Hailey Hudson's Blog, page 18

Blogmas 2021 Day 9

Some mornings you just need a little extra serotonin, you know? Which is why my neighbors were treated to One Direction/Meghan Trainor/Katy Perry blasting through my Bluetooth speaker at 11 A.M. while I put away laundry and wrapped Christmas gifts. It was a good time. For me, anyway.

Once I’d sufficiently exhausted myself doing that, I sat down to get to work. I wrote an Instagram marketing blog post and a PR piece. Then I had to rest in bed for a while. Midafternoon, I got up and dug into a piece about content distribution. Next I practiced voice and took a shower. Then I came back and collapsed on the couch.

This evening I attended a Zoom support group for tubies, sponsored by the Oley Foundation. Now I’m about to set up feeds and crash in bed with Abbie’s new book: Tessa and Weston: The Best Christmas Ever. (Go buy it!!)

Today I’m grateful for: Sketching out fun plans for 2022.

Check out Blogmas Day 9 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas Day 8 (sick day)

Thankfully, my cold wasn’t any worse today. But still, I forced myself to do what everybody keeps telling me to do and rest (for the most part). I’m really hoping to be able to enjoy my fun plans this weekend.

I did have some work I needed to do. I stayed in bed until after noon working on a piece about therapy apps for kids. Then I got up and practiced guitar (aka singing Lizzy McAlpine songs) and wrote a PR piece.

After resting in bed for a while, I worked on brainstorming The Art of Staying (the next YA contemporary novel I’m going to write). I need to do a whole blog post soon on how I’m transitioning myself from a panster to a plotter–it’s been way more fun and easy than I expected, and I think it’s going to be the key to having a sustainable novel writing career. Today I made up the two shows the dancers in the book to do, which was the MOST fun thing ever.

I was sad to miss Bible study at church this evening, but I knew it was better to stay home and not push myself. So I got back in bed and watched the movie Brooklyn. I read the book (by Colm Toibin) a week or two ago and was interested to see the film adaptation, which Saoirse Ronan stars in. I LOVED the movie and thought it was really, really good. I can relate to Eilis in a lot of ways and it gave me a lot to chew on. Plus, the dresses/hair/lipstick were super fun and Tony and Eilis were so freaking adorable.

I’m not sure how good of a job I did of *actually* resting today, but I did have a pretty enjoyable day.

Today I’m grateful for: Sunshine.

Check out Blogmas Day 8 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 7 (urgent care)

I was feeling pretty miserable today, to say the least. On top of everything else going on, I’d had a stopped-up ear for a couple of days, and I woke up today with a sore throat and congestion, too.

I struggled through writing a COVID news piece in bed. I didn’t want to cancel my early afternoon phone call with my counselor, so we talked for a bit. But she could tell I was really out of it and suggested we end early.

Then I went to urgent care. I had a strep test (negative), COVID test (negative), and got my ears irrigated. (Which is a recurring thing for me, and tonight I found out this is due to my genetic condition. Wild. Honestly, it really annoys me that I can’t just have normal person health problems. Everything, big or small, is always connected.) I got home in the early evening and crashed with Gilmore Girls–the ultimate comfort show.

Today I’m grateful for: My mom driving me to urgent care because I felt so rough; Julia Robertson’s Vlogmas videos; Bethany chatting with me while I was waiting at urgent care; having a doctor who was very familiar with my rare disease; Joshua sending me updates as he’s reading my book.

Check out Blogmas Day 7 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 6 (medical stress + guitar practice)

This morning I went to visit my mom and the two little kids she keeps, but I basically spent the morning crying on the couch about medical stuff. I was so, so tired, and worsening symptoms, insurance changes, and the inability to find a place to get the infusions I need this week/month were stressful and upsetting and all too familiar.

When I came home I immediately went back to bed and fell asleep. I woke up later in the afternoon and spent a couple more hours in bed with my kitty, working on a blog post about content distribution and an affiliate review webpage.

