Missing you, missing you dearly....

Most of the time I write here to share information, to highlight an amazing mom or to help spread creative inspiration. This post is different. This post is for me.

I want to take the time to put down some thoughts about writing. My love of writing is really what prompted me to start this blog. I wanted to figure out a way to write, and be a mom and not forget that being creative is important to me.

Yes, blogging technically is writing and I feel that blogging has allowed me to keep up some of the skills needed to feel like a writer. Right now, writing here is what I do to stay sharp, to stay familiar and to keep my thoughts fresh.

Maternal Spark has brought me many connections with like minded women and I love that (you guys are great!)

But I really miss fiction.

I really want to pound out the novel that's been stuck in my head for the last two years.

I really want to sink myself into it and allow myself the indulgence of writing for me.

Honestly, I don't know if I can work a full time job, be a mom, be a wife, be a blogger AND write a book. I don't think I can.

I'm not giving up Maternal Spark - that's not an option.

And I don't think I'll give up the hubby or Little H (love you guys too!).

Job? Well, that has to stick around for a while.

Hmmm. You know, I've come to meet a few moms who have written books. I think I'll do a series of posts about them. See what kind of wisdom they have to share....I know they have it tucked away in their minds. What do you think? If you have a question you'd like them to answer leave it in comments.

What have you put on hold since becoming a mom? Are you going to go back to it? What are you doing about it in the mean time??



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Monday's Muse - the Meme for Creative Moms

Read about the Meme.

This week I'm inspired by possibilities.

The possibility that little H's sleep issues will be overcome.
The possibility that little H's sleep issues will be overcome with minimal tears.
The possibility that little H's sleep issues will be overcome with minimal tears from my eyes.
The possibility that little H's sleep issues will be overcome in a short period of time.
The possibility that my nights sleeping on the hardwood floor outside her bedroom door are almost over.
The possibility that I can reclaim my evenings for myself.
The possibility that I can use those evening times towards creative things.
The possibility that I will indulge those creative thoughts and in doing so, will become a better mother, a better wife and a better version of myself.

What's inspiring you this week? Enter your url below to share




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Sarah Pinto Weekly Planners - Organize your life and get creative!

There are few things that inspire me like a blank notebook. I get all warm and fuzzy and feel full of possibility. I almost hate to write in them, tarnish their freshness and mar their potential. I always do though, and I always love to have a stack of different ones around.

Then there is one time of the year when a blank book not only inspires possibilities for creativity, but possibility for life. That time of year is now because it's time to buy your daytimer for the upcoming year!

This year I acquired a Sarah Pinto weekly planner and man am I in LOVE!

At first glance, it's very pretty and it's the perfect size. I mean perfect! At 5"x7" it is small enough to fit in your purse but large enough to have lots of space to write.

The cover choices are fun and whimsical...some of my favorites are the horseshoe and the pink tapestry...part of the proceeds from sales of pink tapestry journals will go to help support CPMC Pediatric Cardiology. It's near and dear to her as her son was born with heart problems and had open heart surgery at 2 days old.

Some of the features I love:

• Month at a glance with to do list in the margin
• Lots of room on the weekly plans
• Note pages in the front and back
• Telephone and address section
• A full month for January 2010 and mini months for all of 2010 and
• a "Special Days" section for the whole year so you can have a quick peek at what's going on easily.

Not only is this a functional planner, but it's mom made too. Sarah's planners are also eco-friendly and made with soy based inks and recycled papers. Staying organized is one of the best time savers you can find. I look forward to all the time my Sarah Pinto Planner will find me and I hope I can put it to good creative use!

Go and check out the product line and if you like what you've read, you better get yours. Last year she sold out.

Don't fret though, if you're an RSS subscriber you can have a chance to win one. Get an extra chance by blogging about this great mom made product line. Just leave a comment with the link if you do so.

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Meal Planning - A Time Saving Tip for busy Creative Moms

Image via Wikipedia

Sometimes, in order to embrace our creativity, we need to A) make time for it and B) save money for purchasing supplies. One of the ways we can accomplish both is by meal planning. Now, I confess - I've never done this before. Sometimes I'll make enough for left overs and occasionally I'll make a second 'batch' for freezing. That's as far as my plans go. So I was happy to have a guest post on the subject. Jamie Ussher of Baby Get Green is not only well read on the subject but she's also written an ebook. Win a copy by leaving a comment...tell us what your favorite fall back meal is. You know the one, it's what you make for your family when the fridge is empty and you're short on time. You can comment until Dec 15th.

