Back in Circulation

This week went by so fast that sometimes I wonder if I didn’t dream my parent’s visit.  The wedding vow renewal went off without a hitch and if you guys are really good I’ll let you have a peek at my favorite picture at the end of this post:)  

So, my parents didn’t spend umpteen dollars on tickets just to watch me sit around my living room.  (Although I think me in my natural habitat could very well be ticket worthy)

 

In seven days we:  Had a wedding,  Drove to Normandy to see the American Cemetery and the D-Day memorials,  Went to the Palace of Versaille, and  Spent a day in Paris seeing the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysees. 

I opted out of the Paris day.  I’ve seen it all a million times and dragging my three kids around the monuments on the hottest day of the season was not my cup of tea.  


I apparently missed a tense moment when my little brother (age ten) got the top of his head stuck in the revolving doors at the Louvre.... ahem.  What more can I say?  As someone who has walked repeatedly into sliding screen doors, I don't think I'm fit to judge.

I admit, I set small goals for myself this week.  I wanted to be sure I: 

1. Kept my house clean. 2.  Stayed away from the computer 3. Kept my parents happy  4. Prove to my parents that I’m ‘alright’!

 It’s hard for them.  I live in France and we don’t see them often.  For a number of years my father tried to convince us to move back..…pretty much every time we spoke.  But they’ve come to terms with it in the last couple years and they were pleased at the way we’re living and raising our kids.  So score there.

As I’m sitting here, my feet propped up on the coffee table and the kids completely ignoring their morning cartoons, I feel a tinge of satisfaction. They were small goals but I met them. 

And it made me realize that the goals I’ve set for myself with writing and publishing are pretty huge.  Instead of feeling like a big ole faking failure because I haven’t acquired representation-  I should be looking at things differently.

 Every query I send out is a goal met.  The manuscript itself is a goal met.  Every request for material is a small step forward.  And every rejection a small step back.  But my biggest goal is to know I did my best-  That I really looked at my manuscript objectively and it’s the best it can be,  and to just keep going and not lose hope.  That’s probably the hardest goal of all.

What are your goals and do you feel like you’ve met them ?  or like sometimes, you might never meet them?

Oh yes, and because you guys were so patient with me this week, here's the promised wedding photo.  I feel it's pretty representative of our future together.  My husband is apparently begging God for mercy and I look every bit the conspiring blonde psycho.  Have a great day ya'll!