This evening I worked on learning some guitar chords, which ended up being the very best part of my day! I’ve only had one guitar lesson so far and this was my first real practice session. I played my first ever and then quickly abandoned Internet chord charts and moved on to playing and singing my favorite Alessia Cara and Maisie Peters songs (no, this is not the homework I am supposed to be doing). It was SUPER exciting! I can play the guitar now–how cool is that!!! Next order of business: learn to capo, because apparently I can’t sing anything in the key of G. But right now, I am changing my sheets and going to bed.

Today I’m grateful for: Ending the day on a good note with a fun guitar practice.

Check out Blogmas Day 6 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 5 (church + lunch with missionaries)

I read The Blackbird Girls by Anne Blankman last night and it was SO good.

“It feels as though my soul is flying.”
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“Right now, I imagine you feel as though you’re alone in the dark. I promise you, you aren’t.”
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“Change takes time. You won’t always be afraid.”

My body was feeling very rough this morning and I was discouraged and frustrated about it. But I had to work in nursery at my church today. So after lying in bed until 10 listening to Advent episodes of the Living With Hope podcast, I got up and got ready to go.

I had so much fun working in nursery. We had seven kids from our church plus three kids from a visiting missionary family (including the most adorable one-year-old–she and I fell in love with each other today). Our nursery room is small and windowless, so it was pretty chaotic (especially because all the kids were eating Oreo cake), but good. The hot piece of news today was that the lady working with me saw Santa and Mrs. Claus on a motorcycle on her way to church!

Every Sunday I tell myself I need to be strong, resist invitations, and come home right after church to let my body rest–and every Sunday I fail. Today was no different. So, after church my friend Margarita hopped in my car and we headed to a Mexican restaurant with my pastor’s family and the visiting missionary family. The missionary family was from Thailand, and lunch was a really special time–I got to hear about their testimony and ministry, I told them about mine (chronic illness), and the kids kept us all entertained. (I also tried Jaime’s trick of getting a kids’ menu with crayons so you have something to do while everyone else is eating. Highly recommend!)

By the time we wrapped up lunch and I swung by the pharmacy on the way home, it was 3:30. I forced my tired body to take a seated shower and set up feeds before getting in bed to crash. I dozed for a few hours and now I’m going to beta read my friend Bethany’s book for a bit before going to sleep.

Today I’m grateful for: Getting my baby and toddler fix! I really miss the days when I was able to work with kids on a regular basis. They make me so, so happy.

Check out Blogmas Day 5 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 4 (lots of writing craft)

**It was brought to my attention today that no one received my Blogmas posts via email this week. If that’s the case for you, you can check them out here: Blogmas 2021 Day 1, Blogmas 2021 Day 2, Blogmas 2021 Day 3.

This week was very hard on my body and I was ready for a chill Saturday at home. I had a lot of things I wanted to do today, but I tried my best to rest, too. I started the day in bed listening to an episode of The Kate and Abbie Show about character voice; catching up with my friend Brooke on the phone (which was so nice!!); and scheduling a couple weeks’ worth of Diamonds social media posts.

Around noon I got out of bed and did some bookkeeping/planning/life admin; dealt with WordPress difficulties (I apparently lost all my followers this week? Sorry y’all); and did some Christmas shopping/planning.

After that I had to get back in bed. I did a webinar on plotting vs. pantsing from Nadine Brandes and Sara Ella–their “From Head to Tome” writing webinars are excellent, but the ones from this year are going to be archived at the end of the year, so I’m trying to catch up on them all before they go away.

After resting in bed for a while, I got up and did some character brainstorming for my novel The Art of Staying, which was so fun–just look how dreamy! And now it’s 8:00 and I’m going to bed for the night with a book.

Today I’m grateful for: How my kitty waits outside the door for me when I’m in the bathroom showering or getting ready.

Check out Blogmas Day 4 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 3 (voice lesson + Target run)

I read A Heart in A Body in The World by Deb Caletti last night, and it was EXCELLENT. Wow. That’s the kind of book that reminds me I have no idea how to write a book.