Now, have a read of Jamie's post :)

The Basics of Meal Planning

I’ve always loved planning meals – writing the grocery list, pricing out the items, going shopping… When our daughter came along I knew we needed to save money, but until I saw how chaotic the dinner hour gets with little ones, I wasn’t serious about meal planning! Family members coming home from school or work, kids wanting attention…All while you try to think about what items you have at home to make meals with and whether you accomplished your own projects and goals of the day.

In comes serious meal planning! I know it may sound like a bit of work, but it’s much less time consuming than not having a plan! I promise! There are so many reasons to meal plan, but I think we all kind of know the reasons – boiling down to saving time, money and energy! Where a lot of people get stuck, though, is how to start.

Here’s a bit of a beginners guide…

• Take inventory of what you already have. This might take awhile, but it will be so helpful when you’re getting your plan together. Grab some coffee, a pencil and paper, and make a morning of your first meal planning adventure!
• Ask yourself if you could make any meals with what you already have at home. Write those down. Also write down meals that you have most of the ingredients for (making a note that they aren’t complete).
• Write a list of meals you want to make or your family would enjoy. You’ll then pull from these when you plan meals for the week.
• You can now pick your meals based on that list or on the ads from your local grocery store (the cheaper option). Going through the sale items won’t take long once you have done it a few times. Starting with the meals you have, or almost have, from your inventory is a great place to start!
• Write down the meals you’ll make for the next 7 days (plus or minus, depending on your schedule).
• Write a separate list of the items you need to get from the grocery store to complete your meals.
• If you’re looking to save money, price out the meals. Then adjust meals as needed to fit your budget (take out items or make different meals). If you’re new to this, you may not know the prices. You can spend extra time at the store your first time to get a price list going.

There are so many benefits to meal planning, especially giving you more time and energy to do the things you really want to do! If you're interested but are not yet sure you know enough to start, you can pick up my meal planning eBook complete with meals, recipes, weekly plans for a month, shopping list and more! I also write other tips and my personal weekly plan on my blog – Baby Get Green.

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Monday's Muse - the Meme for Creative Moms

Read about the Meme.

I had a hard time coming up with my Muse for this week. My upcoming week will be very full. We're short staffed at the day job as our receptionist is on holiday so I'll be picking up some of that slack. It's also a short week for me as I've taken a day off to visit with my parents who are coming to visit (can't wait to see you mom!) So I'll be very busy at work. Not to mention preparing for company always involves an extra load of laundry and other random chore type things that mean I'll also be busy at home.

So, in my plans for the week, I hadn't included anything creative as I just know there will be little time and less mental capacity for it.

Which left me in a predicament. What to write?

Looking forward wasn't giving me any ideas so I started looking back at this last week. Little H is finally starting to grow hair - but that doesn't make for interesting reading. I did some housework....nope, still boring. Wait, I did some housework! It's been a while since I really did that. I tackled some big jobs too, like the bottom of the master bedroom closet that had a still half packed suitcase from my last trip out of town (from last February) and I also hand-washed our hardwood floor as it had become too much of a job for the Swiffer Wet Jet to tackle.

I was quite proud of myself for getting these things done and I owe it all to Little H who, has really grown up in the last month. She can now play very well on her own, in her room. She has taken to coloring (so far keeping it on the paper provided!) She has even attempted to help me do things like sweep the floors or clean the big window in our living room.

Yes, I know you're wondering how this ties in with Monday's Muse well, I realized just today that slowly but surely, little H is allowing me some time to do things. She's growing up. While it makes me sad that we're leaving her babyhood behind, I can look forward to more time for creative endeavors...and more time working on creative things with her - together.

What's inspiring you this week? Share your inspirations by linking to your post below!




