.

5) I love Starbucks, no kidding???? So I'm a Starbucks addy now, although I haven't had a Starbucks since Wednesday, but I used to HATE coffee. I remember trying it in my early 20's thinking if you had to add so much sugar and milk what was the point.

Sometimes we have to eat our words. And they don't taste too bad when you have them with a Grande nonfat, no whip Mocha.

6) I'm a nice person I have a knack for getting along well with others. I'm pretty tolerant, so I guess that helps.

Back when I was histologist and went back to work after Julia was born, I interviewed for a job at the VA hospital in Little Rock. During the interview the supervisor confessed that he had had a very hard time keeping people in my position because the other people in the department were "characters" and sometimes hard to get along with. I knew I would only be at the job for about 5 months so I told him that I had never had a problem getting along with coworkers.

Oh my! When he said they were characters, I really had NO idea what I was getting into. It was a very interesting experience, from one guy literally watching the clock when I left for a break or lunch, to 2 coworkers yelling and screaming at each other in the hallway and finally the guy who told me he knew someone who could "take care of" a relative I was complaining about. Oh my is right! But I worked hard, helped them out and when I left my supervisor told me he had never seen anyone get along with the characters in Character City and how sorry he was to see me go. I heard he quit not long after I did.

7) I like to bake I make the best silk pie in the world. Ask anyone who's tried it. Its the easiest thing to make but its always requested. Stop by sometime and I'll prove it to you. Give me a few hours notice first.

So now I'm supposed to tag 7 more people:

The Shaw Family
Not Your Average Soccer Mom
The Johnson Family Tales
Mommy Chronicles who redid my blog
Pokonutz
The Princess and the Ladybug Because Lorie's all new to blogging and she needs to get her feet wet!

I think 6 is enough 'cause I'm not going for 7!


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Edited Sunday morning @ 8:00: I have had several people ask me how to do a strike through, which is when a word or words have a line through them. I tried to answer this in the comment section and it got all freaked out with the Html format and wouldn't let me so I'm posting it here. Besides, lots of people don't read comments and might see it here.

The Strike Through:

Let's say I want to strike through some words in this sentence: My children woke me up at the crack of dawn at 8:45.

I want to strike through " the crack of dawn"

Go to the Edit Html tab and put your curser in front of the words " the crack" and type < str!ke>and after the word "dawn" type < /str!ke> when you click on the Compose tab it will look like this: (Important note: change the ! in the strike above to an "i" and take out the spaces. I also just found out that you can type this on the Compose tab and when you publish it will put it in the Html format.)

My children woke me up at the crack of dawn at 8:45. And its true, they did, pre Daylight Savings time, which all that mattered to me.