“The world is gone.”
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“She wonders if all of her will ever feel healed at the same time.”
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“Happiness seems like a miracle. Happiness seems like something that maybe always should be celebrated.”
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“Love is corny, when you get right down to it. It has two left feet… It’s sort of silly, done right. After all, how do you convey something that huge?”
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“I am still here. And this is what I’m made of, too… I am pressing back.”
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“There is still so much more beautiful stuff to see.”

I was exhausted this morning and my tube had clogged in the middle of the night, so I was bracing myself for a long morning of trying to fix it. However, it had apparently somehow fixed itself–so after my quiet time, I was able to get right to work writing a cybersecurity blog post and a pet blog post. I then watched a Julia Robertson YouTube video, and spent some time working on my spreadsheet of literary agents for Things We’ve Lost. I also made a cup of tea–exciting because I haven’t been able to handle even clear liquids lately. I was very nauseous the rest of the day, but it was worth it because I used this adorable teapot my friend Brooke gave me for the first time.

Around 2:45 I headed out for my voice lesson (wearing my adorable new Christmas earrings for the first time–despite the fact it was 77 degrees today). I sang Stupid With Love from Mean Girls, In My Dreams from Anastasia (which we broke down and worked on bit by bit, tweaking the placement of my head voice), and Mad Hatter from Wonderland. Then I made a Target run that I’ve been meaning to make for WEEKS. I needed a bunch of random stuff–hangers, cat litter, a basket to hold bag sets, candles, wrapping paper, you name it. I also found an Advent calendar with Harry Potter socks, which I OBVIOUSLY had to get.

I also got gas, went by the library, and went by my friend Kenna’s house. So it was a productive errand day, but I was completely exhausted when I got home at 6:00. I got in bed and watched an episode of Bridgerton, which I started last weekend, and now I’m going to read and go to sleep.

Today I’m grateful for: Waking up to 20 texts from a friend who started reading Things We’ve Lost last night.

Check out Blogmas Day 3 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 2 (feeling rough)

Yesterday was an extremely long day and I was feeling rough this morning, to say the least, as well as stressed about a couple of health things. But I had quite a bit of work due today, so I did my best to push through: I finished the dental case study, finished the cybersecurity article, and edited a piece on the best apps for postpartum depression. By 1:00 I had to go back to bed for a nap.

At 3:00 I got up and wrote a PR article. Then my mom came over to help with fixing my vacuum and setting up my printer. When I moved out two and a half years ago, I didn’t think I needed a printer. But after two and a half years of constantly emailing my mom stuff to print for me, I think we’re both very ready for me to have a printer. However, we unfortunately weren’t able to get the printer up and going today.

I’ve been discouraged at how badly my body is doing today, but I was able to push myself and do a few things this evening: I vacuumed (see below), typed up some handwritten notes I brainstormed last week for my next novel, and attempted to practice guitar. Now it’s 7:30–I’ve showered and redone my feeds, and I’m going to bed for the night to journal and read.

Today I’m grateful for: Work is now back to a much more normal/manageable level.

Check out Blogmas Day 2 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

Blogmas 2021 Day 1 (update from a missionary friend)

Welcome back to Blogmas! It doesn’t feel like Christmas without Blogmas–and life lately has been so happy, fun, and full that I’m excited to share it (or at least, that was the case last month; fingers crossed this month will be the same. HA). So, you’re going to get a day-in-the-life post from me in your inbox each day this month whether you want it or not. Let the sixth annual Blogmas commence!

I woke up today feeling miserable, exhausted, and panicked about how I was going to get through the day/whether this worsened health is going to last all month. Work suddenly got crazy after I accepted a rush work project yesterday, and I went into today feeling stressed. I haven’t felt stressed about work in a long time and I have to say, I do not like the feeling. But I do like bringing in an extra grand this month, so, stressed I will be. I let my body get started slowly by lying in bed listening to a podcast on story structure, catching up on Voxer messages for a mentorship group I’m part of, and reading Ephesians.

When I got up I dug into the rush project (a dental case study that was definitely a challenge, but I did it) and wrote a pet blog post. I also got distracted by my Spotify Wrapped, which was mostly just vocal warm-ups and the albums I listened to while writing my novel, lol. But there was a healthy dose of Maisie Peters and Lizzy McAlpine, too.