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Some very fun posts are in the works

I wanted to just do up a quick post to let you know that I'm working on some fun things for the near future. You see, when I started this blog I had a vague plan of what I wanted to write about. I feel that I've slowly lost a little focus here and there and life got busy and new plans started up and over time, I've moved away from my original goals for Maternal Spark. Now I want to get back on track and I have a new plan of action. I'll be focusing a little more on the core ideas of Creativity and Motherhood by writing a few article style posts.

While I still love hosting giveaways, they will now be posted on weekends only. (If you have a giveaway hosted with me, watch for an email with your new dates outlined. Most will only be moved a few days here and there)

I'll still be showcasing the Featured Moms as scheduled :)

I hope you'll all come along as we explore the intricacies of being a Creative Mother.

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A Simple way to Jumpstart your Creativity

Mommyhood revolves around schedules and routines. We all know that days we mess up our babies napping schedules never end well and most kids stomachs growl at precisely the same time every day. Delay that meal or snack and we hear about it faster than a toddler knocks their noggin on every surface in sight.

But did you know that a well oiled schedule can hinder your creative thinking? It's true. Once our brains get to a place where they don't have to do any creative work, they just float along, taking everything in stride. Diapers, feedings, cleaning, diapers, feedings, cleaning...wash, rinse, repeat.

Now, don't get me wrong. Motherhood is full of surprises and rewards that go deeper than anyone could know until they look into their child's eyes for the first time. But. We all know there are days that hum along 'as scheduled' and it can be a little difficult to shake our brains awake to do some creative work.

What to do about it?

Chose something that you see day to day and change it. Pick up a new CD that is from a genre you don't normally listen to. Buy a new room fragrance. Hang some new curtains. Use Stumbleupon to take you to some new websites. Cook something completely different for dinner. Plug in a little water fountain to change the ambient noise around you.

It won't take much. Just something little that get's your brain to pay attention. As soon as it fades into the background, change something else. Just make sure it suits as a source of invigoration and doesn't act as a distraction.

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Scatterbrained - a Creative Funk

Lately I've found myself a little out of focus. I flit around from one idea to the next, never falling completely in love with any of them. One moment I want to sew, and then I sit down at the machine and find myself annoyed with my bobbin thread and lose interest really quickly.
Then I'll pull up good old 'Word' on my laptop but start daydreaming of the books I got for my birthday. I'll read a couple paragraphs and realize I'm hungry or thirsty and put the book down having not really allowed myself to ingest the words.

This isn't like me.

I'm a know what I want and grab for it kinda girl. And it's not even the knowing what I want part that's the problem...it's the grabbing.

I want to write.
I want to sew.
I want to read.

So why aren't I?

Hmmm. I don't want to make a bunch of excuses for my pathetic failures to produce, enjoy or partake but I will spend some time pondering this lack of ambition. Yesterday I wrote about Creativity Killers and going over that list there are one or two that stand out for me, mainly fatigue and chaos. There's been chaos at work and it's making me damn tired. Little H has been overly cranky and not sleeping well. That's making me tired too. Still, I've gotten past those things before and I'm sure I will this time. Maybe my creative stars are out of alignment and I'll just have to wait it out. In the meantime, I'll try to surround myself with inspiring things, sights and sounds.

How are you fairing these days? Are you meeting your goals?

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Creativity Killers - how to avoid the 5 biggest blocks

As hard as we try to make the best use of our free time towards our creativity. There are always those days when the heart just isn't behind the work and we struggle to be productive. Be on the lookout for these Creativity Killers so you can put them to bed and get motivated!

1) Television

This one is a no-brainer. I'm sure you all know that it's hard to form an original thought while immersed in a rousing rendition of your favorite show. Now that the new TV season is upon us I know that shows like Fringe are going to suck up a bit of my free time and I'm ok with that. But the problem lies in that many of us have the idiot box (and they call it that for a reason) on all day in the background - even when we aren't really watching it. If it's a re-run, turn it off. If you aren't really watching it, turn it off. If you have something else to do, don't try and do it with the TV nattering at you in the background. Turn it off and turn your focus on.

2) Lack of organization

Clutter is a killer of free time and free thinking. It's so oppressive. Our time for ourselves is so precious we can't have minutes flittering away into nothingness because we can't find our scissors or that special pen or what ever else you might need to complete your project. If we're organized then we are able to get down to business at a moments notice.

