Cacapoopoopeepeeshire

How is July over? The month flew by, as it tends to do every summer.

I spent the month decluttering the house and collecting things for a charity pickup. Like most families, we keep things we don't need. I still have clothes and toys from when the boys were babies. It's my hope to move to a new house in a few years. Downsizing the amount of belongings we have now will gives us fewer things to move later.

July marked the eleventh year we've lived in Indianapolis. This is the longest I've stayed in one home. As a kid, we tended to move every five years.

Moving from California to Indiana remains a great decision. The cost of living is better and we enjoy four seasons. I had no idea how much better the schools were or how easily the state allow parents to home school. I never saw myself homeschooling, to be honest. Yet this will be my third year doing just that with Roo.

He begins 6th grade this Monday. Like many kids, he isn't thrilled to start school. He'd rather spend all day playing Xbox or Roblox. Oh, well, he'll survive a few hours of schoolwork a day.

Pooh's health remains improved, but it'll always be a struggle. He's doing well at the residential facility, playing softball on the weekends and visiting the zoo last week. Soon, he'll be moved to a home for his adult care. My hope is Pooh will be settled into a more permanent location by the holidays.

Writing-wise, I'm still working on Thunderstruck. A few times during this book, I've lost my way and had to step back. In fact, I've been rather stuck creatively this year, publishing only three books. I had expected to be farther ahead in 2015. Despite the slow start, I still hope to have eight books out by the end of the year including one for Dakota. Considering August is here and I'm still working on Thunder, eight books out by December 31st feels like a foolish dream, but I'm all about aiming high and falling short.

I remind myself that since July 2012 I've published 24 books (Angela - 8, Dakota - 3, Bijou - 13) True, many of them are now unpublished since I don't have the time or focus to finish the Angela series. One day, I'll clean them up and republish. First, I need to finish my Dakota series, which should be completed in 2017.

On the 25th, I joined a fellow author, Aimie Grey, for lunch in Richmond, Indiana (halfway between her home in Ohio and mine in Indy). We enjoyed pizza at a quirky place and talked about writing for hours. It's always fun to discuss the creative process. I'll see Aimie again in October when we attend the Queen of the West signing.

August will be a busy month. I'm publishing Thunderstruck on the 20th. I have the Carolina Book Fest on the 15th. I'm also hoping to finish the edits on Wounded this month. Oh, and I need to get started on the novelette I'm writing for a box set due in mid-September.

Here's hoping August is a fun and productive month for everyone!

 

FYI, the post title comes from an episode of Family Guy. This joke had Roo and me in stitches.