I had a 1:00 quarterly review meeting with a client (I’ve never had anyone show me a slide deck with all the reasons my writing is good, but I could get used to it). Then my head and body needed a break from screens, so I took my rescue migraine med and went to bed to finish reading the magical Rooftopper by Katherine Rundell and to take a short nap.

I got up around four, wrote a PR article, and started a cybersecurity article. Then I practiced voice, put away my laundry, unloaded the dishwasher, and got ready to go.

This evening my mom picked me up and we went over to a family friends’ house. One of the missionaries we used to work with on mission trips to Colombia is in town to get to know some people from my parents’ church (although my health no longer allows me to go on mission trips, my dad still leads mission trips to Colombia). So tonight, several people gathered to hear an update on the mission work being done in Colombia. It was tiring, but a good evening.

Today I’m grateful for: Lingering in the car with my mom talking about loss, grief, church, tube feeds, and other good topics.

Check out Blogmas Day 1 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, and 2016. What did you do today?

November 2021 Monthly Wrap-Up

November was such a happy month. It was full of library programs, baby snuggles, sweet moments at church, coffee shop novel editing sessions (AND AN AUTHOR RESEARCH DAY TRIP AND FINISHING EDITS AND SENDING MY NOVEL TO BETAS), and singing (AND GETTING MY MIX BELT), and I absolutely thrived on it all. I was so happy and thankful for my stable health.

This month I’m…

Reading: Coral, Sara Ella. Flight Season, Marie Marquardt (reread). Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates, Mary Mapes Dodge (reread). The Alice Network, Kate Quinn. The Trouble With May Amelia, Jennifer L. Holm. The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger. No Cure For Being Human, Kate Bowler. Better Than the Movies, Lynn Painter. In the Company of Women, Grace Bonney. Daughter of the Deep, Rick Riordan. How High the Moon, Karyn Parsons. As If On Cue, Marisa Kanter. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert, Rosaria Champagne Butterfield (reread). Shipwreck, Island, and Escape, Gordon Korman (rereads). Our Castle by the Sea, Lucy Strange. Save the Cat! Writes A Novel, Jessica Brody. The Good Thieves, Katherine Rundell. 19 total.

Listening to: Lizzy McAlpine. Ed Sheeran’s new album, especially Shivers. Little Women by Alexandre Desplat and 22 Break by Oh Wonder (for my novel). Harry Styles’ Sweet Creatures album, especially Two Ghosts. Favorite Crime, Olivia Rodrigo. Stupid With Love, Mean Girls. Astonishing, Little Women. The Kate and Abbie Show. The Author Shenanigans podcast. Anastasia. The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, especially If I Were A Man. Miss Saigon.

Watching: Spinning Out (rewatch). Red Joan. West Side Story. Tick, Tick… Boom! Bridgerton.

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Writing: I finished research + edits on Things We’ve Lost and sent it off to beta readers, much earlier than expected! I’ve been squealing over their comments and reveling in their tears. I also brainstormed and plotted my next YA contemporary novel, The Art of Staying. I attended several fiction-oriented writing webinars and workshops, most of them by Nadine Brandes and Sara Ella, and also did volunteer work with Diamonds, People Hope, and Chronic Joy as well as writing letters to pen pals (and all in addition to work, obviously, lol. Priorities).

Eating and/or cooking: Tacos. Pineapple and granola. Lemon Luna bars. Cheerios.

Buying: Christmas earrings and Christmas tubie pads. A printer.

Grateful for: Driving with the windows down (lots of main character moments listening to music and driving through the beautiful North Georgia color). A highly anticipated book in bed on a Friday night. The privilege of mourning with those who mourn. Energy to work on my novel in coffee shops, and to sing. My favorite blue dress fitting again. That there are other days. A friend coming for Thanksgiving. The ways my story is being redeemed. Discovering Redbubble. A friend sending me home with a container of fresh pineapple after I mentioned how much I liked it. My kitty being snuggly.

What did you do in November? Blogmas starts tomorrow and I can’t wait!