3) Chaos

Life with kids is a whirlwin of fun, frustration and emotion. As much as we love this about our children, we also need to teach them that there are times for play and there are times for quiet. You'll be teaching them a life skill when you show them that it is ok to sit and read a book by themselves. They will learn to focus. They will learn to turn inwards. Even if it is only for 30 seconds at a time, teach your children about relaxation and you'll be doing both of you a favor. As they get older, you'll be able to work on your creative endeavors while your little one colors, reads or does a puzzle beside you.

4) Perfectionism

This goes back to the quote I posted for Monday's Muse. Just because we don't feel we have the time to do a perfect job, or a complete job doesn't mean we shouldn't begin. Don't talk yourself out of it by thinking a little bit isn't worth doing.

5) Fatigue

I'm always foggy when I feel tired. I know that sometimes it can't be avoided - like the other night when little H woke up at midnight with teething pain and refused to go back to bed until we'd exhausted a whole rigmarole of tricks. But on days that you stay up surfing the net (I'm bad for this one) or watching those TV shows we talked about while half awake, you could have grabbed a precious hour of extra sleep making you bright and ready to roll the next morning.

What is your biggest block? What do you do to overcome them? Share in comments :)

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My Day at Work with Little H

Thanks so much for the comments on my post about taking Little H to work with me. I thought I'd pop in and post a quickie update :)

She woke up at 5am. I thought for sure I was screwed. But she was a complete angel ALL DAY. I couldn't believe it. It was like she was a different child. She sat in her stroller for the longest amount of time she'd ever been in her stroller. She amused herself by snacking on bananna and goldfish crackers while watching a myriad of Baby Einstein videos (I don't normally use TV to babysit my kid so please don't blast me over it....this was a special situation).

She even napped in her stroller.

My teleconference went fine. I got my project completed. I changed two poopie diapers on my desk as coworkers passed my office window with looks of sympathy and understanding. Everyone appreciated the above and beyond effort that went into planning a day with a 15 month old at work.

I couldn't have asked for it to go better and it was nice showing my boss that my new mommyhood status doesn't change my abilities to perform.

Now, if I can get her on the payroll somehow we'll be set!!

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How far can I push it before my brain asplodes?

On Wednesdays I usually work from home via email. I decided to do this because:

a) I don't like being away from little H 40 hours a week
b) It saves us in childcare costs
c) Hubby only gets every second weekend off. So not every week, but every second week, he is off on Wednesdays - so every second Wednesday we get a bit of family time (did 'ja get that?).
d) I enjoy my pjs and
e) Time saved commuting is time I can, maybe if I'm lucky and all the planets align and I don't cook dinner, get some creative stuff done.

Right now at work we are dealing with three HUGE projects that involve a lot of money. I need to be there to help out and coordinate actions surrounding these projects. So guess what. Wednesday came around and I couldn't afford to not be in the office - there is just too much going on. What I'm doing about it? I'm taking little H to work with me.

Please pray for me that:

Little H doesn't cover me from head to toe in goo, snot, tears, banana or something else equally embarrassing.

That she doesn't have a massive poop blowout for all the world to smell

That she sits nicely in her stroller and watches her baby Einstein video during my meeting (yes, I will be in a teleconference meeting!)

That she amuses herself safely and allows me to actually get some stuff done.

My head hurts just thinking about it!

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Got 60 seconds? Write a story!

Go to One Word. Read the prompt. Write.

Time is not an excuse this go round Mammas!

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Take just one night for yourself

This past weekend was needed like no other. I left little H at home with her Daddy and took off with my sister on a short, one night camping trip. We went to Dinosaur Provincial Park here in Alberta (go take a peek at the photos in the gallery, the landscape is very unique.) and what a difference it made to my state of mind.

I left being a mommy behind for a night. I sat fully clothed in a creek drinking beer. I ate more hotdogs than should be legal in one sitting. I didn't wear make up. I didn't change a single diaper (though it is a preferable task to using a campground outhouse), nor did I feel guilty for enjoying myself.

