My Office Has Arrived!

After years of dreaming, planning, and saving ideas for my "future office," the time has finally arrived! My middle daughter graduated back in May, turned 18 in July, and has moved from my house into my rental house to "live on her own." That means......

I have an office!  Woohoo!

My youngest daughter moved into the bigger of the kids' bedrooms, and I staked my claim on the smaller of the rooms. I've spent the last few weeks working on my off days to paint both rooms, reorganize, clean out closets, and create my writing oasis. It is a room of my own to close myself off and focus on just writing. I've even hung a little chalkboard sign on the door that will inform others to NOT come in when I'm working (unless it's a matter of life or death, of course).

I used my grandmother's old sewing machine as my laptop desk.

My husband built me some new shelves and helped me move a bookshelf from the bedroom to the office. I had to order a valance for the window (because I like the sunshine, but still need a window treatment) and wait for it to arrive. I moved some of my aloe vera plants into the office because they were overflowing in the kitchen.

I have filing cabinets and the printer set up in the closet, along with storage for office supplies and reams of paper. I have room for more detailed storage in there when I have time to get a little more "fancy" with it... at a later date. Right now I just wanted to get into my office as quickly as I could.

I'm sure I'll be tweaking this room over the next several months to find my just the right way of doing things and storing items to make it the most beneficial to my productivity, but in the meantime, I'm really enjoying having my own space.

The animals seem to like the new office also. Especially in the morning when the sun is shining into the room, making nice, warm sleeping spots. LOL!

Be sure to stop by the Facebook page for a lot more pictures from beginning to end.  :)

I'm still alive... I promise!

Well, here I am again. Things are settling into a nice swing and I'm able to pick up a decent writing schedule. I'm still working on the 7th installment of my Liz Baker series and have hopes it'll be ready for release by the end of the year. Woohoo! I know a few readers have been chomping at the bit for the next book and I hope they'll love it just as much as they loved the previous ones. :)

The last few months have been insane. I thought things were calming down when the new year rolled in, but then my oldest daughter sprung the Army on us. She joined a few months ago and shipped out to basic training on May 15th. Nine days later, my middle daughter graduated high school, which was also the anniversary of my mother's passing. A week after that, the new graduate had orientation at the college she chose and we spent 8 hours there doing paperwork and going from building to building. In between all that, my middle daughter got her braces off (YAY!) and the youngest got hers put on (BOO!). I had to order senior pictures, print graduation announcements, throw a graduation party...all while panicking over the oldest being in basic training 14 hours away.

Sooooo.... yeah.... it's been crazy around here.

I'm still rockin' the day job and loving it. I adore my bosses and co-workers, and even most of the customers. LOL! It's fun and we laugh regularly. We all just have a good time together, and that makes for a wonderful work environment.

Aside from all that, I just hit my 1 year anniversary at the gym. I've lost a good bit of weight and just as many inches. I still have more to go, and it's moving slower these days, but I enjoy going to the gym and will keep at it. It's a great end to a busy day and helps me chill out with some mind numbing cardio or an hour of focusing on weight training.

Even with all that going on, it has finally settled again and I'm jumping back into my writing. Hopefully life will grant me a reprieve from the insanity for a while and I can get back on track. I miss my writing time and I'm excited about the upcoming books. And, I should mention, that personal office I've been pining over for years (regular blog readers will know) is finally happening next month! *Gasp* I'm actually picking paint colors and planning the layout now. *Faint*

Be on the lookout in the next few weeks for pictures of the office and updates on the writing.

Love to you all,

Summer is coming to an end.

Here we go again! Summer is coming to a close and the kids are getting ready to go back to school. A lot of schools around the country have already started back, but our county doesn't start until the day after Labor Day. Therefore, my kids have three more weeks to do stay up late, have no schedule, and watch way too much YouTube.

We've had a lot of rain this summer, making it difficult to enjoy outdoor activities, like swimming. Our pool is constantly being cleaned because of the rain, and now the nighttime temps are dropping into the 70's. Thus, pulling the pool's water temp down into uncomfortable zones for me. I like my water to be at least 80 degrees, and if it's below that it makes my (warning: sounding like an old lady here) legs hurt. And that's no fun. :( So it won't be long before I have to close it up for the winter because it'll be more cleaning and less swimming. So what's the point?

On the upside, the kids will be back in school and back on their schedules. I won't have to worry about them waking Tim up during the day while I'm at work (he works nights), or have the teenager running all over creation with her boyfriend because I'm not there to say "Whoa there, missy."

Speaking of the kids: my oldest is still in college; my middle will be starting her senior year in high school; and the youngest is heading into middle school. Eek! This time next year I'll have two in college!! That's just crazy to imagine, but....

It means I'll finally be getting my very own private office!! Woohoo! I can't wait to move all my book stuff into one room. I'm looking forward to having a room where I can close the door and get my writing done without as many interruptions. All my cover art will decorate the walls. Bookshelves will be plentiful. My desk will be an actual desk instead of the kitchen table. I'm already planning paint colors, a new ceiling fan, and even window treatments. I'm still trying to decide if I want to rip up the carpet and put down hardwood to match the rest of the house. But, hey, at least I have time to think about it. LOL!

Overall, things are going well in the Silvers' household. I even added to my tattoo collection over the summer. If you're on my Instagram you've probably already seen it.  ;)  I hope you're all having a great week and that the weeks to come bring you peace and happiness.