Welcome to the blog of science fiction author Eileen Rhoadarmer--where science fiction and Mommyhood collide!


Sunday, August 28, 2011

Holy Crap, My Maternity Leave is Almost Over!!!

Yes indeed, Kal'El is nearly three months old, and that is when I decided my maternity leave would end.  It's hard to believe he's been around for that long already--but on the other hand, he's so much a part of our family that it also seems longer.
So now is the moment of truth.  Will I be able to start writing every day again?  I don't rightly know.  I hope so, though I fully expect many of those days will only meet the bare minimum of that requirement.  If I manage to keep it up at all.  But 267 days, plus the 40 or 50 I've managed to add to that during my leave, would be a shame to have to reset.  So hopefully I will succeed in getting back into the daily groove.

I get the most done on the days I can get both boys down for a nap at the same time.  That doesn't always happen though, because Kal'El still doesn't nap at the same time every day and Zaxxon often refuses to sleep--though I still insist on a two-hour "quiet time" period on the days I can't wear him out enough.  It's been a growing struggle to keep him in his room during that time.  I'm thinking of getting this product, which is a clock that glows green when it's okay for a child to get up.  He seems to like it when I set a kitchen timer for him, so I have high hopes that the clock would be a success.  Back to the original subject of this paragraph, on days when I can't get anything done at naptime I suppose I'll just have to nurse Kal'El at the keyboard after Zaxxon is in bed.  It wouldn't be a long writing session, but it would be something (if I can keep myself from checking my email and facebook, that is.)

I'm also hoping to start blogging a little more frequently again.  I've found that I miss it, and the socializing that results.  Kids are time consuming, but they're here for the next 18 years or more, so I'll just need to work better at getting writing into my schedule around them.

2 comments:

Charlie N. Holmberg said...

Three months already??

I hope you can start writing and blogging again, it's always fun to read your posts.

Anonymous said...

I hope you've enjoyed your time with him. I do sympathyze with the age gap - ours is similar - so I get the nap issue. Plus there isn't something nice about having 5 minutes to rejuvinate yourself before diving into the writing.

I found the more pressure I put on myself, the more frantic I got. Start easy. 15 minutes a shot. Aim for twice a day. Let it grow from there.

when my kids were under a year, I didn't worry about my novels - I focused on shorter works. It made it much easier to fit it in and was less overwhelming.

Good luck!! :D