Sister and I had long, uninterrupted conversations about nothing and about everything. We drank enough to get tipsy but not enough to puke. We roasted our food over the campfire and watched the moon rise above the hill in front of us. We listened to the coyotes howling and yipping all night long and awoke to the footsteps of a HUGE doe walking past our tent. When we peeked out at her, she peeked in at us.

I can't say that I didn't think about my little girl at home for the first time without her mommy to put her to bed - of course I did. I can't say that I didn't wonder how many emails were piling up - of course I did. But, I got over it and had fun and on the drive home, I felt ready to jump back in to mommyville. I was refreshed and ready to fully appreciate what I have in my life.

I highly recommend the one night mommy vacation! If you've had a similar experience, tell me about it in comments.

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A Canadian Mom writes about post partum sex

Recently I've had the pleasure of making the online acquaintance of a fellow Canadian mommy blogger who goes by the screen name Mama of Romance. Her new blog - Sex Diaries of a Mom is such a fresh take on the life we moms lead post baby. Don't worry about clicking over there - there isn't anything graphic or gross, in fact most of her posts are PG rated.

She is an example of how that maternal spark of creativity takes on many forms - hers happens to be discussing how becoming a mother changes a marriage and let me tell you, she's one creative mama!

She has graciously written a guest post for me, so here it is - enjoy.

More Than a Mom

By: Mama of Romance of Sex Diaries of a Mom

Being a Mom is more than being a guardian to your child. To many of us, being a Mom has so many other sides to the story.

I think the secret to enjoying Motherhood, is to savour, and make the most of each moment.

For instance, I found myself dancing in front of my baby shaking maracas and giving them to him so I could change his poopy diaper. That makes me a great ENTERTAINER.

Holding my 2 year-old in my arms after he falls, and quickly changing the subject by making a toy magically appear that I had tucked away so it wouldn‘t lose it‘s charm. That makes me a HUMAN KLEENEX, and a MAGICIAN.

I placed 2nd in the race against my 4 year-old to clean the house before dinner which made our job less overwhelming. I’m a world-star ATHLETE, and COACH.

Changing every day chores that the kids loath doing into fantastic adventures makes me the best STORY-TELLER in the entire world.

Not having enough money to do decorate my son’s bedroom was NO challenge at all as I wiped out a paint brush, and painted his favourite things on a wall. I am an ARTIST.

Being a Mom means I’m a HUMAN GARBAGE CAN, a HUMAN CANVAS of which my children splatter anything, and

a TAXI DRIVER,

a MAID,

a CHEF, and

a PUKE CATCHER.

a COMEDIAN…who turns even the saddest of frowns upside down.

a SEWAGE SPECIALIST.....I can’t begin to count the number of times that I’ve had to retrieve invaluable items out of our toilet.

Making a paper hat, ship, or airplane in a pinch at a restaurant to keep my children occupied as the food is taking so long to arrive - makes me an INVENTOR.

Amazingly, during a wedding ceremony just as the bride-to-be was walking down the aisle, I instantly prevented a 2 and 4 year-old disaster by miraculously moulding the contents of a jar of play-doh into each of their favourite animals. That my friend, makes me a GENIUS.

Whispering into my spouse’s ear late at night, totally exhausted in a feeble attempt to be intimate, I tell him to imagine that we‘re in some exotic place to create some excitement. Because in reality, after having children, real opportunities to have special, intimate moments are practically inexistent. That makes me a GODDESS.

I cherish being a Mom because that makes me,

a HUMAN TEDDY BEAR, a HERO, a ROLE-MODEL, a QUEEN, a BEST FRIEND, and much more.

That being said, we are all way more than “Just” a MOM….

Go visit Mama of Romance and show her some comment love. Her blog has only been live since the end of July but she's already got lots of posts up to keep you reading for a while.


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Being busy beyond belief encourages focus

I was standing in the shower this morning doing the zombie stance. Head back, water hot, eyes closing not because of steam, but because I was falling asleep standing up. And I started to wonder if I was taking on too much.

There's this blog, the new blog, the Chicken Soup essay, a new weekly contribution which I'll talk more about at another time plus working full time and raising a one year old.

Yesterday, some family dropped by with some books for Little H and it was sort of unexpected. I couldn't let them in the house. It was verging on dirty with cat fur covering the sofa and little H's cast offs still on the floor from the last meal. I suggested we take Little H and their 5 year old to the park next door instead.

