2017 is Strewn with Rocks #WereloveSeries

I'm only 3 months into 2017 and all I can say is that Chaos is my best friend. I really wish she would leave. I have things to do and I can't do them when she is joined to me at the hip.

I started off strong, getting 75% of the way through the writing of Werelove #4. Then everything started grinding to a halt thanks to, you guessed it, LIFE and CHAOS. I don't often put out there everything going on in my life but I figured it was time to let everyone know some of the setbacks that I've experienced this year.

Let's get started, shall we?

1. Two jobs. That's right I'm doing double duty working at a tax preparation business and cashiering at a retail store. I like both jobs but I'd forgotten how draining working more than one job can be.
2. Illness. This one has been taking a toll on myself and my family. First, my husband landed in the hospital for about four days with pneumonia. Then my youngest got the flu. I had some kind of head/sinus cold. Then my oldest caught something. I thought we were all clear but then this past weekend (March 5) I started to feel very under the weather. Sore throat, coughing, and headaches decided to play with me and throw me around like a rag doll.
3. Which leads me to this week. On Sunday, March 5, amid the other warning signs, I had, what I thought was a bruise on my left leg. I ignored it, thinking I had gotten it while attending my kids' dance competition. It turned out that it wasn't a bruise but an abscess. That along with my worsening cough and sore throat sent me to the ER on Tuesday (March 7).
   
   Once the doctor took a look and gave me the verdict, I had to endure getting the abscess lanced so they could drain some of the infection out. I didn't really care what they did, because by that point, I had been in pain for two days and could barely walk. I wanted my body back and anything that needed to be done to fix it was welcome.
   
   It turned out that my throat and cough are part of an upper respiratory illness and I'm stuck taking antibiotics for the next 14 days to clear it and the abscess up.
   
4. In addition to illness and jobs, I also work at a dance studio and we are in the middle of competition season. I mention that here because this takes us to... 
5. I'm going to be starting my own dance studio in Lakeland later this year. I've been getting myself ready and I'm pretty excited about it. That has taken up some of my time because of the running around getting all my ducks in a row.
6. Kids. I don't think this one needs an explanation, but when you have two special needs kids (my youngest is Asperger-Autistic), life can be a bit of a challenge. Especially, when the oldest is driving age and thinks that a driver's license is mandatory. My favorite word right now is "No".
7. Four-legged drama. Yesterday (March 8) and today (March 9) have been some of the hardest days to endure. Yesterday my dog (a female pit mix) attacked my husband's elderly dog, Bravo (chow/shepard mix). I'm not sure what prompted the attack because I was asleep due to my medicines for above mentioned illnesses.
   
   My dog got poor Bravo by the face and bit all the way down to the bone in his muzzle right below his eye. Bravo's eye is okay but it required sutures and an hour & half to stitch him back together again.
   
   I had to make the painful choice of return my dog to the shelter where I got her a year ago. I explained what had happened and why I couldn't keep her. She's a good, obedient dog. I hope that at her next forever home, it's just her. I don't think she's meant to have other dogs around her.

So, after all the above has happened, I'm hoping to finally finish Werelove book 4 during my kids' spring break. I will be going back to my home state to visit and there is literally nothing to do and not a lot of distractions either. I think a dose of that as well as the soothing mountain calm will be the nudge I need to finish my novel.

So everyone, hang on and keep your fingers crossed. Let's see if I can cross that finish line.