Hello, Everyone!
I hope everything is well for you in your part of the world, and that you’re enjoying some lovely weather. I’ll still be trying to cram in a couple more days of skiing, but have to be careful not to use up all my work vacation time on the slopes. It’s tempting because I have so much fun skiing with my family and friends, but I also want to enjoy a summer vacation. Because I was laid off at a job I’d held for 15 years, with my new job I had to start at the bottom with the vacation time again so I’m very careful how I spend it. It takes forever to accumulate and in the blink of an eye, it’s gone. Even if we just plan to take a few days off, it’s still nice to get away for a while.
The day is fast approaching when we’ll be celebrating another wedding in our family. I can’t believe how much our family has grown. My parents would’ve loved to have seen the new members and the new babies. My mother loved babies. She was so good with them the way she held them and played with them. She would sing to them and recite Irish ditties, none that I understood, which is too bad because I don’t remember the words, but it was fun to hear the rhythm. She would bounce them on her knee and recite the rhyme. The babies would look up at her with wide eyes and smile their toothless grins.
We also have a college graduation to celebrate, which will be a major accomplishment. One of my nieces didn’t want to attend college after high school. She managed a pool hall for several years. Four years ago, she wanted a career change and went to college. She is a single mother, which is never easy undertaking, parenting is difficult even with two parents, but she persevered and now she will graduate in May. It will be a wonderful celebration. This fall she’ll begin law school. We’re all very proud of her. It seems that graduations are scheduled around Mother’s Day. What a great Mother’s Day gift to see your children graduate! It will be a busy weekend for our family as her graduation party is scheduled the same day as a family bridal shower and both in different towns, but that won’t stop me from attending both. It seems I’ll be driving through the entire state that day, but it will be worth it.
A few weekends ago, my cousin emailed to say that her family was celebrating her mother’s birthday. I hadn’t seen the family in several years and so was happy to receive the invitation. Her husband is a builder so naturally they have an amazing house. It was wonderful to see my aunt, who is my father’s sister, and my uncle. We had a great time catching up on the various activities of our families. My cousin’s son invited his girlfriend who is a lovely and beautiful girl. Young people are always planning and it was great to hear what they want to do. Life is so exciting for them. We should take a lesson from that and look forward to our own plans no matter what our ages. Although my aunt and uncle are moving more slowly, they enjoyed the activities of everyone around them and hearing the news. They are both very alert and great conversationalists.
I have been busy wrapping up the final edits for the 5th book in the Crystal Creek series. I received the manuscript from the proofreader, who found many things that I missed even though I’ve read the manuscript a thousand times. It’s nice to work with someone who is a great eye for detail. If everything goes as planned, this book will be released in April. I’ll keep you informed. I’m very excited about it. I hope you like it.
With the coming week, it looks like we’ll have some doubtful weather, which means indoor time for me. That will keep me focused on writing. I hope the weather is wonderful where you are and that you have a fabulous week.
Love,
Laura