As I let the conditioner work on my hair, I stared at some soap scum on the tile and I started feeling guilty about the state of my house. I started wondering how I will manage all of this, and how I've been managing it until now.

I realized that the answer is in my focus. I've been thinking fast on the topics at hand because I can't afford not to. I find myself narrowing in on my goals, choosing my activities wisely, defining what it is I want to accomplish and striving towards that. So housework isn't in my top ten must dos. We aren't wallowing in filth or anything like that, but I would like things a bit more orderly. One day we'll get there - when Little H can understand she needs to play in her room so I can scrub a toilet. Until then I'm ok with what's going on because I'm doing what's important to me. I'm working towards my goals and I'm spending lots of time with my daughter who doesn't care if all her cute onesies are in the wash and I've dressed her in a not so cute one. And I did make a very nice chicken stew for dinner last night, I was happy about that.

I got out of the shower feeling much better about myself and where I've chosen to spend my time. I felt refreshed and ready to start my day - then I brushed my teeth with hubby's toothbrush. Maybe I should put 'sleeping' a little higher up on the to do list ;p

ps - image from wikipedia - that's not my shower, mine is grosser than that!

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Busy Moms know how to save time -10 ideas for what to do with it

You're smart. I know that. You've been reading time saving tips all over the place; heck there are entire sites dedicated to saving time.

You write a grocery list so you aren't wandering aimlessly around the store - time saved : 10 min.

You organize your home so you know exactly where stuff is when you need it - time saved searching for a pair of scissors: 3 min.

You cook meals in bulk and freeze for later - time saved upwards of 1/2 hour.


So, once you've saved all this time what are you doing with it? How do you make the most of those 3 or 10 minute chunks of time when it is easy to let them flitter away. Sometimes, your three year old will smear their pb&j all over the kitchen floor and then that time is used - it's unavoidable. But there are days, here and there, when everything is running smoothly and you've got 5 min to spare. How on earth can you use such a small amount of time towards your creative endeavors? Here are 10 things you can do in 10 min or less.

1) Write down three ideas for future projects - don't worry about fleshing them out. Just get them down on paper. Next time you go to get creative you won't be wondering what to do - that part will be done for you.

2) Do a Doodle. Sketching or doodling, even for those of us without a visual bone in our bodies, still loosens up the mind and allows for a connection between thought and action.

3) Read. Take 2 minutes to read your favorite crafty website or blog........ahem.

4) Set up. Go to your creative space and thread your sewing machine. Lay out your bead supplies. Cast on that first row of knit stitches. Then, when the kids are in bed you'll be all ready to dive in - and anticipating it too.

5) Shut off. Get comfy and close your eyes. Relax for once wont'cha! You never know what might come if you let your brain breathe.

6) Pack Jr. in the stroller and go for a walk around the block - longer if you have the time. Or even better, go along a river path or woodland walkway. Nature inspires many.

7) Review something you've completed in the past that you weren't quite happy with. Think about what you could do to make it better.

8) Start in - depending on what type of artist you are, 10 minutes might be long enough to actually DO something. Cut out some pattern pieces. Embroider that little butterfly motif. Ice your cupcakes.

9) Do some research. Writing a historical story? Find out what they would have cooked for a celebration in 1856. Need to know how to solder something - hit the Google. Five minutes of learning never did anyone harm.

10) Did I say 10? I meant 9, yeah 9 ideas for what to do with your saved time. My time is up. See you later!

written by H.E.Eigler of Maternal Spark dot com

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The Chaos, I hate it!

Things are up in the air. I have nothing that is certain at this point regarding childcare for my Little H. Everyone I've interviewed has been sub standard and in this city, daycare facilities have at least a one year wait list (some have a two year one, and some just hang up on you).

One woman I interviewed repeated over and over throughout our conversation that "She has nothing to hide". It freaked me out. Another decided to up her rate from $960 a month to $1060 after I told her what a hard time we were having. How loving of her. At this point, that amount of money is half my salary. It's making me wonder if I should get a part time job and care for her myself. It certainly doesn't make sense to me to work a full time job, get half the pay and have my baby cared for by some weirdo.

