What is that number, you ask?

That is the number of words I’ve written on my current WIP (that is the documented number, the actual number is probably well over 200,000).  No, I don’t have one huge novel.  I don’t even have a complete novel.  That is the number of words I’ve written over the last 2 years and 7 months on many, many versions of the same story.  The amount is equivalent to two novels.  So, I’ve written two whole books just get to the half way point of what should be my final version of this story.

One one hand it utterly depresses me that I’ve written so much on one (incomplete) story.  On the other hand, during those 2 years and 7 months I went through an emotional pregnancy then the birth and baby stages of my son who turns two this month.  I’m actually pretty impressed I got so much done with all that going on.  But the fact still is, I should be done by now.  I’m giving myself one month to get it done.  One month!  No excuses!  My poor characters deserve their happy ending!

Most go on vacation to decompress, but I have come to learn that a vacation with small children is far from relaxing.  It’s actually much more work. 

We went to the happiest place on Earth, Walt Disney World.  We have The Girl who is five and The Boy who is almost 2.  Normally, I wouldn’t dare a WDW vacation with a child so young, but we have family in Florida which makes the trip easier.  The Girl loved Magic Kingdom as she is a big princess fan.  The Boy enjoyed it about as much as a child his age would.  There’s one thing you should know about my children, falling asleep in strollers have never been their thing.  The Boy didn’t even like sitting in the stroller so he moved from one set of arms to another – all 25 pounds of him.  By the last day of our vacation, we were thoroughly tired of playing pass the baby.  Despite the challenges, we did have a wonderful time and I can’t wait to visit again.

For a romantic like me, Disney World is like the mothership calling me home.  It’s the place where dreams come true and it’s full of happily ever afters.  How coud I not get completely caught up in the magic that is Disney?  So, naturally, I’d hoped I would come back from the vacation with extra inspiration and motivation.  Alas, no.  After such a long writing break and the craziness that is traveling with children, I feel more disconnected from my story than ever.  I know I just need to get back into the swing of things, but first I must decompress from my vacation.