In light of all this, I managed to write a little last week. When I say, a little - I mean 300 words. But I'm still proud of myself for getting that done. It's a step towards a final outcome and I took the time to nurture creative thoughts and feelings in a time when I just want to put my head in the sand and pretend all is right with my world.

I hope the rest of you are working away on your projects - no matter what else is going on. It's good for you.


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If it's in my horoscope, it can't be wrong.

I use iGoogle to easily view my gmail account, my rss feeds and several other things. I also set it up to include my daily horoscope - just for fun. I don't put a lot of stock in these things but I enjoy reading them nonetheless. It seems the folks who write over at Tarot.com are in my head this week. Think they've been reading my blog?



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Update - Personal and Bloggy

Well, it's been a little while since I updated with 'crap that's happening in my life' and boy, let me tell you, there's a LOT of crap!

First off, the editors behind a large anthology book series have been reading up on me here at Maternal Spark. I don't want to say who because nothing is happening yet but.... I did receive an email from them saying that my story would be a good fit for their anthology and would I consider submitting? Would I consider? - Hell Yes! The email said I would need to respond with my interest as soon as I could. So I did. And I got an error message back that my email couldn't be received. So I called, and got a machine. Well, it was like an episode of Seinfeld and I couldn't think of what to say and I'm sure I came off like a blundering idiot. I think I said something like "This is Heather, you emailed me, I'm interested. You can call me!" who knows. I haven't had a response back for my efforts at contacting them so ladies, if you're reading now - I'm interested!! I guess I'll try and call again, maybe I should write a script first.

Then, after the high came a low. My childcare arrangement fell into the crapper and I'm left with nobody to watch little H starting August first. It might as well be tomorrow because I'm working full time and hubby has a load of overtime to work through. This means that even if we had months to find something - when are we going to be able to go visit these places and interview people and do background checks? I just came back to work and don't have any holidays to pull. I'll have to take time off without pay - if they let me. Nice return to work for me; it's great looking like an unstable mommy who can't get her shit together right?

What else, I'm sure there's more. Oh, hubby's sunglasses are still in the toilet so we only have one working set of facilities - it's fun explaining to company why they can't use the downstairs loo. In addition to that, he's boiled a pot of eggs until all the water was gone and they exploded. That was a nice smell to come home to - smelled like burning farts. And he broke his baby toe while attempting to vacuum.

Think I could find a daycare for my one year old as well as my 30 year old? Geez.

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Lock yourselves away - How the simple act of bathing is great for your creativity

You've heard me mention before that in order to capture your creativity it is important to take time out for yourself to think. Think about the project you're currently working on. Think about where you want to take it. What obstacles are you coming up against? What are you going to do to over come them? If you have something new floating in your mind, think about what options you have. How are you going to make this project different and unique?

If you're saying to me that you don't have time for all this thinking, that it's impossible to think with kids running rampant and eating three week old cheerios from behind the couch I'll say I agree. It is impossible to think creative thoughts, thoughts that can expand and grow and take you somewhere down your creative path with chaos happening. So here's what you do.

Lock yourself in the bathroom.

Of course you need to make sure the munchkins have adequate supervision, or are confined to their cages cribs for bedtime. A half an hour is all it takes to make this work. You owe it to yourself to find a half hour. It's not long.

Go into the bathroom, draw a bath, grab a notebook and pen and relax. Let you mind wander. Think about your creative works in progress and if inspiration strikes jot your thoughts down. Lock the door so hubby doesn't pop in, ignore the calls of 'hey Mom, mom, mom, mom, mom.' Don't worry if the phone rings, if it's important they will call back. Maybe you need some light music to mask the goings on beyond the door.

Does it sound luxurious? Well, let's make it even more so. Win one small, one medium, one large and one heart bath bomb from Beyond the Bomb!

Go to the Beyond the bomb site and have a browse, come back here and leave a comment telling us which specialty bomb you'd like to drop into your tub most. The draw runs from July 14th to July 28th and is open to US residents only. Between now and then I want you to take at least 1 time out for you bath! You deserve it!!

Oh and make sure you leave an email address so we can contact you if you're the winner!!

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